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alphashley14 · 1 year

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One Of Us

A Scooby Doo: Mystery Incorporated/Mystery Skulls Crossover

Chapter Eight

555

“Lewis! Calm down!” Vivi snapped.

“Calm down? Calm down? Vivi, there’s no way we can let Arthur go through with this!” Lewis roared.

“Like, dude,” Shaggy said with a bit of caution, “I know that you’re like, worried about Arthur. But like, it isn’t up to you.”

“The hell it isn’t!” Lewis snapped. He paced anxiously, running his fingers over and through his hair as he struggled to maintain his mortal illusion through his emotions. “Arthur, you idiot! Why would you offer to do such a thing? He could be seriously hurt, or killed! And without us to protect him-”

“I told him the same thing.” Ricky said, wringing his hands. “I tried to talk him out of it. I swear I did. I made it clear what the risks were, I offered alternatives. But he was very insistent and all I could do in the end was tell him everything he wanted and needed to know to get it done.”

“And why should we believe you? ” Lewis rounded on him. “It’s your mess Arthur’s caught in. You’re probably glad he’s stuck dealing with it for you!”

“Like, hey! Uncool, man!” Shaggy said. Ricky looked over at him bewildered that he was being stood up for. “Like, I get it. You’re upset about the situation and worried about Arthur. But like, I was there, man. And that’s like, totally not how it went down! Mr. E’s telling the truth. About like, everything. Arthur confirmed it. Which is why he wanted to do this.”

“I don’t know about this Shag,” said Fred. “Mr. E’s lied to us a lot in the past.”

“Yeah Shaggy,” Daphne agreed. “Mr. E gives me the creeps- uh… no offense?”

“Some taken.”

“And anyway, how do we know we can trust him this time?”

“Like, um…?” Shaggy glanced over at Mr. E and rubbed the back of his neck. “Things got like… pretty deep while we were in the Sitting Room. I don’t think it’s my place to say all that was said but like, he’s earned my trust. And Arthur’s- And like, Angel had some faith left in him, too. Right to the very end. And like, we all know we should have trusted her! So like… can’t that be enough?”

“You don’t have to hold information back on my account Shaggy,” Ricky mumbled, swallowing to chase away the feeling rising from the back of his throat at the mention of Cassidy. And that she’d had faith in him. “It’s not like I’ve earned it.”

“Hey man. Like, you opened up a lot back there. This isn’t an ‘about you’ thing more as a ‘having basic respect for other people’ thing.”

Even so, it was pathetic how touched Ricky was by the gesture. “Even so,” he gulped, “There’s nothing I told you back there that I don’t want the specific people here at this moment to know.”

“Thank you for that. And I’m sure we’ll have a discussion about that in the near future. But not here and now. Our focus right now needs to be on Arthur.” Said Mystery.

“Mystery is right,” Vivi agreed. “We may not like it, but if Arthur’s decided to do this, then as his friends all we can do is support him from the sidelines.”

“You’re seriously agreeing to this? Vivi-”

“It’s non-negotiable, Lewis.” Vivi interrupted her boyfriend. “However, you do have a point that doubt is warranted.”

“He knew you’d have doubts.” Ricky said. “He told us: ‘he wanted to be brave like Galahad-’ sorry- ‘ Gala-ham ’.”

The Mystery Skulls looked at each other.

“I didn’t mention Galahad to anyone. Did you?” Lewis asked.

“Nope. What about you?”

“I did not.”

“Then this confirms it. They’re telling the truth. They really did talk to Arthur.”

“Wait. Time out. Sorry, am I missing something? Who or what is Galaham?” Velma asked, hands on her hips.

“Arthur’s handicapped hamster.” Lewis explained. “He travels with us sometimes, but he’s back home with Arthur’s Uncle right now. There’s no reason either Ricky or Shaggy should know he exists unless-”

“Oh, come on! This is ridiculous and has gone on long enough!” Velma cried. As hard as she was denying it, Velma was seriously beginning to freak out. Body swapping? Interdimensional beings? Parallel Universes? If it was true then it would change everything she’d ever known about the world, and her knowledge was how she kept her reality grounded. To have it ripped out from under her feet in such a way would be… devastating.

So what could she do but deny it harder?

“Seriously, Velma? I think we’ve all established that what we’re dealing with is the real deal.” Said Fred, exasperated.

“Oh, please ! There are so many holes in this story and so many ways this all could have been faked that it’s not even funny.”

“There’s a skeptic in every family,” Mystery grumbled, rolling his eyes from where he laid in the open back of Arthur’s van.

“Name them.” Ricky challenged.

“Name what?” Velma asked.

“Name the holes. Because it’s clear to me Velma, that you might be one of the smartest people here, but you’re going to be of absolutely no help until you’re on board.”

“Alright. Fine. To start, Shaggy, it’s impossible to prove that you’re actually Mr. E. A good actor could easily pull off acting like another person.”

“Like that’s easy to explain: I can’t act.” Shaggy laughed in Arthur’s body. There were nods of agreement from Fred, Daphne, and Scooby as well.

“Even so, you could easily have gotten everyone else in on this as part of some elaborate conspiracy or prank that I can only assume that I’m the target of!”

“Velma, we’re not pranking you,” Daphne said.

“There is no conspiracy,” Said Vivi.

“Nope,” Lewis nodded.

“We’re really not,” Fred shrugged.

“It’s not a prank. That’s not Raggy, so it must be Mr. E.” Scooby said.

“Of course you would all deny it!” Velma shouted. As ridiculous as she was being, Ricky couldn’t help but feel sorry for her. She was so frustrated that everyone could see tears in the corners of her eyes.

Ricky took a deep breath. “I understand that this is a difficult thing to definitively prove for you Velma,” he said, “But what we’ve been telling you is the truth. So. What can we say or do to make you believe it?”

“Just- prove it . Prove that you’re really Mr. E!”

“Very well. Ask me a question. Any question. Something Shaggy wouldn’t be able to guess or make up an answer to.”

Velma thought for a moment.

“Shaggy- ‘Mr. E’ , if that’s who you’re supposed to be - you keep saying that you regret your decisions. That you’re on our side now, and that you never should have left it. So answer me this: what changed? And don’t just give me the enslavement story, because there’s presently no way to prove that . Even if it were true, there would still have to be more to it than that. If you’re so remorseful, then why did you agree to partner up with Professor Pericles again in the first place, when you knew what he was really like and what he was willing to do?”

Ricky knew he had to answer… but he really didn’t want to. “Um… wow. There are… a lot of layers to that question.” He finally got out, fidgeting. Ricky crossed his arms to stop himself from messing with his hands too much, and he felt himself involuntarily shrink a bit. Where should he even start with this one? “First off, everyone. I want to make it clear that I’m not making excuses. At least I’m not trying to. I’m… attempting to explain my behavior. It’s a long story, and this isn’t exactly a conversation I thought I would be having or a box I thought I would be opening today, so there are some things I might struggle to put into words and-” Ricky’s nervous rambling was cut off by a small body nuzzling against his calf.

“There’s no pressure. It’s a very personal question,” Mystery looked up at him through gold spectacles. The dog gave him a nudge, then jumped back into the Mystery Skulls’ van and sat down on the edge, indicating for Ricky to sit beside him. “Just take your time.”

Ricky followed Mystery and fell back to sit inside the open van. Then he took a few deep breaths, avoiding the expectant gazes of the others, and began. “I guess the first part of my explanation goes back to my youth, as cliche as that might sound. My family was close when I was young, but then my Mother got sick. Cancer. Stage three. And we all… drifted apart. She tried to be a good mom even while fighting for her life, but eventually she ended up in the hospital and never left. And my father was so hellbent on her that he ignored me. Even after she died when I was fourteen, I think… Either I reminded him too much of her, or maybe he felt guilty for not being there for me when she was still with us. But we were never close again. It was a lonely time for me, and that’s when I met Professor Pericles. I was eight, playing in my front yard, and he crash-landed right in front of me with a broken wing. I nursed him back to health, but when he got better he just… stayed.

“I know your only frame of reference for imagining our relationship is by comparing us to Shaggy and Scooby, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. You two are mentally about the same age, so you’re such close friends that you’re practically brothers. But Pericles was decades older than me. Hell, he was older than my parents. And mine weren’t around. So Pericles practically raised me. He was my best friend and my surrogate parent all at once. Given such, he… knows me. I know it’s pathetic but… he’s- just-”

“Manipulative.” Mystery growled helpfully.

Ricky groaned and ran a hand over his face. “... Yes. Which… brings me to the next part of my explanation.” Ricky had to look away for a second, rubbing the back of his neck and anxiously tapping his heel as he searched for words. “I… I don’t do well on my own. Never have. As much of my life as I’ve spent pushing people away, the truth is I hate it. After my frien- after Brad, Judy, Cassidy, and I left Crystal Cove twenty years ago, we stayed together for… all of two days.”

Mystery Incorporated’s interest was immediately peaked. They had solved the mystery of their predecessors long ago, but they’d never heard a thing about what had happened after the original Mystery Inc. had disappeared.

“We drove for an entire day when we fled Crystal Cove, getting as far away as we could. Then we rented a cheap motel room and hid the Enigma Engine. At the time all of us were just- reeling. We’d just lost everything apart from the van, each other, and the clothes on our backs. We were angry, hurt, scared, confused, and none of us had any idea what our next steps were. Then when Cassidy and I woke up the next morning, Brad and Judy had ditched us. For the first few years, it was just Cassidy and I. Then… I guess life happened,” he sighed.

“We each had our own bullshit- okay, no. It was mostly me. Pericles’ betrayal… It really messed me up and affected all of my relationships going forward. And not in a good way. Because if he could betray me, then in my mind anyone could. And eventually, it pulled Cassidy and I apart. I had a few girlfriends after her, but I didn’t- couldn’t love any of them. Because truth be told, I never stopped loving her. I just- one of my biggest regrets is not making sure she knew that when I had the chance. Anyway, I tried to move on. To make other relationships work, but I was in love with someone else and so afraid of being betrayed or abandoned again that none of them went anywhere. So eventually I gave up, leaving the only relationships I had left work-related.

“After I founded Destroido, I had a string of PAs until Ed finally stuck. He was there through… some hard times for me. He was my employee, yes. But he was also a friend. And the only person apart from the original group whom I ever told my true identity. Eventually, I worked up the courage to move back to Crystal Cove and built my main facility here. Once I knew it was safe and my cover was good enough that the Freak wasn’t coming after me, I reached out to Cassidy. Then she moved here and we started working together again, so for a while I had her and Ed… and you kids, if I’m being honest with myself.”

God, this was so humiliating to admit. Ricky ran a hand over his face. “Looking back, I regret not reaching out to you in person. I know this is going to sound stupid but…”

Ricky thought back to the dark times he’d put himself through, before them. All the pills he’d had to take just to get out of bed in the morning, the constant temptation of the bottle, the eating, and the suicidal thoughts. Then one day, on the cameras he’d taken to monitoring in lieu of going out and actually interacting with people, he’d seen them. Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby. And they had looked so much like- that for just a moment, it was like he was a meddling kid, again. For a while after that, he observed. Updated and upgraded his cameras, and had more installed. He saw mystery unfolding in the town below, and he watched with glee and pride as his successors solved them one by one. Until one day, the temptation became too much.

And ‘Mr. E’ sent Mystery Incorporated his first clue.

Within a month, he didn’t need the pills anymore.

“Helping you kids with those early mysteries was one of the greatest honors and pleasures of my life,” he admitted solemnly. “I won’t go into it, but I was in a very dark place back then. And if I hadn’t worked up the courage to start sending you those clues… I might have never gotten out of it.”

He looked up at them at last. Mystery Incorporated looked very taken aback. Even Velma, in all her skepticism, looked… honored? And the Mystery Skulls, just as Arthur had, looked as though they understood.

“Anyway,” he cleared his throat, “You all know how it was. At least for a while. Then… I ruined it. I think it started when you found your first piece of the planispheric disk. And I started to think about that damn treasure, again. But I think the nail in the coffin started when Pericles got out. I was so angry and also so terrified when he escaped. It brought back so much that I’d finally managed to lock away, and I couldn’t force it back in the box. From that moment on, it wasn’t about you and your mysteries, anymore. You were pieces on the table in my war against him.

“Then everything really started to unravel after Ed was murdered. At the time, no one knew who’d done it. I only realized recently that it was Pericles. Even that far back, he was trying to get me isolated and desperate, because he knew exactly how to get what he wanted from me.

“And because I had abused the trust you kids had in me, you stopped trusting me too. Then not long after that, Cassidy and I had another falling out. Over you kids, actually. From the start, I had kept my distance. I thought it would be better that way. But Cassidy was never the coward I was. She met you, became your friend, and cared about you. And she wouldn’t have any part of it. So then, for a while after your gang split up, I had you and Marcie, Velma. Until… I didn’t. And it was my fault because I should have treated you better. Having the two of you agree to work with me was a privilege, and I abused it.” Ricky shook his head at his past self and scoffed, “Then I had the audacity to approach you, again-”

Velma looked up sharply. “Say that again.”

“I approached you again and asked for a partnership. With you, if not all of Mystery Inc. Outside the ice cream shop. Remember?”

“What’s he talking about, Velma?” Daphne asked.

But Velma didn’t answer. She was looking at Shaggy- Mr. E with opened eyes. Oh my God. “No one- I never told the gang about that. No one knows except… Jinkies! You’re not Shaggy!” She blurted out.

“Told ya,” Vivi, Lewis, and Mystery said at once.

Ricky looked up at the sky and put his hands together in a mock prayer, “Praise the heavens above, she finally gets it.”

“Seriously, Velm? Out of everything he just said, that’s what convinces you?” Fred exclaimed.

“Like, we’ve been trying to tell you that all day.” Shaggy laughed from Arthur’s body.

“So y-you’re really- Mr. E!” Velma cried, “But you can’t be, and you have to be Shaggy, because body-swapping can not happen ! There can’t be inter-dimensional beings or curses because magic isn’t- can’t be real! But it is, so it has to be, and that doesn’t make sense. I need it to make sense!”

Velma started to hyperventilate. “Everything I know is wrong! Science is useless! So I’M useless! My life is a lie-”

“Velma! Velma! Velma, sweetie! Calm down!” Vivi said, placing a hand on her counterpart’s shoulder. “You’re not wrong or useless and neither is science- oh crap. How did Arthur always put it?”

“What are the three primary colors?” Mystery asked, hopping down from his seat next to Ricky to lean against Velma.

“Colors?” Velma cried, hysterical. “The universe is falling apart, and you two want to talk about colors ?”

“I can assure you, the universe is not falling apart.” The little dog chuckled. “It is exactly as it has always been. Now, humor us. What are the three primary colors?”

“Well, that depends.” Velma said, straightening her glasses from where they’d gone askew on her face. “Light or pigment?”

Mystery laughed, eyes twinkling behind his spectacles. “Both. More artistic people would reply red, blue, and yellow. The sciency sort would say red, blue, and green. Mix all pigments together, you get black. Mix all light together, you get white. They are different, sometimes even opposite. And yet both are valid.”

“What’s your point?” Velma sniffed.

“That magic is real;” said Mystery, sounding every bit his true age at that moment. “It’s a part of this world, and always has been. It’s older than you and I, older than the curse on this town, older than the beast behind it or the others of its creed. And it will continue to exist until long after the Andromeda galaxy collides with our Milky Way in about three or four billion years. It doesn’t follow any rules you know, but that’s not to say it isn’t lawless. Just as math is different from art, yet at times intertwined with it, similar is the relationship between magic and science. Its existence does not negate the science and logic you know. It just means that the way the two coexist isn’t fully understood, yet.”

Velma looked pensive for a moment, before the shame became apparent on her face. “You must all think I’m such an idiot,” she said, “The rest of you knew almost immediately that you two weren’t who you appeared to be. Oh, Shaggy. I’m so sorry!” She exclaimed, rushing over to give Shaggy a hug.

“Like it’s alright, Velma. You didn’t know.”

“That’s no excuse! You were so scared, and you needed your friends more than ever. And I wasn’t there when you needed me! And you!” She stormed over to Ricky and grabbed him by Shaggy’s green shirt. “I know you’re denying involvement and I heard about the Sitting Room with everyone else, but if I find out you had anything to do with this, they’ll never find your body, Ricky Owens!”

“As you should.” Ricky said defensively, nodding profusely.

Velma let him go, and he fell back on his butt in the van. “Still,” she said, hands on her hips. “For the record, if Professor Pericles really has weaponized cobra venom, and if he really is using it to hurt you as you said… then I’m sorry. Even after everything that’s happened between us, and everything you’ve done… you don’t deserve that.”

Now it was Ricky’s turn to be taken aback.

“Now, assuming the latter is the truth,” Velma said, “what can we do to help Arthur?”

“Like, he has a plan,” Shaggy said. “Mostly, he wants us to leave it to him. But there are a couple things he asked for specifically.”

“The first and most important thing he said he wanted was…” Ricky made a face. “He wouldn’t tell us exactly what it is, but he said you guys would know. He needs to borrow a couple of… ‘deadbeats?’ From Lewis? Does that mean anything to you?”

Vivi and Mystery both turned to look at Lewis. “Yes,” he cleared his throat, “we’re all quite familiar with what a Dead Beat is.”

“Well, what is it?” Asked Daphne.

“One of the ‘secrets’ Arthur mentioned,” Lewis explained, folding his hands behind his back, “and not a conversation to be had here. Just know that I’ve got it covered.”

And indeed, at that very moment, so discreetly that none save Vivi and Mystery noticed, three orbs, aglow with pink light, appeared in Lewis’ hand behind his back.

“You know, you guys are still withholding a lot considering that you swore to be more upfront from now on.” Velma said cynically. Behind Lewis’ back, the three Dead Beats bounded from his palm and raced down the hillside, bound for Destroido to fulfill their Master’s silent order, swerving to and fro like serpents rushing through blackened underbrush.

“The secret we’re keeping is… a big one. I don’t know what to say other than that,” said Vivi. One of the Dead Beats paused and looked back, causing the one behind it to bump into it.

“It’s a cryptic answer, but that’s about right,” Mystery shrugged. “What we’re hiding is huge, hard to believe, and connects to a lot of other things. It is, in essence, the true nature of the Mystery Skulls.”

The two Dead Beats stopped momentarily to fuss at each other, before the third reappeared from the front and roared quietly at the two of them, pointing ahead with a nubby arm. Then the three were winding down the hill towards the toxic fortress once again.

“It’s a lot to unpack.”

“Whole other box of worms.”

“This is not the time nor the place.”

“You’re just gonna have to trust us.”

“Back to Arthur. Did he have any other directions?”

“He said he wanted to talk to Lewis directly about the final stage of his plan. But like, I don’t know how you’re supposed to do that.”

“Like, he also said he wanted us to keep an eye out for Hot Dog Water,” Shaggy said.

“Marcie?” Velma perked up.

Mr. E nodded. “Marcie’s only still working with- ‘me’ and the others because she’s being blackmailed. She works with me, she stays out of jail- I know, I know! Don’t look at me like that! The point is, that this works in our- or rather, Arthur’s favor right now, because she’ll be trustworthy and willing to betray Pericles at the drop of a hat. It’s not like she hasn’t done it before.”

The three dead beats were cautious to not be seen as they approached Destroido. They swerved under and between cars as they crossed the parking lot.

“Of course! Hot Dog Water can help him from the inside!” Fred said.

“And knowing how much she has in common with Velma, she’ll probably want to confirm the body-swap for herself. Which will send her looking for us,” said Ricky, pointing between himself and Shaggy.

“And like, if he has more instructions for us, then he’ll probably send them through her,” Shaggy added.

“Apart from that, he just wanted us to stay together.”

At the bottom of the hill, the Dead Beats came around the side of the building and split up, searching in serpentine patterns for a way in where they could avoid being seen.

“Like, don’t forget the other thing. He seemed pretty insistent about it.”

Ricky sighed, “He also said that I should talk to Lewis and Mystery… about some things.” Ricky said nervously.

Mystery tilted his head. “About what?” Mystery asked.

At the bottom of the hill, one of the dead beats found an air vent. Too small for any human, covered in stainless steel mesh too strong and fine for any device. But not too fine for the Dead Beats - manifestations of energy with no solid body to keep out by such mortal means. With a howl, the tiny creature called for the others.

“Nothing important. Personal matters.” Ricky said quickly. He cleared his throat. “We shouldn’t stay here any longer. We’ve been here way too long as it is. The longer we stay, the higher the chances that Destroido detects we’re here. And if that happens, it could put Arthur in a very precarious position. Which is saying something, because his position is already precarious enough.”

Lewis tensed anxiously. “He’s right Lew,” Vivi said soothingly, hooking her arm with his. “I hate to leave Arthur like this just as much as you, but trusting him is probably the best thing we can do for him.”

Down below, the three Dead Beats, one after another, passed through the mesh as easily as air, slipped into the vent, and entered the dark labyrinth to look for Arthur.

Lewis released a long breath. “You’re right. Let’s just- get everyone back to the mansion. We have plenty of rooms, and it’s well-protected and hidden from Destroido’s sight. Is that alright with you all?”

“You guys are staying at a mansion?” Fred exclaimed, surprised.

“Correction: we have a mansion. Or rather, Lewis does,” Mystery corrected.

“Here in Crystal Cove?” Daphne asked.

“Yep. And we’ll lead you there,” Lewis said. “Just follow us. Same seating arrangements as before.”

“When we get there, we’ll scour our tomes for any information that may be useful. And the materials we took from the Burlington Library - we still haven’t had time to look through all of those. And Velma, it would be helpful if you could check your mother’s collection. As well as the Crystal Cove Library and the library at Darrow University. It’s a longshot, but you never know. And I think I’ll contact our network to see if they know anything. And to give them a heads up about Nibiru.”

“Your network?” Scooby asked with a tilt of his head.

“We’re far from the only supernaturally inclined people in the world,” Vivi said excitedly. “Over the years we’ve collected contacts of others with experience in the paranormal.” She counted off on her fingers, “The Addams Family in New Jersey, Sabrina in Greendale, Lydia and Bee- BJ in Peaceful Pines... There are a couple others. And they’re invaluable sources of information.”

“And sometimes backup,” Lewis added.

“Though,” said Mystery with a pinch of smugness, “we seldom need it.”

“Then this evening,” Vivi said, “seeing as we will all be staying together until we see this through, we’ll have dinner. Which will be a real treat. Lewis’ food is amazing.”

“Vivi…” the ghost blushed.

“Like, oh boy! If it’s half as good as breakfast was, then like, count me in!” Shaggy said, already starting to drool.

“Oh boy!” Scooby licked his lips.

“Then after dinner, we’ll come clean.” Mystery interrupted. “Given today’s revelations, I think it’s best that you all have a few hours to process and brace yourselves before a whole new bomb explodes in your faces.”

“There is however, something you all need to be made aware of before we arrive at the manor,” Lewis said sheepishly.

“What’s that?” Fred asked.

The Mystery Skulls looked at each other.

“Well…”

“It’s kinda-”

“Sorta-”

“A little-”

“ Extremely-”

“Haunted.”

At this point, ‘Zoinks’, ‘Jeepers’, and ‘Jinkies’ did not begin to cover it.

༻˚⁺･⚉｡○✼༓☾⦾♫෴♡💛♡෴♫⦾☽༓✼○｡⚉･⁺˚༺

Within the labyrinth that was Destroido Corp, Marcie Fleach sat in her room, stared at her computer, and tried to quell her rising panic.

Mr. E had sent her an email. Asking to meet with her in a very particular hallway.

Not just any hallway.

The hallway where, near the ceiling, there was concealed a small camera that Marcie had installed for Velma in secret some weeks ago.

It was too specific to be a coincidence.

But Mr. E couldn’t possibly know. How could he? She’d been so careful . She’d worn stealth tech while installing it! She’d literally been invisible.

If he didn’t know, and it was a coincidence or a test, then Marcie’s only hope was to play dumb.

But if he did know… then this was bad. Like, really bad. He’d given her so many chances, and she’d betrayed him so many times. And Pericles had been acting so much more deranged lately. If they found out she’d betrayed them again… they might just kill her this time.

But.

Something was off.

First of all, Mr. E had sent her an email. Usually, he called or sent someone to fetch her directly when he had an assignment for her or wanted to see her.

Second of all, in said email, Mr. E just… did not sound like himself. Something about his wording was just way too… polite? Mr. E didn’t ask Marcie to do things. He gave orders. But this didn’t read like an order. More like an urgent request.

Third of all… there was the link. At the bottom of the email, Mr. E left her a link. When she clicked on it, it took her to a video on a website called MysterySkullsBand.com. The Mystery Skulls were, according to the website, an indie pop/electronica band. And if she wasn’t mistaken, this was the group who had defeated Rude Boy not too far back. To her knowledge, they were still in Crystal Cove. Then when Marcie clicked on the video, it showed her one of their performances from about a year ago of a song called 555.

It started with special effects. Thick pink, blue, and orange smoke that cleared to reveal the band’s members. The song began with a girl in blue on the electric guitar, and a young man in orange on the synthesizer. Then in the center of the group, the band’s vocalist, dressed in pink, began to sing.

"Yeah.

So please don't look into my eyes.

You might just see the other side.

There lie some secrets deep in mine.

Can't you pretend it's all okay?

"But I know it's not what you wanted.

And you just wrote this, fucking bought it.

It's like I haven't got a clue, and-

Yes, things just might be strange

Keep pretendin' it's okay!

"And my mind keeps on changin',

I've gone blind, I can't see it through!.

And my minds fully fadin',

And I know this might seem strange

Keep pretending it's okay!

"You're probably right to think I lied.

There's something 'bout it, but I tried.

And we can't pretend it's all okay.

What a nightmare love becomes,

When the way up fills your lungs, hoooh!

"And I'm tryin' to leave you, let you choose it.

Cause you were right, I'm a bit confusing!

I'm driving fast, heartbeat's improvin'.

But the way out's just the same,

Keep pretendin' it's okay!

"And my mind keeps on changin',

I've gone blind, I can't see it through!

And my minds fully fadin',

And I know this might seem strange

Keep pretending it's okay!"

Mr. E liked puzzles, she supposed. But after watching the video multiple times, Marcie… still had no idea what the point of it was. He said nothing about the link in the email (except the obvious - “PS: Watch this”), leaving the video and website itself as her only clue.

It was too deliberate to be random. She knew he was trying to tell her something, but didn’t know what. Was he planning to use the Mystery Skulls, somehow? Or was he suspicious of them? Or was there some sort of message in the lyrics or notes of the specific song he’d made her listen to? Because from the look of it, 555 was far from one of the group’s most popular songs. If he’d wanted to give her an idea about the group and their music in general, it would have made more sense if he’d made her watch one of their more popular songs, like Magic, Freaking Out, Money, or The Future.

The possibility prompted Marcie to listen to the song another couple of times.

She couldn’t discern anything from the notes. But then again, Mr. E was far more musical than she was. So maybe he’d taken something from it that she just couldn’t see. Which left her the title and lyrics.

555 was known as an angel number among the religiously minded. But Mr. E wasn’t religious (that she was aware of), and she was pretty sure it wasn’t relevant.

On to the lyrics. Was it a request to pretend everything was normal? “Yes, things just might be strange. Keep pretendin' it's okay!” Was a memorable line from the chorus that was repeated multiple times throughout the song. And there were similar lines in the other verses, too. If that was the case, then was there something going on she wasn’t aware of?

She couldn’t tell.

There were countless other lines in the lyrics that could also be a message. She checked the email and the song for some kind of cipher, but couldn’t discern one. And Mr. E knew her capabilities. He wouldn’t send her a cipher she couldn’t solve in an hour if that was the amount of time he gave to meet her. Which meant there probably wasn’t one.

One thing was for sure, it was very unlike Mr. E.

It was weird.

Too weird.

Weird enough that it prompted Marcie to trace the email back to its original sender just to make sure that it actually came from Mr. E.

Sure enough. It was sent from Mr. E’s account. Right from his personal computer at Destroido. The question was: did Mr. E, himself send it? Or could Pericles, one of Fred’s parents, or someone else have hacked his account?

Marcie couldn’t find out without hacking into Destroido’s security cameras and checking the footage that aligned with the timestamp of the message. But that, she didn’t dare do. They didn’t trust a hair on her head as it was. If they caught her hacking their security…

Unfortunately, all that left for Marcie to do was as the email asked. She had watched the video. Several times. Next, she still had about an hour to kill before she had to meet Mr. E, but in the meantime she had to wonder: what was Mr. E trying to tell her with that link. And if Mr. E didn’t send that email… then who did?

It took me forever to find a song that fit for this chapter, but then I listened to 555 for the first time and just sat back SHOOKETH. It's as if it was WRITTEN for the express purpose of being Arthur's hidden message to Marcie for this fic. Most of the song's lyrics fit with the context! I could literally make a whole post about it. (And maybe when I have the time to, I will!) And it's sadly true that 555 is extremely underrated. But I for one think you ought to give it a listen if you haven't heard it before, because it is a BANGER. - Or maybe it just tickles my neurodivergent brain just the right way. I can never tell. Lmao

Chapters One through Ten of 'One of Us' are presently posted on Archive of Our Own

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