Understanding

Chapter 3

Arthur felt himself shiver as another chill ran up his spine. He rolled the window beside him up, immediately blocking the cold, night air from entering the van. Vivi casually flipped a page in her book, appearing to be immune to the temperature change. Arthur felt himself envy her wisdom on bringing a scarf everywhere she went. Maybe he should start doing that...

"Arthur, are we there yet?" She suddenly asked as she glanced up from her book, adjusting her glasses. "We should be there by now."

"Almost," Arthur replied, ignoring the goose bumps that came onto his arm. He felt another chill run up his back, and he felt his shoulders rise at the feeling. He grit his teeth before glancing back at him for a split second before bringing his attention back on the road.

What the hell was making him so cold!?

Mystery stretched as he yawned, appearing to have woken up from his nap that he took for about 86% of the ride. Vivi started to pet the dog, immediately getting him to nuzzle up beside her. She giggled before scratching behind his ear, immediately getting the dog to wag his tail.

"You know, Arthur," She said as she glanced at her friend, removing her hand from the dog. "I'm really glad I came with you guys tonight. I hadn't felt this relaxed in awhile."

"Yeah, me either," Arthur shrugged. "But it's kind of nice, you know? Actually going out and doing something you like..."

Vivi nodded. "Yeah. I wish everyday could be like this."

"It could," Arthur shrugged. "If only we made enough money out of this. Then it'd become a job."

"Well, why don't we do that?" Vivi asked a grin came to her face. "We should start on all the difficult cases! We can certainly manage it, right?"

Arthur frowned. "I don't know, V....Like I said the other day, it's been awhile since we managed to crack one of those."

"I don't think your arm will get in the way, though," Vivi gave him a look. "If we just use our heads together, we should be able to solve it, right?"

"Yeah, but-"

Arthur was suddenly interrupted by Mystery starting to whine. The dog started to move around a lot and turned to his owners, worried spread on his face. Both Arthur and Vivi blinked in confusion.

"What's wrong, boy?" Vivi asked, giving Mystery a strange look. The dog simply whined some more, giving her a look she couldn't recognize.

"Maybe he has to go to the bathroom," Arthur suggested. "It's been awhile since we made a pit stop."

"Oh," Vivi nodded before turning back to Mystery. "Do you have to go to the bathroom?"

Mystery shook his head before whining some more, turning to Arthur. He glanced at him, but kept his eyes focused on the road.

"D-Do you want a snack?"

The dog shook his head before placing his paws on the seat, looking at the back of the van. He started to whine as he turned to Arthur and back to the other part of the vehicle, as if motioning to it. Arthur groaned.

"Vivi, can you check back there? I'm driving."

The female nodded before looking behind her seat, only to see the equipment stored in the van that they would use during their investigating. She looked around a bit before turning to Mystery, whom had whined in return as he continued to motion in the same area. Vivi sighed.

"Arthur, can you pull over real quick? Maybe there's something in the back of the van."

"On it," Arthur replied as he continued to drive, looking for an area he could pull over in. It took a few seconds until he managed to move the van to the side of the road, and he gave Vivi a nod. She returned it before unbuckling her seatbelt and stepping out of the car, moving to the back of the vehicle. She opened the back door before looking around, rummaging through some of the stuff they packed. She did this for a few moments until shutting the doors and returning back into her seat, closing the door beside her.

Arthur glanced at her, and she only shook her head. He then turned to Mystery, whom was still whining and fidgeting. He asked, "What's the matter, Mystery?"

Mystery opened his mouth, but closed it as he just whined, looking around frantically. Arthur sighed before pulling back on the road in silence. Vivi gave Mystery a worried look.

"Has he ever acted like this before, Arthur?"

"No," He shook his head. "It's weird. Last night he was barking at the garage door, but nothing was in there."

"Odd," Vivi placed a finger on her chin in thought. She then looked at Mystery, whom was still looking in the back of the van.

"Maybe it's just the feeling of the new equipment," She shrugged as she leaned back in her seat. "Mystery always acted strange in the past whenever we brought out something new."

Arthur shrugged. "Maybe."

"Hey, Arthur, can you pull over to the rest area over there? I need to use the restroom."

Arthur nodded before turning the wheel so the vehicle moved to their left, pulling into the rest area. Arthur pulled into an available spot in the corner and nodded at Vivi. She returned it and reached for the door handle until Mystery started to whine and placed his paw on her back. She whipped around in surprise.

"Oh! Mystery!" She laughed, rubbing the back of her neck. "I suppose you want to come?"

Mystery whined before turning to Arthur, motioning over to Vivi. Arthur blinked in confusion.

"You...need to go, too?"

Mystery blinked in confusion before suddenly nodding with a smile. Arthur rolled his eyes.

"Alright, I'll take you."

Vivi then stepped out of the van as Mystery followed her, wagging his tail repeatedly. Arthur stepped out as well, making sure to lock the car while he was at it. The dog barked happily as he led them over to the restrooms in silence, a smile spread onto his lips.

--

DAMN IT!

Lewis felt banging his skull on the back of the seat repeatedly. How the hell could he have lost his chance!?

The skeleton groaned as he watched Arthur from afar, whom was, currently, following Mystery as the dog sniffed the ground. He knew he should've strangled the idiot when he had the chance. And why didn't he!? It would've been easy, quick, and done.

But, NOO, he just HAD to bring the dog, didn't he!?

Honestly, the only thing he managed to accomplish was remaining hidden to the idiot and Vivi by using his powers. It made him a bit tired, having to hide from the three using his invisibility, but what other choice did he have? That dog would've blew his cover from the start!

Lewis tapped his gloved fingers against the headrest of Arthur's seat in silence. He figured that the best way to kill Arthur would be by following him and waiting for the opportunity that the idiot was alone so he could make his move. But, with that dog and Vivi by the side, how could he manage THAT?

Lewis' eyes widened as he saw Vivi come out of the restroom and approach Arthur. They seemed to talk for a bit before suddenly walking back to the van, Mystery following behind. The ghost then levitated through the van and sat on top of the vehicle, going in his invisible form as he watched the three figures make their way over. Vivi was the first to approach it.

"Look, all I'm saying is that, if there ARE ghosts haunting the lake, then they'll, most likely, just be some people under a mask. Simple!"

"Oh, come on, V. Not every ghost we come across is going to be fake."

"And how do you know, Arthur? Have you caught a real ghost before?"

"N-No, but I'm just saying...What if s-some actually died and is really a ghost? And they just so happened to be spotted by someone?"

"Then call me when you find them."

Lewis watched as Vivi stepped into the unlocked car with Mystery behind her. The dog glanced up in his direction, and he, immediately, scooted back so he was on the edge of the car. The dog stared a bit before jumping inside the van, Vivi shutting the door behind them.

Lewis mentally sighed as he then scooted so he was back in the center on the roof. It took a few minutes until Arthur managed to start the van and had backed up out of the parking space. Lewis had to hold on to the side so he wouldn't fall off, and the car sped off back to the road.