“Heather?” Daphne and Velma asked, but Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby remained nonchalant.

        A small smile crossed Daphne’s face, but bewilderment soon replaced it.

        “Wait, no!” Velma tossed down the mask and jerked Heather to her feet. “This is all wrong! I’m never wrong!” She faced Stan. “She set us up, Stan! She’s not the ghost or demon bear! Ihaan is!”

        For once, Shaggy stood up for her. “Like, she’s right. Scooby and I noticed that the bear ran fine in the forest, but Ihaan’s foot is injured.”

        “And there were no stilts,” Freddie added. “Ihaan used them to give the bear a more intimidating appearance.” He couldn’t believe that, for once, someone outsmarted the Mystery Gang.

        Red from her heels up, Velma’s cheeks puffed out, and she looked at Heather. “She must’ve come up with the idea after Daphne first accused her of being the demon bear to try to stop us from interfering with her ‘perfect, little’ resort. Stan, we swear.” Velma put her hands together. “A boy lives in this forest, and he’s the real Ghost of Ontario!”

        Heather giggled and crossed her arms, but her smile faded.

        Stan rubbed the sweat from his forehead and told the gang, “I’ll believe a boy lives in this forest when I see him.”

        “Then turn around,” a voice spoke behind him.

        Stan jumped and whirled around.

        Another demon bear stood before them, and while he didn’t wear the stilts, Freddie recognized his voice.

        Wait a minute! Ihaan came out of hiding and wasn’t scaring the construction personnel for once. Instead, he removed his bear mask, revealing his tanned face and scraggly hair, and tucked it under his arm.

        A screech came from behind, and Ro ducked into the scene, landing on Ihaan’s costumed shoulder. She folded her wings and seemed to glare at Stan and Heather.

        Their eyes, and a few of the workers’, widened to the size of watermelons.

        The Mystery Gang grinned and relaxed their hitched breaths.

        “Who are you?” Heather almost yelled, blushing when Velma gave her a knowing look.

        “I am Ihaan,” Ihaan answered, “the Ghost of Ontario. Let me prove it.”

        Ro reached her bill into a hidden pocket on Ihaan’s costume and removed the leaflute, offering it to him.

        The sun poked out from behind the clouds, coating Ihaan in a warm summer glow when he brought the leaf to his lips, closed his eyes, and played “Lucilla”. It sounded better than last time: no skips and hesitation between notes.

        Stan’s jaw dropped, and he whispered, “‘Lucilla’.”

        Heather blushed again, but a coat of misty guilt glossed her eyes.

        Ihaan finished his song and returned the leaf to his pocket, bending his elbow. 

        Ro jumped from his shoulder and plopped onto his leather wrapping, nodding.

        Ihaan's knees knocked, but he locked them and nodded back at Ro. “You can’t build canoe resort here,” he sternly stated. “My home. My home is here. Shouldn’t have scared you—sorry—but I didn’t know how to stand up for myself then.”

        Was Velma crying? She rubbed the side of her eye and grasped Daphne.

        In only a few seconds, the entire Mystery Gang crowded around Ihaan and hugged him.

        Ro returned to his shoulder and smirked at Stan, Heather, and the construction workers.

        Ihaan released the Mystery Gang and said, “Let me show you all something.” He led the way into the forest, and the others followed, even a few fascinated workers.

        The clouds broke apart above the canopy, sending sun rays bouncing through the treetops onto the forest floor.

        “Our first clue was this piece of fur I found when we first got here,” Velma explained, showing Stan the fur. “I noticed stitching in it, and when you mentioned the demon bear, it got me thinking.”

        Fred piped up. “What gave it away was”—he gestured at Ro—“Ro, and you said the ghost didn’t become aggressive until the construction began. We then found Ihaan’s home.”

        “But why did Heather turn against you guys?” Stan inquired. “And”—he gulped—“is Ihaan a ghost?”

        The Mystery Gang glimpsed at Freddie, who gave a cheeky grin and shook his head. “He’s not. Ihaan’s a real-life person who's been out here for ten years since that canoe accident. His survival skills and foot prove it.”

        “Heather didn’t believe us when we told her,” Daphne elucidated, “so she tried to prove Ihaan wasn’t real by attempting the demon bear act herself and to get us out of the picture. Granted, Stan, I don’t think she did anything wrong, but I did convince myself that she was the real demon bear at first—oops.”

        Stan lowered his voice. “And Ihaan did all this because he was trying to protect his home?”

        The gang nodded. “That’s right.”

        “After all,” Freddie said, “some people are not what some people think they are.” If he and the gang got something out of the mystery, it was that. He chuckled when Heather spoke up from the back.

        “And I would’ve gotten away with it, too, if not…”

        “… for us meddling kids,” the gang finished.

        Shaggy patted Scooby’s head. “And Scooby-Doo. You saved us again, Scoob.”

        Scooby brought his paws together and stood tall, knocking off his wig. It appeared he would breakdance at any second, but then Ihaan stopped and nervously faced his group.

        “Here we are. Our home.”

        Sure enough, the Mystery Gang and their curious followers stood in the familiar area with Ihaan's longhouse, fire pit, etc. The sky was blue above the treetops, dotted only with cumulus clouds. The Mystery Gang's flashlights sat on the table in Ihaan’s kitchen area. He picked them up and tossed each flashlight to their owners.

        They caught them, except Shaggy, whose flashlight bounced into Scooby’s paw.

        Ihaan next left the kitchen and stopped beside the fire pit. He lifted his hands, and a warm gust of wind passed through his and his followers’ hair.

        Spirit Animals emerged from around, a few eagles, hawks, and even a familiar form dropping from the sky.

        Hawenneyu bowed his head to the gang, his eyes reading, Thank you.

        The gang returned his bow and watched while the Spirit Animals circled Stan and the workers.

        Their faces changed from shock to joy, and they reached for the creatures.

        It wasn’t long until Shaggy, Scooby, and Daphne joined in on the fun, but Freddie and Velma remained together.

        Velma’s shoulders tensed, and she bent her chin, looking the most nervous Fred had seen her since they met Ihaan. “Fred,” she softly spoke, “I’m sorry I doubted you and thought we were too old for mysteries. I was so caught up in college that I forgot how much we love them.”

        Fred assumed that was on her mind but didn’t expect Velma to admit it finally. They may have changed a little after all, even Shaggy and Scooby.

        They approached Ihaan, and Shaggy allowed Scooby to lick Ihaan and Ro.

        Fred chuckled at seeing them and told Velma, “It’s no big deal, Velma; you were just being Velma. We’ll always be the Mystery Gang, college or not.” With those words, he and Velma embraced.

        “This is probably the best mystery we’ve had,” Velma admitted, “where the culprit wasn’t a villain. Thank you, Fred.”

        That time, Fred blushed. “You’re welcome, but Ihaan is the real hero here. He’s the one who solved the mystery of the Ghost of Ontario. We only helped.”

        Ihaan waved the Spirit Animals over, and they surrounded him like an ensemble, with two wolves standing on both sides of him and the Great Spirit in the back. “So please,” he begged Stan, Heather, and the construction workers.

        Stan left the crowd and came within reach of Ihaan, a serious expression on his face. However, it faded, and he cleared his throat, drawing his badge again. “This land is now under the protection of the National Park Service.”

        “What?” Heather yelled from within the crowd.

        Stan glanced at the gang and then at Ihaan. “That’s what I was doing the past few days. I knew something was here, so I worked to get it approved. Demolition on the resort will begin immediately.”

        Tears streamed down Ihaan’s cheeks, and he hiccupped. He threw himself into Stan’s arms and whispered, “Niá:wen. That means ‘Thank you’.”

        The Mystery Gang clapped and cheered. 

        Scooby, sobbing, locked arms with Shaggy.

        Heather huffed, but then a tiny grin overtook her face. It was like she now realized who and what the Ghost of Ontario really was.

        Ihaan freed Stan and said to the Mystery Gang, “I wouldn’t have done this without you meddling kids.”

        Fred waved his hand. “Hey, it’s what the Mystery Gang does best.”

        “We’re just glad you got your home back, Ihaan,” Daphne voiced. “I never knew how important nature is until now, so thank you, too.”

        “You’d make a great park ranger one day, son,” Stan admitted, studying Ihaan’s right foot. “But before we do anything, why don’t you let us help you?”

        “Niá:wen,” Ihaan repeated, “and I won’t let the Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park down. It’s my duty as the Ghost of Ontario.”

        Shaggy’s mouth watered, and he said, “Like, now that the mystery’s solved, what do you say we have a delicious Leaf-Fish sandwich, Ihaan?”

        “Reah!” Scooby rushed away from the group and headed toward Lake Anima Nipissing, soon returning with a fork and knife.

        The gang laughed, Ihaan, Stan, and Heather, too.

        “Scooby-Dooby Doo!” Scooby howled. “Doo-Doo!”

        It was the most fantastic victory howl Freddie ever heard.

Current Word Count: 25,354