Chapter 6: Dinnertime and piano magic
"So this one evening, not long after our commissioning, there was an incident on base." George was speaking as they were all having dinner. "Me and a few lads in military police, we were after a guy who somehow got some booze in and had one too many of it."
As the others glanced at him and George with questioning looks, Sam elaborated, "Even though the guy was heavily intoxicated, he still made a good run for it like he was running a marathon - and winning, not even caring that his pants were getting loose."
"Being the young lad fresh out of OCS and eager to impress the lads, I took off after him, firearm drawn." George flushed, resulting in some chuckles from the others. "Guess with the adrenaline in the heat of the moment, I didn't notice that the guy's pants had slipped off until I tripped over."
"While the lads went after the now-pants-less drunk, George tried to get up, only to find himself entangled in the drunk's pants." Sam added, leading to more chuckles from the others.
"The lads never let me live it down, and after the escapade, my platoon sergeant pulled me aside and suggested, 'If I may say so, sir, maybe military police isn't the right MOS for you'." George winced. "Obviously, that was before I came to figure out what I really wanted to do in the Corps and made my way to combat logistics."
As the laughter died down, Geoff remarked between chuckles, "Golly, I cannot imagine laughing this hard at the expense of your misfortune from early in your military service, Mr. Blake."
"Sometimes, Geoff, things get so bad that the only thing you could do is to laugh about it afterwards." George responded with a smile.
Skip nodded. "Wise words to live by."
Everyone's attention soon turned towards Sam as Elizabeth asked, "What about you, Sam? Any interesting stories to tell?"
"Well." Sam momentarily blushed. "This actually occurred not too long ago, and it was one of my very last cases before I got made lieutenant back in '61, and it is funny thinking back on it now, but it wasn't when it happened."
"What happened?" Skip prompted.
"Long story short, the primary suspect from an old case was tracked down to some town out in Jefferson, and my partner and I made contact with the town's police department about the man and they agreed to keep watch on him and not move in on him until we arrive." Sam explained.
"Sounded like a usual pick up from a typical unsolved case." George remarked.
"It was up until that point." Sam nodded. "What my partner and I didn't find out until later, when we arrived, was that the town was small enough that practically everybody knew everybody, and it was no different for the police department, which has four sworn officers, and one of them happened to be the brother-in-law of the guy we're going to pick up."
"Oh boy." Peggy remarked.
"Indeed." Sam said. "With the chief heading over to the train station to pick me and my partner up, there was no one else watching our guy and he was able to make his getaway. He was long gone by the time we arrived, and it will be another couple years before we finally brought him to justice."
"Where was he when he was finally caught, Sam?" George asked.
"Out in some small town called Smallville in Kansas." Sam replied. "By chance, the local police chief happened to be a guy we served with during the war - Pecker Becker, you remember him, George?"
"Sure did, I think he was already serving in LAPD when the war broke out and he put it on hold to enlist." George said.
"Indeed he did." Sam nodded. "Anyways, Pecker had already pulled the pin and retired to Smallville at the time our guy settled there under another false name. Unfortunately for him, Pecker still religiously reads the wanted posters that comes across his desk and he recognized our guy this one day and went in to make the arrest."
"Wow, now that is something." Skip remarked.
Sam nodded again. "You said it."
Exchanging looks with George briefly, the police chief continued, "And since George and I have told our funny stories, guess that leaves you to tell us if you've got any funny stories to share, Skip."
"Well, there is one that does come to mind, and it was a couple years before Fred came along." Skip said as he frowned briefly to recall the exact time of the story in question, then he turned towards Peggy as he added, "As a matter a fact, Geoff would've been no more than two at the time we went there."
"Ah yes." Peggy nodded. "It was a great pleasure meeting Brad and Judy there, and their wedding was really interesting."
"What happened during the wedding?" Wendy prompted.
"For context, both Brad and Judy are lawyers, and I have know Brad for a long time since our service in the Navy before we both enrolled in law school after the war." Skip explained. "He and Judy invited me and Peggy to the wedding, which was officiated by the judge they frequently appeared before."
"Long story short, Skip was supposed to object when the judge asks for any objections, as was previously arranged between him and Brad and Judy." Peggy said. "However, what nobody had found out until the day of the wedding, right as the bride and groom were saying their vows, was that the venue had one of those cuckoo clocks."
"Suffice to say, when time came for me to object, the cuckoo clock went off." Skip said, prompting some amused laughter from the table. "It took at least fifteen minutes before everyone could calm down, and the judge nevertheless overruled the objection, albeit still chuckling from that cuckoo clock's peculiar sense of timing."
"Wow wee." Shaggy remarked. "Like, talk about the situation going cuckoo. Hope that didn't foreshadow anything about the marriage."
"Well, they've been married for almost 20 years and are still going strong with a couple of boys and three girls." Skip said with a shrug.
"Ah, that's good to know, Mr. Jones." Daphne said.
"Anyhow, those were a bunch of interesting stories to share." George said.
"I'll say." Skip agreed before he nodded towards Jenkins, who was pushing a tray cart with dessert, and added, "And I'm certain Al here has his own stories to share."
When Jenkins paused and turned towards him, the lawyer added, "Don't you, Al?"
"Ah, yes, of course, Skip." Jenkins said as he applied the handbrakes of the cart. "So this happened while we were serving on board HMS Magnificent, when it was docked in Halifax."
Glancing towards Skip, Jenkins continued, "For context, this was the first time most of the lads been to Canada, and long story short, none of us were expecting a reception committee from the Royal Canadian Air Force when we docked."
"And by reception committee, he meant a squadron of Canada geese." Skip interjected, prompting some chuckles.
"Yes, and you should see the mess those geese left when ol' Truss started that racket of imitating those geese honking." Jenkins added. "Last I heard, he's still paying those dry-cleaning bills from that literal storm of droppings."
"That oughta teach him to mess with those geese, especially when near their nest." Skip quipped as the rest of the table laughed.
After some moments, as the gramophone player was playing the final chords to the Kaiser-Walzer, known as the Emperor Waltz, by Johann Strauss, Jr., Shaggy quipped, "Like, I don't know why but I find it very funny that we are discussing these funny stories with Strauss' music playing."
(Note: The music of Johann Strauss Jr. is featured in two Tom and Jerry shorts, first in Tom and Jerry in Hollywood Bowl with the Die Fledermaus overture, then in Johann Mouse, where various compositions by the composer was featured in the short, such as The Blue Danube, Kaiser-Walzer (The Emperor Waltz) and the Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka)
"Master Blake does have quite the taste in music." Jenkins spoke as he began distributing the slices of apple pie.
"I'll say." Maggie nodded. "So does Norville."
As the opening chords to the Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka began, Shaggy said, "This is the Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka by Johann Strauss, Jr., with the 'Tritsch-Tratsch' portion of the polka's title, meaning 'chit-chat', referring to the Viennese passion for gossip."
George nodded. "Very impressive, Norville."
After dessert, the kids and Scooby were excused from the dinner table and they decided to hang around together in the back yard.
"Boy, like, am I full." Shaggy commented as they took a stroll down the path.
"Did you enjoy the dinner, Shag?" Daphne asked.
"I sure did, Daph." Shaggy nodded. "Your family cook sure makes good food!"
"Reah, reah, reah!" Scooby barked in agreement.
Turning to Fred, Shaggy continued, "Like, Fred, how are you enjoying the dinner so far?"
"Enjoying it, Shag." Fred smiled. "The food is really good, and it is nice to meet Sugie. She's really a nice girl."
"With a brother like Norville, I am trying my best." Maggie deadpanned as she elbowed Shaggy playfully, prompting him to turn towards her ludicrously while the others chuckled.
"If I may say so, Shag's really fortunate to have a sister like you, Sugie." Daphne quipped as she chuckled.
Maggie simply smiled as her brother resisted the temptation to give her a face.
"Sometimes Mags just doesn't know to appreciate that I've got a hobby." Shaggy said.
"Collecting hideous-looking T-shirts isn't what I would consider a hobby, Norville." Maggie rolled her eyes.
"Collecting T-shirts?" Geoff raised an eyebrow.
"T-shirts with interesting designs that are no longer in production." Shaggy explained.
"More like they were no longer in production as a result of the cases of wardrobe malfunctions." Maggie interjected.
"Not sure if I wanna know." Fred quipped.
"Trust me, you don't wanna know what sort of T-shirts Norville's got in his collection." Maggie said.
"Like, it's not like collecting those T-shirts are my only hobby, Mags." Shaggy quipped, eager to shirt the conversation away from his T-shirt collection. "I do have other hobbies."
"What other hobbies do you have, Shag?" Daphne asked.
"Collecting belts, specifically belt buckles." Shaggy replied. "Many of the belt buckles I've collected have interesting, groovy designs, and if you take a closer look right now, you may notice that I'm wearing one of the belt buckles I've collected."
He then gestured at the belt he is wearing, prompting Daphne, Fred and Geoff to take a closer look at it.
(The idea of Shaggy collecting belts is taken by and inspired by a series of the old 1990s Cartoon Network Scooby Doo promotion bumpers, titled Those Meddling Kids, where Shaggy mentioned that he collects belts.)
"Wow, it is an interesting design, Shag." Daphne remarked after she took a look at the belt buckle. "Where did you got it?"
"This one was actually passed down through the family line for generations." Shaggy explained.
"Made by one of our third great-granduncles who was a blacksmith." Maggie added.
"Fascinating." Geoff remarked. "Any other hobbies you've got?"
"Playing the piano and guitar, listening to music, particularly rock and classical music, drawing, reading comics and mystery short stories, doing some gymnastics, watching movies, and cooking." Shaggy continued.
"What comics do you read, Shag?" Fred perked up.
"Mainly The Blue Scarab published by CT Comics." Shaggy explained.
"I've heard of him." Geoff spoke. "Any chance you've watched the television series?"
"Sure did." Shaggy responded. "You too, Geoff?"
"Not so much, though I do know enough about the overall stories of his adventures." Geoff said. "Primarily with how a fatal boat crash that killed his parents later inspired him to take up the mantle of the Blue Scarab to fight crime, especially after finding out that the boat crash was no accident."
"Indeed." Shaggy nodded before he turned towards Daphne and asked, "Anyways, you got any hobbies, Daph?"
"Sure do." Daphne nodded. "For starters, I've always enjoyed reading newspapers, especially the school newspaper, and it's been a great pleasure to have the opportunity to work on it."
"Arlene's been telling me that you've been fitting in well with the editorial staff at the school paper." Shaggy said. "Glad to hear you're enjoying it."
Daphne nodded with a smile as she continued, "Also, I liked playing the piano, drawing, and reading mystery stories."
"That's impressive." Maggie remarked as they turned towards Fred and asked, "What about you, Fred?"
"I've always enjoy reading mystery novels, and as a matter a fact, I looking to become both a mystery writer and a lawyer someday." Fred replied.
"Like, a mystery writer and a lawyer, eh?" Shaggy remarked. "Given your contributions to the school paper with those mystery short stories, which are quite the good read with the twist and turns, it makes plenty of sense that you'll have the inspiration to be a mystery writer."
"I'm glad you enjoyed those short stories, Shag." Fred replied proudly.
"Huh, I just realized something." Maggie spoke up, prompting the others to turn towards her.
"Ruh?" Scooby asked.
Pointing at her brother, then Daphne, and then Fred, Maggie continued, "It would seem you guys all share the same interests in mysteries, whether be Norville's reading of The Blue Scarab, who has been billed as the 'World's Most-Distinguished Detective', Daphne reading mystery stories, and Fred's short stories."
Exchanging glances, Shaggy remarked, "Like, how about that."
"Indeed, Shag." Daphne agreed.
After finishing their walk, the kids returned to the living room and gathered around the piano as Fred said, "Well, Shag, Daph, since you guys have shown yourselves as being good at the piano, why don't you play a piece for two pianos?"
Shaggy and Daphne turned to look at each other for a moment before the former nodded. "Like, sure."
After that, the duo went to the pianos and took a seat. They then made some eye contact before placing their fingers on the keys.
After taking a breath, the duo's fingers both struck down on the keys in the same time as they started playing Mozart's Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major.
Fred, Geoff, Maggie, and Scooby listened silently as the duo played the sonata together, while Shaggy and Daphne were occasionally glancing towards one another as they played along.
Neither of them had practiced playing the piece, nor did either of them have the music score in front of them, yet it will seem like they had rehearsed it countless times before.
Watching her brother play with Daphne, Maggie raised an eyebrow at Scooby. I'm certain this piece isn't part of Norville's regular repertoire of piano pieces.
Fred was likewise raising an eyebrow at the way Shaggy and Daphne were playing. Even though they've been hanging out more often for the past few weeks, he was positive that the duo never practiced the piano together before.
And yet the way they were performing the sonata, it would seem like they had rehearsed it together countless times before.
What also amazed them was the fact that Shaggy had switched to play the second piano part of the sonata sometime during the playing of the first movement, while Daphne did the same in switching to play the first piano part, a trend that continued throughout the rest of the performance.
Eventually, the duo finished playing the final four notes of the sonata and lifted their hands in a ceremonial fashion together.
"Holy cow, that was brilliant!" Geoff remarked as the four clapped their hands.
"Yeah, how did you guys did it?" Fred asked.
With a shrug, Shaggy quipped, "We did some practicing a couple of times."
"Just a 'couple' of times?" Fred raised an eyebrow.
Daphne nodded as Shaggy said. "That's right."
"For a piece in which you've only practiced a couple of times before, that performance is really marvelous, especially as I hardly heard you practice it as part of your regular piano repertoire, Norville." Maggie said. "Not to mention making the timing and coordination with Daphne work."
Daphne nodded. "All in a hard day's practice. Must say that was a lot of fun, Shag."
"It sure is, Daph." Shaggy smiled.
"You know, Norville, Daphne, you guys should partner up in playing music together more often." Maggie suggested.
"Indeed. In fact, I can imagine you guys taking part in more music competitions and winning more awards for the school." Fred added.
With a nod, Shaggy and Daphne both smiled as the latter placed her hand on Shaggy's back.
As the night was starting to get late, the guests decided it was time to take their leaves and return home for the night.
"Well George, I cannot thank you enough for inviting us over for dinner." Sam said as he shook hands with George.
"No need to thank us, Sam." George smiled. "It was nice to get together and catch up."
"Indeed." Sam nodded as he turned towards Skip and said, "It was nice getting to know you better, Skip."
"Likewise, Sam." Skip agreed as he and Sam shook hands. "Also good to see our wives getting along well."
"Indeed." George agreed as he shook hands with Skip.
"We really ought to get together more often to share recipes and other stuff, ladies." Peggy was saying as she exchanged hugs with Wendy and Elizabeth.
"You said it, Peggy." Wendy agreed.
"It was really nice of you to accept our invitation and come over." Elizabeth said.
"We should be the ones to thank you for inviting us, Elizabeth." Wendy said.
As their parents chit-chat, the kids were gathered at the front door.
"Like, I can't thank you enough for inviting us over for dinner, Daph." Shaggy said.
"Reah, reah." Scooby agreed. "Re rood was good."
"Oh, just what I needed to do in thanks for helping me get through the first few days at Central." Daphne waved her hand.
"The party was groovy for sure." Fred said as hie brother nodded.
Eventually, the guests took their leaves and went their separate ways after the goodbyes, with the Rogers' simply crossing Easy Street to head home while the Jones' walked several blocks further down Maple Street.
That night, as Shaggy laid on his bed, he couldn't stop thinking about his piano performance with Daphne.
For a piano piece for two pianos, of which he and Daphne had only got together to practice a couple of times before, their performance was flawless enough that they even switched to play each others' parts.
It was as if there was something more to Daphne that he couldn't quite put his finger on, something that was special enough that he and she could go in sync in playing the piano together.
Maybe his sister was right on her observation that there's something special about Daphne.
Those thoughts continued to linger in his mind as he drifted off to sleep.
In her bedroom, Daphne was also thinking about her piano performance with Shaggy.
For a piano piece for two pianos, of which she and Shaggy had only got together to practice a couple of times before, their performance was flawless enough that they even switched to play each others' parts.
It was as if there was something more to Shaggy that her woman's intuition couldn't quite fully grasp just yet, something that was unique enough that he and she could go in sync in playing the piano together.
Maybe there's something more to his sister's woman's intuition that supported her observation that she's more than just a friend to Shaggy.
Those thoughts continued to linger in her mind as she drifted off to sleep.
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