*Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!!! I'm staying up late in ungodly hours to finish writing this. Even bigger news...I'm going to see an early screening for Sing 2!!! EEEEEE!!!!! So, this is the last episode for this but don't worry...there might be a season 2 after my version of Sing 2. This is published on November 25, 2021. If you guys like this episode, don't be afraid to vote and comment. That would be greatly appreciated! Enjoy!*

Johnny played the notes of the piano from the musical number while smiling widely and flowed into the music as if it's taking him to someplace else. Once he's done playing the keys, he smiled brightly at the notes he played. He made some notes while trying to figure out what to do next.

"Top of the morning, Johnny!"

Johnny turned to see Buster walking into the lobby with a grin from his office. "Top of the morning."

"I see you're practicing for the musical," Buster pointed out.

"Yeah, I'm just going over all the notes we're going to use in the musical. I'm hoping that I'm not pressing the wrong notes."

Buster shook his head. "I don't hear any wrong notes. It's like I'm hearing Mozart in the morning."

Johnny giggled. "Well, I'm glad to hear that, Buster."

Buster froze and turned to the gorilla while almost chuckling at the way the gorilla said his name, which sounded like "Bust-tar" then "Bust-ter".

"I-I mean, Mr. Moon," Johnny stuttered while focusing on the piano.

"No, it's fine. You can call me that."

"Really?"

"I believe we're past the formalities at this point, Johnny," Buster said softly.

Johnny smirked. "Alright, Buster."

Buster let out a choked sound from attempting to stifle his laughter at the way Johnny said his name in his British accent.

"What?" Johnny noticed Buster making a choked sound with a concerned look.

Buster straightened himself up. "It's nothing, Johnny. I'm going to check on the theater real quick. You know what? Why don't you come with me? Take a little break."

Johnny nodded his head. "Sure."

Johnny stood up from his seat as both the koala and the gorilla made their way to the theater while stepping downstairs to check on the stage and backstage. Johnny saw that Mike was trying to open a can of white paint with paint on his clothes and fur.

"Need help with that?" Johnny asked.

"No, I think I--." Before Mike could protest, Johnny opened the can with his strength. Mike gave Johnny a deadpan stare. "You know, I could've handled that."

"Really? You look a little helpless," Johnny teased Mike. "It's a pity to watch."

Mike furrowed his brows. "I'll have you know that I'm capable of doing a lot of things despite being small."

"And that I have no doubt about," Johnny said with a chuckle.

Buster noticed the mice, including Nancy's brother and her gang of mice from the club, were painting the boards to make a background for the theater. "Great work, guys! Keep it up! Hey, where's Mizuki?"

"Right here."

Buster and Johnny called to notice Mizuki coming in backstage with flyers to audition for the musical.

"Ah, there you are, my love," Buster replied happily. "I was hoping you get around the city okay."

Eddie came in behind her. "Don't worry, she's got help."

"Eddie! What brings you in here, stranger?" Buster questioned happily.

"Thought I help you guys out with the musical," Eddie said with a shrug.

Johnny smiled to greet Eddie and Mizuki. "Hey, guys."

"Hey," Mizuki greeted Johnny.

"Sup?"

"Look, there's Johnny!!!"

The animals turned to see Rosita coming into the auditorium with a few rowdy kids running towards the stage.

"Uh oh," Johnny uttered playfully as he stepped forth onto the stage. The rowdy piglets climbed up on stage and jumped on the gorilla, causing Johnny to fall over and laugh.

Rosita sighed deeply. "Guys, get off of him."

"It's fine, Rosita. Watch this." Johnny stood up on the stage with the piglets hanging onto him.

"Johnny, be careful with them," Buster said in concern.

"It's fine," Rosita reassured Buster.

"I'll be as careful as I can be," Johnny responded with a chuckle while making big steps to exaggerate his walk, earning laughter from the children climbing upon him.

On cue, Ash came in backstage behind Buster, Mizuki, and Eddie with a tired groan.

Buster turned to see Ash approaching them. "What's going on? You okay?"

"Yeah, just tired," Ash uttered while rubbing her tired eyes.

"How late did you stay up?" Mizuki asked in concern.

"Well, rock gigs tend to suck up a lot of time so...I say later than midnight," Ash calculated in her brain.

Eddie clenched his teeth. "Sheesh, well, at least you're making some money."

"Yeah, just to keep the bills up though," Ash stated while noticing Johnny playing with the little kids with Rosita watching in pure soft gaze to watch her kids play with one of her coworkers.

Who knew that Johnny was good with kids? Ash smiled genuinely to watch Johnny play with the kids. Mike and Nancy noticed Ash's gaze at Johnny while Mike just smirked and looked at Nancy with his brows wiggling as if he found something to tease Ash with now.

However, the doors opened to see two older porcupines entering through the theater with their gazes wandering around. Ash instantly noticed them with her eyes bulging out in shock while everyone else took note of the porcupine couple walking through the theater.

"Hmph, I've seen fancier theaters," the woman porcupine stated huff.

Ash gasped quietly as she slowly stepped back into the shadows. The kids got off of Johnny due to Rosita instructing them to as she guided the kids backstage to help Mike, Nancy, and the mice paint the boards for the background of a musical.

Buster noticed the porcupine couple with a confused look. "Hello, um, may I help you?"

Johnny straightened himself a bit while noticing the porcupine couple just looking around.

"Oh, well, we were wondering about--oh, there she is!" the porcupine woman pointed at Ash before she could just disappear into the backstage as well. "Ashley, it's been a long time."

Ash growled underneath her breath. She definitely didn't like to be called Ashley.

Buster, Mizuki, Eddie, and Johnny turned to Ash as Buster shifted his focus back to the older couple.

"I'm sorry, I don't know your names," Buster politely stated.

"Have you heard of Gerald Law Firms?" the woman questioned with her arms crossed.

Buster shook his head, not familiar with that name. "I don't think I've ever heard of it."

"It's a law firm that takes care of crime and drug trafficking. Something along those lines," the porcupine man answered in a casual way.

Buster nodded his head. "Wow. Uh, I never heard of that--"

"Ashley, dear, won't you come out to say hi to us?" the porcupine woman interrupted Buster.

Johnny gasped to assume that the porcupine couple right in front of them was, in fact, Ash's parents. And the obvious 'Ashley' was clearly an indicator that her parents were still using her full name.

Ash groaned quietly while turning to face her parents and narrowing her gaze at them. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We saw you on that rundown talent show on TV," Ash's mother replied. "We figure we find you for Thanksgiving."

"After you guys kicked me out?"

"Well, Lance was a bad boy and you wanted to run away with him so badly so we let you--"

"By telling me that I'm destined to go to hell and tell me to never come back," Ash said with her arms crossed, mostly at her mother, in a sarcastic tone. "Yeah, that sounds love to me."

Buster and Johnny glanced at each other with clenched teeth as they shifted their gazes back at Ash.

Eddie's phone vibrated in the sheep's pocket as he took it out. "Oop, uh, Nana needs my help. I'll see you guys later."

Eddie quickly exited through the backstage door in an awkward situation as Mizuki noticed the sheep taking off quickly. Mizuki shrugged it off while checking on the mice and Rosita with her piglets.

"Oh, Ashley, always being so dramatic," Ash's mother said with a giggle.

Buster twitched his ears a bit in some form of offense. Johnny narrowed his brows a little at Ash's parents.

"Well, anyway, you and your well-dressed boyfriend are invited to dinner for Thanksgiving. I wanna see how you two met," Ash's mother uttered happily.

Buster and Ash blinked as they glanced at each other. Ash almost wanted to gag at the thought of being in a relationship with her boss.

Buster arched a brow a bit. "Uh...are you talking about Johnny or me?" He pointed at Johnny, even though he knew that it was mostly aimed at himself. But there's a small percent of himself that hoped that they're referring to Johnny.

Ash's mother gave a deadpan stare at Buster. "I was referring to you when I said well-dressed--not the leather jacket monkey attempting to be edgy standing next to you. No offense to you, of course."

Johnny cocked a brow up. "It's kind of hard not to take offense to that."

"Johnny," Buster said before any more conflict got out of hand. "Uh...for your information, I'm in a relationship with somebody else."

"Well, guess a well-groomed businessman can also be a cheater," Ash's mother said with a sad sigh.

"Ew, Mom...Buster and I are never in a relationship. He's old enough to be my dad!" Ash commented in disgust.

Ash's father glanced up from his phone when Ash said that last line with a brow arched.

Ash's mother's jaw dropped. "What? Then who in the world are you in a relationship?"

"Hey, babe." Mizuki strolled in on cue towards Buster, earning a screech from Ash's mother.

"Hello, my love," Buster said with a relieved smile as she kneeled down and gave him a kiss on the forehead.

Mizuki whispered into his ear. "I figured you need to be rescued."

"Desperately," Buster replied in a hushed tone.

Ash's parents looked at the couple strangely.

"Isn't he too short for you?" Ash's mother questioned Mizuki on her choices of who she chose to love.

Ash covered her face with a groan in discouragement.

Johnny shot a withering glare at Ash's parents. "Does it matter?"

Mizuki arched a brow while holding Buster's hand. "Yeah, does it matter?"

"Well, he seems a little short for you, dear. Usually shorter people have smaller dic--"

"Okay! That's enough judgments, Mom," Ash groaned. "We'll see you later for dinner. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go practice."

With that said, she took Johnny by the hand.

"Come on, Johnny, let's go," Ash said, surprising Johnny with a blush on his cheeks as they both headed backstage.

Buster and Mizuki followed suit as Ash's parents just shrugged it off and exited out of the theater.

"Hoo boy," Buster uttered with a shaky sigh as he looked at the group consisting of Mike, Nancy, the mice, Rosita, Rosita's kids, Johnny, Ash, and Mizuki.

Johnny looked down at Ash. "You weren't kidding about your parents."

"Looks like we're dealing with prickly Karen and...not-so-participant father. I honestly pity you, Spikes," Mike stated plainly.

Ash gave him a deadpan stare. "Do I sense the sarcasm?"

"More of a genuine response than sarcasm."

Ash widened her eyes a bit at Mike's answer. "Thanks."

"No problem."

Buster glanced up at Mizuki with a small content grin. "I love you so much."

Mizuki smiled and rubbed the top of his head. "I love you too."

"Geez, louis, why don't you two get married already?" Mike stated with his arms crossed.

Nancy elbowed him in the rib gently while smiling at the two of them. "I think you guys look adorable together."

"Thank you, Nancy," Buster said while nodding his head and blushing a bit at the thought of marriage.

Ash glanced up at Johnny with a mischievous smirk. "Hey, Johnny."

"Yeah?" Johnny responded with a brow raised.

"Are you up for something mischievous?"

"Whoa, whoa!!! If you two are going to do the thingy-thingy with your bodies clashing together, I suggest you do it privately!" Mike stated loudly.

"Ew, no, Mike," Ash growled at the mouse. "That is not what I was thinking. I want to get on my parent's goats. They complain so much about me being with the bad boys."

Johnny arched a brow even higher. "I think I'm starting to see where you're going with this."

Ash smirked wider. "Are you up for it?"

"Guys," Buster said with almost a firm tone.

Johnny smiled a bit. "That depends. What are we doing to get on your parent's goats?"

Ash chuckled at the idea. "Okay, this is going to be fun."

"Ash," Buster called with a firm tone.

Mike leaned in a little bit. "I'm interested in this plan."

Ash gestured Johnny to lean over as she whispered the plan to him. Johnny blushed madly at her whispering to her with his pupils shrank in shock. Everyone else tried to lean in to listen to Ash's plan as Johnny's head slowly departed from Ash's lips.

"Wait, you want me to pretend to be your boyfriend?" Johnny uttered almost out loud.

Ash gave him a deadpan stare. "You're not supposed to tell."

Johnny widened his eyes. "Oops."

Mike guffawed at Johnny's statement. "Oh boy, I gotta see this!"

Buster blinked a bit. "Honestly, I thought you were going to suggest something worse than that."

Mizuki furrowed her brow and glanced down at her koala boyfriend. "Like what?"

"Oh...just throwing toilet papers at Ash's parent's house or something along those lines," Buster uttered while scratching the back of his head.

Before anyone could say anything, Meena came in with her breathing heavy while stomping around to find the room where she could practice her singing voice.

"Meena, you okay?" Rosita noticed the stressed-out elephant walking into the theater from the backstage door.

Meena cornered a plastered smile. "Yeah, I'm totally okay. Getting ready for the holidays is totally normal."

"Something's up with Cookie Dough," Mike whispered to Nancy.

Nancy tilted her head. "Are you alright, sweetie?"

Meena smiled widely, and the group could instantly tell it was fake. She sighed, finally relenting. "I've entered the baking competition and we're making this really really big cake. And my mom is sick and my grandparents barely walk and--"

"And you need help?" Mizuki guessed.

Meena nodded her head. "I guess."

"Well, why didn't you say so?" Rosita said with an excited smile. "It's no wonder you're stressed."

"Yeah, we can help you," Mizuki volunteered.

Meena's smile brightened. "Really?"

"Yeah, let's go!" Rosita stated as she turned to the mice. "Do you guys mind if you watch the kids? I'll be right back."

Before Mike and Nancy could protest, Rosita and Mizuki went over to Meena as the three of the ladies exited out of the theater to help Meena with her baking competition.

Mike and Nancy just stared at the kids.

"It'll be fine," Nancy stated. "You know, it might be practice for us to take care of future kids."

Mike just blinked and looked at his girlfriend. He frowned sadly and then contorted his face into disgust, trying to come off as abrasive. "Ugh, I'm not into kids."

"Okay...you know you don't have to change anyone's diaper," Nancy teased with a giggle.

Mike frowned at that statement while watching the children. He hated kids. Not just because they're annoying and they could be a handful. But because those kids contained such innocence and happiness that he never had as a child. The kids were so blind to the dark world around them, so focused on exploring the world for its beauty rather than seeing the ugliness inside of the beauty.

Nancy noticed Mike not answering, a pause that made her question her boyfriend's thoughts. "Hey, Mike, are you okay?"

Mike turned his head and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

~.~

Nana had her mansion all decorated with Thanksgiving themes with her servants preparing the food. Eddie arrived at the mansion while noticing Gary and Gunter waiting for him.

"Yo, Yo, Yo!!" Gunter chirped.

Gary smiled to see his roommate arriving just in time. "Hey, buddy, how are you doing?"

"Doing alright. You?"

"Doing just fine," Gary responded to Eddie's question.

"Alright, boys," Nana announced to the men. "I have something down in the basement. My servants are not supposed to go down there, so I trust you boys will be in and out of that basement."

"Wait, basement? Why does this suspiciously sound like something out of a horror movie?" Gary uttered questions.

"Life is not a horror movie, Gary," Nana corrected. "I forbade my servants from going down there because it contains something that shouldn't be touched."

"And you trust us to go down there?" Eddie questioned Nana's logic.

"Well, two of you guys are the ones I actually care to know your names. And the other one was my grandson," Nana stated plainly. "Go down there and be quick about it."

"Wait, what are we getting?" Gunter asked.

"A turkey," Nana stated.

The men had their eyes widened in shock.

Nana gave them a deadpan stare. "A decor involving the cardboard cut turkey--not a live turkey, they're a symbol of Thanksgiving after all."

"Oh," Three of the men uttered simultaneously.

"Now go down there and be quick about it," Nana urged as she continued to organize the grand feast called Thanksgiving.

"Well, I'm guessing we're going to go into a dark scary basement," Gary said to his group.

"Never fear," Gunter replied while taking out the glowsticks from his pockets and bending them to make them glow. "I got glowsticks."

Eddie and Gary stared at the flamboyant pig in shock.

"What? Mizuki is rubbing off on me," Gunter pointed out as he handed the glowsticks to Eddie and Gary so that each could have the glowstick.

"Alright then...let's go," Eddie said as he led both Gary and Gunter into the kitchen and towards the basement.

Eddie stopped in front of the basement door and opened it, staring down into the dark abyss. "Uh...well, there's the basement."

Gary and Gunter noticed Eddie's voice getting shaky.

"You're afraid of basements too!" Gary realized with his eyes wide.

"What? Pfft! No, I'm not afraid of a dark dusty basement," Eddie said while trying to laugh it off as if he's not afraid.

Gunter tilted his head. "Are you sure about that?"

"Yep, I'm definitely sure."

Gary smirked. "Well, Mr. Brave Boy, you go in first."

Eddie trembled slightly but straightened himself up. "Okay, I will." With that said, Eddie only took a step into the basement hesitantly. Eddie turned to the men, who urged him to go on. Eddie gulped and stepped further into the basement. Gunter and Gary followed after Eddie.

Meanwhile, the penguin butler strolled into the kitchen while noticing the basement door opened.

"Ugh, we're not supposed to be down there," the butler groaned while closing the door and locking it without realizing that there were three people down there.

"Is it just me or are we locked down here?" Gary inquired while hearing the locks click.

"Oh, great!" Eddie barked angrily from the basement.

~.~

"Thank you guys so much for helping us," Donna, Meena's mother, said with a sniffle and blowing her nose from her cold.

"Oh, it's no problem, Donna," Rosita stated happily while helping Meena and Mizuki with the baking, which was halfway done.

"This looks so good. We're going to win for sure," Mizuki encouraged Meena while her natural ability was never cooking and baking. However, she liked the idea of learning how to bake a cake or anything really. Maybe someday if Buster and Mizuki were legitimate or married, she would want to bake him something someday.

"So, what's this competition for anyway?" Rosita asked Meena.

"Oh, it's for our church. They're having a bake-off competition and I thought it would be fun to participate," Meena replied happily. "It's also for a fundraiser for St. Clarence's Cancer Research Center."

"Really?" Mizuki inquired.

Meena nodded her head in confirmation. "Yeah. Hopefully, the kids and their families will enjoy the cakes we made."

"I bet they will," Rosita said sweetly. "Phew, I didn't realize this was going to take longer than this."

"Sorry, I didn't mean for you to leave your kids--"

"Oh don't worry, sweetie, they're in good hands with Buster, Ash, and Johnny around...along with Mike and Nancy."

"I'm not sure leaving Mike and Nancy in charge of the kids is such a good idea," Mizuki uttered. "I mean, not really Nancy but Mike--"

"I'm sure they're fine," Rosita reassured the women with her.

They spent hours upon hours finishing the cake when it was in a beautiful display and it tasted delicious according to Meena and her own mother. They're definitely going to win.

The cake was beautifully decorated with orange and yellow colors to portray autumn themes with cinnamon sprinkled on it to make the cake taste more delicious.

Meena had a lid covering the cake as the ladies were able to take the cake towards the nearest church where they held banners for both Thanksgiving and baking contests. Once they got inside the small church, the ladies waited for the results as the judges were just looking at the cake. Anticipation boiled in the ladies' blood as they awaited the result.

~.~

"Hey, put it down!!" Mike shouted at one of the kids who took his saxophone case without even considering the consequences.

"Mike, relax, the kids are--"

"The saxophone is very fragile," Mike indicated to Nancy, interrupting her. "If one of the kids breaks it, then it's going to be unfixable."

"Oh, Mike, don't be dramatic. You're able to fix it before--"

"That doesn't mean that it's invincible. Although, I wish it was sometimes," Mike uttered as they heard a slam.

The mice turned their heads as they noticed the saxophone case all bent up. One of the piglets gasped in shock that it could break. Mike quickly approached his bent-up saxophone case as he examined it to see that it was broken. Is it fixable? Maybe. His annoyance had reached its limits after dealing with those kids for a couple of hours.

"Ugh, you guys don't know when to not take stuff, do ya? The world ain't gonna be all rainbows and sunshine if you keep taking stuff and breaking them as if that's okay!" Mike shouted at the piglets, scolding them. "Stop being such a nuisance and grow some common sense, will ya?!"

"Mike!" Nancy scolded Mike.

Mike gasped to realize that his words impacted the piglets in front of him. Some of them were growing teary-eyed. He was about to go on to tell them to stop crying but he knew Nancy was now going to be on his case as he just stormed away from the piglets with a messed up saxophone case.

Nancy watched with a sigh while Johnny approached the mice.

"Everything okay, Nancy?" Johnny questioned the mouse.

"Yeah...could you watch the kids? I want to talk to Mike," Nancy requested.

"Of course," Johnny answered with a nod.

"Thanks." Nancy made her way after Mike while Johnny noticed the kids getting teary-eyed as he tried to entertain them by singing to them fun little songs that would slowly cheer the kids up.

Meanwhile, Nancy searched for Mike until she found him up in the ceiling drafts with a saxophone in pieces right in front of the mouse. Mike frowned while trying to reassemble the pieces. He heard the floor creaked behind him and he knew Nancy was right behind him.

"I don't want to talk right now," Mike uttered.

Nancy narrowed her brows and crossed her arms. "Too bad. You better explain to me what was that back there. I know you don't like kids but do you really have to say that to them."

"What? They broke my saxophone--"

"So, that gives you a right to call them a nuisance?" Nancy argued with her hands on her hips. "Besides, a saxophone shouldn't be a big deal."

"Well, guess what? It's a big deal to me," Mike protested.

"Why? I know you played on that thing for years because it's what gives you money to survive--"

"I played it because it helps soothe Mom!" Mike blurted out with tears in his eyes.

Nancy became silent while her glare faded away in an instant. "Mom?"

Mike widened his eyes to realize what he just revealed while his breath got shaky. "I mean, no, I---!"

He already dug himself a grave so he might as well tell her what's really going on.

"It helps soothe Mom," He said more calmly this time. "We're a rich family but Dad spends most of his money buying cheap liquor and fixing holes on the walls that he caused when he's drunk."

Nancy didn't respond, without anything to say. She continued to listen.

Mike lowered his sad gaze on the broken saxophone. "She knew I like jazz and playing the saxophone. So, she bought me the instrument and I taught myself to play it. It soothes my mother because of her anxiety. Dad didn't like it because she bought it behind his back and he didn't like it. He never liked me. I was called a nuisance and a burden by him...that's why Mom and Dad would get into fights. Because of my existence."

Nancy shook her head.

"So, one night, I was playing the saxophone for her and my dad caught me. Then he just threw me against the wall and my mother had to come and interfere." Mike looked up at Nancy. "Nancy, I need you to promise me that you won't tell anyone about this."

Nancy nodded her head in obedience.

"I went into the kitchen and saw his liquor. I slipped some pill in there, thinking that it would just put him to sleep. He stumbled into the kitchen...wanting to kill me so badly. He took one drink and he just fell right on the floor. I don't know if he's choking at the time or what...he probably was. I went to check on my mother and she just...died in my arms." Mike choked at the last part.

Nancy frowned while hugging Mike, which Mike didn't expect. Nancy held him for a second as he hugged her back.

"I guess I did turn out like my dad after all," Mike said tearfully. "That's the last thing I wanna be. And that's why I don't want to have kids...because I'm afraid that I'll turn out like him. I'm afraid of being him. And then after the kids...I'm afraid of beating the crap out of you without thinking about it and then blaming it on the kids. I don't want to hurt you, Nancy."

Nancy shushed him while hugging him tightly. "Hey, you're worrying too much. You're not like your dad at all. There are words that you shouldn't have said to those kids back there but you're not going to become your father if you learn from his mistakes. If you learn to break the cycle of abuse, I'm sure that you won't end up like your father. Have you talked to someone about this? A counselor, perhaps?"

"I couldn't afford one," Mike said while wiping the tears away.

Nancy frowned at the answer. "I'm sorry."

"No...I'm the one that's sorry about what I said," Mike stated.

"You better tell that to the kids," Nancy reminded him softly.

"Right...right," Mike said as both of the mice went through the ceiling drafts to find Johnny entertaining the kids still, cheering them up already.

Mike smiled softly. "You know, Johnny should be a dad."

"Mike," Nancy replied with a chuckle.

"What? He would've been good at it."

The kids noticed Mike and Nancy as Nancy held his hand to show him that she was here with him.

"We're so sorry for breaking your saxophone," one of the piglets apologized immediately, knowing that they did something wrong.

Mike sighed heavily as he looked at the kids. "It's okay...it can be fixed. But, I'm sorry for my outburst back there. You guys are not a nuisance. You were never a nuisance at all. Rosita is lucky to have all of you guys. And you guys are also blessed to have Norman as your father."

Nancy glanced up at Mike in shock that he's adding more to his apology than needed to be. But her smile grew fonder at him as she squeezed his hand to reassure him that he was doing the right thing.

Johnny's eyes were bulged out comically in shock that Mike, out of all people, apologized for his abrasive actions.

As soon as Mike and Nancy separated from each other, Nancy went up to Johnny and stood next to him to see Mike telling the kids more stories about him and his saxophone, leaving out the parts where it involved his parents.

"How did you get him to apologize?" Johnny questioned Nancy.

Nancy blinked her hazel eyes. "Honestly...I have no idea."

"J, you coming?!" Ash shouted as Johnny turned to see the porcupine girl in a pretty black dress.

Johnny nodded his head with a hidden blush. "Yeah. I'm ready to go!"

"Where are you guys going?" Nancy asked in curiosity.

"Oh, we're going to Ash's parent's house for Thanksgiving. Wanna come?"

"Uh, we'll wait till Rosita gets back with Mizuki and Meena to watch the kids," Nancy stated.

"Cool, I'll see you guys later then." With that said, Johnny headed off with Ash to go to Ash's parent's house with Buster coming along with them.

After the three left, Meena, Mizuki, and Rosita entered backstage with Meena frowning.

"Uh...what happened?" Mike noticed the sad look on Meena's face.

"Well, we lost," Meena uttered.

"The messy cake got first place," Mizuki said with a groan. "And we got last place."

"Oof," Mike replied.

"How many cakes were there?" Nancy questioned.

Rosita pondered about the number. "Ten."

"Oh," both of the mice answered sadly.

Rosita shrugged. "Oh well, that means those churchgoers were missing out on Meena's masterpiece. Say, I heard Nana was going to have a Thanksgiving party around this time. Wanna head over there?"

"That actually sounds good," Mike stated.

"Let's go," Nancy determined.

"Wait, where's Buster?" Mizuki questioned.

"Oh, he went with Johnny and Ash to Ash's parent's house," Nancy responded.

Mizuki nodded her head in understanding. "Alright then."

~.~

Saying that Buster felt uncomfortable in the presence of Ash's parents was an understatement. He didn't like Ash's parents at all. He didn't like the way they talked, they walked, they spoke about Ash, and how they confused Johnny for a monkey instead of a gorilla. Now, he knew why Ash was always so rebellious. They were always putting pressure on her to become...them. But he knew who she was. He knew that being a lawyer wasn't her desire. Ash wasn't acting like she was better than everyone just like them and that's what both Johnny and he liked about her.

This emo phase her mother happened to mention wasn't even a phase nor was it her being emo. How come the showman, who was both her boss and her friend, knows so much more about her than her own parents? It was pretty sad when he thought about it.

"Well, I'm sorry for the little confusion in the theater this morning."

Buster snapped out of his thoughts to see Ash's mother talking while he sat between Johnny and Ash.

"Oh, uh, no worries," Buster politely said.

"Oh good, I don't have to worry about hurting your feelings accidentally," Ash's mother stated while taking a bite of her vegan meat.

Buster noticed that Ash's father was not present. "Isn't Mr. Gerald coming?"

"Oh, he's got some work to do. Apparently, his daughter didn't understand the perks of being a lawyer and the huge downsides of being a rockstar," Ash's mother commented, meaning it to jab at Ash, who just rolled her blue eyes with a groan to ignore her mother.

"You know, you want us to come here, right?" Ash stated firmly.

"Of course, dear. Since you dumped that Lance guy, I was hoping you picked a lawyer or someone like this fella in a business suit," Ash's mother referred to Buster, who just wanted to strangle the woman. But he kept his composure as he knew he had Johnny to hold him back.

However, Johnny appeared as upset as Buster was. Maybe Buster should be the one to hold Johnny back.

"For your information, mother, Buster is a showman. So, he only does shows and plays," Ash stated flatly.

"Well, I don't want your little numb mind to get confused that men in suits are to be trusted while men in leather jackets are not to be trusted...like this fella here. No offense, hon," Ash's mother pointed at Johnny.

Johnny furrowed his brows while tugging his leather jacket harshly so that he wouldn't hit a woman sitting next to him. "And women with blazers are usually Karens and entitled."

Ash and Buster glanced at Johnny with some shock. Ash just smirked and blushed. Buster knew that Johnny wasn't a violent person but when it comes to his friends, Johnny would not hesitate to punch somebody in the face if it means that he was defending his friends.

Ash's mother took offense. "See? That's a bad boy right there."

"In all fairness, you deserve it," Ash talked back with a bit of sass.

Buster and Johnny were tempted to nod their heads in agreement with the porcupine girl sitting beside Buster.

Ash's mother rolled her eyes. "Just like how you deserve Lance cheating on you because you disobeyed us? They say karma is a rotten biscuit."

Johnny gripped the plastic fork.

One stab. Just one stab.

Johnny knew he couldn't hurt somebody with a plastic fork but anything could be used as a weapon at this point. Buster put his small paw on Johnny's muscular arm to calm him down.

Ash's mother smirked when Ash didn't retort. "Huh, didn't get a smart response back, huh? Well, I guess some part of you knew it was true."

"That's it, I can't take this anymore," Buster said with a growl while giving a piercing glare at Ash's mother. "You can't just talk to your daughter like that! Let alone treat her like that!"

Ash and Johnny watched this with shock while Johnny smiled to encourage Buster to go on.

"She's nothing like you and thank goodness for that!" Buster shouted before Ash's mother could make a comeback. "Thank goodness, she's not snotty, entitled, and, let alone, selfish just like her own mother! She's the most talented artist I've ever got a chance to meet! And saying that you've seen her performing in the talent show, you have to know that your daughter is not a numb skull just like what you just said!"

Ash widened her eyes with her tears shimmering a bit at Buster's compliment.

Ash's mother was about to say something until Buster interrupted again.

"She's not just some edgy teen like you made her out to be! She's helpful, she's loyal, and, she probably will never admit this, she's also compassionate. You have no right to talk down on your daughter as if she's a child who should be anything like you! People like you disgust me! Just by the way you treat your one and only daughter! No wonder your daughter doesn't want anything to do with you! You are the one who pressured her to be someone she's not! You either get a grip that she won't be anything like you and be okay with it or you will never have that loving relationship with her! You choose!"

Buster didn't realize that he was already leaning on the table while his eyes turned into feral pinpoints as if he was ready to attack again as he did with Babeesh before the flood. Johnny noticed this as he put his arm on Buster's chest, snapping the koala out of his feral instincts. Buster breathed heavily to realize that he let his anger out but he didn't apologize for what he said. Every word he spoke out of anger was true in his own mind.

"You know what? Maybe we should just go," Ash determined. "It wasn't a good idea to be here anyway."

"Yeah, let's go," Johnny urged Buster as the three of them got up from their seats.

"Well, mother, thank you for the nice dinner. See you never," Ash growled as she left the house while Johnny and Buster followed her out.

"Get back here!" Ash's mother ordered.

"No!" Ash snarled as they finally exited out of Ash's parent's house.

~.~

The feast had arrived as Eddie, Gunter, and Gary hadn't come out of the basement yet, which caused Nana some anxiety. It had been hours...something must be wrong.

Nana made her way towards the basement, checking in on the boys as she unlocked the door. When she opened it, she saw that huge decoration coming towards her as she stood aside quickly to see it fall over. Nana blinked for a second and then turned to Eddie, Gunter, and Gary panting heavily like they'd been carrying the heavy set of the decoration of a cardboard turkey.

"Hey, Nana," Eddie waved to his nana.

Nana arched a brow. "Who locked in here?"

"I have no idea," Gary responded.

The penguin butler who locked them in the basement without realizing it arrived at the scene. "Oh, there are actual people in there."

Nana slowly turned to the penguin. "Don't tell me you locked them in the basement."

The penguin was silent. "Uh. Sorry."

Nana rolled her eyes as she turned to the three men. "Take a shower. You guys smell horrible."

"Alright, alright," Eddie said with a sigh.

"Phil, get them some fresh clothes for the feast," Nana ordered. "And be quick about it."

Phil, the penguin butler, nodded his head and took off to do her bidding.

Meanwhile, Buster received a text from Mizuki about a Thanksgiving feast held at Nana's mansion.

"Hey, do you guys want to go to Nana's house for Thanksgiving?" Buster questioned both Ash and Johnny.

Johnny shrugged his shoulders and nodded. "Sure."

"Yeah, let's go," Ash determined.

The three of them arrived at Nana's mansion as every theater group, including Norman, Rosita's piglets, Gary, and Meena's family were there and gathered around the table.

Meena was over her sadness that she lost in a competition while laughing from thinking about it. Rosita cuddled next to Norman while holding his hand. Eddie, Gary, and Gunter in freshly new clothes were talking Mizuki's ear off about their mishaps in the basement. Johnny and Nana talked about the weather and what things were like at Ash's parent's house, to which Ash joined in and confirmed it all. Mike and Nancy were able to tell about their unfortunate situation with his broken saxophone but Mike knew that it could be fixed. Ms. Crawly had Herman with her as they both talked to Mike and Nancy for most of the dinner.

However, Buster was just sitting back and letting everyone talk and talk about everything coming to their mind as the servants were serving them delicious foods and desserts. He smiled in thought about having thanksgiving with his father, Arthur--not Roy. Arthur had been more of a real father than Roy ever was in his entire lifetime. But he did remember wondering if his family could ever get bigger than just him and Ms. Crawly. Well, his question was finally answered thirty years later.

Buster smiled in thought as he felt a hand on his shoulder. He glanced up to see that it was Ash that got his attention.

"You okay?" Ash uttered.

Buster smiled. "You know, there's a lot of things I'm thankful for. And it's for you guys."

Ash grinned. "Aww, thanks, Dad."

Buster and Ash froze as Ash immediately slipped back into the conversation with Johnny and Nana. Buster smiled softly with warmness in his heart. The musical was underway to be worked on...soon it will be performed by everyone in his theater cast. And he couldn't wait till then to see what talent they could spread onto the world. 

The End.