Yep, it's another shippy fic. I get my wisdom teeth out tomorrow and I'm really frickin' nervous. Sorry for any and all mistakes but I wanted this posted before i go all loopy.

The fact that Mr. Moon eventually had to face legal repercussions for some his more questionable methods of keeping the theater on its feet was a surprise to no one. The crimes were minor, but Judith had stayed true to her word about calling the police and a price still had to paid. The koala took full responsibility for everything regarding to the theater in an effort to keep his employees from facing any troubles. He was given a short sentence and left the theater temporarily under the charge of Eddie and Ms. Crawly.

Aside from not having the sure-of-himself theater owner around, the only major change for Johnny was that he now had someone going with him to the prison for visiting hours.

The last two times, it had been Eddie who went and talked with the theater owner. Both times the sheep had brought a long list of questions about running the theater, as he had little experience handling any kind of major responsibility and was relying heavily on Ms. Crawly and the other theater employees. In acting as the temporary owner, Eddie was making numerous blunders as he struggled to manage the theater, but so far they had just been harmless and embarrassing on the sheep's part.

Today, however, Eddie was preoccupied with directing a maintenance group in fixing some of the light fixtures on stage and had sent Meena to collect some information from Mr. Moon instead. So, today Johnny pulled into the prison parking lot with the shy elephant riding passenger. The paired walked in with Johnny leading. Johnny kept glancing behind him the whole time, wondering what Meena's thoughts were about the prison and if she felt nervous or scared. Every time he looked, she was close behind him as if partly hiding behind his smaller form. After entering, they were directed to visiting booths next to each other.

The young gorilla waited eagerly to see his father and the small theater owner. Instinctively, Johnny straighten up in his seat when he saw his father come into view. The larger gorilla was presided by Mr. Moon, who took a seat kiddy-corner from Johnny. The gang leader passed by Mr. Moon's seat to get to his seat across from his son, glancing quickly through the koala's window to see who he would be talking with.

"Whose talkin' wif your boss, there?" Big Daddy asked as soon as he picked up the phone, completely forgoing greetings.

"Huh? Oh, that's Meena." Johnny was caught a little off guard by his father's abrupt question. "I've told ya 'bout 'er before. She's another singer at the theater." The teen continued, an amused smile forming on his face. He didn't expect his father to be able to remember everyone he talked about just by name and half expected his father to have no idea who Meena was.

To his surprise, Big Daddy's face seemed to light up with recognition. "She's the one 'oo knocked down the stage, yeah?" The older gorilla said looking a little more excited.

"Heh, yeah." Johnny smiled thoughtfully at the memory of Meena's face at her first performance when she had realized the staging behind her had fallen away. He snapped himself out of reminiscing to explain. "Eddie was busy, so she's filling in for today 'n talking to Moon."

"Yeah?" Big Daddy responded absentmindedly, still looking in the direction of where Meena and Mr. Moon would be relatively to him, though his view was blocked by the barriers put on each side of the visiting unit. Suddenly, his features lite up in realization. "Oh, right. The little guy wanted to talk to ya'. Somethin' to do with the theater, I think." The older gorilla scrunched up his brow, as if trying to remember.

"Really?" Johnny asked, genuinely confused. Why would Mr. Moon want to talk to him specifically?

Before Johnny could question it further, his father spoke up. "Yeah, hang on a sec. I'll get 'im." And with that, Big Daddy set down the phone and leaned back to look around the barrier between him and the koala. He tapped the smaller animal on the shoulder, making him jump in surprise. Mr. Moon looked at the large gorilla inquisitively. "Sorry, it's my son. 'E wanted t' talk wif ya t' make sure you're doin' alright in 'ere." Big Daddy explained with a slightly apologetic look.

"Oh, really? Just one moment, please." The koala turned back to his phone and addressed Meena, quickly explaining what was going on and that he would be back shortly. After that, he hopped off his stool and traded places with Big Daddy in order to speak with Johnny. Grinning brightly, Mr. Moon picked up his receiver and greeted his employee. "Well, hello Johnny! All well?"

The younger gorilla gave his best causal smile, trying to hide the fact he was disappointed not to be speaking with his father. "'Ello Mr. Moon. 'Ow ya' been?"

The theater owner took off with chatter. Saying everything he could think of to reassure Johnny of his safety and comfortability. Unbeknownst to the koala, Johnny wasn't too interested in his lengthy answers. The young gorilla was actually anxious to wrap things up quickly and return to speaking with his father, but was far too polite to say anything or have the nerve to interrupt the theater owner. After awhile of listening to Mr. Moon talk about the prison and how welcoming and civil Johnny's father and his friend were, the koala finally wrapped up his monologue. "I'm sorry, I must be chatting your ear off." Mr. Moon said as through he had just realized how long he'd been talking. "Is there any specific you wanted to ask about?"

Johnny looked at the koala in confusion, his brow scrunching up. "What, me? Naw, I thought you needed t' tell me somethin'." The gorilla blinked a couple times off to the side as he tried to process what was going on. "Didn't ya want t' tell me somethin' about the theater?"

This time, Mr. Moon was the one to look confused, tilting his head to one side. "Why no. Your father said you wanted to speak to me!" The theater owner's forehead also furrowed as his thought about the situation before his face relaxed and he just shrugged it off. "Oh well, must have just been a misunderstandin-" He was cut off by Johnny standing up abruptly in realization.

Meena fidgeted in the prison stool that was a bit too small for her size. She puzzled over why Mr. Moon had needed to go talk with Johnny. The gorilla hadn't mentioned wanting the speak with the theater owner at all on their ride over. With nothing to do and not being at all comfortable with her surroundings, she kept her gaze down and fussed with the sleeve of her hoodie.

A knocking on the glass in front of her made her jump and she looked up to find herself staring at a massive gorilla she didn't know. Meena openly gawked at the animal before her. Sure, she knew Johnny was a bit on the small side for gorillas, but he was what she had gotten use to and now the gigantic figure in front of her just looked unnatural. The logical part of her mind reminded her that the 'gigantic figure' before her was probably only as tall as she was, but the way he carried himself immediately made Meena feel small and intimidated.

The gorilla on the other side of the glass calmly picked up his phone line and gestured for her to do the same, waiting patiently as she processed what he wanted and fumbled with the phone before bringing it to her ear.

"H-H-Hello?"

"'Ello." Big Daddy smiled coolly. "You must be Meena. Johnny talks 'bout ya' a lot. It's a pleasure t' finally meet cha'." The gang leader made sure to be as polite as possible with the somewhat terrified looking elephant.

Meena's face turned a little pink from the stranger's greeting and her ears drew closer to her face. Her gaze flickered down and off to the side as she tried to formulate a response. "Uhhhh, thank you? You... you're Johnny's dad, right? It's n-nice to meet you too, sir." She voice was mumbly and quiet, and she stutter more than she would have liked while talking to him. When she chanced a glance back at the large gorilla, he was smiling with a look of fond amusement.

"Did ja just call me 'sir'?" Big Daddy asked with a low chuckle. He shook his head a little when Meena nodded. "Na, ya' don't need t' be callin' that." When he said this, the teen gave him a slightly confused look, making it clear she didn't know what to call him. Big Daddy cocked an eyebrow, still smiling. "What? Did Johnny neve' tell ya' my name or something?"

Meena's eyes shifted off to the side again and she looked decidedly uncomfortable. "He told us..." she answered softly. Yes, Johnny had mentioned what the gang called his father, and there was no way she was could call someone 'Big Daddy' in a way that wasn't entirely awkward.

This must have shown on her face because she her the gang leader's voice chuckle through the phone again. "'Ow 'bout this: you can call me 'Marcus'?" Meena was once again looking at him and he gave her an understanding smile. "It's what the little guy calls me too." He added, nodding in the direction Mr. Moon was in.

"Marcus..." Meena tested the name thoughtfully, then smiled a little. In a soft voice she added. "I like it. How come more animals don't call you that?"

"I don't let 'em." Big Daddy stated with authority. "Aren't too many folks who even know my name. You 'n the koala are kinda' special cases."

Meena felt her face heat slightly and her ears pull even closer to her face. She couldn't figure out why she'd qualify as a special case for him. "Why is that?" She heard herself asked.

The large gorilla smile soften as did his voice. "I own you 'n the little guy... 'Eck, I own that 'ole bloomin' theater group! You lot 'ave done a lot for Johnny..." His glaze fell off to the side as his voice seemed distant. "Can't remember the last time I saw him so happy."

Meena felt a pang of sympathy for her friend's father as he spoke. "W-Well, we're happy he's there too!" She felt compelled to say something about Johnny, and her mouth started talking before her brain could think of anything interesting to say. "He's, uh, he's really talented! And, uh, nice." The teen inwardly kick herself for sounding so lame.

"Yeah, it's funny 'ow good at the piano he got. When he was lil', he hated his piano lessons." Big Daddy reminisced with a nostalgic look in his eyes. "Heh, he even called his piano teacher a witch once. Right to 'er face!" The older gorilla chuckled. "T' be fair she was kind of a prick." He heard a light giggling from the other end of the phone and looked up to find that, for the first time since Big Daddy had sat down across from her, Meena's ears were flared open and her face was visible. She smiled brightly at the father's story with her eyes cheerily on him rather than looking down shyly. Seeing this made Big Daddy's smile widen.

The following conversation consisted mostly of the father gorilla telling stories about Johnny's childhood, watching Meena's expression grow brighter with each new thing she learned about her friend's past, a major of which were tremendously embarrassing. In the span of a few minutes, Meena learned that Johnny had to wear glasses through out all of middle school, but broke them so many times that switching to contacts was cheaper; he wore a pink tutu to school for about a month in kindergarten to spite a girl panda who didn't let him play dress-up with her because "boys don't wear pink;" and was terrified of thunder storms until he was eleven. So much so that he would hide under furniture or climb into his father's bed, too scared to sleep alone.

Meena cooed a bit as she heard the last one, much to Big Daddy's amusement. "Yeah, sure, sounds cute now! Wouldn't 'ave been so bad if he hadn't been a bed wette'." Meena sputtered behind her free hand trying not to laugh too much. The gorilla opposite her studied her thoughtfully and his eyes drifted up to the clock behind her. He was impressed. In the short time was had gotten to know the tiny theater owner, he had learned that Buster Moon could be a real talker, especially when he was nervous. Still, Big Daddy hadn't expected the koala to buy him this much time. "Oi, can I ask ya somethin'?" He asked sweetly as he turned his attention back to Meena.

"Hmm?" The elephant's eyes lite up with curiosity, encouraging her company to continue.

"I was just wonderin', 'ow long 'ave you two been togethe' anyway?" Big Daddy asked casually gesturing in Meena's direction and the direction in which his son was sat.

Meena's cheerful expression dropped, leaving her wide eyed and in flustered shock. "Huh?!" Was the only sound she could manage in her dumbfounded state. She had let her guard down listening to Johnny's father speak so fondly of him and wouldn't have seen that question coming in a million years. Her and Johnny were not 'together'! Why would his father ask that? Why would he think that?

As if hearing the last question spinning through Meena's head, he spoke up. "I ain't daft. I've seen the look he gets when he talks about ya'." Big Daddy explained as if this would ease the baffled look on Meena's face.

Meena's mind wondered what Johnny could possibly be saying to give his father that impression. "Johnny really talks about me?" She heard her mouth quietly ask without her permission.

"'Course he does. He even-" Big Daddy 's voice was cut off when the phone was nabbed out of Meena's hand. Johnny had caught on to what was really going on and was now glaring at his father over Meena with on hand slammed down beside her and the other hand currently holding the phone.

"Not funny! Go back t' your seat!" Johnny practically shouted in frustration as his father burst out laughing on the other end. Meena sat in disarray, the pink color in her cheeks darkening a little now that Johnny was practically hunching over her to address his father.

The commotion got the attention of the guards present in the visiting area. Some explaining and reorganizing later, all four animals were back in their original seats with Mr. Moon and Meena both a little unsure as to what just happened. "What do you suppose that was all about?" The koala puzzled once he picked up the phone on his side.

Meena looked thoughtfully in the direction the two gorillas she couldn't see, a small smile on her face. "I think Marcus just wanted to mess with Johnny a little." She said in good humor.

On the other side of the barrier, Johnny was leaning forward on his arm and glowering at his smug looking father. "Ya' can't blame me for having a little fun. I'm your father. It's my job t' embarrass ya' in front of girls you obviously like." Big Daddy said with a shrug, finally breaking the silence.

Johnny's expression morphed from frustrated to embarrassed, his face immediately going pink and his gaze shifting off to the side. "Daaaaad." He groaned.

"What? Was I not suppose t' notice ya talk about 'er like she hung the bleedin' moon?" Big Daddy cocked an eyebrow as he spoke.

Johnny shrunk back in his seat. Had he really let himself talk about her that much? He hadn't noticed. Ever since the open air theater show, Johnny and his father had grown close and Johnny had gotten use to opening up more and telling his father, well, everything. He could tell the older gorilla about everyone and everything at the theater, never really bothering to keep anything in check. Before this, he didn't think there would be any reason to keep track of what he told his father about his friends. "What were ya two talkin' about? Ya' didn't tell 'er about... that stuff, did ja?" Johnny asked nervously, unsure he wanted to know the answer.

"Ya' mean did I tell 'er about 'ow ya' get all stary-eyed talkin' about 'er? Or when ya' catch ya'self talkin' about 'er too much ya' quickly start talkin' about everyone else at that theater so it don't look like ya' playin' favorites? Stuff like that?" Big Daddy watched with glee as his son's face grew more and more horrified as the larger of the two spoke. The older gorilla was silent for a moment to let Johnny anticipate the humiliation that could come. Then Big Daddy casually straighten up from where he had been leaning in to face his son. "Naw. Didn't tell 'er any of that." He heard whooshing sigh of relief as Johnny let himself breathe again, the young gorilla's shoulders going slack as his body relaxed. Big Daddy smirked. "I told 'er about when ya' were lil'."

"You what!" Johnny's head snapped back up with panicked eyes on his father. His outburst gained him annoyed looks from the other visitors and the guards. His face reddening, he hissed into the phone. "Why did ja do that?"

"'Cause it made 'er happy. Ya' girlfriend 'as quite a pretty smile." Big Daddy was clearly unfazed by his son's tone, answering with a dopey grin.

"Dad, she's not my girlfriend." Johnny stated, still red-faced and incredibly embarrassed. His father just smirked with his chin in his hand. Johnny was about to say something else, but his father's knowing look shifted to be looking up and behind Johnny, then back at him. The teen's face fell when he realized. Slowly, he looked over his shoulder to find Meena waiting behind him.

"Um, Mr. Moon and I are all finish. I'm gonna go wait by the truck, okay?" Meena informed her friend while her eyes shifted downwards and her cheeks stubbornly stayed a little pink.

"Uh, yeah, sure, okay! See ya there!" Johnny babbled out while internally slapping himself.

A banging on the glass surprised both the teens and their attention was immediately drawn to Big Daddy. The large gorilla smiled brightly and cheerily wave good bye to Meena. The elephant couldn't help but give a shy smile back and wave little in return before turning and leaving the visiting area. Johnny shot his father a glare before looking back to watch Meena leave. Once she was gone, Johnny turned back and let his head fall against the unforgiving metal surface in front of him with a groan. If his father said anything, he didn't register it. His brain was too busy fretting about how he was suppose to face Meena when he left, let allow survive a whole car ride with her.

Finally, he heard Big Daddy's voice through the phone. "If it 'elps any, I think she likes ya'." Johnny didn't want to admit it, but hearing that did make him feel a little better.

A few minutes later, Johnny was exiting the prison and immediately spotted Meena by his truck. As soon as he was within talking distance with her, he started apologizing profusely for whatever his father was saying to Meena. She cut him and tried to calm him down. "Johnny, it okay! You're dad was really sweet." The elephant smoothed with smile. Johnny gave her a look that made it clear he had never heard someone describe his father as 'sweet' before. What stumped him even more was when Meena all but whispered. "I see where get it from." Johnny froze for half a second before he shook himself, finished pulling his keys out, and unlocked the truck. They piled in and drove off in silence, each in their own thoughts and not looking at the other.

After a bit, Johnny couldn't take the silence anymore and spoke up. "Sooo... wanna do me a favor 'n forget any stories he might've told ja about me?" He asked hopefully. He turned slightly to look at Meena and found her smirking a bit with her gaze set in front of her, not looking at him.

"Nope."

i like die the idea of Mr. Moon having to face consequences for the crimes he committed and i loved the idea of Big Daddy finding a way to embarrass Johnny. Let me know what you guys think!