Charity Shout-Out: St Jude's Children's Research Hospital, dedicated to helping children with cancer. You can make a tax deductible donation on their website. Give the gift that can last a lifetime.

I should say, largely the kids aren't going to have large roles. About as much a role as we saw from the kids in Downton Abbey.

Part 74

Clay woke with the dawn as he always did. He looked over at Sitara. It still was a slight jolt to be waking up beside a woman again but it was getting easier. He carefully got out of bed and went downstairs.

Ishin was already brewing a fresh pot of coffee. "Mornin' son!" He had welcomed Clay into the family as soon as he knew his daughter was interested in the lion.

"Good morning, Mr. Gupta," he started fixing breakfast. He laid four strip steaks on the griddle and got the cast iron skillet preheating. He diced up some onion, a red bell pepper, a potato, and some mushrooms and broke eight eggs into a bowl.

After Ruby got sick, he had no choice but to learn how to cook for the both of them. Now, he found the activity relaxing. He threw the veggies into the buttered skillet just as his phone rang. "Calloway speaking."

"Clay!" A familiar voice shouted in his ear. "It's your old pal, Jake! I heard you were back in the game."

"I wouldn't really say I'm back in the game. I certainly am not looking for an agent," Clay contradicted him.

"Fair enough, but listen… are you back in the game enough for a small concert? For charity, St Jude's," he explained.

Clay froze. "St. Jude's? Where's the gig."

"It's in Calatonia. I heard that's where you're based now so I thought it was perfect. We have other acts but someone as legendary as you will sell far more tickets. And I know how you feel about this subject."

Calloway thought about it. "When is the gig?" He asked.

"March 12 at the SFJ football stadium. You'll go on at 7," he replied. "Thanks so much, buddy!"

"Wait, I haven't said yes!" Calloway stopped him. "I'll only do this on two conditions. First, I'm no longer a solo act. I'm part of a troupe now and I know they'd be interested. Second, I don't want to give any autographs or deal with fans. I'm not back and I don't want to give the impression that I am."

"Of course, pal. Anything you want. The more acts the better. It's such a good cause," he promised.

"Fine, we'll be there. See ya then," he hung up, rolling his eyes. He couldn't say no to that kind of request. He finished making the omelets and the steaks, getting everything plated just in time for Sitara and Old Lady Patel to join him and Ishin. "Good morning, Sisi." They shared a chaste morning kiss before Sitara sat down with a cup of joe.

"Good morning, dear. Did I just hear you on the phone?" She asked, curiously while she buttered a piece of toast.

He nodded. "I've been asked to perform at a charity concert for St. Jude's."

His wife smiled. "That's a great cause. I'm guessing you said yes?"

He took a bite of his omelet while nodding. "I promised that we would perform. I don't want to completely come out of retirement."

"No, I understand. But I'm still proud of you for doing it," She took his hand and squeezed.

He smiled back at her. "I love you…" His phone buzzed again. "Oh, a text from Ash. She and Tyler are taking the twins to Pizza Planet and they want to make it a group event."

She laughed. "I'm glad she's doing alright, all things considered. How does it feel to be a grandfather?"

Clay rolled his eyes. "I'm happy to let them call me that and I'll love them like they are, but does it really count? She's not my daughter."

"Are you sure about that?" Sitara asked cryptically. "Family isn't just about blood. Lance came to ask you for permission to marry her. She looks up to you. They all do. Let's face it, dear. You have not just a daughter. You have a stepdaughter. You have a stepson-in-law. And the entire troupe, really. You wanted to be a father. Now you are."

She always knew what to say. "Thank you, Sisi. You're right." His phone buzzed again. "Oh! It's Rosita, Eddie's getting out of the hospital. He's going to the pizza place too.

"Wow! That fast? Isn't he still recovering?" Sitara asked.

"The doctor says he's ready," he said incredulously. "It's almost as if he wasn't hurt at all. He'll need to take it easy but his recovery is nothing short of miraculous."

Ishin nodded. "Well, why don't we go get ready? With so many kids, I know they can use a few more sets of eyes."

Sitara smiled. Her father loved children and thanks to the New Moon Theater, it was like he had many more grandchildren to love.

She watched her husband get up. He had come a long way. Learning to love again had not come easy for either of them but by sharing their grief and opening up to each other, the bond was forged. A part of her wondered if Naveed hadn't somehow helped to bring them together.

——————————

At the indoor playground and pizza buffet, the troupe each got a few slices while the kids went to play in the ball pit and the video games.

Johnny and Ryan looked at Neo who was playing a racing game with Sara. They were grateful that Neo already had a friend close to his age to play with. The piglets welcomed him and happily played with him but they were a few years older and they didn't have as much in common.

Ash waved at Raquelle and Lancy while they played in the ballpit with Hannah and Caspar. Tyler watched her out of the corner of his eye.

Alphonso and Meena sat with Rosita and Eddie. Meena couldn't stop hugging Eddie, just grateful that he was alright.

"And we really don't need to worry about Mrs. Noodlehead anymore?" Marcus asked. "Because I was this close to going Crystal on her ass."

Eddie nodded. "Yes, we're sure. A police officer told us this morning." He still wasn't sure how he felt beyond relieved that he and his family were finally safe.

"What happened?" Porsha asked curiously.

"The officer said it looks like a heart attack but she looked like she was frightened to death," he debated whether he should share the rest. "And… even stranger, the flat was destroyed, claw marks everywhere and gray and snow-white fur were found."

The table became quiet and they all looked at him in disbelief. "Gray and white fur? Claw marks?" Rosita asked.

Ash waved her hand. "No, no…. That's not possible."

Eddie nodded. "It's not but when I was in the hospital, I dreamed of Buster and… he promised that my mom wouldn't hurt me again…"

Gunter took his hand and squeezed. "Now she can't."

"Yeah, but do we really think Buster's ghost made her have the heart attack?" Johnny asked. "I mean dreams are dreams. Right?"

Meena thought about it before replying. "Well, I wasn't going to say anything because like you said, dreams are dreams, but, on my wedding day, I kind of dozed off a little and I dreamed that he came to congratulate me. He was really happy that Alphonso and I were together."

Rosita blinked. "I saw him right before I went into labor." She looked down at her five month old quints with a smile.

"I had a dream about him when I was in the hospital after…" Johnny trailed off. "He was with me the entire time…"

Ryan took his hand. "He came to me the morning we got married."

Gunter smiled, choosing to keep his experience to himself. There were some things that didn't need to be shared. He took Eddie's hand.

Marcus looked at Porsha. She was looking at the ground, trembling only a little. "What's wrong?"

"I… on the way to Redshore for our show, I dreamed that my father came," Her breath hitched as she waited for their reaction, it didn't come. "He wanted to say he loved me… and… he was proud of me…" Tears welled up and Marcus put his arm around her. "And… Mr. Moon was with him. It was probably just a dream because they said they're friends now…"

Johnny nodded. "Well that confirms it. Mr. Moon would never be friends with someone like him." He froze when his father gave him a sharp look. "Sorry, Porsha. I know he was your dad… I shouldn't…"

She shook her head. "No. You have every right to hate him. I know I should too. I just can't. He was my daddy. He was there when I was sick. He threw a fit when I was being bullied in grade school and he pulled me out because the school either wouldn't or couldn't protect me." She tried to explain. "I know now that he abused me but he didn't mean to. He loved me."

Marcus rubbed her back. "It's okay, Porsha. You don't have to apologize. It's okay that you love him. No matter what he did." He looked at the others, particularly his son. "You don't stop loving someone because they do something wrong. No matter how bad it is."

The younger gorilla nodded. "I know… I'm sorry, Porsha. I'm trying. I just can't picture them being friends in any way."

Rosita thought about it. "I don't know. Buster was one of the kindest people I knew. I could see he might forgive Mr. Crystal."

Alphonso seemed to be deep in thought. Ryan could practically see the gears in his head turning. "Penny for your thoughts?"

The elephant looked at him. "Well… the Bible references angels many times. 'For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways', Psalms 91:11. 'Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it', Hebrews 13:2. Just to cite a couple of verses. And I'm not trying to push anything, but there is support for the existence of spirits or guardian angels," he explained. "And from what I've heard about him, Mr. Moon seems to be the perfect candidate for a guardian angel. I mean if I was hiring guardian angels and had his résumé, I'd hire him. And he might have spoken up for Mr. Crystal. From what you've all told me, it seems like something he might do." He smiled at Porsha. "His love is for everyone, no matter what they've done."

Porsha smiled back at the elephant. "I would love to believe that. Thank you, Alphonso." At least he used his faith to build people up instead of putting them down.

Ryan hugged Johnny, kissing the top of his head. If believing Mr. Moon might be a guardian angel brought them comfort, he would not take that away.

Ash got up and walked away. When she woke up, she'd thought it had been a dream.

"Are you alright?" Tyler asked softly.

"Everyone's had dreams of Buster. And I had one last night. Lance was there and even Ruby," Ash said. "I thought it was just a dream but…"

The orangutan looked at her. "We can't say it wasn't but… whether it was or not, I completely believe that the ones we love aren't totally gone. That they never really leave. Too many cultures have their own versions of what happens when we die. You know what Alphonso and I personally believe but, for example, Mexico believes in the Land of the Dead. Every year at the beginning of November or occasionally the end of October, they celebrate Dia de Los Muertos. Day of the Dead. They decorate a small shrine called an ofrenda and there's all these beautiful golden flowers and they give offerings to their loved ones. Favorite foods and other things they liked. We took the truck down to a small city during that weekend a few years ago. It was a blast. There were mariachi bands and the entire village just came alive with music and celebration." He imitated the guitar players dancing and playing, attempting to cheer her up.

She couldn't help laughing at him. "You've been to Mexico?" She asked.

Tyler nodded. "It was the first year we had the truck. Mr. Ramirez was from Mexico and he got an invitation to their family celebration. Alphonso even got to meet his abuela. I wouldn't be surprised if we go down this year. He'll want to add his father's photo to the ofrenda. We might not believe in the full tradition but it's still a nice tradition. And it's comforting in a way."

Ash smiled as she pictured the event. It sounded like a lot of fun, albeit a touch morbid. Maybe they could do something like that for Buster and Lance both. They were her family and it might help the twins.

He turned her until she saw the twins playing. "He's not completely gone. He lives on in your heart and in those kids. As long as you hold onto his memory of the love he had for the three of you, he'll never be truly gone."

She sighed. "Thanks, Ty. I can see Alphonso's wisdom is rubbing off on you."

"Excuse! My wisdom has rubbed off on him, thank you very much," he cracked. "Should we go back to the others?"

Together, they rejoined the troupe. "And they want us to perform," Clay was telling them.

Rosita nodded. "Absolutely. It's for such a good cause. You said March 12th. Eddie, do we have anything planned for that weekend?"

He shook his head. "No. Our final showing of After Happily Ever After is February 26th. But since we're talking shop; Ryan, I got us a gig in Galveston for Easter week. So you can tell your grandparents that we're coming for a short visit."

The tiger pumped a fist in the air. "Yes! What show are we doing?"

"We were thinking My Fair Lady but then we watched Mary Poppins with Sarah on her first night and it would be perfect," Gunter said. "Two of the kids could even play Jane and Michael if we did that. Maybe Raquelle and Lancy."

Ash realized what he was doing. "That's a great idea! Thanks, Gunter. I bet they would love that."

Eddie looked at Rosita. "Think you could play the titular character?" He asked.

"I would love too," Rosita. "What about you, Gunter?"

"I just want to join the Chimney dancers, but Ryan, think you could play Burt?" Eddie asked. "I thought a show that let them see your talents would be perfect."

"Thanks, Eddie, that's great! I love that movie!" Ryan was getting excited. My Fair Lady would have been good but this show would be even better.

"Before that though, we have a birthday coming up. A pretty big one," Suki smiled, looking over at Porsha. "You'll be eighteen on March 19th, remember?"

The wolf nodded. "Yeah, but we don't have to do anything. Really. Just a nice family dinner and one of Meena's yummy cakes." She threw the hint pretty hard.

Meena laughed. "I'd love to bake your birthday cake."

"The house should be done by then," Marcus promised. So, she only wanted a family dinner? He could definitely manage that. It wasn't his fault the family was so huge. "You don't have to decide now, but just start thinking about what you'd want to eat that night. It can be anything you want."

Porsha nodded. "I'll let you know." She hugged her dad. Just a family dinner would be more than she'd had in years. Her father always threw her a big party and gave her a big flashy gift. The party always ended up being more about him. She always loved the gifts and the party was always fun but it was never about her. He gave her the gift and went about mingling. Now she understood, he was all she really wanted for her birthday. "And I don't need any presents. I have more than enough of everything. Please. Just a family dinner. Please?"

He nodded. "If you mean that, then okay, no gifts." He hugged her reassuringly. He looked at Suki. She smiled and nodded. Planning the dinner was right up her alley. She'd be able to get the invitations out surreptitiously.

—————————

The party at the pizza place wouldn't break up until closing time. None of them wanted it to end.

Rosita and Norman took Sarah home with their brood to let Eddie and Gunter have the first night home alone. They had promised to keep the relationship a secret from the others.

"They'll find out eventually," Eddie pointed out with a laughing grin as they went up to the apartment.

"Oh, I know…" Gunter said. "I just want to keep it between us for now. To just love you… without interference." He kissed his sheep tenderly. "And I know they'll understand…"

Eddie nodded. "They'll just understand a little too well. It can be a lot of pressure. No, I don't want that either. Not at the beginning." He kissed him back, leading them up the spiral staircase, their clothes falling off on the way up.

AN: I love afterlife myths and I just watched Coco. That movie always make me cry.