Author's Note: Well, here I am, back again after finishing my "Ed Edd n Eddy/Nightmare Before Christmas/Gorillaz" saga. This time, as a filler story, I've made up a sequel to my story "Cartoon Paranormal Project," written two years ago; I thought it was fitting since Halloween is coming up. To get the full vibe, you might want to read the first story before this one. I came up with the first story after watching the VH1 show Celebrity Paranormal Project, so this story, in turn, will also have elements from the show. Be sure to read and review, and happy reading! ;)-AMX


Cartoon Paranormal Project 2

Chapter 1: Introductions

Somewhere in Rural America, there lies an old, abandoned textile mill. It is known as the Hawthorne Mill, and there's a good reason that it is abandoned.

The Hawthorne Mill is said to be haunted.

There are many rumors surrounding the mill. There are stories involving madness, murders, and accidents involving the machines used for the textiles. However, there's one story in particular that stands out: a story involving the wife of the mill's owner. Legends have dubbed the wife "Wooden Lucy."

And on one particular night, six cartoon characters were called upon to investigate her story.

That night, a young female was making her way through the forest with a small bag of personal items and a flashlight. However, there was something different about this woman: she was not a human, she was a squirrel.

--

Name: Sandy Cheeks

Residence: Houston, Texas (previous); Bikini Bottom (current)

Occupation: Inventor

Talents: Strength training, endurance, inventions

Paranormal Believer: No

--

"Tarnation," Sandy muttered as she made her way to the Hawthorne Mill. "This meeting spot would be much easier to find if it wasn't pitch black out here…"

Suddenly, Sandy heard a combination of mumbling and singing in front of her. She walked through a few more trees and bushes, only to find a clearing before her. In the middle of the clearing was a boy, around eleven or twelve years old, with a large, bushy eyebrow on his head and a dark green jacket on his body. He was holding a manila envelope.

The boy saw Sandy, and a big, goofy grin appeared on his face.

"Hello," he said in a slightly deep voice. "Did you come to hunt for ghosts, too?"

--

Name: Ed

Nicknames: Lumpy, Monobrow

Residence: Peach Creek

Occupation: Student

Interests: Comic books, monster movies

Paranormal Believer: Yes

--

Sandy chuckled. "Uh…no," she replied. "I'm here to prove that there are no such things as ghosts, and that all the stories of the Hawthorne Mill are just stories."

Ed stared for a moment, as if he was attempting to make sense of what Sandy just said. Suddenly, it seemed to click, as he frowned at the squirrel. "Nonbeliever," he muttered.

Sandy looked at the envelope. "So…uh…what's in there?" she asked.

Ed looked at the envelope, too. He shrugged. "Uh…I don't know," he said. "I have been waiting for someone to read this to me." He handed the envelope to Sandy.

Sandy looked at the envelope and saw that something was written on the front of it. "It says, 'Do not open until all participants are present'," she said.

"So when is everyone else coming?" asked Ed.

"Finally! When are we gettin' paid?"

Sandy and Ed turned to find an old man standing behind them. He wore overalls, a flannel shirt, black boots, thick glasses and a frown on his face, and a brown hat on his head. He looked like a farmer.

--

Name: Eustace Bagge

Occupation: Farmer

Residence: Nowhere, Kansas

Likes: Money, his hat, his chair

Dislikes: Stupid dogs

Paranormal Believer: Yes

--

Sandy and Ed seemed uneasy by the farmer's disposition.

"Well, uh…" Sandy started, "according to the flyer that advertised this expedition, you get the reward money after spending the entire night in the "haunted" location."

"All night?!" asked Eustace. "I thought it said we got paid beforehand!" He growled, and then mumbled under his breath. "Stupid false advertising…"

"Radda radda radda radda?"

Sandy shone her light behind Ed. Behind him was what could only be described as a living stone tiki creature…wearing an apron.

Ed turned around and looked at the creature made of stone, and his face broke into a huge grin. "Easter Island man!" he cheered.

The creature gave Ed a weird look. "Radda?" he asked.

--

Name: Shnitzel

Occupation: Chef

Residence: Marzipan City

Talents: Strength

Paranormal Believer: No

--

"Eh…stupid rock people…" said Eustace.

Shnitzel looked at Eustace. "Radda radda radda…" he mumbled.

"Uh…what?" asked Sandy.

"He said he didn't appreciate the farmer's comments," said Ed, with a proud look on his face.

Sandy stared at Ed. "You understood that?" she asked.

"Yep," said Ed. "He talks just like the nocturnal Moon people located in the Sea of Serenity!" He paused. "Can we go into the mill yet?"

"Well…" Sandy gave a head count. "There's four of us here right now, and from what I was told, there's supposed to be six of us here. So that means there should be two more coming…"

"Aww…" Ed mumbled; he was getting impatient.

"What in blazes…? Do they really expect me to work with these imbeciles?"

This comment caught Eustace's attention. "Hey!" he barked, turning around as Sandy shone her flashlight in the same direction.

Behind Eustace was an even older-looking man with a bald head, long nose, and a sort of…yellow tinge to his skin. You could even say he looked a little like a praying mantis.

This man's appearance startled Eustace, Sandy, and Shnitzel. Ed, however, had a different reaction.

"It is a zombie!" he exclaimed. "Just like the minions from the Cyclops IV: The Blinking!"

The man looked at Ed. "Excuse me?" he asked.

--

Name: Charles Montgomery Burns

Occupation: Mogul, Resident bad guy

Residence: Springfield

Age: Somewhere between 84 and 104

Paranormal Believer: Yes

--

"How dare you, you little brat!" Mr. Burns snapped at Ed, walking up to him. "I'm going to give you the thrashing of a lifetime!" He began to try and attack Ed, but all he was able to manage was a few feeble slaps to Ed's chest.

Ed was obviously unaffected. He chuckled. "That tickles!" he said.

Mr. Burns growled in frustration, while Eustace laughed at his pathetic attempt at causing any real harm. "Smithers!" he finally yelled. "Get over here and punch this delinquent in his ugly face!"

Just then, there was a pain-filled groaning sound that came from the woods.

"I can't, sir…" a voice muttered.

"Oh, damn it all!" said Mr. Burns, obviously getting impatient. "Why the devil not?"

"Because, sir…" the voice answered, "I think your supply bag is crushing my spine…"

Shnitzel walked back into the woods, in the direction of the voice in pain. A few seconds later, he came back into view, carrying a backpack as big as Ed in one arm, and a similarly yellow-skinned individual in the other. This man had a flattop full of grayish hair, and was wearing glasses on his face, along with a green business suit. He looked exhausted.

"Damnation, Smithers," said Mr. Burns. "If you can't even carry my supplies, what good are you?"

The man under Shnitzel's arms lazily held his head up. "Forgive me, sir…" he mumbled.

--

Name: Waylon Smithers, Jr.

Occupation: Personal Assistant

Residence: Springfield

Suspected Preference: "Burns-sexual"

Paranormal Believer: No

--

As Shnitzel put Smithers back on the ground, Sandy looked at the colossal backpack the rock creature was holding.

"These are your supplies?" Sandy asked Mr. Burns. "But they instructed us to only bring the essentials!"

"Yes, they did," the old man answered. "And your point is…?"

Sandy sighed. "Never mind," she said. "Let's just see what this says." She finally opened the manila envelope and began reading it out loud.

"Dear participants, if you are reading this, it means that everyone has shown up, and you are ready to take on the Hawthorne Mill. Tonight, it is your job to look into the legend of Wooden Lucy."

"Wooden Lucy?" asked Mr. Burns. "Sounds like that broad I dated back in the '40s."

"Fascinating, sir," Smithers seemed to automatically respond. However, Shnitzel couldn't help but notice that the assistant looked a little uncomfortable…

"Legend has it that the original owner of the mill, only known these days as "Hawthorne," spent too much time at his job. One night, his wife, Lucy, couldn't take it anymore and confronted him in his office. But what she didn't know was that her husband had taken to heavy drinking due to the stress of his job. The night she confronted him, Hawthorne was terribly drunk and, in a blind rage, accidentally killed his wife in his office. In order to cover up the incident, Hawthorne disposed of his wife's body by…sending it into the nearby river."

"Spooky!" said Ed.

"Radda radda…" said Shnitzel, in disbelief.

"He went to all that trouble?" asked Eustace. "Sheesh…stupid cover-ups…"

"Ever since the incident, while the mill was still running, workers who were there at night claimed to have seen the ghost of Hawthorne's wife wandering near the wooden mannequins used for textile fittings, thereby giving her the nickname "Wooden Lucy." Your task tonight, if you choose to accept it, is to explore the Hawthorne Mill and try and detect any paranormal activity. You are to find the area with the most paranormal activity, also known as "The Heart of the Haunting," and from there, try to make contact with any ghosts, including Wooden Lucy. Any participant who makes it through the night will receive a cash reward of 100."

This caught Eustace's attention. "Now we're talkin'!" he said.

"I could buy a lot of jawbreakers with that!" said Ed.

The only one who wasn't impressed was Mr. Burns. "100?" he asked. "That's it? Pish-posh, I carry more than that in my wallet."

"Well, uh…this will just make you 100 richer, sir," said Smithers.

This caught Mr. Burns' attention. "Excellent…" he murmured.

"Well, sounds good to me!" said Sandy. "And if this map included with our instructions is accurate, our home base camp is up this way. Let's go!"

"Ghost-hunting time!" Ed exclaimed, following Sandy.

"Home base, eh?" asked Eustace. "It better have a TV!" He followed after Ed and Sandy.

"Come, Smithers," said Mr. Burns, shuffling along behind them.

Shnitzel (still carrying Mr. Burns' backpack) started to follow as well, when he noticed that Smithers still hadn't moved from his spot.

"Radda radda?" he asked the assistant.

"Uh…" Smithers still sounded slightly out of breath. "I'd like to follow, but I'm still trying to regain the feeling in my legs from carrying Mr. Burns' bag."

Shnitzel sighed. "Radda…" He then walked over to Smithers and slung the hapless assistant over his shoulder. The rock creature then went to catch up with the others.

"Thank you," said Smithers.

"Radda," Shnitzel answered back.