Sponge: Happy Wednesday! Thanks for coming back for chapter 5! Hope you enjoy! A disclaimer: There will be some aspects of Scooby Doo and the Witch's Ghost in this story, but I'm also taking some liberties so it won't be exactly like it. Hope you enjoy regardless! Also, I don't own any of the Scooby Doo characters. They belong to Warner Brothers, Cartoon Network, and Hanna Barbera.

Chapter 5: The Book of the Dead

"Who?" Shaggy asked, eyeing the tall young man who stood beside their table. He'd never seen or heard of Ben Ravencroft before.

But Ricky and Cassidy turned to Velma looking delighted. "You're familiar with his work then?" asked Ricky.

Velma blushed. She liked to think of herself as stoic and unflappable, but she seemed to have a hard time keeping her cool around people she admired. And Ben Ravencroft certainly fit into that category. "I've been reading your books for years," she admitted, suddenly unable to look him directly in the eye. "You're my favorite author."

Shaggy bristled. He knew many things about Velma – her favorite pizza toppings, her favorite songs, her favorite scientists. She even had a favorite mathematical equation (something called the Fibonacci sequence). But he had never heard her mention Ben Ravencroft as her favorite author.

Ravencroft smiled widely. "Well that's quite flattering," he said. He stuck out his hand for her to shake. "What was your name?"

"Velma. …Uh, Dinkley." She shook his hand, embarrassed that it suddenly felt warm and slightly damp from nerves. But if Ravencroft noticed, he said nothing – just continued to smile at her charmingly.

"Well it's very nice to meet you Velma Dinkley," he said, eyes crinkling in a smile behind his glasses. "It's always a treat to meet fans."

The rest of the gang introduced themselves, along with Brad and Judy. Then Fred asked, "What kinds of books do you write, Mr. Ravencroft?"

"Please call me Ben," he replied with a nonchalant wave of his hand. "Mr. Ravencroft was my father. And to answer your question, I write mystery novels. Horror stories."

"Like great," Shaggy said under his breath. Scary stories were the last thing he needed right now.

"Wow, that's fascinating!" Fred exclaimed.

"I thought you all might find that interesting," Ben said with another smile. "Ricky and Cassidy have been singing your praises as mystery solvers ever since I came to town."

Shaggy's eyebrows shot up – Ricky and Cassidy really had been talking up the gang. It was oddly touching. But something about what Ben had just said confused Shaggy a bit.

Daphne picked up on it too, and asked the question. "Came to town?" she repeated. "Are you not local?"

To her surprise, Velma was the one who answered. "Nope," she said, shaking her head. "He spends most of his time in Europe, but he's actually from Oakhaven, Massachusetts. The same town the Hex Girls are from."

Ben smiled at her once more. "You've really done your homework," he said.

Velma blushed again, embarrassed for fangirling this way. "Sorry," she apologized.

But Ben shook his head. "Don't apologize," he insisted. "Like I said, it's flattering. And quite sweet, if I'm being perfectly honest."

Shaggy felt his skin heat up with annoyance.

"So what are you doing in Crystal Cove?" asked Fred. "If you don't mind me asking."

"Not at all," Ben told him. "I'm here following up on the town's claim to be the most haunted place on earth. Many unexplainable things are said to have happened in Crystal Cove, so I'm here to do some research."

Velma was quite sure there were, in fact, explanations for the "unexplainable" things that occurred, but she wouldn't dare interrupt him.

Fred would, though. "On what specifically?" he asked.

Ben gave a clandestine smile. "Now that is a story." He pulled up a chair from a recently emptied table. "May I sit?" he asked, moving aside Velma's water glass to make space.

"Please," Brad said, gesturing for him to take a seat.

"As a matter of fact," Ricky added, indicating himself, Brad, Judy, and Cassidy. "I think we're due at the Tiki Tub for some drinks. Kids, do you mind if we leave you with Ben?"

"Of course not," Velma replied, too quickly.

Ben chuckled, charmed, and Velma blushed for what seemed like the millionth time. Shaggy wished she would stop that.

"Here's some cash to pay for dinner," said Judy, dropping several bills into Fred's hand. "Have fun at your party tonight! I don't feel like we have the authority to give you curfews, but maybe try to be back at the beach house by one a.m?"

Fred checked his watch. It was barely seven-thirty – he couldn't imagine they'd be out that late.

"We'll see y'all later!" Cassidy called as she and the adults left the restaurant.

Once they were gone, Ben turned back to the gang.

"So," he began. "Legend has it that many years ago, a witch was said to live in this town – in a house on the edge of a cliff near the coast."

"Like we've never heard that before," Shaggy muttered sarcastically. He couldn't count how many times he and the gang had investigated a house or a forest or a cemetery that claimed to be haunted by a witch.

Scooby flicked him gently with his tale, and Velma shot him a warning glare across the table.

But Ben chuckled and looked at him. "Stories like this are old hat to you, are they?"

Velma buried her face in her hands, embarrassed at Shaggy's outspokenness.

Fred answered instead. "Well, I don't know how much Ricky and Cassidy told you about us, but we've solved a lot of mysteries like the one you're describing – you know, haunted house, scary witch, et cetera, et cetera – and it always turned out to be someone in a costume."

Ben nodded thoughtfully. "Tell me more about those cases," he prompted.

The gang spent the next little while regaling Ben with tales of some of the cases they'd solved as high schoolers, and how they'd always foiled the perpetrator in the end with a trap and a dramatic unmasking.

Ben listened politely, asking an occasional question for clarification. Once the gang was done though, he leaned forward.

"Those are some great stories," he admitted. He shot Velma a wicked little smile. "Now let me tell you one."

Shaggy clenched his fists, pretending not to notice the way Velma flushed when Ben smiled at her.

"It's said that the witch who lived in this town kept a book," Ben continued. "A book in which she wrote stories about the townspeople. In these stories, they always met a gruesome fate. No one thought much of it at first. But then her stories started to come true. People began to disappear, get ill, or even die, just like they did in her stories. The legend went that once the witch wrote your name in her book, you'd be dead within a day. That's why they started calling it The Book of the Dead."

Shaggy shivered in spite of himself. He didn't like Ben, but it didn't mean that he couldn't tell a good story.

Scooby and Nova seemed uneasy as well, but Velma was absolutely rapt. Daphne was holding hands with Fred, whose brow was furrowed in concentration as he listened.

"The witch's name was Sarah," Ben went on. "And she was descended from another alleged witch, also named Sarah, who had lived during the 1690s. Sarah the First was an herbal healer who had lived in Puritan Massachusetts. She documented her cases in a leatherbound book, but she was accused of witchcraft when the people from her records started dying. She was sentenced to hang for her alleged crimes. Her husband had died long ago, and she had a young son named Thomas. She was terrified of what would happen to her boy if she was executed, so she asked her good friend Hester to care for her son. However, Hester refused, instead breaking Sarah out of captivity and fleeing their community with young Thomas and the book of medical records.

"They settled in Virginia, where Hester took Sarah's last name to give the appearance that they were sisters – though, it was more likely that the two were lovers. Thomas grew up in this home with Sarah and Hester and eventually began a family of his own. Over the next two hundred years, their progeny continued. Ultimately their descendants began moving westward, manifesting their destiny until they arrived here, in Crystal Cove, California, in the year 1860. It was at this point that the first female was born in that lineage since Sarah herself, and the baby was also named Sarah, as an homage to her ancestor. For the next twenty or so years, Sarah the Second and her parents lived in comfortable wealth, enjoying popularity and power.

"Until, that is, Sarah found the book that her great-great-great-great-great-great grandmother had kept. But, as I mentioned before, she didn't use the book to record medical data. She used it to write horrific tales in which the townspeople suffered terrible gruesome deaths. When the citizens of Crystal Cove actually did begin to perish, the book was discovered. The townspeople declared Sarah II a witch, and ran her out of town and off a cliff to her death. Her body was never found…and neither was the book."

Here, he finally finished his story, letting silence and awe overtake the gang.

Daphne was the first to speak. "Jeepers," she said. "Is this the basis for your next novel? It sounds like a fascinating story."

"It is," Ben agreed.

"It's like too bad no one knows where the book is," Shaggy remarked. "I bet that would have helped you a lot in your research."

Ben fixed Shaggy with an inscrutable gaze. "Ah but you see," he said. "I believe I do know where the book is hidden."

The gang stared at him, amazed. "How?" Fred had to ask.

Ben leaned his elbow on the table. "After doing some research on the house in question, I believe there is a secret panel somewhere in the walls of the basement, and that is where Sarah hid her book. I plan to go there tonight, actually, to see if I can find it."

"Jinkies," Velma breathed. "You mean you haven't tried to look for it yet? That would have been the first thing I'd do if I were in your shoes."

Ben shrugged. "I had to spend a good chunk of time in the genealogy section of the library in town. That's where I found the blueprints for the house, which made me think there must be a secret panel in one of the walls." He sat up and gazed intensely at the gang again. "Would you like to come with me? To the house, I mean?"

Velma nearly choked on her water. "Are you serious?" she coughed, putting her glass down.

"Very," Ben assured her. "Ricky and Cassidy told everyone in town how talented you all were at following your instincts and finding clues, and after hearing your own accounts, I have to agree. I would be honored if you would come with me tonight and help me search."

"Tonight?!" Shaggy exclaimed. It was nearly eight o'clock by now, and though the sun hadn't set quite yet, it was sinking dangerously close to the horizon. Shaggy did not want to spend an evening searching an allegedly haunted house for something called the Book of the Dead…especially with Ben Ravencroft.

"We'd love to!" Velma cried enthusiastically, eyes shining.

"Whoa, wait just a minute," Fred said, holding up a hand. He wanted to solve the mystery of the missing book too, but he wanted more information first. He looked at Ben. "How do you know this book is even real? Isn't it only a legend?"

Ben shrugged noncommittally. "It is a legend," he conceded. "But even legends have a basis in reality. And the story of this book has been passed down in my family through generations. It's always been my lifelong dream to find it."

Scooby eyed him. "Rour ramily?" he asked.

Ben's lips quirked into a grin. "Their last name was Ravencroft," he explained. "These women – these witches – are my ancestors."

x.X.x

That was all the convincing the gang needed. Everyone wanted to go to the Ravencroft House to search for the Book of the Dead. Well…almost everyone. Shaggy did not want to go, but he was outvoted. Truthfully, Scooby didn't really want to go either – he was just as frightened as Shaggy. Nova seemed reluctant as well, but figured they had better stay with the humans.

Velma, of course, was thrilled to have been invited. Even if she didn't really believe that the book had special powers, or that the women who wrote in it had been witches, the fact remained that a book existed, and if she could help Ben Ravencroft find it, she would be ecstatic.

Fred, too, was excited to be searching for the book. It had been a while since the gang had solved a proper mystery – almost exactly a year – and he was itching to get back at it.

But as the gang followed Ben out of the restaurant, Daphne put a hand on Fred's arm. "Freddie, are you sure this is a good idea?"

Fred glanced at her. "What do you mean? Don't you want to find this book?"

"I mean, sure," Daphne replied. It was true – the curiosity of what was really in this book was killing her. "But we don't know this man. I mean, Velma knows his work, but we don't know him."

Fred shrugged. "Ricky and Cassidy do," he pointed out. "I highly doubt they would let us spend an evening with him if they didn't trust that he was a good person, you know?"

Daphne sighed. She did trust Ricky and Cassidy. But after living in New York City for two years, Daphne had become a bit more cautious around strangers. Fred, though, still lived in their small Midwestern town where everyone knew each other. Of course he wouldn't get bad vibes from an adult, especially one as charming as Ben Ravencroft.

Daphne loved Fred, but she worried about him sometimes.

"Okay," she relented. "But let's be careful."

Ben had a van just as large as the Mystery Machine, if not larger. They were all able to fit in it comfortably. Shaggy climbed into the back and tried to ignore his rising annoyance when Ben opened the passenger side door for Velma and gallantly helped her in.

"It's really nice of you to drive us," Velma said as they drove down the coastal lane. The sun was setting behind the ocean, the pinks and oranges fading into darkness.

Ben shot her a grin. "Well it's really nice of you to come with me and help me search for the book," he replied. "You seem exceptionally clever and bright – I'm sure we'll find the book together in no time." He adjusted his glasses. "So speaking of books…you mentioned reading mine. Are you a literary connoisseur?"

Velma blushed. "Hardly. I mean, I love reading and I love books, but I'm more of a scientist. I'm double majoring in chemistry and physics at Stanford."

"Wow," said Ben, impressed. "That's truly an accomplishment. When do you graduate?"

"Oh, not for a while," Velma replied, glancing out the window. "I'm only eighteen. I still have two and a half more years."

"Only eighteen?" Ben murmured, his voice quiet enough that Shaggy wasn't sure if the gang was supposed to hear him. "Hmm. You seem so much more mature than…"

He trailed off in a pensive mutter. No one had heard the end of his sentence.

Velma looked at him inquisitively. "Sorry, what did you say?"

Ben cleared his throat, and stroked his beard awkwardly. "Nothing, never mind," he replied, seeming embarrassed. "I was just saying that…you seem so much more mature than others your age." He shot her a flustered smile, though his eyes twinkled as he did so.

Shaggy tensed. Was Ben flirting with Velma? Not that Shaggy should care – not that he did care – they were broken up. He knew that Velma had gone out with a few people at Stanford after they had ended their relationship. And okay, Shaggy couldn't pretend like he'd been thrilled about that, but at least those people had been age-appropriate. Ben was at least fifteen years their senior. It was kind of gross that he was flirting with Velma.

No – it was very gross.

Shaggy glanced around the van to see if anyone else had noticed. Fred, predictably, seemed oblivious, but Shaggy was mollified to see that Daphne looked just as aghast as he felt. She made eye contact with him and they shared an appalled expression. The dogs, too, seemed uncomfortable.

Mercifully, the car pulled off the road onto a dirt lane, and moments later, they found themselves in front of a large, dilapidated house. It was not in good shape. The roof had multiple holes, all the windows were broken, and paint was peeling off the siding.

"Rhis doens't rook safe," Scooby remarked as they got out of the car.

"I agree," said Nova, glancing up at Ben.

Ben shook his head. "Don't worry," he told everyone. "We're not going upstairs. The secret panel should be in the basement."

"Like isn't that less safe?" Shaggy muttered to Daphne. It seemed that if a house was on the verge of collapse, the basement would be the last place you'd want to go.

Fred clapped him on the shoulder. "Don't worry buddy," he said. "I'll do a quick check around the perimeter, make sure of the structural integrity."

Daphne smiled at him. "Thanks, babe," she said. She wasn't thrilled to be exploring the house either – especially as derelict as it was – but she did feel better knowing Fred would check it out first. She trusted him and his architectural expertise.

Fred walked around the house, occasionally knocking on the outer walls or putting his hands against the siding before declaring it safe. "We should still tread carefully, though," he warned.

Ben led the way into the house, easing open the broken front door. It was properly dark inside, the last vestiges of the sun too low in the sky to penetrate the windows, so everyone pulled out their cellphones to use their flashlights. The foyer in which they found themselves was dusty and dingy – it was clear that it had been centuries since anyone had lived here. The bannister on the stairs was broken and seemingly infested with termites. Open archways to their right and left seemed to lead the way to a neglected kitchen and living room, respectively. Straight ahead of them was a dark hall, and at the end of it was an even darker doorway.

"That's the way to the basement," Ben said. He turned to the gang and smiled gamely at Velma. "You ready?"

Shaggy gritted his teeth in annoyance.

Velma simply nodded. "Let's go."

The pair of them led the way, phone flashlights illuminating their path. Daphne clutched Fred's arm as they descended the stairs to the basement, terrified that she'd trip and fall into the darkness. At last, they reached the bottom of the stairs, straining their eyes.

"Okay," Ben said. "If I'm remembering the blueprints correctly, the secret panel should be on the eastern wall."

Velma glanced at him. "You don't have them with you?"

Ben shook his head. "Unfortunately not. They were reference materials, so I couldn't remove them from the library."

Velma nodded in understanding.

Nova, who was good at orienteering, spun in a few slow circles before eventually stopping. "I believe east is this way," she said, pointing with her nose.

"Like great," Shaggy sighed. It required them to go even further into the dank basement. The group steadily made their way through the large room, careful not to bump into any of the detritus and old furniture that littered their path. Daphne nearly walked right into a large wooden table.

"What is that?" she asked, shining her flashlight. It was about the size of a dinner table, but it was made of stainless steel with a wooden top.

Shaggy found himself answering. "It's like, a butcher's table," he explained. He'd seen plenty of them both at school and in the restaurant's kitchen. But he wasn't sure what one was doing in this basement.

Ben didn't seem fazed, however. "That makes sense," he said nonchalantly. "Sarah Ravencroft's father was the local butcher."

"But wasn't that like, two hundred years ago?" Shaggy asked. This butcher's block seemed much newer, being made of stainless steel.

No one answered him however, as a gasp from the far end of the room caused them all to shine their flashlights forward. "Jinkies!" Velma exclaimed. She hadn't been paying attention to the discovery of the butcher's table, and had instead begun immediately exploring the walls for a secret panel – which she had evidently just discovered.

By the light of their phone flashlights, the others could see a slim panel on the wall hanging forward as if on a hinge. It opened to a small, shallow compartment in the wall.

Ben rushed forward, beside himself with excitement and delight. "Oh my," he breathed, the flashlight casting his face into odd shadows. "Velma, you brilliant, clever thing!" He reached the hand that wasn't holding his flashlight into the compartment and fished out a very old and battered leather-bound book.

Everyone gaped at it, awestruck.

"All my life," Ben whispered, gazing at the book. "I've heard it was real…but to actually see it with my own eyes…to hold it in my own hands…" He paused, then glanced at the gang. "Shall we open it together?"

Shaggy decidedly did not want to open this book. It was called the Book of the Dead, for crying out loud. But the rest of the gang seemed eager, so Ben took his cue from them, and lifted the thin leather cover of the book to see what was written on its first yellowed page.

Sponge: Thanks for reading! I love reviews! Also, if you're interested, since I don't respond to reviews, you can ask me any questions on my Tumblr, where I'm also SpongeAddict. Anonymous questions should be on so you should be able to ask me anything fanfic related and I'll do my best to answer! See you next week!