The Inheritance

Disclaimer: I do not own the Magic School Bus. This work is purely to stimulate the imagination and no profit, monetary or otherwise, will be gained from these efforts.

Chapter One: Immediate Successor

It was a cold, wet day. The groundskeeper at the old Walkerville cemetery stood at the edge of a new gravesite with shovel in hand. He had not expected to be burying someone today but, he supposed, no one could really choose to die at a convenient time either. The groundskeeper was quite surprised; he had heard that this funeral was for one of the teachers at the old elementary school; he expected a bigger crowd and a less ostentatious farewell. The crowd was a small one; just a few adults were in attendance. They stood over the deceased and, he noted with shock, a lizard in a suit which appeared to be sobbing hysterically into a handkerchief. The lizard stood on the edge of the casket and, in between sobs, looked over to the deceased mournfully. That was the least of the spectacle. A bright yellow school bus had apparently been driven into the yard and was parked right next to the tombstone. The groundskeeper was unsure if the bus wheezed and trembled because of the rainy weather or if, as he really hoped it wasn't, the bus was exhibiting personifying qualities and appeared to be in a set of hysterics all its own.

One of the adults in attendance, a woman with bright red hair, offered her hand to the lizard and the groundskeeper watched as the lizard hopped onto the woman's arm, scrambled up her shoulder and then proceeded to sob silently. He had never seen a lizard in a suit before. The woman crooned to the lizard in comforting tones and the groundskeeper could barely make out her voice against the din of the rain and the wheezing of the bus.

"It's going to be alright Liz. Val knew this was going to happen sometime. Stop crying." This did not appear to comfort the lizard at all. It also caused an odd stir with the few adults in attendance.

"I wouldn't try to Murph." Said a stout man with mustache and a violet shirt and jeans, he wore work boots and stood next to the bus. He occasionally patted the bus' hood gently. This was another aspect that surprised the groundskeeper; none of the attending wore black. Instead, they all wore colorful clothing and, if he peeked into the casket, he could make out a bright yellow fabric had been used for the lining. In fact, the entire casket was painted to look like a bus. This was quite the ostentatious send off.

"R.U," The woman referred to as "Murph" started, "Valerie knew of her own death long before any of us did."

"Right," R.U. said, "But, that doesn't mean it means any less to Liz."

"I never said that. All I am saying is that it is of no use to cry. She wouldn't have liked that. She informed us of her death to make sure we wouldn't. " Murph stated. "Besides, I am saying it for all of us." She gestured to the crowd attending. "I believe it's best if you get onto the last rites Radius Ulna Humerus." Murph snapped.

Radius Ulna, or "R.U." as he preferred, nodded and walked over to the casket. He took one look at the casket, and it almost broke his resolve. Katrina Eloise "Murph" Murphy, the deceased's cousin, gestured for him to get on with it. So he did.

"Valerie Felicity Frizzle, was a woman whom dedicated her life to education." R.U. had to clear his throat. "She worked harder than anyone to make learning…magical. I… we will forever miss her."

Murph nodded at the groundskeeper. She watched as they lowered her cousin to the ground and turned to the young man next to her. His bright orange hair reminded him so much of her cousin. He was much older now then the cowardly little boy she once met. His lenses were fogged up and he appeared to be grimacing slightly.

"That's it Friz." The boy murmured. "Time to start the next trip. Take chances, make mistakes, get messy and all that."

Murph reached for the young man's shoulder. He glanced at her and smiled tightly.

"Maybe we shouldn't have read the will before this." Murph stated.

"No," the young man said. "She wanted me to know this before she left. She wanted me to hear it first."

"Arnold—"

That was the first time someone had said his name since she had died. Arnold Matthew Perlstein turned to Ms. Murphy and saw the worried expression on her face.

"I am fine Ms. Murphy. I mean…I am fine Murph."

The groundskeeper had begun the shoveling and every time he heard the sound of mud hitting Ms. Frizzle's bright yellow casket, Arnold winced slightly.

"I know she was the closest thing you had to a… a… a parent Arnold."

Arnold shook his head. "In the years I was living with her, she made it clear that she wasn't my mom Murph."

Arnold could remember that day well in his mind. He remembered walking into the Frizzle's home. He remembered her warm smile as she brought him to his room and he remembered all the times she had reminded him that despite this new arrangement, she could not be his parent.

I have never been a mother, Arnold. All I have ever been is a teacher.

And so, she had been. She had taught him everything she knew. Where before his fears made it impossible for him to follow her on the crazy trips the class would take; now, his fears had turned to doubts, those doubts into notions that were only meant to be disproven. He had learned that, although many had called her magic, Valerie Frizzle was a science and all she ever had been was science.

And just as Valerie Frizzle could never be a mother; Arnold, wimpy Arnold that would groan at the beginning of trips, would not be her son. Instead he became her pupil; her most beloved pupil.

Until now, that is.

Now, as she had requested of him, he became her immediate successor.

R.U. stood by as all the other attendees departed for home. Frizzle had not asked for a funeral.

No one would come anyway to a kooky old lady's funeral!

However, Arnold had insisted. He had written invitations to his classmates however, none came. He received condolence letters from a few: Phoebe, Tim, Ralphie, and a strange note on professional letterhead from Wanda. (Despite being "From the Desk of Wanda Li Chen" he doubted the now busy CEO of Li Chen Industries had even looked at the invitation.)

Those whom had attended had been her closest confidants in the past, and of course her only living relative: Murph.

But, the funeral was now over. The funeral was over and it was time to get down to business. R.U. walked over to Arnold and Murph. Arnold looked up to the old man and held out his hand.

"The keys please." Arnold said with a look of determination in his eyes.

R.U. handed them over without a word.

Arnold held out his hand and Liz hopped onto it.

"Are you sure, you want to do this? I don't know if doing this what she would have wanted from you." Murph said.

Arnold simply nodded. "I am not a teacher like her, Murph." Arnold said. "She always told me to walk my own path. Take chances. Make mistakes. Get messy. Besides, she liked it when I told her."

Arnold pressed a button on the keys R.U. had handed him. The bus ached and groaned until it transformed. The Magic School Bus was no more. In its wake, was a bright yellow muscle car.

"I think she would have approved of your ride though." R.U. chuckled slightly.

"There will be another Ice Age if you think I'm starting Frizzle Private Investigators with a school bus."

With that, Arnold climbed on and sped away from Murph and R.U.

As he drove, the rain stopped and the sun peeked through the clouds.

"There you are Valerie." R.U. said as he smiled skyward. "I knew you wouldn't let him leave without saying goodbye."

Author's Note: Hello all! My name is sensai32 and I have not written a fanfiction for a long time. However, recently, I had this dream in which the Magic School Bus had been turned into the Magic Muscle Car and the adventure that came with it. Hence, the birth of this new fic: "The Inheritance". So here, we have Arnold, Arnold now turned bad-ass and awesome. He has been living with Ms. Frizzle since his parents died. (More about that later) We also have the characters, R.U. and Murph, Frizzle's mechanic friend and her cousin from the recycling episode. I know it's sad and that I killed Frizzle but, please don't flame me for this. It gets good, I promise. I hope that this is well received and that it gets many reviews. Thank you for reading.