Back at HQ, Kowalski was ordered to begin work on fixing the Shrink Ray. Meanwhile, Skipper was pacing around the main room as Rico and Private were waiting for their leader to say something.

"Alright, boys. We're gonna need an actual plan for this operation. We obviously can't just invite the Ringtail over. We need a cover story. Any ideas?"

Rico and Private thought for a moment.

"We could invite him over for breakfast because it's his birthday," Private suggested. "He does seem to enjoy coming here, actually. I wonder why,"

Why did Julien visit the Penguins HQ so often anyway? His reasons were so impractical that they almost seemed like excuses. But they didn't have time to worry about that now. It was already 8 P.M. and 'Lights Out Protocols' were at 9, giving them only 1 hour.

"Hmm, not a bad idea, but if it's going to be a surprise party, then it would be better not to mention the fact that it's his birthday. But then pretending we don't know it's his birthday would be too cliche. Cliches are easier to figure out. But after all, he's Ringtail, so-"

"Um, Skipper? Don't you think you're overthinking it a bit?"

"Nonsense, Private! Paranoia can apply for any situation. Remember that. Rico, Got any ideas?"

"Snow cones?"

"See? Not cliche nor unreasonable"

"That's a marvelous idea, Rico! We could take him out for snow cones." Private clapped his flippers at Rico's great idea. But Skipper didn't stop finding disadvantages.

"Hmm, now that I think about it though, an average snow cone operation ranges from 20 to 30 minutes, but Maurice said we need to keep the Ringtail busy for at least 2 hours."

Private noticed that Skipper was acting a little extra paranoid.

Guess he really wants his sleep.

"That is true... Perhaps we could also take him on a walk through the park?"

"A 2 hour walk in the park? I don't think so."

"He does get easily distracted."

"True, but he also gets easily bored."

"Umm, okay, what about…"

Private was running out of ideas.

"Kaboom," Rico asked.

"No, Rico. No kabooms for a diversion operation."

"Aww."

"We could take him for a joyride in the car! He's always wanted to do that," Private offered.

"Private, you know our vehicles are for authorized personnel only!"

"It was just a thought…"

"Come on, men! We've dealt with much worse situations before. Distracting a lemur from his birthday party should be a piece of cake!"

"Maybe…"

"What? What is it, soldier?"

"Maybe we should just ask him what he wants to do."

"Say what," Rico babbled confusedly.

"What's so suspicious about inviting a friend over? Well, maybe he's not our closest friend, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't treat him like one!"

"That's the problem, Private. Don't you think it would be suspicious if an enemy just invites you over for 'fun activities'?"

"Skipper, you don't really mean that, do you?

"Mean what?"

"That he's an enemy."

Skipper looked away for a moment. He wanted to say yes and no. Half of him saw King Julien as nothing but an obnoxious and selfish lemur. The other half of him had a bit of a soft spot for him. Somehow, without him noticing, he began growing fond for the lemur slowly over time. Skipper wasn't really the type of person to have deep feelings. Not wanting to seem weak to his team, he simply said,

"Yes, of course, Private! Why wouldn't I?"

Just then, the lab door swung open and Kowalski appeared in the room.

"Alright! The Shrink Ray is now fixed! Have you come up with a plan?" The other three penguins glanced at each other.

"What? Did I miss something important?"

"Actually, we haven't decided yet," Private replied. "We were…just discussing it."

Skipper could see a bit of disappointment in Private's eyes.

"Really? Well, if you're stuck I'd be happy to provide some options."

"Yes. Kowalski, give us some options," the leader ordered. He decided to just ignore their little dispute, hoping Private would get over it later.

Kowalski pulled out his clipboard and began jotting some things down. Before long, he had already written a full list.

"That much that quick? Nicely done, Kowalski," Skipper said.

"Well, I'm your options guy for a reason," Kowalski replied with a smile. "It's more of a plan though."

"Lay it on us, soldier."

Note: You'll have to wait until the next chapter to see what the plan is!