It had taken some time, but things had finally settled into a routine for the PENGUINS. And the royal family and household staff were used to them now. One single person was trying his hardest to evade the watchful eye of his guardian and get back to his old, escapist ways and that was Prince Julien. Skipper was thankful now that he gave the guard assignments the way he did. He didn't believe any of his men could resist Julien's systematic attempts at shucking his personal protection. Especially not Rico. They would have been one royal down very quickly, no outside intervention needed.

There was one more thing they needed to take care of, but had not managed to find a suitable way how yet. They needed intel on the opposite side, but seeing as they were just four and already strained to their limits with the protection of the king and his family they had no way of sparing one of them to infiltrate the opposite side and bring back information. Skipper had proposed that they either wait for the reinforcement troops or trust someone in the household staff to be sent in. They were already covertly screening everyone around them.

The day had started normally enough. Skipper took his position by the Prince's door. Julien didn't go down to breakfast that morning, a tray that in its majority was made up of fruits was brought up to him instead. Skipper had learned from his observation that the Prince preferred to eat fruit in any form to any other food. After a few hours boredom was already starting to settle in over Skipper and he was estimating that Julien's first escape attempt of the day was due. He was rewarded when the door behind him swung open and Julien strode past him. He didn't figure the man was this idiotic.

'Hey! Wait, wait, wait! Where do you think you're going… Your Majesty?' he still had problems with the correct way of addressing him. "Majesty " and 'Highness" stuck in his throat.

'I am going for a walk!' he had pronounced the "I" in such a way as if it excluded any possibility of the existence of any other person in that sentence and the action it implied ever.

'You know you can't go anywhere without me, Julien.' retorted the other man. 'And anyway, where is this walk you want to take?'

'The forest.' When he got a funny look from the commando, he elaborated. 'The thingy with big, greeny leaves all around this house? Not even your unbig littleish brain could have missed that.' Skipper gritted his teeth.

'Well, I'm coming with you. Lead the way.'

'Fine!' The fact that yet another one of his attempts of getting out from under the ever present eye of this outsider had been thwarted left a bitter taste in his mouth. It wasn't that the man was terrible (maybe a bit annoying at times when he got that military stick way too up his…). He was even tolerable when he left his guard down. Skipper would never admit that he left his guard down in front of Julien and truth be told he never did. But Skipper was not the only one who liked a bit of spying. It's funny what people do when they think they're not being watched. All those days and nights posted in front of Julien's door, the Prince watched and saw a smile, a yawn, a tired face, a muttered word to no one. Little things that made this man, that wanted to be so hardened, more endearing.

The day was pleasant, not too stifling. Skipper had expected the extreme warmth of the tropical countries, but he soon found out that they had arrived in the dry season and the coldest part of the year. Not that it was any different from a nice summer's day in New York. The forest was as green and vibrant up close as it appeared from a distance. Even more so. And as Julien led him farther in through the large foliage he could smell, see, hear many new things. It set his sharp senses on edge. Julien didn't seem to stop. Perhaps he didn't plan to, just walk and return to the mansion/palace. Suddenly a movement drew Skipper out of his musings and in seconds he had his submachine gun aimed in the offending direction. Before he could do anything he heard Julien's voice in a stage whisper.

'Are you a nutso?!' the man rushed to him in a few, quick strides, managed easily with his long legs, and lowered Skipper's gun with a hand. 'That's just a Lemur. A Ringtail Lemur as you call them. We call them maki or hira.' He explained to Skipper, sounding the two foreign words for his benefit. 'My people, that is my clan thinks that the spirits of our ancestors are Ringtails.' He seemed very proud of himself as he smiled down at the gun wielding man beside him.

'Well, your ancestor is lucky. I would have blown it to bits.' The little lemur, frightened by Skipper's voice, scurried away.

'Aww, you scared it!' complained Julien smacking Skipper's arm lightly with the back of his hand. He, then, headed for the same spot the Ringtail vacated moments ago and sat himself down on the collapsed tree trunk. He put his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands and watched Skipper with his unusual amber eyes. Skipper was really itching to break the awkwardness with something, anything. Julien beat him to it, instead.

'Why don't you seat down, too, trigger happy PENGUIN?' the Prince said patting the tree trunk beside himself as if it were a really comfy couch.

'I have to stay on guard remember?' said Skipper raising his gun as an indication. Julien just nodded lowering his eyes to the forest's leaf floor for a second 'So, how's your father doing?' he knew already. Everybody knew that the man was feeling bad going on worse. But it was right at the front of his mind and he was in a pinch for small talk.

'You really wanna talk about that?'

'Um…'

'What?' asked Julien with a frown. Skipper hesitated and no words came out. 'You think your life comes first because you come from America and we're from Madagascar?'

'Hey now… your Majesty! Don't go putting words in my mouth! I'm not here to feed your superiority or inferiority complex. So are you going to tell me about your father or are we going to stay here in perfect silence until the whim takes you to go back?'

'You don't care and won't understand anyway, with your PENGUIN brain.' Huffed Julien, crossing his arms. All the changes heaped upon him in such a relatively short period of time were thoroughly confusing him and the only way he knew to express it was through his bratiness and arrogance. He did want to talk about it, but the man standing in front of him like a sentinel was just a stranger.

'You're right. I don't care. Your personal problems are not my concern.' Julien lifted his big, amber eyes to Skipper and it seemed like there was hurt hidden somewhere in there. 'But I've been thrust into this. This is my mission and if this will help me accomplish it successfully then lay it on me.'

'Anything for the mission, huh?' asked Julien with half a smile, giving the impression that he didn't put much stock on the military man's code of conduit. He was almost certain that it was reciprocal. He then heaved a great sigh, as if preparing for some great labour. 'I'm scared, PENGUIN…' Well, that was something Skipper expected and yet didn't expect. People were usually scared when he and his team were around, otherwise they wouldn't have needed them around in the first place. But the way Julien had said it was different. Not at all panicky and scared for his life. He tried to give the Prince the standard victim talk down (at which he sucked and so it was Private's job).

'Um…Death is a difficult thing for everyone, your Majesty.' Julien just gave him a confused look until the penny dropped.

'Hmm… Oh! Not about that!' he said waving a hand in the air. 'I lived in this country since I was born. I can't even remember that's how long I've lived here. And I love it, no matter what dada says.' Skipper did not have a clear idea of what he was talking about, but he could guess. He had heard a few talks between Julien and his father and it seemed that the older man really considered his son unfit for anything else but partying. 'But now a crazy, insane, maniac, nutso wants to be king.'

'Well, don't worry, that's why we're here.' Skipper reassured him, with his most confident smile.

'It's not just that. My father's death…' Skipper knew this was coming. 'is such a pain in the back of my side!' he hadn't seen that coming though. 'Everyday I wait for him to pass to the spirits is like…Have you ever seen an animal waiting to be cut and eaten or sacrificed to the spirits? Like that. Waiting for the big, bad thing to come down on me.' Skipper was a bit disturbed right about now. What was in this guy's mind? 'Because after he is with the ancestors, I will be between a rock and a hard place!'

'What are you talking about?!'

'For a guy whose job is to be watching very carefully, I don't think you missed this. You saw that pretty lady that is not my sister?'

'Yeah, yeah… Private's looking after her.'

'Whatever.' Dismissed Julien. He held up his hands like the pans of a scale looking from one to the other as he spoke. 'If I don't marry her I can't be king. If I won't become king after my father dies the dangerous nutso wins. For sure.'

'Then marry her. What's stopping you? She's a looker I have to tell you.'

'I don't really…like her.'

'You mean like her or like her like her?' asked Skipper, a bit intrigued.

'That last one.' Gulped Julien and pointed with his hand as if the answer was something physical that he could show. 'Also, marrying her will mean I'll be a king for real. What if all I can do is just party and have fun?'

'First of all, I can't believe you're a mushy romantic. What, you're looking for your one, true love?' scoffed Skipper.

'Love, at least' muttered Julien.

'Second, you're playing right into your father's expectations, doubting yourself.' Skipper added, giving the Prince a stern look. He couldn't believe Julien was capable of all this inner turmoil. Ten minutes ago he could have sworn that the Prince could compute only one though or emotion at a time.

'You're right, you're right, PENGUIN.' Said Julien turning suddenly to his relaxed smile, as if wanting to put what he had just said seconds ago behind him. 'Ha, I can't believe I just said you are right.' Skipper rolled his eyes. 'Let's change this subject. It gives me a sad face. Tell me PENGUIN, have you always wanted to be a PENGUIN?' Skipper gave him an annoyed look.

'You mean a special ops officer? Even "in the army" would have been acceptable.'

'Hmm hmm. Whatever you say. So?' Skipper walked over to the trunk and finally sat down.

'No. I've always liked an adventurous life, but I wanted to travel. Anywhere. Especially to very remote locations.'

'Me too.' Said Julien enthusiastically. To Skipper it was incredible how he could make everything about himself. 'I wanted to see the island, but my father always kept a close eye on me. I would love to see the world. I would be so completely free!' Skipper was not aware that he was unconsciously nodding his head in agreement. 'Is Madagascar one of the places you'd have visited if you were a traveler?'

'Hmm, yes, in a way.' Julien grabbed Skipper's arm as an idea struck him.

'You can travel when you're retired from the army! Huh?' said Julien clearly as a joke, but presented as the greatest idea anyone ever had.

'Yes. I'll finally leave all this violence and destruction behind me. I'll come and pick you up on my way too. We can go on an adventure. You can choose the course.' They both laughed and then suddenly realized what they were doing. Sharing a moment together, having a joke of their own. Skipper didn't do this, bond with his 'mission' or share personal things about himself with practical strangers. But it felt easy with Julien in this moment, just as easy as with his teammates and that jolted him to the harsh reality of his life, not an imagined adventure. He stood up angrily, not facing Julien.

'I'll never go traveling! Not with you or anyone else!' he almost shouted in annoyance. 'I'll never leave the army. My best option is that I'll die in service.' Julien stood up behind him, with just as much passion.

'You speak like there is a price on your head or your family's.' Skipper turned to watch him with his eyes narrowed in anger. 'At least, you can change your situation if you want to. Don't expect me to pity you! You're not the one forced in a situation you can't escape. I made a deal for kingship against marriage. And now my tyrant of a father controls that too and he will continue to from the spirit world!' and with that he left Skipper there, heading back alone towards the mansion.

~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~

Evening had fallen quietly over the house. Private was having a good time deciding whether to have a staring contest with the wall or the potted plant with huge leaves from a little bit down the hall this time around. He was trying to ignore the feminine laughter coming from the closed door behind him. It wasn't making him uncomfortable or anything like that. Just that people were having fun and he was on duty. And those people more specifically were Princess Lea, the lady he was supposed to guard, and her ladies in waiting. He wondered briefly if people still used the term "ladies in waiting".

He hadn't noticed when the voices had gone down, but the next thing he knew the door opened and the Princess's head was poking out.

'Hey, Private, right? I asked one of my maids to come and get you, but they're all too shy to come and speak to you.' She said with a giggle. Private looked at her wide eyed. Someone was too shy to speak with him. That was a new one. 'Come in, come in!' she added, beckoning him inside the room with her hand.

Private passed over the threshold and entered the Princess's chamber. He didn't know what to expect, but this was amazing. He thought the rooms they had been given were huge, but this was beyond words. The Princess's maids were all huddled somewhere towards the bed, speaking amongst themselves in low voices, looking at him from time to time and giggling. Puzzled, Private looked at them than back at Julien's fiancée, who was just closing the door behind him.

'Is something the matter, Ma'am?' asked Private rather worried.

'Oh, no! Relax!' said the Princess with a reassuring smile, taking his hand and leading him to the middle of the room. 'Aren't you tired of staying out there, all alone? I hate to know that you're standing there all day and most of the night. It must be so boring! I've decided you must have some fun with me!'

'I really can't, Ma'am…uh Miss…Princess.' Private's fumbling made the Princess giggle some more.

'Sure you can! It's me you're trying to protect. I'm certain I'll be safer with you in here with me.' She said putting her hands around his shoulders. Private nodded his agreement seeing her very logical point. 'I want to choose a dress for dinner. Do you like dress up?!' she asked enthusiastically and not waiting for his answer she spun him around. Two of her ladies in waiting were opening two doors that led in her walk in closet. Private may not have been a dress up enthusiast, but his jaw did drop at the sheer size of it. It seemed that everything around here was in maximum proportions. He suddenly felt minuscule. Everyone entered the closet and Private was feeling like the fifth wheel, not knowing what to do.

The Princess delegated her maids to bring her dresses, from modest and chic to extravagant and diva like, while she was browsing at the same time. She turned to Private holding a dress high.

'What do you think? Too glamorous?'

'I…I…'

'Yeah, too glamorous.' She said throwing it back. 'How about this one?' she said, holding another, this time against Private. She scrunched up her nose. 'Maybe a hat, what do you think, Private?' Julien's fiancée asked him, while placing a headpiece hat on her head with long, green, lustrous feathers. Seeing his lost face she commented 'Too much, I agree.' And removed the extravagant headwear. A maid pulled her to another part of the closet and Private found himself stranded in the middle of women's clothing. He was fingering a leather jacket when he was startled by the Princess's voice close in his ear.

'You like that one, do you?'

'Um… yes I do.' He answered, unsure and unsettled by her smile.

'Uuuu great!' she almost squealed. She went to another shelf and picked out a tank top and to another and chose a pair of jeans and with each item Private's heart plummeted farther and farther to the floor.

'What do you want to do?'

'Girls!' Princess Lea called and immediately one girl carefully took Private's gun and placed it to one side, not paying any attention to his warnings, and another lifted his T-shirt and in the next instant yanked it over his head. Panicked, Private hunched over, covering his chest. A third girl was going for his pants.

'No! no! I'll do it myself if I have to! Do I have to?' he asked the Princess, somewhat imploringly.

'You'll look fabulous, I guarantee it. It's just a bit of fun.'

'Oh, bloody…' He shed his pants as well and the Princess handed him the clothes. All because he made the bad decision of looking at a jacket. No, because he made the bad decision of stepping into that room. Skipper would have never done that, get involved with the "mission" like this, so personally. He finished putting on the jacket and the Princess turned him towards a mirror. Huh, he actually did look good. Perhaps all those clothes were unisex or perhaps he was indeed a bit girly, like some people insisted. The Princess took his arm and led him out of the walk in closet.

'So, what do you think?'

'You were right, it does look good, your Highness.' He said blushing.

'You can keep the jacket. I don't think you want the shirt or the jeans.' She said laughing.

'I…I really can't.'

'I insist.' She stopped before a huge, ornate vanity mirror which had a long ottoman for a seat. She sat down and sat Private next to her. The Princess pulled over her cosmetics and Private couldn't help his exclamation.

'I hope you don't want to make me up!' the Princess burst into laughter at his sincere fear.

'No Private, don't worry. This is for me. Have to keep up appearances don't we?' she said, while applying some mascara.

'What do you mean, your Highness? You're a very charming, beautiful young woman jut as you are.'

'Oh, thank you Private. That's very sweet of you to say. But do you think I got chosen as Julien's fiancée, queen to be because of my many inner qualities?'

'I hope so…' said Private in his boundless optimism. Julien's fiancée set the make up instrument she was holding to one side and with her hands folded in her lap looked at Private seriously.

'I may have been trained since I was a girl in diplomacy, speaking several languages, court etiquette or other such things, but Julien's father chose me to be the Prince's fiancée only for my looks.' Private could see how her mood had suddenly changed. She raised from the ottoman and turned to her maids. 'Leave us!' For a second he though he meant that he should leave. The girls rushed out one by one, careful to close the door behind them. Princess Lea walked to the bed and sat down, her head bowed. When she started talking again, Private joined her certain it was rather awkward and rude to be talking to a person in the other corner of the room.

'I like fashion.' She said motioning to the closet. 'It gives me something to do, while it keeps the illusion that I'm just a pretty body. But sometimes it gets rather sad and frustrating to feel so negligible. All I've done with my life thrown to the wind. People look me over or look down at me. They only see me as…'

'Cute! I know what you mean…'

'Then what can I do, Private? I'll don my attires and continue deceiving them.'

'No, don't give up! One day all you've worked for will pay off. People will see you for who you are. I did today.' He said and hugged her, forgetting the difference in rank.

~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:

It was time to retire for the night, but Skipper was still loitering in front of Julien's door. He was a bit hung up about the way he had snapped earlier that day. Few things or people could squeeze an apology out of Skipper, but he felt like he owed one to the bratty Prince. His outburst had not been provoked by Julien, but by his own frustrations or fears. Skipper turned to the door and raised his hand to knock only for said door to swing open in front of him.

'Good, you're still here!' said Julien and pulled the commando inside. They stared at each other for a few awkward seconds then they both said:

'I wanted to apologize.'

'What? For what are you apologizing, Julien?'

'Ah, ah, ah, Prince Julien.' said the Prince wiggling a finger in front of the other man's face. Skipper just narrowed his eyes. 'Because, I snapped today and said some nasty things. Aaand I left you behind in the forest. I'm amazed to see you made it back.'

'It was a struggle.' Said Skipper sarcastically. 'Well, apology accepted, I guess.' He hadn't even though about Julien's reaction back in the forest, being too absorbed in his own.

'And you, PENGUIN?'

'Oh, coincidentally; the same. I came to apologize about what I said back in the forest and how I said it.' It was hard getting the words out.

'It's okay.' Said Julien, patting Skipper's shoulder. Skipper's eyes flicked to the hand and when they returned Julien was much closer to him than before. Then he felt lips and the man was kissing him. This was a joke or a strange custom they had when forgiving people. But he didn't push back nor pull away. Only after Julien pulled back and looked at him did his heart kick start.

'I … I really have to go… bed… shift…' he mumbled. Skipper fumbled a bit with the door and bolted out of there like a bat out of hell.

.