AUTHOR'S NOTES: Look out! A wild Fanficiton has appeared!
Hey guys! I'm back, sorry for not updating my last fanfiction ("Forever by your side") as soon as I'd promised, but I was really stuck on how to start the next chapter, on top of that it is under two months until my AS exam...which are kind of a big deal! So, I'm going to be taking some time away from fanfiction; I might write soemthign over the Easter break, but it is unlieky since I should be revising, but once my AS exams are over I should be back to writing over the summer holidays (July and August) - Thank you so much for being patient and so kind.
Of course, I have this lovely little piece of writing for you, Ghostbusters has been a love of mine since I was about 4 years old, and since I absolutley hate the idea of the all female reboot, I just had to write a fanfiction based on the original films. I've planned this one out and am putting a lot of work into it, so hopefully it's good and hopefully you'll enjoy it. It probably won't be any more than five chapters.
And a HUGE shout out to my beta reader LucyFire Ten for checking for spelling erros and helping me out, I couldn't have done it without you!
Into Darkness
Chapter one
The room Egon sat in was cramped and cluttered, his over-used desk was lit with a hard, white light. He was hunched over piles of paper with endless scribbles of scientific and mathematical formulas that would be completely nonsensical to most people; his glasses lay on the very edge of his nose - ready to fall at any moment. He scratched his head with fearful frustration before letting out a hopeless sigh. Egon sat back, staring down at his work; he'd been working for hours, yet at this point it all seemed pointless; he hadn't solved anything and was just bouncing between the same useless solutions.
Janine hadn't received a call in two days - which had unnerved the entire team, in their experience when things went quiet only two things could happen: scared citizens would regain their confidence and before they knew it they'd be in court again, or something big was right around the corner, something big enough to threaten the life of every single New Yorker. Egon had hoped that after Vigo and the Psychomagnotheric slime they'd seen the worst of the paranormal world, but he had an eerie sensation that he couldn't seem to shake, like some kind of hoarse voice in the back of his mind that just kept telling him to be on edge and to watch his back. He sighed again.
It made him tense, like he was about to crack, and seeing so many numbers and symbols staring back at him caused him to scrunch his face up with irritation and despair.
"Pull it together, Egon..." he muttered to himself in the most minute tone possible.
Of course, Egon seemed perfectly fine on the outside. Reserving his strong emotions had always been a talent of his - granted, it occasionally made him appear rude or platonic, but he always felt that some things were more important. Over the past couple of days, however, not showing his concern had been a challenge for him. He just wanted everyone to stay safe.
It was then that he heard the door open with a timid creak, and by the light footsteps he could tell - without even turning around - that it was Janine. He turned and cast his plain gaze over her, noticing immediately that she was carrying a steaming coffee mug in her hand.
"Hi, Egon... you've been up here for a while so I thought I'd bring you a coffee."
He flashed her a warm smile, that same smile that always made Janine's face light up. Egon took the coffee from her and felt comfort from the warmth of the mug.
"Thank you, Janine," he replied with genuine happiness.
He looked back up at her and their eyes locked together, their gaze strong. There had been some kind of tension between them for years now, and a lot of it. Even Egon had noticed it. In fact, he was pretty sure that everyone else had too. The way they would often exchange a meaningful gaze, the gentle touches that never quite made it, or even when they found themselves in situations that lead to them inevitably share tender moments. If Egon had believed in fate he would have called it that.
It was clear to anyone that she had an attraction to him when they first met, they spent a lot of time together - which he didn't mind, if anything he was grateful for it... but what surprised him most of all was his inability to respond to her advances. Even when she feared for his life the only thing he could think of doing was hang on to the shy hug she gave him. They had shared something together, after taking down Gozer and Mr Stay Puft they'd gotten a lot closer, nothing that could technically be called romantic, but there was something there; they found themselves having deep conversations into the late hours after Egon had pulled one of his common all night sessions with his research. But then things tumbled down hill. The Ghostbusters found themselves been sued for practically everything they had, everyone became angry, stressed and before they knew it they'd gone their separate ways. Egon and Janine saw less and less of each other... then Egon began his own lab research, and they didn't speak until the company made a comeback.
"So what are you working on?" she asked with a quiet squeak, partially interrupting his nostalgic thoughts.
They had both tried their best to pick things up where they had left off, but with the worrying case of Dana and her baby it just didn't happen, and before Egon knew it Janine was having some wild relationship with their very own Louis Tully. It had hurt him slightly. He was never a man of strong romantic desire, but he felt something for Janine, some kind of warm connection, however her relationship drove a wedge between them and after New Year's Eve it was his work that dominated Egon's life. But Janine's relationship with Louis had ended pretty quickly and since then she had changed too: her hair was cut short and dyed brown - what Peter often referred to as her 'original look' - and she was back to spending all of her free time reading and catering the needs of her employers - especially Egon. It was almost as if she had regained her intellect... Egon often wondered if she put on a kind of "dumb b***" act to attract male attention. He just couldn't figure himself out, but he definitely admired her in one way or another.
"Well, unfortunately the storage facility is beginning to get crowded again, so I'm trying to find a safe way to expand it... or at least find some way to solve the problem."
Janine swallowed hard: she didn't like to think about the storage facility... too many bad memories.
"Any luck?" she questioned hopefully.
"No, nothing yet, I'm trying my best to branch out from the original ideas I had a few years back, but none of my designs seem to be effective enough... or safe enough."
He sighed with slight embarrassment.
"Well, I'd offer to help... but I can't," she joked lightly and Egon gave her a slight chuckle as he sipped his coffee - Janine knew just how he liked it.
"Believe me, you're doing just fine," he said with a smile and a reference to the coffee mug.
She giggled at him before noticing that Egon's expression had returned to worry.
"Egon, what's bothering you?"
She leant on his desk slightly.
"Nothing -" he lied, "- I'm just trying to solve of storage problem."
"Egon, you're a terrible liar -" She said softly, "- Now, tell me, what else is bothering you?"
He couldn't resist her, the caring gaze she gave him was hypnotic. He sighed with defeat.
"I think something big is going to happen..." he admitted with fear.
"Something big?"
"Uh-huh..." he winced.
"What do you mean 'big'?" she questioned with a tight jaw.
He stood up in controlled panic.
"I mean like Gozer and Mr Stay Puft big... I mean the destruction of New York big... I mean the kind of big that's either going to kill one of us or put us out of business..." Egon's words were violent, but they way he delivered them was so calm... like he'd given up and just accepted a darker fate.
"Are you sure? Maybe you're just paranoid...?"
"No, I highly doubt that... all of the samples indicate some kind of major paranormal activity within the city... the same thing happened just before the return of Gozer." He sighed again...almost whimpered.
There was silence, a silence so thick and tense that they could almost feel it.
Janine had never seen Egon like this before. He wasn't your typical male hero, but he was no coward, she had always seen him with a clear head... even after almost killing himself in the explosion at Central park West he just walked out onto the street calmly. It mad her feel wounded... and worried. She just wanted to help him, she wanted to help the entire team, but how could she? She was nothing more than their secretary; her most daunting task was putting the traps away - something that Ray was still showing her how to do properly. She moved over to him with nervous steps and draped her arms lightly around his torso. He accepted her hug and returned it as best as he could. "I'm sorry, Janine," he said at almost in a whisper; her head was resting on his chest and she could feel his voice more than she could hear it.
"You've got nothing to apologise for... just promise me that... that you'll look after yourself -" She paused briefly, and Egon remained silent. "- I know that it's your job to protect the city...but don't forget to protect yourself."
There was so much he felt he wanted to say, but no matter how hard he tried no words presented themselves. He wasn't a cliché romantic. He wasn't about to say 'I promise' or 'I'll do it for you' or any of that romance novel nonsense; he just stood in awkward silence, desperately trying to think of the right thing to say to her... but he was too slow: Janine's arms dropped from him and she took a step back.
"Take it easy," she said gently, and flashed him a small but meaningful smile before walking out of the room. She moved with purpose but also reluctance.
There was just something about that man that pulled her in, like having an attraction to someone but not really knowing the reason why. She trudged down the firehouse stairs with self annoyance, she had always blamed herself for her and Egon growing apart: there had been time where the possibility of a relationship between them seemed more like reality, but she had let it all go. She knew that Egon would be absorbed in his new research... maybe they were equally to blame for their split, but she always felt responsible; she felt that if only she had been there for him during the Ghostbusters' dark period... she didn't like to think about what could have been, it was too painful. Janine sat down at her desk, and was just about to let all the negativity wash away when...
"Hey, Melnitz, where have you been?" a bold voice asked her.
"Nowhere, Doctor Venkman," she said with a plain and irritable tone.
"You were clearly somewhere," he teased.
"Is it really that important, Peter?"
"Yeah! I've been looking for you."
"Well, if you must know, I was taking a cup of coffee up for Egon," she said to him plainly.
"You never bring me coffee," he said childishly.
"You never ask."
"Janine?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you get me a cup of coffee?" he asked with a smirk.
"Get it yourself," she replied plainly but forcing back a few chuckles.
"But you made coffee for Egon!"
"He's busy," she reasoned.
"Maybe I'm busy?" he squeaked.
Janine let out a single sarcastic laugh, which earned her a somewhat offended look from Peter.
"Anyway, why were you looking for me?"
"Oh! Ray wants the latest update on the storage facility."
Janine's heart skipped several beats.
"Why were you looking for me then?"
"Because I couldn't find Spengs and he usually gives you a report on the storage thingy to file, so I thought I'd save myself some time."
"Well, I don't have it," she said, trying her best to avoid the topic altogether.
Peter shrugged.
"Okay, I'll go ask Spengler then."
"Ah, I'd leave him if I were you," she almost snapped at him.
"Why?"
"He's... busy."
"Doing what?"
"He's still working on the latest sample." She wasn't exactly lying.
"Fine, but let me know as soon as your little crush has finished his science project." He smirked.
"Why you-" Janine was about to chase him with a rolled up magazine, but was stopped by the abrupt sound of the phone ringing.
"Saved by the bell!" Peter laughed as he walked towards his office.
She picked up the phone with a violent hand.
"Ghostbusters," she answered irritably, but her tone suddenly dropped to shock once she heard what the caller had to say. "Okay, Sir, calm down, just give me the address -" She began scribbling on a piece of scrap paper, "- Okay, yes they'll be with you very soon, just stay calm, stay out of the kitchen and sit. Thank you." Janine moved over to the alarm button. "Time for work, boys!" she wailed.
Her fist slammed onto the button and the shrill of the alarm filled the firehouse; Peter leaped away from his office and was putting on his boiler suit before Janine could blink, Ray and Winston soon came bolting from the containment grid.
"What is it?" Ray asked Janine somewhat excitedly.
She rolled her eyes slightly and handed him the address.
"Some woman phoned up saying there was something in her kitchen."
"Anything else?"
"Something about there being slime on the walls... I think?"
"Wow, I can't wait to get new samples! Thanks Janine." Ray joined two of his companions at the lockers. "Hurry up, Spengler!" he beckoned, and right on queue Egon came almost tumbling down the stairs - he had never liked that fire pole. "Come on, Egon, some poor woman has a Slimer problem in her kitchen!" Ray informed him, he was like a kid on Christmas morning.
Suited up, the busters packed themselves into Ecto and pulled out of the firehouse at a dangerous speed.
Janine sat back into her chair. This was the worst part of her job: the boys were out, she was alone and was worrying about them the entire time.
She couldn't shake the trepidation that hung over her shoulders: if Egon's prediction was right - which, unfortunately, it was - then trouble could be right around the corner... for all Janine knew they could've walked straight into it, and all she could do was sit around and wait for those closest to her to die. She paced around her desk, hating herself for worrying,
"Pull yourself together, you idiot, they're going to be fine... it'll be just like usual, they'll come back, store the traps and they'll all be fine -" She shivered. "- Oh for god sake! Stop being so silly!" she cursed herself.
Janine tried countless times too sooth herself, but nothing worked; she could feel paranoia spike through her veins as cold as ice, as if at any moment tears would haemorrhage from her. It was torture, torture that she was so annoyed for experiencing. She always got wound up like this, nearly every time the boys answered a call; when their work load had slowly declined she had hoped that she could relax for a while, but things were never that easy, just when things got quiet something else came around the corner... something that was always bigger than the last.
Hours passed with a torturous lack of speed - with each second seemingly the same length as a decade: the phone didn't ring, there was no sign of the boys and she didn't even know where Louis was - not that Janine would be exactly overjoyed by the idea of seeing him. Soon after the events of New Year's Eve, Janine had realised that she'd made a mistake, she had been so hurt by the loss of contact between her and Egon that she had practically thrown herself at Louis; it wasn't fair that he had been her rebound, she hated what she had done to him, but also what she had done to herself. She had always seen herself as an intellectual, but she had practically turned herself into a desperate, dumb bitch just to get some male attention: it was a time when she had despised herself. Egon always brought out the best in her. Yet here she was, once again fearing for his life and not being able to do a thing about it.
She rested her head on the desk with closed eyes and begged herself for forgetfulness, until slowly she felt her eyelids become heavy, and her body begin to sway, to drift, fading into the blackness of a world that would, for the moment, offer her more comfort.