*Hey guys, it's been a little while since I published this fanfic, huh? I ran into writer's block from the next chapter and thought that I should add what I was going to add in the next chapter into this chapter. So, this is published on June 9, 2021. If you guys like this chapter, don't forget to vote and spam the comment section! That will be greatly appreciated. The song used is called "Don't You Dare Forget the Sun" by Get Scared. Enjoy!*

Flashback:

"Don't you dare forget about me," She heard him say in a desperate tone.

Her hooves intertwined with his, eyes locked as the once elegant maid of the stage was in utter tears. The stagehand of a man she married was lying on the hospital bed.

Her daughter was only five years old gazed at her father's deathbed innocently, sparkling brown eyes.

The famous Nana Noodleman was shaking in her grasp onto her husband. The wound on her husband's chest slowly swallowed his life. Nana Noodleman, the theater's queen of epiphany, had the tears of crystal waters that weren't often shed only except this one time in this pale hospital. Her daughter touched her arms, causing Nana to glance over at her.

"Mommy, will Daddy be okay?" her daughter asked.

Nana smiled meekly, rubbing her daughter's back. "Don't worry about it, sweetie. Why don't you go home with Uncle Bill?"

"I wanna stay with you and Daddy," the little Suffolk sheep begged innocently.

Nana frowned a bit while sitting her daughter on her lap. "Daddy is hurt, sweetie. Here, why don't you get yourself some candy?" the famous actress handed her daughter a dollar. "Something to occupy your little mind."

The young girl took the dollar and hesitantly walked out of the door.

Nana sighed heavily while turning her head to look into her husband's dying eyes. "Please, tell me that you'll live."

Her husband frowned. "I'm trying...I'm trying to fight. I'm not sure if I'm strong enough."

"Don't say that, Ray. Please," Nana uttered, tears in her eyes.

Ray, her husband, trembled. "I think I see my mom."

Nana gasped while looking around the room to find no one there. She frowned at this while turning to look at her husband, knowing that his mother met a lot to him. She died of cancer a year after they were married, making this room darker for the young actress.

"I can smell the cookies she makes," Ray uttered. "Her delicious chocolate chip cookies."

Nana smiled a bit with a small sad laugh. "She still hasn't gotten me the recipe."

"That's because she has never written it down," Ray replied while holding her hoof loosely.

"I guess I'll figure it out," Nana responded with a small smile that slowly turned into a frown when she realized that her husband's breathing disappeared. His heart was no longer beating as the heart rate monitor began to create a line, not offering life. That's when the doctors heard it droning and strode into the room while Nana let go of his hoof and began to hold in her sob. She exited out of the room, noticing her daughter walking back to the room with candy in her hand.

"The vending machine was too far from Daddy," the little girl responded until she heard the heart rate monitor. "Is Daddy okay?"

Nana didn't answer as she picked up her daughter and took her out of the hospital, trying her best to hold in her sobs.

Through the years of Nana's daughter's life, the little girl was convinced that Nana never cried, not even during her wedding. Not even the birth of Eddie. Even Eddie always thought that Nana was never the one to cry.

Even after the theater collapsed, she was angry for sure but she never cried according to Eddie and his parents. That one mean sheep, who couldn't mourn for her husband's passing, had bottled up her emotions. But...what the rest of the family didn't know was that after her husband's passing, after her daughter's wedding, after Eddie's birth, and after the theater collapsed...she cried alone with no one ever disturbing her. And Nana was never caught mourning.

~.~

Buster's Dream:

Buster was in line again with dark figures in front of him and behind him. He had no idea who those people were around him as he glanced ahead of him to see what he's in line for. It's a dark abandoned house that had burnt spots covering the wood. The line moved forward faster than usual as he entered the dark burnt house. He glanced around to see items such as counters, kitchen sinks, and a crib floating in the air. There were no strings attached to the furniture, which earned a brow raised from the koala.

A shiver crawled down his spine when he saw nooses hanged around the burnt house with limp bodies resting their bruised necks on the hangman's noose. Buster didn't know who those people were on the nooses but he averted his gaze away from them. He trembled when he finally got to the auditorium. The hands were pressed against the wallpaper, as in it trapped the people in this decaying theater.

"Help! Help!"

Buster heard the voices both unfamiliar and familiar. He breathed heavily while covering his ears.

"We know you can still hear us, Moon!"

"Let us out!!"

"Our dreams built this theater!"

Buster couldn't stop the voices coming into his head as he lifted his gaze up to see that no one was even around him. He glanced around for anyone else in this decaying theater.

"You trapped everyone here," a crude voice spoke, causing Buster to turn around to see a shadowy figure of a koala with eyes burning red.

"What do you want from me?!" Buster interrogated, his voice echoing the theater.

"You think life is a musical. The world is the stage and everyone is an actor or an actress. You trapped everyone you ever know or have not known in this theater. They can never get out of it because of you," the shadow growled.

Buster began to tremble. "I-I didn't trap anyone. T-They want to be here--"

"In hell with you, Mr. Moon?" the shadow chuckled at Buster's response. "I'm sure they want to be here with you in this dark place."

"Who are you?!"

The shadow grinned mischievously. "I'm your shadow, Buster Moon. And I grew over the years. Ever since you're what? Born? Since you fell in love with the theater?"

Buster heard a creaking noise coming from the stage as he turned his gaze up to see a familiar black Suffolk sheep.

"Once there was a way

To get back homeward

Once there was a way!

To get back home!"

Buster gasped in shock as Nana was aging faster than he could imagine. She was young...then old...then her flesh peeled away to reveal her organs, staining blood on the purple dress she usually wore. Then, her eyes fell out of the eye socket, her organs that once held her skeleton up began to hop out of her skeletal body. Her dress came undone, dropping by her feet. She stepped up the stage, now that her organs and her veins had been dispatched and turned to dust. Her skeleton body continued to sing.

"Once there was a way.

To get back home."

Buster breathed heavily and anxiously as he heard a peal of tiny laughter. His eyes shifted towards the balcony to see his younger self, his six-year-old self, peering at the edge of the balcony with his father holding him so that he wouldn't fall. His loving adopted father had the hangman noose around his neck.

"D-Dad," Buster began to sob, his legs wobbling.

"You even trapped your poor old father here."

Buster turned back to his shadow with a glare. "I didn't trap him here."

"Maybe not physically...but that look of desire in your eyes was what trapped your father here in this place."

"He-He's not trapped here. He's-He's dead."

The shadow chuckled. "You don't get the concept, do you? You trapped so many people and you are in the process of trapping your 'beloved'."

"Wh-What?"

The stage made a creaking noise again as Buster glanced to see Maya, sitting on the piano and playing violin solemnly.

"Once there was a way.

To get back homeward.

Once there was a way.

To get back home."

"M-Maya?" Buster recognized with tears in his eyes.

"You're trying to free her from her mother...but what you don't know is that you trapped her in the theater just like how her mother trapped her at home," the shadow continued to speak behind him, hissing into Buster's ears.

"I did not!" Buster turned abruptly, glaring at the shadow. "She's safe from her mother! She doesn't deserve this much suffering!"

The shadow smirked. "Look at you. You're all riled up when I mentioned your mistress."

Buster had his fists clenched with tears staining his cheeks. "Leave her alone! You leave everyone alone!"

"What? You think I can just crawl out of your head and torture your little friends and family?" the shadow guffawed at Buster's demand. "You're dumber than I initially thought. I just told you. I'm your shadow. That means I'm stuck inside of you--"

"Mr. Moon--"

Buster felt a hand grab him by the shoulder as he gripped on the small arm, followed by a little girl's scream.

~.~

Reality:

Buster snapped his eyes open with his breath hitched. His blue eyes went wide when he noticed his hand gripped on the little piglet's arm with fear in her green eyes.

He breathed heavily and let go of the piglet's arm, who began to shed tears out of pure fear. She dropped her stuffed teddy bear as her cry alerted Norman and Rosita in their apartment.

"Gail!" Rosita gasped while running up to check on her daughter's arm.

"What did you do?!" Norman shouted his question at Buster.

"I-I don't know," Buster uttered, his voice becoming terrified of himself.

Rosita examined the little piglet's arm. "Are you okay, sweetie?"

Gail hugged her mother quickly, quaking in her little body.

"I thought I had you and your siblings over at your grandmother's house," Norman scolded his daughter.

"I forgot my teddy," Gail sobbed. "I saw Mr. Moon having a bad dream. I was only trying to give him my teddy."

Buster breathed heavily and anxiously while glancing at his hands, trembling in his place in the living room floor. Before any more words were spoken, Buster got up from the floor and sprinted out of the living room and through the kitchen, finding Maya sitting on the dining chair and noticing him.

"Buster?" Maya called but Buster didn't listen as he quickly exited out of the apartment.

Norman noticed this as he glanced at his wife and his daughter. "Watch over Gail. I'll go get Mr. Moon before he gets himself hurt."

Norman strode through the kitchen, causing Maya to stand from her seat.

"I'm coming with you," Maya determined.

"Let's go," Norman ushered without denying her. They both exit out of the apartment, leaving Rosita alone with her daughter.

Meanwhile, Buster ran as fast as he could, his breathing picking up from running so fast. What was he running from? He wasn't sure exactly. He didn't want to hurt anyone else. That...that shadow in his dream. Did it have a hold on Buster when he grabbed that poor little girl's arm harshly? For this, he had no idea. He didn't believe in ghosts or shadows but...until his recent dream, there's more to his shadow than what meets the eye.

Buster ran into the middle of the street where a familiar truck almost hit him. He noticed Johnny peeking out of the driver's seat with a quizzical gaze.

"Mr. Moon?" Johnny recognized but Buster didn't bother to stop. He couldn't stop.

Buster had tears in his eyes when he ran through the city, breathing heavily. Everything around him became a blurry mess of distorted shapes. The koala reached the theater, noticing Meena getting off on the bus nearby. Her eyes went wide when she saw Buster running into the theater.

He shoved the doors open and ran through the auditorium, climbing up the stairs backstage. He reached his office and shut the door, locking it so that no one could get in. His eyes were broadened while he breathed heavily from running too fast.

His legs wobbled to the point where he sunk down on the floor and curled himself up, eyes wide and staring at nothing except the space of what's ahead. He stared at his hands, blinking to see if any of this was real. Realizing that everything was real, he burst into tears. He sobbed out loud while covering his mouth, figuring that he might've scarred the poor piglet for life. And she's the kindest out of all the piglets. His eyes were brimming with tears but he didn't care because he's alone in the theater. No one will hear him cry. Or so he thought.

"Mr. Moon?" Came in Meena's voice with a light knock on the door. "Is everything okay?"

Buster tried to calm his breathing, trying not to cry in front of the gentle elephant. "Y-Yes...Meena, everything is fine."

From the other side of the door, Meena didn't seem convinced by Buster's answer. She could hear the choked sound of him trying to contain his tears to act like everything was fine. The elephant took a moment to think of what to say. "You keep saying that."

"What?"

"Everything is fine," Meena repeated Buster's line.

Within his office, Buster breathed heavily while trembling in his body. "I'm...Fine."

"I wish I can believe you, Mr. Moon."

Buster had his eyes widened more at the fact that the shy elephant was slowly showing courage and determined to help him, which made him feel worse about his responses.

"Whatever it is, we can figure all of this out together," Meena added, her tone a bit more hopeful and encouraging.

After a long pause, Buster sighed. "Something is wrong with me."

There's a silence that filled the air.

"Do you want to let me in and talk about it?" Meena asked softly.

Buster took deep breaths while standing up, unlocking the door to his office. There stood the elephant, her eyes softer and caring. She was able to walk into Buster's office while he shut the door.

Buster climbed up on his desk while Meena took a seat in front of the desk.

"Are you okay?" Meena managed to ask.

Buster sat on the edge of his desk with a deep sigh. "Meena, I trapped everyone here in this theater...even you. I-I didn't mean to or...I didn't think of it as a trap. I thought that maybe...maybe you guys want to perform and sing. This morning, I felt someone touched me on the shoulder and just...just snatched the arm. One minute, it's a shadow, and then the next minute, I blinked and it was one of Rosita's kids. The way she looked at me...and cried."

Buster began to sob. "I'm such a monster. I didn't mean to hurt her."

Meena scooched closer to the koala. "You're not a monster, Mr. Moon--"

"You--You don't know me...I-I let my own father kill another man for this-this building. I let my father down when the theater collapsed. I let everyone down. The people thought I was a psycho for almost drowning you guys. And maybe I am...And I didn't even know it. There's this monster inside of me."

Buster sobbed more as Meena scooched more closer and rubbed his shoulder in comfort.

Unbeknownst to the koala and the elephant, Johnny climbed up the stairs with Mike and Nancy on his shoulder while Ash and Gunter were following him.

"I can hear him," Johnny whispered as he pressed his ear against the door.

Mike climbed on top of the gorilla's head and put his ear up against the door as well. "Oop, he's crying."

"Oh, I knew something had to be wrong. I'fe felt ziss negatife energy vhen Mr. Moon passed by us," Gunter whispered to the group with a shiver. "Heck, I feel like something is ahttached to him...like a dark shadow or something."

"Indicating he's possessed or what?" Mike asked in a low voice.

"Shh," Johnny urged as he listened in to the conversation between Meena and Buster.

Meanwhile, within the office, Meena sat next to him on the desk with a frown.

"Mr. Moon, I want to tell you something that...I haven't told anyone in the theater or my family. Something that...I've never shared," Meena replied while Buster glanced up at her.

"Okay." Buster wiped the tears away and turned his gaze up at her.

Meena rubbed her arm nervously. "When I was a little girl, my mother sent me into this elementary school with the younger elephants. It's only a talent show and I wanted to sing a song. And I did...but...the kids from the audience would laugh and make fun of me. It went as far as calling me Jumbo Strings or Fat Belch...and...I was afraid of being up on stage ever since then."

Meena paused to let Buster register this information. She let out a deep breath and continued. "I never told any of my family members about it because my teachers...well, they said they'll handle the bullying but the bullying never stops. It kept going and going and...that's when I just isolate myself away from people. I listen to my music and when I sing, I do it alone when no one is looking. I didn't think I had a pretty voice and my grandpa would push me to hone my singing voice and use it to perform...but I was too afraid."

Buster frowned while hearing this.

Meena smiled a bit. "But...all of that...ended when I first performed in the Moon Theater. Someone in the theater once told me that I can't let fear stop me from doing the thing I love. And the only way to conquer that fear is to sing my heart. And I did. Ever since being in the Moon Theater, I've been more confident and...and that wouldn't have happened if I hadn't met you, Mr. Moon."

Buster began to get teary-eyed again but for a different reason.

Meena smiled softly. "I may not know you for your entire life. But in the past five months, I worked with you and the others, I don't see you as a monster at all. And neither does anybody in the theater. You're always the one who would support others. You would carry everyone's burdens and you would not only make sure that we're okay but help us when we needed you. Mr. Moon, I don't see you as a monster. I don't think anyone in the theater thinks you're a monster. You gave me a chance to express myself and I'm sure the others would feel the same way too. You carried our burdens, Mr. Moon. Let us help you with yours."

Buster couldn't help but grew a tearful smile up at the elephant and leaped up to hug her. Meena wrapped her arms around the koala in the gentle hold.

"Thank you, Meena," Buster whimpered happily while holding her tightly.

"You're welcome, Mr. Moon," Meena uttered sweetly.

They hugged for a good moment until they heard someone sniffling.

Buster and Meena broke away and glanced at the outside of the office. Buster jumped off of his desk and opened the door to see Johnny standing up against the wall with Mike and Nancy on his shoulder. Ash stood next to Gunter, who was sniffling in utter tears.

Buster also noticed that the others besides Gunter were trying their best to hold in their tears.

"Ziss is a touching moment," Gunter sobbed while wiping his tears away.

Johnny smiled softly. "Is it okay if I can give you a hug, Mr. Moon?"

Buster gasped at the question but smiled at the gorilla. "Yeah. It's okay."

Johnny knelt down and hugged Buster. Ash and Gunter immediately joined in.

Nancy and Mike didn't hesitate to hop off of Johnny's shoulder and climbed up on Meena to give her a hug on the neck.

"Hey, Cookie Dough?" Mike called.

"Yeah?" Meena answered.

"Sorry for calling ya jumbo. I didn't know that you--"

"It's fine, Mike," Meena interrupted him as she joined in to hug Buster from behind.

Mike and Nancy smiled fondly at the elephant as they slid down and hugged Buster around the neck.

Buster couldn't help but had his heart instantly melted when the group was hugging him, this warmth and kindness was something that he never thought he needed.

He glanced up to notice Maya and Norman approaching the scene, panting from running.

Mike noticed this too while gesturing to Maya. "Hey, blondie, come join us."

Maya smiled as she joined in the hug, being the one closest to Buster, causing the koala's face to turn red.

Rosita entered the scene with Milla and Eddie behind her. "Is everything okay?"

"We're hugging!" Mike shouted while gesturing for Rosita, Eddie, Milla, and Norman to join in.

"Honey, where's Gail?" Norman asked.

"She's with my mother now," Rosita answered with a smile.

"Oh, okay."

The four animals that were gestured got into the group hug with small smiles as Buster chuckled a bit.

"How did I end up with people like you?" Buster muttered to himself happily but the group heard him.

"Guess you got lucky," Mike responded with a soft smirk.

Nancy rolled her eyes. "I think we're all lucky to have each other."

"Thanks, guys," Buster uttered while not wanting the hug to end. However, it's getting a little hard to breathe. "I don't want to break this up but it's getting hard to breathe."

Everyone broke away from the tangled arms from trying to hug Buster.

"Ow, ow!" Johnny groaned while trying to slide his arm around Maya and Buster.

"Whoa, whoa, Johnny, you're going too fast," Mike warned as the group's struggle caused Buster and Maya to wobble in their holds.

Before anyone could react, Maya's and Buster's faces were so close...too close to the point where their lips could just gingerly touch. Their faces became a bright shade of red, their eyes comically broadened at the closeness.

Buster resisted the temptation to kiss her lips in front of the group while Maya tried to shift out of his hold.

Mike purred from Buster's shoulder. "Kiss the girl."

"Mike, shut up," Buster growled lowly at the mouse.

Mike chuckled while both the mice couple got off of Buster's shoulder.

Maya giggled while they finally got out of each other's hold. Buster dusted his suit off while trying not to think about that moment. When the koalas looked at the group, there's a union of animals throwing smirks at them.

"What?" Maya questioned with a little giggle.

"So...when are you two dating?"

The group turned around to see Ms. Crawly entering the room with a bright sweet grin.

Buster's face got even redder. "We haven't scheduled it yet."

Ms. Crawly's face got brighter as she trudged over the desk. "Oh, let me schedule you, Mr. Moon."

"Ms. Crawly, you don't have to--"

"How about reservations at Les Calamars at 6:30 tonight?" Ms. Crawly insisted while calling the phone number.

"Uh--"

"Hello, can I make reservations for Buster Moon at 6:30?" Ms. Crawly called on the phone. She nodded her head in response to the voice. "Alrighty. Thanks." She hanged up the phone with a bright smile. "You're all good to go on a date, Mr. Moon."

Buster blinked incredulously at the lizard assistant. "Uh...thank you, Ms. Crawly."

Maya tilted her head. "What's Les Calamars?"

"It's a French restaurant that Buster and I go to," Eddie explained. "But they speak English. Not French."

Buster rolled his eyes at Eddie's last statement. "Yeah, yeah, I know--"

"I was talking to her, man," Eddie pointed at Maya to Buster.

Buster chuckled a bit.

Rosita gasped. "I have an idea. I have to take you to this magical place called...the mall."

"Yas! Let's go to the mall and pick a cute outfit for you," Gunter responded happily.

"Th-The mall?" Maya stuttered at the word.

"Yeah, what's wrong with a mall?" Mike questioned without hesitation.

"Nothing...just that it's chaotic and my mother works there," Maya answered nervously.

The group blinked a bit.

"Well, we'll find a mall that won't have your mother in it," Nancy reassured the female koala.

"Wait...why are we going there?" Maya asked as the girls and Gunter guided her away from Buster and the men.

"Well, we're inviting you to the world of dresses, make-up, and beauty," Rosita chirped happily.

"Not a fun world to be honest," Ash responded with a gruff.

Nancy rolled her eyes. "She likes wearing black dresses and goth stuff."

"Actually, they're not goth. They're just rockstar clothes I like to buy occasionally," Ash clarified.

Gunter danced excitedly. "Well, vhat are ve waiting for?! Let's go, ja!"

The girls nodded their heads in agreement as they head out of the lobby, leaving Buster alone with Johnny, Mike, Ms. Crawly, Norman, and Eddie.

"Huh, I didn't expect the date to be so soon," Norman uttered his thought for others to hear.

Ms. Crawly smiled excitedly. "I have a good feeling that you'll have fun."

Buster glanced over at the lizard. "Thanks, Ms. Crawly."

"Speaking of fun," Mike began while looking at Buster's blue suit. "Is this all the suits you have?"

Buster arched a brow. "What do you mean?"

"I would be careful what your next words are, mate," Johnny warned the mouse.

"Well, what I mean is that how many suits do you even have?" Mike clarified.

Buster was about to speak when Mike interrupted again.

"That you wear on formal occasions, not when you work on the theater or taking a walk outside of the theater," Mike added.

Buster sealed his lips. "Well...this is the only suit I wear."

Norman blinked a bit in disbelief. "Seriously? What are you? Homeless?"

"Yes," Buster answered with a nod. "That's why I sleep in the desk drawer."

The men and Ms. Crawly blinked for a good minute.

"That does explain you sleeping at your desk," Mike pointed out.

Norman shook his head. "Did you even buy your own place?"

"Uh...no...not at the moment...I didn't have the time to--"

"Whoa, whoa. Hold on, how much money do you make?" Norman interrogated with shock in his voice.

"Oi, don't push him," Johnny scolded the pig.

"It's okay, Johnny. It depends whether the shows strike gold or not," Buster answered sadly. "Right now I have so much money but...I don't want to risk if the show is not going to do good."

Mike tilted his head. "Out of curiosity, how much money do you have?"

"I don't know...uh, five hundred thousand dollars--"

"WHAT?!" The men gasped in shock, including Ms. Crawly.

"You can literally buy a freaking mansion with that kind of money," Norman spoke in shock.

"No, you can't--"

"That's just a figure of speech, Johnny," Norman responded before Johnny could correct him.

"But I do pay the crew good money too," Buster replied.

Mike nodded his head in agreement. "Well, can't fault ya there. But...five hundred thousand dollars. You need an apartment or something to live in and sleep in. Not be so cramped in a desk drawer."

"Yeah, now since you're in a relationship, how are you going to be able to make room for Maya in the office? Have her sleep in another drawer?" Norman questioned with a brow raised.

Buster shook his head in denial. "What? No, of course not. I'm...I'm just a bit...well, I'm not sure."

"Moonster, let me tell you something. Having a place to live is like...sanctuary. Just start out small and eventually...get a bigger house if you got more than one kid. Or do it like Rosita and Norman. Live in a cramped apartment with twenty-five kids. But I'm sure that lifestyle ain't for you," Mike explained.

Buster blushed a bit about his future. "Um--"

Norman brushed off what Mike said and came beside Buster. "Look, we'll focus on that aspect later. Right now, you're in need of new suits and casual clothes."

"Casual clothes?" Buster questioned with a brow raised.

"Yes, Casual clothes. You know, just to help you relax," Norman suggested as Ms. Crawly followed the men out of the theater.

"Speaking of casual...I hope Dad doesn't do anything stupid to find the map," Johnny mumbled mostly to himself.

~.~

On a dreary morning, Dexter had a schedule in the prison. Have breakfast, work out with his gang, have lunch, take showers, and then go into the cells. But today was going to be different for the giant gorilla. He followed the other prisoners down the hall, eying on the cameras hidden in the corner of the halls. Coming into the cafeteria, Dexter kept his eye around for any guards. Apparently, there's one guard that appeared like one of his inmates, a rhino.

"Oi, Ryan," Dexter whispered to his rhino friend while sitting next to him.

"Yeah, what's up, Dex?" Ryan, the rhino, answered while eating his cereal.

"You went to prison for fraud, right?" Dexter questioned the rhino.

"Yeah, I used to get billions of dollars from both hacking and fraud. Why?"

"How good are you at going undercover?"

The rhino glanced up at the gorilla with a perturbed gaze. "Um...I've done a bunch of them. The last one resulted in me being in here."

"There's a cop that looks exactly like you," Dexter pointed at the rhino cop patrolling. "From what I observed, he usually goes into the security room."

"Something tells me that you're planning an escape."

"Oh no, no. I need to find something for my boy but the cops won't let me off to find it."

"How important is it to find it?"

"Very important...it was a family heirloom that got lost when I got arrested. And the bloody cops ain't letting me look for it. I need your help, mate."

Ryan took a moment to ponder while leaning close to the gorilla. "Alright...what's the plan?"

To that, Dexter cornered a smirk.

~.~

The breakfast session is over and it's off to work-outs and exercises. The rhino cop began to head into the dark hall so that he could patrol in other areas into the prison until a fist knocked him out. The cop was caught before collapsing onto the ground and was lifted into the secret room, hidden from plain sight.

About a few minutes later, Ryan emerged out of the secret room with the cop's uniform on. He ambled his way through normally as any cop would. The rhino snuck through the hallways that were prohibited to prisoners while he saw a couple of rhino cops exiting out of the room where he needed to go. The rhino criminal, dressed as a cop, was able to sneak into the security room undetected. That's when he locked the door behind him and put up a chair against the knob while scooting the second chair to the center.

The rhino criminal, Ryan, took out his walkie-talkie. "The coast is clear, Dex. You're good to go."

Meanwhile, in the gym room, Dexter heard Ryan from the walkie-talkie. He nodded his head with a gruff and went towards the wall, flailing his arm up against the wall, hearing the bone cracked.

With a screech, he's able to convince the guards to take him to the nurse's office.

Dexter was able to knock the guards out on the way to the nurse's office, relocated his bone, and stormed through the hallway to find the storage room. Knowing that the storage was filled with objects that were most valuable to prisoners, the giant ape made his way towards the storage room. There's no guard nearby, letting the gorilla slip into the storage room without being spotted by officers.

Inside the tiny storage room, Dexter roamed through to find the boxes of his stuff at the very back of the storage room. The ape looked through his stuff until he was able to feel a strange wooden box. He scrutinized the box and opened it to find a piece of a map that his son was talking about.

"There you are," Dexter muttered to himself. It was sudden that the alarm went off.

"Dexter! Dexter! The cops found the guards murdered! Get out!" He heard his prison friend, Ryan, warned.

Dexter glanced at the map. How was he supposed to hide it from the cops? Ryan told him to get out, did he mean out of prison or out of the storage? That didn't matter since Dexter had to give this map to his son either way. The huge ape climbed up into the vent and was able to crawl right out of the prison building. The gorilla slid into the alleyway, landing on his feet. Before he could continue forward into the open city, he found commoner's clothes with a note.

"Dexter, 

Put these clothes on quickly."

Dexter blinked. Who wrote this note? That question escaped out of his mind when he took off his prisoner clothes and put the common clothes on himself. They fit much to the gorilla's surprise.

Now, since he's escaped prison once again, he had got to find Johnny.  

To Be Continued...