A.N.-April Fools! :P

Chapter 19: Just Talk

Kowalski frantically checks her for a pulse again. "No, no, no, no! You're not allowed to do this! Come back! You were so close!" He exclaims and goes to do CPR again.

"...No Kowi…" She says, barely audible.

"Oh thank Calmette!" He gasps and checks her vitals. "Don't scare me like that!"

Marissa smiles a tiny amount. "I was...Moving…"

Kowalski takes a deep breath. "But you weren't…" He very softly turns her over and checks her back. "Can you feel any of this?"

"Any of what?" She says silently.

"Okay, okay…" He smooths his feathers back to think for a moment. "Probably this will wear off in a short while...But um...Don't go back to sleep."

Marissa looks at him. "But…"

"No buts!" He looks at her. "No buts. I know you're tired, you're going to feel exhausted, but you MAY NOT sleep." He says sternly. "Just...Talk."

"About what?" She asks weakly.

"About whatever comes to mind." He nods and then very softly picks her up.

Marissa blinks and looks at him. "Where are we going?"

"My lab so you can be tended to better." He sighs. "I don't have the equipment here and I don't know where you keep yours."

"There just one light on one side that won't light. I'll take it up there and then bring it back here." Marissa rambles quietly.

Kowalski softly carries her and nods to Rachel. "I have no clue what you're going on about, but please continue." He murmurs to Marissa.

"The Grinch...You said talk about whatever came to mind...The Grinch came to mind."

The scientist blinks. "Ehm...Alright then." He says and positions her a little better as he carries her.

"The Grinch said he took the tree because it has problems and that he was going to bring it back. You're taking me because I have problems and then you'll bring me back." She mutters.

"I think by that point you'll be perfectly capable of bringing yourself back to Skippsy's HQ, Marissa."

Marissa moves her head a little and looks at Kowalski. "You're not bleary."

"That is because you, Marissa, are still wearing your glasses." He nods.

"I don't feel them…" She wiggles her beak.

Kowalski sighs. "That's because you are temporarily paralyzed, Marissa, we've been through this…"

"Why do you keep saying my name so much?" She mutters.

"Am I?" He looks at her.

"Sounds like it...I know my name is Marissa." She yawns.

"Don't go to sleep." He sort of shakes her in his flippers and she whimpers. "Sorry, that wasn't supposed to hurt."

Marissa sniffs and looks at him some more.

Kowalski notices and looks down at her. "What? Why are you staring at me?" He asks. "Continue your rambling."

She shrugs and looks away. "No reason…"

"Mhm hmm…You know I read your journal."

"What?!" She quietly exclaims and looks at him. "But I'm not deeeeaaaad!"

"Well, you nearly were." He sort of shrugs.

"What did you read?" She sighs.

"Nothing much...Some stuff about your findings on Rachel and Rico's stomachs...Invention notes...You love me...Bacteria cultures…" He shrugs.

Marissa groans. "I plead delusion…"

"Even on a normal day?" He smirks.

"I hate you." She snorts.

"No you don't."

"Now I do. Drop me off in the woods! Let me curl up and die in peace!"

Kowalski chuckles and holds her still. "I'm not leaving you in the woods. I'm taking you to the lab where we are going to get you better...Hopefully before Skippsy is back."

"Skippsy will be back tonight...I got a text earlier from her." She sighs.

"Well...We can't meet that deadline for sure, but that's alright." He nods.

Marissa sighs and looks away from him. "You don't return the sentiments, do you?" She asks silently.

Kowalski is quiet for a moment. "I'm not sure...It's...A lot to digest." He looks down at her. "I mean, I have thought that you have hated me since that experiment...I'm having trouble believing you actually felt the opposite with how you are."

"Logical…" She nods a tiny bit. "And of course, you don't need to feel the same way."

"Hush." He says. "Or, don't hush, just change to a different subject."

"But why?" She says. "We'll discuss it eventually."

Kowalski shakes his head a little. "We don't have to...My best thoughts are we forget I ever read anything and we continue on as friends again and see how that goes...If it goes well enough, who knows."

Marissa nods a little. "I like that option."

"As do I." He nods and carefully starts down the ladder into his HQ. He then hops down from it and carries her into his lab and lays her softly on a small bed-like area Cecelia has set up. "There we go, nice and cozy."

"How is she? Is it working?" Cecelia asks and waddles over to them.

Kowalski nods some. "She's in a state of denial, temporary paralysis, slight delusion, possible internal disruptions." He says.

Marissa glares at him. "You said you weren't bringing that up!"

Cecelia looks at her strangely. "Bring what up? Kowalski, what is she talking about?"

"Oh, nothing that needs to be brought up again. Where is that other serum?" Kowalski smiles.

Cecelia looks at him strangely and gives it to him.

"He's a tail-hole." Marissa mutters.

"If I'm one, then you're one squared." He replies and gives her the shot.

"Kowalski's not a tail-hole." Cecelia shakes her head. "I see what you mean by the delusionment."

Marissa glares at her. "He is! He is! All geniuses are! He just slathers up in charm and can hide it!"

"No, no, you are most assuredly mistaken." She says softly. "Poor thing...It must have really affected her brain."

Kowalski just looks amused as he attaches some IVs to Marissa's flipper. "So I've finally graduated to genius from idiot then, eh?"

Marissa just growls a bit to herself. "I'd turn away if I could move." She grumbles.

"It'll be okay, Marissa, you just wait for the medicines to kick in and you'll be feeling nice and sweet."

"Well, actually you'll just feel drowsy and drugged." The male penguin says. "Cici, I don't think there is any amount of meds that could make her 'sweet' as you say."

"That's too bad…" Cecelia sighs. "Oh well, I had better be packing up. Lieutenant should be coming by first thing in the AM to take me back to England."

"So soon?" Kowalski sighs.

"Patient...About to….Lose lunch….Bleeeeeh." Marissa mumbles and pretends to be gagging. The other two scientists just give her a look.