FanFic: A Little Knight Music

[The Count]

Well... Of course it's in a positive way. This story has rully come along quite nicely... And we're all waiting for the rest of the final act.

 

[Beauregard]

Ok! I though I best pop in and tell you that I AM reading this! Slowly but surely, I am up to the masked-men scene. Well, just finished that scene. And this story takes my breath away, and then gives it back just in time for laughter! I adore you remarks in ()'s and also the clever names for places and buildings, as well as, well, everything! I was so obsorbed in the "Artie" story that I forgot that wasn't the main focus of the story

And Nora is a refreachingly good new Muppet character!

 

[Muppet Newsgirl]

Nice to hear you say so, Beauregard. It's true that most of the story concerns the Killer Fish, but act six is devoted entirely to the play. Speaking of which, expect the last scene of act six later tonight.

It's a long story, I know. I have this tendency to take a short story and turn it into War and Peace.

 

[Muppet Newsgirl]

All right, everyone, here it is, the last scene of 'A Little Knight Music!'

Sam: And thank goodness for that.

Muppet Newsgirl: I heard you calling me a left-wing tree-hugger earlier. Save the opinions for the editorial page, featherbrains (Sam huffs and disappears behind the curtain). Of course, I do consider myself a left-wing tree-hugger, and Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein are two of my journalistic heroes and...oh, dear.

Scooter: (peeking out from behind curtain) You just told them that you were the mysterious reporter from the Daily Inspector. Did you mean that?

M.N.: Er...quasi-sorta-kinda. Places, everyone, we're on the home stretch!

Act Six, Scene Three:

Link pompously surveyed the waltzing couples down on the Great Hall floor, with a "my loyal subjects" sort of air. Uncle Deadly tapped his claws impatiently on the balcony railing as he looked around the hall.

"When, Mordred?"

"Not just yet. I want to finish the feast, get the guests through a few waltzes and make a speech," Link said haughtily as he took a hefty swig of wine. "There's a pattern to these, you know." Nearby, Wayne (a.k.a. King Cadogan, who was in cahoots with Mordred) chatted grandiosely with a fluttery noblewoman played by Wanda.

Uncle Deadly sighed. "But still, Mordred, I can't get the feeling that we'll have some…unwanted company."

"Llandfyll, please, do you think I'm not capable of taking care of one measly little lizard king and a pack of ragtag knights?" Link asked in a bored tone. "And what you said to Arthur down in the dungeon really hit home."

"True, my Lord. But still…it is a feeling that shakes this old dragon to his bones."

The doors at stage right opened. A couple entered and started waltzing among the other couples. One of the couple was short, green-skinned and wearing a gold tunic. The other was taller, much plumper and wearing a ruffly pink ball dress. Both also wore masks.

"I see we have some new guests," Link said.

The doors opened again. In came two people in masks and sorcerer's robes. Then came a furry creature in a bright yellow tunic, with a woman who seemed to be trying to avoid having her feet stepped on. Then a whatever in a white and dark purple tunic, waltzing with a lovely lady chicken. Last of all, a young man in a white, green and orange tunic, leading a young woman in a dark bluish-purple dress.

"Come, Morgan." Link took Mildred by the arm and walked with her down to the dance floor. The music abruptly changed to a tango.

For a while, the Camelot contingent did their best to avoid Link, Mildred, Wayne and Wanda. And then...

"Hello, what's this?" Mildred asked down her nose as she collided with Kermit.

Kermit's mask accidentally fell off. "Oops."

Link's face turned purple with rage. "It's King Arthur!"

All of Mordred's guests promptly drew their swords.

"Gratuitous sword fight!" Gonzo yelled happily.

The ball quickly dissolved into a stunning display of swordsmanship, with a few guests getting chucked into the punch bowl by Miss Piggy.

Uncle Deadly took off up a staircase leading to the castle tower. Kermit, Scooter and Fozzie spotted him and took off after. The band started playing the Mission: Impossible theme.

Meanwhile, Nora and Robin were confronting their evil brother.

"I never said that! What I said was, on pain of deaf! I'd make you listen to all your least favorite ballads until you wished you couldn't hear anymore!" Wayne said quickly.

"Come on, Deirdre, haven't I been a good brother to you? And Tristram, I did let you play with my toy dungeon set when we were kids, didn't I?"

"Yeah, you made me play the part of the prisoner," Robin retorted from Nora's shoulder.

"Right, right…but about all this: you don't understand! Mordred made me join him," Wayne sniveled in a tone that fooled no one.

Nora rolled her eyes, shoved Wayne into a potted plant and ran off after the knights.

-----

The knights burst into Llandfyll's lab.

"Not one step further!" Llandfyll roared from his perch next to a gigantic pulsating glass globe. The globe looked a lot like a medieval ray gun, and it was pointed out the window in the direction of Camelot.

Here, people familiar with the play would have realized that Kermit had made changes to the script in the last few days, after what had happened with the Killer Fish.

"Why are you doing this, Llandfyll? I thought this was all Mordred's idea!" Kermit shouted.

"Mordred…ha. The pompous old twit wouldn't know a proper battle plan if it came up and bit him on his silk-clad rump," Uncle Deadly snorted. "This is a new weapon, the future of war. With one tug of the lever, I can turn your precious Camelot to rubble without getting my claws dirty. But I guess you wouldn't care now, would you? You've been moping and doping about and forgetting what's really important. You went on this meaningless quest just to get out of the castle and make yourself look like a pack of heroes." Uncle Deadly threw back his head and laughed. "You've got nothing to live for, Camelot!"

"You're wrong, Llandfyll," Kermit said decisively.

"Say what?"

"We do have something to live for, and we didn't go on this quest just to get out of the castle, even though the knights needed some excitement." Kermit took a deep breath. "We've realized that at Camelot, we've got something very precious that we need to protect. It's not gold, or silver, or…that iron maiden Lancelot's been hankering after." Kermit looked Uncle Deadly straight in the eyes as the others gathered around. "It's each other. And our dreams."

Uncle Deadly's lip curled.

Kermit went on, "And…and we don't care what kind of twisted psychopathic plan you want to use against us. As long as we've got our dreams, and our belief in one another, you can't stop us, Llandfyll."

Uncle Deadly sighed dramatically. "A touching speech. I'll just get this over with, then."

"NOW!" Fozzie, Gonzo and Scooter went running at the globe with their swords outstretched, Nora and Robin went running for the globe's control panel, and Clifford and Skeeter raised their wands just as Uncle Deadly lunged at Kermit and Miss Piggy.

There was an almighty crash and an explosion, and no one really knew what happened next.

"It also helps if you have a sword or something with you, but that's another matter," Fozzie remarked through the cloud of smoke.

"I thought I would have broken you, Arthur King," Uncle Deadly said sourly. "You were too busy chasing after all those assorted quests that you worked yourself into a burnout. I thought this would have been the straw that broke the camel's back."

Gonzo stared at Uncle Deadly. "Are you kidding? This is the most fun we've had in months!"

The malevolent court wizard disappeared in a flash of green sparks.

Slowly, as the smoke cleared and as Kermit regained consciousness in Miss Piggy's arms, the cast went into a reprise of "I Forgot How to Dream."

At the song's end, Gonzo said, "Come on, the ball's still in progress, and the buffet table is loaded!"

The play ended back at Camelot, with a reprise of 'A New-Fashioned Story,' as well as a rendition of 'The Rainbow Connection.'

The audience went wild as everyone came out for curtain calls. First came the ensemble cast. Then came Beauregard and some of the guards. Then came Link, Mildred, Wayne and Wanda.

The audience started to rise to their feet as Skeeter and Clifford appeared and bowed, then Fozzie, Gonzo and Camilla, and Scooter, Nora and Robin. Last of all came Kermit and Miss Piggy.

In the front row, Jim, Jane, Frank, Jerry, Richard and Dave were applauding enthusiastically, as was the reporter.

Sadie, J.P. and Nancy were nearby, as were Nora's family. Mrs. Farley and her husband were one row behind them. Up in the balcony, Auntie Eleanor waved her handkerchief at her mate and Lady Faffner clapped graciously. Wild, Riff and Mimi were practically jumping up and down where they stood.

The cast acknowledged the band and took one final bow before disappearing behind the curtain, high-fiving and hugging each other.

As long as we've got our dreams…and our belief in one another, you can't stop us, Llandfyll…

Nor can you, Killer Fish.

-----

Scooter put his jacket back on and buttoned it up. As he did so, a newspaper on a nearby table caught his eye.

Killer Fish to Face Additional Charges in Boston, the headline read. Mr. Knotworth's face glowered out at the reader from the police photo.

Scooter shivered and turned the paper over.

Richard was right. There were more important things to worry about now. There was one thing in particular that Scooter needed to take care of tonight.

Scooter reached into his backpack and pulled out a large book with the title "The Lost Files of Baker Street" emblazoned across its blue and maroon cover. It was an anthology of lesser-known Sherlock Holmes stories as well as some other stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

Scooter had convinced Mrs. Farley to let him buy it the day before.

He opened the book to the first page, took a red and gold card out of his pocket and placed it between the page and the cover. He closed the book, went out into the backstage area and waited for Nora to appear.

Skeeter dashed by, carrying a gleaming white wicker basket full of radishes - a stage-door gift from the Fraggles. The Electric Mayhem went out the side door in a chorus of "Right on," and "Far out."

Nora appeared from one of the dressing rooms, with her coat draped over one arm. "Tonight's show was the most fun I've had since…well…since whenever!" she beamed. "Don't you think, Scooter?"

Scooter nodded, smiling. "Come here, I've got something for you."

Nora ambled down the stairs and came over just as Scooter took the book out from behind his back.

Nora gasped with delight. "Scooter, where did you get this? I've been looking for this for ages!"

"I asked Mrs. Farley if she had any really good mystery anthologies in stock. She had that one, but I had to twist her arm a bit. I think she was saving it for your birthday or something."

Nora turned the book over in her hands like it was one of the greatest treasures of the world. Which a book is, actually.

"Open it to the first page," Scooter urged her.

Nora opened the book. There was a laminated gold and red card stuck inside the cover. It said: The Muppet Theater: Cast and Crew ID: Nora Brandon, Actor and Stagehand.

"Kermit told me to give that to you. You're officially one of the gang now." Scooter explained. "Truth be told, we've been ready to tell you that for several weeks now, but we wanted to make it a surprise and…ooof!"

Nora cut Scooter off by throwing her arms around his neck and planting a kiss on the surprised gofer's cheek.

"Thank you, Scooter…thank you," Nora mumbled into Scooter's jacket. "This means a whole lot to me."

Scooter looked a little taken aback by Nora's sudden display of affection, but he did what he had wanted to do for some time and gave her a big hug. "This means a whole lot to me too, Nora."

"Come on, you two, let's move it. Cast party at Jim and Jane's in twenty minutes," Skeeter called from the side door.

"Shall we?" Scooter offered Nora his arm, and the two started to join the others.

"I might as well drive up to the state pen and shove my theater card into Mr. Knotworth's face just to spite him," Nora cackled.

"Better not; my uncle's complaining that the insurance rates on this place are high enough," Scooter laughed.

They ran outside to where the others stood by the Mayhem bus. A short distance away, Jim and Jane pulled up in the black van. Frank, Jerry, Richard and Dave came outside and climbed in moments later, along with the reporter. The doors swung shut and the van started out of the parking lot.

The Mayhem bus followed as soon as the last passenger got on board. The two vehicles roared off into the night, both to Jim and Jane Henson's home and into the end of this story.


The End (for now).

-----

(Scooter and the others come out from behind the curtain, amid thunderous applause. Scooter is holding a large bouquet of mostly blue and white flowers.)

Scooter: Hold it, everyone, someone we need to tell you about before we officially end the story. You all know the reporter who was in the audience at the show, but mostly under another name. And she's more than just the reporter; she's the author as well. Put your hands together for Erin Roll, a.k.a. Muppet Newsgirl.

(M.N. comes out on stage. Scooter hands her the flowers.)

Muppet Newsgirl (Erin Roll): Thank you Scooter, they're beautiful. (addresses the cast) You guys were nothing short of excellent. (to readers) Guys… what can I say, I had a lot of fun doing this story, and I hoped you had just as much fun reading it. Thanks for bearing with me through fire, flood and Fish!

-----

Final note: I dedicate this story to Jim Henson and Richard Hunt, who showed us how to laugh and to dream.

 

[ReneeLouvier]

I loved it!!!! *Thunderous applause*

 

[The Count]

Yep... A rully great story... Stemming from all the insanity in the fanfic community the last two months... And tieing it all in a different POV. Rully good story Erin... Look forward to whatever's next. Oh, and if you want, you can always come and join us at the dorms, just remember to contact me first since I'm kinda of the manager of the place.
Thanks for the story and have a great day.

 

[Muppet Newsgirl]

Thanks, Count. And I might just swing by the dorms sometime. I'll let you know for sure first, that is.

Now what the deuce am I going to do after this one...well, I kinda have an idea that has the Muppet cast playing a live game of Clue...with typically insane side effects. I'll fill you in if I decide to go with it.

 

[The Count]

Sure thing... If you decide to join, I'm sure we'd be happy to have you.
Next story huh? So long as it's good and Muppety, it'll be a hit with the critics.
Statler and Waldorf: "Dont bet on it!"

 

[TogetherAgain]

WOW!

Okay, I FINALLY read this... I'm sorry I'm so late... but I just LOVE it!!! <Hugs the whole story> It's awesome and funny and heartwrenching and heartstopping and "Oh I'm sorry, you didn't need to know how to breathe, did you?" and SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Oh I love it!

 

[Muppet Newsgirl]

(blushes in a desperate attempt to look humble) Heartstopping, eh? I guess I should have posted a defibrillator along with the story!

Glad to hear that you loved it!