Redshore City Courthouse

9:50 A.M.

Trial of James Crystal

Day 2

The courthouse was just as busy as before, if not busier. The crowds gathered outside were getting rather anxious, everyone wanting the actual trial to get underway. And of course, Linda Le Bon was especially anxious to get the juicy details for her next segment. She had even interviewed a polar bear who had started a betting pool on whether or not Crystal would be found guilty. But, despite the humdrum of activity outside, the main courtroom was actually pleasantly mild.

Well, pleasant in terms of activity. But in terms of tension…

And Buster could feel it in every fiber of his little being. Even though he had pleaded guilty to more than half of the charges against, Charlie had confessed that that didn't mean Jack would still find a way to use it against them. In truth, Charlie was on a bit more of a high alert around Jack than he would have been, the sheer steadfast determination radiating from the donkey as he sat beside his client very much present. But, if Charlie played his cards right, the trial would be over before dinner…

With Crystal sent off to Prison.

"How you doing Rosita?" Charlie heard Buster whisper to the sci-fi star as she sat with the others, the mother of 25 still very much on edge from the threatening note she had received, her gaze ever present on her clasped hands, wishing her husband was there to offer her comfort. But, she knew it was better for him to stay at the hotel and watch over their children. She was, after all, more than content with Porsha and Miss Crawley offering her that comfort instead.

"I-I'm fine," Rosita stammered, the mother waving everyone away as they looked at her with great concern.

"I-I called the police, gave them the note and told them to get it Charlie. They even offered to have the hotel watched for our protection."

"Was there anything on security cameras?" Clay inquired in his gruff voice.

"Hotel security said they caught something," Suki added in, "but the person's face was covered by a hoodie. The only thing we could gather is that they were feline because you could see their tail."

"That reminds me," Buster said, "where's Jerry?"

It was at that moment the other's realized that Buster was right. Crystal's ever loyal cat secretary was nowhere to be seen. Not the day before and not now. In fact, when the news came from hotel security that the person of interest in the letter incident was feline, they had assumed it might have been Jerry. However, it didn't add up as security said that the hooded figure had a tall, lean frame, a far cry from Jerry's short, portly stature.

"I don't know," Suki responded, tapping a pencil against her chin in thought.

"He had been issued a subpoena, and was supposed to report an hour before the official start of today's proceedings."

"Probably squared out of wits to testify," Nooshy joked, the lynx leaning forward and resting her chin on her arms, which were casually draped over the wooden barrier separator them from the gallery and the main floor.

"More than likely," Charlie added in, his thoughtful gaze forward, bushy eyebrows furrowed in contemplation as he though over what Nooshy had said.

"Jerry has never been very strong when it comes to confrontation. If Jack called him as a witness, he would definitely fold under cross-examination. Jerry, upon learning I was the prosecuting attorney, would probably have realized this."

"So, Jerry risks going to jail because he's afraid of you?" Johnny inquired, somewhat incredulously.

"Kind of, like, raising yourself on that pedestal, Ja?" Gunter added in, his face a mixture of confusion and amusement, the question itself causing Charlie to chuckle at this observation.

"Well," he said, turning his attention to the others, "a little bit. But, then again, we don't know the whole story. I'm willing to give Jerry the benefit of the doubt and say he's running VERY late."

"ALL RISE!"

The sudden intrusion of the bailiffs booming voice causing the group to jump a little bit. But, once the initial shock had worn off, the prosecution and the defense, as well as the gallery and jury, did as instructed. And as Judge Prides made his way into the courtroom, this time backed by a slim, brown-furred female gazelle, who Charlie and Jack recognized as his court recorder, Buster couldn't be sure, but the tension seemed to grow exponentially.

"Be seated," Prides called as he took his seat, everyone else, save for Charlie and Jack, did so. And once everything had settled, prides, after placing his glasses on his face, turned to the congregated jury.

"Jury you have heard opening arguments," he began, "now we will hear both sides of the alleged incident from Mr. Crystal and Mr. Moon. Upon conclusion of each testimony, both Mr. Lane and Mr. Burro will conduct a cross-examination if they see fit. Once testimony and cross-examinations are complete, both parties may call forward witnesses, be they actual witnesses to the alleged crimes or character witnesses. With that said, in terms of testimony, we will here from the defense. Mr. Crystal…"

Crystal himself, upon having his name called, let a smug smirk form on his muzzle as he looked at Prides, the lion sporting a less-than-amused frown.

"Would you please take the stand."

As Crystal stood and made his way towards the witness stand, he took one last chance to shoot the defense one last, defiant smirk before taking seat in the booth to Pride's left. At that moment, the bailiff stepped forward, a bible in his hands.

"Please stand, place your left hand on the bible and raise your right."

Doing as he was told, Crystal, with a straight a face as possible, placed his left hand on the good book while rising his other, his actions mirrored by the bailiff.

"Do you, James Crystal, swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"I do," Crystal responded with great civility, civility that Suki and Buster recognized as being very fake but could not quote on it. However, this did not quell Charlie's sense of humor as he leaned over to Buster and Suki before whispering so only they could here.

"I half expected him to burst into flames when he put the first claw on the bible."

This did cause both koala and female saluki to crack a smirk and release a small guffaw or giggle. However, that little moment of levity vanished once Crystal had finished swearing his oath, the wolf taking a seat as the bailiff placed the bible at the edge of the witness stand.

"Mr. Crystal," the bailiff began, "in your own words, could you please describe to the court the events leading up to your arrest?"

"Certainly," Crystal responded with huge grin, the expression itself actually causing Suki to roll her eyes.

For the most part, Crystal's testimony would have been very similar to Buster's. He talked about how Buster and his crew had come to Redshore to audition for him. He had rejected them when they had initially pitched their rendition of "Alice in wonderland" but was intrigued by Gunter's idea for a space-themed musical staring Clay Calloway. Everything past that point went exactly as Buster and the other's remembered.

But it was when Crystal got to the part of when Buster was first called to his office that his so-called "memory" of events started to change.

"I had called Mr. Moon to my office to discuss a very important update in the show's production. My team had recently been in contact with Mr. Calloway's lawyer…"

At that moment, Crystal's smile, while still maintaining that faux civility, turned a bit more ominous. And needless to say, it did not sit well with Charlie, as he realized before the words left his mouth, what Jack Burro had planned for his case.

"One Charles Lane…"

And seeing as how Clay was siding with him, Charlie, upon trading a concerned glance with Clay, knew that Jack had already scored a point.

"He said that Mr. Calloway had never heard of Moon, or his little show."

And what was said next filled Buster with great disgust.

"Now, I am a reasonable man. So, I gave Mr. Moon an ultimatum. Either get Mr. Calloway by the end of the week, or he's and his little show are out."

And with that disgust…

Came distress, the twisting of events that lead to him discovering the cold, cruel nature that was THE Jimmy Crystal. And at that very moment, as Buster watched the otherwise immoral, rageful wolf calmly and collectedly recount that meeting with unrepentant grace and civility, the memory of what did happen seemed in the stage that was reality to sweep it's way from upstage as it began twirling and Grande jetéing until it was front and center in front of koala huddled in on himself in the seat that felt like an iron maiden rather than a cushioned chair.

"And a week later, what does he do to show his gratitude? Fires my daughter, my Sweet Little Porsha."

It was at that Buster found himself pulled from his thoughts, his hitched breaths and rapid breathing a clear sign to him that he seemed to suffer some sort of panic attack. But that could wait, for the moment he laid eyes on Porsha, he knew from her pained expression, her eyes misting and her bottom lip quivering, that teen must have felt sick to her stomach. Here he was, her father, Jimmy Crystal, the man who had called her a talentless loser, talking about her as if she were his pride and joy, his face now contorted into what could only be assumed to be fatherly anguish.

"Porsha," he whispered, only for his call to fall on deaf ears as Porsha looked to the ground, her ears pinned to her head as she looked like a lost pup. And at that moment, Buster could hear silent murmuring from the jury. There they were, looking at Porsha with great pity, her current position making it appear as Crystal was speaking the truth. And it must have been the case as some began to look at Buster with a damning scowl.

If only they.

They will know, Buster thought to himself.

"And I'm sure," Crystal continued, his face still scrunched up in false sorrow, "without a doubt, that he promised my darling little angel, in her heartbroken state, that if she helped him put on his show, then she would become a star. But in reality, he was only using her because he thought it would gain my forgiveness. And when I tried to shut down this illegal performance, what does this tiny monster do? Sends his goons to attack me and my security and locks me beneath the stage like a savage beast until the police showed up, CALLED BY THE ONE WOMAN I THOUGHT WAS MY FRIEND! MY LOYAL TALENT SCOUT, SUKI LANE!"

And icing to the cake, big wet, CROCODILLIAN tears fell from Crystal's eyes, his sobs clearly not phasing the prosecution, Charlie just sitting with a neutral expression and Suki rolling her eyes at her former employers over-dramatics. But, as Buster observed the two salukis, and for that matter, his troupe, displaying such little emotion did not help their appearance as the jury looked upon these apparently "unrepentant perpetrators," with great contempt.

"I AM NOT THE VILLAIN HEAR!" Crystal wailed, reaching out to the jury as if he were a pup begging his mother for a comforting embrace. And needless to say, Charlie was quite impressed with how easily Crystal was able to sway the jury, some of the female members fishing out tissues and hankies to dry their misting eyes. Thankfully, the troupe wasn't the only who could see through the facade.

Prides looked at him with great scrutiny, like a scientist looking at a flu sample under a microscope, not out of total disbelief, but because the lion had heard such stories of woe for twenty years.

"That…" Crystal whimpered, the wolf dramatically pulling his handkerchief from his breast pocket to wipe his tears, "is all I have to say about that."

"Yes," Prides finally said, the same scrutiny on his face that was present before still there, "well, thank you, Mr. Crystal…you may step down."

With that, Jimmy did as he was told. In summation, despite seeming like an hour to Buster, Crystal's testimony, in reality, had been two minutes. And needless to say, given the jury's reaction, it would seem that his "great performance" had definitely started to sway him to his side. But, Buster was sure to hopefully rectify that.

"Mr. Moon," Prides called, pulling Buster's attention from the scowling jury, "please take the stand."

"Y-yes, Your Honor," Buster meekly responded, his own timid demeanor making it seem as though Crystal had hit the ball to close to home. But, as he got down from his chair, making his way around Charlie, Buster felt some of his worry melt away as he passed Porsha, the teen, despite the pain in her eyes, sending him a comforting, encouraging smile. Unfortunately, that comfort vanished the moment he saw that smug smirk on Crystal's face.

And Jack…well his more neutral. Buster couldn't quite get a read on him…

Neither could Charlie.

What are you thinking, Jackie Boy? The saluki lawyer thought to himself as Buster made his way past the judging eyes of the jury, the koala actually having to rely on the use of two law books so that he could see over the edge of the witness booth. And, as he had done before, the bailiff presented the bible to the koala, his right hand up as the left hand rested on the holy book.

"Do you, Buster Moon, swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"I do."

"Mr. Moon, in your own words, could you please describe to the court your view of events leading up to Mr. Crystal's arrest?"

"Well," Buster began timidly, a sheepish smile on his face as he began, "as you could possibly imagine, I was very thrilled to have the opportunity to work under THE Jimmy Crystal. When he agreed to do our show, he had given us three weeks to get it going. A bit tight, but it was doable. He had escorted to the roof of the tower where he was getting ready to depart on his helicopter. But before he did, he looked at me and told me not to do anything to make him look bad. I had said I would never let that happen. And then he told me, with now that I look back on it, an eerily straight face, that I better not, or he'd throw you off the roof."

This earned a round of chuckles from the jury at the absurdness of his statement, which was somewhat what Buster wanted. And out of the corner of his eye, Buster could see Jack and Crystal chuckle as well. But he knew it was to make it seem that THEY found the "absurdness" humorous too.

"Yeah," he continued with a good-natured chuckle, "I laughed too. But my first inclination that I had bitten off more than I could chew was, uh…"

Buster stalled for a moment, his gaze landing on Suki. Realizing what the koala was getting at, Suki, after offering a moment of hesitation, nodded.

"When Suki Lane had told me I had no idea what I was getting myself into."

This resulted in a hushed murmur as the jury's attention now turned to the very stiff Suki.

"NOW!" Buster immediately added, desperate to keep the jury's attention of off Suki, "had I know what was to come, I would have obeyed my first instinct and gotten us out. Now, the first, and I think, only time Mr. Crystal came to set was a few days later, when we were getting started on set designs. He came, along with Suki, Jerry Stilwell, and Porsha. He explained that he brought Porsha because she was a fan of Mr. Calloway and wanted to meet him."

This little tidbit caused Clay to look to the opposite end of the pew, Porsha doing the same as she offered a sheepish wave, one which was returned with caring smile.

"Well, around that time, I was summoned to one of our high rise platforms by our stunt coordinator Sasha because Rosita seemed to have developed, to my surprise and the surprise of our group, a sudden case of acrophobia…uh, fear of heights."

This was said to the jury, each with a visible look of confusion at the "fancy" word Buster had just used, each offering a silent "oh" or "ah" in response.

"Porsha had actually followed me up and after a little, for a lack of a better word, argument, had hooked herself up to the harness. I'm not gonna lie, the kid is a natural acrobat, talking about how she had seen that very situation in a dream she had the night before."

This earned another chuckle from the jury. The troupe even laughed, including Porsha herself. Unfortunately for her, she knew what came next as her smile faltered into a frown laced with, as some might see, shame.

"Anyway, after we had gotten back to the ground floor, Porsha…well, uh…"

At that moment, Buster sent an almost sad look to Porsha, the wolf, ears pinned to her head, offered a sad smile and nod.

"She said she understood what her dream meant, that Rosita was afraid and wouldn't be able to do the part. That she was young and wasn't afraid of anything. Now, I was about to explain to Porsha that the part had been specifically written for Rosita…but Mr. Crystal stopped me and asked me to walk with him."

At that point, Buster glanced out of the corner of his eye, Crystal's smile turning into a deep frown almost instantly. And despite the fear that started to grow in him, the koala knew he had to keep going. However, Charlie began to grow nervous, not about Crystal, or Jack for that matter, but Buster as the diminutive showman's breath seemed to be getting quicker.

"We were walking on one of the sets, and had asked me, well," he continued, pausing briefly to let out a light chuckle, "if I had a kink in my think. I was going to explain to him what I was going to explain to Porsha, but he told me that what I had was an opportunity to make him happy."

Buster took in a gulp of air before continuing.

"And when an opportunity like that happens…I need to grab. He meant GRAB IT because he grabbed my collar and hoisted me up to his face. I hesitated when he asked if I understood, and he accused me of thinking that Porsha wasn't good enough for his show, and he said this while picking his teeth with his claws. Now if that isn't a silent threat, I don't know what is."

Buster paused for a minute, his eyes landing on the edge of the witness booth, the koala unaware that a few of the glares in jury box were now longer on him, but Crystal, the disgraced mogul actually squirming a bit in his seat at the harsh glares. The remaining jury, while not entirely judging Buster anymore, still maintained a look that conveyed they were now divided, all thanks to Buster's testimony so far.

"Anyway, a few days later, Suki had told me that Mr. Crystal wanted to see me. And it started pretty much the way Mr. Crystal had described it. His team had gotten in touch with Mr. Calloway's lawyer, Mr. Lane. But…"

Buster hesitated one again, the marsupial taking a deep breath to steel himself before he continued.

"He was not 'reasonable.' He went into this rage, told me I had lied to him. He was practically screaming in face. I tried to explain that I thought I could get Mr. Calloway in the show. He just shoved everything off his desk, baring his teeth, snarling."

Buster's voice started to become more quiet, his eyes going wide with fear as his mind told him he was no longer in a courtroom, but back in that office, staring down the muzzle a snarling wolf. And needless to say, his friends did not like what they saw. Even Charlie could see that Buster was on the verge of a panic attack. And to his relief, even Jack seemed to be a bit concerned for the koala rather than his frowning client, though his face didn't show it.

"There was no ultimatum. He had told that if I didn't have Porsha in the show, I would have been out his window by that point. He did give me a week, but if I didn't deliver, well, I got a pretty good when word got out that I had reportedly fired Porsha. Now, I want to clear something up before I continue. I didn't fire Porsha. It was a misunderstanding. I gave her the opportunity to switch rolls with Rosita. Well, she told her father different."

A pause. Buster didn't want Porsha to know what her actions nearly caused, but knew it was the only way to ensure a chance that Crystal would be locked up.

"I tried to explain to Mr. Crystal, but he wouldn't listen. H-he grabbed me…w-walked out onto his balcony…"

Buster at that this point was beginning to hyperventilate, his ears back and eyes clenched shut as he was forced to relive that dreadful moment.

"Held me over…"

Buster at this point was holding back a sob. At that moment, Buster's friends felt their hearts break for him. Even Clay felt a sense of sympathy for what this koala went through to make his show a reality. And now here he was, reliving this pain in a way Charlie recognized all to well.

"Buster," he called in a sort of loud whisper, the lawyer overjoyed to find that was all it took for the koala to look his way. And, without a word, Charlie began breathing calmly through his nose, and out through his mouth, over and over until Buster began to mimic it. For several minutes, the courtroom was filled with intense silence, all except for the sound of Buster's breathing.

"I'm sorry," he finally said after a half a minute.

"It's alright, Mr. Moon," Prides responded, his expression still neutral, but his voice soft.

"Take as much time as you need."

"Anyway," Buster continued, his breathing still uneven but his voice steady and firm, "he said I made him look bad…and he had to 'let me go.' Luckily, I grabbed onto his arm. That's when Jerry showed up, said that Mr. Crystal had an interview with Linda Le Bon and that they would have to 'put a pin in it.' He threw me in his closet and said he would 'finish the job later.' I would have been dead if Suki hadn't let me out."

It was at that moment buster sent the female saluki and appreciative smile and nod, the talent scout sending Buster a bittersweet smile in return.

"She told me to leave and never come back. She said that when Mr. Crystal found me gone then he would send his thugs after me. I had gathered everyone to leave, but then we saw Mr. Crystal's interview with Le Bon. The things he said."

Buster paused for another moment, the fear and sorrow in face morphing into something else, something his friends easily recognized.

And it made them feel warm on the inside.

"We were going to prove him wrong. Yes, I got everyone together to put the show on. And if memory serves, people were raving about it after. It still doesn't' excuse that we went behind Mr. Crystals back, but I was determined that our hard work did not go to waste. And knowing that once Mr. Crystal found out what we were doing he would come for us, which is why I sent for Johnny's dad."

Johnny tensed at this, but seemed to calm down as Nooshy, never once taking her attention away from Buster, gave his hand a comforting squeeze.

"But," Buster continued, his face now becoming firm, the koala once again taking a deep breath to steel his nerves, "that didn't stop him. He got through, grabbed me, and took me to the top of the support frames. He called me a lowlife little loser."

And with each word coming from the now defiant koala's mouth, some of the holdouts in the jury were being swayed to his side now, though not entirely.

"I told him," Buster continued, "that I was not a loser. We had accomplished what we had set out to do. And there was nothing he could say or do to change that…"

Another pause before the big reveal.

"He said he could do whatever he wanted…and I couldn't catch his arm this time."

The room was deadly silent for a few moments before Buster, his face still contorted in pain as he relived that terrifying moment, that moment of weightlessness as he plummeted to his certain.

"But," he finally said, a warm smile on his face as he looked to the star of his show, "Rosita saved me."

And it was then that Buster's expression took a sour tone as he turned his attention to Crystal, who, despite the amount of power he still had over Buster, couldn't help but shrink a little under the koala's indignant glare.

"But, the worst thing out of ALL OF THAT…was Mr. Crystal attempting to take credit for all of our hard work, expecting me to call us even. And well, you all know what happened next."

The room was silent.

Not a single person spoke, moved, or even breathed.

You could hear a pin drop…or rather Charlie's cane.

The sound of the brass eagle hitting the floor caused a startled shriek to escape Miss Crawley's lips, resulting in a few other similar reactions around her, even Charlie and Suki. The only two seemingly not phased…

The wolf and koala staring daggers at each other from across the room.

And after a full minute, Prides broke the silence.

"Thank you, Mr. Moon," he said, his voice now matching his face in terms of neutrality, the lion looking to Jack, the donkey, having regained some of his composure after listening to Buster's testimony, taking the stare from the larger feline as a silent invitation to stand. And with what Prides said next, Buster, as well as Charlie, were certain, that at that moment…

"Your witness, Mr. Burro."

…That they began to sweat.

Special Thanks in Advance to Ahdoss for some wonderful ideas that will be used in the next chapter.