Caretaker of Madagascar: Full Moon

The Scientist's Apprentice

"Thank you, Private, that'll do."

Kowalski smiles, patting a small bandage onto the smaller penguin's flipper. He takes the tube of blood over to his microscope, getting out a fresh testube in the process. He carefully squirts the blood from the syringe into the tube with a little water and swirls it around. He then sets it in a holder and switches his little disposable gloves before taking a dropper and dripping a couple drips of the blood sample onto a slide with some indication fluid.

Private however decides to stick around and watches him over his shoulder. "So...How are you?"

"Huh?" He glances back at him.

"I mean, your back and all."

"Oh. Much better, thank you. Maurice really should become a chiropractor." He chuckles slightly. He peers into the lens of his scope, adjusting the knobs slightly.

Private nods, waddling over to glance at his notes. "And what do you think about Bridget?"

Kowalski's flipper slips on the knob, obscuring his vision. "UH—" He pauses, looking over at him. "Why, what do you think of her?"

The younger penguin crosses his flippers with a look. "Way to flip the question, Kowalski." He then sighs with a smile. "She's...Complicated? I think she's nicer now than at first but...She's a little...Maybe a little scary?"

"Scary?" He blinks and then shakes his head. "Mmm. Not quite, no. You could say she kind of growls but...I think it's mostly just for show." He picks up his pencil as he readjusts the microscope's view. "I think...I think she has potential."

"....What do you mean?"

"Well..." He shrugs slightly, looking in the scope. "I think once she's finished fighting with herself that she has plenty of room to grow."

"Kowalski, I think she's as tall as she's going to get—"

"Not that kind of growth." He rolls his eyes. "I mean...I think she's had a tough past and it's left her roughed up...Maybe a little broken inside. Of course, broken things can be a little dangerous at first, with their jagged edges and sharp points but...With a little time and patience...Most broken things can be fixed or even improved, like Kintsugi."

"Kintsugi?"

"A form of Japanese art where broken pottery is fixed together with gold...An expensive repair material, I may say, but they are really pretty in the museum." He makes a note about the blood cells.

"...But Kowalski, this is a short-term partnership, isn't it?"

Kowalski furrows his brow. "Theoretically speaking, yes."

Private squints at him. "You're being suspicious."

"I have nothing to be suspicious about. So the partnership may be short-term, that doesn't mean I can't befriend her...Right?" He turns and looks at him. "I mean, she's an inventor deep down. I can see it, it's that obvious. She needs a fellow inventor to get her back in the game."

"But Kowalski, I'm not sure that's your place to decide?"

"It...It may not be but...I don't know. She just..." He rubs his flippers over his face. "We haven't known her long at all and I already see a lot of myself in her, Private. She has potential to actually be successful. You know, human inventors have chances penguins never have. It would be nice to help her get back to inventing and help her avoid my mistakes. Maybe I could be more successful in mentoring than I am in actually inventing."