Marty hummed a song as he walked. Maybe there's something to that wild zebra herd thing, he wondered, at least in a herd, no one would be alone. He was cold, hungry, and once again, lonely. But he wouldn't let that get him down!

The zebra could see the familiar rock outcropping ahead. He picked up the pace slightly, eager to discover what was beyond it…hopefully his warm hut, food, and friends! Unseen glowing eyes tracked his every movement as he approached the outcropping. Marty trotted past the rock, happy to leave it behind.

Suddenly, he was thrown to the ground by a large hairy weight!

"Ahhhhhh! Heeelp!" yelled the startled zebra. Marty struggled, kicking and shoving the weight away.

"Marty! Marty! Calm down, it's me! It's Alex!" the weight said.

Marty looked up at his friend's big glowing night-eyes and jungle-frazzled mane. The lion had a crazy look on his face.

"Ahhhhhh!" Marty yelled again.

"Marty, it's ok! You're safe now!" Gloria's voice said from somewhere behind Alex.

Marty blinked. Alex helped him to his feet.

"Are you all right?" Alex asked.

Marty brushed himself off, "You mean aside from the heart attack you just gave me? Yeah, I'm fine!" the zebra glared, pretending to be annoyed at his predatory friend, "What's wrong with you, anyway? You should know better than to tackle me in the dark when I'm all alone!"

Alex shrugged defensively, "Hey, I didn't want to lose you again!" Alex's face switched emotions, "You know, we've been looking for you for hours, Marty! I thought something had happened to you!"

"You had us all worried sick!" Gloria told the zebra.

"Yeah!" Melman agreed wholeheartedly.

Marty's legs still shook from adrenaline, "I'm sorry, guys! It's not like I wanted to get lost. But I…"

Alex interrupted, "Every time you run off, you get into trouble! Someday, it might not be me who tackles you! That scares me, Marty! You're my best friend! Don't you ever, and I mean ever do that again! Do you hear me?" Alex grabbed Marty around the neck, "Do you hear me?"

"Yes!" gasped Marty, "I do…I won't…I…can't…breathe!"

Alex released his hold on Marty, "Sorry."

"The important thing now is that we're all here, safe, and together." Gloria pointed out, "And now we can go home."

Marty rubbed his neck where Alex had grabbed it, "Sounds good to me! Man, that sounds really good to me!"

Reunited at last, the foursome headed down the beach in the direction Marty had been going.

"So, then what happened?" Alex asked. The four New Yorkers had been walking down the beach for quite a while. Marty had been telling them all about the day's adventure. They were tired from walking all over the island, Marty especially. He'd just gotten to the part where the mare had run off when he stopped talking mid-sentence.

Alex looked closely at his sleepy striped friend, "Marty?"

The zebra was still walking, but his eyes were closed. He didn't answer Alex. A very quiet snore came from Marty.

Alex shook his head in disbelief, "He's sleepwalking!"

"Aren't we all?" Gloria replied tiredly. Behind her, Melman's eyelids drooped.

"Lack of sleep isn't good for my immune system." Melman mumbled.

Gloria glanced back at him tiredly, "Melman, you don't have an immune system."

Melman glared into the darkness, "How do you know?"

Marty snored.

Alex shook his head, "Come on, guys! It can't be much farther down the beach!"

"Um, Alex, I can see 'much farther down the beach.' We are a long ways from home, and we're all tired." Gloria reasoned with the lion.

Marty veered off and ran into a rock. He collapsed.

"Scratch that," Gloria corrected, "we're all exhausted. We'd better stop and get some rest."

Alex frowned. He looked at the sleeping Marty-heap; chronically yawning Melman; and the edgy, worn-out Gloria.

The lion sighed, "Okay, you're right."

"And if home is just out of sight, we'll be there in the morning." Gloria sighed, trying to find a comfortable spot near Marty's rock. Melman flopped down and instantly fell asleep.

Alex looked at the horizon. Beyond it lay, hopefully, the huts and his bucket of fish! Uh, oh, thought Alex, I'm thinking about food!

He decided to sleep about thirty feet from his friends, just in case he dreamed about sushi.

Then he fell asleep.

Alex awoke on the warm, sandy beach. There was sand in his ears, nostrils, and mouth. His mane was full of it. The lion stood and brushed himself off. His nose caught the scent of something delicious! Steak? No, better than steak…fish!

Penguins flew past him, flapping their wings and chanting, "Fish. Fish. Fish. Fish." Rico dangled a shiny fish in front of Alex. Hungrily, Alex grabbed the fish and shoved it into his mouth. It turned to sand. Alex spat out the sand and then blinked at the horizon.

"Home is just out of sight, Alex! Let's go!" Gloria smiled at Alex. Together, Gloria, Alex, and Melman raced towards the horizon in slow motion. Marty tried valiantly to keep up.

Alex attempted to slow down so that Marty could catch up, but he couldn't. Marty got further and further behind. Alex saw his friend point at something. Alex glanced up.

On the horizon was…the New York skyline! Alex would've recognized it anywhere! With a happy roar, Alex leapt ahead full speed.

"Alex?"

The big cat heard Marty's call and stopped.

"We're almost there, Marty! We're almost home!" Alex cried joyfully to his best buddy.

For some reason, Marty looked sad, "Alex! I want to go with you! Don't leave me!"

Alex grabbed Marty's hoof and pulled the zebra along. A sandstorm appeared behind them, trying to swirl Marty away! Alex held on as tight as he could.

Melman and Gloria stood on the Brooklyn Bridge, yelling something about Marty and sand.

Alex and Marty were almost to New York! Alex pulled with all of the strength he had. He looked into Marty's terrified face. Marty looked back at Alex, "Alex, I can't…"

"We're gonna make it, Marty!" Alex told his best friend.

"Alex!" Marty cried.

The hoof that Alex held so tightly turned to sand just as Alex reached New York.

"Marty! No!" Alex yelled into the sandstorm. He thought he heard Marty say something back. He reached into the swirling sand.

But the zebra was gone.

"Marty!"

"Marty! Marty!" Alex yelled, spitting sand from his mouth.

"What is it, Alex? I'm right here! You don't have to wake up the whole island!"

Alex blinked sand from his eyelids, "Hi."

Marty stared perplexedly back at Alex, "Hi."

"Ahh!" Alex yelled up at Marty. He leapt up and hugged the surprised zebra, "You're okay! You're alright!" Alex danced around, letting go of Marty. Then he looked his friend straight in the eye and asked seriously, "You're not sand?"

"No," Marty said, still confused, "should I be?"

"NO! Definitely not! I…ah…this is real?" Alex stopped dancing and patted the ground with his big paws.

Marty raised an eyebrow, "As far as I know."

"Ahem," Alex cleared his throat, "then that never happened."

"Whatever you say," Marty shrugged, "you sure you're okay? You're acting a little…weird."

Alex looked up at Marty, "Weird? No, no, I'm fine, really! I'm just a little hungry is all. What's for breakfast?"

Marty's eyes widened, "I sure hope you know how to fish." He pointed at a small tide pool. Shiny fish swam in it.

"Melman and I tried to catch some for you, but we just don't have the right…equipment." Marty held up his hooves. Alex was relieved to see that they didn't turn to sand. The lion shook himself.

"Thanks for trying, Marty." Alex smiled.

Marty grinned back, "No problem!"

Alex walked up to the pool of fish and looked in. Hard to believe that something so alive can taste so good! Alex thought. He dipped a squarish toe into the water. He promptly pulled it out. He tried again. A fish swam innocently near Alex's paw. The lion waited until the fish was almost touching him. He closed his eyes, grabbed, and yanked…a weed out of the water.

"What?" Alex shook the weed off his paw, "I don't get it! That was supposed to work!"

Gloria called out from a large pile of fresh fruit, "Use your claws!"

"My claws?" Alex looked at his paws. He hated to use his claws. They made him feel savage…like a killer! Something dawned on him.

"Wait a minute, hold on there. I have to kill the fish?" Alex winced, "I'm not a killer! I've never killed anything! Never!"

Gloria stood up and looked the lion in the eye, "Alex, honey, unless you wanna swallow a live fish, you'd better figure out how to kill one."

"But I don't want to kill! I'm not a murderer! Am I Marty?" Alex turned to his friend.

"No way, Alex!" Marty mixed his grassy salad. He hadn't heard the conversation until now, "You're my friend! My sometimes-a-little-weird-friend…" the zebra shook his head, "but no murderer!"

"Marty, you're not helping!" Gloria cried frustratedly.

"If he gets hungry enough, he could become one," Melman pointed out, "We've seen it happen."

"Don't remind me!" Alex put his paws to his head, "Again, I am really sorry about that, Marty!"

"Ancient history, man! That was a long time ago! Don't even worry about it!" Marty smiled and took a bite of his salad.

Gloria looked pointedly at the fish pool, "Yeah, and let's keep it that way."

Alex sighed, "You're right, guys. I'll try again."

An unproductive hour later, Alex stood up and began walking down the beach.

"Hey, Al!" Marty called, "Where are you going?"

"Hunting," answered the hungry lion.

Alex's tummy growled as he loped off. If nothing else, he was getting away from his friends. Hungry as he was, that was a good thing. It was true that two weeks ago, he'd been hungry for several days before he'd tried to eat his friends…but he wasn't taking any chances now!

The lion ran on the wet sand, disliking the wet, soggy, grainy feeling between his toes. It was a lot faster than running on dry sand, however. Right now, speed was his priority.

The wind rushing by blew Alex's mane back, increasing his peripheral vision. The lion grinned in spite of his hunger. It was fun to run fast!

No way could I have done this at the zoo! Alex thought, watching the scenery fly by, What a great show it would've made if I could've! Alex envisioned crowds lining the beach, shouting his name and flashing pictures as he zoomed past, fast as the wind!

Except that there aren't any beaches like this in New York City, thought Alex semi-sadly as the fantasy faded. Besides, I'll never be able to go back, anyway. Might as well get used to the anonymity.

Suddenly, there was a tiny dot on the horizon. As Alex ran, the dot grew larger! And larger…and larger…it was a cone-roofed structure made from large leaves and sturdy bamboo sticks. It was Marty's hut! Alex roared happily and ran even faster. He skidded to a halt outside Marty's door.

Inside, Alex knew, were his fish. His precious bucket of pre-caught, pre-killed, scaly, smelly fish! Alex inhaled deeply. Sure enough, he caught the scent of his breakfast. Alex opened the door. Not pausing to wipe his paws on Marty's "Wild Sweet Wild" mat, Alex dashed inside to his deliciously stinky bucket. He snatched a fish out, tossed it in the air, caught it in his mouth, and gulped it down whole like a wild and naturally talented hunter.

"OW!" Alex grabbed his throat, "Agg! Gak! That fish was too big!" He felt the large lump slide slowly down his throat.

So much for wild and naturally talented.

Alex pulled a smaller fish from the bucket and ate it. Much better. He popped one more in his mouth, leaned back, and savored the taste.

It was hot in the hut. The fish smell had started to conquer the salty sea air.

No problem.

The lion stepped to some levers and pulled the closest one. A board dropped down on ropes. Several sticks with seaweed wrapped around them sat on the board. Alex made a face and pushed the lever back.

He pulled another lever. Part of the roof pulled back to reveal a blue sky. Alex grinned and pulled a third lever. A leafy ceiling fan began to turn and fresh air once again entered the hut. Alex filled his lungs with it and then sighed it out contentedly.

"Marty sure built a great place!" Alex breathed, reclining on a sand couch. He sat up suddenly, "Marty! And Gloria and Melman! They don't know where I went!" Alex cried. He ran out of the hut and searched the horizon, "I wonder if they've caught up with me yet!" The lion saw nothing on the horizon but sand. He slapped his forehead.

"What am I thinking, they were a long way behind me. I'll just have to go back for them." Alex quickly stretched, grabbed a fish for the road, and took off running down the beach.

Alex met his three buddies about three quarters of the way back from where he had left them. Still energetic from his run, Alex danced a hyper lion circle around Gloria, Melman, and Marty.

"Where have you been? We finally decided to come after you!" Gloria demanded, not unkindly.

Alex frowned innocently, "I went to go find myself some fish for breakfast." The lion blinked angelically. He knew Gloria wanted him to learn how to catch and kill his own fish.

Gloria sighed, "Well, did you catch any?"

"Uh, yeah." Alex answered, remembering his not-so-successful catch-in-the-mouth trick.

"Good," the hippo nodded, "now we can concentrate on getting home."

"I can't wait!" sighed Melman, "I ran out of sunscreen, and I'm breaking out! I must have run into something that I'm allergic to yesterday…and look at this…I have two huge lumps on my head! See?" Melman pointed at his head.

"Those are your horns, Melman." Marty sighed from the back of the group.

Melman stopped pointing, "Oh." He looked calm for a moment. Then suddenly, he looked worried again and exclaimed, "Oh no! I…I forgot I had horns! What if this is the beginning of some kind of brain disorder…"

While Gloria tried to calm Melman down, Alex stopped dancing to look closely at Marty. The zebra seemed troubled.

"Hey, Marty, what's so bad that it's got you down?" Alex sat next to Marty on the sand.

Marty looked distant, "I've been thinking…"

"Really?" Alex feigned surprise.

Marty glared sarcastically, "Ha, ha."

"Sorry," Alex grinned cheerfully, "Go on."

Marty didn't smile, "Well, I've been thinking a lot about New York, and what you said the other night…" Marty began again.

"Huh?" Alex looked confused, "What did I say the other night?"

"You know, about how you'd go back to New York if you had the chance, and how it's home for you," Marty answered.

"Oh," Alex looked guilty, "I said that?"

"Yeah."

"Out loud?"

"Yep."

"To you?"

"You did."

"Oh, boy." Alex sighed a long, deep sigh. He knew it was better not to tell something to Marty unless he was completely committed to having it happen sometime in the near future.

Marty's mouth curved up slightly, then drooped again, "Alex, what's wrong with Madagascar? How come you aren't happy here?"

"I am happy here!" Alex replied, trying to sound completely sincere, "With you guys!" He put one paw around Marty's shoulders and gestured towards the jungle with his other paw, "This place is fine, great even, as long as you guys are here with me!"

Marty still didn't look convinced.

"Look, Marty, don't worry about it, okay? I sometimes say weird things when I sleep, you know that!" Alex shrugged.

Finally, Marty grinned, "Man, you always say weird things when you sleep!"

Alex nuggied his zebra friend as they laughed and rejoined Gloria and Melman on their trek down the beach.