Current WIPs/”WIP whenever”
Thanks for the tag, @glowstar826!
As I finished “The Case of the Goose Lake Monster” a few weeks ago, I’ve started working on a one-shot for “The Week After” series. This WIP takes place, well, the week after Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated ends, and it’s intended to offer a glimpse of the gang’s arrival at Miskatonic University while also illustrating their emotional and mental mindset post-Nibiru.
I only have 1300 words so far, but here is a snippet of the beginning.
“It takes Mystery Incorporated exactly one full week to drive all the way across the country, starting from Crystal Cove and ending on the East Coast, where Miskatonic University is located. Initially, Shaggy and his friends thought their trip would take much longer after factoring in stops along the way for food, sleep, and rest, and they had eagerly anticipated solving every mystery they stumbled upon along the way; however, much to the gang’s chagrin, there wasn’t a single case to be found in this new timeline. The road unfurled before them as smoothly as a patchwork quilt blanket, with not a snare nor wrinkle in their entire trip. There weren’t even any minor inconveniences, like a flat tire or a wrong turn on the highway or a motel with zero vacancies.
Most normal people might marvel at the normality of a road trip, but Shaggy could tell from the atmosphere crackling inside the Mystery Machine that it unnerved his friends. Fred’s characteristically bright, upbeat personality dimmed like a dying light bulb once he realized he wouldn’t be able to utilize his newest sophisticated trap, which Shaggy thought sounded complicated as always, as it involved multiple nets, a hammer, a parachute, a rope, and most baffling of all, a rubber duck. Daphne’s usual energy resonated at a lower frequency, as she was much less talkative and chatty than usual, but Shaggy couldn’t help but wonder if it was partially because Daphne was like the moon to Fred’s sun; she reflected back his light, and since his was reduced, she was consequently darker, too. Meanwhile, Velma became quieter and quieter as the van hurtled closer and closer towards the university; she began the trip by excitedly rattling off interesting facts about the school that she read online, but her contributions to any conversations – and any facts regarding Miskatonic University – gradually became fewer and fewer, swiveling down the drain like water. Although Velma never vocalized it, Shaggy’s intuition told him the reason Velma was more subdued than anyone else had just as much to do with missing Marcie as it did with the lack of mysteries. There were multiple times every day when Shaggy caught Velma checking her phone, blinking at her screen for several moments as though she was willing a message to pop onto her screen, but after a minute she would groan softly as she slid her phone back into her pocket. Out of the entire group, Velma had undoubtedly given up the most when they decided to leave Crystal Cove, and Shaggy’s heart panged in sympathy for his friend.
Meanwhile, Scooby seemed most well-adjusted to this new timeline. When he wasn’t playing video games with Shaggy or indulging in some of the delicious food Mystery Incorporated ate at various restaurants scattered along the way, Scooby slept fitfully beside Shaggy in the backseat of the Mystery Machine; it was clear he thoroughly enjoyed a less fast-paced lifestyle, and that he relished the uneventful hotel stays that didn’t end in unmasking a villain in a mask and the cheap, greasy diners that lacked a backstory about a ghost haunting the kitchen; quite frankly, Shaggy understood this because he could relate to this, as well, which wasn’t a shock since he and Scooby were always on the same wavelength about everything. However, Scooby did reveal a different layer of inner turmoil when he illustrated that he did not escape their Nibiru timeline experiences unscathed; occasionally, the Great Dane would twitch wildly in his sleep as he murmured and growled aggressively, and one time he even writhed on the ground and howled while he slept, which forced Fred to pull the van onto the side of the road as everyone gently woke Scooby from his nightmare. Scooby was understandably embarrassed when this happened, but he had no reason to worry; every single member of the gang dealt with the same collective nightmare every so often, even if none of them ever admitted it to their friends.”
Annnnnd I tag @spongeaddict @scoobysurfers @thequeenxofhearts @complikated1 :)
