Scooby Doo! Meet Ellie Machine

The Ghost Rig (Part 1)

It had been a normal weekend morning, and I was just drawing in my sketchbook when I got a text from Fred: Meet @townhall, help!

So, being the fantastic and easily panicked friend that I am, I grabbed my essentials, ran out the door without even looking at my father, and ran as fast as I could to get to the Town Hall. Panting from running those five miles, I saw the Mystery Machine and the front door close behind who was probably Scooby. I ran to the doors and threw them open and raced to catch up to them.

"Fred?" I called to them. "Ellie! Alright, thanks for coming along, gang. I really need the support," he said, walking up the stairs to his father's office with Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma. "It's never a good thing when my dad asks me to meet at his office."

I stopped and stared at him. "That's what I ran here for?! Not a new mystery, or someone getting hurt, or anything extremely serious, but because you needed support for talking to your father?" I exclaimed, still trying to catch my breath. "Oh, uh, sorry Ellie. I would have already picked you up, but I was running a bit late as it was," he said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. I sighed and put on a smile. "It's okay, Freddy. You know I would have gone with you in a heartbeat," I told him. He smiled as well, and we hugged briefly.

"Like, dude, no problem," Shaggy jumped in.

"Yeah. No problem," Scooby repeated, wagging his tail.

"Too bad Daphne couldn't make it. Trust me. She'd love to be here for you if she could," Velma reassured him as we entered the mayor's office.

"Ah, Fred, my boy," Mayor Jones called to him. "Today is a very exciting day for you because today you learn the family business: politics!"

"Politics?" Fred asked, shocked. "That's adult stuff. You know, kids my age are into traps and solving mysteries."

"No, they're not, son."

I snickered a bit as he continued. "You're going to learn all the vital things I do for this community," he said as he led us out of the office. "Like create pamphlets and strategize about new places to put parking meters."

"I know a place he can put another parking meter," Velma muttered to me, and I chuckled. "Fine," Fred conceded. "What do you want me to do?"

"Help me get reelected as Mayor. Make me 40,000 copies of this campaign pamphlet," Mayor Jones ordered, and he walked away. We all groaned and looked at the copier with disdain. "Don't worry, Freddy. We'll get your dad elected again, and you'll be back to solving mysteries in no time," Shaggy comforted Fred. "Yeah! Vote for Fred Sr.! Vote for Fred Sr.!" Scooby chanted, and they approached the machine. "Um, guys, I don't think-," I got cut off as they pressed buttons, and it exploded ink all over us. A man yelled from behind us as well.

"Look what you've done to my new suit!" he yelled at us. He was a tall, Hispanic man with salt-and-pepper hair, and wearing an outrageously green suit and an avocado broach.

Scooby laughed nervously and handed him a ruined pamphlet. "Vote for Fred Sr.," he told him. The man glared at us all as Mayor Jones raced out of his office to see what the commotion was.

"What's the problem here, Avocados?" he asked the man, standing in front of us. "That's Avoc-ados," the man snipped. It was clear that the man's name was often mispronounced. "And if you want to run a dirty campaign, Jones, two can play at that game," he snapped and stormed off.

"Gee, dad. Who was that guy?" Fred asked as we all stared after the man. "George Avocados, the person I'm running against. He considers himself a shoo-in for the job because his father, Theodore Avocados, was mayor once. Well, until he was caught stealing a priceless diamond from Crystal Cove bank," Mayor Jones explained.