"Ah... there we go..."

Stephanie let out a long, satisfied exhale, while the warm aroma of the coffee she'd just poured out slowly lifted her mid-morning grogginess. The mug, which has no handle, was still too hot to touch, though the wolf eventually managed to get ahold of it after covering her hands with the sleeves of her sweater.

As the Assistant Theatre Manager and Co-Producer, a title she still found herself struggling to embrace fully, Stephanie had taken over the responsibilities running of the venue in the temporary absence of its owner. While she'd been trying to keep things ship-shape, the overwhelming workload did make the wolf reconsider whether losing out on owning the Theatre herself was a missed opportunity or a narrowly dodged bullet.

"Oh God..." Stephanie whispered under her breath as she reached the top of the stairs, looking down to see the menagerie of animals that were already lining up in the lobby all the way out the side of the building, before taking another deep breath to steady herself. "Alright, just gotta grin and bear it... it's just until Baxter gets better."

Once she'd managed to shuffle her way through the sea of hopeful auditions and reached the auditorium door, making sure not to drop or spill her still steaming cup, Stephanie slipped her way inside and approached the stage, her sharp gaze quickly settling on the giddy eight-year-old that was already sat waiting on the front row.

"Ooh! Hi, Mommy!" Porsha stood up on the cushion of her chair, nearly bouncing on it in her excitement. "Ya ready to see more cool stuff?"

"Eh..." Stephanie's little murmur couldn't quite hide her weariness, but she managed to force a small smile while she sat herself down on the seat beside her daughter. "Hmm... yeah, Mommy's always ready for the cool stuff, sunshine."

"Babe, are you sure you wanna go through with this...?"

Lance's words made Ashley briefly freeze in the middle of the bridge. Her boyfriend hadn't said much during the bus ride and most of the walk afterwards, so she couldn't help feeling taken off-guard by him suddenly expressing doubts when they were only about five minutes away from the Moon Theatre.

"Uh... y-yeah, of course I do!" Her confident tone faltered a little as she tightened her grip on her guitar case. "Why...?"

"I dunno, Ash, I just... I just don't get it..." Lance gently pried his hand away from his girlfriend's and stuck them both in his pockets. "I mean, yeah, I get you're not big on the whole backing vocals thing, but it's gotta be better than joining a bunch of theatre weirdos."

"Oh come on, Lance, they're not weirdos. They're just, uh... y'know, passionate..." Ash shrugged. "Besides, Johnny said he'd put in a good word for me, so... might as well take the opportunity, right? Could even make a fun hobby."

"Uh-huh... wait, Johnny? That gorilla guy from your music club...?" Lance arched an eyebrow when Ash nodded. "How the heck did he get in there?"

"His parents are friends with the producer lady."

"Oh, is that what he says?" Lance scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Yeah, right..."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Come on, Ash, you've heard all the stories." Lance said, barely noticing the disapproving glare on the other porcupine's face. "I mean, seriously, a gorilla wanting to be a singer? I don't buy that for a second. They're probably doing one of those laundering things, or maybe he's stealing stuff for them, or -!"

"Ugh, just stop, Lance!" Ashley finally snapped, making her boyfriend purse his lips while he raised both his hands in surrender. "You can't say stuff like that! God, if you even knew half of what Johnny and his Mom went through, you'd -!"

"Alright, geez..." Lance exhaled harshly. "You don't have to get all woke about it, babe..."

"Oh, uh... y-yeah... sure..." Ash looked down to the ground, biting down on her bottom lip, and they remained silent until they were just across the street from her destination. "Oh hey! We're here!"

"Hmm..." Lance thought for a moment, cupping his chin. "Oh yeah, and talking of hobbies, how's Katy doing with that karate class?"

"It's boxing, actually. She's doing great, though..." Ash chuckled. "Yeah, I saw a couple of her classes, she's got a really good, uh... what's that word again? Not a jab, the one where they swing it...?"

"A hook?"

"Yep, that's it! Hmm..." Ash's eyes then widened a little. "Why'd you ask?"

"Well, I dunno..." Lance shrugged, though this didn't hide the rather mischievous glint in his eyes. "I mean, if you're looking for a hobby, Ash, I'd even pick getting punched in the face over coming to this place."

"Oh ha ha, very funny..." Ash rolled her eyes, straightening her glasses while she looked across the street. "Besides, I think I got a better chance at this place than I would taking Katy in a fight."

Even after the road became empty, the young porcupine took a couple more deep breaths, before turning over to her boyfriend while he casually crossed his arms. "So uh... you wanna wish me luck?"

"Nah... hmm... you don't need it."

"Aw..." Ash's cheek beamed a warm red, then she quickly leaned over and pressed her lips right on Lance's. "Love you too, babe."

Although Porsha had enjoyed most of the acts they'd seen so far, Stephanie's fatigue only worsened as she endured one lacklustre audition after another. Admittedly, some were genuinely decent, but she found herself somewhat disheartened when she checked her watch and discovered that what she thought had been at least several days was actually only two hours.

I want love to forget that you offended me
Or how you have defended me

When everybody tore me down

Yeah I want love to change my friends to enemies,
Change my friends to enemies

And show me how it's all my fault

The porcupine on stage looked to be about fifteen and she was mostly dressed in stylish blue denim, which made her pink, heart-shaped sunglasses stand out all the more. But she had quite a nice voice, and despite the original song not including one, the tambourine she was using was a surprisingly fitting instrument for it.

Yeah, I won't let love disrupt, corrupt or interrupt me
I won't let love disrupt, corrupt or interrupt me
I won't let love disrupt, corrupt, or interrupt me anymore.

"Wow... great! Yeah, it's a little unorthodox, but uh... but yeah. I really liked it." Stephanie looked at the checklist in her hands while Porsha excitedly clapped for the performer. "So, it's uh... it's Rebecca, right...?"

"Well yeah, I mean... I wasn't sure if I was supposed to put my full name or not, but my friends usually just call me Becky..." The porcupine answered, lifting her sunglasses while she tilted her head. "So, does this mean I'm, like, in or something...?"

"For now, it means I'm gonna mark ya down as a possibility, but I definitely think ya got potential, Becky..." Stephanie gave a small smile. "But yeah, thank you. Um... next please!"

Becky had a slightly excited spring in her step as she quickly made her way backstage again, though a brief glance back at the main stage caused her to run right into the next animal in line. "Oh... sorry about that, sweetie!"

"Oh no no, it was my fault, I was just... ugh, dammit!" The other, younger porcupine struggled to get ahold of her guitar case, while her glasses hung crooked off her face. "Yeah, I got everything!"

"Hmm... okay, I think you're on next, anyway..." Becky patted the other porcupine's shoulder, before taking off again. "Good luck!"

Stephanie was still hunched over the small table she'd set up and continued reading through the notes she'd written about the other performers, barely noticing her little one's face light up when the next performer came centre-stage.

"Ooh, Ashley! Hey Ashley, over here!"

"Hmm... hi, Porsha..." Ash gave a small wave to the eight-year-old while she opened her guitar case, before quietly clearing her throat in a bid to get the older wolf's attention. "Um... am I supposed to, like, wait to be called, or something?"

"What...? Oh no, no no no, I'll just be a sec, I uh... wait..." Stephanie's eyes narrowed a little, glancing down at Porsha then back over to the porcupine on stage. "Ashley? Oh yeah, you uh... you're Johnny's friend from school, right? The one he's always talkin' about...?"

"He is...?" Ash briefly felt her cheeks burning red while she clutched her guitar case tighter, though she quickly shook her head and tried to regain her more deadpan tone. "Uh, y-yeah, that's me. Well, I actually just go by Ash now, but uh... but yeah, I'm Johnny's friend."

"Oh, nice... hmm... it's good to finally get a face to the name, huh...?" Stephanie straightened up a little in her seat, prompting Porsha to try mimicking her mother's posture. "Well anyways, uh... you wanna get yourself started?"

"Okay, well I guess I'll just, uh... yeah..." The porcupine cleared her throat again, trying to keep her guitar upright while she spoke into the microphone. "My name's Ash, I'm thirteen years old, and today I'm gonna be singing -"

Ash was cut off when the doors to the auditorium flew open, the loud SLAM! echoing off all the walls as everyone's hearts skipped a beat. Stephanie scrambled upright and turned around in her seat, her eyes widening when she saw the familiar little koala stood in the doorway.

Buster wasn't wearing his blue suit jacket or his red bow tie, his fur was unkempt, his ears were drooped and heavy gags hung under his eyes. He clearly hadn't been expecting the auditorium to be occupied when he barged in, but looked as though he was barely able to stand, only just propping himself up against one of the doors.

"Moon...?" Stephanie spoke with surprisingly genuine concern as she stood up, leaving Porsha in her seat to watch while she hurriedly ran over and knelt to her employer's level. "Moon, y'okay...?"

"I... I j-just... h-he..." Buster's breathing was heavy as he tried to stammer out his barely audible words, before his gaze fell to the floor as he stumbled back into the lobby. "I gotta go..."

"No, Moon, just... Buster, wait!" Stephanie called as she stood back up, her heart utterly plummeting as the koala turned away and clumsily made his way up the stairs. She was just about to follow him, before glancing over to see the old lizard who was still sat in the front doorway, still crying her eye out. "Ms. Crawly...?"

"Oh, Ms. Frangipane, it... it's terrible..." Ms. Crawly managed to choke out through her tears aftee she blew her nose, while the wolf knelt beside her. "He was doing so well... Mr. Moon really thought he was going to pull through..."

"Pull through? What do ya... oh... oh..." Stephanie let out a sigh, gently placing her hand on the old lizard's. "Baxter...?"

Ms. Crawly hesitated for a moment, still letting out a monsoon of sobs and sniffles, then finally nodded.

"Oh, God..."

At least a hundred thoughts were racing through Stephanie's head - Buster, his parents, the theatre, Porsha, and for some reason, even Suki - while she stood back up and re-entered the auditorium. Though she was snapped out of this brief catatonia when she glanced over to see Porsha staring at her from her seat, along with Ash and all the other animals that were watching from the stage.

"Mommy...?" Porsha tilted her head, a curious but concerned expression etched on her face. "Is Mr. Moon okay...?"

"I uh... I don't... um... how do I, uh... no, it... ugh..." Stephanie pinched the bridge of her nose, then straightened up as she looked over to the stage. "Look, I'm sorry, everybody, but we're gonna have to close up for today. So, I'm just gonna need ya all to go home."

"What...?!" Ash exclaimed. "But... b-but what about my audition?"

"I dunno, kid, ya just gotta come back another day..." Stephanie answered, trying her best not to get frustrated. "It ain't a good time."

"No, but that's not fair!" Ash objected, sounding more passionate while she gestured to the other animals in line. "We've been waiting here for hours, you can't just dismiss us just because you -!"

"Well, I'm doin' it anyway!" Stephanie finally snapped, her harsh tone making everyone freeze up. "And if you don't like it, nobody's forcing ya to come back!"

Stephanie briefly held back when she noticed that even Porsha was cowering fearfully at her outburst, though she still kept her authoritative posture as she looked over to the porcupine again. Ash's glasses didn't conceal the small tears welling up in her eyes, though a frustrated scowl quickly formed on her face as she climbed off the stage and stormed out the door, slamming it shut behind her.

"Ugh..." Stephanie rolled her eyes, putting her hands on her hips while she glanced over to her daughter. "When you turn into a teenager, Porsha, don't be like that kid."

"Oh..." Porsha gulped. "Okay, Mommy..."

"Moon...?"

It was mid-afternoon when Stephanie finally came into Buster's office, seeing the koala seated silently at his desk while he held the Moon Car Wash bucket to his chest. She hesitated for a moment before she took the seat opposite him, offering a small, sympathetic smile when he finally looked over to her.

"How ya holding up...?" She asked softly, her voice filled with genuine concern, though he remained silent as he looked back down at the bucket. "Hmm... right... so, uh... so how'd Bernie take it...?"

Buster's eyes flickered briefly, having clearly not even thought about his mother's reaction until Stephanie brought it up, but still, no words escaped his lips. Stephanie let out a sigh, then slowly hunched forward on the desk, reaching a hand over and placing it on the koala's.

"I know it ain't easy losin' a parent..." She said, looking down to the floor while she let out a scoff, which seemed to pique Buster's curiosity as he looked over to her again. "Y'know, my... my friend Mary lost her Dad a couple years back. And he wasn't a good guy, by any means, y'know, he made her life Hell, but she... she was in a real dark place after he kicked it."

"Oh..." Buster finally spoke up, his voice still strained, though a good few seconds passed in silence before he spoke again. "Have you ever lost a parent, Steph...?"

"What...?" Stephanie paused, her expression faltering for a moment before she processed his question. "Oh, you mean... uh... no. Well, I guess technically... um... I dunno."

"You don't know if you lost a parent?"

"Ugh, no, I... oh, geez..." Stephanie straightened up, letting out a sigh. "I didn't lose my parents, I just... never had 'em. I was a foster kid, so... y'know."

"Oh... oh, Steph, I'm really sorry, I didn't even -"

"N-no, please, Moon, it... it's okay..." Stephanie forced a smile. "Besides, we're not talkin' about me, we're talkin' about your Dad."

"Hmm... I dunno, I just... I thought I'd be more ready than this..." Buster put the bucket upright on the shelf, drumming his fingers on the arm of his chair. "Y'know, after that first stroke in the summer, me and Mom, we just... it felt like we were just counting down the days after that, but it... but it still hurts. It hurts a lot."

Stephanie nodded slowly. "Well, y'know, maybe... maybe that's a good thing."

"It's a good thing he's dead?!"

"What, no! No no no, that ain't what I... I just... ugh..." Stephanie pinched the bridge of her nose, forcing a chuckle. "What I meant was... it's a good thing that it hurts for ya to lose him. "Y'know, cause... cause I never even had parents, but I can tell you and your Dad were close, Moon."

A small smile tugged at the corner of Buster's lips, a fleeting moment of nostalgia making its way through his the grief. "Yeah... yeah, we were."

"Right... I mean, if ya were that close to him, or course it's gonna hurt losin' him..." Stephanie continued, a hint of a playful tone in her voice while she lounged back. "Y'know, in a weird almost kinda little jealous. I mean, I dunno if it makes us lucky, but me and Porsha, well.. we ain't got any kinda family like that, so... we're never getting hurt that way."

Her eyes narrowed with intrigue when Buster suddenly reached behind his desk and pulled out what seemed to be an old bottle of whisky, the amber liquid glinting in the soft light of his desk lamp. Stephanie couldn't help feeling some nastier memories resurface when the koala poured out two glasses and slid one toward her, but after some hesitation she finally picked it up and raised it with her.

"Well, uh..." Buster cleared his throat. "Here's to you, Dad."

"Hmm..." Stephanie nodded, a bittersweet smile on her face. "To Baxter."

They clinked their glasses together, letting the sound ringing in the air for a good few seconds as it echoed around the room. Stephanie looked over as Buster downed his glass in one, though she simply stared down at her own while she slowly swirled it in her hands.

"Hmm... the last time I was holding a drink like this, I threw it against the wall in Jimmy's office..." She finally said, a hint of bitterness in her voice. "Which was not the biggest mess I made that night."

"Jimmy? Oh, you mean Mr. Crystal!" Buster straightened up, seemingly regaining some of his usual, somewhat childish curiosity. "He's um... he's Porsha's Dad, isn't he?"

"Ugh... unfortunately."

"Hmm..." Buster tapped his finger against the glass in his hand, biting his bottom lip for a few seconds before he finally came out with it. "This um... this might not be a great time, Stephanie, and... and if you don't wanna answer, that's fine too."

"Answer what...?"

"Well, I'm just curious, but um..." Buster exhaled. "What exactly happened between you guys? You and Mr. Crystal, I mean."

"Oh God, I um... ugh..." Stephanie groaned as she itched the back of her neck, her gaze slowly becoming more distant as she looked up at the ceiling. "Well, it just... hmm. When I first moved to Redshore, I used to go and sing in places. Y'know, payin' the rent, makin' ends meet, all that crap."

"Uh-huh."

"Anyways, I ended up singin' in this place called Peralta's, and that's where I met Suki..." Stephanie briefly looked over to Buster as the koala as he tilted his head. "Oh, uh... Suki Lane. She uh... she works for Jimmy."

"Ah, got it!"

"Right, well uh..." Stephanie continued. "When I got my contract signed with him, Jimmy was real fond of me. Or so he said. Y'know, he'd take me to fancy shows, dinners, I got all these gifts and stuff."

"Oh yeah, Mom calls that love bombing..." Buster cut in.

"Love bombing? Hmm... yeah, that's a good way of putting it..." Stephanie sighed, her voice tinged with regret. "I did everything I could to impress him. Y'know, make him think I was good enough for him, or whatever. He'd say wear this, or eat that, and... and I listened."

"Oh..." Though it was brief, Buster's tone indicated that he was catching on to her implications.

"We tied the knot about three years in, and it seemed pretty great at first, especially with Porsha around. But then, y'know, we kinda just uh... drifted, really. He was workin' on his shows, or his premieres, or whatever, and... he still kept goin' to the parties and the dinners and stuff, but... well, I never got the invites. Hmm... yeah, most nights it was just me, the couch and a couple bottles of wine, y'know...? Then I found out about the cheating, and I -"

"Cheating...?!" Buster gasped, sounding genuinely flabbergasted. "Who'd ever wanna cheat on you...?!"

Stephanie paused, her eyes widening a little while she pursed her lips, prompting the koala's face to go slightly red while he recoiled back into his seat.

"Right, well uh... anyways, I finally packed up what I had and I was gonna take off with Porsha, but... he wasn't gonna just gonna give her over..." Stephanie let a small hint of pride slip into her voice laced with a mix of resignation and strength. "I mean, yeah, it was pretty frickin' scary when he tried to get his thugs to kill me after I took her, but -"

"He did what...?!"

"Okay okay okay, before ya overreact, Moon, it all turned out fine..." Stephanie raised her hands, letting out a dry chuckle. had his thugs forcibly remove me from the mansion. "Y'know, it was a good few years ago, so... plus, now I got full custody and stuff, so there's no way Jimmy's gonna hurt me and Porsha now."

"Ah... okay... y-yeah, that's good..." Buster let out a long, fatigued sigh as he lounged back, almost as if he'd been through this horrific ordeal himself.

"But the point is, Moon, I pulled through..." Stephanie said, finally breaking the long, somber silence that had settled between them. "Just like Mary pulled through. And you and your Dad pulled through when ya got this Theatre. Hmm... and now ya gotta pull through this too."

Buster slowly nodded, letting a warm smile tug at his lips while he gazed at the beautiful wolf opposite, before he suddenly grabbed the bottle of whisky and filled his glass again.

"To pulling through..." He said, raising it up as she did the same.

"Hmm..." Stephanie nodded proudly, before clinking her glass against the koala's. "To pulling through."

The sun was just beginning to set outside when Stephanie left Buster's office and reentered the auditorium, seeing Porsha lying flat out and snoring in her seat. The older wolf smiled while she shook her head, making sure not to disturb her eight-year-old's peaceful slumber as she gently scooped her out of the seat and carried her over to the lobby.

With Porsha nestled against her chest, and having to use both arms to cradle her, Stephanie turned around and pressed her back against the front door in order to pry it open and get out. Though she quickly froze up when she looked to the edge of the pavement ahead and noticed a small, familiar figure sat huddled up on top of her guitar case.

"Ashley...?!" She said, prompting the porcupine to shoot up and turn around to face her. "God, your parents oughta be worried sick, what the heck are ya still doin' out here?"

"Oh, I uh... I've been waiting for you..." Ash stood up, still crossing her arms to keep herself warm while she shivered a little. "I just... I just really wanna audition."

"Audition? Still...?" Stephanie felt her heart sink a little at the sight of the porcupine's freezing posture and her dishevelled, slightly tear-stained face, but she closed her eyes and shook her head. "Listen, kid, I know you're passionate, but this really hasn't been a good day for us. Y'know, the boss, he just lost his -"

"N-no, just... ugh... please, Miss Franga... uh... Franny... um... well, whatever your name is, just hear me out!" Ash straightened her glasses, trying to sound and look more professional as she began the speech she'd been rehearsing during her time outside. "If I've learned anything from Clay Calloway, Eel-ton John, Florence Fletcher and all those guys, it's... it's that nothing's more powerful than music. Y'know, it's not just catchy or fun, it... it's everything! It tears you down, it builds you back up, it saves lives!"

"Uh-huh... y-yeah..." Stephanie quickly rolled her eyes, trying her best to seem interested, but after a moment she pursed her lips, and an idea began to form in her head. "Hmm..."

"And there's nothing I've ever wanted more than to be able to get up on a stage, and give the world my -!"

"Now you just hold that thought, cause I'm gonna stop ya right there, kiddo!" Stephanie raised a hand to silence the porcupine, who noticed a more confident grin forming on the wolf's face. "I'm gonna need ya to come on in..."

Around half an hour later Porsha finally woke up, once again finding herself in the same seat she'd fallen asleep in. As the eight-year-old yawned and stretched herself awake, she looked to her left to see her mother sat there beside her, only now accompanied by Buster and Ms. Crawly.

"Oh... hi, Mr. Moon! Are ya still sad...?"

"What...?" Buster tensed up, then looked past Stephanie to see her daughter - who despite being only eight, was just slightly taller than him - waving, and he awkwardly smiled back. "Oh, uh... n-not so bad now, kiddo."

They all looked up at the stage as Ash made her way to the centre, quickly getting out her guitar again while she adjusted the microphone.

"Okay, um... guess I'll just take it from the top..." She said, her voice trembling slightly as it echoed. "My name's Ash, I'm thirteen years old, and today I'm gonna be singing a song by Clay Calloway."

"Hmm... great." Stephanie nodded with a wink. "Whenever you're ready."

Having decided not to use a backing track, the gentle sound of Ash's fingers plucking two of her guitar strings echoed off the stage and the entire auditorium around them. The porcupine closed her eyes and bobbed her head along to the iconic rhythm, using her free hand to gently pat the bottom of her instrument for percussion.

See the stone set in your eyes
See the thorn twist in your side

I'll wait, for you

Slight of hand and twist of fate
On a bed of nails, she makes me wait

And I wait, without you

Porsha still hadn't completely gotten used to what Ash sounded like without braces even when she was just talking, but now hearing that same voice singing was utterly mesmerising. And when taking a quick glance at her mother and the other two members of their impromptu audience, it was clear they were just as captivated by the porcupine's performance.

With or without you
With or without you, ah, ah

I can't live
With or without you

While Ash sang; Stephanie couldn't help feeling her heart flutter as small, bittersweet tears formed in her eyes. Despite all the memories that were playing on repeat in her mind - marrying Jimmy, leaving Suki, Mary's jump, Kendall's attack - she didn't quite feel the intense pain or misery that she was used to associating to them. Rather, it was a more calm feeling, perhaps almost peaceful, and it only increased when she felt a smaller hand slowly latching onto her left forearm.

My hands are tied
My body bruised, she got me with

Nothing to win, and
Nothing left to lose

Though she had initially assumed it was Porsha, Stephanie was rather surprised when she looked down and saw that it was actually Buster that was holding her wrist. The koala looked up at her with a tearful but clearly grateful smile on his face, and after a moment or two of hesitation, the wolf gave a small but equally sincere one in return.

And you give yourself away
And you give yourself away

And you give
And you give

And you give yourself away

Porsha glanced back over at her mother, now raising a curious yet also suspicious eyebrow when Stephanie gently clasped Buster's hand in her own. Quite a few questions began to form in the little wolf's head while she saw this, only adding to the pile of countless questions that Stephanie still hadn't answered from that night at the Autumn Festival. But rather than asking them now, the eight-year-old simply lounged back in her seat, enjoying both the music and the moment as the porcupine on stage sang her heart out for them.

With or without you
With or without you, oh

I can't live
With or without you