just so everybody amongst my readers knows, this idea was originally from the mind of another blogger on this very website under the penname of iamacliche. his/her fanfiction was set for only a week after the final ending of the 'Zombie Island' movie in the 'Scooby-Doo!' television movie series. my fanfiction, right here, is set for an entire month after the final ending of 'Scooby-Doo! on Zombie Island'. I know what you're thinking; how could I truly call this fanfiction my own if it was basically copied off of somebody else's work? well, that's just the thing. I don't actually have any plans to call this fanfiction my own. I just thought that iamacliche's own fanfiction, 'The Week After: Zombie Island' could use a facelift or two here and there. I had also noticed a few or more spelling and grammatical errors in iamacliche's 'Scooby-Doo!' fanfiction, 'The Week After: Zombie Island', but there were far too many for me to tell them about. so, I just figured I would rewrite their fanfiction into my own and fix the situation, myself. no offense intended to you, iamacliche, should you read this fanfiction of mine that I've modeled after your own. anyway, this fanfiction of mine is at the very least paraphrased and also comes with at least one additional paragraph I had written up for my own fanfiction, right here, and for this fanfiction, alone. this fanfiction is a whopping sixteen-thousand-three-hundred-ninety-nine words worth of pure storyline, a storyline that doesn't include this descriptive headnote, right here, or the (mandatory) disclaimer that makes up the following paragraph after said headnote. sad to say it, this fanfiction holds no comments from yours truly disguised as author's notes. I think I shall leave the comments for this fanfiction up to my readers in my stead, this time. OK, enough with that stuff. on with the (mandatory) disclaimer.

disclamation: I don't own the 'Scooby-Doo!' franchise in any way, shape, or form. I also don't own much 'Scooby-Doo!' merchandise, other than the hit movie, 'Scoob'. all ownership rights for the 'Scooby-Doo!' franchise and its merchandise are reserved for William Hanna, Joseph Barbera, Kenneth Spears, Joseph Ruby, Iwao Takamoto, and all of the truly obsessive 'Scooby-Doo!' fans. for the entirety of my whole childhood, I had a pediatrician who had the exact same surname as Iwao Takamoto. her name was Fern Takamoto. anyways, hope you all enjoy this fanfiction of 'The Month Following the Final Ending of 'Scooby-Doo! on Zombie Island'. P.S. this entire fanfiction is told from Fred's point of view, which I still don't own. the ownership of this fanfiction's very storyline reserved for another blogger on very website under the penname of iamacliche.


It was just a month after the entirety of our 'Mystery Incorporated' gang had finally made it back to mainland Louisiana in the US of A through the New Orleans Bayou Port. We had all travelled back to our collective hometown of Coolsville, Ohio, after that. We also had Beau Neville in tow on our way back to Ohio with us since he had revealed himself as a detective/undercover agent while we were all still on Moonscar Island. It turned out that he was keeping secrets from even his own employer, alright. The secret that Beau was keeping from Simone Lenoir, however, was that he was investigating the Moonscar Island disappearances which had happened over the years.

The entire gang had all gone back to their day-to-day lives from before our time on Moonscar Island; Shaggy and Scooby continued to look for a job which could employ them both, Velma tended to her Mystery book shop, while Beau, Daphne and I were all on the set of Krys Herring's popular morning talk show simply yet appropriately named 'Krys'. That was to say that Beau and Daphne were on the set of Krys' morning talk show. I, on the other hand, was just in the stand-by section of the show with Krys' stagehands, and it was only because I was the one who had driven Daphne to the set in the first place. Even with Krys' set buzzing with colors and lights flashing about and voices raising and braiding together in the scenery, I had managed to completely detach myself from everything there was to the show, itself.

While Daphne and Beau were busy being guests on Krys' show, I could only stare at my coffee as though my wake-up-call-in-a-mug could magically reveal to me exactly what would happen within the following hour on 'Krys'. I found my situation to be the exact opposite, however, as the coffee in my mug was as murky and dark as the waters of the Louisiana bayou in which we were just a month prior to appearing back on Krys' show the minute we made it back to Coolsville, Ohio. As such, my coffee drink did not even show the bottom of my mug clearly.

I sighed and simply checked my watch for only the hundredth time in a row in the prior ten minutes. I also impatiently tapped my foot on the floor in a pair of black dress shoes which were just about a quarter of a size too small and pinched my toes uncomfortably. My original pair of shoes had accompanied me to Moonscar Island, and I left behind every last bit of my luggage when the gang and I had returned home from the island as though I could actually leave behind the memories of our time in Louisiana in doing so. Unfortunately for me, that turned out to not be the case… not even by a long shot. That of which had quickly become apparent just by the way I had woken up multiple times coated in an icy cold sheen of sweat and panting like crazy by the same kind of nightmare over and over and over again over the course of the next month.

Although the nightmare always took on a different form every single night, the theme of the dream was always the same. It always involved the gang and I being chased by either life-draining werecats or horrendous zombies. There were even a few or more dreams in which I was actually getting married to one of the life-draining werecats, and Daphne was happily on a date with Beau and giggling up a storm at whatever joke he told her. Of course, I knew that the part about Daphne dating Beau was just my own sense of paranoia manifesting itself into my dreams, but I could not get over the fact that Daphne was, indeed, drawn towards Beau when the rest of us had first met him. And the minute we got back to Coolsville, Daphne had fulfilled her word to Beau about asking him to be a guest on TV with her just to validate our unwanted adventure on Moonscar Island.

I knew that I should have been more trusting towards Daphne with Beau, but the gang's time on Moonscar Island really did a number on all of us, especially me. I did not like the way Daphne looked at Beau every time we had encountered him on Moonscar Island. I also could not believe that I was actually drawn in by Lena while we were on that God-forsaken bayou island. Why did I have to fall for that alluring figure and voice? I should have known that she was hiding something from us all the minute we had all met her in the New Orleans Marketplace. How could anyone blindly trust a girl like her just because she was that cute? Some Louisiana beauty she turned out to be. A cat creature. A cat creature. Of all the things she could have been, why did Lena need to turn out to be a life-draining cat creature?

Suddenly, I heard a beeping sound coming from my pocket and felt a buzzing coming from my pocket, as well. It snapped me out of my long reverie and woke me right up. It was my beeper, and it held a message from Shaggy.

The beeper message from Norville 'Shaggy' Rodgers: Hey, Fredster. Like, how's Daph doin'? Is she nervous?

I just placed my coffee mug on the table located behind me gingerly just so that I could respond to my friend, Shaggy's, beeper message. My fingers hit the function for which to send him my message as I wish for only the thousandth time that day that all of my friends from 'Mystery Incorporated' were at the TV studio with Beau, Daphne and I. In spite of my desire to have everyone else there with the three of us that day, however, I still knew that they all had their own schedules to keep.

My own beeper message to Norville 'Shaggy' Rodgers: She's doing OK, at least I think she is… all things considered. She didn't seem all that nervous when I had picked her up today, but you know Daph. She's never been one to let anyone else onto whenever she's feeling nervous, worried or even scared of anything.

I just sighed and hit the send button on my beeper before placing it onto the table with my mug-full of hot and highly caffeinated coffee.

Ever since we all returned from Moonscar Island in the Louisiana bayou, I knew that I had worried myself crazy about Daphne and her show. I had felt the worry about the entire case seep into my bones and sear my body from the inside out as I had moved throughout the day of her interview with Detective Neville on Krys' show. It felt just like how an elderly and arthritic body would groan and react to a thunderstorm.

While I was close to all my individual friends in the 'Mystery Incorporated' gang, I had always felt as though there was something extra special about my friendship with Daphne that made me think of her as my best friend. She understood me in a way of which nobody else had before. I had always even been drawn to her side for an inexplicable reason time and time and time again. It had always felt as though there was a thread of some kind connecting the two of us both together and tethering us to one another throughout various stages in our lives together. For one reason or another, I had always felt the tug of that very same thread pull me straight to her side just like a magnet whenever she was either struggling or hurting. No matter what the reason, I always felt as though I just had to make sure that Daphne was alright at the time. Whatever it cost me, I just always, always had to do my absolute best to put a smile back on her face once again.

It was no different for the two of us when the camera I had for Daphne's show, 'Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake', had been swallowed up by the quicksand of the zombie-infested marshes on Moonscar Island. I could still remember the look on Daphne's face when it happened and just how visibly crushed she was about it. She was totally deflated by it, especially when knowing that she had promised her viewers 'a real-live ghost', and not just some 'bad dude or bad chick in a mask' or just another 'hologram projecting a ghostly image'. She had finally caught her show on Moonscar Island just in time for the camera she needed for her show to sink into quicksand and for her proof of the slobbering zombies and soul-sucking cat creatures we had encountered on the bayou island to be rendered completely non-existent on her.

Only this time when I felt that thread tug onto me and draw me to her side in an attempt to soothe her, I had no idea of what to do for Daphne that would help her in any way possible. I knew perfectly well that I could not magically make her show's camera reappear out of thin air. Even worse than that times infinity, there was also a knotted, twisted-up pit of blindingly soul-crushing guilt which had embedded itself into my stomach and had consistently reminded me that it was all my fault that the camera for Daphne's show had been lost to us within the zombie-and-quicksand-infested marshes on Moonscar Island in the first place. I knew for a fact that Daphne's audience would be skeptical of our adventure, at best. At worst, they would probably laugh Daphne right out of TV forever and never again believe anything she had to say, it was such a nightmare scenario for her.

After that, who even knew just what would happen to even my friendship with Daphne? She would probably grow to resent me for the rest of our lives and never want to even think about me again. The very thought of that kind of worst-case scenario sent a shiver snaking up my spine then all throughout my skeletal structure as I thought about hers and Beau's interview on Krys' morning talk show.

Yes, the mention of Detective Neville sent a realization into my brain. When Beau had revealed himself to be an undercover detective who was merely investigating every last one of the disappearances on that accursed Moonscar Island, I remember how Daphne almost immediately viewed his presence near our entire gang as a silver lining after the cloudy skies which had shrouded us all in darkness from on the island from within the Louisiana bayou. She had enticed Detective Neville to make an appearance for her TV interview on Krys' talk show, in spite of the guy's protests that he was not 'television material', whatever that even meant. Daphne's plan was to reveal just what had happened to all of us on Moonscar Island, and Detective Neville would be there for validation of her claims.

Of course, I knew very well that by default, I had no real need to even be at the TV studio with either one of them, never mind anywhere near even the camera crew. I certainly had no need to be there with my Daphne for Krys' television interview for two good reasons. Reason number one being that I was not invited onto the show as a guest speaker alongside Daphne, because that role went solely to Detective Beau Neville. Meanwhile, reason number two as to why I had no purpose even being there was because I was not needed to lend my talents as a camera man since both Daphne and Beau were guests on Krys' morning talk show, and we were not filming content for Daphne's show of 'Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake'.

When I had pictured Daphne sitting before an audience with dozens of people watching from within the studio, squirming and glaring at her along with all of the white-hot lights glaring at her from the cameras as she painfully recalled what had happened on the God-forsaken Moonscar Island, however, I had felt the familiar yank of that one thread pull me to Daphne's side once again. I just felt the thread beckoning me to stay near her so I could and would grapple whatever residual fallout came from Krys' interview with her and the detective.

Or so I had selfishly told myself. However, perhaps what I was really worried about was Daphne having time alone with Beau and the both of them being interviewed by Krys on her morning talk show and all the people in the audience, and especially those in the audience who might as well have assumed the both of them to be a couple. I was just far too proud to admit it to anyone, even myself for that matter. I had begun to believe, however, that my only real reason for being there in the first place was just because I could not stand the very thought of Beau being alone with my Daphne and her contagious, bubbly laugh and her sparkling, beautiful blue eyes. It all just made me want and need to desperately choke for oxygen. It felt as though my lungs had either been lit on fire and were even shrinking within my chest.

Once again, I was perfectly aware of just how paranoid I sounded whenever I continued to accuse Beau of being a home-wrecking 'friend girl'-snatcher, especially when considering just how Velma and Beau had taken a shine to one another by the very end of our time on Moonscar Island. Heck, the two of them had even gone on a date to a classical Italian restaurant as soon as Velma was finished showing Beau around her mystery bookstore. Their date was even just around the corner from Velma's own mystery bookstore.

Even though I had managed to feel fairly confident knowing that Beau had been exploring whatever bond he and Velma had which had recently drew the two of them together at the time, I still felt a stabbing pain in my chest drive itself through my heart like a dagger every time I had remembered the way Daphne looked at Beau with a faraway gaze from within her angelic, blue eyes and a soft, demure smile on her beautiful lips. I had always been so embarrassed to admit it, even to myself every single time, but I had felt this sort of pain before now.

It was always under different circumstances, but the way I felt about it always had the exact same aftereffects. It happened every time Daphne did a double-take or two whenever another guy smiled at her. It also happened whenever she lingered with a young fan boy of ours longer than she really would have normally with any other fan of Mystery Incorporated.

I just never even knew what to call it, never mind what to do about it. I had always supposed that such a burning, white hot rage could have easily qualified as jealousy, but I could always feel that there was just a touch of anger and fear mixed into it, too. The only true consistency about it whenever I felt it was that I just knew that I could never ignore it. I also insisted on not only being present within the studio for the interview, but I also insisted that I drive my Daphne to and from the show as a result.

Suddenly, a voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

Voice: Hey, Jones. How goes it, man?

I jerked backwards in surprise at the sound of the incredibly masculine voice, and I could only calm down once I saw that it was only Beau. He stood before me as though he had materialized out of a puff of smoke. My face suddenly felt flushed for one reason or another. Granted, that it was a deep crimson blush blooming from my facial cheeks which only ever appeared whenever I was embarrassed about something or other.

I just could not help but wonder as to just why my conscience had weighed me down like a lead anchor. I chalk it up to the fact that I had just been thinking about Beau, especially since he was just now standing before me. For one reason or another, it felt as though I had suddenly summoned Beau with my own thoughts.

I tapered down a metallic and rusty taste which rose up from within my chest as I forced myself to smile coolly at Beau while offering the guy my hand for a handshake. He smiled boyishly as he pumped my hand in an enthusiastic handshake which felt as though it were reserved just for friends who had not once seen one another for quite a while.

Yours Truly: Hey there, Beau. It's good to see you, man.

Even I had to admit to myself that I had been really surprised with myself at the time when I had finally talked to Beau. I could not once sense any a trace of toxicity or even acidity in my tone, either. Apparently, I had gone a long way with Beau by then since just a month prior when I had accused him of being a suspect.

Yours Truly (continued): How are you feeling about today? You nervous about being on live television or anything?

Beau swallows and his larynx bobs noticeably. I could not believe I thought that way, but his actions made me regret even approaching the subject about being on television. I knew, myself, that I had certainly not meant to intimidate him at the time. For one reason or another, however, I could not help but marvel at the sight of the perspiration which had decorated the man's forehead. Perhaps he really was the very same Beau with the toned, muscular, sharply fined abs and the confident and intensely handsome green eyes. I just could not help but secretly sing with joy in my head upon realizing that even the strong and incredibly good-looking Beau had insecurities, fears and doubts.

Yours Truly (continued): Hey, man, I can't imagine this to be any worse than anything that you see out on the force as a cop. In fact, I'd easily be willing to bet that being interviewed for T.V. beats being out on patrol any day of the week.

I chuckled and clapped Beau on the back, hoping to lighten the atmosphere. Instead, however, it suddenly seemed to crackle and sizzle over with even more tension than it originally had. I had to do something about it.

Yours Truly (continued): I mean, it definitely can't be any worse than all of the stuff we saw just last month.

Beau just laughed darkly at it, as though a hand were strangling his neck and he were struggling to breathe freely.

Detective Beau Neville: Yeah.

He ran his hand through his chocolate-colored hair.

Detective Beau Neville (continued): I highly doubt that anything could ever top the hideous zombies or the soul-sucking cat creatures last month on Moonscar Island. All I hope is that Daphne's audience believes what we have to say today, or this could be the end of her television career.

At the mention of Daphne's disturbingly uncertain future in television, I could just feel the atmosphere around the room completely thicken all around me. I could not help but sigh at the very implication which had up and stiffened the air between Beau and myself. It crushed the both of us beneath its weight.

Yours Truly: Well, that's exactly why we can only hope for the best. I can't even begin to think about how Daphne will feel if her audience isn't receptive to hearing the both of you out about our experience on Moonscar Island. She poured her blood, sweat, and tears into 'Coast to Coast' over the past couple of years, and it'd be such a shame if it all went up in a puff of smoke just because I tripped over that tree root on the island and dropped the camera for her show into the island's stupid quicksand.

I hung my head just thinking about the burden of my mistake as it weighed heavily upon me. It had completely hindered me from holding my head up properly. I had already been trying my hardest to banish the thought of it for the past month. No matter how I tried to banish it from my psyche, however, the thought of Daphne potentially getting laughed right out of her television job solely because I had tripped and dropped her camera into quicksand just continued to haunt me like a relentless and restless ghost, and the guilt of it inevitably consumed my psyche like a bad dream, clouding my head and distorting my thoughts.

Whenever Daphne had been in trouble or hurt in the past, I had always felt that same invisible thread jerk me towards her like a gravitational pull of some sort. Whenever I had finally made it to her side in those situations, I had always tried to either fix whatever was wrong with her in the situation or to just be there to listen to whatever she needed to say in order just to vent and hold onto her as she would cry over it. How could I have been able to fix the problem this time when I was the very cause of the issue?

That was when I heard Beau's voice talk some more to me about the events from Moonscar Island. He sounded very gentle.

Detective Beau Neville: You can't blame yourself for what happened then. It was just an accident. You're sorry about it, aren't you?

As strange as it sounded, the police detective's voice was as soft as wool at the time.

Detective Beau Neville (continued): You were running from a hoard of zombies when it happened. Who would've guessed that your camera would get caught in quicksand? I actually suspected the quicksand to be the cause of all of the island's many, many, many disappearances for a while during my time there.

So, Beau had a suspect in his case while on Moonscar Island just as we did. Only thing was that Beau's suspect was the very landscape of the island, itself.

Detective Beau Neville (continued): And anyone who knows Daphne would know for sure that she wouldn't and doesn't blame you for the camera falling into the quicksand, nor does she even hold it against you.

I gave Beau no response back to his comments and only stared down at my feet. I supposed I could have told anyone who listened to me about it that I was trying to memorize the scoff marks sprinkled across the television studio's hard wood floor beneath my shoes, but that would have been just a slight fib. I could feel Beau's gaze bore upon me intensely. I suppose that he might have thought better of what he wanted to say because he closed his mouth just as quickly as he had opened it. I raised my sea blue eyes sensing this and began staring at him inquisitively.

Detective Beau Neville (continued): It's nothing really.

With that, I drop my head in defeat once again. Beau added his next words hastily, as though he wanted to keep from second guessing them.

Detective Beau Neville (continued): You know that she cares about you, don't you? That she really, really cares about you?

With that from him, I could practically feel a flush of embarrassment decorate my cheeks and color me red in the face. My head snapped back at Beau just to study his face so as to look for any a trace of a smirk twitch across his lips or even a mischievous glint shimmer in his eyes. Upon looking him in the face, however, I could see nothing except for absolute seriousness on both his lips and in his eyes.

I was just very unsure of how to respond to how serious Beau was when he said such things to me about Daphne. I could practically feel myself squirm underneath his gaze, I felt so helplessly uncomfortable to the sound of his words. Of course, my knee-jerk reaction was none other than to vehemently and completely deny any of it right before insisting how completely ridiculous Beau had sounded at the time. And yet, my psyche suddenly flipped right back to a certain moment between Daphne and I which had happened while we were all on Moonscar Island just a month prior to this time with the television interview.

In my flash back, the two of us were both cowering in the bushes from the zombies as I hid there with Daphne. Her arm was gripped around me, and she had whispered something to me which I had not expected to hear from her at the time.

Daphne Blake: Freddy, if this is it, and this is the end, there's just something that I have to ask you. Something I really need to know from you.

I had suddenly felt the sensation of every last thing around me; the soft, moist grass underneath my knees, Daphne's sharp yet hypnotic inhaling as she drew in a shaky breath, and even when my heartrate was incredibly fast just a few minutes prior on account of the zombies and was basically slamming against my chest at even that point, my heartrate had suddenly accelerated even faster by the time Daphne had spoken to me in the bushes for one reason or another. She had her lips pressed into a tight line so as to speak and her eyes darted around as though she were nervous about something or other.

Just as she had parted her bubblegum-pink lips to ask me whatever it was she wanted to ask, the bushes suddenly shook like the leaves that were on them. We both screamed fearing that we were about to become a feast for the very real zombies, it turned out. To our joint surprise, however, the bushes only revealed the ones on the other side of them to be none other than Velma and Beau having finally found Daphne and I at the time. The two of us just felt a wave of relief wash over us like the tide rushing back to the shore from within the sea.

The moment of it since then had been laminated within my brain, and I still could not help but wonder what it was that Daphne had wanted to ask me at the time. All I could say about that time was that it had lit a flicker of hope aflame in my heart every single time I had wondered just what question she had wanted to ask me at the time. I had even been wondering if it was the very same question I had been wanting to ask her for some time, myself.

When I had finally managed to end my flashback and return to the present, however, I had noticed Beau just stare at me like I was some kind of idiot. I had to respond.

Yours Truly: Well, um, yeah, of course, she cares about me. She most likely cares the same way about all of our other friends, too. You know, like Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo.

I admit that I knew I was basically stammering and being a complete nervous wreck about just hearing that Daphne had cared about me, but it was the best excuse for Beau's comment which I could come up with. The detective just stared me in the eyes in disbelief.

Detective Beau Neville: That wasn't what I meant, Jones, and I'm pretty sure you know that it wasn't even close to what I meant, either. I don't see why you can't just tell her how you feel about her, man, especially when I'm pretty certain that she feels the same way about you. I mean, I just know by the way you kept looking at her when we finally left that God-forsaken bayou island that you most likely care about her the same way she cares about you.

I could not believe it. Just as Beau talked to me, I was near instantly reminded as to why Velma believed him to be a suspect while she and I still believed that the whole zombie thing was a scam of some kind. Whenever the guy would speak, he sounded filled-to-bursting with confidence, insistence, and even held an accusatory-by-nature tone in his voice. Then again, I reminded myself that he was a cop, after all. It probably just came with the territory of being a private investigator.

I still could not really handle the heat and intensity of Beau's stare aimed at me, however, and felt as though I were exposed and naked. I had never even once been fond of feeling as vulnerable as I had during then.

Yours Truly: I'm just gonna go check on Daphne and see how she's holding up about the interview today.

With just that one sentence, I tactfully sashayed away from my conversation with Beau and his judgmental, glaring green gaze as I turned and walked towards Daphne's dressing room.

Yours Truly (continued): You two go live in about fifteen to twenty minutes, so maybe you should both meet up for a bit and discuss what you'll say to the audience just once more, for safety's sake. You know, we gotta make sure ya get it right.

Yes, I knew that I was just evading the subject. I could not help it, though. Whenever I thought about the question which was on the tip of my Daphne's tongue in the bushes back on the God-forsaken Moonscar Island, and when Beau had insinuated just before the interview on Krys' morning talk show that Daphne had feelings for me, it had felt a lot like a fist had clenched my stomach into a knot, and I could have easily sworn that my hands felt moist and slick with sweat. Of course, I knew that there was a chance that Beau was right about Daphne liking me as more than just a friend. Just the same, I also knew that there was just as much a chance that Beau was wrong about her liking me, liking me.

Let's say that I decided to take that chance, and Beau's prediction turned out to be wrong and Daphne rejected me because of Beau being wrong. It would place a snag and a wrinkle in the very fabric of our 'Mystery Incorporated' gang. Not to mention that before I would even know it, even my friendship with my Daphne would disintegrate into dust. If that were to happen to us, I would have lost everything.

Never going to happen-it would have been so much better to keep every thought I had ever had about my Daphne crammed within the confines of my own psyche and just remain quiet. Mystery Incorporated had only just recently reunited, and I was not about to let our group splinter into a million pieces once again over any love confession I aimed at Daphne, only to get rejected by her. We would never recover from such a blow. I knew certainly that I would never, ever, ever recover from that kind of blow, especially considering if it meant that I would lose my Daphne forever. I never wanted to admit to it, but a life without Daphne was just the kind of life I dared not even consider whatsoever.

I passed by a few dressing rooms which belonged to Krys' staff before I had finally made it the door with the blackboard which held my Daphne's name on it written in extra light purple, almost lavender-colored, chalk. I raised my hand towards the door and loudly knocked on it three times after a few moments of hesitation. I paused for a minute or two thereafter. Upon hearing my Daphne murmur for me to enter, I slightly nudged the door open and paused in the threshold that was her dressing room.

My shy and retiring eyes swept across the room. I took in all of the sights of the circular mahogany table covered in notepads and mugs worth of cold, bitter-looking-and-smelling coffee, the chic white vanity mirror in the corner with the lightbulbs dotting it from every angle, and last, but not least, the glowing, gurgling aquarium-styled support beam for the dressing room which had contained an entire cluster of colorful, and I bet at the time, tropical fish. Of course, there was also Daphne, obviously, and she massaged her temples with her fingers while pacing back and forth across her dressing room.

When my Daphne finally registered that I had come into her dressing room within the studio which ran Krys' morning talk show, I was leaning against the doorframe and waiting for her to notice me in the room. Her eyes meet mine and my heart begins to stutter like a broken record, just as it does every single time my Daphne gazing at me with her enchantingly beautiful blue eyes. Her cheeks are quite possibly the rosiest hue of pink I had ever seen even once in my life. Then, she ran her hand through that perfect semi-blonde orangish-red hair of hers. Even with just how flustered and anxious she obviously was by then, I just could not help but think about nothing except for exactly how beautiful she looked at the time.

Yours Truly: I just came in here to see how you're doing with, you know, everything that's been goin' on recently. I also came in here to let you know that yours and the detective's interview with Krys on live T.V. is about to start between ten and fifteen minutes.

Daphne still fixed her gaze upon me, and I suddenly felt rooted in place and completely frozen beneath her gaze. I still managed to speak to her calmly, though. I could not believe it, myself, but the very sight of just Daphne, and Daphne alone, standing completely unnerved before me had somehow untethered something within me, as well. I felt the insane guilt in my stomach coil and uncoil itself all around my body.

My brain: If only I had never dropped that camera into the quicksand of that God-forsaken bayou island. Then, she wouldn't have been in a state as sorry and defeated as something like this.

My Daphne nodded, but it was pretty obvious from the far-off gaze embedded within her beautiful blue eyes that she did not completely register one word of what I had told her, or even my presence, itself. As I, myself, stared at Daphne, my mind had returned to Moonscar Island once again. I could practically feel the soggy and swampy grass from beneath my knees and my Daphne's breath on my neck as the two of us both clung onto one another, shuddering. I could also hear her distinct whispering.

Daphne's voice in my brain: Freddy, if this is it, and this is the end, there's something I need to ask you. Something I really need to know from you.

I basically could feel it just wander all around my psyche.

Then again, I might have just been hearing her soft, velvet-layered voice during the time of which we were in the television studio for Krys' morning talk show, right then and there. My Daphne blinked a few times and stared at me inquisitively with her eyebrows arched and her forehead furrowed.

Daphne Blake: Freddy?

I could feel the concern that laced itself around her voice as she called me the same as what she had usually called me.

I suddenly jolted, pulled from my flashback and back to the present. I immediately felt all of the perspiration slide right down my back like several lines of marching ants sliding down my spine. I shook my head as though to diffuse the fog which had penetrated my psyche.

Yours Truly: Sorry, Daph. I guess that there's just a lot on my mind today.

Yes, I knew it was a lame way to put it, and I felt a bit sheepish for it. I just smiled at my Daphne even more sheepishly than I had felt for what I had told her about not paying attention to what she told me.

Yours Truly (continued): Were you, uh, saying something?

I had to admit that I was sort of scared that she would sigh at me in annoyance and exasperation for not listening to her at the time. Much to my surprise, however, she visibly gulped as her eyes met mine instead. It was all as though she feared what she was trying to tell me at the time.

My Daphne sighed by then as she decided to face her fear, however, and try speaking to me once again. This was just one of the many things I lo_ liked about her… you know, as a friend, a really good friend, that is.

Daphne Blake: I said, before I go onto the set and tell the world our story and what happened to us on Moonscar Island, if this is it, and if this is the end, there's something I need to ask you. Something I really need to know from you…

I mentally reminded myself to breathe when I had finally realized that I was holding in my breath pretty drastically. Daphne was finally about to ask me what she wanted to ask me back when hiding in the bushes on Moonscar Island just a month prior to that moment in time. I was finally going to hear what she had wanted to ask me, and no force on Earth could have ever been able to stop her from asking me her question.

That was, until a loud knock came up on my Daphne's door, pierced whatever question she was going to ask me, and completely crushed the melancholy of the moment between the two of us into tiny, little specks of dust. My Daphne and I both jump at the sudden intrusion. While I was pretty sure that Daphne was merely startled by it, I was just as equally startled but also a bit annoyed by the intrusion. We both took a glance at the direction of the knocking back towards the door to Daphne's dressing room. Upon turning our heads towards the door to her dressing room, the two of us both saw none other than Krys' cameraman, Joe, hanging around the doorframe from just behind yours truly.

Joseph: Oh, geez, sorry, you two. Really hope I didn't interrupt anything.

The cameraman's eyes darted between Daphne and I as he noted the size of our eyes and the crimson coating both sets of our cheeks. He looked a lot like he is about to ask us both the same question. After taking a glance at his watch, however, he apparently decided against it.

Joseph (continued): Ah, God. Daphne, you're on in just under five minutes. Krys sent me here to come and get you so that you can be ready off stage for when she introduces you. She has you and Beau speaking at the top of the hour 'cuz she figures that your audience is waiting on pins and needles to hear what the two of you both have to say, and she doesn't feel up to keeping them in suspense any longer.

Before my Daphne or I could even respond or nod to Joe in acknowledgement, he just gave the two of us a tight smile before he bobbed and weaved his way down the hallway. His walk was brisk by then since he and the rest of the camera crew were all less than a mere five minutes away from going live on national television.

I turned my attention back to my Daphne. For one reason or another, however, something felt very different between the two of us. It felt as though the thrum of electricity which was dancing from within the air between the two of us was suddenly gone. Instead, I could feel a new sense of urgency blanket over us as I suddenly realized that we were both about to get the answers we had been asking ourselves all month regarding exactly how Krys' audience was going to react to Daphne and Beau's story about what had happened to us and the rest of 'Mystery Incorporated' on Moonscar Island. My psyche, however, was still snagged onto what my Daphne was saying only a few moments prior. As much as I wanted to stifle the hammering of my heart against my chest and just ask already, I knew that the moment to ask had already come and gone by then, slipping like sand between my fingers.

My Daphne inhaled her breath and attempted to plaster a smile on her face. She looked in my direction, and I saw that the nervous twinkle in her eyes had been replaced by something fierce and fiery. I could see the same glimmer of courage and determination that I saw when my Daphne first announced that she was leaving Mystery Incorporated to pursue her dream of being a talk show host. It was also present in her eyes when she went on Krys' morning talk show to announce that she was seeking a real-live, authentic ghost.

Daphne Blake: Well, I'm as ready as I'll ever be.

She even added a smile to her face which I supposed was for my benefit.

Daphne Blake (continued): Even if my audience doesn't wanna hear the truth, I'll make them believe me! We've both worked too hard and endured too much for this all to go down the drain.

I felt a stab of guilt sting me from within my chest once again. As my Daphne offered me a smile and began to exit out of her dressing room and stepped around me, I gripped onto her arm just before she could pass by me. She raised her eyebrows at me with a questioning look in her eyes.

I had so much to say to my Daphne right then and there. I wanted to just beg her to ask me exactly what she had wanted to ask me twice by then. I wanted so much to tell her that everything was going to be alright and that everything was going to work out for the better. I wanted to wrap her up in the biggest, tightest hug I possibly could at the time. I had even wanted to ask her the very question which was needling at and torturing my own psyche for such a long time by then.

There was something even bigger looming in my mind by then, however, than all of what I had wanted to do with my Daphne. I knew that if I did not say it right then and there, I was going to just about collapse in on myself like a dying star.

Yours Truly: Daphne.

I spoke very tersely when choosing my next words to my precious Daphne.

Yours Truly (continued): Before you go out there, I just wanna say…

Her beautiful blue eyes were once again glossy. I swallowed hard, my heart constricted from within my chest, and I just pushed on further.

Yours Truly (continued): I just wanna say that I'm very truly sincerely sorry. If I hadn't have gone and dropped the camera for our show in quicksand while we were running from all those zombies back on Moonscar Island, you wouldn't have had to worry about bringing Beau…

I said Detective Neville's first name with a hint of bitterness to my voice, I could not believe just how jealous I had felt about it at the time.

Yours Truly (continued): … onto Krys' show with you so as to have proof of what had happened to us while we were doing the 'Haunts of Louisiana' segment for your show 'Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake'. We also wouldn't be here wondering if the third season of your show'll be picked up or rejected just because we're at the audience's mercy right now.

I exhaled very slowly at what I had just told my Daphne. I felt as though a gigantic boulder had been rolled right off of my shoulder. The confusion which had creased itself across her face from just earlier had since faded by then. Her eyes had also shone as I spoke to her. The minute I was done, she gave my arm a gentle squeeze and a kindly smile.

Daphne Blake: You did nothing wrong, Freddy. Don't blame yourself for this; the only thing that truly matters is that we're all back home safe and sound right now. Even if the camera didn't fall into the quicksand, that would've easily been us instead. I mean, we were both running towards the mud.

My Daphne's voice sounded so calm and confident about hers and Beau's interview with Krys on her morning talk show. I had to admit that I had thought about her words once or more for the past month since arriving back from that accursed Moonscar Island. I shuddered at the thought of the two of us stepping into the mud and being yanked back into the ground violently and struggling, fighting and clawing our way back to the surface as we slowly melted into the muck below us. As horrible as it was that the camera had been consumed by the Earth that night, I also knew that my Daphne and I had easily avoided disaster at the expense of the camera and its footage.

I felt the knots in my stomach and on my shoulders loosen and unravel as I sighed in relief that my Daphne held nothing against me after all. With one burden eased off of me, I felt as though I just had to ask the exact question that I wanted to ask Daphne about that one moment on Moonscar Island when we were hiding from the very real zombies, and she had mentioned the possibility of that moment being our end. The timing for my question to her was bad, however, because the lights suddenly began flickering in my Daphne's dressing room, and Joseph's voice boomed over the studio's loudspeaker.

Joseph: Places, people, please! We go live in two minutes!

With Joseph's interruption from the loudspeaker, I just had to suppress the urge to vomit like a projectile straight out of my mouth, I felt so ill at the mention that my Daphne had to go onto the set of Krys' show with Beau to talk with the host about our experience on Moonscar Island in less than five minutes in reverse counting. I heard her as she inhaled and exhaled to my side for about five seconds; no doubt it was her way of calming herself down for the interview. It was a calming technique that our entire 'Mystery Incorporated' gang had learned over the years back when we were teenagers moving through a carousel of mysteries fast as lightning.

I knew that I had to step up and be strong for my Daphne at the time. It was my consistent role as the leader of 'Mystery Incorporated' on every single case before then, after all. Even with the interview being no typical situation for us, I could not see it as any different situation than everything else that had ever happened to our gang before it. My Daphne needed me for it, alright. Maybe she did not need me to protect her like I had always been eager to before this interview, but for hers and Beau's interview with Krys on her show, I certainly knew that my Daphne definitely needed me to at least feign confidence for her. Maybe, just maybe, if I could radiate just enough self-confidence and self-assurance to her, my Daphne would soak it up and refract the same way the moon reflects the sun's light in the night sky just enough to swallow all of her doubts that Krys' audience will believe her about the incidents we experienced on Moonscar Island.

I stood alongside my Daphne as the two of us both moved down the hallway. I could feel our forearms brush against one another and separate as we both walk; twice to be exact. I just wished that I felt no such thing as my skin tingling right when and where she had touched me; I just could not let anything, even something so ironically thrilling and pleasant, distract me during the time that my Daphne had needed me to be strong and forget about the sensation she had given to me just before we had started on our way to the stage for her interview. I could not afford to feel things for her at the time.

Yours Truly: You've got this, Daph!

I assured her as assertively and enthusiastically as I possibly could, hopefully leaving her no room for nervousness or panic. We approached the set of Krys' morning talk show and stood up on the fringes of the action. We watched as men and women zipped around one another to either adjust the lights or aim the camera at various certain angles on the stage. Krys, herself, was already reclined comfortably in the sleek leather chair that was her own seat as she looked very professional in her crisp red blazer and skirt. As soon as she saw my Daphne and I hovering in the distance, she beamed at the two of us and mouthed the words 'break a leg' to Daphne.

That was around when I saw Beau saunter up from behind Daphne and me. He looked exactly like he fought the urge to just run out of the building. His hands quivered and his legs kept shaking like a pair of leaves. Joseph and another guy from Krys' staff rushed towards Daphne and Beau with microphone clips to put on the clothes covering their chests. I could see Beau's face pale as he eyed the sea of faces that was the audience that just swam in the viewing seats on the other side of the room, and they were just the studio audience. I could only imagine how poor Beau had felt about the audience watching his and my Daphne's interview with Krys on her show from the comfort of their own home. I clasped onto the back of Beau's shirt and mouthed two words to him.

My lips: Just breathe!

The chocolate brunette guy swallowed hard and nodded with his peridot gemstone green💚 eyes wavering towards my Daphne, who was as calm and composed as calm and composed could be. She was always that calm and composed during the last few seconds leading up to whenever she was getting ready to speak on national television.

Joseph: OK, people. I'm just gonna count us down!

With those several words from Joseph, the live studio audience bursts into a roaring crowd of cheers from all over the set. Joseph also adjusted the giant headphones that were clamped totally over his ears just before he began with his counting down.

Joseph (continued): And we're live in three, two, one; and go for you, Krys!

Joseph pointed to Krys, who did not miss a single beat of his signal.

Krys: Thank you, Joseph, and good morning, everyone!

At her trilling towards them, Krys' live studio audience stood on their feet, completely overwhelmed with excitement as all of them always were every morning at the very start of her show. Krys held onto her smile towards them and paused as the crowd sprinkled her with cheers and applause. Joseph panned the camera towards a particular young lady fan who held a sign that basically screamed about being on the show with the camera on her.

Young lady fan's sign: I'm here to see Daphne Blake!

I happened to chance a glance in my Daphne's direction at the time to see if she had noticed the sign. She just continued to stare straight ahead at Krys with her jaw set firmly and determination shining from within her gorgeous blue eyes.

Krys: Thank you! Thank you all!

Krys beamed a smile as she waved out to her audience. The smattering of applause was slightly less intense by then as Krys flashed her bright teeth once again and gazed into the camera.

Krys (continued): Today, we have a special guest speaker for whom many of you in the audience have more than likely been eagerly waiting. So, let's get right to it, then, shall we?

Her words to the one live studio audience prompted for a fresh applause from every last person amongst them all.

Krys (continued): Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Miss Daphne Blake from 'Coast to Coast', with her own guest, Detective Beau Neville.

I had to say that the response from the audience was pretty deafening. Daphne and Beau walked towards Krys, and the audience screamed out what had felt as though it were a roar in my ears. The noise from it had even oppressed me as I fixed my eyes on my Daphne and just watched as she folded Krys into a tight hug before sitting down carefully back into her seat. Then, Krys' eyes even grew a flirty, yet friendly twinkle in them. It was the same kind of twinkle in her eyes that she had often reserved for me and other young men who worked with her on her morning talk show. I once again bristled at how the women in the audience were so fixated on Beau and just how appealing to their eyes he truly was, no matter how nervous he was about being on television.

Daphne waved out towards the audience as a surge of respectful silence slowly blanketed Krys' television studio audience. She and Beau flashed smiles at them all as the two of them settled into their respective seats. At the sound of the chairs groaning and shifting in the finally seated audience, Krys turned her head to face Beau and my Daphne with the smile on her face still ever present even by then.

Admittingly, I had actually managed to wonder just for a fleeting moment at the time if Krys' cheeks ever hurt by the end of the day with all of her smiling for the cameras which she always seemed to do on television. I did not know why I had even pondered it during then, either. I suppose, however, that it was nothing more than the continuous jealousy I still felt towards Beau just for being my Daphne's guest for Krys' morning talk show, along with being the one whom my sweet Daphne needed at the time.

Krys: Daphne, Beau, I just wanted to thank you both so much for taking time outta your own schedules to be on my show today.

Krys was so incredibly earnest as she spoke to both Beau and my Daphne. For a second or two, I could have sworn that I felt my heartrate decrease as Krys spoke to the both of them. I had almost forgotten just how professional and genuine Krys could truly be and how she had always worked to make absolute certain that her guests were constantly comfortable appearing on her show. All that while seamlessly guiding said guest(s) throughout his/her/their segment of her talk show.

During my Daphne's and my first season of filming 'Coast to Coast', the two of us had quickly learnt that some people in show business did not always match up with the character they presented when in front of the camera. It was pretty safe and easy to say, however, that Krys was never one of those kinds of people. My Daphne and I had only been on the set of her morning talk show twice by then, but Krys had still shown the two of us nothing but kindness during both times we had been guests on her morning talk show. Between Krys' hospitality and the fact that her morning talk show was where things had all started just several months prior to our little unwanted expedition on Moonscar Island, bringing my Daphne her show's second season full circle at the time, I could not help but feel as though Krys' show was a perfect and natural fit for exactly what Daphne and Beau were about to do by then.

Daphne Blake: Thank you so much for having us back again, Krys! It's such a pleasure to be here once more.

My Daphne just grinned at Krys as a member of the audience from within the studio shouted, 'I LOVE YOU, DAPHNE!' out to her. It prompted another round of a more than enthusiastic applause.

Krys: Oh, Daphne! You know that it's always a treat for me and my audience to have you and your cameraman on my show.

Then, Krys sent a wink of her eye towards the camera in my direction.

Krys (continued): Can we get a shot of Freddy just in front of our live studio audience, guys?

I squirmed and felt the red coloration as it spilt onto my cheeks, effectively causing me to blush. I just could not believe that the camera's attention was aimed at me by then, panning itself to where I was in the live television studio on the fringes just in front of the audience. I could just hardly manage even my tiniest ever smirk as I merely waved my hand at the camera good-naturedly. The audience only clapped for me as loudly and energetically for me as they had for my Daphne. I had even heard a young woman out in the audience loudly ask me if I were single. It did not surprise me much and had even made me laugh a little about it. Honestly, there were some days when I felt as though my celebrity status had still felt ever new and ever unfamiliar to me as a person. Truthfully speaking, those days always left me slightly tongue-tied from all of the attention and adulation from every last one of all those ever-flirtatious girls my Daphne and I would constantly come across.

That was just around when the camera swiveled back over to Krys as she talked to both of the guests on her morning talk show. She leaned across my Daphne as she stared at Beau from within her seat.

Krys: And just who might this fine gentleman be that you brought along with you today, Daphne?

Krys winked her eye at Beau as he just offered his hand to her before briskly introducing himself.

Detective Beau Neville: Detective Beau Neville with the New Orleans Police Department in the state of Louisiana.

Krys shook Beau's hand vigorously.

Detective Beau Neville (continued): And I'm here to authenticate what Miss Daphne Blake is about to tell you all this morning.

Krys: Oooh, this sounds really exciting and really, truly serious all at once.

Krys clapped her hands giddily before stealing a glance in my Daphne's direction with a mischievous glimmer in her eyes.

Krys (continued): Be honest, Daph… is he about to tell you that there was somewhat of a serious romance that went on between the two of you back on Moonscar Island?

When Krys asked Beau her question, I grew so surprised that I basically began to choke on my own stomach and heart as the latter of which knocked hard against my ribcage. Of course, I knew perfectly well that Krys was only teasing Beau and my Daphne and meant very well with such banter. She was obviously trying to boost ratings and engage with her audience like a good morning talk show host would. The audience had even screamed with anticipation by then.

I could not help but feel rather deflated and betrayed, in a certain sense, though. I had even been driven to wonder about it as well. I mean, when we were on Moonscar Island just a month prior to Daphne and Beau's present interview with Krys, I had basically lost count of just how many times I had whirled on my Daphne and confronted her about her feelings for Beau during the time just a month prior to the interview on Krys' show. Sure, she shot all of confrontations I did with her about the way she saw Beau at the time down instantly and simply dismissed him as 'cute' and nothing more, but it did little to ease my inexplicable jealousy of him.

I had to say, however, that both Beau and my Daphne looked pretty embarrassed about it at the time. Her hands twisted about in her lap, while he swiped his arm across his forehead to wipe the sweat from his face. He began stammering shortly thereafter just before he could manage to get his next words out.

Detective Beau Neville: There is actually somebody else who I've had my eyes on as of late.

Beau's reply to Krys' question brought forth a round of both 'awes' and 'boos' from a lot of the girls in the audience who had hoped to have a shot with the detective.

Detective Beau Neville (continued): She's really special, smart, and funny. If she's watching this right now from her bookstore, I hope that she hears every single word I'm about to say right now, especially since I mean it all.

I had to say on the audience's behalf that if the girls from within it were smitten with Beau before that comment about already being into Velma, they were definitely swooning over him by then. I could even see one young woman dab her eyes with a tissue.

I had to admit that I, myself, was also a bit taken aback by Beau at the time. When we had all first met him back on Moonscar Island just a month prior to the interview at the time, both Velma and I were incredulously suspicious about Beau's innocence in the mystery due to his own irritable and unapproachable personality towards Scooby and Shaggy most of all. He had been proving more and more every day since then exactly how wrong the two of us both were to be untrusting of him just a month prior to his and my Daphne's interview with Krys on her morning talk show.

Daphne suddenly began grinning again at the time, and I knew that she had been just as pleased as I was at the time for Velma and her budding friendship/relationship with Beau. She turned her attention back to Krys as she visibly inhaled just before telling the audience the real reason why Beau was with her for the interview.

Daphne Blake: Actually, Beau is here for a completely different reason. He's here to confirm what went down for both him and our gang back on Moonscar Island just last month.

The audience had suddenly turned deathly quiet upon hearing those words from Daphne regarding Beau's appearance on Krys' show with her as they all wondered in absolute silence exactly what she had to tell them. I could hear my heart thunder in my ears from within my chest.

My brain: Well, here it goes. I hope they don't laugh her out of her dream job.

Krys: Why, we just cannot wait to hear all about it, dear!

Krys sure seemed awfully chipper about what my Daphne had to tell her audience about the mystery we faced on Moonscar Island.

Krys (continued): The last time you were on the show, I recall that you promised all of our viewers a real live ghost for your second season of 'Coast to Coast'. Now we all wanna see just what it was that you and all of your fabulous friends stumbled across these past several months for your show! Joseph, cue up the video footage of what Daphne and Fred had prepared us for the interview today.

This caused my Daphne's cheeks to burn up a crimson red, and I felt my knees tremble at how she felt. She only spoke about Beau's reason for joining in on her interview with Krys as though she were only trying to soften the blow from both the giving and the receiving ends.

Daphne Blake: Actually, Krys, we don't have any footage from what we had experienced while on Moonscar Island.

My Daphne then eyed the audience if only to gage their reaction to what she had said about our time on Moonscar Island. They all just remained totally silent and absolutely still.

Daphne Blake (continued): It's why Beau is here with me today for the interview. He's gonna echo what happened to us on Moonscar Island as I speak. Since he's a police officer, I just figured that his testimony might just carry more weight than any validation of mine could ever carry into the audience's ears by itself.

True to her credit, Krys' facial expression made her look as though she were temporarily thrown by my Daphne's comment about no footage. She recovered amicably, though. By the time she had recovered from her surprised shock, the questioning expression that shone from within Krys' eyes had almost immediately been replaced by a warm, inviting smile once again from between her cheeks. I could already feel my shoulders finally begin to relax. Afterwards, however, Krys asked another question, and I suddenly felt my heart sink into my chest like a rock.

Krys: Daphne, why don't you have any footage to show us today, dear? What happened to your camera while you were on that island?

Everything suddenly went frozen for a minute or longer as I leant forward, my breathing had hitched in my throat. I anxiously waited to see if my Daphne would have ratted me out as the reason as to exactly why we had no footage from our journey with the others to Moonscar Island. I knew perfectly well that the second she would have told everyone, my credibility as a talented cameraman was going to be destroyed. The worst part of it all was that I had no choice but to stare my mistake directly in the eye by then.

For a brief moment or two, my Daphne and I had actually managed to lock eyes with one another. A knowing expression of some kind fell onto her face. She just smiled tersely at Krys while replying to her question.

Daphne Blake: Oh, afraid that it was all my fault. What else can I say other than that Danger-prone Daphne struck again during the very climax of our mystery on Moonscar Island. Stupid me, I didn't look where I was going and dropped the camera. It landed without getting a single scratch on it… right into a patch of quicksand on the island, unfortunately for me. I was the one who had also forgotten to bring a backup camera, so of course, it was all my fault that I have no record of what I saw on Moonscar Island. Doesn't make my claims today any less truthful, because I give you mine and Beau's word that what I'm about to tell you and your audience is one hundred percent real.

Granted that her reply was slightly too upbeat to be how she really felt about it, though it made my heart swell in my chest that she took the rap for what I had let happen to the camera and our footage of the occurrences on the island. Not long after my Daphne's reply to Krys, I suddenly felt the mysterious urge to just get up on the stage of Krys' show and just hug my pretty redheaded angel right in front of everyone who had been watching at home and even the entire studio audience. I did not even care that it would have made me look unprofessional at the time. I just wanted to hug my Daphne and hold her tightly in my arms like I was going to lose her within the following few hours to another man.

My brain: She-she actually lied and covered for me. She lied about the fate of our camera and all the footage that went along with it being all my fault and covered for me. Even with it having been my mistake in the first place coupled with knowing just how bad it would make her look, she still covered for me and lied about our camera's fate being my fault.

Krys looked pretty confused by it as to why Daphne would have been carrying the camera back on Moonscar Island and not I, who was basically her cameraman, when Beau cleared his throat before speaking once more to Krys, herself, on both mine and my Daphne's behalf.

Detective Beau Neville: Look, Krys. I know how this must look and sound to you right now. I know that you and your audience might be skeptical right now, but I just want you and everyone else in here and at home to hear Daphne and I out right now. I promise that as soon as this interview's finished, you can ask all the questions you wanna ask us.

I had to admit that I was completely impressed by exactly how quickly Beau had regained his confidence. It felt as though that nervous wreck of a man from just minutes prior to his and my Daphne's interview with Krys had left the building. Actually, that would have been such an underwhelming understatement of how his composure really looked. In truth, it had felt as though the nervous shell of a man from just minutes prior to the interview had never even existed, never mind been in the building at all.

I had actually felt terrified of Beau when he held onto such confidence and composure. I knew for a fact that if he had liked my Daphne in return the same way in which she had liked him while we were all on Moonscar Island, he could have easily gone for her no problem. The artistry of adapting to circumstances which this brunette man on the stage of Krys' show with my precious Daphne had in him made him look frighteningly and unimaginably perfect. It really was no wonder as to exactly why my Daphne had a slight crush on Beau when on that hellhole of an island just a month prior to their interview on Krys' talk show to which I had openly insisted upon taking her that morning. I did not know even by then, but I guess that I was probably just a bit jealous of his confidence in adjusting to the cameras being on him and my Daphne at the time.

For the following half hour, Beau and my Daphne alternated between one another, recounting the horrifying events which had transpired with all three of them and the rest of Mystery Incorporated back on Moonscar Island just a month prior to the interview. The audience stayed absolutely still the entire time with the only sound able to be heard by anyone from within the entire television studio were Beau and my Daphne's own voices as they continued to speak of the events on that hellhole of an island from within the Louisiana bayou. Of course, Krys let out the occasional gasp and brief interjection of an 'oh, my!' particularly when my Daphne had conveyed the fear she felt upon witnessing Lena and Simone's horrifying transformations from beautiful, normal, and harmless-looking humans into terrifying, frightening, unnatural, and soul-sucking cat creatures.

I suddenly felt a shiver go both up and down my spinal column when flashing back to the time of which we had met her in the New Orleans marketplace. I could not believe that I had actually thought that she was beautiful and charming when I had first met her. I remembered when she flashed a sinister smile at me when revealing her set of pointy fangs and the thick brown fur which had sprouted all over her milky white skin. I had not allowed myself to reflect back on the prior month before Beau's and my Daphne's interview with Krys in the present; at least, not too often. When listening to the both of them during said interview, I grew overwhelmed by the immense realization that mine and my friends' lives were nearly drained of both energy and of soul that night back on the island. I had sighed in relief at the knowledge that I was not walking around with skin as wrinkly as a raisin within the present.

As soon as Beau and my Daphne had finally finished recounting everything which had transpired back on Moonscar Island and telling it to their viewing audience, Daphne concluded the story through words of confirmation towards what she and the detective had told them all either in the studio or at home.

Daphne Blake: So, you see, Krys, that's everything that happened on Moonscar Island. Of course, I know that it sounds all too crazy to believe, but Beau was there, working undercover as a gardener, and my friends, Fred, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby can all confirm that it happened, too. I really do wish that we had the footage for season two, but I only hope that my fans can graciously accept this story in its place.

Then, my Daphne paused and stared out into the audience, and her eyes just took in each face. When nobody moved to clap or heckle or respond to her story in general, she glanced at me. In that same moment, I could feel the all too familiar pull of that very same thread once again as it beckoned me towards my Daphne. I could not understand, nor could I really explain, why, but I had wanted nothing more than to take my weary Daphne into my arms and just shield her from every scrutinizing eye in the entire live television studio. Truthfully, I had wished that I could simply hold onto her and reassure her that the worst of it all was over, at last. I wished that I could have protected her from whatever was about to happen following hers and Beau's interview with Krys on her morning talk show.

The silence had been stretching for about five seconds. I could not tell if it was just me being slightly paranoid, but I thought it was about three seconds too long for a pause in the atmosphere on live television. Krys cleared her throat and directed her attention to the camera.

Krys: Well, folks, I can't quite believe it, myself, but there we have it.

I know that no one would have normally expected any statement like that from Krys, and those who were new to her morning talk show probably thought that it was her normal behavior for the television screen, but Daphne and I knew better than to think that of Krys. From what both of the two of them had told Beau about Krys' normal behavior for being in front of the camera, he also knew better than to think this of Krys' true personality. Still, for one reason or another, Krys' usually bubbly demeanor had been toned down and diluted as a result of everything that Beau and my Daphne had discussed with Krys during their interview. Of course, I could not actually tell if it was because she was efficiently creeped out by their story or because she did not quite believe the both of them. Frankly speaking, I was not quite sure if I was actually ready to know the answer, either.

Krys (continued): Beau and Daphne, thank you so much for being here with us all, today.

Krys tried to be as earnest as she possibly could towards Beau and my Daphne after hearing their story. The audience finally responded by clapping at a slightly normal pace. Anyone who did not know our story about what had gone on during our stay on Moonscar Island would have assumed that it was an applause worth our efforts, but I, for one, knew that it was just the audience being generally polite to Beau and my Daphne for all the collective troubles of the entire Scooby Gang and Beau's own troubles. I tried my hardest not to overanalyze if their applause was toned down compared to when Beau and Daphne had first stepped onto the set with Krys because they were all still processing what my Daphne had told them all, or if it was because they thought her story about the zombies and the cat creatures was a complete and total crock of garbage.

That was around when Daphne spoke up further about hers and Beau's recounted story about the ghost, the zombies, the cat creatures, and all other of the events which had transpired just a month prior back on Moonscar Island.

Daphne Blake: Actually, Krys, I've just one more thing I wanna announce.

My Daphne's crystal blue eyes danced about in the television studio nervously. Her gaze soon met with my own eyes momentarily, and she offered me a brief smile before responding to her own announcement to Krys and her viewing audience. I felt my adrenaline slam throughout my body as my heart raced against my chest.

My Daphne and I never discussed whatever additional comment she was about to make at the time. I also had no idea as to exactly what she was about to reveal to Krys' viewing audience and everyone watching from the comfort of home. She cleared her throat before she began speaking confidently to Krys once again.

Daphne Blake (continued): Starting today, I am officially announcing my retirement from television. Even though the gang and I went through something that almost killed us, it made me realize exactly how much I actually missed those simpler days on the road in our crammed-up Mystery Machine, solving mysteries just for the thrill of it. Therefore, Krys, you and your audience can all consider this my farewell from television.

Almost immediately after Daphne announces her retirement as a television host, the audience starts vibrating with questions, exclamations and screams. I even heard some livid protesting from the audience. Krys looked as though she were panicked for a moment or two, her eyes were as wide as saucer plates. Joseph waved his hands at the audience in an attempt to silence every last one of them present in the studio at the time.

I had suddenly felt my own mind buzzing with questions, myself. Why did my Daphne decide to quit just when her show was already starting to climb into its own ratings? Two years prior to the day of Daphne and Beau's interview with Krys on her show, my Daphne was completely tired formulaic and repetitive pattern on which her life had taken the form of unmasking a man or woman in a mask, and she dared to dream of starting up a popular mainstream talk show that would make her a household name. Why was she even considering throwing it all away by then just for the sake of returning to the life she had before 'Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake'? I could only shake my head in confusion in response to this, wondering exactly when she had made such a decision.

Krys beamed, clearly thrilled to have the latest scoop in all of Hollywood revealed first on her own television show.

Krys: Well, folks, you heard it here first! Daphne Blake, we sure are gonna miss you and Freddy, but just as much, we wish you well on your next journey. Thank you for being here on our show this fine morning, Daphne, and you, too, Beau. And now, we're gonna take a break for a few commercial messages.

The audience cheered and clapped, and some of them even rose to their feet as Daphne stood to wave. She did not linger, though. She shook Beau and Krys' hand hurriedly, unclipped her microphone from her blazer and handed it to Joseph. Then, she made a beeline toward where I was standing at the time. When she stood before me, I opened my mouth to ask her about her announcement. She only grabbed my hand and laced her fingers through mine, which caught me off guard and sent jolts of electricity up and down my arms.

Daphne Blake: We need to get outta here anyway so I can ask you something in private, Freddy.

As she spoke to me, my Daphne kept her hand threaded in my own as she guided me towards the exit, which led to the private parking lot ordinally meant for the studio staff. Our eyes blinked as we stepped toward the sunlight. As my vision adjusted, I saw that my Daphne was leading me toward the Mystery Machine. I sort of expected her to open up the passenger door and climb in, so I reached for the keys to the Mystery Machine out of my pocket but dropped my hand just as unexpectedly as she took it and swiveled herself around to face me.

Daphne Blake (continued): You're probably wondering why I didn't tell you about that announcement beforehand.

That was when my Daphne eyed my face just to find out my reaction. I sighed, unsure of what I was supposed to say to her about her decision to bring our television show, 'Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake' to a close. I might as well have started somewhere, though.

Yours Truly: I mean, yeah, it would've been nice to know about this decision of yours beforehand, especially when considering that I am your cameraman.

I was also shocked to realize that I felt no trace of anger and felt something or other flittering about in my veins instead. The giddy realization that the gang and I were about to become permanent detectives once again caused a smile to spread itself across my face. I admit that I still had yet to understand why my Daphne decided to call off the following season of her show without even once mentioning her decision for such an action even to me. She also had no way of knowing how the audience would even receive the story in the following weeks.

Yours Truly (continued): So, you decided on your retirement as a TV host before you even knew how your audience would react to your story.

I mused my words together slowly as I spoke to my Daphne.

Yours Truly (continued): So, this means that you've made up your mind before you even know which way yours and Beau's story about what happened to us on Moonscar Island would even work out for you. Why'd you do it, Daph? What if the tabloids and the media decide to trust your story? This whole thing could've been good for your show and made you a huge hit. What were you even thinking when you said you were gonna retire as a TV host?

My Daphne only took a surprisingly tentative step towards me at the time while smiling softly.

Daphne Blake: Being with the gang last month reminded me of how much I love and have missed solving our mysteries; not for the proof, but for the fun of it instead. Honestly speaking, when I announced that I was gonna find a real-life monster for season two of 'Coast to Coast', I didn't actually expect to find one. I'd anticipated a lot of the same routine as usual of unmasking bad guys left and right. I admit that I was hopefully optimistic about getting a real ghost or monster on tape just for my second season of 'Coast to Coast'.

My Daphne suddenly looked as though she were getting nervous about what she was getting ready to tell me next regarding her decision to retire from television.

Daphne Blake (continued): When we finally found the zombies and you just yanked that one pirate zombie's head off of the body, I actually felt like I'd found the elusive pot of gold at the end of the metaphorical rainbow, so to speak. I felt like we'd hit the jackpot and also like I'd finally had a thrilling story to tell my audience, with or without our camera. The minute the mystery ended, and we all went home last month, however, I'd realized that the time I'd spent with you and the others was the absolute happiest I'd been these past two years since we all split up and went our separate ways. Even though I'd had the time of my life filming 'Coast to Coast', I don't think anything I ever do again will compare to the height of solving mysteries.

I could see my Daphne react to her own words as she shifted herself about and a tint of pink blushed onto her face. I, myself, was only too stunned to even speak.

Daphne Blake (continued): That brings me back to something I've been wanting to ask you for a while now.

Her eyes began darting in all different directions as my Daphne spoke to me. I was pretty sure that I was about to pass out by then, but it was far too soon for it. Instead, I chose to just wait patiently for what she had to say to me. I had only hoped that she could not hear my heart galloping like a wild mustang at its top speed. I was almost positive that my heart was racing against my chest so loudly that the audience from within Krys' own television studio could even hear it, even amongst all of the activity and noise of the set.

Daphne Blake (continued): Freddy, I've been wanting to ask you…

Daphne's voice suddenly trailed off for one reason or another. I saw her gulp thereafter before she continued with what she was trying to say in quite a rush.

Daphne Blake (continued): Um, you know. I know it's a silly thing to ask, but I guess that I've been meaning to ask you if you wanna go back to mystery solving with the others like I do. When this whole journey started, I asked you if you wanted to be my cameraman, and you said yes back then. I suppose I'm really just hoping that you'll say yes, this time, too. I've just been so afraid that you're gonna be upset with me for making this giant leap without even once letting you know before I do it.

I had to admit that as touched as I was by her gesture, I felt as though it was not what my Daphne had intended to ask me from one reason to the next. My mind was a storm cloud brewing with thoughts, questions and emotions. One thing was certainly clear to me at the time, though. It was that he was not going to let her escape that moment between the two of us for a third time in a row by then.

That was around when the words Beau said to me from earlier resounded from within my head.

Detective Beau Neville's earlier words from within my brain: You know that she cares about you, don't you? That she really, really cares about you?

I knew that the chocolate brunette detective was right about my Daphne. I could just feel it, but could I really tell the truth about what I, myself, felt towards her?

Then, I remembered several more words from what Beau had said to me earlier about my Daphne.

Detective Beau Neville's earlier words from within my brain (continued): I don't see why you can't just tell her how you feel about her, man, especially when I'm pretty certain that she feels the same way about you.

Every word Beau had said to me from earlier echoed from within my head, and it was enough to propel me forward as I stepped toward my Daphne, who looked perplexedly at me by then. I had a string of questions I had wanted to ask her; such as why she took the fall for my mistake of losing the video camera back on Moonscar Island when being interviewed by Krys along with Beau on national television; or why she could not bring herself to ask whatever it was that was really on her mind; or even why she had consistently selected and isolated me out of everyone else in her life to follow her from solving mysteries to filming a news show to returning back to mysteries again.

I only wanted to ask her those specific questions and more all too much. However, there was still one question I had been dying to ask her since the moment I had met her. I felt as though if I did not ask it by then, I was afraid that I was going to burst.

I grabbed onto my Daphne's hand gingerly and laced my fingers through her own. Then, I gently pulled her towards me. She did not even resist me, though. She did, however, search my eyes for a hint of what was to come as I continued to pull her towards me until the full lengths between our bodies were finally touching one another. I did not stop pulling her until her face was just a few mere inches away from my own and she was in my breathing space.

Yours Truly: I'd follow you anywhere, Daphne Blake.

My voice was so soft as I spoke to my Daphne that we would have had to have been not even a centimeter apart from one another for her to have heard what I told her, which we were at the time, by the way. I could even feel the slight heat from the rosy blush spreading across her cheeks as I told her what I did.

Yours Truly (continued): But first, before we get back into the Mystery Machine and go to pick up Velma, Shaggy and Scooby, I only have one question that I've been dying to ask you for the longest time now, myself.

I paused and waited for my Daphne's permission as I attempted to summon all the courage I had ever had in the past. For some reason, however, running, be it from zombies, cat creatures or villains in cheap-o Halloween masks felt a lot less scarier than what I was about to ask her. I remembered when we stood on the pier together just a month prior, watching the sun sear through the sky and melt the clouds away as it rose. It left behind vibrant streaks of pink and orange that morning. As the two of us both gazed upon the sky, Daphne clung onto my arm as she spoke. I could remember her words very clearly as though it were in a flashback.

Daphne Blake's words to me from within my brain: You know, Fred, with all the zombies and cat creatures gone, this is a pretty romantic spot.

I quickly became bolstered and fueled by that memory by then, along with the implication and invitation of her remark. It was a remark I knew even on the pier that I should have acted upon when I had the chance for it the month prior to the time we were discussing it in the television studio's parking lot.

Of course, I was about to rectify my decision not to act on such a remark back on the Moonscar Island pier while we were still in the studio's parking lot. I waited for Daphne to speak and searched her moist eyes for permission when finally, finally, she nodded her consent. I gave her hand a good squeeze as I asked her something I had been wondering since the moment I first saw her when we were kids.

Yours Truly (continued): Can I kiss you, Daphne?

I admit that for a split second or longer, I was kind of worried that my Daphne was going to shove me away from her or even laugh in my face. My heart was even pounding fast and loud in my ears as I watched her for a reaction, any reaction. She only blinked her crystal blue eyes which shined like aquamarines. When her lips spread into a smile and she nodded, I put one hand on her waist and buried the other in her luscious, luxurious orangish-red hair. It was exactly as silky and as soft as I had always expected it to be.

For a short second, neither one of us moved. My brain screamed at me to move before I could lose my nerve at the moment I had been waiting for almost all of my life. I kissed my Daphne, and I had to say; her lips were like soft pillows as I felt my own lips sink into them. I felt as though my skin was on fire the second I kissed her. I had felt the kiss everywhere, from the center of my stomach to the backs of my knees to the top of my head. The kiss only intensified itself even more when she parted her lips and our tongues tangled then retreated then tangled yet again.

It felt as though the kiss lasted a few minutes when I could feel my lungs burning up and begging for air. So, I pulled back slowly from the kiss as I inhaled a breath of fresh oxygen. When I opened my eyes and saw my Daphne smiling back at me, he knew that it was actually the very same question she had been wanting to ask me, herself.

I opened my mouth, but I was still rasping for air. I had even heard my Daphne rasping for air, herself, as she attempted to catch her breath, too. I always knew that there was a certain chemistry between the two of us, but that kiss was pretty intense. It felt as though we were like kindling and explosive match sticks, or even something as dangerous as fire danger signs amongst the paths all over the forests just waiting to be enflamed, even burned. I placed my hand on the back of her neck and rested my forehead against her own. That action of mine caused her to blush once again. When we were finally breathing normally again, I planted another kiss on the tip of her nose.

Daphne Blake: I guess this means that you really do like me and not Lena, after all.

With that guess of hers, my Daphne finally exhaled, but I could feel the guilt claw at me for even being attracted to at all Lena and making my Daphne wonder if there ever really was anyone else in the first place.

Yours Truly: There's only you, Daph. There's always been only you.

I punctuated each of my following four words with a kiss on her nose.

Yours Truly (continued): It's. Always. Been. Only. You.

I then hooked her hair behind her ear as a laugh bubbled from within her throat.

Yours Truly (continued): Can I ask you something else?

Daphne had a response to my question to ask her. Although she said it as an accusation, she held a light-hearted teasing tone in her voice.

Daphne Blake: Hey, you lied to me a few minutes ago! You said you only had one more question you wanted to ask me!

I grinned at my Daphne sheepishly.

Yours Truly: OK, yeah. I guess that I technically did lie, but I just hope you don't mind that I had because I'd also wanted to know if you'd wanna be my girlfriend. Would that be alright for another question I could ask you?

My Daphne did not speak, but I knew that I had my answer when the tears began sliding down her cheek, and she cupped her hands around my face, bringing me in for a kiss. As soon as our lips met once again and I could feel my Daphne's smiled beneath her lips, for the first time since the month before then, I was truly grateful for all the zombies, the cat creatures, the wax figures, the voodoo dolls and the quicksand. It was all because every second had brought me there, right to that moment he had pictured a thousand times over from within my head. It was even better than anything I had ever imagined before, and I never wanted it to end.