AN: Due to its long word count, I have to split this one-shot into two chapters. It's a double upload today! Make sure to read both Part 1 and Part 2 on Mr. Shark's own special one-shot moment.

Strong warning for Part 2, however. There's actually gonna be a scene where there's fake blood. But it's not gonna be lovely.

Summary: "Shark has decided to revisit Dreary Dream University for tonight's performance, though to also check on anything fishy with the sophisticated Dreary family. With nearly everyone back home, there's no worry for him. But it's still a performance of drama, of course."

Special Short #3 - Mr. Shark, Part 1

Judy was grateful that her son wasn't watching THIS moment. Lou was already reading through the original text script, muttering a few lines.

She and her husband were on the bed with Lou sitting in front of them, all three sharks watching a live-action adaptation of Macbeth on their television. Now at the part where someone was publicly hanged…by a chain. Tastefully, it cut away to a long shot, but it would have terrified Lou for months.

"I don't think we should show him THIS part, darling," said Judy worriedly.

Oscar was more lax, chugging a bottle of lime cordial. "What? We haven't even shown him how a human explodes."

In response, Judy slapped him across the elbow. Oscar looked genuinely confused with a raised eyebrow. Those two couldn't seem to get along with each other yet they still tolerated each other. Eventually, seeing the confused look on Oscar, Judy could only smirk and rubbed his cheek playfully.

Meanwhile, Lou was oblivious to the disturbing scene, lost in understanding the words before him. At this age, he couldn't really say properly how the language before him made him feel.

"This is…this is…erm…making me feel…"

"Confused?" answered Oscar. "That's the language of Shakespeare."

"It's kind of wonderful," said Judy with a kind smile, caressing Lou's head. "Makes you think of another world."

The younger shark looked up at his mother with big curious eyes. The kind that would sparkle in the night sky. "Do people speak in…this manner?"

"Not anymore. But these pages are still shared by millions."

Lou glanced back at the ridiculously thick book. "Even the…humans?"

Oscar snorted. "Yeah." An awkward beat. "And pirates, apparently."

"Exactly!" said Judy triumphantly, glad her husband was on the same page. "It's a universal language shared. The man behind it was a genius! Not only using new words but in an inventive way. He was a creator, an artist, telling a story through a language understood by his audience and for him. His own world is told properly to be heard and learnt. Full of drama, erotic scenes and the parts where your heart will break."

Lou cooed, staring at his mother innocently. "Will these stories…break my heart in two?"

Oscar chuckled towards the innocent remark. "They won't. Just leaves you a little sore. They can be 'sad'."

"But it comes with the desire to fix it," finished Judy, patting her son on the back. "A commentary for the commentary you might say."

Lou stared at her for a while, trying to process what her mother said. It was a lot. REALLY a lot. His silence prompted Judy to wonder if she had explained too much again. Sheepishly, she scooted a little away, rubbing the back of her head.

"OK, sorry, you didn't need to…" she muttered in embarrassment.

When she trailed off, she felt Oscar patting her shoulder. A comforting reassurance that she wasn't mocked again. "He's still a child, Judy. He won't-"

"Oscar, this is kind of…"

"Can I…stay to watch as well, Mum?" asked Lou suddenly.

The two older sharks were surprised to hear this. More so for Judy.

"What?" she said.

"I think I'd like to know more," said Lou with a smile.

Judy wasn't sure at first. This could be something Lou might discard when he becomes older. But his sweet eyes showed interest. A massive contrast to how he viewed his father's lessons. Maybe this might be a good thing for Lou. This was admired by humans as well, right? So that would make them humane?

With this thought, Judy felt warm inside. She found herself feeling…happy.

"Of course, my little shark," she said, picking Lou up and on her lap.

Oscar gasped, trying to process his son's intrigue. His son never showed interest before. He would often appear afraid of what he presented. But how come Judy managed to interest their son? How was she able to reach his motivation in educating him? Alas, it did relieve Oscar since it was the first time he saw Lou liking something for once.

The father could only shuffle to the side awkwardly to give space for Lou. "Sure, sure. Could…provide character?"

Judy gave him a blank stare, unamused.

Oscar cleared his throat. "Hope you enjoy it, Lou. Those are good stories to read through."

When Lou turned to him, he appeared shocked by the encouragement.

"...also, avoid using the prisoners to reenact scenes of killing characters. They're not toys."

"That explains a lot," said Kitty, leaning against Shark's body as they felt the unexplainable bumps on the tram. Natural yet bumpy. Good thing Shark was soft, like a pillow to rest on instead of hitting against the rigid walls.

"I don't think I took him seriously," snickered Shark. "Surely it's not a lesson on political forces!"

"Or probably a lesson that escapism is just stupid," added Kitty.

"Ever since from there," continued Shark. "I loved Shakespeare! His plays even encouraged me to read through every play and drama I could find. Soon enough, I even managed to steal a couple of costumes for myself. My dad got mad for how cheap they were, but worth it!"

Shark was already jumping slightly in his seat, his body jiggling like a teddy bear rocking around. His sweetness was hard to contain and Kitty felt like a mother watching over this sweet child. Two things she liked about Shark were his childlike nature and his interest in acting.

"And from there, you've been acting ever since," summarized Kitty.

"Well, it inspired me to be a master of disguise," said Shark proudly. "I also have nothing to hide when I get to fool the crowd! Surprisingly, it's something I connected to with my father. He wasn't so gung-ho about it, but he did like the drama…"

His smile nearly faded away. It was a while since either he or his father brought up any of the plays they both loved and the games he often set up to do with the whole family. He remembered his father's surprise whenever he played as a character with a full costume. Sometimes, Oscar watched him act. Sometimes, he joined in, filling in a villain role or a dead guy. Sometimes, he voiced his dislike, but that was understandable. There was always room for improvement.

These were the very few moments he could remember when they laughed together without feeling wrong. Those memories made him want to remain there. It reminded him much of when Oscar wasn't acting like a monster. What happened to them?

"...he's more of a watcher…and being honest," continued Shark, trying not to sound depressed. "I know I have some kind of mask, but I don't care! It makes me confident and I would rather learn new ways to trick the crowd instead of slashing through them."

Kitty thought about it for a while. "Maybe he understood your interest even though you two are opposites? He didn't stop you?"

Shark nearly thought that wasn't true, given Oscar's calls lately. However, he couldn't deny it. Especially since Oscar barely did anything else but use words after the two went off on their own separate lives.

He found himself smiling a little, even if he felt sad. This was nearly the first happy memory with his father and mother. At least one thing he liked about his father was that he could be loud and unashamed with whatever nonsense he said.

Shark could only give a nod, sadly smiling. "Well…if he were here, then maybe he would like to have a watch of the drama club's play on…"

"You mean the Scottish Play?" asked Kitty with a knowing smile.

"Why, of course." Shark felt a grin creeping up. "On Macbeth."

"AHH!" said Kitty suddenly, clapping Shark's hands. "Hot potato, orchestra stalls, Puck will make amends!"

Like little children, the two animals broke into an uncontrollable giggle, slapping their knees. Passengers nearby gave them looks. Eventually, they resumed back to staring at nothing or their phones. Just some drunks. Shark wasn't bothered, already feeling happy by the joke.

"Maybe we should do that as our performance," giggled Kitty, wiping a tear. "Students at universities and colleges are into this kind of thing."

"Now, let's not try ridding that house of evil spirits," chuckled Shark. "There are kids watching this!"

"But isn't there murder in it?"

"Oh, now there ain't!"

"Well, Macbeth is a pretty good tragedy!" said Kitty. "So I'm looking forward to that. I'm just hoping that they won't use the Shakespearian language. Funny thing, when my kids started reciting lines of Romeo and Juliet, my father thought he dosed their milk."

Shark nearly laughed again. "But the language is a classic. Macbeth enhanced this through its themes of ambition and revenge! Fair is foul and foul is fair! It's poetic, allowing you to enter a world like no other."

"Say, you could have been a poet for this," joked Kitty. "You seem to know a lot about performing. I'm surprised you haven't crashed a stage yet."

"Oh, that," said Shark with a sassy hand wave. "Acting may be a safe career, but it's pretty clear that being an actor or an actress means going by the script. Not by the heart."

This intrigued Kitty. "Wow, you really dig into the fine arts long ago. You studied it? You could be a romantic poet or a naturalist poet."

"Nah. I wasn't able to go to school. I self-taught myself when my mother told me about it."

An educated individual like Kitty would find this as a challenge. But given the big fellow's success in acting and knowing a lot, she could give points to that. She nodded, impressed. "I'll take that as a good reason."

They nearly forgot what they came in for when they set foot inside Dreary Dream University. Shark could count this as a haunted house version of the university because it was at night with some rooms closed. Except for the students walking around for evening classes. But the atmosphere was still alive due to the new posters of the Macbeth play spread around, informing them where to go.

"Remember, Kitty," reminded Shark, leaning close to Kitty's ear. "Keep an eye out. If you see Thelma and Spalding or their loyal accomplices, don't provoke them since we don't need a scene."

"Aye, aye, soldier," said Kitty with a serious look. She heard that these two talked utter crap towards Wolf and Snake. But Shark was right. They couldn't create a burden during this night.

"Good!" said Shark, grinning. "And most of all, have fun!"

"I thought you took this order from Diane. And by the way…can I have my watch back?"

Shark's eyes widened. "Oooh, you…how can you tell?"

Kitty rolled her eyes, directing them to Shark's hoodie pocket. The giant shark giggled sheepishly, pulling a golden chain watch out.

"Repress your temptations," hissed Kitty, snatching the watch back. "That's how you don't get caught."

"Sorry," cooed Shark, rubbing the back of his head. "Force of habit."

Thankfully, their journey throughout the planetary university distracted Shark from temptations. Finding the right place took a while since it would cover a hundred miles to get where they wanted to be at. Yet, time passed like dust, leading them to a huge interior clearing connected to the performance theatre room.

A large staircase sat right in the middle, connected by bridges that would guide them to the different levels of this specific building. Through the see-through glass balcony fences, they could spot multiple classrooms within the four spacious floors. Half of them already had their lights out. The first floor above them was packed with people, crowding around an entrance leading to their destination.

A couple of waiting families were standing around or sitting on the staircase. Shark was surprised by the number of kids around, not even appearing older than 10 years old. Was this an exclusive performance for the whole family?

Nobody seemed to notice either Shark or Kitty yet.

Well, only one person.

Shark found himself letting out an exasperated sigh when he spotted the bugged-eyed Thelma. The dachshund dog stared at him longly like she saw a ghost. However, she slipped back on the peppy, critical frown she often gave to those she disliked. It was already inevitable when she marched down the staircase, several clicks of her footsteps that emphasized her sophisticated and strict manner.

"Is that Thelma you're talking about?" whispered Kitty.

"Yeah, that's her," muttered Shark, crossing his arms.

While Thelma scared Wolf, Shark was indifferent when Thelma glared right at him. At least she was as tall as Kitty.

"Thanks for dropping by in, 'Sandy'," said Thelma, not hiding her spite. "Back for more, aren't you?"

Shark smirked a little. "Just want to check on the drama club. Perhaps we can talk about it, Thelma!"

"Cut the chit-chat. You're not allowed to be here. What makes you think-?"

"Uh uh uh!" sassed Shark, wagging a finger. "You can't throw me because Kitty and I paid our tickets online to the show. Kitty is my companion!"

Thelma snorted in agitation. Her dad would kill her for this. She directed her glare towards the idle Kitty. She didn't seem to be just an ordinary cat. Noting the muzzle shape and the slightly thick tail, she was a panther. The only thing that baffled Thelma the most was her Kill Bill jumpsuit. That she would have to come back later.

Thelma tried to pick up reasons not to trust her, but only one came to mind. "I'm assuming you're not a criminal judging by how tame you look. Why should I believe you'll have your eyes on him the entire time?"

Kitty nearly missed the question but quickly paid attention. "Oh, as much as the Bad Guys are diabolical, they are good company. Shark is a good buddy baby. He doesn't have a kill count, does he?"

"And how do you know that?" questioned Thelma, narrowing her eyes.

"Simple, I'm a friend of Governor Diane Foxington."

That shattered a piece of Thelma's self-confidence. "You're telling me…" She paused upon feeling her forehead flaring up in ice shock. "You're friends with a governor. And she trusts YOU to guide this degenerate?!"

Kitty smacked her lips. "In a nutshell."

Thelma glanced at Shark and he nodded, confirming the truth. As much as Thelma could trash-talk Oliver, she couldn't precisely put force on them. She and Spalding acknowledged they could be in so much trouble since Diane was more powerful.

And Thelma was in disbelief that the rest of the Bad Guys were simply bored by the truth.

She tried to recompose herself, biting her tongue several times. "C-Cute one! You know, Lou, you will be a distraction for tonight's performance! A hot distraction…well, not a hot one, but still a distraction!"

"Don't call me 'Lou,'" grumbled Shark, narrowing his eyes. "You don't have the right calling me by my real name. If my memory serves me right, I also remember you being cool with the many students as animals. I'm not even wearing drag tonight!"

"You're still a shark," snarled Thelma through gritted teeth. "I've seen enough classes that talk about sharks swallowing up-"

"Look, Miss Dreary," Shark's sassiness was already gone. In that place was a replication of Oscar's seriousness. Shark's softness surprisingly switched into being dead straight. "I came here for a good night and if it's something you don't understand, I'm sorry."

"And what if you sniff blood-?"

"At least I don't waste time bragging and instead make the time licking the leftover lemon cream, you sugar craver. Why not see it for yourself first rather than running your mouth dry from all that yapping?"

Thelma didn't have another comeback. She tried thinking through, but Shark's surprising defiance and no-nonsense left her dumbfounded. Dumbstruck enough to scatter her brain. He wasn't playing around now. In fact, he was challenging her on her argument.

She loudly barked out frustration before turning away on her heel. In an attempt to regain her confidence, she adjusted her glasses to appear sophisticated again. Her shining armor to show she would still be in control. She needed to work anyway.

Uncaring to see her disappear into the dark, Shark turned his head with a huff and walked up the staircase, followed by Kitty.

The panther let out a long exhale of relief. "Oh, man! For a moment, I thought we would be caught! How…are you alright, Shark?"

Finally, away from Thelma's insufferable presence, Shark grinned. "I don't feel good, babe."

"How come…you kept your cool like this?"

"It's called acting," said Shark, grinning. "Cool thing about using a mask, masking can turn yourself into adopting the mask for real. This isn't my first show."

"But are you feeling good?"

"A little nervous, but nothing too bad." Shark noticed the long silence that determined Kitty's uncertainty. He presented a gentle, lovely smile to her. "Say, you can call me Lou."

Kitty was a bit surprised to hear this confirmation. "That's…your real name, right?"

"Indeed! Only my friends are allowed to call me 'Lou'. Do you have a real name?"

Kitty snickered. "My name is Kitty."

"Oh, right! Thank you! Though, I didn't expect Thelma to refer to me as 'Lou'."

It was only when they crossed over the bridge on the first floor that Shark noticed the apprehensive stares towards him. It then came to him that while unaffected by Thelma, it drew attention from those watching nearby.

So much for keeping a low profile, thought Shark worriedly.

His smile didn't continue when passing by the mass of people crowded around.

Trying not to give a scary grin, Shark adopted the look of staying calm. It didn't help that some of his sharp teeth tended to pop out from his closed lips. Kitty was slow to realize, raising an eyebrow towards those watching anxiously. The giant shark noticed this, now envious of how easy it was for her to get by…when you're a larger monster, everyone will know you as that.

But after his redemption, Shark wanted to show himself as friendly as possible.

Thankfully, as they came closer to the theatre doors, Shark found many who didn't mind his presence. They were all too absorbed in their conversations, not like a giant, walking shark would interrupt them. One child playing with an airplane noticed him, his eyes sparkling in childlike utopia. And as they neared the area where there seemed to be more students, one of them flashed a picture of him.

Immediately, Kitty gave the student a deadpanned glare, wagging her finger.

Shark couldn't help but snicker at the panther's manner of so.

Before he knew it, Shark came across a familiar face.

When Truman first saw Shark, he immediately recognized him as the 'Sandy Griffiths'. He had a hunch before but didn't think further about it. It was only after hearing Thelma rambling about the Bad Guys that he later tried to make the connection.

You could imagine his surprise when he turned out to be right.

He froze up, eliciting a fearful reaction from Shark. But not wanting to be exactly mean, Truman quickly improvised.

He took a step forward with a dramatic look, lifting his hand up to make a fighting pose.

Shark raised an eyebrow, not moving an inch.

Eventually, Truman dropped the facade. "It's OK, Mr. Shark Griffiths. I'm not gonna spread word on this."

"Me too," said Shark, smiling.

"It's good to see you again!" said Truman, shaking his hand. "I'm surprised you dropped in."

"I heard about the drama club's performance and considered watching. Are you part of tonight's show?"

"Not really, but my younger brother is performing. I just came here to support backstage." Truman noticed Kitty's presence, turning to her with a friendly smile. "And you must be…?"

"Kitty Kat," introduced the panther, bowing down like a loyal subject. "Pleasure to meet you."

Truman raised an eyebrow. "Wait, aren't you the one whose car got stolen by the Bad Guys for-?"

"I don't want to talk about it," hissed Kitty.

"Truman," started Shark. "I'm sorry for tricking everyone in disguise-"

"It's fine," said Truman coolly. "Spalding barely called the police and he checked that there was nothing you stole." He dropped his smile. "But seriously. Don't think about stealing anything here tonight. Spalding looked like he could have a stroke."

"It's all good," reassured Shark. "I don't have any plans."

Kitty couldn't help grimacing at him.

"So anyway," said Truman, checking his watch. "Only an hour left until the show starts. I know that you would be interested in seeing the props, Shark, so I'll beat you to it: I can show you something on my brother's behalf."

He managed to pull the two animals through the crowd of people, though it was slow due to Shark's size. At least the crowd was becoming more aware of his presence, opening up a somewhat clear spacing for them to move through. He noticed that more and more people were stacking up in number, waiting. For such a fancy university, the attendance of visitors was thriving.

Surprisingly, Truman led Kitty and Shark to another room that already had its doors opened. Both animals were confused initially since they could only see students in cardboard costumes moving in and out. But it turned out to be a huge, shiny dancing practice room: the one place where the actors and actresses prepare themselves before showtime.

There wasn't any particular form of activity everyone was supposed to do, already split into groups to recite their lines. Others were mucking around. One pair was chasing each other with fake wooden swords. Shark noticed that the scattered bags and piles of clothes incited some disorder, but there didn't seem to be any fatal setbacks.

It was peaceful between these club members. He could feel the excitement needed to reserve for the show.

It helped that he recognized a few people from the tour he attended earlier, guided by enthusiastic members of the club.

To Shark's surprise, the clothing rack contained much more than the period fashion of the original Macbeth setting. A mix of royal clothes and streetwear. Even the armors were decorated with heavy golden chains. It looked ridiculous. It looked fascinating. A line of jesters walked by with hats holding up large colorful feathers you would see from a festival.

"Ooh-la-la!" whistled Kitty. "I'm guessing that this really is for all ages!"

Truman, on the other hand, seemed to think otherwise. "I don't know, maybe it looks too much."

"Why's that?" asked Shark. "It makes the show more lively!"

"It's just me," said Truman, scratching his chin. "I get the appeal, but I feel like it's a bit…exaggerated for such a serious play? Macbeth isn't exactly colorful."

Shark chuckled. "Would you change your mind if I grab one of those dresses and-?"

"Oh, no, no, no," said Kitty, noticing Shark eying a random tight red glitter dress. "Let's not. We're all wearing really small tighty-whities now."

"But I looked good in that dress two years ago!"

While not exactly turned on, Truman found it amusing of Shark wearing a red dress. "I'll take your word. Now, still want to have a tour around?"

Kitty nodded and Shark gave an eager thumbs-up.

The tour was only short, but Truman did his best to show the two what this room had in store. Apparently, this would be where the Drama Club occasionally meet up with special areas and rooms for certain roles. For Shark, the mood was only spoiled when people slowly noticed him.

He thought of looking away, but everywhere he turned, he was met with club members in dead silence or gaping in silence.

The giant shark felt uncomfortable, not wanting to disrupt anything. At least no one made a fuss about it since everyone still tried to continue their activities. A couple remained anxious and wary. But Shark didn't know that behind his back, a few people stared at him in interest.

A few smiles were beginning to appeal from the sea of serious and apprehensive frowns.

"Of course, he would be here."

"He isn't going to steal? Those clothes we made are priceless!"

"The clothes we made are cheap and plastic…"

"I wonder if they actually got him to perform with us."

"Who is that cat girl he has?"

"He kind of looks cute"

No explicit insults or biases or fears. Shark could understand worries, but he was still surprised some were alright with his presence. It was like being treated more casually and ordinarily than people running away.

It was different to last night when he partied with the drunk visitors at the bar. Here, they could think clearly yet it got Shark wondering how they didn't treat him like a feral animal. That part could explain the tough exterior he saw from the locals of Melbourne. The blase yet welcoming demeanor they exhibited.

After seeing some smiles, it made him smile as well and his dorsal fin wagged.

"This drama club encourages all kinds of different styles, performances and themes provided to their members," explained Truman as they crossed the middle. "From what my brother told me, there are requirements for landing a role in each big musical play every year, but they have daily social activities. If you ask me, it sounds like party games."

"That so?" asked Kitty, eyeing the giggling club members around her. They looked equally extravagant. A club for the ham. "Birthday cakes and balloons must be part of the tradition."

"Ah, not like that. I mean, a couple of social acting activities. Charades. Dance performances. Everyone likes having fun."

"I'm wondering," said Shark. "Is your club interconnected with this?"

Truman shrugged. "Not often, but we do have collaborations. Some provide research and feedback for specific characters they want to act as. We don't need to worry anyway since the club provides a safe place for all to be themselves."

"Sounds like my kind of thing," said Shark, grinning.

"I thought you said you don't like going by the script," snarked Kitty.

Truman chuckled when he heard this. "If it interests you, here are some trying to do something different with the script. I know them before and I heard their planned twist."

He was referring to a group of four reciting over their lines, recognizing the group mulling over different ideas. Shark heard the peppered lines of the witches' dialogues in Scene 3 of Act 1. Three women and one man. The man had silver hair, olive skin and an equally matching shiny jacket. For the girls, there was one blonde, one pink-haired and one black-haired.

The three women were already decked in heavy black cloaks that could reach the edge of the stage. Surprisingly, the black-haired girl was sitting in a wheelchair, her cloak easily hiding its features.

"Here I have a fillet's thumb!" said the blonde girl dramatically. "Wrecked as hog-ward he did come!"

"...that feels too much," said the pink-haired girl, displeased. "And also, are you trying to reference Harry Potter in this?"

"I thought we agreed that you'd be playing around with how you say your lines," said the silver-haired guy, scratching his head. "Not rearrange them."

"Aren't you guys a little worried about our upcoming performance?" asked the girl in the wheelchair, taking a more sensible approach. "Cause we haven't really rehearsed on…different sounds. We already done figuring out the lines. What about voices?"

"Well, you gotta improvise a little, babe," cut in Shark's voice.

All three girls yelped in shock to find a shark towering over them. The man flinched when the back of his head bumped into Shark's large snout. There was silence for a while and Shark realized he had come in without greeting himself properly.

However, once the silver-haired man saw Truman, he broke any tension between them.

"Truman!" he said with his arms wide open. "Nice to see that you pop in again!"

"Aww, you know that I have to keep checking on two VIPs," said Truman, coming in for a hug. "My brother and my cold Steel."

Expectedly, the three girls were shocked by the watchful Shark, but like Steel, they seemed to quickly get past the shock. Slightly intimidated but not closed off.

"You must be Mr. Shark of the Bad Guys," said one of the girls.

"Naturally," said Shark with a nervous smile. "Just a bit of a business trip."

"That's weird," said the second girl. "I thought you were on vacation since the news of your gang crashing a car."

Shark flinched, embarrassed. "We were drunk that night."

"Girls, Steel," called Truman. "This is Mr. Shark and Kitty Kat. They'll be seeing the play as well. I see that your surprise will be revealed soon?"

"Oh, Sydney, Pam and Isla are gonna perform as the three witches," explained Steel, his hands behind his back. "And they did say they want their performance to be 'special' tonight."

"Oh yeah, sir," said Isla, the blonde. "I say that we stick to the voice used in The Wizard and the Oz."

Pam, the black-haired, shook her head, visibly uncertain. "Isla, we can't carry that kind of squeaky tone for too long."

"C'mon, it would give the audience a chuckle! Even the witches sound ridiculous! How can you monologue for that long when alone?"

"I have to disagree," said Sydney, the pink-haired. "Pam has a good point. I'm thinking more of a deep, raspy voice." She placed a hand over her chest. A raspy, unladylike voice croaked out from her lips. "Like the spirits of hell awakening to possess the innocent~."

"You sound thirsty, Sydney," deadpanned Pam.

Isla clenched her teeth. "Yeah, we're…not going to sound THAT old!"

"Do you have any new ones so far, genius?" asked Sydney.

Kitty slowly leaned towards Steel, interested in the communication between these three. A little quirky, but in a short amount of time, she could tell that they were serious as if doing their homework.

"They know their character well," she commented.

"They did their study," said Steel. "Voices, however, are lost in pages."

Shark tilted his head in childlike wonder as the three girls got caught up in their discussion, oblivious to the rest of the world. They appeared rebellious, especially Isla. However, one thing about being a rebel was the needed preparation for anything. That was one thing he considered when using his cons in past robberies.

Of the three, Pam appeared to be less vocal about their decision of the employed voices.

Shark couldn't help saying his thoughts out loud. "Well, those are some good vocal ranges. Would take lots and lots of practice to maintain these voices. I think the thirsty one might work better."

Kitty blinked. "You think so? Cause I don't think the witches in Macbeth were-"

"No, no," said Steel, his eyes sparkling. "He's got a point there! Go on."

Truman grinned, knowing that look from Steel. "This is going to be interesting."

Shark was soon shifted to be the teacher of the three girls. Making his way to the centre, Sydney and Isla sat cross-legged on the floor. To their surprise, Shark didn't appear scary anymore despite their sharp teeth. In fact, his big eyes and giddy smile made him look more like a giant teddy bear.

"Now you can try changing your voices to fit the characters," he explained, waving an arm around gently. "But it seems like you haven't adjusted yet for different ranges. It's all about capability and what you're even comfortable with. Like flipping dials on a DJ turntable, but it's not controllable. All three of you can have your own individual voices as long as it resonate with your version of the witch."

Pam raised her hand politely. To her, it was a once-in-a-lifetime talking to Shark like her teacher. As far as her anxiety could tell. "I still think we should use our normal voices for this. Unless all three of us can use another accent for all our lines, it will be hard to talk in…another 'witch' voice?"

Isla sighed. "You keep over worrying, Pam. Everyone's going wild tonight. Maybe we might see Jayden's planned melodrama of his character's death."

Pam turned her eyes to the ground. "I…I don't know. Sorry, I thought it might not work straining my voice like this."

Sydney frowned, concerned. "Pam, maybe-"

"I'm not saying that I don't want the role!" said Pam quickly, holding her hands up. "I mean…what kind of voice would work if neither of you want to go with regular?"

Shark rubbed his chin, humming. "Perhaps I can give advice? Recite any line on your page and I'll analyze."

In the midst of her progressing thoughts, Pam felt flustered. She felt like she could shrink underneath her cloak and into the safety of her wheelchair. But she was baffled by a giant shark's offer to listen to her.

But time was already ticking, so she didn't have a day to think about it.

"Sure then?" she said. "Not sure how this will help."

Like flicking out her wand, she pulled a script sheet from her cloak. Shark didn't need to borrow a script to understand what she would be saying. He knew nearly every single line of the Macbeth script, even identifying which line number of specific quotes. The part Pam chose to recite was the first witch's explanation of where she was before meeting up with her sisters again. Somewhere around Line 4 of Act 1, Scene 3.

Her voice wasn't dull since she carried some energy for her character. But what Shark noted was the lack of any emotion. It was neutral. Distant. The only indication of any emotions was whenever Pam slowed down or nearly trailed off. Those were signs of hesitance.

"But in a sieve, I'll thither sail and, like a rat without a tail, I'll do…" Pam was nearly out of breath, taking a slow inhale. "Is it good?"

Shark thought for a while, replaying Pam's voice in his head. Being an expert master of disguise, he easily brought up his feedback.

"Using your normal voice here would work since you created this calm, stoic composure," he explained. "I feel like it should sound a little mad given that the first witch was agitated by the people she met. Your delivery was unconvincing. The last part 'I'll do', why hesitate?"

Pam shyly turned her eyes back to her script. "It's about swearing revenge. For some reason, the words…don't match well in translation."

"And how would you feel if you said this on your own? What feelings are elicited when swearing revenge?"

Steel was slowly nodding, understanding the technique Shark was invoking. This one wouldn't require Pam to use another voice, but it was something else to add more character. Both Truman and Kitty watched on with the former placing both hands on Steel's shoulders. Never before would they see Shark teach a bunch of university students.

It was a strong feeling when thinking about revenge. It could be easily brushed off. Pam knew that this feeling could come and go. There was one emotion driving it.

"Anger?" she asked.

"Oh yeah, babe," said Shark with a triumphant grin. "Here's what would need to happen; it's not about getting people to know you'll do. It's about getting people to know that you FEEL like doing it. You were reading this like a textbook. Your role fills in someone coming from a new world that has no rules. You got that anger. Show that side of you to swear vengeance!"

Pam raised an eyebrow. "You're saying to sound angry?"

"Not just anger, babe. Sound determined. "Add more gusto like you mean it! Add a little growl to say 'I'll do'!"

Pam nodded slowly, understanding this. "Hmm, I'll do."

"You're doing it," encouraged Shark fiercely, shaking a fist.

"I'm doing it!" said Pam, raising the volume of her voice.

"You're doing it!" exclaimed Shark like a cheerleader.

"Oh, I'll do it," snarled Pam, confidence regained.

"Oh, you go up there and do it!" hissed Shark.

"Yeah!" shouted Pam, punching the air. "I'm doing it and cooking it, everyone!"

Naturally, their loud exchanges attracted those nearby. Though, it didn't take too long for everyone to ignore them. One person gave a more lasting, disapproving look, not pleased with the unwanted noise.

Pam giggled, covering her glowing cheeks. "Oh, sorry."

"Whoa, girl!" said Sydney, surprised.

Isla shared the same sentiment. "Yeah, like whoa!"

"Is it too much?" asked Pam.

Isla shrugged, not having the words.

"Actually, I think that can work," said Sydney. "Sounding this loud is really convincing of a witch."

"Yeah," agreed Steel, stepping in. "The growl works as well. More emphasis on the growl."

Pam seemed to lose any lingering hesitance, breaking into an excited smile. "Yeah! The growl works on the stronger words."

As the three girls shared compliments on this idea, Shark watched on in pride with his hands on his hips and his dorsal fin wagging. He just helped someone become more confident in their lines for the upcoming play! He did a good thing! He wasn't an official part of the club, but volunteering as a mentor was enough.

This confirmed that not everyone in this city was afraid of him.

"Wow, Mr. Shark of the Drama Club!" commented Truman, patting the giant shark on the back. "Would have been a really good teacher."

"Just call me the best role model for acting," said Shark, smirking. And then, his smirk was wiped off. "Wait, role model is the wrong word."

Kitty laughed, rubbing his shoulder. "Yeah, I second that."

A sweat drop rolled down Shark's face, acknowledging this fact.

"Say, brother," said Steel randomly. "What's with the golden ring?"

Shark was confused. "Wait, what ring?"

"The one on your dorsal fin. Does it hurt putting it on? I don't recall seeing your dorsal pin with a piercing poking through it before on the news."

Shark's smile nearly faded away. Not many talked about his golden earring; honestly, he hoped not many would notice it. He got lost helping these girls, so he shouldn't feel ashamed. But why was he suddenly feeling…tense?

Shark swallowed, remembering his father's words. "It was only a couple of weeks ago. Thought it would look nice. It doesn't…really hurt that much!"

"It looks like my earrings," said Kitty simply.

"Appears to be so."

"You kind of remind me of a pirate," said Steel, tapping the golden earring. "I've seen things like that before!"

A surprised Shark gently pulled Steel's arm away from his dorsal fin. The latter immediately took a step back with a cheeky grin. He glanced at Truman who gave a neutral smile. He didn't seem to mind either.

"Do they?" asked Shark. "Never seen pirates wear them."

Steel smiled with a dreamy look. "I would be biased to say I've seen fanart of this. But I think it looks nice! Can be said to be a trend."

"A dapper pirate captain outfit would be better with the golden earring," chimed in Isla. "I mean, you were the son of a shark pirate?"

"Oooh!" Sydney chuckled bashfully, nearly having hearts in her eyes. "Wow…a pirate captain."

Shark felt flustered at the thought of his father dressed as a stereotypical pirate. Honestly, Oscar was a feared MODERN pirate. Sort of, but only occurred when he went out to sea. Despite the bubbly feeling that made him shy, Shark didn't mind at all. In fact, he imagined himself steering a ship of his own with a golden tooth, a parrot on his shoulder and golden stripes all over his clothes.

He grinned, liking the imagination. "If I got all my gear here, then I can dress as a pirate captain for your liking. And to crash the show!"