Chapter 7: Sparkles

"Follow the light with your eyes," Einstein told Bloom. He'd had Bloom sit up and held a candle in front of her face.

Bloom followed the light with heavy eyes. SJ watched the way the light reflected in them. Einstein set the candle to the side.

"Squeeze my paw," he instructed, taking hold of her flipper. Bloom weakly attempted to follow his directions. Her grip was almost firm. Einstein sighed and turned to SJ.

"Her eyes are dilated and she's a little weak, but she'll be fine in time. I'm going to give her something for the pain, but she'll be a little out of it for a while," he reported.

SJ nodded. "It's all right. I'm just glad she's okay. I'll stay here with her," he told him as he watched Bloom lie back down after taking the medication Einstein had given her.

"All right, I'll come back to check on her in a little while. Just give a shout if something happens. Just know she might be a little loopy," he said.

SJ nodded. "Of course."

Einstein turned and left him, and almost a split second later, Sergeant pushed through the flaps. He looked from SJ, to Bloom, and back to SJ.

"Hey," he said softly. "I just learned the details about the mission that had been carried out a few hours ago. I came looking for you and was told you were in here. It seemed like you needed to be alone," he explained.

SJ nodded slightly and glanced at Bloom.

"Who is she?" Sergeant asked, bringing SJ back to his attention.

"She goes by Bloom. She was one of the first ones I met when I arrived here. Showed me a lot of the ropes," SJ answered.

Sergeant smiled sympathetically. "How is she doing? I heard she was shot."

"Better. Einstein gave her surgery and some medicine for the pain. She'll be able to get around in a few days," SJ answered.

Sergeant studied him for a moment. "You're worried," he observed.

SJ's brows lowered. "Pardon?"

"You're fidgeting. Your eyes can't stay locked in one place. Your weight is constantly shifting from leg to leg," Sergeant explained. He paused for a moment, watching SJ. SJ opened his beak to say something, but closed it a second later. "She means a lot to you, doesn't she?" Sergeant asked.

SJ looked down. "Yeah. She does."

A giggling averted their attention. It was Bloom. SJ went to her side as she continued to giggle as if she were drunk.

"Bloom? What's so funny?" SJ said, smiling with curiosity.

Bloom let out a chirp of laughter. "I know something you don't know!" Bloom told him in a sing-song voice. SJ chuckled and glanced at Sergeant, who was grinning with his brow cocked.

"Pain meds?" he asked.

SJ nodded and turned back to Bloom. "What is it that I don't know?" he asked to humor her.

"Sh-h-h! I'm not telling!" Bloom responded, putting a flipper to her beak. SJ grinned. This was the most amusing thing he'd ever witnessed in his life.

Sergeant approached the other side of the cot, unable to tear himself away from what Bloom would say next.

"Come on, I won't tell anyone," SJ urged.

Bloom smiled broadly and seemed to think it over for a second. "Okay. Come 'ere," she said, ushering him forward.

SJ leaned in.

"Closer," Bloom instructed.

SJ leaned in so Bloom's beak was just next to his ear-hole. "All right, what's the secret?" he asked.

"We're penguins," Bloom whispered.

SJ and Sergeant started snickering uncontrollably.

"That's not a secret, Bloom. Everyone knows we're penguins!" SJ told her.

Bloom giggled again. SJ pulled back away from Bloom and chuckled. She was still giggling and snickering beneath the covers. He looked back at Sergeant.

"So how much training have you done?" Sergeant asked.

"I've been training for a couple weeks now. I'm getting pretty good at it. Tank says I'm a natural," SJ responded.

Sergeant smiled. "Given your DNA, I'm not surprised." SJ looked down and Sergeant frowned. "Look, I know you don't think you're worth that much. Blowhole's indoctrination program at PODS will have made sure of that. But you and I are much bigger than this whole thing. We're connected to its roots. And we're going to be the ones to tear the whole thing from the ground."

SJ sighed and looked down. "I really want to believe that. I do. It just seems impossible."

Sergeant studied him and decided not to press the subject anymore right now. He didn't want to freak him out more or fuel his doubt. He would just let him come to realize what his legacy meant in his own time.

"Hey, guys," Bloom slurred softly with a calm smile, catching their attention. "Don't you just love the pretty sparkles in the air?"

— § —

Two suns and two moons later, Bloom was taken off of the medicine and had healed considerably. SJ had stayed with her the entire time. Sergeant had come in and out to see him, but decided to not bother him with his plans for the time being since he was obviously preoccupied. One morning, Bloom started to stir for the first time since being off pain meds.

"Bloom? Bloom, wake up."

Bloom slowly opened her eyes and SJ came into view at her side.

"Hey, how do you feel?" he asked.

Bloom stretched a little and sat up. "A little run down, but I'll be all right," she answered. "How long was I out?"

"Well, you've been going in and out of consciousness for the past couple of days," SJ answered.

"Did I miss anything important?" Bloom asked.

SJ hesitated. "Well, Skitter didn't make it," he told her mournfully.

Bloom cursed under her breath. "I didn't think he would. The bullet ruptured his artery. He just lost blood so fast . . ." she said in recollection, trying to stay strong.

"I'm sorry, Bloom," SJ said, putting a flipper on her shoulder. Bloom nodded.

"It's fine. That's why I try not to get too close to anyone. I only end up hurt," she said as she choked back tears. "The weird thing is, that never helps. Whenever someone dies, I always feel like I lost a member of my family. I guess because everyone here is my family. The only family I've ever known."

SJ found himself holding back his own tears. He couldn't help but feel the same way about everyone here, even in the short time he'd been there. He pulled himself onto the cot next to her and draped his flipper around her shoulders, drawing her close. Bloom buried her face into his chest feathers. SJ could tell she'd been in need of a good cry for a while now.

For a few minutes, they were silent as Bloom cried soundlessly. Then:

"If it makes you feel any better," SJ said, "he died fighting for a good cause."

Bloom sniffed and pulled away slightly. "Yeah, you're right, I know. I'm just not going to get any satisfaction until Blowhole has paid for what he's done," she told him with a hard stare.

SJ looked down. Ever since Sergeant had told him that he expected him to save the world, he was so sure he was going to decline the mission. Or leading it, at least. The pressure was just too immense. But now . . . now he wanted nothing more than to be the reason for Blowhole's downfall. He wasn't sure how he was going to do it, but he made a silent promise to himself and Bloom that he was going to destroy Blowhole for causing so much devastation.

"I talked to Sergeant," he admitted without meeting her eye.

Bloom perked up. "What? When? What did he say? How much do you know?" she blurted, grabbing him by the shoulders. SJ's brow rose and he eyed her curiously, mildly amused by the sudden burst of energy.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Bloom said, breaking away. "I'm just spouting off questions, aren't I? Just start from the beginning, what happened?"

SJ took a deep breath. "He told me about what happened when Dr. Blowhole officially took over the world. And about — my father. He's asked me to lead the revolution," he told her.

"Well, go on, then! How did it end?" Bloom urged.

"He said I'm a symbol. That even if I lose, the world will realize we're stronger than we realize. I'm just not so sure if I'm the right person for this," SJ admitted.

Bloom smiled sympathetically. "It won't matter. You're a descendant of one of the greatest heroes to ever live. I know you're the right person for this," she encouraged. "I have faith in you, SJ."

"You know who my father was?" SJ inquired.

"Not personally, no. But everyone in the RAB camps has heard the tales. We keep his legacy alive here, to remind ourselves that Blowhole was beaten countless times, and he can be beaten again. We instructed everyone to keep quiet about it from you only because we all knew it was best for Sergeant to be the one to tell you," Bloom told him.

SJ nodded. "Yeah, I understand. You really think I can do this?"

Bloom smiled. "I know you can," she answered.

SJ nodded slightly and got to his feet. "Come on, you must be famished," he said, offering his flipper.

Bloom took it and pulled herself up, wincing at the pain in her abdomen. "No kidding. So, did anything else interesting happen while I was out of it?" she asked as they left.

SJ couldn't keep from smiling. "Nope. But you did seem to enjoy the pretty sparkles floating around the room," he said chuckling.

Bloom blushed beneath her feathers. "Well. That's embarrassing," she said, scratching her neck.

"Nah, it's fine. I always knew you had a sparkly personality," SJ said, fighting back a laugh.

"Okay, I get it," Bloom said, smiling bashfully.

"What color were the sparkles anyway?" SJ asked.

"SJ, if you don't zip it, you'll be seeing sparkles for a week."

— § —

Quote: "You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do." ~Eleanor Roosevelt