Memphis turned around to waddle back home, Norma Jean still watching her baby boy walk off in the distance, his five friends waddling next to him. Everyone else in Emperor Land had their eyes on the adolescent penguin as he waddled, some turned to Memphis as he walked off, whispering, staring. Others looked to Norma Jean, pity in their eyes. Norma Jean was absolutely crushed, and she knew her husband was to blame. She didn't want to leave just yet, wanting to watch Mumble leave, thinking he would have known that someone still loved him. But she needed a serious talk with Memphis, and it wasn't going to be pretty.
Returning to the cave they came from, stood Memphis. He looked like he had been waiting for her, knowing what was coming to him. The two just stared at each other, Memphis had guilt plastered on his face, while Norma Jean had a look of disappointment, nothing more, nothing less. Norma shook her head slowly, waddling past her mate. Only for her to stop in place when he called out for her.
"Norma Jean, I… I'm sorry, I went too far I-"
"Don't" the female penguin spoke firmly. Silencing the male penguin at once. Norma Jean was trembling, on the verge of a breakdown. She felt the need to cry but she refrained herself the best she could, but rage burned in her soul. She turned to the male penguin, staring him down coldly, Memphis could see the hurt in her eyes as she spoke. "So, is this what you hid from me?"
"What?"
"You dropped him Memphis" Norma Jean's beak drooped. "And you hid it from me, for years." Memphis was near at a loss for words, he scrambled to find the right words to explain his mistake, but the other penguin continued speaking. "You knew why he couldn't sing, and you never thought to say anything?!" the first wave of tears welled up in the broken penguin's eyes.
"Norma Jean, I wanted to, I really did. But you have to understand where I'm coming from, I didn't want you to be mad-"
"Mad?!" Norma cried out in despair. "You assumed I would be mad?! I would've been disappointed, Memphis, but far from mad! We could have done anything we could to have helped him, we could have stopped the bullying, the disappointed teachers, the disgust of the elders. But you did nothing.."
"What was I supposed to do?!" Memphis cried back, taking a foot forward. "I didn't know he'd have this curse, I thought he'd be fine after the drop, We couldn't have done anything, even if we tried!" Norma Jean looked disgusted by what he had just said, the anger getting worse by the second.
"It's not a curse, it's a gift, Memphis. I thought you would have known that, I'm surprised you don't." Norma Jean was near damn ready to slap the sense into her mate. She was hurting and he couldn't give a damn about it. "You promised me you wouldn't hide anything, remember?"
She reminisces to the night after she and Memphis got together. They were cuddling under the bright moonlight on top of them. Norma Jean looks up to her new husband, smiling.
"If anything happens, promise me you won't hide anything from me, please?"
Memphis was half asleep at the time, but retained curiosity at the strange question asked by his new wife. He chuckled softly, gently stroking Norma Jean's head with his beak.
"Of course honey, I promise."
Memphis lowered his head in shame, his wife was sobbing, no longer being able to contain herself. The emotions were understandable, she had just lost her son and won't ever see him again, but she had also been betrayed by the only person she thought she could trust. The promise that had been made years prior, completely shattered in front of her.
"Why?" Norma Jean sobbed, her head slowly going up to Memphis. "Why did you drop him? What went through your head when you decided to be careless to your own child?"
"I.." Memphis started. He took a deep breath before explaining himself to his distraught partner. "I missed you so much, Norma. I kept hearing your heartsong in my head and I just had to dance.. I didn't know what would happen I-"
"Dancing?" Norma stopped, her heart sinking all the way down to her chest. "You were dancing… To me?" her flippers tremble at the thought of that stormy winter night where instead of taking care of their egg, he was dancing to her heartsong, causing him to drop the precious life into the freezing snow. Norma Jean felt disrespected at the thought of Memphis only mating with her for her voice and her body.
"You don't realize that you've done Memphis.. You may never see your boy again, and you're the only one to blame right now.." Norma Jean sobbed in agony. The guilt hit Memphis harder than ever. All the years he could have spent raising his son against all odds were wasted because he believed in the Great Guin more than he did himself.
"We can try again.."
"Try again.." Norma Jean sputtered in amazement "Try again, are you serious?" she chuckled sarcastically. Memphis being the way he was, didn't pick up on the sarcasm until Norma said otherwise. "If we 'try again' we're going to be throwing away everything we've worked for, I am not replacing Mumble, Memphis" Norma shook her head at how ridiculously stupid Memphis was acting.
"I don't know what to say right now Memphis…" Norma Jean simply gasped. She waddled past the male penguin, making her way out of the cave. "I'm going fishing, I need to clear my head." Norma Jean waddled completely out of the cave, leaving Memphis alone with complete and utter guilt smashed all over him.