Read 'Em and Creep, Part 4 (Last Part)
Shaggy poked his head out from behind a shelf. "Like...is it over? Did we get her?" he asked, nervous.
"Let's just say that the Ghost of Miss Shusham is out of print for good!" declared Fred confidently.
"Well, that's great!" Shaggy laughed in relief. "Because Scoob and I found one last clue upstairs!" He immediately handed the clue to Velma and Fred.
"A price guide on rare books?" Velma muttered as she opened it and turned to the bookmarked page. " 'Pizza Parrot and the Boney Brigade'. I think I saw that book somewhere around here...but we'll get to that later. In the meantime, I think it's about time we unmasked this loony librarian!"
The others nodded as Fred went over to the Librarian Ghost and grabbed her by the hair.
She grunted and winced, as Fred managed to pull off her face, revealing a familiar brunette underneath.
"Bernice Bindenschwartz!" exclaimed Velma and Fred.
"Sorry...like, who?" asked Shaggy.
"We met her at the other library yesterday," explained Fred. "Apparently she runs a bookstore."
"I did some research, and found the place: CRYSTAL COVE'S COVER-2-COVER," Velma chimed in.
"I think I get it," commented Daphne. "She was trying to find all of these old and rare books in order to make a profit!"
"And like, she must've used the ghost story to keep people away!" added Shaggy.
Scooby bumped Shaggy's shoulder.
"Oh, right! Not to mention the Pizza Parrot book was one she was after!" Shaggy added. "With nobody else around, she'd be free to search until she found all the books she was looking for!"
"Of course, she got careless," stated Fred as he held out the scrap of red cloth. "Case in point; when she was at the other library, she left behind THIS piece of cloth from the ghost's dress!"
"Plus, a librarian dressing up as a librarian ghost," chimed in Velma. "Seems a little on the nose."
"I told you, I'm a bookseller!" clarified Miss Bindenschwartz. "And I would've been a RICH bookseller, if it wasn't for you pesky kids and your dog!"
Scooby gave a chuckle in response.
Later, the police arrived to apprehend Miss Bindenschwartz.
"Well, kids, I don't quite know HOW you did it," said Capt. Rogers. "But you managed to crack this case wide open!"
The gang gave proud smiles.
"Just warn someone before you do this next time, okay?" asked Capt. Rogers. "I don't want you kids getting hurt."
"Like, sure thing, Dad." Shaggy nodded.
"Reah! Rure thing, rad!" Scooby chimed in with a salute.
"Glad to hear it," said Capt. Rogers with a smile...before he did a double-take. "Norville, when did you get a dog?"
"Dad...like, please, don't call me that..." urged Shaggy. "At least, not in front of my pals! People could be listening!"
"Er, alright Norv—er, son," said Capt. Rogers. "When did you get a dog?"
"A day ago," Shaggy responded. "But Dad, I can honestly say that without Scooby, I wouldn't have met these guys."
Capt. Rogers glanced at the new friends Shaggy had made. He never would've thought his son would've made friends like them.
"Well...I'm just glad that you managed to make some friends," he told his son. "But just try to stay out of trouble, okay?"
"We'll do our best, Dad," Shaggy nodded.
"Reah!" Scooby chimed in.
But from a distance, both boy and dog were being observed by three young girls around the boy's age; one was blonde with pigtails, the second was dark-skinned with messy red hair, and the 3rd had black hair with crimson highlights.
"It appears the rumors of that ghost were false," said the 3rd girl.
"But what about our mission?" asked the first girl. "They said there'd be ghosts in this town."
The middle girl raised her hands. "Calm yourselves, sisters," she instructed. "The monsters will come forth when least expected. And in the darkest hour...the boy and his dog shall lead the way to salvation. In the meantime, we shall observe until the time comes to step forth."
The other girls nodded as the three of them slowly left the scene, vanishing into the shadows—although something was left behind at the scene.
"I gotta say, this was pretty great," said Fred. "Even if it WAS just a one-time thing."
"I'll admit, this was...most scintillating!" chimed in Velma.
"I didn't really know how to feel about it..." said Daphne. "But, somewhere inbetween the terror, I did kinda have fun."
"Like, yeah," Shaggy chimed in. "It was kinda fun, when everything's said and done."
"I'd wanna do this again with you guys," said Fred. "But we don't have to hang out just for mystery solving stuff. We could just all hang out together."
"Like, you wanna hang out with us?" asked Shaggy.
"Sure! Why wouldn't I?" asked Fred. "I mean sure, you two are kinda jittery, but y'know what? You guys knew it would be scary, and yet you stuck around and lent a hand...or paw, in Scooby's case! My dad always says that bravery isn't the absence of fear, but the ability to move forward in spite of it."
"What's that mean?" asked Scooby.
"Like, in other words: we were scared, but we didn't let it stop us," explained Shaggy.
"Ohhhhh," nodded Scooby.
Fred turned towards Velma. "And Velma, your brain helped us figure out what was going on."
"It was more a combination of deductive reasoning and research skills," responded Velma. "But why split hairs?"
Fred nodded, before he turned to Daphne. "And Daphne, you knowing how to convince Shaggy and Scooby really helped us out." he chimed in.
"Oh, it wasn't too much trouble," responded Daphne with a self-assured smile.
As the group talked, Scooby noticed an old Crystal Cove High School yearbook that had suddenly appeared nearby.
"Rook! Rearbook!" he exclaimed as he pointed a paw at it.
"Yearbook?" Fred asked as he reached down and picked it up. He noticed a specific page was marked and opened the book up to that entry.
On the page was a full-sized photograph of 5 teenagers and a parrot. Underneath the photo was a caption that read "from the Class of '86: MYSTERIES SIX".
The names were listed underneath the top caption:
BRAD JONES
JUDY CHILES
CASSIDY WILLIAMS
RICKY OWENS
WALLY "W.W." CHILES
with team mascot PROFESSOR PERICLES.
"Why don't we form a team like these guys did?" Fred suggested. "I guess we could call it...the Scooby-Doo Detective Agency, until we work out a more permanent name!"
"Ri rike it!" Scooby chuckled.
"Like, yeah," said Shaggy. "This could be fun!"
"It's settled then," said Fred as he hugged the others. "We're gonna be the Scooby-Doo Detective Agency!"
AND SO...
Soon, the gang were all celebrating at Pizza Potamus as a way to commemorate their very first case.
It was Daphne's treat, something Scooby and Shaggy were thankful for as they gobbled up their pizza.
"Like, I know they say victory is sweet," said Shaggy. "But gimme pizza any day of the week! And thanks again, Daph!"
"Reah! Ranks, Raphne!" Scooby chimed in.
"It was no problem, guys," responded Daphne. "Anything for a friend! Or 4 of them, in fact."
Velma, Fred, Scooby and Shaggy all laughed.
"Attention, Pizza Potamus Patrons!" said an announcer over the PA system. "On behalf of one of our employees, we at Pizza Potamus present a special performance!"
"That's my cue!" said Artie, looking a lot less grumpy. He picked up a bag and ran off to the restroom.
"I wonder what this special performance is supposed to be?" Daphne wondered aloud.
"Please give a warm welcome to Artie Melnitz, performing the opening number from 'Magilla Gorilla: The Musical'!" the announcer said.
The curtains opened, and onstage was Artie, fully clad in a Magilla Gorilla costume. The music began to play.
"~Weeee've got a gorilla for sale, Magilla Gorilla for sale!~" he sang proudly. "~Won't you, buy 'im, take-em-home and try-'im! Gor-illa for sale!~"
Half of the gang cringed at the performance. Shaggy and Scooby sure liked it, though.
"The Magilla Gorilla Musical!" exclaimed Artie, in a Magilla Gorilla voice. "Presented by IDEAL Toys! They're wonderful toys—in fact, they're downright ideal!"
"Eh, I've seen worse," shrugged Fred.
"I've seen better," said Velma.
"I haven't seen much," said Daphne.
"Like, I never was a fan of theater," shrugged Shaggy. "But, man, the tune sure is nice!"
"Reah!" Scooby chimed in, bobbing his head to the beat.
"~Take our advice, at any price, a gorilla like Magilla is mighty nice!~" sang Artie with a flourish. "~Gorilla! Ma-gilla! Gorilla for saaaaaale~!"
And the song concluded as he took a bow. The gang gave polite claps to Artie.
"Like, I think this could be the start of something wonderful," said Shaggy as he ate another piece of pizza. "For me AND my new pal: a pup named—"
"SCOOBY-DOOBY-DOO...!" Scooby howled with joy.
The End, The Beginning!