"Alright... let's try this one more time..." Nancy's sweet tone couldn't completely conceal her fatigue, the small mouse lounging back on top of Johnny's piano while Audrey went back to her starting position. "Now, let's take it from the top. And... cue the music!"

Johnny nodded, then began playing the intro to the song. Audrey took a deep breath as she tried to steady her hands, still holding the sheet with the lyrics on it, before she stepped forward and began singing.

Don't know why
I'm surviving every lonely day

When there's got to be
No chance for me

"You gotta project, sweetie!" Nancy spoke up while Audrey continued, the young gorilla's voice straining slightly as she tried to sing louder.

And it doesn't matter how I cry
My tears, so far, are a waste of time

If I turn away
Go crazy is what -

"No no, cut!" Nancy interrupted with a mild groan, prompting Johnny to stop playing as Audrey straightened up. "Audrey, sweetie, you missed a whole line then!"

"I did...?" Audrey clicked her tongue as she looked back at the sheet. "Which one did I miss...?"

"Its supposed to go... Am I strong enough to see it through, and then Go crazy is what I will do..." Nancy explained, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Right..." Audrey let out a frustrated sigh. "By the way, do we really need the piano? It's really throwing me off the timing..."

"Wait, what...? But I always play the piano..." Johnny objected. "Y'know, it... it's my thing here."

"Well yeah, but I don't think there even is a piano on this song..." Audrey's tone had a slight whine to it. "There definitely wasn't when Mum sang it..."

"Trust me, mate, you can do any song on a piano."

"Okay okay okay, let's just reset... again." Nancy seemed far less enthusiastic now, the strain of the constant retakes finally getting to her, but she brightened up a bit when Mike entered the room.

"Moon's not back yet, baby, so I gotta head over to to the Wharf and see the wolf kid do her stunt. Ya comin' with?"

"Oh yeah, sure! Hey, you two won't mind if we come back to this same time tomorrow, do you?" Nancy turned back to Johnny, only just noticing that Audrey had already grabbed her coat and bolted out of the room. "Hmm... I guess not, then..."

Johnny watched where Audrey had gone, and let out a small sigh. "Not really a friendly type, is she?"

"Nah, that girl's used to a more sophisticated crowd..." Mike said as Nancy hopped down and linked arms with him. "Caleb says she's pretty artsy. Even went to some kinda special talent school when she was a kid."

"Really?" Johnny was slightly more curious. "What, y'mean like a music school or something...?"

"Probably..." Mike let out a smug chuckle as he adjusted the cuffs on his sleeves. "Course, I oughta know a thing or two about that. Cause y'know, I studied at -"

"You studied at the Lincoln School Of Music." Johnny cut him off, rolling his eyes. "Yeah, Mike, you've told us. Repeatedly."

Mike was slightly miffed by Johnny's blunt interruption, so he couldn't resist having the final word as he and Nancy left the room. "Point is, kid, you're basically a peasant as far as she's concerned. And ya can't exactly expect the daughter of Florence Fletcher to be lowering herself."

"Yeah..." Johnny sighed. "I suppose not..."

It was a cooler day, but still bright enough, on the Calatonia Wharf as the building crew continued constructing the various sets. The structure for Porsha's stunt had already been mostly completed, the top of the diving platform reaching just short of seventy-five feet high, though the others were more focused on the massive pool at the bottom of the set.

"Whoa-ho, check it out!" Ash was the first to speak as everyone stood on the edge looking at the crystal-clear water. "Man, if Moon and Fletcher let us, we should totally play some volleyball in this thing!"

"Oh yeah, totally..." Meena laughed, before her eyes went wide as she heard a familiar, slightly deep but still soft voice about a hundred yards behind her.

"Meena! Hey, Meena!"

"Alfonso...?! Oh my gosh, baby, I can't believe you're here!" Meena was nearly shrieking with joy as she ran into her boyfriend's arms, letting Alfonso lift her slightly off the ground and spin on the spot. "I thought you said you weren't coming until Saturday!"

"Yeah, the guys said they'd hold down the shop for a couple extra days." Alfonso gently kissed her on the lips. "Big finale, huh?"

Meena giggled, still struggling to contain her excitement. "Yeah... and Mr. Clark says if I impress Ms. Fletcher, she could get me a record deal!"

"Sounds like you're really going up in the world, Your Majesty."

Meena couldn't resist blushing whenever Alfonso used her favourite nickname, not helped by the resounding "Aw..." she got from her cast-mates as they watched.

"Hmm... I'm really glad you're here, Alfonso..." She said warmly as she pulled him into a hug, the couple staying in this embrace for the better part of a minute while the others went back to talking amongst themselves.

Johnny noticed Ash looking over at Audrey and Tim, who were both sitting on a small bench eating ice creams that Becky had got them. Their conversation was inaudible, but it was clear from her expressions and body language that Audrey wasn't happy about something, though she did brighten up a bit when some of Tim's ice cream got on his nose.

Becky seemed proud of her work as she nodded confidently, then left the pair to their ice creams as she ran back over to Ash and Johnny. "Well... that oughta keep those two occupied."

"Ice cream, huh...?" Ash chuckled. "Works every time."

"Hmm... y'know, that's probably the first time I've seen her smile since she got here..." Johnny scoffed, though he forced a grin onto his face as Becky looked over to him.

"Y'know, Johnny, I've actually been meaning to talk to you about that..." Becky seemed genuinely concerned. "Audrey's, um... she's not too been much to handle, has she...? I only just found out Caleb didn't tell you about her yet, so I'm really sorry if it feels like -"

"Oh no no, Becky, it... it's been alright." Johnny shrugged, putting his hands in his pockets. "A bit awkward, maybe, but Mike told me everything about her school and stuff, so... yeah, I know what I'm dealing with."

"He did...? Oh, good." Becky sounded slightly surprised, but seemed more at ease. "We didn't wanna overwhelm you or anything, but as long as you're okay with it, I guess that -"

"Alright, ya roustabouts, let's move it!" Mike's voice echoed through the tiny megaphone he was holding, prompting a few annoyed groans from the already hard-working set crew. "Hey wolfy, why aren't ya at first position yet...?!"

"Right, sorry!" Porsha quickly removed her jacket as she ran over to the platform lift, sending a friendly smile to Sasha as the cheetah opened the barrier to let her in.

"Knock 'em dead, sunshine!" Rosita called encouragingly as the young wolf went up. The mother pig's face lit up even more as she saw Suki's moped pulling up at the entrance to the Wharf, and she quickly ran over to greet her and Buster. "Oh hey, you guys are just in time to see her!"

"Huh...?" Buster was slightly taken off-guard by her words, seeming to be in a world of his own, but after a brief moment he snapped back to reality and regained his usual giddiness. "Oh yes, of course. Yeah, that's really great, Rosita. Come on!"

As they headed over to join the others at the foot of the structure, Suki glanced to her left to spot Caleb speaking to two servals. The couple, a male and female, seemed to be a few years younger than him, though the caracal was clearly familiar with them since he was laughing and smiling, a far cry from the quiet and reserved individual that he had seemed to be in their previous meetings.

Caleb's face straightened when he looked over noticed her watching him, and - after excusing himself from his old friends - he quickly rushed over while straightening his shirt. "Um, Excuse me! Mr. Moon, Miss Lane!"

"Ah, Caleb! Good to see you!" Buster said.

This distraction only just prevented Suki from seeing the bottom of the structure that the cast were now crowding in front of, but she was still more focused on the two caracals that were still sat chatting about fifty yards away. "Friends of yours, Mr. Clark...?"

"Hmm? Oh yeah, um... that's just Jane and Gerald. Used to be my old assistants. Actually, that reminds me..." Caleb suddenly looked over to the bench at the other side of the Wharf, calling to the younger serval who was finishing his ice cream. "Hey Tim, your Mum and Dad are here!"

Nooshy was already gathered with the others at the edge of the pool, but she just caught Caleb saying this and turned to see for herself. She nearly burst into laughter at the look of embarrassment dread forming on Tim's face as the serval shuffled past them all to greet his parents, his mother instantly trapping him in a tight, smothering embrace.

Caleb gave a small smile at this, then turned back to Buster and Suki. "Anyway, while you're both here, I was really hoping to talk to the pair of you about the sets..."

"Yes, they're lovely, aren't they...?" Buster chuckled, not really listening as he continued heading off. "We'll put a rain check on that talk, Caleb, we just gotta rehearse right now!"

"Yeah, but... but Mr. Moon, I really... ugh..." Caleb's quiet but frustrated groan prompted Suki to hold back, the saluki now being much more curious to hear what he had to say. "Oh, good, at least someone's listening... I just have a few urgent issues about the budget allocations..."

Audrey finished the last bit of her ice cream as she quietly made her way over to the group, still keeping her distance from the others, while Buster shuffled forwards to the front. The little koala looked upwards with a proud smile, squinting slightly to see Porsha being fitted with her harness. "Looking good up there, kiddo!"

"Thanks, Uncle Buster!" Porsha called back, before quickly shuffling over to her starting position.

Buster quickly glanced over to Tim as the serval finally pried himself from his mother's grip and returned to his already set-up mixing desk. "All ready over here, Mr. Moon!"

"Great! Thank you, Tim!" Buster took a deep breath as he looked back up, waiting for another anxious moment or two. "Alright, and... playback!"

Porsha turned her back away from the diving platform as the music began, swaying her hips and bopping her head along to the up-tempo club track. Unlike her past endeavours with high jumps, she was making an effort not to look down at what awaited her below, but she remained confident enough as she turned around in-sync with the building music.

In the last few seconds leading to the chorus, Porsha finally ran to the very edge of the platform and leapt off, her beautiful voice echoing as she gracefully glided through the air.

And oh!
I'm alive, I'm alive, I'm alive

And oh!
I can fly, I can fly, I can fly

Suki was only barely paying attention to Porsha's impressive aerial tricks, occasionally glancing over to her honourary niece while she listened to Caleb's concerns.

"All the years we've run this festival, we've always saved a chunk of the budget for security measures, and Mike's just spending it on these useless embellishments!" Caleb continued ranting, listing the various issues on his fingers. "There's no extra supports, no safety catches, even the wires are nowhere near our usual standard. I mean, Porsha's lucky she's got the pool, but in any other -"

"POOL...?!" Suki suddenly cut him off, grabbing Caleb by the shoulders and looking him right in the eye. "What pool...?!"

And I'm loving every second, minute, hour
Bigger, better, stronger -

SNAP!

Porsha stopped singing when she realised the cord on her harness had just come loose. Wide-eyed, the wolf swivelled around to latch both hands onto the cable, only for it to slip right through her grip.

"HOLY SHAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH-!"

"PORSHA...!" Everyone ran to the edge as she plummeted down, landing in the pool with a violent splash and disappearing beneath the surface.

Suki pushed and shoved her way to the front, her eyes bulging to their widest point as she reached the railing. "Somebody get her outta there right now!"

"Anybody see her...?!" Ash climbed up to the railing and looked down into the water, anxiously hyperventilating as she squinted hard. "Why isn't she coming up...?!"

"Because she can't swim!" Suki suddenly blurted out, nearly sucking all the air out of the room as everyone looked to her with a resounding "WHAT...?!"

Everyone's eyes widened as Porsha suddenly shot out from under the surface, frantically kicking and paddling in the water as she struggled to keep her head afloat. The Moon Troupe knew all too well how loud Porsha could get when she wanted to, but this blood-curdling shriek wasn't like anything they'd heard from her before.

"HELP ME!"

While the others were still processing the bombshell that had just been dropped, Johnny threw off his leather jacket and dived in, swimming towards Porsha and struggling to get a hold of the wolf while she kicked and screamed. "Porsha... Porsha, hold still, it's alright! I've got you!"

Porsha latched onto Johnny's chest, frantically clambering up towards his head as he swam back to the side. Johnny climbed out of the pool with Porsha in his arms and put her down on her hands and knees, gently patting the wolf's back as she coughed the water out of her lungs.

Most of the troupe surrounded Porsha in a protective circle as Rosita skidded down right beside her, putting a hand to Porsha's forehead while she still coughed and spluttered.

"Honey, you're freezing..." She said. "Somebody get her a blanket or something!"

"Oh here, take this!" Audrey quickly ran over with own her jacket and threw it over Porsha's back, while Ash knelt beside Rosita and held the wolf's hand.

"Porsha, you... you can't swim...?! But... but what about the pool parties and stuff, how come you -!" Ash cut herself off, letting out a soft sigh. "Aw, buddy... you never even went in the water then, did you...?"

Porsha shook her head. "I know I shoulda told you guys, but... but it's real embarrassing, and I... I didn't wanna let ya down or -"

"Oh you'd never let us down, Porsha..." Buster kept his gentle tone, though he was still overwhelmed by what had happened, just as everyone else was. "Kiddo, if we knew you couldn't swim, we never would have asked you to do this..."

"I'm sorry, Uncle Buster, just..." Porsha put her face in her hands as she finally broke down. "Just please don't make me go in the water again...!"

"No... no no, Porsha, it's okay." Rosita pulled the sobbing wolf into a soft embrace, gently shushing her. "No one's gonna make you go in the water, sunshine."

"Hey! Hey hey hey, what's goin' on here?! Moon?!" Mike's voice boomed from the distance as he and Nancy ran over. Ash noticed the mouse's furious glare as he approached, so she quickly stood before Porsha with a defensive look on her face.

Mike ignored her and looked right to Buster, who tried his best to stay calm as he explained. "Um... well, thing is, Mike, Porsha just had a little accident, but she's okay, and that's what -"

"Never mind her, what about the stunt...?!" Mike scoffed as he noticed Porsha shivering. "Ya seriously mean to tell me Legs For Days over here's too scared to go in the water...?!"

"Mike, this is not the time for that!" Rosita snapped bluntly, a scowl on her face as she kept a tight grip on Porsha's hand. "The poor girl's been through enough, and the last thing she needs is -"

"You said she was cut out for this, Porky!" Mike cut her off with a snarl, then turned his attention back to Buster. "Fletcher's countin' on us to deliver this show, and last thing we need is a useless little coward like her ruining it!"

"What did you just call her...?!" Ash went red in the face as she nearly approached Mike, but Porsha grabbed her hand to hold her back.

"Ash, it's okay, I... I uh..." Porsha stammered, then shuffled forward to look down at Mike. "Listen, I... I'm real sorry, I never woulda -"

"Aw sorry, sorry, I'm real sorry, boo hoo!" Mike cut her off, a mocking tone in his voice. "Yeah well, sorry's not gonna get somebody up on that platform, is it, baby?!"

"She nearly drowned, mate! Leave her alone!" Johnny cut in, putting a comforting hand on Porsha's back.

"Yeah, dude, it's just a show!" Ash added. "So don't you dare talk to her like that!"

Mike glanced across all the angry faces of the larger animals looking down at him, and he rolled his eyes with a sharp exhale. He then glared at Porsha, the wolf lowering her head and looking away to avoid his gaze.

"Yeah, that's right... not so strong and fearless now, are ya, big girl?!" He scolded harshly. "And you can kiss your role goodbye too... ya hear me?! You're fired!"

"No no, Aunt Suki, please don't make it worse!" Porsha quietly pleaded as Suki got to her feet and approached Mike, who visibly winced at the sight of her furious, reddened face.

"Why don't you take your show and shove it up your tiny -!" Suki was cut off when Buster took her hand.

"Suki, please... this isn't the time for that."

"Don't defend him, Buster!"

"I'm not defending him, I just -"

"Yes, you are! Porsha could have died, and -!"

"And I just wanna focus on her for now, okay...?!" Buster took a deep breath, having not meant to shout, then briefly shot a glare in Mike's direction. "We'll talk about the show later."

"Well, we're on the clock, Moon!" Mike snapped as he stormed off. Nancy remained for another moment or two, sending a silent but sympathetic glance Porsha'a way, before she turned away and caught up to her boyfriend.

Everyone was still taken aback after what had just happened, but the Moon Troupe mostly remained focused on Porsha as she slowly staggered back to her feet.

Ash took Porsha's hand, her furious scowl having now changed in a softer, gentler smile. "Come on, buddy, let's get you nice and dry, huh...?"

"Okay... yeah, okay..." Porsha sniffled as she let Ash lead her away. "I'm really sorry, you guys..."

Buster sighed as he itched the back of his head, waiting until Porsha and Ash were out of earshot before he looked over to the others. "Rosita, you could um... you could probably do that scene, right? With the jump, and the water, and stuff?"

"Oh, um... yeah, I could, um... I suppose I could, yeah." Rosita gave a small smile as she stood up. "Yeah, whatever works for you, Buster, I'm game."

"Ah, great. Yeah, if you could, Rosita, that'd be wonderful..." Buster sighed with relief. "Y'know, it just keeps things on schedule for Mike, so we can worry about Porsha now."

"Right, of course." Rosita kept her confident aura until Buster walked off with Suki and Caleb, though she gave a soft sigh when she looked where Porsha and Ash had gone. "Oh, sunshine..."

Porsha didn't say a single word on the car ride back, and Ash was similarly unsure what to say after what had happened. Once they'd pulled up to the apartment, they stayed sat in silence for a few more moments.

"So, you um..." Ash's voice was slightly hoarse, so she cleared her throat before she continued. "You want me to make you some French toast?"

"Yeah, uh... n-no thanks. I'm not hungry." Porsha sniffled, still looking away. She opened the door and was about to leave the car, but Ash quickly grabbed her hand to hold her back.

"Listen, Porsha, I just..." Ash sighed as she thought about what to say. "I know it was scary today, buddy, but you're okay. Y'know, you're safe, you're in one piece, and... and that's all that matters."

Porsha sniffled. "Yeah, but... but I got fired. Like, for real, this time..."

"Eh, don't worry about that... Moon could always getcha another part."

"Nah, he doesn't have to do that." Porsha looked down. "Uncle Buster's got enough on his tray..."

"Plate, Porsha..." Ash bit her bottom lip, quickly realising her friend wasn't in the mood to be corrected right now. "Look, I know you really wanted to do that stunt, Porsha, but it wasn't safe. Especially with that jerk Mike running the show. But you really don't need to feel bad about it. Alright, you've not done anything wrong here, buddy."

Porsha hesitated, then nodded. "Okay, let's... can we please just go inside now? Cause, like... I really don't want all the neighbours to see me like this..."

"Oh, uh... yeah... sure thing." Ash sighed. "But seriously, don't worry about any of this. It's gonna be okay, Porsha."

"Are ya sure, Ash...?"

"I promise." Ash stifled a chuckle, holding up her other hand as a small grin crossed the wolf's face. "Hey... love and pain?"

Porsha hesitated for a moment, before gently clasping her own hand around Ash's as she finished the motto. "Pride and shame..."