August 2013
Daphne and Fred were truly embracing 'normality' at last, and they were enjoying their new found love of hiking, just outside Coolsville. What started out as a beautiful morning soon turned nasty and they found themselves caught out in the heaviest storm for years. At first when the rain started, it was a minor inconvenience, they were both dressed in shorts and T-shirts but had packed waterproof parkas too. They had been caught out in heavy downpours before and it didn't seem like this would be any exception to the norm – A bit of rain then bright Californian skies as it quickly eased away. This time however, as they tried to continue, the wind whipped up wickedly and the rains instead of easing increased in intensity. Stuck in the woods, a little off their designated trail, they were partially sheltered by the tall trees but every time they reached a clearing, they took a hammering. With Daphne shivering now, Fred knew they had little choice but to try and find shelter.
Soaked to the skin of her thin parka now, Daphne was marching resolutely behind Fred when she was startled by a loud rustling of the bushes next to her and something shot out. She screamed and barreled into Fred who was caught off-guard and lost his footing too on the slippery ground. In the driving rain, the pair tumbled down the raised pathway they had just got back on, rolling through mud and goodness knows what else before finally coming to a rest at the bottom with Fred on top of Daphne.
"Well, that was awkward," Daphne commented as she lay pinned underneath Fred, her hair plastered to her face and covered in mud as the rain lashed down relentlessly. She waited for him to get up but he made no move to do so. "Fred, move!" she said annoyed but he was looking at her with a goofy smile on his face now. He leaned in to kiss her and she was powerless to resist his lips as always. When he stopped, the rain was no lighter and he still made no move to get up off her.
"Er Fred, I think I'm getting cramp," Daphne complained, hoping he would move soon. "And I'm absolutely soaking wet," she groaned. "Let's go find shelter already!"
He grinned and finally helped her up, Daphne immediately pushed the wet strands out of her face, using her scarf as a make-shift bandana to pin her sodden hair up. She tried to wipe the mud from her face and Fred reached forward and wiped off a tiny streak from her nose. He still had that same goofy look on his face and it became a little unnerving now.
"Fred, what are you doing?" He suddenly dropped fully to one knee and she full on shrieked against the backdrop of the wind and the rain right now. "FRED JONES WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"
"You told me a while ago that I would know when the time is right, and I know that time is now," he grinned.
Daphne goggled at him, as she fought to keep her scarf from blowing out of her hair now. "Are you kidding?! You think NOW as we're lost in the woods, getting a battering from storm whatever, and while I'm soaked to the bone and covered in mud. You think now is the perfect time to propose to me?!"
"We're not lost," Fred said petulantly before the smile on his face returned. "You have honestly never looked more beautiful to me," Fred said sincerely. "Marry me, Daphne?"
She stared at him, completely speechless. "I swear you have the worst timing in the world Fred," she muttered eventually.
"Ah, but that's not an answer," Fred said, still balancing on his bare wet and muddy knee.
She broke out into a grin. "Of course. My answer is yes, Freddy! Yes!"
He got up and threw his arms around her, sealing the moment with another kiss. Then he very abruptly picked her up and put her on his shoulder, causing her to squeal again in laughter. "What are you doing?!"
"Saving you," he replied and he carried her faithfully until they finally found their way back onto the trail and the exit, all the while in the driving rain and wind.
"You young folk, OK? That was quite a storm that swept in. Really took us by surprise. I actually didn't think there was anyone still on the trail?" The ranger said when they got to the exit.
"Oh, we kinda got lost," Fred said sheepishly. "But my fiancée and I, we're fine."
Daphne smiled warmly at Fred's excitement to use that term as they hurried back out to the van, which had been fully restored to its former glories as the Mystery Machine once again. "I can't believe we're engaged!" Daphne trilled happily and he kissed her again.
"Believe me, this is not how I planned it at all, I have had far more elaborate plans but it suddenly hit me, I didn't need a special place or moment or to preface it with a big speech, I just wanted to ask you the most important question."
"We're going to have to get a better ring though," Daphne giggled at the twig Fred had bent lovingly around her ring finger as they moved down the trail.
"I've had that part sorted for ages." Fred grinned. "Wow, there is still no let up on this rain! It's like a monsoon! Hey, do you have signal again yet?" He asked as he eased them out the now empty parking lot.
Daphne grabbed her cellphone and saw the bars finally grow again. "Just." Suddenly her phone burst to life in a series of missed call notifications and she gulped. Velma. Velma. Velma. Velma. "Uh, looks like Velma tried to call a couple of hundred times," she said, holding up her cellphone.
"Shoot. Check mine?" Fred glanced very quickly at it and then asked Daphne to grab his own as he concentrated on driving on the horrendously slippery surfaces. Daphne reached for his and the notifications soon began in earnest too. "Shit," Fred sighed. "I wonder what's going down?"
Daphne shook her head worried, the euphoria of the afternoon, already wearing off. Things had been incredibly quiet in Coolsville for a while. The hysteria of Justin's sentencing had died down now and the town was almost back to its quiet pre-Devon days. They had agreed to take a break from mystery solving anyway after such a fraught time in the entire last year both in America and in Europe, but it was looking likely that it might have to be a permanent break. Ironically, without Devon's influence to instigate mayhem, the calmness of the town meant the gang were somewhat out of a job. Although this state of unemployment wasn't exactly unwelcome, it did mean they might have to revisit their options for the future soon, with nearly a year sliding by since Devon's death in the blink of an eye.
They both knew that receiving that many missed calls from Velma was unlikely going to bring good news. They didn't have too long to agonise over it as she quickly made attempt number 246 to contact Fred or Daphne.
"Hi?" Daphne said tentatively and had to hold her phone away from her ear as Velma gave her both barrels crossly.
"Oh my god! Finally! Where the hell have you two been?! I was starting to think the worst."
"We've just been out hiking and got caught..."
"Forget it! I don't want to know!" Velma rudely interrupted. "Can Fred hear me?"
Daphne put the phone on speaker. "He can now."
"Hey Velma," Fred shouted from the driver's seat.
"Fred! We have a major shitstorm going down!" Velma said, a hint of panic creeping in now. "Have you guys really not heard?"
Fred and Daphne looked at each other in concern. They had been caught in an altogether different kind of storm but they were immediately worried by Velma's words now. Poor Fred was even just starting to think that if even he and Daphne weren't cursed as a couple, then he definitely was. He couldn't forget how his original proposal plan in Hawaii was scuppered by Devon's attack in Coolsville. Now they were finally engaged for barely an hour and the universe was turning against them again it seemed. Steeling himself for the absolute worst he calmly instructed. "Just tell us Velma."
"It's Talia! We had a suspicion she wouldn't stop digging and we were right! She just went public with the news that we were involved that night and is planning a news special tonight to expose all the juicy details!"
"What?!" As annoyed as Fred was by the news, he was just relieved it wasn't anything worse than that. "Have they tried to contact you?"
"Ha!" Velma laughed. "They got here a couple of hours ago and they're not ready to leave. I was just waiting until we made sure you two hadn't been abducted by aliens, and then we're heading out of here by the fire escape. How far away are you?"
"About an hour and a half tops?"
"OK, meet us at the bunker at 6. Everyone has moved out of it now but Rory left a back way for us to get in should we ever need it."
"Oh great," Daphne sat back in her seat when Velma finished the call. "She's just made us the hottest property in Coolsville once again. How did she find out?"
"Truthfully, I'm amazed it's been hidden for this long actually Daph," Fred commented. "And she has been like a dog with a bone since Day One!"
At 6pm, two hours before Talia's scheduled exposure, the gang and Ethan met up in the bunker again to discuss what to do next.
"Maybe we come clean and give our version of events before her?" Daphne suggested.
"We don't need to 'come clean' about anything Daphne," Ethan reasoned. "We haven't done anything wrong. It was never our decision to hide your involvement."
At 8pm every television set in Coolsville was glued to Talia's eye catching 'exclusive.'
With the eyes of the town on her, Talia presented her information smugly.
"For almost a year, people have wondered whether we were fed the full story of how Devon Blake was trapped and then murdered at the Coolsville Docks by one rogue police officer. Well, I can exclusively reveal tonight that we were not! An enormous cover-up has taken place to mask the real story that night. A security tape has come into my possession of an extraordinary orchestrated deception by one Mystery Incorporated. Yes, despite being assured by our wonderful police no-one else was involved in Devon's arrest, this was a bare-faced lie as the tape I'm now going to show you proves."
"She's bluffing right?" Shaggy said in astonishment as they sat in the bunker watching intently. "No tape exists?!"
But Shaggy was proven incorrect quickly as he and everyone else was instantly transported back to everything that happened that night.
Talia paused on the video to narrate it. "You see there?" she pointed out to her audience. "That's Fred Jones, Shaggy Rogers and Velma Dinkley. And there held in the arms of some dude in a werewolf mask is...Daphne Blake. The four human members of Mystery Incorporated who had nothing to do with this case? Keep watching. I advise viewers of a nervous disposition to look away now."
"She's surely not going to show us being shot?!" Velma said in surprise, but that was exactly what she did show, including the subsequent turning of the werewolves attack on Devon and the return of Fred, Velma and Shaggy as they had flipped the tables on Devon.
"My, my, what a complicated plot twist we have here!" Talia narrated triumphantly. "If you didn't catch it on the footage, a quick explanation. Fred, Velma and Shaggy were all shot by this masked werewolf, presumably on Devon Blake's orders as you can see him here, just in shot. As he approaches Daphne, his niece, those masked werewolves VIOLENTLY attack Blake; and Fred, Velma and Shaggy re-appear as if by magic, fully unhurt. Well, I don't know about you but I find this absolutely EXTRAORDINARY folks. We will not be showing you the remaining footage as it contains Blake's brutal murder but this certainly poses some truly shocking questions I'm sure you will agree! Why has this tape only surfaced now? Why was the clear involvement of Mystery Inc. hidden from the public? You can be assured I will be pushing for answers. This darkest of moments is yet to truly unravel."
The gang stared open-mouthed as the broadcast finished.
"Where the hell did that tape come from?!" Fred gasped, absolutely stunned by the footage which immediately opened up old wounds for all of them.
I guess we never even thought about the security cameras," Velma said. "I can only imagine the tapes were then seized by the FBI, but they were never used as evidence against Justin, so who has had them all this time, and then leaked them to Talia freaking Roberts of all people?!"
"The problem isn't so much how they got to her but that they did," Ethan said seriously. "It looks especially bad that it's been covered up. If you thought they would't leave you alone because of your 'suspected' involvement, they're just going to be absolutely relentless now. So, the question is, what are we going to do?"
One month later. September 2013
Absolutely nobody believed the answer to Ethan's question was to go to Hawaii and even less so for Fred and Daphne to get married there and then, but that's exactly how the extraordinary trip ended, much to everyone's surprise, not least Fred and Daphne. It turned out things moved very quickly once the cat was out of the bag about the engagement...
Suggestions were made very quickly about getting out of Coolsville for a while, which were hard to argue against but there was certainly a lot of heated disagreement about how far they needed to go and whether they should indeed go together.
"You guys," Fred shouted, struggling to be heard over the arguing between Velma and Ethan particularly about where they should go. Ethan was set on just leaving State but Velma was arguing the case to go further afield than that. Ethan loudly argued back that they weren't 'on the run for Christ's sake!'. When Fred yelled, they all stopped immediately.
"Okay," he said. "Now I might have a suggestion about where we could go but I need to make an announcement first." Ethan, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby were all staring at Fred curiously. None of them had noticed how Daphne had resolutely kept her hands in her pocket the entire time she had been stood in the bunker. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Well, actually we have an announcement to make..."
As soon as Fred said 'we', Velma guessed immediately and she was already squealing before Daphne finally exaggeratedly extended her hand out of her jacket.
"FUCK! NO WAY NO FUCKING WAY! TODAY!?" she rambled incoherently as Daphne flashed the ring at them all. It was a close race as to whether Ethan or Velma reached them first but it was pretty much a tie as Velma nearly knocked over Daphne in her excitement to hug her, and Ethan jumped on Fred.
"You got freaking engaged!? When?! How?! How did you not tell us the second you walked through the door?!" Ethan bombarded them with questions.
Shaggy looked at them in amusement. "Today? Like when it was blowing a hooley out there?! What happened to your grand and elaborate engagement plans Freddy?"
Daphne and Fred had their friends' rapt attention now and happily filled them in on Fred's spontaneous wet and wild proposal, to more squeals of excitement from Ethan and Velma especially.
Once the congratulations were over, attention once again turned to what they were going to do next. Equally as spontaneous as Fred's proposal, they all piled into the Mystery Machine together and drove through the night upstate.
While their friends slept in the van, in the campsite they had found, Daphne and Fred stayed up to discuss wedding plans. They lay on their backs on the grass, looking at the stars, their arms entwined together.
"I need it to be outside," Daphne said dreamily. "Just a small ceremony in front of our closest friends, that's all I want," she said flipping over to lean on her elbows and looked directly at him serenely. "Classy, simple, intimate – that's my three must-haves."
"Sounds perfect," said Fred. They both had small families so a huge wedding wasn't something either were keen on.
"So, tell me Fred, what were these grand and elaborate proposal plans Shaggy was alluding to?" she smiled coquettishly.
"Daph, that's in the past. I happen to think it couldn't have gone more perfect."
Daphne wrinkled her nose, remembering the state she was in earlier. "Perfect?"
"To me you are perfect," Fred said, leaning to kiss her again. "But if you must know, the original plan was to do it in Hawaii."
"Hawaii!" She sat up quickly, her eyes shining in excitement. "Fred! That's perfect!"
"Er sweetheart, we're already engaged!" Fred pointed out the obvious and Daphne rolled her eyes at him.
"Well yes, I meant for the wedding silly! Oh Fred, I can't imagine anything I want more than a beachfront wedding! Imagine having it on that little cove beach! Do you think it's possible? About a year or two from now?" Her pupils were practically dancing with happiness now.
Fred smiled and lay back to look at the stars again, with Daphne cuddled up on his side. "Sounds gorgeous." He closed his eyes blissfully, feeling truly contented as he thought about where they could go next, preferring to avoid the kerfuffle in Coolsville that was kicking off, and then opened them again to see the twinkling stars. He couldn't swear he saw an actual shooting star but the idea hit him like a shooting star.
"No, not a year or two from now. Now. As soon as we can, let's go to Hawaii and get married Daphne!"
"Fred, you can't be serious! You can't plan a wedding that quickly, that's insane!"
"Who says it's not possible?" He grinned. "Sounds like a challenge to me!"
Daphne looked at Fred incredulously. "You're serious? You think we could actually organise a wedding that quickly?"
"I don't want to wait another minute longer than I have to, to marry you, Daphne. Makani and Akuma said we were welcome back in Honolulu anytime. I really think we can make this work! You said yourself you wanted a simple ceremony; I think we can do this."
Daphne's heart pounded in excitement as she considered it. "You're right! Location, flowers, dress, rings, a priest. Oh my god Fred I'm picturing it now. Oh my god we're getting married!"
"I'll phone Makani first thing in the morning," Fred resolved.
"I can't wait to tell the others!" Daphne sighed joyfully and Fred shook his head playfully.
"No. We won't tell them Daphne. We'll sell it as a vacation and we won't tell them until we get there!"
"You are an evil genius, Fred Jones. In that case I am taking Velma as my secret maid of honour!"
"And I'm taking Shaggy and Ethan as my secret best men," Fred said but Daphne was shaking her head sweetly. "What? Oh! Yeah, OK Shaggy and Scooby then."
And so the next morning, Fred and Daphne innocently sold their Hawaii vacation plan to the others while secretly any moment they got, put the plans in motion for their impromptu nuptials, and despite having two stellar detectives, the world's most impressive dog and investigative reporter on the team, they fully got away with it with no meddling.
Just three weeks after Fred's mad plan, nearly everything was in place. Makani had been absolutely bowled over by the news they were engaged and wanting to get married in Hawaii, and began to plan everything, securing a permit for the part of beach that Daphne had fallen in love with, and arranging a recently ordained friend for the ceremony.
They all touched down in Hawaii two days before the planned ceremony, with Fred making a secret visit to the cove to begin decorating with Makani and Akuma and the friends they had brought alone to help. Finding Daphne a dress was proving trickier but Makani's sister soon came up trumps. There was only one way to get Shaggy, Ethan, Velma and Scooby to the cove and Daphne and Fred struggled to keep straight faces as Makani rushed in to their camp ealy afternoon on the second day while they were all sunbathing.
"Friends, you will not believe it! But some strange Fish Creature has been seen at the cove again! I think we might have another smuggler!"
"A mystery! Here?" Fred said sounding overwhelmed. "Makani, I don't know it's been so long since we even solved a mystery, I'm not sure that we can..."
"We'll be glad to help!" Velma jumped in excitedly. "Let's go check it out!"
"Do we have to?" Shaggy pouted. "A fish creature? Really?"
Velma grabbed his arm and pulled him behind Makani who led the way to the cove. Ethan shook his head in amusement and followed, not used to being an active part of their mystery solving. Daphne and Fred brought up the rear on the short walk across the beach to the cove, sharing excited glances at each other. For Daphne it was going to be the first time she saw the setting and she could feel the butterflies fluttering now.
She could see the look of utter confusion on Velma's face as it was evident there was no fish creature, only a beautiful decorated arch in front of the water with a couple of nicely decorated benches on either side. "Uh Makani? I don't see any evidence of any smuggler!"
"There is no mystery Velma." Fred stated with a serious expression on his face. "And I never suggested coming to Hawaii for a vacation."
"What?" Shaggy said in consternation. "What's going on guys?"
Daphne and Fred and Makani couldn't keep the smiles from their faces now.
"You're here for our wedding guys," Daphne said, hugging Fred tightly. She thought Velma would start screaming again but she broke down in tears at the true romanticism of the situation.
"Oh my god," she sniffed, looking around at the beautiful setting. "This is...amazing! I can't believe this! How the hell did you guys pull this off? You only got engaged like less than a month ago!"
"Makani really helped," Daphne said gratefully, looking at their beaming host. "The ceremony is at 7 pm tonight, just as the sun is setting. Velma, I would love it if you're my maid of honour."
Velma sniffled again and then hugged Daphne, still looking at the beach in awe. "This is so perfect," she sniffed. "Of course I will!"
"And you two," Fred said, warmly approaching Shaggy and Scooby. "I would be honoured if you would be my best men!"
Ethan kept the smile on his face but Daphne saw the look of utter crestfallen disappointment at Fred's 'snub' that had flickered briefly. They all assumed enough time had passed for Fred to well and truly forgive Ethan but it seemed not.
Daphne smoothly took Ethan aside. "Daphne, this is just the most beautiful, sneaky little thing you have ever pulled off. I still can't believe it."
Daphne smiled as he tried to cover up his obvious disappointment. "He wanted you, of course he wanted you," she told him warmly. "But I said he couldn't have you. I have an even more important job for you," she said taking his hand and smiling. Ethan knew immediately what she was going to ask, and it was his turn to cry a little now as she asked the question. "Ethan, will you give me away?"
The next hours were a little frantic as everyone got ready. Velma cried again when she saw Daphne's dress and helped her with her simple hair and make-up. She looked truly elegant. At 6.55 pm, a gentle breeze was blowing but everything was in place.
Fred had an ocean blue shirt on with white chinos, true to Hawaiian tradition, Shaggy placed a flower garland around Fred's neck. It wasn't entirely dissimiliar to the one he had placed around his neck the last time they had been in Hawaii. If Shaggy thought Fred had been nervous that evening before he had planned to propose to Daphne here, it was nothing compared to the last-minute nerves he was exhibiting now.
"Oh my god Shaggy! What are we doing?! What kind of crazy people get engaged and then married straight away! Why has no one stopped to tell us how insane this is."
"Fred, this is probably the best idea you have ever had. Take a breath and look around you. Almost a year ago we were in this room, you were gearing up to ask Daphne to marry you. Nobody could have predicted the awful thing that happened next, and it only got worse from that point. We lost good friends. We witnessed some terrible things. Things that still haunt me now, but this Fred? This is hope. This is new beginnings."
"Thanks Shaggy," Fred said quietly, hugging him close. "Okay, I think I'm ready."
Makani had roped in a couple of friends to play steel drums so the atmosphere was delightfully laid-back and calm. Makani, Akuma were sat rapturously on the benches as the minister stood under the arch with a still very nervous Fred, who was looking out to the calm waters beyond, and the sky which was a beautiful hazy reddish purple now as the final glimmers of sunlight faded.
The breezy tune they were playing on the steel drums soon changed to the familiar wedding march and Fred stiffened further now as Shaggy, looking handsome in a red shirt, fixed Fred's flower back onto his breast pocket. He leaned over ever so slightly into Fred's ear and whispered, breathe.
Fred did, taking deep, calmful breaths before he finally dared to glance behind.
Velma was shyly walking down the mini flower adorned aisle first; she looked beautiful in a deep orange jumpsuit, like all of them she was barefoot and her hair was set loosely about her shoulders, she carried a pretty bouquet of flowers with shades of purple and white. When she reached the arch she stood off to the side and Fred got the full glimpse of his bride now and his breath caught in his throat. With Ethan proudly linking arms with her, she was gliding down the aisle, smiling serenely. Fred drank in every inch of her appearance, committing it to memory. Daphne would look sensational wearing a pillow-case to get married in, but even for a last-minute wedding, she had pulled out all the stops. The dress was billowy and floor-length and it whipped up gently in the breeze that had set in, there was a slash all the way up past her knee on one side, exposing her toned leg. The dress was an off the shoulder style, further revealing her shoulders and perfect neckline. She had kept her hair down and bouncing in soft beachy waves and finished the look with a large purple dahlia that set off her hair beautifully. Fred could feel the tears already and she hadn't even reached him yet.
"Hold it together Jones," Velma whispered crossly from across the aisle.
Ethan kissed his sister's cheek and unhooked his arm as he gave her away to stand next to Fred, as they faced the minister Makani had arranged to perform the incredibly intimate ceremony. Like Makani, he was a large and warm man with a beaming smile as he turned to Fred and Daphne before him and addressed the very small group present.
"Friends," he began. "The journey to this moment, I know has been incredibly tumultuous for all, and this is far from the ceremony I would usually perform," he added to light chuckles from Shaggy, and Ethan, who leaned across to whisper to Velma when have these two ever done anything traditionally? and Velma elbowed him good-naturedly.
"In spirit of this, Fred and Daphne have asked that we take a moment to honour those loved ones who are no longer with us today. Please take a moment of silence."
After an incredibly poignant silence for all of them, the minister continued.
"Makani has told me much about your extraordinary adventures but it is clear only one thing has remained consistent and that is the love you undoubtedly share for each other, and I'm delighted to be able to unionise that bond here in our beautiful state, on this gorgeous evening. Fred, do you take Daphne to be your wife, and in so doing, give yourself to her, freely, fully and gladly? Do you agree to take the bad with the good, the difficult with the easy, the anguish with the joy, the defeat with triumph? And do you promise to love her, come what may?"
He gave a soft chuckle at the choice of words, before saying his part whole-heartedly. "I do."
The minister then turned towards Daphne. "And Daphne, do you willingly take Fred to be your husband, and in so doing, give yourself to him, freely, fully and gladly? Do you agree to take the bad with the good, the difficult with the easy, the anguish with the joy, the defeat with triumph? And do you promise to love him, come what may?"
"I certainly do," she giggled in anticipation.
The minister smiled kindly at her eagerness and turned to Shaggy who quickly handed over the rings. "A ring is an unbroken circle, with ends that have been joined together, and represents your union. It is a symbol of infinity, and of your infinite love. Fred, can you place the ring on Daphne's finger and repeat after me: Daphne, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love with the pledge: to love you today, tomorrow, always, and forever."
Fred intoned it faithfully and carefully placed the ring on her finger, and the minister then urged Daphne to repeat the pledge, and before he knew it, she was squeezing a ring onto his finger and he looked down at it in amazement. Oh, My God.
The minister was beaming widely now and Velma and Ethan were already dabbing at their faces with well concealed tissues.
"Fred and Daphne, before these witnesses, you have pledged to be joined in marriage. You have now sealed this pledge with your wedding rings. By the authority vested in me by The American Marriage Ministries and the great State of Hawaii, I now pronounce you married. Fred, you may kiss the bride!"
Daphne threw her arms around his neck and he dipped her slightly as he gave her a long kiss. They had really done it!
The rest of the evening passed by in a blur of quiet and then private celebration for the happy couple. At the airport the next day once they had reunited and had dealt with Talia's gatecrashing, they were enjoying each other's company while they waited for the long-delayed flight home. They knew they would have to face the cameras when they arrived back home but that was a 'tomorrow' kind of problem.
Daphne raised her eyebrow at Fred when she saw exactly what Fred was googling on his phone.
"Fred," she warned. "You know he'll kill you right? We should know by now not to interfere! So much time has passed now!"
"I know Daph but when I first started looking, it seemed an impossible task but look at how much progress I've made already! I really think that I could find him soon! Besides, I'm not the only one with a little project am I?" he teased.
They were startled when Velma suddenly appeared in front of them, a sly smile on her face.
"So, I know we all agreed to go back home and face the music together which is so kind of you, but have you guys even thought about a honeymoon yet?"
Daphne and Fred exchanged a look and Fred nodded obviously giving permission to talk about something they had discussed.
"Well actually, yes. It won't be for a while yet, but we kind of have settled on somewhere. We were thinking of going back to Europe, specifically Italy."
"Italy? Wow." Velma was surprised. "I mean it was a beautiful country from the parts we saw of it but I just thought...well, bad memories?"
Fred squeezed her fingers hard. Daphne's determined facial expression didn't waver as she looked at Fred lovingly. "Yes, well we can't allow the past to haunt us forever." Fred stared at her resolutely. A silent understanding passing between the couple that Velma for once didn't pick up on.
"So what about you Velma?" Fred teased. "You and Shaggy have been going steady for almost a year, right? Any wedding bells?"
Her expression immediately soured and she scowled. "Don't push it, Jones."
2 Days later
"Ah alone at last," Fred sighed happily as they climbed the stairs to their apartment after finally dealing with the press once and for all. "I'm so glad that's over with."
"Me too," Daphne said tiredly, giving a little yawn. As they rounded the corner on their floor, Fred suddenly stooped to pick her up in preparation, an action that predictably had Daphne squealing in protest.
"Come on, it's tradition to carry you over the threshold, welcome home Mrs. Jones!" They kissed and he extravagantly carried her towards the door when they both stopped dead when they realised they were not alone after all.
"Hey," Daphne said in annoyance, assuming for sure the woman outside their apartment door was a reporter. "Did you miss the memo? We've said all we have to say on the matter. It's over."
The woman blinked in surprise at the redhead's abrasive comment as the blond carried them a little closer to her now. She saw the look of surprise and then agony flash across his handsome features and her heart ached again for all the pain she had caused him.
Fred almost dropped Daphne in pure astonishment as he realised the woman was not a reporter at all. He couldn't form the words to speak at all. "I've tried to call," she stammered. "A few times, but I lost my nerve every time," she said speaking only to Fred now. "I'm so, so sorry... son."
A.N. OKAY! I know that seems very cliff-hanger (y) but it is merely a huge plot thread to pull on for me to return to this world in the future. In the immediate future, you might well have noticed a couple of subtler plot threads left open there, one of which I will be announcing soon in a special one-shot. After that, I will be closing the book on this universe for a while.
I cannot BELIEVE how much I have written, both in this story and in New Beginnings. It's absolutely incomprehensible to me. I remember when I first conceived New Beginnings, I didn't think ANYONE would be interested in such a nuts plot! At the time there were very few dark Scooby Doo stories so I felt I was firmly in my own niche. Thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed this crazy journey.
I always knew I wanted this sequel to come full circle from how it began and I hope you are all very happy with how it turns out.
AA.