AS DREAMS FADE

By Ben King
GBI Case File GBNY-1991-9/300

All rights reserved to Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis and Columbia Pictures. This follows year eight through fourteen (1991-1997) of the Ghostbusters Omnibus Timeline.

So, it's really come to this then? Funny, you get so used to something, but time always ensures that nothing lasts...and so do those things which a man can hold dear. It's not like I hadn't noticed of course, I was slow off the mark I accept that, I never even really noticed her interest...well, at least not straight away, and by the time I did, I nearly lost her. But then, then things had changed, I had truly realized that she was the one I wanted to spend the rest of my scientific life with...but then something happened, and I fear I may lose her again, and this time...for good.

A faint hum reverberated around the large room, things had grown quiet. Dust slowly moved past the sunlight that streamed in the windows, it lay in thin layers across most surfaces, dulling the sheen on the large car's white paintwork, and covering most of the tables, most. The hum came from on of the few pieces of machinery still being operated on the ground floor, a old and now out-of-date PC. It's box design was almost ugly now, but standard at the time of it's make. The screen glowed with a almost ethereal quality, this glow was reflected off of the glasses of the person who was using the computer, a red-headed woman who answered to the name...

"JANINE!" A voice cried from the floor above. The secretery's hands paused in mid sentence, the small hash flashed on an off as the computer waited patiently for the next command from it's user. Janine stared at the screen, frowned and then stood up, pushing the chair away from her as she walked across the dusty garage to the flight of stairs up to the floor above.

"Can I help you Dr. V?" She asked, many years had passed since she had first assigned him that nickname, and she wasn't about to let it go.

"AH! Janine, I need you to do a favour for me." Peter Venkman's face appeared in the gap in the floor above, he wore a chesire grin which must of meant trouble.

"Dr. V, if it's for those magazines of yours stuffed under your pillow then I'm not doing it." Peter's grin faltered, but his politician's bravado kicked in.

"Actually no, I need you to grab us a few things for the fridge...Slimer's eaten all the doughnuts plus all the milk and cheese." Peter replied.

"Do I look like a green grocer?" Janine asked, hands on her hips. That was when Peter pulled the proverbial ace from his sleave, he whipped out a white piece of rectangular paper.

"Do you know what this is?" He asked, amusement in his eyes. Janine blanched, it looked like the company chequebook, only used for paying staff and so on, and the last time Peter had touched it was...well, never.

"What are you doing with that?" She asked.

"Well, I thought, that maybe it was about time you were given a raise...you know, for all you've done for us...like, say picking up some groceries." Janine froze, she had integrity, she had standards...she couldn't let Dr. Venkman do this to her...

"I was on my way out anyway, there's no need to bribe me Dr. V. Though, I know three men who could use some information to their advantage, information about a certain person's dirty habit, should I not receive my long promised raise." Janine said, a sly grin on her face. Peter's grin collapsed, and for a brief second she saw actual fear in his green eyes, but then he smirked.

"You wouldn't do that." He said.

"Try me, I'll be back in an hour or so, I'd like my cheque before I leave work tonight." With that, she walked away from the staircase and over to the filing cabinets, stood between the gate in the office wall and the filing cabinet was a beaten coatstand, Janine reached up and pulled down her jacket. She then turned and opened a drawer, extracting her purse. She slipped on her jacket and slung her purse over her left arm, making sure her copy of the Firehouse keys were with her. She then crossed the garage, fondly looking at Ecto-1 as she moved she then paused to unlock the bolt on the door, turned the handle and opened the door, she stepped out and closed the door behind her, locking it as she went.

The shrill sound of the phone on Janine's desk reverberated across the garage, but was unheeded, that is, until a blond-haired physicist poked his head out from beneath the staircase.

"Hello?" he asked. "Janine?" He added. Janine wasn't to be found. He then walked up the rest of the stairs and across the garage. Unlike his usual uniform, Egon had decided to wear his usual slacks and pink shirt due to a lack of calls over the previous few days, business had been tapering off for quite a while, and they feared they would be shut down for good. They hadn't had much new income coming into the company account, and they barely had the bills paid as the situation progressed. He picked up the receiver and listened to the sound of the frantic caller. "Please calm down madam, can you please tell me what the problem is? Okay, I see...yes, very well, we will be there shortly." Egon said as he jotted down a brief description of the entity and the location. Egon then reached forward and pressed the small red button on Janine's desk, it creaked slightly and Egon was almost sure it gave him a static shock. But that thought went away when the alarm began to sound, reverberating not just around the garage, but the whole Firehouse. Peter, having been sat on the couch in the rec room ran down the staircase, Winston and Ray, having been on the third floor came sliding down the firemen's pole. Egon walked over to his locker and opened it, extracting a dark blue jumpsuit with pink trim. A nametag on the left breast read: Spengler.

"What is it?" Ray asked as he pulled out a tan jumpsuit with brown trim, a nametag on his read: Stantz.

"Eh, they're all the same, ectoplasmic monster, wanting to make trouble." Replied Peter, he extracted a brown jumpsuit with dark blue trim. A nametag on his read: Venkman.

"We haven't had a call in almost a month, I'm surprised anyone calls us anymore." Winston said grimly, removing a blue jumpsuit with red trim. A nametag on his jumpsuit read: Zeddemore.

"It appears, from the caller's somewhat quick and frantic description, to be a Class Five Non-Corporeal Confectionery Devourer." Egon said.

"In English?" Peter pleaded.

"A ghost that eats candy." Ray translated.

"Oh great...another Slimer." Peter said sarcastically as he zipped up his jumpsuit over his blue sweater and joggers'. He rushed over to his place in the rear of Ecto-1, Egon was already sat in the back and patiently awaiting them. Soon Winston was dressed and he ran around to the driver's seat, only to be blocked by Ray.

"Winston...for old time's sake...could I?" Ray pleaded. Winston smirked.

"Okay Ray, seeing as you're the one who built her up," Winston said. "Just make sure you watch the speed...I want to enter her into a car show next week." Ray nodded and sat in the familiar leather upholstery of the driver's seat. He took only a minute to familiarize himself with the layout and then started the engine. Unknown to Egon, Peter had suddenly bucked his belt frantically. Ray switched on the siren and lights, and pressed the button to activate the doors, then he pulled the car out of the Firehouse and into the traffic.

Peter clung to the seat for dear life, now he remembered why he'd persuaded Winston to become the designated driver, Winston didn't have a death wish.

"Ray...what did I say about keeping our speed under 90?!" Peter nearly screamed.

"Aww come on Peter, I'm not even breaking the speed limit, enjoy the ride." Ray said with enthusiasm, the machine was once again an extension of Ray's boundless energy, it was good to be back in the driver's seat. The equipment in the rack clicked together contently as Ray pulled what could be taken as dangerous maneuvers to the untrained eye. Within minutes, they arrived on the scene. If there was one positive point to Ray's fly by the seat of your pants driving, it sure as hell got you to where you we going on time. The car screeched to a halt on the street corner, people were running amok as a entity, which strangely resembled Bertie Bassett, was rampaging across the street, every few moments it took a swipe at the now badly smashed confectionery shop. A flickering and sparking neon sign hung at an angle over a broken picture window. The four Ghostbusters stepped out from the converted ambulance, to a mixed selection of cheering, and boos.

"Oh come on, we're the Ghostbusters...we're famous!" Peter said to the crowd with a smile.

"More like has-beens!" A crowd member shouted.

"Okay," Peter said, pointing at the offending crowd member. "For that, no autograph signings." He finished.

"Peter." Egon said, the other three 'busters had their packs and equipment on. Peter quickly donned his Proton Pack.

"So, Mr. Liquorish Allsorts thinks he can beat up a candy store..." Peter began.

"Not in our town." The other three finished, each wearing a grin.

"Gentlemen, set your streams to 50% dispersion ratio, we'll try to burn it like when we first fought against Stay Puft." The four paranormal eliminators set their 'throwers accordingly and prepared to fire. "When I give the signal, fire at it's head...erm, the pink allsort." Egon said. "Fire!" Four streams of energy shot at the parody of the famous corporate logo, the pink allsort that made up the entity's head started to burn, but it remained practically unphased. The monster then started to stamp away from them, smashing cars as it went.

"After it!" Peter shouted, the four Ghostbusters charged after the monstrosity. "Egon," Peter asked, turning to face the physicist as they ran, he had his PKE meter in hand and was taking readings. "How do we stop a twenty foot selection of cheap candy?"

"Well, I would suggest we disable it's ability to move." Egon mused.

"You mean, we shoot out it's legs?" Peter asked.

"Crude, granted, but most likely effective." Egon finished. A Checker Cab that was rolling down the street suddenly spotted the giant selection of sweets and sped out of the way, rushing onto the sidewalk and moving through a large gathering of people, it then finished it's journey by ploughing into a set of newspaper dispensers and a lamppost.

"Aim for the legs!" Peter shouted.

"Roger." Winston replied, two beams shot at the monster's left leg, and two beams were fired at the monster's right leg, within seconds the joints had begun to glow and smoke, and soon they were melting. The monster, it's legs melted from it's body, toppled to the street, and caused the windows in the nearby buildings to shake. It then cried out in pain and tried to crawl away.

"Almost a shame isn't it?" Peter asked.

"Why do you say that Peter?" Ray asked.

"Well, look at the poor thing, it almost makes you feel sorry for it...almost." Peter finished with a grin. Egon, Peter and Winston fired three confinement streams at the monster as Ray rolled out a trap, he gave the signal for the guys to close their eyes and he activated the trap, the ghost became deformed and was sucked, melted legs and all into the Ghost Trap, it then shut and started to smoke.

"Another successful bust by the Ghostbusters!" Ray shouted, more of the crowd was cheering this time and the Ghostbusters allowed themselves to be bathed in it, that part of the job never really got tiring.

"Hey hey!" Peter cheered, he suddenly frowned, there was a small pillar of smoke rising up from a street corner a block away, also, there was a large crowd gathered around the source. While the other three Ghostbusters were still occupied with the crowd, Peter slipped away and started to move towards the smoke. He approached it within a minute and saw the source of the smoke was the crashed Checker Cab. "Is everything okay?" Peter asked. "I'm a doctor." He finished. The crowd then parted for him to see, and then a shiver ran down his spine as if someone had walked over his own grave, and at what he'd seen, that might not be to far from the truth. A pair of legs were sprawled on the sidewalk, they lay under the front fender of the cab, one of the leg owner's shoes had been knocked off, it was a red pump. Peter moved forward, she wore a grey-ish coat, a pink purse was strewn a few feet away, next to a burst grocery bag, it's contents spilled all over the place. Peter then leaned over the front hood, it was badly crumpled from the impact with the lamppost, but over the twisted metal he could see the face of the owner of the legs. Peter could of sworn that his heart had skipped a beat when he saw her face. She was solumn, almost calm, a strand of hair had fallen over her silent face. A pair of glasses lay near her face, they were broken. Her red hair was a stark contrast to the dull grey of the sidewalk. "Oh...shit..." Peter breathed, almost silently.

"Peter?" Peter jumped, it was Ray. He turned to see that Egon, Ray and Winston were only a few feet away.

"Has someone been injured?" Egon asked. Peter's mind went blank, he suddenly walked forward quickly and held his arms out, like a cop moving a crowd. "Peter?"

"Peter...what's the matter?" Ray asked, worry on his face.

"Hey man, what's wrong with you?" Winston asked, doubt was written all over his face.

"Just don't." Peter said coldly.

"Peter, what's wrong...why won't you..." Egon halted. "It...it..." he spluttered.

"Damn." Peter muttered, he then turned and followed Egon's gaze, he'd seen her. Egon then surged forward, but Peter tried to hold him back. "No...NO!" Peter shouted, Egon batted him by and rushed forward, then his expression almost looked like his world had collapsed around him, that wasn't far from the truth.

"Ja...Janine?" Egon asked, stupified.

"Oh God." Ray said, joining him by his left shoulder.

"Man." Winston said, he remained by Peter, he gave him a reassuring clap on his shoulder and the walked forward a few steps. Peter then turned and sat down on the curb. Those who say Dr. Egon Spengler is an unemotional automaton like a character from a sci fi series were proved wrong that day, as a single tear slipped down each cheek of Egon Spengler's face. In the distance, the crowd could hear an ambulance siren.

Peter felt numb, not just in a limb or in mind, but everywhere, he'd felt numb ever since he'd climbed back into Ecto-1. As soon as they'd piled into the customized ambulance they had followed the ambulance to the hospital, the crowd had been hushed as the two vehicles left the scene. The ambulance crew had said that Janine was still alive, but it brought little comfort, each Ghostbuster had a haunted expression on his face, and Egon's was the worst. Janine Melnitz wasn't simply a secretary at their reception desk, she was a friend, a confidant, an adopted sister, and to one, a lover. For Peter, it was a severe blow, he and Janine had never been on the best of terms, but they had formed a sibling relationship, sharpening both wit and tongue with their verbal sparring, but when it bottled down to a serious situation, they both had an unspoken respect for each other, the tragedy had a more sinister note, as Peter knew he had sent Janine out in the first place. For Ray, he had been shocked by what had happened, to him, Janine was a friend, a person to talk to and on the odd occasion, even arrange tricks to either hinder Peter, or to actually help Janine gain some ground on Egon. For Winston, tragedy was nothing new, he had seen the horrors of war, but a personal tragedy ranked above that. Janine was a little sister to him, someone who he could relate to as she was the only real 'normal' person when compared to the other three Ghostbusters. And then Egon, to him, Janine was as priceless as the world, the one person he had an interest in before he even knew he had an interest in her. A person who would defend him if the event ever came up, a person who no matter how dangerous the experiment in the lab was, would always try to find a way just to see him. He hated himself more then ever now for not having noticed it sooner.

The four Ghostbusters sat in blue cloth chairs with black plastic arms and legs, the waiting room was somewhat quieter then the ER where they had initially arrived. A young-ish man in a white labcoat and brown hair stepped out of a nearby treatment room, the look was completed with a stethoscope and a metal clipboard.

"Um, the Ghostbusters?" He asked. "I'm Dr. Carter..." The four Ghostbusters stared at him, Dr. Carter frowned. I've heard all the jokes, and now's not a joking time." Dr. Carter said grimly.

"How is she?" Egon asked, racing to the point.

"She's physically fine, only a few bruises and a couple of broken ribs from where she was clipped by the car, those injuries should be healed within two weeks..."

"But?" Ray prodded. Dr. Carter sighed.

"But," It sounded like an effort for Dr. Carter to utter the word, "there's worry over mental damage, she struck the sidewalk very hard, the force caused some trauma, and currently Ms. Melnitz is in a coma." The Ghostbusters suddenly seemed to have taken on additional weight on their shoulders. "I know it sounds melodramatic, but I'm afraid the blow was that bad. The next thing we have to worry about is the damage caused, the longer she's under, the more damage is done...and frankly, we never truely know when, or if patients in comas do resurface." Dr. Carter finished.

"What can we do?" Peter asked.

"For now, wait. Soon though you'll be admitted to see her, I suggest that maybe you organize one of you to stay here for a set period of time, sometimes it helps for a coma patient to have a familiar voice or person nearby to help stimulate the resurface." Dr. Carter suggested. Peter looked at Egon, he nodded grimly but appeared calm, but Peter knew Egon better and knew he was bottling up the emotions...and doing that could drive a man insane. Peter also knew who would volunteer to be first, and he had to prevent Egon from doing that.

"I'll do it." Peter said, stepping forward. Both Ray and Winston were surprised, but not as surprised as Egon.

"Peter I can..." He began.

"Egon, I can do this, I'm the one who gets more sleep then anyone else around the Firehouse, and you look like you could use a week's sleep." Peter said.

"But..." Egon began to protest.

"If anything happens, I'll call the Firehouse the instant it happens, now go." Peter said. Egon paused for a moment, but then reluctantly agreed.

"C'mon Homeboy." Winston said, ushering Egon out of the room. Ray paused at the door.

"He's going to be suffering Peter, maybe not on the outside, but after he and Janine finally got together over the Lotsabucks incident he's had pretty strong feelings for her, he's going to need you, both as a friend and as a doctor of psychology. I'll let you know if he does anything unusual...for Egon." Ray replied, the joke had little humour and Peter could see that Ray's eyes were red.

"Thanks Ray." Peter said quietly. Ray nodded, and then left the room.

"Eh-hum." Dr. Carter deliberately coughed, a hand over his mouth. "If you wish to see her, you can." He said. Peter nodded and walked over to the door, darkness was now falling rapidly and the room was dark, save for the reading light above the bed and the soft glow from the monitoring equipment.

"Beep...beep...beep..." The soft sound was ambiance music, it was almost like a scene from a bad hospital soap opera.

"Janine..." Peter whispered, not intending to wake her. She lay in the bed, a breathing tube in her mouth and a drip attached to her arm. There was a dark bruise on her left cheek and she wore a white with green speckled hospital gown. She looked so unusual without her glasses, persistence of memory. Peter slid a chair similar to one of the waiting room's over to Janine's bed, he then sat down and simply looked at her face sadly. "Janine?" He asked quietly. "It's me, Peter, Dr. V..." he trailed off uncomfortably. "...you'd...you'd do most things to get a raise wouldn't you?" His mouth twisted in an unstable grin, emotions conflicting his expression. "I...how do I say this? I...I'm sorry..." Peter didn't notice the lone tear as it slid down his right cheek. "I...I'm sorry I sent you out...It's my fault? Isn't it? I'm the one who caused you to get put here..." Peter continued a similar track of self-blame until the watch on Janine changed, nearly two hours later.

"I'm worried about Peter." Ray said.

"Peter?" Winston asked. They both were in the rec room, but the TV was off and only a few lights burned.

"Yeah...I don't know for sure, Peter's the mind expert...but, I wonder if he might be blaming himself for this." Ray said.

"So we could have a depressed psychologist on our hands? As well as a physicist with chronic emotion-bottle up." Winston said.

"In a situation like this, I'd either get Peter to talk to Egon, or vice versa...but with both of them like this..." Ray trailed off. He then decided to change the subject. "Who should take Peter's place when his turn ends?" Ray asked.

"Not Egon, if there was one rational thought Peter had before he went into the guilt trip, it was keeping Egon from watch duty for now...I'll do it if you don't feel like it." Winston offered.

"No...I'm willing to do it...maybe the watch will give me some time to think over the last four hours or so...I always used to talk some things over with Janine..." Ray bit his lip.

"It's okay Ray..."

"No...I really want to do this, it's just...you never really take seeing a friend...no, a family member being injured." Ray finished.

"Yeah well, right now we have three family members who need attention right now. And I'm almost afraid to think what could happen to Egon up there in this state with all that dangerous hardware."

The room was dark, in the distance a siren wailed. Egon stared at the two sash windows that bordered with Varrick Street, he stared, but not seeing, his red-rimmed glasses sat on the work bench beside him, next to a partially dismantled Ghost Trap. But Egon wasn't working, he was thinking, thinking of the times they'd had with Janine...and thinking of what they were liable to loose if Janine never resurfaced from her coma.

Almost three days had passed since the accident, and now the team had taken up a bi-hourly roster. Even Egon had now been allowed to participate, but there was still worry for him. He'd taken to spending even longer in the lab then usual, and more often then not tried to actually avoid the rest of the team. Ray sat at Janine's desk, as well as setting up a roster for visiting Janine and keeping her company, there was also a roster for someone to man Janine's desk. It seemed that the Ghostbusters had been blackballed by every secretarial and assistance agency in both the Greater New York Area and it's surrounding boroughs. And so, they couldn't hire anybody within 50 miles of Manhattan to cover the empty reception desk. However the job had been made worse, at least the day after Janine's accident, they'd had the excuse of a bust to put their feelings aside to help save New Yorkers from paranormal threats...but as the day so far hadn't had a single call, they were forced to confront their thoughts. Louis Tully, the company's legal rep and financial officer had been informed, he'd been mortified by the news, it was theorized by some that he hadn't completely given up his feelings for Janine. Peter had asked him to go over the insurance policy, a rarely seen side of Peter wanted to make sure that if the worst came to worse, Janine's family wouldn't have to foot the bill in case a funeral was required. Ray stopped what he was doing and thought that over. Over the many years that the company had been in operation, Janine and Peter had always been at each others end. They'd argued, blackmailed and screamed each other in the face. But most of the closer friends of the Ghostbusters, and even the Ghostbusters themselves (though Peter would never admit it) knew that the verbal sparing matches simply hid a friendly affection for each other that they'd built up. That Peter and Janine were siblings in the GBI family, as were the others. And of course in some families, siblings argued. Peter and Janine had a unspoken mutual and professional respect for each other. Janine knew, but would never utter her respect of Peter's ability to charm celebrities, government officials and the like. And Peter would never word his appreciation and utter astoundment that Janine hadn't actually quit, and that she'd been able to manage and file their financial nightmare. Ray smirked at this thought, but then he frowned. Janine was still under, and as each day passed, the chance of her resurfacing grew slimmer and slimmer.

"Beep...Beep...Beep..." The steady rhythm of the machine was background noise, Ray sat in a chair beside the bed where Janine lay. He studied an engineering magazine, though he had little enthusiasm in it, slightly less then a week and a half had passed since the accident which had hospitalized Janine, and there was still no sign of Janine resurfacing. The separate members of the Ghostbusters had strayed onto the deadly thought of that she might never recover, and it had been the cause of many a chill down the spine for all four of them. Many a night, Ray had lain awake, sometimes he'd hear muffled crying, other times he'd hear half envisioned nightmares. No matter what they'd faced over the years, they'd never suffered a personal loss on such a level.

"Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep..." Ray stared at the machine, it's electronic pulse was maddening. He let the text book flop to the floor as he stood up and walked over to the window, he placed a arm on the frame and leant on it, resting his head against it, he then shifted his head to the glass, the cool touch was a welcomed relief for the moment. "Beep...Beep...Beep..Beep..Beep..Beep.Beep.Beep..." Ray looked up, the pitch had gone up. He moved over quickly, she was breathing on her own! God, oh God! She's alive! She's alive! Ray looked around, he snagged the call button and pressed it, moments later Dr. Carter and a nurse burst in.

"What's the problem?" He asked.

"She's coming out of it! She's coming back." Ray smiled, tears brimming in his eyes. Dr. Carter quickly inspected her.

"Okay, make sure you call your friends, I can't promise anything yet, but if she does surface, they need to be here if she does." Dr. Carter explained.

"Yeah..." Ray nodded, he then ran out of the room and into the hallway, he looked up and down, and then ran along to the elevator, he took it down to the ER and ran over to the nearest payphone, he then dropped several coins into the slot, and dialed the number to the Firehouse. The line rang several times before it was answered by Winston.

"Ghostbusters." He replied.

"Winston! Get here, and bring Egon and Peter!" Ray shouted, out of breath.

"Wait, slow down. Is she...is she coming out of it?" Winston asked, there was a noticeable pause in his voice.

"I think so, the doctor told me to get you guys here."

"Okay, calm down, Ray. I'll get them there as soon as possible." Winston then hung up. Ray allowed himself to get his breath back, he then quickly returned to hallway outside of Janine's room to wait for the others.

The three Ghostbusters charged down the hall towards Janine's room, Egon leading, Peter following and Winston trailing behind.

"How is she, is she okay?" Egon asked, startling Ray who had been waiting outside.

"Whoa, calm down Homeboy." Winston placed a hand on Egon's shoulder.

"Okay, Janine woke up, about a half hour ago, I phoned you guys straight away." Ray replied, raising his hands defensibly.

New York traffic. Winston thought.

"Is she okay?" Peter asked, there were dark patches under his eyes.

"I don't know yet, they haven't let me in and Dr. Carter hasn't been out yet." Ray reported, they looked in through the window. Janine was sat up in bed, nodding her head to something Dr. Carter was saying, the silent discussion lasted a few minutes, and then Dr. Carter stood up, turned and walked over to the door, the Ghostbusters moved to allow Dr. Carter entry into the hallway. When the door was closed behind him, he released a heavy breath.

"Okay, as you can see, it's confirmed that Miss Melnitz has regained consciousness, we've performed the standard tests, what her name is, what year it is, who's President and so forth, those came back okay...but she has suffered some memory loss. I'm not at liberty to say how much yet, because, well, we simply don't know." Dr. Carter reported.

"Do you have any idea just how much could've been lost?" Winston asked.

"At present, I'm willing to believe she have suffered a Grade Three concussion, it is undetermined just how much she could've lost, but she may have lost parts of her memory which are as much as a year old." Dr. Carter replied tiredly, his face was a little pale, it matched the now three pale white faces which faced him. What he'd said had begun to sink in.

"A year?" Ray asked, he swallowed as his processed what he'd heard.

"But...that means..." Peter drifted off.

"She's lost everything since the Makeoverus Lotsabucks case...maybe even longer." Winston muttered, recoiling. Egon wandered blindly over to a chair and sat down. Having suffered a bad blow, it was possible, that all they'd suffered during the incident with Makeoverus Lotsabucks had been lost. His mind processed the thought. He wasn't sure, if he'd be able to go through it again, if she no longer remembered. He loved her too much to possibly risk something by blatently telling her.

No, not now. This will take time before I feel it will be safe to tell her that I have, and always will love her. I just hope that I will have the chance to tell her again. Egon thought.

"...there's still some tests to be performed," Dr. Carter's voice filtered back into Egon's range of hearing as if a volume on a TV had been turned up. "However, I think it would help cheer her up if you were allowed to visit, it is, however, your choice." Dr. Carter replied, he then rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"We'll be in there in a minute." Peter replied, Dr. Carter nodded and went back into the room. While Winston and Ray discussed what they'd do for when Janine could leave, Peter walked over to the chair and sat down next to Egon who had his head hung low. "God, Spengs...I'm so sorry." Peter finally replied. "I can imagine how bad it could be..." He added.

"I'm not sure I'll be able to tell her what I thought of her again..." Egon trailed off.

"Egon, you're gonna tell her again, and we're going to be there to make sure it happens." Peter replied.

"I only wish I could find some comfort in those words, Venkman." Egon replied.

"Besides, there's the chance she'll still remember." Peter reassured. Egon didn't answer. "C'mon Big Guy, let's give her the biggest welcome ever." Peter replied, he stood up, and a moment later, pulled Egon up. They walked over to the door, though, Peter felt he was dragging Egon along with him. They passed through the door and entered the room, indeed, Janine was sat upright, albeit still very pale, a plaster was still on her forehead, but her green eyes were still strong and defiant.

"G...guys?" She asked groggily. They stepped forward, though, Egon seemed to hold back, staying in a dark corner where he seemed to brood.

"Hey." Ray greeted.

"We knew you'd come back." Winston replied.

"This desperate to get holiday leave?" Peter asked, not even expecting himself to say it. Ray and Winston glared at him. "Sorry." He replied, shrinking a little.

"I'll take it as a 'hello'." Janine replied, smiling weakly. "Hey...what's wrong with Egon, somebody flush his fungus again?" She asked.

"Err...erm..." Peter, Ray and Winston looked at each other quickly. "He's been going over a formula to pass the time until you woke, real important stuff." Peter replied.

"Oh..." Janine replied, a little down trodden. Peter moved away quickly as Winston and Ray asked how she was feeling.

"Egon, Egon!" Peter hissed. "Get your butt over there, now." Egon relented and walked over to face Janine, Peter reappeared at his side. "Here he is!" Peter replied, keeping his voice low as to not add to Janine's probable headache.

"Hi...Egon." Janine smiled weakly again.

"Hello Janine. I'm...I'm glad to see you aren't worse for wear...I hope you recuperate quickly." Egon replied uncomfortably, Ray and Winston traded a quick worried look.

"From him...that's the most caring thing he's ever said." She smiled weakly for a third time.

"Okay, we've got to go now." Ray replied. "It's past visiting hours and the nurses are giving us the 'evil eye'. We've got to go now, but we'll be back first thing in the morning." Ray explained.

"Bye." Peter waved.

"Hang in there, Sister." Winston replied.

"See you in the morning." Ray added.

"Have a...good rest, Janine." Egon finished, they then left the room.

The four Ghostbusters sat in silence as Winston drove them home, outside, rain poured as if it was some awful romance story gone bad. The cabin lights were off as well, the car's interior was lit every few seconds by streetlamps and car headlights. As Ecto-1 neared the Firehouse, Winston finally spoke.

"We're going to have to get something set up here when Janine is finally released, even with her determination, I don't think it's safe leaving her at her apartment on her own." He explained.

"Agreed." Egon replied halfheartedly.

"Yeah." Ray agreed.

"I suggest we set up a sleeping area in the rec room for her..." Egon trailed off.

"Yeah." Winston replied. "I don't think anyone'll argue if I say we should take over running the office...not that we get that much business anymore..." Winston trailed off. The Ecto-1 pulled up outside the darkened Firehouse, Winston leaned forward and pressed a button mounted above the dashboard, the Firehouse's doors slid open slowly, revealing a yawning blackness inside, Winston released Ecto-1's hand break and pulled into the Firehouse garage. The four Ghostbusters disembarked from the vehicle and trudged upstairs. Three of them making a slow beeline to the bunkroom, the other, making his way to the lab. Thunder flashed outside as Peter readied himself for bed, then he noticed Egon's metal bed devoid of the scientist, even more startling, the sheets were unmade, it was a testament to just how badly Spengler had been affected. Peter, shaking his head pulled his brown and blue check dressing gown back on and crept over to the double doors, not wanting to awaken Winston and Ray who had fallen asleep. He gripped the cold brass door handle and turned it, he winced when the door emitted a slight creak, but moved slowely as he opened it enough for him to slip through. The landing was dark, and Peter noted that no light shone from beneath the doors to the lab. He crept across the landing, passed the spiral staircase and paused at the double doors, he knocked, and waited. There was no answer. He then gripped the handle and opened the door, he poked his head through the jam and into the lab. He could see Egon, slumped over a table, his glasses sparkling every so often when lightning exploded above them.

"Spengs." Peter muttered, he walked over to the blonde haired physicist and regarded him. He'd know Egon Spengler for a long time, for more then half of his life now, he'd seen the best and worst of the occupants of the Firehouse, but he'd never seen Egon so emotionally exhausted. "Egon...Egon!" Peter hissed as he nudged the physicist's shoulder.

"I'm sorry Mom...I didn't mean the burn the bath...it was a science fair project..." Egon muttered, lost in dream. Peter rolled his eyes.

"Wake up Spengs!" Peter hissed and jabbed Egon, he awoke with a start, but with bleary eyes, he looked about as his vision without glasses cleared. He then felt around the table until he got his glasses. The black, blurry image in front of him solidified to that of a somewhat peeved looking Peter Venkman with his arms crossed. "Just what do you think you're doing?" Peter chided. Egon studied his impromptu sleeping place.

"Apparently sleeping over the blueprints for my next invention." Egon replied dryly.

"Egon, I know how bad it's been the past few weeks...but sleeping in the lab is not going to be any good to your health, trust me, I'm an expert at sleeping." Peter replied. Egon regarded Peter back with slight amusement. "Now, are you going to get up from that work bench, march into that bedroom and sleep in your bed...or do I need to get Slimer to chase you into there by saying there's a doughnut in your shoe?" Peter asked with a devilish grin, but, Egon noted, it was a strained smile.

"Very well, as our current washing machine requires Ray's skill, I shall forgo getting another uniform covered in ectoplasm." Egon replied as he stood up.

"Egon, I'm pretty sure it was Ray's skill which got it broken in the first place." Peter replied.

As Peter lay in his bed, he could hear three sets of snoring. Oddly enough, he couldn't get to sleep...of all people, Peter Venkman couldn't get to sleep. A feeling of increased restlessness descended on Peter, and he decided he'd do something else. He got up, crept over to the door, opened it quietly and slipped out of the room. He descended the staircase into the darkened garage. He walked over to Janine's desk and sat down, he then leant forward and switched on Janine's desk lamp, recoiling slightly from the sudden, bright glare. Once his eyes had adapted to the light, he reached forward and grasped the phone receiver, he stared at the keypad for a few moments, tossing over whether to call or not. The dial tone droned in his ear as he made up his mind. Finally deciding, he punched in the number that he had engraved on his mind...he needed somebody to talk to. The phone rang three times, four, Peter was ready to hang up on the fifth ring, but the phone was answered.

"Hello?" A female voice asked.

"Oh...um...is that Dana Barrett?" Peter asked. There was a silence.

"Peter?" She finally asked.

"Yes...I hope I didn't wake you." Peter replied, leaning back in the desk chair.

"No...." Peter eyed the glass fronted wall clock which quietly ticked away, it was a quarter past twelve.

"A little late for work?" He asked.

"You forgot it's three hours earlier out here, didn't you? Plus...Oscar woke me up crying, I've been tending to him for about half an hour." Dana replied. "I'm sorry...did you want to ask something?" She asked.

"No...not really...just wanted to know how things were...I guess I just needed somebody to talk to." Peter replied.

"Peter, is something wrong? You sound more tired the usual...and now I think about it, you're not up this late usually unless you have a call." Dana replied. Peter sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"I should've told you long before...it's about Janine." Peter replied.

"Peter, what happened?" She asked.

"About a week and half ago Janine was involved in an accident..." Peter started.

"It's okay, Winston phoned the same day...I just hope she makes a recovery...she made an excellent babysitter for Oscar." Peter remained silent, silently thanking the black man who slept above him, you could always could on a Zeddemore.

"Well...we have had some good news...Janine resurfaced last night, around ten 'o' clock, the doctors are wary about her, but she seemed okay...a little dazed...but the doctors are worried that she may have lost a good chunk of her recent memory." Peter explained.

"That's awful!" Dana replied. "Is the loss total...will she remember Egon and..." Dana trailed off.

"We don't know." Peter replied honestly.

"I'm buying my airline ticket tomorrow...do you know when she'll be released?" Dana asked.

"We're hoping in a day or two...but we'll just have to see." Peter continued.

"Hopefully, that'll be what happens...I've got to go now, Peter, but we'll talk tomorrow...try to get some sleep." Dana continued.

"I will, Dana." And with that, he hung up. He sat there for a long time, until finally he switched off Janine's desk lamp and laid his head against the felt letter blotter. Within five minutes he began snoring in a dreamless, exhausted sleep.

"Yo, wake up sleepy, we don't pay you to sleep at your post." Peter blinked several times, sunlight streamed in through the garage windows and he made a face at having been woken up.

"Wha?" He asked, the words were half garbled.

"Hmph, figures." The voice belonged to Winston.

"You know, if you hadn't woken up then...it would almost be too tempting not to use that felt pen to draw you a mustache." Ray grinned. Peter looked up and narrowed his eyes at him.

"There is no way in hell anyone can be so happy in the morning, not even you." Peter scowled.

"Not to burst your bubble, but it's nearly noon." Winston replied.

"It is?" Peter asked, surprised.

"Yeah, you've been out like a light all morning, we didn't want to wake you until it became too late, you even managed to sleep through the phone ringing, it was Dana, she said she'd be here this afternoon. I wouldn't be surprised if she walked through the door now." Winston replied, there was a knocking at the door.

"Aw jeez!" Peter swore, he then catapulted himself up the staircase, there was no way he'd let Dana see himself in that state, they may have been dating, but there were just some things never seen outside of marriage. Winston shook his head and chuckled, especially when Ray came back, holding a parcel.

"I never knew the mailman could get that kind of reaction from Peter." Ray grinned.

Dana knocked on the door which led into the Firehouse and waited, as she did, she pulled the 'leash' which held little three and a half-year old Oscar Wallance. A few moments went by and the door opened and Ray stuck his head out. He grinned as soon as he saw Dana.

"Hi Dana." He greeted, stepping out into the street.

"Hey, Ray." She greeted.

"How have things been?" He asked.

"Well, LA can be very difficult, it was only now that I could get some time off to visit Peter. It's not the best way to hold a relationship to be honest." Dana replied frankly. Ray nodded in understanding, he then peered down at Oscar.

"Heya Oscar ...you remember your Uncle Ray, don'cha? Did mean old Mom make you wake up early?" Ray asked in a joking tone. Oscar made a face. "Well, he may not be Peter's biological son, but if I didn't know any better, I'd say I'd seen that face around 9:00AM every morning." Ray replied, Dana grinned. Then the grin vanished to a more concerned look.

"Is he down here?" She asked. As if on cue, Peter's head shot up from over the edge of the filing cabinets behind Janine's desk. They entered the Firehouse and closed the door behind her.

"There you go." Ray replied, he then walked over to the staircase and began to climb it as Dana walked over to Peter's office area, Peter stooped down and pulled open the swing gate to allow Dana entry and child entry.

"Hey." He greeted.

"Hey." She smiled back. She walked over to a chair and sat down, keeping a hold on Oscar, a moment later Peter sat down. "Peter, I know we couldn't talk about everything over the phone...but now we have more time to talk...is there a chance we might be interrupted?" Dana asked.

"Not really." Peter sighed. "Jobs have pretty much shrunk to nothing, Winston and Egon went over to the hospital about half an hour ago...unless Ray needs me, we should have a hour spare." Peter replied.

"Good." Dana commented. "Where do you want to begin?" She asked. Peter leaned back in the chair, his hands behind his back, he then leaned forward, steeping his fingers, finally he settled for resting his head on his arms on the desk.

"I don't know...listen to me...it sounds like I'm talking to a psychiatrist." He muttered.

"Even those who listen need to be heard every once and a while." Dana smiled.

"Well...I guess...I just feel responsible for what happened to Janine..." Peter trailed off.

"Why's that?" Dana asked. She subconsciously rocked Oscar's buggy.

"Well...if I hadn't sent her out to groceries that day...she wouldn't've have been hit by that cab." Peter replied.

"Is that it?" Dana asked.

"Yeah." He replied.

"Oh, come on Peter, if you'd been driving the car and hit her by accident, then I'd understand. But that's not fair for you to blame yourself, you never knew it was going to happen, it just happened." Dana chided.

"I thought you stood up for me." Peter regarded with a raised eyebrow.

"Peter, stop moping around, I'm surprised at you, of all people you're the best at determining how to approach something like this, you're a qualified doctor in this field." Dana continued.

"Darn you, woman." Peter muttered. She smiled.

"Now, should we continue?" She asked.

"Yeah...Ugh..." He muttered again. "...there's something else, about Egon...last night I found him fast asleep in his lab." Dana gave him a puzzled look. "Well, he's been sleeping there more then usual...and the few times he's actually slept in his bed...I could swear I could hear him crying, plus most times recently that I went into the lab before Janine resurfaced, he's put his glasses back on quickly like he was trying to hide something." Peter explained.

"Usually, I wouldn't find that surprising under the circumstances...but with Egon...it's worrying... And with the added possibility of Janine's memory loss..." Dana trailed off.

"Don't remind me...I know too well how long it took to get the egghead to realist Janine had the hots for him." Peter replied flippantly. "But Egon's crying...Egon never cries, at least, we've never seen, except maybe close when we nearly lost Janine...but he always bottles it away." Peter finished.

"Maybe that's the problem, maybe he's bottled his emotions for so long, it could be finally getting to him." Dana suggested.

"It could be..." Peter agreed. Dammit, Egon. "What do you suggest I do?" He asked.

"Don't look at me, you're the psychologist, I'm just a woman who was possessed by a minion of Gozer, and nearly had her baby son possessed by a ghost from a painting." Dana replied, standing up. "I need to go now, but I'll try to get back soon, if not, let me know when Janine's out of the hospital." Dana asked. Peter walked over and opened the swing gate, when she was through, he walked over to the garage doors and opened the smaller customer door, Oscar moved about, as much as the lease would allow.

"I will." He finally replied. "Bye, Dana." He said, mock saluting her.

"Bye Peter." She replied, Peter watched as Dana walked Oscar along the street, he then released a breath and slouched against the doorframe, after a few minutes he looked about, turned, and walked back into the building, closing the door behind him.

Night soon fell on the Firehouse, and by the time Winston and Egon returned, Ray had vanished off to bed, leaving Peter and Slimer to devour popcorn in front of a very old, and exceedingly cheesy movie.

"That's fake..." Peter muttered as he stuffed a small amount of popcorn into his mouth. "Aww, c'mon, we've battled worse in our jammies..." He shouted.

"Evening, Peter." Egon greeted. Peter looked up to see Winston and Egon climbing the staircase in near darkness.

"Hey, what you watchin?" Winston asked as he watched a scene from over Peter's Shoulder.

"One of Ray's Dr. Crowely movies...I guessed I might as well watch one of them sometime." He shrugged.

"Personal opinion?" Winston asked.

"I've seen worse things in my sleep!" Peter replied, scowling.

"That bad huh?" Winston grinned. Peter focused his attention onto Egon who stood watching them.

"How is she?" Peter asked.

"She is...doing well, the doctors informed us she may be ready to leave within the week...but she'll still need to get a lot of rest before she can really start moving around here." Egon replied, he walked over to the spiral staircase, being watched by Winston and Peter.

"Has he been like that during most of the visit?" Peter asked, the movie forgotten, behind them, Slimer devoured the last of the popcorn.

"Pretty much, he sat near Janine's bed, but remained silent for most of the time...I don't like it...I mean, sure, Egon's not exactly the quickest guy to notice Janine's interest in him. But he's been even less human then usual. I think he might be withdrawing." Winston replied grimly.

"I don't like it, I'm going up there." Peter replied, determined, he stood up and started to move over to the staircase.

"Peter...maybe we should give him some more time?" Winston suggested.

"No way Winston, he's been shutting himself away in that lab every three days...I'm a trained professional, if Egon needs to talk to someone, then he can talk to me." Peter replied, he then climbed up the spiral staircase.

Egon stared into space when the knock came from the door, he looked up to see Peter stick his head through the gap.

"Spengs." Peter greeted, a grin on his face. Egon gritted his teeth, he didn't want to have a discussion with Peter at that moment. However, he put on his best neutral face, which wasn't hard.

"What can I do for you, Peter?" He asked.

"Spengs, we need to talk, and you know what it's about." Peter replied.

"Honestly Peter, I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about." Egon replied, he began to turn to a workbench but Peter grabbed his elbow and pulled him back.

"Don't you do that to me, Egon. I've known you long enough to know when you're bottling it up, this isn't good for you, I've studied cases where a guy has gone insane by doing it." Peter replied.

"Peter, how I deal with my feelings isn't your concern." Egon replied, a slightly venomous tone in his voice that startled Peter.

"Egon, it is my business when one of my friends goes into a depression, and it is all of our business if it could become a risk on the job." Peter replied.

"I guess it won't amount to much with our jobs dwindled to nothing." Egon spat, he caught himself, but the look of near horror on Peter's face spoke what he thought in spades. "I'm sorry Peter...I just...maybe it is time to close up the premises." Egon replied quietly.

"I seriously hope you're kidding, you know more then anyone just how important we are to making sure the people out there are safe!" Peter exploded. "Do you know what would happen to us if we just closed down? We have no other place to go! Nobody in this state will hire Ray after Yeager got onto the phone, I'm not going to be able to get a job as a psychiatrist with so many counselors and things out there, and I don't think Winston's going to want to go back to construction." Peter replied, his mind reeling.

"I know Peter...but I'm tired...the job has become too dangerous for us...what happened with Janine is a prime example." Egon replied, Peter could see the physicist was visibly tired, and in a uncharacteristic depression.

"Bullshit!" Peter swore. "Don't give me that crap, I know what you're going through, I can't blame you. You loved her more then anything, but you can't let what happened blind you like this! What'll Janine say? Where will she go? Are you really willing to let her go after everything we've...and you've been through?!."

"The thought has crossed my mind many times during the past few days...I have not made my final decision as of yet...but when I do, if it is too dangerous to continue running the company, I will enforce the closure." Egon replied warily.

"This isn't over." Peter pointed straight into Egon's face. "I'm not going to let you do such a reckless thing in your condition." Peter swore, he then stormed out of the lab.

Peter quickly descended the spiral staircase, filled with fury, he stormed passed a surprised looking Winston and Slimer as he went down the staircase. Winston ran over to the railing overlooking the garage, Slimer floated over a few moments later.

"Yo, Pete! Where are you going at this hour?" Winston shouted.

"FOR A WALK!" Peter bellowed back, he opened the door, stepped out into the falling rain and slammed it behind him.

"I don't know what happened up there Slimer, but it can't be anything good." Winston commented, Slimer nodded, a expression of worry on the ghost's face.

"Okay, Okay...easy now..." Ray replied.

"Knock it off Ray, I'm in a wheelchair, not a Ming vase." Janine chided as she was pushed through the garage door.

"He's just worried, kid can't help it." Winston grinned.

"Good morning Miss Janine, how good of you to turn up nearly on time." Peter grinned. Janine scowled.

"You're lucky I'm in a wheelchair buster, otherwise I'd kick your butt into next week." Janine retorted, Peter slightly winced at her mentioning the wheelchair, Janine seemed to notice her slip, and looked away. Winston patted Peter on the back reassuringly.

"Right, first thing's first, we have a surprise, Janine." Ray replied as he pushed her wheelchair. "Because we didn't want you to feel left out, Egon and I got talking, and we decided to put this in for you while you were still using the wheelchair." Ray continued, he wheeled her over to the end of the equipment lockers, something was covered in a tarp.

"If you could do the honours, Winston." Peter winked. Winston coughed, making it look like he was going to give a speech, but instead he simply pulled the tarp off, exposing a metal-grey framework which extended to the floor above, and then vanished into the third floor.

"A wheelchair access elevator." Ray presented.

"Oh...guys." Janine smiled. "I don't know what to say." She replied.

"Just get better Janine, when you're better you won't need to use it anymore." Winston replied.

"Yeah...once you're back walking we can get rid of the pile of bills on the desk." Janine scowled and jabbed her elbow into Peter's gut, he doubled over and toppled to the floor moaning. Having just witnessed it, Winston and Ray burst into laughter, above, Egon watched, however he moved away before Janine could see him watching.

"For now, you'll be staying here...we brought up a few things, but if you need anything else, Janine, just tell us." Winston replied as Ray pushed Janine's wheelchair into the rec room, Peter, still hurting from the jab hobbled over to the armchair behind the blue sofa and collapsed into it with a wheeze.

"Are you sure you didn't do any permanent damage?" Ray whispered.

"Probably only to his ego." Janine smirked. Ray then pushed her into the newly-re-designated rec room, it was basically the same, however a few pillows and bedsheets lay on the floorboards, ready to be used, a small digital alarm clock sat on the coffee table, plugged into a outlet, stood next to the clock was a table lamp, and a small pile of trashy romance novels which had been gathered from the drawers of Janine's desk, it was no means as comfortable as her apartment, and it didn't have half the things she'd have at home, but it would do until she got better. As Ray moved a few more things about, there was a loud clatter from the kitchen and Egon emerged with a tray of sandwiches and coffee, the move was so unlike him that everyone had to take a double-take, then Ray timidly picked up one of the sandwiches and studied it.

"Is this another experiment, Egon?" He asked, trying not to bring back the memory of Egon's last pursuit into sandwich making.

"It is most certainly not." Egon assured. Janine picked up a sandwich, checked it's contents, cucumber and tomato, and gave it a halfhearted bite. Winston leaned forward and grabbed a cup of coffee, he then sat down slightly behind Janine, on the sofa. "However we will all need to perform tasks until Janine is back to her standard of health." Egon replied, Janine blushed and Ray could've sworn he saw Egon swallow nervously, he felt bad that for Janine, this was almost a regular day at the office, but for them it was a terrible thing to participate in.

Nearly a week had passed since Janine had been released and things had been slowly becoming better, while she still slept at the Firehouse the guys had made the odd trip to her apartment to bring a few possessions and to ensure her fridge didn't become Egon's next source of mould. As time passed, Janine had taken to performing routine, but not tiring tasks around the Firehouse, she had comitted herself to writing up reports on the week's calls, not that many had come in, on the Friday of that week only three calls had been called into the Firehouse, one of which was a prank call and another was a false alarm...cats stuck up in chimneys seemed to becoming a regular past time for the Ghostbusters. As Janine wheeled herself over to the filing cabinets, Egon and Ray watched from the basement staircase.

"I've been doing some thinking Ray...and I've come to a conclusion that I must act quickly." Egon spoke.

"What do you mean, Egon?" Ray asked, obviously confused.

"For Janine's sake, I cannot allow her to view the case concerning Makeoverus Lotsabucks, the risk would be too much..." Egon replied.

"I don't know, Egon." Ray replied reluctantly. "Is it wise to keep it from her? If we keep it a secret and then she finds out, it's going to make things a whole lot worse...will you please at least give it more thought anyway? We've all been worried about how you've been acting the past few weeks." Ray replied, worry in his voice.

"I am fine, however Raymond, if you insist I give my conclusion more thought, then I shall do so, but if I come to the same conclusion, then I shall enact it." Egon replied, Ray didn't say anything, but now he was becoming deeply worried about the physicist he called a friend.

"Guys, I hate going behind Egon's back on this one...but I think he's really been affected by what happened." Ray whispered across the dining table.

"As much as I hate it, I have to agree." Peter replied.

"What sort of things should we be watching for?" Winston asked.

"Well...erm..." Ray looked sheepish. "...he insisted in keeping the Lotsabucks case away from Janine's eyes." Ray replied.

"Dammit." Peter cursed. "What's happened to him? He's gone all nutso and un-Egon-like since the accident." Peter replied.

"His girl was involved in an accident, Peter." Winston chided, narrowing his dark gaze.

"That's no excuse for his behaviour, it's not as simple as locking up some of the case files, he..." Peter caught himself.

"What, what did he say?" Winston asked sternly. Ray looked Peter square in the face, and Peter cursed his friend for having that puppydog look to manipulate him.

"I'm not sure if it was simply his little-seen temper, but he said he was seriously considering closing the company." Peter replied, Ray went pale and a new kind of understanding crossed Winston's face.

"Maybe it's for the best." Winston replied tiredly.

"How can you say that? This job means eveything to us, we provide a service, Winston, we've known each other for a good, long time, how can you justify his actions?" Peter asked, not believing what he'd heard.

"Peter, have you seriously taken a look recently? Our business is dying, has been dying for nearly a month...apart from anything else, most people don't believe in ghosts anymore, you know what that clown McShane is saying, that we're all con artists, he's from Peck's ilk." Winston replied.

"That's what happens when you vote an Irish Republican into office." Peter muttered darkly. "I'm not going to let us go down like this, we were shut down once already, and what'll happen when the ghosts come back and we're not around? What'll be done, hire a new team and just leave us to grow old?! I'm not up for that." Peter replied.

"I understand your feelings, Peter." Winston replied.

"Ray? Where do you stand?" Peter asked, eyeing his second oldest friend.

"Oh, Pete, don't make me choose against you and Egon." Ray fidgeted with his hands. "I love the job...but I can also understand Egon's reasons." Ray replied reluctantly. "Maybe like Winston said, it's for the best, maybe we should move on from our lives, put our experiences to good use." Ray replied. Any further conversation was interrupted by the phone downstairs ringing.

"I've got it!" Janine shouted up to them. Silence went by, and then Janine shouted again. "Peter, it's for you!". Peter stood up and walked over to the staircase, he descended it quickly and walked over to Janine's desk. She held a hand over the receiver. "It's Louis, he says it's important, about business." Janine replied quietly. Peter took the phone from her, sat on the edge of the desk and listened to Louis on the other end of the line. Nearly ten minutes passed before he hung up, he then pushed a confused Janine over to the wheelchair elevator and sent her up to the floor above. He then slowly but surely climbed the staircase and joined the rest of the group. Janine rolled over to await whatever Peter had to say.

"Peter?" Winston asked.

"What's wrong?" Ray asked.

"That was Louis...he told me the liquidation order has been issued...Egon's pulled the plug on GBI."

The six employees of Ghostbusters Inc stood inside the garage, also present was Dana Barrett, she had insisted she'd be present. Louis stood beside Janine's desk, she now used a crutch to help her walk, however at home she sometimes still used the wheelchair. Off on his own, Egon stood thinking to himself, he looked terrible, a stubble was beginning to form on his chin, and a stray piece of tape held one of the arms onto his glasses, he looked like a wreck. Louis fidgeted with his bow tie for a moment, swallowed, and then spoke a slightly cracking voice.

"It is in accordance with the GBI Charter that under the circumstances of the request of a founding member, a liquidation order can be presented to the other founding staff, and later a press release to any customers, public facilities and stock holders. It is by the request of founding member, Dr. Egon Spengler that a liquidation form be presented as allocated by his purchased stock and position within the company. The reason to support such actions have been presented by the fall in commercial business and earnings, additional information presented include the increased risk to company staff members." Louis continued. As he did so, Peter scowled at the piece of paper on the desk. "I require signatures from at least two stock holding co-founders of the company." Louis added, his eyes held regret but his voice was unusually professional. Egon signed the piece of paper with the Ghostbusters International logo on the letterhead. He then looked at Peter with sad eyes. Peter glared at him, walked over to the paper and reluctantly signed it. "Following standard procedures, the document officially stating the shutting down, and liquidation of Ghostbusters International is now in affect. The company has exactly thirty days in which to complete the last of it's jobs, perform a final financial report, repay it's investors and additional stockholders...if any and to officially close down, including the storing of equipment, the dispersal of any assets the other founders wish, and the final redundancy payment slips." Louis informed them. Peter looked around at the group, he then turned, walked over to the doors to the garage and flipped a switch next to the large frame that held the wooden Firehouse doors. Outside, the neon sign flickered off, almost signifying the close down of Ghostbusters International.

"It doesn't seem real...does it?" Winston asked, as he slowly packed away some of his clothing into his old army chest.

"It doesn't, I just wish we could have gone out better you know, in a blaze of glory." Ray replied sadly. He unclipped the TV from his bed and laid it on the bedcover.

"I wonder how Pete's taking it, he looked pretty bad down there after the paper was signed." Winston added.

"Yeah...if anyone was the most enthusiastic about the company, it was Peter, it was his idea...it must be killing him to see Ghostbusters International close down." Ray added, he picked up his Stay-Puft doll affectionately, and then placed it into a suitcase on his bed. He then looked around the room. "It's gonna be hard to give this place up." He said.

"You knew this place was perfect from the beginning, didn't you?" Winston said, watching Ray's reminiscing.

"Yeah...it was the firepole that sold it..." Ray said, studying the brass pole near the closet. "This building's been through a lot, at least three Containment breaches, a portal to the Boogieman's realm opening up in the closet. A giant ghost made from imps smashing through the downstairs wall, the place being transmogrified into Samhain's fortress, and an uncountable number of small fires and explosions, especially in the lab." Ray said fondly, a weak smile on his face.

"Yeah, this old Firehouse was built when they really did build them well, it survived almost 10 years as the home of a group of paranormal eliminators. Solid as the Rock of Gibraltar." Winston said fondly, remembering the old description. He then looked across the room at Peter's four poster bed, it's green New York Yankees cap still hung on one of the posts. "Where's Peter? I thought he'd be clearing out as well." Winston asked.

"Don't know, I haven't seen him since we came up here." Ray said glumly, starting to clear away the chess set by the arched window. There was a light layer of dust on the black and white pieces.

"Wait." Winston said, he moved forward and performed the last move to gain himself a win. "Checkmate." He added. "I'm gonna miss this place, plenty of good memories." Winston mused, he then turned back to his packing.

"I will as well." Ray said fondly, he then taped up a cardboard box, ready for moving.

Janine typed away at the computer, transferring the computer case files onto disks and printing them out for a folder, she'd completed the case files from 1989 and had only gotten through a few files in 1990 when she'd come across a password. She frowned as she saw the password option, the word was already in the field, ************* appeared below the file title, but she required the confirmation password. She pondered for a few moments, then tried several combinations, however she was only rewarded with a small klaxon and a failed attempt message. She was about to chuck the whole thing in, when on a whim, she tried something. She typed in the following word.

"JANINEMELNITZ." She waited, and then looked in surprise as the file opened up in front of her eyes:

Janine simply stared at the computer file. She couldn't believe it...

Why was this kept from me? She thought as she re-read the file. She'd realized Egon had been deeply unsettled by the accident, but had she misinterpreted him this much? She didn't know what to say or think. Was Egon alone in this, or were the rest of the guys involved as well? Peter quickly descended the staircase and looked up at her briefly in mid step, the look on her face froze him to the spot.

"Oh Shit." He said quietly.

Egon stood over by the staircase to the basement, he leaned on the rail, he didn't want to face Janine and look her in the eye, from what he'd heard from Peter, he was sure she'd be giving him something of a look of betrayal. He wondered what else she may have rediscovered...he'd hate to think what may have happened if she'd forgotten about what had occurred with Louis, and then found out. But if that was the case, she wouldn't find out from Peter, Ray or Winston, only Egon knew of what had happened.

"Egon...why did you keep this from me?" Janine pleaded, Egon finally looked up, he had a expression of extreme embarrassment and mixed sorrow for what he'd done.

"I...I didn't want to hurt you." He replied sheepishly.

"But I had a right to know. We'd finally gotten together...I had a right to be told everything that had happened during the bits of memory I lost. ...Is this why Peter's been acting the way he has?" Janine asked. "Is this why he's been so resentful along with the closing of the company?"

"I am willing to conclude that it may have played a part in how he was acting recently." Egon replied.

"I don't believe it...Egon, I expected more from you...I thought we didn't have any secrets..." Janine was starting to break down. "How could you do that to me? To Peter? To Ray and Winston, they're our friends."

"I didn't feel it would be in your best interests to tell you at that stage..." Egon swallowed. "I asked them not to mention it until it was necessary."

"And that's meant to make me feel better? Egon, I'm insulted by that...I'm disappointed in you...I thought we had something going...I think I'm going to need some time to think this over..." Janine replied, shrugging on her coat and handbag while also managing with her crutch. "See you around Spengler, I guess you never truly know a person..." Janine replied, she then walked over to the door, opened it and stepped out, closing it behind her. As the door clicked closed, Egon's head lolled forward. He'd left the only woman he's really care about after his mother walk out of his life, probably permanently.

"Peter was right..." Egon muttered, he then stood up and walked over to the staircase, he felt awful, and he supposed that a sleep could help to start making him recover the past few days. However the weight that he'd caused a woman he deeply cared about to leave and that he'd created heavy friction between his friends would haunt his dreams for many nights to come.

"Fu-doom!" The explosion rocked the Firehouse, dust drifted around the lab as some of the equipment toppled to the floor. Egon, bleary eyed pulled himself from the ruins of the experiment.

"Drat." he muttered, his vision was blurred. Though, this was due to his glasses having been knocked off in the blast. He felt around the floor for the familiar red frames, he snagged on one of the elbows and placed them on his nose. They only improved his vision slightly, he then took them off and worked his hands across all the vulnerable areas. Just as he though, both lenses were cracked, and one of the arms was snapped. He slowly pulled himself up, and maneuvered his way to a desk in the far corner of the lab. In the drawer he kept a few spare sets of glasses in case such an incident happened. He felt for the drawer, grabbed the metal handle and pulled it open, he then felt around in the drawer and was rewarded with a pair of intact, red-rimmed glasses. Ah, much better. He thought. He then studied the drawer and frowned, he was now wearing the last pair of glasses that had been in the drawer. True, he had become somewhat of a recluse outside of his employment at New York City College in recent years, his experiments taking up greater time now that he had more free time to work. And unfortunately, while he had groceries delivered when he was too busy to shop, he had meant to get a fresh supply of glasses for some time. However, due to the unexpected break in his experiment during the winter break period less then a week before lectures at the college began again, he was able to get that problem sorted out. He tidied himself up, washing away the soot and so on, and was ready to leave the building. "Slimer! I'm going out to buy some glasses, don't touch anything in the lab, or anything in the fridge." He shouted to the resident ghost, and left the building. Though, from experience. He had taken a Venkman-esque tactic, and hidden a bowl of his mother's chicken soup with mushrooms in a box labeled: Steamed Broccolli. The upside was, that even had Ray still been there, he didn't deliberately set the Ghostbusters' mascot on Egon's food when it was labeled with the one food Slimer couldn't eat. It had intrigued Egon to begin with, seeing how Slimer could eat almost anything, including things that weren't supposed to be eaten or as Peter had surmised "He eats everything that wasn't nailed down or on fire". Yet he couldn't eat steamed broccoli. Peter had also remarked that maybe it was Slimer's Kryptonite.

It only took ten minutes for Egon to make his way to his regular opticians, though the place had changed since his last visit. It seemed now it had been bought out by a bigger chain of opticians. He walked into the shop, and looked around. A blonde haired girl in her late teens looked up from a desk, noticed him and walked over to greet him.

"Good afternoon sir, how can I help you?" She asked helpfully, flashing a friendly smile at Egon.

"Erm, yes. I'd like to come and re-new my perscription, I appear to have run out of my supply of replacement glasses, and so would like to purchase some more." Egon said, handing over the most recent copy of his perscription. The girl, Julie, her badge informed him, studied the sheet of paper, then frowned and looked at Egon.

"Would the set of glasses you are wearing be the ones you were prescribed?" She asked.

"Indeed." Egon said.

"I'm sorry sir, but that brand hasn't been made since 1990, discontinued due to falling profits." Julie said, sympathy in her eyes. Egon blanched, he'd had that style of glasses...since forever, he'd had them right through University, and before then. Since High School. The fact that he'd no longer be able to wear them struck him hard...what would he do now? "However Sir, we can always find you a new set." Egon nodded. Julie walked off towards a wall with a large selection of glasses in all types and styles. Egon followed along and stared at all of them. "Please may I have the pair you are wearing, for size judgment?" Julie asked. Egon removed his trusty red frames, and handed them to her, she studied them, then studied his face. "Now, please do tell me if I say something too personal." She said. "Now...let me guess, did your glasses slide down a lot?" She asked.

"They did." Egon was slightly amused, and somewhat impressed with the young lady's guess.

"Thought so, your glasses were a little too big for your nose, the bridge was a couple of fractions of an inch too big, and so didn't grip well." She explained. "I'm also guessing that you're in some sort of profession...maybe academia?" She hesitated.

"Again correct." Egon admitted.

"I just had a feeling..." She smiled. Then Egon realized why he'd had an uncomfortable sense of deja vu when he'd met this woman, she was in some ways, like an old friend of his. "Let's see, wire frames should do the trick, and with nose braces, they shouldn't slide down your nose." She said. She then handed a pair of glasses to Egon and he slipped them on. They in deed did fit better, he studied his reflection in a small mirror quickly, not one for vanity. That was another former member's forte.

"I suppose these will do." Egon admitted.

"I'll find another set, and get you a case for both the spare set, and your originally prescribed set. They can still be used for reading at night, but I think they're too fragile for anything too hectic." She admitted, then walked away. Egon again stared at his reflection and frowned. He'd aged considerably in the past few years, his hair had become unkempt, and so he had tied it off in a ponytail instead of trying to work it back into the quiff he used to have. And now with the changing of his glasses, it showed that he had grown older. Some may describe it as distinguished, but for Egon, it was just another sign that his Ghostbusting days were over. Julie returned quickly with the glasses and they then moved over to the register to pay for his purchases, with that accomplished, he left the store and made his way back to the Firehouse. Just before he crossed the street to it, he studied the structure. The red brick and stone structure had weathered badly, even after they'd purchased it. The neon sign that hung above the large double doors was covered in grime, the windows were in dire need of a clean, and the metal fence separating the street and the alley was collapsing, no doubt it would have to be replaced if he wanted to retain the level of security he'd been used to during his sole inhabitance of the Firehouse...well, inhabiting it with Slimer anyway. Admittedly, Egon did appreciate the quiet, now that his experiments were no longer interrupted by the alarm going off...but he missed being able to consult with Ray, he missed his friends. He even had to admit, he missed going out on a job with his friends, busting ghosts...but the way they'd parted five years before, and dispersed across the country ensured they probably wouldn't all be meeting up again. He shook off the nostalgia and walked across the street. He paused in front of the large double doors, fished out his keys and inserted a slightly rusty brass key into the lock of one of the smaller portals. He pushed the door open and stepped into the garage, he turned, closed the door and locked it again. He then glanced around the garage. Most of the furniture had a thick layer of dust covering the surfaces, and Ecto-1 was in a sorry state. The roof rack had been cannibalized for experiments, and so the vehicle's light rigs and roof equipment were no longer intact, several wires trailed from the vehicle's roof as he slowly walked by. The room itself also showed age, several of the tiles on the walls had fallen away, and there were signs of damp near the ceiling. And in the air lingered a musty smell, almost like a tomb. The Firehouse, and the remains of Ghostbusters International were in a sorry state. But Egon's teaching job barely catered for his experiments and maintaining the water, gas, internet and electricity for the Containment Unit. Which per Ray's request, received a check-up every two days. Egon sighed, and made his way to the lab. He had to clean up the mess if he wanted to continue with the experiment.

Peter Venkman sighed in frustration, he then looked around his office. Displayed on the walls were film posters, movie memorabilia and even a picture of the four guys, Slimer and Janine. He then looked at the yuppie actor he'd been trying to peddle in Tinseltown, and had been an almost complete failure so far.

"Randy...you're not what the movie industry really wants...have you ever considered a life in psychology?" Peter asked, steepling his fingers.

"You know...every time I failed, I wondered if it were me. But I know now it's you Venkman, you've been holding me back!" The actor fumed.

"Randy, I've been reasonable...I'd move heaven and earth to get you a spot...but...you're just a really bad actor." Peter said, leaning back in his faux-leather chair.

"Up yours Venkman!" The actor jumped up, and stormed from the room. Peter regarded the empty seat for a few moments, then leaned forward and pressed a button on the intercom on his desk.

"Ms Jefferies, please cancel all my other meetings for today..." Peter said.

"Yes sir, Dr. Venkman." A female voice replied. Peter sighed again...it just wasn't right...she had no spirit, no spunk. She just wouldn't fight, she was...too helpful. As much as he hated to admit it, he missed the verbal sparing he'd had with Janine Melnitz, she was the first proper secretary he'd had...and goddamit, nobody else even compared to her, she'd been an unspoken friend. I wonder if she and Spengs ever got together... Peter drifted off, the thought of his oldest friend created renewed anger, that Spengs, or all people had instigated the unofficial closure of GBI. Sure, business was dying...and those court orders back in the early 80s hadn't helped anything. But it was like Ceaser and Brutus. But Peter couldn't blame him though...Egon had unusually affected by his emotions...and had a fairly decent reason for doing it too. His mind then drifted to the other two members of the team...where were they now?

"Good afternoon, welcome to Hugh's Commuter jets, this flight is from Montana to Washington DC, I'm your Captain, Winston Zeddemore, on the behalf of the cabin crew I wish you a pleasant flight." Winston said into the intercom. When he switched the device off, he released a sigh a few moments before they taxied off along the runway. Winston looked at a pair of photographs that he's been able to tape to the panel to his left, the first depicted a small girl with a smile which had a tooth missing, this was Charlene Zeddemore, aged four. Holding Charlene's shoulders and smiling towards the camera was Kaila Zeddemore, who had long black hair and deep, almost mysterious brown eyes. Winston's eyes then shifted to the second photo. It was a photo showing all of the staff members of GBI, including Louis and Janine. Winston regarded the photo sadly as to what had happened only a few months after it had been taken. He hadn't seen any of them since Ray's wedding the previous summer; but as far as he knew Ray was working at the University of Idaho, Peter was in LA, that Egon was still in New York and that Janine and Louis had gotten married a few years after the company broke up. It saddened Winston to know two of his friends who had finally known that they loved each other had ended so...well...tragically. However, Winston had to abandon his thoughts as his Co-Pilot nudged him.

"C'mon Winston, last flight for the day, don't go out on me." He smirked. Winston then prepped himself as they prepared for take off.

Ray stood beside the car and shivered, this was not what he'd expected to be doing, selling cars in Colorado. Not long before, he'd been teaching at Stanford and later the University of Idaho, but that had ended abruptly. As he waited for customers in the dilapidated car lot, his mind went back to what had happened. After GBI had closed down he'd been offered a job to teach at Stanford, it had been a dream come true. However, it eventually went bad, as did his subsequent gig in Idaho, and it just wasn't the same, especially without his colleagues to be there with him...but Egon was still in New York, teaching as a lecturer as he recalled, and Peter had eventually moved out to LA with Dana and Oscar, from the last message he received from Peter recently, he was doing okay as a publicity agent in Tinsel-town, he'd even mentioned a little bit about his working to get a new script by Dan Aykroyd made into a third movie by Columbia, now owned by Sony, however he'd also mentioned a certain actor who played him in a previous movie as a 'stuck up A-list Prick' who'd been blocking his attempts to revitalize the dormant franchise rights. But, that had been a while ago, and he hadn't received any fresh news.

---

"Alright class, today we're going to do a little experimentation with a cyclotron and some chemicals, now, usually, when put together, these chemicals would create a dangerous explosive, however they are currently separated." Ray replied, as he moved he knocked a pair of the bottles over, they began to roll down the workbench and the entire class watched in fear. "Erm...now would be a very good time to test our your duck and cover technique." Ray replied as he hit the ground, moments later the rest of the class did as a explosion flared up in the far corner of the room.

---

He dropped out of the reminiscing when a couple strode towards him. Business time, he throught tiredly.

Egon studied himself in the mirror, making sure he looked respectable in his blue sweater and shirt combo. His hair was tied back and his newly acquired wire-rim glasses sat on his nose, he looked all the part of a college professor. Placed on a table behind him was a leather briefcase which contained Egon's notes for his first lecture of the autumn term, he didn't know how large the class would be, but the job did allow him to pay the bills and to continue one of his more pleasurable pursuits, researching the paranormal, both in a bid to keep up to date with the scientific community and to help expand his recently published Spengler's Spirit Guide. Satisfied that he looked professional, he turned and picked up the briefcase, his eyes wandered briefly to the glass case which stood in the rec room, it had been a odd, wistful idea at the time, of placing a store mannequin with a Proton Pack and one of the old uniforms into the display case, it had been Egon's intent to possibly open the Firehouse for tours, but the idea had been abandoned soon after. Egon moved past the rec room to the staircase, left on the coffee table were a pair of PKE Meters that Egon had been dismantling and swapping components for, nearby Slimer dozed, not seeming to have heard Egon's movement. He quickly descended the staircase and over to the garage doors, he paused, grabbed his coat from the coat stand near the garage's office, and then continued out of the Firehouse, locking the door behind him. On his way out, he'd passed a small mount of letters, presumably bills and possibly the odd correspondence, he wasn't sure just how long he'd let the pile of envelops grow...but by his estimation it could be a few months...or up to a year's worth of unopened mail. However, now was not the time to worry about outdated post. The commute on the Subway would take him slightly less then half an hour to travel to the college, driving Ecto-1 would be unacceptable, the car's engine and other components were in a shocking state with the resident mechanic having no longer lived in the premises and even if the car's engine was as good in 1997 as it had been in 1991, the car's license had run out long ago.

Egon arrived slightly late for the lecture, Paranormal Phenomenon (101), however, it appeared that it wasn't much of a trouble, his largest class yet, four students sat before him talking quietly. He noted with slight amusement that the sole girl, who appeared the match the general description of the youth culture known as 'Goths' was sat next to a considerable pile of occult related books, including his own Spirit Guide.

"...like those ghost blasting things." An African-American said as Egon walked out onto the stage.

"Proton Guns." Egon replied. "Actually to be more accurate, ectoplasmic molecular displacement beams." Egon continued as he reached the podium.

"It's Egon Spengler!" The Goth girl said quickly.

"I'm all a twitter." A Latino sat in the same row replied sarcastically. Egon set his briefcase down, opened it and started to go through his notes, he then turned to face the small class, he crossed his arms as he leaned against the desk.

"Four people are taking this class?" Egon asked.

"The average student just isn't as enlightened enough to be interested in the paranormal." The Goth replied sympathetically.

"Great turnout!" Egon replied, surprising the group. "Double the class size I had last semester" Egon replied.

"Excuse me Professor, am I late?" A female voice shouted.

It was him, alright, it had been more than five years since they'd seen each other, but he was still pretty much the same to her, albeit slightly older and with his hair tied into a ponytail. She'd stopped by at the Firehouse earlier, she still had her old door key, and surprise surprise, he'd never gotten around to changing the locks. But her being there only made her feel more inclined to see him again, even if as a student.

"No, we were just getting..." He looked up, he couldn't believe it was her, he hadn't seen her in almost a decade, but to him, she'd hardly aged at all, however, it was obvious that her appearance had eventually shifted back from the reversal of the effects caused by Makeoverus Lotsabucks. But she was really there, walking down the ramp towards the small class. "Janine?" He asked, stupefied.

---

The Beginning

Based on Ghostbusters Created by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis

Extreme Ghostbusters Created by Fil Barlow