#peter venkman x dana barrett

[incorrectghostbustersquotes1984]

(After Dana got married to the Violinist)

Peter: I’m not jealous, I’m envious. Jealousy is when you worry someone will take what you have. Envy is wanting what someone else has. What I feel is envy.

Egon: [checking in a dictionary] Wow, he’s right.

[stanfordpinesenbyhusband]

Looking at this picture I can't help but think of Peter and Dana in the context of those Ghostbusters II promo pictures like

You get what I mean right?

[psychokinetic-ectoplasm]

If you are taking asks... Is there anyway you can do a reimagining of how things would have gone down if Venkman had turned out to be Oscars father?

🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 thank you 💗💗💗💗💗💗💗

I am! Thank you for this!

Timelines are obviously being ignored in this, so just keep that in mind 😅

Available here on Ao3

SFW, under the cut for length

He's Yours

There were several reasons Dana didn't want to see Peter again. She wasn't surprised when he pushed past Egon and Ray and stepped into her apartment. She knew how he would act, what he would say. That was one reason, and she was right. His smugness, his attempted groveling… Damn her for still loving him…

And then the other, more life-changing reason. The secret she’d been keeping for two years now. Part of her worried that he'd know as soon as Peter saw Oscar. That was probably silly, but between what had happened on the street with Oscar in his carriage and the threat of Peter finding out the truth… Dana was filled with trepidation. She thought maybe she could keep the two apart, but that was wishful thinking. The other part of her, the part that wasn’t worrying, wanted Peter to know. She wanted to tell Peter the truth so badly.

While Ray and Egon had been in Oscar’s room, Peter was alone with Oscar… Dana could hear Peter talking to him, but for the moment, she tried to help the others, wanting to give them all the information she could. But when she returned to the dining room, she froze upon seeing Peter holding Oscar. They might have been goofing off, but it made Dana choke up a bit. This is how it should be, father and son… Why didn’t I tell him sooner?

“Peter?” she murmured as she approached.

He glanced over his shoulder at her before turning to face her.

“He had some sort of clear liquid coming out of his mouth,” Peter said as if that explained why he'd been pretending Oscar had been biting his nose.

“Well, that happens,” Dana murmured, lightly rubbing Oscar's back.

Peter then moved to lean against the table, still playing with Oscar. He was a natural. I have to tell him…

“Well…” Dana began, the words fighting to get out. He’s yours, Peter. You’re finally getting to hold your son, and you don’t even know it. “What do you think?” she asked instead, managing to keep the trepidation out of her voice.

“Well, he’s ugly. I mean, he’s not Elephant Man, ugly, he’s not attractive,” Peter joked, a smile in his voice. “Was his father ugly?”

“Don’t listen,” Dana said to Oscar. If only he knew he was talking about himself…

“And he stinks,” Peter went on. “You’re ripe, senior!” Oscar giggled. Peter then glanced briefly at Dana. “Did his father stink? Yeah? Daddy was a smelly, huh? What’s your name?”

“His name is Oscar.”

“Oh, named after a hot dog! You poor man! You poor poor man!” Peter cried in exaggerated lamentation. 

“But seriously, there’s nothing… there’s nothing unusual about him, is there?” Dana asked, half hoping he'd pick up on her trepidation and call it out.

Peter looked thoughtful. “Well, I don’t have a lot of experience with babies.” He then smiled at Oscar. “But you’re excited now because Mama’s here to take your stool sample! Right, Mama?” Peter said, handing Oscar off to Dana.

As their hands touched, Dana nearly gave in again. Oh, Peter, I've missed you so much…

With Peter helping Ray and Egon figure out what had happened to Oscar, Dana honestly felt better about all of it. Despite everything, and not just because she still loved him, she trusted Peter implicitly.

She should trust him enough to tell him the truth.

***

Maybe it had been a mistake going directly to Peter after her bathtub attacked her and Oscar, but Dana hadn't even thought. She just moved. And the one place she'd feel absolutely and totally safe was with Peter. That's just all there was to it.

Maybe he was just being his usual self, but she liked to think he was acting goofy as a way to distract her. Dana knew she was visibly shaken, and Peter seemed to be going out of his way to lighten the mood. She appreciated it. It made things feel a little more normal.

What wasn't normal was being back in his apartment. It felt like it had forever and yet no time at all. It was just as she remembered it, though messier. It was odd sitting on his bed again, too… The last night she'd been here was the night Oscar had been conceived… 

That thought made her nervous. Dana was half worried Peter might be able to read her thoughts, that maybe his work with ESP finally paid off. But that was silly, she told herself. He'd probably know already.

But even so, she didn't want to share a bed with him. That was asking for trouble, no matter how much Dana missed getting to sleep in his arms.

“How about you on the sofa and me and the baby in the bed?” she said.

“It’s the way to go,” Peter said, scooting up to sit on the edge of the bed.

She hadn’t expected him to relent so easily. She also didn’t expect the smile he gave her. “It’s so late, I really gotta put him down…”

“May I?”

Dana blinked in surprise. “Yeah, if you want to.”

She should have known better, but Peter's actions still put a smile on her face. Peter leaned down closer to Oscar and pointed at him.

“You’re short, your belly button sticks out too far, and you’re a terrible burden on your poor mother.”

In all the time she’d known Peter, she’d never seen this kind of smile on his face when he interacted with Oscar. Even more surprising was when Peter reached up to lightly rub Oscar’s cheek with the side of his finger. It was such an affectionate gesture…

“Peter?” Dana murmured.

“Yeah?” 

Peter looked up at her with that soft smile he used to give her back when things had still been good between them, the one that she convinced herself meant he loved her. She'd longed to see it again for so long…

She swallowed hard and looked down. “You're really good with him.”

“Ah, well, we're just a couple of big kids, aren't we, Oscar?”

“I'm serious, Peter. You'd make a great father.”

He looked genuinely shocked, blinking a few times as he processed the words. Dana smirked.

“Is Peter Venkman finally at a loss for words?” she teased.

He opened his mouth to respond, likely with some quip to defuse the seriousness, but then he closed his mouth, looking down at Oscar. Now, Dana was the one genuinely surprised.

“No one's ever said that to me before…” he admitted quietly.

“I have,” she said. “But I don't think you wanted to hear it before.”

It seemed he couldn't look at her, but she was used to that. When something serious needed to be said, Peter never wanted to look anyone in the eye. Gone was any smugness. 

“I meant what I said the other day. You'd have been better off marrying me. I wouldn't have left you…”

Tears pricked Dana's eyes. “I know,” she whispered.

He finally managed to look up at her. They simply gazed at each other for a few moments, everything left unsaid weighing heavily between them.

“I guess I should let you get some sleep,” Peter finally said. “You two are probably exhausted after almost being eaten by a bathtub.”

Dana smiled. “Yeah, I'd like to get some rest.”

“Well, you know where I'll be,” he said, climbing off the bed and gathering up what he needed to sleep in. “You know, in case you get lonely.”

She nearly gave in, taking him up on his offer to sleep in the same bed again, but she wasn't ready for that. “Thanks. Goodnight, Peter.”

Peter gave her a genuine smile. “Night, Dana. And goodnight, Oscar!”

Oscar cooed quietly, smiling up at Peter. Dana waited until Peter closed the door before leaning closer to Oscar. 

“Someday soon, he'll know who you really are. You deserve to have a father, and your father deserves to know about his son.” She kissed Oscar's forehead. “And your father deserves a second chance from me.”

***

Dana was thrilled that Peter had invited her out to dinner. More so than she thought she would be. 

She had missed this, missed him. She couldn't help but kiss him. Peter gave her his signature smirk. 

“You really did miss me, didn't you?” he teased.

Dana remained serious, a faint, smitten smile on her face. “Yes. Yes, I really did.”

To her surprise, his expression softened. “Don't tell anyone, but I missed you, too.”

Tell him. Tell him now. Dana took a deep breath. “Peter, there's something I need to—”

She broke off, interrupted by a sudden commotion from the other side of the restaurant. Maybe she shouldn't have been shocked to see Ray, Egon, and Winston show up, but the shock was more so at the state of their undress, coupled with the fact that they were covered in slime.

“Hold that thought,” Peter muttered, obviously annoyed at the interruption.

Dana sat back, half paying attention to what was being said until they mentioned the museum. And then Peter was gone, leaving Dana to go home alone. Home… how quickly his apartment became home.

But then Oscar had been taken, kidnapped. Aside from her frantic desire to get her son back, she desperately wished for Peter.

Peter, our baby needs you!

***

Once the dust had settled from the wildest — and scariest — New Year’s Dana had ever experienced, she stuck close to Peter because of course she did. He never even asked if she wanted to go home to her apartment as if it was some unspoken thing that she would return with him to his. Neither made a comment about it.

When Dana returned to the living room, Peter was holding Oscar, pacing the room and bouncing him a bit, talking quietly to him. Dana watched them for a moment. Now was the time; it had to be. This couldn't wait any longer.

Peter looked at her and smiled as she approached. “See? There's Mama!”

“Peter… I want to— I need to tell you something.”

“Okay, shoot. I'm all ears.”

Dana could only look at Oscar as she spoke and soothed herself by gently rubbing his arm. “He's yours.”

Peter didn't stop lightly bouncing Oscar in his arms. “He's my what?”

“No, Peter, he's yours. He's your son.”

Now, he stilled, and Dana glanced up at him, finding him staring at her. “My— Mine? He's my—” He looked down at Oscar. “Well, maybe you're not so ugly.”

He turned and wandered away, gazing down at Oscar. Dana watched, torn between feeling relieved and anxious. She hesitantly took a step forward.

“Peter?”

“Would you believe part of me hoped that was the case?” He was quiet for another moment before turning to face her. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Dana looked away, ashamed. “With how you were acting about marriage… I didn’t think you’d want kids. And besides, we were no longer seeing each other when I found out I was pregnant. Oh, Peter, I’m so sorry… I didn’t want it to be this way, and that’s why I’m telling you now.” She stepped up to him and put a hand on his arm. “If I could take it back, I would. I want you in Oscar’s life, and I want you in mine.”

Peter continued to stare for a moment before looking at Oscar. “You both deserve better than me.”

Dana lifted her hand to his cheek. “I don’t want anyone but you. If I’ve realized anything over these past two years, it’s how much, despite everything, I still love you. I love you so much, Peter.”

Again, there was no smugness on his face. In fact, he seemed to get pretty emotional. Emotional for Peter. “You mean that?”

She nodded, unable to hold back her tears anymore. “Yes, I mean that. If anything, I want you to be Oscar’s father because you are. You deserve to know your son.”

Peter took Oscar’s hand and kissed his cheek. “I’d like that, too…” He then smiled a bit and shook his head, looking at Dana. “Only you could ever make me want kids.”

“Yeah?” she murmured.

“I mean…” Peter wrapped his free arm around Dana’s waist and pulled her close. “I guess that’s what love does to a guy.”

She took a breath. “Love?”

Peter leaned in and softly kissed her lips. “I love you, Dana. And I promise I’ll do better this time. For both of you. I’ll admit, I kinda sucked at it last time, but I missed you too much. I… I want this to work.”

“So you’re not mad at me for keeping this from you.”

He shook his head, making a face. “I probably would have kept it from me, too.” He then smiled at Oscar. “But we’re all here now! And I’ve got a little baby boy!” Peter got a little more serious. “I’ve got a kid… Huh, that’s gonna take some getting used to… Oh, and I take back everything I said about your father. He’s the most handsomest, best-smelling guy around.” He cut his eyes up at Dana. “Most of the time. Okay, so he has his moments.”

“Peter?”

He looked at her.

“You can sleep in the bed tonight.”

Peter grinned and kissed her again. “I promise to behave.”

“And yet, somehow, I don’t believe you.”

They made their way toward the bedroom. “No, I promise! I’ve changed, Dana. I’m a new man! Literally. I’m a father now; I gotta start acting like it.”

“Oh, good! Then you can start changing his diapers.”

“Whoa, now, let’s not get ahead of ourselves!”

“Peter?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too, Dana.”

[inevitablemoment]

I only see him as a friend (biggest lie I ever said)

[inspo]

[inevitablemoment]

Feel fee to drop some of these prompts for the following pairings in my Cathleen Lives ‘verse.

Cathlegon (can still do some angsty shit in the canon ‘verse, too)

Peter x Dana

Clarkemore

Raylow

Startha (Ray x Martha)

~ THEY'RE MARRIED ~ MARRIED LIFE PROMPTS

requested by: anonymous

Feel free to use and reblog!

Setting/scenario:

more non-verbal than verbal communication

being the most endearing spouse, even though they're not the 'marriage type'

needing the other's presence, even if they're each doing their own thing, but they have to be with each other

having a shorthand for everything

fussing over the other

being able to predict the other's moves

being able to predict the other's words

having the same conversation in a certain situation all the time

sharing responsibilities

teasing the other just because they can

always arguing about the same things

being a chill couple when there are others around, but getting touchy/freaky behind closed doors

feeling like they're missing a limb when they're alone

playing with their wedding band when they're thinking about the other

always considering what the other would think if they would be there Dialogue:

"I didn't sign up for this."

"Why did I know you would do that?"

"You know what I'll say."

"Who else should I annoy if not my wife/husband/spouse?!"

"Come back! I'm not ready to get up yet. So you aren't either."

"One more kiss, please!"

"Oh honey, come here!"

*staring at their sleepy partner* "How are you so adorable?" *barely able to open their eyes* "I've never looked nastier."

"You can't escape. You're bound to me for life!"

"... You were right." "Say that again!"

"Did you miss me?"

"Not that gain! I can't believe we're discussing this again!"

"Is that my shirt?"

"Don't worry, I'll be there."

"I'm home, sweetheart!"

[bella-goths-wife]

How you get the ghostbusters back for trapping you

Warnings: reader is super petty, non canon events, the guys are assholes in this, aggression

After being trapped for three months in that stupid ghost trap, you are severely pissed off with the ghostbusters

You’d spend months beforehand innocently haunting them and building individual bonds with them

All for them to take your one mistake as reason to punish you, you never meant to hurt Dana so why were you punished so severely

You, being as stubborn and strong willed as you are, expected them to be begging for forgiveness considering what they put you through

But they all acted like everything was going to go back to the way it was before, they didn’t even offer you the slightest apology for what they did

This did not bode well with you

In fact, it only seemed to enrage you further

You started off with your usual pettiness, but it lacked your standard playful style and just came off malicious

But the ghostbusters still found a way to make it a joke

You would mess with Egon’s lab equipment and experiments, but he’d just laugh it off in an Egon fashion and then suggest to your invisible figure that the two of you play chess again like you used to do so you could get your anger out

You’d hide the traps Winston was cleaning and storing in ridiculous hiding places, but Winston would just laugh and ask if you were playing hide and seek again

You’d turn off and change Ray’s music on his radio to something aggressive, but the only reaction you received was Ray joking that your music taste had definitely changed since you last played music together

Whenever Venkman would read the crossword prompts out to you and hold his pen out expectingly, you would write profanity in all the gaps

But venkman only sarcastically commented that “that’s definitely doesn’t fit the hint”

It infuriated you, they turned your anger into a joke and treated you like a pet who did a cute trick instead of a (spirit) person

You started to retract yourself from showing your presence to them out of embarrassment that your anger and their reaction caused you

You felt like an embarrassed child who had just been scolded rather than someone who underwent a painful and traumatic process of your spirit being caged to a small confined trap

You stopped showing yourself and kept to yourself next to janine’s desk so you could listen to her conversations on the phone as your only source of entertainment

You even tried to leave the ghostbusters HQ but found yourself unable to leave the building without attaching yourself to a human person, and you weren’t going to follow any of the ghostbusters around anymore

Despite janine working for the ghostbusters and Dana being the reason you were put in the trap, you never treated them unkindly

You understood them both and you knew that your anger wasn’t directed at them and they were just coincidental bystanders

You let your anger simmer but eventually it bubbled over the top

You heard the boys joking that soon you’d be over your “tantrum” and would come back to hang out with them

They joked about how they could ever think you were dangerous when all you’ve pulled are childish stunts

You felt yourself twist and twitch in anger and embarrassment as you heard them mock your very real emotions as if you weren’t once breathing like them

You decided that if you were originally going to be labelled as dangerous, then you would become dangerous to them

Instead of messing with Egons equipment to ruin his test results, you’d smash it to pieces and throw them at him

Instead of hiding the traps that Winston was cleaning and storing, you’d smash them to pieces and release the spirits inside to cause chaos in the HQ

Instead of messing with the radio of the car that Ray was cleaning, you’d blast loud screaming music in his ears before smashing the windows of the car

Instead of writing profanity on Venkmans crosswords, you tore his office apart and disposed of important documents before writing “fuck you ghostbusters” on his desk

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, and you were living (dead) proof of that

Your anger infected you and turned you violent in a way you hadn’t been in your entire stay with the ghostbusters

And the ghostbusters weren’t sure what to do

They didn’t want to put you back into a trap considering that’s what caused this mess in the first place, and they missed you dearly when you were gone

But your aggression was getting out of hand

They decided that the best plan of action would be to find out more about your life when you were alive to appeal to your human side

And until they found something they could use, they had better get better at dodging thrown items…..

[tuliptired]

He's Good People Ch.2

Chapter 2: We Could Steal Time, for Just One Day (We Can be Heroes)

Pairing(s): Gn!reader/Ray, Gn!reader/Egon, Gn!reader/Winston

Summary: (Egon centric) You get to spend most of the day with the quiet scientist, as per his out of character invitations.

Warnings: talk of having a baby, though reader biology is never specified

Thank you for all the support so far!

read it on Ao3!

 There was a soft light hitting your eye, lulling you back awake. You were safe, in your own bed, in your own house, about to go to work.

Oh. These aren’t your sheets. This was not your house. You sat up. Ray was still asleep, curled up in extra blankets beside you. You looked around, Peter and Winston were motionless, the clock reading 7:22. Egon’s bed was empty.

Normally, you didn’t wake up in beds that weren’t yours. Normally, you didn’t wake up in beds that weren’t yours in houses that weren’t yours. Normally, you didn’t wake up in beds that weren’t yours in houses that weren’t yours that belonged to some men you had only just met. And you don’t wear their spare clothes, and sleep in close enough proximity that you can hear their snores catch in their throats. You ran a hand over your face. It all felt so shameless. Not respectable. What were you doing?

The door opened softly and Egon stepped in, holding a stained piece of fabric. He appeared to have showered and dressed in the earlier hours of the morning, and he pulled a drawer open for a new tie. You felt awkward in his space, as he went about his business. Thankfully, he broke the silence.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning…sorry, Ray told me I could sleep in here.” You unconsciously pulled the sheets over yourself, despite the fact your body was fully covered in baggy sleepwear built for the physique of a 50 year old firefighter.

“I don’t mind.” He pulled a tie out and examined it.

“You didn’t sleep?” You ask idly. His fingers made ease of the garment, smoothing it out.

“I’m fine.” He looked over at the sleeping forms of his friends, dead to the world. “They won’t be up for a while. It’s a Sunday.” He paused for a bit, pondering something, shutting the drawer.

“Would you like breakfast?” The question takes you by surprise, but the emptiness in your stomach is starting to ache.

“If it’s not too much trouble.” He freezes up, as if he didn’t expect your answer. He blinks, gears turning, the offer coming out beyond his own volition. Egon shakes his head slightly, as if wiping a thought away. He and Ray had habits of doing that, you noticed.

“None at all.” He starts out the room. When he reaches the kitchen space, he stands there for a moment, hands at his sides. Robotically, he pulls out eggs, butter, sugar, and a few other things from the fridge, managing to lay them all out methodically, in an organized chaos.

You feel a bit rude, just standing there. “Is there any way I could help?” You unconsciously roll up the sleeves of the sweatshirt.

Egon keeps working, mixing something intently. “No.” You blink. Hesitantly, you move to sit at the table somehow feeling a little ruder. As Egon notices you pulling a chair out slowly so as to not disturb him, he sighs, slowing his work.

“Not because I think you’d be inadequate. I just have a system.” He lit a pan on the stove, pouring a small amount of oil into it.

“A system for pancakes?” 

“Mrs.Stantz taught me how to make them in graduate school.”

You got a little thrown at that. “Mrs…Stantz?”

A silence. His arms are suspended in the air, batter flowing into the hot pan. “Ray’s mother.” You let out a breath you didn’t know you were holding. He held one.

“Your parents never taught you to cook?” You try to alleviate some of the palpable tension still in the air.

“My parents were fans of quark on their gruel,” is all he said. “But. The Stantz family was different. They…put sugar in their coffee. Had big ‘sundee’ dinners.”

He seemed to think hard before speaking again, measuring each word like they could betray him. “Mrs. Stantz told me that…cooking for others was a way of saying you wanted them to live.”

That’s why he offered. You could smile at that. In the short time you knew him, you’d gathered that he didn’t seem as skilled as his friends in the ways of sociability. You really didn’t know him as well as you’d liked- he hadn’t shown you much, but you could appreciate the gesture. 

“Thank you, Dr. Spengler.” He stilled again, ever so slightly. You hadn’t noticed until then that the sleeves of his dress shirt were rolled up to his elbows. Maybe you ought to call him that more often? If you planned on sticking around. You didn’t know what your plan was anymore

There was a comfortable silence as he continued to work, diligently managing pancakes in one pan, potatoes and eggs in another. After a while, he pulls a small container out from the back of the fridge. 

“Do you feel strongly about mushrooms?”

“Do you want me to?” 

“These are top shelf. The Hennessy of the mycology world.”

“Can’t argue with that.”

Eventually, he was plating food for the two of you, potatoes and eggs (with Hennessy mushrooms) on one half, steaming pancakes on the other. Before you could smile and thank him, he stops you.

Swirling around a small pitcher one final time, he carefully crouches at the front of the table. A light, yellowish liquid pours out of it and slathers onto the pastry, making you unknowingly drool.

With delicate precision, he adds a heap to his own. When he decides it's enough, he takes a seat, gesturing for you to start. You take a bite and…

Good god, this was the best thing you’ve ever tasted. The pancakes were cooked thoroughly, the texture of it all feeling like clouds in love on your tongue. The mysterious syrup was the best part- it was homely, and almost like a candy that melted down your throat. You stared up at Egon in disbelief as you swallowed.

“Holy cow” 

‘More or less. Buttermilk syrup”

It's safe to say you dug in, making quick work of the stack that was once on your plate. Wiping your mouth, you had to sing his praises. He had the slightest hint of an indulgent smile, watching you eat. One of pride, maybe?

 “These are incredible, Dr. Spengler. What do I have to do to get Ray to give me the recipe?” You asked earnestly. To that, his smile quickly fell, and he hastily dismissed the idea.

“Don’t bother. His mother says I’m the only one who can replicate them.” He speaks as if you’re discussing nuclear codes. “Besides, I’ve got it memorized.”

“Are you willing to share?”

“I’d have to kill you.”

You made pleasant conversation for a while, even after both your plates had been cleared. Nursing a pot of coffee, he recalled something. 

“Your bag ended up in the laundry chute. Here.” But he misjudges how secure the latch was- and as he holds on to the wrong part the contents spill onto the table. The worn, brown bag of candy from the day prior rips, and Crunch Bars, hard candies, and fruit chews tumble out in front of you. Embarrassment engulfs you as you apologize, just short of lunging over the table to clean up the mess, detesting how weird you must look carrying around a bag that had nothing but sweets. 

He helps you rather the treats up wordlessly, before handing you one of the many blue wrapped chocolate bars.

“Would it be optimal to keep candies in my flight suit?” He voiced.

“Don’t patronize me,” your face burns still, your hands crumpling up the paper packaging.

“I’m serious. It would keep my blood sugars high.”

“Go for it, Dr. Spengler.” You grinned, sliding him a Crunch Bar. Something twinkled behind his eyes. Was this the first time you noticed that he and his arms looked strong, under all that clothing?

“Hey noise machines. You woke us up.” Peter stands in the doorway, Winston and Ray behind him sleepily.

“Sorry,” you pardoned yourself. Like a pack of bears, the men made their way to search for the delightful smell that was wafting towards them from down the hallway.

“Don’t be. I’ve never heard the professor talk so much so early,” Winston yawned.

“Hey! You left us with the dishes!” Ray whined, holding up the dirtied mixing bowls and oily skillet. 

“There’s raisin bran in the pantry.” Egon conducted you out of the room. He had you follow him back to the bedroom, stopping at the door to think to himself. You were used to it at this point. He emerged, with a light blue sweater and an unworn pair of track pants. 

“I’m assuming you’d like to shower now. Here’s a change of clothes-” His voice got a bit worried at the end as you thumbed through the garments, musing at a dark blue fabric sandwiched between what he had handed you.

He couldn’t meet your eyes, his pupils darting in different directions. He fumbled with his folded hands. “They’ve never been worn. It was either those or long johns.” He shuffles past you, in a hurry to leave you be.

Opening up the pile, you see a dark blue pair of boxers, making your face ignite with embarrassment. It's the thought that counts?

“Dr. Spengler!” You call over your shoulder.

He’s halfway down the hall. “...Yes?”

“Thank you.”

He nods, and disappears into the corridors of the firehouse.

The showers are in one large bathroom, reminiscent of a locker room. A wall of sinks and mirrors, opposite a wall of spacious shower space, where curtains separate each showerhead. Well, you´re already there. There's a small bottle of coconut body wash staring you down as you do your business. Of course a little bit wouldn't be missed right? It's a lot more liquid than you expected- and that ´little bit´ went a long way. As you exit the shower careful not to slip on the slick tile, the coconut scent wafts into your nose pleasantly.

You stared at the pile of clothes neatly folded on a bench, like it's a dragon to be slain. In a way, it was. You pulled on the boxers- they fit better than you thought. Ignoring how the image in the mirror made you feel. As your skin still dried, you felt the blue sweater in your hands. The knitwear was delicate in your palms, the yarn a bit worn. It felt more personal than the spare loungewear left in the basement. It felt like a person. 

 It was fairly large, dwarfing your body. The fibers carried a similar coconut and sandalwood smell that the soap had, making your body feel protected. There were the sweatpants, too, but whatever. They weren't like this. 

You left your pajamas in a neat pile as you dropped it down one of the laundry chutes, hoping your undergarments didn´t tumble out into the open. As you crept down the stairs, Janine was working at her desk while Winston gave Ray a hand repairing the Ecto-1. You sat with her for most of the morning, as she insisted on your presence as she handled clerical work and gossipped simultaneously. The 2 men listened to your conversations fondly. 

“You smell nice,” Janine commented questioningly.

It was around 12 when a woman walked into the firehouse holding a baby, greeted by Ray and Winston while they worked on the underside of the car. Winston seemed a little less enthusiastic as he held the bright hot flashlight.

"Hi Dana. This is Peter´s keeper,” Janine filled you in. The woman, Dana, gave you a kind smile. "The little bald one is Oscar."

The baby sat patiently, if not curiously, in her arms, a hand in his mouth. Dana joked at him to say hi, and he blew a small raspberry in response.

“He's adorable," you cooed, letting instincts take over as he reached out for your finger, which you gave to him. "How old?”

"10 months, and already very handsy." Dana bounced him in her arms as he tried to replace the hand in his mouth with your own. "Is Peter around?

"Somewhere." Janine yelled for him, and he beckoned for her to give him a second. Egon emerged at that point, wondering what all the noise was. His features relaxed at the sight of the infant.

"Hi, Egon." Dana greeted him, as he stood peering at the mother and her child.

"May I hold him?"

She blinked, a little dumbfounded. "I thought you said babies carried pathogens detrimental to your lymphatic system?" Oscar seemed very interested in him.

"Normally." He held his arms out, expectantly. Dana slowly concedes, and he takes the baby awkwardly. Oscar didn't seem to mind the weird angle, held almost like a freshly caught fish on his back. He kicked his feet and stretched his arms out, and Egon looked as if he was scared to move.

You laughed, though partially concerned for his stability. Babies got heavy fast. "Have you ever held a baby, Dr. Spengler?" You repositioned him so that he sat comfortably against Egon´s shoulder. "May I…?" You asked Dana, to which she nodded warmly.

Taking Oscar, you held him with ease, as he reached up to grab your nose. Bouncing him in your arms, he hit you on either side of your temples, exploring your face. "What´re you looking for?"

Unbeknownst to you, Egon was gazing at you playing with Oscar. So was Ray, across the garage. As you walked in a circle with him in your arms, Dana also watched on, amused.

"You're a parent?"

The question catches you off guard. “Oh, no. Not yet at least.”

“Waiting for ‘the one’” Janine cuts in, eyes not leaving her computer.

“Among other things.” Oscar plays with the collar of the sweater, tugging on it. Peter hopped off the last of the stairs then, exclaiming at the spectacle.

“You’ve got some hairless monster on you,” he feigns fear. Oscar looked at him once, before going back to your collar. 

Ray crosses to you both, cooing at the kid in your arms. Peter stopped him halfway there.

“Wash.”

Ray looked down at his motor-oil covered hands, and defeatedly sulked over to the garage sink. Peter turned to you, opening his mouth to say something, before snapping it closed. He narrowed his eyes and pointed a finger at you.

“Is that Eges’?”

You look down. “Is it?”

Egon went rigid, as usual, and swallowed silently. “Today’s forecast predicted a cold front.”

“We’re in the middle of the warmest spring in a decade. Mr. Softy’s outside.”

“Inaccurate journalism, then.”

While Ray’s eyes turned into slits from the sink, Peter’s widened. He put a hand on Dana’s shoulder and steered her towards the door. “I’m gonna have a quick walk with my girl here.”

“I was only stopping by for-”

“A quick walk.”

Oscar looked confused at seeing his mother go. He balled his fists in the front of your shirt. “The baby?”

“Keep it,” Peter called over his shoulder before the door shut. 

As Winston packed up all the tools under the elevated vehicle and Ray vehemently turned the pipe off, the phone rang. Janine took it, listening with “uh-huh’s” occasionally, before scribbling down an address on a notepad.

“There’s a client at,” she ripped the paper out and held it out for Ray, “this address. Golf course- she says there’s a puppet ripping out the green.” His eyes grew to the size of saucers as he read it to himself.

“Man! Are you sure this isn’t out of our zoning?” He pleaded with the tiny woman.

“I don’t know, Mr. ‘We’re ready to believe you’.” Janine resumed her typing.

“The day barely started and we’re already driving 2 hours out the way,” he grumbled., “Isn’t it Peter and Egon’s turn?” 

“It’s not. Last month we went down to that beach in Jersey.”

Ray’s incredulous glower deepened. “And you got ice cream afterwards!”

“And we’re very sorry yours melted.”

 He muttered a few things, before surrendering and pulling on his flight suit, Winston behind him begrudgingly. They repacked the car, pulled out the garage, and they were off.

Peter and Dana still weren’t back, so you sat back in the chair at Janine’s side. Oscar reached out to grab her sleeve.

“I’m returning this later, he’ll stain it.” She rolled her chair an inch away, sharpening a pencil. 

He babbled at her. “Don’t worry about Janine. She’s mean and old.” He tried leaning out of your reach to touch her face, entranced by something, before you spun the chair around. “She’ll steal your youth, Oscar.”

He looked a little bored, as he hit your temples for the second time. His brow furrowed as much as a baby could manage, as he examined your face again. “What?” You asked. He looked sad, making small whimpers at you. You turned the chair around again, showing him Egon. “He looks constipated, Dr. Spengler.”

Oscar suddenly got very excited, bouncing up and down and grabbing the air. You laugh, using your foot to bring a wheeled-stool over, waving Egon along to sit. He sat, legs comically too large for the tiny chair.

“Sure, let’s have a meeting at Janine's desk,” the woman commented dryly.

Egon looked a little bemused as the boy exclaimed for him, sitting in your lap. You scooted closer to him, so much so that your knees touched and formed a bridge, his skin getting warmer as you did. You place Oscar on the ledge you created, and he eagerly leans into Egon. He reaches for his face like he did you and Janine, but falls onto his butt in the process. Egon’s stiffness is endearing. It’s like there was a baby bear on his lap rather than a baby child. Jeez, he’s gonna burst a blood vessel at this rate.

Putting him out of his misery, you lightly grab each of his hands, steadying them on each side of the sitting baby marveling at the man in front of him. Egon’s skin is still warm, even more so now, as you coax him to pick Oscar up. The backs, at least, were a little rough and worn, but you expected no more from a scientist. He was still a man, at the end of the day. You glanced up at his panicking face, and you didn’t know any better, you’d say his chest was rising and falling more than normal. You held Egon’s large hands under your own as you aided him in raising him to eye level.

You leaned to the right, keen on teasing his bewildered face from behind Oscar’s rear end. “Was that hard, Dr. Spengler?” Oscar starts gleefully hitting his temples as he did yours.

“Do you want to have a baby.”

Janine’s typing stops. Egon’s glasses go flying off his face and land behind you, as the baby in your hands erupts in a fit of giggles before you could say anything. His hands recoiled from yours like you were a burning stove as you gently set him down, back on your own lap.

Egon looks like his brain is short circuiting and melting out his ears, which, for all you know, it was. Even with his glasses off, his face never failed to absorb you. He definitely had the face to make a few college girls lose their humility. 

He remembered human interaction and cleared his throat. “What I meant was. Oscar has a larger than normal head and large eyes. He also has an upturned, small nose.” His tone regained the scientific timbre it normally had. “Many people of,” he fished for the words, “child-rearing-age find these features…’cute’.” Janine snorted a laugh, then got up to search for his discarded eyewear somewhere on the floor.

“He’s to die for, no doubt. I just…” he’s resided lying against your legs now, his wonder satisfied for one afternoon as he teethed on one of Egon’s fingers, “Unfortunately, it takes 2 to to make a baby. I’m not exactly properly equipped to complete that job on my own” You sighed. How was your life gonna go back to normal, once your apartment was safe again? You hate to admit, but that job was you at your peak. Janine pressed the eyeglasses into Egon’s palm.

The door opened then, and Peter entered with Dana in tow. She smirked at the sight of you and Egon, knee to knee with a baby in between you.

“How cute, we’ll call up JCPenney and they can take a family photo,” she took to teasing Egon as you handed her back her son.

He sat limply in her arms, about ready for a nap. “He’s delightful, Dana.”

“Makes you wanna have one?” Janine turns in her chair to face you.

At some point during the afternoon, Janine sighed heavily at the idea of running around and completing the list of errands she’d let fester over the week as you ate together upstairs. Egon was tinkering with something at the workspace near you when he spoke up.

“Do you want me to do it?” He put the contraption down on the desk.

“You would?” Janine let her head fall on the back of the couch, holding the list out to him.

“I might as well. I can’t focus today.” He folded the paper, placing it in the pocket of his coat. As he started down the steps, he slowed, and turned his head towards you.

“Y/N? Would you mind joining me? I don’t get to the store much.” You had no objections. After washing the last of the wares you both had dirtied, you dried your hands off on a teatowel before descending the stairs on Egon’s heels.

He held the door for you as you stepped out onto the sidewalk, and the humidity hit you like  a brick. It had been a pretty warm spring, but the recent light rain seemed to cool the earth off, just a bit. It was getting gray and wet outside the longer you walked, clouds ghosting over the sun every now and again. You both walked together in comfortable silence, in an arbitrary direction (you’ve never been shopping in this area), as gentle drops on your head slowly turned into genuine precipitation.

Before you could suggest turning back, or grabbing umbrellas, the rain above you suddenly stops. As you look up, he’s holding his overcoat above your head. Head and shoulders undoubtedly getting soaked. 

“There’s a bus stop down the block. We can catch it if we run.”

With that, you’re off. Running like little kids down a hill, you narrowly avoid deep puddles and streetlamps as you giggle uncontrollably. As your feet hit the sidewalk with every step, the petrichor in the air fills your lungs like it’s your soul. In a way, in your adrenaline rushed mind, you equate it with the man next to you. 

When you finally reach the stop, the bus is lurking from the end of the street. Doubled over, you catch your breath, the air now feeling like fire leaving your esophagus. But you laugh through it all. And the man who shielded you from the rain lets out a weak, barely there chuckle. You straighten to thank him, when you notice how bad mother nature got him. Egon’s usually pomaded, high and tamed hair had fallen out of place, curls now coming loose on his head. He looked wonderful, other than most of his upper body being stained by the sudden downpour.

You can’t speak, staring at him, at the almost Grecian picture in front of you. His lips were parted slightly as he regained his energy, almost curled in a simper as the strong hands you felt earlier wiped some of the dampness from his forehead. His tie was a sky blue, unlike the sky that had dominion over you now. And god, he looked nice in blue.

As he noticed your staring, an eyebrow quirked up, only slightly. There was nothing for you to do but laugh, leaning into the tall man in front of you. He was stiff at first, and confused, but he succumbed to it soon enough, holding you as well as he couldn’t hold himself back from the ridiculousness of it all. You both probably looked like idiots, losing your minds on the side of the street. But for the first time since yesterday, you were sure of something. If this was what it felt like to be an idiot with him, you never wanted to be smart again.

[americas1suiteheart]

Heres something I've been thinking about working on for a while now and I'm finally getting to it. Heres the pilot of it, let me know if you guys want me to make it into a full series (which I might do anyways🧍‍♂️)

Here's the link on Ao3 for the series if you prefer to read on there :)

Weird Science | Pilot Chapter

[Egon Spengler x Fem Reader]

[Summary; honestly I don't know what I'm gonna do with this, I'll leave the summary to finish later.💀

[Notes; This is a fem reader and it is mentioned quite a bit, this is to make things a little easier to write but I may consider making it a gender neutral reader if enough people want it and ask. [This is also kind of a long one for a pilot chapter.]

[Warnings; Some swearing and mentions of smoking. [Also very very minor mentions of drinking.]

Part 1/? | Next Chapter>

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"Hey, can you hand me that soldering iron please?" I say, holding my hand out.

"Of course Dr. L/n," Theodore says, handing the iron carefully.

Theodore Thalmann was a freshman student majoring in Computer Engineering at Columbia University, the very University I've worked at for 7 years now.

Theodore came for an internship to work with me, wanting to learn a little more visually than just reading some book, writing down notes, and listening to some old guy talk for hours on end, and frankly you couldn't really blame him for not wanting to deal with that.

Theodore was a sharp kid, not lazy like most of these kids now, and willing to learn rather than just be here for some extra credit, that's what you liked about him so much.

"Do you need anything else Dr. L/n?" Theodore asks, writing a bit more into his notebook.

Just then, a knock at the door interrupted your thoughts.

"Yes actually, can you go get that for me?" You reply, taking the protective glasses off of your face.

You get up out of your chair, taking off your black rubber gloves and placing them in their respective area. You liked things organised in your lab, it was much easier to find exactly what you needed, and it was also that you never liked a mess where there was work.

"Is Dr. L/n in here? I need to have a word with her." A voice you were far too familiar with comes from the door where Theodore was standing.

Oh, this can't be good.

"Yes she is, come on in Mr. Yeager," Theodore says, letting the man inside the lab.

"Ms. L/n, pleasure to see you again.. as always." The man says snarkily.

You turn around and walk towards him.

"Hello, Mr. Yeager. Come to complain about the music volume again? I promise I hadn't played anything today, whatever you might've heard must've been someone else."

"No, actually, I wanted to talk to you about something more serious. Do you think you can get this student to be somewhere else so its a more private conversation?" The Dean says, smiling sarcastically.

Dean Yeager wasn't exactly fond of you, hense the use of your last name rather than Dr. L/n, regardless of how hard you had worked for that title. But to be quite fair, you weren't very fond of him either, so it was more of a mutual hate. There were probably a lot of reasons why he wasn't very big on you, but one of the most obvious had to be the fact that you played your music too loud while you worked. Far.. too loud.

"Of course sir. Um, Mr. Thalmann, would you mind stepping outside for a few moments? Me and Dean Yeager need to speak to eachother in private," You say, turning towards Theodore.

Theodore gives a nod and takes off his pair of gloves, placing them haphazardly on a nearby worktable then stepping outside of the lab, shutting the door.

"So, Ms. L/n, I wanted to inform you that you will no longer be working here at the university, I'm giving you a one month notice so that way you may pack all that you have and get out of here by then, is that understood?" Dean Yeager says, a shit eating grin on his face.

"Excuse me?" You say, after a few moments of silence.

"I said you are out of here in a month, fired, let go of, from the university, Ms. L/n," He repeats, venom laced in his voice.

"But wh-what am I supposed to do about Mr. Thalmann? I can't just tell him-" You stutter, still letting the fact you're being fired sink in.

"We will move him with Professor Dietz, someone that actually has a degree to teach, Ms. L/n". He says, cutting you off.

"But I've worked here for more than five years now, you can't just let me go. I graduated from this very University Mr. Yeager, for what reason do I deserve to be let go?" You say, anger becoming more prominent in your voice as you continue to speak.

"We are letting you go because of the constant loud music, because of the constant loss of electricity on the campus due to your failed experiments, because of your lack of necessity and funding of being here, Ms. L/n. We cannot continue to fund and pay you just for you to cause disruptions and only be useful to students if they are working under you as an intern. Even when you do have them, they only complain about how you do absolutely nothing in ways of teaching them, you are the issue, Ms. L/n."

The students don't think I teach them? But they've never complained.

The thought of the past interns you've had having bad thoughts about you and your ways of teaching them hurt far more then being fired. Sure, you got good pay from the university and your projects were funded, but the students wanting to come in and learn more about what you just so happen to love was the reason why you were still working there in the first place. And sure, you would sometimes blast music while showing and teaching them, but they never complained.

"The students never complain though, I do my absolute best to teach them Mr. Yeager, I don't underst-"

"That is the last of this conversation, Ms. L/n! You will be out of here in one month, and you will get no more students doing internships with you from right now to the day that you are completely gone from this place! Goodbye, Doctor." Dean Yeager says, walking out of the lab, shutting the door.

After a few moments Theodore comes back into the lab, slowly and gently closing the door.

"Ah, Mr. Thalmann, um there's going to be a change in plans for you with this internship unfortunately. I hope you don't mind but you'll be moved to go and work with Professor Dietz starting tomorrow, I do apologise," You say, straightening your back.

Theodore stays quiet for a minute, the air thick with awkwardness.

"What Dean Yeager said about all the other students disliking you and your teaching, I don't agree with him. I like your teaching and don't think its right of Dean Yeager to just fire you on the spot like that, Dr. L/n." Theodore says awkwardly, trying to lighten the mood of the room.

"Thank you, Mr. Thalmann, but unfortunately that still doesn't change my situation about my work here. I truly do appreciate all of your help and willingness to learn more, especially from me for these past couple of weeks. You're a great student and I'll be honest, I envy Professor Dietz for getting to teach you," You say, a slight smile on your face.

"Thank you, Dr. L/n, do you need any help cleaning up?" Theodore asks, taking the rubber gloves from the table and placing them next to yours.

"No, no, there's no need for that at all, you're free to go early today, thank you for the help Mr. Thalmann."

"Alright, thank you again for teaching me Doctor, I hope everything else goes well for you," Theodore puts the lab coat you let him borrow folded up onto a clear table, then leaves the lab.

You sit down in your rolly chair, clearly worn out as it was bought almost 8 years ago in the late 70s. Even with its rips and threads sticking out from it, as well as the black soot stains and worn cushions, it was still comfortable and somewhat soothing. It reminded you of when you first started working here, about a year after you graduated from the university. And now that you think about it it makes you a little upset that for the past 12 years now this university is all you knew.

Sure you had your own apartment and went out for groceries sometimes, but you never had friends that you still kept in touch with, so you never really went to bars or parties. And at this point having an apartment proved useless as most of the time you would fall asleep in your lab, you would eat in the university's cafeteria, and after that you would just get back to work and drown every other sound out with music from the radio or your cassette tapes.

You get up and grab your coat, leaving the lab to go outside.

You pat your pockets and pull out the cigarette tin, hoping you hadn't run out of any, and to your relief you had just two more left. Grabbing one out of the tin and placing it lightly hanging from your mouth, then lighting it and inhaling the smoke.

You make a mental note that you'll have to go to the drugstore and buy some more.

"What the hell am I gonna do now?" You mutter to yourself, taking another drag of your cigarette.

"Y/n? Is that you?"

You turn your head to see an old friend you hadn't been in touch with since you've graduated at this university.

"Ray?"

"It is you! Oh am I glad to see you. Its been, gosh, how many years now? How have you been? What are you doing here?" Ray says excitedly, asking a million questions all at once.

"Its so great to see you too, Ray. I've been okay these past years, and I work here actually." You say, giving a light chuckle.

Well, more so like you worked here.

"You work here?"

"Yeah, I've been working here since after we graduated actually, what are you doing in terms of a job?"

"I work here too actually, I'm surprised I never seen you around here. You remember Venkman and Spengler though?" He says, taking a half used cigarette out of his pocket.

"Yeah, how can I not remember Venkman, the guy constantly harassed and flirted with me until I graduated, kinda annoying. But I don't recall ever speaking to or interacting with Spengler though."

"Well I've actually been working with them two for a couple of years now, we're working on some equipment and studies to see if ghosts and entities are actually real, parapsychology you know. It would kinda make sense for you to not remember Spengler though, he was a quiet isolated sorta guy. Mind lending me your light?" Ray rambles on, gesturing for your lighter.

You hand him the lighter, taking another drag from your cigarette yourself as he lights his.

"That's neat, I honestly can't believe that I hadn't known you were here though, I would've loved to talk to you and hang out more after graduation," You say, grabbing your lighter back from Ray.

"We should go out for drinks sometime! It'd be a great way to catch up with eachother, I could bring the other guys too! Maybe all of us could ask you questions about our equipment. Given that I don't really know how to do it and all but you're the one that got a Doctoral in Computer Engineering and'll know a bit more than me, but mostly just to hang out with eachother again, like old times!" Ray says excitedly, a smile on his face.

"I'd love to go for drinks with you guys, not sure I'll be of any much use now though because I've just gotten fired by Yeager and have to move all my stuff out by a month from now, so studying and doing experiments are not something I'll get to work on for a while now," You chuckle, putting your cigarette out on the palm of your hand.

"Oh thats such a shame, Y/n I'm sorry that happened. It seems like Yeager has got a grudge on you too, huh?" Ray says sympathetically, putting a comforting hand on your shoulder.

"Yeah but honestly, I totally deserved it. Do you remember those series of blackouts throughout the campus that would happen twice a week? Those were all me and it took him 5 years to get sick of it and finally fire my ass,"

You laugh, now feeling a bit better about the loss, mostly because you get to speak with Ray again.

"I heard from some of the other professors that the cause was coming from the engineering and computer science halls, it reminded me of you in a way, and it seems I was right about it!" Ray laughs, letting out a dry cough afterwards.

God, Ray has always had such bad smoking problems. I can't say all that much though because that'd be too hypocritical but that cough is starting to get worse.

You two continue talking a while longer, forgetting how long you've been out there until hearing all the ruckus from the students getting released from their classes.

"I should get going now, Peter and Egon are probably wondering where I went by now. Oh! How can I get in touch with you by the way?" Ray says, turning back around toward you.

"I'm usually over here in my lab but it seems it won't be like that much longer, but here's the number for my home telephone, call me if you need or want to plan anything and if I don't answer leave me a message for my answer box," You say, pulling out a notepad and pen from your pocket, scribbling the number down, ripping out the page and handing it to Ray.

"Thanks Y/n, I'll remember to call you later on! Sorry about the whole getting fired thing, by the way, but I hope we see more of eachother. I'll talk to you later!" Ray says, taking the paper and waving goodbye as he runs off to a different area of the university.

---------------------------------------

Once you were back into the lab, you looked around to see what you should start packing. You didn't have much space at your apartment so you would either probably have to rent out a storage unit or call your parents to see if they could store some of it in their attic at home.

First I need to get boxes, and then a bunch of bubble wrap and foam so none of my equipment or computers break. I'll have to go and buy some from the post office.

You go and grab your keys and head back outside of your lab, locking the door before you leave. Walking to your car, you take your keys and unlock the door of it.

As you sit down and turn the key it stalls, taking a few more tries before it finally starts. I really gotta get a new car or at least get it checked out.

You start to drive to the nearest post office, and due to the horrible New York traffic it took you about 20 minutes to get to it even if it was only half a mile away. But that's what you got yourself into deciding to move to one of the most populated states in the US.

You park, grab your wallet, lock your car, and proceed into the post office.

You see the large amount of people in there, checking their post boxes, mailing out letters, and waiting to get their packages accepted to be sent out.

You walk to the area they have the boxes set up, grabbing a few medium sized ones and proceeding to the shortest line so you can purchase them. Once finally at the front, you place the flattened boxes onto the table.

The man nodded and pulled out a large roll of bubble wrap, placing it on top of the boxes.

"Hello, just these and also, do you guys have the big rolls of bubble wrap?" You say to the man at the desk, who already looked far too tired.

"Is that all, ma'am?"

You nod, taking your wallet out of your coat pocket so that way you have your money ready.

The man punches numbers into his machine, looking at each thing on the desk as he does so.

"That'll be $21.47, ma'am."

You take 22 dollars out of your wallet, handing them to the man as he takes it, placing the bills into the register and grabbing a few coins for your change and handing them and the receipt to you.

You thank the man and take the boxes and bubble wrap with you, struggling slightly at how awkward it was to hold the 10 flat boxes and bubble wrap in your arms.

You open the trunk of your car, putting the boxes and bubble wrap in, just barely fitting to where you can close the trunk door.

God, this is gonna suck.

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I literally wrote all of this in about 7 maybe 9 hours total because I just thought up something and was like, "oh yeah, this'll be great," and that's at least what I'm hoping now. I want this to kinda be slow burn and I know that's what I always say when I do series, and I never finish them, but I am really hoping I'll be able to do more with this then my other failed attempts at series [if I take longer than a month to get another chapter of this out I want you all to yell at me and tell me to finish it]

[Word count; 2,769

[dutchessofcaladan]

Might post my first fic here...

I'm pretty on the fence about it but I might work up the courage to post it. It's a Ghostbusters sequel set a few years after Frozen Empire. The MC is an OC I created for Afterlife and Frozen Empire. Her name's Alexis Venkman (Peter's daughter).

Here's a description:

"When the spirit of Sumerian sorceress Ahassunu, daughter of Vigo, possesses Alexis, the Ghostbusters must band together to determine the fate of the world"

Anyway, I might post it, I might chicken out and it'll never see the light of day.

Who knows...

[sporesmoldandfungi]

Flip City - Sued

Author's Note: This rewrite of my original sequel is heavily inspired by Channel Awesome's video on how they would fix the Ghostbusters 2 movie. I'm going to use roughly the same plot points from that video because it's more appealing to me as a writer, but I'm going to make it my own with Genevieve's relationships with everyone, especially Egon. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the first chapter!

Dana Barrett walked down the streets of New York, her heels clicking against the city pavement. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a gentleman selling today's paper. She stopped to read the headline "Ghostbusters V. The State of New York, Trial Today". She stopped in front of the small stand and picked up a copy, quickly skimming through the first few paragraphs.

The man poked his head up from reading his own paper. He took a deep sigh before speaking. "Drives me nuts, ya know? Those guys put their lives on the line for the city and how do we repay them? By suing the shit out of them. Property damage be damned, they saved my life and my family's lives, as well as countless others, that should be enough."

Dana smiled softly, "Yeah, I know what you mean."

The man took another sigh, "Man, I wouldn't wanna be them right now."

"Well, it's not that fun for me either." She replied.

"Why do you say that?" He asked.

"I'm engaged to one of them."

Across the city, in a courtroom full of people, The Ghostbusters sat waiting for the trial to begin. Genevieve sat in the audience in the front row, leaning over the railing to speak with Egon and the others.

"Where the hell is Dana? She's a key witness." Genevieve whispered to the four boys, frantically looking back at the doors, waiting for Dana to come running in any second.

"Relax, she'll be here." Egon reassured her.

Genevieve shut her eyes tighter than she ever did before, shaking her head slightly, as if when she opened them again, this whole mess would be gone, and things would be how they were before. But when she opened them, all she saw was Egon's worried expression. "I can't lose you, Egon."

"You won't." He spoke.

She shook her head again. "It's hard enough having to deal with the aftermath of having my entire mind and body taken over by a Babylonian god and watching from the front row as I almost killed everyone I loved. But to sit here and watch the four most important people in my life get locked up for fixing MY mess, I can't do it."

"Sumerian." He corrected, making Genevieve look at him puzzlingly. "You said Babylonian, Gozer is a Sumerian god. Gosh, you should know that above all." He teased, earning a sly smile from her otherwise worried expression.

"Well, when you suddenly get possessed, your main focus isn't what kind of god they are. So, excuse me for my ignorance." She quipped back. Her attention suddenly shot back to the matter at hand. She looked her wristwatch, showing her there were only five minutes until the trial began. She tapped Peter on the shoulder, "Venkman, where is Dana?"

Peter turned around, still looking unimpressed even though his whole future depended on the trial. "Dunno, she's supposed to be on her way. And by the way, would you cool it, Gozy? You stressing back there isn't helping us. We got enough on our plate. We're pretty much royally screwed with our attorney."

Genevieve looked confused until Louis Tully came stumbling into the courtroom. His arms full overflowing with documents and folders, almost dropping a few as he approached the Ghostbusters. With all of them being strapped for cash, he was the best they could do. He dropped his things on the table with a loud thud then leaned into the group, quietly and worriedly whispering, "I think you guys are making a huge mistake. I got my law degree at night school."

"That's alright, Louis, most of this happened at night," Ray said, promptly slamming his head on the table afterward.

The judge banged his gavel a couple of times, gaining everyone's attention. The Ghostbusters looked over to the prosecution and saw Walter Peck sitting with a few other lawyers, a smug smile plastered across his face.

"Before we begin this trial I want to one thing very clear. The law does not recognize the existence of ghosts. I don't believe in them either. Don't wanna hear a lot of malarkey about goblins and spooks and demons. We're gonna stick to the facts in this case and leave the ghost stories to the kiddies, understood?" the judge spoke, taking off his reading glasses and fixing his documents.

Winston scoffed, turning towards the others, "Sounds like a pretty open minded guy."

"They call him 'The Hammer'." Egon replied. Genevieve groaned and placed her head in her hands, her hope fading away with each second. Egon turned around, gently lifting her head up and caressing her cheek. "It'll be okay, no matter what. I love you."

She smiled into his hand, kissing it gently, "I love you too."

The gavel came down again, "All right, all right, let's get on with it."

Louis nervously approached the judge, fixing his glasses messily before speaking, his voice wavering with anxiety. He cleared his throat before speaking again, "Your Honor, ladies and gentlemen of the- of the audience. I don't think it's fair to call my clients frauds! Okay, so the blackout was a big problem for everybody, okay? I was stuck in an elevator for two hours and I had to make the whole time. But I don't blame them! Because one time I turned into a dog and they helped me. Thank you."

Chuckles were heard echoing in the courtroom and Louis held his head down in shame, walking back over to the Ghostbusters.

"Very good, Louis. Short but pointless." Egon said.

The trial seemed to drag on. City rep after city rep went on and on about the damages and costs the Ghostbusers caused. Walter Peck went on his usual spiel, claiming the Ghostbusters were frauds and no good liars. Louis made a fool of himself, Peter couldn't care less in his testimony, Ray cared more than anyone.

Egon couldn't even focus on what was being said, all he could hear was Genevieve's foot bob anxiously behind him. She hasn't been the same since Gozer. Sure, he was overjoyed to finally be in a romantic relationship with her, and she felt the same. But even that wasn't enough to stop the panic attacks, the nightmares, the anxiety that followed her every day. And he couldn't do much to help. He was stuck watching the love of his life morph into a shell of her former self, and it not only broke his heart, but it scared him beyond belief. Would she ever be that girl again? Or is this the new norm?

Below the city where the old Van Horn station used to be, a blood-red river of slime flowed directly below them. Churning and pulsating, fueled by the fear of every New Yorker, which nowadays, there seems to be a lot of. As the trial came to a close, the slime began to travel upwards, inching its way closer and closer to the surface, fueled by the fear and anxiety of the five Ghostbusters and the judge began to read the verdict.

"Peter Venkman, Raymond Stantz, Winston Zeddemore, Egon Spengler, stand up. Get up! You too, Mr. Tully. I find you guilty on all charges! I order you to pay fines in the amount of $25,000 each! I sentence you to eighteen months in the city correctional facility at Rikers Island! On a more personal note, let just me go on record as saying that there is no place for fakes, charlatans and tricksters like you in decent society! You prey upon the gullibility of innocent people!  And believe me, if my hands were not tied by the unalterable fetters of the law! And I would indulge in the tradition of our illustrious forbears reach back, to a purer, sterner justice, and have you burned at the stake!" The judge roars, fully rising from his seat with the last sentence.

As soon as the judge finished reading, or screaming, the verdict, the slime had finally penetrated the surface, slipping through a crack that lay directly beneath the judge. A loud explosion made the entire courtroom shake and a bright ray of light revealed two cackling ghosts, one tall and lanky, the other short and stout. Full-blown chaos broke out, people began screaming and ran out the doors, leaving only the Ghostbusters, Louis, the judge, and Walter Peck in the room.

The eight of them quickly ran for cover, trying to find a way out. The judge cried out to the Ghostbusters, "It's the Scoleri Brothers! I tried them for murder, gave them the chair! You gotta do something!"

"Why don't you tell them you don't believe in ghosts?" Egon quipped.

The ghosts cackled louder, chasing more people out the courtroom. The judge looked white as a ghost, shaking with fear, "You gotta do something, help me!"

"Don't talk to me, talk to my attorney." Ray said.

"And that's me! My guys are still under a judicial mistrangement order! That blue thing I got from her! They could be exposing themselves!" Louis said, waving documents in the judge's face.

"And you don't want us exposing ourselves!" Peter added, making Egon and Winston roll their eyes.

Walter Peck intervened, "Your honor, you can't actually be considering this."

As the judge, Peck, and the other Ghostbusters all argued with one another, Egon turned around to see Genevieve, shaking and holding onto herself tight. He approached her, wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her close. She quickly grabbed onto him, holding on as tight as she could.

"I can't do this, Egon. I can't be a Ghostbuster." she said into his chest, a tear escaping her eye.

He held her close, stroking her auburn hair gently. "I'm afraid we don't have a choice, darling." He pulled her back so he could look at her in the eyes as he spoke. "We are the only ones who can stop things like this from happening. And you, Genevieve Stratford, are one of the bravest people I know. You have to take that fear and channel it into something deeper, something bigger than us, something that can light that fire in you and make you strong. Do you think you can do that for me?"

He saw the confliction in her eyes, but still, she nodded. "You're right, you're always right."

He smiled, "And I promise you, I won't let anyone, or anything hurt you, ever again, okay?"

She nodded again, "Okay, I trust you."

By the time Egon got a remnant of the old Genevieve back, Peck was being ushered away by the judge and the remaining Ghostbusters began walking towards their proton packs. They all suited up, groaning as they pulled the heavy proton packs over their backs.

"Oh… oh, I always hated this part of the business. You know, it's been a couple of years since we used this stuff. I hope it still works." Peter said, groaning as he adjusted the pack on his back.

"It should. The power cells have a half-life of five thousand years." Egon said, situating his and Genevieve's packs.

"Well, there's no time for a bench test! Heat em up!" Ray said excitedly.

Peter was the first to switch his on, a low musical hum ringing out. He smirked and sang, "Doe..."

Ray followed suit, smiling and joining in with a "Re..."

Egon followed, adding "Egon!". The others looked at him, but he just smirked, proud of his play on words.

The room began to vibrate with that familiar uneasy feeling whenever a ghost was present. Chairs soon began to fly up in the air, moving quickly towards the five Ghostbusters.

Ray quickly opens fire, the others following but they all miss. The Scoleri reveal themselves briefly then disappear. Thinking the job was already done, they slowly broke out into quiet chuckles and giggles. Peter got cocky and began to imitate the fat brother, but was caught off by the Scoleri joining in on the laughter, revealing themselves again.

Peter quickly fired and got a good grip on the fatter brother. "Come on big boy! Let's go! Let's go! I'm gonna take you home to my private zoo!"

"You got him! You got him! Spengie, bring out the trap!" Ray shouts excitedly.

The tall one, quickly flew behind Ray and Winston, catching Egon's attention as he grabbed the trap. "Behind you, Ray!"

Ray and Winston fired, catching it in a tight confinement stream. Genevieve ran towards Peter, seeing him struggle with the fatter brother. She fired and her proton stream wrapped around the waist of the ghost, dancing in harmony with Peter's confinement stream around the ghoul's legs. The two teams began to herd the ghosts towards where Egon was setting up the trap.

Before Egon activated the trap, both of the Scoleri brothers' heads turned to face Genevieve. In two deep and strangled voices they roared, "Join us, Genevieve."

Her eyes widened and she sceamed, "The trap, Egon!"

He quickly activated it, the portal blinding the five as the Scoleri Brothers got sucked into the trap.

The four boys laughed triumphantly, huddling around the trap. Genevieve was laughing too but was still trying to register what those ghosts just said to her. No ghost had ever spoken to her, let alone know her name. Egon held out his hand, and she accepted it, joining the huddle.

"Two in the box!" Ray began.

"Ready to go!" Peter and Winston chimed in.

"We be fast!" Egon and Genevieve added.

"And they be slow!" They all cheered.

They walked out of the courtroom, greeted by hundreds of reporters and onlookers. As Peter declared their victory, Genevieve stood back, trying to grapple the ghosts' message, "Join us." Egon looked over to her, giving her a reassuring smile. She returned it, smiling at the reporters and at Ray as he cheered triumphantly, but the Scoleri Brother's voices still echoed in her head.

"Join us, Genevieve."

[incorrectghostbustersquotes1984]

Dana: How would you react if Oscar wants to take dance class even though all his friends are playing football?

Peter: He can dance if he wants to. He can leave his friends behind. [singing] 'Cause his friends don't dance and if they don't dance, then they're no friends of mine! S-S-S-S-A-A-A-A-F-F-F-F-E!

(Cut to later)

Dana: Then I said, what if Oscar wants to take dance classes instead of play football with his friends? And Peter ran off singing "Safety Dance."

Janine: Dana, didn't you learn your lesson that time you told him "Der Kommissar" was in town?

Dana: Yeah...

[stanfordpinesenbyhusband]

I honestly firmly believe that some years after Ghostbusters II peter and dana got married or at least in my version of Canon they do

[mercy-erts]

Decided to do my take on the side characters too! You can tell I never drew Louis before tho 😭

They're all silly i love them

[inevitablemoment]

~ Amy Santiago, Brooklyn Nine Nine "Jake & Amy"

They've been on my mind recently, and this quote is just... so them.

[bixiebeet]

Dana shows up at the firehouse, and something ominous seems to be following her. Also, Peter shows off his bathrobe.