A Heart of Gold

[redBoobergurl]

I just have to comment in a little more detail now that this is just so amazing, I still can't believe it. You're touching on something that is so real to so many people right now. I don't know anyone overseas right now, but if I did, man, this would be such a help. So many things stick out to me. Fozzie and Rowlf being together, Piggy being polite, Sweetums sleeping in Robin's room, Robin's innocense, Fozzie and Kermit writing letters to each other on Fridays, Kermit....I don't know what I can say about Kermit. I'm so impressed Lisa, I just feel that this story is going to be so different from any other you've written and it's going to be very special.

That's not to say I don't want to see more Cheese and Flippersteps either though, I'm glad to hear they are just on hiatus!

 

[Beauregard]

"It's real." That's what I thought when I reached the end of this chapter. "It's real." The war is a real war. The soldiers are real people, wearing real uniforms, with real letters under them. (At least Kermit is already camoflague(sp?) green...).

It's not far away for me any more. It's not sombody elses problem that I don't need to think about. It's real.

In fact, it's almost shamefull that it takes a fictional character going out there in order to make it real...but that's what it does take.

Thank you for that, Lisa.

 

[TogetherAgain]

Chapter Two

The house was undeniably tense the next morning. The breakfast table was undeniably quieter than usual. The previous day was undeniably weighing heavy on their minds.

At the small desk shoved in the back corner of the family room, Scooter slumped in front of the computer and checked his e-mail. "Spam... spam... Skeeter... hm..."

He suddenly sat straight up.

"GUYS! E-MAIL! FROM KERMIT!"

He was instantly surrounded by every single Muppet in the house.

"What happened?"

"Is he okay?"

"How bad is he hurt?"

"How'd he get hurt?"

Scooter stood on his chair to try to get their attention. "GUYS! WAIT!" he shouted. "I haven't even OPENED it yet!"

"Well what are you waiting for?" Rizzo demanded.

Scooter sat down, clicked the mouse, and glanced over the e-mail. "Geez, did he forget how to use the 'Shift' key?"

"WOULD YOU JUST READ IT?" Miss Piggy snapped.

"Sorry, it's just that nothing's capitalized! He's usually good about that. Okay, here it goes." Scooter scrutinized the screen. "Hi-ho, all. Guess you heard I got a Purple Heart. Bullet in right shoulder. Collar will cover scar. Hurts, but I'm fine." He looked around. "He's fine, guys!"

They collectively let out a sigh of relief.

Scooter turned back to the screen and continued reading. "There's talk I might get honorable discharge and come home. I hope so. Miss you. Please give my-"

"Robin! Kermit loves you!" Sal interrupted.

Robin smiled, and the others chuckled.

Scooter studiously frowned at the screen. "He didn't finish the sentence," he said. "It just stops after the letter L."

They shifted in the peculiar silence. "You mean that's it?" Fozzie asked. "There's nothing else?"

"Well, no, there's more," Scooter said. "He just... didn't finish the sentence."

They thought about it.

"Well, we know what he meant," Gonzo said, and he nodded to Robin.

They agreed, and Scooter went back to reading. "Yours, K."

"Not KTF?" Fozzie asked.

"No, not KTF," Scooter said. "Just K."

"It's usually KTF," Fozzie frowned.

"Maybe he's tired," Miss Piggy said.

"Or rushed," Rowlf offered.

"Guys, there's more," Scooter said. "It says, PS: Piggy-" He stopped and turned. "You'd better appreciate that, Piggy. He used the shift key twice there, and no where else in the e-mail."

"Just read," she said softly, smiling.

"Right." Scooter turned back to the screen. "PS: Piggy- the nurses are ugly compared to you."

They burst into laughter and grins.

"Well." Miss Piggy tossed her hair. "Naturally," she said smugly. She was secretly glad that her make-up covered her reddening cheeks. She backed out of the crowd and went upstairs.

"Must be some hideous nurses!" Floyd said.

"Watch it!" Miss Piggy shouted down before closing a door.

They continued to laugh.

Gonzo leaned over Scooter's shoulder. "He's gotten pretty flirtatious in these e-mails," he observed.

"Yeah," Rizzo shrugged, "It's probably somethin' in the food."

"That, or he's on some heavy medication," Clifford said.

"They're probably all male nurses, anyway..."

"Hey, but he might come home soon!"

"Yeah, that'll be great!..."

The crowd slowly dispersed, chattering about the e-mail.

Scooter stayed at the computer, his chin in his hand, tapping his foot, staring at the unfinished sentence on the screen.

Rowlf crouched next to him. "Bothers you, doesn't it?" he said.

"Huh?" Scooter looked up.

"His e-mail," Rowlf said. "It bothers you."

Scooter nodded.

"It is kind of unusual for him," Fozzie said, crouching at Scooter's other side. Gonzo stood by Rowlf and leaned on the small desk.

"Yeah," Scooter nodded. He counted on his fingers. "No shift key, unfinished sentence, just K..."

"And the flirting," Gonzo added.

Scooter shook his head. "The flirting's old news," he said. "But add up the other stuff..."

Rowlf nodded. "It could be the medicine, all jokes aside. But something big's on his mind."

"Yeah," Fozzie said, "I bet he's upset."

"Well of course he's upset!" They turned to see Miss Piggy standing right behind Scooter's chair. "He had to fight," she said simply.

Rowlf did a double take. "Pardon?"

She sighed and reached over Scooter's shoulder, pointer finger extended. "Look-"

"Don't touch the screen!" Scooter panicked.

"I'm not!" she growled. She pointed at a line of the e-mail. "See? Bullet in right shoulder." She straightened up and folded her arms. "Bullets don't get into shoulders all on their own," she said. Then she turned to Scooter and added, "And your precious little monitor is still clean."

Scooter cowered in his chair.

"Well I know that," Rowlf said. "But he's had to fight before, hasn't he? I mean, we've all seen the news. Nobody's over there for..." He gestured, trying to think. "...Fozzie?"

"Nine months, four weeks," the bear reported.

"Exactly." Rowlf turned to Miss Piggy again. "Nobody's over there for nine months and four weeks without fighting."

Miss Piggy sighed and gripped the back of Scooter's chair. "I don't know, Rowlfie," she said. "...He's never been shot before..."

Fozzie twisted his hat in his hands. "That... might've made it more real," he said.

Gonzo sighed. "Well... whatever got to him... it's gonna be rough."

Scooter nodded grimly. "Still hard to imagine him with a gun," he said quietly.

"He never mentions it," Fozzie said, motioning to the computer screen.

"I don't blame him," Rowlf murmured.

"Poor Kermie," Miss Piggy sighed.

A small voice behind them piped up. "Um..."

They turned, and there was Robin, looking rather sheepish for a frog.

"I missed the bus again," he explained.

They grinned at each other. Rowlf shook his head and gestured to the computer. "Every time Kermit writes..."

"That's okay!" Fozzie declared as he scooped the young frog up onto his back and headed for the kitchen. "Extra time for breakfast!"

 

[The Count]

Thank you for the new chapter Lisa.

Loved the E-mail, the mentions of spam, and all the things the gang noted about Kermit's message.
Also liked how you had the core group that grew up together in the nursery going over the deeper meaning of the message.

But you know what made this real for me?
That last line about Robin missing the bus again. So many times it's happened to you, you just had to make it happen to someone in one of these fics?
Loved it all... Post more please!

 

[redBoobergurl]

Great chapter, I love the small touches of Muppet normalcy spread throughout, like Floyd saying that the nurses must be rather ugly if Piggy is better looking than them. And Scooter, Rowlf, Fozzie, they all know Kermit so well that they can even tell in an e-mail, which is like the most impersonal thing ever, that something really got him over there. *shudders at the though of Kermit with a gun* Anyway, great stuff and very cute with Robin at the end missing the bus.

Keep it coming!

 

[ReneeLouvier]

Oh my gosh WOW! *just got around to reading this story* It's really...real. Can't think of what else to say, but it's...real.

I don't have family (that are close at least) over in the war-zone, and I didn't have anyone die in the towers. To me, personally it was a bit...impersonal for some reason. Yes, it was bad they died, no...it was horrendous. But nothing else other then that. And this story kinda....makes it all real.

I agree with Beau, it's shameful when it takes a fictional character for it to finally hit home that it is real.

I can't wait to read more of this precious gem of a story.

 

[theprawncracker]

Lisa, that is by far my favorite scene from what I've seen. It's just so gloriously Muppety, hillarious, yet charming, concerned, yet deep. Perfection my half, perfection. More please.

 

[TogetherAgain]

<Pulls out the teddy bin and several additional cuddly things to snuggle with>

Nobody said this story would be easy...

And just to make it harder, I'm going out of town in... Oh, about an hour. I'll be back in a week. Rough spot to leave you at, but... That's life.

 

[TogetherAgain]

Chapter Three

"...Come on... Kiss her..."

"He's not gonna kiss her."

"He's gonna kiss her!"

"He's not gonna kiss her!"

"He should kiss her."

"Five bucks says he does."

"Ten bucks say's he doesn’t!"

"You're on!"

"Come on, kiss her!"

"Don't kiss her, don't kiss her..."

"Kisssssssss herrrrrrr..."

"Don't do it!..."

They fell silent and stared at the screen intently.

"Aw, man!"

"YES!"

"Pay up."

"Nuh-uh!"

"I can't believe he did it."

"He's crazy!"

"She's crazier."

"And I'm CRAZIEST!"

"No arguments here!"

The huge group of Muppets all laughed, and money was exchanged between a few hands.

"That's not how the movie ends, is it?"

"Pipe down and you'll see!"

"Do you always talk through movies?"

"Nah. Mostly only when I'm in the theater."

"Or getting paid for it!"

"Yeah, then we just don't stop talking!"

"Yeah!"

"...Wait a second, you got paid for that?"

"Of course. Didn't you?"

"...Um..."

"Hey look! They're gonna kiss again!"

"No they're not..."

"Ten bucks says they do?"

"You're on!"

"Hey guys, could you pass the popcorn?"

"...You want the popcorn, or the bowl?"

"What's the difference?"

"One we have, and one we've eaten."

"YUM!"

"...Okay, scratch that, there is no difference."

"Disgusting."

Fozzie sighed. "I'll go get some more," he said, and he stood up to leave the room.

"HE KISSED HER AGAIN! HA!"

...He was glad he left the room.

He put a bag of popcorn into the microwave, turned it on, and looked for a bowl while he waited for it to pop.

Kermit had now been gone for ten months and four days. A week had passed since his last e-mail, and they hadn't heard a word since. It wasn't like Kermit to go this long without writing unless something big was going on. Since his last e-mail had mentioned some talk of an honorable discharge, they tried to take it as a good sign.

But his last e-mail had also mentioned a bullet wound. Optimism was a difficult thing to find in such a circumstance. They had finally resorted to distraction, and now they were watching whatever movies they could find lying around the house. Considering they lived in Hollywood and therefore kept up with most movies, that was quite a lot.

It did not, however, mean that the movies were any good, and they were beginning to understand why Statler and Waldorf had taken to heckling... and kept coming back.

Fozzie pulled a bowl out, glanced at the microwave, and called into the other room. "Is he still kissing her?"

"No, they're at a park now!" someone answered.

Fozzie pulled the bag out of the microwave and dumped it into the bowl.

"No, they want us to think they're at a park," someone else said. "They're really in somebody's back yard. See the little kiddie pool, about two feet away?"

"I think that's supposed to be a duck pond."

"Okay, having little pink and yellow ducks on the side of it does not make it a duck pond! Come on, even we know that!"

Fozzie's ears pricked. "Hey guys?" he called. "If they're at a park, then why is there a door sound effect?"

"What door sound effect?" someone asked.

Fozzie hesitated. "I... I thought I heard..." He stepped out of the kitchen in time to see the front door close.

There he was, in his well-pressed uniform, his fairly worn looking boots, a Purple Heart on his chest, his right arm in a sling. He looked tense, staring out at the world through an invisible yet hazy shield.

Fozzie felt his jaw drop.

He was home.

The bear finally found his voice. "KERMIT!" he shouted. He ran to greet his friend.

The other room suddenly rustled to activity. "What? Kermit? What is it Fozzie?"

"KERMIT'S HOME!" Fozzie shouted.

The entry way was suddenly very crowded.

They slowed- just slightly- at the look on his face. "KERMIT! YOU'RE HOME! YOU'RE HERE! YOU'RE... Kermit?..."

His knees went weak, and he began to sink.

He didn't sink very far. Silk gloves, furry paws, were instantly grabbing and supporting him.

"Kermie!"

"It's okay! We've got ya!"

"Make room, guys!"

"Let's get him to the couch!"

"Turn the movie off!"

"Who needs that movie anyway?"

"Just relax, green stuff!"

"Welcome home, Kerm."

They settled him on the couch between Miss Piggy and Fozzie.

Miss Piggy, on his right side, was careful and wary of the sling and, more importantly, his shoulder. But nothing was going to stop her from gently wrapping her arms around the nearer half of him, and filling his cheek with kisses. "Kermie," she managed to whimper between pecks.

His eyes seemed to fight their own vacant gaze, and his face remained strained, but his good hand managed to find and touch hers for a brief moment before pushing away to give Fozzie the biggest one-armed bear hug the comedian had ever had.

The two best friends hugged tight for a long moment before settling back against the couch, each still keeping an arm around the other. Kermit looked like he was finally beginning to relax. Miss Piggy scooted closer to him, and his exhausted head dropped onto her shoulder.

Then he finally broke his own silence. "It's good to be home," he mumbled.

They nodded in quiet agreement, letting themselves relax. Kermit was home, and it felt incredible.

They heard the front door open and close. "Sweetums Sweetums Sweetums guess what I did in school today!" an excited little voice proclaimed.

The Muppets exchanged quick, excited glances.

"Robin, wait!" Gonzo and Sweetums raced to the door. "We've got a surprise for you!"

Kermit lifted his head, tensing. A mournful shadow fell over his eyes. He felt a lump in his throat.

"A surprise?" Robin followed obediently as Sweetums and Gonzo guided him towards the couch, blocking his view.

"You'll love it!" Sweetums told him. "Now cover your eyes..."

"Okay!"

Kermit watched his little nephew approach, his eyes covered. He had grown some, but he was so young and innocent... Kermit felt himself start to shake.

Gonzo positioned Robin right in front of Kermit. "Okay," he said, "Now look!"

Kermit suddenly found himself looking into the biggest, roundest, most innocent eyes he had ever loved. Oh please don't let him say-

"UNCLE KERMIT!"

Kermit burst into tears.

The Muppets stared. This was hardly the reaction they had expected. Quick glances were exchanged, racing to calculate how to undo this.

Robin lightly hugged his uncle's leg. "Uncle Kermit?" he said softly. "Are you okay?"

Kermit had shielded his eyes with his good hand. "I'm sorry, Robin," he managed to croak through his sobs. "I'm so sorry..."

Fozzie quickly scooped the younger frog away. "He just got home, Robin, he's tired-"

"Yes, Kermie, why don't you get some rest-"

The others tried to comfort and distract Robin while Miss Piggy half-led, half-carried a sobbing Kermit up the stairs and into his room.

 

[Beauregard]

There was this one line that struck so real and so...it summed up everything ever, Muppet-wise, family wise, everything...

"Right." Scooter turned back to the screen. "PS: Piggy- the nurses are ugly compared to you."

They burst into laughter and grins.

"Well." Miss Piggy tossed her hair. "Naturally."

That line...the reaction...her hair-tossing...the laughter...the pain...it's so vividly realistic and real...and, wow. I love that you used "-" instead of "," after piggy. Gave a longer pause ready to dive in. perfect.