Scooby Doo
The Courtship of Velma Dinkley
By Andy Fuller and Kelly Fuller-Browning
This Story was inspired by Littlesoprano's 'Journey of Self Discovery'
Thanks to Jack, Vicky and Joe for the Beta
And a big thank-you to my Cousin Kelly who wrote the end of this episode
Please note I'm British so take that into account with some of the spellings
Chapter 3 - Singing Under The Stars
Ethan leaned on the aft railing and felt the cool evening Atlantic breeze brush pleasantly against his skin as the Seacutter headed further out to sea on it's way to Bermuda. For the past five days since his arrival in Florida the 'Cutter had made it's way slowly up the coast stopping off occasionally to allow Velma's parents to do some of their research until this morning the ship had stared out to sea for the short trip to Bermuda. At the same time Ethan and Velma had taken the time for Velma to teach Ethan how to scuba-dive and although he was no-way near her level yet Velma had been delighted how quickly he'd taken to it and Ethan had found it a great experience and had thoroughly enjoyed his underwater adventures with Velma.
Ethan was pulled from his thoughts by the sensation of Velma's arms going around his waist and her head resting against his shoulder blades. "Hey you," she murmured softly. Ethan now pushed himself off the rails and turned to face her wrapping his own arms around her waist as he did so.
"Hey yourself," he smiled.
"Sorry I was so long," said Velma softly. "Father's got a great scientific mind but he's not particularly good with technology."
"Hey, no problem," said Ethan with a chuckle. "Scott still has to help Mom and Dad set the video at home and he's always moaning to me and the others about how they almost always crash the computer when they use it."
"Oh, mine are alright with the computer," said Velma. "And Mother's alright with most things although she does have trouble with the microwave. But Father..well let's just say he's no technophobe but he still needs his training wheels." At this Ethan gave a snort of laughter while a grin crossed Velma's face.
"So you just give him a push when he needs one eh?" said Ethan as he looked into Velma's eyes, which had a mischievous twinkle.
"Something like that," said Velma giggling softly. She now turned to look at the disappearing coast herself while resting her head against Ethan's chest. "Well, I guess it's just us and the sea for now."
"Looks like it," said Ethan. "How long did you say it would take us to get to Bermuda?"
"About three days give or take a bit," said Velma without looking up.
"Uh-huh," said Ethan resting his chin on top of Velma's head. The couple stayed where they were for a few minutes until Velma pulling away slightly so she could see Ethan's face.
"So what do you want to do now?" she asked looking up with a broad smile. "I mean, we're pretty much ship bound for the next three days." Ethan now looked up and saw something that brought a smile to his face and an idea on how to spend this Evening at least popped into his head.
"Wait here," he said releasing his grip on Velma. "I'll be right back." He now turned and disappeared through the door leading to the cabins leaving Velma standing alone on the deck. She now moved over to a storage bin and hauled herself onto before folding her hands in her lap while her feet swung idly.
Ethan was as good as his word and returned a few minutes later with his guitar and Velma immediately felt a grin cross her face. She'd never been a really big music fan although she'd had her favourites like everyone else but she could spend hours listening to Ethan playing. Ethan himself smiled on seeing that he'd gotten the desired reaction.
"Anything you want in particular?" he asked as he tuned up his guitar.
"No really," said Velma with a shrug. "How about you choose something."
"Okay," said Ethan. "In that case, how about an old classic?" He now started to play a familiar tune and after a couple of bars he looked up at Velma and began to sing the vocals of the song that he was sure even she knew.
Stars shining bright above you
Night breezes seem to whisper, "I love you"
Birds singing in a sycamore tree
Dream a little dream of me.
Ethan's hunch was right; Velma did know the song and now, without any prompting her soft voice joined Ethan's in the second verse.
Say "Nightie-night" and kiss me
Just hold me tight and tell me you'll miss me
While I'm alone and blue as can be
Dream a little dream of me.
As they ended the sing verse Ethan stopped singing and half expected Velma to as well but to his surprise and delight she continued, her gaze looking out to sea.
Stars fading but I linger on, dear;
still craving your kiss
I'm longing to linger till dawn, dear,
just saying this:
At this point Velma seemed to become aware for the first time that Ethan was now merely playing and no longer singing and a wry smile crossed her face as she started the final verse while at the same time moving closer to Ethan.
Sweet dreams till sunbeams find you
Sweet dreams that leave all worries far behind you
But in your dreams whatever they be
Dream a little dream of me.
As Velma finished the song she rested her head on Ethan's shoulder as he now just strummed away gentle.
"You stopped singing," she said although there was no annoyance in her tone. It was merely a statement.
"Yeah, I kinda noticed that," said Ethan with a chuckle. "I thought you were doing pretty good yourself. You didn't need me to finish it with you."
"How did you know I knew the words to that?" asked Velma lifting her head from Ethan's shoulder.
"Lucky guess?" suggested Ethan turning to look at her with a grin. At this Velma raised an eyebrow skeptically.
"Yeah right," she murmured. "Come on, who talked?" At this Ethan's grin widened and he gave a small shrug.
"Okay, maybe I talked to Shaggy," he allowed with a chuckle. At this Velma grinned and shook her head.
"I should have guessed," she said turning to Ethan still wearing a broad grin. "So what else did he tell you I know?"
"Well, how about this one?" said Ethan and he started to play a new tune. It only took Velma a few seconds to recognize it and she rose to the challenge and now started to sing.
Would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
And be better off than you are
Or would you rather be a mule?
A mule is an animal with long funny ears
Kicks up at anything he hears
His back is brawny but his brain is weak
He's just plain stupid with a stubborn streak
And by the way, if you hate to go to school
You may grow up to be a mule
As she reached the end of the verse Velma met Ethan's gaze and a grin filled her boyfriend's face as she started on the chorus.
Or would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
And be better off than you are
Or would you rather be a pig?
At this point Ethan joined in and this time around it was Velma who stopped singing and allowed Ethan to carry on alone.
A pig is an animal with dirt on his face
His shoes are a terrible disgrace
He has no manners when he eats his food
He's fat and lazy and extremely rude
But if you don't care a feather or a fig
You may grow up to be a pig
Or would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
And be better off than you are
Or would you rather be a fish?
Velma now rejoined and the couple continued singing together unaware that they now had an audience in the form of Nick Martz who'd come out for a brief smoke of his pipe.
A fish won't do anything, but swim in a brook
He can't write his name or read a book
To fool the people is his only thought
And though he's slippery, he still gets caught
But then if that sort of life is what you wish
You may grow up to be a fish
A new kind of jumped-up slippery fish
And all the monkeys aren't in the zoo
Every day you meet quite a few
So you see it's all up to you
You can be better than you are
You could be swingin' on a star
As the pair trailed off they were both looking each other in the eyes and so when the sound of hand clapping filled the air the pair both jumped before turning to see Nick Martz standing a few feet away warmly applauding.
"Now that's what I call playing," said the Seacutter's skipper as he crossed over to them smiling broadly.
"Jinkies Nick, you startled us," said Velma pulling a hand through her hair while Ethan gave the older man a sheepish grin.
"Sorry," replied Nick before turning to Ethan and grinned. "Velma wasn't be biased when she said you were good. That was great."
"Thanks, but I just played that one," said Ethan. "Someone else wrote it."
"Maybe so," said Nick with a shrug. "But if you play that well anything you're writing can't be bad either."
"I'd agree with that," said Velma with a grin causing Ethan to glance at her while Nick chuckled.
"Indeed," said Nick with a nod. "I look forward to hearing you on the radio."
"So do I," admitted Ethan. "I still can't quite believe it. I mean, I thought I'd only play clubs at weekends. But here I am just a few months out of College about to start my first album."
"You earned it," said Velma encouragingly. "You'll be a big hit."
"And whatever you do, don't let the critics get to you," added Nick with a chuckle. "Their just failed musicians who are jealous that you've got talent and they haven't."
"I'll try and remember that," said Ethan as Velma snuggled up closer to him. Nick grinned then with a tip of his cap he turned and left the couple alone.
"Do you really think I'll be a hit?" asked Ethan after a couple of minutes. Velma looked up and saw the slight look of doubt on his face.
"Ethan Dace, don't you dare think like that!" she growled menacingly. "You heard the kids at Spooky Island. They loved you..although not nearly as much as I do," she added more softly. Ethan turned and gazed down at her loving face and felt a new wave of confidence rush through his veins.
"What would I do without my number one fan?" he said before moving in and claiming a gently kiss.
When they finally broke apart they returned to silence for a short time until suddenly a bright flash shot through the sky.
"Oh wow!" exclaimed Velma.
"Damn, now that was cool," said Ethan. "I've never seen a shooting star before."
"Really?" replied Velma.
"Nope," said Ethan. "But I did make my wish." Velma was about to reply when something from her childhood just popped into her head and a broad smile crossed her face. Ethan now gave her a curious look. "Vel, what is it?"
Instead of replying Velma merely returned her head to his shoulder and started to sing softly.
When you wish upon a star
Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires
Will come to you
If your heart is in your dream
No request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star
As dreamers do
Fate is kind
She brings to those to love
The sweet fulfillment of
Their secret longing
Like a bolt out of the blue
Fate steps in and sees you through
When you wish upon a star
Your dreams come true
As she finished she looked up at Ethan who just chuckled and shook his head softly. "You really are full of surprises aren't you?"
"You have no idea," replied Velma returning her had to his shoulder while taking hold of one of his hands in hers while his other arm went around her. She then closed her eyes and without intending to soon fell asleep as did Ethan.
Nick Martz was just coming back from his stroll when he saw the couple on the storage locker. For a moment he thought they were just sitting quietly but as he came right up to them he realized they were asleep. With a chuckle the Seacutter's Captain ducked through a door leading to the cabins and grabbed a blanket out of one the empty cabins before returning to the pair and draped the blanket over them.
"Night you pair," he said with a nod and then left them to sleep under the stars.
By Andy Fuller and Kelly Fuller-Browning
This Story was inspired by Littlesoprano's 'Journey of Self Discovery'
Thanks to Jack, Vicky and Joe for the Beta
And a big thank-you to my Cousin Kelly who wrote the end of this episode
Please note I'm British so take that into account with some of the spellings
Chapter 3 - Singing Under The Stars
Ethan leaned on the aft railing and felt the cool evening Atlantic breeze brush pleasantly against his skin as the Seacutter headed further out to sea on it's way to Bermuda. For the past five days since his arrival in Florida the 'Cutter had made it's way slowly up the coast stopping off occasionally to allow Velma's parents to do some of their research until this morning the ship had stared out to sea for the short trip to Bermuda. At the same time Ethan and Velma had taken the time for Velma to teach Ethan how to scuba-dive and although he was no-way near her level yet Velma had been delighted how quickly he'd taken to it and Ethan had found it a great experience and had thoroughly enjoyed his underwater adventures with Velma.
Ethan was pulled from his thoughts by the sensation of Velma's arms going around his waist and her head resting against his shoulder blades. "Hey you," she murmured softly. Ethan now pushed himself off the rails and turned to face her wrapping his own arms around her waist as he did so.
"Hey yourself," he smiled.
"Sorry I was so long," said Velma softly. "Father's got a great scientific mind but he's not particularly good with technology."
"Hey, no problem," said Ethan with a chuckle. "Scott still has to help Mom and Dad set the video at home and he's always moaning to me and the others about how they almost always crash the computer when they use it."
"Oh, mine are alright with the computer," said Velma. "And Mother's alright with most things although she does have trouble with the microwave. But Father..well let's just say he's no technophobe but he still needs his training wheels." At this Ethan gave a snort of laughter while a grin crossed Velma's face.
"So you just give him a push when he needs one eh?" said Ethan as he looked into Velma's eyes, which had a mischievous twinkle.
"Something like that," said Velma giggling softly. She now turned to look at the disappearing coast herself while resting her head against Ethan's chest. "Well, I guess it's just us and the sea for now."
"Looks like it," said Ethan. "How long did you say it would take us to get to Bermuda?"
"About three days give or take a bit," said Velma without looking up.
"Uh-huh," said Ethan resting his chin on top of Velma's head. The couple stayed where they were for a few minutes until Velma pulling away slightly so she could see Ethan's face.
"So what do you want to do now?" she asked looking up with a broad smile. "I mean, we're pretty much ship bound for the next three days." Ethan now looked up and saw something that brought a smile to his face and an idea on how to spend this Evening at least popped into his head.
"Wait here," he said releasing his grip on Velma. "I'll be right back." He now turned and disappeared through the door leading to the cabins leaving Velma standing alone on the deck. She now moved over to a storage bin and hauled herself onto before folding her hands in her lap while her feet swung idly.
Ethan was as good as his word and returned a few minutes later with his guitar and Velma immediately felt a grin cross her face. She'd never been a really big music fan although she'd had her favourites like everyone else but she could spend hours listening to Ethan playing. Ethan himself smiled on seeing that he'd gotten the desired reaction.
"Anything you want in particular?" he asked as he tuned up his guitar.
"No really," said Velma with a shrug. "How about you choose something."
"Okay," said Ethan. "In that case, how about an old classic?" He now started to play a familiar tune and after a couple of bars he looked up at Velma and began to sing the vocals of the song that he was sure even she knew.
Stars shining bright above you
Night breezes seem to whisper, "I love you"
Birds singing in a sycamore tree
Dream a little dream of me.
Ethan's hunch was right; Velma did know the song and now, without any prompting her soft voice joined Ethan's in the second verse.
Say "Nightie-night" and kiss me
Just hold me tight and tell me you'll miss me
While I'm alone and blue as can be
Dream a little dream of me.
As they ended the sing verse Ethan stopped singing and half expected Velma to as well but to his surprise and delight she continued, her gaze looking out to sea.
Stars fading but I linger on, dear;
still craving your kiss
I'm longing to linger till dawn, dear,
just saying this:
At this point Velma seemed to become aware for the first time that Ethan was now merely playing and no longer singing and a wry smile crossed her face as she started the final verse while at the same time moving closer to Ethan.
Sweet dreams till sunbeams find you
Sweet dreams that leave all worries far behind you
But in your dreams whatever they be
Dream a little dream of me.
As Velma finished the song she rested her head on Ethan's shoulder as he now just strummed away gentle.
"You stopped singing," she said although there was no annoyance in her tone. It was merely a statement.
"Yeah, I kinda noticed that," said Ethan with a chuckle. "I thought you were doing pretty good yourself. You didn't need me to finish it with you."
"How did you know I knew the words to that?" asked Velma lifting her head from Ethan's shoulder.
"Lucky guess?" suggested Ethan turning to look at her with a grin. At this Velma raised an eyebrow skeptically.
"Yeah right," she murmured. "Come on, who talked?" At this Ethan's grin widened and he gave a small shrug.
"Okay, maybe I talked to Shaggy," he allowed with a chuckle. At this Velma grinned and shook her head.
"I should have guessed," she said turning to Ethan still wearing a broad grin. "So what else did he tell you I know?"
"Well, how about this one?" said Ethan and he started to play a new tune. It only took Velma a few seconds to recognize it and she rose to the challenge and now started to sing.
Would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
And be better off than you are
Or would you rather be a mule?
A mule is an animal with long funny ears
Kicks up at anything he hears
His back is brawny but his brain is weak
He's just plain stupid with a stubborn streak
And by the way, if you hate to go to school
You may grow up to be a mule
As she reached the end of the verse Velma met Ethan's gaze and a grin filled her boyfriend's face as she started on the chorus.
Or would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
And be better off than you are
Or would you rather be a pig?
At this point Ethan joined in and this time around it was Velma who stopped singing and allowed Ethan to carry on alone.
A pig is an animal with dirt on his face
His shoes are a terrible disgrace
He has no manners when he eats his food
He's fat and lazy and extremely rude
But if you don't care a feather or a fig
You may grow up to be a pig
Or would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
And be better off than you are
Or would you rather be a fish?
Velma now rejoined and the couple continued singing together unaware that they now had an audience in the form of Nick Martz who'd come out for a brief smoke of his pipe.
A fish won't do anything, but swim in a brook
He can't write his name or read a book
To fool the people is his only thought
And though he's slippery, he still gets caught
But then if that sort of life is what you wish
You may grow up to be a fish
A new kind of jumped-up slippery fish
And all the monkeys aren't in the zoo
Every day you meet quite a few
So you see it's all up to you
You can be better than you are
You could be swingin' on a star
As the pair trailed off they were both looking each other in the eyes and so when the sound of hand clapping filled the air the pair both jumped before turning to see Nick Martz standing a few feet away warmly applauding.
"Now that's what I call playing," said the Seacutter's skipper as he crossed over to them smiling broadly.
"Jinkies Nick, you startled us," said Velma pulling a hand through her hair while Ethan gave the older man a sheepish grin.
"Sorry," replied Nick before turning to Ethan and grinned. "Velma wasn't be biased when she said you were good. That was great."
"Thanks, but I just played that one," said Ethan. "Someone else wrote it."
"Maybe so," said Nick with a shrug. "But if you play that well anything you're writing can't be bad either."
"I'd agree with that," said Velma with a grin causing Ethan to glance at her while Nick chuckled.
"Indeed," said Nick with a nod. "I look forward to hearing you on the radio."
"So do I," admitted Ethan. "I still can't quite believe it. I mean, I thought I'd only play clubs at weekends. But here I am just a few months out of College about to start my first album."
"You earned it," said Velma encouragingly. "You'll be a big hit."
"And whatever you do, don't let the critics get to you," added Nick with a chuckle. "Their just failed musicians who are jealous that you've got talent and they haven't."
"I'll try and remember that," said Ethan as Velma snuggled up closer to him. Nick grinned then with a tip of his cap he turned and left the couple alone.
"Do you really think I'll be a hit?" asked Ethan after a couple of minutes. Velma looked up and saw the slight look of doubt on his face.
"Ethan Dace, don't you dare think like that!" she growled menacingly. "You heard the kids at Spooky Island. They loved you..although not nearly as much as I do," she added more softly. Ethan turned and gazed down at her loving face and felt a new wave of confidence rush through his veins.
"What would I do without my number one fan?" he said before moving in and claiming a gently kiss.
When they finally broke apart they returned to silence for a short time until suddenly a bright flash shot through the sky.
"Oh wow!" exclaimed Velma.
"Damn, now that was cool," said Ethan. "I've never seen a shooting star before."
"Really?" replied Velma.
"Nope," said Ethan. "But I did make my wish." Velma was about to reply when something from her childhood just popped into her head and a broad smile crossed her face. Ethan now gave her a curious look. "Vel, what is it?"
Instead of replying Velma merely returned her head to his shoulder and started to sing softly.
When you wish upon a star
Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires
Will come to you
If your heart is in your dream
No request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star
As dreamers do
Fate is kind
She brings to those to love
The sweet fulfillment of
Their secret longing
Like a bolt out of the blue
Fate steps in and sees you through
When you wish upon a star
Your dreams come true
As she finished she looked up at Ethan who just chuckled and shook his head softly. "You really are full of surprises aren't you?"
"You have no idea," replied Velma returning her had to his shoulder while taking hold of one of his hands in hers while his other arm went around her. She then closed her eyes and without intending to soon fell asleep as did Ethan.
Nick Martz was just coming back from his stroll when he saw the couple on the storage locker. For a moment he thought they were just sitting quietly but as he came right up to them he realized they were asleep. With a chuckle the Seacutter's Captain ducked through a door leading to the cabins and grabbed a blanket out of one the empty cabins before returning to the pair and draped the blanket over them.
"Night you pair," he said with a nod and then left them to sleep under the stars.