Liar, Liar, the Mage's Desire Vol. 3 (Return of the Oumeno)

Shuichi Saihara, Where Are Ya? (4)

    Hand in hand, Kokichi and Himiko walked down to the beach to join the others. Many tourists were enjoying themselves despite the overcast skies. The clouds hovered ominously over the beach, but the temperature was still hot enough for some beachgoers to take a dip into the ocean. 

   "So, what do you guys wanna do?" Fred asked, hoping to get everyone's mind off of what just happened in the Mystery Machine.

  "Well, it was Kokichi's idea to come here," Velma said, giving Kokichi a pointed look. "Why don't we ask him? " Kokichi gave her a cheeky grin.

   "What's with the attitude, Velma? We're all friends here!" he said. 

   "Enough, Kokichi. Just tell us why you wanted to come here," Daphne said, crossing her arms. 

   "Like I said, being out here in the open air might help us think about where all that gold might have been smuggled," Kokichi explained.

  "Like, how?" Shaggy asked. 

   "Well..." Kokichi began, but he was suddenly interrupted by a bunch of screaming from the tourists. Everyone turned to see what the fuss was all about.  Through the frantic crowd of the beachgoers, they could see a large, burly, ghostly figure of a fisherman bellowing in the middle of it all. 

   "LEEAAAAAAVE!!!" the ghostly fisherman roared. 

   "ZOINKS!!! It's a g-g-ghost!!" Shaggy exclaimed. Scooby yelped as he jumped into his arms.

   "REEELLLP!!" he screeched.

   "E-Everybody...run!!" Fred said before everyone scattered. Fred, Daphne, and Velma hid behind a giant umbrella, while Shaggy and Scooby quickly built a large sand castle and hid inside of it. Kokichi and Himiko hid underneath a blanket that one of the tourists had left behind. The only one who hadn't rushed to find a hiding place was Shuichi. He stood there on wobbly knees as the ghostly fisherman closed in on him. He fell backwards onto the sand, trembling violently in fear. 

   "Shuichi!" Himiko whispered horrifically. She turned to Kokichi and frantically tugged his sleeve. "Nyeh...we have to help him!" Kokichi merely smiled at her.

   "Don't worry too much about it, Monkey Buns," he said. "Remember...that's only someone in a costume. That's how it always turns out in Scooby-Doo."

   "Yeah, but what if it's a real ghost?" Himiko asked. "Some of the ghosts in Scooby-Doo were actually real!"

   "Yeah, but, I don't think that's the case here," Kokichi replied as he watched the ghostly fisherman inch closer to the cowering Shuichi. "That fisherman isn't moving like a ghost. Ghosts usually float, but this guy's walking."

   "I guess that's true, but...what about Shuichi?" Himiko asked. Kokichi grinned mischievously at Himiko as he suddenly pulled out a box of Scooby Snax from behind him.