By the end of his story, Johnny was slumped down in the corner, having huddled his knees into his chest while he buried his face in his hands. The others were still completely silent for at good few minutes, most of them being at least a little misty-eyed after what they'd heard, though Porsha was quietly sobbing while Suki pulled her into a hug. After another moment or two of hesitation, Nooshy quietly shuffled over and sat down beside Johnny, gently clasping one of the gorilla's hands in her own.

"J, mate, I... I had no idea..." She said softly, then looked over to the others. "I mean... n-none of you lot knew about that, did you...?"

The rest of the group - sans Buster - all murmured in agreement, putting Nooshy a little more at ease as she let out a small sigh. While it hadn't softened the blow of the bombshell that Johnny had just dropped about his family history, the fact that the others were just as in the dark did help to lift some of the guilt she had felt for her initial insensitivity.

They both straightened up a bit when Ms. Crawly quietly approached, the old lizard wringing her hands as she thought to herself. "What was it you said your Mom's name was again, Johnny...?"

"Oh, uh... Mary..." Johnny said. "Yeah, her name was Mary."

"Ah... right..." Ms. Crawly let out a small chuckle. "Hmm... Mary... I always thought that was a really nice name."

Nooshy glanced over to see Klaus propping himself up on the opposite wall, having managed to keep a rather straight, neutral face throughout Johnny's entire story. At first the lynx couldn't help feeling that his complete lack of emotion or reaction was quite insensitive given all that had come out, but knowing that the old monkey had spent decades training himself and his students to repress their emotions in the face of pressure, whether he really was less affected than everyone else remained unclear.

"I'm really sorry you had to go through all that, sweetheart..." Rosita sniffled a bit as she knelt beside Johnny. "It must have been so hard... y'know, for you and your Dad..."

"Yeah, he... he took it pretty tough... Stan and Barry too..." Johnny wiped his eye with the palm of his hand. "Mum were always the one keeping them on straight. They gave up stealing, started working in the old garage. Y'know, legit working, but... but after she died, they... well, I suppose they went back to normal, if you know what I mean..."

"Hmm... yeah, I've been there before..." Buster let out a small sigh. "There's nothing like losing a loved one to push you back into your habits."

The rest of the group all looked over to the koala, most of them giving him curious or sympathetic looks, though Buster quickly straightened up to regain his usual reassuring tone.

"Well yeah, I mean, I... I've always been crazy about the theatre, don't get me wrong, but... but y'know, when my old man died, I just... I kinda got lost in it all..." Buster itched the back of his head. "If it wasn't for you guys coming along, well... who knows...?"

Johnny pulled a small smile at Buster's words, though he sat slightly straighter when Klaus spoke up again.

"Well... here I was thinking I had problems, eh...?" The old monkey said, though his tone was more self-deprecating rather than insulting. "Hearing you and your family had to go through all of that, Johnny, I... I realise things with Madame and myself perhaps aren't so bad."

"Wait, what...?" Johnny clicked his tongue, then stood back up. "No, Klaus, that... it is as bad with you and Madame, that's the point!"

Klaus pursed his lips and crossed his arms, not looking Johnny in the eye as the gorilla approached him.

"My Mum was a victim, and... and whether you like to admit it or not, Klaus, you were too!" Johnny's tone of voice hit a midpoint between compassionate and lecturing. "Madame, my Granddad, they... they were abusers! There's no two ways about it! Yeah, Madame might not have hit you, but -"

"Eh... technically..." Klaus winced a bit, as he thought back to the countless cane strike that he'd received from his mentor, and how he'd used similar methods with his own students.

"Well yeah, exactly...!" Johnny groaned. "I mean, come on, do you really think she did those things for your sake!m? What, because she was trying to toughen you up or something? Bloody hell, do you think that's what you were doing when you treated me like that...?!"

Klaus' eyes widened a little, and everyone else in the room looking at him made him feel even more like he was on the spot. After some hesitation, he let out a small, defeated sigh and lowered his head. "No... I didn't..."

"Klaus, folks who do stuff like that, they... they don't do it for good reasons..." Johnny nodded solemnly, then looked down to the floor. "They only feel strong when they make everyone else feel weak. And y'know, maybe... maybe someone did it to them once too, I dunno, but... but that doesn't give them any right to do the same. And it doesn't give us any right either. My Mum knew that... and you should too, Klaus..."

The room fell silent once again as Johnny's words hung in the air, heavy with truth and sadness. No one quite knew what to say or do, before Klaus straightened up and finally looked at Johnny directly.

"Then what about the ceremony...?" He asked. "What, do I just... do I just not go...? Move on, forget she existed...? She already thinks I'm a coward, and if I don't go, then surely everyone else there will think the same!"

"Well no, but... I dunno..." Johnny rubbed the back of his neck. "I mean... I'm not saying you shouldn't go see her, Klaus, you just... you don't need to do it alone."

"Yeah, mate, it's like J said before! You're not weak to ask for help, Klaus..." Nooshy laughed as she stood beside Johnny, though she sent a sincere smile the gorilla's way as she patted him on the back. While the lynx had been dismissive and reluctant to partake in this situation, after everything she'd just heard, her usual enthusiasm came bouncing back to the surface as she looked over to Klaus. "And if you wanna show that old horse what for, mate, we've got your back!"

Klaus hesitated for another moment or two, then cleared his throat and headed towards the door. The others all lowered their heads in disappointment, before he suddenly cleared his throat and they all looked over to the doorway, where he was still waiting. "I, um... I trust I'll be seeing you all there on Monday, then...?"

Johnny and Nooshy's faces both lit up, and while everyone else remained silent, it was clear from their expressions that they were just as pleased to hear this.

"Yeah, mate, of course..." Johnny nodded with a grin. "It might not be easy for you, Klaus, but... but it'll worth it. I promise..."

Johnny noticed a small, sheepish smile tugging at Klaus' lips - not unlike the one that he'd previously seen when Johnny had defeated him during their onstage duel - before the old monkey gave a silent nod and finally left the room. He felt a smaller hand grabbing his own, and looked down to see the diminutive koala smiling back up at him.

"I'm really proud of you, Johnny..." Buster said warmly. "Took a lot of courage sharing that."

"Yeah... thanks, Mr. Moon..."

A contemplative silence settled over everyone for the better part of a minute, before Johnny headed over to the door and the others gradually dispersed after him.

While following Meena and Porsha, Ash stopped herself in the doorway when she noticed Marilyn and Kaya were still sat together at the other end of the room. Marilyn was still staring up at Madame's imposing portrait, while Kaya placed what seemed to be a comforting hand on the gorilla's shoulder. Ash considered speaking up to gain their attention, but ultimately decided to leave them to their privacy as she went to rejoin the others.

"How did I end up with a son like you, eh...? You're nothin' like me. Ya never were, and ya never will be!"

Marcus stormed back to his cell, the SLAM! of the metal door echoing through the halls. Stan and Barry looked up from their card game, surprised by the sudden outburst, but they both let out a mutual sigh as Marcus began pacing back and forth, something they hadn't seem him do in a long, long time.

"I can't believe he'd do this to us!" Marcus grumbled, propping himself up against the walls. "Where do ya think he was when we was makin' out getaway, eh...?"

Stan shrugged as he rolled his eye. "Well, I don't know, Marcus, but you're probably going to -"

"He was at a rehearsal!" Marcus bellowed. "Can ya believe that! It's bad enough him not listenin' and... and goin' behind my back, but now I find out he's joined some bloody singin' contest! What's been goin' through that boy's head, I'll never know!"

Barry glanced over to Stan, then turned back to Marcus. "Maybe Johnny just wants to follow his dream..."

"Well, he should have been followin' the plan!" Marcus spat, before he made his way past them and slumped down on his bunk.

Stan bit his bottom lip, pinching the bridge of his nose, then shuffled closer. "Well... that's who Johnny is. Y'know, he's a good lad, but... but he's always been a bit of a dreamer..."

"Well yeah, but... but why this dream, eh...?" Marcus scowled, though he couldn't help sniffling a bit. "I mean... don't he even care what it did to his Mum...?"

"Mate, come on..." Stan scoffed, shaking his head as he took on a sterner tone. "Graham did that to Mary, Marcus, not singing."

This took Marcus off guard for a moment or two, but he lowered his head and rubbed his temples. While he had never spoken about it, Stan and Barry both knew full-well that their friend was still haunted by what had happened to his wife just over a decade prior. The pair were quite traumatised when Mary had died, and they could only imagine how it must have felt for Marcus and his young son at the time.

"I just don't know how he's turned out like this..." Marcus let out a small sigh. "I've tried to teach him best I can, but... but he's nothin' like me, boys..."

"Well, that's just it, innit...?" Stan laughed, but he sounded sincere as he placed a comforting hand on Marcus' hand. "It's cause he's just like her, mate. He always has been."

Marcus tensed up a bit, his eyes narrowing. It was clear to both Stan and Barry that their old friend hadn't thought of it that way before. But having always been a stubborn and prideful gorilla, even with the grief he'd been feeling for the past few years, he wasn't willing to accept defeat in this argument.

"Yeah, well... well, he still shouldn't have abandoned his post!" Marcus grumbled under his breath as he crossed his arms. "Besides, it were only a bloody rehearsal. Not like it were the main show..."

Stan and Barry exchanged a knowing look. Whenever Marcus was in a bad mood or angry about something, words could only do so much to assuage him. So from their past experience, they knew it was better to just wait for him to feel better on his own, but whether that was going to take hours, days or weeks was another question.

KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK!

Johnny and Nooshy both jolted up at the loud but rather fast-paced sound of a fist rattling on the door, and after exchanging an equally unsure glance with each other, Johnny slid off his bed and went over to open it. "Oh... Marilyn... y'alright...?"

"What...? Oh, um... y-yeah, I'm fine..." Marilyn stammered a bit as she rubbed her arm.

She was only wearing a tank top and sweatpants - though since they clearly weren't the same ones she'd been wearing during the rehearsals, Johnny assumed these were just her bedclothes - but her rather uncertain expression and awkward posture was a far cry from the confident girl that he'd been seeing the past few days.

"I um... I was just hoping we could have a quick chat..." She said after a brief moment of silence. "Am I okay coming in...?"

Johnny quickly glanced over to Nooshy, waiting for the lynx to give a small shrug, before turning back to the other gorilla that was stood in the doorway. "Uh... yeah, alright... we can talk..."

Marilyn quickly shuffled past Johnny and sat down on the bottom corner of his bed. Nooshy sat up on her own bed, eyeing Marilyn with a curious, but still welcoming expression. As Johnny closed the door and came over to hear what she had to say, Marilyn closed her slightly mascara-stained eyes and took a deep breath.

"Okay, well um... well, for starters, I just wanted to thank you, Johnny..." She said, sounding surprisingly genuine. "Y'know, for um... for sharing that story about your Mum today. It really meant a lot..."

"Hmm..." Johnny's expression softened slightly. "Thanks..."

Marilyn nodded with a small smile, before her usual, more enthusiastic tone briefly resurfaced. "And for what it's worth, I also think it's really amazing what you're doing with Mr. Kickenklober too. Y'know, helping him confront Madame like that. If you don't mind me saying, I actually think it's pretty badass."

Nooshy stifled a chuckle, and Johnny seemed rather amused by this as well, but the three of them managed to remain serious enough for what they were discussing.

"Well, um... I do appreciate that..." Johnny sat on the foot of Nooshy's bed, hunching forward a bit. "But really, it... it's got nothing to do with being badass, Marilyn. It's just the right thing to do. Folks like Madame, and... and Graham. They need to be stood up to."

Nooshy nodded, sitting up a bit so she could put a comforting hand on his shoulders, before looking over to the other gorilla present. "Suppose it's a bit like you, innit, Marilyn...?"

"How so...?" Marilyn straightened up a bit, pursing her lips.

"Well y'know, you... you were saying you didn't get along with your family either..." Nooshy had a genuinely sympathetic look on her face. "I mean, it might not be that bad, but... but I can see if this whole thing hits a bit close to home for you, mate..."

Marilyn scoffed, almost letting out a chuckle, then shook her head. "Yeah, no offence, Nooshmeister, but that is way off the mark..."

"Nooshmeister...?" Nooshy raised an eyebrow, with Johnny being equally perplexed by this nickname, though they both remained focus on Marilyn as she straightened up a bit.

"Yeah, there were none of that abuse stuff back in my neck of the worlds. In fact, it... it was probably a bit too sheltering, to be honest... I'd probably say I'm less the tragic victim and more, uh... well, suppose you could say a spoiled brat, kind of girl..."

"What, you...? No no, not at all!" Nooshy said in a half-joking manner, exchanging an amused grin with Johnny, though they remained quiet as Marilyn continued.

"I mean, yeah, me and my family have had a bit of a spat now, but... but truth be told, it... it's all on me. My Mum, my Dad, my Auntie, my... my little cousin... I've burned a lot of bridges these last couple months..." Marilyn's voice grew sadder and more regretful as she looked at her phone screen, pulling a small scowl at it. "And now I'm stuck here on this bloody phone all the time, and my only friends are 71K followers that I've never even met! They only remember I exist because I have to constantly remind them of it... hmm... wouldn't be surprised if my family's been wanting to forget me too..."

"Come on, mate, that can't be true..." Johnny tried to cut in.

"Oh, can't it...?" Marilyn scoffed. "Y'know, KC's probably the only one who wants to be anywhere near me now, and that's just because she's paid to be!"

Johnny sat a bit more upright as he thought for a moment, still trying to piece together the point that the other gorilla was trying to make. "So... what's that got with all this stuff with me and Klaus, anyway?"

"Well, I dunno, really, I'm just..." Marilyn hesitated for a moment, before pulling a small and uncharacteristically sheepish grin. "I suppose I'm just a bit jealous."

"Jealous...?" Johnny raised an eyebrow in surprise, as did Nooshy. "Why, Marilyn...?"

"It's just... seeing you today, with Mr. Moon, and... and all your mates, how they all sat and listened, and you just... just poured it all out to them. It's like you're all your own little family, isn't it...?" Marilyn stifled a chuckle, pulling a warm smile as she wiped her slightly misty eyes. "I suppose, seeing you lot like that, it just... I just really wish I had still had that, y'know...?"

Johnny and Nooshy both felt rather touched by Marilyn's words, though the lynx felt it was necessary to say something that would lighten the mood. "Well, don't tell Mr. Moon that, mate, or he'll end up adopting you!"

They all laughed at this, though Marilyn's eyes suddenly widened as she looked down at her screen again, and a small, confident smile tugged at her lips.

"But y'know, funnily enough, I... I might actually be able to help you lot out here..." She said "On Monday, I mean. Y'know, with Madame and Klaus..."

"Oh yeah...?" Johnny glanced over to Nooshy, who gave an uncertain but curious shrug, before looking back to the other gorilla. "Well, um... whatever you think you can do to help, Marilyn, we'd appreciate it."

"Right, brill!" Marilyn jolted up off the bed that she'd been sitting on, quickly typing something on her phone while Johnny led her over to the door. She began walking through after he'd opened it for her, though she still held back for a moment or two. "But um... but seriously, though, I appreciated the chat."

"Oh yeah, any time..." Johnny nodded, thinking to himself for a moment. "But y'know, if... if you're wanting to feel a bit more at home, Marilyn... y'know, like having a family again, and stuff, you're... you're more than welcome to join us if you want. The troupe, I mean..."

"Hmm...?" Marilyn pursed her lips as she thought about this offer, but a small grin crossed her face as she looked away. "Well, I appreciate that, really, but... but I think I've already got a few bridges that need mending, y'know...?"

"If you think you can..." Johnny hesitated briefly, then gave Marilyn a small pat on the shoulder as she finally went out the door. "Night, Marilyn..."

"Oh yeah, goodnight..." Marilyn quickly pulled her hand to the door just before Johnny could close it, looking the other gorilla right in the eye. "But seriously, Johnny... you really are lucky to have mates like this. Don't ever take it for granted..."

"Hmm... I won't..." Johnny sniffled a bit, then pulled a small smile while he finally closed the door. "I promise..."