Summer In The Theater

[TogetherAgain]

Chapter seventeen

Miss Piggy took her magazine and sat out on the porch swing, half-watching as Robin, Scooter, Sweetums, Beauregard, and Rowlf all played Frisbee.

“Hey this was a good idea, Scooter,” Rowlf said as he threw the Frisbee to the go-fer.

“Thanks,” Scooter said. “I thought we might need to unwind a little.” He threw the Frisbee to Beauregard.

“Unwind what?” Beauregard asked. He threw the Frisbee to Rowlf.

“Our nerves,” Rowlf said. “It’s been a rough week.” He tossed the Frisbee to Robin.

“It sure has,” Robin said. He hopped up, caught the Frisbee, threw it to Sweetums, and landed.

“I have some really great news, though,” Scooter said as he watched the young frog.

“What’s that?” Rowlf asked. Sweetums threw the Frisbee to Beauregard.

“We’ve raised five thousand dollars,” Scooter said.

Beauregard almost dropped the Frisbee he had just caught. “Five thousand dollars?” he repeated, somehow managing to throw the Frisbee back to Sweetums.

“Five thousand dollars,” Scooter said. “And it’s all ready to give to Kermit, just as soon as we get back in the theater. And unless we completely bomb with the summer show, we have all the money the theater needs for now.”

“That’s great!” Rowlf said, secretly wondering if it would even help Kermit at all.

Sweetums accidentally threw the Frisbee too hard. It flew over Scooter’s head and landed on top of the house.

“Oops,” he said.

Scooter chuckled. “Well,” he said, “That’s the end of that.”

“I’m not sure if that was on the roof or in the rough,” Rowlf said.

They stayed on the porch for a while. Beauregard got his broom and started to sweep, Rowlf and Scooter discussed ways to get the Frisbee down, and Robin and Sweetums sat on the steps and looked at the darkening sky, talking about the different things they thought the clouds looked like.

Robin heard the door open behind him. He turned around and was amazed at who he saw. “Hi, Uncle Kermit!” he said.

The others looked up. “Hi Kermit!” they all said.

“Hi,” Kermit said. He was empty and emotionless, but at least he was outside. He walked over and leaned against the railing, looking out at the horizon. The others followed his gaze, and for a long time no one said a word. They kept glancing at Kermit, as if to make sure he was really there. It was a peaceful evening, with a few birds singing softly and the stars coming out.

“We can start over, right?” Kermit said suddenly.

The others stared at him. “What?” Rowlf said.

“I mean... if we lose the theater,” Kermit said, glancing around at them before returning his gaze to the sky. “If we end up on the bottom again. We can work our way back up, right? We’ve done it before...”

They were shocked. Somehow it hadn’t quite hit them how bad Kermit thought they had it.

“Oh, Kermie...” Miss Piggy rushed to his side and hugged him close from behind. He didn’t fight it. He put his left hand on her right wrist and leaned into her arm a little.

They were very quiet for a moment before Clifford came out.

“Hey Kerm,” he said. “Detective Keene’s on the phone.”

The others followed Kermit as he silently walked into the house. He could feel everyone in the house watching him as he took the phone from Fozzie.

“Hello?... Yes?... Oh, good. Thank you... Uh, any progress on... yeah... okay. Thanks, detective... well good luck... Thank you... Bye-bye.” He hung up the phone.

“Well Boss?” Scooter asked eagerly.

Kermit looked at his friends. He was still as unemotional as ever. “We’re back in the theater tomorrow,” he said. “But still nothing significant on the thief.”

“But we’re back in the theater?” Fozzie asked.

“Yes,” Kermit said. “We’re back in the theater.”

“Alright!” Dr. Teeth said.

“We’re in the theater!” Scooter shouted.

“We’re in the theater!” Miss Piggy said, jumping up and down with excitement.

Robin started hopping around on the counters. “Uncle Kermit!” he shouted. “We’re in the theater, Uncle Kermit! We’re back in the theater!”

“We’re in the theater!” Fozzie shouted.

By now, everyone was shouting. “We’re in the theater! We’re in the theater!”

“I thought we were in the boarding house,” Beauregard said.

“We’re in the theater!” Scooter shouted again. “Oh, this is great, Chief, I- Chief?” He looked around. “Where’s Kermit?”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~​

Robin had seen Kermit go. The young frog slipped away from the excitement and stepped out onto the front porch. “Uncle Kermit?”

Kermit was sitting on the front steps, looking sadly up at the star-filled sky. Robin sat down next to him. Kermit looked at his nephew and nodded. Then he turned back to the stars.

Robin watched him. This was not his uncle. His uncle would be even more excited than anyone in the house. But his uncle was gone now. He was hidden somewhere in the empty shell of a frog that Robin was sitting next to. And Robin would have given the whole world just to bring his uncle back. He looked at the stars, looked at Kermit, took his hand, and slowly, quietly, tried to find his uncle.

“You’ve got to follow...” he sang. “Follow your star... You’ve got to follow... no matter how far...”

Kermit put a hand on Robin’s back and looked down, shaking his head. “I can’t find my star anymore, Robin,” he said. “I don’t know where it is.”

“It’s where it always has been, Uncle Kermit,” Robin said.

Kermit looked at his nephew for a moment. Then he sighed, pulled the young frog onto his lap, tucked his head down next to Robin’s, and put Robin’s hand around his. “Remember when I showed you which one it was?” he said.

Robin turned a little. “Of course I do, Uncle Kermit,” he said.

Kermit nodded. “Can you show me?”

Robin smiled, turned back to the stars, and carefully guided Kermit’s hand. “It’s that one,” he said. “Right there.”

“That one?” Kermit asked. “Are you sure?”

“Yup!” Robin said. “That’s your star, Uncle Kermit. The big bright one. Right there.”

“It... It does look familiar,” Kermit said. He looked at the star for a long moment. “Robin?” he asked. “Where’s your star?”

Robin was quiet at first. He leaned back into Kermit’s chest. “I don’t know yet, Uncle Kermit,” he said. “I’m still looking.”

Kermit nodded vaguely. “Well,” he said. “Let me know when you find it.”

They gazed out at the sky and watched as a shooting star flew through the night.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~​

Scooter peered out through the curtains again, shook his head, and turned away.

“Still out there, huh,” Fozzie said.

Scooter nodded. “Yeah. They’ve been out there for a while.”

“Do you think someone should bring them in?” Rowlf asked. “It’s past Robin’s bed time.”

“Nah,” Fozzie said. “Let’s just keep an eye on them. They’ll come in when they’re ready.”

“Kermit acted like he didn’t even care about the theater,” Gonzo said.

“Man,” Clifford said, “Something is definitely wrong with that frog.”

“Yeah,” Scooter said. “Well, but hey, we’ve raised five thousand dollars.”

They nodded. The door opened, and they turned to see Kermit carrying his sleeping nephew in. He started to climb up the stairs. Then he looked at Robin, and stopped, halfway down the stairs. He almost smiled. And he continued on his way.

They gathered at the foot of the stairs, watching, amazed. Fozzie looked at the door, up the stairs, at the door, and then to Rowlf. He voiced what all of them were wondering. “What the heck happened out there?”

 

[theprawncracker]

OH!!! That was the best chapter yet! The best! I loved Fozzie's ending line! And Robin, and Kermit and Clifford and, and, and, and, all of it!!! GAAHHH!!! You are such an awesome writer Lisa!!!

 

[redBoobergurl]

Lisa, this was a wonderful thing to come home to after being away for a couple of days. It was a wonderful chapter! Fabulous! Superb! I loved the scene with Kermit and Robin and how Kermit stopped "halfway down the stairs" and almost smiled! It was just so beautiful! Keep it up!

 

[G-MAN]

I loved everything especially Kermit's trademark shooting star, I applaude your wonderful writing skills Lisa

 

[Beauregard]

*shivers* Where's your star Robin? *shivers* Wow! A spin tingling chapter!!!

 

[TogetherAgain]

Thank you much for the wonderful comments. I have to admit, the scene with Kermit and Robin... it haunted me for a couple nights after I wrote it. Which was interesting, because I was at camp, sharing a cabin with a bunch of Israeli girls who were speaking a lot of Hebrew. So there I was half asleep, hearing a steady stream of Hebrew, and all of a sudden I hear "It's where it always has been, Uncle Kermit" Then I heard more Hebrew, and then "Do you remember when I showed you which one it was?" Then I heard some more Hebrew, and then "Can you show me?" Then more Hebrew, and "Robin? Where's your star?" And more Hebrew, and "I'm still looking," and more Hebrew, and "Let me know when you find it," and more Hebrew, and then it started over... And eventually I fell asleep... sort of... but anyway.
Who wants the next chapter? <raises hand>

 

[theprawncracker]

*raises hand along with TogetherAgain*

Yeah, you move on along with that new chapter. I posted a new one, so now it's your turn.

 

[TogetherAgain]

Chapter eighteen

Kermit stood in front of his desk at the theater. He felt completely empty. Robin had helped, on the porch. But here, at the theater, it was different. This was what he was going to lose. This was his dream.

He could hear everyone getting ready. Beauregard and the rats were building sets, the Electric Mayhem was tuning up, and everyone else was scattered across the theater, memorizing lines and working out various issues. And he was at his desk, looking at the paperwork, trying to find his motivation. But it wasn’t there. He was empty.

“Yo, Kerm!” Clifford walked in with a huge stack of envelopes. “Got some mail for ya.” He set the pile on Kermit’s desk.

Kermit looked sadly at the pile. “Thanks, Clifford,” he said.

Clifford looked at the frog. He understood. “You okay, Kerm?”

Kermit nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.”

Clifford knew that Kermit wouldn’t talk unless he was ready. So he just shook his head. “You know, Kerm,” he said, “You usually have a pretty good poker face.” He walked away, leaving it at that.

Kermit examined the envelopes. An electric bill, a water bill, a phone bill, all demanding payment. Insurance wouldn’t be far behind. He slowly made his way to the bottom of the pile. There was a large manila envelope addressed to him. But there was no return address, and no stamp. Kermit opened the envelope and pulled out a single sheet of paper. “Dear Mr. Kermit the Frog...”

He started to read, slowly getting faster and faster. He tightened his grip on the paper and the envelope, shaking with excitement.

“I’ve gotta tell everybody,” he said. “Hey guys!” he shouted. “Fozzie! Piggy! Scooter! Rowlf! Clifford! Everybody! ROBIN! Guys, come here!”

Scooter came running. “Boss?”

“Oh, Scooter! Good!” Kermit put a hand on Scooter’s shoulder, almost forgetting that he was still holding the envelope. “I want you to get everyone on stage right now. Got it?”

“I’m on it, Boss!” Scooter said.

Kermit ran up to the dressing rooms. He knocked on a door and pushed it open. “Piggy! Onstage! Now!”

“Oh! I’m coming, Kermie!” Miss Piggy said. But he was already at the next door.

“Robin!” Kermit shouted as he burst into the dressing room. “Onstage! Hurry!”

Robin hopped after Kermit with a huge smile on his face. He saw the letter and the envelope, but that wasn’t why he knew that his uncle was back.

Soon everyone was on the stage. They had pretty much figured out that Kermit had gotten the letter, but they pretended to be confused.

“Hey what’s goin’ down?” Floyd asked.

“Well Boss, we’re all here,” Scooter said.

Kermit had a huge smile on his face. He held up the paper so they could see it. “I got this letter in the mail today,” he said. “It doesn’t say who it’s from, but whoever it is, they really love us! Here, lemme read it to you.”

Robin smiled. He knew the letter by heart. Still, it was wonderful to see his uncle so enthused about something without knowing it was Robin’s.

“Dear Mr. Kermit the Frog,” Kermit read. “I am writing to try to tell you how much you and the Muppets have helped me. I do not know where I would be without you. Whenever I have felt like the whole world was against me, just watching any one of your productions has lifted my spirits more than enough to go on. When I feel like laughing, you are there to entertain me. When I feel like crying, you make me laugh anyway. You calm me down when I am nervous, angry, or afraid. And when I feel like I will never amount to anything, you remind me that any light can make a rainbow. I hope that you can understand how much you have entertained and inspired me and so many other people I know. I hope you can see how many lives you have touched, because it truly is amazing. Thank you for inspiring me to follow my star. I know it’s not easy being green, but it must be easier with a heart of gold like yours. So keep connecting your rainbows. The world is a better place because of it.”

Kermit looked up at his friends, still with a huge smile on his face. They smiled back at him. It was a wonderful letter, of course. They almost forgot it was fake, and they were honored to have been included. But mostly, they were just glad to have their Kermit back.

“That’s quite a letter, Boss,” Scooter said.

“Yeah,” Fozzie said as he put a hand on Kermit’s back. “And you know what, Kermit? Every word of it is true. I agree with it completely.”

“Me too,” Rowlf said.

“ 316 percent,” Gonzo said.

The others were nodding.

Kermit had a pensive look on his face. “Do you... do you think we touch that many people, and... and that much?” he asked.

“Well sure Boss,” Scooter said. “102 countries have gotta mean something.”

Kermit thought about it. “I guess you’re right,” he said.

“Hey Kermin,” Pepe said. “Is dat de envelope de letter came in?”

“Yeah,” Kermit said, “Why do you ask?”

“Oh nothing,” Pepe said. “But it’s a lot for once piece of paper, hokay.”

Kermit opened the envelope as he spoke. “Well, I didn’t see anything else in-“ he looked inside. “...Here...” He ran to his desk and dumped a large pile of hundred-dollar bills out of the envelope. “Guys help me count,” he said.

Scooter had to smile. He had been counting that money over and over everyday for a week. But he stepped up to the desk and helped the others count it one more time.

“Five thousand dollars,” Bunsen finally announced.

“Wow!” Kermit said. He looked over the papers on his desk. “That’ll cover the bills, and the scenery, and the props, costumes, this is incredible!” He looked at the letter and picked it up. “Gee, I wonder who would send us five thousand dollars.”

The Muppets looked around at each other, nervously shifting their weight.

“Uh, it’s probably one of dose crazy fan site peoples, hokay,” Pepe said quickly.

Kermit shrugged. “Maybe,” he said. “I wonder who.”

 

[redBoobergurl]

Speechless...

Kermit is so happy and that makes me happy and the love that all the Muppets have for him and each other! It's just so wonderful! I wish I could put better into words how much I like this chapter, I just can't find them now! I loved the letter, it was so uplifting. Awesome!!!!

 

[theprawncracker]

GAH!!! I take back what I said last time! This, this right here, this is the best chapter yet! I'm so happy! Kermit's back! Kermit's back! GAH!!! This is such an awesome, awesome, AWESOME!!! Story Lisa!