#MSA fanfic

[alphashley14]

One of Us

A Scooby Doo: Mystery Incorporated/Mystery Skulls Crossover

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Chapter 26

Erase Me

There was something good about the Mystery Machine. It was filled with a sort of warmth that never really went away. And almost always, it was filled with sound. Plotting, theorizing, and swapping stories and information while on a mystery. Or in mundane moments, there would be idle chatter, laughter, music or voices drifting from the radio, tapping from Velma’s computer as she typed away, or Shaggy and Scooby munching away in the back seat. And even when the Mystery Machine did fall silent, there was a sort of lightness to be found there; when five friends could find comfort in a familiar place with nothing more than one another’s presence.

It was never a good thing when the Mystery Machine was the other kind of quiet. 

This kind of quiet. 

The sort of heavy silence when there was an elephant in the room. So many words that needed said - would inevitably be said, but weren’t ready to come out. And yet the five of them were so stuck in their own thoughts that it didn’t seem very quiet at all. But to the sixth occupant of the van, the silence was suffocating. 

Before the drive, before the quiet, back at Daisy’s when she and Steven had finally walked back into the living room, the five Mystery Solvers had barely moved and none of them had spoken. Daisy, mascara slightly smudged, had stood in front of her sister and said, “Daphne.” 

But Daphne didn’t look at her. 

“Daphne,” Daisy said again. And this time she actually knelt down. Daisy Blake, who had never once stepped down to meet her little sister in the middle, knelt down to look her in the eyes. This time, Daphne looked up. 

“Steven and I talked about it and… we’ll do it.”

The next few hours passed in a blur. They called the Mystery Skulls back inside and Vivi and Lewis did most of the talking. Logistics. Timing. Whens, wheres, and hows. Plans and backup plans. Numbers were exchanged for if and when those plans changed and so the nitty-gritty details could be hammered out later, and then they were leaving. 

Daisy led them out herself, Steven beside her, but as Mystery Incorporated was heading down her front steps Daisy said, “Daphne?” And when her sister turned around, Daisy looked like she didn’t know what to say. Or perhaps like she wanted to say more than what came out. “Just- like… be careful. M’kay?” 

“I- uh… okay Daisy. You too.” Daphne stammered, bewildered.

Then they were at the Mystery Machine, and Fred was fumbling with the keys when Lewis gently placed his hand over them. “Fred,” he said, “I’ll drive.”

“Huh? What do you mean you’ll drive? C’mon Lewis, that’s ridiculous,” Fred tried to laugh it off, but he wasn’t fooling anyone. 

“Dude,” Lewis said, gently yet firmly, “you guys have been twitchy since… look, you can barely get the car started with how bad your hands are shaking. You are in no state to drive. Please, Fred. Let me.”

And as much as Fred loved the Mystery Machine, he didn’t fight Lewis on it any further. But once they were actually in the van, heading back to the mansion behind Vivi and Mystery in the other vehicle, the quiet set in. 

The sort of tense silence that had Lewis very, very worried. What had they seen? Because whatever Mr. E had been facing then, it was what Arthur was facing now! 

And Mystery Incorporated knew that. Really, they did. And they were thinking about it. But their thoughts were also elsewhere, elsewhere, and all over the place. 

Yet individually, they stood united under one question: How could you?

Mr. E was the one person who believed in Professor Pericles more than anything. The one who gave him another chance, even after everything. His best friend. And he’d-

But that train of thought just made them replay what they’d seen all over again. And that was one thing Shaggy absolutely did not want to do. Just thinking about it made his skin crawl. 

He kept having to remind himself that Ricky wasn’t there anymore. He was safe and sound in Shaggy’s body back at the Mystery Skulls’ mansion. And Shaggy was safe and sound in Arthur’s body - but where did that leave Arthur? 

It isn’t fair, he thought to himself. It wasn’t fair that Arthur was fighting a battle that wasn’t his own. The way Mr. E had screamed in that video… Arthur had already endured what Ricky had at least once. Had he screamed that way too? Was he screaming now? He shouldn’t be, and it wasn’t fair! But if Shaggy wished Arthur to be safe and sound back where he belonged, then where would that leave Ricky? And Shaggy- 

Once his train of thought went down that road, Shaggy shrank in on himself and felt dirty. He wasn’t a stranger to being afraid. Or running away, or wanting to quit. But this time? That kind of thinking made Shaggy feel like a rotten, selfish, ungrateful coward. Because if they could swap bodies one more time and Shaggy had the chance to take their place, he knew he wouldn’t have the strength to do it. And for a moment, he wasn’t sad for Ricky or worried about Arthur. He was just glad that it wasn’t him. 

Feeling awful about himself, Shaggy looked up and his eyes wandered to each face in the Mystery Machine. Scooby was laying at Shaggy’s feet, ears drooped. He looked oddly guilty, or as though he was going to be sick. Velma, sitting next to Shaggy, had alternated between looking completely blank or on the verge of tears ever since they’d seen the footage. And from what he could see in the front seats, Daphne was looking out the window and Fred was staring straight ahead. So while he could not see their expressions, he could see the glances Lewis kept giving them; And his face told Shaggy everything he needed to know. 

With a sigh, Shaggy looked down at Arthur’s prosthetic arm, flexing the metal fingers thoughtfully. Now wasn’t the time to be feeling bad about what a shitty person he was (which of course only served to make him feel even worse) for one simple and obvious reason: it wasn’t about him. It was about Ricky. Ricky, who had been carrying all of this around from the beginning. Ricky, who had trusted them with one of the most horrible things to ever happen to him, and was probably waiting back at the mansion right now worrying over what their reaction was going to be. Ricky, who was somehow brave enough and strong enough to face what Shaggy knew he couldn’t.

Mr. E. 

Who didn’t really have anybody else. 

So the five of them would have to do.

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When they arrived at the manor, they found Ricky and Angel in the library. 

Not that they were exactly difficult to find. The Dead Beats were diligently patrolling the hallway outside and their voices were drifting down the corridor from the open door.

“-So the first and really only culture to write about the Annunaki and the Nibiru event were the ancient Mesopotamians,” Ricky was explaining. “But there’s evidence of their presence among other cultures under different names. Which obviously there must be at least some truth to because Mystery’s Annunaki ancestors spent time in Japan, and according to our research the evil entity behind the curse, which is an Annunaki, was defeated and imprisoned in Ancient Egypt- oh!”

Ricky stopped mid-sentence and looked up when Mystery Incorporated stepped into the doorway. He and Cassidy had some of the notes the two groups had made yesterday spread out on the floor and the two of them had been laying on their stomachs side-by-side reviewing them. But the moment he saw their faces he sat up and his stomach dropped. 

They’d seen it. 

Daphne’s eyes were red and puffy, Fred could barely look at him at all, there was no mistaking the pity on Shaggy and Scooby’s faces, and Velma’s eyes were fixed on the floor. 

I knew it. 

They’d never go back to the way they’d been this morning. All the progress they’d made, and for what? How little they must think of him now. They must be so disgusted… 

Ricky could see the Mystery Skulls coming up behind the kids, and even though they hadn’t seen the footage, it was plain on their faces that they were worried. It was also clear even to poor Cassidy, who didn’t fully know what was going on, that something was up. Right as she was sitting up, looking between them, Ricky nervously cleared his throat and stood up abruptly. 

“So!” He said, as if ignoring the elephant in the room would somehow make it go away. “How did it go?” Ricky rubbed his hands together and started picking up the notes and books that they were done with, busying himself with stacking them and setting them on tables to quell his nervous energy. “I uh- heard from Lewis that you went to see Professor Hatecraft. I know he’s your friend. Must’ve uh- been nice to see him again. And you’ll have to tell me how it went with Daisy. I know Daphne wasn’t looking forward to it, but I really do apprecia- oof.” 

Right as Ricky was setting the first stack on the table, Velma suddenly marched forward, grabbed him by the shirt, turned him around, and hugged him tight around the middle. 

Ricky was so shocked by the gesture, much less from Velma, whom he’d wronged more than any of them, that for a stunned second he froze. Eyes wide, arms awkwardly held above her like he didn’t know what to do with them. Did he hug her back? Was he allowed? 

“Uhm… Velma…?” 

Then finally she whispered, “I’m so sorry…” 

Her bottom lip trembled, her shoulders tensed, the tiniest little whimper slipped out, and then she was crying. 

“Velma…” Feeling extremely awkward about it, Ricky brought his arms down, rubbing her back and gently patting her hair. And when she didn’t pull away he hugged her back. Then the rest of her friends were around him too - and Ricky didn’t have enough arms for them all. Shaggy’s head on his left shoulder, Daphne’s on his right, Scooby against his hip, and Fred’s cheek leaning on the crown of his head.

They’d never go back to the way they were this morning. And slowly, it dawned on Ricky that it wasn’t because they’d gone backwards. 

But any warmth that realization inspired was replaced by a cold dread. Because he could feel Cassidy’s eyes boring into his back and he was fresh out of excuses. 

Swallowing nervously, Ricky gently backed Velma off of him, and the other four took the cue to let go as well. “Aw, thanks guys. There there, Velma. It’s alright-” 

“No. It’s not,” she said. And now she sounded angry. “I-” she sniffed and dabbed her eyes under her glasses with the thick fabric at her turtleneck. “I cannot believe they did that to you!” 

“Reah!” Scooby agreed with a growl. 

“Like yeah. Friends like- friends don’t treat friends like that, man!” Shaggy exclaimed.

“Oh It went far beyond treating someone bad!” Velma said, so loudly it bordered on yelling. “It- it was assault! That’s what it was! I just- I can’t believe he- Oh god… Ricky, I- dammit, I know I already said it but I’m so sorry!” 

“She’s right,” Fred said. “What they did was- beyond anything I could ever imagine doing to one of my enemies, much less one of my friends. And I can’t believe my real parents-”

“Fred,” Ricky said, his brows coming together, “I don’t blame you. What they did- it wasn’t your fault.”

“Yeah. I know that,” Fred said, sounding every bit like someone who didn’t completely believe it. “But that doesn’t make it any less true.”

“And the way they talked to you!” Velma scoffed. 

“No kidding! If Pericles has got one thing going for him, it’s the audacity,” Daphne quipped, hands on her hips. 

“Reah! Rit’s not like you asked for anything unreasonable!” Scooby added. 

“Like yeah! He totally didn’t!” Shaggy agreed. 

“He asked for the bare minimum really,” Daphne said. 

“So- Are you okay, Ricky?” Fred asked. 

By now, Ricky’s head was ducked as far between his shoulders as it could, and he was positively red in the face with a mix of embarrassment and flattery… and a smile he couldn’t wipe off his face no matter what other emotions were clambering over each other for attention. Everything they were saying- even after seeing it. Even after presumably knowing everything. They weren’t disgusted or treating him like he was made of glass. And in spite of all the words of comfort and wisdom he’d gotten up until now, he’d never felt so validated before. 

But of course he couldn’t say all of that without embarrassing himself further. So all he said was, “M’ good. I’m- better than I thought I’d be, actually.” And he laughed when he said it, in spite of himself. “So uh- what exactly did you see? I mean I was under the impression that there was… a lot on that flashdrive. I mean did you watch all of it?” 

“Not even close,” Fred said. “We started at what I can only assume is the first time he hit you. And we got to the first time he- did it. Before we uh… sorry. We couldn’t bear to watch any more than that.”

“Couldn’t bear. To watch any more. Of what?” 

All six of them froze and had the same thought at once: Shit. 

They slowly turned around, and there she was. Brows furrowed, mouth set in a firm line, arms crossed, weight balanced on one hip. Looking positively murderous. Without daring to look away, feeling very much like they were facing a rabid animal, Fred gulped. “You didn’t tell her, did you?” He asked out of the corner of his mouth.

“Most of it, but then couldn’t get the important part out,” Ricky grumbled back. Also out of the corner of his mouth.

“Want us to help you out?” 

“No Fred, I’m afraid this is something I have to do myself. But thank you.”

Also not looking away from Cassidy, like she’d jump out and bite somebody at any moment, Velma pulled her laptop out of her bag, stuck the flashdrive in it, and passed it into Ricky’s arms. “All yours, E.” 

“Hoh-boy. Like, we believe in you man.” Shaggy laughed nervously. 

“Rud ruck,” Scooby said. 

“Ranks. I’m gonna need it,” Ricky gulped. And then they were backing away. Not leaving, but lurking just beyond the doorway to give them the space they needed (yet close enough to witness the drama unfold). The Mystery Skulls meanwhile, still respecting Ricky’s wishes and privacy, had made themselves scarce.

Ricky was glad the kids were sticking around, because if they left he would’ve been alone with quite possibly the scariest thing in the entire manor. Had she really been contently laying beside him while they talked just a few short minutes ago? Because now, it was as if the energy of the room itself had shifted.

“What happened to you?” She pleaded. Her voice wasn’t as hard as it had been a moment ago but there was a crack to it already, and she hadn’t even seen it yet. “Ricky. Baby. Please. Talk to me.” 

He took a deep breath and nodded. He set the laptop down on a desk between them and opened it right to where the kids had left off. With the screen paused on a scene he remembered all too well. His hands were shaking when he slid the timestamp back to the beginning. Then he looked up at her, still staring expectantly over the top of the screen. And he knew this whole day, waiting for bad news must’ve been torture for her. His mouth was dry and his heart was pounding in his ears. But he remembered the kids. He remembered how seeing it, knowing what had happened to him, hadn’t ruined anything between them. 

He hoped the same would be true with Cassidy. 

And he told her - he must have. But if anyone asked him what he said, he couldn’t tell you. Even as the words came, it was as if he blocked them out.

But not the look on her face. First anticipation. Then unease. And finally horror. And once he ran out of words and couldn’t bear to see her look at him that way anymore, he turned the laptop around and hit play. 

“He’s late,” he heard his own voice, his real voice, say. 

Then came Judy’s. “You know he shows up when he means to. I’m sure he’ll be here soon, don’t you think Brad?”

He couldn’t look at her as she watched the scene unfold. Try as he might to tune it out, those voices- that scene started playing in his head and the feelings started coming back in real time, as if he was back in the shoes of his past self all over again. Anxiety. Hope. Pride. Power. Then frustration. Anger. And as the video neared the inevitable tragedy, the feelings of his present self, knowing what was coming, seeped in. 

Fear. Fear that grew and swelled into abject terror. 

“-If you won’t listen to me,” his true voice said, and his mouth silently traced the words, having played this memory over in his head a hundred times before. Searching for some way it could have ended differently. “-Then you haven’t left me with much choice: Get out…”

Ricky turned around and all but stumbled out of the room. Wanting- needing to get away. He knew how this story ended, but he didn’t want to live it again. The kids made some move to stop him. But he played little heed to their voices and jerked away from the kind hands that reached for his shoulders. 

The sounds of his own screams chased him down the hallway as Ricky blindly fled his own memory.

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Cassidy didn’t know what she’d been expecting. 

But it wasn’t this. 

A torture button? Using what- mutated cobra llarvae? 

Who on God’s Green Earth other than Professor Pericles even thinks of that? 

After spending time with Ricky in someone else’s body for the past few hours, it was sort of jarring seeing him in his own skin again. Even in a video. But when Ricky of two weeks ago (according to the timestamp) started telling Pericles off, Cassidy sat back, looked up at Ricky, and laughed, impressed. 

The far-off look in his eyes and the tremble in his shoulders stole the smile from her face. She looked back at the screen. 

At some point, she became aware that he left. And she would have gone after him, but tunnel vision locked her legs in place and her eyes on the screen.

When Pericles pushed that button, when Ricky went rigid, then dropped to his knees, it hit Cassidy right in the heart. Then came the screaming. The begging. The pleading. And she froze. 

She had never heard Ricky scream like that. And she never wanted to hear it again.

And Brad and Judy were smirking at one another. Like a pair of naughty children who’d gotten a third into trouble. 

And Pericles was laughing. 

“I had wondered what sounds you would make,” the parrot sighed, chuckling to himself. “And of course, my sweet Ricky, you did not disappoint me.”

A cold fury seeped into Cassidy’s veins like venom. She had already hated Professor Pericles for far longer than the time she’d once considered him a friend. But at that moment, listening to him laugh and gloat over the sound of Ricky screaming- Angel Dynamite thought to herself for the very first time, I’m going to kill you. 

Pericles had finally stopped, but Ricky was still quietly sobbing, his body shaking with the aftershocks when Cassidy stopped the video, unable to watch any more.

There was a painful lump at the back of her throat that Cassidy couldn’t afford to let out. Her hands steepled against her lips, her elbows on her knees, and she closed her eyes and took deep breaths. She wanted to scream. Throw things. March out of this manor right now and put a damn bullet through that bird’s skull. But the kids were still lurking just outside - watching. And Arthur was in there- oh God, Arthur was in there! And above all, Ricky needed her. 

Ricky. She opened her eyes. And what did she see? With the video closed, she was faced with a long, long list of files. And it hit her, really hit her, that what she’d seen was only the tip of the iceberg. “Oh sweetheart…” She muttered.

Then one of the file names jumped out at her: “CASSIDY 🗣️🔴”

… What was her name doing there? 

For a moment, she was torn. She didn’t want to see any more of Ricky’s suffering. She wanted- needed to go after him. To see him, comfort him, hold him. Reassure herself that even if not in his own skin, she had him.

But that file. It was as if it was calling her. Cassidy. Cassidy!

She had to know. 

Cassidy opened the file and hit play.

Ricky was sitting alone in front of his monitors. With the glare, she couldn’t see what he was doing, but he was anxiously bouncing one leg. Brad and Judy appeared on the island behind him and he flinched, but said nothing, trying to ignore them. 

“You’ve been on the computer more and more.”

“He sure has, Brad! You’re not allowed on the internet, so what do you do in here for hours on end?” 

“There’s been no sign of her for weeks!” Ricky finally said.

“Who are you looking for?”

“Cassidy.” And the way he said it- even while trying to mask it, he sounded so worried. Earlier today came to mind. The look of shock, hope, anguish on his face when he’d seen her standing alive and well at the bottom of the staircase.

“Maybe she finally gave up,” Brad suggested smugly. 

“No! She would never give up! She’s gone!”

Again, this morning came to mind. Ricky, screaming those very words at the top of the stairs.

“Of course she’s gone,” Professor Pericles said, appearing onscreen. “Anyone who crosses me gets… eliminated.” 

If Cassidy had found the first video hard to watch, seeing Ricky’s heart shatter into a million pieces right in front of her was somehow worse. Again, she remembered this morning. The way he’d hugged her like his life depended on it- 

“You were informed she had been taken care of,” Pericles said dismissively. The Ricky on the screen was hyperventilating. Falling to his knees beneath the weight of his grief. His guilt.

She remembered Ricky sobbing into her shoulder, hardly able to get a word out between sobs. ‘I never stopped looking for you and then he told me- he-’

“Would you like to know how she died?” Pericles asked, as if he enjoyed the pain he caused. “If it is any consolation, my sweet Ricky, she likely did not suffer.” Cassidy stood up. She’d seen enough. But as she stepped around the computer she could still hear the audio. “-They say that drowning is one of the most peaceful ways to die. If the explosion didn’t kill her instantly.” 

Then she heard two words come out of Ricky’s mouth in such a frigid tone of voice it stopped her in her tracks. “Fuck you.”

“What?” Pericles said. And he sounded just as surprised as Cassidy. She slowly turned around. She never would have expected Ricky to talk to Pericles that way. But then- 

“FUCK YOU! You bastard! You were always jealous of her! All because you wanted me all to yourself, you just couldn’t let me have anyone else that I loved! And look at what you’ve done to us! Brad and Judy threw away their own son like garbage for that stupid treasure! Anyone with eyes can see what I’ve become! Cassidy was the only one of us who was strong enough to stay good in spite of that stupid curse - in spite of you! And YOU KILLED HER!” 

Then Pericles must have pulled out the button again. Because Ricky made that same horrible choked, strangled sound from the other video. Screaming on the inside, but unable to muster the breath to let it out. 

Cassidy slammed the laptop shut with a snap, unable to bear a second more. 

There was a beat- maybe two, of stunned silence. Then the music began. 

Dramatic violins overlaid with static - all too fitting for the tightness in her chest, the burning in her throat, and the wetness on her cheeks. Right as the deep thrum of the cellos and clarinets joined the orchestra, Cassidy took a deep breath, turned around, and walked out of the library with as much grace as she could. She barely glanced at Mystery Incorporated when she passed them. A few of them were crying, and a few of them had their hands clamped over their ears. The crash of the cymbals all too fitting for what they were feeling. Angel herself was holding her own emotions back by a thread and knew that if she stuck around a second longer, she was going to lose it right in front of them. 

She strode up to the nearest Dead Beat. And right as the striking beats were ending and the gentle thrum of the piano began, Cassidy looked up at it with angry, bloodshot eyes and asked it point blank, “Where is he?” 

The sad little ghost knew without being told who she was asking about. It pointed a nubby arm and went zipping down the corridor. Cassidy walked after it at first. 

So right now I can feel it, feel it overtaking me

Then she couldn’t stand it and walked faster. 

So right now, ooooh I can feel it overtaking me.

Then the moment she turned a corner and the kids couldn’t see her anymore, she was running. And when it sped up, she sprinted after it. 

'Cause there's, 'cause there's no one in this world that could treat me like 'Cause there's no one in this world that could take me back 'Cause there's no one in this world that could make it fit 'Cause there's no one in this world

Turn after turn, paintings, doors, and suits of armor flew by. Cassidy’s boots colliding with the carpeted hardwood floors echoed through the corridors. Where is he? Where is he?

Erase me Erase my mind again. Erase meeee~, ooooh~ Erase my mind again, love

When the Dead Beat led her into the foyer and went zipping up the stairs, Cassidy dashed after it. Where is he? Where is he?

Erase me Erase my mind again

Cassidy ran after the Dead Beat for what felt like an eternity, but really wasn’t very long at all. They found Ricky on the second floor, having been trying to retreat to the relative safety of his room before his own emotions got the better of him. He was kneeling on the floor leaning against the wall between two suits of armor, clearly facing the tail-end of a breakdown, his hands fisting his hair. She stopped when she saw him, breathless, shoulders sagging with relief. And then she was striding towards him. 

Erase me, oh

He turned around when he heard her coming. Red-faced and puffy-eyed he croaked, “Cassidy I-” 

Erase my mind again, love!

He was cut off just as the song came to an end, when she dropped to the floor at his side and flung her arms around him. He stiffened, surprised, but a moment later she felt him relax. Only then did Cassidy lean back and, gently yet firmly, she dragged his upper body into her lap and pressed her nose into his soft caramel colored hair. He stretched his legs and curled them in on the floor to get comfortable, and his arms came, gentle yet firm, around her waist. 

And she held him; So tight it probably wasn’t comfortable but he didn’t complain - just held her back. Leaning into it with a sigh when her fingers carded through his hair, then stayed there. Ricky had always loved having his hair touched. 

Cassidy’s shoulders shook. Her vision blurred. That lump in the back of her throat finally slipped out. And then for the first time in what seemed like forever, she was sobbing. 

He muttered her name, muffled with his face pressed into her chest, “Cassidy,” and his arms tightened around her. “M’ sorry…” 

“Don’t you-” she sniffed, “dare apologize- hic! It’s just- I… oh Sweetheart… Baby. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry…”  

“Yeah,” he said. “I know.” 

They laid there together for what seemed like the longest time. There was something unmistakably intimate about their position, and yet in spite of everything that had happened between them none of it seemed to matter. 

It did matter. That much should not be mistaken. And they would hopefully work through it. Or they wouldn’t. But that didn’t seem to matter much for the moment either. 

All that mattered was that, at least for the moment, he was safe. And he was with her. 

-Except he wasn’t.

Because no matter how much she kept telling herself that this was Ricky, and that was enough, her heart still longed for the rest of him. All of him. Complete and whole. In his own skin. As he should be. She missed his face. His voice. His dark brown eyes, even with the bags under them. His beard and thick, silky dark hair. She’d never gotten the chance to touch it, in the five years since she’d gotten to see him again. She remembered being surprised to see it so long, and had caught herself wondering how it would feel beneath her fingers. Or how the rest of him had changed for that matter. How would it feel to lean against him? Or to have his arms around her? Did he still have that scattered peppering of freckles across his back and shoulders? And how much could those constellations have shifted?

It scared her to think of Ricky, even part of him, still in the clutches of someone who only wanted to hurt him. And it horrified her to know that Arthur was in his place. Oh God, Arthur! He was such a sweet guy- a good person. He was the grounding member of the Mystery Skulls, who’d been the best at easing her into… all of it. And he’d never been anything but kind to her. Even going as far as to let her stay in his room while she stayed in Tempo recuperating with his uncle. And now he was in that Hell too. And now? If he really did get himself- get Ricky out of this mess, she didn’t know how she’d ever repay him. 

Pericles came to mind again. Looking so proud of himself for what he’d done to the one person who’d stuck by his side the longest. And she didn’t even want to imagine him doing to Arthur what he’d done to Ricky. Anger set her heart ablaze and that thought came again, with even more conviction than the first time: I’m going to kill you. 

Suddenly the walls began to scream. Cassidy and Ricky both jumped and scrambled out of their embrace, searching for the source but there was none! The sound was all-encompassing, as if it was coming from everywhere! But then they realized- 

Cassidy’s blood ran cold. She knew that scream. And when she looked over at Ricky, she knew he recognized it too. 

Because it sounded like him. The real him. Shouting in agony, and begging for it to stop.

In an instant, Cassidy was on her feet and dragging Ricky to his as well. “Come on Ricky!” She said to him, but he was having a freeze response. Staring straight ahead, straight through her. “Ricky! Ricky, look at me!” Cassidy shouted above the din, shaking him slightly, and finally his eyes focused on her face. “We have to find the Mystery Skulls! Come on!” And then she was dragging him down the hall with her as fast as she could. Within a few moments, he was snapped out of it and running after her. 

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The paintings they passed along the way were either laughing or cowering in the corners of their frames. And as they ran the screaming got louder, and then the music began. 

Erase me, just like before. But the house had never played the same song twice in a row, and this time the music was different. Corrupted. Jagged, almost. Like playing a scratched CD. Around the time the cursed cellos started, the walls began to shake. 

When they ran into a swarm of Dead Beats, it became even clearer that something was very wrong. They were ignored when they tried to get the ghosts’ attention and hissed at when they tried to reach out. They were glowing more brightly than they’d ever seen them before and they were shrieking, pulsing, swelling and shrinking in size as they howled and scrambled along the walls like lizards, leaving claw marks in their wake. And they were all heading in the same direction. And as terrifying as it was, they followed. 

They arrived right when the piano made its entrance in the song, at the same time as Mystery Incorporated, who had followed the Dead Beats from elsewhere. And they found the Mystery Skulls in what was- should have been an art gallery. The Dead Beats were swirling around the walls in that same panicked frenzy, not knowing where to go or what to do and in the middle of it were Mystery, Vivi, and Lewis. Huddled together staring at the paintings in utter horror. 

Ricky, the fastest of them with Shaggy’s body, got there first. “Mystery! Vivi!” He shouted at them above the cacophony. “What’s-” Then he saw what they were looking at, and he let out a gasp of absolute mortification. 

S̷o̷ ̷r̷i̷g̸h̴t̸ ̵n̵o̸w̷

He was in every picture frame. Convulsing on the floor in agony back at Destroido. It was as if the contents of the flashdrive had been hung up on every frame! Except- wait. 

I don’t recognize that scene. I never would’ve gone anywhere without my coat. And why do I have a bottle of wine - oh dear God. 

S̵o̵ ̵r̷i̵g̷h̴t̶ ̵n̷o̶w̸,̵ ̸o̴o̷o̴o̴h̵ ̶ ̷I̶ ̷c̶a̴n̸ ̵f̸e̶e̷l̷ ̵i̴t̵ ̵o̶v̷e̸r̸t̷a̸k̷i̷n̶g̸ ̵m̶e̸.̶

THAT’S ARTHUR! 

At once he rushed to their side, dodging Dead Beats as they flew by his head. “Guys! It’s okay! Everything’s gonna be alright! Don’t look at that! Look at me!” Ricky shouted above the din. 

C̶̮̓a̷͓͐u̶̗̚s̸̥̕e̴͈̊ ̷̞̕t̶̰̒h̷͖̿é̴͓r̴̘̊e̶̘͌'̷͈̽s̴̜̔ ̷̣̉n̴͈͑ó̵͖ ̸̞̓ŏ̸̹n̶̥̓é̴̯ ̷̍ͅȋ̵͔n̷͖̂ ̷̝͝t̸̮̕h̴̳͂ȉ̸̧š̸̤ ̴̫̋w̷̞̚ọ̷̅r̸̤͝ḽ̶̀d̶̪̉ ̶̦̿t̸̺̿h̵̯̉a̷͎͒t̷͊ͅ ̸̞̈́c̵̥̽o̶̯̚u̸͈͒l̴̟͊d̷̼̆ ̷̗̿t̷̙̒r̷̗̒e̶̯̅à̴̼t̵̙́ ̵̗̈m̸͚̐ē̸͉ ̸̟̍l̶̖͝i̴̻̎k̷̬͠e̵̟̓

When the others saw what he was doing they rushed to join in. “Come on, Mystery! Snap out of it! Do something!” Ricky shouted. But the kitsune was so big and utterly frozen with horror that no amount of shaking or shoving against the creature, even with Fred and Scooby helping, could rouse him. 

C̶̨͎͆͒a̷͇̖̽̒u̷̘̲̚ś̷͓ȩ̴̋̎ ̵̹̀̃t̶̢̹̿́h̴̔͜e̷̬̐̀r̶̲̙̔̾ȅ̵̖́'̸̘͕̌s̴̖̩̄ ̷̻̗̋n̸̬̾͝ô̷͈͜͝ ̵̖͈̅̕ō̴̗ņ̴̇̏ẽ̵͖̟ ̴͖͑͐į̴̒̒n̸͙̊ ̸͙͈̅̊ẗ̸̖́̓ḩ̶̎͘í̸̲̜s̷̛̤ ̸̥͑̕w̴͓̄͝ơ̷̩r̵̟̅l̴̝͘̕d̸̠̐ ̵̣̦̚t̴̠̔h̷̞͛͜ả̸̳̖͝t̴̚͜ ̷̹̫͆̚c̶͉̈o̴̧͔͆͒ṵ̵̳̃l̶̪̘̀͝d̷̦̃͐ ̸̻͛t̷̼́ạ̸̡̾͘k̶̮̈e̶̲̜̋͐ ̷͚̉m̶͓̔́e̸͖̳͌̄ ̴̪̍b̴̞̗̀a̸̧͇͂̑c̴͕̆͒k̷̠͍̇͠

Desperate, Ricky looked over at Vivi but she was absolutely inconsolable. Cassidy, Velma, and Daphne were shaking her, blocking her view of the moving pictures with their bodies, to no avail. She was hugging herself, trembling, looking straight ahead with loud, ugly, gasping sobs bursting out of her. 

C̵̳̫̪̍̕̕ä̵̞̲̚ų̸̂͋ͅș̶̡̘̔̌ę̴̺͊͂ͅ ̴̡͚͕̋̄t̵̺̹̯́h̸̡̺̐̍̀e̴̥͊͆r̴͈̽̐͜ë̵̹̭́'̷̛̗̖̱s̷͙̖̒ ̵̜̳̥̂̕n̵̰̣͒͠ö̷̜̣͑̔ ̸̥̮͆̏͝ȭ̷̬̦̠n̷̺̰̟͗̏e̷͉͂ͅͅ ̴̨̯̜̓͑͝i̵̳̟͐̕n̶̖̈͋ ̸̞̏́t̵̝͑ḩ̵̬͔͗̀ì̵͍͕͗s̴͈͕̑ ̸̛̤̪̄̇w̵͎̺̚o̸̼̰̊̌̕r̶͓̳̂̃͆ĺ̵͖d̸̲̮̬͗̍̽ ̵͈̿̇̀t̴̟̱̥̅͌h̵̫̞̰͗̇a̴͍͒ṱ̴̋͊ ̵̞͎̪̑̎̓ċ̷͈̖͍̋̀o̷͇͇̖͗̽͠ư̶̙͓̐͐ͅl̷̢̦͋̕͘ͅď̸̹̜̦͝ ̵͍͈̉̌̈m̶̮̏a̵̛̜͉̔̇k̶͍̳͉͒̊e̷̻̠͔̊̂̒ ̵̧̮̫̉ì̷̤̰̈́̍ț̵́ ̸͉͝f̷̛̜̰̦i̷͍͍̒͊t̴͚͎̃͌͝

And that left Lewis. The Master of the House was in his ghostly form, staring wide-eyed at his friend in pain with ugly black tears, like ink, dripping from his eye sockets. 

C̴̛̰͈̲̻̽͆͆ą̶̛̠̘̘͉̭́̔̀̀ų̸̮͍͎͉̋́̌͘ͅs̵͙̒͐̐̒̏e̴̢̼̯̰̔̓̓ ̸̡̡̗̦̐ͅṯ̷̨͍̹͇͆͐͘̕h̶̤̋̃̈́̊e̶̲̫͖̒̚̚r̴̨͔̤̩͓̦̂̿̽͌ḙ̶͙̜́͑̀̐̿̓͜'̸̪̳͗̐͑̚s̴̜̫̾̐͘̕͝ ̶̧̈́̑͌͝n̶̛̖͔o̵̧͉̗̮̞̱̓̋̅͌͛̕ ̸͔̊͑̓̚͘͜o̵̬͙̦̎͝n̸̬̲͍̝̄̒͛͒͘é̴̬̹͔͉̗̝̌͛̿͌̎ ̵̨͍͎̞̈́̍̋̃ḭ̸̃̓n̶̡͙̬͈̞̼̈́ ̶̠̩̩̭̟́́̇ẗ̶̢̘̫̬̝̲́h̸̲̙̭̮̙͂̈́ì̵̫̩̲͇̟́s̴̨̒̀̾͂͘ ̸͉́̀̀͗̍̽ẃ̷̤̘ǫ̵̛̪͈̹̤̏̎̚r̶̗͈̦̞̃͘͝ĺ̵̝d̸͕̋

“Lewis! Like come on man!” Shaggy was shouting. 

Ë̶̢̦̪̺͍̥͉́̓r̸̜̫̮̝̟̲̓͐̏̚a̷̡̫̗̬͕̱̹̎͝s̵̢̙͙̦͂̓̃̌e̸̯̰͈͙͓͆̐̍͆̽̎̿ ̵̢̞̩͓̑͋̔̕̚m̴̼͓͚̭̫̓̾̀̽̃̒ȩ̵̜̀͌͗̕

“Like dude! You’re the master of the house! You gotta stop this man! Like snap out of it!” And in desperation, Shaggy slapped Lewis across the face so hard that his skull spun around like a top for a moment before the ghost slapped both sides of his face and turned his head around the right way. Dazed, but finally alert!

É̸̛̛̥͇̤͛̋̔r̶̠̯̹̠̹̈̈́͒̀a̶͉̣̝̣̝̾̂̐̊̚s̸̡̫̑̕ȇ̸̡̖̩́́ ̶̡͎͎̟̾̄̎͒̐́͜m̶̨͓̱͂̓͜y̸̹͍̐̈́̈ͅ ̶̣͉̃̂͗m̷̮̣̲̼͓̲͂̅̃̉̉͘̕ĭ̶̧͈̙͐̃̌̏̂̕ń̸͖̗̩̲͒̓̓̎͝d̵͇̠͂͆̃͛̚̕͠ ̴̢͊̊̏å̴̡̧͔̣̩̣̟ǵ̴̻̌̒̎̿̈̀ą̸̯̦̩̼͇̠͠ḭ̷́̌̇͛͗͊͠n̷̥̏́͌͘͠.̶̢͉̱̦̼̬͔̋̔͑̈́̎̽̓ ̶̡̟͕̠̓͐̒̽̋̈͠E̷̻̫̭̼͕̓̄r̶̮͍̅̑̿͐a̴̱͙̟͌͆s̶̹͖̙̖̭͘é̶̢̱̭̬͕̽͌͠͠ ̷̘͘͠m̶̱͖̔͒e̷̝̣͔̾̎̅̌̑͝ĕ̷͙͈̔̓̎͜ě̸̛͇̩̣͔̣̓͝͝ͅe̷̢͓̬̤͔̳͗̎͋̍͊̒~̶̹̩̻̬̊̿̈́̄,̴͓̏̃̒̉̑ ̷̣̯̱̦͌͗̍́̕͝ơ̴̢̟̐͠o̸̢̱̫̞̼͇̣͆̌̿͆ỏ̵͇̖͇͊ö̷̪̰̠̫̟̆̂h̷͇̱͎̰͇̥͒̂͛̓̆͝͠~̷̞͔̝͝

His eyes finally focused on Shaggy, then his gaze darted to Vivi and Mystery. Flames dancing across his shoulders, the ghost looked back at the paintings with fury. 

E̸͔̗̪̣͚̤̗͎̘̯͍̣̿̓̓̒̕͜r̸̡̧̬̙̮̝̖̜̖͎̟͓̒̃̔a̷̧͚̭͓̭̻̎̔͆̿́̓̑̋̌͝͝s̴͍̹̯͔͓̙̮̹̓̈́͋̏̂̒͒̓͐͐e̸̝͓̼͑̏̃̾́̌̚ ̴̨͎̗̫̲̜͚͎̯̗̑̏̔̈́̃͑̃̓m̶̨͍̬͉̗̩̺̣͈̼̟̩̿̎̊̊̊ẙ̷̢̧̧̹̞͍̘͎̗͕̤̈̌͗̿̒̒͌ ̸̡͈̺̘͕̱̪̠͉̫͈͚̙̈́͂̔̈̿͛͌̐̉́͌̀́m̸̛̮̞̄i̴̧͕̥͈̠͍̯̘̠̟͈͎̤͎̓͒ǹ̸͍̟̗͐̅͑̿ͅḑ̷̧̧͙̠̠̗̹̥̪̙̇ ̴̭͈́̄̓ą̶̡͇̣̳̖̻̮͉̼̦̲͎͉̳̬͐̔̿͗̂́̈͛̕͠g̸̻̬̙̟̟̦̼͖͇͎̮̑̔̍̑̐̿̎̉͌̾̇̈́ä̶̭͍̺́̊̍͋̋̌͑̆͋̔̾̃͌͝͝į̸̯̦̗͎̜̹̹͖̜̱͍̞̻͈͛̾̆͗̈́̈́̈̇͂͒̈̿̌͠͝͠n̷̢̰̹̭̗̹͙̤̬͕̳̼̺̮̺̂̾͆̇͆ͅͅ,̸̧̧̼̖̞̘͕̤̯̞̗̫̫̑́͐̈́́́̀̔̈̕̕͠͝ ̶̧̡̝͔͎̺͕̱̙͈͙̙̼͖̝̀̉l̷͉̬̩̥̍͌͋͘͝͝ơ̸̢̞̜̰͓͉͇͕͛͊́͊́̆̍̋̾̍̿̀͘ͅv̴̟̬̜͓̟̲̩̜̠̘̤̼̼̘̊̊̆̊e̶̡̨͙̰̘͎͈̝͉̦͕̱͍̾

“ENOUGH!”

There was an explosion of blinding pink light!

And just as suddenly as the screaming had started, it was quiet. The music was off. The screaming stopped. The Dead Beats vanished into corners and crevices unseen. The only sound was Vivi’s crying.

Mystery Incorporated, Ricky, and Cassidy slowly sat up from where they’d hit the deck, looking around partially surprised they hadn’t been torched by the pink fire. And yet none of them were burned and nothing was touched. The torches had been blown out, and the only light came from the cloudy sky outside the large window. Other than that the room was back to just how it should be, with macabre paintings of supernatural creatures and statues of the dead. And in the middle of it all, just as they had been, were the Mystery Skulls. 

Vivi’s legs shook, then gave out under her as she sobbed. “Ar-Ar-Arthur! Artie….” 

Lewis still looked absolutely stricken, that black fluid still leaking from his eye holes like tar. He made some move towards his girlfriend, “Vivi-” but he stopped, looking torn, and finally his eyes settled on Ricky. “ I’m sorry. I- it was an accident we- I- we didn’t mean to-... I’m sorry. I have to go!” And then in a flash of pink fire, he was gone. 

And then there was Mystery. Once the images stopped, the kitsune was finally shocked out of his stupor and his gaze dropped to the floor. Large, fat tears dripping silently down his snout. 

 There was a sort of tension in the air, like the calm before the storm. Did the others feel it too? Either way, Daphne was the first to move. She dropped beside Vivi and pulled her into a hug, trying to comfort her, and Velma and Scooby joined in to do the same. Cassidy, Fred and Shaggy stood up as if they didn’t know what to do, and when Ricky stood up, something told him to be very, very careful.

“Mystery?” 

“Ricky!” Cassidy hissed at him quietly, and when Ricky looked over at her he could see it on her face: she felt it too. 

But he’s my friend, Ricky thought. And he remembered how Mystery had comforted him more times than he cared to recount. So he continued on anyway. With careful, deliberate footsteps towards the creature. “Um- are you-” 

“He trusted you.” 

That voice. Inhuman. Part growl, part hiss. The only time Ricky had heard anything remotely like it was when Mystery had lost his temper back in the conservatory. But this was different. It was so loud, so deep, so powerful that it froze Ricky dead in his tracks, reverberated deep in his chest, made his skin break out into gooseflesh. And when Mystery turned, a new set of crimson markings were on his face and the only thing in his glowing red eyes was pain and rage. Rage that raised his hackles and bared his fangs. Rage that sent pale mist rising from his shoulders and made his snowy coat glow like a silver flame. And Ricky realized then that he, in fact, had never seen Mystery lose his temper.

“Mark TRUSTED YOU with his BOY…” 

Ricky’s heart seized for an entirely different reason. Mark? Mark Owens? Dad?!

But that train of thought ended when Mystery snarled, 

“And now you DARE HARM MINE?!” 

That was when Ricky realized he was growing. Seven tails lashed menacingly behind him as the kitsune swelled in size until he positively towered over them, almost incorporeal. Glowing, as if his body was made of smoke while curses rumbled out of him in Japanese, in English, in tongues that had never been spoken by man! Until finally Mystery raised his head to the ceiling and everyone’s hands snapped over their ears when he let loose a bellow that shook the house to its very foundations! Then as swift and smooth as the wind itself, the kitsune leapt over their heads and out the window with a howl and the piercing scream of shattering glass. 

Ricky’s last glimpse of Mystery as he rushed to the window after him was a white blur vanishing into the dark mass of jagged branches surrounding the manor. And he was gone. 

For a few beats of stunned silence, the only sound was Ricky’s heart pounding in his ears and the soft rumble of thunder overhead. Then right as the first raindrops were starting to fall from the dark sky above, Ricky shakily turned around. To Vivi, still sobbing on the floor. And to the others: Cassidy, Fred, Velma, Daphne, Shaggy, and Scooby. All staring out the broken window with the same question written on their faces: what do we do now?

༻˚⁺･⚉｡○✼༓☾⦾♫෴♡💔♡෴♫⦾☽༓✼○｡⚉･⁺˚༺

Thunder boomed overhead as the storm rolled in and began to unleash its fury upon the land below. Soon the rain began to fall in sheets, hiding the Earth in a gray haze of falling raindrops. But even still, as he ran the trails beneath Mystery’s paws were familiar. Smells and shapes, similar yet changed, that he’d seen a thousand times before flew by as he squinted through the rain. Leaping over roots, stones, and creeks. The forest whispered to him like an old friend welcoming him home, but Mystery was too far gone for niceties. Breathless and furious. 

How could you? How could you? How could you?!

He trusted you. He trusted you. He trusted you! 

With a roar, Mystery burst out of the treeline and was met with a familiar hillside. The familiar sound of waves crashing against the rocks. A familiar church silhouetted black against the sky as lightning cracked across the heavens behind it. 

But the god this temple had been built for had long-since forsaken it, and a demon had taken its place. 

Mystery’s ears laid flat against his skull as he let loose another otherworldly shriek and took off across the grass. So fast his paws seldom touched the ground. The same ground where all those years ago he’d sniffed and searched until he knew every blade of grass, and still he’d found nothing!

When he reached the top of the hill, the Old Spanish Church towering above him, Mystery exploded through the double doors and screamed, “YOU!” 

But another crack of lightning was his only reply. 

“You VILLAIN! You COWARD! Did his screams delight you?!” The kitsune roared into the storm as he paced across an empty floor, looking around at shattered stained glass windows and fallen arches.

“I thought I’d won when I denied you the blood of my children, but I see now that I gave you what you wanted! My old nemesis! Have you enjoyed these twenty years of free reign? Drawing power from the pain you’ve caused? DID YOU THINK THIS DAY WOULD NEVER COME?! Well hear me now you disgraced, twisted, FALLEN GOD! My vow was no bluff!” He hissed and spat, and though he received no answer, he knew that it could hear his every word. 

“This has all happened before, but OUR story won’t end the way you want it to!” Mystery swore, as lightning split the sky and the wind clawed at his fur. “I’ve taken back Jasmine’s daughter and Mark’s son,” he hissed, chuckling darkly. “By your enemy’s blessing, I have your newest opponents at my side. You tried to kill my children when they were small, but now they’re grown and they are strong, strong, STRONG. Ready to fight you just as their predecessors did five hundred years ago, a hundred years ago, twenty years ago! But you won’t survive it this time. I’ve brought them back just as I promised I would.”

A mad grin split across Mystery’s face as he roared into the storm. 

“-AND WE’RE GOING TO KILL YOU!”

Well that was intense. Not gonna lie - this chapter wasn't an easy one to write for that very reason. Ain't NOBODY having a good time right now. 🙁 (But I had so much fun with the formatting and fanart for this chapter for that very reason. 😜) Seriously I put my whole soul into the fanart for this chapter, and I'm so proud of how it came out!!! Good thing too, because I had two other pieces planned for this chapter but uh... they didn't work out. 😅 I have part of a plan for chapter 27 and a whole-ass plan for chapter 28. But plans can always change and no promises as to when either of those will be completed OR posted. Because yay me - I just started college classes again. (And that's not a complaint. Actually I'm having a great time.) So to say the least, I'mma be a busy bish. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter and art!

And of course! Here's the tag list for all the beautiful people who wanted to be notified when each chapter is up. If you want to be added or removed from this list, then feel free to DM and let me know!

@void-lioness @nikicherry1234 @angorwhosebabyisthis @lunasummers04 @orithereticent @mysteryskullsblog @the-moogle-of-your-nightmares @sfcabanasstarcgs

Chapters 1-25 of 'One of Us' are presently posted on Archive of Our Own!

[flowerful-doodles]

Y’all I’m not much of a writer but it would be so funny if I wrote a crack fic based on that stupid msa Genshin video

[totallynotafeline]

Just found an older MSA fic I had been writing a couple years back that I never finished. I decided to try writing more for it again and it's going so well 😎😎 I am so motivated 👹

So hopefully at some point that'll be released on my ao3. I'll link it here if I do

Also I am working on my punk sun fic but I've slowed down with writing it for a bit but I AM still writing I swear. I have a few chapter prewritten and they keep seeming to get longer. Which is good and bad cause that's more content but that also means more time between posting chapters. I'm also working on more art for it

[haveyoureadthisfanfic]

Summary: An occult mirror called The Lifestealer leads to an unexpected journey for two teams of mystery solvers. Now Arthur Kingsman is in the body of Shaggy Rogers and vice versa and it is a race to reconnect and get their own teammates back. But like all good investigative teams, cases find them and sometimes they end up being radically different than what they are used to. Plus there are secrets that they are keeping, from themselves... and one another.

Author: Eternal_Phantom

[shinchinror]

PERIOD

NSFW ALERT‼️

It's ovulation week that's why I'm writing like this lmao.

This is work of fiction, names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual person, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Apologies for grammatical error and misspelling. If you happened to notice some, feel free to correct me. Thank you.

I was on my period when Magnus began to crawl on my back and put his weight on top of me. He began to kiss my nape while I'm playing a video game on my phone.

For that sudden move, I flinched but I continued to control my character. I don't want to lose another round in this game.

Magnus groaned frustratedly when I ignored him. His hand traveled down on each side of my waist, pressing it softly with his thumb. I groaned because of it.

“Sweetheart, I'm on heat…” his voice is pleading and arousing, making me stop from what I'm doing.

I turned around to face him and he didn't even bother to move. When I completely faced him, he immediately snuggled into my neck and sniffed my natural scent. I smiled and played with his hair.

“What were you saying earlier?” I asked even though I completely heard what he said.

“I-I'm… I'm on heat.” he whispered through my neck and I barely heard it.

I cackled, “What?”

Him feeling embarrassed, he raised up and that's when I saw his handsome face. His skin is pale but his nose is kinda red. His eyes are heavy lid while staring softly at me. I looked up at his messed up hair and I found him cute by how he looked right now. Out of instinct, I pushed his head toward me as I gave him a smack and immediately let him go.

He looked shocked after a quick kiss. He was staring at me in awe as his lips parted.

“You…” he trailed off before claiming my mouth in just a snap.

I chuckled between his kisses but when he pinched my waist my smile dropped. I whimpered and reciprocated his kiss that made him more intense, he sucked my lips and entered his tongue inside my mouth and lapped me like I'm his prey.

Our non-stop claiming lips stopped when his lips shifted to my cheeks down to my neck and now to my collarbone. I grunted when he nipped my skin and licked it after.

I was losing my mind as I gripped his hair. His hand began to enter my blouse and immediately snap the hook of my bra easily, freeing my mound as he grabbed and played with it.

I moaned when he pushed my clothes aside and sucked my peak while his other hand was playing with my other mound.

My womanhood got wetter because of it. Making me on edge as I squeeze my legs. Him noticing it, he parted my thighs by his knee and centered himself on me. I groaned when I felt his hard on.

Him hearing that raised his head to see my flushed reaction as he rocked his hip to me. I was covering my mouth with the back of my hand while he was doing that, trying to stop my whine but there's still coming out, making him chuckle as he took my hand off away from my mouth to free my moans.

“Hmpp—ah, mmh, ahh, nghh, huffmmp!”

Him still brushing his hard on against me chuckled. “There’s still no intercourse yet you're already enjoying yourself.” A smirk flashed across his face that made me blush.

Then my eyes widened when I remembered I was on my period. I pushed him out of me and before I escaped, he immediately grabbed me and threw me back on the bed. Locking me with his arms.

“What with the sudden attitude, huh? Why did you push me?” His eyebrows were furrowed and you can clearly see he was mad for what I did.

Feeling guilty, I chuckled awkwardly and looked away. I don't want to keep him hanging because he should know this.

“I—uh… uhm… I'm on my period.” The last word was barely heard because of how I said it.

He didn't budge so I slowly looked at him and I found him smirking. Why the fck he looked glad?!

“Oh, really? That's great then.” he muttered and straddled me again. He began to kiss my neck and I pushed him lightly.

“Magnus, don't you get it? I'm on my period so no lovey dovey thing!”

“Why?” He asked nonchalantly.

“Because it's gross?”

“Well not for me. I love blood.” He uttered and before I protested, a sharp pain struck on my shoulder and that's when I knew he bit me.

I whimpered and grabbed his arm painly, he's now sucking my blood with his pang directly on my skin. Making me lightheaded.

“M-Magnus…” I groaned.

“I'm a vampire sweetheart in case you forget.”

I grunted in response.

When he was done sucking me, he began to crawl down. My eyes widened when he tried to take off my shorts, I pulled the top of it to fight him. It was embarrassing! I was on my period for peak sake.

“Don't make me mad, sweetheart. You wouldn't like it.” His voice is dripping ice.

I flushed and shook my head. “It… it's gross, Magnus! I don't like it.”

“Oh, sweetheart. Any kind of blood is fine for me as long as it came from you so don't be shy and obey me.”

This time, I didn't have the courage to fight him back when he took off my shorts again because of how dangerous he looked, his eyes were glowing along with the moon that was glistening outside our window.

I closed my eyes embarrassedly when he opened my legs. I thought he was now going to penetrate me but I felt a soft and squishy thing that was playing with my clit. That's when I opened my eyes and I found him eating me.

“M-Magnus!” I yelled and tried to push him but he just lay hold my legs and pinned it to his shoulder. Not making me move by how he gives me pleasures and embarrassment.

I cried but he didn't stop and continued to suck me harder. And our bodies collided by god knows how many times I came under his touch. The hot night ended in the morning where I was completely blown off.

𝐄𝐍𝐃

𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐊 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆!

[wthelvetica21]

◻︎◼︎◻︎◼︎ Murlyn Kingsmen ◼︎◻︎◼︎◻︎

Age 

27 (when last seen)

Blood Type 

O- 

Occupation 

Former Paranormal Investigator and Cryptologist for The Living Tombstone/ Amateur Musician 

Actual Occupation

Formally Electronics Expert at “Kingsmen Mechanics’ owned by his dad, Lance 

Favorite Shows/Games  

Horror/Anime 

(Saitama, Resident Evil 4) 

Favorite Food 

Pepper Paradisio’s Pasta Garlic Bread Sub 

Instrument 

Beat sequencer (owns a Roland 808) and Vocals

Favorite Animal 

Foxes and his cat Jiru 

Likes Video Games Music The Paranormal and Urban Legends Alcoholic Drinks 

Dislikes Being used Getting mocked for his interests Hospitals (long story) Fate Alive but... [[Date Redacted]]

[pi-cat000]

MSA time travel idea (part 44)

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Vivi POV, 8, 9, 10, Lewis POV, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, Lance POV 18, 19, Lewis POV 2, 21 , 22, Vivi POV 2, 24, 25  Lewis POV 3,  Mystery POV , Vivi POV 3, 29, Lewis POV 4, 31, ViVi POV 4 , 33, 34, Lewis POV 5, Mystery POV 2, Lewis POV 6, Vivi POV 5, Lewis POV 7 Vivi POV 6 Vivi POV 7 42 43

Part 45 here?

...

When Arthur blinks back awake his head is heavy like it has been filled with cotton and there is a persistent throbbing soreness to his shoulder. Out of habit, he checks his arm. It is still his arm and still attached to his shoulder. The dull pain is from a shotgun wound and not a recent amputation. After several years of arm-related pains and aches, it is a familiar enough sensation. Easily ignored. Best to just go back to sleep and let the world fade away. Everything is better when he is not awake to feel the press of guilt weighing on his throughs. Fittingly, it is this same guilt that drags him into a more coherent state.

He can’t drift back to sleep yet.

What right does he have to sleep when his Uncle and Lewis might never wake up? For all he knew his last conversation with Vivi had been a hallucination conjured by his exhausted brain and his Uncle was dead and Lewis possessed.

He shifts his attention to the room, immediately spying Vivi sitting at his bedside. The room is quiet enough that he can hear her finger tapping aggressively across her phone. She is hunched under Lewis’s oversized jacket, reading something on her phone, her brow creased into a scowl. The dirt on her face is gone and her shirt is a lighter shade of blue so enough time has passed for Vivi to leave the hospital, get changed, and come back.

He clears his throat to catch her attention, watching how a faint smile tugs at the corners of Vivi’s mouth when their eyes meet. Like she is happy to see him or something.

“Are Lew…” he immediately breaks into a coughing fit before fumbling for the half-full cup at his bedside, shrugging away Vivi’s attempt at helping and gulping the water down.

He clears his throat again.

“Lewis and Uncle Lance? Are they…” alive?

Vivi’s smile falls away, settling into a more neutral line of worry.

“Lance is still in intensive care, but only because he needs a ventilator. The nurse in his ward says he’ll be moved out today as long as there is no further complications with his injuries. As for Lewis’s situation…” She breaths out, face crumpling ever so briefly, “there’s been no change. He’s still in a coma…”

“Do you think I can see them?” Maybe it’s dumb but Arthur wants to confirm with his own eyes that they are both alive. He attempts to wiggle upright and finds it difficult from his prone position.

“I can’t see why not. They’re in different parts of the hospital so it’s a bit of a walk.” Vivi looks him over, gaze critical.  Pain spikes in his chest and he fumbles for the bed’s remote knocking over the now empty cup, so it tumbles to the ground.

“…we should ask a nurse first,” she amends, catching the remote before he can knock it off the table as well. She offers it to him, and gives a shaky smile. He tries to return the gesture but the expression feels wrong...disconcerting…He lets his eyes drop to focus on the remote, selecting the setting that would raise him into a more upright position.

Vivi’s hand rests against his shoulder, drawing his eyes back to her.

“Just take it easy Arthur. I checked in on Lance not even an hour ago and Nicholas and Maria are with Lewis almost around the clock. They’ll let me know if things change.” She holds up her phone which is lit up with several message notifications, none were from Lewis's parents. 

“Right…” Arthur lets himself relax back onto the bed with a weary exhale. “Okay…”

He doesn’t have the energy to make a fuss or press for more. Not with Vivi looking so upset. Arthur doesn’t think-not even in his own timeline- he has ever seen Vivi look so unhappy. But of course, in his timeline, Vivi had complexly forgotten Lewis and it was hard to be sad about something you couldn’t remember. 

Their conversation fizzles out and Arthur lets himself fall back onto the bed in favour of staring at the ceiling.  

Remembering was better. It had to be better. Right? 

Lewis wasn’t in the clear yet. If Lewis died then…then maybe forgetting was better. The ugly thought twists in his chest. Lewis’s disappearance had been the source of so much going wrong in his life. Would he have been better off completely forgetting as well?  

“….” Vivi clears her throat and he twitches. Awkwardly, he shifts his attention back to her, realising he was still staring unblinkingly at the ceiling.   

“I’ll go ask a nurse and see if we can visit Uncle Lance,” Vivi says, saving him from what would surely have been a clumsy attempt at reassurance.

“Just wait a second… I’ll be right back.”

Not like he could go anywhere. He has nowhere to go.

When Vivi returns she is accompanied by a harried-looking nurse who, despite not appearing pleased, helps Arthur into a wheelchair, impressing upon him the importance of not making an extraneous movement.

Arthur half follows along with the instructions. This isn’t his first time in the hospital with a serious injury. Everything is very familiar including Vivi pulling out her phone to take notes, nodding seriously. Deja vu. He is really starting to hate the feeling.

“…and please stay on hospital grounds.” The nurse finishes after which Vivi asks a few more questions which Arthur doesn’t pay attention to. The energy needed for him to move from his bed into the chair has left him exhausted.

“Arthur. I’m going to push you now. Let me know if anything hurts or if I’m going too fast or something.” Vivi leans over him, filling his field of view.

He takes a long, tired breath. “Sure…”

Vivi bites at her bottom lip, obviously worried. He tries once again to muster up a smile and give her some indication that he appreciates her efforts. Even if said efforts were undeserved.  

All he can manage is a grimace.

…..

Lance is alive.

He had known Lance was alive.  Why would Vivi lie about that? Seeing that his Uncle was alive in person makes it real.

Arthur leans as far forward as he can while confined to the wheelchair, attempting to see as much of the man as possible. From this low angle, he can see the profile of his uncle’s face and not much else. Despite it being eerily pale his chest is rising and falling in slow rhythmic patterns. There is a heart monitor counting out steady beats. The beeping is loud enough that it thankfully drowns out the soft tick-tick of the clock on the wall. This wasn’t the room Lance had almost died in but it looks similar enough that makes his skin itch. He focuses on the beep beep of the monitor and the soft breaths of his Uncle instead. 

Some small, fractured shard in his chest loosens. The demon had failed. Maybe his cursed luck had rubbed off on it while it occupied Arthur’s body. Maybe Arthur’s unique ability to screw everything up had been passed onto the demon. 

Sharing is caring.

He glances away from his Uncle’s chest and up at Vivi who is sitting in the room’s visitor's chair. 

She is still chewing at her bottom lip, watching Lance. When she notices him watching, she turns, looking like she wants to ask a question. An uncomfortable question going by her hesitation. There is no shortage of possible topics. Arthur has barely explained anything. 

She doesn’t ask her question and Arthur turns back to his Uncle. They both sit in unbroken silence. 

…

The hallway between his and his Uncle's rooms has large windows with a view onto a half-paved, half-gravel courtyard. The open-air courtyard separates the hospital’s two main buildings and access to the adjacent research centre. Arthur can't help but let his eyes be drawn to the space. The sun outside is directly overhead, meaning everything is blindingly bright, making the hospital’s interior dim by comparison. Benches and tables are clustered around two sprawling trees at its centre. All were occupied by groups of off-duty doctors, nurses, and researchers. Nobody wanted to sit on the benches placed along the perimeter and under the hash midday sun.

Vivi follows his gaze. “Do you want to go outside?”          

Arthur shrugs.

....

They end up sitting on the bench closest to the building entrance, barely shaded in the lea of the hospital. Well, Vivi sits on the beach. Arthur sits in his wheelchair next to her. It doesn’t take long for the sun to beat some warmth into him.

Deja vu all over again. He and Vivi had spent several afternoons sitting in this courtyard, talking themselves in circles trying to figure out what had happened in the Cave. He remembers accidentally trigging one of Vivi’s more severe blackouts on this exact bench trying to get her to remember Lewis. Months later, when Arthur started working on his prosthetic arm at the research centre, Vivi would visit on her lunch breaks and they would eat out here together. He doesn’t know why the memory makes his throat tight.  

“It’s a bit hot out,” Vivi comments awkwardly, tugging off Lewis’ jacket to rest across her lap. She eyes him, tilting her head to the side. 

“It's nice I guess…the hospital is too cold…” she continues after a beat. 

“This place could do with more trees though.” She eyes the space and squints at the sun critically. “There’s not enough shade out here.”

“Yeah…” he agrees in lieu of anything substantial to say. The statement rings familiar. Vivi had complained about the lack of shade in the courtyard back then as well. 

He lets out a weary breath, “So…”  He might as well do this now while he has some iota of energy. Once he was back in his bed this would be almost impossible.

“So?” Vivi repeats.

“So…do you want to talk about it.”

“It?”

He hesitates, “You want to ask questions, right?” Obviously, she has questions he has barely told her jack, his own mind mocks him. 

“That obvious huh?”

“A little …” he winces which has Vivi looking concerned again, “I know when you’ve got something on your mind.” 

“I’m just worried.” She gestures at the hospital buildings around them. “about you and Lewis and everything else. It’s…it’s a lot to process.”

“In the future…” He starts, “In my timeline, I lost my arm like Lewis.” It feels like a cruel joke explaining it but, if the information helps, then little discomfort was worth it. 

 “It happened just after Lewis…ah…” he swallows, deciding that mentioning Lewis’s death probably wasn’t a great idea if his goal was to make Vivi feel better.

He starts again, “The old mines-the cave where I lost my arm- there was no cell reception out there, not up in mountains. Vivi, my Vivi, had to drive me to the main road so I probably lost just as much if not more blood. It took a few days, but I still woke up abet missing a few key memories. Hopefully, it’ll be the same for Lewis…i mean he’s a lot bigger than me...more blood?”

Shiny blue eyes meet his, unsure, conflicted.

“Lewis should wake up,” he clarifies, “hopefully not missing any important memories. The missing memory thing kind of sucked…a lot…” He tails off lamely, swallowing again to help with his dry throat. Understatement of the century.  What if Lewis ended up with memory problems like Vivi? God, if Lewis forgets anyone let it be him and not Vivi. Please don’t let Lewis forget Vivi. Unease sits about him like a well-worn coat.

Vivi sighs, “I…” She shifts to sit a little straighter like she was physically pushing aside their combined gloom, “yeah…I hope so too.”

Arthur grimaces. He had always been terrible at cheering Vivi up. “You can ask more questions. I…I’ll answer them now.”

“I do have a few,” Vivi agrees, and lets a long, frustrated breath, “Okay…I have more than a few questions.” Another pause. “Actually, I have nothing but questions really.” Her open mouth clicks shut and he finds himself the subject of a scrutinising stare. She is scanning his face for something…he doesn’t know what.

“I promise I will answer?” He tries to inject some enthusiasm into the statement, but his voice sounds just as thin and tired as he feels. Vivi’s stare turns troubled.

“I mean…” Arthur starts again, “I’ll tell the truth. I did promise I would."

“That’s not….” Vivi interrupts and frowns. She takes a breath, “I don’t want people lying to me and that includes lies of omission. But look, just rest, get better, and tell me when you’re ready. I know about time travel and the body snatcher. I have Mystery to answer the more general questions now he's actually telling me stuff. You just focus on recovery.”

She nods to herself and sits back on the bench satisfied.

“I’m fine,” he reassures. “Just ask away…hmm…some of it isn’t very pleasant but I’m fine.” If he repeats it enough times maybe it would come true as if that strategy had ever worked for him.

“...” Vivi raises a brow, giving him one of her ‘do you seriously think I’ll believe that’ looks. 

“I am fine.” He defends.

Vivi huffs, crossing her arms, “I thought you said you’d be telling the truth.”

Arthur grimaces, “That’s not fair. I’m fine enough for this.”

“You’re really not.”

“I mean…aside from the bullet wound I’m fine. Just ask me anything.” And now he just sounds desperate. Great. Why does Vivi pick this to be adamant about?

Vivi just scans him again, silent, scrutinising, like she is trying to decide what question to ask. It is a familiar expression.

“Arthur. Are we friends?”

Arthur blinks. “What?” Not the question he had expected.

“In the future are we friends?”

“Yes. Of course, we are, were, friends. You've always been my best friend,”

 “I’m still your friend, right?”

“Ah…” Arthur hesitates because…because he doesn’t know what to say. Were they friends? Did Vivi still want to be friends? Why, after all his lying and the trouble he caused, would she still want to be friends? His hesitation does him no favours because Vivi is now a mix of indignant and worried.

“Maybe?”  He answers. Vivi’s whole forehead lifts in disbelief.

“I mean…Yes?” He tries again. 

“Then stop acting like we’re not,” Vivi bites, anger colouring her voice before she takes a calming breath and confirms, “We’re friends.”

She uncrosses her arms, turning so she can give the side of this wheelchair a light tap, “and as your friend, I want you to take it easy. If you’re set on telling me everything, then we can do it later. There will be time for explanations and questions. I’m not going anywhere.”

Oh no. He was not waiting for later. If he didn’t say something now he’d never have the courage to say it. It was now or never. 

“The other Arthur, the one original Arthur from this timeline, he wanted to go on the supernatural-themed road trip originally, before I came back and replaced him.” He begins, ignoring Vivi's attempt at interrupting. 

“We painted the van and put on that Mystery Skull logo like you always wanted. It even turned out looking pretty cool. Technically I didn’t lie about being afraid of supernatural stuff. Everything bad in our lives started on that road trip and none of it was normal or explainable.  I didn’t want you and Lewis to get hurt.”

Arthur scrambles to reorder the sorry saga into something that was somewhat chronological, trying to separate the two timelines out in his head so he could cover any major differences. He could skip the majority of the road trip. He barely remembered enough of the good parts to recap them anyway.  

“The road trip ended with Lewis disappearing you see, and I didn’t want a repeat of that. It didn’t work. You both got hurt anyway. Sorry.” He mutters the last bit like saying sorry made any difference.

“Arthur…” Vivi tries to interrupt again but Arthur pushes on.

“We solved mysteries, saw way too many lame roadside attractions, went to every haunted diner between here and California and no one got food poisoning … It was a good road trip. Your…ah…your itinerary was spot on.”

Vivi’s expression is now pinched, pained. He gives a weak  almost-smile which Vivi doesn’t return. He quickly looks away, staring at his lap, mouth dry.

He swallows and chokes out, “Then there was the Demon. The Cave. No more arm. No more Lewis. Haha.” Even to his own ears his laugh sound hollow.  His chest hurts and he takes a shuddering breath. 

 “I didn’t remember Lewis dying. Not at first. Not for a long while. Traumatic amnesia will do that apparently.”

Too much of a coward…locking away the memories of his role in Lewis’s death. If not for the demon, who knows if he would have ever remembered?   

“Everyone tried to tell me Lewis was gone, but I didn’t listen. Guess I just didn’t want to believe it. To me, it was like he had just vanished. Poof. I always knew something was off about it. Something more to the story than Lewis getting lost in a cave and...and succumbing to exposure somewhere where none of the search parties could find him…I was only partially right."

He blinks rapidly to clear incoming tears. With no demon to dull this physical response, it feels like he reliving that moment of realisation all over again. The grief feels like a lead brick sitting in his chest.

“and Vivi got hit with some memory curse. The memory curse was our running theory because it targeted her memories of Lewis specifically. She forget him, everything about him and most things associated with him. It was too specific to be anything normal. It had to be a curse because a curse was better than brain damage or anomalous, medically inexplicable, memory loss triggered by a traumatic event. At least a curse might have been curable. No one believed us.”

And why would they have believed him? Arthur had barely believed it himself.

“It was bad in the beginning when no one knew what was wrong. We would mention Lewis’s name and you would just not register it or check out like a real-life blue screen. You barely recognised his parents. Anything that reminded you of him kind of zonked you out. After we discovered what was triggering it…” he swallows the familiar old sting of helpless frustration ignites, adding to his grief, “At least we knew what to avoid talking about."

“Once I recovered enough from losing my arm we went searching... ” He chokes out and stops talking because he physically can’t continue.

A glance at Vivi shows that she is understandably upset, her face slightly paler despite the sun's heat.

 “I’m guessing convincing me to search for a person I didn’t remember wasn’t easy,” She mumbles and her voice also sounds wobbly like she’s trying to not cry.

He quickly looks away, sniffing back tears and pushing on, “You do like to ask questions and know things. I used to say we were searching for your memories…it was close enough to the truth. I thought that maybe, if we found Lewis, the memories would all come back. I was kind of desperate.”

It had always been a farfetched goal. The kind of goal that sprung from desperate hope. Hope so painful it kept him awake at night on the rare occasions the nightmares didn’t. Hope that he would carefully tuck away in the morning to prevent Vivi from catching on to the fact that something was terribly wrong.

It feels oddly freeing to voice this to Vivi now. He had clung to the belief that finding Lewis would break some mysterious curse and return all Vivi’s missing memories for so long that he had grown afraid that any points to the contrary would cause his motivation to crumble. It had always been a point of tension between him and Vivi.  He wishes he could have explained it back then. Back when it mattered. 

“Was saving Lewis the reason you came back?”

Arthur blinks rapidly to clear his vision and glances to the side,  “No. It wasn’t. Like I said, I didn’t know Lewis was gone gone until I was…” He stops, wincing and swallowing, “I was already here in that past when I found out he was..d..dead.”

 “I don’t know how I came back. We were out on one of our investigations looking for Lewis and we ran into this…Tree creature…looked like a human-shaped tree…. I hit it with the van by accident. It’s kind of hard to remember now...” He slowly sorts through half-truths. His encounter with Lewis directly after hitting the Tree Lady dwarfed everything else in his mind, making the strange attack seem barely important. He hardly remembers events between seeing Lewis at his ghost mansion and crashing into Kingsman Mechanics.  

“I ended up crashing the van...” Arthur stops, stalling. Then Lewis killed him…his brain helpfully supplies. 

All his fault…he had wanted Lewis dead. So weak and pathetic. It was only fair that Lewis return the favour. 

“...and I woke up in my bed. At home. In this body. Two years in the past…” He finishes quickly. 

“The demon…” 

“Body snatcher.” Vivi corrects. “Don’t call it a demon,” she explains, “Calling it a demon makes it sound impressive. That thing was a parasitic asshole.”

“Ri…Right,” The venom in Vivi’s voice has him restarting, “The… body snatcher…” He shakes off his discomfort and the undercurrent of fear. Arthur remembers how annoyed the demon had been when Vivi called it a body snatcher and a small part of him worries...

“It was just as surprised to find out about the time travel and was really interested in how I did it. I...I didn’t know anything useful …It, ah, went through my memories pretty throwaway so I got nothing…not even subconsciously. The…body snatcher…ah…found the memory of me pushing Lewis of a cliff…in the cave…that’s how I, ah, know I killed Lewis. The demon found the memory and showed me.”

There is a sharp movement and rustling next him and Vivi stands up. Then the crunch of gravel. Arthur tilts his head up to see Vivi standing in front of him, leaning over. She reaches out to put one hand on each of Arthur’s shoulder, grip relaxed so as not to aggravate his injury. She holds him at arm’s length, scanning his face, her expression intense.

“Stop that." She commands.

“Stop what?” Arthur responds dumbly.

“Stop saying you killed Lewis.”

“I…”

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“You weren’t there. You can’t know that.”

“I know enough.”

“But…” the words stick again, “that’s just it! You don’t know. You don’t know everything…I…I haven’t told you everything yet. When I tell you, you’ll agree with me.” When he looks up the sun is high enough in the sky that it turns Vivi into a darkened outline, stirring up hazy half-forgotten deams.

He squints up at the blurry Vivi-shaped outline but can’t make out her face. The word around him is too blindingly bright to make out anything. 

“It’ll be okay Arthur. Just explain what happened. I’ll understand...We all make mistakes.”

He deliberately averts his eyes, muttering, “Why are you both so stubborn.”

Vivi obviously hears because she pulls back and frowns. Then, slowly, she reaches out with one hand to touch his cheek. Arthur, confused, also reaches up with his uninjured arm to put his hand over hers. Vivi brings her other hand around so she is squeezing both his cheeks together, scanning his face.

“We’re not different people. Me and your 'future Vivi' are the same person. Just like you’re still my Arthur.” 

He doesn't meet her gaze. It is a lot harder to do with her holding his face like this. 

"I’m just as much your best friend as she was…”

“…” he doesn’t know what to say so pulls one of her hands away from his cheek.  

“Any version of me would care if their friend,” She emphasises the word, retracting her other hand without prompting, straightening “went through something awful. I care. We’re the same.”

“But you’re...we're not. I’m not your friend…” Arthur can’t help but protest even when he knows he should give it up and let Vivi believe what she wants. Arthur never won these sorts of arguments. Better to let everything stew and think up an argument with sounder logic later when Vivi was less worked up.

 Frustrated at himself he continues, “I came back to fix things, and everybody was worse off for it. I lied to you. I lied to Lewis. Now Lewis’s arm is gone…That was supposed to be me! I was the one who lost their arm. I hurt Uncle Lance. I killed Darrel! I stabbed him. He was nice. A good guy. He always took my shifts at the workshop when I couldn’t work and I couldn't save him. Just like I couldn't save Lewis. I'm cursed. If I had just not been here, he would be alive.”

“Two years Arthur,” Vivi interrupts, hash now, standing taller, hands on her hips, “You’re two years older. Last I checked, that doesn’t make you a monster so stop acting like I’ll pack up and leave because you aren’t 100%, A-Okay after living through all that horrible stuff. Nothing you say is going to change my mind so you can just quit while your ahead.”

When he opens his mouth to argue Vivi beats him to it, “Don’t you dare try and get rid of me.”

“I’ll confess.” He continues hysterically. If Vivi won’t believe him then maybe he should find a way to remove himself from the equation, “Turn myself in. I’ll tell the police I drove Darrel out into the desert and killed him.”

“No.” Vivi objects. Sharp and abrupt. “You’re not going to tell the police you did anything because it wasn’t you who did it.”

“I can’t just leave him out there. He deserves better.”

Vivi’s face spasms, “Not at your expense…You shouldn’t take the fall for this. Not on top of everything else.”

She glances around but the space around them is clear of people and Arthur realises that their conversation had been growing louder and more intense. The courtyard is now mostly empty with many of the hospital employees returning to work 

Vivi lets out a long breath then kneels down, putting her at eye level, crouched in front of his chair. 

Arthur still can’t hold eye contact.  Vivi’s eyes are too intense.

“When the police come to question you,” she says in a lower voice, “you need to say that you came to the hospital to see your uncle then went off for some alone time to gather yourself. They’ll have you on the security cameras so you can’t deny that you were here. Luckily, they also have that asshole Micky on the cameras. Out of the two of you, he is way more suspicious, and they already have him in custody so it’s not completely unbelievable that he would kill some random employee. Guy was a nut case.” 

“He’s not some random employee.” Arthur interrupts upset, finding his voice again, “Darrel was a friend, and I killed him.”

“No. No you didn’t,” Vivi snaps matching his upset with equal frustration. “Look, I know you think you deserve some punishment for...I don’t know...having a bad case of amnesia and getting possessed, both of which were out of your control. That bastard parasite probably fed you a bunch of bullshit lies as well. It seemed like just the type to gaslight. Tell me I’m wrong.”

Arthur stalls in unhappy silence, not prepared to compromise or give ground.

 “If you confess to the murder then I’m going to say I was a co-conspirator and planned the whole thing.”

Arthur blinks, finally looking up. Vivi’s glare is frosty, intense, and unyielding. 

“What?” 

“You heard me.”

“Why…why would you do that.”

“I told you. I’m going to help you, Arthur. If you’re set on doing this, then I’m not letting you face murder charges alone. What did you think I meant when I said that.”

“Not this,” Arthur cracks, “You can’t.”

“I can and will.” She really meant that.

“But… you’ll be arrested or something…” He is not actually sure what would happen if Vivi randomly confessed to his crime. 

“Just the way it has gotta’ be apparently.”

Arthur gets with another wave of déjà vu because he has had this conversation or a similar one with Vivi before. In another life. In a different future. It leaves him floundering as both versions of Vivi seem to meld into each other, like everything he loved about his own Vivi was seeping through to this new one.

“This isn’t …” He starts then stops. “It’s not supposed to be this way,” he says helplessly. Vivi wasn’t supposed to be this way. 

“Of course not. What’s the point of changing the future if everything stays the same? We’ve both seen the same moves. You know how this works.” 

“Half of those movies end with a lesson on inevitable consequences and fate.”

“And half of them end with everything sorting itself out. Look, we can argue about this until I get kicked out at closing time -remind me to find the paperwork so I can sign myself up as your medical proxy- but I can guarantee that nothing you will say will change my mind.”

Well, he’s not sure about that. Maybe if told her the real truth about Lewis and his role in his murder she would leave. He wasn’t sure. The answer, which moments ago he had been so certain of, was now unclear. 

“I can’t leave Darrel out in the desert,” he repeats, exhausted, “He deserves better…”

Vivi frowns, opening her mouth and then clicking it shut, considering him. Her jaw clenches and she flops back so she is now leaning against his chair instead of crouching, half stretched out across the gravel path.  

“Yeah…okay,” she props up an elbow against a knee, massaging her eyes. “How about this? You give me as good a proximation of the location as possible, or any landmarks you remember, and I’ll go track Darrel down with Mystery. Then I’ll leave an anonymous tip with the police, and they can handle the rest. How does that sound?”

“Like you’re giving me much of a choice.” He mutters, trying to not let his thoughts wander off into dangerous lands filled with crackling fire and unkind whispers that would berate him for giving in and letting Vivi bully him out of justly deserved consequences. 

Vivi glances up at him and she is back to looking sad, anger falling away

“Maybe I’m being too blunt about all this. I’m not good at this sort of stuff,” she says, “but, Arthur, if Darrel was a friend, then he wouldn’t have blamed you. Just like I don’t blame you. Just like Uncle Lance or Lewis wouldn’t blame you.”

He can’t help but shiver. Bright purple flames dance across his vision like ghostly hands pulling his attention. 

Lewis’s angry fire catches in in shirt and a sudden drop awaits on either side of him.

“This is your fault!”

He can almost feel the heat.

Lewis had blamed him. 

He doesn’t know who to believe. Should he believe Vivi, sitting here with him, peering at him with such honest intensity that he can hardly stand to look at her? Or should he believe Lewis, dead by his hand, left in a future that didn’t exist? 

For some strange, unfathomable reason, he thinks he believes Vivi. If she was so willing to share the consequences of his failures, then maybe she wouldn’t care that he was so weak and pathetic. He squashes the sentiment. He can’t think like that. It’s wrong. 

It must be wrong. 

...

Note: a year later and this is finally done. 

[the-soft-hoodie]

[helpmefindmymind]

𝐇𝐞𝐲 𝐛𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐬 '𝐧 𝐛𝐫𝐨'𝐬, '𝐧 𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐬!

𝖨'𝗅𝗅 𝖻𝖾 𝗐𝗋𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖿𝖺𝗇��𝗂𝖼𝗌, 𝗆𝗎𝗅𝗍𝗂 𝖿𝖺𝗇𝖽𝗈𝗆𝗌 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝗇𝗈𝗐 𝗈𝗇, 𝗂𝖿 𝖨 𝗁𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝗍𝗂𝗆𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗂𝗌(:

‼️ 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗺𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿, 𝘀𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀/𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻‼️

𝐇𝐚𝐳𝐛𝐢𝐧 𝐇𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐥

𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐮𝐯𝐚 𝐁𝐨𝐬𝐬

𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐲𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐚

𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭

𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐩𝐚

𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐖𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝

𝐈𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐕

𝐃𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫

𝐅𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐞𝐭

𝐒𝐊8 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲

𝐍𝐢𝐣𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐣𝐢 𝐞𝐧

𝐃𝐬𝐦𝐩(𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐧𝐨𝐭)

𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬(𝐢𝐟 𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝)

𝐉𝐮𝐣𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐮 𝐊𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐧

𝐒𝐡𝐞-𝐑𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫(𝐀 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐲𝐞𝐬)

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝 (𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐟𝐟)

𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐬

𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐒𝐀 (𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐈 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈'𝐦 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐬)

+ 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧

𝗜'𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴:

𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐬𝐭, 𝐅𝐥𝐮𝐟𝐟, 𝐬𝐦𝐮𝐭, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐬

That's all for now, not much aestheticness here because I'm a 'lil busy, but my writing skill won't disappoint, I think

[ectoimp]

I have the weirdest most specific pet peeve that makes it hard to read alot of mystery skulls fanfic.

I HATE the phrase "down an arm" when talking about arthurs arm. I struggle to keep reading fics when I see it and it's everywhere is MSA fics.

And weirdly I almost never see it used in other fandoms with characters with missing limbs.

I dunno it's so weird and dismissive sounding? Especially when it's not arthur using the phrase. Like can you imagine losing a limb and a friend saying youre "down a leg"???

And once you notice the phrase, you see it's EVERYWHERE in msa fics. It's so weird how common it is.

[butterfluffy]

Hiiii Fluffy! Congratulations for your 500 followers (you super deserve it).

If it isn’t a matter: could I request a MSA one-shot for Lucci, please?

Thanks 💞🎃

“my strange addiction”

⠀⠀ੈ♡˳· killing someone is nothing new to lucci, so it's definitely not a problem to him if he had to kill everyone just to make you his..

⠀⠀➧ fluff | yandere!r. lucci × gn!reader | oneshot

⠀⠀➧ warnings — contains yandere themes, (graphic depiction of-) violence, and (mention of, and-) deaths (of minor characters.) get out of this fic if you're uncomfortable with these. mistakes and swearing are present too.

⠀⠀➧ requests are closed until further notice!

⠀⠀꒰ 🍨 ꒱ notes: welcome to “my strange addiction,” which is a writing special i made to celebrate this account reaching 500+ followers.

reqested by: anonymous — thanks, anon! i hope you like this, even though it's short.....!

by continuing, you consent into reading this oneshot fanfic which contains yandere themes, violence, and death/s. if uncomfortable with these topics, please don't read this fic. also, do not go blaming me, i gave you a warning.

Rob Lucci is a man who had no qualms in killing people, especially when he will be drawing blood if it is the only way he can have you to himself.

“Hey, thanks for sending me home. I appreciate it real lots, since there is this killer going around in our town..” You thanked your acquaintance who hummed, before bidding their goodbye.

“No prob, Y/n. If it's what will make you feel safer.” They chirped, rubbing your head as a tiny blush crept up their face, “Anyway, I'll be going now, take care, m'kay?”

“Yes, I'll do that. And you too, take care on your way.” Waving goodbye, you watched them leave before going back in your home—not knowing that...

“Why hello there.” A voice greets, owned by no other than Rob Lucci who seeped out of the dark, greeting your friend who got shivers down their spine by this man.

“...U..Uh, hey. You're.. Rob Lucci, an acquaintance of Y/n, correct?” They muttered, rubbing the back of their head as Lucci hummed, nodding his head.

“That's right.. Anyway, could you do me a favor?” Lucci asks with his hands stuffed on his pockets, calmly approaching your other friend who gulped, frozen in place as they nod. “..Eh, uhm... Sure? What is it though..?”

Loosing up, they then sighed, waiting for Lucci's favor, which is— “Die.”

Swiftly taking them by their collar, Lucci then slammed them against a wall, bashing their skull, killing them in a rather bloody, and brutal way—so Lucci-like.

“Mhm.. Like the previous ones, you don't put up a fight, though I admire your courage for trying to take Y/n from me.” Huffed the raven-haired male, a small snicker escaping his lips, having no remorse at all for his vile crimes, because in his mind...

They deserved it, for even thinking that they had a chance against him on winning you over..

“L..Lucci, the killer got another of my friends even—even though they.. They didn't do anything wrong..!!” You cried, weeping on Lucci's shoulder as he sighed, rubbing your back, comforting you as if he wasn't the one who killed your dear friends.

“...I..I'm scared, what if.. What if they take you next? Please, Lucci, don't leave me too, so please stay safe..” You sniffled, looking up to the man's face that lit up.

“Don't worry, Y/n. I won't leave you like they did. I'll be by your side, forever.” Lucci whispers, letting your head rest on his chest that encased his pounding heart, feeling that he finally won you..

© butterfluffy 2022

[alphashley14]

One of Us

A Scooby Doo: Mystery Incorporated/Mystery Skulls Crossover

<Prev

Chapter 25

Erase Me (Original Demo)

<WARNING - This chapter contains themes of sexual assault and domestic violence that may be upsetting to some readers. Though no actual SA takes place. Viewer discretion advised.>

Mystery Incorporated didn’t talk much in the few minutes before they arrived at their destination. There had been plenty of idle chatter about Hatecraft’s new boyfriend. And plenty of speculation about what exactly Mystery had said to Mr. Ellison. Or what he may have shown him for that matter - the writer had been very pale when Mystery had brought him back. 

Then Lewis had dropped a bomb on them about Arthur’s flash drive. And if they had to use it, it would fall upon at least one member of Mystery Incorporated to watch it. 

… All things considered it made sense why they hadn’t heard about it before now but the timing was still shit.

Daisy Blake’s impressive property, as with many wealthy homes, was surrounded by a tall wrought iron fence, and the road was blocked by a gate. Given such, when Mystery Incorporated and the Mystery Skulls pulled up to it, it fell upon Daphne to get them buzzed inside. She leaned over Fred on all fours, reached her arm out the driver’s side window, and-  hesitated. 

“We’re doomed,” Daphne gulped. 

“Is your relationship with Daisy really that awful?” Lewis asked over the two-way radio. Having three (albeit adopted) sisters of his own, he sometimes struggled to see how siblings could be anything but inseparable. With Daphne however, it seemed that wasn’t the case.

“It’s pretty bad,” Velma said back. “She commissioned us to retrieve a necklace of hers once after it was stolen by a Hodag, and she was super rude the entire time we were here.”

“Ugh, this is a bad idea. Even if it is the only one we’ve got,” Daphne groaned.

“Come on though. She can’t be completely heartless, right? I mean she’s a doctor. Isn’t caring about people in her job description?” Vivi asked.

“Yeah you’d think so, wouldn’t you?” Daphne griped. “Well I’ve never seen her at work but I can definitely say I’ve never seen her flex a selfless muscle in her body outside of it. As for Steve, he’s… I haven’t talked to him that much but he seems like a good guy. But don’t be fooled. He’s from… ‘our world’. So he can slither around in a den of vipers just as well as Daisy.”

“Be that as it may,” Mystery interjected. “What choice do we have?”

“And if all else fails, there’s always the flashdrive…” Lewis reminded them all. 

As if they needed reminding.

Without further ado, Daphne rang the buzzer. 

They waited. 

Daphne rang it again. 

Just as she was about to hit it a third time, a voice drawled through the intercom, “Who is it?” 

“Hi Daisy!” Daphne said as nicely as she could. Though there was an ugly grimace on her face seen only by the other occupants of the Mystery Machine. “Iiit’s Daphne.”

“Daaaphne. Finally taking me up on my offer to bring your little trap-maker by for polo?”

“Fraid’ not, sis. We need to talk. I’m calling in an I-owe-you from when my friends and I braved a Hodag on your behalf. Unless you’ve forgotten?”

“An I-owe-you?” Daisy scoffed. “And here I thought favors among family were supposed to be unconditional.”

Daphne took a deep breath as if she was about to shout, but Velma placed a hand on her shoulder. “Gently, Daphne….”

Daphne let that breath out, then took a second deep breath to gather herself. “Daisy,” she finally said, “you’ve made it abundantly clear my entire life that asking anything of you is pointless. That’s why I stopped trying years ago. Do you really think I’d come to you now if it wasn’t important?”

Daisy said nothing on the other end of the line. 

“Please, Daisy!” Daphne groaned. “I need your help right now more than I have ever needed it in my entire life. Just- hear me out and I will never ask anything of you again. Please.”

A moment’s pause. 

Then there came a loud BZZZZZZT, and the gates swung open. 

Daphne sighed with relief and sat back in her seat. Much to Fred’s relief - Daphne hovering over his lap like that was giving him some weird feelings. But for now, they would have to go into a box to be sorted out later. A big, thick steel box with the best locks his brain could conjure.

They had a job to do. 

Three minutes later the two vans were parked and Daisy’s mansion was towering imposingly before them. Once both groups were squeezed onto the front porch, it was one again time to ring the doorbell. “This is going to be a dumpster fire,” Daphne groaned.

“Come on. I know the odds are against us, but she’s your sister,” Vivi said, trying to be supportive. “If you go in thinking this is going to go badly, then it will. Just think positive!”

“Okay - I am positive this is going to be a dumpster fire.”

Vivi opened and closed her mouth before finally pulling out her phone. “Ya know what? That was funny. I’m writing that down.”

“Regardless of how this goes, with or without using the footage, the result will be the same,” Mystery said. “I want to avoid it if I can, but know this: we have exactly one plan and are pressed for time. Daphne - I will put a spell on your sister if I have to. So for her sake, you’d better use every bit of cunning and charm that you possess.”

“So like, it’s a good thing Daphne has so much of both!” Shaggy said, flashing her two thumbs up. 

“Reah!” “You’ve got this Daph!” Scooby and Fred cheered.

With a heavy sigh, Daphne moved to hit the doorbell, but the door swung open a split-second before she could. And there was Daisy Blake, looking not too pleased to see her sister there unannounced. And even more displeased when she saw just how much company she’d brought with her. 

“Daphne.”

“Daisy.”

“You sure brought a lot of friends. I didn’t realize you had this many outside your little mystery club.”

Daphne’s eye twitched. “Well - you learn something new every day, don’t you?” she said through gritted teeth. “You’ve met Fred, Velma, and Scooby. This is Vivi, Lewis, Arthur, and Mystery. Is Steve home?”

“Yeah, and he’s enjoying a quiet morning in. He worked a twelve hour shift yesterday,” Daisy said, not-so-subtly hinting that they should make this quick. Unfortunately, everyone but Daisy knew that would not be happening.

“Then we’re sorry to disturb him,” said Vivi. “But we need to talk to both of you.”

“To both of us? Just what kind of favor do you have in mind?” Daisy scoffed.

“I have a patient for you,” Daphne said. “And to say the situation is complicated would be an understatement. Can we talk about the details inside?”

To the untrained eye, Daisy’s expression did not change. But the older mystery solvers could all see a calculating glint hiding behind her mascara as Daisy gave a deceptively nonchalant shrug and waved them inside. 

Daisy led them through a maze of large rooms and clean, geometric shapes. Where Hatecraft’s home had celebrated the gothic past, Daisy Blake’s home was grounded in the future. It was dominated by whites, grays, and blues with dashes of magenta, and the art on the walls was inspired by the human body. 

It all made Vivi extremely uncomfortable, and she knew Arthur would hate it here if Shaggy wasn’t walking around in his body right now. The medical motifs and overall lack of character reminded her of a hospital or a doctor’s office. And indeed, many of the “modern” light fixtures and furniture looked as if they’d been taken directly from the couple’s profession. Vivi had spent enough time in hospitals for a lifetime - staying by her friend’s side while he recovered from having his arm ripped off. 

Daisy led them into a spacious living room and sweetly called out, “Stevie darling, we have company.” 

And while there were many less-than-pleasant things that could be said about Daisy Blake, there was real tenderness in her voice for her betrothed, and her face softened when he turned around from where he sat on the couch watching a medical drama. 

Steve Poindexter was as wealthy as he was handsome. Nothing less would please a woman like Daisy. And while he was quite a few years older than her (Daisy was twenty-four and he was thirty-five) there was nothing untoward about their relationship and they were very much in love. 

“Who is it, Daisy Belle? Friends of yours?” He asked, pausing the TV and getting up. 

“Not at all,” Daisy said. “You remember my littlest sister Daphne, I’m sure. And these are some of her little Mystery-solving friends.”

“I know who you are,” Steve said. “Some of my colleagues were there the night you captured a Headless Horror at the hospital. And I was called in to treat one of the victims of the cicada attacks for nerve damage after the bugs wrecked his car. He couldn’t sleep through the night until you kids caught the perpetrator. And for that you have my thanks.”

Mystery Incorporated straightened a little from the uncommon moment of praise for their efforts. 

“-But I get the impression this isn’t a social call.”

“I’m afraid not,” said Daphne. “We need your help. Specifically: we have a patient who needs your help.”

“That’s right - you said something about a patient. So, who is it and what’s the problem?” Daisy asked.

All seven of them glanced at each other.

“Can we sit down?” Daphne asked.

Daisy raised an eyebrow, but allowed it. And once they were all seated around the room across from Daisy and Steve, they began to tell their story.

“You said you treated a victim of the cicada attacks,” Velma said. 

“I did,” said Steve.

“Then you must be familiar with Destroido.”

“Uh, who in Crystal Cove isn’t familiar with Destroido?” Daisy asked in a do-you-think-we’re-stupid? tone of voice.

“Fair,” Velma shrugged. “Getting to our point, you might have heard about those kids that disappeared in the caves twenty years ago.”

“Kids that- Oh yeeeah, those weirdos. I was a few years younger than them, but I saw them around school every now and again,” Steve said. “There was always weird stuff happening around those freaks. And their parrot gave me the creeps.”

“Oh yeeeah… I was like super little when that happened,” Daisy drawled. “Didn’t you find them though? ...Some of them, anyway? Mommy and Daddy hosted a party for trap-boy’s parents here a while back, right?”

“Yeeeah…” Fred sighed. 

“Ohhhh that’s right. You’re the kid the old mayor got locked up for kidnapping,” Steve cringed.

“That’s me…” Fred said awkwardly.

“Anyway!” Dahne interjected. “We actually did find all of them. In fact the other two had both been living in Crystal Cove under new identities for some time. Cassidy Williams is actually Angel Dynamite, the DJ at K-Ghoul radio.”

“Wait- The one that exploded? Didn’t you used to be there all the time?” Daisy asked.

“That’s the one,” Daphne said, shocked Daisy had paid her enough attention to know that. “-And the last one, Ricky Owens, has been going by Mr. E… he’s the owner of Destroido.”

If Steve or Daisy had been drinking something, they undoubtedly would have spat it out. “Whaaat?”

“It’s true,” Vivi said. “And he’s also the patient we need you to treat.”

“Isn’t the owner of Destroido like… a billionaire? And a total recluse?” Steve asked. 

“Yeah. How the heck did you get involved with someone like that?” Daisy asked. 

“And for that matter, why doesn’t he just hire us himself if he needs treatment? Or go to the hospital? Why would he need some kids to seek out our services for him?” Steve asked. 

“Like- hoh boy, those are all excellent questions,” Shaggy gulped. 

“And that is what we meant when we said this situation was complicated,” said Velma. 

“But before we tell you anything else - Daisy, Steve, I need you to promise that none of it leaves this room,” Daphne said. “If we don’t have your discretion, people could get seriously hurt. Possibly even die.”

Daisy started to laugh. But then she saw the look on her sister’s face, and the haughty facade melted away a little bit more. “Oh… oh shit, you’re serious about this, aren’t you?”

“Like I said,” Daphne sighed, “I wouldn’t have bothered coming to you if it wasn’t important.”

Daisy and Steve looked at each other and came to a silent agreement. “Alright,” said Daisy, “you have my word.”

“We’re no strangers to confidentiality,” Steve said with a nod. “But I reserve the right to use my best judgment.”

“If you have any respect for yourselves, your profession, or your patients,” Mystery growled, “you’ll treasure the trust being placed in your hands and keep your mouths shut.” 

Daisy and Steve stared at him. “Just so we’re clear… that dog just talked. Right?” Asked Steve. 

“See, Darling? I told you weird things happen around Daphne. But I thought that was the one who talks.” 

“Reah. I can talk too,” said Scooby.

Steve blinked at him. “... Huh.”

“Ha! If you think that’s weird, you are not prepared,” Vivi scoffed.

“So? Do we have your confidentiality or not?” Asked Mystery. 

Steve was now wearing the same calculating look as his betrothed. “...Alright.”

༻˚⁺･⚉｡○✼༓☾⦾♫෴♡💛♡෴♫⦾☽༓✼○｡⚉･⁺˚༺

Cassidy Williams woke very suddenly to an empty room. 

What in the world? How did I- Mystery! That son of a bitch! Grumbling curses under her breath, Angel sat up with a groan, stretching this way and that to relieve the stiffness in her limbs before her eyes wandered to the empty spot on the couch where Ricky had been. Then she spotted two pieces of stationary on the coffee table. After reading them, she realized that he must’ve woken up a while ago and wandered off to find something to do. 

Cassidy stood and stretched once more to loosen the sore muscles in her thighs and buttocks, and then there came a happy trilling sound. When she looked up, she found two Dead Beats floating into the room towards her. “Hey babies, how you doin?” Angel chuckled as they snaked around her neck and torso for pets. “You mind showin’ me where that fool Ricky got to?”

The little ghosts gave an affirming chirp and made a “follow me!” motion with their nubby little arms. 

They found Ricky in the kitchen. The lights were off in the daytime and the only light was streaming in from a window above the sink. Bubbles drifted lazily through the air, catching the light with sparkling rainbow sheens before popping in a shower of tiny droplets like falling stars. And standing at the sink, jacket tied around his waist and his bare arms elbow-deep in soapy water, was Ricky. Well- Ricky-in-Shaggy’s-body, that is. 

His back was to the door, and he was working his way through the mountain of dirty dishes from their huge breakfast that morning. There were also Dead Beats all over the place. There had to be at least twenty! Ricky would finish a dish, inspect it, then hold it up and a Dead Beat would take it and either find a place in the dishwasher or carefully stack it in one of the cabinets. Those that weren’t helping were hanging around the room watching Ricky work. There was a radio on the counter playing one of their hosts’ more upbeat, hopeful-sounding songs, and Ricky was lightly bobbing his head along while the Dead Beats pulsed and hummed to the beat. 

“-In this life, it changes for the better, babe.  And right now, I feel it, overtaking meee~…. Oooh. “Said please baby, please. Erase me. Erase my mind again-”

Cassidy hadn’t seen him so content since she’d arrived. For a few moments she was content to lean against the doorframe, arms crossed, and watch him. But she knew she couldn’t lurk forever. 

“Hey, baby.”

Shaggy’s body jumped in a way that was utterly and completely Ricky, and when he spun around his entire face was as pink as the Dead Beats. “Ca-Cassidy! Uh- hi. I was just- dishes,” He stammered. In a way that was just as stupid as it was endearing, and his own embarrassment only turned his face redder. 

“And just like before, we’ll fall in love.”

Cassidy snorted and crossed the room in a few strides, brushing the mob of ghosts away as they tried to crowd around her for attention. “Here. It’ll get done faster with two,” she said, standing at the large sink beside him. He scooted over a little to give her room, but her hip still ended up brushing against his thigh. His blush wasn’t going away. Interesting. 

“We’ll fall in love again.”

“I’m uh- glad you’re up,” Ricky said as the two of them got into the chore. “I woke up a while ago and hung around for a while but… then I got hungry and when I got to the kitchen there were all these dishes so I figured… might as well, am I right? Anyway - did you sleep good?” 

“Well given that a spell was put on me, I don’t think I got much of a say in how I slept,” Cassidy grumbled. 

Ricky snorted. “Me neither. Though I at least wanted the sleeping potion, even if I was the idiot who took it at the wrong time. Still - do you at least feel better? It didn’t occur to me how long you must’ve been awake.”

Cassidy pressed her lips into a thin line. “Yeah… I do.” She admitted dryly, but then she waved a sudsy ladle at him and scolded, “-And if you tell Mystery that, I’ll smack you silly!”

Ricky laughed. “Don’t worry - I won’t. Can’t give him the satisfaction after pulling one over on us, now can we?” 

“Definitely not,” she agreed. 

As the song came to a close and the two worked in silence, Cassidy gradually realized that Ricky was tensing up again. His brows were furrowed and there was a troubled look on his face. Was he considering telling her whatever it was everyone seemed to be tiptoeing around? Or was there something else?

“So…?” Cassidy finally said, not looking at him.

Ricky jumped. “So?” He echoed, pretending not to know what she could be “so”-ing about. 

“Is there anything you wanna tell me?” 

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see him starting to sweat, and the nervous bob of his Adam’s apple as he swallowed. “Uh-huh,” he croaked. 

Cassidy paused what she was doing, forearms resting on the edge of the sink, and looked at him. Waiting. 

Ricky looked petrified.

Probably on account of the fact that he was petrified.

He had been thinking about this, dreading this, since he’d hung up the phone with Lewis. But all those thoughts had done was draw a new weariness over him. So heavy on his shoulders it had been tempting to lie back down, close his eyes, and return to that familiar, comfortable blackness where he wouldn’t need to think about it anymore. That was why he’d left the room in the first place. Watching Cassidy, still blissfully dozing, he’d found himself envious of the peace written on her face. But now that her beautiful black eyes were open and expectant, the words were shriveling on his tongue. 

What sort of expression will you make when you find out what kind of man I became without you? Ricky wondered. Will you be able to look at me at all, once you know what it took to change me?

His hands were shaking when he took them out of the water and hastily dried them with a dishtowel. “I- uh…” He opened and closed his mouth a few times. 

A moment passed. 

Then another. 

Then finally he shook his head. 

“... I can’t.” 

Cassidy bit her bottom lip. She was frustrated. And honestly a little hurt. But instead of getting angry she asked, “Why not?... The others know. So you told them. Why not me?”

Ricky didn’t say it, but he knew exactly why. 

Because whatever care or respect you have left for me is one of the few things I have left to lose.

“When I… told them,” Ricky began shakily, fiddling with his hands, “it was right after- well- this happened.” He gestured to himself, in Shaggy’s body. “I was emotional, and it was an emergency. But now… the words’ve just left me.”

“Then you don’t have to tell me everything yet,” Cassidy sighed, resigned. “But… can you try? Just- start wherever makes sense and tell me what you can.”

Ricky still looked absolutely terrified, but he nodded. “... okay.” 

He didn’t say anything for a moment. 

Then another. 

Then finally- 

“I said no,” Ricky said, right as Cassidy was starting to worry he wasn’t going to say anything at all. “Professor Pericles was spiraling. I’d gone along with… things I’m not proud of. But after a certain point… what we were doing didn’t make sense anymore. He was hurting people. And it was as if he was enjoying it. And that- wasn’t what I signed up for. At least I didn’t think it was. And I’m ashamed to say it, but I think it was his reckless spending that snapped me out of it. He’s spent millions. Hundreds of millions, Cassidy. Of Destroido’s money - my money. Often without permission, and never with so much as a ‘thank you.’ And ya know what? Yeah - that pissed me off. Enough that money-related questions led me to the questions I probably-definitely should have been asking all along. I knew I had to do something so- I locked him out of the system. I was losing control of the group and figured if they needed me to access every cent, then I could filter what they did with it. And uh… he- didn’t like that very much.” 

Ricky still remembered the surge of fear that went through him when Pericles had launched himself off his perch. Could still feel the sting on his cheek. “-Idiot human mascot!”

“So he uh- anyway- he attacked me.”

“I’m sorry. He attacked you? How? Were you hurt?!” She demanded. 

“It was just a slap!” Ricky said quickly. Only to immediately kick himself. Why is your first instinct to defend him??? “But uh… he’d- never hit me before, ya’know?” He said with a half-assed smile. “He’d- said some pretty nasty things but he’d never- so it uh… really smacked some sense into me, huh?” He laughed halfheartedly at his own joke, trying to lighten the mood. 

Cassidy wasn’t laughing. Cassidy looked horrified. Ricky looked away so he wouldn’t have to see that look on her face anymore. 

“It- made it clear to me that I was gonna have to do something drastic, so I went to Brad and Judy. He was out of control. Losing his mind, really. And he wasn’t even pretending to listen to me anymore. I thought if I could get all three of us to throw him out, or at least threaten to, then I could make him see reason. But uh…”

His voice cracked, and he had to swallow and pause before he could talk again. “They uh… they lied to me. They told me to my face that they were with me. But then they went straight to him. And uh… he uh…” Ricky choked back a sob, his vision blurring with tears. 

‘Tell her…’ that pitiful part of him whimpered once more. ‘Come on! Just say it!’  

Cassidy’s arm, still wet from the sink, slid around his. And she gently interlaced their fingers. She didn’t say anything, but she was there. Grounding him. Listening. Waiting. 

“They- they drugged me and they- he put s-something…” Ricky shuddered, but he just couldn’t get those last few words out. He couldn’t bring himself to tell her about the thing in his back. How dirty he felt all the time knowing that there was something inside him that could turn on him at any moment. The torture. The way Pericles had laughed while Ricky screamed… 

“Cassidy, I messed up. I-I messed up so bad. I’m in so much trouble… I couldn’t refuse him anything anymore, I couldn’t leave, and I had no one to go to for help. I’m- I’m a prisoner in my own home. Then this happened, and now Arthur’s in my place. But he’s- he’s not me. He’s smart, he’s brave, and he has friends. I’m fucked - but Arthur has a plan to get me un-fucked, and he’s doing it with my body.” 

Ricky paused to sniff and rub the wetness from his eyes with his wrist. “The others are uh… in Crystal Cove right now. They’ve gone to one of Daphne’s sisters for help, but in order to prove what’s happening to me and show her what we’re up against… Arthur and Hot Dog- Marcie - hacked Destroido’s cameras. Anyway… they uploaded all the footage they could onto a flashdrive and uh- and right about now the kids are probably watching it.” And his eyes were wet when he turned and smiled at her. “-And when they get back… I think I need you to see it too.”

Cassidy was staring at him with an expression that was almost unreadable. “Ricky,” she said at last. “I won’t push too hard. But please- please at the very least tell me this: Ricky… Ricky, they didn’t!”

Confusion stabbed through his other emotions. What’s with that face? “Didn’t what-” Then he thought about what he’d said, and realized what she was insinuating.

“Oh! Oh shit- NO! Nonono! It was nothing like that! I swear!” 

She stared at him for a long moment, searching his face for honesty. Then quietly, she pressed her forehead to his shoulder and all but sagged against him. “Thank god…”

Oh no… “Cassidy…” When was the last time she’d- it had been years since he had last seen her this upset. He knew the sadness in her eyes. He knew the longing he either ignored, denied, or pretended not to see. And he remembered her anger. The night she’d stormed into Destroido on her bike, the night he’d been found out for being behind the Oblitheratrix, the night they’d stopped working together… he remembered her anger. He remembered the shouting, the screaming, the arm-waving and circle-walking as she raved and berated him for his foolishness. He remembered hurled insults and both of them saying things they regretted later. 

And most of all, he remembered that one last tearful look over her shoulder when she left his home and never came back. 

But she wasn’t angry now. She was relieved and she was scared. For him. He dared to turn so her head was on his chest, his free arm came around her shoulders, and then… he dared press his nose into her curls. “I’m sorry, Cassidy. I didn’t mean to- it really wasn’t anything like that… I’m alright… Nobody- nobody touched me.”

And yet… the connection Cassidy had made bothered him. Was it really ‘nothing like that?’ He couldn’t help but wonder. Even if nothing overtly sexual had been done to him… now that Ricky was thinking about it that way: they had drugged him. Snuck into his room while he was sleeping. And while he was defenseless and vulnerable, they… put something inside him. And after that, he could never say no again… 

He remembered that dirty feeling. Then a whole new wave of revulsion washed over him as he realized fully, perhaps for the first time, just how truly violated he had been. How he was still being violated now. Professor Pericles, along with Brad and Judy, had taken over his home, his finances, his autonomy… and even if not in the way Cassidy had assumed - they’d violated his body too. 

“Promise me, Ricky,” Cassidy said at last. 

Her eyes were wet when she looked up at him. And they were simmering like hot coals. She didn’t know the full truth yet. But he knew that look. 

Rage.

“Swear to me that they didn’t violate you. Not like that. And not in any other way. Swear it!” 

He wanted to. 

But he’d also promised himself that he wouldn’t lie to her anymore. 

༻˚⁺･⚉｡○✼༓☾⦾♫෴♡💛♡෴♫⦾☽༓✼○｡⚉･⁺˚༺

Daisy and Steve were looking at them like they had lost their minds. 

To be fair though, if someone had come to them with the same story two days ago, they probably would have reacted the same way. 

“So. Let me see if I have the facts right,” Daisy said, disbelieving. “There was another mystery-solving group that got chased out of Crystal Cove twenty years ago by their psychotic genius talking pet parrot and the former mayor in a monster costume. But the parrot escaped from the animal asylum after a robot dog disguised as your dog attacked the place. And has now joined forces with two of the aforementioned missing kids - who happen to be trap-boy here’s long-lost parents - and trapped a third one, Ricky Owens, who has apparently been living as this “Mr. E” guy for… who knows how long, in some kind of domestic violence-type situation-”

“It really does get more and more bonkers the more you put it into words, doesn’t it?” Lewis muttered. Vivi, Mystery, Shaggy, and Scooby all nodded in agreement. 

“-So you’ve come here to ask my beautiful fiancee and I to surgically remove a small capsule of- mutated cobra larve from his lower back. Which the parrot has been using to torture and control him. Do I have that right?”

Daphne took a deep breath through her nose and said, as seriously as she could, “Daisy. You do not even have all of the facts for how absolutely bat-shit insane this situation is. But yeah - that’s the gist of it.”

“Oh my God, you have lost your mind.” 

“Daisy-”

“Get out.”

“Please, sis-” 

“You must think I’m either crazy or stupid to believe one word of this!” Daisy shouted! “Now get out!” 

“We can prove it,” said Lewis.

Daisy faltered, her eyes widening with surprise. Clearly, she hadn’t been expecting proof. Mystery Incorporated stiffened. Right… the flashdrive.

Lewis pulled it out of a pocket inside his vest, and all eyes locked on the small purple piece of plastic and metal pinched between his fingers. “- We’re not just rescuing Mr. E. He’s also working to rescue himself. With a little help, he hacked his own system. There’s hours of security footage and multiple notes and photographs on this flashdrive, proving everything we just told you. If you take a look and still refuse, then there’s not much we can do. But you have no idea what he risked to get this out of Destroido. We owe it to him to use it… Please, Dr. Blake…”

Daisy’s eyes were narrowed and her lips were pursed, tapping one manicured nail against her crossed arms. Thinking. Then finally, she looked over at her fiance. Steve shrugged his shoulders with a look that said ‘I’m kinda curious not gonna lie…’ And Daisy rolled her eyes to the ceiling with an exasperated sigh. “Fine. We’ll have a look. But no promises.”

“Thank you,” Lewis sighed. “Now Velma, if you would please get out your computer, I’ll leave this with you and we’ll be waiting in the van. Give us a call when you’re done or if you need anything.”

“Wait- where are they going?” Steve asked. 

“You seeing that footage is us using it as intended, and Ricky gave them permission to see it. Not us,” Vivi shrugged. “It’s only right to honor his wishes.”

Velma waited a few moments for the Mystery Skulls’ retreating footsteps to disappear altogether before she opened her laptop, plugged the drive into the port, and began typing away to access its files. 

And then, there it was. 

File after file after file, letters and numbers stark white on a black background. Hours worth of footage, just waiting to be played. “Holy- Jinkies, there it is,” Velma said shakily. 

“What? Have you not even looked at it yet?” Daisy scoffed. 

“We only just acquired this footage last night, and the contents are some sensitive stuff,” Daphne said. 

“Like there’s so much of it. Where do we even start?” Shaggy (still in Arthur’s body) asked. Daisy, who paid little attention to her sister’s friend group, didn’t pay his appearance any mind.

“And before we do… is everyone here ready to see this? And do you want to?” Fred asked his friends. “We don’t really know what we’re about to see, and it’s like the Mystery Skulls said - it’s our choice who in our group does. If any of you walk out now, I won’t judge.”

“Like… I feel like we owe it to Arth- to Mr. E to see it, after how hard he worked to get this to us,” Shaggy gulped. “And like- Ricky said he wanted us to see it… so like yeah. I’m not going anywhere,” Shaggy said. 

“Ree too,” Scooby nodded. 

“In spite of everything that’s happened… I feel like I need to see this,” Velma agreed. 

Daphne and Fred looked at each other and came to the same silent agreement as the others: they weren’t going anywhere. 

“Right… as to where we start,” Velma said, “It looks like Ar- Mr. E and Marcie have made a small legend at the top of the file list for things that happen in each video, and each one has a title and description too.”

“What’s the first video say? Is that when… it first happened?” Daphne asked nervously. 

“I don’t think so. Look at the legend,” Velma pointed out. “He’s used a small icon that looks like a red circle to indicate each time the remote was used, and there isn’t one on the first video.”

“There are icons there though,” Scooby said. “Rut do those mean?” Scooby was talking about two icons beside the video’s title - “Confrontation1” The first one he was pointing to was spiky, orange, and yellow. Like a collision. The next was a man’s head, his mouth open and lines coming out, like he was talking. 

Their eyes wandered to the legend. 

💥 Physical abuse.  🗣️ Verbal abuse. 

Velma hit play. 

The video started out with Mr. E - the real Mr. E, still in his own body, sitting in front of his monitors. Velma recognized at once where it was - on his island office in the middle of his dramatic-ass shark moat. 

“Who’s that?” Daisy asked. 

“Your patient,” Fred said.

“That’s Ricky Owens?” Steve balked. “Damn - he let himself go.”

“It’s called depression and it happens to people when they suddenly lose everything at age seventeen,” Daphne snapped. And the rest of her friends were glaring at him too. Steve quickly shut his mouth. 

Whatever Mr. E had been up to, the glaring light in the dim room prevented any of them from making it out on the screens. But he jumped and quickly turned it off when Professor Pericles appeared onscreen with an angry shout. 

“Ricky! Ricky what have you done?! I’ve been locked out of the system!” 

“I know - I did it on purpose,” Mr. E snarled, rising to his feet. “You’re out of control, Professor Pericles! And I’m putting a stop to it! I’m in charge - I built Destroido from the ground up! While you were cooling your beak in prison! It’s time that I-” 

WHACK. 

The five Mystery solvers went rigid with shock. 

They’d heard about some of the things Professor Pericles had said and done to Mr. E. Seeing it themselves was another matter entirely. And Ricky had never said anything about- he hit him. And when they heard what he said next, their jaws dropped.

“You are in charge of nothing, Ricky Owens! You have never been anything other than an idiotic human mascot! A shoulder for me to perch upon!” 

The Mr. E on the screen was so startled- so genuinely frightened of the very creature he’d deluded himself into seeing as a friend, that he was silent for a long moment. Then he gingerly touched the red side of his face, wincing. “... You don’t mean that,” he said quietly. Pitifully hopeful. Still in denial. Still desperate for something that wasn’t there, and maybe never had been.

Professor Pericles sneered down at him like a bad seed in his bird feed. “You will restore my access by the end of the day.” 

“And if I don’t?” Ricky growled. Stubborn. Trying to be brave when it was clear even through a screen that he was terrified. 

Professor Pericles smiled at him in a way that didn’t reach his eyes. One foot came up to touch Ricky’s large nose with deceptive tenderness. 

Then he dug his talons in. 

Not enough to break the skin, but just enough to hurt. Ricky hissed with pain. “You’re a very valuable egg, Ricky,” Pericles sneered. “I’d hate to have to break you.”

“Pericles- stop. That- ow! That’s enough!” Ricky shouted. He shoved the parrot off of him with a great flapping of feathers as the parrot perched himself on the edge of the chair. Ricky got to his feet before he could regain the upper hand. 

“Restore. My access,” Pericles demanded. 

“Really? That’s all you care about?! You hit me!” Ricky barked.

For a split-second, Pericles’ expression turned positively venomous. But then it softened. “Ricky,” he said in a jarringly tender voice. “How are we to move forward when I don’t have access to our resources? The treasure is at hand. Whatever investment we make in attaining it will be returned to us beyond calculation.” 

“You mean whatever investment I make,” Ricky corrected him. “How much of your own money have you spent, exactly? Or Brad and Judy’s? Why is what I worked for worth so little to you?” 

“Und here I was under the impression you’d grown up,” Pericles tutted disappointedly. “I didn’t realize you were so selfish. Isn’t locking me out rather childish?”

“I- you- shut up!” Ricky shouted! And Mystery Incorporated suddenly remembered what Ricky had said, about how Pericles knew exactly what buttons to push. “Shut up and get out! I don’t want to talk to you- I don’t even want to look at you right now. You want your access back? Earn it back!”

“After everything I’ve sacrificed-” 

“You’ve sacrificed?! What about my sacrifices? You’ve cost me everything, and still you find more to take.”

“Vögelchen… You told me once that I was family. Does that mean nothing to you?”

“Did it mean nothing when you betrayed me?! But unlike you, yes. It means something. But that doesn’t mean I’ve forgiven you or that I trust you. Not for back then, and certainly not for that shit you just pulled. Now get out.”

“I’m not going anywhere until you stop acting like a child!”

“Fine! Then I’ll leave! There’s plenty of places for me to go! It’s my house!” 

“Don’t you turn your back on me, Ricky Owens!”

“Watch me!”

And Ricky wasn’t kidding. Mr. E stormed over the bridge, went out a side exit, and when Professor Pericles tried to follow a steel door slammed shut within an inch of his beak. 

Then Professor Pericles was alone. But the video wasn’t over yet. He flew back over to the island and perched himself on the top edge of that ring of monitors, looking up at the fish swimming in the lake above. What he said next couldn’t be heard very well, with how quietly he was speaking and the way German was mixed in. But they could make out this: “My Master… my master was right. Mein Vögelchen ist only human after all… no different from…” 

He was staring off into space when the video ended. 

They stared at that last frame for several long moments. Visibly unsettled. 

“Well- um- that was-” There were holes in Daisy’s unbothered facade. “So like- I guess he really is Ricky Owens, huh?”

“That was definitely the same parrot…” Steve muttered. “Knew he gave me the creeps.”

“Like um… that was like…” Shaggy stuttered.

“Yeah,” Fred said. None of them even had the words. 

“I didn’t see any torture though…” Daisy scoffed. 

And even if the way she said it was insensitive, she was right: they hadn’t seen what they needed to just yet. 

The second, third, and fourth videos, according to their captions, were of Brad and Judy conspiring with Professor Pericles against Ricky. There wasn’t any footage of Ricky going to Brad and Judy with his plan to turn on Pericles, as he’d been smart enough to avoid the cameras in case Pericles was monitoring them. But because the others weren’t nearly as familiar with the placement of the cameras as Ricky, a lot of their activities were on camera. Which added yet another layer to the tragedy: if Ricky had only checked his footage at the right time, what happened to him next could have been avoided. 

Then, along with video evidence of their verbal conspiracy, there was a short clip of the Original Mystery Incorporated having dinner together, and Arthur had managed to find the exact moment Brad’s hand moved nonchalantly over Ricky’s drink. Then when it cut to the end of the meal, it showed Ricky walking with a slight stagger into the hallway where his rooms were apparently located, unaware he’d clearly been drugged. Then there was a clip with a timestamp about two hours later of Brad, Judy, and Pericles entering that same hallway with a briefcase, then leaving thirty minutes after that. But there weren’t any cameras in the rooms themselves or joining hallways, so there was no footage of them actually committing the crime.

Then there was the seventh video.

The first one with a big red circle beside its’ title:

“Confrontation2+Confession 🔴”

Velma clicked on it. 

Again, it was on that central island in Mr. E’s lair. Ricky was pacing to and fro across the floor, arms crossed, while Brad and Judy stood side by side watching him as if they hadn’t committed an unforgivable sin just the night before. 

“He’s late,” Ricky griped. 

“You know he shows up when he means to,” Judy said. “I’m sure he’ll be here soon, don’t you think Brad?”

“Right you are, Judy. You know he’ll be looking to get his system access back, and making you wait isn’t the way to do it, Ricky.”

“Suppose you’re right…” Ricky grumbled. And he looked proud. Proud of himself for standing up to Pericles for once. Happy that he still had two old friends who had his back. Hopeful that after this, things would be better. That they’d change their approach, and no one else would have to get hurt once he took the reins back.

The new Mystery Incorporated were on the edge of their seats.  Daphne was holding Fred’s hand, Shaggy and Scooby were hugging each other, and Velma was anxiously tapping her heel. Even Daisy and Steven, who weren’t involved yet, were tense. There was a sort of hopelessness to watching this footage. Like watching a train wreck: they all knew how it ended.

Then Pericles arrived. 

He landed with a flutter on the edge of a desk beside Brad and Judy. And when he spoke his voice was jovial, yet his remaining green eye glinted with malevolence.

“Ricky. Brad. Judy. Do forgive my tardiness. Now Ricky, what did you need to interrupt my work to talk about?” 

“This isn’t a talk, Professor Pericles. It’s an intervention. Things can’t continue as they have.”

“Oh? Und how have they been?” Pericles asked. And there it was - that hostility. Almost a ‘how-dare-you?’

“As you know, I’ve revoked your system access.”

“Ja. And you still haven’t returned it, as I told you to.”

“And there it is!” Ricky exclaimed. “You can't order me to do anything, Professor Pericles. When I agreed to this partnership, it was a part-ner-ship. That means you and I. Working together towards a common goal, each respecting the other. But you haven’t respected me or anything of mine since almost the beginning. You have spent tens of millions without my permission on plans that you have gone through with behind my back. You have poked your beak into parts of my life and business that don’t concern you and I didn’t want you in. And overall - you have gone too far. It isn’t just the expenses that bother me. The collateral damage of your last few schemes have been insane.”

“Bah! One cannot make a genius omlette-”

“‘-Without breaking a few worthless eggs.’ Yeah - that’s what you keep saying. But you know what? People aren’t eggs. By the time you actually told me about that ridiculous skull cattle plan of yours, you’d already spent a fortune making them. Then by the time we expunged what was left of them out of my company, they had eaten twenty-nine of my best scientists. And at least forty of my other staff. My people, Pericles. People with families who I was responsible for. I told you I thought it was insanity, but did you listen? Their deaths are on me because I didn’t stand up to you sooner. Not to mention all the casualties in Crystal Cove, or the homes and businesses they destroyed. All for a plan that didn’t even work! I don’t care how much of my money you’d already spent on those creatures. I should’ve had them all killed the minute I found out about them!”

“But you didn’t,” Pericles said. “You’re judging my sins, Mister E? Then you're a damn hypocrite. What if not blood is your kingdom built upon, Ricky Owens? All you are is a false king sitting on a throne of poisoned land and ruined lives!” 

“YOU THINK I DON’T KNOW THAT?” Ricky roared. “YOU THINK I LIKE THE PERSON I’VE BECOME? When I was a boy, I had a different dream for this company. I wanted…” But then Ricky gritted his teeth and looked away. “Nice deflection,” he grumbled. “But I’m not letting you do that this time. Because I might be a piece of shit, but we’re not talking about me. We are talking about you: Out of control and out of your damn mind. But you know what? I can see it on your face. I could talk myself hoarse, but you’re not listening.”

“My ears are working just fine, Vögelchen.”

“Don’t. Call me that,” Ricky seethed. “There is a difference between hearing and listening, Pericles. And if you won’t listen to me, then you’ve not left me with much choice: Get out. And I don’t mean out of the room this time. Get out of my home, out of my company, out of my life. I can’t exactly make you leave Crystal Cove, but us? I’ve talked to Brad and Judy about it already, and we’re all in agreement: you’re done. Out.”

“Out? You think you can banish me?” Pericles smirked. 

“Yes. I do. Destroido is mine. So you see Professor Pericles, it’s over! You’re not the boss here, I am! And you’re out of the group!”

The camera caught Pericles pulling a big red button out of a pocket in his scarf and there came a collective gasp of horror. 

The instant Pericles pushed it, Ricky’s body froze in a position that wasn’t natural. His eyes widened with shock. Horror. Confusion. In so much pain he couldn’t even muster the breath to scream.

“Oh Ricky, Ricky,” Pericles tutted. “My loyal Brad and Judy told me of your little mutiny. So, last night while you were asleep, I put mutated cobra larvae in your spine! Every time I push this button… a little venom is released.”

And there it was. Straight out of his own beak.

They saw it all. They heard Pericles boast about what he was planning to do, and they heard him laugh. They saw Brad and Judy, smirking at one another as if they were proud of what they’d done. And they saw Ricky. They saw him fall to his knees, unable to stand. They heard the sound that found its way through the audio - somewhere between a whimper and a grunt. Then finally, as the torture continued and Pericles still didn’t let up, a damn burst and Ricky cried out!

None of them would ever forget that sound.

He was convulsing, shaking, crying, begging for it to stop, making any number of promises between sobs. 

And Pericles was enjoying it.

That was when Velma slammed the laptop shut with a snap, unable to bear watching a second more. 

Not a soul stopped her or asked to see the rest.

And for a long minute, they were quiet. The silence was only broken by the sounds of Daphne quietly sniffling. Fred was stunned stiff beside her. Scooby was huddled as close as he possibly could to his boy, and Shaggy felt as if he was going to be sick. As for Velma? She was thinking. Thinking so much so fast that her brain was overwhelming itself. Or perhaps not. It was more like her brain was so horrified that she couldn’t conjure any thoughts at all. Silently, she put both feet up on Daisy’s expensive leather couch and hugged her knees to her chest, still staring at the closed laptop. 

They would wonder to themselves later, if they lost something when they watched that footage. 

Subsequently, they would also wonder what they gained. 

Either way, they got what they came for.

Daisy left the room. 

She straightened her back, arms crossed, and briskly yet gracefully walked out of the room, her heels clicking against the tile. Looking almost as disturbed as his betrothed, Steven rushed out after her. 

They didn’t come back for a very long time.

And there it is! Chapter 25! I know I promised to post it on Sunday and I'm technically posting it on Monday, 2am isn't thaaaat late, right? I spent all day working on revisions and that lllovely little piece of fanart that I put so much of my heart and soul into. (My one regret is that Tumblr is going to condense it so, SO much 😑) I was having a really good conversation with @angorwhosebabyisthis a while back about SDMI, specifically about Ricky, Pericles, and their relationship, and they pointed out to me that the way Pericles physically abuses Ricky using a device that he has literally inserted inside of him is quite obviously an allegory for rape. And I'm not going to lie - I had never drawn that comparison before. But once I saw it I couldn't unsee it. And I think it's extremely important that more adult fans do and that it gets talked about in the SDMI discourse. Because if more people have realized it, and I certainly hadn't, then I certainly haven't seen anyone else talking about it and I haven't read about it in any other fics. Likely because in spite of its' extremely adult, dark themes, SDMI is for all intents and purposes a "kids' show." Not to mention it's an extremely heavy and oftentimes taboo topic even among adults. But while it is the former, I don't believe it should be the latter. I rated this fic M for mature from the start and have piled on the angst this much already. So even if it isn't a comfy subject, I saw no reason why it shouldn't be here. All the same, I hope my writing didn't upset or trigger anyone and that anyone disturbed by such things heeded the warnings I put at the beginning of the chapter. SO! On to talking about the rest of the chapter! Any room for doubt the kids may have had is no longer existent. How will what they've seen affect their behavior and actions moving forward? And Cassidy finally has at least some idea of what's happened to Ricky, but how will she react to the full picture? Much less when she sees it. Daisy Blake is a character I've been looking forward to playing with because we saw so little of her in SDMI and what we did see was extremely two-dimensional. Which is one of my favorite characters to write in fanfiction because it means I can do whatever interpretation of her I want, and who's to say I'm wrong? Not to mention Daphne's complicated relationship with her family in SDMI is an interesting dynamic to explore. Same goes for Daisy's dear fiance Steve, who for all intents and purposes doesn't actually exist in the canon of SDMI. All that is canonically known of "Daisy's fiance" is that he is rich and a neurosurgeon. That is it. He's basically an OC. I literally said to myself, "What is the first basic af white boy name I can think of? Steve. And what's the first sorta fancy and less-than-common surname I can think of? Poindexter." (As in Benjamin Poindexter, aka Bullseye, the Marvel villain.) And so it was. I got sidetracked into another project (look sometimes autism makes you spend three days on cross stitch, okay?) so I unfortunately haven't gotten more than a few paragraphs into chapter 26 of One of Us. So while I do hope to have it done by next Sunday as I hope, I also can't make any promises. But rest assured I do have a plan, and I intend to have it to you as soon as I can. And people... please go onto my ao3 and leave comments on my fic there once the chapter posted. Seeing the number go up on my inbox and getting to read your words means more to me than you know. Chapter 25 should be posted to ao3 tomorrow morning, and it definitely will be tomorrow afternoon.

Last thing: a while back I said I would be starting a tag list for One of Us, and unfortunately I forgot about it when I posted Chapter 24. So sorry about that. Here's to all my readers who either asked to be tagged when new chapters are posted, or liked that post. Cuz I can't tell if liking it was asking to be added to it or not and I wouldn't want to leave anybody out. If you want to be added to this list or want to be removed from it, then feel free to DM and let me know!

@void-lioness @nikicherry1234 @angorwhosebabyisthis @lunasummers04 @orithereticent @mysteryskullsblog @the-moogle-of-your-nightmares @sfcabanasstarcgs

Chapters 1-24 of 'One of Us' are presently posted on Archive of Our Own!

[cryptidghostgirl]

Question would you be able to make a Magnus x reader fanfic from msa

i am so sorry but i don’t know what msa is or who magnus is. i tried looking it up but that wasn’t really helpful.

[reblogalanaartdream]

If I could I’d write fanfics for ao3 for my fave polyship lewvithur mystery skulls animated tags but alas my spelling and grammar sucks

And thanks to my adhd brain I’ve not got the energy to stay stuck on just msa ideas

But mystery skulls animated part of ao3 really could do with some new fanfics the last ones that were posted there are from October 2022 and we’re in February 2023 now so it could do with some more fanfitions I think

[solitaria-fantasma]

((I've been binging a lot of DPxDC fanfic lately, and I'm noticing a trope where a ghost (let's be real, it's usually Danny) retreats back into their core when significantly hurt or damaged...

...which is also a veeeery common trope in MSA fanfic. Funny how that works out, huh? XD))

[prodigaldaughteralice]

6, 7, 18?

Thank you for asking~!

6. Are there any fics from others you reread all the time?

I’m not that much of a rereader when it comes to fic, honestly, but I do come back now and again to So, What Was Your Name Again? by Thousand_Springs (adorable pre-dadrius fluff, with Hunter giving Darius’s surname as his own in the human realm and when/how other people notice) and the Eda’s Dark Past series by AllThingsAnime (exploring Eda’s implicit past abusive boyfriends, along with her curse messing with her fertility).

7. How many ideas for fics do you have right now?

…oh dear god. A lot. Uh, one MSA one which is actually partially written, a Twelfth Night thing I probably won’t ever put on Ao3 because Shakespeare fanfic is potentially publishable depending on style, two or three Deltarune ideas, four or five Owl House ideas, one Infinity Train one. And I’m in my final two weeks of undergrad, too, so I have less-than-no free time. Whoops!

18. What’s one of your favorite lines you’ve written in a fic?

oooh you know I’m still really pleased with this bit of keep making trouble til you find what you love when Ryan is thinking about how Min will always be a part of him even if he never sees him again—

“He would be there as a man, as a friend, or as a gaping wound.”

Thank you for asking!!!! ✨💕💞✨‼️‼️