Since the last time that the Mane 6 and Sparky saw their friends, the gang had gotten a whole house to share, courtesy of Daphne’s father, and the Mane 6, Queen Haven and Alphabittle were welcome to stay there until their quest was completed.
But… it was hard to think about the quest when the gang seemed so disheartened to give up what they loved.
Misty was definitely one that found this true, for this is what was keeping her awake for hours with the moon and stars glistening above.
After 30 minutes of tossing and turning on her mattress, Misty sighed, got up and walked into the living room to sit in front of the fireplace.
Why did the gang have to give up the thing they loved most after one mistake?
And yes, it WAS a big mistake, but... mistakes can be forgiven... can't they?
“Misty, dearest?”
Misty looked around to see Queen Haven approaching her, causing Misty to suddenly feel a mass amount of guilt. “I’m sorry if I woke you, Your Highness.”
“No, you did no such thing,” Queen Haven brushed off as she sat beside the young unicorn. “I had been up for a while anyhow, thinking about things.”
“Me too. Mom... everypony at home...” Misty trailed off. “...the gang giving up their hobby...”
Queen Haven sighed heavily at this. “That’s been weighing on my mind too. I wish I could have done something more to defend your friends, but... in different realms there are different and similar laws, and... I have to try and help abide by these laws. And I even have to try and respect them even though I don't feel like they're right, as much as I hate to admit such.”
“...it must be so hard trying to govern a whole kingdom of ponies that really depend on you,” Misty looked up at her. “Do you get... I don't know... scared? Thinking about the future, I mean?”
Queen Haven nodded with a sigh, a smile gracing her face. “All the time, actually.”
“Really?”
“Ponies think that the life of a royal is glamour and charm, and while it does have good aspects... it can be incredibly scary too. That's why I admire my little fillies so much... because they're so brave when they're here in countless worlds fighting who knows what. And you have been so courageous to keep striving to protect the realms despite everything you had been through in your past life.”
“The past is the past,” Misty said. “The future is the only thing that really matters... right?”
The queen chuckled at this. “Spoken like a true leader, if I do say so myself. Now... we better get back to bed. We have a garage sale to help with in the morning.”
“Right... no matter how much it hurts us,” Misty agreed, and after bidding one another good night, the pegasus queen and the blue unicorn retreated to their rooms for the night to prepare for the day ahead.
XXXXXXXX
By the time the morning finally came, everything had been set up for the yard sale, and by the time the sun was at its peak in the sky, there were already a lot of people at the sale itself.
Alphabittle and Queen Haven made themselves and useful in several different ways to help their kids and their friends-- moving boxes, talking to shoppers, collecting money and keeping an eye on Sparky when Hitch or Izzy couldn’t.
By the time the afternoon rolled around, Fred had already sold the Mystery Machine to a lucky buyer, and a few of the gang's most precious collector's items had been sold as well.
Daphne looked around at the shoppers left as she closed the money box. “I don't understand why we have to unload everything.”
That was when Fred approached, his shoulders slumped in disappointment and sadness. “I can't believe I just sold the Mystery Machine.”
“Fred, I'm sorry about that. I know it can't be easy to give up something you love-- if I had to give up the Crystal Tea Room, where I made so many precious memories with my Misty... I'd feel the same way,” Alphabittle tried to reassure. “But nopony can ever say that it's easy to retire, especially when you're retiring from something you love doing.”
Pipp sighed as she and her sister walked over. “It sure looks easy for Shaggy and Scooby, though-- even though I think most of it is just trying to cheer Misty up.”
True to her word, Shaggy and Scooby were lounging on chairs on the front lawn, dressed in Hawaiian shirts and drinking some of Sunny's best smoothies, and Misty was resting between them, trying to make light of the situation. “Ahh... this is the life, you guys,” Shaggy sighed in relaxation. “No more mysteries, no more ghosts, and no more year-round fancy attire.”
“Hey,” said a man in a blue shirt and hat walking past them. “I like your style.”
“Thank you,” Scooby slurped his smoothie before burping, causing him to cover his mouth with his paw. “Oh, heh... excuse me.”
“Misty, you’ve hardly touched your smoothie,” observed Sunny as she poured some more Dreamy Greenie smoothie into Shaggy’s glass. “Is Pineapple Paradise not your favorite anymore?”
“No no! I love it, I really do,” Misty said. “It's just... none of this business with the sheriff feels right, but I just can't put my hoof on it.”
“I know how you feel,” Zipp told her friend. “I wanted to go up and yell the sheriff off yesterday, but... I tried to think of what might be best for the gang.”
“Speaking of the gang,” Hitch said, “I don't think Fred is gonna take this sight too well...”
The stallion pointed toward the Mystery Machine with another driver at the wheel, and this caused Daphne to release an audible sigh. “I agree with Misty... this just doesn’t feel right.”
“...I love my Mystery Machine...” Fred mumbled to himself. “I feel like I just sold part of myself.”
Alphabittle sighed and put a hoof on Fred’s shoulder. “Come on, Hitch... let's take Fred and Sparky over here for a little fresh air.”
“Sounds good to me,” Hitch nodded, and picked up his baby dragon before the boys walked away, leaving the rest of the group to themselves. “I know how you feel, everyone,” Velma tried to assure her friends, “but it's not like we have a choice. Besides, it's already done. We've already closed all our cases and have absolutely no unfinished business. None whatsoever.”
“Eureka!”
The man from earlier immediately found a crystal clear sphere in one of the boxes set up on the table next to them, eagerly turning toward Velma and Daphne. “How much for the crystal ball?”
Suddenly, one look at the crystal ball caused Shaggy, Scooby and Daphne to freeze in complete shock.
They thought that crystal ball had been lost years ago!
Seeing her friends in so much surprise was enough to get Izzy confused. “Since when do you guys have a crystal ball? Oh my hoofness... were you gonna do fortune telling and not tell me?!”
“Well, it's not exactly that, Izzy,” Daphne struggled to find the words to explain, “but, um... I don't think...”
But before Daphne could finish, Shaggy and Scooby pushed by them, trying to get the crystal ball back into hiding for some odd reason. “Like, put that thing away!!”
Scooby ran around the man, causing him to stumble and drop the crystal ball. Luckily, Shaggy caught it, but that relief turned to fear when the crystal glowed with an eerie green light. “Oh, man… I know that glow.”
“Shaggy?” said a male voice coming from the crystal. “Shaggy, is that you?”
“Did that thing just…?” Fred began to say before Shaggy dropped the crystal ball, letting roll a little ways toward the ponies before a male figure, this figure being Vincent Van Ghoul, appeared within it. “Kids!” he cried out in relief. “I’ve been trying to reach you on this thing for months. Daphne, Shaggy, Scooby-Doo, where are you?”
Cautiously, everyone approached the crystal ball and Daphne picked it up. “We’re here,” she said hesitantly. “What’s up, Vincent?”
Zipp and Pipp shared a confused glance at this. “Vincent?”
“I think he prefers Mr. Van Ghoul,” Shaggy quickly interrupted. “No, Vincent is fine,” Vincent reassured before turning back to Shaggy, Scooby and Daphne. “Listen… I’ve found him. Or rather, he’s found me.”
At this remark, Scooby felt the fur on his neck raise in fear and familiarity. “Oh no…”
“You mean…?” Daphne began to ask before Vincent nodded. “The 13th and final ghost,” Vincent answered, causing Daphne, Shaggy and Scooby to become worried while everyone else looked majorly confused. “You must come at once to catch him, so we can seal the Chest of Demons forever! Hurry, I can't hold him off any long…”
But after he said this, the glow in the crystal ball went out, and Vincent’s image could no longer be seen. “Vincent?” Daphne called. “Vincent?”
Shaggy gulped nervously at this. “Like, I guess we've got some unfinished business after all.”
He and Scooby nervously whimpered and hugged each other, giving Zipp the opportunity to speak. “Okay, okay, is anypony else completely confused about what just happened or was it just me?”
“No, it’s not just you, darling,” Queen Haven said before the rounds of questions from many different members of the group began.
“How do you have a crystal ball?”
“Who is Vincent Van Ghoul?”
“How long have you known each other?”
“What’s a Chest of Demons?”
“Is it some sort of Equestrian artifact?”
“What did Vincent mean by ‘13th ghost’?”
Just then, the man who wanted to buy the crystal ball held a check within his reach. “And will you take a personal check?”
“NO!!” the gang and ponies responded harshly. “All right,” the man backed off. “It’s just a question.”
“Sorry about that!” Misty called as the man walked off. “Have a nice day!”
As the group made sure they were completely alone, Fred was about ready to demand an answer right then and there. “Daphne, are you gonna tell us what's going on here?”
“We said we’d never talk about this,” Shaggy said in a murmur. “We have no choice,” Daphne sighed. “Vincent’s in trouble, and it’s all our fault.”
This immediately caught everyone off-guard, Fred and Velma especially. “Our fault?!”
“Listen… something… happened,” sighed Daphne as she turned to face them. “The summer that Fred and Velma were both away at camp and before we met you Equestrians. Shaggy, Scooby and I traveled the world in search of ghosts, real ghosts I might add, that were set free from an ancient chest.”
“Ancient chest? Real ghosts?” Alphabittle asked with a shudder. “Sounds like something that could come from Bridlewood.”
Daphne then turned to Shaggy and Scooby. “Hey, maybe you two can get everything ready to heads up to Vincent’s, and maybe take the unicorns with you. This explanation might take a while, and I think it might be best to do it in smaller groups to handle individual questions.”
“Sure, Daph,” Shaggy sighed with a nod. “Iz? Can you, Alphabittle and Misty help us get packed?”
“Sure, Shag-a-roni!” Izzy chirped, and the unicorns followed Shaggy and Scooby into the garage while everyone else followed Daphne into the garage.
And this would be the story that they would never forget for as long as they lived.
XXXXXXXX
Once the others had entered her bedroom, Daphne (while searching through her closet for a certain outfit) had begun explaining what had went on all that time ago;
She, Scooby and Shaggy were on their way to Hawaii when they accidentally went down in the Himalayas, and during their time there, Shaggy and Scooby accidentally opened the Chest of Demons, releasing the 13 most terrifying ghosts on the face of the Earth into their world.
For weeks and months they tracked down every single ghost… all except one. And now that this ghost was back, it was up to them to go and catch it.
After the story was explained, Sunny was the first to speak, looking up from her notes in awe. “You guys captured real ghosts with supernatural powers?”
“Don’t be silly, Sunny,” Velma brushed off. “We’ve seen enough cases to know that real ghosts aren’t a thing.”
“Aha! There it is!” Daphne said, pulling a purple dress out of the closet, but instantly frowned at it. “Ugh… how did I ever think this was practical?”
“Oh, I agree,” Pipp said. “I’m sure I can totally find you a better outfit!”
Pipp tossed that dress onto Hitch’s head, causing Sparky to yelp in surprise, but then giggled as Hitch pulled the dress off his head. “This is insane,” Fred told Daphne with a frown. “I can’t believe you never told us, any of us, about this!”
“Well, the ponies always had their own problems, and Shaggy and I weren’t sure when to bring it up after you and Velma got back from camp,” Daphne said as Pipp continued to hand her outfit. “Besides, the whole experience really traumatized Scooby. He almost had a nervous breakdown. So, we decided the best thing for him was never to bring it up again.”
“Well… doing that for Scooby was really thoughtful,” Zipp said. “I can’t imagine seeing the guy break down over this.”
“Yeah… and I thought that being sheriff of an entire community was harsh,” Hitch said. “But Daph, you said there were 13 ghosts and you only caught 12.”
“Yes, didn’t you think,” said Queen Haven, “that with that last horrible beast on the loose, that this might come up again someday?”
“I understand, Queen Haven, but if you’re all worried about Scooby, don’t be,” Daphne advised. “He’s conquered his demons… twelve of them at least.”
“Hey, Daph,” Pipp said, holding up a bag. “What about this?”
“Hey… that’s perfect, Pipp!” Daphne took it from her. “Just give me a few minutes to get changed.”
XXXXXXXX
When Daphne got changed, she was now wearing a purple/magenta jumpsuit with matching fingerless gloves and boots, and her hair in a completely different hairstyle. “So, guys? What do you think?”
As soon as he saw Daphne with this new look, Fred only had one thing to say. “Whoa! Who are you?”
“I think you look great!” Sunny smiled. “That new look is really you.”
“Thanks,” Daphne smiled. “Now… we better get outside and see how the others are doing with preparations before we hit the road.”
XXXXXXXX
The gang soon went down to the garage, and as the doors slowly opened, they expected to see the unicorns, Shaggy and Scooby with their luggage.
Instead, they saw Shaggy and Scooby wearing all sorts of protective clothing, and the unicorns holding weapons of different kinds, as if fearful of what might be ahead.
Velma stared at how ridiculous Shaggy and Scooby looked for a moment. “What are you two wearing?”
“By what Shaggy and Scooby told us about their earlier adventures with these ghost things,” said Misty, “I’d say that they’re not wearing nearly enough!”
“Don’t worry about that, Misty. Daphne said that they handled 12 of these already,” Zipp spoke. “Will one more kill all of us?”
“Uh, Zipp dude,” Shaggy said, “that’s the question… isn’t it?”
“We won’t let anything happen to you, I promise,” Sunny told her friend with sincerity. “But if we wanna get to Vincent’s before nightfall we better hurry.”
“Well, we’d love to help,” Fred said, “but I just sold the Mystery Machine, so…”
“Don't worry. I've got it covered.”
Daphne pulled a cover off of a large object next to them, revealing a sleek, shiny red van underneath, much to the ponies' awe and amazement.
Fred, however, was shocked and confused by all these different changes. “You have a van too?!”
“It’s not a van,” Daphne chuckled. “It's a strategic, all-terrain mobile command unit.”
“Oooh! Wow-wow-wow!” Sparky giggled, running to the van and crawling on top of the hood, jumping around in happiness. “At least Sparky likes it,” Hitch said. “But it still kinda looks like a van to me.”
“It was a van,” Daphne corrected. “Then, Vincent had a few upgrades installed.”
“Kinda like the Marestream back home!” Izzy recalled. “Zipp and I made it out of an old cart, and then our magic made it into what it is today! This Vincent guy really knows how to unicycle!”
Fred brushed his hands over the van’s initials, feeling a sense of familiarity from it. “M.M?”
“Don’t worry, Freddy,” Daphne reassured. “There can only be one Mystery Machine.”
“But if it doesn’t stand for Mystery Machine,” said Alphabittle, “what does it stand for then?”
“Let me guess,” Velma crossed her arms with a smirk. “The Miss-tery Machine?”
“Uh… no,” Daphne said, “but that’s way better. Let’s call it that.”
“Okay, whatever. Everybody hop in and…” Fred was about to say something else when he noticed the shift next to him. “Oh, wait, wait. This is a stick. I can't drive a stick.”
“Everypony, let’s go!” Zipp said. “The more we stand here, the more we’re burning daylight!”
And so, everypony got in with Daphne at the wheel, and with the swift turn of the key and stomp on the gas pedal, they set off on their next new adventure... sure to be one for the ages.