Or maybe we found our thief. Maybe the best way to keep the stolen treasure safe is to be with it at all times. We open it and it's the guy that stole it, we pretty much have him cornered. We'll open it quietly, just in case that noise really is snoring. Imagine it, Shaggy. Catching a criminal while he's sleeping. Easiest case ever, right? No risk, no problem." he explained, calmly and collectively.
"Besides, the museum would be expecting the sarcophagus back anyway, so Fred's plan is as good as any. We just gotta keep quiet." Daphne said with a sigh. She did understand Shaggy's point. What if it was indeed a sleeping mummy? Or maybe a wild animal had found its way in there and any noise might piss it off. But there is the chance that some criminal would be dumb enough to think that he could just sleep inside it and get away with it later as long as it was hidden. This was the era of many an idiotic crime, after all… For one thing, the casket looked pretty small. Were they dealing with a teenager? A midget, maybe?
Velma knew where this was going, so she reached into a small pouch she had on her and withdrew a couple of Scooby Snacks. "You guys know how Fred is when he gets an idea. Will you help open the casket for a Scooby Snack?" she offered, a smile on her face as she saw the familiar, always amusing reactions of her foodie best friends.
"Alright, alright. Like, let's have 'em, Velma." Shaggy said, licking his lips in anticipation. Scooby made more of a show out of it by tying a bib around his neck, even though it was completely unnecessary for the little mouthful of homemade biscuit. The brainiac threw the little snacks at them, which the duo effortlessly caught with their mouths, an action they literally had years of practice. Almost immediately, their fears were abated, not completely annihilated as they never will be, but merely placed on the back burner, replaced by food-induced courage.
Carefully, Shaggy, Scooby, and Fred surrounded the ancient coffin, the girls looking on from behind them. Placing their hands under the lid, the trio looked to one another. "Alright, guys… On three, we slowly lift. Agreed?" Fred whispered.
"Like, is it one, two, lift or one, two, three, and then lift?" Shaggy asked, causing Fred to grumble to himself.
"Run… roo…. ree!" Scooby counted for the group. The trio carefully began pulling upward, unsure of how hard or easy the casket might be to open. The lid was surprisingly easy to open, time having been kinder to its functionality than some might think. Slowly, the lid was hefted off and gently placed on the ground. The sound from within was immediately more noticeable and easier to identify as snoring. The three casket-openers took a look at what was inside, the girls coming up from behind.
Inside was indeed a mummy, fast asleep without a care in the world. The fact that it was asleep was the only reason why Shaggy and Scooby's temporary courage hadn't fizzled out immediately. The mummy was clearly feminine, judging from the hint of curves, the bandage-made ponytail 'hairstyle' with a golden Egyptian ankh tied at the end of it, and the bandage skirt she wore around her waist. It was also clear that she wasn't very tall at all. To Shaggy and Scooby, now that they took a good look at her, something seemed oddly familiar about this mummy. But why…?
"Wow… An actual mummy…" Fred whispered in awe. It was rare that the group came across something supernatural that didn't immediately start getting dangerous on them. To see a mythological creature doing something as mundane as having a peaceful sleep… The blond didn't have long to ponder, however, as the night air seemed to get to the sarcophagus' occupant as she began to shiver and unconsciously reach up for the lid like a person in a bed might reach for a moved blanket. The trio pulled their heads back, thinking for a moment that she might be doing something retaliatory already. But they calmed down, watching as the raised hand continued to meet nothing but air, expecting the lid to be there.
Tanis' sleep was slowly disturbed by the chill of the night air. Consciousness began to come back to her as she found herself reaching up to make sure the sarcophagus' lid was firmly shut. But as she realized that the lid wasn't there, she suddenly became more alert. Opening her eyes, the first thing she saw was the night sky. Immediately, she sat up. "Wha?! Where's my—" her question to herself was cut off as she noticed that she was surrounded by people. "EEP!" she shrieked, panicking at the presence of strangers. Quickly fumbling around, she eventually found the ancient coffin's lid, somehow lassoed it with bandages from her wrists, and yanked it back over to her, shutting herself back in her coffin.
A muffled "Go away! Um, please…!" could be heard from inside. Throughout all this, the five merely stood and watched. They just saw a teenage mummy freak out over intruders… Again, Shaggy and Scooby's minds began bugging them about how familiar she seemed. Did they meet this mummy somewhere before.
As if driven by this strange sense of familiarity, Shaggy gently knocked on the sarcophagus. "Umm… Miss? Like, sorry we woke you up… Umm… We were looking for this sarcophagus, actually. The museum back in town hired us, like, because somebody took it from there and… umm…" Shaggy trailed off, unsure of how to continue.
"And you are… looking for thieves… yes?" the mummy concluded, her voice still muffled by the closed casket.
"That's right. Were you, like, sleeping in there this whole time?" Shaggy asked.
"No… Just for a few hours, I think… It's still night time… And you don't have to look for thieves… This is my sarcophagus… I've been looking for it for months and I just found it again… Please don't hurt me." The mummy said, beginning to sound scared at the prospect of humans making sure they get to keep what they stole…
"Wait… Like, whaddya mean 'just found it again'? Ya mean ya weren't, like, sleeping for years?" Shaggy asked.
"Reah. Rong sleep. Dirt rap. Rix reet under. Rest… in… reace!" Scooby hammed it up by listing off slang for being dead.
"Like, Scoob, cut it out, man." Shaggy scolded lightly.
"Rorry, Raggy." The dog apologized, followed by his trademark snicker.
The mummy then spoke. "You two sound… very familiar… Could you be…?" she trailed off.
"Familiar? Us? Heh, like, it's funny you say that, because when we got a look at you, I kinda think you looked familiar too. Not sure from where, though." Shaggy answered, causing the other three humans to look at Shaggy questioningly.
"Wait, you've met a talkative, nervous mummy before, Shaggy?" Daphne asked. Suddenly, the lid of the sarcophagus was thrown straight upward, landing harmlessly a short distance away. The mummy sat straight up and looked in Shaggy and Scooby's direction. Her eyes went wide with surprise and recognition before she then lunged at Shaggy, wrapping him up in a full-body hug.
"COACH SHAGGY! Thank Ra it's you! I've been so lost in this world and I just found my sarcophagus after so long and police are probably looking for me and I don't know where I am and I don't know how I'm going to carry my sarcophagus home and… and…!" With that, she broke down and cried as Shaggy, surprised and unsure of what to do, slowly returned the hug. Shaggy responded to the others' expressions with a shrug and a shake of the head, silently saying 'Hey, I'm not sure yet either'.
A couple minutes later, the mummy girl managed to calm down. Despite the style change, Shaggy and Scooby had managed to remember her upon her referring to Shaggy as Coach. They both mentally kicked themselves for not recognizing sweet little timid Tanis from good ol' Grimwood School. To be fair, she did have a bit of a growth spurt since they last saw her (although she was still fairly short at 4 feet, 3 inches) and she did change up her look. A sign of her growth seemed to be that some of her bandages didn't cover all of her anymore, ending up with spots of grey skin showing here and there. Was she doing her own bandage work these days? Eventually, she was calm enough to finally release her tight cling of a hug.
"Like, hi, Tanis." Shaggy greeted.
"Hi, Coach Shaggy… Um…" And here she thought she was doing better about her introverted tendencies… but here she was, ready to clam up and go hide again. But no, she couldn't do that. Not in front of her favorite human that she looked up to ever since his gym coach days. "Um, that was a way to run into each other again, huh…?" she asked as an ice-breaker, a nervous quiver in her voice.
"Yeah, I guess so. Heheh… So, that's your casket, huh? That looks really nice." Shaggy replied, keeping things friendly. Remembering how she was, he figured it'd be best to ease the shy almost-adult into conversation.
"Yeah… Daddy and Mummy made it for me after I learned to walk. It felt so big and roomy then, but we mummies grow into our blessed sarcophagi. I was born undersized, so… yeah, my sarcophagus is smaller than others… You remember how small I was back then, Coach…" Tanis timidly finished.
"Ahem, pardon my interruption, Miss… Tanis, was it? But I think your 'Coach' has some explaining to do." Daphne pointed out with a smirk on her face. She knew that this had to be a good story and, as someone who attempted to do the journalism gig a couple of times, she did love good stories.
"Ehehehe… Like, yeah, Daph's right… I should at least introduce you to my friends before they feel more like third wheels." Shaggy said, standing back up. "Tanis, I'd like you to meet Daphne Blake, Velma Dinkley, and Fred Jones. Like, it's ok to be shy, but don't worry. They're good people."
Tanis stared for half a minute, taking in the appearance of the three new humans while battling her own nerves. Finally… "Hello…" she spoke softly, a meek smile gracing her bandaged face.
"Hi there." Velma answered, reaching her hand out for a handshake. Tanis tilted her head slightly at the gesture before realizing what the brunette wanted and gently grabbed her hand.
"While I'm just as curious as Daphne is about how you know this girl, Shaggy, you think we should all get going and find somewhere warm to crash for the night?" Fred asked.
"Ah, yeah. Like, good point. I'll head back and get the Mystery Machine." Shaggy offered but Fred shook his head.
"Nah, Daph and I'll go get it. You keep her company, since she knows you, alright?" Fred countered.
"Right." Shaggy grinned.
Around 45 minutes had passed before the Mystery Machine finally pulled up, Tanis marveling at the design of it. The little group had been discussing little things when it arrived. Fred got out of the van and opened the back doors. "Alright, gang. Let's load up and roll out."
"Like, where, Fred? The museum? I dunno about you, but I don't think Tanis wants to give up her sarcophagus. Sounds to me like explorers stole it from her first." Shaggy pointed out, causing Tanis to instinctively cling to her resting place as her nervous demeanor got the better of her.
"We won't give it up, Shaggy. But they will be expecting something. We'll figure it out in the morning. But it's getting late and we'd like an explanation sometime. 'Coach'." Fred retorted as he walked over to the coffin. As a group, Mystery Inc carefully loaded the sarcophagus into the van, with Tanis awkwardly supervising, needlessly worrying that they might crack it or something. Afterward, they started the drive back to town.
"Ok, story time, Shaggy. How on Earth did you meet a mummy without running away?" Daphne asked, barely keeping herself from giggling as she watched the timid little late-teenager cling to Shaggy like he was a teddy bear or something similar.
"Alright, like, during that time where Scoob and I took Scrappy and went out on our own, we had a few… adventures out there. Guess I turned out to be the magnet for trouble, eh? Well… One time, we were runnin' low on cash so we figured it was time to get a job somewhere. Better than us not having food, like, right? So we noticed there was a job opening for a gym teacher at an all-girls school and we figured…. What? Like, what's wrong?" Shaggy stopped his story after noticing Daphne having an unamused look on her face.
"Why would you think it was acceptable for a guy to teach at an all-GIRLS school? Weren't they worried about the potential of sexual predators or something?" Daphne asked.
"Uhh…. Well… They hired me, didn't they?" Shaggy countered lamely, completely unsure why the redhead was being this way.
"Reah. Ro roblems." Scooby seconded.
Daphne then smiled. "True point. And I was just pickin' on you, Shag. Of course, this took place before everybody seemed to get all up in arms over political correctness and who can be allowed in where and what-not." Daphne chuckled.
"That's another problem for another time, Daph. Please continue, Shaggy." Velma stepped in, nonplussed by Daphne's societal jab.
"Uh, alright, so we decided to take the job. I mean, we do keep in shape and we run a lot so we thought we could do the gym thing, easy." Shaggy continued. Tanis' giggling interrupted him this time.
"That was why you became our teacher? Oh my… You're not much of a long-term planner, are you?" Tanis was once again amused by the antics of her favorite human. To think that she had met him just because he figured the job went along with his natural abilities. Looking back, it was hard to pin him as a man who wanted to actually make a career out of teaching… On the other hand, his tendency to be scared of a lot of things around Grimwood's might have helped.
"Like, guess not. Especially since I didn't even do any research on the place beforehand. I thought the 'Ghouls' thing was a typo. Boy, was I ever wrong!" Shaggy chuckled as he remembered the first time his van came up to the front gate and noticed the sign that proclaimed what the place was.
"It was a school for monster girls?" Velma asked. "Guess you got to use your running skills after all."
"Like, ha-ha, Velma… Yeah, when I discovered the truth behind everything, well… uh… I'd rather not talk about it…" he trailed off.
"I know how you feel, Coach… It's not pleasant to admit to embarrassing things…" Tanis said, slightly tightening her grip on him as her way of showing support for what she perceived as his own timidity. "Don't worry. I won't say that you ran all over the school when you met us, one by one, screaming all the way…"
"Like, you just said it!" Shaggy yelped as Fred, Daphne, and Velma snickered, each of them trying to mentally picture the situation. Tanis, however, realized her mistake and had a look of horror upon her wrapped face.
"Oh no! I'm so sorry, Coach Shaggy! Please forgive me! I didn't mean to say that out loud…" The poor Egyptian looked like she was going to cry at any second. Startled by this, Shaggy immediately calmed down and put an arm around her to console her.
"Tanis, it's ok. Like, I'm not mad. Just… shocked, that's all. Things happen and, like, I'm kinda used to being the team goofball anyway." Shaggy said, gently patting her on the back in a 'there there' gesture.
"Team goofball…? You mean, you're always so funny?" Tanis asked in a hopeful manner. She didn't want to have her favorite coach talk down about himself. Not after he was such an inspiration to her and the rest of her classmates.
"Maybe if ya, like, mean that I always end up in some sort of problem. Heh… But I try not to get too down about my luck, man. I got great friends, a good life on the road, chances to have plenty of good food, and we're known in some areas as heroes, so if people find me falling down or something to be funny, then have a laugh, man. Just don't try and kill me… Like, I'm scared of that!" Shaggy chuckled.
"Wow… Rat's reep, Raggy." Scooby said.
"Huh… That's amazing, Coach Shaggy!" Tanis praised, impressed by her teacher's supposed wisdom. "You do know how to live. I wish I could say the same…" she then admitted, suddenly finding the floor of the van interesting.
"You mean… because you're undead?" Velma pondered.
Tanis sighed. "No… I didn't mean that literally. It's…. well… I've always been the shy one of the class. Then again, with how tiny I was, it's easy for people to just trip over me or run me over or something, so… I was nervous of getting in everybody's way… And of new people…. And of talking to people… Sometimes, of even just seeing people… It was half the reason I was sent to Ms. Grimwood's to begin with, so I could try to learn how to be social and meet new people. I'm definitely glad I went, of course. I did make a few friends there. Great friends. And I met Coach Shaggy and his funny dogs…"
"Rogs? Where?" Scooby asked, looking around.
"But even after I graduated, I'm still kinda… awkward. I mean, the only reason I've been traveling was because somebody stole my sarcophagus and I needed to track it down. I mean, how would you feel if somebody stole your bed and you really liked that bed? You'd try to look for it too, right? So… yeah… I left my tomb and went from town to town… Fortunately, I'd found some human things left behind by those that stole my sarcophagus. They had hieroglyphics on them, just like in my tomb. Although, I think you humans call those kind of hieroglyphics 'company logos' or something… So I took a piece with me and asked around about the logo…"
"On your own? What about your family?" Velma asked, growing concerned about a teenage girl wandering all by herself, even if she was an undead species that could probably take care of herself in dangerous situations.
"They were on vacation… Mummy said that she wanted to reenact hers and Daddy's honeymoon, sailing in the Dead Sea… I was supposed to watch the tomb and make sure nothing happened… It's rather fortunate that those thieves only took mine and not theirs too. Otherwise, I don't know how I'd be able to take all three all the way back to my pyramid… I'm only one mummy…"
"Like, zoinks! So how'd you find it anyway?" Shaggy asked.
"It was hard… Can you imagine how I felt when I was trying to build up the courage to ask a stranger something and then they just run away because of what I am? I… I had to pin some people down with my bandages… I felt so guilty after that… I didn't harm them, but they wouldn't believe me when I said I wouldn't hurt them… I'm not like some of those other mummies that curse mortals on sight…" Tanis pouted. Shaggy rubbed her back in a reassuring manner. Tanis slowly began to feel secure enough to release her clingy grip on Shaggy and have her own personal space back.
"But I eventually got my info on what group they are and where they are… So I went… It took time and effort but I found their hideout. I didn't mean to do it, but… I had to pretend like I was a mad mummy, out to curse… Good thing Daddy once taught me a few phrases that would be believable to mortals in case I ran into bad people but wouldn't do anything. At least, I hope they didn't do anything… Daddy was known to be a mischievous one… Oh my… But one of them gave up and told me where my sarcophagus was going. So, I snuck on an airplane…. and then another one after landing on the wrong side of America… and then another, after learning that planes are scheduled to go to specific places… and then a bus, full of people… I was so nervous… I was so far away from anybody I knew. I wasn't even near Ms. Grimwood's… But I made it! To that town, to that museum… And then, I… um…" she trailed off.
"You found a way to break in and steal your sarcophagus back." Velma finished for her.
Tanis nodded rapidly. "It was mine first…" she muttered quietly. Shaggy and Scooby both found the way she responded to be quite adorable, reminded of the tiny mummy that she previously was. She continued on. "Even through all that, I… don't think I'm much braver than I was before. Instead, I feel like I need to go on a vacation. Somewhere far away with no people… Or at least with just my friends. Sometimes, it feels like my bandages could come undone any minute."
Velma felt sorry for the little one. "Sounds like you're pretty stressed out. We'll help you get back home. Just leave things to us while you relax, ok?"
"Well… I guess that's ok. If you're friends of Coach Shaggy, then I should be fine here. So, um… where were we before? Oh, yes. Coach Shaggy arriving at our school. Um… Let's just say it was very clear that he misunderstood what kind of school this was. But once he calmed down and got used to things, he took to the job the best he could. Got us all moving around and keeping in shape in various different ways… I still remember that one time where…. Eep!" she suddenly cut herself off, a couple of bandages wrapping around her mouth to help her prevent what was about to be said. She didn't want to embarrass Shaggy any more than she already did. Still, it was funny how Shaggy and Scooby were in tutus that one particular gym class…
"You ok, Tanis?" Shaggy asked, concerned at her sudden behavior. She nodded as the excess bandages removed themselves from the lower half of her head.
"Yes, I'm fine. I was about to say another embarrassing memory of you and I didn't want to annoy you again… Um, moving on. I will say that, as he got used to us, Coach Shaggy actually treated us like fellow people instead of things to be afraid of. I admired that about him… I wish I could be like that with new people, just go up and try to make a friend without any worry or fear… Oh, here I am, talking in circles now. Coach Shaggy and Scooby were pretty silly as well, us girls getting a few good laughs from their mannerisms, especially with food. I've never seen anybody take to food the way they do. Um… How are you two still so thin?" she curiously asked, giving his stomach a tentative yet playful poke.
"Re runno." Scooby answered with a shrug as he took a bite out of a sandwich he procured from… somewhere.
"I'd guess, like, extremely high metabolism. All I know is that I really like food and I don't gain much weight. Like, pretty lucky, huh?" Shaggy chuckled. He wasn't one to question the quirks of the world he lived in, especially if it was one where he ended up benefitting from. Mostly because he was too laid-back to ponder why exactly it was he could eat as much as he does without consequence. Unless, of course, he was 'laid-back' (hint hint), but that was another story.
"Ah. Anyway, Shaggy even helped us get confident enough to participate in our school's annual volleyball competition against our rival school, an all-boys military school. We did not get along with those boys whatsoever… They'd keep picking on us throughout our time there, just because they're human and we're not… But with Shaggy's odd training and his inspiration, we managed to win that game. Good memories…" Tanis finished with a smile on her face. She deliberately left out any mention of a certain evil witch that had tried to brainwash her and her friends. No need to worry Shaggy's friends about any danger that he was in, even if that was well into the past now.
"Like, yeah, you girls were wonderful and I did end up having some fun over there. But… what happened after I left? Because… well…." Shaggy trailed off, remembering how he and Scooby ran out of there upon seeing the scarier new monsters that were to attend the next semester.
"Ah, yes, the next class of freshwomen… Ummm…. Things didn't go so well… You were right to run away, Shaggy. And no, I'm not saying that to embarrass you again. They were… scary…" Tanis got quiet as she remembered the disastrous class that she and her classmates shared the building with for a time.
Shaggy gulped. "How bad?"
"The alien girl seemed nice enough at first… Until she was found trying to alter our genetics to create more of her kind… It was fortunate that Elsa was the first one that alien tried to alter, as her artificial body was sorta immune to such attempts. Anything altered, she would just replace, as she is the Daughter of Frankenstein. All she needed was for her father to send a replacement part and it was like the alien didn't do anything. Ms. Grimwood expelled that alien after the third attempt, when she tried going after Sibella instead."
"New girl having a tough time fitting in is one thing. New girl making everyone else fit in to her way? That's a bit much." Fred said as the town came into visual range.
"Yeah… The lizard girl kept gnawing at everything. I had to get new bandages five times before she was finally dealt with and those aren't easy to come by. Winnie was sore for a while about her favorite bones having been chewed on by somebody that wasn't her." Tanis explained, recalling how the werewolf sanitized and even polished her favorite chewing bones.
"Oh boy… So, what happened to everyone anyway?" Shaggy asked, his curiosity getting to him.
"Well… Sibella ended up sticking around the school to become a teacher there. With Ms. Grimwood getting on in years, it was time for her to train a replacement. With her friendly nature, she'll sure be a wonderful teacher for the next generation of ghouls." Tanis beamed.
"A vampire heading a ghoul school. Like, sounds fitting." Shaggy observed.
"As for Winnie, she ended up finding a use for those pesky Calloway Cadets that bothered us so much… I would never have done such a thing, but I guess they do deserve it. Um… She ended up biting all of them…" Tanis said with a bit of hesitation.
"Biting them? What's wrong with that?" Daphne asked.
"Like, Winnie's a werewolf. You get bit by one, you turn into one." Shaggy explained.
"She then wasted no time in becoming the Alpha Female of her new pack. On the bright side, umm… I hear that she's gotten plenty of 'practice' with them for when she wants to have some cubs…" Tanis said with a red face.
"So they bullied you guys and end up getting laid in the end? Despite the werewolf curse, I don't think that's exactly much of a punishment." Fred commented. Naturally, Daphne rolled her eyes, muttering something about how guys find any predicament pleasant as long as sex is involved.
Tanis went on. "Phantasma tried to take her musical talents on the road, but even in the monster community, she wasn't well received. Most likely due to her tendency to sing way off-key. That's what happens when a ghost is born part-banshee, or so she says… Fortunately, she caught the attention of a guy who said he was a manager and claimed to see a lot of potential in her. Um… Unfortunately… well… He wasn't lying about his job or him wanting to make her famous, but… did you know that ghosts are popular for making monster porn because they're immune to all STDs? Zombies too, but that's only if you get ones that aren't too rotted out and, even rarer, still sentient…" She sounded a little embarrassed upon delving into the concept of adult films.
"Wait, so Phanty's a porn star? Didn't expect that one…" Shaggy replied, trying to picture the loony ghost swinging on a pole.
"Ghost porn? If she's transparent, you can totally see the 'ins and outs' of the action." Fred joked, chuckling to himself. The van was silent, save for the engine. Everybody looked at the driver like he had just farted. Even Tanis had to cast a wary glance at the blond man for his particular brand of humor. "C'mon, guys. Ins and outs? Get it…?" Still nothing, except for a cough from Scooby. "Jeez, tough van…"
"Anyways, Coach Shaggy, I wouldn't say that Phanty's a star just yet, but she's relatively successful so far and she seems to really like all her co-stars. Well, mainly the guys… If you get my meaning…" The mummy's face went red again. She recalled the latest letter she got from her ghostly friend, depicting how she somehow managed to talk several of her male co-stars into a harem relationship outside of work.
"At least she has that hyperactive energy of hers to keep up with all of that, I guess." Shaggy said, trying to accept that one of his students turned out to be a nymphomaniac who loved the camera. As long as she was safe, he'd be ok with it.
"Elsa decided to follow in her father's footsteps and has been in the process of building her own dream guy. The Groom of Frankenteen, as she dubbed it. I sometimes worry that she spends more time on that project than on anything else, but at least she seems fine. I probably would've went to her place for a visit if it wasn't for my sarcophagus having been stolen…"
"Like, I hope she doesn't go too overboard with her creation. Hey Scoob, how much do ya bet that Elsa creates some sort of too-perfect hunk?" Shaggy asked. The dog snickered.
"I bet one rextra rarge rizza!" Scooby replied, causing both of them to laugh. Tanis giggled. Her coach did have a point.
It wasn't much longer before the Mystery Machine parked in a hotel parking lot. To avoid the possibility of curious questions from people, Tanis' sarcophagus would remain in the van, as it was one of the windowless ones that could generally hide whatever's inside from view. But as that was the case, Tanis herself also had to stay behind, as she didn't want to be too far from it just after she found it. Feeling bad about the timid mummy being left alone, Shaggy volunteered to stay with her and sleep in the van's long backseat. Naturally, Scooby chose to stay too.
A part of Tanis was elated that Shaggy wanted to stay with her. Even if it was just her sleeping in her sarcophagus and Shaggy sleeping just a few feet away outside of it, the mummy couldn't help recalling some of the few dreams that made her red in the face. Dreams involving her and Shaggy… alone. Shaking her head quickly as Shaggy pulled out a spare blanket from a sack that was underneath the seat, she climbed into her ancient coffin. She was lucky that Shaggy and Scooby didn't notice her zoning out. It would've been so awkward…
"Good night, Shaggy. And thank you again." Tanis said with a grateful smile on her face. To Shaggy, it was strange to see a mummy sitting up in her sarcophagus and thanking him, but he was nonetheless glad that things worked out this way.
"Good night, Tanis. Like, ya need help closing that?" he asked, looking at the lid of the sarcophagus that was leaning against the rest of it on its side.
"I can do it… but… I guess it wouldn't hurt to accept your offer. It'll remind me of when my mummy used to, as humans say, tuck me in at night…" Tanis giggled shyly as she laid down. Shaggy made his way over and grabbed the lid. It was heavier than it looked and made Shaggy wonder how Tanis could lift it with just her bandages like she did when she panicked before, but he managed to get it up and over the top. It was now on the sarcophagus but at an angle, leaving some space open as Shaggy panted from the effort.
"Umm… Are you ok, Coach Shaggy?" Tanis asked, concerned.
"Like, yeah, I'll be fine… That thing's a little heavy, though. How'd you lift it back there?" Shaggy asked through his labored breathing.
"Ah, well… I can control some of my bandages with my mind… Very useful for reaching things or other uses. And the kind of bandages I've been getting lately are… I believe the human term is 'industrial strength'. So they won't break easily if I grab onto something heavy." Tanis answered, lifting a hand up and letting a length of bandage unravel and reach up, gently touching Shaggy's face as a demonstration of her bandage telekinesis.
"That's impressive, Tanis." Shaggy said in awe. "And your bandages are soft too. Your kind certainly knows what they're doing these days."
Tanis blushed again. "…Thanks, Shaggy… Um… You sure you two want to sleep in the van with me? I bet you two would be comfortable in an actual bed…" she asked, feeling a little guilty.
"Nah, it's ok. Like, it's not the first time we've had to sleep in here with all the traveling we do. Besides, we wouldn't want you to feel lonely again." Shaggy answered with a smile. Tanis giggled, using the bandage she had extended to pat Shaggy on the cheek before reeling it back in. With that, Shaggy and Scooby bid the mummy a good night before Shaggy fully closed the sarcophagus by straightening out the lid over the opening. Scooby laid down on the floor after circling around a spot at the back of the van while Shaggy climbed onto the back seat and laid down, blanket and all.
-Morning, 7:18 am-
Shaggy's dreams, which usually involved food, were slowly interrupted when he began to think that he could hear Scooby calling for him, despite his best friend not being in this particular dream. As consciousness came for him, his brain passively realized that he felt quite warm. Warmer than his blanket usually made him… Then, he realized much faster that he felt very snug in his blanket. In fact, he couldn't move much at all. He could squirm, though. Opening his eyes, he took a look around and saw that numerous white bandages had wrapped around him, with trails leading up and over the backseat, back to a certain sarcophagus. Scooby was indeed calling for him, having noticed the situation soon after waking up. With a little effort, Shaggy sat up, his mouth nudging out a strap of bandage that had somehow gotten in there.
"Like, what's going on?! Tanis?! What are you doing?" Shaggy called over, noticing that the lid was askew again.
"Something like sleepralking, Raggy." Scooby guessed, looking inside the ancient coffin.
"Sleepwalking? Why didn't she do this when we discovered her?" Shaggy asked, more to himself than to Scooby. In any case, he had to do something to get himself out of his predicament. Before he could try moving around, the lengths of bandages rose up, picking him up in the air.
"Zoinks! She wasn't kidding about being able to move stuff like this!" he griped as his body was being pulled toward the sarcophagus. Another length shoved the lid completely off, the thud of the coffin top doing nothing to awaken the mummy within. Moments later, Shaggy was held up over the sarcophagus, face down. Tanis was still sleeping peacefully, the lengths of bandages having been unraveled from her arms and legs. He noticed the bare dark-gray skin underneath. Oddly enough, she didn't look as decomposed as he thought. Well, her limbs didn't, anyway… Then again, it might have had something to do with how she was a lot more intellectually sentient than what people know of most mummies.
As the bandages slowly lowered him, he noticed that she was mumbling in her sleep. He couldn't tell what exactly she was saying, but he could tell that whatever her dream was about must have been something positive. But a certain problem presented itself: The fact that he was noticeably taller than the casket. If the bandages wanted to pull him in by folding him up somehow, he probably wouldn't fit without squishing little Tanis, even though he was skinnier than plenty of people. He had to do something.
"Like, Tanis? Taaaanis… Time to wake up. It's morning already!" Shaggy gently prodded. Tanis smiled, muttering more.
"Mmm… Five more minutes, my Pharaoh…" Tanis muttered quietly and happily, clearly still in dream land.
"Pharaoh? Like, I'm no King Tut, Tanis… Seriously, it's time to wake up. Like, uhhh…. Breakfast! We're just about to get some food. Whaddya say?" Shaggy asked, hopefully. If food could snap him out of sleep, maybe it could work for somebody else? Unfortunately, it only caused Tanis to turn over in her sleep, still mumbling to whoever her dream pharaoh was. He was getting dangerously close to the sarcophagus and the bandages were already forcing his knees to bend and his legs to fold up so that his knees were up near his stomach. This was definitely going to be uncomfortable…
"Gulp… Like, Tanis, HELP!" Shaggy yelped loudly. This finally did the trick as her eyes immediately opened in panic. Her fright about hearing her favorite coach in trouble intensified when she noticed him hovering above her and tied up in her own bandages, looking nervous. To her, now the situation had gotten quite embarrassing.
"OH MY RA, I am so sorry, Coach Shaggy! I truly am!" Tanis frantically stammered as she gently lowered him to the ground and tried to untie him, her bandages having apparently criss-crossed in so many ways. "I don't know why this happened. This hasn't happened for a couple of years now. I thought I had complete control of my bandage-kenesis. I must look like such a fool now. Oh, why can't I get these off of you? Huh? How did my bandages do THIS? Oh, no… I'm stuck now!" Her panic grew worse as she kept rattling apologies until she discovered that she had managed to tie her lengths of bandages in a jumbled knot, a bunch of them still wrapped around Shaggy. The duo was, in essence, tied together. Tanis felt like crying…
And so, she did. Fretting in his own right, Shaggy immediately pulled her into a hug, letting her cry it out while saying soothing nothings to her. A part of him mused how this was quite a way to start the morning. Scooby tried to help by giving Tanis a few sympathetic pats on her back. After a little while, she calmed down enough to stop crying.
"Like, I'm not mad about this, Tanis. You're ok." Shaggy reassured with a smile as he gently placed a hand on her head for a friendly pat. Tanis looked up at him for a moment before showing a sad smile of her own.
"…Thank you, Coach Shaggy… Um… So, how do we fix this…?" Tanis asked, again using her control over her own wrappings to try and undo her own work, only to again find that the lengths of cloth wouldn't loosen the knot she had mistakenly made in her haste. Shaggy thought about the problem as she concentrated, her arms and hands outstretched like a mage in medieval-fantasy stories casting a spell.
"Well, I know one quick solution, but you probably won't like it…" Shaggy trailed off.
"…I know. Cut my bandages…" Tanis pouted, her arms drooping after another failed attempt. "But I don't want to… These aren't exactly easy to come by…"
Shaggy sighed lightly. "Like, I figured as much. Well… At least my arms and legs are free, so until we figure this out, we're gonna be pretty close for a while. Is that okay?" he asked, looking down at her. He wasn't sure if it was something he said, but he noticed the few places of visible skin on her face turn a bright red as she simply stared up at him.
But the inside of Tanis' head was anything but quiet… 'Me and Coach Shaggy? Pretty close? Together…? Ah, bad mind! Dirty thoughts, dirty thoughts! No! Not the time… It's too sudden. Way too sudden! Just play it cool, ghoul… Friendship first…. Ah, he's looking concerned again. Oh Ra, I'm not saying or doing anything! SAY SOMETHING!'
"YES! Um… I mean, yes, Coach Shaggy. It's fine." Tanis finally replied, her face still fairly red as she looked down, burying her face in his chest from embarrassment.
Karma must have been in a foul mood toward mummies this day, for it was that moment when the doors to the Mystery Machine opened to reveal Fred, Daphne, and Velma. The three were surprised to see their new companion all cuddled up on Shaggy's lap like that. Naturally, it didn't stop them from playfully commenting on it and, when they noticed it a minute later, joking about their little bandage problem.
Needless to say, Tanis refused to move from her spot for a few hours, her sheer embarrassment being driven to a new high. And then there was another hour of feeling embarrassed added when Daphne joked at one point that, due to their height difference and the way Tanis was clinging to him, it looked like Shaggy was wearing around one of those baby-carrying slings that people can wear on their chest.
It turned out that Daphne's little baby-carrying sling joke proved to be useful for going out in public. Tanis would cling to Shaggy while somehow wearing a large baggy hoodie jacket to hide her and their unwanted mass of tangled bandages, making Shaggy sort of look like he was carrying a baby in one of those slings. It wasn't the best way to disguise a mummy that was tied to a human, but it'd be enough to divert most prying eyes as Shaggy walked by them. As embarrassing as it seemed at first, Tanis quickly figured out the bright side of being so close to her favorite human for so long. And so, that factor was quickly proven a success as Mystery Inc reported to the museum with the fabricated excuse that they had only found bits and pieces of the "destroyed" sarcophagus. Velma was quite good at playing the role of the offended intellectual, lamenting the mindless destruction of a piece of history (as well as the alleged "mother" of Shaggy's "child", when the curator asked about the "baby sling").
Afterwards, they were on the road again. Shaggy and Tanis were managing to get her oversized jacket off, the strands of bandages making a simple process slightly difficult.
"We're really going to have to do something about this, guys. I'm not sure how far we can keep that disguise going in public. Good idea on paper, though." Daphne pointed out.
"Yeah. Although, I certainly didn't mind playing the role of the mother of Shaggy's child." Velma teasingly commented, snickering to herself. This caused Shaggy to look at Velma with a raised eyebrow and slightly crimson cheeks. This didn't go unnoticed to Tanis, though.
'Does she like Coach Shaggy too…?' Tanis timidly thought, already growing nervous at the prospect of having to compete with another girl for her crush's affections. Her mind was already comparing her own petite body with what the brunette glasses-clad nerd might be hiding under that baggy orange sweater of hers… Opting not to voice anything about it yet, she fidgeted with trying yet again to untie her knot of bandages.
"Why don't we just buy some more bandages for now? I'm sure it'll do until we can get her back home." Fred wondered. Tanis frowned as her latest attempt to force the giant knot of wrappings loose failed. "Those are medical bandages for humans, Fred. Not meant for mummies… They don't last as long and are kinda constricting. Also, I won't be able to control them, which I guess would prevent any future incidents…" A sigh. "…I suppose those will have to do." She admitted, her head hanging. Shaggy gave her a few pats on the back.
"Like, it'll be ok, Tanis. Maybe your parents have some backup bandages in your home." Shaggy said, causing her to turn her head toward him and grace him with a sad smile.
"Maybe… Um… You'll help wrap me up, right…?" she meekly asked, a hint of a blush visible on her face. It was pretty much the mummy equivalent of asking someone to dress her, with all the awkwardness that would entail from it. But at the same time, Tanis felt a tiny thrill at the prospect of her favorite human doing something as personal (to a mummy) as wrapping her limbs.
"Me? Uhh… Like, sure, Tanis. But I thought you would've wanted Daphne or Velma to help ya out with that." Shaggy replied, thinking that dressing her up would be another one of those 'girls only' personal things that they'd rather not have guys peeping at. Tanis' thrill grew as he accepted, at least until her normally-dormant libido turned her thoughts into Shaggy unwrapping her in a bed… Then she blushed again. Shaggy saw the hint of red and thought she would agree with his point and change her plans...
"Um, well… I guess one could see it that way. But I trust you, Coach Shaggy. Very much. And it would at least get us to do something together while we're traveling." Tanis pointed out. Shaggy nodded along. Why not count it as an activity they can do together?
And so, after a quick stop at a pharmacy and dodging questions from the cashier about why Fred needed so many bandages (due to so many stories about 'botched D.I.Y. injury care'), Shaggy and Tanis set out to fix her look. A few tragic snips of scissors later and Tanis and Shaggy were free of the jumble of wrappings, leaving the mummy with bare arms and legs, dark-gray flesh visible to all. To the group's amazement, her skin didn't seem as rotted out as one would expect from a walking corpse, other than the discoloration. But Tanis' embarrassment prompted Shaggy to immediately get started instead of letting the inquisitive Velma take a closer examination of the properties of the teenage mummy's un-living flesh.
It took a couple of tries for Shaggy to get a good wrapping rhythm going. The first attempt was too tight and Tanis ended up with a numb arm when Shaggy only reached her elbow. Who knew she still had some sort of circulation, even though whatever blood she might still have probably hadn't been properly flowing through her body in who knows how long. The second attempt was too loose, some of the loops drooping before Shaggy even finished. Shaggy's third attempt was some sort of criss-cross pattern he tried to do, but Tanis discovered that it wouldn't let her move her arm that much without constricting too much. Finally, he tried not being that accurate with the coverage, allowing little slips of flesh to be visible as long as the bandage held and didn't restrict movement. Tanis found it acceptable, as her human friend had no experience on how to properly wrap a mummy.
The baggy jacket was needed again when the gang booked a flight to Egypt, where her family's home tomb was located. Unlike the last few plane trips Tanis had taken, she was legally paid for and treated like a regular passenger. The hooded jacket and the sweatpants that Velma had fished out of her supply of clothes helped keep her appearance a secret, for the most part. As long as nobody took a real good look under the hood… It was a real close call with the officers that needed to scan everyone for illegal contraband, though.
In order to keep the disguise going, Tanis was put in a window seat. Next to Shaggy, naturally. But soon after the plane reached high altitude, the teen mummy had to shut her window blind. The sight of the extreme height was a pretty view to her, but also one that gave her the creeps. Heights were another thing that she was particularly meek about. She took to clinging to Shaggy's arm as she tried to calm herself down, the foodie getting used to the feeling of the height-challenged ghoul's arms around him in some way. After convincing her to try watching the in-flight movie, he thought about his former student. He was proud that she graduated, of course. He also had to admit that she was definitely growing up, no longer the tiny girl that was under his tutelage. If only there was a way to fully conquer her ever-so-nervous demeanor…
An awkward moment arose a short while before landing when Tanis poked Shaggy on the shoulder. Looking over to her, he noticed that her expression was what could be described as annoyed confusion.
"Um, Coach Shaggy…? Why does your kind think my kind is always so evil…?" she whispered to him, pointing at the movie screen she was watching. Shaggy noticed the problem right away. The movie was the newly-released version of The Mummy, where Tom Cruise does some running and the mummy was female this time. He could see how Tanis would be concerned about others' perception of monster-kind. Unfortunately, he couldn't adequately explain it. How could most people? It's not like monsters were public knowledge, other than stories or myths that could be wrongly interpreted.
But he tried to explain anyway. After about a minute of fumbling and stammering, Tanis giggled. She informed him that she had some understanding on how humans interpret monster origins, attitudes, and abilities and was just messing with him about being offended. Shaggy groaned as she kept giggling. Winnie or Phantasma must've rubbed off on her a little before graduating… Not that it was so bad. Her cheerful laughter would make anyone feel better about being pranked by her. At least, that's what he came to think.
After they landed and eventually rented a vehicle able to drive across sand, Tanis became backseat driver and kept giving Fred directions on where to go, knowing intricately where her family's tomb was located. It took a couple of hours and, midway through, the mummy had to quickly shed her disguise…
"Hot…! So hot… We mummies are quite tolerant of heat, but these clothes are quite confining… They need to go!" Tanis practically wheezed as she yanked the hoodie over her head.
"Well, that cinches it, gang. You don't wear winter clothes during a hot summer." Daphne remarked, trying to lighten the mood.
"You're not the mummy here, Miss Daphne…" sighed Tanis, unimpressed with the redhead's obvious remark.
A lengthy drive later, they arrived at a lone pyramid that Tanis pointed out as her family's. Fred and Shaggy hauled the sarcophagus like pall bearers carrying a coffin as they entered the tomb of Tanis' bloodline. Unfortunately, the gang had to trek through many a long corridor before they found anything resembling living quarters. Tanis even had to guide them past a couple of traps that the eagle-eyed tomb raiders had managed to bypass. The boys' arms were killing them by the time the excited mummy allowed them to set it down and rest.
"Feels good to be home again!" she said, taking a deep breath of the musty scent of old cloth and dusty remains. "Whenever you're ready, I'll have you take my sarcophagus to my room. It's not far from the dying room."
"Gulp… Dying room?" Shaggy asked, his nerves instantly reacting to his runaway imagination.
Tanis giggled. "Not like that, silly. We're already dead, so why would we call it a living room?" she asked like it was the most natural thing in the world. It probably was, to her kind.
"Huh… Ya got me there, Tanis." Shaggy shrugged, calming down again.
"So, shall I show you my dead-room?" Tanis asked. She rolled her eyes with an amused smile as Shaggy got visibly nervous again.
"Must everything be a pun now?" Daphne pondered aloud as Fred and Shaggy carried the Egyptian casket and followed the height-challenged mummy.
It wasn't long before Mystery Inc encountered Tanis' father, who didn't look much different than when Shaggy last saw him at the end of his tenure at Grimwood's. Things almost went horribly wrong, as her father mistook the gang of humans for more thieves and began chanting an incantation that was most likely an Egyptian curse of some sort. It took Tanis suddenly clinging to Shaggy with a loud 'NO!' to get him to stop and ask what was going on.
"These are friends of mine, Daddy… Please don't hurt them. Especially this one. He's the one I told you about from school…" Tanis said, sounding like she was ready to cry again as she clung tightly to the lanky foodie. Her father gazed at Shaggy as if inspecting him.
"Ah, yeah… I remember seeing you when I picked up my daughter from Grimwood's. Nice fellow, but easily frightened." the bandaged parent observed.
"Like, you can say that again." Shaggy gulped, his knees still shaking from the sudden scare of a few moments ago.
"And these others?" the elder mummy asked, a curious eye looking over the other humans.
"Uh, my friends, sir. Fred Jones, Daphne Blake, and Velma Dinkley. I'm sure you also might remember my dog, Scooby Doo." Shaggy introduced.
"Rog? Rhere?" Scooby asked, looking around.
It's nice to meet you, sir. It's quite a rare opportunity to get to explore an actual Egyptian tomb, I must say." Velma said cordially, sticking her hand out for a handshake.
The mummy took her hand after a moment's hesitation. "Indeed. You'll have to excuse my earlier behavior. I'm still rather troubled by the last batch of mortals that dared enter my tomb. My wife and I leave for one measly vacation, the first we've had in a few decades, and thieves dare take advantage of our absence! Ugh… Disgraceful mortals. It worried me moreso when I discovered upon our return that our dear little Tanis also wasn't home."
"I had to go get my sarcophagus back, Daddy… I was scared that you'd be angry that I let thieves get away with something…" Tanis muttered, her face buried in Shaggy's chest. Her father turned back to her and Shaggy.
"Disappointed, yes. But angry? Well, I wouldn't be angry with you, my little scarab. I would've just been glad that you weren't harmed. The things I hear about how humans these decades can defend themselves, even when intruding on someone else's property… It is rather worrisome. No, my wrath would've been saved for whoever was responsible for stealing your blessed sarcophagus. It would've been painful and glorious." He said, raising a clenched fist at the thought of punishing the tomb raiders that dared violate the sanctity of a deceased's resting place.
"Um… I'm glad you don't have to go that far, Daddy. I got it back and I'm home, safe and sound." Tanis said, letting go of Shaggy and jumping up at her father to give him a clinging hug, which he caught and returned. The parent immediately calmed down from his irate thoughts.
"You're certainly becoming brave, little Tanis. Daring to venture out into the world on your own like that, with how timid you are? It's quite inspiring. A tale worthy of inscribing on one of our many walls with hieroglyphics, for more respectful visitors to gaze upon and ponder the meaning of. You are truly outgrowing your baby bandages, young lady." Tanis' father praised, much to the delight of the height-challenged near-adult hugging him.
"Thank you, Father… But I should give credit to where it is due. If it weren't for dear Coach Shaggy, I probably would've had a lot longer trip trying to drag my sarcophagus home…" Tanis said modestly as she tried picturing what her trip would've been like had things gone differently.
"And he and his friends shall be honored as well as I inscribe your tale of overcoming your sheltered nature upon the wall." her father agreed as he set her back down on the ground.
"Umm… I was thinking that perhaps they deserve a reward of some kind…? I mean, they did do a lot for me and this trip was kind of… out of the way for them. My sarcophagus ended up being all the way in America…" Tanis proposed, twiddling her fingers.
"A reward, huh? You think they deserve a reward, my little scarab? Hmm… They did bother to travel all the way here when they could've just passed you by…" her father thought aloud.
"Like, you don't have to reward us, sir. I didn't mind helping out my former student. She's a great girl and it wasn't any trouble to bring her back home. And I admit, like, it was good to catch up on what she's been up to since my time at Grimwood's." Shaggy explained. Despite the gang having gone completely out of the way to bring Tanis home, he still would've felt kind of awkward to accept any kind of monetary reward. He was just bringing a friend home. (However, if food was the reward… That might be a different story.)
"Heh. You're a good coach, Shaggy… for a human. And Tanis seems to really taken a shine to you…" he pointed out.
"Daddy!" Tanis shrieked, embarrassed. She ran over to Daphne, who was in the back of the gathered group of mortals, and hid behind her.
"I've lost track of how much she talked about you when she came home from Grimwood's that year." The proud parent continued on. Tanis moaned, wanting to just hide in her coffin and never come out. Why did her father want to expose her secrets like that?
"Like, really?" Shaggy asked, curious. He didn't think he'd be able to make any woman of any age think about him so much, he was so used to having little luck with love. His failed relationship with Googie was proof enough…
"Oh, yeah. She might always be the timid type, but after your semester there, there was a time where she'd convince us to leave the tomb and do some workouts. I know it's always good to stretch the old, rotted limbs here and there, but she wanted to be like her coach. I'm not sure what you said or did, but it was great to see her actually want to leave the tomb for something other than going back to school. Eventually, she moved on from the workout phase, but she'd still go for a walk around the desert sometimes as a habit. She was always such a sheltered child… It's partially our fault, but as we are mummies, we do have a tendency to be… oh, what's the modern-day term…? Oh, right… 'home-bodies'. That's the term." He explained to Mystery Inc, chuckling as he remembered how energetic Tanis was when she was younger.
"Wow… Hey, like, that's pretty cool, Tanis!" Shaggy said, figuring that she needed to hear it more than her old man did. She peaked her head out from behind Daphne.
"…Really…?" she meekly asked.
"Like, yeah. It may be a slow process, but you're coming out of your shell. That's great, Tanis." Shaggy answered, proud of his former student. The teen mummy slowly stepped out from her human hiding spot, looking at Shaggy with a slight blush on her face and a small smile.
"Thank you, Coach Shaggy…" she said.
Her father smiled at this. "Alright, you know what? I know just what to reward you with for helping her out. As head of this tomb of my family's distinguished bloodline, I shall reward you with… Tanis." he proclaimed, extending his hand toward his daughter in a theatrical presenting manner. Said daughter gave a slight 'eep' and hid behind Daphne again.
"Wait, what? What're you talking about, sir?" Shaggy asked, not expecting a sentient being to be his reward. Tanis wasn't property…
"Simple. I shall allow her to travel with you wherever you may go. She's proven herself to be old enough to explore this vast world. And it'd give me great comfort to know that she'll be traveling with someone trustworthy. Also, she's fond of you and, once you leave, my wife and I are probably not gonna hear the end of it for a couple of months, unless we keep you here. And I bet you wouldn't want to stay for long, as we're relatively far from civilization or any source of food that humans can eat…" the father explained, a satisfied smile on his face as he mentally congratulated himself for giving his daughter an opportunity to spend more time with her favorite human.
Tanis, however, looked unsure as she stepped out from behind Daphne again. "Daddy… Are you sure you'd like me to go…? Don't you want me to stay with you and Mummy?" she almost sounded heartbroken. Her father then realized what his offer could've sounded like to Tanis. But before he could console her, someone else beat her to it.
"Oh, Tanis dear, of course we enjoy your company as we go through our eternal unrest, but having a chance to explore the world… It's something that our kind rarely gets to do, especially in this era of pesky thieves illegally entering our tombs all the time. Not to mention, the upkeep on these old places… My, my…" A feminine voice said from behind the group. Tanis' mother had came up from a stairway leading further down the tomb, having finished with some sort of chore. The humans and dog could see right away where Tanis gets her height problem from as the bandaged matriarch was only half a head taller than Tanis, leaving her just a bit shorter than Velma. The lacking height seemed to have gone to her curves, however, as her hips, butt, and chest were… very noticeable, even with the bandages.
Obviously, the humans definitely noticed. Certainly, this brought up a conundrum of how a living mummy's body could possibly not suffer the effects of decomposition that much. But the guys didn't ponder it much for obvious reasons. Velma was the only one to really think about it as Daphne was, if she were honest, jealous that a mummy somehow had better endowments than her.
Tanis fidgeted, finding the floor interesting. "Well… It would be neat…" she admitted. Her mom approached her and gave her a loving hug.
"That's the spirit, Tanny. And you're going to be with that nice young man you were gushing about for a while too. Such a wonderful opportunity for you, don'cha think?" she soothed her daughter, throwing in a wink for good measure.
"Mummy!" Tanis whined, her face a crimson red as she squirmed in her mother's arms, wanting to hide again. Fred, meanwhile, started ribbing on Shaggy about it, much to the coward's annoyance.
"Now, now. It's nothing to be embarrassed about, scarab. Do you know how much I daydreamed about your father before I worked up the nerve to show interest? By Anubis, it must've felt like an entire era…" the mother reminisced, letting go of Tanis, but patting her on the head instead. She then whispered to her. "Don't take as long as I did. He is a mortal, after all. Not exactly as long-lasting as us, ya know."
"Okay, I get it… Um… Thank you for your support, Mummy, Daddy…" Tanis said, trying to not sound so timid, despite her excited mother's 'advice'. She couldn't fathom why her mummy felt the need to make things awkward like that. It wasn't like Shaggy was interested in her like that. She highly doubted he'd be interested in dating any sentient undead… Oh, the troubles of a one-sided crush.
And so, after staying for dinner so that the parents can get to know Tanis' human friends a bit (thankfully, Mystery Inc had thought ahead and brought some edible food, just in case), Tanis bid a bittersweet farewell to her parents, clad in a fresh new wrapping of proper bandages as white and clean as fresh snow. She would miss her family dearly and tears were already welling up in her eyes from the thought of being away from home for even longer than her casket-retrieval mission. But she was going to be brave. For her family. For Coach Shaggy. For herself.
Speaking of Shaggy, Tanis' father had to make one thing perfectly clear to the lanky beatnik. He had pulled him aside as the group stood outside the tomb, the travelers near their vehicle. "Now, I'm sure you probably wouldn't want to hear this from me, but as my little scarab's father, I do have certain duties. As much as I like the cut of your cloth so far… if you hurt my little Tanis in any way, there won't be a deity you can call upon that can stop me from finding you and placing the worst curse known to the time of pharaohs." He placed a hand on Shaggy's shoulder, a solid grip that would leave a bruise on most men. "Do we have an understanding?"
"Y…y….yes, sir… Like, please don't kill me..." Shaggy moaned, knees ready to buckle from the pressure of the straightforward threat.
"Oh, was I too much? My apologies. I know I needn't worry about my daughter. She's in good hands. Uh, trembling hands… but good hands." the Egyptian father said, his tone quickly switched to a pleasant one. The message was sent. No need for further unpleasantness.
"Like, yeah, uh… I'm just gonna go see if we're, ya know, ready to go…" Shaggy replied, his voice wavering from the fear that was so expertly inflicted upon him. However, as he turned and started back, a hand landed on his shoulder again.
"Hey, just one more question, Shaggy… My wife wanted to know… uh… When are we gonna be expecting grandchildren?"
Shaggy's eyes bulged. "Like, WHAT?!"
The father laughed at Shaggy's reaction. "Oh, Ra, that was golden! The look on your face! You looked like a stumped sphinx! Hoo… I always wanted to do that to somebody and I wasn't disappointed. Thanks for that, Shaggy. No, seriously, it's good to laugh, yes?" At this, Shaggy facepalmed and shook his head as he ventured back to the others.
"But seriously, though, when should we be expecting that?!" the father yelled in a boisterous way. Shaggy raised his hands in a resigning gesture and Tanis scolded him to stop picking on her coach.
After a few more minutes of chit-chat and farewells, the long trip back to America began. Now that Tanis was used to disguises and airplanes, the return trip wasn't as eventful. The next day, Mystery Inc was back inside the Mystery Machine and on the road again.
And that included the agency's newest official member, Tanis.
The group spent about a month traveling from city to city, letting Tanis see the sights and explore. It was fun to have a little vacation from pursuing rumors and cases of monster hauntings. But, as their luck would have it, it wouldn't take very long to just stumble upon a case… This time, it was a local casino being haunted by what was described as the reanimated corpse of some local well-known gambler, back for some sort of vengeance. Or money. Most likely money.
But solving the mystery proved to be a lot easier with little Tanis around… For meek as she was, that didn't always mean that she was easily scared of other monsters. She proved that by immediately unleashing her bandage telekinesis upon the ghoul by whipping loose bandages at him so that they tied him up.
"Bad ghoul. Bad! Who said you could leave your grave, you lost soul?!" the disguised Tanis scolded, as the gambling zombie did behave in a manner similar to undead without independent thought or will.
"Arrgh, lemme go! What the hell is this?! Release me this instant!" the 'ghoul' demanded, confirming to everyone what Velma had immediately suspected.
"You can talk? And so well for a zombie. Ooh, that must mean you're actually a criminal in disguise! My friends have run into plenty of people like you. Now that I've seen such a thing in person, you guys kinda seem… just weird. Doing this whole disguise thing just to take some currency? Really petty. Especially since you're not even doing it right." Tanis rambled to the guy, excited that she caught her very first monster, like her human friends have done so many times as mentioned by Shaggy before.
"The hell do you mean? I put this on and I growl and walk stiff. Boom, empty casino and easy pickings. How would you know about 'doing it right'?" the criminal scoffed. If his mask wasn't on, he'd spit at his captor for effect. The being that caught him threw off her jacket hoodie, revealing a being covered in bandages.
"Because I'm a real one. That's how I know." Tanis answered, lifting her bound prey up in the air with her telekinetic bandages. The criminal started yelling out for help. Her look might have been questionable as a possible disguise of her own, but there was no denying her claim when there was no logical explanation for why he was being hauled around in the air by seemingly nothing, as if he was the bandaged girl's balloon.
"Wow, that was easy enough." Fred pointed out.
"With the way things usually turn out, I'm surprised we don't just charge at whatever's haunting these places." Daphne remarked, nonchalant.
"Well, there's always that chance that one of these kooks might actually be a real, powerful, murderous being. Especially since Tanis is proof that the supernatural exists." Velma answered, always the voice of reason.
Tanis yanked the criminal down so that he was close to her. "Umm… Would you rather take jail or a curse? Because my daddy taught me some curses…" she asked, trying to be intimidating but ending up still sounding as innocent as usual. However, the criminal caved all the same.
"Alright, I'll take jail! Don't curse me!" he whined.
"Like, smart choice, dude. I don't think you wanna get on her bad side." Shaggy chimed in, patting Tanis on the head. The mummy giggled at Shaggy's gesture as she set the crook down on the ground and began reeling back her bandages. Fred managed to tie up the fake monster's arms with rope just as Tanis unraveled him. And then he pulled off the mask. Another mystery solved.
After a month had passed since Tanis was 'rewarded' to Shaggy as Mystery Inc's newest member, Tanis felt like she needed to just relax, having seen and explored a lot. Fortunately, the gang happened to be traveling close to their hometown of Coolsville. So, they decided to stop home for a while and put their travels to rest for the time being. Mystery Inc housed itself in their own apartment building. A relatively small one, but it was enough to house everyone comfortably. Even though she loved her family's tomb in Egypt and she enjoyed the dreary atmosphere of Grimwood's dorms, she had to admit that the apartments that her fellow paranormal detectives lived in were nice.
When she was asked if she wanted to take the guest apartment, she shook her head. Her face red yet again, she quietly mumbled a request to move into Shaggy's apartment. Fred got a sly look on his face as the girls were slightly taken aback by the timid mummy's inquiry.
"How about that, Shaggy? A woman wants to move in with you. Your luck's beginning to look up, old boy." Fred joked, clapping Shaggy on the back. Tanis's blush was practically glowing through the bandages as Shaggy flustered and stammered.
"Now, Fred, that's quite enough out of you." Daphne scolded, although a slight smirk betrayed her own inner amusement.
"Like, yeah, man. It's not like that. She probably isn't comfortable with being in her own place all alone. I mean, she's had to do plenty of being alone when she went to get her sarcophagus back." Shaggy pointed out.
"Suuure… That could be the case, but she could've picked any of us. Hell, logically, she should've asked one of the girls." Fred countered, a smug smirk on his face.
"Freddy, I think Shaggy and Scooby are the people that she's most comfortable around. It takes some people a while to get used to new friends." Velma stepped in.
"Aw, come on. Surely, I can't be the only one that thinks she's interested in him." Fred said.
"That's their own business to work out. If she is, she is. If she's not, she's not." Daphne stated, hoping to put an end to it. No use in making the poor mummy feel more awkward than she probably does right now. "Let's go back to our rooms before I make it pretty clear that I'm not that interested in YOU, ok Fred?"
"Ok, ok! Sorry, Daph. Just trying to have a little fun." Fred conceded, walking with the redhead toward their shared apartment. After Velma also left, Shaggy helped Tanis get her things into his apartment. She didn't bring much, so the task went by quickly. What was amusing to Shaggy was the air-sarcophagus that she had brought. Similar to an air mattress, it required inflating. Feeling helpful, Shaggy took the liberty of pumping it up for her. Oddly enough, it was adult sized. Tanis pointed out that they didn't make ones that match her current height.
That night, however, it would prove fortunate that her air-sarcophagus was adult size… For again, her telekinetic power over her bandages decided to 'sleepwalk' again, strands of bandages slithering out of the artificial coffin and floating over to the bed next to it. Pushing the covers aside, it revealed its prey….and quietly went to work…
Shaggy woke up to two things. First, the feeling of being confined. Secondly, the sounds of what could possibly be a sleepy female sigh. Opening his eyes, he saw darkness. However, hints of light could be seen from above him, coming through in a thin line. Feeling something like an arm or a hand moving up his chest momentarily, his mind became more awoke as it realized what could've possibly happened. Realizing that he wasn't tied up this time, thankfully, he reached up with the hand that wasn't next to the dozing body he was with and pushed the lid of the air-sarcophagus open. Indeed, it was morning. And he was indeed sleeping next to Tanis in her fake coffin. As he looked at the bandaged face of the sleeping mummy, he could've swore that he heard her mutter something about a 'pharaoh'… She had a smile on her face.
Smiling himself at how adorable she looked, he gently nudged her. "Tanis? Time to wake up. Like, it's morning." he said in a low voice. The height-challenged teen squirmed as her return to consciousness seemed like a struggle. Must've been a really good sleep…
As she stirred and slowly opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Shaggy, smiling. "Good morning, my Pharaoh…" she said in a tired slur. But after a moment, her brain realized something. She was awake. Shaggy was really in her sarcophagus. She had just called him by a pet name she had only dreamed of being able to call him. Her eyes bulged wide open as her face became the reddest it had ever gotten.
"OH, RA!" she shrieked as she leapt out of the sarcophagus and landed on the floor, scrambling underneath Shaggy's bed. Concerned about her actions and surprised by what she called him, Shaggy climbed out of the air-sarcophagus. "Tanis? Are you ok? …Is there something you want to talk about?" he asked, looking around the seemingly empty room.
"No…" a scared voice came from underneath his bed. "I did it again… My bandages brought you to me in my sleep… I lost control again… And I… I…" she trailed off as Shaggy knelt down and looked under his bed, his eyes met her scared ones.
"Tanis… It's ok. Like, I'm not gonna laugh at you or anything. You know that. But if this is gonna keep happening, like, I'd like to know why. I mean, I have an idea, but…" he was interrupted by the sounds of sniffling. She was about to cry. "Aw, Tanis, come on… Everything's ok. Whatever this is about, it can't be that bad."
"Yes, it can… (sniff) …It's embarrassing… And it can't possibly work…" Tanis muttered, her eyes closing in a failed attempt to hide from Shaggy.
"What can't possibly work?" Shaggy asked, curious.
No response. Then, Tanis crawled out from the bed like there was no tomorrow and clung to Shaggy. "US! I like you, okay?! I really, really, really like you! I know you were my teacher and also a human and, to your kind, I know that's gotta be like… twice as illegal or something… but I can't help it! You're so nice and funny and caring… and I think you're cute… I've been having these dreams every so often… Kinda naughty dreams… Dreams I shouldn't be having…!" she confessed before finally letting it out and crying.
Shaggy immediately returned her hug and comforted her, spending a good few minutes reassuring her with promises that everything's okay. His mind reeling from the revelation that the smallest Grimwood Ghoul harbored an incredibly huge love for him, his mind took stock of the situation. It wasn't like he wasn't interested at all. She was a fine girl to be around. He did find her to be pretty cute…for a mummy. She truly was a loyal friend to him, although now he knew exactly why… And as they got to know each other over the past month, their friendship grew as Tanis found herself enjoying some of the mortal things that Shaggy liked and ended up having more than a few good conversations about their common interests. Still, there was that little part of him that still saw her as that tiny student living at Grimwood…
He supposed he had dealt with stranger scenarios before in Mystery Inc's career. Or at least, scenarios that were a LOT more harmful to him… So what the hell?
When Shaggy came down for breakfast with the others, nobody expected him to be holding hands with what must've been the happiest mummy to exist. Tanis practically skipped to a seat at the table as she brought her new boyfriend over with her.
"Uhh… Something you wanna share there, Tanis?" Daphne asked as everyone stared at the oddly exuberant display of joy. Having had a few Girls' Nights with Velma and Tanis throughout the past month, the redhead had a suspicion…
"Why, yes there is! I'm overjoyed to tell you all that Shaggy and I are now officially dating. Oh, I'm so excited! The places we can go…. Ooh, the things we can do!" Tanis gossiped, her bright smile seemingly unable to leave her face.
"Oh, I bet I know one thing you two can do now…" Fred casually joked, earning himself a kick in the leg from Daphne. "Ow!"
"Really, Fred? What? What is it?" Tanis asked, her excitement apparently making her as energized as Phantasma.
"It's nothing you need to concern yourself with now, Tanis. Congratulations on finding each other!" Velma said, diverting Tanis' attention back to the matter at hand. The mummy reacted by standing on her tip-toes and kissing Shaggy's cheek before sitting down.
"Like, this is gonna take some getting used to, but I'm liking this so far." Shaggy said with a smile. Seeing how pleased his new girlfriend was had already made his day. He just hoped he could keep her happy in the long run…
The first official date started off pretty awkward, as Tanis felt like she shouldn't have to wear the usual disguise. To her point, it did seem like a goofy thing to have to wear for such a special occasion. But what else could they do for going out in public? As the duo mulled over their options in Shaggy's apartment, an idea came to Tanis. An idea that would take bravery… An idea that would take sacrifice… An idea that would help her step out from her shell…
Excusing herself to go into his bathroom, Tanis went to work…
After a half hour of waiting, the bathroom door opened and Shaggy was greeted with a very surprising view… Gray skin… A lot of gray skin! Tanis had removed most of her bandages! Her face was fully revealed, except for the top of her head where her bandage 'hair and ponytail' remained. Bandages covered her B-cup chest and her crotch and ass in a very modest manner. As a nice touch, bandages covered her forearms like gauntlets and her feet like makeshift boots.
"Tanis… Like…. your bandages… They're….." he said, surprised that she would expose herself like this, knowing how imbedded into their existence the bandages were to mummies. Being like how she now appears was, supposedly, similar to a human exposing her naked body to the public.
"I know, Shaggy… I feel… stressed… REALLY stressed… but at the same time, I… This feels… good… Having you see this… It feels like one of my dreams…" Tanis said in a quiet voice, trying her best to keep her nerves under control. It took all she had to open that door and reveal herself.
"Is there anything I can do, Tanis? If you're freaking out, you can put them back on. Like, you don't have to do this." Shaggy reassured her.
"NO! Please, Shaggy… I need to do this… Otherwise, I'm still gonna be the same me… Only being brave when I have to… No, I have to get used to… putting myself out there. Stepping up… I'll be fine, eventually. Just… well… how do I look? Does my form please you…?" Tanis said, spreading her arms out as if that'd reveal more of her to him.
In stark contrast to the normal lifeless mummies that rested in peace, what lay beneath the bandages was nowhere near decayed. A tad dry, perhaps. But other than the gray skin tone and some patches of dry, rough skin here and there, she seemed about as human as she could get. A few strands of hair poked out from her wrapping of bandages, appearing to hint that whatever she had under there wasn't exactly the liveliest of hair… Perhaps some things couldn't be saved by whatever supernatural mysticism gave her kind un-life. Her face, on the other hand, looked alive, aside from what seemed like a permanent case of chapped lips and somewhat dry eyes. Her Egyptian features, as well as being considerably blessed in the genetics department, helped create an exotic look to the young adult mummy that Shaggy couldn't help staring at for a few moments.
"Like… Yeah… It, uh, pleases me…" Shaggy answered nervously. He was suddenly engulfed in another Tanis hug.
"I'm glad! It is rather fortunate that my kind don't decompose as much. If we did, we'd kinda have problems existing… Well, maybe we'd be just skeletons or something? Oh, why am I talking about that? Hehe… So I am attractive, yes?" she asked, kissing him on the cheek again. Shaggy couldn't help but begin to be turned on. Despite what she was, she was still an attractive woman in her bra and panties clinging to him.
"Like, yes! Yeah, ya are. Um… Perhaps we should find you an outfit, though. Ya know, before I, like… do something stupid…" he said, trailing off. It took her a moment to realize what he meant by that and remember her current state of dress. She wanted to blush and apologize and go hide again, but not this time. The urge was there, but she'd fight it this time. She was with her beloved Shaggy at last. If she couldn't handle a long hug in her bandage-made lingerie, then how could she handle a whole date where anything could happen? So, she settled for calmly releasing him and smiling.
"Um, yeah, we should. It'd be funny if we spoiled the evening because you decided to keep me here for our own pleasures…" Tanis giggled, blushing at her own innuendo. Shaggy thought her reddened face was so adorable. Definitely worth removing the bandages. He got up and went to his dresser to see what spare clothes he could have her wear. Most of the options would probably be slightly oversized, given her height… Even so, at least they wouldn't be too small for her.
With that, the date finally begun. Shaggy thought that the classic dinner and a movie routine would work just fine. Thankfully, Coolsville just happened to be one of the towns that had that new restaurant/theater combination concept of an establishment, so they tried that. Thankfully, their waitress for the evening didn't ask any questions about why Tanis' skin was gray or why she had bandages 'covering' her ponytail. As they enjoyed the showing of Spider-Man: Homecoming, Tanis was actually thrilled by the fact that she could simply wipe her mouth and hands after eating her burger and fries meal, instead of worrying about how to get grease off her bandages.
Then came the cliché moment of both Shaggy and Tanis reaching into their shared popcorn bowl at the same time. Feeling bold, Tanis had a bandage from her 'gauntlet' wrap around Shaggy's wrist so that he was stuck holding her hand instead of getting some popcorn. She looked over at him with an unsure 'Is this okay?' look on her face, despite the mostly darkened room. He returned her look with a smile and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.
After the movie, they settled for a walk around, taking the senic route back home. Surprisingly, Tanis kept her bandage's grip on Shaggy, making him hold hands with her all the way out of the theater. Some of the movie-goers either joked about it or pointed out how sweet it was. As they talked about the movie, Tanis eventually released his hand from her bandage, but only so she could nuzzle into his side and position his arm around her.
"Like, you're certainly getting affectionate there, Tanis. Quick learner for being more social, huh?" he joked, gently holding her as they walked.
"I think so… I'm getting to like doing this stuff. It's fun and it makes me feel so happy. Um… Would it be alright if I called you…. my pharaoh? Like in my dreams…? I think it'd make for a nice pet name for you. Couples do that, right? Call each other cute nicknames?" she asked to make sure.
"Sure, Tanis. Like, call me anything ya want."
Days, weeks, and eventually, a few months went by as Mystery Inc got used to home life again. A couple of local mysteries came up in the meantime. Oddly enough, one of the costumed creeps turned out to be the gang's old childhood nemesis, Red Herring. Unsurprisingly, Red was flat broke and decided to resort to elaborate theft involving scaring people out of a bank… Other than those incidents, most of the group found jobs to make up for the agency's diminishing profit income.
Even Tanis found a job, which was surprising. Then again, it was at a clothing store meant for the darker styles of fashion. Apparently, gray 'body paint', a little bit of 'fake' mummy bandages, and a 'prop' bandage ponytail with a 'shiny toy' ankh on it looked stylish enough to fit the job… She would just have to be careful not to use her bandage-related abilities on the job. And there was also that one time she decided to bring one of her old favorite Grimwood 'delicacies' for lunch… She forgot that humans couldn't eat some of that stuff and would find it bizarre for a 'fellow human' like her to eat it. Luckily, her boss wasn't around, but it was still a close call. One of her co-workers ended up being wary of her for a little while…
Along with her job, dating Shaggy helped Tanis' social skills grow. It eventually got to a point where she decided to flirt with Shaggy, whereas Shaggy usually was the one to awkwardly flirt with her. What better way to show her man that she was overcoming her timid nature than…. a slap on his ass… with a bandage. He was just finishing up making dinner at the time and, therefore, ended up reacting in classic Shaggy fashion to the surprise 'attack'. After jumping up and almost bonking his head on the ceiling, he turned around to see Tanis a few feet away from him, the collar of her borrowed, baggy shirt placed so that one of her shoulders was bare. With a blush on her face, she attempted a 'come hither' expression, although it looked more like a silent 'Could you come here? Please?' with a touch of 'This is correct, right?'.
"Like… You slapped my ass…" Shaggy pointed out, sounding surprised.
"Um… I did, yes…. Is that okay?" Tanis quietly replied.
"Uh, sure! Of course it's fine. I'm just, like, shocked is all." Shaggy grinned, walking over and taking the short young woman in his arms.
"I have another surprise… if you'd like…" she told him, smiling as she wrapped her arms around him. She loved hugging him.
"Oh yeah? What might that be?" he asked, playing along. With that, Tanis' arms moved up to around his neck where she pulled herself up the few inches she needed to start kissing him. Shaggy's arms shifted so that he could carry her and not leave her stuck on her tiptoes while making out. He lumbered his way over to a nearby couch and lightly fell on it, placing the couple in a definitely more comfortable position for them to kiss their troubles away.
"Somebody's…. into it today…" Shaggy managed to get out between kisses, his hands roaming up and down his girlfriend's back. She took a moment to grin at him from her position atop him before diving in for another kiss.
"Of course…. my pharaoh… Why wouldn't I… be? I have you… to thank for… teaching me another lesson." she answered as she juggled the actions of talking and kissing. Her own hands did some roaming of their own, mainly sticking to his chest, although one hand did start to roam a little south. Shaggy noticed this.
"Umm… Like, you want me to… teach ya something new?" Shaggy asked, admittedly as turned on as he could possibly get. Her hand made the final stretch of its intended journey and landed on its destination with a gentle grab. "Whoa… Like, I guess that's a yes…"
"I love you, my pharaoh…" she said, returning to her old timid self for the moment as she gazed down into her man's eyes. He understood why she clammed up again. This was a big step she was suggesting…
"Like, I love you too, Tanis." he answered, initiating the next kiss. For once in Shaggy's life, dinner was postponed that evening in favor of an activity he found to be far more delicious and full of exotic flavor…
Soon after Shaggy finally lost his 'V-card', as Fred would phrase it, the mummy began to have certain problems… Waking up sick in the morning, sudden bouts of irritability that nearly ended up with curses being thrown, and cravings for the strangest of things to eat. (The others were disgusted when she suddenly wanted to eat beetles… What was she? Beetlejuice?!) Naturally, Velma had the suspicion and decided to talk with the short mummy about her strange behavior.
"Pregnant?! Me?! But I… Um…. Oh my… So Shaggy and I are…?" Tanis stammered, not expecting such a situation at all.
"Compatible in that way? Your behavior suggest that, practically against every piece of logic there is, a human has successfully bred with a mummy." Velma filled in the blank, not shy in expressing her own shock at something as logic-defying as an undead being reproducing sexually. The genius made a note to study and track the mummy's pregnancy. What a phenomena it must be, even for the supernatural world.
"Oh my… Oh my, oh my, oh my! What do I do? Is this good? Would Shaggy like this? We haven't even dated a year yet! What'll my parents think? I'm gonna be a mummy, I mean, mommy?" Tanis rattled off in rapid-fire fashion, panic setting in. Velma grabbed her by the shoulders to steady the quivering young woman.
"Tanis, everything's going to be ok. You're a bit young, but generally, creating new life is supposed to be a good thing. As for Shaggy, this'll be a surprise for him… but I'm sure he wouldn't mind being a father. You two are practically inseparable since you started dating and he's a very loyal man. I'd be extremely shocked if he did act negatively about this. Your parents, though… Well, we'll all cross that bridge when we get to it. Hopefully, they'll like grandchildren." Velma explained, which calmed the bundle of nerves in front of her.
"You're right, Velma… I'll tell him when he gets back from work. ….I bet he faints." she meekly joked, trying to psych herself up for the big talk later.
As expected, Shaggy fainted upon hearing he was going to be the father of a bouncing, bandaged baby… But when he came to, he simply kissed the worrying Tanis and reassured her that he'd be honored to raise a kid together.
He fainted again a couple of weeks later when he answered his front door and found Tanis' father glaring at him, her mother standing behind him. News traveled fast, it seems. Mummies trying to get to a different country in the human world, however, don't. It took Tanis herself to stop her mad father from hurting her 'pharaoh'. Her mother was surprised to see the not-so-timid-anymore Tanis actually standing up to her father. After what Shaggy guessed to be ten minutes of bickering when he came to, Tanis' father took her in his arms, apologizing for making a scene.
But not without making one certain request…. One that would not be denied.
Fast forward to the next weekend, where Mystery Inc, the Grimwood Ghouls (along with Winnie's "mates", Phantasma's porn star harem, and Elsa's D.I.Y. hunk), and quite a few members of Tanis' extended family were gathered in a park pavilion. Tanis chose an outdoor wedding since, despite American traditions, she thought that some of her elderly family members would be bothered by the wedding being held in a Christian church. (She could imagine their discontent. "Bah! So disrespectful to our honored Ra!")
Even though this was what Americans would refer to as a 'shotgun wedding', Tanis couldn't be happier. She no longer felt fear of being in public. She was well on her way to building a decent life in the human realm. She had a man who loved her for who she was and treated her like a queen, despite her chosen pet name for him. And she had a little one on the way. What more could she ask for?
Her joyful musings were interrupted by the minister (who was wise to the realm of monsters, a rare find in the Coolsville area) as he got to the part she had been waiting for.
"…take this man, Norville Rogers, to be your husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, til death do you part?"
Her blue eyes looked up into his as she gave her answer, wearing the brightest smile that Shaggy would always fondly remember. "I do."
As the minister relayed the same question to Shaggy, two things were apparent to him. First, although he tried his best to ignore it, was the dead stare of Tanis' father, who wanted to make sure that Shaggy would go through with it. He wished the guy would just back off about it for at least five minutes… But after a few more minutes, the father wouldn't have a reason to push him around anymore. Secondly, and more importantly, was how radiant Tanis looked in her regal wedding dress, which was mostly made with her own bandages. According to Daphne, it had taken a lot of serious effort to turn mummy bandages into a fancy-looking dress in such short notice, but it wasn't anything some major creativity couldn't hack.
"Like, I do, man." Classic Shaggy style response. Tanis nearly giggled, but kept her composure. The rest of Mystery Inc had to roll their eyes at that. Scooby muttered a quiet "Oh brother…" while snickering.
With no one to object to the wedding when given the opportunity (not that anybody wanted to, which made the father of the bride's glare toward the rest of the audience pointless), the wedding was completed with the traditional kiss, which the couple gladly obliged. It was noted that Tanis seemed to be the more enthusiastic one about the kiss, if the way she practically yanked her new husband's head down to her level and clung to him was any indication. Shaggy had a far more intimate indication of her excitement: her tongue. Lots of her tongue… The make-out session was enough to make the minister cough loudly to get their attention, thinking things might escalate a little too far in public.
The reception was well underway and things were going about as well as to be expected for a gathering of mummies, Ghouls, the Ghouls' mates, a few humans, and one dog. But Shaggy wasn't exactly having fun at the moment. No, it seemed Tanis' father wanted to give the new son-in-law one last warning…
"…so you see, my boy, I take pride in the idea of a lifelong marriage. One that's happy and fulfilling. And you know what that means, don't you? Keeping your wife happy. At ALL times. Oh, don't think I'm just pushing you around for sport, Shaggy. I had to learn that fact myself. My lady can be a bit… uh… intense when I've done something that displeases her. You do NOT tell her I just said that… Needless to say, that if you upset my precious little scarab, then I will show up here again… and I will be ready for—"
"DADDY!"
Shaggy immediately felt relieved. Saved by the wife! For someone who was once known for being as timid as she was short, she seemed like an imposing threat for the first time ever. She stormed right up to her father, a drink of soda in hand.
"I told you that enough was enough, Daddy! Why don't you try getting along with him?! Do you really have to make yourself seem bigger than Anubis here? For the love of Ra, we're still at our wedding and you're doing this! I was supposed to be on the dance floor with my new husband and I find him being needlessly grilled by you! Shame!" Tanis screeched, jabbing a finger at his chest as she ranted. (Tanis could've sworn she heard Phantasma shout out a "You go, ghoul!" in support.)
"But, Tanis, dear, I—"
"Shame!"
"It was only—"
"No. More. Warnings! Got it? You should be glad you're getting a grandchild. Sheesh… Just… Just relax and enjoy the party, alright? This is a celebration, after all…" Tanis said, sighing in resignation as her mood deflated. She didn't think he'd have the gall to pick on Shaggy at the wedding reception, of all times. What was he trying to do? Make Shaggy become as meek as she once was? His antics were beginning to give her a headache.
Her father grunted before speaking. "Alright, Tanis… Alright. You're right. It's your day, my little scarab. You go on and dance with Shaggy. I'll just see what your mother's doing." he said, lumbering off to search the crowd. Those nearby that had been watching Tanis' screaming match turned their attention back to what they were doing before.
"The nerve of that mummy…" Tanis groaned, leaning against Shaggy who instantly put an arm around her.
"Like, you alright, love? Thank you for the save, by the way."
"Yes, beloved pharaoh. I'm just glad I got here before he really got going. Now let's get on that dance floor and have some fun, alright?" she asked, looking up at him with a small smile.
Now that was a plan Shaggy couldn't argue with. He decided to express that very thought with a kiss. Who knew Tanis would turn out to be such a firecracker in public? And not even one embarrassed apology for the outburst too. Being married to this young woman, it seems, was going to be quite interesting.
Parenting, on the other hand… Well, that would certainly be an adventure in its own right. How does one raise a baby mummy anyway