The gang all eventually sat down together at a table, and as Ophelia went to sit with them, Vincent stopped her.
"Ophelia, can I talk to you for a second?"
"Of course," she responded. "What is it?"
"I wanted to let you know that I understand how you feel because of what Asamad put you through," he admitted.
She gave him a slightly confused look.
"You do?"
"Yes, well, obviously it was very much different for you, and you ended up dead because he broke your heart, but I do know how it felt to be haunted by him. My parents told me Asamad's story when I was very young, and it haunted me for many years. I even had nightmares about him during my youth, and people ridiculed me for being related to him," Vincent explained. "A lot of them thought I was dangerous because of it. It was absolutely terrifying when I accidentally released him from the Chest Of Demons and he hurt me too."
"Vincent, I am terribly sorry," she sighed.
"It's alright," he assured her. "He horrified me for most of my life, but I forgave him after he apologized and explained to me how he is now searching for redemption and protecting my friends and I. I could have refused to forgive him, but I did not. It didn't get rid of all of the horrible memories, and I have not forgotten how awful he made me feel back then, but it did help me feel some sort of peace. I'm not saying that you have to forgive him, especially since you owe him absolutely nothing. However, I think it will help heal your relationship with him, and bring you some peace as well."
She looked away.
"Well, I have been secretly considering it ever since he saved me from being erased from all of existence," she confessed.
"The choice is all yours."
She thought about it for some time, and then nodded.
"I think I am finally ready to forgive him. It won't be the easiest thing, but I will do it," Ophelia told him.
"Very well then. It wasn't the easiest thing for me as well, yet, I believe that you'll be just fine, and so will he," Vincent nodded.
"Thank you. I apologize for telling you to stay away from him earlier. I didn't realize that he changed."
"No need to apologize. Although we tried to tell you, I see why you didn't believe us. You were not ready to accept that he changed just yet. But I think that because he saved you, now you are ready to accept it."
She smiled in response.
"You are right about that," she confirmed. "Thank you again, Vincent."
"Of course, I am glad that I was able to help," he smiled back.
Ophelia then sat down with Asamad, and Vincent sat down with Daphne, Flim Flam, and the rest of the gang. Vincent then passed the letter over to Asamad.
"I suppose we should start with why I heard you crying when I first found the castle, and why we heard you screaming when we all got there," Asamad said.
"Well, it was because I was terrified when I saw you in your demonic form for the first time. It's horrifying, honestly," Ophelia admitted. "I didn't really know what to do so I let out a cry and just shut the window."
"That's understandable, we were all scared when we first saw him too," Flim Flam recalled.
"Yeah, but when we really got to know him, like, the person that he is nowadays and not the evil person he was back then, and now we're not scared of him," Shaggy added.
"So, how come this castle is shattered? I mean, we know you didn't make it that way since you said that in the letter, but do you know why it's like this?" Daphne wondered.
The glowing ghost looked up at Asamad for a moment, and then at everyone else.
"I hadn't figured that one out after I was here for quite some time," she began. "The castle being shattered represents my broken heart. How it was torn up and damaged after what Asamad did to me. The fact that it's still mine and my husband's castle symbolizes that I was stuck in the past and I wanted things to be how they were before all of this happened. My heart didn't break just because he turned evil, hurt me, and left me, although those are the main reasons why. It was also because we were fighting everyday once he became evil, and it was awful. We never fought like that before then."
"Everyday?" Velma repeated.
"Yes, sometimes late at night too."
"And then one day, you died because of that broken heart. You died because of me. Ophelia, I am truly sorry…" Asamad lamented. "I'm sorry for leaving you, for hurting you, and really, for everything."
"I forgive you. Of course, what you did was wrong. But, now that we've found each other again, I think it's time for us to make amends." Ophelia stated.
He stared at her in shock, he hadn't expected to hear that from her at all.
"You actually forgive me?"
"I do. After you saved me, I realized that you really aren't evil anymore. You have changed for the better. I guess I should've known that when you kept persisting to help me, despite me yelling at you and telling you to leave. I apologize for that as well. I was just so angry with you because of our last fight, I thought that yelling at you was okay, but it wasn't," she sighed.
"I kind of guessed that after we suspected that you still had feelings for him. Looks like I was right," Cheryl commented.
Asamad put his hand on his wife's shoulder.
"Do not worry, you are forgiven. I understand why you did so. Thank you for forgiving me," he replied.
Vincent smiled at the both of them, feeling satisfied that Ophelia followed his advice. She noticed this, and smiled back at him.
"Anyways, since Cheryl just mentioned that we suspected that you might still have feelings for Asamad, I think we should talk about that too," Daphne announced.
"Yeah, like we pointed out earlier, you kept his portrait clean, kept his and yours chairs next to each other, and asked him if he was going to the afterlife with you," Jayden noted.
"Rou even said rou still roved him in rhe letter," Scooby recalled.
"Also, in the letter you said that you were still waiting for him to come back to you," Velma added.
Ophelia nervously laughed a bit and rolled her eyes in response.
"Fine, you caught me. I still love Asamad, and I was saying that I hated him only because I didn't want to tell the truth. I did wait here for him, which is why I have been here ever since he left and I died, and why I did all of those things for him," she admitted, putting her hands up.
"Well, in that letter you also said that you hated him for what he did. Maybe that hate wasn't real, but you thought it was?" Jayden guessed.
"No, it was real. But, that hate turned into anger, and I carried that anger towards him with me for years. But tonight, I finally let it all go, and now, I am no longer angry."
Everyone nodded and looked at each other for a moment.
"I'm glad we've got all our questions answered now," Daphne said.
"Not all of them," Asamad corrected her. "There is something else that I want to address. In the letter, Ophelia also said, 'I have not forgotten about you, Asamad, and I hope that maybe, you have not forgotten about me as well.'" He turned back to the ghost sitting beside him. "Were you convinced that I was going to forget about you?"
"I was. However, it was only because I knew that we were going to be apart for a long time after you left, and I wasn't sure if we'd ever see each other again," she confessed.
"Then I think that you should know that I have not forgotten about you at all," he informed her.
She smiled at him once more, and he returned the gesture.
"Is there anything else you wanted to mention?" Velma asked him.
"No, that's the last and only thing that I wanted to address," he responded. "Is it alright if I talk to Ophelia in private for one moment?"
"Of course, we'll be right outside," Vincent told him.
They both waited until everyone walked out of the room and closed the door.
"What do you want to talk to me about?" Ophelia questioned.
"How did you get those painful shocks in your soul?" Asamad wondered. "Was it from someone else?"
"It was Covington. He put this purple stamp on my wrist because I refused to work for him and join him in defeating you. That's why it happened."
He stared at her in shock, he knew Covington was dangerous, but now that he knew that same ghost went after his wife, he was absolutely furious.
"How DARE he do such a thing to you!? I am going to make him pay for that!" he fumed.
"If I hadn't refused his offer, he wouldn't have done it," she frowned.
"Listen, it's not your fault," he assured her. "I know that even if he didn't do it, you still would've refused his offer. I could've lost you tonight if the others hadn't told me what was going on. I really don't want to lose you like that."
She nodded and looked up at him again.
"Just please be careful around him. I don't want the same thing happening to you too. Also, you can keep the letter that I wrote to you."
"I will, I promise."
With that, he grabbed the letter and they went outside, joining the others.
Everyone ended up back in the corridor, walking towards the doors of the castle.
"Surprisingly, tonight was fun," Shaggy said.
"I agree. I never expected to meet Asamad's wife, or watch her almost be removed from all of existence, but I did have a nice time. Even though a great portion of it was just Ophelia yelling at her husband and walking away from us," Vincent commented.
The others laughed a little at that.
"But seriously, everything that went on tonight is probably going to be some of my favorite moments now," Jayden shared.
"I am glad that you all had a great time," Ophelia smiled. "You are always welcome back here."
Everyone else exchanged confused glances once they heard that last part.
"You're planning to stay here? You can't do that," Daphne told her.
"Asamad already came back to you and you both made amends. There's no reason for you to not move on now," Cheryl added.
"They're both right. You should move on to the afterlife. You'll be better off doing so," Asamad agreed.
"You mean we should move on, right?" Ophelia asked.
Asamad looked back at the others, still not completely sure what to say.
"Whatever you choose to do, we're fine with," Flim Flam told him.
"Of course," he said, then turned back to the glowing ghost. "I'm really sorry, but I can't go to the afterlife with you right now."
"Why?" she wondered.
"I haven't fully achieved redemption yet, and I promised my friends that I would help them capture the other 12 ghosts before moving onto the afterlife. Also, I am no longer part of The 13 Ghosts League, which is just referred to as the 13 Ghosts nowadays, because I am seeking redemption and helping my friends. Remember when Nekara went after me and told me to choose between her and you, and I chose you?"
"Ugh, don't even mention that!" Ophelia raged. "I still despise her to this day. I'm still glad I defeated her."
"I know. Anyways, on that day, she gave me two choices, and I made a choice. Tonight, when you asked me if I was going to the afterlife with you, you also gave two choices. Stay with my friends, or go with you. I am making the choice to stay with my friends," he explained.
He then held her hand and looked into her eyes.
"I love you too, which is why I'm letting you go first. I can't move on at this moment, but you can. Don't worry though, this is only temporary. When I get to the afterlife, you and I will get to be together for all of eternity, just like I promised you long ago."
She smiled at him once more.
"I understand. I hope you enjoy all the time that you have with your friends, and I'll let our son know that his father is doing just fine."
Suddenly, a large, white light appeared behind her.
"I think that light is for you," Velma said.
"Well, it was a pleasure to meet all of you, and a pleasure to see Asamad again," Ophelia began. "Thank you for your help, I will remember all of you. Farewell."
She let go of Asamad's hand, and began to walk towards the light.
"Bye!" Shaggy waved.
"We hope you have a great time in the afterlife!" Daphne exclaimed.
Everyone else also said their goodbyes as Ophelia went into the light, and it immediately vanished afterwards.
Asamad just stood there, not saying anything until Vincent called his name.
"Asamad…? Are you alright?"
He turned around.
"I'll be fine," he assured him.
The whole place started to fade away now.
"Um, rwhat's roing on?" Scooby asked.
"I'm sure that since she moved on, there's no need for the castle to stay here in this dimension anymore. So, it's finally fading away," Vincent figured out.
"Well then I guess we should leave as well," Shaggy responded.
They all quickly made their way out the castle, and when they looked back, it was completely gone.
No one said anything until after they went through the portal and entered the present day Castle Van Ghoul once again.
"Finally, rhome sweet rhome!" Scooby smiled.
"Yeah, I agree, Scooby. I prefer being in this version of Castle Van Ghoul," Flim Flam said.
"We're sorry you had to let your wife go, Asamad," Jayden said. "But, thank you for choosing to stay with us for a little while longer."
"You're welcome, but don't worry about it. She's resting in peace now, and that's enough," Asamad replied. "Plus, she told me that I can keep the letter."
"That's great, we're happy for you," Daphne told him.
He nodded, and they all went to the study room to hang out and just talk for the rest of the night. They all knew that tonight was a night that they'd never forget.
Author's Note: That is the conclusion for "Thousands Of Years." The 6th episode of my series, which will start sometime in December, is titled "A Demonic Holiday," and will be a Christmas episode since Christmas is nearby.
The mention of the 13 Ghosts originally being referred to as "The 13 Ghosts League" is from my episode "I Don't Want Your Love." I created it to be the official given name of the 13 Ghosts, but then over time, everyone started to just refer to them as the 13 Ghosts.
Covington will appear in my next episode, and the gang will go back to the Dimension Of Lost Spirits in another fic I will be writing at some point.