ben ravencroft

{ BEN RAVENCROFT } snooping around coolsville? they’re { THIRTY-SIX } and they’re a { WRITER & MANAGER OF BINDERS BOOKS}. words going around that they’re { CREATIVE } and { RESOURCEFUL}. but i wouldn’t cross them cause they can also be { RESENTFUL } and { OPPORTUNISTIC }! i’ve heard they’re wanting to { SOLVE } that new mystery that has cropped up! coolsville wouldn’t be as cool without them!

[ben-ravencroft]

@likez0inks​

shaggy groaned softly, running a hand through his hair. “you know, time would move a lot faster without all that.” the male shrugged, licking his lips. “the mystery-ish books. do you keep both non fiction and fiction together if they’re in the same genre?“ he should have just looked it up online. that would have been a hell of a lot easier with the schedule he currently faced. it seemed like he couldn’t get to anything on time after a long day. 

“My shop, my rules.” Ben simply stated as he stared at the other man. “Non-fiction and fiction are kept separate which are you looking for because I’ll point you to that if that will help this all move along faster. You’re wasting your time and my time without knowing the name.”

[ben-ravencroft]

@allsplitup​

“Oops, that’s nerve. My bad,” Fred said. He held up his hands in mock surrender. He and Ben had never gotten along, and even now as adults, it felt like kids duking it out. He scoffed at Ben’s response, though the comment about his friends, though maybe ex-friends now, did sting. “Oh, things have changed, huh? Just because Mystery Inc. isn’t together anymore doesn’t mean I don’t still have people here. I do.” It was rebuttal and a moment of self-comfort. Fred did use to be popular, even if he never translated that into hanging out with people outside of Mystery Inc. and he’s the son of the former mayor. Who was Ben Ravencroft to him? “Tell me. Who’s accidentally stumbled into your life that you’re not just the same lone bully you were the last time I was here?”

“Your parents, yes. You mentioned living with them already. I wouldn’t be bragging about that, Freddie Boy. You are what? Almost 35?” Ben asked after Fred mentioned not being close to the friends he once had within Mystery Inc. “Quite a few people. Maybe even a few people that you used to know pretty well.” Another lie, Ben wasn’t close to any of the people Fred would have called friends. Maybe he knew some more well than others but not enough to be proclaiming that he was good friends with them...yet he did it anyway. 

[ben-ravencroft]

@daphneblakeinc​

     “so- not a jock, not a geek-” she hums, tapping her chin finding the smile on her lips actually being genuine for once. “oh, so you were the lone wolf. the john bender breakfast club type?” she raises a brow, fighting down a laugh. daphne knew the other is pretty strong, doesn’t surprise her at all about the fighting. though she somewhat wishes she could’ve witnessed it. however, high school daphne would have simply been offended by the entire thing, too preppy and perfect. “oh, for when i next text you?” she shakes her head though there’s fondness in the gesture. “just for that- i might have to text someone else.” there really isn’t anyone else at the moment. but as always, a facade must always be in play. she takes another sip of her whiskey and hums before shushing the other playfully. “i haven’t had whiskey this good in a decade, lemme enjoy it. lemme take it in.”

“Yeah,” Ben laughed. “I was the John Bender type more than a jock or a geek. Had my fair share of detentions so A Breakfast Club comparison wouldn’t be that fair off,” he smirked. He had gotten into a lot of trouble back in the day which didn’t help the stories told about him after he moved here. “Text someone else,” he said to her. “But you’ll text me anyways when they fail to do the job. Or do a bit more pillow talk than you expected,” he quipped. “A whole decade well that is quite some time. We’ll need a lot more of these then.”

[ben-ravencroft]

@williamclemore​

“actually, it would be t-minus nine minutes and fifty-five seconds when you said that,” bill corrected, looking at his watch. “now,” he lifted a finger, “it’s t-minue nine minutes and fifty seconds.” he had come in for just one book, hopefully he’d be in and out. “i called in earlier to place a hold on a book - ‘you don’t know js: up and going,’“ he explained, placing his hands in his pockets as he looked around. “it’s by kyle simpson and the hold is for william mclemore.”

Ben merely stared at the man when he corrected his countdown and was almost tempted to cut the time down 5 minutes just because he could. “I got it the first time,” Ben stated. “You’ve got a book on hold. Not many people call to put a book on hold so I’ve got a single book here.” 

[ben-ravencroft]

@allsplitup​

“I don’t know if living in your grandma’s old place is that much a flex, but go ahead.” Perhaps it was hypocritical of Fred. Sure, he had his own place in California but back in Coolsville he was shacking up with his parents, unsure if he’d be here long enough to rent his own place. Maybe Shaggy would be down… “Must be lonely,” he posed, not actually caring for Ben’s sake if he was feeling lonely. “Living in that house alone in a town where no one likes you.”

“It is my place,” Ben firmly stated as he could feel himself getting more upset when Fred brought up his grandmother. “I own it and pay for it so it is mine!” Ben plainly put as he tried to control the anger and annoyance that he felt. “A lot has changed since you left, Fred.” Truly, Ben still held a pretty bad reputation and people still disliked him but he wasn’t going to own up to that. “I’m a lot less lonely than you are. Where are those friends of yours?” 

[ben-ravencroft]

@zialelio​

the curse of having the closing shift at the bar was that zia’s midday was when most places were closing. luckily she knew binders books like the back of her hand at this point. she knew how much she hated people who walked in so close to locking up, but still she couldn’t help but chuckle lightly to herself at the worker’s countdown. “i’ll only need three of those minutes.” she smirked as she zipped to the culinary section and pulled Dishing Up the Dirt. quickly walking over to the counter she set it down with a smile. “how long did that take?” she teased.

Ben rolled his eyes at the promise of only needing three minutes. He had no issues losing a sale and closing right on time because he definitely didn’t more people pushing the time limit on his store. “I didn’t time you,” he said as if it was obvious. “But you have time to spare so good job for following instructions.” 

[ben-ravencroft]

@likez0inks​

he just needed one book and to get that book, he had to go see the one person he was uneasy about. shaggy huffed out a breath and pushed the door open, glancing up at the bell as it went off. the male bit down on his lip as he entered the store. “got it..” he muttered, headed straight to the back of the store. he was looking for some book he had remembered seeing in the van years ago. sure, the gang hadn’t been together in years and shaggy wasn’t even sure they would get back together to solve this, but with or without them, he felt like he needed to get to the bottom of this. fingers skimmed the spine of the books as he tried to manage finding it and keeping an eye on the time. there was no way he would be able to find it on his own. “hey, uh, theres a book.. its got a green ish color.. and uh.. its definitely a crime-esque, but i cant think of the name… do you know where the books like that are?”

“Do I know where the mystery books are? Or do I know where the green books are?” Ben asked as he shut his book. “We, like most bookstores, don’t sort our books by their cover art but by genre.” Ben knew he was being a little shit but he was annoyed after a long day and the minutes were counting down till he could lock up and head back to his big old house and get that peace and quiet that he needed. “You will need to be a lot clearer since we don’t have all the time in the world.”

[ben-ravencroft]

@velmadinklley​

“it matters to me, mysteries always matter to me,” she remarked, staring him down carefully. to velma, it seemed impossible for someone not to care about things like the villains of coolsville. “do you hold any resentment towards mystery incorporated?” she pondered, leaning further back. “from the way you’re talking about the villains, it almost seems like you have more empathy for them than for us.” velma changed the subject a bit, trying to dig more out of this strange book clerk, “so, what are your thoughts on the missing teens as of late? did you hear about the one found dead at the drive-in?” she began bombarding him with questions, “do you think one of these outlaws could have done it?” velma gestured to all the costumes in the room, all of them most likely retired.

“i did ask what was new in stock, but i also thought you were going to give me your personal opinion on what you thought was good and in stock,” she pointed out with a coy smile and threw her hair over her shoulder, “so, now that i’ve realized you were just giving me the lowdown on the new stock and not crossing over into what you found interesting, tell me what kinds of books you’d actually recommend.” she stood up straight again, her eyebrows knitting together, “congrats for being able to solve the mysteries? i don’t think i deserve any kind of medal after doing it for so long in real life.”

“Are they truly villains or just people doing what they thought was their only way to get what they needed,” he mused as he dodged answering her question. “The missing teens is concerning and I hope that they are found. But I think if one of these outlaws were doing it then the teenagers wouldn’t be their main target,” he mused. “Maybe at first as a catalyst to bring people back but their true targets would soon be revealed. Likely successful since they would have been planned this for years maybe even decades,” he continued. “Or at least that what I would do if I was writing the story. Cliche but this formula sell especially if they want to make it into a movie.”

“I like the classics,” he answered. “A lot of these new writers hold nothing to the books that writers are inspired by-” he complained though of course he didn’t mean himself. “People are reading less so I order what I know will sell and not what I personally enjoy. If I sold only the books that I’d read well then the shop would have gone out of business. I can recommend a popular horror writer. He’s been around for a little while,” he smirked as he spoke about himself. “Then I take it back.”

[ben-ravencroft]

@daphneblakeinc​

       “so no to football hmm… all those books, gotta be a nerd.” she leans her back against the bar, smirk in play across her lips. daphne was the perfect student in high school, cheer captain, head of the debate team, events organiser, tutored, got strait a’s. part of her wishes she had spent her teenage years doing teenage things, instead she was either a picture perfect student or chasing after fake ghosts. she never even got to go to a house party. though she did make up for that in college. “hmm, my ears are open when you do. if it’s something embarrassing expect a variety of jokes.” daphne resits the urge to down her drink, she doesn’t know when she’d get something this nice again. “i was never good at the whole- describing how alcohol tastes. it’s either bad or good to me.” a breathy chuckle escapes her and she shakes her head in somewhat of a fond manner. “keep plying me with whiskey and i might agree.”

“No to that too,” Ben laughed as she tried to guess what he was like in high school. “I was more of a loner type. Detentions for skipping class and being late, and fights which might shock you. Since I give off that nerd type according to you,” he smirked. He was slightly older than her and so they hadn’t overlapped but he hadn’t enjoyed his time at Coolsville High and thrilled to finally graduate. “I’ll try to remember some good stories for you the next time. “I’ll make sure that I remember a good couple of stories for the next time that you text me.” Ben joked, hinting that it was just her who texted him. “Good or bad works for me,” he shrugged. Truly he wasn’t that picky but he had the money so why not get something expensive. “I can do that. Should I get the next round or do you plan on taking your time?”

[ben-ravencroft]

@daphneblakeinc​

     “it’s already brewing, you can’t stop it. i’m picturing you now, football player, cheerleader girlfriend, your face painted up for the pep rally.” she fakes a dreamy face before an actual laugh slips free at the thought. however, she fights the laughter back down quick and if asked she’d simply deny it. “hmm, same applies when they’re drunk with a pretty woman.” daphne has had a handful of guys suddenly confess something to her. she, however, prefers to keep the majority of herself under lock and key. no one can hurt you when they don’t even know you.  “well- i said i couldn’t buy it, not that i never had it.” daphne use to be rich- well, her family are rich she’s just been cut off. she takes a sip of the whiskey and hums. “ah, tastes like a week of rent with a hint of- money burning.” her voice is teasing but god, has she missed some of the finer things in life such as a simple glass of high quality whiskey. 

‘Playing football wasn’t the type of thing I did back in high school but you might be right about the cheerleaders,” he smirked. Ben had moved to Coolsville right around that age of high school and he was often in detention or being caught by the police department doing something he wasn’t supposed to. An angry kid who had lost a lot and thrown into a new town was a lot on top of everything else he was dealing with. “Wonder what all I spilled,” he joked. Had he ever said anything to anyone- it would most likely have been some sort of lie or a exaggeration of the truth. “Right,” he simply stated as she corrected him. Ben’s fortune had come long before his first book and just through inheritances left to him as his family dwindled down to the point where it was just him. “That is one way to describe smoky,” he smirked as he took a healthy drink from his own glass. “Now my company isn’t that bad.”

[ben-ravencroft]

@daphneblakeinc​

     "you know a little too much…” she raises a brow, amusement pulling on her lips. “speaking from experience?” an momentary thought hits her and daphne’s smirk sharpens. she turns slightly to grab a peanut from the bowl and then throws it at the guy they’re talking about. daphne sharply turns to act as if she’s ordering and a breathy chuckle escapes her. she hums in agreement to ben’s words. “a lot harder.” daphne makes sure to meet the other’s gaze as if she’s offering up a challenge. “being paid in whiskey does sound tempting, but then i’d have to be on doorway watch while drinking them and that takes the fun out of it.” she shrugs. “so many words said when all you had to say was two- i’m buying. magic words those. lets see how the rich drink.”

“I hate to ruin whatever you’ve got brewing in your head now- but that does not come from personal experience,” Ben stated with a slight chuckle. “It is amazing what people will confess to their friends when they think no one is listening.” Ben often was more quiet and tended to observe more than actively participate when he was out and about in town. “Interesting,” he simply stated as he looked right back at her. “Wouldn’t want to be cutting into your fun,” Ben teased. “Can’t blame me for being loquacious. It comes with the job and without that then I wouldn’t be able to buy the good stuff,” he smirked. Waving down the bartender again, Ben ordered two top shelf whiskeys for the pair and knew it would just be the first of many rounds. Most likely. “You’ll have to tell me how it compares.”

[ben-ravencroft]

@daphneblakeinc​

     “sure you are, pinocchio.” daphne raises a hand and pats the side of ben’s face condescendingly. she trusts ben as far as she can throw him, and she can’t even pick the guy up… well physically. though that tends to be how daphne sees everyone lately, trust issues at an all time high and keeping everyone a football field distance away. she drinks a couple more mouthfuls of guinness and hums. “he would probably cry at the end of it too.” she scoffs a breath at the other. “hmm, don’t find myself thinking about anyone i’ve had sex with late at night.” a slight dig at the other, but that can easily be disproven with the texts daphne has sent the other at a ridiculous hour for a hookup. “less concern for you and more for the doorways you’ll get stuck in.” she takes another sip of the beer but it is soon ignored at the mention of whiskey. “can’t afford the top shelf, but as long as it’s strong and is going to get me drunk i have no complaints.”

“Original,” Ben teased back, smirking as she patted his face. “He would be a crier and then he’d go into the tales of his glory days at the quarterback for his school football team. How he had it all but then he got married and his life was ruined. Sounds like a fun time,” he quipped. “Maybe people need to be trying harder then,” he mused aloud after her little remark. Their thing was bantering comments thrown at one another so he didn’t expect a praising comment but it had been more than a one time thing so that said enough for him that he didn’t take her words that personally. “Then the owner here should be thankful for caring so much about the doorways. They’d most likely pay for all those whiskeys that you want,” he joked. “I am getting the good stuff so if you want one too then I’m buying.”

[ben-ravencroft]

@velmadinklley​

“it is interesting. all of these people were interesting. i’ve always wondered why they’re like now… do you think they still do any crime on the down low? or are they changed people after getting caught?” she thought aloud, glancing at some of the other costumes around the room: scarecrow, gramps the vamp, the ghost of captain cutler - all her past demons were literally there to haunt her. “i never really got the chance to do any follow up on the people behind the masks until we started putting in the exhibit. back in the day it was always close one case and open up a new one.”

she clapped her hands together as he explained the books that were in stock. velma loved both genres, and she was sure to stop by and get them. “if the book seemingly didn’t deserve to get published why would you tell me about it in the first place?” she prodded. “so, does that mean i should get it or i should just go ahead with the cheesy romance instead?” velma turned around so she could lean against the little barricade between her and the artifact. “i usually solve the mysteries in the novels by chapter two anyways, i’m sure this one wouldn’t be any different. so, that’s fine with me.”

“Does it matter?” Ben asked her. “Some likely continue doing the same thing, some changed but very few, and a lot tried to change but their reputation was holding them back so they did what they had to do. They likely hold resentment towards you,” Ben mused. It was blunt but he knew what it felt like to have a reputation in this town. 

“You asked what was new in stock,” Ben pointed out. He wasn’t going to state that he was annoyed that this other book was a bestseller and was selling well even though it was crap. His own books were far better than anything that other writer could do but yet they were the best seller. His books did well but he still didn’t like competition. “Congrats.” 

[ben-ravencroft]

@daphneblakeinc​

     “you and honesty don’t go together. that’s like toothpaste and orange juice.” she crinkles her nose at his smirk, though her lips slightly turn up at the corners, akin to a smile but daphne would deny it. “oh yeah, you’re more annoying wait gimme a sec-” she clears her throught and decides to do a voice that sounds nothing like ben. it’s nasally, high pitched, and she chooses to end her words in a lift like a question. “did you know i’m this amazing writer? i haven’t told you in the last five minutes, just wanted to remind you that i’m soooooo successful with my books.” daphne knows she’s being childish but ben brought that out of her. she directs her gaze to the soon to be divorced and hums. “hmm, maybe- depends if he’s the type that either gives sad sex while approaching a divorce or great sex cause he’s close to freedom.” she tilts her head to the side, taking the stranger in. “tempting.” though she makes no move to separate herself from ben’s company. “can’t let you be right cause your ego would inflate and we wouldn’t be able to get your head through doorways.”

“I am honest,” Ben lied. He could be honest when he wanted but he wasn’t an honest individual. Certainly wasn’t known for that and even if he was? Well that would have been a lie. Leaning against the bar, angled towards her, Ben watched as did yet another impression of him as he took a sip of his pint to hide his own smile. It sounded nothing like him regarding the voice but maybe he was a bit boastful of his writing and success. It was a lot more than most people would have thought he’d be able to do with his life so why not brag about his wins? “I bet the sex is terrible,” he mused as he studied the stranger he pointed out to her. “Nothing to write about home about or anything you’d think about late at night-” he added after her remark. “You concern for me is much appreciated, Daphne.” Ben smirked as he downed what was left in his glass. “Whiskey, right? I’ll only drink the top shelf.” 

[ben-ravencroft]

@vio-joniet​

“ it’s the flavor of the milkshake, pistachio mint. “  spoken as if he could not see the shade in her clear cup, a pale green almost looking like chalk. yesterday she’d had chocolate raspberry then the day before that something with orange shavings on top with a hint of coconut yet violaine couldn’t remember what the initial flavor had been. having had these milkshake frankenstien creations since she returned to coolsville. placing the straw back between her lips, a long sip was taken as if time did not matter. “ it would depend on if you have a obsession with overly minty drinks my friend. “

“Right,” he nodded as his gaze dropped from her and down to her glass where the noticed the milkshake. “I like mint to an extent. Who doesn’t?” Ben jokingly questioned her as his gaze followed her picking up the milkshake. “But that flavor combination is slightly worrying. Better or worse than a vanilla one?”

[ben-ravencroft]

@velmadinklley​

she felt tempted to reach out and poke it, to make sure that it wouldn’t move again. velma bounced on her heels, her hands coming to rest on the railing that kept museum patrons from getting too close to the artifacts. “there’s nothing run of the mill about it. sure, it looks like anyone could put on this suit, but hank,” she had become so wrapped up in telling the story she’d forgotten to mention that hank and the miner were all the same - hank was just the man behind the costume, “rigged the suit so it appeared like he was floating. it’s the most convincing ghost i’ve seen in the lot we came into contact with.” velma had also conveniently left out the fact she had been a part of mystery incorporated, but she had pretty much exposed that fact with her last sentence. “i don’t judge a book by its cover, and a certainly can make my own opinions when it comes to books. what do you have? i read just about anything as long as there’s an actual story to be read.”

“Interesting,” Ben mused after listening to her explain what it had been like to be there. Now that was interesting to him. Hearing her side of what had happened. What is had been like to be there. What feelings she had during the case. What was it like to solve something rather than just writing a mystery and knowing how it ends up because it all came from his mind. “Some new romance book that his very mainstream and then a new mystery novel. It isn’t worth a read though- nothing special about it. You can figure out the ending after chapter two,” he told her. “Don’t know how they got a publisher or a contract.”

[ben-ravencroft]

@allsplitup​

Fred lowered his hands, but he didn’t lower his guard. Not with this guy. “That’s what we’re famous for, ain’t it? Ghosts? Monsters?” He looks Ben up and down pointedly. Fred knew there were plenty of things and people he’d have to deal with when he came back to Coolsville, and Ben Ravencroft was definitely on his list of folks he’d hoped to avoid. “I don’t know if you think that you staying here because you had nowhere else to go makes you better than me for some reason? But I’m sure you’d be glad to know that your reputation as an asshole is still very strong in my heart,” he said, patting his chest as mentioned his formerly-racing heart. His reply was surely rooted in some deep-seated guilt that Fred had on his own about leaving Coolsvile, but he wasn’t thinking about possible projecting. And Freddy wasn’t interested in whether or not time had changed some of Ben’s less desirable characteristics. Fred had always had a “possible suspect” mindset, even when he wasn’t solving mysteries.

“You could say something like that,” Ben shrugged. Whilst his books and stories were popular and widely praised- it wasn’t his name on those books. He had a past and a reputation within this town and a background check would pull up a few other things. So the best way for him to sell his stories? Write under a false name though that hadn’t been a secret to those in town for years. It was obvious who was writing them after they were first published but he still didn’t get the fame and praise he might have had he used his real name. “No where to go? Is that what you tell yourself? Because we know that isn’t true. I could go anywhere I wanted,” Ben declared. “I just like that big old house I own.” Not exactly the truth, it had been left to him and he really didn’t have much else to go. He was alone in this world but the only place he felt a connection to was in the drafty old mansion.