Scooby-Doo brought the birthday cake toward him and licked his lips, saying, “Rum! Rirthday rake!”
At the same time, Freddie drove the Mystery Machine through the luxurious Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park. Trees surrounded him and the rest of the gang like bowling pins that would never fall, leading to an influx of pins for more competition.
Velma pushed her glasses closer to the bridge of her nose and glanced over her shoulder at Scooby. “Scooby,” she warned, “if you eat that cake, you’re making a new one for Ihaan.”
Shaggy, sitting beside Scooby and playing on his SP Game Boy, said, “Like, chillax, Velma. Scooby wouldn’t betray Ihaan like that.” Without looking up from his game, he dug a sandwich out of the picnic basket in the Mystery Machine’s trunk and stuffed it into his mouth. “He’s just excited for those Leaf-Fish Sandwiches.” Giggling, Shaggy lowered his Game Boy and met eyes with Scooby. “Like, aren’t you, Scoob? Finally, another week of Ihaan’s famous Leaf-Fish Sandwich!” His grin widened. “Even better, no new mystery or creepy crawly to unmask. Boy, am I in heaven!”
Scooby nodded in agreement and set the cake down. “Reah! Reaven!”
Daphne, who sat in the front of the van with Freddie and Velma, closed her makeup box and tucked it into her green purse, which she wore around her neck. “Oh, I can’t wait to see Ihaan again!” she cheered, holding up her purse like a dress. “He’s going to love the latest teen fashion I bought for him!”
“And I can’t wait to try my brand-new Elvis impression,” Freddie chimed in. He reached into the Mystery Machine’s glove compartment and removed some sunglasses, tucking them into his short blonde hair and lowering them over his eyes. Freddie deepened his voice and added, “Hey, kid, now that you’re a man, it’s time for your old man to give you The Talk.” He paused before finishing with, “Thank you, thank you very much.”
Velma blushed and collected a newspaper, hiding behind it. “I think you need to study theatre science, Freddie.”
Silence followed, and then Freddie laughed. “Oh, that’s a good one, Velma!” He focused his attention on the rest of the gang. “Don’t you think so, gang?”
No answer. Shaggy returned to his game, Daphne her makeup.
“Oh, come on!” Freddie complained.
“Huh?” Scooby asked. He rolled his shoulders and chuckled.
The rest of the way through the forest, Freddie grumbled to himself and ensured that the two canoes on the Mystery Machine’s roof didn’t slide onto the dirt road. The van bounced over a sea of rocks, and a green tint overtook Shaggy’s face.
He covered his mouth and said, “Like, shouldn’t have had that taco sandwich.” However, Shaggy removed his hand when Freddie pulled into an open area of the overgrown forest, Lake Anima Nipissing before them.
A few loons passed before the Mystery Machine, cooing at each other, and a figure emerged from the trees and bushes. He was a shadow at first, but then Ihaan’s tall form unmasked itself, revealing his long, scraggly brown hair, muscular body, and broad shoulders. Paint decorated his bare torso and arms, and a large bald eagle rested on a wrapping around his right forearm.
Hold on—that was Ihaan? He was already a muscular guy, having canoed Lady Evelyn’s lakes for ten years, but now? Maybe Fred should take up bodybuilding.
He snapped out of his trance when Scooby appeared over his headrest, barking, “Rian! Rian!” The Great Dane shook Freddie’s shoulders, and his eyes knocked together.
“Okay, Scooby!” Fred parked before a few ferns and shut off the Mystery Machine, opening his door.
At once, Scooby crawled over the seat, across Fred’s lap, and leaped out into the forest. He rushed toward Ihaan, tongue flapping wildly.
Ihaan’s wide eyes widened further, and he bent his body, saying, “Uh, uh.” Scooby tackled him onto his back, and Ihaan’s cheeks puffed out. “Oof!”
Crying out, Ro flapped her wings and jumped off his arm, landing beside Scooby, who licked Ihaan’s face.
“Scooby!” Ihaan laughed, gripping each side of his face. He crawled out from under Scooby and stood, wiping slobber off himself. “All right, boy—I’m excited to see you, too.”
Scooby crouched down and playfully chased Ro as the Mystery Gang approached Ihaan.
Daphne, Freddie, and Velma hugged him, but Shaggy and Ihaan faced each other and slapped their knees before high-fiving.
“What happened to you?” Daphne asked, blushing and studying Ihaan from head to toe. “You’re almost as tall as Freddie now!” She squealed and clenched her fists. “You were right, Velma!”
“Aren’t I always?” Velma giggled, crossing her arms. “I calculated that you would hit your growth spurt between fifteen and sixteen, Ihaan.”
“Not only that, but wow!” Fred’s eyes caught a hair on Ihaan’s chest. “Is that a hair on your chest?” Instantly, he reached into his jeans, took out his sunglasses, and put them on again. “Hey, man,” he included in his deep, Elvis-like voice, “I have too much time on my hands, so let me tell you what’s happening.” Fred wrapped his arm around Ihaan’s shoulders and led him toward Anima’s calm water. “Welcome to the man club, meaning that you’re a man now. We brought you things to help with this transition.”
“Transition?” Ihaan still looked bewildered as ever. “Great Spirit says it’s time for my rite of passage.”
“Uh… sure,” Freddie stammered before smiling again. “Don’t worry, kid, we’re going to help you through this, starting with…” He snapped his fingers, the cue for Daphne and Velma to grab the cake.
At the sight of them trotting toward the Mystery Machine, Scooby stopped playing with Ro. His mouth watered, and he joined Shaggy.
They panted while Daphne grabbed the cake, Velma a bag of birthday gifts.
A warm breeze passed through Anima Nipissing’s treetops, and Ihaan’s hair waved in his face. He tucked it behind his ears, and his mouth dropped when the Mystery Gang held up the cake and gift bag.
“Happy birthday, Ihaan!” they announced simultaneously.
“Birthday?” Ihaan’s voice cracked, and he quickly covered his mouth. “Sorry.”
The gang tittered, and Fred said, “Another sign that you’re now a man.”
Daphne took the stage. “Sixteen’s a big birthday, Ihaan. Granted, we and you don’t exactly know when your birthday is, but it happens every year, and you’ve probably never had a party.”
“Party?” Ihaan looked more confused by the second.
“Like, a party’s only the greatest thing ever!” Shaggy laughed, lifting his hands. “Food, balloons… food, and cake!”
“Reah!” Scooby repeated after him. “Rood!”
“And let’s not forget the music and Myspace uploads!” Daphne cheered. “Oh, we can’t wait to teach you how to party, Ihaan!”
Ro peered up at Ihaan, slight concern in her dark eyes.
“Uh… okay.” Ihaan backed away and shivered under a sudden gust of cool wind. “Well… um… I have something I want to show you guys, too… before the—” he emphasized with his thumbs and index fingers—“party.” From there, he picked up Ro and hugged her close, turning on his heel. “Follow me. And thank you for the cake.”
Fred understood why he was hesitant. Ihaan had lived alone in the wilderness for eleven years after a canoe accident separated him from his mother, so the modern world was a little overwhelming for him. Fred had to make sure he and the gang did this right, starting with whatever Ihaan wanted to show them. After all, too much time on their hands meant more opportunities to help him, just like the tutors at college.
Ihaan led the gang through the forest to a wide area where new trees had just sprouted—a reminder of what happened the year before. He stopped, clasped his hands together, and nodded toward the woods.
Ro freed herself from his arms and landed with a plop onto the forest floor.
Velma knelt and set the gift bag down, a bewildered yet knowing look on her face. “Why isn’t she flying, Ihaan?” She seemed excited about another potential mystery. “Is it another mystery for us to solve?”
“Look at you, Velma,” Freddie said, removing his sunglasses and clutching his hip. “It looks like you expect a mystery whenever we come here now. Another Ghost of Ontario potentially?”
“No mystery,” Ihaan explained.
“Aw,” Velma groaned.
Daphne, Freddie, Shaggy, and Scooby gave her a funny look.
“Ro had accident a few months back,” Ihaan continued, putting his hands together again. “Hasn’t flown since. But that not important now. The Spirits want to meet you.”
Shaggy gulped. “Like-Like Spirits?” He ducked behind Scooby. “I-I thought there would be no creepy crawlies this week.”
Velma nudged him. “Shaggy! I think he means the Spirit Animals.”
“Like, oh,” Shaggy continued, standing back up. “Sorry, Ihaan.”
“It okay,” he replied. “We’re still learning our worlds.”
That was true. It had been a year, after all, so the gang probably forgot a few things, Ihaan, too.
He faced the woods and waved his hand. “You can come out now; they don’t bite.”
Silence followed, but then a rustle came from the forest, and a few deer, wolves, and a bear emerged from it.
“Zoinks!” Shaggy shouted, jumping into Scooby-Doo’s front paws. Their knees knocked together, but they watched the animals, who inched closer.
“Relax, Shaggy and Scooby,” Velma stated. “They won’t hurt us. They’re Spirits, remember?”
Sure enough, a gray wolf with a white underbelly stopped before Shaggy and Scooby. He sniffed them, then sat back with his tail wagging.
Ihaan soon approached Shaggy’s side. He gripped his wrist and said, “It’s okay,” bringing his hand toward the wolf’s muzzle.
Shaggy giggled when he touched it and slipped out of Scooby’s paws.
That was the first time Fred had seen him not afraid of a spirit, ghost, or monster. He and the girls flinched for a second when the rest of the Spirit Animals approached them, but it wasn’t long until they began playing with them, even Scooby, who ditched Ro for a moose with Daphne. It wasn’t the Great Spirit, but a Spirit nonetheless.
Fred had forgotten how incredible Ihaan’s world was, but he and his friends lived in their own magical world, one they would share with Ihaan that night. It would be a night of fun, change, Scooby Snacks, and transition for Ihaan, and Fred couldn’t wait. He wanted to give him his gift first, but remained patient and slipped behind a tree to play hide-and-seek with a Spirit Deer.
Velma, in the meantime, approached Ihaan and gestured at Ro, asking, “What happened to her, Ihaan?” There she went, wanting to know everything and every clue so she could piece the puzzle together.
Ihaan’s lips twitched. He shut his mouth and bobbed his head, explaining, “Flying accident with the Thunderbird. She broke her wing, and the Thunderbird disappeared. Been having trouble regaining her confidence.” Angst glossed his eyes, and he bit his lip.
A grin stretched across Velma’s face, and she put her hands together. “Thunderbird? What’s the Thunderbird?”
“Only appears when someone needs help.” Ihaan scooped up Ro and stroked her feathery back. “Don’t yet know if it’s me or her. All I know is that something’s happening, and it’s up to me to figure out what.”
Velma bounced on her heels and quickly glanced at the gang before focusing back on Ihaan. “Does this mean we finally have another mystery to solve?”
Silence followed between them, soon interrupted by Ihaan, who answered, “I guess it does.”
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Prompt: "Too Much Time on My Hands" - Styx
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