Once they reached the line to the ride, Velma started to get nervous again. It was like the feeling she got when she felt like their might be a clown around. An unnatural fear.

"You know I only wanted to go since I... Well, mainly due to the fact that I... Well what I mean to say." Velma stuttered, blushing all the while though not taking her hand off of Fred's arm. She feared that her hand would get to clammy and it would be uncomfortable. She thought about removing it.

But Fred didn't move his arm. His mind recalled what the vender earlier had said, but he shook his head and gave her a warm smile.

"You wanted to go since you've never gone before." She nodded dumbly, chiding herself mentally for acting so stupidly. But certain things could make even the smartest person turn stupid. But Fred didn't seem to mind.

"Well it's my first time as well. So we'll go into this like scientists! We'll use our detective skills and solve the mystery of why couples like the ride so much. I mean, really. What normal people go into the Tunnel of Love just to see what it's like?" Fred surmised. He was curious, since so many couples went in. What was so special about it anyway?

Velma seeped back into her normal attitude and shot him a glance with an added eyebrow raise.

"Are you saying we aren't normal?"

"We solve mysteries with a talking dog who thinks he's a person. We help arrest guys whose goals in life are to get rich quick by rubber suits and fake masks... Do you say that is normal by average standards?" Fred pointed out as they moved in line for the ride. Their were a few couples line in front of them before they could go in.

"You do have a point there." Velma thought about it and they weren't really joe average.

"I mean come on... I got an Alien on my head, wearing an Ascot after labor day!" Fred tried to joke, Velma snickered and shook her head.

"It's march."

"...It's still AFTER Labor day. Then again, we hit into a contradiction. Since there is always a Labor day before, and a Labor day after, when isn't it labor day? So does that mean it's only bad to be wearing an Ascot on the day itself." Fred pondered, taking his train of thought way off course.

"It's white." Velma pointed out.

"What? No it's Orange. A delightful Orange at that." Fred said with a knowing smile. Velma knew that smile, he was just acting to make her distracted to feel better. And it was working. Shaking her head she decided to not push the current topic.

"Did you hear?" Came a voice from in front of them. The statement itself drawing attention from the other 'couples' nearby the speaker. "..Some people have been coming out of this ride, scared for their lived. They say it's haunted."

Velma looked over as Fred's face lit up. She wasn't sure if she shared his sentiments or not. A Haunted Tunnel of Love? Was someone following them or something? Or did they just happen to in all of Ohio come across the one haunted Tunnel of Love that existed in the state? She wasn't sure, but her ears betrayed herself and listened in for more information.

"No, really?" A woman gasped and clung to her boyfriend. The guy didn't look to amused.

"Someone is probably messing with people in there. Maybe a Carnival guy or something." The guy tried to figure an excuse.

"But then why would it be called the Tunnel of Love?" Asked another woman who had been listening. The line infront of them seemed to be clumping as the groups of people clustered to talk. Velma and Fred hovered on the fringe of it all, trying to gather more information. "Wouldn't if it was an act, call it the Tunnel of Horror then?"

"I hear a couple went in there and never came out." Another lady said in a hushed tone. "And other couples breaking up as soon as they came out."

"Next!" Shouted the man up at the front, all eyes turned to look at the man. A few ladies pulled their boyfriends away, while others gripped them as they braved the 'haunted' ride.

"So what do you think?" Fred said as they moved up in the line and soon were third to go inside. He had a smile stretching ear to ear, and seemed to be enjoying this alot more knowing there was something fishy going on. Velma found herself feeling the same way. Instead of that uneasy feeling she had before, her stomach was aflutter with excitement. It was probably just someone in a mask or something, but it was habit to get all charged up when these kinda situations arose.

"Kinda reminds me of High School." Velma added.

"Oh, all the mushy couples and paranoia about breaking up over something as trivial as a ride?" Fred poked fun, though he knew what she was talking about. Which his statement did earn a short harmless jab to the gut in response.

"You know what I'm talking about." Velma snorted, Fred just laughed.

"Yeah yeah, I know. It's just like old times when we just stumbled over mysteries instead of them coming to our doorstep."

"NEXT!"

"... Shall we go my dear." He said hamming it up. Velma rolled her eyes and replaced her arm upon his offered elbow.

"Let's."

The boat they got in was a classic swan shape. Such an graceful and noble bird that had been tacked on as a romance piece since they mated for life. The poor boat had seen better days, as some of the pain cracked and flaked off. But normally you weren't supposed to be paying any attention to the boat, rather each other. Fred wasn't any better, as he leaned over and peered into the water.

"What a rip off. The boat's on a track under the water."

"What did you expect? Self propelling boats with self guidance systems? It's a carnival, they aren't going to have something that fancy." Velma commented, though the idea did sound interesting to play with later in her lab.

"Still." Fred huffed. They could at least hide it better."

"Fred, most people coming in here don't comment about how the ride works. They are more interested..." She blushed, turning away to peer into the water herself. "...Other things." She shook her head and knocked away the blush. She was here as a scientist. Nodding her head, she looked forward as the darkness ahead was seeming to becoming lighter.

"Hey look over there." She pointed out. The ride went from the calming sounds of the waves upon the boat to almost what Fred would call... Elevator music. Well, it wasn't that bad, but it was trying to be all romantic and it wasn't working for him. He would probably fall asleep to such things.

"You think they would be playing something like Barry White... at least something with more class?" Fred grumbled, Velma had to hide her smile. Though he had a point.

Coming to the slightly lit area, the sides of the ride were covered in cherubs. Fat babies with diapers and wings staring down at them with smiling faces that were cracked and aged over the years of use and exposure to the more humid area due to the water. Velma thumbed her hand at those.

"And these are supposed to be love inducing? Kinda reminds me of that staring robot from Funland. Remember him?" Fred nodded, he recalled the wacky robot all to clearly.

"Yeah, not to all inspiring image with those little things. Why do they think small kids with big smiles and armed with bow and arrows are romantic material? I wouldn't want to be shot by one of them."

Velma was about to respond when a scream came echo'ing from the couple that went in before them. Fred and Velma nodded and sunk under the sides of the swan to only be peering with their eyes. Further down the section they were getting to was all dark, probably there to inspire cuddling rather then fear as it seemed to be. Though from where the scream seemed to have come from, they heard giggling instead. Peering into the darkness, two forms hovered in the shadows on either side of the Tunnel.

"Shhhhh..." Hushed one of the figures as they turned to the arriving swan. Ducking their heads down, they managed to barely escape being noticed by the two.

"Nah. Coasts clear. This one's was sent empty." A second voice chimed in.

"I wonder if we scared them all away. Hahahaha."

The two voices seemed almost squeaky, like they belonged to some random kids. Some kids who obviously were enjoying scaring people. As the swan got closer, and their eyes adjusted to the darkness it was easier for them to see the two perpetrators. Adorned in fly fisher Wader outfits, they kept themselves dry in the water inside the tunnel. With gloves and masks, they looked a bit to early for Halloween. The two boys were just abusing the darkness and the couples that rode on the ride. But little did they know their trap was about to be sprung.

"They'll never catch us!" Cackled one boy, giving a hearty laugh as he waded over to give his partner in crime a slap on the back for a good job. They reveled in their victory, having spent the last while enjoying scaring the riders that came through.

"Oh really?" Just as the swan boat got up to them, Velma popped up and crossed her arms to lean her chin upon it. She grinned their way as she made her presence obvious.

"Wah"
"Oh no!"

The two boys called out as their little charade was finally caught. They turned to run, but they came across something they didn't expect. Patiently waiting, Fred had slipped out of the swan and snuck around to get behind the two 'monsters'.

"Hiya boys. You guys are a Thousand Years to early to be pulling this stunt on us."

"Aw man"
"Busted." Grumbled the boys as Fred got a strong hold on the two and shuffled them through the water back to the swan. Thankfully the ride was slow in general, so he had more then enough time to catch up to it. Which by the time he got there, Velma was done shaking her head at him from his comment.

"What?"

"You've been watching to much Anime recently, haven't you?" Reaching over, Velma helped Fred to get the two boys on board and then helped him into the swan as well. He pulled his feet in and sent water splashing about with his soaked pants.

Blame Daphne and Shaggy. The keep watching the stuff... Man! My poor pants." Fred groaned as he just realized what he had done to his pants. Velma couldn't help but laugh.

"Now you really sound like Daphne."

They both laughed as the boys sulked from being caught. Obviously not finding it all that amusing. Probably not getting why it was funny either. Daylight couldn't come soon enough for the two boys. As the swan came ip to the platform, Fred grabbed the boys and hauled them out before the end ride conductor.

"I believe these two are responsible for all the scares."

Pulling off the masks in proper tradition, he revealed the two sulking children. They were caught and knew they were in trouble. The man scowled and took the two kids from Fred.

"Wait till we find your parents. They will probably have more then a few choice words with you two."

"Oh man..." They groaned as a chorus.

"And another mystery solved!" Fred chirped, spinning around the masks in his hand. It took him a second before he realized he still had them and turned to give them back when he noticed they were gone.

"Darn. Oh well. At least I got a souvenir!"

"I'm not sure what amazes me more..."

Having helped herself out, she came up beside him. She paused from her sentence long enough to wait for his obvious confused look her way from what she said. He nodded for her to continue, which she obliged. "... Well the fact we found a mystery on our day off. Or the fact that you did it all with a small UFO sitting on your head. I'm even surprised the glow in the dark alien didn't give you away."

They burst into laughing, leaning on each other for support. The laughed a while before they started walking.

"Come on. Let's find the rest of the gang. There is still alot more we haven't seen or done here today. And we got a story to tell. I bet Daphne will be jealous she didn't come." Fred chuckled, still playing with the masks, tossing one to Velma as he finished his sentence.

"Well, I'm kinda happy she didn't go. Then I wouldn't have been able to have been here to help." Velma caught the mask and played with it in her hands. A small it of silence built up between the two, in which she broke by moving the mouth and facing the mask towards him.

"They'll never catch us!" She tried to mimic the boys voice. Fred smiled and puppeted the other mask right back at her.

"Nah! The Coast is clear." Then Fred added some maniacal laugher for good measure that sent them both into snickers. As it died down, they continued to walk with the occasional chuckle.

Suddenly, Fred leaned over and plucked the mask out of her hands.

"I'm glad you came too."

-PLOP-

He used both hands and plopped the mask upon the top of her head on her hair like a hat. And it was a bit too big, so it slid and sat lopsided on her head. She now had two faces, though one was staring up at the sky.

"... And now we match! Come on. Let's go find the others."