"Maybe one day I'll fall in a bookstore
And land in the arms of a guy
We'll sneak into bars
And gaze at the stars
Surrounded by fireflies"
The weeks that followed were some of the best of Suki Lane's life. The harsh winter winds that had encased the globe were finally subsiding, leaving room for flowers to start blooming and the world to start buzzing with liveliness once more. She'd started working for The Majestic Palace Theatre officially the day after they first arrived, and had even taken to explaining to Si and his employees that Buster Moon was still experiencing constant fatigue, and anxiety, and was prone to flashbacks. The koala would've hated to know that Suki expressed her worries to her new employers, but Si took it with massive amounts of understanding and patience.
"Remind Moon of one thing for me, Suki, if you can remember," he'd said.
"Yes, sir?"
"We are here for him and his cast. He's in charge as long as his show is up and running, so if he ever needs anything, you tell him to come to us. No matter what. And let him know he can take as much time as he needs. We saw the whole scandal with Jimmy Crystal on the news, and we saw what he did to Mr. Moon. Can you make sure he knows that?"
Suki had smiled, accepting his gracious request. "Of course, sir."
"Si. You can call me Si, dear."
"Oh, I'd like to sleep in 'til two on a Sunday
And listen to the bluebirds sigh
Get soaked in the rain
And smile through the pain
Slow dance under stormy skies"
The New Moon Troop had taken notice of Buster and Suki's sudden closeness, and Gunter continued to tease the koala about it, and one particular day when this was happening on set Suki walked up, bent down, and placed a kiss right on Moon's cheek. The showman had blushed and laughed it off, rubbing the area she'd shown her affection, while the cast watched on in absolute amazement. Gunter had practically squealed while everyone else congratulated him, telling him how great it was that they'd gotten together. Johnny had joked about something happening with the entire crew, considering that somewhere along the way, Porsha and Nooshy had announced their relationship budding into prosperity. Everyone had laughed at that, even Nooshy, who initially swatted him on the arm and gave him a playful glare.
"Maybe I'm just old-fashioned
Read too many fairytales
It's no wonder I've had no luck
No one's ever good enough
I want a love like I've seen in the movies
That's why I'll never fall in love"
All the while, Moon still struggled. He wasn't dealing with as much physical pain as he had been, which was a good sign, though he dealt with the same overstimulation and anxiety and turbulent mental trauma that one could expect after going through something so heinous. So, the cast stayed patient and offered their support whenever necessary. Buster, at first, would wave off their frets, letting them know he was okay. At least, he was getting better. But after a particularly bad day, Suki found him and his cast huddled in his office, all of them wrapping their mentor and boss into a tight, secure hug, and him finally accepting it. Ash and Suki had grown much closer, as well. It was clear the young porcupine was still extremely protective of her adoptive father, and held a sort of reinvigorated resentment towards Suki, considering she was the one who'd told them they weren't good enough in the first place. Suki had to deal with that for a few days at most, however, because Ash was finally beginning to come around. Either Buster had talked with the young woman about it after noticing small bouts of her discomfort, or she'd finally realized just how happy her dad would act around the Saluki, and how safe the scout made him feel.
It took the entire rest of the month before their first show before Buster Moon and Simon Oaks began to have a relatively normal working relationship. Slowly but surely, Moon was reintegrating himself into the showbiz life he'd grown to love, and that meant he was gaining small amounts of his confidence back. He'd finally believed, or at least convinced himself to believe, that he was in no danger, and that Si was someone he could genuinely trust. It did help tremendously that Si was a patient man on his own, and would oftentimes geek out with Moon over an added set, or a new idea being brought to the table. At The Majestic, Moon was really able to stretch his creative potential, and he did so to the fullest. Even after Clay Calloway showed up, Si would treat everyone the same as he had before. No fake bravado or increased importance. In fact, he really turned into a hardcore fan the moment Clay got out of his taxi, and Simon was the first one who greeted him at the front doors. Everything was starting to turn around, and even though it had taken almost three months for Moon to find relative normalcy again, to Suki, and to his family, that time was all worth it.
They were starting to see their mentor again. Their boss. Their big brother. Their father. He was coming back from that terrible place he'd been, and even though he wasn't one hundred percent, as he wished he was, he wasn't far off from getting there. Every night, after rehearsal, he and Suki would either meet up in his or her room, brewing some tea and listening to calming jazz. Especially on days whenever Moon couldn't stop shaking, those nights would be conducive. And then they'd curl up either in bed or in an armchair and sleep peacefully until morning hit once again. It was the best rest Moon could remember getting in a long time, even before everything happened at the Crystal Tower Theatre.
A few hours before their very first showing at The Majestic, Nana Noodleman had shown up. Buster had alerted Suki to this, but the scout was still wholly shocked whenever she saw the old performer stepping out of her fancy car, gazing upon the theatre and the poster out front in shock and pride. But whenever she saw Buster, hands on his hips and giving her a firm nod as if to say, "You were right, Nana. I did it," that was when her eyes really glistened with fulfillment. Suki was nearly blown away whenever he introduced her to Miss Noodleman as his significant other, and how the old sheep looked her up and down before smiling warmly and moving forward to embrace her.
"You sure do know how to find the good ones, Mr. Moon," the old performer had charmed, kissing the Saluki on both cheeks. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you."
Only minutes before the show started, and Moon had given massive hugs to his entire cast, he escorted Suki up to be of the plethora of booths on the very highest point of the theatre. It was nerve-wracking for him, of course, considering his newfound fear of heights had worsened past the point of no return, but he kept his charming smile going until they made it to the doors, where he pulled out a wonderful bouquet of white lilies, handing them to the Saluki and thanking her for everything.
"Buster, you shouldn't have..." she breathed, staring down at the sentiment in shock and gratitude.
"Suki, you deserve more than I could ever give you," the showman had assured her, kissing her hand before intertwining it in his own. "Now, would you mind joining me for the show?"
"Of course, Buster."
"Excellent, because I'm really not trying to have a panic attack up here."
Suki laughed, bending down to kiss him before squeezing his hand in hers and pushing the doors open. As they got settled and the lights dimmed, Buster watched on, tears in his eyes, as the show began, and he was able to witness his cast in all of their glory for the first time again in months. Suki had never expected to fall in love with anyone. It was never in the cards for her. But now? Now, things were different. And she was okay with that. They were difficult and upsetting, and sometimes she wanted to travel back to Redshore just to find Crystal in whatever miserable cell they had him locked up him and clock him in the snout. She knew that would do no good for Buster, though. Her being present and there for him was what he needed, and lucky for both of them, the Saluki had nothing but time and patience. And, perhaps, whenever she truly considered the feelings in her heart, there was some real love blooming. She could only hope that Buster had enough love left in his heart for her, too.
Because she didn't think she could survive without him.
"Oh, maybe I'm just old-fashioned
Read too many fairytales
It's no wonder I've had no luck
No one's ever good enough
I want a love like I've seen in the movies
That's why I'll never fall in love"
