Sponge: Here's chapter 9! Thanks for reading. Warning: language, as always, plus kissing and mentions of attempted suicide in the play. Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Scooby Doo characters. They belong to Cartoon Network, Warner Brothers, and Hanna-Barbera. All dialogue in bold comes from the Next to Normal script. The lyrics to the songs "I Dreamed A Dance", "There's a World," and "A Light in the Dark" belong to Brian Yorkey.
Chapter 9: A Light in the Dark
Because they'd left the dance so suddenly, Velma hadn't been able to ask Daphne how her conversation with Fred had gone, so she had to wait till rehearsal the next morning. She couldn't very well ask her in the Mystery Machine though, as Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby were all in hearing distance, and only found a chance to talk to Daphne alone as they headed to their dressing room once they arrived at school.
"So…" Velma ventured as they dropped off their bags and scripts. "How'd it go?"
"How'd what go?" asked Daphne.
"Your conversation with Fred," Velma replied. "Did you ever tell him?"
Daphne sighed and shut the dressing room door. "No," she said in a low voice as she sat on the couch.
Velma frowned sympathetically. "I'm sorry, Daph. What happened?"
"Mr. Aiken happened," Daphne replied ruefully. "He was like, this close to catching us." She pushed her thumb and forefinger together so they were less than a centimeter apart.
"Catching you doing what?" asked Velma.
Daphne felt her face turn red, and the blush spoke for itself.
Velma sighed. "Daph, come on. First in the parking lot, then in the hall…next thing you know, you'll be going at it on Scooby's ASM desk."
"Um," said Daphne, her face reddening even further.
Velma rolled her eyes. "Daphne!" she scolded. "What the hell?"
"I can't help it!" Daphne exclaimed. "Every time I get close to telling him I love him, I freak out with nerves and can't do it. It's a big thing to say to somebody – and honestly, his head is so wrapped up in this mystery, I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't say it back. I worry about it all the time, and fooling around with him relieves a lot of that stress. I can't describe it – it's like when I'm kissing him, all my worries just…disappear." She shrugged. "Besides, it would be a lot less scary to tell him I love him if I don't have to look him in the eye when I say it."
Velma arched an eyebrow. "Won't it be better if you're looking him in the eye when you say it?"
Daphne shrugged again. Desperate to change the subject, she poked Velma's shoulder. "By the way, what was up with you and Tony last night? I saw you dancing with him. Are you guys back together? What happened to Shaggy?"
Velma felt embarrassment color her cheeks. "Nothing's happening with Shaggy. I'd rather just be friends anyway. Nothing's happening with Tony, either. He just wants to be friends, too. He told me so himself."
Daphne raised her eyebrows. "That's a lot of guys you just 'want to be friends with', Velm."
Velma scowled. "It is not a lot – it's literally just two. Besides, you're friends with both of them too."
"But I don't have history with either of them," Daphne replied. "One is your ex, and the other one you're in love with."
Velma's eyes grew wide. "I'm not in love with Shaggy!" she hissed, standing up. "Listen, my performance has been suffering lately and I think Holden's right – it's because Shaggy and I haven't been meeting. But that does not mean I'm in love with him. All I want is to be his friend. And I'm going to go find him now to talk in the practice room so we can get our onstage chemistry back." With that, she hurried out of the dressing room before Daphne could say anything else.
Velma caught Shaggy as he and Scooby came out of the boy's dressing room.
"Ri, Relma," Scooby said.
"Hey Scoob," she replied, gathering her courage. To Shaggy, she said, "Practice room?"
Shaggy avoided eye contact with Scooby, gulped, and nodded. Scooby said nothing, just headed for the house alone, though Shaggy thought he saw the dog give him a knowing look. Regardless, Shaggy followed Velma down the hall to their practice room (when had he started thinking of it as theirs?) and waited as she closed the door behind them. Was she about to tell him she was going back to Tony? Was she here to end things between them, once and for all?
"I'm sorry," she said as soon as the door was closed.
Shaggy's breath caught. This wasn't what he'd been expecting.
"I said a lot of things I didn't mean the last time we were in here. And I put a lot of pressure on you," she continued. "I'm happy keeping things the way they are right now. Your and Scooby's friendship means a lot to me, and I don't want to lose that for the sake of some kind of relationship that might not even work. We don't have to put a label on whatever this is. I just want my friend back. And if you want to cool it on the physical stuff, I understand," she finished. A blush had risen steadily to her cheeks during her speech, but she'd maintained eye contact throughout. See, Daph, she thought ruefully. I can have a scary conversation with a guy while looking him in the eye. You should be able to do this, too.
The relief that Velma wanted things to go back to normal between them was so visceral that it made Shaggy feel physically lighter. But he wasn't out of the woods yet. He had been the one to cause the problem in the first place, after all. Shaggy knew the right thing to do was to apologize back. He even knew exactly what he should say. I'm sorry too. I said some stupid shit the other week that I shouldn't have said. The words were right there. It would be so easy.
But it didn't happen.
"We like, don't have to cut out the physical stuff," he blurted. "I think it's really helping us. As like, actors." Also, Shaggy was so frustrated from not doing anything for the past two weeks that he was having a difficult time not pouncing on Velma right now, but he was definitely not about to say that to her. "Like, if you're okay with that?"
Velma bit her lip. Was she okay with that? The fact that Shaggy wanted to keep up the physical relationship, even under the guise of "acting," was enough to encourage her.
"Are you sure?" she whispered.
A moment later, Shaggy had locked the door and taken Velma into his arms in a fierce and passionate kiss.
He had missed this. God had he missed this – the feel of her soft body in his arms, her sweet and spicy vanilla-cinnamon scent, the taste of her lips on his. He pulled her closer, savoring her. The way she gripped him tightly and sighed into the kiss was all the proof he needed that she'd been missing this just as much as he'd been.
She opened her mouth against him and let his tongue claim her. Her knees went weak at the contact, and she pulled herself closer to him. Daphne was right. There was something about being physically close to Shaggy that made all Velma's anxieties evaporate. And it was true – they didn't have to put a label on themselves. All she needed was to know that he wanted this as much as she did.
x.X.x
Scooby came to retrieve them a few minutes later, and though he didn't really understand, he didn't want to confront Shaggy again. He remained resolute about this as everyone in the cast arrived and dropped off their backpacks and scripts in the dressing rooms. If Shaggy said there was nothing going on with Velma, then nothing was going on with Velma. Scooby trusted him unconditionally. Besides, Scooby was far too preoccupied with the show to worry much about anything that might be happening with Shaggy and Velma.
The subject matter of the play was getting darker now as rehearsals wore on. Today they were rehearsing the scene where Daphne's character Diana is advised to begin electroshock therapy after a suicide attempt, and Scooby was not looking forward to it. Mostly he worried about Shaggy, and wondered if this would bring up complicated, unpleasant memories for him.
Daphne/Diana stood on stage with Holden/Gabe, having just finished the waltz in "I Dreamed a Dance." Scooby looked over his shoulder and watched Shaggy closely. He sat several rows behind Scooby, near Velma, Fred, and Tony, and stared off into space. It looked as though he was trying not to pay much attention to the lyrics. Scooby wished so badly he could comfort his master, but he had to stay near the stage with Leesa in case someone needed a line.
"I'll dream, my love," Daphne/Diana sang tearfully as Holden/Gabe turned to go.
"I'll live, my love
And I'll die to dance with…"
At this, Holden/Gabe turned back to her, and Daphne/Diana stopped singing.
"Oh, shit," Tony murmured, getting up from his seat to climb the stairs to the wings. He'd forgotten he was supposed to enter near the end of the next song. Fred scooted past Shaggy and Velma to go backstage as well.
"There's a world," Holden/Gabe sang, as the pit orchestra began an eerie tune.
"There's a world I know
A place we can go
Where the pain will go away
There's a world where the sun shines each day…"
Scooby turned away from the stage to look back at Shaggy again. He stared straight ahead without really seeing the action. Scooby noticed Velma glancing at Shaggy as well, and he made eye contact with her. Velma looked back at Shaggy, then glanced at Scooby again with a questioning gaze. Scooby just shook his head. It was a lot to get into, and impossible to have that conversation across this expanse. Besides, Shaggy should really be the one to talk about it if he wanted to.
"There's a world
There's a world out there," Holden/Gabe was singing again, enticing Daphne/Diana to look at him.
"What do you think of a fog effect here?" Leesa whispered to Scooby. "I think it might really enhance the whole supernatural, ominous atmosphere?" Without waiting for Scooby to reply, she made a note in her production binder.
"I'll show you just where,
And in time I know you'll see…
There's a world where we can be free…"
Scooby shivered involuntarily. He wasn't sure Holden needed a fog machine. He was doing fine being creepy all on his own.
"Come with me."
As Holden sang, Tony entered with a clipboard, as Dr. Madden.
"Goodman, Diana," he said, reading the notes on the clipboard.
"Come with me…" Holden/Gabe sang.
Tony/Dr. Madden: "Discovered unconscious at home."
Holden/Gabe: "There's a world where we can be free…"
Tony/Dr. Madden: "Multiple razor wounds to wrists and forearms. Self-inflicted."
This last was said seriously, and the music underneath trailed off before Holden/Gabe came in with his final sung line.
"Come with me…"
With this, he reached for Daphne/Diana, who looked at him uncertainly for a moment before taking his hand.
"Saline rinse, sutures and gauze," Tony/Dr. Madden said as the music faded out. "IV antibiotics. Isolated, sedated, and restrained." A sigh. "Damn it…"
Daphne/Diana followed Holden/Gabe offstage in one direction as Fred/Dan entered from the other, holding his script and looking worried.
"ECT is indicated," Tony/Dr. Madden said to him.
Fred/Dan exhaled as the weight of this hit him.
"Wow. I mean…they still do that?" he asked.
"Cut!" Mr. Atwood called. "Everyone's doing great so far. It's a heavy subject matter, and you guys are doing awesome. I just want to make sure everybody's okay. Anyone need a break?"
Everyone shook their heads.
"Fantastic," Mr. Atwood said. "Let's continue with this scene. Jones, you think you can handle 'I've Been' today?"
"Yes sir," Fred replied.
"Great," said Mr. Atwood. "Then let's go. Action!"
Velma scooted past Shaggy to wait in the wings, as she had a scene after the song. Fred and Tony finished their scene, Fred keeping his script held out in front of him, to Daphne's annoyance. The good news was that his songs were absolutely phenomenal – Daphne actually felt herself swoon as he sang "I've Been" – and his acting was good, too, in spite of his dependency on his script.
After Fred's song, Velma entered from the wings. Shaggy watched from his seat in the house.
"Dad," she murmured. "Why didn't you take me with you?"
Fred looked at his script. "We don't see you much these days," he said. "Is this Henry a good influence?"
Velma/Natalie fixed him with a dubious glare. "Like, compared to what?"
Fred/Dan sighed. "Okay, that's fair."
On the other side of the stage, Tony and Daphne entered for a split scene. Holden stood near Daphne, watching unseen by the other characters.
"The aftereffects are minimal," Tony/Dr. Madden said. "You'll feel a bit like you have a hangover."
Holden/Gabe looked at Daphne/Diana, stricken. "Mom, don't let them do this. It causes brain damage."
Back in the other scene, Fred/Dan said, "Your mother's in for a new treatment. ECT."
"Okay," Velma/Natalie replied. "L-M-N-O-P – what is that? I don't know."
Shaggy snorted, despite himself. She'd delivered that line well. And it was something that Velma might actually say in real life.
"Electroconvulsive therapy," Fred/Dan said, still looking at his script. "Shock therapy."
Tony/Dr. Madden kept going. "A minority of patients report some memory loss, but it's usually not much memory."
Holden/Gabe crossed his arms. "How do you know how much memory you've lost if you've lost it?"
Velma/Natalie was staring at Fred/Dan in disbelief. "You're kidding, right? Dad! That's bullshit."
"Language!" Fred/Dan said sternly.
Tony/Dr. Madden was still talking to Daphne/Diana. "Patients have said it's like becoming a new person."
"It's bullshit," Velma/Natalie repeated, fixing Fred/Dan with an icy stare. "She trusts you." She turned and exited to the wings.
"Natalie!" Fred/Dan cried as he followed her off.
"Cut!" called Mr. Atwood. "Nice job with the split scene, everyone. Jones, think you can you try it again without your script?"
Fred's face turned red. "Um…" he hedged.
Mr. Atwood sighed. "Never mind. Let's go into the next number. Blake, are you ready?"
Daphne nodded, pushing aside her frustration with Fred's dependency on his script. Velma headed back to her seat in the house with Shaggy.
"Hey," she murmured to him as Daphne began to sing. "Are you okay? You've seemed…not yourself today."
Shaggy nodded. He didn't want to get into all of the memories this play was dredging up for him. "Yeah I'm fine. I'm like…" he shrugged. "I'm just glad we're like, talking again."
Velma smiled wanly. "I am too," she said. She could tell there was something else going on, and from the eyebrow messages she and Scooby had exchanged earlier, she figured it was a long story, whatever it was. But it wasn't her place to pry, so she swallowed her curiosity to watch Daphne's song.
Daphne/Diana finished singing to Tony/Dr. Madden her thoughts on the electroconvulsive therapy and was about to exit, when Fred/Dan re-entered. His expression was pleading.
"One light shines in the drive," he sang
"One single sign that our house is alive
Our house, our own
So why do I live there alone?"
"He's like, really good," Shaggy whispered to Velma.
"I know," she replied. "It's too bad he can't remember his lines."
"Like, what do you think that's about?" Shaggy asked. "The rest of us are doing okay. Do you think he's like, too distracted by the mystery and the Phantom?"
Velma gestured towards the stage with a shrug. "He doesn't seem distracted now." Shaggy turned to watch the song as Fred continued singing.
"Tell me why I wait through the night
And why do I leave on the light?
You know. I know.
Our house was a home long ago."
Onstage, Fred/Dan looked at Daphne/Diana imploringly.
"Take this chance," he sang
"Cause it may be our last
To be free,
To let go of the past,
And to try,
To be husband and wife
To let love never die –
Or to just live our life."
Velma watched them intently. They were so good together – both onstage and off. She hoped Daphne would get up the courage to tell Fred she loved him soon. Maybe then they'd be a little more discreet with their intimacies.
"Take my hand," Fred continued, as Daphne did.
"And let me take your heart,
Keep it far
From what keeps us apart –
Let us start
With a light in the dark."
It wasn't quite a love song, but it was romantic. Shaggy thought desperately for something to say to Velma to break the tension.
"Night falls, I stare at the walls," Fred sang, as Daphne echoed,
"I stare at these walls…"
Fred/Dan: "I wake and wander the halls."
Daphne/Diana: "I get lost in these halls…"
Fred/Dan: "And I ache to the bone."
Daphne/Diana: "It's like nothing I've known."
Then, together, they sang, "I can't get through this alone…"
Velma ended up breaking the silence herself. "Speaking of the Phantom," she whispered. "We should stick around after rehearsal today and try to figure out what it was Scooby saw in here last night."
Shaggy gulped. "Like…we know what he saw, Velm. He saw the ghost."
"Shaggy," she admonished lightly. "You and I both know it's not really a ghost."
"Oh yeah?" he muttered. "Like, how can you be so sure?"
"Because literally every single other mystery we've solved has been perpetrated by a person in a costume," she replied rationally. "So the question is…who in this production has the most to gain from sabotaging the play?"
"Like what about the practice room?" Shaggy heard himself say.
Velma turned to him, puzzled. "What about it?"
"Uh…" Shaggy mumbled, embarrassed. "Like, if we investigate…we won't have time to have a…meeting."
"We went without them for two weeks," Velma pointed out. "I think we'll be fine."
"Yeah, at like, the cost of our performance," Shaggy replied.
Velma looked at him seriously. "Shaggy…" she said quietly. "Do you want to go to the practice room after rehearsal to avoid investigating the mystery? Or do you want to go because…of another reason?" Her heart thundered in her chest as she asked, and she waited for his answer with bated breath.
Shaggy felt his mouth go dry. Obviously he didn't want to investigate the haunted theater. But he knew that the real reason he wanted to go to the practice room was so that he had a private place where he could kiss Velma. They'd gone for so long with no physical contact at all. He missed her. He needed her.
But he couldn't tell her any of that.
So he said nothing.
Fred was singing again. "Take this chance
And we'll make a new start
Somewhere far
From what keeps us apart
And I swear that somewhere in the night
There's a light…
A light in the dark."
As the final notes of the song faded out, Daphne/Diana signed the consent form for the ECT. Tony/Dr. Madden entered to take her offstage, as Fred/Dan and Holden/Gabe remained onstage watching them go.
"Cut!" Mr. Atwood cried once they'd exited. He was beaming. "Excellent job everyone. All your hard work has paid off, and we are now officially finished blocking Act I!"
Everyone in the cast and crew clapped and cheered.
"Tomorrow is a federal holiday, so enjoy your day off from school," Mr. Atwood told everyone. "You deserve it. We'll start in on Act II on Tuesday."
Velma turned to Shaggy. "Grab Fred and Scooby, then meet me and Daphne in the girl's dressing room after everyone else has gone. We're going to get to the bottom of this."
Shaggy sighed and nodded. Maybe he and Velma would have some time in the practice room after they'd investigated.
Scooby caught up with Shaggy as he climbed the stairs to the stage.
"Roo rokay?" Scooby asked.
Shaggy exhaled, thoughts of the practice room and the investigation evaporating. He knew what Scooby was referring to. "Yeah, I'm like, fine Scooby Doo. This play is just…like a lot, you know?"
Scooby nodded understandingly and nudged Shaggy's hand affectionately. Shaggy grinned and patted him on the head.
"Rid roo rell Relma?" Scooby asked. "Rye rink rhe ruspects romething."
"Yeah like, she asked me if anything was wrong earlier," Shaggy told him. "But I like, don't think I'm ready to talk about it yet."
Scooby nodded again. Suddenly, he noticed they were alone on the stage. "Rhere ris reveryone?"
Shaggy looked around. Indeed, they were the last two left onstage. The house lights were still on, but the only other source of light on the stage was the ghost light, which Mr. Atwood had taken out and turned on before he left.
"Well, I think like, the girls went to their dressing room," he said. "Fred and the guys must have gone too."
Scooby looked around. There was something spooky about being the only ones here.
"Ret's ro," he said as he turned towards the boys' dressing room.
And froze.
It was hard to see, due to the lack of light, but several feet in front of them, partially hidden behind a curtain, a pallid figure stood watching them. Scooby recognized her immediately. It was the Phantom of the Auditorium.
"RAAAAAH!" he screamed, jumping into Shaggy's arms.
"Oof," Shaggy stumbled under the sudden weight. "Like what's wrong Scoo—" Then Shaggy turned in the direction Scooby was looking and saw the ghostly figure as well.
"ZOINKS!" he cried, sprinting away from her into the boys' dressing room. He still held Scooby aloft, and they barreled directly into Fred.
"Hey!" Fred cried from the ground, where the three of them had formed a mini pile-up.
"What's the matter?" asked Tony, who appeared behind Fred. "You guys okay?"
"Rhe Rantom!" Scooby panted. "Rhe's rack!"
"Like, I saw her too!" Shaggy confirmed.
"Saw who?" asked Tony. He wasn't as well-versed in Scooby's dialect as others.
"The Phantom of the Auditorium," Shaggy and Scooby said together.
Fred suddenly appeared more alert. "You saw her again? Where was she?"
"She was like, standing kinda backstage," Shaggy said. "Near the stairs to the wood loft." They led Fred and Tony to where they'd seen her – and of course, by the time they arrived, she was gone.
"Well, nothing's here now," Fred began.
Suddenly, from the other side of the stage, two familiar voices screamed in horror.
Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby looked at each other aghast. "The girls!" they cried in unison. The three of them sprinted across the stage, Tony close behind.
Daphne and Velma stood in the wings outside of the girl's dressing room. Velma's eyes were wide with shock behind her glasses and Daphne had covered her mouth in fright.
"What's the mat—oh my God," Fred started, then interrupted himself when he saw what they were looking at.
Costumes had been upended from their hangers. Couch cushions had been tossed haphazardly around, while the couch itself, as well as the makeup chairs, had been capsized. The contents of Daphne's purse and Velma's messenger bag had been overturned and strewn around the room. The remains of what had once been their scripts were torn to shreds and littered along the floor. And in menacing red letters on the mirrors were the words, "QUIT, MYSTERY FREAK."
The Phantom had been here for sure. And she'd absolutely decimated the girl's dressing room.
Sponge: Lots of questions here. Who does the Phantom want to quit the play? What's the traumatic thing from Shaggy's past that he refuses to talk about? Is Daphne ever going to tell Fred that she loves him? Only one way to find out. Come back again for the next update! We are at about the mid-way point in the story now, which means I'll be taking a little "intermission" of my own to catch up with life, but fear not! I will post the next installment on Wednesday, March 18th around 10pm EST. In the meantime, review if you please! Thanks for reading!
