Okay, I know I said I'd be doing my tournament fic first, but other things happened that I decided to focus on chapters from other projects first... so, I figure, why not update a chapter of "Keeping Promises"? I believe it's about time we did that, and reveal the villains of the story! So, let's get right down to it! Anyway, enjoy!
Somewhere, out in an abandoned park somewhere in an abandoned neighborhood, a meeting of malevolence was taking place as a few characters had gathered around, wanting to discuss their further plans. At the moment, the area seemed dark as figures were sitting around, looking at various pictures of the gang.
"Hard to believe that of all the things we had in common, THESE meddling kids were the ones that managed to take us down." One figure frowned as he crossed his arms. Lit up only by candlelight, he resembled a well built brown haired man wearing black rimmed glasses, wearing a light blue turtleneck sweater, a dark blue jacket and brown pants. "And some of them, not even the full gang, just the green shirt kid, the dog and the red head."
"Make no mistake, the smart girl was smart, even for her age, and that blonde haired boy looked proud, but a bit idiotic... and yet, these three ALWAYS had some type of luck magnet to them, or something." Another figure said, this time, a middle-aged man in a black mustache and goatee wearing a red shirt with a collar, green pants, brown shoes and white apron. "Even the red haired girl... as spoiled of a brat that she is, thanks to her and that dog, they shut down my precious restaurant AND managed to keep their STUPID arcade... it just BURNS me up! And they were only preteens! PRETEENS! This was just an insult!"
"That sounds a little... pathetic." The third person, this time, an elderly man with grey hair and glasses wearing a blue suit, light blue shirt, a black bow-tie and black shoes, said as he rolled his eyes.
The black haired man growled at the older man.
"All we want is to continue our petty little crimes in peace, but those stubborn brats just have to butt their nose into our business..." A fourth person, this time, a young brown haired man wearing a light blue turtleneck sweater, blue pants and grey shoes said as he hammered his hand down to the table. "Even though my brother assisted them in taking me to justice, he wouldn't let me HAVE my rights to the treasure! Although that red haired girl... Daphne Blake... looked rather cute..."
"Indeed, she was." Another figure said. This person was a tall adult man with black hair and purple eyes, wearing a red long-sleeved shirt, jeans and black boots, along with fake fangs and grey toned skin. He gave a small sigh. "Pity that Daphne rejected me... we REALLY could have made quite beautiful music together..." He looked around and noted some looks. "Oh ho? Don't judge. I bet all of you were thinking the same away about her..."
"Uh, dude, even I wouldn't have stooped THAT low." The man in the goatee frowned.
"Oh, I would not judge on that regard..." The sixth figure said, this time, a middle-aged Asian man with a mostly bald head with some patches of black hair around his head, wearing a dark grey shirt with red accents on the collar, cuffs and front of the shirt, blue pants, black socks and red shoes. "Even when my men kidnapped her to get that mask, I certainly had my eye on her the whole time... you just think that because you still saw her as that young brat..."
"Stop that!" The man in the goatee growled as he looked around.
"SILENCE!"
Everyone jumped as all six turned to the head of the table as someone had taken their seat. It was a balding white haired, slightly older, but having a fun, yet sadistic demeanor to him. He was wearing what seemed to be a black cloak at this moment in time.
"I think we're ALL in agreement that in this little group alone, not only have we been foiled by a group of meddling kids and their dogs, albeit the SAME meddling kids and their dog, but at one point in time or another, we managed to kidnap the cute red head... or rather... in my case..." He gave a chuckle as he pulled out what seemed to be a gold coin. "Hypnotized her..."
All six shuddered as they tried to avert their eyes away from the coin as he put it away. "BUUUUT... I did not call this meeting to recall the past and how we managed to fail because of those kids... I called you all here because you ALL had them on the brain. And so have I."
The figure looked around and noted each character, starting with the first figure. "Olaf the Terrible, or at least, that's what your persona is known as. You lead a group of Vikings because you got bored of your real job, and wanted to do some modern day piracy. But things didn't turn out well when a REAL archaeologist AND at least three-fifths of Mystery Inc went to look for you, did they, Busby the Pirate?"
Busby merely growled at that fact.
The middle-aged man turned to the next figure in line. "Crusty Baker, owner of Crusty's back in Coolsville. The main reason you got arrested was because you wanted to shut down the Blake's family video arcade store, because you couldn't concentrate when your food was being made. You thought doing this by kidnapping the Blake's daughter while she was running the store on her own would help out... disguised as a large hairpiece named Bigwig... but you didn't count on her being a Mystery Inc member, did you?"
"No, I didn't, though back then, they were just the Scooby-Doo Detective Agency." Crusty frowned. "They all said my food was terrible, but BAH! It was the stupid noise from the arcade that drove me insane, THAT'S what it is!"
"Bigwig? Really? Even MINE was a little more original." The third man frowned.
"SHUT UP!" Crusty Baker growled, snapping at the third man.
Everyone just shook their heads in annoyance before the balding white haired man moved onto the next person. "Professor Greer, was it? I seem to have heard about your exploits with the gang in Vulture's Claw Botanical Gardens, when you went around as the Mantis? Even though you technically OWN the place?"
"Shut up! There was OIL in my gardens, and I needed everyone to leave... I couldn't just TELL them there was oil... I wanted to scare them away so that I can finalize the deal in selling the property and making myself rich! And yet, I get thrown into jail for scaring people? I didn't deserve that!" Professor Greer frowned.
"No, no, I suppose nobody did..." The man sighed before turning his head to the next person. "Ahhh... the Ghostly Gondolier, or, should I call you Mario?"
"Mario is fine." Mario frowned.
"Yes, yes, I seem to remember your greedy side in wanting to betray your brother for the treasure, so much so, in fact, you'd betray his trust by disguising yourself as the Ghostly Gondolier in order to take it for yourself... and you would have gotten away with it too if it weren't..."
"For those meddling kids, yes, yes, tell us something we DON'T KNOW!" Mario snapped.
"Touchy..." The man chuckled before turning to the man with the fake fangs. "You're a bit more recent, aren't you?"
The vampire looking man smirked as he got up. "Indeed. I am Bram, the leader of Fanganschanz's acting troupe... and a follower of Valdronya! Unfortunately, my troupe and I were separated and taken to different cells. I'm just fortunate to have landed in the same cell as a couple of you... maybe not YOU so much..."
Bram turned to Crusty as the man in the goatee narrowed his eyes. "Screw you!"
The vampire-like man rolled his eyes as he gave a sigh. "Although my love for Daphne is nigh, I had to made an ultimate sacrifice as I knew Valdronya needed a vampire bride in order to be greeted immortality... and although I have not received that gift, I would want nothing more than to meet up with the lovely vision once more..."
"Okay, okay, DON'T flower it any more than you have to." The man frowned as he turned to the final man. "Master Fong, it is good to meet again for so long... how long has it been?"
"It felt like sixty years have passed... but we know only a couple have passed by." The man known as Fong chuckled. "But yes, I, along with my two henchmen, were doing a smuggling operation in Chinatown, and we meant to steal a mask that had our next mission on it that we sent to a curio shop by mistake. Unfortunately, it was by that curious red head that my foolish henchmen had to kidnap in order to steal the mask away... if it hadn't been for my foolish henchmen, those kids would have likely searched ALL night, even WITH the mask..."
"That just leaves me, myself and I..." The final man grinned as he sat down. "I am known as the Ghost Clown... although I used to be known as Harry the Hypnotist. But you all already know that."
"Sooo... what exactly is your story with Mystery Inc?" Bram asked in curiosity.
"Oh, those kids just arrived at the circus one day while I was trying to get revenge on the boss on the circus for firing me, and trying to ruin his reputation. I thought I'd have a little fun with the kids, trying to hypnotize them as I go... and I had my fun for a while... and I won't lie, I did consider a few ideas for that red head when I hypnotized her..." He smirked. "A... LOT... of ideas..." He chuckled evilly. "I will admit, having her dress up in that ballerina uniform turned out to be a delightful show..."
Most of the villains perked up in interest, save for Professor Greer, who just rolled his eyes, and Crusty, who couldn't help but feel a little disgusted by that.
"So... did you actually see her..." Bram asked.
"Yes, and with no regrets." Harry the Hypnotist smirked as he crossed his legs.
"Wow..." Bram paused in awe.
"...that's just sick and wrong." Crusty grumbled.
"All right, all right, we're not here to talk about lusting on the red head and what not!" Harry frowned. "ANYWAY, I didn't have a chance to get the rest of the gang before they decide to pull the old mirror trick on me, hypnotizing myself! The nerve! And I didn't even get my justice either!"
"Soooo, why HAVE we gathered here anyway?" Mario asked as he looked up.
"It does seem like a rather random group of characters to be sitting in a room." Busby the pirate nodded.
"Well, my friends, I gathered you here because..." Harry took a deep breath. "As the same as you, the memory of Mystery Inc putting you in jail has haunted you, right?"
Everyone nodded as the former hypnotist continued. "Well... I think it's time we DID something about this, don't you know? But we're not going to be stupid like doing this for oil or sending out mysteries or whatever. No..."
Harry looked up as he gave a sinister smile. "We're going to DESTROY Mystery Incorporated... destroy their EVERY... SINGLE... BEING... ruin them so that they will never bother us again..."
The others followed Harry's words as the former Ghost Clown gave a big, big, grin. "All we need is the right information... on what they're doing right now... and we'll make our plans going forward... now... do we have ANY volunteers to go to Coolsville?"
It had been about a month and a half since Shaggy and Daphne's sweet date out on the fields (and the slight incident with Sadie-Mae, but that was a footnote), and things have been going great for both Shaggy and Daphne as they were getting even more closer. Hanging out at each other's houses, attending a couple of parties, Shaggy holding Daphne close as he guided her slowly, but surely... Daphne admitted, Shaggy was being a little overprotective, but maybe it was because the young man was actually excited about the idea of him becoming a father. Also, the fact that the two went out on MORE dates became a telltale sign that both the two were falling in love with each other. Velma and Scooby even gave their support...
As for Fred... well, he still wasn't budging. Once or twice, they tried to visit him, only to be met with his parents, who told them that Fred had gone off on a holiday for a while. Shaggy and Daphne sighed in disappointment, realizing that Fred must have decided to go on the vacation anyway. Of course, they figured maybe he needed it to cool off even more. Maybe once he returned, he'll be in a better mood to talk.
But regardless of that, Shaggy and Daphne were still together, having the best time of their lives, hanging out, eating and even going to the movies together a few times.
But eventually, it came around that time. Daphne was about twelve-weeks pregnant, which meant that it was time for her first ultrasound test. As of current, Shaggy was sitting in the hospital with Daphne as she was laying down on an almost flat hospital bed, with the top leaned up a bit. Next to the two was a machine, presumably used for the ultrasound test. He was holding her hand, though Daphne could tell the young man was shaking.
"Are you nervous?" Daphne asked.
"Like... are you?" Shaggy asked right back as he turned to his girlfriend.
Daphne giggled. "Shaggy, just take a deep breath. I know the idea of an ultrasound may be scary, but I think it's going to go great. The fact that we'll be able to see how the baby is like up close... you must feel some fatherly pride in you..."
The light brown haired man looked down and smiled towards his blushing girlfriend, though he was still shaking a bit nervously. "I suppose so. I guess I just don't know what'll happen..."
At that moment, a raven-haired woman in a white doctor's clothing came in holding a file. "Ahhhh, Miss Blake, good to meet you. I'm Doctor Truman, I'll be the one checking on the progress of your baby."
"Pleased to meet you." Daphne smiled.
Doctor Truman nodded before turning to see Shaggy. "Ah, and you must be the father. Mr. Rogers?"
"Y-yes, like... that's me..." Shaggy grinned nervously, hand holding tightly to Daphne's.
Doctor Truman laughed a bit before turning to Daphne. "Seems to be the nervous type."
"He always is." Daphne giggled. "It's like Fear and Anxiety are his main emotions."
"Like, come on, Daph." Shaggy laughed a bit as he turned to his girlfriend.
The doctor chuckled a bit as she turned to the young man. "Don't you worry, Mr. Rogers, I've done plenty of ultrasounds with other women before, and I know quite a few fathers who were more than anxious to actually see their newborn through the monitors. Anyway, Miss Blake, have you drank anything before coming here?"
"At least three bottles of water." Daphne nodded.
"Very well. If you can just pull up your dress for a bit to show your belly, I'd like to rub this gel on you." Doctor Truman said as she pulled out a tube of gel. "It'll help the ultrasound machine get a clear picture. You'll feel a slight cold spot where the gel will be."
Daphne nodded as she obeyed and lifted up her dress to the point where her belly was shown. At that moment, Doctor Truman applied the gel on Daphne's belly, making the red headed girl shiver. The doctor then nodded before getting her hands off.
"Okay, now keep still." Doctor Truman said as she turned to the machine, and picked up what seemed to be a scanner that was attached to the machine before using it to rub the gel all over Daphne's belly. "Take a look at the monitor and you'll see a picture of your baby."
Shaggy and Daphne looked over as they saw the screen turning on as it became all black and white, a bit fuzzy. Thankfully, Shaggy and Daphne had studied biology a couple of years ago, AND had the talk as well, so they knew exactly what to look for. Shaggy then looked at the monitor as he smiled. "Zoinks! Like, I see your womb, Daphne."
"And... I can't seem to make it out, but..." Daphne squinted as Doctor Truman typed in a few keys as the image zoomed in on something blurry. "...is that our baby?"
Doctor Truman nodded as Daphne smiled and looked at it. Shaggy wasn't quite sure how to make of it, but he felt happy as he saw what seemed to be his son or his daughter growing inside his girlfriend's womb. "Like... wow... this is amazing, Daphne."
Doctor Truman gave a chuckle as she moved the scanner a bit... pausing as she raised an eyebrow. "Oh? My, my."
"What?" Shaggy asked as he and Daphne turned towards the doctor.
"Is something wrong?" Daphne asked.
"Well, sometimes, it's not exactly certain and doctors won't be able to tell you if you want the gender to remain a surprise... HOWEVER, I think I might have a good idea." Doctor Truman smiled.
"You do?" Shaggy and Daphne asked, both of them looking surprised.
"Would you like to know... or do you want it to remain a surprise?" Doctor Truman asked.
"Shaggy?" Daphne asked, looking at her boyfriend as her eyes widened in curiosity. Although the idea of a baby sounded quite fun for everyone, especially with the Rogers and the Blakes being excited, she was curious to see what her baby would be like.
Shaggy shared the same sentiment as he knew, no matter what, he was going to love this baby. "I want to know."
Daphne gave a smile towards the young man. "So do I."
Shaggy smiled and nodded towards his girlfriend before turning to the doctor. "Lay it on us, doc. We can take it."
"Very well." Doctor Truman smiled. "Mr. Rogers, Miss Blake, in about six months from now... you're going to be the mommy and daddy... of a beautiful baby boy."
Shaggy and Daphne gasped a bit as they turned, with Shaggy giving a wide smile. "A boy..."
"We're going to have a son." Daphne smiled as she squeezed Shaggy's hand.
And that's this chapter done and done! How did you guys like it? By the way, for those who don't know who the villains are... I have a list of the appearances they're from... caution, you'll see spoilers from old Scooby Doo shows and movies, but that just means you'll have to track them down...
First person you see is Professor Busby, who was the main villain known as Olaf the Terrible from The New Scooby & Scrappy Doo Show episode "Scooby the Barbarian"!
Second person you see is Crusty Baker, AKA Bigwig from A Pup Named Scooby-Doo episode "Horror of the Haunted Hairpiece"!
Third person is Professor Greer, AKA the Mantis from The Scooby-Doo Show episode "The Creepy Creature of Vulture's Claw"!
Fourth person is Mario, AKA the Ghostly Gondolier from The Scooby-Doo Show episode "A Menace in Venice"!
Fifth person is Bram from the Scooby Doo movie, "Scooby-Doo and the Music of the Vampire"! I had a little debate on that one, but ultimately decided to go with him.
Sixth person, of course, is a classic, A. Fong, AKA the Ghost of Zen Tuo from the Scooby-Doo, Where Are You episode "Mystery Mask Mix-Up"!
And of course, the leader of the group, last but not least, Harry the Hypnotist AKA the Ghost Clown, another classic from the Scooby Doo Where Are You episode, "Bedlam at the Big Top"!
All right, that should be that! On another note... I debated on whether or not I'd reveal Shaggy and Daphne's baby's gender for a while, but ultimately, I decided to stick with my gut feeling, and... well, let's just say, I think I have a good idea where to go next. Next time, we'll see what happens when the couple tells Velma and Scooby the good news! Anyway, read, review, criticize and suggest, everyone!
