A few weeks had gone by, and a lot had advanced. The Muppets have had more amazing shows than they've had in a long time, and we're slowly re-planning their world tour. But until then, they had many gigs lined up on late night talk shows, mid-morning talk shows, live performances at famous theatres and arenas, whatever could be named. Things were running smoothly, and couldn't be better.

The same was said for Walter and Lily's relationship. Lily had gotten many gigs for her acting career. She had been in a few commercials, and guest starred on some shows. The paparazzi of course kept trying to scope in on their dating life, and had recognized that the girl Walter was dating is a future rising star, trying to make it big.

But more personally, Walter and Lily had become closer and closer. Though they had only gone out for a few weeks, it was without a doubt the two were a pair. Lily had also became more acquainted with Walter's Muppet family. They all really liked her, and thought that she was an ideal girl for their young Walter.

With all the success going on with the Muppets and Walter's blossoming relationship with Lily, it distracted him from what had happened with his father's photo. It wasn't exactly something he had planned to give much closure to, and instead accept the fact that his father was still watching him from above. And if he kept it close to his heart, he'd be okay.

However, Kermit had a few different thoughts. After the little spurt him and Walter had that day, the two had moved passed it. They both felt guilty for being bitter and pushy, seeing as the two both had pure caring souls. Walter of course, apologized for being ignorant. Kermit reassured him it was okay, and that it it was natural to be bit testy when you lose something that belonged to someone who passed. It still bothered him a bit when Walter rejected his offer to help, and reminded him that he wasn't his father. Kermit wasn't sure why that bothered him. Maybe because he had took such a liking to Walter, a little part of him almost felt like he was a distant son. But, that wasn't the main thing Kermit was thinking.

Kermit had a few meetings in the past few weeks, since the day he told his few friends that he wanted to pick Walter as the future leader of the Muppets. They called it the Jim Henson Committee, abbreviated as JHC by Rowlf. It still included the same Muppets that Kermit rounded up, which was Miss Piggy, Scooter, Fozzie, Gonzo, and Rowlf. Starting off, meetings were every once and a while. But, it then became more regular. They discussed how Kermit would lead Walter's apprenticeship, and any basic tools regarding it. And of course the big question, how would he ask Walter?

Then came the day when Kermit had to gather them for something important.

"Hey Kermit, do you know where Piggy brought Lily?" Walter asked, walking up to the frog. Kermit looked up from his clipboard.

"Uh, I think she brought her to The Grove. Why?" His leader asked.

"Well, uh..." Walter sounded nervous. "Like Piggy, Lily sometimes can have a craving for being in the lime light. I'm worried that it will cause a riot between them..."

Kermit eyes widened. "Oh no, you're right!" The two immediately ran to the lobby door, from the auditorium.

"Walter, I will personally pay any medical bills if Piggy karate chops Lily." Kermit reassured him as they ran to the door.

"Don't worry, I-"

The two Muppets came to a sharp halt, as they saw the two girls entered the lobby. They were smiling, and not at all arguing. Both boys let out a sigh of relief, glad that Piggy hadn't broke Lily like a toothpick.

The two girls stopped, when they saw their partners.

"You guys look exhausted." Lily said. "Did you jog around the theatre, or something?"

"Just um...wanted to be waiting for you guys when you got back." Walter awkwardly lied. Kermit shook his head.

"Walter, you could have told me sooner that your girlfriend has the same knack for the arts of musical theatre like I do!" Miss Piggy said.

"Well, I told you guys that she did it in New York..." Walter shrugged.

"Yes, but you didn't tell me she was a Broadway Contemporary enthusiast!" Miss Piggy said. "It's about time I've met someone with the same understanding of true performance."

"You said it." Lily agreed. Kermit looked at the time, and remembered that he had to call a JHC meeting. But, how was he gonna do that with Walter standing right there?

Kermit cleared his throat. "Piggy, can I see you for a second?" Miss Piggy followed the frog back to the auditorium, leaving Walter and Lily.

Walter tapped his fingers together, nervous like. "So, uh...she called you my...girlfriend."

Lily couldn't help but arch a brow, and laugh. "Yea, why are you surprised?"

Walter put his hands in his pockets. "Well, I guess because we haven't really talked about that..."

The girl shrugged. "We don't have to. If it helps, I'm happy with our title as boyfriend and girlfriend." Walter looked up at her, smiling.

"Really? Well, I am too!" He said, happily. Lily smiled.

"Listen, I have to get to a table read for my tv show. I'll see you later?" She asked. Walter nodded.

"Yeah, for sure." He said, before kissing her. She left, and Walter couldn't help but feel all fluttered in his chest. He walked back to the auditorium, smiling bashfully.

In the auditorium, Kermit stood with Fozzie and Piggy.

"I'm calling another JHC meeting. It's important, so please tell the others." Kermit said. The frog began walking to his office, as Fozzie and Miss Piggy went to go find the other members.

As the JHC members rounded each other up, Kermit sat at his desk. He pulled open one of the drawers, and pulled out a brand new document. The frog sighed, looking at it. He just got it printed and legalized yesterday. It was the new contract.

His office door then opened, and the five others entered.

"Okay chief, what's on the agenda today?" Scooter asked, as they all sat down. Kermit lifted up the document for them to see.

"I had the new version of the contract made." He said, passing it around. "The same standards like the one I signed, but specialized for Walter."

"Anything new you added?" Gonzo asked, as he passed it back to Kermit. The frog shook his head.

"No, I didn't." Kermit said, putting it on his desk. "If Walter signs this, he agrees to an apprenticeship with me and becoming the future leader."

"So, what now?" Fozzie asked. The room stayed quiet.

"I guess...we have to figure out when I'll ask him." Kermit concluded.

"Well if you have the document ready, I don't see why you can't ask him soon." Scooter said.

Kermit hesitated. "That may be a problem..."

"Why?"

The frog leaned against his desk. "I thought a lot about what you guys said about Lily. How I would need Walter's full time attention, and that she may take away from that..."

Many of the Muppets exchanged some looks. They didn't look totally convinced.

"Well, we were probably wrong." Rowlf said. "I'm sure it's fine."

Kermit shook his head. "I don't know, Rowlf. Of course I like Lily, we all do. She's a very nice girl and I couldn't be happier for Walter. But, maybe you're right. I think I do need Walter's full-time attention. The two of them have been so occupied with each other though, it might be hard."

"Guess that's just young love." Rowlf shrugged.

"I know..." Kermit said, looking down at the contract. "Ok, I know what to do."

The others all inched forward in their seats.

"I'll try to get Walter's focus into a more hard working head space, to keep him more occupied. And when the time is right, I'll tell him."

Scooter nodded. "Anyone who's on board say 'I'."

"I." Rowlf said, raising his paw.

"I." Gonzo and Fozzie said in unison.

"I." Piggy voted last. Scooter looked back the Kermit.

"I think that settles it, chief."

Walter sat on the couch in his apartment. He had just hung up the phone. Currently, he was waiting for Lily to come over. But, he just had the most busy call with Kermit. The frog called him, asking the boy to do these extra work things and possibly come in early tomorrow. As much work as it was, Walter was of course wiling to do it. He would never let anyone down.

Just then, someone knocked on the door.

"Come on, Walt. My bag is heavy and I think my arms are gonna fall off." Lily's voice said from the other side. Walter chuckled, as he went to go answer.

He opened the door, and Lily came in. She kissed him on the cheek.

"Sorry I'm late. The shoot went longer than I thought it would." She said, taking her bag off her shoulder.

"No problem." Walter said, closing the door. "I'm just happy that you're getting more gigs. I saw you in the Rising Stars magazine that Piggy was reading the other day. We all did."

Lily couldn't help but blush. "Glad to know I'm starting to be recognized."

The two of them went and sat on the couch.

"I just got a call from Kermit." Walter said, with a funny tone. Lily looked at him with confusion.

"Should you be nervous?" She asked.

"No, he calls me a lot for an extra opinion on things. But, he asked me to come in early tomorrow and do some extra work."

"Well, that's good." Lily said, sounding sure. "I think he puts a lot of trust towards you."

Walter nodded. "Anything else up with you? Besides work, that is?" He asked his girlfriend, taking her hand in his. Lily smiled, batting her eyelashes slightly.

"Actually, yeah. I have something for you..." Lily said. The girl reached into her bag, and pulled out a little white box. It had a red ribbon tied neatly around it. Lily handed to Walter, who carefully took it.

"I got something for you." She said. Walter looked from her, to the little package.

"Did I miss a memo...?" He asked. Lily rolled her eyes, smiling.

"Just open it, before I do." She said through a chuckle. That being said, Walter looked at the white box once more. He carefully tugged on the red ribbon, pulling it out of it's place. It swiftly came off, and he tossed it aside. The boy lifted the top of the small white box off, and saw a layer of tissue paper. He took it out of the way, and saw his present underneath.

It was a brand new black leather wallet, with Walter's name engraved on the bottom right corner. Walter picked it up carefully, running his thumb over the fresh material of the wallet.

"On our first date, you told me you were worried about losing that photo-message from your dad. And how you actually might, since you have such an old wallet. So, I thought I'd help you out...to keep that photo safe." Lily explained. Walter continued to look at the wallet, and his girlfriend felt nervous when he didn't respond.

"What's wrong? Do you not like it...?" She asked. Walter shot his gaze at her.

"No, no Lily I love it." Walter said, taking her hand again. "It's amazing. Something just...happened to the photo..."

Lily's eyes went wide. "Oh no, did you lose it?"

"No..." Walter shifted uncomfortably. "It was...ripped up, by accident." He thought of the incident with Animal. "I'll tell you about it another time..."

Lily held his hand with both of hers. She knew how much that photo meant to him. "Walter, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bring down your mood."

Walter squeezed her hand a bit tighter, and held the wallet close. "You didn't. If anything, you brightened it..." Walter looked her in here eyes, and Lily couldn't help but smile. At that moment, Walter felt something spark within him. A spark that was telling him to advance with what his heart was telling him. By now, Walter was accepting of his feelings for Lily. He wouldn't push this back.

"Lily, I..." Walter swallowed. "I..."

Lily looked at him, not breaking her gaze. She waited for him to say something, her heart fluttering.

"I...I love you." He finally said, his eyes full of care. The two of them felt the world disappear around them, and Walter swore he could see tears dwell in Lily's eyes.

"I love you, too..." She said, her voice cracking a bit. Walter smiled, feeling himself become emotional as well. He leaned in and gently kissed her. She kissed back, and they both felt their hearts become a little more filled.

Later that evening, Kermit still sat at his desk in his office. He was finishing up the last of his paperwork. The Muppet had a hectic and exhausting work day, and was ready to go home. Like Piggy had told him, he needed to relax. He couldn't remember the last time he stayed this late at the studios. The frog needed to rest.

As Kermit was putting the last of his filed papers into his desk drawers, the office phone on his desk rang. Kermit came up from putting stuff in his drawer, and reached for the phone.

"Hi-ho, Kermit the frog here." The amphibian said, answering the phone.

There was no direct answer from the other end. The frog could hear a slight, heavy breathing. It became louder, and louder.

"Hello...? Is someone there?" Kermit asked, confused.

"Walter is going to die." A gruff, deep Russian accented voice said. The other line then hung up.

Kermit felt his heart drop through his chest, as that disturbed voice echoed through his head. Mainly, the words that were attached to it. He still held the phone up, staying frozen in place. He swallowed, and shakily put it down.

The frog snapped out of his moment of fear, and dialled another number.

"Hello, 911? I'd like to report a threat..."