Wished on a Morning Star - (A Sam and Janice story)

[Beauregard]

WARNING. Do not read this story, if it is going to disturb you. Do not read this story if you are going to lash out against the content. Only read this story, if you can or want to understand love and what it does, and how compassion shared brings an end to heart-break and pain. I'm not asking anyone to read this story. I'm not saying that I am going to finish it necessarily very quickly, or update it every day. I'm just saying that this story has been on my heart and mind for a long period of time now, and I want to get it out and get people thinking... END WARNING.

Storyline: On the set of Muppet Treasure Island, Sam the American Eagle is struggling with the feeling that his country has let him down, while Janice is struggling with her long-term boyfriend's depression...then the upright american and the modern valley-girl share a single look that may change their lives forever...

--

Chapter 1: An Island

"…then repeat the words after me, and in speaking these words, discover that a bond is forming that cannot no man can set apart. I, Sam Baldwinn Eagle…"

"I, Sam Baldwinn Eagle…"

"…do take you, Martha Louise-Anne…"

"…do take you, Martha Louise-Anne…"

"…to be my lawfully wedded wife…"

"…to be my…" Sam's deep, heart-felt voice cracked and he couldn't speak the words. She was so beautiful, and when he looked at her he lost his voice, his ability to speak, and his reason. She could see beyond his stiff American exterior and past his even stiffer American interior to his soft American heart. She was perfect.

The priest prompted again. "…lawfully wedded wife…" he hissed.

"…to be my…" Sam's soft heart burned and his stiff exterior melted into a smile. "…lawfully wedded wife," he said.

And later, they exchanged rings and the church erupted into applause, whistles and hat-throwing. Penguins flipped, smartly dressed eagle flapped, and the family of Sam's dark, buzzard bride applauded the union.

*****​

An alarm clock buzzed.

Sam slapped it and the noise shut off.

He'd been trying to sleep, but the crack of sunlight, which snuck through the almost closed curtains and painted a single two-inch line of brighter blue over his closed eyes, was keeping him awake. That and the book kicked under his bed.

The book had been left untouched where Sam had kicked it almost a month ago now. Its dust-covered dust jacket sported a soldier with a smile and, leaning on his shoulder, a beautiful woman with blonde hair that caught the wind and clung to his green army-regulation jacket.

"The American Hero," it was called. Sam had pushed it under the bed with his clawed toes. Apparently, all that being an American hero meant was going above and beyond the call of duty, and meeting a woman who enjoys the feeling of military material under her soft skin. The book was fitting for today's pop-culture, but nothing more. It didn't portray an accurate image of a hero.

Sam had been a hero, once. He had stood beside America for richer and for poorer, but no one had stood beside him, to love and to cherish, for as long as they both shall live. He was a hero without a badge. His walls were not lined with certificates, and his only trophy was a wedding band he had worn for seventeen months, then discarded in a drawer along with his dreams of becoming a politician and changing the world's culture into something decidedly decent, moral and just.

There was no justice, and in times of desperation, morals were the first against the wall. That was how he had come to be here.

Something exploded downstairs and Sam stuffed a pillow over his head. Living in this particular society only just passed for decent. By society, he meant family of misfits living together in a boarding house, among them an immigrant chef who had yet to learn the language, a porcine diva who had yet to learn the meaning of the word 'No', and a weird something-or-rather who had yet to learn that shooting one's self from a cannon led only to injury.

Sam scooted himself up on one elbow and the pillow fell off onto the floor where a mattress provided a resting place, if not a bed, for Sam's room-mate Scooter. Scooter was a gentleman, in a manner of speaking. He was efficient and sensible and witty, in his own way, while not holding to any of the excessive behaviors displayed in the others of this unconventional family. Scooter didn't sing, generally, tell jokes, thankfully, eat the furniture, naturally, or engage in extreme sports. He wasn't an inventor, despite the fact he wore glasses, but he did have a wealthy uncle who owned the theatre in which the troop performed, and that is always an advantageous thing to have in a roommate.

Scooter had woken a good hour ago and left for a short jog to the theatre where preparations were being made for a general meeting at twelve-noon that day. Sam supposed he'd have to get up himself soon.

*****​

Janice figured she'd have to get up soon, but wasn't sure she wanted to. In fact, she wasn't sure she wanted anything right now. She hadn't felt this empty since the time Zoot deserted her in that subway station years ago. He'd announced they needed space, and she was left waving a limp goodbye as the sub pulled out of the way. Zoot was gone, just walked out, from the band for three weeks and when he got back, she was with Floyd.

But Floyd wouldn't play anymore, not in the band, or in her life. After Dr Teeth lost his voice and Animal lost his heart for beating drums, Floyd had become distant, if not cold. She dreaded the day she knew was coming when he'd tell her he needed space. He'd get on a train and strum gently out of her life.

Janice watched him sleep beside her each night, and woke to see him frowning in dreams. She trailed her fingers through his thick red hair and he stirred.

She'd been there. She knew what depression was like. Sooner or later, every Muppet feels it when a certain friend dies or goes away, but she hadn't been as close as Floyd to total depression, because Floyd had been close to her to help her though. Now though, Floyd had gotten it bad. Janice drooped her hand onto his pillow and Floyd turned over and rested his warm face on her palm.

She wondered if he was genuinely asleep. Maybe it was her who needed space.

Just because they shared the same house, and the same bed, didn't mean they had to always share their lives. Floyd had visited Miss Mousey on occasion, and Janice had spent a lot of time with Zoot. Their lives had always been like this but less so; individual, yet entwined.

Janice slipped out from under the sheets and headed to the communal bathroom. She needed to get ready for the meeting.

*****​

Kermit's announcement was met with a flurry of activity among the seats in the theatre where bears and chickens and things had gathered for the

"big news."​

It had been decided. They were making another movie with backing from Disney, and Disney had picked the storyline; a traditional telling of Treasure Island with a Muppet twist.

"Treasure Island?"

"Disney backing?"

"Traditional? Where the fun in that?"

"Hey, it'll have a Muppet twist."

"It's Treasure Island not Oliver Twist."

"Yeah, that's Dickens."

"I love Dickens!"

"Burgh!"

"No offence Chicken love."

"Buuurg."

"Oh no, another classic."

"Oh yes! Another classic!"

"Of course, Moi knew all about this before, and moi shall be playing a female version of the main character, with a leetle name change, Jem Hawkins."

"Who will I be?"

"What will I be?"

"Will I be in it?"

"Kermit, will it be funny?"

"Is that the story with the pirates?"

"Ya, de pies ern de rates der swordy clash clash!"

"Rats and spies? This ain't no Jamie Pond, you know."

"Pies, not spies."

"Muppet Treasure Island? What next? Treasure Island in space?"

"Look, Uncle Kermit, I can hop on one leg! I could be Silver!"

"Robin's going to be Silver."

"I thought Silver was taller?"

"Uncle Kermit! I fell down!"

"Hey Kermin, Kermin, what if we give a modern feel and change Silver to Long John Scrap-metal, hokey?"

"Why not change Silver to Gold?"

"A man with a wooden-leg leg named Gold…"

"What did he name the other one? Wocka wocka!"

"Gold legs, Goldfingers, rats as spies…see, it's Jamie Pond!"

Kermit stood up, lifted a bullhorn, and yelled. "Quiet!"

Everyone immediately shut up, and Janice didn't say anything. Gonzo looked at her.

"Alright," Kermit called, his voice still raised through the horn. "We are doing Muppet Treasure Island, that's fact. Everything else is rumour until I specifically say so."

"But Kermie." A sweet female voice floated from the audience. "We did agree that moi would be playing Jem, right?" The sweet voice dissolved into something threatening. "Riiiight?"

"Er…no. Casting is really not yet set in stone…or silver, or gold, or any other hard mineral. We need time to work things out, and, I suggest we meet again in an hour's time when we've spoken things over a little." He switched off the bullhorn. Everyone waited, hoping for something more. "That went better than expected," Kermit whispered aside to Scooter who was on the stage beside him. "I suspected more of an explosion…"

"Did someone say explosion?" a crazy voice yelled and a bearded man appeared behind Kermit's shoulder.

"Er…no."

A stick of dynamite blew up half the stage, announcing the end of that particular meeting for now.

*****​

"Scooter, you'll be in charge of the theatre during the production. Just try not to burn it down and don't let Pepe audition acts."

In the audience, Pepe sniggered. "Dios, hokey."

"Right, boss." Scooter checked his name off the long list of Muppet names on his clipboard.

"You didn't really want to be in the movie did you?" Kermit whispered across to him.

"No," Scooter whispered back.

"Good."

"Right."

"Kermie, dear, who's next," Miss Piggy, that delicate rose, called from the crowd.

Kermit cleared his throat. "Well…Jim will be played by…"

"Kermit?" a deep voice asked from the back.

Kermit looked up. "Er, yes?"

"I can offer my services back at the theatre," Sam said. "If that is of value?"

"Yes, Sam, your service is always valued, but we really had you picked out for a character in our movie. Quite a big part. It's Mr Samuel Arrow. I think you'll like it."

Sam sat down.

"So…er…if I may go on…Jim will be played by -"

"Uncle Kermit?"

Kermit looked at his wrist, then realised he didn't have a watch to stare frustratedly at, and turned to his nephew Robin instead. "Yes, what?"

"I don't want to be Jim. You know I'm scared of the ocean."

"Ah, um, yes. I wasn't, actually, going to offer you that part." He smiled. "Anyone else want to interrupt?"

Scooter scribbled something on the clipboard.

"Ok then. Jim will be played by…" He paused so as not to be disappointed if anyone or anything spoke over him again. "A human," he finished.

There were gasps.

"It was a stipulation of the studio," Kermit explained rapidly. "The studio specifically stipulated it, and the stipulation that they stipulated will stand stipulated with no debate or speculation, else the studio, if said stipulation is not, er, stippled, will not provide their rather generous funding, see? Silver and Jim are both to be played by humans. Any questions?"

"What's a stipulation?" Fozzie asked.

*****​

"Ben Gunn," Scooter read off the clipboard. "A wild man of the island, marooned by Long John, um, ages ago."

Kermit nodded. "Wild man. Tattered, ripped clothes. No decent musical ability. Obviously we have decided on…"

"Me?" Gonzo queried.

"Er, no. Animal, and the Marooned Electric May-Ben." Kermit grinned at his little pun-like thing. There was a smattering of applause at the casting.

Janice sat up straighter. She'd all but fallen asleep, off to the side of the theatre with the band. Zoot actually had fallen asleep. Floyd had been sat with his arms folded, listening but not caring.

"Is that alright with you guys?" Kermit asked.

"Yes," Floyd replied simply.

"No," Janice replied quickly.

Kermit frowned and scrunched up his face. "Yes no? Is that no?"

"Yes," Janice answered, and -

"No," Floyd said at the same time.

"So that's yes?"

"Yes."

"No."

Kermit was getting one of those migraines usually reserved for conversations with his favourite pig. "Is that yes?" he asked, slowly and calmly. "Or no?"

"No."

"Yes."

Animal leapt from his seat and charged down the side of the theatre. "YES NO! YES NO! YES YES YES!" He paused, panted, and blinked. "NO!" he shouted.

Scooter looked at his boss with raised eyebrows. To tick, or not to tick.

"Does the hero get the girl?" Sam asked, and every eye turned towards him.

"Pardon?"

"The hero. Jim, or Smollet, or Doctor Livsey. Who gets the girl?" Sam asked. His eyes slid left and right. "It's just a question."

"Er…well…you see." Kermit adjusted his collar uncomfortably. "There's not…really…any girl to speak of in the movie."

"What!" That came from Kermit's favourite pig. He expected another migrane.

"I was going to explain that more gently," Kermit hurried on, "but…"

"No role to speak of? For moi? Fine, forget the movie. Let's do Wizard of Oz. I get to play four roles or something in that one."

"Yeah, but, Piggy…stipulations…"

"May moi tell you exactly where to stip your stipulations, dear?"

"Benjamina Gunn!" Scooter suggested.

"Piggy, they're not my stips! They are the studio's stips!"

"What's a stip?" Fozzie asked.

"Benjamina Gunn!" Scooter suggested, louder this time.

"Studeo stips my foot!" Piggy scoffed.

"It does?" Gonzo said, admiringly. "Cool."

"Hey, guys!" Scooter shouted. "Benjamena Gunn! It's perfect. The Mayhem don't want it…why doesn't Miss Piggy have-"

"But, Scooter," Kermit interupted."That won't work. Piggy's not exactly my first thought of…er…a…wild woman."

Piggy growled deep in her throat. "Oh, I think moi could pull it off." She lent on the back of the seat in front of her. "Wild. Untamed. Moi's natural habitat."

Kermit gulped. "We could always…er…change the role. Make Benjamena a stylish maroonee, empress, and queen?"

"But Kermie, that's messing with literature."

Kermit searched for an escape hatch from this conversation and considered leaping down the crater left by the earlier explosion.

"Do it," Piggy snipped. "Change the role. And if vous need any artistique assistance, just give moi a call."

So it was settled. Miss Piggy would be playing Ben Gunn, and the band would be reassigned to the background, again.

*****​

Later, everyone filed from the theatre still murmuring about various castings that were or were not appreciated. The pirates were almost all going to be hired from a swordplay and stunt troupe in order to ease out the final fight scene, and that meant a lot of Muppets who could've been cast, weren't in the movie.

Sam fiddled with a first-draft copy of his script as he moved towards the door. He flipped a page over. "Move aside there…" he muttered, reading his lines.

"Oh, sorry…" Lew Zealand stepped out of his way.

"Hmm?" Sam looked up. "Oh, not you."

"Oh, ok then." Lew stepped back into his way.

Sam rolled his eyes and waited for the group around the door to disperse.

Janice walked beside Floyd who was picking at some music sheets of a suggested score for the film. "Did you rully want the part?" Janice asked.

Floyd blinked. "What part?"

Janice flicked her hair back. "Like, we totally fought over a part for the band back there."

"We did? Man, I didn't know we were even getting any part?"

She sighed. "Forget it."

Floyd shifted the sheaf of music. "Alright, babe. You wanna walk back, or should we grab the bus?"

Sam glanced towards Floyd over the crowd of Muppets. Janice glanced away from Floyd over the crowd of Muppets. For a moment, their eyes met. Sam saw something there he had seen in his mirror every day since…back then, and Janice saw something there that she had never seen before in Sam's eyes, that is, a sense of understanding and compassion. They both looked away at once.

And, by chance, as they walked out of the door, Janice brushed against him for the briefest of seconds, then they were, once more, just a part of the sea of green, red, purple, and pink that was the Muppet crowd.

To be continued...

 

[Leyla]

<blink> Well, that was a nice little jolt you gave me, Beau dear! For all the Sam and Janice talk I've been um, reading, I had no idea that there was an actual story in the works, and I didn't know it was a Treasure Island story! You are full of surprises!

Anyway, let me be the first to tell you, it's great! The characters are very sympathetic and you smacked me right in the pity zone, which, admittedly, for me is a pretty large zone.

I like the characterizations and your writing style, and the comedy and yeah... I like your stories Beau.

Oh, Sam. Now I have a little known soft spot for Sam the eagle and have had one since I was little. It's wonderful seeing a story where he can take the lead, and you, being a person of intelligence, set it during the movie that Sam had the biggest role in. I'm looking forward to seeing where you take us.

"The American Hero," it was called. Sam had pushed it under the bed with his clawed toes. Apparently, all that being an American hero meant was going above and beyond the call of duty, and meeting a woman who enjoys the feeling of military material under her soft skin.

<giggles> I can just see the contempt oozing out of Mr. the Eagle here. Nice titillating language there too.

Scooter is absolutely the perfect choice for a roommate for Sam. I like the image of the two of them hanging out.

Sigh... I'm worried about Floyd... Janice has prospects in Sam, but it is a little heartbreaking to think of any muppet being depressed.

This, in particular, stabbed me in the heart.

But Floyd wouldn't play anymore, not in the band, or in her life. After Dr Teeth lost his voice and Animal lost his heart for beating drums, Floyd had become distant, if not cold. She dreaded the day she knew was coming when he'd tell her he needed space. He'd get on a train and strum gently out of her life.

Yeah, if you're trying to send me straight into Floyd's depression, mission accomplished. I need chocolate.

The Treasure Island announcement scene was very very funny, and we all know I'm biased, but Piggy in particular was hilarious in this scene. "Jem Hawkins?!" Too funny! Actually seeing everyone vying for roles was really amusing, which made the Mayhem turning down the part all the more distressing.

"Why not change Silver to Gold?"

"A man with a wooden-leg leg named Gold…"

"What did he name the other one? Wocka wocka!"

HA! Mary Poppins! Lovely, lovely! (It's such a Fozzie joke too.)

"Kermie, dear, who's next," Miss Piggy, that delicate rose, called from the crowd.

Hmm... I'm sensing something here... is it... sarcasm? Yes, I think it is! <grins>

Kermit nodded. "Wild man. Tattered, ripped clothes. No decent musical ability. Obviously we have decided on…"

<giggles> Hysterical!

Kermit was getting one of those migraines usually reserved for conversations with his favourite pig.

I probably shouldn't have squee'd here, but I did.

"What!" That came from Kermit's favourite pig. He expected another migrane.

<sigh> His favorite pig...hmm, oh what? Where was I? Oh, yes, taking pot shots at Piggy, right. Hilarious!

"May moi tell you exactly where to stip your stipulations, dear?"

<laughs> Oh, lovely, and I love how they ignore Scooter.

"But, Scooter," Kermit interupted."That won't work. Piggy's not exactly my first thought of…er…a…wild woman."

Piggy growled deep in her throat. "Oh, I think moi could pull it off." She lent on the back of the seat in front of her. "Wild. Untamed. Moi's natural habitat."

Kermit gulped.

<laughs hysterically> Oooh, I love that line, and Kermit's reaction, and the solution. Ah, this really is a lot of fun.

"But Kermie, that's messing with literature."

Kermit searched for an escape hatch from this conversation and considered leaping down the crater left by the earlier explosion.

"Do it," Piggy snipped. "Change the role. And if vous need any artistique assistance, just give moi a call."

Quick question. Piggy is the only one who calls Kermit "Kermie" right? So... did she just change her mind? And why did she? Don't mess with literature and then, change the role... 'tis a little confuzzling.

Sam glanced towards Floyd over the crowd of Muppets. Janice glanced away from Floyd over the crowd of Muppets. For a moment, their eyes met. Sam saw something there he had seen in his mirror every day since…back then, and Janice saw something there that she had never seen before in Sam's eyes, that is, a sense of understanding and compassion. They both looked away at once.

Which of course, is exactly what people do. I'm intrigued Beau and enjoying this, so you've got at least moi in your corner dear.

 

[The Count]

Oy... So much there to go through...

Loved the dream sequence, or flashback to Sam's wedding.
Makes me ask what happened to Martha Louise Ann.

The way Sam loathes that book...
Bunking with Scooter...
Describing the society he's been shanghaied into as a "family"...

The movie! Yaey the movie!
Muppet meetings always filled with so much Muppety chatter.
Loved all the lines everybody got.

Casting of parts...
Clever how you explained Scooter's absence.
Fighting between the Electric Mayhem?
The explanation of Benjamina Gunn...
And of course the stips, funny... But I kind of feel you lose a bit of the humor when getting caught up in your tongue-twisting logical explanations.
*Refer to Kermit's studio stipulations narrative.

Janice and Zoot?
My, my... And now she's with Floyd but he's going through a worse depression than she did.

The moment Sam and Janice's eyes locked onto each other...
And then they just blended back into the sea of colors...

Not to mention Crazy Harry's Lew Zealand's and Robin's interaction.
So much is going into this story... Rully hope this one gets finished, unlike some other tomes of yours I could mention.
*Cough, Visions 2.

Great story. More please!

 

[Skeeter Muppet]

Hmm. I am intrigued by this. Well and truly intrigued. I may have to read more if you write more.

-Kim

 

[TogetherAgain]

Oy my oy, Beau. OY MY OY! I- oy! I think everything I love has been mentioned... Can I just say how Muppety I think Kermit's stipulation speech is? And his argument with Piggy about the other stipulations... Oh, and like Leyla, I love the Mary Poppins joke... And, gosh, gee, gee whiz, I love the whole dang darned thing! (See, I'm in one of my gosh-good-golly-graciousness modes, where I can't decided which word of a certain sound to use. Sure sign of my reading pleasure.)

MORE PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[redBoobergurl]

Ohhhhh.....

This is great! This is clever and intreuging and a paring I would have never made and I just love it! I love it when someone breaks the traditional Muppet storyline and you're so good at it Beau! I want to read more!

 

[Beauregard]

To Layla, yes, it was Piggy who said, "But Kermie, that's messing with litriture..." then growled, "Do it." Her reasons for doing this are that she swings from sweet to moody in the scene and she refuses to let Kermit win here. So when he holds the upper hand in that he suggested changing the character, she puts on a little pout, then, naturally, she agrees with him and it was all changed on her order with nothing to do with the flippered amphibean...or so she leads herself to believe...

-

Chapter 2: Sea

Sam asked for the toast and waited as the toast-rack of golden, crispy fresh toast was passed from the orange bear to the mini frog to the hook-nosed whatever, back to the mini frog who'd changed his mind over which piece he was having, across the table to the brown dog, down the other way to the male pig with the toupee and over to the young female pig with crimped fuzzy hair, back across the table to the mini frog who had changed his mind and didn't want toast after all, then up towards the purple man with dreadlocks and the shrimp who was really a king prawn, back down to the mini frog who had, yet again, changed his mind, then, finally, to the monster with pointy teeth who ate the toast, burped, and promptly ate the toast-rack.

Sam helped himself to cereal.

"Is this seat taken?"

Before Sam had a chance to explain that while the seat wasn't occupied, it certainly couldn't be taken by the six-foot monster with shaggy fur and ripped raggedy clothing, the six-foot monster with said clothing squashed into the space between the eagle and a brown cow who sat munching, naturally, muesli.

"Sweetums." Sam shifted in his seat and wavered over whether or not to press his wing on the monster's arm. "Sweetums, I am actually attempting to eat here."

"Oh, I know, I know," the monster said, leaning close to Sam and flopping his huge mouth open. "Are you done with that packet?"

"Am I done with the cereal?"

"Nope, the packet." Sweetums leant over and snatched the cereal packet from Sam, stuffed it in his wide-open trap and chewed, dropping flecks of cardboard and cornflakes all over Sam the American Eagle. "Thanks mate." He followed the cereal down with a cartoon of milk and would have been heavily frowned upon by the cow, if the cow had eyebrows with which to frown upon him.

Sam got up. He was suddenly not hungry.

*****​

Janice lay under the shade of the porch. Not in the shade of the porch, under the porch, literally. Beneath the wide porch that spread out around the doorway to the Muppet Boarding House was a small area, no more than two foot high, which could be accessed only by crawling on hands and knees through a bent back broken board. Robin had dragged her out here one day when Kermit was busy writing a script for The Muppet Show and Miss Piggy was hogging the phone so he couldn't call his dad.

"It's secret," Robin had told her. "Only you, and I know about it." He paused, then added, "And Uncle Kermit."

Janice giggled. "Like, fer sure, Uncle Kermit."

"Fer sure," Robin said, trying the accent on for size. He discarded it quickly. "Don't tell anyone!"

"Never," Janice had promised.

She lay there by herself now and watched the shafts of light that filtered through cracks in the woodwork and dissipated as clouds crossed the sun.

She was dressed in a white tank-top and airy white trousers. Her wispy yellow hair was flicked back out of her face and she shut her eyes. A floorboard creaked and the door above her clicked softly shut. Janice opened her eyes and, beneath long dark lashes, pale green iris's glowed with an inner life. She raised herself up slightly and peeked through a small hole to see who the newcomer to the porch was. She released herself and fell back onto the dry mud with a soft plop. She hadn't expected to see him out here.

Sam the Eagle crossed the pouch and leant on one of the two wooden pillars that held the balcony up above. "Decency…" Sam muttered under his breath. "Civility. Decorum. Politeness. Politesse." He stopped, searching for the exact word he needed here, then said, "Breakfast."

Janice stifled a giggle, then realised that she too was having that "missed-my-organic-orange-juice-too-long-till-lunch" feeling and sighed. Breakfast had been too alive, figuratively, for her state of mind and she needed somewhere to crawl and shut everything else away. Luckily, she had someplace. Here.

Sam paced over the boards and leant against the other pillar.

Janice watched him through the cracks.

"I am Sam." He paced back. "Sam, I am." He frowned. "I don't need this." He spun on his heel and walked back inside. Janice turned her head away from under the door and wondered why she felt a part of her had walked inside with him.

"Boo!"

Janice sat up so fast her head hit the underside of the porch. "Robin!"

"Sorry."

"Like, why creep up on me?"

"Fer sure," Robin said, and laughed. "What are you doin'?"

"Resting." She rubbed her forehead.

"Where's Floyd?"

"I don't know."

"I haven't seen him today," Robin said.

"He's asleep."

"You said you didn't know…"

Janice refused to follow that avenue of argument. "How's school."

"Great!"

"Why aren’t you there?"

"I get a week of!"

"What, now?"

"Yup."

"Nice timing. Like, with the movie preparations."

"Oh. I'm not in it."

"Why?"

"I'm in one scene."

"Why?" Janice asked again.

"I'm afraid of the ocean."

"Aww."

"I get to help with the show while you're away!"

Janice smiled slightly. "Oh, wow, but, like, we're not going. We turned the part down, fer sure."

"Fer sure," Robin repeated and laughed. "But Uncle Kermit said…you're playing the band on the ship."

Janice sighed. She didn't need a movie to deal with right now. She just had to get her head sorted out. She lay on her back under the porch and a cloud moved over the sun.

*****​

Sam sat on his bed with his hand on the phone but didn't lift it or dial. He just sat there.

"Hey Sam." Scooter came into the room and flung a backpack on the floor beside the mattress. "We're all headed down the theatre to read around lines and make suggestions. Wanna come?"

Sam looked up. "Maybe later."

"Ok, sure, whatever you want Sam. But you know this is your opportunity to point out he moral inconsistencies in Robert Louis Stevenson's big number, would you wanna miss that?" He tugged his glasses off and rubbed them on his black t-shirt, wondering if Sam would be amused or offended by his little dig.

"Maybe later."

Scooter walked back out the room and Sam sucked air into his lungs, pushed out his chest, straightened his chin, fluffed his wings, picked up the phone, and...put it back down again.

Maybe he'd call her later.

To be continued...

 

[theprawncracker]

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! BEAU!! You talked about it!! And you did it!! You did it AMAZINGLY!!! Oh my goodieness! This is AWESOME!! I loooooooooooooove Janice and Robin under the porch! FANTASTICABULOUS (Fantasticabulous is a registered trademark of yadah yadah you know the drill)! And Floyd in depression! WOWZERS! I need to hug Janice! *hugs Janice* There. And SAM! And SCOOTER!! But the BEST part was the scene at the theater with Kermit telling them about the new movie and all the Muppets talking! FOZZIE!! WOW!!! LOVE IT!! Keep it up Beau!! (((HUGS)))

 

[The Count]

Yaey for the new chapter...

But I have to ask. What's this fixation with making everybody's eyes green?
Miss Mingostone I understand because she said so herself... But first Isabelle, and now Janice too?

As for the chapter...
The scene with the breakfast was probably the best part of all.
Orange bear: Fozzie.
Mini frog: Robin.
Hook-nosed whatever: Gonzo.
Brown dog: Rowlf.
Male pig with the toupee: Link Hogthrob.
Young female pig with the crimped fuzzy hair: Annie Sue.
Purple man with dreadlocks: Clifford.
Shrimp who was really a king prawn: Pepe.
Monster with sharp pointy teeth who ate the toast, burped, then ate the toast rack: Gorgon Heap?
The six foot tall monster with shaggy fur and clothing: Sweetums? But wasn't it established Sweetums was more like 9 feet tall?
Cow who was eating moolessly: Denise from The First Time It Happens by Nicole (smiles)?

Janice having that miss my organic orange juice too long till lunch feeling.
Oh, like wow, that's a great way to describe how she's going through the same non-breakfast moment.

Loved the descript of the area beneath the porch and the pillars supporting the balcony of the house itself.
Heh, laughs at Robin imitating Janice's "fer sure" accent, and showing her the secret hiding place.

The eagle lent against one of the wooden pillars.
"I am Sam."
He lent against the other pillar.
"Sam I am."
Oooh, now that's a powerful little two lines of dialogue.
Almost felt one of those stabs you and Lisa exchange amongst each other.

Sam was perfectly in character mustering up all his determination to prepare himself and carry through... And then he just picked up the phone and put it back down.
Can't begin to count or tell you the times I've felt that way regarding a pet project of mine.

This is starting to take shape, and I like its shape... Is a good shape hokay?
Post more!

 

[Beauregard]

Hey Count! Yes!!! You got all the toast-characters...athough I have heard of Denise I've never met the cow, so, no, it's just a generic Muppet Cow...glad you got the muesli pun there. Thanks for commenting! Glad you like it!

Ryan, since when was Fantasticabulous a registered trademark?