sonderling || mystery incorporated

002 THE CREEPING CREATURES

The gang were lounging about in the Jones Mansion, Fred working on a trap while everyone else was seconds away from sleeping. Daphne sat on the edge of the couch, flipping from magazine to magazine, occasionally showing a page or two to Lydia, who sat on the ground by her feet, leaning her head against Daphne's leg. On the opposite side of the couch, Shaggy was seconds away from sleep, while Scooby-Doo rested his head in Shaggy's lap, also drifting off to sleep. Velma sat on a chair, head resting on her chin while she closed her eyes. "Ugh, I am so bored!!" Velma finally broke the silence, standing up to stretch, "We haven't had a good mystery in... I don't know when!!"

As she complains, Shaggy's head drops a bit, finally asleep with his canine best friend right behind him. Lydia opened her pink eye to spare a glance at Velma, then she made an attempt to stand up, stretching her arms above her head.

"Fred, I think I've read every magazine in your house..." Daphne sighed, tossing the last magazine onto the coffee table, then paused, something catching her eye, "What's that?" She pulled a magazine out from between the couch cushions. Fred finally noticed, shouting a 'no' while diving over the couch to try and grab the magazine, taking Lydia down and over the coffee table with him. The commotion was enough to wake up Shaggy and Scooby, jolting awake.

"Traps Illustrated? Freddie!!" Daphne spoke in a low, disappointed tone as Fred stood up, leaving Lydia on the ground, grumbling. He glanced from Lydia to Daphne, then back to Lydia, helping her up before snatching the magazine from Daphne, face red. "I- I read it for the articles. In fact, it's where I got the idea for this beauty!" He motioned to the front door where an intricate trap was set up.

Velma sighed, glancing at the front door, "Who do you expect to trap at your front door?" She asked as Lydia took the seat Daphne got up from, "Girl Scouts." She hummed, "Stop them from making us feel bad for saying no." Shaggy sat up a bit and Scooby raised his head, both staring at her with surprise, "You say no to them?" Shaggy asked just as the doorbell went off.

"Let's find out!" Fred spoke giddily, moving to the front door with the gang following behind him as he opened the door. On the other side, the mailman was hanging upside down holding a package. He didn't seem very bothered by the situation. "I got a delivery for, uh, Fred Jones?" The said blonde grinned, "Hey, that's me!" And he took the package and shut the door. He passed the crank for the trap, flicking it the other way and letting the mailman go with a loud yelp and a bang. The rest of the gang glanced at each other briefly before surrounding Fred at a chair.

Scooby-Doo sat down beside Fred on the left side, "What is it?" He asked, Daphne sitting on the arm of the chair to Fred's right. Shaggy and Lydia moved to stand behind them, Lydia throwing her arm to rest on his shoulder. "Like, um, I think it's a box." He answered, earning a few unamused looks from everyone, though Lydia smiled in amusement while rolling her eyes. Fred opened the box and Velma took the card from the top, gasping to herself before showing everyone else the familiar call sign.

"It's from Mr. E!" She said before reading off the card, "'Save this for a rainy day, enjoy.'" Daphne shivered a bit, shaking her head, "Mr. E gives me the creeps." She commented before Fred dug through the box, "Fred, careful! It could be a bomb!" Then he took out an alligator skin purse, Daphne immediately reaching for it with grabby hands, "Scratch that, cute purse!"

Fred pulled it out of her reach, reading the label on it, "100% pure gator, made in Gatorsburg?" Lydia leaned forward, grabbing it, "Gatorsburg?" She asked, glancing over to Velma, asking her to explain. "Gatorsburg was founded in the 1800's when a group of prospectors searching for gold found something much more valuable. Alligator! Gatorsburg had more alligators than anywhere in the world! Overnight Gatorsburg became a boomtown. The town became famous for its gator skinned products! Then the gator wells ran dry, Gatorsburg became a ghost town." Velma informed the gang, clearly happy to explain something, smiling proudly.