Chapter 3: Locker trouble and an encounter in the park
Shaggy sighed as he turned the handle on the combination lock on his locker door. He had the provided combination number committed to memory, yet it seemed like no matter how many times he got the right combination, the locker door just wouldn't unlock and open up.
You've gotta be kidding me. Shaggy sighed as he tugged at the locker door handle and shook it.
Honestly, though, he wasn't actually surprised one bit that his locker door wasn't working properly. Just like all of the lockers in the school, his locker has seen better days since they were first installed in the 1980s.
First full day of school, and already this beat-up locker door has decided to give me trouble. Shaggy grumbled under his breath as he tugged right at the locker door, trying to pry it open with all his might.
Just then, something snapped from the door handle, and much to the astonishment of the students nearby, Shaggy suddenly found himself flying backwards.
"Zoinks!" Shaggy exclaimed, during which a janitor pushed an empty garbage bin right onto his path.
Before anyone knew it, Shaggy flipped over and landed upside down in the garbage bin, which sent it rolling down the hallway.
As the nearby students looked on, the janitor only stared at the retreating garbage bin blankly before he swung his fist in frustration and grumbled, "I hate this job!"
A short while later, over at the main office, one of the staff members was preparing to step out of the office and opened the door, only to bolt back in shock when she saw the garbage bin carrying Shaggy rolling through the opened door.
Everyone else in the main office were likewise surprised by the sight, and it was only a matter of seconds before the garbage bin carried Shaggy past a role of chairs occupied by students waiting to see the principal, where it came to a stop right at the doorway to the principal's office.
The minute the garbage bin came to a stop, Shaggy was ejected out of the bin and plopped right into the chair.
Across the desk from Shaggy sat Principal Sheldon Deedle, who was busy signing a few papers on his desk.
Without looking up, the school principal asked, "First full day at Central, and you're already having locker troubles, Mr. Rogers?"
"Yeah." Shaggy nodded. "Seemed like the only lockers that were available are the squirrelly ones."
"Well, you're hardly the only student at Central that has been having locker troubles." Deedle stated as he put his pen down and clasped his hands together. "I've been going to the school district for the past year or so to have these old lockers replaced, but they don't seem to have the budget to do so."
"Can't say I'm surprised, Principal Deedle." Shaggy exhaled. "Like, I've noticed that a lot of the school structures, especially the light fixtures, wall colour and all that looks like they're still in the 1970s and 1980s."
The principal nodded. "It's been a while since the school had its last major renovations. Heck, I've been in this position for five years now, and everything remains largely the same as when I took over as principal."
"I don't even remember the last time I noticed a school that looks this old on the inside back when I was living in LA." Shaggy remarked.
"Yeah, well, you know the Crystal Cove Unified School District." Deedle shrugged. "Always telling me that the district simply doesn't have the budget to make these major repairs, and this is only the tip of the iceberg."
"What do you mean, Principal Deedle?" Shaggy arched his eyebrows.
"Well, Coolsville Central High School has been returning a surplus in operational costs year after year under my tenure, but the fact that I still haven't been successful in getting the school district to allocate funds to make the necessary upgrades should give you pause." Deedle explained. "And then, there's our crosstown rival Crystal Cove High School, which hasn't been faring so good lately."
"Like, not sure if I wanna know how bad things are." Shaggy said.
"From what I understood, Crystal Cove has been dealing with issues for quite some time, some of which predates my tenure as principal here, and to top it all off, Crystal Cove has also been dealing with deficits in operational costs." Deedle continued. "If the school district couldn't allocate funds for Central to make the necessary upgrades, imagine the response Crystal Cove gets when it likewise raises the issue of funding for basic improvements to the school district."
Shaggy nodded thoughtfully. In mentioning the issues faced by Crystal Cove High School, Principal Deedle was referring to a number of challenges faced by his counterpart at Crystal Cove High.
It is worth noting that out of the two high schools in Coolsville, Crystal Cove High School is the oldest, having had been established as the Crystal Cove Education Institute and was, up until the formation of Coolsville Central High School in 1925, was the only secondary education facility in the entirety of Crystal Cove County.
As a matter a fact, Coolsville Central High School was established as an offshot of the then-rapidly expanding Crystal Cove Education Institute in 1925.
This was also where the intense rivalry between the two schools began, as up until Coolsville Central High School's formation, Crystal Cove Education Institute was located at the heart of Coolsville.
The formation of Coolsville Central High School changed the city's dynamic, resulting in the urban activity shifting westward away from the city's east end, which is where Crystal Cove Education Institute, now renamed as Crystal Cove High School, is located at.
Along with the city's east end, Crystal Cove High School has suffered from what amounted to urban decline following the deregulation in the 1980s and 1990s.
In particular, Coolsville's east end has increasingly acquired the reputation for drugs and gangs. With the neighbourhood quality of life in decline, the school dropout rate in Crystal Cove High School skyrocketed and hasn't taken much of a dip since the 1990s.
Adding to the issue was that budget cuts made by the Crystal Cove Unified School District, which runs the public school system in Crystal Cove County and the City of Coolsville, in the 1990s has resulted in the school district becoming increasingly notorious for school overcrowding, on top of facilities that were aging rapidly.
Much of the necessary maintenance and repair work were deferred, and in the years that has followed the cuts, electrical and mechanical problems at the school buildings were slowly beginning to rear their ugly heads.
As far as thing go, much of Crystal Cove High School's central air system, lighting, lockers and mechanical facilities hasn't underwent a major overhaul since the school last underwent major renovations in the 1970s, and last Principal Deedle heard, a Department of Public Works engineer has deemed the school's electrical and mechanical systems to be nowhere near the industry-acceptable level following an in-depth inspection.
Coolsville Central High School wasn't spared from the crumbling mechanical and electrical systems that has been working well-past their useful lifespan, and like Crystal Cove High School, deferred maintenance has been leading to mechanical issues such as an air conditioning system that has been blowing hot air non-stop following a malfunction two years ago.
At least with the surplus Central has posted from its operational budget year after year, the school was able to squeeze in some much-needed upgrades and maintenance, whereas Crystal Cove High has been posting deficits for quite some time and couldn't squeeze in much funds to even schedule basic maintenance work.
"Anyways, moving on." Principal Deedle continued. "How are you fitting into Coolsville, Mr. Rogers? I'd imagine it would be quite an adjustment from living in a big city like Los Angeles to a small town like Coolsville."
"Well, I suppose you could say that living in a small city has its perks." Shaggy shrugged. "Like, I've been to Coolsville a number of times, all of which were for family reunions and visiting my grandparents."
"Ah, is that right?" The principal raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. In fact, my new place is practically the same house as where my father spent his childhood all those years ago." Shaggy nodded.
"Good to know." Principal Deedle nodded thoughtfully. "In anyway, though, I did gather about what happened to you in LA, Norville, and to tell you the truth, your father made the right decision to move you guys up here. For all I know, LA is quite the tough place and that after what had happened, you certainly could use the peaceful setting of small town Coolsville."
"Won't I know it." Shaggy remarked.
"Indeed." Principal Deedle said. "That being said, as I've mentioned earlier, I'm sure it's quite an adjustment from living in a big city to a small town, and given that you were transferred in the middle of the semester, I'd imagine that you must've left your old friends behind in LA."
As Shaggy inhaled, the principal continued, "Not to mention leaving your old friends behind in LA is a major factor in your struggle to fit in. I don't suppose you've made any new friends yet, huh?"
"Afraid not." Shaggy shook his head.
"I figured as much." The principal nodded. "Ever tried joining one of the school clubs?"
"No, though I was the school radio announcer back in LA." Shaggy offered. "Playing rock and pop music over the radio, that is."
"Ah, at least you've got a hobby." Principal Deedle nodded again. "Perhaps I could be of assistance in getting you onto our school radio network, though I'm afraid that the tools that would be at your disposal isn't on par with what you're used to in LA."
"Like, I can take whatever's on the table, Principal Deedle." Shaggy said as he stood up from his seat. "It's no big deal."
"I'm sure it's not." The principal said. "But either way, what I'm trying to say is to give Central a chance. I'm confident that once you start opening up and start making new friends here, your adjustment to living in Coolsville would be made easier."
Shaggy sighed before he nodded thoughtfully. "I will keep that in mind, Principal Deedle."
"Now that's the spirit." Principal Deedle smiled as he stood up and offered his fist.
Shaggy nodded as he bumped the principal's offered fist, just in time for the school bell to ring.
Without another word, Shaggy proceeded to make his way out of the main office, pulling the garbage bin as he went.
Later that evening, after dinner, Shaggy and Maggie had taken Scooby out for a walk in the park as usual.
It was very much dark and cloudy outside, and the trees swayed with the wind as the trio walked by.
"I could've sworn that the night time weather is always like this, Norville." Maggie remarked as the wind started to pick up speed.
"No need to tell me that, Mags." Shaggy agreed as they walked down the trail through the park. "In fact, I can't remember the last time it was calm during nighttime."
"You'd think it has something to do with Crystal Cove being the 'Hauntedest Place in the County'." Maggie scoffed.
"Which makes you wonder what Grandpa was thinking when he decided to settle down in this small town after he was demobilized." Shaggy remarked.
As the siblings chat, Scooby wondered off further ahead down the trail through the woods.
The Great Dane sniffed as he slowed down and eventually came to a stop when he saw an eerie-looking iron gate to his right.
The nearest lamp is located several feet away, and for a while, Scooby was puzzled as his eyes settled on the old-looking wooden sign on the top of the iron gate.
All it took was a brief lightning strike to provoke Scooby's fears, though it wasn't because of the lightning itself, but rather it was because of what was on the wooden sign on the top of the iron gate.
The wooden sign, through the brief lightning strike, read, "Cemetery". Of all the places for Scooby to end up wondering to.
However, just when things couldn't get any more eerie for Scooby, there was another lightning strike.
This time, the lightning struck the two tombstones closest to the cemetery entrance, and Scooby's eyes widened in fear.
Following the lightning strike, two spectres started raising from the tombstones before forming into the shapes of two people.
Both people were dressed in Victorian-era clothing, and both of them had rotting-looking skulls.
The two spectres, upon seeing Scooby, glanced at each other before they laughed humourlessly.
It was all it took for the Great Dane to took off running, and the two spectres began to float away.
"You think he saw us?" The first spectre asked, referring to Scooby.
"It's not of our concern." The second spectre replied. "The game's afoot."
"Follow your spirit, and upon this charge, cry, 'G*d for Harry, England and St. George!'" The first spectre nodded as they continued to float away.
Meanwhile, Shaggy and Maggie were preparing to turn back as the wind began to pick up speed.
"We should call Scooby back now, Norville." Maggie suggested. "Any longer, we're gonna be soaked wet when the storm comes."
"Right." Shaggy nodded before he whistled and called, "Scoob!"
However, right out of nowhere, Scooby plowed right into Shaggy and knocked him off his feet.
As Scooby whined, Shaggy furiously tried to calm him down.
"Like, down, Scoob! Down!" Shaggy exclaimed.
However, the Great Dane didn't heed his words as he continued to whine, and it took some restraining on Maggie's part before the Great Dane let go of Shaggy.
"What's gotten into you, Scoob old buddy?" Shaggy asked as he got up and rubbed his forehead. "You looked like you spotted something."
Scooby panted as he nodded in confirmation, though his subsequent attempts to imitate the two spectres he saw near the cemetery only served to confuse the siblings.
"What do you suppose Scooby saw, Norville?" Maggie asked.
"Search me." Shaggy shrugged before he added, "But I digress, we should head back home now."
Maggie nodded in agreement before she reattached the leash to Scooby's collar and prompted the Great Dane to lead the way back home.
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