Disclaimer: I do not own The Penguins of Madagascar or any of its characters. I do own a few characters in this story, like Skipper's daughters, Alex and Sam, and a couple of new characters.

Enjoy!

Then

Francis took a deep breath before riding forward on his segway, toward the large building. As he got closer, he became very nervous. This was his first year at this school and he was worried about making the wrong impression with his fellow classmates.

He noticed a group of animals near the entrance but as he approached them, they gave him a wary look and went inside.

With a sigh, he watched the door close before he got there. He reached down and grabbed the doorknob but he struggled to open the door; his segway kept getting in the way.

"Hey. Need help?"

The voice behind him startled Francis and he spun around on his one-wheeled vehicle to see a black-and-white creature standing there.

Unsure, he just stared. What should he say? As he hesitated, confusion crossed the other animal's face. After another moment, the flightless bird stepped forward.

"Here," he said, opening the door.

A smile formed on the dolphin's face. "Thank you," he stammered, and the two entered the building.

The halls were empty and a moment later the bell went off, signaling that class was starting.

"Oh no!" Francis gasped. "I gotta go. Thank you again for your help." He started riding away, then paused and looked back. "I'm Francis, by the way. What's your name?"

The animal paused. Then he said," Skipper."

Now

Angrily the bottlenose dolphin slammed his flipper down on the desk. He tried to push the memory away as he rode across the room on his segway. He stopped near the door, growling at the flashback, then left the room.

He went down the hallway, soon entering the monitor room where his alliance of lobsters kept a close eye on his arch-nemesis' secret headquarters. He paused in the middle of the room and looked up at the huge screen. Rage pulsed through him when he saw the leader of the penguins, Skipper, talking to the youngest of the team.

The mad dolphin's gaze went past his enemies when another penguin entered the lair. The familiar shock he's felt ever since she joined the others at the zoo coursed through him every time he saw her.

Skipper's daughter, the land-dwelling dolphin mused, feeling a sense of surprise that his oldest enemy had an offspring when he did not.

"Doc?" The voice made him jump. Then he growled angrily that his closest minion managed to sneak up on him and startle him.

"What?" he snapped, glaring down at the creature.

The lobster cowered under his glare and squeaked out," The ray gun you asked for is almost done." As it paused, Dr. Blowhole grew even more impatient.

"Continue," he snapped, knowing the creature wanted to say more.

"Well, we're… we're missing a part."

Blowhole groaned and asked," What part?"

"A button," the lobster answered, then explained further," We have other buttons; just none that fits the ray gun."

Angrily, Blowhole swung his head around and the lobsters nearby retreated. He realized that if this plan was to work he needed to go get the part himself. "Fine, I'll go," he growled, and when his lobsters looked surprised, he added," I can't trust any of you to go get it."

Ignoring the hurt on his minions' faces, the dolphin turned and left his lair. He was careful out here and made sure he wasn't spotted. Soon he came to a store where he thought he was likely to find just what he needed, and to his relief it was closed so no humans were around. It was nighttime and he was glad of the dark as he rode down the alleyway, looking for a way in.

He found an unlock door in the back and he muttered to himself that humans were so stupid. Entering the store, he paused when he saw a panel on the wall. A light was flashing and he guessed the store had some kind of security system. Thinking fast, he pressed a button on his segway and something shot out of it, hooking itself onto the panel. He punched in a code and the system was disarmed.

Satisfied that his presence wouldn't alert the humans, he rode farther into the store. It wasn't a big building and soon he found the section where what he was looking for would be. As he looked, he muttered curses under his breath, asking himself how he can be a genius when he forgot something as simple as a button for his latest weapon to get rid of the penguins…

He was so focused on his mission that he didn't realize someone else had entered the store until he ran into the other creature, knocking Blowhole off his segway. With a deadly growl, he looked up, ready to destroy whoever had bumped into him. Then he froze when he saw who it was, his mind suddenly filled with memories of meeting the animal who stood in front of him now.

Then

Taking a deep breath, Francis rode his segway forward, entering the classroom. He looked around, but his anxiety grew when he realized that all the other animals were avoiding his gaze. Once or twice, he tried sitting beside someone, but they glared at him and moved their bag over in the seat. There was nowhere left for him to sit, so he quietly settled himself in the back, lonely and miserable.

Determined to not show his emotions, he focused on the teacher, a muscular lion with a magnificent mane, as he began roll call, each student saying "Here" when he got to their name. Francis was waiting for him to call his name when he was distracted. Someone had appeared beside him and he stared at the other dolphin, also on a segway.

The newcomer gave him a sly smile. "Mind if I join you back here?" he asked smoothly.

Suddenly very nervous, Francis tried to say something, but every word he spoke sounded lame and he ended up getting tongue tied, so not wanting to look stupid or anything, he shut his mouth and nodded.

The handsome dolphin grinned at him, which sent shivers down his body, and he quickly looked away. He didn't realize someone was calling his name until he heard it three or four times.

"Okay," the teacher said, looking over a clipboard. "I guess Francis isn't here."

Totally embarrassed, Francis raised his flipper and stammered," I-I'm h-here…"

The whole class exploded in laughter, and Francis ducked his head, feeling his face burn. A touch on his shoulder made him turn to see the other dolphin smiling kindly at him, and Francis felt a little better and a huge wave of relief washed over him when the teacher called for attention. It took several moments, but finally the class quieted down, and Francis let out a long breath, glad when everyone turned back to the teacher.

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