Chapter Twenty-Seven:
Time Zone – 2010
Joanie had not moved an inch from the bedside the entire
time Robin laid motionless in the only bed available in the Muppet Theater.
Scooter, Kermit, and Fozzie found it in the prop room, one of the props used
for a recent skit that was performed. The bed was the only suitable item to
provide some comfort for the heavily wounded small frog inside of the theater’s
attic. While Joanie watched Robin, tears
streamed from her eyes, thinking about the reason he was there – her horrible
actions as “Dawn.” She was completely aware of all that happened during her
time as the evil sorceress, but she was unable to control herself…stop herself
from hurting the one person she cared about most.
A lone figure soon entered the area – it was her son,
Sean. He saw her watching Robin intently, hoping for some sort of awakening to
emerge from the small frog soon. Unbeknownst to Joanie, she had been waiting
for that miracle for nearly an hour by that time. The reason Sean had arrived
in the attic was to alert her of that fact, but he could not bring himself to
do so. Instead of bringing it up, he decided to speak of something different:
“Brandy’s getting Kim and Meagan fixed up right now. I’ll admit that the
headband isn’t as efficient as…whatever it was you did as Dawn was…but it gets
the job done.”
Joanie did not say a word to him; she remained staring
upon Robin’s motionless form. The sight was depressing to Sean, and he could
not think of anything enlightening to say on behalf of Robin’s situation.
“We’ll find a way to help him,” he told his young mother, “there are plenty of
great doctors here in 2010 that we can take him to and…”
“You really
don’t get it, do you?” Joanie uttered, speaking to him for the first time since
returning from Agrabah. “I’m the
reason he’s laying here right now. I’m
the one who was responsible for that place being destroyed.” She put her head
into her hands and cried, “I’m…I’m not sure what I’m becoming anymore.”
(Authorial Note: At this point in the story, Livingston took notice in the idea that he was essentially writing a superhero origin tale, with the "Joanie Navarro" character transformed into a mystical, hero figure.)
Hearing the agony that his young mother was going
through, Sean knew for certain that he had to say something to bring her
spirits up. He walked up beside her at Robin’s bedside and placed an arm around
her. “I know what you’ll become…my mother.” Joanie looked to him with teary,
hopeful eyes. “I’m sorry that I never told you who I actually was when we first
met.”
“Why didn’t you
tell me?” Joanie asked him. “Is there something about me in the future that made
you ashamed to be my son?”
Sean shook his head. “No, no. It was just…we just never
shared much of a bond. Growing up, you were always attached to your work here
in the Muppet Theater than you ever were with me. It didn’t help being your
only son either.” He swallowed hard and then added, “Though…despite however far
apart we were as mother and son…you always cared about me more than Kim,
Meagan, or Ciciley…you watched over me just as much as my father watched over
them.”
(Narrative Note: This relationship between Joanie and Sean is mirrored in that between Sean and Brandy, right down to the feelings of neglect brought on by the stress of work. In Sean's case, working at the KMUP Studio has made Brandy feel that he cares more for the studio than her - plus, she is his only child, which fuels the sensation of abandonment.)
Listening to his story, Joanie seemed to have understood
Sean more than she had before. “I’m sorry things ended up that way for you…but,
if there’s anything to come out of this crazy adventure, it’s that I’ve met
you. You’re living proof that I have a great
future ahead of me…and you give me more hope than I could use right now.” She
leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead, which embarrassed him a little.
“Glad no one was around to see that.” Sean muttered.
Joanie chuckled. “Young or old, there’s nothing wrong
with getting a kiss from your mother. It’s a lot of magic in it. It’s almost
like a healing touch.”
Hearing her words, Sean appeared to have been
enlightened. “Wait a minute. I think I know how we can help Robin.”
“You mean a kiss?” Joanie caught on. “Get serious, Sean.”
“I am serious.”
Sean said. “You showed that you had learned quite a bit of magic while in
Agrabah…well, what if you could use that magic to save Robin?”
Although the idea sounded incredibly ridiculous to her,
Joanie admitted there was some possibility in it. She did not want to pass on
any ideas that would help her small, wounded friend. Joanie looked long and
hard at Robin, focusing on one thing – making him feel better; she then leaned
in over his small, motionless frame and gave him a kiss on the left side of his
tiny head, which seemed to be just the size of her pink, glistening lips. While
the kiss was given, a strange occurrence took place: Robin’s entire body began
to glow in a golden hue; he had done so for a few seconds before Joanie moved
her lips away, and he stopped glowing.
(Character Note: This is Joanie's first act of sorcery while as herself. The lighter side of her power is shown here, which she channels from the heart, as opposed to the rage that Dawn possessed.)
Slowly, Robin began to open his eyes, seeing Joanie and
Sean standing beside him and the bed. Opening his mouth, he whispered,
“J-Joanie? Is that you?”
Joanie laughed through the tears of joy streaming down
her face. “Yeah…it’s me, sweetheart.”
Sean smiled over the sudden recovery of the little frog.
“I’ll go let everyone else in on the great news.” He then turned to leave, but
he stopped once he was face-to-face with Tracy, who nearly scared him. “Tracy!
You’re awake!”
“Indeed I am.” Tracy calmly remarked with a smile.
“Are you feeling alright?” Sean asked.
“Sure.” Tracy replied, still maintaining a calm demeanor.
“Never felt better. Excuse me.” She walked around him and approached Joanie and
Robin.
As he watched Tracy interact with his mother and the
frog, Sean could not help but to notice something “off” about his cousin; she
did not appear to be traumatized in any way after the accident in Bunsen’s lab,
which left her unconscious for nearly five hours. The super calm attitude that
Tracy displayed was even more suspicious to Sean; although his cousin was
always a cool-headed individual, a common human being would not have been so
calm after what Tracy went through. Rather than put any more thought into
the matter, Sean just left it alone and decided to deal with it later.
Sean moved downstairs and headed into the backstage right
area – where he was suddenly greeted by practically everyone, including
Kimberly and Meagan (who both were rubbing their temples after Brandy returned
their normal personas) and Bella and Michelle (who were brought back from the Winnie the Pooh realm by Brandy after
her return from the Aladdin realm).
All were there except for Bunsen and Beaker, who remained downstairs in the
lab. Surprised to see his friends and family gathered in the area, Sean stated,
“Well, I’m glad you all decided to show up before I did.”
(Authorial Note: This mass gathering of most of the main players of the story is Livingston's way of setting the stage for the final act, which is commonly done in stage plays. Livingston himself has had experience in working in theatre during his high school days, taking classes and volunteering.)
“We need to
talk.” Brandy said.
“But, first…” Kermit stepped forward and approached Sean.
“Is Robin going to be okay?”
Sean smiled. “He’s perfectly fine now, Kermit. He’s
upstairs talking with Joanie and Tracy.”
Kermit nodded, just as Brandy stated, “We need to talk
about Bunsen and his machine. Apparently, it’s reached to a point now to where
it can wipe out these worlds it has created. That pretty much makes it a
‘Doomsday Device.’ It can be hazardous to both our world and the world of
Disney.”
(Factual Note: "Doomsday device" is a hypothetical construction that could destroy all life on a planet, particularly the Earth, or destroy the planet itself, bringing "doomsday," a term used for the end of the planet Earth. Doomsday devices and the nuclear holocaust they bring about began to show relevance in literature and art in the 20th century, when advances in science and technology made world destruction and the eradication of all human life credible scenarios.)
“And I don’t know about y’all, but I ain’t interested
about bein’ anywhere near somethin’
that has ‘doomsday’ in its name.” Clifford declared.
“Same here.” Fozzie agreed.
“Yeah, you said it.” Gonzo (surprisingly) acknowledged as well.
Clifford’s sentiment appeared to have resonated
throughout the room, as everyone collectively agreed with what he said. Hearing
them all, Sean’s curiosity and suspicions began to grow. “So what are you all
saying?” He did not want to bring himself to make the guess that came out of
his mouth afterward, but he could not help but to assume aloud. “Are you giving
up?”
Most of the group did not want to admit it, but Joie
appeared to be free with doing so. “Shoot! I am!”
“Yep. Pretty much.” Gina added.
Seeing the two women, Sean shook his head negatively and
said, “I’m sorry, but…aren’t you two supposed to be finding your brother –
another version of me – somewhere out there?” He then clarified, “I’m talking
about finding my grandmother…Joanie’s mother…Diana Navarro! She’s still out
there somewhere, waiting for us to rescue her! And you just want to quit?!”
“If memory serves, you never wanted to be part of any of
this in the first place.” Kim uttered. “You just wanted to go to Disney World and forget about getting
involved.”
“I did,” Sean admitted, “but then I got to see just how
bad Joanie’s situation was when I nearly lost her. And I know she’s got to be
feeling the way I did right now. I know we can find her. I just…I need you all
to…”
POW! POW! POW! POW!
Loud thuds accompanied the sounds of explosions from
upstairs. Everyone stopped to look upward as grime from the ceiling fell and
landed on a few faces, mostly Rizzo’s and Gonzo’s. Spitting out the bits of
grimes that fell in his mouth, Rizzo muttered, “Either Crazy Harry’s been
practicin’ new explosions without us knowin’, or somebody’s doin’ roof work.”
(Pop Culture Note: "Crazy Harry" is the pyrotechnic expert on The Muppet Show, carrying an unkempt figure with wild eyes and a mad cackle and taking delight in blowing things up. He originally appeared on The Muppets Valentine Show, which aired January 30, 1974 on ABC, under the name "Crazy Donald," a reference to Muppet builder Don Sahlin, who enjoyed creating the Muppets' special effects explosions. His name was changed from Donald to Harry in his second appearance, the classic Muppet Show pilot titled The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence in 1975. Harry was performed by the late Jerry Nelson from 1977 to 2003, and accomplished puppeteer Matt Vogel has recently taken over the character since 2008 for appearances that include the Muppet viral videos, 2011's The Muppets, and 2014's Muppets Most Wanted.)
There then came a series of thuds that echoed within the
area between backstage right and the stage, which was where the stairs leading
to the attic were, meaning something or someone was falling down them. The
group went to the area just in time to see Joanie falling down the old, wooden
stairs and collapsing at the foot with a sickening thud. Joanie’s body was
wracked with pain and even smoking a little as she laid on her right side.
Seeing how she fell, Sean had to ask her immediately, “Joanie, are you okay?!”
All ears then heard the cries of a small voice that
accompanied the sound of mild, steady footsteps coming down the steps. “Let me
go! You let me go right now!” Everyone soon saw that it was Robin crying out,
and the person coming down the stairs was in fact Tracy, who was carrying the
fidgety frog under her right arm while having a devilish smile upon her face.
Seeing that it was Tracy, Sean then asked, “What are you
doing?”
Joanie groaned as she quickly told the others. “It’s not Tracy! It’s her!”
“Her who?!” Kermit exclaimed, suddenly puzzled of what
was transpiring before them all.
“Queen Grimhilde!”
The others glanced in Tracy’s direction as she glared
upon them all with sinister eyes. It was clear at that moment of what Joanie
had alerted them – it was not Tracy
standing upon the stairs, but the “Evil Queen” from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs inhabiting the form of Tracy.
Looking upon the Queen, Brandy perfectly deduced the real
severity of the problem: “If the Queen’s consciousness is here in the real
world…then that could only mean Tracy’s is…” Her clear blue eyes widened in
shock from her sudden realization.
(UP NEXT: The face of evil!)
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