The Patter of Tiny Dinkleys

[russm]

After being honoured for her love of science Velma ends up being held for ransom, by the rest of the gang. Will their high-stakes gamble pay off and can Daphne think like a Dinkley to save her friend? S/V Set 12 months after The Snack Strikes Back


Chapter 1
A white gowned Velma was facing the window, clucking and fussing over the precious bundles in her arms.
"Does mummy love you? Yes she does, yes she does, oh yes she does," cooed Velma. Shaggy and Scooby were getting over-emotional, passing tissues to each other and knitting some very small and odd shaped booties.
"Velma, please stop," asked Daphne in a flat voice.
"Oooh look Uncle Shaggy and Uncle Scooby are making you presents, you are so lucky, oh yes you are. Can you give your uncles a wave? Yes of course you can clever things you," gushed Velma turning to face Shaggy and Scooby showing them what she was holding.
They waved back "That was so, beautiful," blubbed Shaggy.
"Reha, reautiful," agreed Scooby, both then blew their noses.
"But what has Aunty Daphne brought you then?" asked Velma.
"What? Nothing! Please Velma, all of you, just stop it!" exclaimed Daphne becoming increasingly unsettled by the proceedings.
"Don't you pay any attention to your naughty Aunty Daphne," pouted Velma.
"Velma stop it now, please, you are freaking me out," pleaded Daphne.
"Come on Daph, just hold one. Look they are waving at you too," smiled Velma. She turned and held out a Petri dish towards Daphne. The label on it read E. velmadinklei.

(Authors Note: E. velmadinklei is a relative of everyone’s favourite gut bacteria E. coli.)

Chapter 2
Earlier that day...
"Well here we are gang," said Fred as the Mystery Machine pulled up outside a large steel and glass building "ECBio Labs."
"It will be nice to see Polly again after all this time" said Velma, as they got out and walked towards the building.
"And to see the new Dinkley," said Shaggy.
"Yes, this is so exciting, my own bacteria, a whole new species named after me," enthused Velma taking hold of Shaggy’s arm.
"Velma, it's a bug," said Daphne with a degree of disgust "A perfume, shoes, artwork I can understand, but... bacteria?"
"Daphne, this is a huge honour for me, it's like immortality, the laws of taxonomy are set in stone, it's... oh never mind," Velma stopped, slightly crestfallen, when she saw Daphne's look of incomprehension. Velma and Fred walked slightly ahead. Shaggy went up to Daphne.
"Aw come on Daph, this is a big thing for Velma," he whispered "Especially after..."
"I know, I know," sighed Daphne feeling a little guilty "I just can't get excited by it like she does. I don't want to hurt her feelings but it all just makes we want to go ewwwwww. I mean they first found it in raw sewage."
The gang went through security and then waited to be collected, after a short while a glass lift descended. The door opened and for all intents and purposes a lab coated Velma stepped out.
"Hey Velma, how did you get over there, but if your over there, who are you," Shaggy was doing a double take between the Velma next to him and the 'Velma' that had stepped out of the lift.
"Hi Velma," called lab-coat Velma.
"Polly, it's good to see you, but, you've... changed," said a surprised Velma.
"I'm into amateur dramatics and had to dye my hair for a part, I've also had an eye infection so I have to wear glasses rather than contact lenses for the time being," replied Polly. Velma and Polly did look rather similar to each other, especially at a distance. "So this is Scooby," enthused Polly "oh I love Great Danes, I've even got some Scooby Snacks for you, Velma told me you liked them." she bent down and scratched Scooby behind the ear, Scooby was just as enthusiastic, he’d found another ready supply of Scooby Snacks.
"We're dumped Velma, looks like Scooby has a new best friend," wailed Shaggy resting his head on her shoulder in a blatant display of overacting.
"Don't worry Shaggy you can have Scooby's share of the snacks I've brought," replied Velma patting him on the head, the rest of the gang joined in the amusement.
Polly escorted them to a conference room where some refreshments had been laid on. Slightly chastened by her discussion with Shaggy Daphne was trying to get a human angle on things so she could generate some genuine enthusiasm for the proceedings so she decided to have a chat with Polly.
"So why did name the thing after Velma?" she asked.
"It was Velma that fed my interest in science; she was kind enough to keep answering all my questions and encouraged me when I was in graduate school. It's thanks to her that I'm where I am today. As the discoverer of the new species, I get to pick its name, and this was the most appropriate way I could think of to acknowledge both her support and her love of science."
"I think I get it now, but, well, a bug as a friendship gift," replied Daphne.
Polly gave a giggle "I'm a microbiologist Daphne, I don't study 'cute' things, but there is beauty there, even in bugs. It's not to everyone's tastes but for Velma it is appropriate," Daphne nodded in agreement.
"That's true Polly, it’s also put quite a spring in her step, I haven't seen her this happy for months. Certainly not since she came out of hospital," replied Daphne.
Polly took hold of Daphne's arm and quietly moved her to the side of the room "Speaking of Velma, how's she really doing? I can never bring myself to ask her directly," she asked quietly.
"Much better Polly she's almost her old self now, she still has the odd bad day from time to time, though they don't upset her as much as they used to. When she first came out of hospital she was mortified by the changes in her behaviour when she was in public. At home she would lose her temper, badly, over the smallest thing then it would break her heart when she calmed down and realised what she’d done."
"I remember that, you said she refused to come out of her lab for days at a time as she was so upset by her behaviour."
Daphne nodded "That was the worst time, she even considered admitting herself to hospital again. She did go in but as a day patient for some behavioural therapy sessions and they put her on some medication as well which helped stabilise her but it was Shaggy who did the most. He had the genius idea of taking her out for a long walk early each morning when there was no-one else around. It got her out the house into the fresh air but in a safe environment which was what she really needed. That's when the real Velma began to make a come-back. What annoys her most now is she hasn't had the all-clear to play ice-hockey yet."
Polly breathed a sigh of relief "Thanks Daphne, I was horrified when I heard how badly she'd been hurt."
Daphne shivered slightly "We all were, it was so bad that the man who attacked her was charged with attempted murder. I nearly fainted when I first saw her in the ICU, she looked so tiny amongst all those wires and tubes… she couldn't even breathe for herself… she nearly died…"
"But she's much better now Daphne," Polly said firmly, she could see Daphne beginning to tear-up with the memory.
Daphne smiled "Yes Polly, I think we're the ones who need therapy now, she still can't remember any of if whereas we still can, all too clearly. There’s still the hurt there from her recovery, but she’s quite stoical about things, paradoxically she can’t bottle it up like she used to so we know when she’s upset or having a bad time. What annoys the rest of us is that the police could never find who was behind the gang. After what happened to Velma, after all she’s been through, they deserve to be in jail, they’re the ones who should feel ashamed not Velma."

Later in the afternoon there was a semi-formal reception prior to the presentation. The gang and the guest mingled and the room was filled with the noise of social hubbub. As the reception carried on Velma noticed that Polly's voice began to grow quiet and she was coughing a lot.
"Your voice sounds a little rough Polly, are you sure you are OK?" asked Velma.
"It's all the rehearsing we've been doing, I'm not used to speaking so much," croaked Polly.
"Do you want me to do the talk after the presentation to save your voice? I should be OK unless things get very technical."
"That would be welcome Velma, I'll get the slides so you can look over it beforehand," replied Polly and she left the room with Scooby in tow.
"Like, what's up Velma?" asked Shaggy as he came up behind her.
"Polly has been overdoing rehearsing and has a sore throat," Velma turned and smiled at him
"Ah! 'Once more unto the throat lozenge dear friends' or perhaps 'Now is the winter of our expectorant,'" quipped Shaggy in a Shakespearian voice and manner, Velma laughed and held his arm. A little way off Daphne could see Shaggy and Velma, they were exceptionally close at the moment, all they need is a little nudge in the right direction… she thought.

Just before the presentation the gang went off to get changed into suitably formal clothes, Daphne wore the latest fashionable dress, Fred wore a blazer and smart sweater and Scooby had his collar and tag polished till they shone like new. Shaggy entered the room looking uncomfortable, as ever, in a suit. Velma entered a few seconds later wearing smart chocolate-orange trouser suit. Shaggy said something to Velma; she smiled and looked rather bashful. Shaggy offered her his arm, she took it, and he escorted a blushing Velma towards the stage. Daphne whistled 'Here comes the bride' but to her disappointment neither of them heard her. Velma was now on the stage and people settled down for the presentation. Velma was handed a framed copy of the formal species description written in Latin, some large electron micrographs and a cut-away model of her bacteria "Wow, look at Velma's face," whispered Daphne "She looks so proud." Instead of the usual flowers at the end she was presented with a large orange coloured plush-toy of E. velmadinklei, she waved its flagella at the applauding audience.
"If her grin gets any wider the top of her head will fall off," whispered Shaggy. Velma then proceeded to give the presentation talk instead of Polly; Velma was in her element and enjoyed every minute of it.

That afternoon there was an informal buffet, everyone was now back to normal. Daphne was surprised to find out that Shaggy had helped Velma pick her outfit for the presentation. She couldn't decide between feeling a little put out or intrigued by this discovery. The gang were due to crash at Polly's house that evening for a proper party. Polly was enjoying the time she was spending with Scooby "My boyfriend and I love dogs, but he's allergic to them," she sighed "but as he's off on mountain rescue course at the moment I'll take full advantage of Scooby being here." The group made their way down to reception. They were bringing the boxed-up leftovers from the buffet as back-up. Polly, though she had been warned to get extra food in, had yet to experience Shaggy and Scooby in full party-food mode.
"Polly do you want me to put this stuff in your car while you put snacks into Scooby?" laughed Velma.
"Thanks, Velma here’s my keys," replied Polly.
Velma walked out of the building with the boxes, as she appeared a van parked opposite the building started up and entered the car park.

(Authors Note: Flagella are tail like structures that some bacteria use to propel themselves about the place.)

Chapter 3
Velma carried the boxes out to Polly's car. As she loaded them into the boot the van pulled behind her and a side door opened. Velma stood up stretched and yawned, all of a sudden she was grabbed around the waist and a hand pressed was over her mouth and dragged back into the van "Mmmmph?" was the only noise she could make until she bit down hard on the hand covering her mouth "Scooby! Help! Scoobhhh..." the man sprayed something in her face and Velma passed out, he then proceeded to bind her with tape, Scooby ears pricked up and he ran outside barking, the gang looked at each other.
"Hey man, like what's up Scoob?" Shaggy called out. Seconds later Scooby dashed back inside.
"Relma in Ranger! Relma in Ranger!" he barked then ran back out into the car park.
"Velma's in danger!?" said Shaggy and Daphne simultaneously, the group dashed out after Scooby. They got to the car park just as the man had finished taping up Velma's torso and was about to start on her legs. Velma was starting to come round and saw Scooby running towards her barking furiously "Mmmm mm MMMMM!" she cried through her gag and kicked her legs out to stop him taping her ankles together, the man turned and saw Scooby, he quickly closed the door and drove off with the Mystery Machine in hot pursuit.

For ten minutes they chased each other. Fred's experience in racing paid dividends as he was able to keep the up the pressure on the van's driver. Eventually a series of tight corners forced the van to slow down. Under pressure, the driver obviously misjudged one corner as they could see the van slow to a crawl for a few seconds. To everyone's surprise the van door suddenly slid open, Velma came tumbling out just as it began to speed up. Black tape covered the lower half of her face and most of her body. Despite this she managed to get to her feet before the van stopped and ran towards the Mystery Machine. On seeing Velma come out of the van Shaggy, Scooby and Daphne got out of the Mystery Machine and ran towards her "Go Scoob go!" shouted Shaggy, Scooby raced towards Velma. The man got out of his van and ran after Velma but Scooby got to her first and stood his ground growling angrily as Velma continued to run for the Mystery Machine. The man turned tail then raced off in his van. Velma and Scooby were quickly bundled into the Mystery Machine which then sped off in the opposite direction.

Pale and shaking Velma looked in an awful state. Shaggy held her tightly as Polly gently prized the tape from Velma's face while Daphne worked to free the rest of her. "Thanks Polly. Jinkies that was scary, I'm shaking like a leaf," she said, her voice trembling "Please don't let go Shaggy," she whispered to him and rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, comfort and security were the order of the day and she didn't care who knew it. Shaggy kept hold and gently stroked her head, slowly he felt her body began to relax and the shaking subside.
"Did he hit you over the head?" he asked quietly, Velma gently shook her head.
"No, he sprayed something in my face, thanks for looking out for me Shaggy."
"Who was that creep?" asked Daphne "Jeepers, how much tape did he use on you Velma?"
"Dr McKleef," said Polly in an emotionless voice "he was sacked from here well over a year ago for stealing and falsifying data, his university is investigating to see if he did the same for his PhD. He has a grudge against me as I was the one who uncovered what he was doing. He was trying to steal the data on velmadinklei as the microbe has many potential commercial uses," she paused "He's a bit nuts, he once threatened to make me work for him or proclaim him as the discoverer. We haven't seen anything of him for a long time, until now that is. We'll let the police know right away." Daphne finally managed to free Velma who then held Shaggy tightly in return.
"Remind me never to tumble out of a moving van again Shaggy." Holding onto Shaggy with one arm she stroked Scooby's head "And most of all thank you Scooby Doo." Scooby licked her face in return.
"Are you OK now Velma?" asked Polly "I thought you were used to this?"
"Getting there Polly, it was just so unexpected and getting out of the van like that was way more scary than I thought it would be. But being abducted by a mad scientist isn't going to stop me getting to my party though," chuckled Velma.
"That's the spirit Velma," said Daphne.
"Anyway," continued Velma "this kind of thing should happen to Daphne, but only when we are working on a mystery," Velma gave Polly a wry smile. Daphne nodded her head.
"Fortunately not as much as it used to. Next time Velma please just wait to be rescued, you all gave us a heart-attack when you came out of that van."

The party at Polly's house was under way when the news came through that McKleef had been arrested, he was being held at the local police station pending transfer elsewhere. The gang breathed a sigh of relief, Polly especially was happy that this was over and the party kicked up a gear in response. As the party went on Daphne noticed that Shaggy was waiting on Velma hand and foot while Velma not only appeared to be revelling in it, had made him the sole focus of her attention. Daphne mentioned this to Fred.
"That's kind of him, she's still a bit jittery after her encounter with that McKleef fellow," he replied.
"She's really enjoying it," said Daphne.
"Wouldn't anyone," said Fred.
"No, I mean she's really enjoying Shaggy's attention," emphasised Daphne waggling here eyebrows for extra effect.
"He's a kind person, why wouldn't she?" replied Fred aware that he and Daphne were now having very different conversations.
"But she's also ohhh… Never mind," said an exasperated Daphne and she stomped off to find Polly. Fred, mused Daphne, was rather like Velma, both were hopeless when what you really wanted was a good gossip.
Towards the end of the party Polly invited Fred and Velma to go over the next day to an old lab building near a large lake used by the company. It was being decommissioned and both were asked to see if there was anything there that either of them wanted, Velma for use in her basement lab and Fred for use in modifying the Mystery Machine. As it was supposed to be a nice day the rest of the gang decided to tag along and bring a picnic with them. Tomorrow was promising to be quiet an enjoyable day.

Chapter 4
The next day they drove up to the lake. Fred was as excited as Velma at the prospect of the scavenger hunt. Velma borrowed Polly's lab coat and as the security system was still active, her ID as well "The security system won't be turned off until the building is empty, so as I'm on holiday today, you can be officially me," said Polly as she handed Velma her lab-coat and ID "Parts of the building are still off limits, as far as the security system is concerned, to all but me and a couple others so you'll need the ID to get around." Polly then addressed Velma and Fred "OK both of you, remember you just have the van with you, so not too much." both promised that they would try "OK, off you...... go?" Polly said to the dissipating dust clouds.

Shaggy was sunning himself on a deck chair and Polly and Daphne were sitting on a picnic blanket nearby. Polly was throwing Scooby Snacks to Scooby whilst Daphne described the history of Mystery Inc to her.
"Man, this is the life Scoob," said Shaggy "Who'd have thought science could be so relaxing."
"Reah," agreed Scooby grabbing a Scooby Snack in mid-air.
Just then Polly's phone rang, after answering the call she looked at Daphne with concern "McKleef broke out of jail early this morning. Do you think we should get the others?"
"Is he likely to try anything?" asked Daphne.
"He's only shown perseverance when it comes to maintaining his ego," said Polly.
"Better tell them, just in case," advised Daphne "Shaggy, Scooby come on, let's get Velma and Fred," she called out.

The group set off towards the building when there came a crashing noise from the lab. Some of the workers were running out shouting out about a monster attacking the place.
"Velma!" cried Shaggy and he dashed inside with Scooby hard on his heels.
Polly and Daphne were there a few seconds later. They entered the building and headed to the main room, just as they got there Fred and Velma came in from the other side. They headed towards each other.
"What's going on?" asked Fred
"Something is attacking the building." said Polly.
Just then part of the wall was knocked down and a large blob smashed its way in. It looked like a monster bacteria with flagella at its base. The monster lunged towards the gang; they split in two Fred, Daphne and Polly in one direction, Shaggy, Scooby and Velma in another. The monster followed the latter but managed to catch Fred, Daphne and Polly with a flagella which sent them flying. Shaggy Scooby and Velma reached the corner of the room, Shaggy and Scooby went one way, Velma the other. The creature then went after Velma, a finger like structure emerged and darted for Velma, it landed just in from of her; she stopped and started to run back the way she came. The structure darted for her again, this time catching her by one of her legs and pressing her to the floor.
"Shaggy, help!" she shouted, "it's eating me!" as it began to envelop her. Shaggy and Scooby dashed to help only to be knocked aside by another flagella and landing in a heap together.
"Radio Rag, Radio Rag," barked Scooby.
"What? Right the radio tag," replied Shaggy, he quickly took the tag from Scooby's collar and set off for Velma again. Scooby tried to distract the creature and took a different route to Velma.
"Help! Anyone! Please help!" screamed Velma, she was trying to pull herself free but could not, only her shoulders, head and arms were still free. Shaggy dodged one flagella after another as he worked his way towards Velma.
"Velma! Catch!" shouted Shaggy, throwing the tag to her as he dodged another flagella, it landed just in front of her face, she grabbed it just as it began to envelope her head. A flagella slammed into Shaggy sending him crashing into a wall he fell on the floor but didn't get up.
"Shagg.." Velma's cry was stopped as her head was enveloped, rapidly followed by her arms. She curled into a ball and clutched tightly to Scooby's dog tag.
Once Velma had been engulfed the creature seemed to head towards Shaggy, Scooby dashed over and stood over him, refusing to leave his fallen friend. The monster hesitated for a moment then turned away towards where it had come from. Fred, Daphne and Polly pulled themselves up to see Velma trapped in a bubble inside the monster, pounding on the wall, fear etched on her face, she was shouting but no sound came out. The monster rapidly shuffled out of the room towards the lake which it entered a few seconds later. Fred and Daphne rushed over to help Shaggy; Polly tried to see in which direction the monster had gone.
Shaggy came round and shook his head "Man, what happened? Feels like I've been kicked by a horse."
"We were attacked by a monster of some kind, it took Velma," said Fred.
"She's got Scooby's radio tag; I managed to get it to her and saw her grab it," said Shaggy.
"I know Shaggy," replied Daphne "I saw you that was very brave of you."
"Well let's get gooo oh oh," Shaggy tried to move but found it too painful.
"Don't worry Shag, we'll get you patched up then go looking for Velma," said Fred.
Shaggy was taken to a nearby hospital, fortunately there were no broken bones but he had dislocated his shoulder, his ribs and stomach were a mass of bruises and he had mild concussion. Shaggy rested in the back of the Mystery Machine whilst they drove around trying to get a fix on the signal. The trouble was that the radio tag was only a short range device and the local topography was played havoc with reception. A couple of times they thought they had the signal but it vanished before they could make any use of it. They searched till it was dark without success; tomorrow they would take a different approach. Velma would have to be patient, they all knew the drill. They would be up and out early the next day, they were sure that they would find Velma sooner or later.

Early the next day the gang went looking for monster tracks. Polly had the approximate direction the monster had gone in and they were exploring the shoreline to try to find the place where it had come ashore. Due to the size of the lake, the gang knew they were in for the long haul. Despite his injury, Shaggy was taking full part. Both Fred and Daphne had asked if he wanted to rest, but he refused point blank. To cover more ground they had split up into two groups, Shaggy, Scooby and Polly were going along the shoreline where it was easier for Shaggy to walk, Fred and Daphne were checking up the slope. Fred and Daphne had spread out so they could cover more ground, Daphne had moved ahead of the group.
Daphne's screams pierced the air, the rest of the group came rushing over. Something had to be gravely wrong for Daphne to scream like that. They came across a trembling Daphne, her face as white as a sheet was frozen in horror. She pointed a shaking finger towards some bushes. Fred quickly took hold of her; she could barely stand and was already going into shock. Polly, Shaggy and Scooby inched towards where Daphne had pointed. Polly buried her face in her hands and slumped against a tree, Shaggy sank to his knees and wept; Scooby covered his eyes and howled. A few feet away by the bushes was a large area of wet ground, sprawled at the centre was a skeleton covered in sticky acidic smelling slime, it was wearing Velma's clothes with her glasses nearby...

[russm]

Chapter 5
After the monster had entered the lake Velma had curled up into a ball, too terrified to think of anything else to do. As she lay there she became aware of an unusual hum. It sounded a bit like electrical machinery, there also seemed to be the sound of a pump and fluid flowing. After a while all movement stopped with a jolt. A few seconds later the bubble she was in began to move. She took a peek to see what was happening and saw that the bubble was now resting on the floor in some kind of building. She could see a figure approaching her and sat up.
"So Polly, we meet again, this time there is no pooch to help you" the figure gloated.
"Who on earth are you? Let me go NOW mister," replied Velma angrily.
"Temper, temper Polly." he replied.
"I'm not Polly, who are you?" replied Velma, though she had an pretty good idea who he was.
"Don't play all innocent with me Polly Eaglestone, you were loading things into your car yesterday, your lab coat and ID card betray you, only you have access to that lab. Your cowardice in hiding behind the identity of your friend makes your crimes all the worse... it won't just be you who suffer if you don't cooperate." The walls of the bubble began to shrink and exude a fluid which to Velma smelt like acid, she began to cough from the fumes, her eyes started to water.
"Please stop it, please; I don't want to die," shrieked Velma, "yes I am Polly, please don't hurt me. I'm sorry, please leave my friend alone." The bubble stopped shrinking and soon the air was clear again. It had to be McKleef and he was nuts, it was clear to Velma that the best path for survival, both hers and Polly's, was to play along with his delusion. The figure walked up the bubble imprisoning Velma, a small hole opened and he passed a packet in to her.
"Remove all your clothes, including your underwear, shoes and socks. Change into the contents of the packet then put your clothes inside it then pass it out to me." The bubble went opaque, "You have 3 minutes or the digestion process will begin again."
Velma opened the package with trepidation, wondering what sort of humiliating costume she would be forced to wear. She was relieved to find it was just regular casual clothes, white underwear, grey tracksuit trousers, grey t-shirt, grey sweatshirt, white trainers and socks. She quickly changed hiding Scooby's radio tag under her new clothes. She packed up her old clothes and passed them through the hole which sealed shut. "One more thing," said the figure, the bubble began to move along the floor, Velma could see that they were now in some kind of laboratory, when they were in the middle of the room the bubble stopped and opened up at the bottom. It revealed a pair of heavy ankle shackles attached to a long piece of chain which was fixed to the floor. "Put the shackles on your ankles," the figure commanded. Reluctantly Velma bent down and put them on, the blob opened up around her, again the smell of acid filled the air then she was standing in the lab. McKleef checked that the shackles were secure then dragged her around on what he called his ‘new employee’ tour. "There's much work to be done, you will be working for 18 hours each day, every day, to reproduce your discovery. This is now your world, everything you need is in this room, you can get drinking water from there, a toilet is over there, you can sleep on the camp-bed over there in that cell…” Velma stared at a small narrow room made out of cinder blocks and obviously a recent addition to the room The door had a hole through which her chain would run with several locks on the outside, inside against one wall was a camp-bed on which rested a grubby-looking pillow and a thread-bare blanket opposite it was a bucket. A bare bulb hung from the ceiling with the light switch on the outside. “…I will bring you food twice a day. I said you would work for me; you refused; now you will slave away for my glory. Succeed and you will be rewarded, another blanket for the night or your favourite food perhaps. Fail and you will be punished." He pushed her towards the lab space, the shackles causing Velma to fall on the floor her glasses skidding away from her. "Get to work Polly. I will be back later with your evening meal." With that he and the blob left, she could hear the sound of the door being locked then chained shut. Oh I'll get to work all right thought Velma as she crawled on the floor looking for her glasses sorry Daph, I'm still not going to wait to be rescued...

After a meagre evening meal, a sleepless night and a even more meagre breakfast Velma was slowly working away in the lab, partly on her escape plan, partly on doing enough to stop McKleef getting suspicious and perhaps get some better food and a blanket. He’d had been unhappy with her progress the day before so had removed the camp-bed and bedding forcing her to sleep on the floor; he’d also left the light on further adding to her discomfort. About midday he came in the lab and ordered her to sit down and watch a 'motivational video' he had made that morning. He stood behind her and held her face as he played the film. Velma's face lit up, it was Daphne; her friends were looking for her! The camera panned down to show a skeleton dressed in her clothes, then panned up to show Daphne walking directly in its direction "No Daph, no, turn away," whispered Velma, already tears were starting to roll down her cheeks. McKleef gripped her face tightly just as Daphne face first registered the meaning of what she had seen on the ground. Daphne and Velma's screams echoed around the lab.
Velma sat on the stool and wept and wept long after she saw film of the gang discovering her 'body'. The looks on Daphne and Shaggy's face were unbearable to watch, but she was forced to watch them over and over again until they were burned into her mind. McKleef stood at the door to the lab "See my dear Polly; we will be troubled no more. There will be no interruptions to your work as no one will be looking for you, those meddling children will soon be running home to mummy," Velma's grief flashed to rage at those words, no-one spoke about her friends that way. McKleef, as Fred would say, was going down, and going down hard if she had anything to do with it. It was time to put her plan into action.

Chapter 6
The police came later that afternoon and removed the remains, the initial assessment was that it was, well had been, Velma. The confirmation from DNA and dental records would come in a few days’ time. Of all the group Daphne and Shaggy took it the hardest, for several hours both were inconsolable. All there was to do was to wait for the final confirmation. The gang stayed at Polly's that night, all sleeping in her living room for what little comfort each other’s company could provide. Daphne had a fitful sleep, images of Velma kept coming to her mind, of the times they had solved mysteries together, of the monster attack and Shaggy's attempts to save her, of how she brushed her hair and always worried about her glasses, of how she would talk about how the clues that should be there but weren't were as important as the ones that were and the need to resolve the contradictions in the evidence…
Daphne sat bolt upright "Jinkies! Fred! Shaggy! Polly!" she shouted, they were there within seconds
"What is it Daph?" asked Fred gently.
"Freddie, Velma's alive, that body wasn't hers," Fred began to reluctantly protest "No Fred, it’s obvious, it's a fake, that's the only conclusion the evidence supports."
"Daph" asked Shaggy "Did you just say Jinkies?" Polly was already on the phone to her boss.
Daphne, though a competent applied chemist when the need arose, was not big on the scientific method, but she had spent ages in the company of Velma to know a fair amount about how it worked. Also, as Velma had said on numerous occasions, science was just like mystery solving, just without the monsters and ghouls; in both cases Scooby snacks were optional. All that experience suddenly came into focus when she thought about the skeleton they had found. It was so obviously a fake; that was the only conclusion that resolved all the contradictions. Daphne tried to remember the science word that Velma used at times like this; it was... it was parsimonious. She pondered the beauty and clarity of what she had just worked out and wondered if this was what it was like for Velma when all the bits of a mystery came together.
Polly and a number of the other chief scientists had been working overnight, Daphne had been in with them all the time, being questioned, questioning and cajoling them in return. Finally at dawn a conference was called. At Fred's insistence, Polly was with the gang, trying to be Velma, the suspicion was that it was Polly who was the intended target, so for her safety, she was Velma for the time being. The Chief Scientific Officer of the labs, Dr Nemkenstein, addressed the group. "To all intense and purposes the remains were of Velma, but following the suggestion from Miss Blake we have revisited the evidence and I concur with Miss Blake's proposed hypothesis."
"What did he say?" Fred whispered to Daphne.
"It means he agrees with me," she replied.
Nemkenstein outlined the reasons for their conclusion "Firstly there is no acid damage to any of the ground covered by the slime yet this was apparently strong enough to digest a human body. Secondly the substance made no headway on her clothing or glasses. Thirdly the frames and prescription of the glasses do not match the identical set kept by Mr Rogers. Fourthly we can find no trace of her hair anywhere, had her body been digested we would have expected to find some as hair is hard to digest. Fifthly, the radio tag was not at the scene, this would not have been digested and we would expect to have found it with the remains, and sixthly there are inconsistencies in the skeletal remains which do not tally with the alleged cause of death. Seventhly, biology does not scale in that way, what you saw was no single celled creature and finally that thing was huge, yet the remains were found in an area with not a twig broken and no tracks leading to or from the area. In conclusion therefore Miss Blake is right, these remains are not Velma's, they are a fabrication and, for want of any evidence to the contrary, we must conclude that she is alive and being held against her will."
All of a sudden Daphne was being clapped on the back and applauded, Daphne felt proud, soon Velma would be free.
Polly then spoke "The lab techs have knocked up a more sensitive radio detector to try to locate Scooby's radio tag, we should have the results of their first test soon," A few minutes later one of the lab techs came running in, the signal from the radio tag had been detected coming from the nearby lake area.
"We've made a more sensitive version of the device to take with you" said Dr Nemkenstein. He handed over a device to Fred. "Good hunting Mr Jones."
"OK gang, let’s go," said Fred. The gang kitted themselves up and headed off in the Mystery Machine.

(Authors Note: A parsimonious explanation is the simplest explanation among a variety of possible explanations when decisive evidence is unavailable.)

Chapter 7
After a couple of hours of searching the gang came to a small nondescript pair of buildings near the lake, to one side was what looked like a boat house and a slipway. To the other was a tall single story building, near the ceiling were small windows running along the side of the building. "This used to be used by my university as a lab until a couple of years ago," said Polly quietly; "The same university McKleef and I went to so he would know about it," The signal from Scooby's radio tag was coming from within. Scooby scouted out the boat house whilst the others looked into the building. Polly and Shaggy stayed in the van and kept watch. Scooby quickly came back and indicated that he had found something big hidden in the boat house, something monster size was hidden under tarpaulin.
Fred and Daphne had climbed up some overlooking trees to see inside. They could see what looked like benches and lab equipment in the room when some movement caught their eye. A lonely figure was working away at one of the benches, the figure looked up, Daphne nearly dropped her binoculars in shock as she saw Velma's tired sad face gaze at the world outside through a window. Velma got up and shuffled to another bench. They could see that her ankles were shacked together and a long chain was dragging behind her.
A few minutes later everyone was back in the van.
"It's Velma all right" whispered Daphne angrily, "She's been chained up and it looks like she's being forced to do some kind of experiment." Daphne looked ready to punch whoever had done this to her friend.
"Right let's go get her out" said Shaggy, getting up and out of the van, but the pain from his injuries forced him to slow to a crawl after a few yards.
"You need to sit this one out Shag," said Fred helping him back in the van "You did the heroics in getting the radio tag to Velma in the first place. You and Polly can get the van in position, there was some logging equipment a short way from here and I've got a simple plan," Daphne rolled her eyes. "Daph's our DIY whiz so she's going to make a new back door for that place, lakeside views and everything." She looked into her handbag wondering just how much DIY she could do with a couple of nail files. The van headed off and returned a short while later, Fred, Scooby and Daphne headed off to the building while Shaggy and Polly got the Van into position.

Velma shuffled down the aisle of the lab to get some water, thinking about escape and her friends. Images of Shaggy and Daphne had haunted what little sleep she had last night. She was tired, cold and hungry. She refused to believe that the gang would give up on her, but it could take them ages to work out that the skeleton was a fake and start to look for her again so she was working towards her own plan. I'll call it 'B' after the second letter of the alphabet and Patron Saint of plans she thought. Much of the first day had been spent taking stock of what was in the lab, there was liquid nitrogen which could be used to break shackles and take care of the blob if necessary, enough chemicals to make explosives to blow a hole in the wall big enough for her to crawl through. Yesterday she had begun to make nitrate based explosives, but was concerned about their stability so had stashed them away in the far corner of the lab whilst she mulled over the best way to plasticize them, about how much more to make and how to make sure it wasn't detected. She had decided that tomorrow or the day after would have to be when she escaped; soon she would be too worn down to get very far add to that her complete dependency on him carried the real risk of her developing Stockholm Syndrome. She was sure that this is what McKleef wanted but she was determined not to give him the pleasure. She also didn’t want to have another ‘episode’ which in these circumstances would mean her undoing.
"OK Daph," said Fred jumping down from a tree “Velma is near the other end of the building.”
"This job needs a woman's gentle touch, pass me the big chain-saw Fred," asked Daphne, a few seconds later "Timber!" whispered Daphne as the tree fell and took down the corner of the building as planned, what was not planned was the large explosion where the tree had crashed through.
"Jeepers Fred, what happened there?" said Daphne as she and Fred dashed to the building
"Dunno Daph, I hope Velma's OK" Scooby waited outside standing guard.
The next thing Velma knew she was on her hands and knees, dust and smoke were everywhere, she was stunned and couldn't make out what was happening. All of a sudden she was pulled to her feet by two people and half-carried half-walked out, it took a few seconds for her to realise that her feet were now free. The people where speaking to her but she couldn't make out what they were saying as her ears were ringing and she was still dazed. Seconds later she was in the open then being lead up a small slope and lifted gently into a van. The doors slammed shut and the van raced off.
The world finally began to come into focus as faces loomed over her, she could see Scooby, Shaggy and herself looking over her. She reached out and pulled Shaggy to her then it all went dark. Velma opened her eyes again, things moved into focus a bit quicker and she groggily tried to get up. "Lie still Velma, you had a nasty shock back there." said Shaggy, his voice thick with emotion on seeing her.
"Shaggy!" cried Velma as she pulled him to her again "thank you," she whispered, crying with relief. Despite his pain, Shaggy held her tightly; his glimpse of life without Velma had been far more painful. He whispered words of comfort and devotion to Velma as he cradled her in his arms, he could never take her presence for granted again.

As soon as they got back to the lab it was put into complete lock-down. Company medics checked out Velma, aside from still being a little stunned by the explosion and some bruises and grazes was fine. The gang plus Polly went to a large common room to rest. Everyone was fussing over Velma and she was finding the attention increasingly unsettling. She could feel the pressure rising and knew she wouldn’t be able to hold out for much longer.
"I'm sorry everyone, but could I have some space please...and some coffee, I feel so cold inside." people backed off, it looked like Velma was getting close to some kind of emotional meltdown.
"No worries Velma, I'll get some coffee and food sent up. And see if we can get some warmer clothing for you" replied Polly "Who's going to tell her?" she whispered to Fred as she went for the phone.
"Thank you, I'm so sorry everyone, it's just..." Velma was on the verge of bursting into tears "Polly you were wrong, he's not just plain nuts, he's mad; mad, sadistic and evil. He treated me like a slave and made sure I was utterly dependent on him for everything…" Shaggy reached out and took her hand Velma looked to see who it was and squeezed his hand tightly, everyone else was quite. After a while Velma regained her composure and spoke "Sorry again, it's just that it’s just sunk home what you saved me from and everything became a bit too much."
"We didn't mean to crowed you out Velms, but.. well we thought we had we'd lost you, you see the day after you were taken by the monster we... we found a body, well a skeleton actually, dressed in your clothes with your glasses, all covered in..." Fred stopped, Velma had gone pale and was whispering 'Oh jinkies' over and over again gently rocking back and forth in the chair, tears rolling down her face. Shaggy put his arm around her; Daphne knelt in front of her and took her hands.
"Velma?" she asked gently,
"He showed me a film of you finding that body," wailed Velma "he made me watch your faces again and again."
Everyone stared at her for a few seconds then Fred leapt to his feet "OK that's it! McKleef is going down!" he exclaimed.
"Going down hard! You said it Freddie!" shouted Velma angrily causing everyone to jump, Daphne fell backwards, Shaggy gave a zoinks and Scooby hid under a nearby chair. "How I was treated was bad enough, but it was unbearable to watch that film, I was utterly gutted at seeing your reactions. But having seen him upset you all so much he then insulted you all saying that you children would soon run home to mummy." Velma's face and voice became suffused with a dark rage "Nobody, but nobody does this to my friends then insults then to my face. All my pain turned to rage and I began to plot my escape."
The group let Velma vent her emotions; she needed release as much, if not more, than they did.
"Like, how Velma?" Shaggy asked quietly.
"I started to make explosives, I was going to blow my way out of that building." she replied, calming down as she spoke. The room was quiet for a while; everyone made a mental note to never really annoy Velma. The coffee, snacks and a coat finally arrived and the tension left the room. Velma briefly took Shaggy out of the room, when they returned Shaggy signalled to Fred and Daphne that Velma had taken some of her medication, she was still in control. Velma, now wrapped in the coat, was off talking to Nemkenstein.
Fred sidled up to Daphne and whispered "That was scary, she hasn’t lost it like that for some time, I’d almost managed to forget."
Daphne shook her head "So had I, even before then I always suspected there was more than reason buried somewhere under that orange jumper. But I agree, it was scary, I'm glad we're her friends as I'd hate to be her enemy."

Chapter 8
Nemkenstein briefly left to make some calls and, for some unknown reason, took Velma's trainers with him. The group reconvened in a more relaxed atmosphere to continue debriefing each other.
"What caused the explosion?" asked Polly.
"My home-made explosives," replied Velma "I had stored them where Daphne dropped the tree, I thought they were unstable, looks like I was right…" she stroked her chin in thought "…I guess I need more practice at making them..." she saw the look of horror on her friends faces "... but not in my lab at home," there was a collective sigh of relief from the rest of the gang. "How did you figure out the body was a fake and get to me so quickly?" asked Velma "That was impressive work guys."
"Well the two heroes in this are Shaggy and Daphne" said Fred, "Shaggy went one-on-one with that monster to get you that radio tag. Once the lab rigged up better detector for us we soon found you. And it was Daphne who figured out that the body was a fake."
"Indeed," interrupted Dr Nemkenstein "Her insistence on the re-examination of the data was crucial to your prompt rescue. It was no wishful insistence on you being alive Velma; she backed it up with evidence. Her approach was most methodical and rigorous and is to be commended given the stress she was under at the time." For once it was Daphne's turn to feel uncomfortable in the spotlight.
"I just can't thank you both enough. That radio tag was a real ray of hope for me," said Velma "and Daph, what gave the game away. It looked all too real to me."
"It did to us as well. I must have been mulling over it in my sleep when it all became clear that it was a fake, It was so obvious I don't know why we didn't see it before," replied Daphne.
"She even said Jinkies," said Shaggy. Velma beamed a huge smile at both of them.
"Why did he take you Velma?" asked Polly.
"It was clear that he thought I was you, I was in the lab wearing one of your lab coats with your ID, you were with the Mystery Machine feeding Scooby," replied Velma. She described how she had been engulfed by the blob and transported to the lab, there she had been threatened with being digested alive in the blob unless she worked for him. "I was forced to change my clothes, then shackle myself. He said I would be working 18 hours a day, the chain would ensure that I could never leave the lab and had to depend on him for everything, I had to sleep locked in a cell in the lab..." Velma stopped when she noticed Polly had gone as white as a sheet.
"Polly?" said Velma.
"That's.. just... horrible..." she blurted out then ran out of the room.
"Leave it to me" said Velma as she dashed after her. They returned a few minutes later, Polly looking better, but still pale. "Polly has claustrophobia, she can't stand being enclosed, even the description was enough to trigger a panic attack," said Velma.
"I can just about handle being in the elevators in this building they’re glass, but hearing what happened, there is no way I could have put up with it I would have to had given in there and then" said Polly.
"We need to keep you safe," said Fred looking at Polly.
"I agree" said Velma "I'll carry on pretending to be Polly and Polly can pretend to be me. There should be a spare jumper of mine in the van."
"We need to get this guy once and for all, Velma's not safe until we do," said Shaggy.
"OK gang, we need a plan. We need to lure McKleef and his monster where we can deal with them. We'll need the following for a trap..." Fred began to outline his plans "There's a radio controlled plane in the Mystery Machine, we can attach a video camera to it to give us warning of the monster. So all we'll need then is for Shaggy and Scooby to lure..."
"No Fred," interrupted Velma "I need to be the bait," everyone looked at Velma, she continued "It's Polly he's after, and we look enough alike at the moment that he'll fall for it again, we can't allow Polly to fall into his hands. Besides Shaggy has still not recovered from his first encounter with the monster and I won't see him put in any danger. Fred we have a whole science lab to use, so I think we can make a few additions to your trap."
There was a pause; Shaggy eventually broke the silence "What you got in mind Velma?"
"First we hold 'Polly' to ransom..." Velma winked at Polly and outlined the changes to the plan.

The group left to get the necessary things for the trap Daphne found Fred standing in the corridor eating from a box of Scooby Snacks.
"Why are you eating those Freddie?" asked Daphne.
"Well, I'm getting confused with all this role swapping, Velma was you, then me and is now Shaggy, Shaggy went one-on-one with the monster without any Scooby Snacks for encouragement and you've been Velma so I guess that makes me Scooby," Daphne inwardly groaned, Scooby perked up, perhaps they would let him drive the van for once.

Velma was taken by Dr Nemkenstein to a different area of the building. "Aside from what Polly does, we also do a lot of specialist work for the military, the biological digestion of unstable explosives for example." Velma listened, she knew Polly was not all that happy with some of what the company did, but they respected her views and never asked her to work on something she was unhappy about. "What I have had made for you is in here" he said pressing on a key pad then opening a door. In the room was a table on which rested her trainers and some other items, also in the room was a woman in army uniform. "I am not comfortable with you making your own explosives again” you’re not the only one thought Velma “so here you are." he passed Velma her trainers and lifted up the inner-sole "As a great philosopher once said, 'when in doubt, C-4'. The laces are the detonators. Sergeant Williams here will show you how to use them." In the end Velma felt like the hero in a spy film, explosive trainers, escape kits taped to her body with the tape colour matched to her skin tones of course, and all other manner of tools and gizmos concealed in her clothing. All she now needed was a Martini and an Aston-Martin and she'd be set for Hollywood. But first she had a score to settle.

Chapter 9
The chosen spot for the trap was a disused building on the lake shore. The area was famed for its unique views of the lake. The various bit required for the trap were collected and loaded up into one of the lab vans. The gang piled into the Mystery Machine and a small convoy of vehicles set off for the chosen building. When they arrived everyone busied themselves getting the trap ready. The key task being to ensure that McKleef would come in the way they wanted, and only that way.
"OK Shaggy, everything is set-up now, fresh batteries for the radio tag, escape tools in taped to my front and back and Dr Nemkenstein has given me some trainers that will... make things go with a bang. I'm as ready as I can be" said Velma "The lab people have got the room set up so we are good to go."
Shaggy was reluctant "Are you sure Velma, Scoob and I are more experienced at being live bait, we've even got qualifications."
"Thanks Shag, I know you would do it for me but if it goes wrong he must believe that he's got Polly back, I can pull that off long enough for me to use my escape kit. He's mad Shaggy, I don't want to think about what he would do to you, I will not see you hurt."
Velma sat back in the chair and held out her hands and put her legs together.
"Tie me up Shaggy; remember it needs to look real. Do this like we’ll do this for the main event."
"OK then Velma, I'll use regular knots to hold you to the chair but a special knot for your wrists and ankles, it will be solid until you pull one of the loose ends," Shaggy bent down and tied Velma's ankles together then to the chair.
"Too tight?" asked Shaggy.
"Actually a bit tighter, Shag, if it picks up the chair, I don't want to fall out, do my knees as well" replied Velma He went to Velma and tied her hands together, then to her waist.
"Keep hold of this end Velma, I've put a knot at the end just in case you drop it. If you need to get free, just pull that end and your hands will be free, the other end will do nothing. I’ve done the same with your knees and ankles."
"Got it Shaggy," Velma took hold of the rope, let go of it and made sure she could find it again "That's fine," she said. Shaggy then finished off tying Velma's body and legs to the chair.
"This will hold you to the chair but cut it at any point and the whole lot will unravel. There are box-cutters just under the seat on either side of the chair." When he was finished he knelt down close beside her, held her shoulders and put his head close to hers "All done, Velma, for the last time, are you sure about this? Please think again, there's still time for us to change places."
"I'm sure Shaggy; you would be in more danger than me if this goes wrong. Scooby will be here hidden in the chest of draws in the room." Velma paused and checked to see that no-one else was in the room then gently kissed him on the cheek and whispered "You're my hero Shaggy, don't forget that."
"Velma?" he whispered.
Velma leant forward again then slowly and deliberately kissed him on the lips, she could contain herself no longer. He paused for a second then responded in kind.
Shaggy eventually went to get the others; Velma stayed still for a while trying to get her emotions under control. She wondered if she was mad for doing this, but the number of time she had been complicit in sending Shaggy and Scooby into danger as bait had made her determined to see this through. Besides she could still see the pain in his face when he moved even though he tried to mask it. He can barely walk, let alone run, but he's still willing to take my place, you're more of a hero than you think Shaggy. You're not just my hero, you're mine... Jinkies Velma, this isn't the time to go all mushy inside.
Three masked figures in black track-suits came in followed by Fred carrying a video camera and tripod. He set up the shot as Velma and Daphne had a final word.
"Ok Daph, you know what to do, it must look real."
"Are you sure Velma?" asked a concerned Daphne.
Velma sighed "I wish there was an easier way but we have to stop this. Besides I could never forgive myself if Shaggy got hurt," Velma looked Daphne in the eye "Look after him for me till this is finished."
"OK Velma.." said Daphne, rather caught out by what Velma had said, but before she could find out more a voice called out.
"I'm ready" said Fred.
The smaller hooded figure gave Velma a hug "Thank you Velma."
"Any time Polly" replied Velma "Ok Shaggy, gag me and let’s trap that monster" said Velma Shaggy pushed a large damp foam ball into Velma's mouth. She closed her mouth and he sealed it with a strip of tape. Velma looked at Shaggy, of all the things Shaggy has done, this was the bravest, she knew it was tearing him up inside. Scooby hid himself in the fake chest of draws.
"Places everyone" shouted Fred "Here we go in 3...2...1..."
As soon as the filming had been done Velma freed herself the way Shaggy had described. Everyone went thought the plan one last time. After that had been done Velma lead Shaggy away Daphne tried to follow, her curiosity getting the better of her, she was stopped by Polly before she got far "Something is happening between them Daphne, just let it happen." On the distance Polly could see them holding each other as tightly as they could. When they returned Velma rested against Shaggy, his arms around her waist, she held on to his arms. Everyone waited for confirmation that the package had been collected.

McKleef was fuming in the damaged lab when a small package was thrown through a broken window. He picked it up and opened it. It was a DVD; he went to the TV and played it. It showed a bound and gagged Polly tied to a chair, she was struggling and making pleading noises through her gag. Three masked figures, one male and two female, stood around her. "We have your scientist, if you want her back give us half a million dollars," said a male voice. The tall female yanked Polly's head back hard causing her to squeal in pain, the camera zoomed in to Polly, fear and panic etched on her face "If you don't we'll torture the secrets out of her," she pushed her head forward, Polly sobbed quietly. The camera zoomed out further than before to reveal a window "Half a million dollars," said the voice, "we will tell you how do drop the ransom off soon." McKleef rewound the film and zoomed in on a frame and smiled.

Chapter 10
As soon as the DVD was picked up Velma was re-tied to the chair, everyone took their positions and waited. Velma sat in the chair awaiting the arrival of the monster I told Shaggy to tie me so it looked real, but I can barely move, wish I’d asked him to scratch my nose, still shouldn't be long now... she thought.
"Monster has just entered the water and is heading in this direction," said Sergeant Williams looking at the video feed from the camera attached to the model plane.
"Places everyone," shouted Fred, everything was set, everyone nodded that they were ready. The time seemed to drag until.
"Incoming! We have incoming!" shouted Sergeant Williams. A few seconds later there was a crashing noise and the building shook. The monster came crashing through to the room where Velma was waiting.
Velma appeared hypnotised as the monster loomed over her. "NOW!" shouted Fred and Daphne in unison when the monster was almost on top of Velma. They pulled on ropes and two large Dewers of liquid nitrogen emptied down chutes onto the creature freezing it to the spot. The monster arched its back, some of the liquid nitrogen threatened to envelope Velma "Freddie, emergency water" shouted Daphne, Fred heaved on another rope and warm water started to rain down on Velma from two large shower heads. The quick release rope she remembered, the next second her hands were free. Scooby rushed out and handed her an oxygen mask then dashed off, seconds later he returned with an umbrella which he held over both of them. With one hand Velma held onto the mask and started to free herself with the other. Shaggy picked up the sledge hammer, and headed for the monster like a thing possessed. He struck the created in the frozen area with the sledge hammer, Polly threw a bucket of boiling water at the same point and it’s back shattered. Shaggy rushed back to finish freeing Velma the rest surged over the monster.
McKleef was dragged kicking and screaming from the wreckage by Fred and Daphne.
"You meddling fools, do you think that you can stop me? These local cops won't keep me for long" he shouted.
"It won't be local cops who hold you," said a voice form behind them. All of a sudden McKleef was grabbed from Fred and Daphne hands by two heavy-set figures dressed in black and wrestled to the ground, more black-clad figures, all armed, entered the room followed by Dr Nemkenstein. "Ha! I've always wanted to be in the cavalry," he chuckled as a protesting Mckleef was led away. "Our friends from the FBI here will take good care of him for a long time in a maximum security federal prison."

Back in the conference room at the lab everyone was in a jubilant mood.
"Aside from the work here I also do a lot of consulting on defence projects," said Dr Nemkenstein "Velma's description of the bubble that imprisoned her reminded me of a project I advised an a while back. It was for a casualty evacuation module for use in contaminated environments, it used a chlorine based system to decontaminate itself. One of the problems they could never crack was when the bubble changed shape; it would leak a small amount of chlorinated fluid on the inside.
"That's what I could smell, I thought it was hydrochloric acid," commented Velma.
"It was that which reminded me of the project and following further discussion with Velma I decided to alert the authorities. McKleef, it appears, had worked on that project after leaving us and stole one of the prototypes. That act alone will put him inside for over 20 years, that's before they take into account his other crimes."
The gang had to hang around for the rest of the day while the FBI took statements and collected evidence. That night there was an even better party at Polly's house. Late the next morning the gang got ready to leave for home.

Velma walked hand-in-hand with Shaggy to the Mystery Machine and was smiling to herself. Things were definitely on the up, her own species and her own Shaggy all in a couple of days. Fred and Daphne were a short way ahead she's going to hurt herself if she keeps trying to look back at us thought Velma as she stared at Daphne rubber-necking every few steps. She had already discussed with Shaggy how they would deal with Daphne. If she had her way we'd be walking up the aisle tomorrow, she means well, but we'll take that walk when we are good and ready, perhaps sometime next week Velma gave a little laugh.
"What's up Velms," asked Shaggy.
"Nothing much Shag, just thinking about us," she replied coyly. Shaggy smiled back and squeezed her hand.

It was a couple of months later and everything was back to normal at home. It was Saturday and Daphne had decided she deserved a lazy morning in bed. She had successfully crept down to the kitchen to make herself some breakfast before anyone else was up and was back in bed enjoying doing nothing much. She was pondering the change in Shaggy and Velma's relationship; things were definitely cooking between them now. She wondered how to find out exactly where it was going, taking Velma on another pamper session should do the trick or perhaps she could get some quality time alone with her at the convention next month. But there were more important considerations to come first, her breakfast. That completed she lay back and dozed off. She was just getting into a really romantic dream, dancing with Fred on a moonlit beach, when she was woken by the sound of knocking on her door
"Daphne, are you up? We've got some presents in the post," said Velma. Daphne signed, why were those kind of dreams always interrupted?
"Come in," she said, still presents weren't too bad.
Velma came in with a large box. "Present from Polly for you."
Daphne sniffed the air "Ohhh chocolates, very good chocolates by the smell of them," when it came to chocolates Daphne's nose was almost as good as Scooby's.
"What did you get Velma?" asked Daphne, all Velma was holding was a letter.
"A letter from State-U hospital giving me the all clear for ice hockey," squealed Velma "I've already faxed this to the rink, I'm back in the team for the charity ice hockey marathon.". The girls high-fived, that news was as good as the chocolates, almost.
Daphne opened the box. To her delight the first thing she found was a couple of pounds of top-of-the-line Belgian Chocolates from Dr Nemkenstein.
"Lock the door Velma, I don't want to be disturbed," said Daphne. At this point the rest of the gang came looking in attracted by the noise and Scooby by the smell.
"Looks like you're dumped Fred," said Shaggy "At least until Daph finishes those chocolates."
Also in the box were two ECBio lab coats, one each for Velma and Daphne, both with their names embroidered on them. There was another E. velmadinklei plush toy and a snake-like purple plush toy with big eyes and long eyelashes.
"This is cute," said Daphne looking into the toys eyes. At the very bottom was a letter addressed to Daphne. "You read it Velma," asked Daphne "I need to check out these chocolates," As Velma read the letter a wicked grin appeared on her face.
"Wow Daph, it's your chance to be famous in the make-up business," said Velma as innocently as she could.
"Really?" said Daphne getting all excited.
"Yes," replied Velma "that toy is of a new species on nematode worm they want to name after you in honour of your efforts in saving me and capturing McKleef. Say hello boys to...Pelodera daphneblakei." Velma showed the boys the purple worm with the big eyes and even bigger eyelashes.
"Make-up, you did mentioned make-up," said Daphne weakly.
"That's right," replied Velma, her grin had returned "This beauty lives on human eye lashes and feeds off mascara." Daphne paused only to collect her chocolates and make-up remover before running screaming into the bathroom as everyone else collapsed in laughter.

(Authors Note: Daphne's nematode worm is related to one that causes dermatitis in a number of animals including humans. After this comes 'Shaggy and Velma Get a Clue or Two')