Chapter 7 – The Fallout

"Rude, combative, duplicitous, profanity-prone," said news anchor Rudy Brooks, a polar bear, as an uncharacteristic picture of Buster Moon floated next to him. The koala was depicted with his fingers digging into the armrest of his chair and a livid glower across his face. "That is how many are describing Buster Moon in his interview with Walter Kilborn. The embattled theater producer may not have done himself any favors when he decided to give his own interview in response to Jimmy Crystal's sit-down with Kilborn. We want to warn our viewers of foul language ahead."

Footage of the interview appeared on screen with a voiceover. "Victim or perpetrator? That's what many are asking after Buster Moon's contentious interview with Walter Kilborn."

"Stretching the truth implies there is some truth to stretch," Kilborn said in the footage. "This is starting to sound a lot like fraud."

"Whoa, whoa! That's a loaded word. Let's not go there," Buster complained.

The voiceover continued, "What started as an attempt to refute Jimmy Crystal's claims ended up confirming much of what the jailed mogul has said about his experience working with Moon."

"Did you have any connection in any shape or form to Clay Calloway that would make your promise to get him to do this show remotely plausible to someone that was going to finance it?"

"Uhh..." Buster uttered.

"The theater producer grew increasingly defiant and hostile as Kilborn pressed him on the morality of his actions and the veracity of his claims."

"All I'm doing is respecting both parties while seeking out the truth—"

"You want the truth? Here's the truth: Jimmy Crystal is an &#$% that got what he deserved!"

Meena nearly jumped out of her skin from the loud bleeping of Buster's profanity. Her mouth was agape as she flipped the channel.

Buster begged, pleaded with his family not to watch the interview. He could do nothing to stop the country from watching him bomb with Kilborn, but he couldn't let the people closest to him see him like that. The anger... the bitterness... the obstinacy... somehow, the worst parts of himself came into full bloom once the cameras started rolling. It was one thing for strangers to judge him. He wouldn't survive having those closest to him looking at him that same way.

Everyone within the villa respected his wishes. That didn't change the fact that everyone else was talking about the interview, and discourse was inescapable. What was supposed to be Meena dealing with her boredom turned into morbid curiosity as just about every news and talk show tackled The Interview That Must Not Be Watched. She now understood what people meant when they said something was like watching a train wreck. Meena might have been afraid of Buster catching her watching said train wreck had he not holed himself up in his room since the day the interview went live.

After some more channel surfing, Meena settled on a talk show that was just beginning. Cheers erupted from the studio audience as a horse and gazelle emerged from backstage in a half-dance, half-saunter to their seats, two cups of tea waiting for them at the desk.

"Welcome to another episode of Spilling All the Tea," the gazelle said. "I'm Amber."

Batting her eyelashes, the horse added, "And I'm Stacy!"

"You know what we're here to talk about," Amber said. "Did you guys see that interview?"

There was a resounding "oooo" from the audience with an undercurrent of hushed voices.

Stacy took a loud sip of her tea and said, "If you're one of the five people that don't know what we're talking about, Buster Moon did an interview with Walter Kilborn as a response to Jimmy Crystal."

"Let's just say, if he was trying to prove Crystal was wrong, he did the exact opposite," Amber said. "There's so much animosity between those two. I heard their stories, but I just don't understand how things got so bad so fast. I think there might be something more that we don't know about."

"I heard it was a lover's quarrel."

Amber gave her partner a heaping helping of side-eye. "What? No, you didn't. You just made that up!"

Stacy threw her hands in the air. "Guilty as chaaaarged! You can lock me up with Jimmy Crystal and throw away the key."

"You've always had a thing for dangerous men."

The horse pursed her lips in response. "It's true that Crystal has this scary-hot thing going for him, but I like men that are vulnerable enough to be open about their emotions, too."

Amber seemed a little less enthralled. "I thought Crystal's interview was a little 'woe is me,' but then Moon went ahead and basically confirmed everything he said. Now I feel bad for him. You can't just take advantage of people like that! It's shady."

"Very shady," Stacy agreed. "I can't figure out if Moon is naïve or just doesn't care."

"One thing's for sure, that guy has no ethics whatsoever. I'll be surprised if he ever gets hired again."

"Right? Did you hear him defend all the lying and manipulating? It's like... if you're working for somebody and get caught with something you stole from them, and you give it back, it doesn't make the fact that you stole it go away. The trust is broken."

"True," Amber said. "Nobody wants to work with someone they can't trust. And Moon never mentioned apologizing or trying to make amends with Crystal, so I'm not really surprised their working relationship imploded."

Stacy's face went somber as she said, "What do you think about the attempted murder story?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure what to think. Crystal's gagged by his lawyer, Moon said it happened, the assistant said it didn't. The assistant could be lying to protect his boss, but Moon is a pathological liar so it's already hard to take him at his word. It's just a mess."

"It sounded like a skit to me," Stacy said. "Crystal was about to drop him but stopped to do a TV interview? Does that make sense? Drop him and then do the interview!" There were a few gasps and laughs. The horse rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean! It takes more effort to stash him away for later than it would to finish what you started."

"What about the second time?"

"That's even harder to believe. You're telling me there was this war in the theater and nobody noticed? Why did the police show up when it was over?"

"I heard it was Crystal's own talent scout that called the police," Amber said; the gazelle's voice was quiet as if breaking secret news. "What was she waiting for?"

"Exactly! If you weren't going to call when you found out someone took over the theater, the brawl in the lobby definitely would have been the time to do it. Super shady."

"Incredibly shady," Amber said after a sip of tea. "It makes it seem like she was in on it."

Stacy raised her brows. "I wasn't going to say anything, but I can see why Jimmy Crystal thinks it's a conspiracy. All I know is I have more questions than answers after that interview."

"The facts will come out in the trial, but until then, what do you guys think?" Amber addressed the audience. "Is this the story of survival at Crystal Entertainment, or is this just the koala who cried wolf?"

What started as a cacophonic mixture of responses in the crowd eventually rose into a crescendo of boos. Amber and Stacy traded glances as they sipped their tea in unison.

"Poor Buster," Meena murmured. "No one believes him." She couldn't watch the train wreck anymore. Well, not this one.

She flipped channels again, this time settling on a young lioness in a bright red jacket. The woman's energy reminded her of Porsha quite a bit.

"Hey ya'll, it's your girl Redshore Julie Moore with more Word on the Strip. I live and breathe this city, and as usual, I'm on the strip to get live reactions straight from ordinary people like you! Everybody's talking about Buster Moon versus Jimmy Crystal, so let's hear the word on the strip!"

Julie bounced her way down the strip to an elk couple. "Moon and Crystal. Everyone's talking about it. What do you think?"

"I think the world would be a better place if we all stopped paying attention to celebrities and their drama," the guy said, disinterest clear in his voice.

"I feel the opposite," the girlfriend said with a giggle. "It's weirdly cathartic knowing someone else's life is more screwed up than mine. I don't know if Crystal did it or not, but once you start talking about thugs and booby traps... one might say it was... self-defense?" She shrugged.

Julie moved on to an otter. She lowered the mic so she could say her piece.

"The koala looked so hurt," the otter said. "I want to believe him, but his behavior is unacceptable. And after the way he treated Jimmy Crystal and his daughter, I'm starting to think this guy might be just a little bit racist against wolves, even if he doesn't realize it."

Next was a panther. "I think Crystal is a big ol' butthole, but that doesn't make what the koala did right. Where is the accountability?"

A giraffe approached, and as he lowered his head to reach Julie's mic, the spaced-out look on his face became apparent. "Buster Moon is an agent of the illuminati sent to destroy Jimmy Crystal after he betrayed them," he announced. "Wake up, people!"

"Ooookay," Julie said, appearing deeply uncomfortable. "Like I said, live reactions... from ordinary people..." She motioned for her cameraman to follow and they left the ranting giraffe in the dust.

She ran up to a yak in a white tracksuit out of desperation. "You!" she shouted. "What's your reaction to the interviews everybody's talking about?"

"I was just so shocked about everything I heard," the yak said, placing a hand on his chest in a fit of overacting.

Meena sat in disbelief. She immediately pulled out her phone and dialed her scene partner.

The yak held up a finger to Julie. "One minute," he said, answering his ringing phone.

"Darius!"

"Meena!" She was thankful he eventually got her name right. "Is the show back on?"

"No, but I'm watching you put on a show right now."

Darius's eyes widened and he peered into the camera. "This is live? Is this my good side? Trick question, every side is my good side!"

"Darius, they're talking about Buster! They've been trashing him ever since his interview with Walter Kilborn went up!"

"That's not good," he said. "What do you want me to do?"

"Don't give them anything to work with." Meena thought for a moment. "Just... keep the attention on yourself."

A self-indulgent smile traced the yak's lips. "I can do that," he said before hanging up. He turned his attention back to Julie. "Wanna see my moves?"

"Why would I want to see that?" Julie asked, slightly repulsed, but Darius's hips had already begun to sway.

"Hey!" a voice rang out. Linda Le Bon raced down the strip with her own cameraman following close behind, and she came dangerously close to Julie. "I warned you about this, little girl. Interviews on the strip are my thing!"

"Get real, hag," Julie hissed. "You don't own the strip. People want to see me do interviews."

"No one even knows who you are!"

"That's what you think! They call me Redshore Julie Moore for a reason!"

"You're the only one that calls you that!"

Johnny emerged from his room and made his way to the den. "Hey Meena, did he come out yet...?" He found the pachyderm with her eyes glued to the mayhem on TV. "Is that Darius?" The yak was dancing literal circles around the bickering women.

"You're just mad that Moon and Crystal didn't bother to get interviewed by you!" Julie shouted.

"You've got to stop watching this stuff," Johnny said.

Meena looked at him with pleading eyes. "But it's just getting good!"

Johnny shook his head and left. He went through the patio and into the backyard where he was immediately baked under the blistering heat of the noon sun.

"Johnny!" cried a chorus of piglets from the pool. Norman and the piglets came from Calatonia to visit. Considering the troupe's current circumstances, it was a nice distraction.

"Jump in! Ze water is fine, jah?" Gunter said.

Despite how enticing the offer was, Johnny declined. The entire surface level of the pool was covered in pigs. He wasn't sure how much fun he'd have under those conditions, and he didn't want to get trapped somewhere in the middle like Gunter was. He chose to take shelter under the gazebo where Ash was softly strumming away on her guitar.

"Can you really practice out here with all this noise?" he asked, sitting next to the porcupine.

Ash smirked. "Here's my secret: no one can hear me screw up under the playful screams of children." Johnny laughed, but Ash's tone became more somber when she suddenly asked, "Have you thought about what to do next?"

"You mean because Crystal shut us down?"

"What if McCray doesn't figure things out and Out of This World never plays again? What do we do with our careers?"

"Is that what you've been thinking about?" A small fear burrowed into Johnny's heart. He remembered that while he, Rosita, Gunter and Meena played the New Moon Theater, Ash had gone off on her own. She was independent like that, and he was afraid the Moon troupe would splinter again. He really liked everyone together like this, but he also knew how childish and selfish it was to stop her from exploring other endeavors under the guise that somehow, someway, everything would go back to the way it was just a few weeks ago—standing ovations, the brightest smile on Buster's face, and Jimmy Crystal just an afterthought.

Ash could sense the shift in Johnny. "I'm just thinking, that's all," she assured him, then changed the subject. "Is Nooshy coming over?"

"No," Johnny said, somehow sounding even more depressed. "She's busy. With what, I have no idea."

"Maybe next time."

"Do you, uh... get the feeling she's kinda... walling herself off from us?"

"Oh, I do," Ash said, "because she totally is."

Johnny's brows shot up at how quickly Ash agreed. At least he wasn't alone in feeling that way.

"I still don't get why she turned down living with us," he said. "She said she was crashing with her cousin. I've been over there once before. Her 'cousin' is a rhino, and the place is a bloody dump!"

"You don't think it'd be weird trying to date someone when you already live in the same house?"

Johnny's cheeks were suddenly ablaze. Ash laughed and nudged him with the guitar. "You don't have to be like that. It's no secret. Everyone sees the way you look at her. The piglets thought you two were already a thing."

"Not helping!" Johnny whined. "I just wish I knew what was going on with her."

Ash began strumming again. "Give her time and she'll open up. Or maybe she won't. There's no point stressing because it's entirely up to her."

"I know, it's just... I need her to know she can trust me."

"It may not be you she has trouble trusting. Maybe she can't trust herself."

"Huh..." Johnny rubbed the back of his head as he let that sink it. "Have you heard from Calloway?"

The strumming stopped, and Ash sighed. "He called. We didn't talk long. It's been fifteen years so he's doing a lot of catching up, seeing old friends, checking out old stomping grounds, things like that."

"Did he say he was coming back?"

"He... he didn't say he wasn't."

They exchanged pained glances, remembering the day Clay Calloway went nuclear.

It was the day after Buster's interview with Kilborn dropped. Clay came over to the villa, but it wasn't like his usual visits. No pleasantries, no jam session. He made a beeline for Buster, and the two were cordoned off in the koala's bedroom.

Porsha was the first to eavesdrop by the door, her insatiable curiosity borne more of innocence than a need to pry. Soon Ash, Meena and Johnny listened in too. But once the shouting started, it would've taken effort not to hear.

"They're asking if I conspired to defraud Crystal," Clay said. "I don't even know the guy!"

"It's not fair that they're going after you for—"

"Why am I finding out how the show really came about on TV? We've been working together how long? You should've told me!"

"You're right. I'm sorry."

"Do you know how many people have tried to use my name and likeness to screw other people over? Fake product endorsements, fake concerts, you name it! But you actually pulled it off! You made up a Clay Calloway show, tricked that guy into financing it, and convinced me to legitimize it after the fact! It's like I'm endorsing fraud!"

"Please stop yelling," Buster pleaded.

Clay obliged, but his voice still carried a furious gravel. "What would you have done if I said no? What happens if you couldn't deliver? What becomes of your career? What about those kids out there that'll follow you anywhere? They didn't ask for any of this!"

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Calloway," Buster's voice cracked. "I screwed up. I get ahead of myself sometimes. It was wrong to use your name like that. I let you and a lot of other people down."

Clay released a deep, rumbly sigh. "Ain't nothin' necessarily wrong with chasin' the bright lights and the big stage. I know 'cause I've been there. But how you do it matters. If you build a foundation with lies, you compromise the structure and integrity of your house. Sooner or later it'll come crashin' down on you and everybody inside. You've been in this business long enough. You should know this."

"I know, I know. I'm sorry..."

"You know, doing that show wasn't just about me. It was about honoring Ruby's memory. She didn't like liars, and neither do I."

"Are you quitting? Please don't, Mr. Calloway!"

"I need to clear my head and figure some things out."

The kids fell into a heap trying to escape before Clay flung the door open and stormed out. His hard gaze crumbled as it fell on them. Ash could see the pain deep in those turquoise pools. She recognized that haunted look from when she first met him, and she prayed he wouldn't find himself back in self-imposed exile.

Clay left without a word, and they hadn't seen him since.

The wound was still fresh for Ash. She shared a special connection with him. She convinced him to return to the world, and in some way, she felt custody over his well-being. By following Buster's lead and leaving out the details on exactly how Out of This World came about, Ash hurt him. By following Buster's lead... she'd become a liar by extension.

But her annoyance and disappointment with the koala never lasted too long, because no one was feeling the repercussions from the fallout with Crystal more than Buster.

Ash made a decision right then and there. She'd swallow her feelings to pull Buster out of his.

"It's not right for Moon to be locked in his room sulking the days away while we're out here trying to enjoy life." She set her guitar down and began a determined march to the house. Johnny felt compelled to follow.

"Where are you going?" Gunter asked.

"We're getting Moon out."

"I want to be helping, too!" Gunter swam through the piglets and followed after them.

Once in the den, Ash snatched the remote away from Meena. "Enough of this garbage," she said, barely paying attention to the two women wrestling on the strip before she switched off the TV. "We're getting Moon out now. However long it takes."

Meena nodded and fell in line.

When they reached Buster's bedroom door, they settled into an odd silence punctuated by awkward glances for two distinct reasons: no one quite had a plan on how to get Buster out, and Gunter still had a swim tube hugging his waist.

And so, they decided to wing it.

Meena leaned against the door, knocking softly. "Mr. Moon, it's time to come out."

"No," he replied, swift but wounded.

"We miss you, man," Johnny said. "It's not right for you to be stuck in there all day."

"It's what I deserve."

Gunter took a turn. "You are missing a major piggy party out here!"

"Good! It's better without me."

"C'mon, Moon," Ash said. "This isn't like you." She leaned away and said to the others in a hushed voice, "This is totally like him. He always has these overdramatic reactions when things fall apart for him."

"Hiding in there isn't going to fix anything," Johnny said.

"Yes, it is! Every time I open my big mouth, things get worse," Buster moaned. "I can't muck things up if I stay in here. 'Interview of the century!' What was I thinking?"

If Ash had a list of pet peeves, pity parties would be pretty high on it. "Don't make me break down this door," she warned.

After a beat, "I'm naked."

"Don't make Johnny break down this door!"

Johnny nearly choked on his own saliva. "What?"

Buster no longer engaged with them from that point on. They huddled, putting their heads together to figure out their next step.

"This isn't working," Meena said.

"However long it takes," Ash stressed, but she could see the uncertainty racking their faces. She bit her lip; she had one last play, but she wasn't sure if she was ready to play it.

"What if he never comes out?" Gunter asked. "He will grow old and die in zere, jah? So sad."

"He comes out to eat sometimes when nobody's looking so maybe... we wait and grab him and uh... force him to never go back to his room?" Johnny shrugged. "Yeah, I heard how ridiculous it sounded when I said it."

"I have an idea," Ash spoke up. "I didn't want to do it, mostly because of how it'll affect me, but desperate times call for desperate measures."

"Moon," she called softly, pressing against his bedroom door. "What happened to the guy..." The porcupine closed her eyes and grit her teeth. She couldn't believe what she was about to say. "The guy that stans optimism?"

They heard frantic shuffling within the room. The door cracked just enough for one of Buster's eyes to peep through. "What did you say?"

"You heard me. It's never going to catch on if you don't believe in it."

"Do you believe in it?"

"No," Ash said flatly. "But you do, and that's what matters."

The door shut. Ash was officially out of ideas. 'However long it takes' seemed to be beyond their natural lives. Just before they could trudge away in defeat, the door flung open, and Buster was standing there in his pajamas (one of the few times Ash was glad he lied). The koala suddenly embraced Ash, with Meena, Johnny and Gunter joining in for a group hug.

After they pulled apart, Buster gave a sheepish grin. "Sorry, I get stuck in my feelings sometimes."

"We're always here to pull you out," Meena said, and the rest of them agreed.

"Thanks, you guys... for everything. No more hiding from this point on," Buster said, dropping his fist into his palm. "Someway, somehow, I'm going to reintroduce the world to Buster Moon."

"That's great," Johnny said, trying not to wrinkle his nose too much. "Might want to reintroduce yourself to a shower first."

A/N

Is Clay gone for good? Nah, but it goes to show that omission of truth is still a form of lying. Celebrities have their name and likeness abused all the time by scammers, and I imagine a lot of people in the Singverse have taken advantage of Calloway's fifteen-year absence. Finding out the people that convinced you to leave your shell weren't telling you the whole truth can do a lot of damage to someone that already suffered so much and is still finding their footing.