Destination: Home

[TogetherAgain]

Luck Would Have It with commentary

Robin crawled up onto the log and snuggled into his uncle's side. Miss Piggy scooted closer to Kermit. Janice squeezed Floyd closer as he tightened his grip on Animal's chain. Gonzo's arm stiffened around Camilla. Fozzie fumbled with his hat. Rowlf, Dr. Teeth and Zoot each felt their muscles tense. The whole group watched in total silence as the dark figure approached.

It was about average height and walked with a tiny hint of a limp. A soft breeze grazed it and slightly lifted its waist-length hair for a moment.

commentary I love to keep things really obscure, and then slowly reveal them to the reader... trouble is, I can never figure out when the reader figures things out. That's a little frustrating. end commentary​

It drew near and the fire slowly lit its features. The flames reflected in her dark, wide eyes as she looked around the circle, and her face cracked into a tiny smile.

"I'm guessing you didn't intend to be on the side of the road out here at four o'clock in the morning?" she asked.

The muppets recognized her instantly. They all breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing their tensed muscles. Animals eyes went wide.

"WOMAN! WOMAN!" he bolted for her, yanking the chain out of Floyd's hand.

She dashed a few feet away and pointed to the drumset, shouting "Drums! Drums!"

"DRUMS! DRUMS!" Animal repeated, and was instantly at the drumset, banging away.

commentary I always wanted to do that. I wonder if it would actually work. I wonder if I would think to do that if I were actually in that situation. I would probably be more like, "Animal! Animal! Wow, I'm talking to a muppet!" But maybe that's just me. end commentary​

She calmly walked back to the fire and sat down. The muppets stared at her, amazed.

"Now that's what I call quick thinking!" Rowlf said.

"Yeah. Very smart of you, Gina," Fozzie agreed.

Gina smiled. "Why thanks, Fozzie. But what are you guys doing out here, anyway?"

"Well, its kind of a long story," Kermit said.

Gina shrugged. "I've got time," she said.

commentary Yeah, she does. But I don't. So instead of going into details about who said what to tell her everything, I just sort of said, "They told her." I'm lazy like that. Actually I was just taking a tip from The Muppet Movie. When Kermit and Fozzie meet up with the Electric Mayhem in the church, Fozzie starts to tell the whole story, and Kermit interrupts him, "You'll bore the audience!" So yeah. I guess in the movie version of this, they would just hand her a script again. It would fit with a joke I had thought to put in later on. But we'll get there. end commentary​

So they explained everything they had been through over the past two and a half months. Kermit did most of the talking, while just about everybody added their own two-cents a tad more frequently than was really necessary or appreciated. Gina listened carefully to what all of them had to say. Then she leaned back and mulled over their situation a bit.

"So these grey guys have been following you all over the country?" she asked.

"That's right," Dr. Teeth said.

"And now the bus is broken," she went on.

"Yeah," Fozzie said.

"And none of you know how to fix it?"

"Wasn't part of my puppy training," Rowlf said.

commentary I love that line. And have I mentioned yet that I love Rowlf? Because I do. I love Rowlf. end commentary​

Gina nodded vaguely. "Well... well, I just might be able to help you guys out," she said. "I have an idea."

The muppets leaned forward. She could help! At this point, any help at all that could get them back on their feet was worth jumping at. Gina sat up.

"You see, right now I'm on my way to my family's summer home. I'm staying there for a week before the wedding. I could fix the bus and you could all come up there with me. It's really secluded, see, no one could ever find it if they didn't know it was there. And on the way, there's this place I know, they'll make sure the bus is alright. So... so you guys could all hang out at our summer home with me, at least for the week I'll be there... I mean, that'll give you some time to not be chased for a while... what do you say?"

The muppets looked around at each other and nodded. A place where they wouldn't have to run. It would only be for a week. But they knew it was exactly what they needed- an escape from escaping.

commentary Escape from escaping. I like that line, too. One of my original ideas for the title was "The Great Muppet Escape". But I thought, then it sounds like a parody of the movie "The Great Escape," which has just about nothing to do with this story. So I decided that might not be the greatest idea in the world. end commentary​

"Gina, are you sure it wouldn't be too much trouble?" Kermit asked.

She shook her head. "Of course not. Like I said, I'm going there anyway."

Kermit smiled. "Well," he said, "We can't very well turn that offer down."

"Good," Gina said. "I'll get to work on the bus as soon as it's light out."

Kermit nodded and turned to his nephew. "Robin, you'd better get some sleep," he said.

Robin looked up at his uncle. "But Uncle Kermit, I'm not..." he yawned. "I'm not tired at all."

Kermit smiled. "Well, why don't you just lay down for a little bit, then."

Robin wiggled his way into Kermit's lap and was soon fast asleep. Kermit couldn't help but smile. He picked his nephew up gently, got up off of the log, and laid down on the ground. Soon all of the muppets were laying in the sand, sleeping soundly for the first time in two and a half months.

The sun rose peacefully behind them. Kermit awoke to the sound of laughter. He looked around and saw that Gina was already at work under the hood of the bus, with Rowlf by her side. Kermit walked over to see what they were talking about.

commentary This is another part I was worried about getting right. I tried to research it, but I couldn't get my paws on much "Rowlf-and-some-other-person-being-funny material. So I just sort of had to wing it. I really didn't want to just leave it out, because, like I've said, I love Rowlf. end commentary​

"See, Rowlf, this part needs these parts to work." Gina said, pointing around the engine.

"Oh, I see. Hey, can it work with those parts, too?" he asked.

"Nope, just with these parts."

"I thought parts was parts."

"I think that only works with chickens."

Rowlf tapped her on the shoulder. "Don't say that around Camilla."

Gina laughed. "I forgot about that. Gosh, with all the different animals you guys are... what can you eat without offending any one? Beef?"

"Nope. We've got some cows back at the theater."

"Ah. Well, what, then?"

"Well, other than chickens, we mostly stick to birds. Anything else is fowl!"

"What about vegetables?"

"They all talk."

Gina straightened up and took a good look at Rowlf. "Talking vegetables? You're kidding."

"Nope. Actually, most of them sing."

commentary This sort of contradicts what I said at the beginning about her being "more than something of a fan," but oh well. I was really just focussing on the comedy aspect here. end commentary​

Gina shook her head and wiggled down underneath the bus. "Hm. Rowlf, could you hand me a wrench?"

"Which wrench?"

"The little one."

"Right." He turned to Kermit. "What's a wrench?" he asked.

Within an hour, all the muppets were awake, the bus was loaded and running, and Gina had her car hitched to the back of the bus.

"You sure the bus can tow that?" Dr. Teeth asked.

"Sure. It's nice and light," Gina said. They boarded the bus as Gina took the driver's seat. "Alright, everybody!" she smiled back at them. "Destination: Breakfast!"

commentary And that's the beginning of the trend that will eventually lead to the title. Took a bit of working in, actually. I'll explain that in another featurette thing, though. I will get to a "making of" eventually. I think. end commentary​

And they rolled on down the road.

 

[Beauregard]

Awesome Lisa. That is, it is awesome, awesome-Lisa.

 

[TogetherAgain]

The Coffee Shop... and it's commentary

commentary We start chapter ten with a request. Now I had figured out why Gina was in the desert in the middle of the night ahead of time, but I failed to explain it in chapter nine. When Beauregard asked how she ran into them, I decided to take us for a little trip inside Gina's head. end commentary​

As she drove, Gina reflected on the past five or so hours. She had awoken in her hotel room around two in the morning knowing she wouldn't be able to fall back asleep. So she had checked out and hit the road, and the next thing she knew she had seen the Electric Mayhem bus. Thank goodness she had gotten a small enough car after the accident that the bus could tow it. She glanced back at her muppet passengers and decided that they must have had some sort of angel looking after them.

commentary Oh, they do. He's definately some kind of angel. His name is Jim Henson. end commentary​

The muppets talked amongst themselves excitedly while keeping half an eye on the scenery out the window. Gone was the endless desert. Now they were in a small town, with little family-owned shops and businesses on every corner. Gina pulled the bus into a place called Sahlin's Garage.

commentary Hey hey, check it out, it's REFERENCE time! Yay! end commentary​

"Alright, guys," she said. "I know the owners here, so I'll take care of this. But since you probably want breakfast, lemme tell ya, Juhl's Coffee Shop next door has the best french toast around."

"Thanks, Gina!" Kermit called as they hurried off the bus.

Gina watched them go and mumbled to herself, "I know the owners there, too." Then she hopped out of the bus and shouted, "Hey, Don! Got some business for ya!"

commentary A guy named Don who works at Sahlin's garage. Oh, I'd say this is refering to Don Sahlin. I made the Don in the story a bit of a tease, as an attempt to sort of emulate Don Sahlin's playful nature that I have read about. end commentary​

Don came out and saw Gina's car hitched to the back of the bus. He groaned.

"Did you break down again?" he teased.

She laughed. "Nope, the bus did! I got it here, but I figured you should take a look at it. These guys have been on the road for five weeks."

Don gave her a funny look. "Five weeks? Where the heck are they headed?"

Gina shrugged. "Away."

Don shook his head. "Alright, let's take a look at this bus, shall we?"

Meanwhile in Juhl's Coffee Shop, the muppets had lost their sense of relaxation. They were edgy, watching the door, certain that at any moment Galt's men would walk in.

"Can I get you folks something to drink?" a voice asked.

They jumped, surprised. The man had on an apron that said "Kiss the Cook" and a name tag that said "Jerry."

commentary Now this is a reference to Jerry Juhl. See, we already had a "Jerry" reference, but I didn't specify in the story which Jerry it was. So it is now clear that the paramedic was Jerry Nelson, whereas this is clearly Jerry Juhl. Not sure where I got the idea for the "Kiss the Cook" apron, but I like it. end commentary​

They relaxed, realizing that he worked there, and they each ordered their milk or orange juice or water. Jerry dutifully wrote it down and handed out menus.

"You folks seem pretty jumpy," he said. "Feel free to relax." Then he walked away.

"I didn't think it was that obvious," Floyd said.

"Kermie?" Miss Piggy asked, "Do you think they'll find us here?"

All eyes turned to Kermit. "I hope not, Piggy," he said.

"Well even if they do, they can't see us from the door," Rowlf said.

"But how will we get out?" Fozzie asked.

They started to mentally block out a plan of escape.

commentary Here they are all nervous again. Poor things. This is how accustomed they have become to sneaking out of resturants. They haven't even ordered their food yet, and they're already figuring out their escape route. It's really kind of depressing that it's so automatic for them. Aw, now I wanna give them all hugs! Wait, I always want to give them all hugs. Oh, you know what I mean... end commentary​

"If they do come here," Kermit said, "hopefully it will at least be after Gina's done at the garage."

Jerry was approaching the table with their drinks and heard the end of Kermit's sentence. "Gina?" he said, putting the tray on the table and passing out the glasses. "You don't by any chance mean Gina Brinks, do you?"

"Well... yeah, actually," Kermit said.

"You mean she's in town?" Jerry seemed to be getting excited now.

"Yeah," Kermit said.

"She's helping us out," Fozzie added.

"Oh, I remember now," Jerry said. "She was gonna stay for a bit at that summer home they've got, before the wedding."

"Have you ever been there?" Fozzie asked.

"What, to the summer home? Naw," Jerry said. "I'm told I've driven past it, but I've never seen it. It's really secluded. Now you say Gina's giving you folks a hand?" he asked.

"That's right," Miss Piggy said cautiously.

"Well, then! Any friend of Gina's is a friend of mine," he declared. "Now what can I get you folks to eat?"

They ordered the french toast Gina had reccomended, and Jerry collected the menus and went back to the kitchen. After a few minutes Gina came in and told them the bus would be ready to go in about a half an hour. They sat and enjoyed their food, getting several refills on their drinks, and letting themselves relax once more. Before they knew it, it was time to get the bus. Gina insisted on paying for the food, and so they walked leisurely back to Sahlin's Garage. She caught up with them quickly and they boarded the bus.

As he sat down, Kermit chanced to look out the window. His face fell.

commentary Here we go again... end commentary​

A blue van had pulled into Juhl's Coffee Shop. A man dressed in grey got out. He seemed to be looking at Kermit right in the eye. He got back in the van.

Kermit turned to Gina. She had seen it too. They had all seen it.

"Is that them?" Gina asked.

"Just GO!" Kermit said.

She quickly pulled the bus onto the road and drove off. The van followed close behind.

commentary Chase scene! I had to put it in. It emphasizes just how secluded that wonderful summer home is, it adds drama, it puts everybody at the edge of their seats... And it's been a long time since the Muppets did a chase scene. end commentary​

Soon they were surrounded by trees on a twisting, curving road with the van still on their tail. The muppets were clearly nervous. Rowlf poked his head up over Gina's shoulder.

"Gina?" he asked.

"Hold tight," was all she said, and she swung the bus through an even steeper curve.

The van slowed to a stop. The men all got out. They couldn't believe their eyes.

The bus had disappeared.

They looked around, then at each other. Then they got back in the van and drove past.

commentary This is where I was going to end the chapter. It's a great cliffhanger right here. But I didn't use it, because it just seemed so short that way, and I have nothing to do with my life, so it's like, "meh, if I stop here, what am I going to do for the rest of the day? Eh, let's just keep going..." So I did. end commentary​

The muppets looked around, amazed. They weren't quite sure what had happened.

commentary ooh! ooh! I know what happened! The trick is that last curve, which was much steeper than any other curve on the road. If you make an even tighter turn than the curve dictates, you go onto the little dirt road they're on now. But you can't see the road from the road. Er... you can't see the dirt road from the main road. That's because of the tree branches. You can drive right through them, they part for the car (or bus) with ease, but you couldn't see through them if your life depended on it. Ok so maybe I bent the laws of nature for that a bit, but I already did that with the log in the desert, so why not. end commentary​

All of a sudden they were on a narrow dirt road, with the trees almost touching the bus, and the van nowhere to be seen. Gina stopped the bus in a small clearing and they all got out. In the middle of the clearing was a large log cabin.

They carried their bags inside. One room made up the entire inside. To their left there was some kind of kitchen area. It had cabinets, a sink, and a stove that looked like it was used both for heat and cooking. Farther back, there was what looked like a closet. Gina explained that this was the bathroom. Several bales of hay were stacked against the right wall.

"This is it!" Gina said.

Miss Piggy made a face. "Where do we sleep? The floor?"

"You don't want to sleep on the floor?" Gina asked.

"Of course not! It's hard!" Piggy said.

Gina smiled. "No sweat." She spread some hay from the bales into a big pile on the floor. "It's more comfortable than it looks," she assured them, and they began to settle in.

Behind the cabin, just back behind the trees, there was a small pond. It had some fish in it, but it was mostly just inhabited by plants. An old log had fallen on the house side of the pond years ago, and it was a very relaxing place to be.

Kermit found himself sitting on this very log as dusk began to fall. He watched as the fireflies floated through the air. The setting sun sent long shadows against the leaves, with occasional shafts of light beaming onto the water. He sighed. It was so peaceful, so calm. He felt like he could have sat there for the entire night.

commentary That's me putting Kermit with a log again. He just fits with logs. And I love this image of him. Anyway, I realized after I wrote this bit that I might be spending too much time looking at the cards here at MC. Take a look at the picture here, farthest to the left, second row, and tell me if it doesn't look like what I describe here in this scene. end commentary​

He sat and listened to all the sounds of the pond. He heard the birds singing softly up in the branches of the trees. He heard a cricket chirping in the distance. He heard a chipmunk scurrying across the ground. He heard a fish splash in the water. He heard footsteps approaching him from behind.

He turned. It was Gina.

"It's a good spot, isn't it?" she smiled, sitting next to him on the log.

He nodded. "Yeah. It's nice." His mind seemed far away.

They sat in silence for a long time, watching the fireflies, and just listening. Their minds wandered down various seperate paths, reflecting on the past, wondering about the future, examining the present. Her thoughts were mostly light hearted, happy, floating above the branches. His thoughts were mostly dark, concerning, sinking below the pond surface. Finally he let out a heavy sigh.

Gina turned to him, suddenly knowing exactly what he was thinking about.

"Kermit?" she said.

He turned his head to look at her. "Yes?"

commentary I meant to put more of a conversation in here, but it didn't quite work right. end commentary​

She took a deep breath. "Kermit, if this guy has you afraid to stay in your own house... I think you need to do something about it."

He nodded, looked away, and sighed again.

"Where'd you say that letter was from?" She asked.

"Pine Springs, Texas."

Gina turned back to the pond, thinking a moment before speaking again.

"Kermit?"

"Hm?"

"We're just a couple of miles away from Pine Springs."

commentary ooh! Oh, that's the signal. That means we are now rapidly approaching the climax. No more guessing the setting of the climax, we know it will be at Galt's house. And now it's time to begin to brace ourselves for everything to go wrong. end commentary​

He turned to face her again. He hadn't been quite sure what to do. But now that he knew how close they were to Galt, he knew what had to be done. They had to go and face Lloyd Galt. Now if only he knew what to do when they got to Galt. He had to admit to himself- he was afraid.

Gina could see the shadows of thought passing across the frog's face. "Don't worry about it for now," she said. "Stay here for the week. Relax a little. You'll figure it out."

Her voice was so reassuring. He nodded. She stood up and started to walk away. She stopped and turned to look at him again. Then she returned to the cabin.

Kermit sat out on the log by himself until he could see the stars reflecting in the still pond water.

 

[theprawncracker]

Wow Lisa, your description of Kermit on the log compared to the card is totally uncanny! You're awesome!

 

[TogetherAgain]

Oh why thank you. It wasn't intentional, actually. But I love looking at the cards, and I love the image of Kermit on a log, and I had imagined this pond behind the cabin, and somehow the card came out in the story. My mind recycles things, I guess, because the same thing happened with that sentence of Beau's fanfic... Hm.

My mind is a treacherous place, I tell you... a very treacherous place...

 

[The Count]

Hey Lisa, wanted to say something about one of your commentarist barbs. The bit where you say the Muppets have a guardian angel by the name of Jim Henson?

Well, that brings up a memory I have. Not sure if it's from Not Necessarily the News or maybe an episode of SNL hosted by Stuart Penkin. The thing is about Leona Helmsley getting her just desserts.
Stuart Penkin is playing the part of Saint Peter at the holy gates stamping passports of people recently deceased on whether they enter the gates or get sent down below. One stamp means "Yes" (go through the gates and become an angel), two stamps means "No" (sent downwards to become a devil or demon.
He starts calling out names... Stuart Penkin: "John Lennon, (Stamps once), Jim Henson (stamps once)... "
Another name was mentioned and he stamps twice quickly, I've forgotten who. The actress playing Helmsley shows up, they go into a conversation (the comedic hook of the sketch) and then she gets sent down to the basement.

Thought you might like it, Jim being thought of and approved as an angel to enter the gates, even on a satirical comedy show like SNL or NNTN.

 

[TogetherAgain]

Hey, that is cool! Thanks, Count!

 

[TogetherAgain]

A Little Fantasy Never Hurt Anyone... commentary!

commentary Now here we have me covering my tracks. I forgot to write in earlier that as they travelled, it got colder, and the leaves all turned, and fell off the trees, and all that great stuff that comes with Fall. So basically, it was still summer, two weeks before Thanksgiving. I had to bring fall in, and fast. commentary​

They couldn't remember the last time fall had been so late. Here it was the middle of November, and the leaves were just starting to turn. But once they started, they turned quickly, and by the middle of the week not a single leaf remained on the trees. This meant that Gina had a lot of raking to do, and the muppets were more than happy to help, seeing as there wasn't much else to do.

commentary The entire purpose of this chapter was to get a fantasy sequence for Miss Piggy. I wanted to have her in the yard, raking with Kermit, and then go into the fantasy, and have her snap out of it in a big pile of leaves. It didn't quite work out like that, but I still talked about raking. end commentary​

So mornings were spent lounging around the cabin or the pond, taking as long as possible to wake up. Afternoons were spent raking up the clearing, and early evenings were dedicated to exploring the woods around the cabin. But days were getting shorter, darkness was falling sooner, and every day they marvelled at how quickly night descended. Three days danced away before their eyes. None of them could quite grasp that it so much time had already passed, yet at the same time it seemed as though they had been there for a year. Time seemed warped and they almost wondered if it really existed at all.

commentary I wrote that and then I though, hm, that sounds an awful lot like Raenbu from Beau's fanfic. Maybe I spend too much time reading that, because I keep seeing my brain recycling certain random elements of it. end commentary​

On the evening of the fourth day at the cabin, the muppets found themselves relaxing around the pond. Kermit, Robin, Rowlf, and Fozzie were goofing around, pretending they were frog scouts and letting Robin be the troup leader. Due to the circumstance, of course, they decided they were really frog-dog-and-bear-scouts. Robin was testing them for some sort of merit badge that didn't really exist.

"OK, scouts!" He said. "Now pull that log out onto the water and balance on it!"

"That's the craziest merit-badge test I've ever heard of," Kermit said.

"You should see what Miss Appleby puts us through," his nephew told him.

commentary You have no idea how hard it was to find the correct spelling of Miss Appleby. end commentary​

They laughed as they pulled the old log into the pond, and each took a turn trying to balance on it. Rowlf fell in fairly quickly, leading to some loud heckling from the other muppets who were watching. They were even harder on Fozzie, and he fell in even quicker. Kermit did very well until he tried to show off- balancing on his arms, then on one leg, then the other leg, and then no legs. He splashed into the water and laughed at himself as he swam to the banks.

commentary Well, would you look at that, Kermit's on a log again. end commentary​

By now the other muppets had tired of heckling and they wanted to participate as well.

"It's easier to balance if you look at a fixed point," Dr. Teeth said, wobbling a bit as he tried to demonstrate. He fell in after a moment or two.

commentary That trick works, actually. I use it all the time. end commentary​

Floyd was next. "It's easier if you touch your nose," he said. He probably could have stayed on for quite a while, but Animal decided it was his turn.

commentary I haven't tried that trick as much, but I'm pretty sure it does work. end commentary​

"BALANCE! BALANCE!" he shouted, knocking Floyd off the log and laughing. Floyd wasn't quite so amused, and the other muppets couldn't help but tease him.

commentary You know, they would hate doing this scene for real. Could you imagine all the muppets getting wet? It would take hours for some of them to dry. end commentary​

Then Gonzo took a turn. "It's easier to balance if you do it while you pat your head, rub your tummy, and jump up and down on one leg!" He proclaimed.

"Gonzo!" they all said in unison.

commentary For that line, I was thinking their reaction was something along the lines of at the beginning of Muppets Take Manhattan, when he said, "Broadway of what city?" I love that line. But anyway, this is typical Gonzo being typical Gonzo. end commentary​

Gonzo got on the log and began to balance. He patted his head, rubbed his tummy, started to hop, and hopped right off the log.

Miss Piggy then announced that she was going to show them how it was done. Floyd told her she couldn't- she would sink the log. He was promptly karate-chopped.

Before Miss Piggy could get on the log, Robin decided as "scout leader" that balancing one at a time was too easy.

commentary I wonder what kind of scouts they would be with everybody participating. "Frog-dog-bear-pig-chicken-whatever-animal-band-scouts"? Maybe they left it at just plain "scouts." I wouldn't blame them. end commentary​

So he and his uncle balanced together. They stayed up longer than anyone else had thus far. Next Floyd and Janice tried together, but Animal once again "joined" Floyd on the log, and all three of them collapsed into the pond.

Floyd raised his head out of the water. "Alright then, Animal," he said. "Three at a time!" And they clambored back onto the log. It didn't last very long.

Then someone decided it was record-setting time. Soon Fozzie, Rowlf, Kermit, Robin, and Miss Piggy were all balancing carefully on the log.

"It looks like Piggy's end is lower!" Floyd called out. Miss Piggy glared at him. Rowlf wasn't too keen on the idea of falling in again, so he changed the subject.

commentary Floyd just can't resist the chance to tease Miss Piggy. He oughta be careful. end commentary​

"Can you believe we've been here for four days already?" he said.

"Yeah," Fozzie said. "It seems like yesterday that we were trying to get away from those-"

He stopped. No one had mentioned the grey men for the entire time they had stayed at the cabin, and he certainly didn't want to be the one to bring it up again. But it was too late. An uncomfortable silence settled on the pond.

Kermit let it sit for a moment before speaking. "We'll get out of this, guys. Don't worry."

"How?" Robin asked. "How are we going to get out of it?"

"Well, that's the part I haven't figured out yet," Kermit admitted. "But we will. And when we do, we'll go back to the theater, and we'll put on that show."

commentary Kermit's trying to get everybody's spirits up. He has no idea how to get away from Galt and his men, though, so he's distracting all his friends from it. He's a very clever frog. end commentary​

"And then I'll be able to do some new stunts!" Gonzo said.

"Yeah," Fozzie said, "And I'll do my comedy act."

"Rully, and like, we can all play again," Janice added.

"Kermie?" Miss Piggy asked. "Will moi still have my skits?"

"Of course," he said. "You'll have Vet's Hospital, and Pigs in Space, and some others, too."

"Oh, thank you, Kermie!"

And they all started talking about how great it would be to get back to the theater. Kermit looked around at his friends, amazed that they were still balanced on the log. He smiled and thought to himself, It helps to have a conversation.

He looked at Miss Piggy and noticed the distant, glazed look in her eyes. He wondered what she was thinking about. Then he turned to Robin, who was asking him something...

commentary Cue the fantasy sequence! Yaaaaaaay! end commentary​

...The theater was packed with people, all cheering to see her. Important people, too. Reporters, celebreties, even the President of the United States, all there for her. She stepped gracefully on stage and they roared with applause. She wouldn't even have had to perform, just seeing her was enough to please them. But she loved to perform. She crossed the stage, smiling, waving, "Kissy kissy!" and "Moi loves you all!" and "Yes! Thank you!"

She took her place in center stage with a spotlight gleaming down on her. The audience fell silent, waiting on the edge of their seats to see what she would do.

She smiled. The piano began to play, and she began to sing, crisp, clear, with Kermit watching from the wings, silently rooting her on.

When the lights go on
And I take that bow
I hear you applauding
I'm living for now
But it's not in your cheers
It's not how loud you scream
It's that you think I'm perfect
I'm living my dream!

It's ecstasy to hear you roar
You shout to me and beg for more!
And I'm just who I want to be:
Your very best celebrity!

Some one snaps a picture
I flash them a smile
You fans make me feel
It's all worth my while
No one can tell me
What I'm supposed to do
I'm just living my life
I'm only in full view!

It's ecstasy to hear you roar
You shout to me and beg for more
And I'm just who I want to be:
Your very best celebrity!

It's ecstasy to hear you roar
You shout to me and beg for more
And I'm just who I want to be:
Yes I'm just who I want to be:
Exactly who I want to be:
Your very
Best
Celebrity!

They loved every moment of it, and when she finished, they screamed for more. "Encore! Encore!" came the calls. Roses were tossed on stage. The whistles and the applause were almost deafening. But she was done. One must ration what one gives to the loving public.

She waved to them all, with another flurry of "Kissy kissy" and "Thank you all," preparing to depart from the stage. But first she took a deep, gracefull bow..."

SPLASH!!!

commentary Every Miss Piggy fantasy sequence ends with something embarassing for the pig. I suppose the "falling into water" is a bit similar to Great Muppet Caper, but that was falling into a fountain, and this is falling into a pond. So it's different. end commentary​

The balance of the entire log was thrown off, sending her, Kermit, Robin, Rowlf, and Fozzie all crashing into the pond.

They waded slowly out of the water. Everyone was laughing except for Miss Piggy. She was trying to save her ego and figure out what had happened at the same time.

"Can't show off for too long, can we?" She smiled, trying to act naturally. But before anyone else got a chance to call her bluff, Gina came out of the cabin.

"DINNER TIME!" she called, and the muppets raced inside to see what she had cooked up.

commentary Lucky for Miss Piggy that Gina showed up when she did. I think Miss Piggy should owe Gina a favor. You know I was thinking of having those two play a one-on-one game of basketball around this part, but I decided not to. It's too much time away from the actual story, and too hard to describe. Which is kind of a pity, because it could have been funny. end commentary​

 

[The Count]

Aw, Lisa. Why was it such a hard time to find a Muppet's name's correct spelling? If you find yourself in that bind ever again, just take a quick stroll down my "Muppet Listings" thread. Version 15.0's the current list posted, but be sure I'm gathering characters for V16. Heck, got so many already from that to the version in my computer so far, and I'm still missing half a season of Sesame Street to add.

Well, keep us updated with the commentaries.

 

[TogetherAgain]

A Fresh Start with commentary

Kermit laid on his stomach in the pile of hay, with his head tucked into the crook of his arm. He could almost feel the sun rising ouside. He rolled over so he could see, and sure enough, the cabin was a little brighter than it had been when he had fallen asleep. A soft beam of sunlight gleamed in through the window, just touching the cabin floor.

commentary Oh, the changes I made to get this scene just right. See originally they were going to get to the summer home at the beginning of summer, and they would be there with all of Gina's family, aunts, uncles, cousins, half-cousins-twice-removed... But of course I shifted when the story started, so it could end at Thanksgiving. And besides, if Gina's family was there, it would just be confusing. So they were still going to be at this huge house, with a zillion bedrooms. But then I realized I wanted this scene with Kermit waking up, because I think that time when you're just sort of drifting out of sleep, it's kind of magical. I wanted to have Kermit just be half-awake, thinking about everything they had gone through, looking around at his loved ones, trying to figure out what to do, and the scene could just have that peaceful magic of the morning. So I put them all in one bedroom. And then I realized, how would he hear Gina then? So it became a one room cabin with everybody sleeping in the hay. end commentary​

He sighed, not quite ready to get up yet. He turned his head to watch his sleeping nephew as he let his mind wander.

They had fallen so easily into their routine here. The cabin had such a feeling of home to it that it would have taken a real effort to be uncomfortable. It was exactly what a summer home is meant to be- a place where you can forget your worries, leave absolutely all your cares behind, and just relax.

But relaxing time had ended. The week was up. Where had time gone? And still he didn't know what to do when he got to Galt. Just say, "please leave us alone now?" What good would that do? He sighed. Maybe it would come easier when he was actually looking the man in the eye. On the other hand, maybe it would be harder then.

commentary I'm using the difficulty here. I just couldn't find the right words for Kermit to say to Galt. So I figured, if I didn't know, maybe Kermit didn't know, either. end commentary​

He heard something and realized Gina was already up, making breakfast. She was humming something to herself. That sounds familiar, he thought.

He turned his head the other way, to where Miss Piggy was lying. Her body was turned away from him, towards the wall. His mind wandered between his original train of thought and what Gina was humming.

Life was so simple here. They had absolutely no responsabilities, no cares, no worries. Except of course for keeping Robin caught up in school, but he learned quickly, and that wasn't difficult at all. What was it... less than three months ago? Had it only been that long? Less than three months ago, this was the very kind of life they were sick of. But now it was so wonderful, to have absolutely nothing...

...We sang that song, didn't we? When did we sing that?...

Maybe it was because they had absolutely nothing that they were enjoying this so much. Last time they had a break, they had had more than nothing. They had had places they could have gone, things they could have bought, things they could have done. But now there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy, no one to see but each other. All they had was a pond to play in and some woods to explore. And that was more than enough to keep them occupied. He felt like they could have stayed there forever and been happy.

commentary Yeah, but that wouldn't have been a satisfying end to the story. That leaves Galt on the loose, no show, and the muppets far from their own happy home. end commentary​

...Was it on one of our shows?... No, it's from one of our movies...

But of course he knew that couldn't work. Of course there was the obvious reason that Gina was leaving that day, and they couldn't stay. But even if that wasn't the case, he knew they wouldn't have been able to stay there forever. They would get homesick eventually. They would miss... they would miss the sort of things that they were missing now. He pondered that for a bit. Yes, they definately missed some things.

...Which movie did we sing that in?... It was one of the earlier movies...

It was the little things that they missed. He smiled. How did that song go? "I believe in little things..." it was true. Little things. Seeing people other than each other. Standing on a stage. Entertaining people.

commentary I believe in little things, that you can hardly see... I love that song. I got a little confused when I was writing this. Gina was humming "Somebody's Getting Married," Kermit was thinking a zillion things, and I had to go and start singing "Little Things" to myself. Complicated stuff. end commentary​

...If only I could remember the words, that would help... It was at the end of the movie, wasn't it?...

The little things. Little things, like singing. Laughing. Sleeping in their own beds.

...It was the end of Muppets Take Manhattan! Yes, that's it... the wedding...

Little things, like taking their time when they ate. Eating at their own table.

... It makes sense for Gina to be humming that. She's going to a wedding today, I forgot about that...

Little things, like asking everyone questions at the breakfast table. Little things. Little things, like the morning kiss routine. How long had it been since he and Miss Piggy had done that? Months. Somehow, it had drifted out of their pattern when the men had first started to follow them around.

commentary It's my personal opinion that Kermit does in fact love Miss Piggy. end commentary​

He watched as Miss Piggy rolled onto her back, looking up at the ceiling, letting out a soft sigh. Kermit realized that she wasn't really asleep. She was just delaying actually getting up, the same way he was. She probably didn't even know he was awake.

He wondered if she missed the good morning kiss routine, too. She probably did. Or maybe she had been too miserable over the past months to miss it. But on the other hand, he had been miserable, too, and he missed it. And this past week, well, they hadn't been miserable at all. But although this cabin was most definately a home, it wasn't their home.

Home. That's what they missed. Home.

Well, maybe that wasn't such a little thing, after all...

He was certain that Miss Piggy was awake. He leaned over to her, gave her a little peck on the cheek, and whispered, "Good morning."

She smiled, turned her head and watched as he got up and walked towards where Gina was standing.

She was still humming the song. She had no idea that any one was awake yet, and she let a few lines slip out with the words.

"He'll make me happy,
Each time I see him.
He'll be the reason
My heart can sing..."

commentary There's some more of that darned "foreshadowing" stuff. It's annoying but effective. end commentary​

She turned and saw Kermit standing just a few feet away. She blushed a little, but the smile on her face refused to fade as she continued making waffles.

"Good morning, Kermit," she said.

"Good morning, Gina"

"Kinda hard to leave this place, isn't it?"

He nodded, wondering how she always seemed to know what he was thinking. "Yeah."

"Yeah, I know. We go through it every summer. As soon as we leave, we start counting the days to when we can come back again." She started to wash a bowl she had been mixing in. "Do you guys have a place like that? A place where you can always be comfortable? Like a second home?

He thought about it before answering. "Well... yeah, I guess so. I mean our home is the boarding house. But we have the theater, too. That's sort of like home to us. And of course I have the swamp. That's home. And it's Robin's home, too." He turned and saw that Miss Piggy had gotten up and was standing right next to him. "Can you think of any place else, Piggy? Any other place we have a home?"

Miss Piggy's eyes faded into a far away look as she thought. She spoke softly. "I miss home."

commentary There's no place like home. There's no place like home. There's no place like... Oh, excuse me... um... ha ha... uh... It's sort of a theme of "home". Oh gosh I pay way too much attention in English class. First foreshadowing, now I'm talking about themes. Next thing you know I'll start pointing out alliterations, similies, metaphors... Oy! end commentary​

Kermit nodded. "So do I, Piggy. So do I."

commentary Yeah. They all miss home. But don't worry, we'll get them there eventually. end commentary​

Slowly, everyone woke up. They ate breakfast and loaded their belongings into the bus. Gina's car was still hooked up to the bus. She was going to drive with them as far as Galt's place, and then head to the wedding.

Kermit had told the others at breakfast that morning how close they were to where Galt lived, and that they had to face him. None of them asked any questions. No one asked what they would do when they did see Galt. He was thankfull for that. He still didn't know.

commentary Yeah, and neither did I. So frustrating. end commentary​

They got on the bus and took their seats in silence. Gina was the last one on. She could see how grim the muppets were, all of them nervous. She understood why, of course. She wasn't sure she would want to approach her own antagonist.

commentary And she does in fact have an antagonist. She knows him as Lloyd Brinks, we know him as Lloyd Galt. This was about the closest I came to foreshadowing that little plot twist of mine. Yay for no foreshadowing! Take that, English class! end commentary​

Yet she could barely contain her excitement for the wedding.

commentary Of course not, she's the one getting married. end commentary​

But still, she felt the need to give some sort of comfort.

"Guys?..."

Their heads turned from their windows to her, perfectly synchronized. It was almost creepy to watch.

"Guys... you remember, after the accident, when I told you to call me if you needed anything?"

They nodded, vaguely. Of course they remembered. It was the only reason they hadn't felt any guilt about joining her at the summer home.

"It still stands," she said. She sat down in the driver's seat and let her enthusiasm take ahold of her once more. "Alright, everybody- Destination: Lloyd Galt!"

They wondered at how she could act like Lloyd Galt was a happy destination. They sighed, each returning their gaze to their windows. It was all they could do to hope things would go well.

commentary Oh don't worry. They won't. For a while, anyways. end commentary​