The Scoop of the Century

[The Count]

Frooooggging loved! ! ! ! ! Oh man, there's so much here to huggle and gush over. This is why others' fics turn out so much better than my own. Spiritomb's the only one of those I don't know, but I can share some of my own character's Pokemon if you want sometime (not to be confussled with my CCH's). The brawler team... The morphing of Mimi... The story of Dimentio... This is the greatest ever!
*Happy fainted exploded into little bits that will digitally remerge into creating the being that is am and are I.

 

[PuppyLuver]

Thanks! ^u^ But sadly, the fun's almost over. There are only two chapters left. The Scoop of the Century has almost come to an end. Hopefully a happy end, but an end nonetheless. I'm working on chapter 11 and the epilogue right now, with the epilogue strangely having way more done on it than the chapter before it. 8|

However! Just because there are only two chapters left of this story doesn't mean that's all I'm doing here in terms of writing. There may or may not be a sequel to Scoop already in the works... There may also be some extras here as well... That's not a guarantee, though. Or is it? ;3

 

[The Count]

*Bump in the night... Hoping for an update please. *Retreats back into his lair.

 

[PuppyLuver]

PuppyLuver Studios presents

The Scoop of the Century

Chapter 11: The Beginning

No special explanations or trivia tidbits at the top of this one. I think this chapter speaks for itself. Except for the overly long hiatus. It was, um, to build suspense? Maybe? Possibly? Bad excuse?

See if you can figure out which universes the group get toured to. 83

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The formerly large group in the clearing was now condensed to a single form. Paltretta Leviton stood alone surrounded by a multi-colored aura... but it didn’t look quite like Paltretta. She had colored ribbons flowing back from her forehead, shoulders and feet. Her clothes now had darker lines down her sides, with paler lines inside those. Her eyes, instead of just being five colors, were every color at once and yet colorless at the same time. The star-shaped pendant near her neck was gone, replaced by a diamond that glowed all the colors of the light spectrum. Small colored lights twirled around her, representing those who had lent their energy to help Paltretta and Notivel achieve their most powerful form. “It’s time,” she said calmly.

She took off, soaring through the skies graceful as a bird. Music seemed to be in the air, joyful music that made everyone present upbeat and motivated. She flew to where dark clouds were gathering, the place where the Tails Doll was attempting to regenerate its energy.

Fools, all of you... it said. Just because you’ve obtained a singular, powerful form... and I’m without an arm... you think you can stop me...?

“I don’t think we can stop you,” she replied coolly.“I know we can.” A green light was drawn to her hand, which shot Mimi’s Rubees at the abomination. The sharp jewels nicked and cut at the Tails Doll’s fabric. It responded with a wave of dark energy that scattered the lights around Paltretta. “Come on... we have to stay together...!” This time, a blue light was drawn into her hand. She used the power of this light to fire blue lightning at the Tails Doll.

NOOOO! it cried. YOU CANNOT STOP MEEEE! The red jewel hanging above its head glowed evilly, firing an immense energy wave that took the shape of a ferocious dragon. The energy-dragon made for the crystal on Paltretta’s chest, but three small lights blocked it. The energy-dragon shattered, severely weakening the Tails Doll. It’s often arrogance that is a being’s undoing... a voice that sounded like Dimentio echoed. Trust me, I have first-hand experience.

“And now, the grand finale...” Paltretta drew all the lights to her hands, combining into one powerful blast composed of all the group’s individual powers. “This is for all the lives you’ve ruined, abomination,” she told the Tails Doll. “Everyone you’ve destroyed. Everything you’ve ever done.”

She fired.

FRAAAAAAAAASSHHHH!

The blast tore off the Tails Doll’s remaining limbs, stuffing flying everywhere as it fell. Paltretta landed softly beside where it had crashed. Its jewel had been severed from its head, but somehow it was still alive. You... cannot... destroy me... it moaned weakly. I... am the beginning... and the end... I am beyond immortal... you can’t kill death...

Just then, another rift appeared. Stepping out of the rift was something unlike any of them had ever seen, except for Homestar and Shooting Star. It was a large creature at least ten stories high. It was S-shaped, covered in green scales and had large white spikes on its whip-like tail. Its legs looked way to thin to support its bulk, but they somehow did. It had beady black eyes and a large mouth with long, sharpened fangs. On its back were two small, leathery wings and a large muscular arm. Riding on the creature was none other than Strong Bad, a crazed look in his emerald eyes. “YEEEAAAAHH!” he cried. “GET ‘IM, TROGGIE!”

Trogdor the Burninator roared proudly, bending over to taste his latest prey. As the fearsome dragon snarled, everyone could hear the Tails Doll’s last words quite clearly. Oh, crap.

CHOMP!

The abomination was no more.

------------------

Later, the excess Pokémon, the inhabitants of the World of Trophies and Trogdor were being returned to their respective universes. Paltretta, Notivel and everyone else were now themselves again, separate entities. “Thank you for helping,” Kermit said to the elemental twins.

“No problem,” Paltretta replied. “It was kinda fun!” Notivel rolled her eyes at this.

“Well, guess this is where we all say good-bye...” Jess said sadly.

“Wait! Before you go,” Paltretta suggested, “maybe we can give you a quick tour of the multiverse before sending you all home?”

“You all go on,” Jareth said. “I have some clean-up around here to take care of.”

Everyone else thought that sounded like a good idea. So Paltretta and Notivel merged again, everyone reverting to the small lights that they had been during the battle. The labyrinth around them disappeared and was replaced by a sequence of worlds that the group flew through, invisible to all below aside from the rainbow trail.

The first world was full of multi-colored people of different shapes. An orange circular being had its arms outstretched far too long to be possible, using them to tickle a blue, rectangular being.

The next world had a large city surrounded by a thick stone wall, similar to that of the Great Wall of China. The city inside seemed to be a copy of an ancient Chinese city, as well. The people in the city wore mostly green and yellow outfits. Two people in particular noticed the rainbow trail, a young man with a burn scar on his left eye and an older, rotund man with a long grey beard.

“That’s unusual,” the older man said. “A rainbow in the sky, yet there hasn’t been any rain for two days.”

“Maybe it’s a sign of good things to come,” the younger man replied.

“Could be.”

They passed through many more worlds, one of human-like animals fighting an overweight man who commanded giant robots one minute, one of teenage human girls with animal appendages fighting invading aliens the next. They finally came to one world in particular that somehow emanated good feelings to everyone. “This world is my personal favorite,” Paltretta told the others.

I don’t think I’ve ever been here, Mimi said.

“Of course not,” Paltretta giggled. “This world isn’t usually open to tourists. Normally, those who come here stay forever. This is what they’ve earned after a good life. But today, we get to visit. There’s some people here you’ll already know, those who wish to congratulate you.” She flew over floating cliffs that were somehow connected to one another by streams of air. People looked up at the group, focusing on particular individuals. One by one, the people sent their thanks to everyone.

“You did a great job, Jess,” an older woman with curly grey hair and glasses said. She was holding a bowl that was filled with a large mass of butter and sugar. A little girl with a slight overbite wearing a white, brown and black spotted dress clung to the old woman’s leg. She had black hair and brown eyes. “We’ve all been watching you fight, and I was very impressed with your work. So was little Fluff here. I still have our ruined cookie dough, you know.” The old woman laughed a sweet laugh. The little girl said nothing, but smiled.

Grandmommy... Fluffernut...

A young couple also watched them pass. The man had dark blue skin and hair, wearing Victorian-style clothing. The woman wore a white dress with rainbow trim, triangle-shaped earrings and had brown hair with rainbow-dyes bangs. “Mimi, Nastasia, O’Chunks,” the woman said, “you made us both proud. You’ll never know just how great your actions were today.”

“I was surprised with you, Dimentio,” the man said. “After you betrayed me, I never thought you’d turn over a new leaf and end up saving everyone ever born, ever. Thank you.”

Count Ble—I mean, Blumiere! And Timpani!

Kermit noticed in particular a bearded man. This man had been everything for Kermit. He was the reason that Kermit had become who he was in the first place. The man who held him up when he felt down and was always there to lend a hand. “You did great,” the man said to Kermit, and to all the other Muppets who had known him deeply. “I’m so happy for you, and not just about what you’ve done to save all the universes. I’m proud of how far you’ve come. Even when I left, you kept going strong. I’ll always be proud of all of you.”

J... Jim...

Paltretta flew into the horizon. The sun shone brightly upon them, returning them all one by one to their homeworlds.

There’s just one thing I don’t understand, Dimentio said to Paltretta as everyone left. If our loved ones that have passed are all here... then where’s Marley? Why didn’t I see Marley? What does it mean?

“It means she’s still out there,” Paltretta told him. “She hasn’t passed on yet. She’s still alive, David.”

But that’s impossible... he muttered. I saw her dissolve with my own eyes... even if it just sent her to a different world then, there’s no way...

“Nothing’s impossible. Merely improbable.”

Dimentio smiled a sad smile as he disappeared.

------------------

“Well, looks like we helped a lot today,” Errol said. They were getting their van repaired and refueled at the Hensonville Garage, courtesy of the Muppets. “And we even got free auto repair at that.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Web replied. “But how are we gonna keep all this a secret? I don’t think this is something the world needs to know.”

Errol shrugged. “I don’t know.” He looked up at the sky. “Do you think we’ll ever see them again? The ones from alternate universes, I mean.”

Web giggled. “Oh, Errol,” she said, “if movies have taught me anything, there’s no doubt that we’ll see them again. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw them again tomorrow.”

“True.”

The repairman had finished fixing their van. They got in and left, their thoughts still dwelling on the day’s events.

 

[The Count]

Simply wonderful. The only one of those extra worlds I didn't identify is the stonewalled square city. Rully moved by what that bearded guy said. Rully well done. But is this the end? *Scary organ music.

 

[PuppyLuver]

Thanks! No, it's not the end just yet. If it were the end, there would be big bold letters at the bottom that said THE END. But there are none... yet. :3 Plus, I'd never title the last chapter something like "The Beginning". It's been done too many times.

 

[PuppyLuver]

PuppyLuver Studios presents

The Scoop of the Century

Epilogue

Yep, this is the end. I actually finished a story that I started. I’m so happy. I love you guys.

Wait! Don’t reply just yet! I’ve got a credits reel! Wait until that’s up, okay? Thank you.

I actually had half of this done before the previous two chapters were even thought up. Isn’t that hilarious? XD

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“The mysterious case of the ‘Hensonville Goblins’ has finally been solved. 40-year-old David Robert Jones confessed to the various acts of wanton destruction of public property, claiming to have multiple personality disorder.”

“I am so sorry for everything my other self did... I... I had no idea. He’s done some bad things before, but never... I swear, if I had known, I would’ve stopped him—er, myself—from doing it.”

“Jones was tried in court and was found not guilty due to temporary insanity. This is Web the Swallow, reporting live for Channel Five News.”

The TV was shut off. The news manager of Channel Five News(an old vulture) had reviewed the story Web and Errol had covered. “I’m proud of you kids,” he said. “Not only did you exceed my expectations, you also made it seem as if you were hard-core news professionals.” He stood up to shake their hands... wings... whatever... Gonzo... “Congrats, Web, Errol. You’ve done good.”

“Thank you, sir,” Web replied. Of course, the old vulture had no idea of the truth behind the story. The so-called “David Robert Jones” was really Dimentio in his human form. His lawyer had been Jareth, also in disguise. More than likely, the judge, jury and witnesses had been mind-controlled to clear the case. Hey, sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures.

The old vulture sat back down. “This next assignment probably won’t be as exciting,” he said. He rummaged around in his desk drawer and pulled something out. They were two all-access backstage passes to the next performance of The Muppet Show. “I wanna know how Kermit and his buds are doin’. Y’know, for the entertainment spot.” He winked. “Enjoy yourselves, kids. You earned it.”

------------------

“Okay, Electric Mayhem on in five! Mayhem on in five!” Kermit called backstage. “Pepe, could you leave Jess alone for just one minute tonight?”

Pepe, a Spanish king prawn with a habit of flirting with any girl that came near him, had insisted on staying by Jess’s side for the whole of the show, much to the teenage shapeshifter’s annoyance. “Oh, señorita, jou are so lovely, okay,” he said to her. “Jour soft hair is like drizzling chocolate. Let’s do dinner sometime, okay? I know the best restaurant in town. Just remember, when I start singing like Ethel Merman, that’s our signal to run out the back, okay.”

“Look, shorty,” Jess replied irritably, “if you don’t stop with your lame pick-up lines, I’m gonna break out Mama’s recipe for shrimp tempura. And that’s not a threat, it’s a promise.”

“Okay... I see jou need some time to think it over,” he said as she stormed off. “Call me, okay!” He walked off to get ready for his number(which was on after the Mayhem), having the severely distorted notion that Jess was head over heels for him. “Hehe, she loves me, okay...”

Around that time, Web and Errol entered the Muppet Theater via the back way. Web made her way to where Kermit was working, lightly tapping him on the shoulder. “Not now, not now,” Kermit said, not paying attention to who was tapping him. “I’m a little busy at the moment.”

“Kermit, it’s us!” Web told him. “Me and Errol! We came to see tonight’s show.”

Kermit looked up and noticed who was tapping on his shoulder. “Oh! You made it!” he exclaimed happily. “How are you two?”

“We’re fine,” Errol said. “Thankfully, our boss bought the cover story for the ‘vandalizations’.” He winked. The twosome made their way to a spot where they could see the show clearly. At the moment, the Electric Mayhem were performing “Nutbush City Limits”, and they were doing a pretty good job of it. When the number ended, everyone watching stood and applauded.

“Absolutely not!” a familiar voice cried from the dressing rooms. “I refuse to perform anything with that thing! And especially not in this ridiculous get-up!” Web and Errol turned to see something special. Jess had somehow gotten Dimentio in a leopard-print outfit with high-heeled boots, complete with matching tail and cat ears. The two news birds also saw Mimi, O’Chunks and Nastasia peeking out of the cantina, laughing at Dimentio’s ridiculous outfit.

“Oh, come on,” Jess said, giggling. “If you’re gonna be here, the least you can do is make yourself useful. Stardust isn’t complaining.”

“Of course he’s not complaining! Stardust gets to be Amigo, the star! He doesn’t have to dress up as the one who’s always mistaken for a woman.”

“There you go, that makes Rio the perfect character for you.” Jess grinned from ear to ear. “And I forgot to mention... if you don’t go through with the number, we’ll get to find out what happens to Buddha of Suburbia when it’s places in the microwave. On high heat.” This immediately got Dimentio to shut up.

As the Mayhem came backstage, Fozzie pulled Misty aside. “What is it?” she asked.

“Remember right before we went in the Labyrinth and I told you the first part of a two-part joke?” Fozzie asked. “And how I’d tell you the second part when we got out?”

“Sure.”

“Well, here goes.” He cleared his throat and began part two. “This man was in an airplane with his dog. The man, he lights a cigar. The stewardess comes by and says ‘Sir, there’s no smoking on this plane.’ ‘Fair enough,’ the guy says. So he opens the window, and this was back when you could actually open the windows of an airplane, and tosses the cigar out. Naturally, the dog thinks it’s a stick and jumps out after it.”

“Oh my!”

“Yeah, yeah, and later these cops are looking around down on the ground and they see the dog. It’s dead, of course, but it has something in its mouth. What do you think was in the dog’s mouth?”

“The cigar?”

“A pink brick.”

Misty had never laughed so hard in her life. That joke was definitely worth the wait.

Later, Dimentio was shoved onstage for the next number. Stardust and Pepe were already there. “I should get paid for putting up with this crap...” he moaned. The music started as Pepe began to sing.

She's into superstitions, black cats and voodoo dolls
I feel a premonition that girl's gonna make me fall
She's into new sensations, new kicks in the candle light
She's got a new addiction for every day and night

She'll make you take your clothes off and go dancing in the rain
She'll make you live her crazy life but she'll take away your pain
Like a bullet to your brain (come on!)

Upside, inside out she's livin' la vida loca
She'll push and pull you down, livin' la vida loca
Her lips are devil red and her skin's the color mocha
She will wear you out livin' la vida loca (come on!)
Livin' la vida loca (come on!)
She's livin' la vida loca

Woke up in New York City in a funky cheap hotel
She took my heart and she took my money
She must've slipped me a sleeping pill
She never drinks the water and makes you order French Champagne
Once you've had a taste of her you'll never be the same
Yeah, she'll make you go insane

Upside, inside out she's livin' la vida loca
She'll push and pull you down, livin' la vida loca
Her lips are devil red and her skin's the color mocha
She will wear you out livin' la vida loca (come on!)
Livin' la vida loca (come on!)
She's livin' la vida loca

She'll make you take your clothes off and go dancing in the rain
She'll make you live her crazy life but she'll take away your pain
Like a bullet to your brain (come on!)

Upside, inside out she's livin' la vida loca
She'll push and pull you down, livin' la vida loca
Her lips are devil red and her skin's the color mocha
She will wear you out livin' la vida loca (come on!)
Livin' la vida loca (come on!)
She's livin' la vida loca

The applause was nearly deafening. “Thank you, thank you, gracias!” Pepe cried. He threw an index card into the audience. “Ladies, my number’s on that. Call me later, okay?”

Meanwhile, Mimi was getting ready for the closing number. She was wearing a pink long-sleeved jacket with a white shirt underneath, along with a blue skirt and black shorts, both lined at the bottom with white lace. “Do I look pretty, Nastasia?” she asked.

“Yeah, you look great,” Nastasia replied. “You’ll do wonderful out there.”

“But what if they don’t like me?”

“They will. And don’t forget, I’ll be out there too. Everyone will.”

Mimi smiled. She went out onstage, waiting for Kermit to introduce the closing number.

“And now,” Kermit addressed the audience, “we come to the end of yet another show—”

“Hope it’s the last one!” a voice shouted up from the balcony. Like clockwork, Statler and Waldorf were doing what they did best.

“Will you two cut that out?” Kermit shouted. “Really, if you don’t like the show, why do you bother coming?”

“We have nothing better to do,” Waldorf said.

“If we did, we sure wouldn’t be here!” Statler chimed in. They both laughed.

Kermit did his trademark “scrunchy-face”. “Anyway,” he continued, “we bring this particular show, which is not in any way the last one, to a close with this little beauty of a number. It starts off with a recently discovered performer, but everyone will be in on it by the end. Now here it is, DREAMS DREAMS.” He jumped behind the curtains real quick before they opened. Mimi was standing there, holding the microphone. As the instrumental opening for the song began, she felt the butterflies in her stomach. What if she messed up? What if she forgot the words? She turned to see Nastasia giving her a thumbs-up. That was all the encouragement she needed. Mimi began to sing right on her cue.

“In a dream I could see you are not far away
Anytime, anyplace, I can see your face
You are that special one that I've been waiting for
And I hope you're looking for someone like me”

“In my dreams,” Nastasia joined in, “I can hear you call on me
In the night, everything's so sweet
In your eyes, I feel there's so much inside” The two sang together.

“In the nights, dream delight
I want to see you standing there
In the nights, dream delight
I've found someone who really cares
In the nights, dream delight
I want to see you smile again
In the nights, dream delight
You're the one I've waited for”

Another instrumental bit, then little Robin sang the next verse. “In a dream we can do everything we want to
There's nowhere I'd rather be but here with you
The stars above light the way only for you and I
I'm so glad I've found the one that I've been looking for”

“Keep the dream,” Kermit sang, “of the one you're hoping for
Love can come through an open door
Just be strong and you're sure to find
The one, the one, the one, the one” Then everyone joined in.

In the nights, dream delight
I want to see you standing there
In the nights, dream delight
I've found someone who really cares
In the nights, dream delight
I want to see you smile again
In the nights, dream delight
You're the one I've waited for

In the nights, dream delight
I want to see you standing there
In the nights... I've found someone who really cares
In the nights... I want to see you smile again
In the nights... you're the one I waited for
In the night... delight
You and me, we could be together forever
In the nights... delight
Baby, baby, baby, oh woh, yeah, yeah
In the nights, dream delight
I found someone, I found my love in the night
In that dream with you girl
You're the one I waited for
I dream, I dream, I dream, I dream, and you know...

And so the show ended with uproarious applause. The performance of DREAMS DREAMS brought down the house. And with the show coming to a close, so does our story. But don’t be sad. All good stories must come to an end eventually, and there will always be beginnings to new, better stories just around the corner.

We may part for now, but only because this story has ended. Just as sure as all fish swim and most birds fly, we will meet again. I may have new stories for you, or you may have a story you wish to share with me. One thing’s for sure, the cycle of storytelling and the conclusions of stories told will continue till the end of time.

~THE END~

 

[PuppyLuver]

The Scoop of the Century

~Credits~

Directed by Jess aka PuppyLuver

Written by Jess aka PuppyLuver

Music by a multitude of people, including David Bowie, Bob Seger, Styx and Koji Kondo

Costumes by Ms Nicole Vogue

Makeup and Hair by Shirley Vogue

Lighting by the Sylvania light bulb peoples

Starring

Steve Whitmire as Kermit the Frog, Rizzo the Rat, Beaker, Lips and Statler

Eric Jacobson as Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, Animal and Sapia

Dave Goelz as Gonzo the Great, Zoot, Dr Bunsen Honeydew, Waldorf and Errol the Owl

Bill Barretta as Rowlf the Dog, Pepe the King Prawn, Dr Teeth and Nurse Tongues

Brian Henson as Janice and Panjan Spittledrum

John Kennedy as Floyd Pepper and the Tails Doll

Fran Brill as Web the Swallow, Misty Pepper, Kikit, Hands and Mimi

David Bowie as Jareth and Dimentio

Matt Chapman as all the male HSR characters

Melissa “Missy” Palmer as Marzipan and Queen Mizumi

Karen Wagner as Shooting Star Runner

Nicholas Cage as Stardust the Sableye

Jen Taylor as Luna Pekkala, Terra Pekkala and Nastasia

Scott Burns as Helios Pekkala and O’Chunks

Random extras as random characters

Jess aka PuppyLuver as herself, Paltretta Leviton and Notivel Attertlap

Copyright Crap

All the Muppets belong to the Jim Henson Company

Dimentio, Nastasia, O’Chunks and Mimi belong to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems

Pokémon belongs to Nintendo and GameFreak

Super Smash Bros series belongs to Nintendo and HAL Laboratories, all related characters belong to Nintendo in some way except for Solid Snake who belongs to Konami and Sonic who belongs to SEGA/SonicTeam

Homestar Runner characters belong to Mike and Matt Chapman, aka the Brothers Chaps

Misty Pepper and the Fer Sure Four belong to Maddie aka ZootyCutie

This story, Web the Swallow, Errol the Owl, Shooting Star Runner, Snowflake, Luna/Terra/Helios Pekkala, Dimentio’s Pokémon(the individuals, not the species), Paltretta Leviton, Notivel Attertlap and any human incarnations of non-human characters belong to Jess aka PuppyLuver

DREAMS DREAMS lyrics, Sonic series, NiGHTS series, Samba de Amigo series, Can You Feel the Sunshine? lyrics and the Tails Doll belong to SEGA and SonicTeam

Special Thanks

to Maddie aka ZootyCutie, for letting me use her characters in this story

to Joy aka PuppyMother and William aka PuppyDaddy, for bringing me into this world

to everyone at Muppet Central, for taking the time to read my fanfiction and for nagging me to get it done

to Satoshi Tajiri, for creating Pokemon and making me into the total nerd I am today

to the peoples at SEGA and SonicTeam, for putting sound test features in Sonic (Adventure/Adventure 2/Heroes/Riders) and NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams, and also for creating Samba de Amigo so I could be inspired by the great music of said games

to David Bowie, for a spectacular performance of Jareth the Goblin King, which led me to making Dimentio so obsessed with you

and to Jim Henson, for creating the Muppets all those years ago so that this story would have been possible in the first place

Keep the dream of the one you’re hoping for

Love can come through an open door

Just be strong and you’re sure to find the one

~Jess aka PuppyLuver~

 

[The Count]

*Tosses muffins and penguins about. *Goes to promote the link in the library index to the ranks of the finished. *Deathglomps Jes, then runs off.

 

[PuppyLuver]

Yay, muffins! And penguins! 83