Disclaimer: I do not own The Penguins of Madagascar or any of its characters. I do own the penguin Alex in this story.

Alex watched as her father and his team climbed the ladder. Even after they had gone, she continued to stare in that direction, thinking about everything that happened yesterday. She was thankful to be alone with her thoughts for a bit, while Skipper and the others were topside so the humans didn't get suspicious if they didn't see the penguins.

She wasn't entirely sure what she and Kowalski were. Yeah, she had kissed him on the cheek last night, and he had given her one in return on the forehead, but they barely had time to talk before Skipper rounded up his team and ordered them outside. She was glad of that, actually. She wanted to figure out her feelings toward the tall penguin before she said anything to him.

She glanced around the lair, her mind racing. Waddling over to the TV, she thought she could think better with some noise in the background. But as soon as she turned it on, unicorns appeared on the screen. She remembered this show. She discovered it during her journey to find her father and she instantly hated it. What was it called?

Oh yeah… The Lunacorns…

Quickly she switched off the TV, suddenly preferring quiet. She turned away and walked over to the fishy trophy. Private had told her that behind it was a secret tunnel that led outside, and, sure enough, when she pushed the trophy aside she found herself staring into a dark hole.

She took a deep breath and plunged into it, the darkness swallowing her up. For several long moments she couldn't see anything, and she was fighting against panic when she felt her flipper brush against something. Pushing it aside, she was blinded by the bright sunlight but once she could see, she looked around for any humans.

After making sure the coast was clear, she jumped to the ground and looked around. She was in the park. She waddled to the nearest tree, ducking behind it when someone walked by. Hiding suddenly reminded her of when she first got to the zoo yesterday morning. She had been angry and confused then, desperate for answers. But now so many things have been resolved. She was still upset with her father, but at least now she can begin the process of forgiving him. And now as King Julien's loyal subject, she might be able to find her true purpose in life.

And then there's Kowalski…. she thought, sighing dreamingly. He's really sweet and he does seem to like me a lot…. But do I feel the same about him?

As she walked through the park, she looked around, for once seeing the beauty of the world. For as long as she could remember, she's been mad and hurt because she had to grow up without a father, and yesterday those feelings intensified when she found out that Skipper could have returned to his family but chose not to. But now somehow everything seemed okay. She felt like she could start living life instead of hating everything all the time.

Is it because I'm… in love? She's never been in love before, but surely that's what this warm feeling was. She actually felt happy for the first time ever.

She found a tree that she could sit under and she was wondering how to confess her feelings to Kowalski when something hit her on the head. Rubbing where the thing had left a knot, she looked around to see an acorn beside her.

Confused, she looked up just in time to see another falling straight at her. She jumped out of the way and the acorn just barely missed her. She lifted her eyes and saw a bushy tail flicking above her. She opened her beak to call out to the creature but just then another acorn was tossed her way.

Alex jumped backwards to avoid it, but she tripped over the root of the tree and gasped as she went over. Groaning, she sat up, rubbing her aching head. She shakily got to her feet and looked up in the tree, watching the tail.

"Hey!" she called up to the animal.

The tail vanished and a head popped out. It was a squirrel. He stared down at her with a clueless expression.

"Watch where you're throwing those acorns!" Alex told him, and he looked where she was pointing.

Then he turned back to her. "Did I hit you?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Oh." He dropped out of the tree and landed in front of her. "I'm sorry." He stared at her, blinking very slowly.

Alex took a step away from him, suddenly uncomfortable under his stare. "It's okay… I guess," she muttered. She sat down, and when he sat down beside her, she glanced at him. Did he want something? Why wasn't going back to doing whatever it was he had been doing? Sighing, she decided it didn't matter. She had more important things to worry about than this weird squirrel.

She had to figure out what to tell Kowalski later today when she saw him. She now knew she liked him back; maybe even loved him. But she had to find the right words to say how she felt. And the squirrel staring at her wasn't making it any easier.

Finally, she turned to him and snapped," What?"

He didn't react to her harsh tone. He just blinked and said," You're new around here, huh? I don't think I've seen you before."

Alex sighed. She didn't want to have a conversation with this squirrel. "I'm Alex," she told him. "You probably know my dad, Skipper."

The squirrel seemed to think for a moment, before shrugging. He didn't reply but continued to stare at the female penguin. Alex sighed again and decided to forget about him as she considered what she should say to Kowalski. Suddenly the squirrel announced," I'm Fred."

The penguin turned to him and got to her feet. "It was great meeting you," she said politely though she thought, Or maybe not so great…. "But," she went on. "I'm trying to think about something." And you keep interrupting me!

The squirrel blinked up at her, but said nothing.

Alex turned to leave to go find some other place to think, but as soon as she took a step, Fred got up and stood in front of her. She stared at him, expecting him to say something, but he just looked her in the eyes. She sighed; this squirrel was starting to really bug her.

"What?" she asked, taking a step back.

"Whatcha thinking about?"

Alex was taken aback. She eyed him suspiciously; she really didn't want to tell him, but she knew if she didn't, he'd keep on staring at her with that blank expression. Sighing, she sat down again and said," Someone I just met told me that he likes me, and I'm trying to decide what to tell him."

The squirrel sat down beside her, blinking slowly at her. "Do you like him back?" he asked.

Alex glanced at him and nodded. She didn't want to talk to him about Kowalski, but she had to admit that she felt a little better having someone to confess all this to. Nobody else knew that the tall penguin liked her, not even Private, who she had a long conversation with but she wasn't comfortable enough with him to tell him that Kowalski had kissed her.

Maybe King Julien will listen to me, she thought, but she wondered if her father really had forgiven her for promising to be his loyal subject.

Fred's voice broke into her thoughts. "You should tell him how you feel."

"It's not that easy." Alex sighed, looking away from him. She was never good at explaining her feelings.

He was silent for a moment, and she looked at him again to see him blinking at her with a clueless stare. "Why not?" he asked. "Just go up to him and tell him that you like him. It's not that hard."

Now it was Alex's turn to look stupid. The way he said that did make it sound easy, but she knew it was a lot harder than it sounded. But I still have to try! she decided determinedly, getting up. She dropped to her stomach and slid back toward the zoo, calling out to Fred as she left," Bye, Fred! Thank you!"

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