[Freezair]

Kane's ears wiggled. So did Ginger's. Their gazes laser-focused on the Squeaker.

He was teetering.

And Kane's Dad Instincts kicked in.

He dove for the countertop just as the Squeaker toppled over. Down, down he fell from the high shelf--into the soft, springy fur of Kane's neck. The air wheezed out of him--the little fella was heavier than he looked--but he looked unharmed.

The same couldn't be said of his pride.

The little Squeaker let loose with a burbling, frightened stream of tearful squeaks. Kane gently set him on the floor and gave him an affectionate lick.

"There there, li'l fella," he said. "It's alright. Where's yer parents, kiddo?"

[Freezair]

A pair of furry noses peeped around the kitchen door.

"We didn't see him come up here," Sundae said.

"Yeah! We didn't know," Strawberry said. "We didn't let him in!"

Ginger chuckled. "Relax, kids. You're not in trouble." She joined Kane in kneeling over the Squeaker. "This poor little guy, though. I didn't see him in the shop. And no one else mentioned seeing him. I think someone would have mentioned kicking him out. And while he may be tiny, he's pretty hard to miss..."

"Guess we go a job, then," Kane said. He nosed at the Squeaker--and with a hup!, he vaulted him onto his back.

The Squeaker peeped. Being high up seemed to cheer him up.

"We gotta find yer family, li'l fella," Kane said. "Heh. So much fer a day off, eh, Ginger?"

She smiled back. "So much for that."

[Freezair]

Slowly, the Squeaker's blubbering stopped. Slowly his tears dried up. A silence fell upon the kitchen as everyone watched him, for the moment just happy to see him smile.

And in the silence, there was... a sound.

A crispy, crackling, crunching sound.

Four pairs of ears swiveled and twitched, hunting for the source. No... no... there it seemed to be, coming from under the sink. Kane muttered under his breath: "...What the...?" He took a soft step towards the sink, then opened the cupboard with a paw.

There was another one.  

Another penguin--an Aura, this time--munching her way through a pilfered package of crackers, casual as you please.

[Freezair]

A strange burbling hiss came out of the Squeaker's throat.

Except--wait a minute! He wasn't a Squeaker any more! Apparently, he couldn't change with someone looking at him, because he was a Pengi now--and an angry one.

The Aura looked at him slowly--an "Oh, you're here" look if ever there was one.

Sundae scoffed. "She must be his big sister." Kane was inclined to agree--no one could give a look of condescension quite like a sister. Especially a teenaged one.

The Aura replied in series of deep, singsong squeaks. Kane knew utter dismissal when he heard it. The Aura replied with shrill squeaks and a high-pitched squawk... right next to Kane's ear. He winced.

Strawberry asked, "I wonder what they're saying?"

[Freezair]

The former-Squeaker-now-Pengi seemed to have briefly lost all interest in the Lucain family surrounding him. He hopped down off Kane's back as gracefully as his legs would allow, waddled up to the cupboard under the sink, and started giving his sister and earful.

The rest of the kitchen got an earful too. His shrill, high-pitched voice clattered off their eardrums as he yelled at his sister. She rolled her eyes at him and replied in a voice that was... measured, by comparison, but so dripping with sarcasm it was no wonder he didn't want to listen. Strawberry and Sundae hunkered down and put their paws over their ears, grimacing.

Ginger grimaced as well. "I wish we knew what they were saying...!"

[Freezair]

A Thought crossed Kane and Ginger's minds. They shared a glance.

Should we?

No, we shouldn't. It isn't fair to him to bring it up. He gets so embarrassed by it.

But we have a Situation on our hands! He could help resolve this peacefully. Besides, he loves to help! Don't you think he'd like to help resolve this?

I don't know.

But do we have any other options?

They gave each other a nod. Right.

"Kids, y'all make sure these two don't peck each other to death," Kane said. "We're gonna run downstairs right quick..."

As soon as Kane and Ginger turned tail, however, the Pengi let out an indignant squeak. In the same flash he climbed the bureau, he was up on Kane's back again, ready to ride his steed downstairs.

Ginger chuckled. "Well, that at least will help explain things."

[Freezair]

They descended the stairs into the chaos of the storefront.

It was standing room only in the candy shop, and the place was sweltering with body heat. Beaus, swains, lovebirds, and single's appreciation advocates swarmed the shelves, seeking goodies.

Standing literally head and shoulders above the mob was one Halvard Henderson--despite the noise and chaos, calming ringing up patrons. Despite the boom in his voice, he sounded strangely quiet as he instructed them, "An orderly line, please! One at a time. Thank you!"

Kane didn't want to startle him. "Comin' up behind ya, Hal!"

"Pardon me," Halvard said to the woman who was next in line. "My boss is calling. I--Chief...?"

Halvard swallowed. The woman waiting in line giggled--clearly, she wasn't bothered by the wait. "W-why do you...? Where did...?"

[Freezair]

"This little fella ended up in the shop, somehow," Kane said. As if asserting his right to be there, the Pengi gave him a squeeze near the neck with his flippers. "No durn idea where he came from."

"But he isn't the only one," Ginger said. "He's got a sister who ended up in here, too."

"Hiding out under the sink."

You could almost hear the swishing as Halvard's head flew back and forth between them.

"They're getting into everything."

"An' now they're arguin' about somethin' or other."

"And we just wish we knew where they came from, or how they got in here, or what the problem is!"

"An', well... we know it ain't somethin' yer proud of..."

"But you DO know how to speak Squeaker..."

Halvard paled.

Finally, together: "Please?"

[Freezair]

Halvard let out a deep, long-suffering sigh. "Let me just get Aisling to help this nice lady here..."

The nice lady in question was red in the face with trying to restrain her laughter. Halvard flagged Aisling over from the rear of the shop, and set her up on the register before following Kane and Ginger upstairs.

As soon as they saw him, Strawberry and Sundae went red, too. They knew what was coming. Ginger gave them the kind of look only a mother could give, and the two of them sat down on their paws and tried their best not to squirm.

Halvard dipped into the restroom for a bit of privacy while he transformed. He went in as a human...

...and came out as a Squeaker.

[Freezair]

Satisfied, Kane and Ginger entered the kitchen.

The Aura had climbed up on the countertop and was helping herself to the saltine packets. She lounged against the flour jar while popping crackers into her beak. She took one look at the contingent entering the kitchen, turned her head away with a huff, and continued enjoying her snacks... with closed eyes.

Halvard pointed up at the counter and peeped. Kane gently grabbed him by the scruff and placed him up top. On his back, the Pengi scampered behind his wingblades, hissing at his sister all the while.

She deigned to look curious at the strange new Squeaker in front of her.

[Freezair]

A flurry of peeping conversation followed.

First, Halvard began squawking. She looked bored for just a moment before snapping to attention. Halvard stamped a flipper and pointed at the ground. The Aura startled, and gave him a "Sir, yes sir!" squeak.

Halvard turned around and gave the Pengi a beckoning flipper. He peeped meekly. With a great deal of shuffling, he clambered over Kane's head, ruffling his ears, and pulled himself onto the countertop. (Apparently, his agility followed a sine wave.)

With that, Halvard began to moderate their conversation. It was much easier to listen in on without them raising their voices to a glass-shattering screech.

[Freezair]

Finally, they stopped. Halvard nodded to both of them and hopped down off the countertop. The two penguins sat in stoic silence as they watched him leave, waddling out the door and off to the restroom to change back. The seven-foot human man re-emerged and made his way back to the kitchen.

"Well now," he said. "Here's the story, as I understand it."

He pointed to the Pengi. "This young lad is Cupid, appropriately enough." He pointed to the Aura. "And she's Venus. I asked them where their parents are, but... they don't know. They've been living on their own together for as long as they can remember."

Kane and Ginger's hearts both fell. "They're orphans! Poor things," Ginger said. Despite all the trouble they'd caused, the two of them couldn't help but want to give them a hug.

[Freezair]

Halvard went on. "Venus here heard about this shop. She'd heard it was full of delicious treats and candy. She'd thought the two of them could sneak in while it was busy--she'd thought no one would notice them--and take some treats. She'd make Cupid promise to stay close to her while they snuck in, but he wandered off and started exploring. He also got himself caught. Naturally, she wasn't too happy with him for this."

"You poor things!" Ginger said. "If you're hungry, dears, why, we'd have helped you get something to eat if you'd only asked. I'll even make you a proper breakfast--something more substantial than crackers."

"Yeah, yeah," Kane nodded assent.

But in his mind, gears were turning.

[Freezair]

He'd donated leftover sweets and day-olds before. Halvard's daughter Danica in particular was very into volunteering, and liked doing things to help make the world better.

But maybe he should start doing this more often? And not just with day-olds. With misshapen candies too. And maybe even fresh ones! Maybe he could make a few extra batches, just to donate. Outside of big work weeks like Valentine's, it wouldn't cut too much into his work...

He felt a paw on his shoulder.

"You were getting ideas, weren't you?"

Kane gave Ginger a cheesy grin. "Guilty as charged, ma'am."

"We can save the world in a little bit. Right now, let's just focus on saving the world for these two children right here. Want to help me make some more breakfast for them?"

"Darlin', there ain't nothin' Ah'd like more in all the world."