Porsha was not used to any of this.
Ever since the New Moon Troop's return from Redshore, she'd been rooming with Ash in her own apartment. That was the first thing that caught her off guard. Ash was only a year older than her; nineteen years old, and she was living on her own, off of her own money. In all honesty, Porsha hadn't gotten to know Ash very well. In fact, she hadn't gotten to know any of the cast very well; save for Buster and Rosita. So she had been surprised whenever Ash offered up her space and her home for Porsha until she could get back on her feet. The she-wolf had been nervous to either accept or decline, unsure of how Ash really thought of her and the situation with her father. She figured the porcupine would want to stay as far away from her as possible, seeing that Jimmy, her own father, had been the one to nearly rip Ash's father out of existence. She eventually accepted, acutely aware of the fact that she had nowhere else to go.
Ash was doing her best to help Porsha, and the girl knew that. But it had been extremely difficult. Since she was a baby and her mother walked out on them, she had been coasting off her dad's success and wealth. She was never worried about money. Why should she have been? Sure, because of his success, Jimmy had never really been a present father. But he was all Porsha ever had. Suki was there sometimes, but the Saluki was always working as hard as she could; always traveling and trying to scout out any new talents. So, for the most part, Porsha was alone. But something happened the night everyone wanted her back for their show; the moment she entered the room and Buster Moon ran forward, enveloping her legs in the tightest hug she'd ever received. At first, she thought it was simply his relief, which it very well might have been. But there was something else, too. He had been genuinely happy to see her. They all had. And suddenly, Porsha wasn't alone anymore.
Still, the cast could only do so much to help, especially whenever they were all still reeling over the most recent tragedy that had befallen their boss and mentor. So, whenever Porsha was having no luck in finding a job, or rather, lacking the motivation to do so, Ash took her to Moon. They didn't break into the theatre as Ash had done that long while ago, but they still showed up after hours. Ash had insisted that Buster would still be there, and the she-wolf was genuinely surprised whenever he was; hunched over his laptop, covered in bandages and wearing the baggiest clothes he owned in order to hide them, with a steaming coffee by his side.
"Pops!" Ash had called, seemingly startling Buster out of his working state mid-sip of coffee. His eyes nearly popped out of his skull whenever he noticed a tall, lean wolf standing just beside his kid, and he slammed his coffee down, sputtering and coughing and grunting. "Ah, jeez," the porcupine had muttered guiltily as she rushed inside the showman's office. Porsha stood in the doorway awkwardly, unsure of what to do. She knew why Buster had been startled. She tried not to take it personally, but she knew. She continued to twiddle her thumbs as Ash helped Buster down from his chair, checking his bandages and talking him down from his panicked state.
"A-Ash..?" Buster had whimpered.
"Yeah, Buster, it's just me. And Porsha, see? You're alright."
Buster nodded, grabbing hold of Ash's arm as tightly as he could while the porcupine walked him to the couch in his office. While doing so, Ash had nodded for Porsha to enter the office. "He doesn't bite," she teased, and Buster had only rolled his eyes, sitting down on the couch and doing his best to collect his breathing. Porsha stepped inside, stuffing her hands in her pockets and attempting to look non-threatening.
"Heya, Mr. Moon," she said quietly. The koala looked up at her slowly, a warm smile enveloping her in a hug.
"H-hey, Porsha. Sorry 'bout that. I guess I've got the jitters, is all."
"Is it okay if we talk to you for a minute, Pops?" Ash asked, hopping up next to the showman. She patted the cushion next to her to gesticulate where Porsha should sit, and the she-wolf followed, swishing her tail out of the way as she sat next to Ash.
"Yeah, guys. Of course. What's troubling you?"
"Well, Porsha's been having some trouble."
"With... with someone? Or..."
"Job trouble," Porsha explained. "I don't... I don't know what I'm doing. Or what I'm looking for."
"Oh, kid," Buster started, concern making its way to his face. "That's alright, you know. I still have job trouble. That never goes away."
Porsha flinched a bit at Buster's supposed definition of 'job trouble'. That was mostly trouble that should never have to happen to a person. Ash nudged her gently, indicating for her to continue.
"I-I just... I've never had to work before. And I know how that sounds, so you don't have to say anything. I just... I really have no idea what I want to do for the rest of my life. I-I love performing, and if that's something that I can pursue, I'd love to. It's just..."
"Porsha," Moon said with a chuckle, "are you asking to become a member of the cast?"
The she-wolf looked over at the tired showman, her eyes wide and glistening with unshed tears. She didn't know why she agreed to do this. She shouldn't have; Ash shouldn't have helped her. Buster shouldn't have to help her. No one should. Suddenly, Buster curled over, clasping at his side and heaving a deep groan. Ash jumped from her position on the couch.
"Painkillers?" she asked, as if on instinct.
Buster nodded vigorously. "Y-yes, please... Gah, sorry, A-Ash..."
"I'm on it," the porcupine replied, sliding off the couch and rushing out of the room. "I'll be right back! Don't move, Pops."
The moment Ash left the room, Moon straightened his posture, letting out a sigh and chuckling to himself. Porsha was taken aback, looking him up and down carefully.
"A-are you okay?"
"Hm? Oh, yes. It was clear you needed a moment, though. I bought us about thirty seconds, heh."
Porsha snorted, caught off guard by the sound and by how easy it was to act like herself in front of the old showman. "You're a pretty good actor."
"Well, not all of it was acting. I'm certainly gonna need those painkillers. But, I appreciate it. That's what I went to school for, after all." He cleared his throat, pawing at the wrinkled in his baggy sweatshirt. "But, in regard to your other question, you're already part of the cast."
The she-wolf could feel her heart practically stop. "What?"
"You didn't even have to ask, kid. Heck, if I'd known that's what you'd been worried about for this past month, I would've reiterated sooner." He placed a paw over her own, patting it reassuringly. "You've been a part of this cast since our performance, Porsha. Everybody loves you. And, yeah, I know it's kind of weird right now. We aren't doing any shows, so money isn't flowing, but that's typically how it is. We have at least a full month of break time before we start working on a new project. I get why it's concerning, trust me. I haven't exactly come up easy, but that means I'm used to surviving with what I have. Not everyone is like that, though. So, kid, if you ever need money during one of these breaks, don't hesitate to come to me." He smiled again. "I'm not your... dad... but I can certainly help."
The girl could feel her heart swell up with warmth, and this time, it was her turn to give the koala the tightest hug she could muster without hurting him. "Thank you," she whispered and nearly started crying whenever Buster wrapped his arms around her, as well.
"You don't have to thank me, kid. Welcome to the family."
Now, Porsha was walking through the airport, cutting up and laughing along with the cast as Buster Moon lead them all to their exit. She'd never felt more at home in her life than when she became a member of the New Moon Troop. She and Nooshy, of all folks, had become extremely close, sharing their favorite songs with each other and laughing over dumb memes they sent each other every night. Porsha noticed the funny looks Johnny would give Nooshy, someone who had become one of his best friends, and how the lynx would glare at him or buzz him off whenever it became too much to bear. He'd always laugh it off, and go back to talking with Meena, but Porsha took notice of Nooshy's eye rolls and blushes. Porsha would sometimes blush, too.
Buster Moon hadn't been able to ignore the butterflies in his stomach, no matter how hard he tried. The moment they landed and departed from the plane, he had his eyes set on one person, and one person only. Miss Crawly had to help steady him whenever it was blatantly obvious he was walking too fast and started limping. Still, he didn't stop. He didn't think he could, though he didn't completely understand why he was as anxious to see her as he was.
And then they made it to the pick-up area, and Suki was right there, exactly where she'd promised she'd be, waiting for all of them. Moon locked eyes with the Saluki and smiled.
She smiled back.
