Chapter 7: Back to school

Martha Thomas Gates, the late librarian of the Coolsville Central High School library, was staring back at Shaggy as he tried to process what he was seeing.

"Like, Mrs. Gates?" Shaggy asked and blinked before shaking his head.

The late librarian was still standing in front of him and staring back, prompting him to point his thumb towards the door as he said, "Aren't you...already cut up on...the table in that...autopsy suite there?"

"Of course I am." Gates responded. "What do you think?"

Shaggy blinked again. "If you are supposed to be a ghost, why aren't you glowing green?"

"Only the book I've brought up to you could answer your question." Gates responded.

At the mention of "the book", Shaggy's expression lit up in recognition.

"When I was getting a cup of water at home, it was you that told me about 'the book', wasn't it?" Shaggy asked.

When Gates nodded, Shaggy continued, "So then, like, what is this book you're talking about?"

"It will come to you soon, and it will have the answers to everything that has happened." Gates responded.

"How about you tell me what this is all about?" Shaggy asked. "Like, perhaps you could tell me what happened that led to you being cut up in there."

"When you have the book, you will have your answers." Gates said. "I do know for a fact that neither you nor your friends had anything to do with me ending up there."

Shaggy exhaled. "Perhaps you're also telling me that I should pay more attention in English class, given the cryptic way you're answering my questions about the book."

It was then that the washroom door opened, prompting Shaggy to turn his head towards the door, and in came Fred, who arched his eyebrows when he saw Shaggy.

"Shag, are you alright?" Fred asked.

Shaggy quickly turned back towards where Gates was standing, only to find nothing.

"I suppose so." Shaggy responded as he turned back towards Fred.

"You sure?" Fred asked. "I heard you talking in here."

Shaggy shrugged. "Just calming my nerves after watching the body getting cut up like that in there. First time witnessing that, you know?"

"I suppose so." Fred responded as Shaggy walked by him to the door.

"Are we finished in there?" Shaggy asked as he nodded towards the direction of where the suite is at.

"Yes, we are." Fred nodded as he followed Shaggy out of the door. "The girls and I were about to head back out when I decided to check on you after you didn't return."

"Yeah, sorry about that." Shaggy said.

When they met up with Scooby and the girls at the entrance, the girls were going through what they had gathered from Dr. Wymils.

"After what Dr. Wymils has provided, you know what we should do?" Velma asked as Shaggy and Fred joined them. "Go back to the scene of the crime."

"But how?" Daphne asked. "We can't be seen back on school grounds."

"Then, we'll have to use the cover of the night as our silent ally." Velma said.

Clearly excited about the prospect of going back into the school at night, Velma clasped her hands as she added, "Yes, it'll be just like in one of our mystery novels."

Daphne and the boys all chuckled as they walked away, during which they walked past a bench where a man reading the newspaper was seated at.

Once the gang had walked by, the man put down the newspaper and turned towards them with a frown as his eyes narrowed.


That night over at Coolsville Central High School, Scooby was the first to peek out from the bushes facing the main entrance.

Shaggy soon followed suit, then Daphne, and then Fred and Velma.

The grounds were clearly silent, and other than a few bicycles parked to the bike racks, there were no indications of anyone on school grounds, and all the windows were dark.

Eventually, Velma announced, "Alright, guys, lets do this."

She then darted from the bushes and began snaking around towards the main entrance, prompting Daphne and the boys to chuckle before they followed her to the main entrance.

Soon, the gang were inside the school building and turned up on the main hallway.

"Alright, gang." Fred said. "I think we can cover more ground if we split up."

"Good idea." Velma nodded.

Pointing towards their left, Fred said, "Daphne and I will go this way, and-"

"Okay, hold up." Daphne interrupted. "Any particular reason why I should go with you, Fred?"

"Well, I just thought that-" Fred stammered.

"Um, we should be picking our own teams, since we didn't even vote on who will be the leader." Velma cut in. "And besides, I think I know why you would pick Daphne to go with you. It's because she's-"

"Okay, for the record, whatever it is you're suggesting, it's not a factor in why I've decided to pick her to go with me." Fred quickly said.

"Then, what's the factor in your decision?" Daphne asked as she looked at him squarely.

"Uh-" Fred stammered as he tried to think of a quick explanation.

Fortunately for the blonde, Shaggy quickly weigh in.

"Uh, guys, can we just get to it?" Shaggy asked. "Seriously, the school's already scary enough during the day, not to mention we're losing time if we keep on debating on how we're gonna split up."

Fred exhaled. "Fine, how about we just stick together?"

"Works with me." Velma responded as Daphne nodded.

Without another word, Fred led the way down the hallway with Daphne and Velma following suit while Shaggy turned towards Scooby with a sigh.

"Touchy, aren't they?" Shaggy remarked.

"Reah." Scooby agreed. "Sheesh."

Not long after the gang headed down the hallway towards the gym, a nearby door opened up, revealing a shadowed figure.

In the unmistakable voice of the Witch, the figure pointed towards the door and ordered, "It will be trouble should they find what they are looking for, so go and get rid of them."

Immediately, the ghosts of Ebenezer Crabbe and Sarah Ravencroft flew out from the door and proceeded to follow the gang down the hallway.

Eventually, the gang walked past the main stairs leading to the upper floors, where there are three displays showcasing the Cougar's athletic achievements over the years, including the cups they've won and various team merchandise.

And right by the displays were two mannequins dressed in the school football team uniforms from two different eras, with one wearing the modern-day football gear while the other is wearing the football gear dated from the 1940s and 1950s.

Ravencroft's ghost proceeded to possess the mannequin with the modern-day football gear, while Crabbe's ghost possessed the mannequin wearing the older gear.

Crabbe's mannequin subsequently come alive with a glowing green aura surrounding it, and its eyes were glowing red as it turned towards the gang.

Not suspecting a thing, Shaggy, Fred, Velma and Daphne continued walking on with Scooby in tow, though as Crabbe's mannequin came alive and turned its head towards the gang, the Great Dane suddenly stopped when he began feeling that he was being watched.

As soon as Scooby stopped, Crabbe's mannequin quickly reverted back to its lifeless state, just in time before the Great Dane turned towards them.

"Ruh?" Scooby enquired.

Receiving no reaction from the mannequin, Scooby snorted. "Ruh."

He then turned and was about to resume following the gang, only to thought of something and turned back towards the mannequins with a growl.

When the mannequin didn't respond to his growling, Scooby grunted in satisfaction before resuming following the gang.

As soon as Scooby was out of view, the two mannequins returned to their possessed states and stepped out of the stand before proceeding to leap to the ground floor.

The gym was still the way it was left when all the faculty scrambled to get out of the prep rally in fright as the gang walked towards the stage.

"Alright, guys." Velma declared. "Our objective is to gather forensic evidence surrounding the witch's appearance here."

"And keep an eye out for any teeth lost from someone playing dodgeball." Shaggy added.

Deploying her ultra violet flashlight, Velma proceeded to scan the surface with it, prompting Daphne to quip, "Someone's come prepared."

"Just like a proper forensic investigator." Fred added, prompting Shaggy to chuckle.

Just then, Velma stopped when she saw something on the stage.

"Jinkies, look at this!" She said as she put down the UV flashlight, which was flashing at what appeared to be a large splatter of residue.

"What do you suppose it is?" Shaggy asked as they gathered around her.

"I'm not sure." Velma responded. "But it is directly under where the Witch appeared and then disappeared."

Grabbing a pair of small glass slides, Velma proceeded to collect a sample of the residue.

"Do you always carry slides with you?" Fred asked.

Immediately, Velma pulled out her microscope and said, "What good could a microscope do without slides?"

As everyone else nodded understandingly, she proceeded to insert the slides to the slot in the microscope, during which Crabbe's mannequin walked onto the stage behind them.

"See anything?" Shaggy asked as they watched Velma look through her microscope.

Velma responded by urging them to be quiet with a shush, then Daphne shushed him, and then Shaggy turned towards Scooby to shush him, and Scooby turned towards Crabbe's mannequin and shushed him.

Scooby was about to turn back when he realized who he had just shushed and jumped in fright.

"Rhost! Rhost!" Scooby exclaimed, prompting the others to turned turn, only for their hairs to spike in fright as they stood up in horror.

Crabbe's mannequin proceeded to wave at them with a "Boo!"

In fright, the gang proceeded to retreat off the stage and dart towards the nearby exit, only for Ravencroft's mannequin to enter through the door.

"Going somewhere?" Ravencroft demanded.

The gang turned around, only for Crabbe's mannequin to leap off the stage and land in front of them.

Thinking of something fast, Fred quickly darted towards the basketball rack as he asked, "Hey, how about playing a few downs with me?"

Ravencroft's mannequin responded by stomping towards Fred as she growled, while the others quickly took advantage of Fred's distraction.

"Let's go!" Daphne shouted as they rushed out of the door, and right at the hallway, Daphne and Velma rushed off towards the right while Shaggy and Scooby turned left.

At the door, Crabbe's mannequin looked both ways before grunting and sprinted after the girls.

Over in the gym, Fred squatted as he challenged, "Hey, come on?"

Upon adjusting her helmet, Ravencroft's mannequin demanded, "Care to play around?"

She then proceeded to sprint towards Fred in a bid to tackle him, only for the blonde to effortlessly jump in the air and leading her to tumble onto the floor.

Back at the hallway, the girls were running down a perpendicular hallway as Velma asked, "Do you think we lost him?"

As she was asking, Crabbe's mannequin sprinted to the intersection behind them and looked in the opposite direction briefly before overhearing Velma's remark and turned towards them.

Looking over her shoulder, Daphne grabbed Velma by the hand and said, "I don't think so!"

As Crabbe's mannequin cackled, she led Velma towards the Theater Arts classroom door as she added, "Come on!"

Back in the gym, Ravencroft's mannequin was clearly having trouble with the game as she stood up and adjusted her position.

"Oh, too low, princess." Fred said in exasperation. "Come on, you can do better than that!"

"Your luck just ran out!" Ravencroft responded as she once again tried to tackle Fred, only for him to duck under and leading her to crash into the chairs behind him.

In the Theater Arts costume room, Daphne and Velma were walking by the rows of costumes when they rounded a corner and stopped.

"Jeepers, it's the Witch!" Daphne exclaimed as she saw the Witch in front of them and promptly delivered a kick.

However, it turned out to be only a costume as the mask, hat and dress were knocked out of their stand by Daphne's kick.

"A mask...?" Daphne muttered, during which Crabbe's mannequin leaped onto the floor from the stairs, prompting Velma to turn.

"Come on!" Velma said as she grabbed Daphne by the wrist and continued walking.

In the gym, Ravencroft's mannequin once again tried to charge Fred and tackle him in vain.

"Alright, no more playing around." Fred said. "Come at me!"

This time, Ravencroft's mannequin charged him in a fierce manner, only for Fred to deliver a punch at her head, leaving the helmet spinning as she got up after hitting the ground, prompting her to grab onto the helmet and stop it from spinning further.

In the costume room, Crabbe's mannequin was aggressively searching through the costumes as he said, "Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

Meanwhile, the girls have reached the back of the room when they realized that Crabbe's mannequin was blocking their way to the only exit.

"Oh no." Velma said.

Looking behind her, Daphne saw something and said, "I got it."

Grabbing Velma by the wrist, the redhead urged, "Come on!"

All the while, Crabbe's mannequin continued aggressively searched through the costumes.

Back in the gym, Fred was saying, "Is this really all you got? Come on."

"Alright." Ravencroft snarled. "Time for a different game!"

She then swung her arms, opening up the supply room door, and then the tennis net came floating out towards Fred.

Before the blonde could react, he got caught in the net and got dragged to the wall behind, prompting Ravencroft's mannequin to cackle.

"Now we're talking." Ravencroft said as Fred struggled to break free.

Picking up a sharp leg from one of the broken chairs, Ravencroft's mannequin proceeded to charge at Fred.

Thinking fast, Fred noticed the gymnastic harness hanging near him, and he promptly grabbed it.

Then, right as Ravencroft's mannequin was about to be close enough to stab him with the chair leg, Fred quickly slammed on the harness release button, which sent him up just as Ravencroft slammed into the wall.

"Yeah, now that's how Cougars does it!" Fred proclaimed as Ravencroft spun out from her mannequin as a result of the momentum from the collision.

Now at another corner of the school, Ravencroft recovered in time to see Shaggy and Scooby rushing into the school cafeteria.

"Follow me, Scoob!" Shaggy said. "I know just the perfect place to hide!"

At the sight of that, Ravencroft growled before flying towards them.

Back in the costume room, Crabbe's mannequin was still having no luck finding the girls, seeing nothing but endless piles of costumes.

With a frustrated growl, he slammed his hands on his legs and dispossessed the mannequin before flying off.

"Next time, ladies." Crabbe growled.

Once Crabbe's ghost was gone, the horse costume came to life and Daphne said, "Come on, Velma. Let's make tracks!"

"Right behind you." Velma responded as she and Daphne galloped away in the horse costume.

Back in the cafeteria, Shaggy and Scooby were sprinting by the serving area when they saw the lids with steam and stopped.

"Like, all this running's making me hungry, Scoob." Shaggy said. "Time for a nutritious break, eh?"

"Reah." Scooby nodded in agreement as Shaggy took the lid off, only for Sarah Ravencroft's ghost to emerge from the tray.

"First, a grammar lesson!" Ravencroft growled, prompting Shaggy and Scooby to retreat in fright. "You never start a sentence with the word 'like'!"

With a gulp, Shaggy said, "Um, sorry!"

Quickly running off, Shaggy and Scooby hurried to a nearby door.

"Let's go, Scoob!" Shaggy urged as he opened the door, then they ran in and closed the door behind them.

Seeing all of that unfold, Ravencroft's ghost raised her hand and picked up the lock, then she inserted it into the slot and closed it, effectively locking the door from outside.

In the darkness, Shaggy and Scooby looked around just as the former heard the ominous click from outside.

"Uh oh." Shaggy said upon hearing the click. "I don't like the sound of this click."

"Rhere are we?" Scooby asked as he blinked.

Managing to find a light switch, Shaggy turned on the light, only to be greeted by the cold fog and all the frozen food on the trays nearby.

"Figures." Shaggy gulped as he tried to push the door open, only to find it locked. "How do you like that? Undone by the very thing that keeps us alive."

"Ironic, risn't rit?" Scooby remarked before sticking his tongue out in disgust.

Well, at least I am closer to making amends with Dad. Shaggy thought to himself bitterly as he pulled down his sleeves.

Back outside, Daphne and Velma were furiously sprinting through the main entrance.

"Giddyap, Daphne!" Velma exclaimed.

Moments later, Fred sprinted out of the entrance, in time for an explosion to take place and two massive flames shoot up with the two ghosts cackling.

"And never return!" Crabbe shouted.


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