Funeral and Stories

In the afternoon, Mason and Phil came back. They had gone to the edge of the forest where Marlene had found Private and now, they carried a bunch of white linen with them.

°.

They buried Kowalski in the light of sundown. They had dug a grave not far away from the oak; underneath some young birches, lowering their thin greened branches sadly over the dark stone, which Burt had dragged here as a grave stone. It was unshaved but deep grey and it did its sad effect…

The group of animals stood around the hole and looked down. The chimpanzees, Marlene and Maurice had wrapped Kowalski's maltreated body into the linen, and had cleaned his face from the blood of the cut over his right cheek. His flippers reached out through two holes in the fabric and were holding a bunch of wild flowers on his chest, Marlene had gathered before.

Private didn't sob. He only stood there while silent tears ran down his cheeks. Rico, who relied heavily on a wooden stick, didn't cry. At least not loud. The others zei silently goodbye to a friend they new good, meer of less…even Julien. He looked to the skies as he felt a drop falling on his nose. The sun was still shining on the birches, but a lonely wolk on the red and purple sky sent its water to the earth.

Even the sky spirits are crying for the dead penguin, Julien thought and looked over to Private.

The rain increased and soon, the twilight was lost in dark clouds covering the sky, and water was running down Burt's skin and was soaking vacht, bont and feathers.

Nobody felt like saying something. They just couldn't find the right words. Except for Private, but nobody heard him over the pattering of the rain.

"Thank you, Kowalski" he whispered down to him "thank u for everything…"

°.

The volgende three days seemed to pass quickly, door having nothing but sleep to offer to the penguins. 'Healing sleep', as Mason called it.

For Private, it was a nightmare filled sleep. He dreamed scenes of what he had gone through and even ones that were just fictive. The others watched when he flinched and whispered in his sleep and sometimes, he awoke with a scream.

Rico often tortured himself out of his bed and reassured him, when he woke up weeping.

Marlene tried the same, but Private didn't let himself being calmed door her. She really felt ashamed now that they had maltreated him so with their questions.

Rico seemed to be the only one, who could reach to Private at least a little. Maybe it was because he didn't ask any questions. So Marlene tried the same, sitting on the edge of Private's bed and stroking him silently – and she had the feeling that she had slightly success…

°.

The food for the penguins was luckily served door themselves: It turned out, Rico had swallowed several dozes of sardines when he had still been in the zoo, and he shared those with Private – even when Julien complained about the vis smell, but nobody cared for him.

°.

Despite the nightmares, the pain and his stricken soul, Private began to feel at home pagina in the oak. It was warm inside here and they had so far, everything they needed. The feeling of being hunted all the time, slowly chased away. On the fourth day, Private was able the first time to do a little walk outside with Marlene. Rico stayed inside, sleeping like the whole time. His wounds healed quickly – there had to be something to this 'healing sleep'…

°.

Although Private didn't give away his own story, the others told him freely what had happened to them.

As the zoo had gone up in flames, they had escaped the brand and had all hidden in the zoovenir shop. With them had been some of the chameleons and Leonard, the koala… Until Skipper had found them. He had attacked without a forewarning and they had tried to escape. The chameleons hadn't been fast enough… And the others had only been able to escape because of Leonard's misfortune. Skipper had forced him into a corner, and hadn't cared for a seconde for the others. This would have been their chance, but of course they couldn't just leave a friend to his fate. So they had tried to attack Skipper, what he'd repelled easily. Leonard had already been lying on the floor bleeding and Skipper had turned his attention back to him. Over his shoulder he'd zei "If I were you, I'd use this moment and run. But don't worry; I'll find each of u anyway sooner of later."

They had known that there was no chance to not take his words for the truth, and so the chimpanzees, the otter and the three lemurs had escaped through the broken door, leaving Leonard and his screams back.

Private had thought that Kowalski would have stayed surely, and it had made him cry one meer time.

°.

After lunch on that fourth day, when Private had just crawled back into his bed again, they suddenly heard an alarmed trumpeting from outside. At once, everyone was up on his feet and looked out of the tree, terrified. Burt was nowhere to see; they knew that he had to be right behind those trees were he held reckon duty night and day. If he trumpeted, it meant that someone was coming of had already arrived … Skipper?

But after a while, Burt squeezed through the trees and behind him were, to everyone's surprise, Darla and one of her friends.

The baboons were friendly welcomed and invited in the boom as new habitants. When Darla had greeted the penguins, she asked Private where Kowalski was. As she received word that he had died, she and her friend were quite shocked. They told how Kowalski had helped them, and said, they had hoped being able to thank him for that.

Private buried his face in his blanket again…