With introductions done, Velma soon lapsed into thick conversation with the mummy woman. With both of them having such interest in Science and how things worked, they soon became animated in their exchange of ideas. Discussing theories and processes that would confuse anyone who would overhear. But they were becoming quick friends, and easily shared many interests and likes. It helped Velma get over the idea that she was taking to a living mummy, and that those kinds of things would be common here.
After a while, their talks moved towards more recent events.
"So, since we were having this big event for all the kids, we thought it would be nice to invite our old coaches along. Since they mean so much to us. We owe them a lot when they were our teachers."
Tanis spoke, leaning against one side of the bed's headboard. They had taken their conversation to the bed and each found themselves on either side, leaning against the wood that made up the head and foot boards. Getting more comfortable then sitting at the edge where they had been earlier. It was then that Velma had taken a good look at the other woman across from her. She was around her own height, which was strange. Velma was on the short side, and didn't usually run into many people that she could physically see eye to eye with. Tanis' dress was simple and looked rather comfortable, which Velma could appreciate. She was wearing a button down white dress shirt, over what seemed to be a light blue shirt underneath. And she was wearing a pair of tan slacks that were getting wrinkly as Tanis had tucked them to one side as she was talking. And over it all, was the classic long sleeve lab coat, looking rather similar to the one Velma owned at home for her own projects. Curious if they were of like enough of mind, to shop at the same online laboratory supply store. Though Velma knew not to ever say that aloud, less Daphne find out and she would never hear the end of it.
"Ok, so let me get this straight. There exists not only monsters, but monster clans and they send their children to schools to learn the right ways of being a monster?" Velma said confused, but slowly getting the concept. It was kind of like how some rich families send their kids to prestigious schools. This is just a monster equivalent. A boarding school for the ghoulishly inclined.
"Yep. When Shaggy was last here, was when all of the current teachers were kids. It seems that time differs in the monster world from here, so we have aged a lot more then had we spent the whole time here in the human world. And since all of us really enjoyed being here at Grimwoods, we decided to come back and be teachers for the upcoming group of ghouls..." Tanis said, pulling her knees up to her chest and hugging it. She couldn't believe her luck! Here she was spending time, talking on par with one of the most influential minds of the scientific community... and it seemed that Velma was genuinely enjoying her company!
"It's still hard to think that Shaggy answered an ad for a Coach, and ended up teaching a bunch of monsters for a while... No offence." Velma added, after realizing what she had just said. But it was meant more about the guys, then the girls... er, ghouls.
"Haha, don't worry about it. After getting to know Shaggy and Scooby, it's understandable that it would be weird to see them acting like that. Against all previous actions that they have had. But I guess they never could tell the full story, knowing how you guys might react to it."
"I have to admit, he probably left out a few details..." She commented, not exactly sure how her and the gang would have reacted had he told such a tale to them when they had joined back up after a few years of doing their own individual journeys. She probably wouldn't have believed him.
"What did happen back then? It might be nice to know the whole story... since there really is no going back now to being ignorant of things. And we'll be here for a while for your guy's reunion. I like to know what I'm going to be celebrating." Velma added with a smile.
"Well, it went like this. Every year, our school had an ongoing volleyball competition between us and the neighboring school, Camp Calloway..."
"Wait..." Velma's brows knit, with the mention of the other school. "Is that a Military school for boys?" She wondered. The name sounded really familiar, like she knew someone who had mentioned it before.
"Yep, it's another boarding school for young boys. And they have a habit of helping the more troubled group of boys find the straight and narrow. Heh, the bunch of guys we went up against during our time here were particularly wily and tried to cheat against us that year with various gadgets and devices. But with the help of Shaggy, Scooby and Scrappy training us before hand, we were ready for them! Not that we knew about the cheating at the time, but eventually Miss Grimwood found out and gave the headmaster a stern talking too. They later hired another military adviser to help the kids have a better role model and the games got a lot better between our two schools. Though he retired a bit ago, he was a nice man. Though a bit weird fashion sense..." Tanis recalled the nice gentleman. Very clean cut and military, with the exception of one thing.
"...Let me guess." Velma mused, a smile creeping across her face as she put two and two together. "He was a very straight forward Air Force Captain, but he had a fondness for a strange piece of neck wear... right? A bright orange or red scarf, tied into a knot in the front of his uniform, tucked into the collar? Also going grey on the sides of his otherwise blond hair?"
Tanis looked at Velma wide-eyed in surprise. Shocked that the older woman had deduced exactly what she was going to say, and even knew how to describe him. She hadn't even mentioned that he had been Air force.
"I take that as a yes." Velma said with a laugh, noting Tanis' reaction. "You will end up having flashbacks then, because Captain Lawrence T. Jones is the uncle of Mystery Inc's own Fred Jones. He's..." Taking a looked at the room, Velma wasn't sure exactly where she was compared to the last room she remembered being in. Though with the view from the window, she figured she was on the second floor at least. "...Somewhere in the rest of the school with the rest of the gang."
Velma leaned against the back of the bed, and was amused at the thought. She knew that she had traveled the world, but it still felt weird when she ran across someone she knew in a new location. (Or at least heard of him being there.) And a friend of the family as well! Recalling all the times he used to visit the family in Coolsville and stay over for parties and holidays. And she also remembered why the school name also sounded familiar to her, as Red Herring had been a student there as well. Fred told her about the letters he used to get from the man when he was staying there as a kid, being put through the ringer by the older Jones and helping to straighten the once bully out. They had bonded over stories of the strict man through writing, helping forge the strong bond the two had to this day.
Tanis didn't know what to say, but the interaction made Velma seem all the more spectacular than the stories had entailed.
"So what happened next?" Velma inquired, pushing aside her nostalgia and getting back on topic. "I figure there was more than just a volleyball game that made you guys invite Shaggy and Scooby back? I know they are great guys and all, but something tells me that something more happened than winning a long standing rivalry between Calloway and Grimwoods."
"Her name was Revolta..." Tanis said with a shudder. "The Witch of the Web. A cruel and twisted woman, who was banished to the human world. She sought power, and wanted influence on our fathers in the monster world. We all are daughters of famous monsters in the other realm, and she hoped that if she could gain control over us she would be able to overpower them with the next generation. We were almost all lost to her hypnosis, when Shaggy and Scooby came to our rescue…"
Tanis didn't remember much, as she and the others had been brainwashed for most of the event. After it wore off, she couldn't fully remember what she had been forced to do. Nor could any of the others, though Shaggy had told them to not worry about it. But later, they had gone back and seen the half blown up castle and eventually learned of what Revolta had done in the Monster world that had been so horrible, for her to get exiled. And to think, she almost had been under that woman's control. Tucking her legs close, she huddled against herself as she thought about what terrible things she might have done had Shaggy, Scooby and Scrappy not came to their rescue.
This didn't go unnoticed by Velma, but she really didn't know what to do. Here, this intelligent woman before her, was clearly upset with what had happened to her, but she knew little of Tanis to be able to help her feel better. Though she was about to try when she restrained herself from jumping out of her own skin when an arm passed through the wall, and moved to comfort Tanis in a way that she couldn't.
Phasing through the wall, was a woman that Velma had seen earlier. (Though she had believed that she was just a mere projection.) Well, if Mummy's could exist, then certainly ghosts did as well. And if she had to admit it, Zombies and Were-creatures…. but that was something for another day.
Watching the new woman come through the wall of the room next door, Velma took note of the woman. Her skin was a pale blue color and seemed to become more or less transparent depending if she was passing through something. So her hands became more solid as she gripped Tanis in a reassuring manner. Her hair was white with a dark blue stripe down the middle, pulled back into a pony tail with a set of bangs that defied gravity as much as her owner did. Seeing as the new lady was hovering not only through the wall, but the bed as well. She was dressed smartly, similar fashion sense to her own best friend who was somewhere in the house. She was wearing a one piece dress, which ended about mid-thigh. It was another shade of blue, compared to her skin or the dark stripe in her hair. More of a steel blue, then her powder blue skin, or her navy stripe. Or so Velma surmised on her loose memory of Daphne's color wheel lecture she had been forced to attend… more than once. She was also wearing a cropped denim vest, which matched her outfit, and a set of stark white heeled boots. All the edges of her clothing where tattered, though it looked more like it was on purpose, then just general wear and tear. Though why fashion did that somethings, Velma would never know… No matter how many times Daphne explained it to her. She just couldn't understand why someone would purposefully damage the integrity of their own clothing. Thus shortening the lifespan of that particular clothing.
"Th… Thank you Phanty… I'm. I'm alright." Tanis patted the hand of her concerned friend and fellow teacher. Having been the youngest, she hadn't realized how much danger that Revolta had actually been at the time. And only as an adult, understood the repercussions had guys not been there. But then Tanis notice where she was and what had happened. Here Velma was sitting across from her, and her friend Phanty was just sitting there comforting her. "Oh, where are my manners. Phantasma, meet Velma Dinkley. She is friends with Shaggy and Scooby. And she is here for the Reunion at Grimwoods."
Turning to Velma, Tanis continued. "Phanty actually told me you were in here. She wanted to see if you were ok after Elsa brought you up to the room, but couldn't get the first aid kit through the door. And then was worried that she scared you when you yelled earlier, and rushed to get me."
"…Nice to meet you." Phantasma, or Phanty hesitantly extended her hand at Velma. Not wanting to freak her out any more then she already had. Though she didn't realize how obviously ghost-like manner she was sitting in. Absentmindedly having a leg through the bed, and part of her shoulder and back through the headboard to hug Tanis from behind. Not something Velma thought she could ever replicate, unless she managed to invent some type of phasing device. At the moment though her mind was thinking about other things then how to invent such a device.
Feeling really silly, and slightly embarrassed at her out of character scream earlier, she felt bad at the look of worry upon the face of Phantasma at her. So to try to mend things, and struggling to quiet her raging rational mind, Velma extended her hand the rest of the way to breach the distance and take Phanty's hand. Inwardly she remarked on how solid the hand felt. She figured it should be solid, as the lady was offering it to be grasped. But seeing as only parts of her body was tangible, Velma wasn't sure at first how solid her hand might be.
At the unhesitating grasp from Velma, and then looking over for a conformation nod from Tanis, Phantasma brightened up. Figuratively and physically. Her skin tone taking on a brighter tone, and her face beamed a smile.
"Ahahahaha, My names Phanty! Nice to meet you Miss Velma! Shaggy has told us a lot about you!"
Taking Velma by surprise, she hoped her arm wouldn't detach at the sudden explosion of energy from the ghost woman. Her hand was being shaken and shook this way and that, all the while connected by their joint grasp of each other hands. This went on for a bit, before Tanis thankfully stepped in to calm down the eager Phanty. Placing a hand to still the handshake, and let Velma's hand free.
"Ahhahah, sorry sorry. I just get excited and can't help myself. I'm the resident Music Teacher here at Grimwoods. The pleasure is all mine!" Her sudden burst of bubbly energy was a surprise, though not an unwelcome one. Velma was certainly happier to see the woman she just met in a joyous mood, rather than the worried look she had donned on before.
"Though, as I was saying…" With Phanty there, Tanis was able to pull herself together enough to continue the story. Well, at least after everyone was properly introduced, then she could continue. "So Revolta had been trying to brainwash us all, and it hadn't been for Shaggy, Scooby and Scrappy… Who knows where we might have been, and what might have happened to the world in result."
"What little I remember, was that something knocked the device Revolta was using on us, and then somehow got her magic wand away from her. And my friend and now fellow teacher, Elsa tossed it into the cauldron. As the evil magic wand fell into the bubbling soup…."