Chapter 3: Lunchtime, after school and a walk in the park
After arriving at the school cafeteria, Shaggy and Daphne walked over to a table where Scooby Doo is waiting. Along the way, they were passed by Tom and Jerry with the former chasing the latter as usual.
In the process of trying to catch Jerry, Tom came close to crashing right into Shaggy.
"Like, watch where you're going, guys!" Shaggy said to the chasing duo, who paused and stopped and nodded back at him before resuming their chase, making a sharp turn to avoid crashing into Ronald "Ronnie" Silverman, one of the members of the popular school band Mysteries Five.
"Those two sure never stops chasing each other, Shag." Ronnie remarked as he approached the duo.
"Like, you got that right, Ron." Shaggy replied. "I don't suppose it will be long before we hear a crash."
Just as Shaggy finished his remark, a crash can be heard, prompting everyone to turn and look towards the source.
To no one's surprise, Tom was walking around in a dazed fashion after crashing into a table with stars orbiting around his head.
"And I thought Tom is smarter than the average cat." Yogi Bear, who was seated nearby having his lunch, remarked as he saw Jerry laughing at Tom's misfortune.
"Yeah." Ronnie replied in response to Shaggy's remark, and upon catching a glimpse of the time on his watch, he added, "I better get to band practice now, Shag. See you around."
"Right." Shaggy nodded as he shook Ronnie's hand.
After the hand shake, Ronnie briefly nodded at Daphne before making his way to the door.
As the duo made their way to the table, Daphne asked, "What band does Ron play with?"
"Like, the Mysteries Five." Shaggy replied. "They've got six members. In addition to Ron, there's Kelly, Mike, Linda, her twin brother W.W., for Walter Wilkinson, and their dog Too-Much, and while they're not performing, they solve mysteries, hence the name of the band."
"Interesting." Daphne nodded. "And what instrument does Ron play?"
"Saxophone." Shaggy replied as they arrived at the table, where Scooby was waiting.
"Raggy!" Scooby said excitingly at the sight of his old pal.
"Hey Scoob old buddy, I'll like you to meet Daphne Blake." Shaggy smiled as he turned towards Daphne and then added, "Like, Daph, meet my old buddy Scooby Doo."
"Hi, Scooby." Daphne waved her hand as she smiled shyly.
"Rice to reet rou, Raphne." Scooby said as he offered his paw, which Daphne shook.
"Scooby's a nice dog, Shag." Daphne smiled as she proceeded to rub Scooby's back, which the Great Dane came to enjoy. "Where did you get him?"
"Scoob's been with me since we were little. It's kinda a family tradition in my family to adopt a member of Scoob's family." Shaggy explained as he opened his lunch box and took out a tall triple-decker sandwich.
"I see." Daphne nodded before whistling at the tall triple-decker sandwich Shaggy got out.
"Jeepers, that's a tall sandwich, Shag." Daphne quipped. "It looks like you can feed a small family with it."
"Like, just watch and see, Daph." Shaggy replied before opening his mouth and finished the sandwich in one gulp with Scooby doing the same thing with his own tall triple-decker sandwich.
Daphne was surprised as she watched Shaggy wiping his mouth with a napkin.
"Jeepers! You guys just...ate a tall sandwich with only one bite. How do you do it?" She asked as she took a bite of her own sandwich.
"We've had plenty of practice, like, since Grade 5." Shaggy replied. "It's really simple. All you need to do is to open your mouth wide open."
"Yeah, but how can you and Scooby eat that much without getting a belly ache?" Daphne asked.
Shaggy shrugged, "Let's just say one of the downsides of having a fast metabolism is that you can work up quite the appetite."
"Makes sense." Daphne nodded as Fred walked over to join them at the table.
"Hi." He said to Daphne as he approached them. "I'm terribly sorry about what Alice did to you during the basketball match. I hope she didn't hurt you that bad."
"Like, Daph's alright after a short trip to the nurse, Fred." Shaggy replied.
"Besides, Shag did well in fixing me up during the trip to the nurse's office, Fred, so no worries." Daphne added.
"Ah, that's good. But seriously, all that picking on you by the others is really getting out of hand." Fred nodded.
"You got that right, Fred." Shaggy agreed. "I had told Daphne about Alice while bringing her to the nurse's office."
"Oh yes, you definitely do not want to cross paths with Alice Carswell." Fred said. "Her hair might smell like peaches, but let's just say she has a habit of projecting, complete with the usual bits that would be expected from someone sharing a similar background as yours."
"Yes, Shag mentioned her father's a bank president." Daphne said. "Imagine that."
"As I've mentioned, she does have a habit of projecting." Fred nodded before noticing his friends waving at him, which reminded him of a meeting he has to attend.
With an apologetic shrug, Fred said, "Well, I've got a meeting to attend in a few moments, so I'll see you guys around."
"Yeah. See you around." Both Shaggy and Daphne replied as Fred walked off after shaking Shaggy's hand and patting Scooby.
After watching Fred joining his friends, Daphne took a few more bites before asking, "So how long have you know Fred, Shag?"
"Like, since middle school. We didn't attend the same public school, but given the professional rivalries between his father and mine being well known in town, I suppose it was inevitable that we would cross paths." Shaggy replied.
"I see." Daphne nodded. "What does your father do?"
"He's a cop." Shaggy explained. "In fact, he's the chief of police, appointed last year."
"Cool." Daphne remarked. "And Fred's?"
"Defence attorney." Shaggy said simply. "Since my father was a police detective for a good fifteen years, I think you can see where the rivalry came from."
"For sure." Daphne nodded.
It was then that Shaggy checked his watch and said, "Like, I've got ten minutes to go before I have to be on the air."
"On the school's radio network?" Daphne asked.
"That's right." Shaggy nodded after taking a drink of water. "When you hear the morning announcements every morning, it's me behind the mike."
"Wow. You sure got a good radio voice, Shag." Daphne complimented.
"Thanks." Shaggy smiled as he and Scooby got up. "In the meantime, I better get going."
"Mind if I join you and Scooby?" Daphne asked as she finished her sandwich.
"Like, sure thing, Daph." Shaggy replied as Scooby nodded. "You and Scoob can watch me in the booth making the announcements and playing the music."
"Awesome." Daphne smiled.
Along the way to the radio station, Shaggy said, "Like, Daph, I hope Scoob and I aren't overstepping our boundaries, but I don't suppose you've got a crew of friends you could really relate to outside of school, eh?"
"No, not really." Daphne shook her head. "As mentioned, my struggling to fit in with my peers at the private schools hasn't done me any favours with friends."
"I'd imagine." Shaggy nodded. "And take it from me, don't let what Alice did discourage you from opening up to others. Like, back in elementary school, I wished that I don't have to face the school bullies, yet it didn't discourage me from making friends at school and opening up."
"Rand reven if ro rone rikes rou, rou can still count ron re, Raggy, rand Red for rupport." Scooby added.
Daphne nodded thoughtfully. "Thanks for the encouragement, guys. I'll definitely keep it in mind."
"Like, there's no need to thank us, Daph." Shaggy smiled reassuringly. "Scoob and I just like to help people, and if you ever run into any problems, just come to me, Scoob or Fred."
By that point, they've reached the main office.
After entering the main office, the trio made their way to the radio station and walked past the editorial office for the school's newspaper, where a girl with dusty-bornw hair and wearing a light blue blouse and a pair of matching jeans was standing outside.
She smiled when she saw the trio and greeted, "Hi Shaggy, hi Scooby."
"Hi Arlene." Shaggy smiled. "How is the recruitment coming along for the school paper?"
"It's been good, though we're still in need for one more editor, Shaggy." Arlene replied.
"I see." Shaggy nodded. Noticing the way his friend was staring at Daphne, he quickly added, "Like, Arlene, this is my friend Daphne Blake. She's in most of my classes."
Daphne noted that he didn't mention that she was new to Central as he turned towards her and added, "Daph, this is Arlene Wilcox. She's an editor on the school newspaper."
"Pleased to meet you, Daphne." Arlene smiled as she offered Daphne her hand.
"Likewise, Arlene." Daphne nodded as she shook Arlene's offered hand. "Did you just said that the school newspaper is still in need of an editor?"
"Yes, I did." Arlene replied. "Are you interested?"
"Sure, I am." Daphne smiled. "I've always aspired to be a journalist."
"Really?" Arlene asked excitedly.
Daphne nodded before turning towards the rack and grabbed a copy of the Central Bulletin, and upon skimming through the pages, she added, "Must say that the school paper is more enjoyable to read than the one they had at my previous schools."
Turning towards the last page, she added, "I especially liked the editorial cartoons."
"Thanks for the compliment, Daphne." Arlene smiled. "The staff on the paper worked really hard on the newspapers, and Scooby, with some assistance from the art teacher Mr. Scott Takamoto, who, by the way, is a twin brother of the gym teacher Mr. William Takamoto, is in charge of the editorial cartoons."
Seeing that Daphne is becoming fast friends with Arlene, Shaggy says, "Looks like you guys got a handle of things around here. I'll leave you with Arlene and Scooby, Daph. I've got to go now."
"Alright, Shaggy." Daphne smiled. "See you later."
"Right. See you later, Scooby." Shaggy smiled back before taking his leave.
The rest of the lunch period went by as Arlene and Scooby gave Daphne an orientation of the school newspaper editorial office and she soon got down to work, starting with proof-reading article drafts.
Meanwhile in the radio station, Shaggy spent the rest of the lunch period playing more popular music through the radio network, including some rock music from the 1950s and continuing with the Gordon Lightfoot album he had brought.
School ended at around 13:30, and after clearing out his locker, Shaggy met with Scooby and they made their way home after greeting their friends and saying their goodbyes.
As the duo walked down Franklin Avenue, Scooby looked back and said, "Raggy, rook behind rou."
Shaggy turned and looked before arching his eyebrows. A BMW 700 was slowly approaching them from behind and as Shaggy looked closer, he noticed that Daphne is seated in the front passenger seat with a red-haired man behind the wheel.
The duo smiled as the BMW 700 slowed down and came to a stop before Daphne rolled the window down.
"Hey guys, my father was wondering if you would fancy a lift home." Daphne said in greeting as her father shifted the car to neutral.
Her father, George Robert Nadley Blake, smiled as he added, "Daphne told me what you gentlemen did this morning and I can't thank you enough for standing up for her and fixing her knee gash."
"Like, it was nothing, Mr. Blake." Shaggy smiled. "Just gotta do what we gotta do."
"Rindeed." Scooby added excitingly.
George nodded before he squinted his eyes at Shaggy and asked. "By any chance, you wouldn't happen to know a Sam Rogers, do you?"
"We sure do, Mr. Blake." Shaggy replied. "He's my father."
"Splendid." George beamed. "Your father and I used to serve in the same battalion during the war years ago, and I know he's been working in law enforcement for a while didn't realize until recently that he's now the police chief."
"Indeed he is, Mr. Blake." Shaggy nodded. "Sounds like you guys probably could use some catching up."
George nodded again as he asked, "In any way, would you gentlemen like a lift home?"
"I told Dad you guys lived just near the Easy and Maple Street intersections." Daphne added.
Shaggy glanced at Scooby and they both shrugged before he replied, "Like, I don't suppose why not."
"Excellent." George smiled as he unlocked the back doors, allowing the duo to climb on.
Once Shaggy and Scooby fastened up their seatbelts, George shifted the car back to drive.
Observing the interior of the car and noting how smooth the ride is, Shaggy remarked, "Must say this is an interesting piece of German engineering, Mr. Blake. I guess it's safe to presume that it was imported?"
"Indeed it is." George replied. "It was actually gifted from a German business partner in Frankfurt a few years back."
"Groovy." Shaggy whistled. "Sounds like it was for a significant milestone for the business you own to expand into Germany."
At Shaggy's remark, George turned towards Daphne and said, "Now I understand why Daphne spoke very fondly of you, Norville."
Daphne smiled back as he continued, "Did you know you're actually the first person she's ever befriended?"
Shaggy arched his eyebrows before he responded, "Can't say I'm surprised, Mr. Blake, given the way she mentioned not fitting in with her peers in private school."
George nodded. "I really must meet your parents and thank them for raising you boys to be gentlemen."
"Like, thanks, Mr. Blake, though Scoob and I did not help her ourselves." Shaggy said. "Fred Jones also played a role in helping Daphne."
"Then I must also thank his parents as well." George said.
Later that evening, as the Rogers' gathered at the dining table for dinner, Shaggy related his day and mentioned helping Daphne out and how she has been having trouble fitting in.
"Poor Daphne." Maggie remarked after Shaggy finished as they took their seats. "From what you said, Norville it seems like she could use you and Scooby's friendship."
"Indeed." Sam nodded in agreement. "I know George Blake. He's a nice fellow, and with a daughter like Daphne, it'll be a shame to see her growing up lonely with no friends."
"No argument from me." Wendy nodded as well. "It's good to see you lending a helping hand to someone in need, Norville."
"Just gotta do what I gotta do." Shaggy replied. "And for what it's worth, Daphne could use some more friends."
Everyone else at the table all nodded in agreement as they carried on with their dinner.
September 8, 1968
That afternoon, Daphne arrived home from school as usual and went to place her school bag in her bedroom before going down to have an afternoon light snack in the dining room.
Upon finishing her snack, she decided to go out for a walk to the park.
Smiling about how frequent she gets to see and hang out with Shaggy and Scooby at school everyday, Daphne walked down the sidewalk in a relaxed mood.
As she arrived at the nearby neighbourhood park on Easy Street, she spotted Shaggy with another girl walking with Scooby at the park.
That girl, who had long dusty-brown hair and wearing a dark green blouse, light brown skirt and an ascot matching the skirt, had her arm placed around Shaggy's back.
Even though she had only started to become acquainted with Shaggy, there was something tugging in her heart that was making her feel jealous for some reason.
Not wanting to risk damaging her developing friendship because of that jealous feeling, Daphne decided to take a different route and enter the park from a different entrance, hoping that the trio won't notice her.
However, Scooby happened to took a look at his back and spotted the familiar-looking redhead behind them.
"Ri Raphne!" Scooby barked excitedly.
"Oh, hi Daph!" Shaggy exclaimed when he turned and looked and saw Daphne. "What's up?"
"Hi, Shaggy, Scooby. I was just taking a walk to the park and happened to see you guys." Daphne smiled shyly.
"I see." Shaggy nodded as the girl accompanying him and Scooby smiled. Eying his sister, he added, "By the way, Daph, this is my sister Margaret, though she usually goes by 'Maggie'."
Turning to Maggie, he added, "Mags, this is Daphne Blake. She lives across the street from us and is my friend from school."
Daphne felt relieved when Shaggy mentioned the word "sister" as Maggie said, "Pleased to meet you, Daphne."
"Likewise." Daphne smiled as she shook Maggie's offered hand. "For a brief second I thought you were his girlfriend."
"Oh, that's interesting." Maggie smiled back as her brother and Scooby laughed. "Will you like to join us?"
"Why, certainly." Daphne smiled.
Soon, the four were strolling through the park chatting happily before Daphne decided to go sit and relax at the bench facing the creek while the Rogers' and Scooby went to buy hot dogs at a nearby hot dog stand.
As she glanced at the creek, Daphne's mind travelled back to the time Shaggy volunteered to escort her to the nurse's office and the shy feelings she had afterwards.
"I have to admit that I was a little jealous of you." A feminine voice said to her, interrupting her thoughts.
"Excuse me?" Daphne turned and asked, realizing that the voice came from Maggie, who was walking towards her with a smile while her brother and Scooby were waiting at the lineup to the stand.
"When Norville and Scooby came home one day telling me about helping you out at school, I didn't think much about it." Maggie smiled. "I'm not exactly sure if they were having any expectations in you, but you seemed to have soared past them, because almost everyday when they arrive home from school, they spoke about nothing but you, as in, 'Daphne this, Daphne that'."
Daphne arched her eyebrows as Maggie continued, "As that went on, I felt that I was losing their attention and have a feeling that you may be stealing their attention away from me."
"And?" Daphne asked, and Maggie sat down and smiled.
"When I first saw your face before he introduced us, I think you can say it was from my woman's intuition, because I thought you looked a little jealous." Maggie smiled. "When he introduced me as his sister, I saw the relief in your face. It was only for a brief second, mind you, but I noticed it, and I know what that means."
"What is it?" Daphne arched her eyebrows.
"You know, Daphne, in the past when Norville's female friends met me, I don't seem to mind and just treated them as if they're my own friends." Maggie smiled. "However, the look on your face that I noticed tells me that there's something about you that makes you special and makes me feel like you're going to be more than just a friend to Norville."
Daphne smiled at Maggie's response. "I guess I understand why you and Shaggy get along well."
"Yeah." Maggie smiled as she looked up to Daphne in a manner similar to a young girl looking up to her older sister.
Brushing Maggie's hair with her hand, Daphne nodded, "Shaggy sure is lucky to have a sweet, cute girl like you as his sister. Perhaps I should call you 'Sugie'?"
"Sugie? I like it!" Maggie smiled as she shared a brief hug with Daphne just as Shaggy and Scooby came back with their hot dogs.
Seeing the way the two girls briefly embraced, both of them looked happy to see Daphne becoming fast friends with Maggie.
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