Libby was still passed out on the ground minutes after Scratch revealed himself to her and Cleo. Cleo surprisingly took the news very well despite being able to scare so easily. "Cleo, allow me to introduce you to Scratch." I introduced. "So, you guys have been living with a ghost this whole time?" Cleo asked. "Well, only since we moved to Brighton." I replied. "Molly found him in the attic. Scratch cursed her and they became bound for all eternity." "Wow. This is a lot to take in." Cleo said, just as Libby was starting to wake up. "Boo." Scratch said sarcastically. "W-what?" Libby wondered. "Libby, this is Scratch." Molly introduced. "He loves tacos, napping, acting grouchy, but really, he's just a big squishy marshmallow, aren't you, bud?" "Come on! I'm not a toy!" Scratch complained. "And Scratch, this is Libby." Molly continued. "She..." "Yeah, obsessed with turtles, lousy at softball, way too deep in conspiracy theories." Scratch interrupted. "I'm familiar with the 'Lib'." "Supernatural theory number 37 confirmed. Ghosts do exist! And they're rude." Libby records herself with her mini tape recorder. "That we can agree on." I commented. "Finally! The truth is out!" Molly sighed with relief. "Now our BFFs can be BFFs together!" "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!" Scratch exclaimed. "I do not need or want to be friends with Libby and or Cleo." "Same." Libby scoffed. "I am very particular about who I let into my friend circle." "Not me." Cleo added. "I'm pretty open to new friends." "Not everyone has to like each other all the time, Moll." Scratch explains. "I still don't like Scratch." I added. "Um, yes, they do!" Molly exclaimed. "More friends equals more fun!" Scratch and Libby nodded in disagreement. "I don't think that's true." Cleo said. "At least in some circumstances. I guess it depends on who you hang out with." "Okay, fine. You know what? We'll just let this friendship flower bloom naturally. With no interference from me whatsoever." Molly whispered.
The next day, after school, I went on a walk with Cleo through town. She seemed to be adjusting well to her big reveal of Scratch. Better than I thought she would. "I still can't believe your family has been living with a ghost!" Cleo exclaimed. "Yeah. I'm sorry for not telling you sooner." I apologized. "Molly wanted to protect him." "Don't worry about it." Cleo said. "As long as there's no more secrets between us." "Of course." I replied. "So, you're really okay with Scratch?" "Amber, I have two younger siblings. I'm sure I can handle a cranky ghost." Cleo chuckled. "He destroyed your cello at the talent show." I recalled. "Nothing I haven't dealt with before." Cleo said. "Connie threw a tantrum once and smashed it." "Don't worry." I reassured her. "I'm going to make sure he helps to pay you back."
Walking by the softball field, Cleo and I noticed Libby and Scratch digging around the bases. At one of the bases was a flag that someone threw up on. Molly must be scheming again. "Dang it, Molly!" I groaned. "Whoa! What's going on here?" Cleo asked. "Molly set up a scavenger hunt for us." Libby complained as she and Scratch were blasted with confetti underneath first base. "Oh, come on! I'm gonna be picking this out for days." Scratch groaned. "I'll try to talk some sense into her, but I doubt it's gonna work." I sighed. "I have no idea where she is, but she can't be far." "I like scavenger hunts." Cleo said. "I can stay here and help you guys out! It'll be nice to get to know Scratch." "Sounds good to me. Catch you guys later! Byeeee!" I exclaimed, heading back home.
Cleo's POV
After Amber left to look for Molly, Libby, Scratch and I looked over at the Lemming mascot, who was looking pretty suspicious. "That's definitely Molly in the Lemming costume, right?" Scratch asked, looking at the dancing mascot. "For sure." I nodded. "Undoubtedly." Libby agreed. "So, if I know Molly... and I do." Scratch said. "So do I!" Libby argued. "We'll see." He grunted. "Then I know she'd put a ton of work into this." "Yeah. And she won't stop bugging us until we at least pretend to try." Libby added. "Fine. Let me see that clue." Scratch sighed, taking the clue from Libby. ""Strawberries are pink, chocolate is brown, ice cream is the best, and so is having friends around." Gee, I wonder where we're supposed to go." Are they going to fight like this the whole time? What did you get yourself into, Cleo? Before leaving the softball field, I did text Amber that Molly was here.
By the look of Molly's clue, she wanted Libby and Scratch to head to the ice cream shop, Sweets & Treats. I may or may not have ordered a popsicle. Libby grabbed two things of ice cream from the register. "Your little friend asked me to read you this. One second." One of the employees said, opening the next clue. Coincidentally, she sounded a little bit like Molly and Amber. ""Your next clue is yummy and nice, you'll find it within this creamed ice."" "Uh, okay?" Libby questioned. "Her poetry is rough. And Amber's is not much better." Scratch explained, snapping a selfie with me and Libby, which might've traumatized the lady at the cashier. "Still I gotta hand it to Molly. If there's one thing that'll make me tolerate another person, it's ice cream." Scratch takes both of our treats and ate them, including his own. "I guess Amber was right about you stealing food." I sighed. "Hey! One of those was for me!" Libby exclaimed. "I didn't see your name on it." Scratch teased, burping up the next clue. "I do not get what Molly sees in you." Libby said. "Molly and Amber love me just as I am." Scratch replied. "We're basically family." "Amber hates you." I said. "Eh, Molly could do better." Libby scoffed. "She could do worse. Case in point." Scratch joked as Libby took the clue. ""Through all our adventures, you've proved yourselves gallant."" Libby reads. ""And I think you're both so full of..."" Scratch interrupted.
""Talent?"" I asked, catching my breath after running to the Brighton Middle School auditorium. "Ha! Beat ya!" Libby bragged. "I mean, whatever." Scratch scoffed. "Not like it's a competition or something." "Did you guys have to race each other here?" I asked, still catching my breath. "Of course, Molly included this!" Libby exclaimed. "She knows how important the talent show was to me. That was the day I found my voice." "Ooh, I heard that voice. Any chance you could lose it again?" Scratch teased. "Hey! You still owe me money to replace my cello strings!" I chimed in. "I don't owe you anything. I'm dead." Scratch said. "What?! You know about my singing voice?" Libby panicked. "Uh, yeah!" Scratch explained. "Molly and I go everywhere together. The park, the school, your house when you reveal your deepest darkest secrets." "You weren't there when I told her about what happened at Andrea's sleepover in 3rd grade, were you?" Libby asked. "Pro tip: don't drink so much water before bed." Scratch revealed. "Alright, tinkles?" "That's enough!" I shouted. "Aw, I can't believe Molly let me spill my shame while you were there!" Libby sighed. "Maybe we're not as close as I thought. I mean, she did keep an entire secret friend for herself." "Amber told me that Molly wanted to protect him." I remembered. "I'm not exactly sure what from, but maybe it was for a good reason." "Yes she did! Smile!" Scratch agreed, taking the next picture.
Our next stop was the Sally Tugbottom statue in the park. "Ah, a classic Molly-Amber-Scratch milestone." Scratch said. "This is where I saved their lives from a dangerous ghost." "Yeah, more like a Molly-Amber-Libby-Cleo milestone!" Libby argued, taking another selfie. "We're the ones who told them Sally Tugbottom was the true hero of Brighton!" I added. "Eh, big deal!" Scratch scoffed.
"I introduced her and Amber to Abe Lincoln." Scratch gloated, laughing. "Maybe you've heard of him?" "Yeah. Molly did a project on him the day I met Amber." I recalled. "You may know fancy ghosts, but I know Molly." Libby said. "Our friendship was forged in the fires of shared trauma. We defeated Howlin' Harriet together." "Please. You crafted toes out of cocktail weenies." Scratch scoffed. "But have you ever possessed a bus full of Korean popstars for her?" "No, and I don't need to." Libby replied. "Because Molly chooses to be my friend. Whereas she's cursed with you." "Wait, you're the reason Atomic Pink came to Brighton?" I asked. "I was wondering why they thought they were in Cleveland." "Uh, well, I mean, uh, technically, we're cursed together, but that doesn't mean she wouldn't be friends with me because, um, you know, I got a lot of attributes." Scratch said, ignoring me. "Face it, buster!" Libby snapped. "If you were her real best friend, she wouldn't need me." "Guys, stop the violence!" I begged.
Amber's POV
I caught up with Molly after just missing her at every stop she made. Why must she be so fast? She was spying on our friends in a pile of turnips. "Aww! They're working together to open the clue!" Molly exclaimed. "I'm so good at forging friendships." "Pretty sure they're fighting." I commented, making Molly jump. "Poor Cleo, getting stuck in the middle." "Amber? What are you doing here?" Molly asked. "Cleo sent me the pictures and the clues." I replied. "She explained everything to me. Scratch and Libby aren't getting along!" "But, we can all be friends, Amber." Molly said. All of a sudden, Molly and I were pulled into a compost machine. Not exactly sure what the actual name is. On the inside, turnips were getting composted by a huge blade. The blade quickly sped up. "Grab on, Molly!" I shouted as she grabbed onto my waist as I was holding on for our dear lives. "Scratch!" Molly cried for help, summoning him inside the machine due to the curse. "Did someone call..." Scratch said, before going through the blade. "I have questions. First, how'd you get in here? Second, I'm the real best friend, right? 'Cause Libby's out there..." "Scratch! Get us out of here!" Molly shouted as Scratch tried to pull us out through the wall of the machine. "Ow!" I complained. "Every time!" Molly groaned in pain. "Look, you're the ones who can't pass through walls, so I'm not taking all the blame here, okay?" Scratch asked. "You're gonna have to open those doors!" Molly explained. "Okay, I'm on it!" Scratch shouted as we were slowly sliding closer to the blade. "Go get Libby and Cleo, you idiot!" I shouted. "And he's gone." Yup. We're gonna die.
Cleo's POV: Moments Earlier
While trying to break up the fight between Scratch and Libby, Scratch was suddenly being pulled closer to the farm by a powerful force. "Whoa, Scratch, what's going on with you?" I asked. "Oh, look! It seems that Molly's summoning me!" Scratch exclaimed. "Has she ever magically summoned you, Libby? No? Well, then, I guess we know who she likes better. Byeeee!" As Scratch was pulled into Molly's path, Libby frowned. "Yeah, I guess we do." She sighed, walking away from the field. "That's it? You're giving up?" I asked. "What's the point?" Libby sighed. "Molly is literally bonded with Scratch. Not to mention both her and Amber have been lying to us for who knows how long about his existence. Doesn't that hurt?" "It does hurt to know that Amber has lied to me, but we trust each other." I explained. "Molly wanted to protect Scratch. Amber could've said something, but she didn't. The fact that Molly and Amber both had the guts to tell us the truth about Scratch means that we're just as important to them as he is." Libby smiled, but I could tell that she was still bothered about Scratch. "Libby! Cleo! Wait!" We heard Scratch shout. "I don't wanna talk to you, Scratch." Libby grunted, plugging her ears. "Okay, I wouldn't want to talk to me either." Scratch said. "I said some mean things 'cause, well, I don't wanna lose Molly to you. You're both cooler than I want to admit. They like you a lot. And I get why. But here's the kicker... If we don't work together, we're all gonna lose Molly and Amber! They're in danger!" Libby and I froze in terror. ""Danger?!"" Libby gasped. "We gotta help them!" I exclaimed, turning around to save our friends.
At the compost machine, Scratch went inside to buy me and Libby some time to unlock the machine from the outside to come up with a strategy. Libby and I tied up some extra turnips to create a rope to get to a door with a keypad. We had no clue what the code was. We tried a few different combinations, until we found out the code was the date that Brighton was founded. Once the door was unlocked, Scratch pulled me, Libby, and the twins to safety.
Amber's POV
Scratch put us all back on the ground safely. "My life just flashed before my eyes!" I gasped. "Scratch, you saved us!" Molly exclaimed. "Yeah, yeah. I did, didn't I?" Scratch chuckled. "But I couldn't have done it without Libby and Cleo. How did you know what code to enter?" "It actually didn't take many tries." Cleo explained. "I took a guess." Libby added. "Based on the day Brighton was founded. Obsessing over local history does have its benefits!" "Ooh! This is why you're both my best friends!" Molly exclaimed. "I mean, perhaps we were a little quick to judge each other." Scratch admitted. "Yeah, maybe more friends is more fun." Libby agreed. "Uh, yeah! That's what I've been saying!" Molly exclaimed. "And Cleo, sorry about putting you in the middle of our bickering." Libby apologized. "Don't worry about it." Cleo replied. "Besides, it clearly takes three to keep Molly and Amber out of trouble." "Tell me about it! They're exhausting!" Scratch complained. "Molly always has a new scheme, and Amber's always nagging about it!" "She does scheme." I said. "She does nag." Molly added. "And did you know they brought bats to my Bat Mitzvah?" Libby asked. "Ha! That was definitely Molly and Amber!" Scratch lied. "They did that. I told them it was a ridiculous idea! They wouldn't listen." "Scavenger hunts... bringing people together, right?" "And what's with the sweet baby corn thing?" Scratch wondered. "Yeah, I know, right? Molly says it every chance she gets." Libby said. "Amber does too." Cleo added. "Maybe it's a sister thing."