Molly's Return/A Ghostly Intervention
At first, Molly's entire world seemed utterly dark; as if all the light and joy in the universe suddenly disappeared. But then, like a flash, she suddenly gave a shriek and shot up into a seated position. Afterwards, she tried her darndest to calm her frazzled nerves; all while feeling every inch of her body.
After a while, she realized that everything was in its proper place (from the tip of her ponytail down to the tips of her pink toed sock) she let out a heavy sigh of relief and fell back hard atop her pillow. "Wait a second...did I just really land on a pillow" Molly asked herself, "then...that must mean that..." Ever so slowly; she braved a look over her shoulder to find that she had indeed landed on a pillow.
But what really caught her attention was the familiar sights and surroundings of her attic bedroom. Everything from her books on her shelf, her window, her beanbag chair, her dad's family tartan, her easel with her goofy painting of a ghost, her posters...even her favorite gaggle of plushies were in their proper places. After taking another moment to process everything, Molly belted out a joyful cry and exclaimed "I'M HOOOOME!"
Afterwards, she proceeded to greet all of her belongings in the most emotional way possible; as if she were embracing a long-lost friend. She took a particularly extra amount of time to indulge in some Smooch Time with her plushies. "I'm back home...my real home" Molly thought while outwardly weeping, "but what about everything else?" With this idea in mind, the first thing she prepared to do was call out Scratch's name in the loudest possible way.
But as Molly took in a deep inhale, the aforementioned specter came floating up through the floor; his cheeks looking drenched with tears. "HEY! WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH ALL THE SCREAMIN', MOLLY" he shouted in annoyance, "CAN'T YOU SEE THAT...wait a minute!" After taking a moment to wipe his eyes clear of tears, he looks at the young lady standing before him; making intense observation over every inch of her.
When he saw that this truly was Molly McGee standing before him; Scratch let out a joyful wail, lunged forward and gripped the young lady in a hug that would almost rival her own. At first, Molly felt a twinge of pain jolt through her from said hug...but it didn't matter to her. All she cared about was that single moment, right then and there.
"Mol...I can't believe it, you're back" Scratch said breathlessly, "does this mean that Clarance guy did good on his job?" Molly gave her ghostly bestie a quivering grin while swiping some tears away before answering with just a simple nod. But then, she suddenly realized what Scratch had said and proceeded to question how he knew about her ordeal to begin with.
"It's a very...very long story, I swear" chuckled the ghost, "but we don't have time to talk it over, now; we've gotta tell the others!" While still feeling rather emotional, Molly couldn't help but ask about the alleged "others" Scratch was referring to.
(Line Break)
With near lightning-fast speed, Molly speedwalked her way down the stairs of her stepladder; taking a moment to run her hands along each step with a wistful look in her eye. But before she could savor the moment any further, Molly suddenly heard the sounds of sobbing coming from downstairs. "Scratch...what's going on" she whispered softly, "is somebody hurt downstairs or is that just the TV?"
Scratch simply shook his head, took her by the wrist and gently carried her halfway down the steps; making certain to be as silent as possible. Then, he gestured his pudgy hand towards the living room; where Molly could see her parents sobbing on the sofa. "They've been like that all day, Mol" Scratch said bluntly, "the moment Libby heard from Andrea that you ran halfway outta town."
Molly said nothing in reply; instead, her brain did its best to recap everything that had transpired in what could've been days. At which time, she recalled how she made it to a bridge that almost led into Mewline...the same place where she almost tried to "un-alive" herself. "Scratch...I know this may sound weird for me to ask you" Molly said hesitantly, "but how long was I gone?"
Without even the slightest sign of pause or hesitation, the ghost revealed that Molly had been gone from town for almost nine hours. He then went on to say that the police were dangerously on the verge of declaring Molly either missing or legally dead due to how far she traveled. "Everyone's been beside themselves with worry, McGee" Scratch stated, "I even saw Darryl cry for almost two hours...and that hardly ever happens, according to your folks."
With this simple reveal, Molly almost lost her balance and fell down a step or two but she stopped herself by grabbing the railing. Then, once she got her senses together, she asked if anyone else they knew felt as worried as her family. "Is that a trick question, Mol" Scratch retorted sarcastically, "the whole town's practically searched for you forwards, backwards, sideways and I think I almost saw Crazy Larry try looking for you while walkin' sideways."
For a brief moment, Molly found herself chuckling softly at this little tidbit of news. But almost ten seconds later, that laughter quickly turned into tears of joy before the poor girl finally burst into tears. The instant they heard Molly's cries, the other McGees stopped crying themselves and turned towards the stairs; where they found Scratch holding onto her lovingly.
When Scratch finally noticed them staring, he smiled broadly and revealed that Molly had come home. This would be a decision he would come to regret, almost seconds later. Soon, both parents and Darryl came charging towards Molly like a herd of buffalo before tackling her in the biggest group hug possible.
"MOLLY...I can't believe it" cried Sharon while she smothered her daughter's face with kisses, "we thought we lost you forever!" Soon after, Pete was finally allowed his chance to shower his daughter with love; which Molly happily welcomed. But that's when she noticed several bare spots atop her dad's head.
This must've meant Pete was so worried for her safety, he started pulling at his hair. "Honey...I'm so happy you're home" Pete sighed heavily while squeezing Molly in his arms, "we got the call from the Davenports and...well, it's all been a huge mess for us." Sharon nodded her head slightly; revealing that after news reached them about Molly running off, they immediately sent word out all over town.
Soon, people from all over spent hours searching for her from the elderly to members of Molly's school. Of course...there were some who didn't immediately jump in to help. "That's when we saw...the strangest thing happen" Pete revealed, "which is ironic, considering that we live with a ghost." Molly chuckled softly at this and urged her parents to speak up; proclaiming that after everything she experienced, a little strangeness would help her smile a bit.
"Well...after I sent out the mass text about your disappearance, your father and I gathered everyone in town" Sharon explained, "we hoped that our combined efforts would help make the search easier." Molly nodded slightly in acknowledgement, mentally thinking that the idea was sound. But then, she remembered the fact there were those who openly refused to search, at first and asked who they were.
"Aside from Darryl; there was Mr. Bates, that repair lady who acts as your Scout Troop leader, that guy who your mom flipped off last week after getting road rage and...naw, that's about it." For a brief moment, Molly felt bothered by the fact that Darryl didn't want to get involved with the search party; only to realize he may have still been sore about the Mall Santa Incident.
But then, her parents revealed that if Darryl didn't help search for her...they'd talk Santa into giving him nothing but coal for the rest of his life. "Of course...before we could even say it, the skies suddenly opened up" Sharon confessed, "and then, we saw...angels floating down to us from Heaven!" Now, this reveal would've thrown Molly for a loop for sure...but she far too tired to react that way.
Instead, she simply gave a soft gasp and wondered if "Upper Management" called for reinforcements to help Clarence. It was here that Scratch gave her the most playful Cheshire Cat grin possible and proclaimed he had a "secret" to tell. "See...while Clarence was with you, I talked a few ghosts into helping me with somethin'" he stated, "and let's just say that somethin' involved briefly pretending to be angels for a small moment of Divine Intervention...because it did."
At first, Molly was prepared to scold Scratch for doing what he did. But after taking a moment to think, she realized his intentions were pure and urged him to continue.
(Brighton Town Square – Eight Hours Earlier)
As news of Molly's disappearance spread, Mayor Brunson called for an emergency summons of every available citizen in Brighton. It was here that he urged the townsfolk to search high and low for Miss McGee (as he chose to "professionally" call her) and bring her home. That's when the likes of Mr. Bates, the Petting Zoo Manager, the repair woman and many others cried out in protest of this command; proclaiming that Molly had been a "nuisance" to them for too long...almost as bad as her brother.
"HEY! Don't drag me into this, people" Darryl exclaimed indignantly, "I may be sore at my sister for ruining my Christmas...but that don't mean I want to see her hurt!" No sooner had he said this; two of Darryl's classmates, Becca and Charlie, called him a selfish brat for his words. This prompted Mr. Bates to call Molly an "even worse brat" by comparison.
"Now wait just a minute, Andy" Miss Lightfoot interjected, "are you seriously going to stand there and insult a student just because she bumped into you on the sidewalk?!" Mr. Bates gasped loudly at her words, as if taken aback by them and claimed he had every right to be angry. Before long, this argument swiftly spread to every other citizen in Brighton; with the exception of the other McGees, Grandma Nin and the mayor.
That's when it started...the clouds swirling violently overhead and the wind blowing violently. At first, many assumed it was "the Curse of the Ice Princess" happening...only to remember the anniversary of her death happened earlier that month. At which time, there wasn't even that much snow coming down. Then, a loud voice boomed loudly through the skies with but five simple words; "PEOPLE OF BRIGHTON...HEAR ME!"
Within seconds, the people's quarreling finally ceased an they slowly cast their collective eyes skywards. It was here that they could see what looked like ghosts descending down from the clouds. "I KNEW IT, I TOLD YOU PEOPLE GHOSTS WERE REAL" Reuben Chen cried hysterically, "and now...my family and I will take them down!" With that said, he and Ester went about arming themselves with their strongest of ghost hunting gear and aimed towards the floating specters.
Meanwhile, Ollie and June weren't so eager to jump the gun like their folks and tried to think up another solution. That's when they looked up and noticed something...different about the ghosts. "June, quick; give me your goggles for a sec" urged Ollie, "I wanna see something!" Not wasting anytime, the youngest Chen handed her Ghost Goggles over to her brother and he put them on.
That's when he noticed the likes of Sonya Davis, the Tuggbottom Siblings, Geoff n' Jeff, Howling Harriet and others showing off a particularly interesting new element to their appearance...wings and halos.
(Line Break)
When the ghosts had finally got close enough, they proceeded to glare down at the humans with looks of pure disappointment on their faces. Yet, in spite of their numbers, nobody seemed the least bit intimidated. "What cheesy special effects we have here" proclaimed Ernie Fudderson, the self-named "greatest ghost hunter on earth," "how much money did your wife spend to put all of this together, Ruben?"
At first, Mr. Chen didn't want to get distracted from the task at hand; taking down these "ghosts" with everything he had. But after hearing his rival mock his wife's video making skills, his pride as a husband outweighed that of his ghost hunter side. "First off, Fuddy-Duddy; my Ester's special FX tech is years more advanced than...whatever they are" he cried while gesturing at the ghosts, "secondly, nobody insults my wife to my face and gets away with it!"
As the duo flew into an argument, this caused the rest of the crowd to become just as hostile; except for those standing with the mayor. For a minute or two, the "angels" said nothing; preferring to let the humans settle their issues themselves. But then, their bickering became so loud and obnoxious, they just couldn't ignore it anymore!
That's when Scratch, dressed in a more "Christmasy" version of his Chairman robe, appeared before the crowd and demanded for silence in the deepest voice possible. This, as it turned out, was just enough to force everyone to shut up and listen...even Ernie chose to keep quiet. "There we are" Scratch said firmly while still using his voice, "now...we angels have come down from on high to inform ye that thine words of spite towards one Molly McGee has grossly offended the Holy One!"
Upon hearing this, many of the bickering townspeople suddenly felt...rather self-conscious and felt as though they were shrinking in shame. Then, Sir Alister took his place alongside Scratch and announced his own disapproval of everyone's behavior. "YEAH! How could you guys say such nasty stuff about a girl like Molly McGee" "G" Geoff said firmly, "all she wanted was to spread some Christmas joy...but you guys are so focused on all the bad stuff she did that you never looked for the good in her!"
No sooner had he said all of this; the likes of Libby, Andrea, the Chens...even the Middle School staff found themselves hanging their heads in shame. Then, the "angel" of Mayor Brunson's mother, Mary appeared before the crowd; shaking her head with great disapproval. "Heck...given everything you all put her through, I don't blame the poor dear for running off like she did" she stated, "did you really think Molly wanted to hurt you, least of all during this joyous time of year?
With these few yet powerful words, many people in Brighton suddenly found themselves feeling quite embarrassed; particularly Andrea, Libby, her mom...and even Darryl. But before anyone could apologize, Scratch spoke again; warning that if they waited too long to find and rescue Molly, he may consider asking the "higher ups" to take their final judgements into careful consideration.
"NO! No, no, no, no...there won't be any need for that" Principal O'Connor chuckled nervously, "we'll get right to it with our search, I swear!" With a broad smile on his face, Scratch gave one final proclamation to everyone in his "Chairman voice;" urging everyone to not stop until Molly McGee was brought back safely home.
(Line Break)
"And...that pretty much brings us up to speed here" Scratch stated, "gotta say...I was sad to see the wings go." Molly chuckled softly, squeezed her bestie in a loving hug and told him that he "knew a guy" who could help get those wings for him. But before she could go any further, Darryl came walking up to her; his arms at his sides, hands clenched tightly into fists and his eyes looking on the verge of bursting with tears.
Of course...he tried his best to appear "macho" and act like he was only struggling to hold in a sneeze but Molly knew better. "So...you've got something to say, Bro" inquired Molly, "or are you just going to stand there glaring at..." Before she had a chance to finish, Darryl suddenly threw himself into Molly's arms and started lightly pounding his tiny fists against her shoulder.
The whole time he did this, he kept calling his sister an idiot for making everybody so worried; all while trying to hold back his tears. Rather than be upset with her brother's punches, though; Molly only smiled and held him in her arms as tightly as she could. "It's okay, Darryl" she whispered sweetly, "Big Sis is home...and she's sorry for everything."
If the hug wasn't enough to break Darryl, then Molly's words most certainly did the trick. With a joyful whimper, he threw his tiny arms around her and returned her hug with near equal force. Meanwhile, Sharon and Pete wasted no time in taking a picture of this moment; thinking it would make a perfect photo for a Christmas card.
"Wait a sec, honey" Sharon gasped, "forget the card for a minute, we gotta tell everyone that Molly's home!" As the elder McGees raced off to find their phones, Scratch decided to join in on Molly and Darryl's sibling hug; even though he wasn't their official (he was more like a form of spiritual home security and a roommate.) When the hug finally ended, Darryl wasted no time in asking where Molly had gone off to earlier.
"Oh, corn...You wouldn't believe me if I told you, Bro" Molly sighed, "it was like a dream...then, it turned into a nightmare." This only seemed to make Darryl even more confused, while Scratch said this was the "weirdest Molly-ism" he had ever heard.
(Line Break)
Sometime later, everybody was sitting down in the den with cups of warm cocoa steaming in their hands. Earlier on, Andrea and Libby had arrived at the house; wishing to greet their gal pal with open arms (which they did.) Then, Ollie and his family popped by as well; thus forcing Scratch to retreat up into the attic. Next came Grandma Nin, who appeared the most remorseful for what happened earlier that week.
"It's okay, Grandma" said Molly while giving her a loving hug, "we all make mistakes...I know I have." With that said, she went about pouring hot chocolate into everyone's cups while also sharing some Christmas cookies her dad had baked.
Sometime later, after everyone had sampled some of their drinks, Molly wasted no time in telling everyone what she had experienced. She told them of the angel Clarence and how he saved her from almost jumping off a bridge. Of course, this bit of news did not please her parents in any way.
Yet, they slowly came to realize that after everything she endured; they couldn't really blame her. But as shocking as Molly's near attempt at suicide was, what she told them after that was far more shocking. "So...wait! In that universe, Daddy and the head of BizMart become business partners" Andrea gasped, "and it boosted my number of followers even higher?!
For a moment, the young lady came close to claiming the other reality seemed better than her real one. But when she heard how her father's new position made her an even bigger brat, Andrea withdrew her comment. "I can't believe I became a junior crime lord" Darryl gasped in awe, "but...now that I think about it, even I have standards."
While she did feel secretly proud of her brother for his choice, she decided not to dwell on it and kept going. "It was all so...so insane" Molly stated, "by the end, I finally hit my wall and begged Clarence to send me home...and then, I ended up back in my bed." At first, no one said a word or offered up a single comment about anything; which made Molly feel rather uneasy.
Then, without warning, Libby suddenly threw herself into Molly's arms and hugged her with all her might. Next, Andrea followed with a similar embrace...then Darryl, then her parents and finally, Scratch (while remaining invisible, that is.) "That's quite a dream there, kiddo" Sharon said kindly, "and...I can understand why you had it."
For a brief moment, Molly was prepared to call out her mother on her doubts...but decided against it and beckoned her to continue. "Like your mom said, we don't blame you for what happened" Libby stated, "we were all...pretty bad to you this week, after you took time out of your break to help us and we just...you know." While she did feel quite touched, by her bestie's kind words, Molly still reminded her that it was her fault Rabbi Katz got sick from the doughnuts they made.
"About that...turns out before we got the message that you ran off, my mom got one from Mrs. Katz; the rabbi's wife" Libby revealed, "seems he didn't get that sick from the blueberry jelly after all." This bit of news not only shocked Molly but also Scratch...even though no one could see the look on his face. When she asked to hear more of the story, Libby said that the jelly only gave Rabbi Katz a mild case of bad indigestion.
"He only acted like he was deathly ill just so he couldn't go to his in-laws for Hannukah" Libby exclaimed, "which had me and my mom feeling quite bothered to say the least." Molly couldn't help but give out a soft sigh of relief through her nostrils, feeling apparently pleased that the rabbi was going to be just fine. But then, he remembered the incident with Andrea and the Me-Phone...but Andrea quickly silenced her with a hug.
Afterwards, she revealed that it wasn't Molly who'd accidentally sold the phone at the yard sale...it was her mother. "Apparently, some wise guy offered her a 'steal of a deal' for it" Andrea grimaced, "she and Daddy spent just as much time tracking him as they helped me in looking for you." No sooner had she said this, Andrea gave Molly another hug; apologizing for ever blaming her for such a thing.
Then, she brought up something on her social media profile; a video begging her "Fan-dreas" to inform her of any signs they found of Molly McGee's whereabouts. "The likes and views were pouring in like crazy, after it was posted" she giggled, "but...I didn't care, I just wanted to know you were safe." This confession touched Molly so deeply that she almost burst into tears.
Instead, she mustered up all the strength she had to shed only small tears before bringing her gal pals in for the biggest of hugs. Then, Molly noticed something off about the scene she was in...how did Grandma Nin get permission to come home? "You can thank your mother for that, honey" Pete chuckled, "while she and Nin searched for you, she heard about what happened at the Home...and she wasn't happy."
(A brief scene appears, showing the orderlies at the Retirement Palace getting an earful from Mrs. McGee. Anytime they try to speak, the worker's pleas are drowned out by angry yelling)
"After some...slightly hostile negotiations, your mom convinced the home to let Nin come visit us" Pete stated, "the guy in charge looked utterly terrified, when he saw her in person." After sharing a quick chuckle at this memory, Molly confessed how she regretted missing such an "epic" moment. But then, she realized there was one more loose end left untied.
But instead of her approaching Darryl, it was her parents who insisted he apologize. "OKAY! I get the hint" groaned the young lad, "look, Mol...I'm sorry, you only got in trouble because you were trying to keep me out of trouble and...I apologize for never telling you this sooner." Molly cooed softly at this, feeling obviously touched by her brother's words, and pulled him into the group hug she was currently in.
Lastly, Libby urged for Molly to look up her phone's most recent messages. "Okay, Libs" she murmured uneasily, "but who knows if it's already cluttered with calls from...wait a sec." As Molly was scrolling along her list of unread messages, she saw that many of them were apology texts from the other Wilder Scouts.
"Yeah...Sheila, Kat and the others felt real bad for how you blamed yourself for us losing the Snow Sculpture competition" Libby murmured sheepishly, "sorry for overloading your inbox." Molly chuckled softly at this and made a mental note to speak with her other friends in person before Winter Break was over. Finally, she came across a message/e-mail that was sent almost four hours ago; nearly half the time since she ran away.
She clicked on it and saw that it was a video message sent by Ollie, courtesy of his mom's know-how with video making. There was a popular Christmas song playing in the background while a slideshow of the best MoOllie moments played out. Each pic that flashed by had a special holiday frame around it, which made Molly feel quite overjoyed.
At the end, there was a short video recording Ollie made himself. "Uh...Hey, Molly; if you're reading this, it means you're probably at home safe" Video Ollie said timidly, "at least...I hope you're safe." After that, he went on an emotional tangent on how much he regretted not being there to help cheer Molly up; especially after the Snow Sculpture Incident.
With small traces of tears in his eyes, Ollie then proceeded to call himself the worst boyfriend in Brighton; if not the world. "I swear to you...come Christmas, I'm gonna be there to celebrate with you" he vowed, "I don't care how many times my parents may threaten me about cleaning the tech of any ectoplasmic residue!" While some were prepared to call out how the Chens had no such gunk on their hunting gear; Molly, Libby, her parents and even Andrea felt overly emotional by Ollie's words.
When she finally managed to calm herself down again, Molly thanked everybody for showing such concern and kindness towards her. "You know...when this thing started, I really thought you guys would be better off without me" she confessed suddenly, "how silly is that...right?" At first, she half expected to see everyone chuckle along with her on the "joke."
Instead, everyone was giving her a strong "are you serious" kind of angry stare; even Scratch (despite the fact he was currently invisible.) At first, she half expected to hear them yell at her...instead, she felt them all envelop her in yet another group hug. "Molly, I speak for all of us when I ask...are you kidding me with that" Libby exclaimed loudly, "your family coming here was the best thing to happen to Brighton in years!"
While Molly fully agreed with her on these words, she insisted that she was referring to herself and not her whole family. "Honey...don't you understand" Sharon sighed, "the whole reason your dad and I moved around so much was so we could find a forever home our children would grow up and have a good life in." Pete nodded enthusiastically at his wife's words, adding that bringing Molly into their lives was one of the best moments ever.
"As for me...well...you've seen what I was like before, remember" Libby chuckled shyly, "if you haven't come to class and pushed me the way you always did, I'd still be like one of my turtles hiding in their shells." The instant she heard her say these words, Molly remembered what Wish Realm Libby was like; how that version constantly hid her head away like a turtle. "Thing is, Mol...you're the best friend I've ever had" Libby confessed, "and if you were gone from my life, I...I don't know what I'd do!"
Molly felt beyond touched by these words and wondered if anyone else would be able to top them. It was here that Andrea decided to speak up next, reminding everyone of how much a diva she was before. "All I did was twist everybody around my finger" she stated, "whether it was my classmates or the teachers." Upon hearing all of this, Pete and Sharon each shared a nod between one another; as if telling themselves to have a word with the school about this sort of business.
Meanwhile, Andrea continued to thank Molly for her influence on her life...which was ironic coming from a social influencer. "Thanks to you, I've found skills I never knew I had" she stated, "not to mention found a better way to reach my followers outside the family business." Molly let out a soft sigh at this, shared one final hug with Andrea and thanked her for such kind words.
Finally, although brief, Darryl expressed his own words of gratitude for Molly being in his life. "I mean...sure, your meddling in my pranks often feel annoying" he stated, "but I guess you only do it to make sure I don't go...too far and end up in the Pokey." After that, Darryl expressed a more sincere thank you unto Molly and gave her another hug.
To say the least, all of this affection was certainly doing the trick in helping lift her spirits up. But she still can't help but think of all the times where her attempts to "en-happify" Brighton seemed to go wrong. "We all try to do good for the world, honey...I know I have" Pete stated, "but what you should remember that it's doing good shouldn't be about getting noticed...it's all about doing the right thing, in the end.
While Molly's heart swelled with pride at these words, Scratch couldn't help but silently grimace at the sappiness of it all. But even then, some small part of him felt moved by what he said. In the end, this pep talk seemed to be just what Molly needed to forget about her troubles.
"Thanks, you guys...for all the support" she whispered, "it...it really means a lot." After sharing one final hug with her, the oven suddenly chimed; which meant that the cookies were finally finished baking. Without a moment's delay, Molly leapt out of her seat and offered to help pass them out...once they've cooled, that is.
(First AN: One chapter down, one more to go. I know in the last chapter, I said we'd be reaching the end...but in this, I was sort of half-right. Anyway, Molly's finally back home with her loved ones and everything's out in the open now. What awaits our heroine come Christmas Day...tune in next time, to find out.
Until then, Merry Christmas!)
(Second AN: I thought having the ghosts pose as angels would be fitting, not just for the season...but for the fact nobody would take the word of ghosts seriously on dire issues)
(Third AN: Even though the others are aware of Scratch's existence; until the show has her meet him, I thought it best to have him remain hidden while Andrea was there to check on Molly. No doubt many of you feel I've made the right decision)
(Fourth AN: The MoOllie thing is a reference to the episode Grand Gesture, as well as a reference to how fans make up weird combinations of romance ships in media)
(Final AN: Although Molly didn't do anything truly wrong towards Ollie; due to her emotional state at the time, she felt as though she had wronged him. In which case, him sending a video message and pledging to spend Christmas with her was what I felt to be the best way for him to make up for it)