Porsha lay silently in her bed, the young wolf huddled in on herself, blankets encasing her in a sort of fabric cocoon. And despite the bright sun shining in over the Redshore coastline, Porsha just couldn't bring herself to get out of her queen-sized bed that sat in one of the many rooms of the mansion-turned-living accommodations for the cast of "Out of This World," which was about three weeks away from going into its next off-season. Now, most days Porsha would greet the day with great vigor, the teen rushing about with glee that only a pup should have.

But not today.

Today, Porsha was plagued with a great feeling of dread. Though, it wasn't like that a week ago. Today was Porsha's eighteenth birthday, a big milestone in her journey to adulthood. And one thing she definitely noticed, as well as everyone else, Porsha had definitely matured since the first time they met. She no understood the value of hard work, compromise, putting other's needs before her own, something that made her a better person than…

This halted Porsha's thoughts. And, despite her desire to just stay in bed, Porsha knew there was no getting out of what needed to be done. So, setting her bare feet on the shag carpet of her room, her body covered by her blue Clay Calloway shirt and dark blue pajama bottoms, Porsha hesitantly trudged out of her room, down the long hall, and into the spacious living area, which was void of all other life…save for three.

Off course, for what was going to happen that morning, Porsha wanted to be up before everyone else. The reason being she was almost certain that them offering words of encouragement and support, no matter the intentions, would cause her to lose her nerve. Which is why she trusted only three people to help her see it through. And from what Porsha could see, they were all just sitting around, not sat a word, the air thick with anxiety.

Of course Buster was up, the koala already dressed in his usual attire, his blue suit and red bow-tie. Sitting next to Buster, larger hand clasping his, was his gorgeous saluki girlfriend, the older woman dressed in a simple blue blouse and black dress pants, her feet adorned with simple black flats. And sitting across from them, slumped back in a half-barrel chair, clothed in a grey pin-stripe suit, was another saluki, square glasses framing his tired hazel eyes, a frown on his lips, or rather, what Porsha could see through his full, thick ginger beard, which was, along with his slicked back, neck-length hair and long ears, were already showing signs of grey.

This was the best lawyer in Redshore City, the one who heavily prosecuted Jimmy Crystal, earning the wolf mogul the maximum penalty for his crimes. The brother of the best talent scout in the city.

Mr. Charles Lane, Charlie to his friends…

Uncle Charlie to Prosha.

And of the three, he was the first to notice Porsha nervously standing there, her eyes to the floor as she stood just twenty feet from them. But, despite the tense atmosphere, Charlie managed a sad smile, the canine lawyer shakily rising to his feet as he walked towards Porsha, the male aided in the short walk by a mahogany cane, which he heavily relied on, if the limp in the military veteran's right leg was an indication.

"Hey, there's the birthday girl," he cooed in a deep, raspy voice, the greeting causing Porsha to lift her head so slightly, her eyes going the rest of the way to meet his as she offered a small smile in return.

"Hi Uncle Charlie," Porsha greeted back, her arms quickly finding their way around the lawyer's middle, Charlie gently returning the embrace just as tightly as her, placing a gentle kiss on the top of her head. At that point, Buster and Suki had joined the two.

"Happy Birthday, Baby Girl," Buster cooed, placing a gentle hand on Porsha's leg, the action causing Porsha to break her embrace with Charlie to lean down and pull Buster into a new one.

"Thanks Daddy," she responded. Though she couldn't be sure, Porsha could have sworn she felt Buster tense a bit at this, her usual addressing of him seeming to have a different affect now than it did before. But, she didn't linger on it two much as she found herself in another embrace with Suki, the older family, after wishing Porsha a happy birthday as well, taking extra time to hold Porsha close, almost as if she wanted to spare Porsha from what she was about to do as long as possible.

But alas, time was a fickle thing. Before long, the four animals, including a formally dressed Porsha, the young wolf wearing a surprisingly professional black pantsuit and blue blouse were, stepping out into a packed parking lot, the youngest of the group freezing the moment she laid eyes on the imposing structure before them;

Four stories of thick concrete and bared windows. Armed, guards stationed at every possible entrance. And at the main checkpoint into the facility, a sign, emblazoned with bold, black letters…

REDSHORE CORRECTIONAL FACILITY

Despite her desire to stay outside, the time that elapsed between stepping through the checkpoint, entering the prison, going through the proper check-in procedure, and being led into a solitary room and being seated at one side of a large, round wooden table passed in the blink of an eye. And by the time Porsha realized this, she was a wreck, the young adult casting her nervous gaze to the mahogany table, her fist clenching and unclenching the fabric of her pants.

"It's okay sweetie," Suki cooed, both her and Buster sitting at either side of Porsha, Charlie sitting off to his siter's side as he began to procure several documents from his briefcase, every so often sending Porsha some encouraging nods and smiles.

"We're here for you," Buster added to Suki's statement, both taking a hold of one of Porsha's hands, the words and actions causing Porsha to calm down considerably. Unfortunately, that did not stop her nerves from spiking again when opposite door to the room opened, two guards stepping through, with a third escorting in someone that the other's didn't really WANT to see but knew that it was a necessity.

It was at that moment that any fear Porsha felt quickly vanished as the white wolf sat down across from them. The reason being that this wolf looked thinner than he did a year ago. His eyes appeared more sunken, his wrists and ankles bound in handcuffs and shackles, and the bright orange jumpsuit served as a grim reminder of his crimes.

No, Porsha didn't feel scared…No, she felt SORRY for Jimmy Crystal.

But that didn't stop the little twinge of comfort in her when the older wolf sent that same fiery glare of contempt their way, his gaze scanning them before finally landing on Porsha. And when that happened, Crystal scoffed.

"So," he began in a low growl, the action causing Porsha to sink a little in her chair, "best birthday presents ever, huh? Seein' your old man like this."

"You know why we're here, Mr. Crystal," Charlie immediately interjected, his warm, calming voice from earlier now firm and hard, his face void of all expression. And off course, Porsha and Suki, the latter still squeezing one of the former's hands, knew when Charles Lane entered "Lawyer Mode."

"Yeah," Crystal responded, his hard gaze now landing on the lawyer who was reading over one of the documents he had procured, "here to swindle me out of my company."

"Hardly swindle," Charlie added with a small laugh before his face turned hard again as he began or read off of the paper in his hands. And upon hearing the contents, the other's knew it was the sentence that was carried out following Crystal's trial.

"'Ten years for attempted murder, an additional ten years for conspiring to commit murder, plus another ten years for assault with the intent to do bodily harm. Eligibility for parole is five years after sentence begins.'"

At that point, Charlie pulled his gaze from the document to look at Crystal, a somewhat smug smirk on his face as he did.

"Even if you are released on parole, now one is going to want to work for you, nobody's going to want to do ANY kind of business with you. In fact, since you left, productivity at Crystal Entertainment has skyrocketed. You come back? It all goes down. So, really, you could say we are trying to save you the frustration."

"So what?" Crystal growled, his chained hands now folded on the table as he leaned forward, "you just going to hand my company, the one I built from the ground up, to my talentless, loser of a…"

"SHUT-YOUR-FILTHY-MOUTH-NOW!"

This outburst came from the last person in the room anyone would expect. No, not Buster, but the young wolf who was no standing to her feet, her ears back and teeth bared as her claws dug into the shining, wood-stained table, which now had several noticeable scratches in it. And the moment Porsha began speaking her mind, releasing so many years of pent up frustration she didn't know she had, Crystal actually felt himself shrink back in HIS seat.

"I AM NOT A TALENTLESS LOSER! I AM PART OF THE REASON OUT OF THIS WORLD IS SOLD OUT EVERY NIGHT! I HAVE FRIENDS WHO ACTUALLY CARE ABOUT ME, WHERE ALL YOU CARED ABOUT WAS YOUR STUPID BUSINESS!"

Crystal, after recovering from the shock of Porsha's outburst, soon found himself becoming very irritated by the girl's fiery determination, the wolf quickly rising to his feet, putting not just Porsha's party on edge, but the guards well, each reaching for their tasers in case Jimmy decided to try something.

"PORSHA ELIZABETH CRYSTAL, YOU DO NOT TALK TO YOUR FATHER THAT WAY!" Crystal bellowed, only to receive the shock of his life, well the shock of everyone's life with what Porsha said next.

"MY NAME IS MOON!"

Ten seconds of silence felt like eternity, every wide on Porsha as she continued to bare her teeth at the wolf she had basically just disowned as her father. But, after everything that happened a year ago, he stopped being her father long before that.

"My name is Moon," Porsha repeated, this time lower as her rageful expression soon melted into one of bittersweet happiness as she looked to Buster, the koala still shocked at what he had just heard. But soon, that shock melted into pure affection as he placed a tender hand on Porsha's, gently prompting the young wolf to sit back down, which she did, but with some hesitance.

"I see," Crystal suddenly said, he himself having slumped back into his chair from the shock, causing all eyes to turn to him. For a solid minute the room was filled with tense silence, no one daring to speak or even move.

"Give me the paper," Crystal finally said, shocking the other's in the room. But upon seeing his crestfallen, practically defeated expression, they knew that he was serious. And so, after taken a moment to recover from the shock, Charlie slipped the document and a pen over to Crystal, who only hesitated when he saw that the document did not relinquish control of Crystal Entertainment to Porsha.

"I don't want it," Porsha said, clearly understanding what the delay was. Suki then added her own piece to the otherwise tense meeting.

"Because Porsha does not wish to have any control over the company or your finances, amendments were made to the files. The Board of Representatives, which is under my direction may I remind you, is prepared to run things from this point forward."

"There."

The two females looked at Crystal in shock, the wolf having signed the document before Suki could finish speaking. They, along with the two other males, had thought that Crystal might put up more of a fight. But, upon seeing him slide the document over to Charlie, the saluki lawyer being the first to come out of his shock to safely tuck it away for notarizing, they realized that what was going on in the white wolf's mind was the acceptance of defeat.

"Right then," Charlie said as he stood to his feet, cane and case in his grasp, "looks like we're done here."

With that, the others rose from their seats, save for Crystal, who continued to glare at the tabletop before him. But, just before the guards moved to take Crystal back to his cell, Porsha, who stopped just before Suki and Buster could lead her out the door, sent one last blow to Jimmy Crystal's ego.

"Goodbye…Mr. Crystal."

And although her faced was firm…it crumbled the moment they stepped outside, Suki falling to her knees with the wailing wolf as she, Buster, and Charlie tried desperately to console her.

She was free…but it still hurt.

But luckily, the ride back home allowed Porsha time to cool off. And by the time they reached the mansion, the sun had begun to set, the reason being that Buster and Suki wanted to treat the birthday girl to a day out to make her feel better, the trio dropping Charlie off at his office so he could notarize the documents.

And the moment she stepped into the dim living room, Porsha's improving mood was quickly elevated by a resounding…

"SURPRISE!"

The main cast of "Out of this World" was there, the crew having decked out the place with streamers, balloons, and bunting. Also in attendance were Rosita's husband and children, Charlie and his wife, a beautiful Irish Setter named Ellen, as well as their daughter, Porsha's amazing girlfriend Cherry. And it goes without saying that Porsha was ecstatic as she began to enjoy the festivities. And it was a great party. She received many practical, but thoughtful gifts, which she was ever so eager to show her appreciation for.

From Ash and Clay, a signed poster from the aged rocker himself.

From Gunter, a new karaoke machine.

From Johnny, a new sequin jacket.

From Nooshy, a new set of headphones.

From Rosita and her family…basically lots of candy…The kids did most of the shopping. Thank goodness Porsha had a sweet tooth that riveled all twenty-five piglets combined.

From Miss Crawley, a simple, yet thoughtful, set of space themed socks.

But, as the gifts went further down the line, they started getting more…sentimental.

From Meena, a professionally framed photo that was taken after their first performance of "Out of This World."

From her Uncle Charlie, Aunt Ellen, and Cherry, a necklace with the Lane family crest, a way of saying that Porsha was practically family.

From Suki, a framed playbill for her kindergarten show that she attended in her employer's stead…one of the first times Suki acted like the mother Porsha deserved.

But for Porsha, the most amazing gift she could receive, was from Buster.

And every time she looked at the framed document, witnessed and notarized by her Uncle Charlie, Porsha just couldn't help but feel giddy whenever she realized that Buster…

Was now legally her father.

Yes, that document was an adoption form.

She was now "Porsha Elizabeth Moon."

And when he had presented it to her, Charlie, and his signature's and all, it was missing only one thing…

Her own signature.

And needless to say, not a dry eye could be found as Buster and Porsha, after the ink had dried, shared their first true embrace as Father and Daughter. And as Porsha sat in her bed, the festivities now long since concluded with everyone having either gone home or turned in, she couldn't help but smile happily at the framed adoption form in her lap. And as she set the frame on her nightstand, Porsha settled into the warm sheets, turning off her light before rolling over onto her side toward the open doors, the tantalizing smell of the Redshore coast filling her nostrils.

And as the gorgeous full moon rose over the see, Porsha allowed one lats whisper to slip over her lips before letting the call of sleep pull her in.

"My Name is Moon."


Thank you all so much for your support.

I just wanted to take this time to make an announcement.

Now, I love writing these stories, especially when I know they are going to be so well received, but I will be having a lot going on in the coming weeks.

So that is why I am taking a temporary hiatus from writing until the first week of July.

Until then, I hope you ll take care, keep yourselves safe, and as always

HAPPY READING!