Firework

Disclaimer: Madagascar and its characters belong to DreamWorks SKG

A/N: I'm not sure about everyone else, but I absolutely adored the final Madagascar film. It's was magnificently random and hilarious, a perfect end to the trilogy. The animation was also incredibly smooth, all in all a very good film. Anyway, I just happened to love Alex and Gia's interactions and thus created this little story. So please, read and review!

Do you know that there's still a chance for you

'Cause there's a spark in you

You just gotta ignite the light

And let it shine

Just own the night

Like the Fourth of July

-Katy Perry, "Firework"

The full magnificence of New York City was spread out below him, like the vision of a lost dream. In its entire entire splendor, Alex the Lion felt awed—it had been so long since he'd seen the real thing, the oh-so-familiar landmarks that made his heart clench. A million and one familiar buildings and sites; Rockefeller Center, the Empire State Building, the putrid Hudson, Chrysler Building, Brooklyn Bridge… and so much more.

Alex sighed, allowing his chin to fall into his birth marked palm, the impromptu air ship swaying around him. His blue eyes flickered to the patchwork circus-tent hot air balloon holding him up, before his gaze was drawn once more to his surroundings. The lion was quiet as his vision broadened, and had just reached the zoo's bell tower when—

"What are you doing up here?"

Alex jumped, a girlish shriek halfway out of his mouth as he whirled around to face the speaker, coming nearly nose to nose with Gia. The lion yelped, much to Gia's surprise, and jumped back, only to trip over his own feet and lean precariously near the edge. With an extremely amused look, Gia arm shot out at the last minute, grasping his paw and pulling him back up before he could fall and become a furry, far-too-conditioned splat on the ground below.

"You are very jumpy, aren't you?" Gia laughed, and Alex chuckled along embarrassedly.

"How did you know I was up here?" he asked, hoping to regain some of his lost dignity. Gia's grin grew in strength.

"The balloon platform is not too high up, you know." Alex looked to where the jaguar was pointing and found a majority of the circus animals only a few dozen feet below—they waved up at him unabashed.

Alex chuckled nervously. "Ah. Right." The ex-King of New York plopped himself back down with a sigh, and after a moment Gia daintily lowered herself beside him, her back legs hanging over the edge.

"Something is bothering you, no?" she inquired knowingly and Alex glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. Her wide, brown eyes were full of an understanding and empathy he'd only ever seen displayed by his friends' before, and he turned his head away.

"I guess you could say that…" Alex admitted, swinging his legs back and forth. "It's just…really surreal to be back here, but to be, y'know…not back." Befuddled by his own analogy, he turned back to Gia. "You know what I mean?"

"No," Gia smirked, and Alex's face fell. "But I do understand where you are coming from. We circus, and most of us loose homes. Or we run away." The jaguar shrugged softly. "Home is…rare commodity, for us." She met Alex's gaze again, and her brown eyes were full of life. "But here, in circus, we have home. You know that—you seen and experienced it. So what is wrong?"

Alex rolled his shoulders, as he once did for his performances at the zoo. "Yeah, I know that circus is home now," the lion paused to give the "Afro Circus" balloon above him an amused onceover, "Sure feels like it. But here, New York, Central Park, the zoo…it's been home for as long as I can remember. Just…it's like exactly how we remembered it."

Gia shuddered. "Sí. I saw. I saw the cages…the fences. They were not there before, were they?"

The lion shook his head in a negative, a wry smile across his muzzle. "No, there were never cages before. Only walls."

"I do not like cages," Gia opined softly, rubbing her arms though there was barely even a breeze. "Old owners tried putting us inside them once before…"

Alex's lifted a nonexistent brow. "Why did they stop?"

"Vitaly," Gia grinned.

"Ah, of course," Alex chuckled, "the resident hoop-jumping, knife throwing, mean Russian cat. I almost feel bad for your old people."

Gia giggled. "You would be the first."

"Well, I'm a humanitarian like that."

"You are very odd, Alex."

"It's just my charm. It's drawin' you in."

The jaguar snorted rather unfeminine like, but Alex joined in on her mirth. Their laughter subsided, however, as the familiar strains of "Firework" reached them from their floating sanctuary. Gia turned to Alex with a meaningful look in her eyes.

"All better now, Alex? No more moping?"

The once and future King of New York chuckled. "Yep."

"Good," Gia grinned, standing up and holding her paw out to her partner, "because it is almost our turn."

Alex appeared flustered for a moment, but grasped her paw nonetheless. As the lyrics grew louder, the lion beamed, embarrassment forgotten.

"It's our turn to shine."