Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It begins with books.

One morning, Ray comes downstairs from his apartment above the shop and finds a perfectly balanced, 6 foot 2 inch tall, symmetrical stack of books in the dead center of Ray's Occult Books.

"You're right, no human being would stack books like this," he remembers Venkman saying sarcastically upon seeing such a book tower in 1984 at their first ever haunting, the NYC Public Library.

Ray immediately wants to organize all the books away. Put them back where they go. It bothers him fiercely to have things out of order. But he doesn't. He leaves them. Makes all two of his morning customers walk around them. The stack is right in the middle of everything. Where he has to look at them from the cash register counter. So he stares them down.

6'2" was exactly Egon's height.

One inch taller than Ray. The perfect height for kissing. For slow dancing.

All morning long, the books are there.

At lunchtime, he goes for matzo ball soup from Egon's favorite deli. The young guy behind the counter is the great grandson of the original soup maker, who used to be back there in the 80s and 90s when Egon came here every day. The recipe is unchanged, but the old men are gone now. Ray is depressing himself thinking about it. He brings the soup back to his shop and keeps the sign flipped to closed. Locks the door behind him. Looks around. Everything is as he left it.

At the counter, he pulls up his worn wooden stool and sits down for lunch as usual, but it's completely unusual this time, because he opens the soup container and smells a smell he has avoided for 29 years. Pure golden chicken essence fills the little shop and Ray smells 9,125 lunches with Egon.

Ray bursts into tears. Puts the lid back on and sobs into his hands. 8 feet away, the book tower trembles and falls down.
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The next morning, nothing.

But the morning after that, there are three book towers.

Ray makes a note of it. He's been furious at science for almost three decades but how quickly old habits come back to haunt you. Egon has made him a paranormal investigator once again. He writes down the titles of each book. Counts and measures all three stacks. Takes pictures.

If Spengler hadn't made off with all the PKE meters, Ray would be taking readings right now. It's been almost three years and he has yet to broach the topic of getting any of the Ghostbusters equipment back from Callie. It's half his, and he sure could use it right about now.

He tries to script the phone call in his mind: "Callie, this is Dr. Raymond Stantz, remember me from the time you were possessed and almost died? Well, I think your Dad's haunting me and I need half the stuff he stole back. Phoebe and Trevor can keep the rest. Oh, and he was my husband, and you're my stepdaughter, and when I found out about you, I broke his heart and maybe his mind. I am so sorry. Now about those PKE meters..."

He will never be ready for that. Other people would lie, he knows, come up with something appropriate and half true that would charm Callie, get his foot in the door to the lab without any personal drama, but just trying to script the right lie makes Ray feel a bit meltdowny.
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There's a pattern to the book stacks because of course there is.

They're from all over the store. They weren't simply floated over from one shelf and stacked alphabetically. That means they were deliberately chosen for a reason. It's up to Ray to figure out the reason.

They're not color coordinated. So, it's not that the entity was attracted to the color blue, or something. Therefore the message lies in something other than the books' appearance.

They're not all the same size. Each stack is a different height, contains a different number of books. It could be Morris code, with thick books representing dashes and thin books representing dots. Ray checks, and it doesn't compute.

Ray eats a yogurt and stares at the books.

He tries to read his most recent copy of The Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research, but instead stares at the books.

He helps a customer and stares at the books.

He brews tea and stares at the books.

He calls Venkman and stares at the books.

When she comes in for her afternoon shift, Ray packs online orders with his shop assistant Sabrina, and they both stare at the books.
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Late that night, he's almost asleep, when Ray sits up, clicks on the bedside lamp and futzes with his c-pap machine.

"Damn cigarettes" he thinks every time. Remembers when he was young and immortal and could breathe and sleep at the same time.

He gets the thing off his face and goes for his notebook. Looks at the list of titles. There it is. Circles the first letter of each book title, which come together to spell out a word. It's an Acrostic poem. Each stack makes a string of sentences. Sometimes the pattern is the simplest thing.

The first one says: "RAY I AM SO SORRY TOO I FORGIVE YOU REMEMBER I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU."

Ray feels wobbly and it has nothing to do with being 71. He's swooning like he hasn't swooned since 1984. Egon still loves him. That is certainly good news as he has never stopped loving Egon. Ray has to sit on his bedroom floor to ground himself while decoding the second one.

It says: "TRAPS WILL FAIL AND GOZER WILL BREAK FREE SOON PREPARE TO FIGHT"

The third one says: "PROTECT CALLIE PHOEBE TREVOR PETER WINSTON JANINE YOU"

"I will" Ray says aloud softly. Does yelling help with ghosts? A ghost that would be almost 80 if they were still alive. Maybe if you're louder, they can hear you better on the other side. So he yells, "I will, Egon!!"

All the lights in the apartment flicker.

Ray goes downstairs. Stacks some books himself. Puts the rest away. Goes back upstairs, eats a gummy and falls asleep watching a comfort show under his weighted blanket.

Ray's titles read: "I LOVE YOU I MISS YOU I BELIEVE YOU I WILL"
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Ray researches.
- How to strengthen a ghost's ability to appear on the human sensory spectrum.
- How to help a ghost resist the call of the afterlife and stay with you on the earthy plane.
- How to strengthen a poltergeist.
- How to help a ghost resist containment.
- How to allow a spirit to possess you with minimal damage to your psyche.

It's the opposite of everything he'd ever wanted to know about ghosts before.

Ray wonders, where else did Shandor build his vile temples to Gozer? There must be others. He continued to mine and ship selenium long after Dana's apartment was built. If Gozer and Their pets escape, that's where Gozer will go to lick Their wounds. Some energy nest Shandor made for Them. It would take Them some time to remanifest enough power to re-embody Itself. How much time?

He needs to go out to Summerville and read all of Egon's paperwork. Egon will have already written down, condensed and sorted so much of what Ray needs to know. For the 6,456th time since 1995, he wishes he could talk to Egon directly. Maybe he can make his connection with Egon's spirit strong enough to communicate? Too bad communication was never their strong suit.

He's going to have to come clean with Callie. He needs Winston and Peter and Janine to talk it out with. He's not great at talking to people he doesn't know well. They'll help him find the words.

In the meantime, he needs to understand how Egon's ghost form works. What his abilities and limits are.
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Naturally, Dr. Peter Venkman, ever the stray cat, comes pawing at the bookshop door the next day.

"Feels spooky in here, Witchy Poo," he tells Ray, coming in and ditching his spring jacket and rather dapper hat, "I had a feeling I should come see you."

"Egon's here." Ray says immediately, unable to waste a second on small talk, as always. "He used a symetrical book stack to send me a message."

"Ooooh, a love note" says Pete, guessing right immediately, as usual. Then singing out into the shop, "Hellooooo, Spengs!"

"Not here now, I don't think," says Ray. "He can only manifest for short bursts. Sometimes he's somewhere else."

"Oh yes, he is," Pete jumps up. Starts circling the shop. "Very faint but unmistakable. I can feel him, Ray."

"Coffee? Tea?" Raymond the gentleman offers.

"Is the tea a love potion this time?" Peter wants to know. Some of Ray's herbal concoctions have had a potent affect on Peter in the past. Ray's love potion teas are his shop's best seller for a reason. He sells a ton online these days.

"No Horny Goat Weed in this one," Ray swears. "It's a blend for clarity and communication."

"Too bad we didn't have it when Spengler was alive, coulda used a lot more clarity and communication," Peter crumples with grief for .2 seconds and then jumps up, determined to be furious again, yelling at the ceiling, "I am! Still pissed! At you! Egon!"

Clunk. The lights go out.

No, the power is out. The whole block is black. No sound of the heating and air conditioning unit or the fridge upstairs.

"Woah, that was a big surge in Egon's power," Ray thinks. Peter's ability to annoy Egon and amplify Ray's own psychic energy has acted as a catalyst once again, as it often did when they worked and lived together. Ray mentally notes that his and Peter's connection may be strengthening Egon. Or maybe it's Pete's psychic abilities forming some kind of channel. Or some other factor.

They need Winston and Janine to come over STAT. Adding them to the space might give Egon the strength to give them more information.

The power blinks back on after one minute. Ray's loose tea leaves have been spilled across the counter, and written by a ghostly finger in the tea reads: "P you are still a dick."
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Chapter Text

Ray gets out of the shower and written with a finger in the steam on his bathroom mirror, it says, "cute butt."

Stantz blushes. Draws a little heart in the steam under it.

Egon has been haunting Ray for two weeks. Not all the time. He seems to be elsewhere most of the time. Either another realm or maybe back at the house in Summerville. Never getting to be with Callie in life, it makes sense he'd want to be near her now. And of course, be with Phoebe and Trevor. When he can't feel him close by, Ray imagines Spengler is in Oklahoma watching over his family.

Ray comes out of the bathroom to find a record playing in the living room. Queen's song "Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy".

Ray laughs, "Are you flirting with me, Spengler?"

The lights blink. Twice for yes.

"Save your energy until our friends get here, okay?"

The record stops.

"I do love it though, Egon. I love you."

The record resumes. Freddy Mercury sings, "Ooo, lover boy, what'd you do tonight? Hey, boy..."
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That night Ray hosts a seance.

He's invited Janine and the other Ghostbusters to his apartment. He moves the furniture to the edges of his tiny living space and draws a giant chalk pentagram on the battered hardwood floor. He lights pure white candles, anoints himself with protection oils and dons a ceremonial robe (He feels Egon watching during that last part, naturally, the scamp). He sets up chairs, a Ouija board, paper and pen.

He also puts out snacks and blends up a giant batch of Crystal Head tequila margaritas. He likes the skull shaped bottle.

Venkman is the first to arrive, shockingly. He tends to be 30 minutes to 2 days late.

"Oh, it's you, Pete. I thought Zedd would be first," Ray says by way of greeting.

"I like to be early occasionally," Peter says, coming in. "If I was always the last one to arrive, that would be predictable, Ray baby. Can't have that. Nice dress by the way."

"It's a ceremonial robe, but thank you," Ray twirls and curtsies, unabashed. He loves to disarm Venkman by responding as though his silly nonsense is serious.

Winston and Janine arrive together. Peter makes a show of kissing them both on the cheeks smackily and taking their raincoats. Pouring out Ray's margaritas like he owns the place.

It might feel like overstepping to someone else, but Venkman's bon homie makes the transition into the party/meeting/seance easier for Ray. Ray is not a fan of greetings and small talk. But he is very glad they've all come. So Peter jollies everyone in, everyone settles, and then Ray launches into it-

"Egon is haunting me. He says the trap system won't hold Gozer. Gozer will escape and reincorporate. I don't know how long that will take. How much time we have. I need Egon's notes and research. I have to go to Summerville and tell Callie everything. And I don't know how."

"Oh my," says Janine eyes lighting up behind her glasses, looking around the space excitedly. "Is Egon's ghost here right now?"

She was the only one who missed out on Ghost Egon's fully corporal manifestation on the night they caught Gozer in Summerville 2021. She probably wants to tell Egon a thing or two about the paperwork rats' nest his estate left her to sort out. Or maybe she just wants to hug him again.

"I don't know. He was earlier. I can't see him or hear him, but he leaves me messages and sometimes I can feel his presence," Ray answers. "Also he can write, just a few words at a time."

"Oh wow," Winston leans in, handsome face smiling, intrigued.

"This is what I do know," Ray goes on. "He's strongest at sunrise and sunset. He's able to affect our physical world more when he's feeling a strong emotion. Also, his connection to people makes him stronger. He could manifest more powerfully when Peter was with me than he can when I'm alone. I think he can hear me. And he can move small, light things, like books. I know he can read because of the book stack messages I told you about on the phone."

"That's amazing," says Janine, settling into Ray's sofa with a plate of snacks. "And sorta romantic, don't you think?"

"After he moves something, or communicates, he disappears for a while, has to build up strength again. I'm hoping with all of us here, maybe he can speak to us through automatic writing or the Ouija board. And I know what he wants- us to stop Gozer, find a way to stop It forever. He wants me to protect his daughter and grandkids," Stantz finishes.

"Tall order there, Spengs," Venkman says, eyeballing the air around Ray.

"Well," says Winston, sighing with old regrets. "I feel like I failed Egon in life and I don't want to fail him in death. I'll do whatever it takes to make it up to him for not believing him and not helping him before it was too late. I'll do it just to sleep better at night, Ray. So, what's the plan?"

Ray explains, "I'm not sure yet. It'll start with two things: getting straight with Callie-"

"Not that straight," Peter quips, waving a guacamole dipped chip for emphasis.

"Shut it," Janine tells Pete. Pats Ray's knee to get him to continue.

"Telling Callie the truth about my relationship with her dad, getting access to all Egon's notes, and getting my half of the equipment back, is what I mean, Venkman," Ray is affectionately pissy at Peter. "And the other thing is, we need to make Egon a more powerful ghost so that he can help us. He's been doing nothing but working on this problem for 29 years. He might have figured out how to solve this. We'll never make it without Egon's brain."

"So we make our ghost buddy stronger, talk to Callie, find out what Spengler knew, get our stuff back, and stop Gozer a third time," Venkman sums it up and pours out a second round of margaritas.

"And I think I might have to let Egon possess my body," Ray says, not sure how the others will feel about possession.

"You two dirty dogs," Peter teases. "One of you is dead and you're still at it."

Janine giggles at that, starting to feel tipsy, and then shushes herself out of respect for the dead.

"So Egon can communicate with me telepathically when he's used up too much energy to affect the real world. If he gets energetically drained, he can rest inside of me while I do the physical work," Ray says, giving Peter the sideye.

"Remember that time I walked in on him resting inside of you at the Firehouse, Ray? 1989, was it?" Peter says, unable to stop himself. Wink wink nudge nudge.

"Can it, Dr. V," Janine says, glaring at him sassily over her glasses, trying not to encourage him. Then turning sweetly to Ray, "I think it's very sweet of you to do that for Egon, Raymond. What do you need me to do?"

"Paperwork," Ray says, cringing.

"It figures," their former secretary throws her hands up, lamenting. "Left out of the action again."

"You'll be there for the action, too, if you want, Janine, but I need someone else who speaks Spengler to help me go through Egon's lab, somebody else who can read his handwriting," Ray explains, and then he says more softly, "And I could also really use a friend with me when I talk to Callie about Egon and me. I'm scared."

"You got one," Janine tells him. "I'll get a cat sitter and go with you to Summerville."

"How about me?" Zeddemore asks. "Besides kicking Gozer's ass for a third time, what else can I do?"

"Ivo Shandor," Ray says.

"Of course, good ol' Ivo is involved," Winston shakes his head. He starts to chew a cigar but doesn't light it. He's given up smoking, too, long ago.

"Can you use your finance connections to track Shandor's money? What businesses and buildings, outside of the ones we know about, could he have temples to Gozer hidden inside of? That may tell us where Gozer will pop up again. How is his estate investing and spending it's money these days? Can you track Ivo's financial footprint?" Ray asks Winston.

"Sitting at my desk, digging up dirt on Shandor? No problem," Winston is happy to oblige. "But call me when the real fighting starts and I'll be there."

"Welp. Sounds like you three have got this covered," Venkman says, brushes his hands together, pretends like he's about to get up and leave.

"Venks, I need you to help me make Egon's ghost manifestation stronger. He needs to go from a class 2 to a class 7. Your psychic abilities could really help me out," Ray tries the puppy eyes on Pete. They still work.

"Okay, ya got me, I'm in," Peter says, sitting back down. "I'm old, I'm retired, half my friends are dead, Dana dumped me again again, so what else have I got to do?"

"It feels good to be needed again," Winston agrees, grinning around the cigar.

"No one ever stops needing me," Janine pipes up. "It's a real pain in my ass."

"Now, let's see if we can talk to him? Take a seat at one of the points of the star," Ray directs everyone into their proper spots for the seance to begin.
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Chapter Text

The story Ray gave Phoebe over the phone when she'd called the old Ghostbusters' number from jail is not the whole story, of course. Ray isn't a great liar but he can leave a few things out of the truth.

Egon didn't just leave in 1995, Ray kicked him out. He hadn't quite meant to.

Ray had been so worried. And Egon wouldn't talk to him about it. His husband had always been intense, obsessive. But for the past two years, he had been beyond hyperfixated. Frantic. Scary.

Egon was working in the lab on something at night. Wouldn't sleep. Didn't always come home to their apartment. Had a lot more nonverbal episodes. Was refusing to eat actual meals. Scribbled in his notebook constantly. He was always preoccupied. Wouldn't go with Ray on the few ghost calls that still came in. When Spengs did talk, it was about Shandor and Gozer and selenium again. It didn't seem to be wearing off, unlike other obsessive phases.

So one day when Egon was teaching at Columbia, tenure being the only reason the increasingly erratic professor hadn't been fired yet, Ray didn't go to his bookshop for the day. Instead, he'd invaded Egon's privacy.

Egon had a locked desk drawer. It had always been locked and Ray had never seen him open it. Ray didn't think anything of it. He knew Egon so well, he thought, he really didn't care what Egon had in there. Spores, most likely.

A stressed and desperate Ray picked the desk drawer lock, looking for evidence of dementia or drugs or a brain tumor or something.

Ray found something all right. Callie.

Ray had been thrown for a loop when the drawer was full of pictures of a little blonde girl, growing into a teenager. Her drawings, a couple book reports, report cards and other kid stuff. Along with some coldly worded notes from Carole, Egon's ex girlfriend who he'd dated way back in 1981, during Ray's private sector period.

Ray went to the restroom and threw up. Then he came back to the desk and read it all.

When Egon came home, Ray hadn't even tried to hide what he'd been up to all day. He was red eyed and exhausted. Furious, sad and overwhelmed. Sitting in the living room with all the evidence spread across the sofa and coffee table.

Egon stepped inside, dropped his briefcase, and started frantically scooping it all up in his arms, his overcoat flapping like a cape behind him. He looked demented. Like a stranger.

"You're not even gonna say anything?!" Ray had yelled. "Well, you've kept quiet all this time, Spengler, I guess you might as well keep shutting me out!"

He knew Egon couldn't always talk, especially when things felt too intense. Ray never held it against him. He was just over the edge himself. In meltdown, sometimes Ray said exaggerated things he didn't quite mean.

"What the hell, Egon? You're a father!"

"No, I'm not," Egon shook his head, looking down, clutching the pictures of Callie to his chest.

"That is your kid," Ray's eyes darkened with rage at the denial. "Look at her fucking smile, Egon!"

"I do have a child. A daughter named Callie. I'm not her father. I'm nothing to her. She hates me," Egon sounded robotic. He went to his desk and reverently laid the pictures there. Began to sort them back into order.

"Egon, how long have you known about her?" Ray couldn't get his mind around this. Egon fathered a child and didn't tell him about it. How could that be the reality they were now occupying?

You'd have to know Egon very well to see how upset he was, how ashamed and scared. Ray did. He could tell Egon was cracking inside, despite his flat, calm voice as he said, "Since 1992. When she was 10, her mother, Carole, contacted me to request my medical history. Callie had autoimmune issues and they needed information. It was the only reason she ever even told me. I told Carole she could have everything she wanted to know, if she would just send me pictures. Let me learn about our daughter. She did, under the condition that I not contact Callie directly."

Egon's voice wavered, but he couldn't look at Ray, "Carole never stopped hating me for loving you instead of her, Ray. My little girl thinks I abandoned her and never cared about her."

"Three years! I can't believe you kept this from me for three years, Egon you jerk!" Ray would not let his empathy outweigh his outrage at the betrayal. Not yet. Not until it was too late. He had worked up a horrible head of steam that was exploding all over them both.

"Ray, it didn't- I just- Gozer is-" Spengler tried to find the words.

"Don't you dare mention Gozer at a time like this!" Ray slammed his fist on the desk, furious at Egon for bringing up the G word now. How dare he get back on that shit and change the subject!

"I didn't know how to tell you and then I'd kept quiet about it too long and I couldn't find a way. I just..." Egon broke. Finally he looked at Ray, tears streaming down his handsome face, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to keep her a secret this long. I didn't know what to do! I didn't know how it would change things between us if you knew! I'm so sorry!"

Ray glared back at him. "Not acceptable."

"Ray, I-"

"I need you to get out. I'm going to go get a hotel room or something. You better not be here when I get back in the morning," Ray had said, needing space suddenly to maintain his righteous outrage. Egon had done him deeply wrong and Ray was going to stay mad for at least a couple days this time. Nevermind that he already wanted to hold him and comfort him. Egon looked shattered. Ray would cave immediately if he didn't run away right now.

So Ray stormed out in a huff. Drove all the way to Winston's place over the state line. Stayed for two days. Cried a lot. Kept Winston and Tiyah up half the night talking it out. The third day, he called home but it just rang and rang. In a panic, he'd jumped back in his car and sped back to New York.

He'd found Egon and all of their old ghost busting equipment gone.

Ray had only wanted Egon to leave their apartment for a couple days, to give Ray space to process this astounding new information. Ray wanted time to reregulate and get some perspective. He hadn't meant that he'd wanted Egon gone for good. Not forever. Not like this.

But Egon had taken him literally and left. No one heard from him for two years.

Ray was heartbroken. He never recovered. Never dated anyone else. If Egon, his soulmate, the only person who'd ever truly known him, had deceived him that way, how could he trust anyone again? Stantz closed up. Hardened. Went through life mostly alone.

Until now.

Now Ray is living with a ghost husband in his apartment, an Egon who doesn't talk, who just fills the place with a silent, intelligent presence. It isn't all that different from when he was alive, actually. A looming, sentient force that quietly keeps Ray company while he bustles around the shop. It's familiar. Comfortable. Ray feels happier than he has in many long, lonely years.

Now Dr. Raymond Stantz just has to make amends to Callie, earn the trust of Phoebe and Trevor, and become a Scientist and Ghostbuster once more. Then, he'll save the world.

No problem. He's done it lots of times already.

Chapter Text

"Did any of you bring something of Egon's?" Ray asks his assembled friends as they prepare to contact Egon's ghost.

"You're something of Egon's," Venkman grumbles, finishing his margarita.

"Anything he gave you or anything that reminds you of him?" Ray rolls his eyes at Peter.

Ray already has some offerings set up in the center of the pentagram. A fresh container of the matzo ball soup. An old chipped pair of Egon's black and silver wire rimmed glasses that he'd left behind that Ray had never been able to throw away. A picture of Egon that Ray had taken on an anniversary trip to the Kennedy Space Center. A picture of Callie and her kids that Ray downloaded off Bookface and printed out. Some Cheese-Its in a glass beaker. A chunk of lion's mane mushroom, one of Egon's favorite fungi. A battered name tag patch that reads: SPENGLER.

Janine drops a wrapped snack cake and a small packet of envelopes in the center of the floor, "I brought a Twinkie, of course, and here are a couple letters that he wrote me. I feel like he knew Gozer was going to get him. He sent me these all in his final year. I thought something with his handwriting might help? But...Ray, don't read them. They don't make total sense. He said some things about you that you might not want to know. He wasn't himself."

Winston pulls out a Twinkie, too, sets it next to Janine's with a chuckle. Then a photo of all four Ghostbusters looking young, handsome and victorious. Taken right after the Manhattan Cross-Rip, the 1984 Gozer invasion. And then an envelope.

He says, "I also have a weird letter from Spengler. This was waiting for me when I got back from his place in Oklahoma last time. He must have mailed it right before he died. You can read it if you want, Ray. It's a bunch of numbers. Not anything I can interpret. Might mean something to you?"

Venkman has Egon's ancient Columbia sweatshirt. He doesn't mention how he came to have it or why he's kept it all this time. He also brought a Twinkie, which he tosses into the circle with a crinkly plop. A copy of Egon's third PhD dissertation which is as thick as a phonebook. And a faded color picture of the two of them in a little silver frame.

"Look at the short shorts on you, Pete," Winston says, grinning at circa 1980 Venkman in the photo.

"Look at Spengler's 'fro," Peter deflects. "I had great legs, you can say it, Winston."

"Still do," Janine gives him a quick pat on the thigh for old times' sake.

They're too old and boney butted to sit on the floor these days, so they're sitting around the sacred circle in wooden dining chairs. There's a fifth chair left empty for Egon. Ray has encircled the room with white candles and quartz crystals, rosemary sprigs for remembrance. He's burning amber incense with herbs for focus and strength. They hold hands and close their eyes. Ray says a prayer asking the Universe for them to be protected from harm. Then Ray states aloud his intention to draw only Dr Egon Spengler to their circle and only if he wishes to come of his free will.

They don't wait long. The Ouija board oculus starts sliding to the letter J, then U-L-Y.

"July" says Raymond

The oculus spells out the current year.

"2024," Ray reads. "Is that how long the traps can hold Gozer?"

"Yes," oculus replies. Then, "P-H-O-E-B-E-K-N-O-W-S"

"Phoebe knows?" Ray says.

There's a cold wind through the room suddenly, the smell of ink and vanilla snack cakes.

"Has she been going through your papers already? She's figured something out?!," Ray guesses. "Something we need to know?"

The oculus spins on "yes".

The lights flicker twice.

R-A-Y

T-E-L-L

C-A-L-L-I-E

E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G

"I'll try, Egon," Ray will do his best.

Then Ray decides to try possession. He's already been possessed twice on the job. He can handle it. Maybe. He's also been psychically connected to Egon before, through the mood slime. And his friends are here to cast Egon out if things go sideways. Bell, book and candle are sitting under Venkman's chair just in case. Ray breathes. The others have been coached on what to do in the event of a psychospiritual emergency

"Egon, do you want to try to come into my body- don't even say it, Pete, I heard it as soon as I said it-ahem, do you want to possess me, Spengs? See if you can write or talk through me? See if it takes less energy to affect the living world inside a host?" Ray asks the empty chair next to him.

The lights flicker twice. The occulus spins on "yes" again.

So Ray says, "I invite the spirit of Dr. Egon Spengler and only Dr. Egon Spengler to possess my vessel. And when I say 'pumpernickel' that is the exit word that will cast him out of my body and back into the spirit realm."

"Pumpernickel is your safe word, huh? Kinky" says Venkman unhelpfully.

"Be serious," says Janine, slitting one eye open, catlike.

All at once, the candle flames all blaze up super brightly. Everyone breaks out into goosebumps as the temperature in the small apartment plummets 20 degrees. Janine lets out a little yip and opens her eyes all the way when some books fall off a shelf behind her. Winston goes into his hypervigalent mode, suddenly has the posture of an active Marine again. Venkman sprawls in his chair, pretending to be blasé as heck.

All the energy in the room surges towards Ray. The others feel a wind rush by. Then, the candle flames and temperature suddenly return to normal.

And Egon is sitting there.

Ray still looks like Ray, sorta, but he's not alone in there. He's sitting up straighter, stiffer. His eyes glitter with Egon's intelligent gaze. He lets go of Venkman and Janine's hands. Raises his right hand, looks at it, puts it down. Raises his left hand, flexes it, examines it, puts it back down. It takes two tries to stand Ray's body up, but he does it. He looks a little marionette like. Ray's body picks up Egon's crackled spectacles and puts them on. Sits back down.

"Better," says Ray in Egon's deep voice.

"You're dead and you still got astigmatism? That sucks," Venkman snarks.

"You're an old man and yet you still haven't grown up?" Egon responds, trademark smirk in place.

"Ouch, old pal," says Pete, grinning, rubbing his heart.

"Oh, Egon!" says Janine, tearing up. She's missed his cantankerous self.

"Egon, my old friend, good to see you," says Winston. "Ray, are you okay in there? Can you speak to us, too?"

Ray fronts, Egon recedes, in the blink of an eye, "Wow! This is amazing! I'm fine. It doesn't hurt at all...it feels kinda...funky? I don't know! I can hear everything Egon's thinking. Oh, man. I wonder if my head can explode? The fire extinguisher is all the way downstairs with the books! Oh, why didn't I think of that?"

And then he falls quiet a moment, then says to himself, "Okay, Spengs."

To the others, Ray explains, "He's getting tired. We're going to have to practice this to get the hang of it. Let me go back so he can talk to you while he has the juice left."

Egon fronts again, "That was extraordinary. I wish I could take notes."

Then Egon tells his friends what he needs them to do. At least, as much as he can put into words before Ray's body slumps over, exhausted and emptied of everyone but Ray.

Chapter Text

After the seance and possession, Egon can't manifest again for a couple days. It took too much focus. He's dissipated.

Waiting for him to re-form is torturous. Ray can not stand understimulation.

Since Janine told him not to and Ray has a thick streak of contrary, he reads the letters. Egon's letters to Janine and Winston from the year of his death.

Winston's letter is full of numbers, as he'd said it would be. Ray thinks that some of it is dates, some could be Columbia library call numbers, longitude/latitude coordinates, lock or safe combinations, bank accounts- any number of things. He'll come back to it. Perhaps some of it is a code or cypher. He'll marinate on it. And he'll ask Egon when he's back.

Janine's letters are difficult. They don't make sense. And the little snatches of clarity he can glean from the jumble, those glimpses make him feel really really sad. His name is mentioned often in the last three. Janine was right, they hurt to try to read.

Ray grieves that Egon's mind was clearly not under his full control for at least the year leading up to his death. Maybe longer. It seems, the once brilliant man had broken under the strain of doing so much, so very alone for so very long. No one loving him, taking care of him, believing him. Ray is wracked with guilt.

Raymond plays his harmonica. Drinks too much tea, not enough water. Paces. Researches. Plays blues albums at top volume. Eats only crunchy, salty foods, and only standing up. Reads. Paces some more.

That night he dreams of Egon. They're sitting side by side on a porch swing, looking out over sweet smelling wheat fields, and crisp, whispering corn fields. The sun is setting, putting on a real pink and orange sky show. Birds are singing somewhere near by. The swing creaks pleasantly. Egon and Ray swing while the sun sets. Egon's arm over Ray's shoulder, squeezing him. Ray cuddled into Egon's side. They stay swinging like that as long as they can. Until the sun is down and the stars come out.

Ray wakes up early, laying on his back, already crying, salty tears rolling into his ears. He lets them roll and lays there until he's empty.

The thing about when someone has been mad for decades is, when they finally stop, there's so much sadness waiting to be felt. A dam has burst inside of Ray and it isn't killing him like he'd feared it would. He is not drowning. He's floating. It's making him feel better.

"What did I even think the Blues was about, man?" he asks himself.

Feeling sad is so much better than feeling nothing. And under all those stale old layers of anger, what Ray feels the most now, stronger inside him than ever, is his Love for Egon. When he was ready to feel it again, it was right there, clean and bright and sharp. Egon always.
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The next day, Spengler's ghost comes back as a wind in the shop. Ruffling Ray's hair and the pages of his book. Blowing out Ray's candles.

Ray always has to burn candles, rules of the occult book business. The customers expect a bit of witchy ambience. Ray should also have a fat, fluffy, elderly calico cat around the place, it was practically a requirement, but sadly, he was allergic. Candles, incense, tea and crystals would have to do it. The ghost might actually be good for business, come to think of it.

At some point, like many widowed spouses throughout time, Ray just starts talking out loud to his dead partner in case he's close by and listening invisibly.

He is.
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Ray makes an altar for Egon to help him focus. He arranges all the things he and his friends gathered for the seance. Adds more photographs of the two of them. Places his now too small wedding band on a little tray. Ray debates putting crystals on the altar. Egon didn't believe in them but Ray does. Instead, of fancy rocks, he goes out and buys two everything bagels with cream cheese and leaves one on the tray next to his ring. Eats the other.

The day after that, Egon comes back strong enough to blink the lights twice and pinch Ray on the rump.
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Ray does everything he can think of to encourage and strengthen Egon's haunting abilities.

Ray vacuums sea salt off all his windowsills and thresholds. He takes down the dream catchers and carefully ships them back to their Indigenous makers, to be sold elsewhere. He takes the horseshoe down from over the door. Erases chalk marks and takes down the woven hexes. He takes off his amulets. Crosses out one or two of his tattoos with a sharpie. He removes all the symbols of protection designed to repel ghosts from his shop, his person and his apartment. He doesn't want anything draining Egon's power or blocking his access to him

That night in Ray's dreams, he cuddles with Egon on the farm house porch swing again. He wakes up to the scent of ink, ozone and dry white toast.
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Peter comes over to help. Or to eat chips with his mouth open. Or both. He's got his feet up on Ray's coffee table, munching away while making suggestions.

"We could try making him really angry? Or really sad?" Peter thinks aloud. "Get him to poltergeist out."

"Egon's already really angry and sad," Ray says. "For a long time, that was the fuel he was running on. That's probably how he was able to become a ghost at all in the first place."

"Make him really horny?" Pete suggests. "Got it! Ghost Viagra."

"Venkman, be helpful."

"He loves you. So love? Amplify that?"

"Now that's an idea."
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"Ugh, I'm now realizing," Ray says to Venkman later, groaning with the anticipation of certain impending failure, "this plan involves Egon being able to recognize, feel and harness the power of his emotions. Do you see the flaw there? Feeling his feelings, Pete? Not Egon's thing, man. Are you sure you don't have any physics based ideas? E=mc2? Particle physics? Ancient languages?"

"No, no," Venkman chuckles, "it's kind of perfect. Egon's like a Vulcan, see? In the rare instances he does feel a feeling, it's 200 times the power of ordinary human emotion. He loves, hates, desires at super strength, right? When Egon Spengler does feel something, it's powerful."

"I guess so," Ray agrees. Egon was known to Hulk out from time to time. And he certainly was passionate behind closed doors.

They're setting up a little ghost strength trial. The task is for Egon to try and push a coin along the glass countertop in the shop.

First, establish the baseline.

"Spengler, how far can you push this quarter without thinking of any particular emotion? Let's establish the control," Pete instructs the lightly charged air in the shop. After a long moment, the quarter on the countertop slides very slowly forward.

"4 inches," Ray measures. Then he says, "Not so bad. Egs, you can switch on a light or knock something small over with that amount of strength. It's still useful."

"Alright," Peter says. "Let's try feeling something mildly pleasant. Think of Twinkies, Egon and try again."

Peter and Ray both open a Twinkie and bite one. The smell of fake vanilla fills the shop. This time the coin slides a little bit further.

"There ya go, pal" says Venkman, cheek full of Twinkie.

"Okay!" says Ray, excited. "10 inches. That's over twice as far!"

"Egon, my man," says Venks, voice goofily seductive, "Let's get on the love vibration. Alexa, could you play some Diana Ross? How about Sweet Love Hangover, the sexiest song ever written? Now Egon, sweetie, my angel, can you try to think about Ray here and how much you love him? Awww, look how cute he is. Look at Ray's special little face and hit the coin."

The coin shoots 8 feet down the countertop and off the end.

"Awwww," says Venkman, cackling. "Way to go, Egon! What'd I tell you, Ray? Who loves ya, baby?"

"Gee," Ray says blushing. "I love you, too, Spengs."

"Now let's see what happens when I make him mad," Peter says, impish glint in his eye.

"Let's not," says Ray, starting to gather up the quarters. "He's probably tired."

"How about jealous?" Pete says, voice dropping and sultry. "Com'ere Ray Ray, let me give you some sugar."

"Ew, Venkman," Ray says, looking up and preparing (wisely) to bolt from Venkman trickery.

"Give it to me, sweet baby Ray," Venkman flutters his eyelashes at his friend who is Not Amused. Peter leans in like he intends to kiss him. Stage whispers romantic-ish-ly, "Remember New Year's Eve 1983? When I caught you under the mistletoe at Julie Johnson's house party? You slipped me the tongue!"

"No! Peter, yuck, get off!" Ray yells, sidestepping Peter's puckered lips. Then he assures Spengler's ghost, waving a hand, "I did no such thing, Egon."

Peter grabs Ray. Then as though it's been shot out of a gun, the final quarter shoots off the countertop, slings through the air, dings and ricochets around the shop, and smashes its way through the small window in Ray's back door. Then, a whole shelf of books jumps to the floor.

Peter lets Ray go instantly, starts laughing with mischief. Ray is relieved to be unhanded. Relieved it seems Venkman was only pretending to want to maul him as part of the experiment.

"I'm just kidding. It wasn't you at that party, it was Egon!" Venkman chortles, slaps his own leg.

Ray gasps, wondering if Peter and Egon really did kiss long ago, two years before he and Egon got together officially. The thought immediately behind that is to wonder if Egon liked it. He's sure Venkman did.

Then Egon's ghost pantses Venkman. Peter stands there with his slacks pooled around his ankles and his little old man knees and droopy boxers out. He stops laughing abruptly.

"I earned that," Pete admits. Picks his pants back up with a quiet dignity. Clears his throat.

"How the Me Too Movement didn't take you down, I'll never know," Ray frowns at Peter warningly. Peter makes "sorry" eyes at him.

"I had to see! Egon's strongest drive was always protecting you. Protecting his kid and grandkids. Right?" Venkman says, tucking his shirt in. "There had to be a quick way to trigger his protection impulse."

Ray smacks him on the arm.

"I'm sorry! I wasn't really gonna lay one on you! Honest. Take it easy, Stantz. It was for Science!" Venkman begs forgiveness.

"Never again without my consent," Ray tells him sternly. Then aloud to the room, "Spengs, it's okay! I remain unmolested by this deviant."

"Scouts honor," Peter promises. "I'd take you out to dinner first, at the very least."

Ray shakes off his ick with a "hububububuh" sound.

"And I will help clean up the books," Pete offers, remorseful.

"No, you will not," Ray primly forbids it. "You won't do it right."

"Your beloved system," Venkman says, sighing. "Well, I'll pay to replace the backdoor window."

"Damn right, you will," Ray sniffs. "And I will admit that yielded useful data. Protection as Egon's greatest source of strength. Just don't do that again."

"Of course not. We're just friends, see Egon? Be cool, man," Peter tells the crackling and swirling air around them.
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Over a few days, Ray and Egon test and measure Egon's strengths and weakness. What exact weights he can move and for how long? How long can he front while possessing Ray before he gets exhausted? How long can he stay alert as a passenger inside of Ray's mind without speaking or controlling the body? How long does he need to recharge after each manifestation? Does he have use of Ray's senses? Can he access Ray's thoughts and memories?

On Egon's part, he tries to download as much Gozer information as possible into Ray's brain. And tell him he loves him a thousand times a day.

In the evenings, when his shop is closed, the husbands experiment with possession. Mostly, they just watch movies from behind the same set of eyes. They eat dinner with one mouth. Egon likes to do the crossword puzzle. They listen to Podcast's podcast Mystical Tales of the Unknown Universe or put on old motown records and clean the kitchen. They mentally chat while Ray's body packages internet orders for crystals, books and tea. They go over Ray's notes. They read. Make plans to stop Gozer for good. Mostly, just hang out.

And if you must know, they also spend time in Ray's bed late at night, doing things to Ray's body that are none of our business. It had been quite a long time for both of them. We can't blame them for wanting to...experiment.

Each night, Ray dreams of Egon. It's the only time he sees him in a physical form. Sometimes, the dreams are about things that never got to happen, like the porch swing one or another repeating dream he has where Ray is riding shotgun in an old pickup truck while Egon drives, his arm out the window. Other dreams, it's things that they actually did every day, once upon a time. Waking up in their room at the Firehouse and having coffee. Sitting together, grading papers in their dingy little Columbia office. Working on something together in the old Firehouse lab. The dreams are mundane. None of the adventures or busts or scientific breakthroughs. Just their life together.

The two scientists take as much time as they dare to help Egon strengthen and focus his haunting abilities and allow Ray to get used to sharing his vessel with Egon. In the process, the husbands have forgiven each other many trespasses. They've both said their sorries a thousand and one times.

Now, hoping they have enough information to move forward, Janine and Ray head out to see the Spengler family in Oklahoma. Egon's ghost meets them there.

Chapter Text

"Callie, I loved your Dad," Ray tells Egon's adult daughter, sitting across from her at her kitchen table in Summerville, Oklahoma.

"Well, I'm glad someone did," Callie says and then she notices Ray's uncertain face. Exasperated, she explains, "I'm being sincere, Dr. Stantz. I am glad."

"Oh, good," says Ray, smiling. She's not a homophobe, first hurdle jumped.

"Can you not read my tone? Does everyone around here think I am being sarcastic when I'm not and completely miss it when I am?!" Callie asks the world in general.

"Tell me about it," says Janine. Sarcastically. She gets it.

"I am Autistic," Ray explains. "If that's what you're asking."

"Ha! Knew it. And, I mean that in a good way," Callie smirks and squeezes his hand. "Phoebe will be thrilled to have a kindred spirit around here. I mean, other than Dad's spirit's spirit. Whatever. Anyway. You were saying about him, Dr. Stantz?"

"Call me Ray, please," Ray continues, clearing his throat, "I fell in love with Egon the moment I saw him in 1970, but it took me 14 years to realize it. My Autism, you know? Alexithymia? Emotional blindness."

"Yep. I'm familiar with it," Callie nods. She's still gently holding his hand.

"We got married, not legally of course, because we couldn't, but we had a ceremony in 1990. On October 21st, the 20th anniversary of the first time we spoke," Ray continues.

"It was a lovely ceremony," Janine says with a sniff. She dabs her eye.

"How come I never knew you and Dad were together? It was never in the papers or anything? I googled Egon all the time after Google was invented. It was kind of a Thing I went through. For a while," Callie moves for a bottle of wine. Tea is not going to cut it for this conversation.

Ray explains, "It was the height of the AIDS crisis in New York. It was the era of 'don't ask, don't tell.' Being famous in the 1980s and 90s was like being put in a glass box. Our publicist, our management team, all said nobody wanted the Ghostbusters to be gay. Or bi. Two of us, anyway. Winston is straight. But, I mean, who knows what Venkman identifies as-"

"A slut," Janine offers mildly, smiling, not slutshaming, just factual. Ray laughs at her nonjudgmental directness and it helps break his tension. She accepts a glass of wine from Callie. "Thank you, dear."

"We had a good life together, Callie. A marriage and a business. Egon and I built Ghostbusters and published journal articles, invented all this equipment. We pioneered a whole field of science!" Ray glows a little to be talking about it again. "And it was amazing! Spengs was so smart he made me smarter. Better. Braver, too. We were really having fun there for a while. But things got weird. He changed," Ray gulps at his wine. It's not really his drink of choice but he could use one. "It was because..."

Ray chokes for a moment on the wine. Then spits it back into the glass. Egon has surged to the front and Egon hates imbibing alcohol. Always gave him a migraine.

"It was because I found out about you," Egon's voice comes out of Ray's body. He pulls his glasses out of Ray's shirt pocket and puts them on. "I became obsessed with Gozer again when I found out about you, Callie. I needed to protect you."

"Oh, that's weird," Callie startles at Ray's transformation and looks at Janine to confirm something weird is indeed happening right now. Janine nods. "Dad, um, are you inside Ray right now?"

"Yes, Raymond and I are working together again," Egon explains, as though this is a perfectly normal occurrence. "I found out about you when you were ten and Carole only told me you existed because she needed my medical records. I gave them to her in exchange for pictures and updates on you."

"Yeah, I found the pictures in your underground lab, Dad, they mean so much to me, knowing you cared about me," Callie chokes up. Egon pats her hand awkwardly. They smile at each other.

He goes on, "Your mom didn't believe in ghosts. She thought I was some kind of fraud. A grifter pulling publicity stunts, maybe even drugging people and causing mass hallucinations. She made me promise never to contact you. Callie, she believed she was protecting you from a dangerous scam artist by keeping me away."

"Carole the control freak strikes again," Callie laughs bitterly. "She was really something. Boy, am I glad she's not the parent haunting me right now. She would hate Phoebe's hair. And Gary. Oh my god, she would totally hate Gary."

Callie laughs for real. And pours another glass. Her first one went quick.

"Carole was...unhappy," Egon tells his daughter. Trying to be as kind about Carole, whom he came to despise, as he can, "She sensed I wasn't in love with her. She blamed it on distraction- on my work, on the Occult and parapsychology. But, she got fed up and left me, late winter of 1981, when Ray moved away for a while and I fell into a deep depression. I didn't know it was heartbreak, but I think Carole knew. I think she knew before I did, that Ray was a better match for me than she was. Carole was right to leave me. She was right that I was in love with Ray, it would just take me a couple more years to call it love."

"Well, she would be thrilled to know she was right about something. Being right was her favorite," Callie bitterly toasts to her Mom's memory.

"She was wrong to keep you a secret and she was wrong to keep me from you, Callie," Egon tells her and they exchange a father/daughter look. Callie has a lot of unprocessed grief that she wasted time hating him when Egon was still alive. Ray understands what that must feel like. Egon, too.

Janine says, "Egon, you never told me that story. It's so sad. I'm so sorry, honey."

"It was irrelevant," Egon was never one to waste time on things he can't affect change over. "I couldn't get Callie's childhood back. I couldn't learn to be a Dad. I wasn't allowed to contact her. I had Ray and Ghostbusters and my work. I went on."

Janine and Callie both make soft sounds of listening.

Egon continues. Ray feels his strength flagging. This is the most he's ever talked at once. It's probably only possible because they're in this house and all together. He says, "The data pointed to another Gozer return. My research revealed, Gozer the Gozarian is a cyclical energy parasite that is going to break through to this plane of existence again and again. They've been here many times before, each time defeated by a team of exceptional priests or warriors, and sometimes by four lucky bastards that did it on accident, but Gozer always comes back. Sometimes Gozer even won. I theorize a period of Gozer rule was responsible for the 400 years of Bubonic Plague-"

Janine interrupts, "Oh, I remember the plague hyperfixation phase. Is Gozer what that was about? Yuck! Egon, I was scared to keep anything in the firehouse fridge next to those petri dishes."

Egon tilts his head to her apologeticly, "I was rather single minded about it. I am sorry for that and many other things, Janine."

Janine is really crying now and slightly pissed about it. Blows her nose and says, "Whadda want, me to cry all day? Get on with your story, Egon."

He does get on with it, "After I left Ray, taking the equipment- equipment I designed, built, coengineered, and helped pay for, and therefore definitely did not just steal, Raymond, ahem- it took me years to find the Shandorian Mines and decades more to build my automated proton security containment system in Shandor's crypt, while setting up and maintaining the super trap at the farm. Alone."

That last word sounds a little pointed. Pointed right at Ray. Egon/Ray's face twitches with inner conflict. Callie raises her eyebrows and gulps her wine. This is capital W Weird.

"Whatever Ray is saying in there in response is probably loud," Janine says to Callie, remembering their firehouse fights from long ago.

The lights flicker. Energy surge. Egon is angry.

"Ray! You know the best choice I had was to make sure Callie, Trevor and Phoebe would have a life. It was the only thing I could give them," Egon argues back with someone they can't hear. "If you had just listened-"

"Pumpernickel!" Ray yells and he is Ray entirely again. Ray rips Egon's glasses off, flustered. Jabs them back into his pocket.

"That's probably the only way to win an argument with Egon," Janine tells Callie. She'd be eating popcorn if there was any. This is fascinating entertainment.

"Egon, you're right, okay?" Ray pants, shaking off the intense energy exchange.

"Egon's always right," Janine shrugs at Callie, "What're ya gonna do? It's very annoying."

Ray turns his focus back to Callie and jumps to the point, "He is right, as usual and I should have listened. I'm sorry I didn't. I wish I had reacted better when I found out about you, too, Callie. I blew it. But that's why I'm here now, because I am sorry and because I need help."

Ray's heterochromic eyes plead with her to understand, "To make a long story short, Egon didn't live long enough to analyze all the data, to fully solve the Gozer problem. Janine and I need to go through Egon's lab papers and find the missing pieces. I am sorry, Callie. I am worried we're all in danger and I need your family's help. Can Janine and I stay here for a while and do some research?"

"Yes, of course," Callie nods, calmly agreeing to get involved in this. She's actually kind of hard to surprise at this point in her life. She's a cool mom. She has to be.

Very chill, she says, "Have at the lab. I would help, but I can't make my way through any of the numbers. Dyscalculia, you know? But Phoebe's been out in the barn digging through Dad's lab all year. Making stuff out there with Podcast. Gadgets. Trevor knows a lot of the math stuff, too. And of course, Gary is a scientist, too. He can help."

Callie waves towards the window with her wineglass. Ray and Janine glance out the window at Gary who is riding a lawn mower across the back field. He's singing along with something in his headphones while he mows. He does not look like a brilliant scientific mind in that floppy sun hat.

Callie is about to ask exactly what kind of danger she and her children are in when she hears her youngest child behind them.

"There you guys are," Phoebe says, entering the kitchen from outside.

The screen door slams behind Podcast who shadows her, as usual. "Hi, Ray!"

"Kids, this is Ms. Janine Melnitz, Grandad Egon's friend and personal assistant," Callie makes reintroductions. "And this is Dr. Raymond Stantz, your Grandad's husband. And also, your Grandfather Egon is possessing him. So. Egon's in there, too. I think."

"Sometimes he's with me," clarifies Ray, looking at Phoebe and swallowing sudden throat prickles. He's always a bit flustered by how much this kid looks and acts like his spouse. "Egon just talked, so he'll be gone for a while."

"Husband. Possessed. Cool," says Podcast with a cheerful smile and then he flashes a thumbs up at Ray.

"I know, Mom," Phoebe says, impatient as only a 15 year old can be. She opens the screen door and gestures towards the barn with 'let's go' gesture. "Ms. Melnitz, Grandfather, Dr. Stantz. Let's get to work."

Chapter Text

Down in Egon's sublevel lab, Ray and Phoebe are at work.

"This doesn't add up," Phoebe is talking about Egon's Gozer data. She's pointing something out to Ray. "It does, but it shouldn't. Do you see how this changed in 1945, 1984, 1993 and 2021?"

"Oh! Yes, I see what you mean there-" Ray understands, he is running the numbers, too.

"-and of course there's-" Phoebe agrees and adds to it. Then crosses something on Ray's paper out. He makes a sound of curiosity. He reaches for a calculator and his pencil.

"-so that's why? What could be-" Ray is scribbling, madly inspired by Phoebe's interjection. He bounces on the balls of his feet, excited.

"That's got to mean-!" Phoebe is also excited that they are racing towards the same conclusion. She rocks, looking their work over, hands flitting. They trade papers. Start making notes on each other's work. Heads down. Hyperfixated.

"Ahem," says Gary. They do not look up.

"Ray? Phoebe? Egon, if you're in there? What's up, you guys? What have you figured out?!" Podcast can tell they've cracked something big. He's been watching Stantz and Phoebs freak out over little things nobody else gets since Ray arrived. But this looks important.

"Could you speak in complete sentences so we mere mortals can follow along?" Gary wants to know the breakthrough. He's right on the edge of understanding, if they would just fill him in.

Ray has been surprised to find Gary super smart. Story of Gary's life. No one has ever taken him seriously but Callie.

Speaking of Cal, she's brought snacks and drinks down to the lab. A smooch on the temple for Gary. Phoebe dodges a Mom temple smooch, thanks but no. A fist bump instead. But she does reach for something to eat and drink, which was Callie's main goal. Growing fast and forgetting to eat are a tough combo for Phoebe's bod. Callie worries.

Phoebe explains, "To sum it up, since 1993, the Gozer data hasn't fit the pattern."

"The math not mathing?" Callie asks.

"Precisely!" Ray grins.

"Hold on, lemme record this," Podcast clicks his microphone on. "Go!"

"What we're seeing is that Gozer is returning too soon. Gozer used to manifest at a rate of around 420 years per cycle. As far as we can tell, I mean, no one was recording precise Gozer data at the time. Egon reverse engineered the data by looking for signs of Gozer activity in recorded history,," Ray tries to explain. "Egon found a four hundred and twenty year Gozer cycle going back roughly 6,000 years."

"And then it changed," Phoebe says. "They shouldn't have come back in 2021. They shouldn't have come back after 1984 until-"

"-2404," Janine tosses off. Then, she sees everyone looking. "What. Ya think they're the only ones who can do math? Sheesh."

"So what's causing the break in the pattern?" Gary asks.

"Why is the return rate accelerating? We think Gozer has help from this side," Phoebe says.

"Gozer has someone or something helping It from this side? From earth?" Podcast is trying to catch on.

"Several someones, by this rate of acceleration," Ray nods.

"Who?" Callie wants to know.

"Gozarians," Ray and Phoebe say together.

"Gozariansssssss," Podcast echo whispers, liking the ominous sound of it.

"Phoebe just proved conclusively that there must be Gozer worshippers somewhere in the continental US, active now, using rituals to shred and erode the Earth's natural defenses against a parallel dimension invasion," Ray explains. "You see, all kinds of interdiminsional nasties would bust through to our earthly realm if they could, but normally, all the laws of nature forbid it, which keeps us safe. There's an organic order to life as we know it, that is sacred and protected. But the laws are being bent. Failing," Ray says.

Phoebe finishes, "Therefore, someone very powerful here in our world is helping Gozer pierce through to our reality faster and faster. Someone alive today wants what Ivo Shandor wanted- Gozer to ascend and rule our Universe. And they have followers. Lots of them."

"So where are they? The Gozarians?" Gary asks.

"Don't know yet," Ray says. Taps his head and says, "Egon has no idea either."

"So the answer isn't in here? Does that mean we can stop digging through all this?" Janine looks over her reading glasses at everyone and waves a stack of Egon's notes to indicate the absolute legion of filing cabinets they have left to examine. "Egon sure could take some notes."

"It means the problem is people this time. Not ghosts. People we can find and stop," Ray says.

"Welllll," Phoebe says, "there is still a ghost problem. Let's go look at the mega trap system. I need to show you and Grandfather something."
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Outside, Ray and Phoebe check out the network of ghost traps that contain all the scraps of Gozer and their minions Zuul and Vinz Clortho. The very dirt around the house is humming. There are some sparks jumping from the two electrified silos that power the system.

"The mission critical flaw in Grandfather's design is that it is dependent upon trapping and containing Gozer. It didn't destroy Gozer entirely. It didn't banish Them back to their own dimension either," Phoebe says.

Ray says, "Right. It worked by ripping Gozer to powerless shreds and imprisoning those shreds in separate traps where they can't reform into Gozer's complete demigod/goddess corporal form."

Phoebe keeps going, "It would have worked long term, but only if we'd been able to afford to engineer the batteries that Grandfather Spengler designed. The super trap would have a shelf life of approximately 10 million years. But we can't. The system as it is, is semi-dependent upon the Springfield power supply."

"Okay, so back up generators in case the power goes out and we're good?" Ray asks, knowing it won't be that simple.

"You already know Gozer will probably break free in a couple weeks, maybe faster. But what you don't know is that Summerville was wired for electricity by Ivo Shandor's power company. He paid to have this town electrified in 1930. Guess what he used for the town's wiring?" Phoebe explains, squinting at Ray in the bright Oklahoma sunshine.

"A selenium alloy, right?," Ray says, smacking his forehead.

"Exactly. I have samples in the lab if you'd like to see them," Phoebe sighs, then continues, "I'm sorry to say this, Grandfather, if you're listening in there. I know grown ups hate it when I point out their mistakes, but..."

"He says it's okay. He'll never be mad at you for improving upon his work. Please continue," Ray assures her. He can see tiny blue sparks snake through the dirt under their feet every so often. It's unsettling.

"Grandfather really messed up," Phoebe speaks plainly. "The selenium power grid is making Gozer stronger. They're down there, sucking up Summerville's energy, and sometime soon, Gozer will find a weak spot to exploit. Rust, water damage, a tree root- any weakness or flaws. They won't even need the Keymaster or Gatekeeper to open their passageway to earth because they'll already be here. And we've been feeding them power for three years."

"Well, shit," says Ray, hands on his hips.
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Back at the kitchen table for family dinner that night, they discuss the issues at hand.

Trevor and Gary have cooked spaghetti for everyone.

"Plain, no sauce. Just cheese," Phoebe reminds Gary as he dishes it out.

"I remember, kiddo," Gary says.

"Thank you, honey," Callie says, taking her plate.

"Thank you, Trevor," Janine says, taking her plate from him. "Handsome wait staff in this joint."

As everyone is digging into their spaghetti, Ray says, "The way I see it, we've got three problems. One- finding the Gozarians. Where is their temple?"

"Seismology," Gary says around a mouthful of spaghetti.

"What was that, babe?" Callie raises an eyebrow.

"Seismic activity," Gary says, swallowing. "You know how I chased the seismic data to Summerville in 2021? Ivo Shandor's temple portal here at the mines was causing explosive earthquakes, with unusual seismic signatures. Maybe this other temple is, too?"

"Awesome idea," Ray gives him a thumbs up.

"I'll call some people at the American Seismology Institute tomorrow and see what data I can get my hands on," Gary says, then seeing Trevor and Phoebe looking mildly impressed, he tries to act nonchalant. "What? I know cool science people, too."

"Problem Two: once we find the Gozarians, we have to stop them," Ray goes on. "They'll be rich and powerful. These supernatural beings always reward their servants while they're using them to siphon power. Fame, money, beauty. Until they ultimately destroy them, of course."

"Power and wealth leave a paper trail. I wonder what Winston has found out about Shandor's estate," Janine says. "I'll call him tomorrow."

"That leaves Problem Three: the super trap system is going to fail and release Gozer. Soon. Egon predicts July," says Ray. "And Phoebe has deduced Gozer will be stronger than ever."

Silence falls around the table. It's just the sounds of everyone eating for a beat. Then Trevor breaks the tension.

"There goes our summer vacation," says Trevor, twirling spaghetti around his fork, pretending to have a conversation with someone. "Hey Trev, what did you do the summer before college? Oh, I fought an ancient deity that exploded out of our front lawn. What did you do, hang out at the pool?" Then, it dawns on Trevor, "Oh no, I'm going to be the weird kid in college, too! Aren't I?"

"It's not so bad, Trevor," Ray tries to assure him. "You'll meet the other weird kids. It'll be great."

"As for your summer, tell them it was a Ghostbusters summer internship," Janine offers.

"Ooh, cool," Podcast says. "Can I have one of those internships, too?"

"Sure," says Janine, kindly. "You're hired."

Phoebe rolls her eyes at her brother and friend, "We need a solution to the Gozer problem. A device that can actually destroy Gozer. Obliterate not trap. And then a way to permanently prevent Their return to this dimension. I think I have an idea. I think we could reverse Gozer's molecular polarity so They become repulsed by our Universe rather than attracted to it. But I am gonna need your and Grandfather's help, Ray."

"You got it," says Ray.
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Phoebe and Ray both dream of Egon that night. They dream they're working in the tornado shelter lab together on Phoebe's entity repolarization device. Egon is able to show them where the things they need are, offer Ray some fabrication advice, and consult with Phoebe on the physics involved.

The next day, Ray and Phoebe wake up ready to bring her design to life. Sure enough they find everything they need, it's where Egon said it would be in the dream, and they're quickly able to fall into a flow state, working beside the other in wordless contentment.

Not since meeting Egon in 1970, has Ray experienced thie sense of synchronicity with another person. Phoebe reminds him so much of Egon. The way she holds her head to keep her wire rimmed glasses from sliding down her nose while looking down at something. Her curly mop of dark brown hair and her sparkling eyes. Her dry jokes. Most of all how brilliant, competent, and driven she is.

Phoebe could probably tackle this machine on her own if she had ten years to do it, to gain the necessary skills and experience. But they have mere weeks. Luckily, Ray is still a Physicist and an Engineer and he's got excellent fabrication skills. He also has (in his opinion) the most incredible, intelligent parapsychologist that the world has ever known peeking out from behind his eyes and offering occasional advice. They're a good team.

Egon rides shotgun in Ray's mind, quietly observing most of the time. July is fast approaching and he is conserving his manifestation energy. But Ray can feel his husband's pride in his grandkids, his interest in their projects and his love for them all flowing through him. He pulses with warm gratitude.

Meanwhile, Egon can feel Gozer's power building. Nearing the solstice, he comes forward enough to tell them, "Hurry! Hurry!" because he doesn't think it will be long.

Chapter Text

Phoebe, Ray and Podcast are in the lab, looking over some new trap tech Phoebe has been developing.

Phoebe is saying, "We know that when Gozer escapes the trap system, there will be a spike in paranormal activity. The good news is that Grandfather will be stronger, too, right? But the bad news is that we could have lots of lesser ghosts to fight our way through."

Phoebe shows him her new, disc-shaped ghost traps. Ray loves a new gadget. He's excited.

"We needed cordless, pedalless ghost traps. Something you could throw instead of having to place down and run away from," Phoebe goes on.

"Presenting the Frisbee Trap," says Podcast with fanfare. And then a grin to Ray, "She hates it when I call it that. But it does look like a Frisbee, doesn't it?"

"Theoretically, one could push this button here on the side, then toss this disc out into a group of ghosts. It would land, instantly open, and suck in any non human entity within a 12 foot radius," Phoebe says.

"Theoretically?" Ray asks.

"We haven't tested it on a real ghost yet," Podcast says.

"There's another problem," Phoebe says, grimacing. "I can't throw."

"You can throw!" Podcast tries encouraging her. "You just can't aim."

"Ah," understands Ray, "My skills lie outside the field of athletics as well. I'm not going to be much help in the throwing department. Egon can't throw either, I'm afraid. Looks like we need to see who in the family can fling these things, huh?"
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So they have a disc throwing contest. Trevor, Podcast, Phoebe, Gary, Janine and Callie all go out in the field and take turns trying to land a deactivated disc at the "feet" of their target. The target is a green Slimer guy painted on a square of plywood that hangs from a tree branch.

Only two of them can land the disc anywhere near the target.

Gary throws it way past the ghost. He completely overdoes it. Launches it over the ghost's head. Gets it stuck in the tree.

"I'll get the hang of it," he grins sheepishly.

On his turn, Podcast nails it. Perfect landing. Time after time.

"I've been practicing," he grins walking back to the others after his turn. "My parents think I'm taking up disc golf."

"I've always wondered what his parents think he's up to," Gary thinks aloud, arm around Callie's waist while they watch the others take their turns. Callie nods at that.

Phoebe tries next. The disc goes everywhere but at the ghost. Towards the onlookers who have to duck it. Off to the left into tall grass. Back behind her, straight through the front windshield of Gary's parked car.

"Damn it," says Gary, sighing, hands on hips. "I just got that fixed."

"Sorry, Gary," Phoebe says. "I'm giving up before I do any more damage."

"Don't worry about it, kid," says Gary. "It's for Science."

Callie and Trevor do okay. They can land theirs on target about 50% of the time. They can definitely get it within 12 feet of the target, which is close enough to be effective.

It's Janine who blows everyone's mind. She's relaxed. Cool as a cucumber in some Capri pants, a leopard print shell top and a classic pair of Ray-Bans, a jaunty little silk scarf tied at her neck. She steps up to the throw line, plants her little white keds in the dirt, and flings the heck out of her disc, which lands dead under the target. She walks around a little, flings one on the hoof, it lands perfectly. She turns her back and throws one from over her shoulder. Perfect landing. She kicks up one leg and tosses it underhand. Boom. Perfect.

"Woahhh," say Ray and Podcast together.

Janine says, "Beach Frisbee Champion 1978 and 1979."

Phoebe and Callie give her high fives.

"Okay! Podcast, Janine, you guys are in charge of the disc traps. That means I'll need to train the rest of you on pedal traps and proton guns," Ray knows what they need to do.

"Oh goody," says Callie. She definitely wants to shoot Zuul with one of those laser gun things if she gets the chance, so she is looking forward to that.

Trevor looks out over the field. Puts his right hand to his eyes, left hand in his pocket. A plume of dust approaches, a car coming up the road. He can't see the vehicle itself yet. Ray steps up next to him, one hand over his eyes, one in pocket, just like Trevor.

At almost the same time Ray says, "Winston!" Trevor says, "Ecto!"

It is indeed the Ecto 1 heading up the long dirt road and pulling up to the house. She looks mint. Clean, refurbished, freshly painted, kitted out. Chrome gleaming and Ghostbuster emblem glossy. Winston flashes the lights once as he parks. And then, Winston and Venkman climb out.

Venkman says, "Hey, has everybody been hanging out without us?"

Phoebe, Ray and Trevor meet them at the vehicle for bear hugs, back pats, and other Uncle-ishness. They admire all the work Winston has had done on the car. The Ecto 1 looks great.
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That night at dinner, Phoebe asks, "So Grandfather is inside of you?"

Gary spits a bite of mashed potatoes out. Covers his spit take with a cough and a napkin.

"Yeah, Ray, what's that like? I've always wanted to know," Janine waggles her eyebrows at him and cackles.

Ray and Phoebe roll their eyes. Ray is blushing though. Janine crinkles her nose and grins impishly.

"Well, I'm not lonely," Ray answers, "Plus, my data analysis has increased in speed. My performance on a standardized IQ test has gone up 14 points. He's never gonna let me forget that, either. And it's nice to be able to talk to him."

"Woah," says Podcast, who rarely seems to go home anymore. "Do you think Dr Spengler would want to do an interview on my podcast?"

"Maybe when this is all over, okay? Egon can't manifest again for a full 24 hours, if he comes forward enough to talk through me. Plus, we don't want to attract the wrong kind of attention. We need to keep this just between us for now," Ray says.

"On the down low," Callie says.

"Mom, no one says that anymore," Trevor laughs.

"I do, honey," Gary says to Callie, supportively.

"Record as much audio and video as you want, Podcast. In fact, that would be a great source of data. You'll definitely catch things with recordings that we'll miss in the moment. Just wait to post it, okay?" Ray kindly places a guideline. Podcast agrees.

"So what have you kids been up to?" Venkman wants an update.

"Well, Phoebe is awesome," Ray starts.

"Of course she is," says Callie, proudly.

"Phoebs, you wanna tell them about the Gozer Grinder?" Ray asks her.

"I named it!" Podcast pipes in.

Phoebe explains, "The idea is this: the device sucks Gozer and Their minions into it, and lots of small, controlled proton beam pulses grind the entities into particles, which are hurled through the depolarization centrifuge chamber at close to the speed of sound, and released."

"Wait. Released?" asks Winston.

Phoebe continues, "As in 1984, the demigod/goddess and her pets, once discoporated, will loose their hold on our Universe and get sent back to their own dimension. Only this time, they can't come back and reform here, because the machine will have altered their molecular charge so that they are now repulsed by Earth's magnetic field instead of attracted to it."

"Killer, man" says Venkman.

"Wish we'd thought of that," Winston says.

"Tomorrow we get to test it out," says Phoebe.

"Dibs!" Ray and Gary say at almost the same time.
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"You're letting that old guy test it and you said 'no' to me?! But I wanted to test it!" Gary grumps at Phoebe, "Ray's, like, a hundred."

"So are you," Phoebe says. They're crouching behind the blast shield with Podcast and Trevor.

"I'm hip. He's gonna break a hip," Gary says.

"Don't be ageist, dude," says Trevor, getting out his sound deadening ear protection.

"You're right. I apologize," Gary recognizes his biased moment. "Is it ageist of Phoebs to say I'm a hundred? People tell me I look young for my age."

"You're closer to Ray's age than mine. It's just math," Phoebe doesn't have time for Gary's moment of Garyness just now. "I didn't want you to accidentally blow yourself up. Mom likes you. It's nice having you around. And Ray asked first."

"I'm touched," Gary loves this brilliant, weird teenager. Then, upon seeing Ray grinning and waving out there, "Aww. Look how happy he is."

"Ready, steady," Dr. Stantz says through the walkie talkie.

"Everyone ready?" Phoebe asks. Nods, thumbs up and yeses all around.

"Go for test!" she says into the walkie.

And Ray tests the Gozer Grinder.

He does not explode. It's a win for Science that day.

Chapter Text

Over coffee around the kitchen table in the morning, Ray, Winston, Venkman and Gary discuss probable Gozarian temple locations and Shandor's financial trail. It's time for a plan of action.

Ray lays it out, "Either we catch Gozer and their dogs immediately, right as they erupt from the super trap system or Gozer busts past us and leaves a trail of destruction all the way to the Gozarian temple, wherever that is. We'd have to chase them and then confront them along with all their followers, in a temple where Gozarians have been amassing power since 1993."

"I say we do the first one," says Winston, adding cream to his cup.

"By that point, Gozer will have gathered a small army of lesser spirits around them to defend them and their followers," Ray adds.

"An army of the dead. That sounds fun, right?" Venkman quips. There might not be enough coffee on the planet for this. He's starting to miss retirement.

"Any sign of an active Gozer temple location in the seismic data, Gary?" Ray wants an update.

Gary spreads some maps and printouts across the table while pointing out features. "There's nothing in the continental US with the same distinct P wave S wave pattern that made Summerville attract my attention. But of course, there wouldn't be. Summerville's seismography was definitely affected by Dr. Spengler's automated proton gun security system that he set up in Shandor's crypt. His guns firing into the sacrificial pit were causing the S wave. Looking for a lot of P wave activity, I'm just not seeing any pockets of unusual seismic data coming in from an isolated, off fault line area. Not like Summerville."

Ray shakes his head, dips a Twinkie in his black coffee. He's been craving them since Egon came on board.

"That doesn't mean it's not out there. What if it's hiding?" Gary's eyes are alight with his favorite topic. "What if this temple is somewhere that has it's own significant seismic activity already and it's hiding behind that natural signature? It could be somewhere like New Madrid, Yellowstone, Mt. Saint Helen, Sedona or-

"Or the San Andreas Fault? What about LA?" Winston interjects excitedly.

"Yes!" says Gary, gesturing to a map.

"Why, Zedd? What have you learned about Shandor's money?" Ray asks his friend.

"Shandor was into some freaky shit," Winston tells them. "He invested in all kinds of things. Brothels, casinos, railroads, weapons, banks, anything powerful or kinda sinful, you know? Anything that would attract rich and beautiful people. Night clubs when booze was legal and speakeasies during prohibition. He probably did lots of other black market illegal stuff, too, that I couldn't track because it was too well laundered."

Winston goes on, talking while getting out his smart phone, "But you know what he was really into? The movies. He backed films. He built a whole movie studio. He poured money into Hollywood. And his movies were hits, too! The films he produced made stars of a so many Old Hollywood legends. To be cast by his studio was a ticket to fame and power. But, here's the spooky shit- almost every star his studio made, met a tragic, early death. All but one."

Winston shows them a picture on his phone of a woman in 1920s vamp garb. Bobbed hair in finger waves, dark smokey eyes and a lavaliere of pearls down to her bellybutton. "This woman. Actress Myrna Van Pelt. She was rumored to be Shandor's mistress. He built her a mansion in the Hollywood hills. Myrna Van Pelt had a child out of wedlock, who may have been his. Shandor's will definitely paid for the kid's education and gave him a healthy trust fund. Eventually, he became a very powerful politician. Governor of California."

"Shandor's son, is he leading the Gozarians out there? Is this the head guy?" Venkman asks.

"He's dead. But his son isn't. He's an actor like his Grandma. A-list. Major social media brand deals. Oscar and Emmy nominations. Has dated every hot actress in town," Winston flips to another photo. "Recognize this guy?"

"Patrick Bronsdown?! Not Captain Universe?!" Gary is star struck but trying to play it cool.

"And guess what? He was born in 1993, the year Egon saw the huge shift in the Gozer data begin," Winston finishes. "And he lives in Grandma's big old Hollywood mansion built by Granddaddy Shandor himself. Out of what, you ask? I'll give you three guesses and they all better be selenium."

"Woah," Ray says. "That's gotta be our guy. Either the mansion or the movie studio have to be the temple."

"Get this- the movie studio burnt down in 1984," Winston tells him. "Same night as our first Gozer battle. Probably caught fire right about the time we crossed the streams and toasted that giant marshmallow."

"Well, that's probably not a coincidence," Venkman says. "Pass me the sugar, would ya Gare?"

"So all signs point to the mansion," Ray says.

"We aren't going to have to fight Captain
Universe are we? I don't think I can do it," Gary is thrown by this. He's a big fan.

"Hopefully not," Ray says, "but just in case, can you tell us everything you know about him?"

"Bronsdown does his own stunts. He's so productive, he makes Tom Cruise look lazy. Has a line of supplements. He's a black belt. He does a lot of charity work, has his own charity, even. He owns a lot of stock in InterFlicks, the streaming service..."

Gary infodumps about his man crush and the others take notes.
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That scorching summer afternoon, Callie drives Phoebe to town for a milkshake at Spinners. Phoebe doesn't want to stop her work in the lab but her mom insists. She agrees to leave for exactly 37 minutes, only while a glue cures.

"It's summer vacation, Phoebs," Callie insists. She's wearing her red plastic heart shaped sunglasses, how embarrassing. "Let's play a little bit."

"It's only the fate of our universe at stake, Mother," Phoebe pushes her glasses up her sweaty nose. Their ancient station wagon hasn't had working air conditioning in years.

"I know, honey," Callie drives and talks. The windows are down but only stirring the hot air up, not really cooling it. "How are you feeling? The entire universe? That's a lot on 15 year old shoulders."

"I can handle it. I'm a Spengler," Phoebe is resolute.

"Love that. Love you. But, I want you to have a little fun," Callie tucks a dark curl behind her youngest's ear and the wind buffets it loose immediately. "You're growing up so fast."

"I've always felt like a grown up," Phoebe says, watching cornfields go by.

"I know," Callie answers. "You came to earth ready to be taken seriously."

"I'm always serious," her child says, looking and sounding exactly like Egon, though neither of them know it. "But, Mom, I am having fun in the lab. Making the gear with Grandfather and Ray is fun. Testing it. Podcast staying over. Everyone visiting us. It's good, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is good," Callie smiles. Her blonde hair whips around her face.

"This may be the best summer break I've ever had, actually," Phoebe smiles back.

Callie's mama heart squeezes in her chest. Her youngest kid has found her purpose. If Callie had a choice, she might have preferred something less dangerous, say soccer, music or chess tournaments but okay. Ghostbusting it was. Better than boys or drugs.

They pull up to Spinners and Enid the carhop rollerskates up to the car and does a fancy spin stop. She's 65 if she's a day, but the woman has moves. She'll do the splits if you tip big enough. Callie wonders if Venkman has introduced himself to her yet.

They order shakes. Strawberry for both.

While they're being made, Callie turns to Phoebe and says, "Remember you're not alone, Phoebe. We've all got your back. And if this Gozer thing goes sideways, that's not just on you. It's on all of us. Whatever happens, we can handle it."

"Thanks, Mom," Phoebe says.

"I believe in you," Callie finishes her pep talk. "Your Gozer Grinder and Frisbee traps are awesome. You're a bad ass, Phoebe. We're gonna win."

"Hell yeah, we are," agrees Phoebe. They fist bump and then here come the milkshakes.
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As June wanes, tensions mount. Venkman considers it his job to tease, argue or flirt with anyone who gets a little too scared or serious. He's testing troupe morale.

"Talked to your Dad lately?" Venkman asks Callie in the faux casual tone of someone who is definitely secretly psychoanalyzing everyone. It's his turn to cook and he's stirring his 'famous' chili.

"He's mostly resting until go time," Callie says, grating the cheese to help him out.

"Until a psychopathic alien deity bursts out of your lawn in a couple days?" Peter asks, adding a pinch of salt. "And we get to see if a 15 year old kid and a ghost invented a machine that can stop a god or if we're all chopped liver?"

"Pretty much," Callie answers, reaching for a stack of bowls.

"How're you doing with that, Spengler?" Peter asks, in one of his rare, disarmingly sensitive moments. Callie likes him.

"Well, it's nice of you guys not to wait until the very last freaking minute to show up, for once," she teases him. "I'm just hoping I don't get possessed this time."

"I think Ray's got that department covered," Peter says. He offers a Dad-ish hug and she takes it.
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In the last days until Gozer 3.0, Ray, Winston and Trevor make some Ecto1 adaptions together. Weaponize the old girl.

Janine and Podcast practice with unarmed mock ups of disc traps. First on the ground, and then tossing them from the back windows of Ecto1 at a moving target, namely Trevor on an electric scooter.

Ray, Winston, and Venkman teach everyone proper proton thrower technique so that nobody gets their face burnt off.

Ray and Phoebe scan the super trap system with PKE meters, looking for surges that might indicate weak points in the system.
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And then Trevor has an idea.

Trevor is helping his sister and Podcast in the lab. He's starting college soon and it's on his mind. He tells Phoebe, "You should write about this for your college entrance essay. This tech is amazing. You could get a scholarship anywhere."

"No one would believe me," Phoebe answers, frowning into the device she's working on. It's mechanism needs to open and shut faster.

"They would if we showed them what you can do. What if we live streamed it on YouView when Gozer starts to escape?" Trevor says. He turns. "Oh, Podcast..."

Podcast looks up from his soldering iron, eyes huge behind magnifying lenses. Takes out his ear buds. "Hmm?"

"I got a job for you, buddy," Trevor tells him. "When Gozer goes live, so do you."

The teenagers make a plan.
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Meanwhile, blue sparks crackle through the dirt in the yard and wires hum. The traps strain. But they hold.

Chapter Text

Around midnight one hot June night, Gary wakes up Venkman and Winston by turning on their bedside lamp. They're bunking together in the upstairs guest room.

"Guys," Gary says, panicky whisper yelling. "There's a ghost in the corn, I think. What should we do?"

"Finally, something is happening! I was getting sick of waiting," Venkman gets up, groaning, goes to get his jumpsuit out of the closet.

"Why do ghosts always show up at midnight?" Winston asks, getting up. "Alright, let's go check it out."

Gary explains, "I was out on the porch and I heard moaning. Not good moaning. Scary moaning. And the corn was moving funny. There's no wind but it was swaying. Then, all the bugs went quiet. And I got scared and ran in here. So."

Downstairs, Ray is already awake, dressed, and armed with his proton pack. He was just looking out the back door with some night vision goggles on. He takes them off. He turns to the others and says, "Egon woke me up. He says there's a ghost outside."

The other two living Ghostbusters shrug into the packs Ray laid out for them on the kitchen table.

"I gotta get one of those," says Gary, enviously.

Ray goes to the door and hits the outdoor flood light switch. The whole perimeter blazes into bright light. There, Ray sees it. Outside, just on the edge of the corn, an elderly farmer is standing. He's in overalls and a flannel, a green Lawn Deer ball cap and some work boots. He has a shovel. He also has a horrid mortal wound across his neck and chest and his eyes are glowing electric blue. Definitely a ghost. He thrusts his shovel into the ground. The shovel is real. He's going for the buried cables of the Gozer containment system. He's trying to sabotage the the super trap.

Venkman steps out onto the porch beside Ray, takes one look at the farmer and says, "Yep, that's a dead guy."

Egon fronts and says, "It's my old neighbor. Henry Lloyd. He died in a farm accident in 2005. He always was a homophobic old jackass. Shoot him, Ray."

And then Egon yells out at the ghoul, "Get off my lawn, Lloyd!"

Winston joins them outside and all three click on their packs.

Ray fronting again, says, "One, two, you know what to do!"

On "do" Ray and Winston each fire a stream of protons at the ghost. The farmer twitches and screeches in the beams but he's caught, tangled in the snake like streams. Venkman walks out into the yard and places a rectangle trap down.

He yells, "Trap down!" And he backs away out of range. "Clear!"

Then Peter fires his own proton thrower, adding a third stream. The farmer's ghost screams, his wounds run with black ectoplasmic blood and his fingers hook into sharp claws. Working together, the three old friends pull the fighting ghost over to the trap, Venkman hits the pedal, and it sucks Lloyd into the light within. The whole thing takes about 4 minutes start to finish.

Just then, Janine pops out of her cute retro style camper, where she has been staying, parked in the side yard. She's got on babydoll pajamas and fluffy slippers. She's looking around, taking in the guys with their packs on and eyeing the smoking pedal trap.

"Did I miss the action, again?!" Janine has a frisbee trap ready to go and is shaking it at them, other hand on her hip, "Call me next time, okay? Don't be such ball hogs."

"Janine, look out!" Winston yells as a giant, ghost bull with glowing blue eyes and flaming horns tears it's way out of the corn and into the circle of light around the house. It starts to rip at the ground with it's hooves and giant blazing horns.

Quick as a wink, Janine arms her disc trap, tosses it right under the bull, and it's instantly open and sucking the beastly ghost into itself. He vanishes harmlessly.

Janine brushes her hands together and smiles. "Well, that was fun!"
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1:00AM and everyone is awake and buzzing around the farmhouse. If the flood lights didn't wake them, the screaming ghosts and burning, roaring laser guns did. Callie and Gary are making hot cocoa for everyone. Ray brews a batch his relaxation tea. Venkman offers a slug of whiskey to the grown ups if they want one.

As a drowsy, pajama-ed Podcast comes to get his cup, Gary hands it to him and turns to Callie asking, "He sleeps here? Does Podcast even go home anymore?"

Podcast answers, "My parents think I'm at sleep away Science camp for the summer. I don't feel that bad about it because it's sorta true. This is Science."

"Fair enough," says Callie, she ruffles his bedhead hair with a soft smile.

Gary shrugs, "Sure is, buddy."

Then Ray calls everyone to order by dinging his spoon on his tea mug. "As we expected, leading up to Gozer's arrival, supernatural phenomenon may manifest. We need to stand watch. We need to start sleeping in shifts. I'm sorry, Janine, you may want to stay in the big house after this. We'll keep all the proton packs and disc traps in here, so they can be grabbed at any time. More than half our arsenal was still over in the barn, useless to us. Time to stick together, stay armed, protect the Gozer super trap system as long as we can, and when it's time- we go. You all know your parts. We've practiced. We're gonna kick ass."

"For those about to rock, we salute you!" Venkman adds.

After warm drinks and a round of cards, nothing else ghostly happens, so most people are sent back to bed.
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No way is Ray going back to sleep after Lloyd and the Bull. He takes the first watch. Callie choses to stay up, too. The two are outside, sitting on the porch steps. The summer night bug serenade is back. All is peaceful.

"It's the summer solstice. Shortest night of the year," says Ray, making conversation. They can see so many stars out here.

Callie sits with her knees pulled up like a kid. She says, "I feel like Gozer could happen any day now. Those things were trying to free Them."

Ray agrees. So does Egon, who is always more forward and paying closer attention when Callie is near by. It's a testament to how strong the psychokinetic energy is growing that Egon didn't need to fully vanish after coming forward to yell at Lloyd. He's there under Ray's skin, nudging Ray to offer some comfort to Callie.

"Um. Egon assures me we have a chance of survival," Ray makes an attempt at being soothing. "So, there, there?"

Callie laughs kindly,"Very comforting, you two."

Then, she changes the subject. Callie asks him, curious to hear how he feels about their connection, "Are you kinda my stepdad, Ray?"

"If you want me to be, I would like that," Ray feels a little shy but answers Callie honestly. Egon flutters inside of Ray and his love for his daughter burns like a hot coal in Ray's chest. "Egon likes that idea, too."

"I don't need any parenting, from either of you" Callie tells him/them. "But I could use a friend. And so could Phoebe. She's really...happy right now. Working with you, and Dad too. Making stuff. The science she's into is all beyond my comprehension, but with you here, Ray? She's got someone who gets it, who can help her make her ideas work better."

"Those disc traps are all Phoebe. And the Gozer device? It was mostly her. I just held the flashlight. Egon checked a bit of math. She's brilliant," Ray says and Callie smiles at him.

"Thanks. Runs in the family, I guess," Callie clears her throat a little. "Um. Well, Ray, I wanted to ask you something. Trevor leaves for college in a few weeks and Phoebe, Gary and I will have lots of room here. When this whole thing is over, I was wondering if you might like to come stay with us? Live here at Dad's place with us?"

Ray doesn't know what to say. Egon fills Ray's body with warm happiness at the invitation and he badly wants Ray to say yes.

Callie goes on, "Phoebe has two years left at home. If you and she could be lab partners during that time? No telling what she could accomplish. You could have access to all Egon's stuff, if you want it. And you can have his old room. We all sleep upstairs anyway."

Ray says, "That sounds really good. I've been wondering what to do after I retire. This seems like a good spot to write a memoire and invent some cool gadgets. I'd love to keep working with Phoebe. Trevor, too. Can I think about it?"

"I hope you do, Ray" Callie says, and she pats his hand. "It feels like this place belongs to you as much as me, somehow. Especially now that the two of you are...back together. I hope you'll come stay."

Callie and Ray look at the stars. Egon is filled with love for both of them. He feels infinitely powerful, like he could flick a quarter to the moon if Ray and Venkman wanted to test him just now.

Chapter Text

It's time. They have everything and everyone in place.

They release Gozer.

It was Peter's idea.
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At family dinner, the day after the Solstice, Venkman had said, "Waiting is for the birds. What are we doing, Ray? Going to let Gozer get as strong as possible while They gather more and more ghosts here to attack the containment grid? They're gonna bust out of there. We know that, so why are we playing by the flat top's rules? Could somebody please pass me the salad dressing?"

"Yeah," Winston agreed, passing the dressing and building on the idea. "Gozer'll pick 3AM or some shit. Attack when we're tired or when we're distracted. I'm too old to pull all-nighters."

Then, Venkman had said, waving a cherry tomato on his fork, "What if we choose the time? I say we get everything set up, everybody in place, ready to go. Then, we let the bitch out. On our terms. Attack before They can fully form."

"That's not a bad idea, Pete." Ray turned to Phoebe, who was piling her plate with plain mashed potatoes, and asked her the most important question, "How soon can you be ready?"

"At the current rate, everything should be completed tomorrow," Phoebe had answered, adding butter and salt to her mash. No pepper. "Under tested but complete."

Then, Ray looked to his other stepgrandchild, "How about you, Trevor? You ready?"

Trevor glanced at Winston who subtly nodded. He'd gulped and answered, "Ready."

"Podcast, you ready?" Ray raised an eyebrow at the final junior member of the team.

Biggest grin on his face, Podcast had said, "Hell, yeah." They fist bumped.

Ray had looked around the family table at (almost) everyone he loved. Looked for objection on the adults' faces. He could see the idea of controlling Gozer's timing was extremely appealing to all.

"The day after tomorrow then?" Ray'd said. "On Saturday, we let Gozer out."

Everyone nodded and agreed. Egon's ghost blinked the lights on and off a couple times and made Elton John's song "Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting" come on the old kitchen radio for a minute.

Everyone who knew the words belted the chorus. The teenagers looked sideways at the corny, off key singing old people but they smiled at each other.

They had wheels in motion at last.
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So Saturday arrived.

At 10:00 AM, on a beautiful summer morning, the 23rd of June, Callie Spengler shuts the super trap system off and releases an ancient deity and Their two demon dogs into our Universe.

On purpose.

At first, nothing happens. Stillness. The ticking sound of cooling machinery. Egon's silo generator system whirring down. Podcast beside Callie, nervously shuffling from foot to foot. The sound of her own excited heartbeat in her ears.

Phoebe waits in place with the Gozer Grinder. Venkman with her, wearing a proton pack, to guard her back. Trevor and Winston wait in Ecto1, engine idling, parked just out of sight in the corn field. Janine is ready to rock. Callie and Podcast are on the porch with a stack of disc traps. Callie wears a proton pack and one of her Dad's jumpsuits rolled up at the cuffs.

Unbeknownst to everyone but the other teenagers, Podcast has his phone discretely set up on a tripod, hidden in a half dead azalea bush nearby, already streaming live to his Mystical Tales of the Unknown Universe YouView channel. Nobody much is watching yet but they will be.

After a tense beat of nothing happening, the birds and bugs fall silent. A hot wind kicks up. Clouds start to race across the previously clear blue sky. Everyone feels the air pressure build.

Ray says, "Hold steady" through the open walkie channel. Egon is with him, aware and watching through his eyes. He holds both of their fear and excitement inside himself.

The ground around the farmhouse starts glowing brightly enough to be visible in the bright summer daylight. Electric blue lightening crackles along the wires and connections. Then, the very earth itself begins to undulate. It looks to Callie as though a giant snake was asleep in the dirt, coiled around the house, and It is now waking up. A scared little girl part of Callie wants to run in the house and hide. She stands.

Suddenly, there's a "pop!" sound, followed by a chain of "pop! pop! pop!" as the buried traps begin to fly open in a chain reaction. Ultraviolet light streams from the broken boxes to the sky. With a roar, Zuul and Vinz Clortho blaze out of their traps, growling and snarling into form. Then, they immediately begin tearing at the ground with their terrible claws, ripping the cables and boxes to shreds. The destruction ensuring that they and their Master can never be trapped by Egon's containment system again.

The two huge, digging beasts do not look as much like giant dogs in the bright summer sunlight as they did in the dark of night. They are not dogs at all. Their flesh is nothing of this world. Too many muscles. Too many teeth. Glowing blue eyes. They're made of darkness and rot. They stink like the breath of a corpse and glisten with a rusty, ectoplasmic slime the color of congealing blood. Nightmares made real.

Callie doesn't exactly know how she knows the beast on the left is Zuul but she does, and she hates that motherf*cker in particular, so her heart soars when she sees Ray step out of the corn and shoot it. Ray catches Zuul in his proton stream, where it thrashes and snarls, held 6 feet off the earth now.

Vinz stops digging and whirls, charges at Ray to try and save his gruesome brother Thing. But Gary steps out of the corn, proton pack on, thrower already firing a stream of neon fuschia and violet protons at Vinz. Trapping him, too.

Callie and Podcast cheer and hug.

The door of her travel trailer bangs open and out steps Egon's favorite redhead in her perfectly tailored Ghostbusters jumpsuit. Janine's proton pack is almost as big as she is but she wields it fiercely. She confidently draws a bead on Vinz and adds her proton stream to Gary's. She wears disc traps in hip holsters. Rhinestones twinkle from the corners of her vintage sunglasses. She is grinning like she's having the time of her life.

Ray has a split second when he and Egon both notice how frigging cute and badass Janine looks.

But then Zuul tries to bite through his proton stream and almost breaks Ray's hold on him. Zuul is about to get away.

"Oh, hell no," Callie says, and she jumps down, running towards Ray, pulling her proton thrower from its holster and flipping her switch to arm it. She shouldn't be off the porch. She's supposed to stay there and block entry to the house. The traps are hissing and crackling with blue fire all around her. The dirt is boiling under her boots.

"Podcast, stay!" she yells over her shoulder back at him, using her Mom-est voice to keep him on the porch. She's the one breaking rules but he better listen.

And then, Callie fires her thrower and she is shooting Zuul at long last and it feels fantastic. She lights his Dad killing, body-snatching, stanky, pig eyed, rotten meat looking, nasty self up. He yelps and squeals. It's very satisfying. Callie shouts.

Of course, Gozer erupts from the ground when Callie is two steps to Ray.

Gozer soars out of the traps in a surreal, ground to sky lightening storm that must be visible for miles. Gozer is huge. Bigger than Stay Puft. As They come screaming into reality, They scoop Callie up like King Kong grabbing Faye Ray.

Still blazing protons, Callie starts firing into Gozer's exquisitely beautiful, awe inspiring face as They lift her but it does minimal damage. Gozer flicks the proton gun away with one giant finger, breaking it and knocking it out of Callie's hands. Their glittering, iridescent body grows so large, the farm house becomes a little dollhouse below Them. Callie doesn't panic but she wants to. She bites and strikes at the huge hand with her tiny fists. Then, she realizes she might die if dropped or thrown and she starts hanging on tight. She can hear Ray and Gary yelling down below.

Above Them, the clouds go dark and threatening, begin to glow with sick greenish light and swirl counter clockwise.

Inside Ray, Egon is terrified for Callie, that she'll be thrown by Gozer and killed, or that she'll be shot by a proton stream and burnt or blinded. He wants to go to her. It is only Egon's faith in Ray, their friends and their plan that keeps him inside of Ray's vessel as agreed.

Ray talks to him, "It's okay, Spengs. We're gonna get her down. The police and the paramedics are probably already on the way. Callie is going to be okay. Stick to the plan, man. We're gonna get her."

And to prove him right, Ecto 1 launches out of the corn, Winston behind the wheel, Trevor operating a triple barreled, hood mounted proton canon from the passenger seat. Trev and Zedd are both shouting with battle joy as the old girl tears into the action. Trevor fires the three proton cross stream cannons upon Gozer's giant legs.

At this size, Gozer is unbelievably terrifying. And unbelievably beautiful. All the power of immortal youth and androgynous beauty, pulled raw from the multiverse, collapsing into the energy vortex that is Gozer. The scariest thing about Them is the way that just being in Their presence makes you want to drop to your knees and worship them. Some part of everyone present wants to surrender immediately and declare themselves a sacrifice to Gozer. If only Gozer will gaze upon them as They devour their soul. If only Gozer will touch them once before feeding their limbs to Their pets. In the hearts of all who fight Them, it feels unholy and wrong to defy Gozer's will. A sin.

However, the Ghostbusters are nothing if not defiant in the face of authority, so they persevere.

Ray, Janine and Gary begin retreating through the corn, dragging the nasty devil puppies in their proton stream prisons away from the house. Baiting Gozer towards Phoebe and Venkman who are still hidden out of sight.

Gozer takes a step and crushes one of the power silos like a frat bro stepping on a beer can. They can see Their minions being dragged away and roar. Blue energy crackles in the corners of Their red and black glowing eyes and sparking along Their glassy, luminous alien skin. Gozer takes steps towards Vinz and Zuul, shaking the ground, reaching towards their servants with the hand that is not clutching Callie in its fist.

Gary, cackling with hysteria, waves his proton beam, lifting and slamming Vinz into Zuul hard enough to make the two creatures yelp and snarl with surprised indignity. Gozer hates that so Gary does it again.

Ecto 1, siren and proton cannons blasting, herds Gozer towards the hidden Grinder device. Above it all, Callie holds on for dear life.

Gozer takes one more step and Venkman blazes down the patch of corn in front of them, suddenly revealing himself, Phoebe and the Grinder, which looks like a woodchipper from hell, maw pulsing with phosphorus bright fuschia light. Then Venkman adds his proton pack stream to Gary's, further binding Vinz. And now, Gary and Venkman, Janine and Ray, pull their horrid, thrashing burdens towards the Grinder.

Gozer recognizes the trap and roars, tries to gather a fist of lightening to throw down at the machine, but before they can hurl it, Their precious Vinz is sucked into the Grinder. A high whine sound and in a fraction of a second, Vinz is broken down into particles and spat back out. Gone forever.

Phoebe screams out in triumph as Gozer immediately begins to waver and writhe. They scream with outrage and bring their arm up, as though they intend to smash Callie in revenge. And her screams turn to terror.

As his brother is taken, Zuul fights against Janine and Ray's capture streams. Fighting to get him close enough to the Grinder, Ray can't look up to watch what is happening with Callie, so Egon flashes his husband a quick image of his plan and yanks himself out of Ray and soars off as an orb. Spengler goes to look after his kid.

With Vinz gone, Gozer is losing form. They're fracturing and reforming, half embodied and half pure energy. As Their hand spasms and blinks in and out of existence on our plane, Callie falls.

Egon catches her.

With all the psychokinetic energy to pull from, Egon can fully, physically manifest and his love for Callie makes him inhumanly strong. So, he's there in a flash of light, catching her and gently laying his daughter down in between rows of corn.

"Thanks, Dad," she says, hugging his shifting quicksilver form. Then Callie shoulders off the broken pack and runs for her own daughter.

She makes it through the corn just in time to see Zuul's horrid form chewed to bits by the Grinder. Callie lets out a howl of vengent joy. The Thing of her nightmares is gone and can never come back.

Just then, somewhere in London, Dana Barret feels a tingle as Zuul exits this universe for good. She doesn't know what happened but knows something has shifted. She feels whole and at peace. That night, she'll sleep better than she has in nearly 40 years.

All proton guns are firing on Gozer now. Venkman, Ray, Janine, and Gary's guns, as well as the Ecto 1 canons. Under the onslaught, Gozer's form frays and crackles. They shrink down to human scale, no longer giant. All flesh burns away, shreds flying into the sucking maw of the Grinder. All beauty gone, They become something like a person made of clear, pulsing gel, shot through with veins of molten, cyan energy. They look disgusting, like something turned inside out, pure wrongness.

"They shouldn't be able to hold on like this! This is wrong!" Phoebe tries to tell the others but she can't be heard.

Everyone is screaming and squinting against the light, trying to drag or push the weakening Gozer into the machine that will free our universe of Gozer's cycle of torment forever.

It almost works.

At the last possible second, Gozer surrenders the ectoplasmic substance that holds Their power together in a semi embodied web. With a splash, the gel splatters and is vacuumed into the device as Gozer ascends, shooting into the air as an orb of pure blue energy. They beam like a comet over the corn, back towards the house, away from the Grinder.

"Podcast!" Phoebe shouts, and they're all running back towards Egon's farm house. They break through the corn in time to see Podcast running from the porch towards the bushes off to side. He's screaming, but with excitement, not pain.

"You guys!" Podcast is yelling, pulling his tripod and phone out of the shrubbery. The screen is lit and recording, the red light on, "That blue light just went into my phone!!"

"Gozer went into your phone?" Gary asks, running up and hugging him, tripod and all, assuring himself the kid is okay. Phoebe is the next one to make it to him. Callie right behind.

"That blue meteor thing was Gozer?!" Podcast couldn't see much from his porch spot. "I guess so! It came out of the sky and zoomed around and it sorta looked at me and then it made a bee line straight for my phone. And then zap! Pretty sure it went in there!"

"Oh no," says Phoebe, deadpan voice not revealing the depth of her terror and dread at the implications of what Podcast just said. She looks at her Mom with big eyes.

Seeing that 'uh oh' expression on her face, Callie turns to Podcast. "Podcast, what happened?"

"I was live streaming to YouView," Podcast confesses. "I'm sorry! Phoebe and Trevor said I should do it so people would believe us about this happening and I- I'm sorry! I shouldn't have! I'm sorry!"

"Oh, shit," say Gary and Callie together.

Trevor and Winston are coming in from the side where they parked the car. Ray and Janine, not quite as fast on foot as they once were, make it to the house last. Ray has a PKE meter out.

All together now, there are hugs all around. Everyone made it through okay. There's a lot of congratulations and giddiness. They lost but they lived. And they got rid of Zuul and Vinz. So at least they have those wins to celebrate. As they pat each other on the back, the dark clouds break up and the birds and bugs begin to sing once more.

"Dad saved me!" Callie tells Ray, an arm around each of her kids, Trevor and Phoebe allowing it for once. They had been really scared for their mom. She can have all the hugs she wants for today.

"I wish I coulda seen it," says Ray and he smiles. "You kids were great out there! Callie, I'm so glad you're okay."

And then Podcast says, "I wonder how many people are watching?"

And he looks down at the screen he's holding, says, "Two million!" and then he freezes, his eyes glow blue. He twitches. Then, Podcast's skin starts to crackle with cyan energy and his face smiles alarmingly wide.

"No!" shouts Phoebe.

A sudden stream of pale pink goo splatters his face, right in the forehead. Then another pink goo stream hits him in the chest. Then a third and fourth. The three living Ghostbusters and Janine are hosing him down with squirt guns full of positively charged mood slime that they've pulled from thigh holsters. Podcast's expression gently morphs into bliss and the blue light leaves his eyes. He collapses slowly, giggling. The phone drops from his hand, still glowing with a wicked light. Ray kicks it away.

Podcast lays in a pink puddle, smiling sweetly.

"He'll be okay," says Ray, holstering his mood slime squirt gun. "Nobody else look at that screen! Don't look at ANY screens, okay? We don't know yet if Gozer is just in that phone or in the whole dang internet. Gozer might be able to get to people through other screens as well as this one."

Callie plucks the phone out of the dirt without looking at it, holds the button on the side and shuts it off. She holds it away from herself like it's a dead rat. Winston holds out a containment bag for her to drop it in.

"I feel so funky," says gooey pink Podcast, grinning dreamily and giggling a bit. "Hey, I love you. I love you, Phoebe. I love all you guys."

Chapter Text

A modern guy, Sheriff Domingo had alerts on his phone set to ding whenever Podcast went live or released a new podcast episode. The thing about that weird kid was, if he was up to something, he was going to be talking about it on air somewhere. And that Dirt Farmer grandkid, the younger one who shot up downtown and helped save Lucky's life, was likely to be with Podcast. Subscribing to the MTUU on Musicify and YouView were a great way for Sheriff Domingo to keep an eye on a certain oddball Summerville family.

It surprised him that it was usually a pretty great show, too. He looks forward to it now. He likes both of those kids. In fact, Sheriff noticed Podcast hadn't been releasing new episodes, last couple weeks. He was mildly curious about it.

So when he'd gotten a ping saying Podcast went live, he'd casually clicked over to YouView on his desktop at the station and had Podcast's livestream playing while he did some paperwork in his office. At first, he seemed to be looking out at Dirt Farmer's yard and the edge of the cornfield. Nothing much was happening, but that's the way the Sheriff likes Summerville.

But then all hell broke loose. Monsters and weapons and was that a frigging giant?! Sheriff Domingo shouts. His deputy and dispatcher, Mira Dunne and Dulce Aribas cram into the little office with him, transfixed by the drama on the screen.

"Is this really real?!" Mira squawks as something big and beastly flies past the camera and the ground boils in front of it. "It's AI or something, right?"

"It's a live stream from the Dirt Farm," Domingo says, bass voice a growl. Goddamnit this shit shouldn't be happening in his jurisdiction. Again.

Seeing the Ecto 1 roaring out of the corn makes them all cheer. Are those laser cannons on the hood? Laser cannons are definitely illegal. More paperwork for him.

"That has to be special effects! Animation." Dulce is skeptical.

"I think we better get out to the Dirt Farm, I mean, the Spengler house. Don't call it that no more," Sheriff Domingo responds, standing up, strapping on his belt and holsters. He can't tear his eyes off the monitor.

Then he runs to the window and looks up at the swirling greenish clouds and blue tinged lightening storm out East. Yikes. He can see some of it from here. This is definitely a real live stream.

"Mira, hit the tornado siren. We need everybody to get indoors," he tells her. She gets up and hustles back to her desk and triggers the alarm.

He walks back to his desk and takes one last look at the screen to try and gauge what he's up against. He picks up the phone to call the next town over for back up. Before the other side picks up, he freezes into a statue with glowing blue eyes. So does his dispatcher, Dulce, who stands beside his rolling office chair.

"Are you guys okay?" asks Mira, coming right back after hitting the siren and disturbed to find them frozen and staring at the screen, not speaking or responding, eyes glittering with electric blue energy. "Sheriff? Dulce? What's happening?"

They don't answer. Mira has good instincts and she somehow understands that the video or the livestream or whatever they were watching is doing this to them. She doesn't step further into the room, she backs away and doesn't bring the stream up on her computer. She doesn't pick up her smart phone. She doesn't know what to do, but she knows something is Very Wrong.
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Meanwhile, two miles away at the Sheriff's house:

Lucky Domingo doesn't seriously subscribe to MTUU on all platforms. She's way too much of a baddie for that. She subscribes ironically. She listens to every single episode just for the camp of it, of course.

She's a college student now, who really doesn't need to keep up with small town Occult news. It's just, she loves Podcast and Phoebe, plus... sometimes she catches a glimpse of Trevor in the background of a video.

But she doesn't miss Trev. At all. Definitely doesn't regret breaking up with him last year. It's so uncool to date a hometown highschool boy. She doesn't think about how he was way smarter and more mature than most of the college boys she's met so far. Or how he's now a highschool graduate and almost a college student, too. She doesn't think about how he's probably just a couple miles down the road right now, instead of states away. She doesn't think about Trevor's big brown eyes and soft pink lips at all.

Home for the summer with nothing better to do, when her MTUU live notification pings, Lucky just happens to open her laptop and log in. Not eager for a peek at Trevor, nope.

An hour later, her stepmom finds Lucky, laying on her bed, blue eyed and frozen in front of her screen. Unfortunately, she runs over and looks at the screen herself, trying to discern the source of this phenomenon. Gozer sends glowing blue tendrils of Itself into her as well.
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In the clean up after the Gozer release, something is missing.

"I don't hear any sirens," Winston says, squinting off into the distance towards town. Surely the locals should be on the way.

"That's not a good sign," Ray says. Giant Gozer was definitely visible for miles away. The only reason Sheriff Domingo isn't tear assing up the road towards them right now, would be if something worse was breaking lose in town.

"I do not love getting arrested, but I'm kinda disturbed that no one has handcuffed us yet. That's usually what happens next after a big bust," Peter jokes.

"Handcuffs, huh? The day's still young yet," Janine winks at Ray. Venkman notices her flirtation and mentally pockets the notion for future Stantz teasing. It's his reason for being, after all.

The cops don't show up and the world doesn't instantly end, so everyone decides to clean up and have lunch. Then, they'll figure out where Gozer went.
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"So you guys positively charged some slime in case somebody got possessed?" Gary asks the Ghostbusters and Janine as they're cleaning up the equipment after. "Is this the infamous psycho-transference 'mood' slime from The Vigo the Carpathian Event Horizon of 1989?"

"Yes," says Ray.

"The very same," says Winston. He once took a swim in it, he'd know that pink goo blindfolded.

"Egon had gallons of it in the barn," Venkman says. He leans back in his chair and grins like a shark that smells blood in the water. "Obviously it came in handy, but you wanna tell us why that is, Ray? Why did you two geeks keep it around?"

"Well, uh, after Vigo there were literal rivers of it running under New York for about six weeks until it all washed away, and we were unsure of it's scientific potential so...we took a sizeable sample or two," Ray embarrassed, stammers an explanation that doesn't quite cut it.

"There's 50 gallon drums out there, bud," Venkman winks at him.

"We'd never seen anything with psycho-transference properties like it! Egon was certain it had potential for...um...Our experiments were...um..." Ray is for sure blushing now. What Ray is saying is true and yet they all know the OTHER powers of the slime and why someone might want a vat of it. Winston in particular knows.

"You still can't lie for shit," Janine tells Ray, grinning. Venkman throws his arm around her and shakes a finger at Ray. Naughty naughty. She finishes, "What do I care if you guys saved it to take a bath in it together every year on your anniversary? I'm glad you did. It saved Podcast."

Gary gapes like a fish. Then quickly shakes off the mental image of slimey Grandpas doing whatever on their anniversary. He wants to still be frisky when he's an old guy, too.

"Look, I got possessed by Vigo in '89 and the slime saved me, so when I found it out there, I figured it was a good idea to load the squirt guns. And it was!" Ray is recovering his dignity. "I didn't even know he still had it, okay?"

"So how did you guys positively charge it?" Gary asks the others, picking up one of the squirt guns and looking it over. "You had to go out to the barn last night and generate some really good vibes, right? Sing to it? Play it some stand up comedy albums? Or what?"

Suddenly, all four of them are looking elsewhere, heading off for a nap, changing the subject, refilling coffee cups, and generally not answering. Gary gently sets the squirt gun down with a soft, "oh."

It's always the quiet ones.
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Podcast comes downstairs after his shower, still feeling groovy.

Everyone's smart phones and watches and tablets are laying on the kitchen table. Phoebe is running a PKE meter over them.

"The devices themselves are giving off normal readings," Phoebe says. "Even yours, Podcast."

"2 million views, Phoebe! Can you believe it?" Podcast usually maxes out at 14 or 15 viewers when he live streams. He's never had this many, not even after his small surge in niche popularity in 2021 after he released his Gozer episodes on the MTUU podcast and scored his interview with Ray.

"Yeah, about that..." Phoebe starts to say, but Trevor comes over, upset.

"I can't reach Sheriff Domingo. I...I even called Lucky," Trevor hasn't talked to her since she dumped him last winter. "I can't reach any of my friends, Phoebe. They might not be picking up because they don't recognize the landline number, but I want to drive Ecto into town and check on things."

They still have a landline out at the farmhouse, even though sometime in the early 2000s Egon built an Internet receiver on the roof that could probably beam WiFi to Mars. Tornados and other Oklahoma hazards mean there always needed to be a landline to call 911 just in case. Since the Gozer escape hours ago, Callie, Gary and Trevor have all used it to call Summerville people and not everyone has answered. They warn the ones who answer to stay off YouView but they are worried about everyone else.

So Gary, Podcast, Phoebe and Trevor decide to go to town. Gary grabs the mood slime squirt guns just in case.

They meet Mira on the road, who was walking towards them along the shoulder. Unsure of what else to do, after a while, she simply decided to walk towards the Dirt Farm. The cruiser keys were in Sheriff's pocket and she couldn't bare to touch him, all stiff and awful like that. She was probably slightly in shock. But she knew to start walking and she is with it enough to flag down the Ecto1 when she sees it. Who ya gonna call?

Gary drives her back to the station, while she answers the kids' questions. He parks, leaving them in the car. Then he goes in, unplugs the computers, and sprays both Sheriff Domingo and Dulce with happy mood slime. Their eyes clear and they can move and speak again. But they're weak and sluggish. Drained. Disoriented. Pink and ooey.

"Oh man, that was like grabbing a car battery and not being able to let go," Sheriff says, coming back to himself, feeling sick.

"What the hell was that?!" Dulce wakes and wants to know. Then, as she discovers she's been slimed, "Ew! What's on me?"

"Um, an ancient deity got into YouView through Podcast's Livestream. I think. Maybe it was tapping into you as a power source? I don't know exactly. Let's go back to the farm and see what everybody thinks?" Gary says, already trying to leave.

"I gotta go check on Lucky. Tell her to stay off YouView," Domingo says, "Do you have anymore of this pink gunk? Just in case it caught her, too."

"Take what I got," Gary says, giving him his squirt gun. "There's more at the farm. See you there after you check Lucky, okay?"

"Hey, Grooberson," Domingo says, rubbing slime off his bald head. "Next time some ghost shit is about to go down, give me a heads up before, okay? Not after. Y'all got to cut this shit out. Got it?"

"Cool, cool." Gary definitely shoulda thought of that. He gives him a thumbs up and awkwardly exits.
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Ecto 1 pulls up back at the farmhouse, siren wailing, and Gary busts in the door, yelling, "Guys! We're gonna need A TON of mood slime!"

Chapter Text

The Sheriff pulls up in the yard, with Lucky riding shotgun. Once inside, around the kitchen table, the Ghostbusters and the Spengler family fill them in and they try to clarify a plan for what to do next.

"There's no way we can mood slime 2 million people," Ray realizes. "We couldn't find them all and get slime to them in time. Gozer will drain them to death or they'll die of dehydration first."

"Grim," remarks Venkman, face serious for once.

"YouView has 4 billion logins a day. This could spread all over the planet," Podcast says, looking sick and pale.

"We can slime everyone affected in Summerville," Sheriff Domingo says, hands on his hips. "My deputies and I can go house to house and squirt the zombies. Tell everyone to delete YouView off their phones, to stay off of it."

"Technically, they are not zombies. They're being used as batteries, as a power source. It's more like The Matrix, Dad," Lucky tells the Sheriff.

At Lucky's arrival, Trevor went out to the barn to clean corn stalks out of the grill and undercarriage of Ecto1. Get the Ecto ready to drive to LA. He's definitely not hiding from Lucky. Or his feelings.

Ray, Phoebe and Gary have determined that Gozer is in YouView now, spreading through it like a virus. Not just contained in Podcast's live stream, but luckily, not roaming the entire Internet. Not yet, anyway.

There is absolutely no way The Ghostbusters have the power to shut an app like that down, short of bombing the corporation's servers, wherever they were, probably hidden in heavily guarded caves all over the planet. YouView is on phones, tablets, tvs and computers all over the world. 14 billion minutes of content are uploaded to it every day. It's an almost infinite power source. Gozer is a parasite, an alien tick that's found a thick vein of energy to latch on to. It's very bad news that the disincorporated entity has found a way to use YouView as a vessel.

"Gozer should have been sucked into the machine after Zuul and Vinz! They shouldn't be able to have ANY form in this universe at all without their servants!" Phoebe is outraged that Gozer hasn't followed the rules.

"The Internet doesn't follow the rules," Trevor says. "Especially YouView. It doesn't accurately reflect reality. YouView isn't really real life, you know? Maybe that makes it a slightly separate plane of existence, with different rules that Gozer found a way to exploit. A parallel dimension. A loophole."

"Interesting, Trevor," Ray then explains what he and Egon have been thinking, "Spengler and I theorize that the Gozarians are responsible for Gozer's ability to remain here in any form. Their rituals are anchoring It to this reality in some way, weakening our Universe's laws, bending them. Gozer isn't in a body. Instead, Gozer found a way to tap into raw power without being embodied. They've essentially possessed YouView instead of a human body or a form like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. And they've tapped into millions of unwilling worshippers, draining them through their screens."

"This is all my fault!" wails Podcast, dropping his head to the table in misery. The positive mood slime vibes have worn off and he feels awash with guilt.

"No, it's not, Podcast," everyone says in different ways. Trevor feels quite guilty, too, for having encouraged him to set up the Livestream. Phoebe isn't sure how to feel yet. It will come to her in 6-8 business weeks.

Callie stands to make her point clear, "No, Podcast. This is on Gozer, Shandor, Dad, sorry, and the rest of the Ghostbusters. All this has been in motion since long before you were born, Podcast! Yes, that Thing used your phone, your channel, to access a power source, but it was going to find a way. That's Gozer's nature, okay? Dad taught us, Gozer always finds a way. But so do Spenglers. Okay? We're gonna fix this."

After a few rounds of debate and several pots of coffee, the plan is this: stop the humans who have been aiding Gozer out in Los Angeles. Use the power nexus of the Shandor mansion and the Gozarian's own rituals against Them somehow. Pull Gozer out of the internet and back into the corporal universe, so that They can be destroyed and repolarized.

And they need to do it quick. Battery people may be dying already. Gozer will get stronger with every viewer who logs on to the app. People all over the planet must already be freaking out over frozen, blue eyed loved ones. What will Gozer do with all that energy? How will they begin their Rule? The Ghostbusters have no idea what Gozer's next move will be.

Plan made, everyone needs to pack and prepare.

But first, they all need to go out to the barn and charge up some mood slime.
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There are barrels and barrels of pink slime in the barn. Callie had overlooked it in all the layers of Egon's mystery junk, thinking it was some kind of fuel or waste or whatever that would eventually be dealt with when she had the time and money. Put it on her very long list of things to do around this place.

It was Ray who'd recognized it for what it was when he came out to the farm this time. Vats and vats of psycho-transference "mood" slime. There are two long rows of 50 gallon translucent white plastic drums. It was mood slime in stasis, essentially dead. No bubbles. Inactive.

So they go out to the barn to charge the slime. First, they pop the vent caps on all the barrels so that they won't explode if they start to carbonate when activated.

The next part was Egon's idea.

Spengler's psychokinetic energy is high due to the gathering of everyone he loves in one space and the increased paranormal power surge from Gozer's rip in reality. So, he is able to pull himself into solidified form for the second time in one day.

There are golden motes sparkling in the air next to the first in the line of slime barrels. Then, Egon Spengler is standing there, visible from fluffy hair and glasses, jumpsuit down to the work boots. He smiles softly and places a quicksilver hand on the barrel of slime next to him. Then Ray steps forward, bashful but delighted, and hugs Egon. It's the first time outside of his dreams that he's held his husband in many years. There are tears in both their eyes as they hold each other close. Egon begins to glow with a golden, swirling light.

Then, the vat Egon is touching begins to glow, a lovely pink. The next one in line lights up, too. Ray and Egon wave their friends and family over. Egon closes his eyes to concentrate. Janine, Gary, Podcast, and Callie are first to join the group hug. They circle Egon and Ray and hug them. Venkman, Winston, Phoebe and Trevor are not far behind, layering themselves on the huddle.

"Everyone focus hard on how much you love each other! On how much we all love at least one person here. Fill yourself with positivity! Concentrate!" Ray calls out from the center of the hug.

They all try to mentally muster happy memories and inside jokes and funny stories. All the barrels light up, one by one, glowing a luminous pink. They all start sparkling like champagne. Bubbling and blooping, glowing softly.

Lucky and Sheriff Domingo stand by awkwardly for a moment and then join in the group hug, too. Why not?

When all the vats of mood slime effervesce with a brightly glowing, fully positive charge, Egon's spiritform dissipates in a golden flash. Spengler will have to go rest now. Ray's arms and head feel empty without him.
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Sheriff and Lucky Domingo, Mira and Dulce will be in charge of local slime patrol in Summerville. They'll get glass jars of positively charged slime to nearby hospitals, too. Spread the word about YouView, call TV news networks, other sheriffs and emergency rooms. So the Ghostbusters will leave most of the glowing slime in the Sheriff's care to be administered locally. Sheriff Domingo is already making calls. Some townsfolk will come with pickups and haul the barrels away to help distribute it.

Before sunrise, everyone else is going on a road trip to visit Shandor's grandson in Los Angeles. They have a temple to storm.
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That night, Ray comes to bed to find Janine already there. Reading a book, propped up on pillows, at home in Ray's borrowed bed that used to be Egon's.

"Oh, hello," says Ray, for lack of the right thing to say at such a moment. His heart pounds. Janine is in his bed.

"I hope you don't mind. You said I needed to sleep in the big house and every other spot was occupied," Janine blinks at him over the tops of her glasses and pats the bed. "Is this seat taken?"

"Um," says Ray, who has never had a suave moment in his life. "Errr, I don't mind?"

"Why did that come out like a weird question?" he asks himself silently, loathing himself slightly for the way his voice pitched up and squeaked.

He grabs his pajamas and ducks into Egon's stark white tile bathroom to change (and cut his toenails and freshen his deodorant and brush his teeth extra extra well).

Then Ray climbs into bed with Janine Melnitz.

"I have a c-pap machine," Ray tells her. Very hot opening line there, Raymond.

"Me, too," she says and gestures to her side of the bed. Then they grin at each other.

"And I'll have to get up to pee three times in the night," Ray blushes.

"So will I," Janine laughs.

Ray laughs, too. Janine is an old friend. This is probably fine.

She's got on a pink plaid pajama set. Her petite bare feet with cherry red toenail polish, peek out of the pajama cuffs. Without her makeup, she looks both older and younger somehow and Ray thinks it suits her. He's always had such a crush. She's so cute, Ray feels a bit wibbly squibbly and doesn't have the time to fully interpret the emotional data of this moment. This definitely feels like flirting, but is it? C-paps and all?

"Don't worry about it, Ray," she says, and she places her hand pointedly on his thigh and makes prolonged, unblinking eye contact with him.

Ray feels quite overheated suddenly. Oh. It is.

"Uh, Janine," says Ray, wondering if this moment is about her long standing attraction to his husband and nothing to do with him. "Egon is not home right now. He's resting wherever he goes after doing something big here. He's not possessing this body right now. It's just us. Just you and me."

"Oh, good. He's not invited," says Janine and she clicks off the light. "Come here, Dr. Stantz."

Ray goes.

Chapter Text

The mansion Ivo Shandor built for his mistress sits in the Hollywood Hills, up a long, switchback road. They'd expected it to be surrounded by walls and guarded by dobermans, but instead, they discover it's wide open, on a big, sprawling green lawn. They can drive right up.

So they won't have to blast in with the Ecto1's hood cannon or answer a demon's riddle to get through some enchanted gates or something? How ordinary. Podcast is slightly disappointed but wisely, doesn't mention it.

It's a gorgeous 1920s estate, the epitome of silver screen Old Hollywood Glamour. It would look perfectly harmless and elegantly innocent, if the sky above it weren't swirling with sickly green clouds and crackling with cyan lightening. The current resident seems to be having a party. Luxury cars line the drive. The exterior is brightly lit by outdoor lighting. It looks inviting, but an aire of menace radiates off the beautiful building, a supernatural energy that has been setting off Phoebe's PKE meter for miles. Some weird shit is definitely going down in there. Ray can recognize the pulse of magic, a powerful ritual at work. Venkman is nearly dizzy with psychic headache. Winston recognizes the smell of ozone and sulfur that floats to them through the open car windows. Ghosts.

"Art deco, very nice," Gary observes when they pull close enough to see the mansion. He's riding shotgun in Ray's car.

"I think I saw this house in a magazine," Callie says, eyes big. "In the waiting room at the dentist's office."

They've driven 20 hours to get here. Sleeping and driving in shifts. At the moment, Ray is driving his car, Janine, Gary, Callie and Phoebe with him. Winston is currently behind the wheel of Ecto1, with Podcast, Trevor, and Venkman riding. It's just after 2AM.

They pull up the driveway to the house, stopping at the circular parking area, surrounding a rather lewd fountain. It's an enormous gold art deco statue of the actress Myrna Van Pelt doing something unspeakable on the back of a swan.

"Weird statue of your grandma to keep around," Venkman says, ready to pick a fight.

"PKE readings are super hot," says Phoebe, taking measurements. She switches the PKE to taser mode.

Jumpsuits on and armed with slime spray canisters, proton packs or disc traps, everyone forms a circle around Phoebe and the Gozer Grinder, which they wheel to the front door.

"They're not actually going to let us wheel this stuff straight in, are they?" Gary asks, afraid to jinx the ease with which they've approached the enemy so far.

Just as they reach the front entry, the large etched glass doors swing open by an unseen hand. They crackle with blue sparks.

"Oh, they want us to come in, now? That's never a good sign," says Venkman

"So much for making an unnoticed entrance," Ray shrugs. They all follow him into a glass and marble grand entry way.

"Oh look, our guests have arrived!" booms a very familiar voice, one from a dozen blockbuster action films.

"Oh look, it's People's Sexiest Man Alive 2021," answers Gary, flatly regarding their host.

Gary is pissed. It sucks when your celebrity mancrush turns out to be a Gozer worshipping, ultra nepotism baby, evil cult leader.

One of the most famous men in all the world is standing in front of them at the top of a sweeping staircase, wrapped in a gold and burgundy robe. Patrick Bronsdown, 31 year old action star, philanthropist, heir of Shandor and high priest of Gozer. His eyes are electric blue. Veins stand out along his throat and temples. The actor's trademark beauty now tinged with rot.

"Woah, feel that?" Venkman feels a nasty psychic power signature radiating off of this creep.

"Yep," says Ray, clicking his proton pack on. It whines and whirrs as it powers up. His mind flickers to Egon switching him on for the first time in the hotel elevator in 1984 and he smiles. He loves this sound. He wonders if Egon is close now or still too weak.

Winston nods and switches on, too, eyes scanning the mansion's interior. He's mentally mapping exits and best points of defense.

Below Bronsdown, a wide stairway winds down to a sunken ballroom at the center of the house. Two wings with living quarters and kitchens sweep off to the East and West, with this large open circular space as the center of the home. The whole back wall is glass, Los Angeles sparkling like the night sky below them. The floor is cream colored marble patterned in stars and circles, forming symbols and rings around a large, black basalt slab at the center. An altar, of course. Thin lines of Selenium run through the floor in intricate tracery, but it's hard to see the floor under all the famous people.

The ballroom looks like the audience of the Oscars in there, so many movie stars in one place. And some of them are dead.

That's Marilyn Monroe over there. John Belushi, who was by far Ray's biggest celebrity crush back in the 70s, is there. Gilda Radner, also one of his all time favorite comedy crushes. Natalie Wood, James Dean, Freddie Prinze, River Phoenix, Dorothy Dandridge and so many more dead faces they recognize but can't name. And all 200 or so of them, living or dead have blue, glowing eyes and are staring up at the intruders, stillfaced and silent. It's extremely unsettling on a number of levels.

"This is big weird," whispers Podcast to Phoebe. "All these people are super famous. I know you don't do pop culture."

Phoebe whispers back. "Thanks. Even I know some of them. That's half the Avengers over there, right?"

"Give us the girl," says Bronsdown, haughty and certain of his right to demand such a thing. He points at Phoebe regally. "She has been chosen."

Phoebe begins to slide towards him, as though pulled like a magnet. She grabs onto her mom and the Grinder. Janine and Podcast grab them both and hold her back from being dragged all the way to him.

"Sacrificing virgins, Captain Universe? What a cliché," Venkman jumps in to verbally spar with Bronsdown, loving an excuse to taunt. "Yeah, it's been done, Pat. We'll pass."

"As you wish," Patrick Bronsdown says, smiling wickedly, showing all his expensive veneers. "We will take the boy."

Blue lightening blazes out of his fingertips, striking Trevor in the chest and encasing him in a ball of shining energy, which lifts him up off the ground and carries him over the railing and down to the altar at the center of it all. They can see Trevor crying out and thrashing inside the energy field that carries him to the cold black stone, but they can't hear him. Electricity lashes him to the altar. He struggles against the crackling blue bonds.

"Trevor!" Callie shouts, and then she tries to run for him. Bronsdown glances at her and regally waves his hand again. Callie is knocked to the ground, writhing in an encapsulating blue energy ball, momentarily incapacitated.

Suddenly, Ray feels a level of white hot rage at Callie and Trevor's treatment that is not entirely his own. Egon is with him again. Ray feels Spengler gathering energy inside of him. Spengler burns his way back into existence, using his desire to save Trevor as his fuel. It hits Ray, a hot rush of strength, and he gasps and stumbles a step. Then, he rushes to Callie and takes her pulse. She's unconscious but breathing clearly. She stirs, starting to come to.

The temple leader doesn't see the possession come over Ray because just then, Bronsdown soars into the air, flying over the assembly on a wave of cerulean electricity, landing next to the altar and looking down at Trevor, crying out, "Behold the vessel for your Ruler! The chalice! Behold the boy who will contain Magnificence!"

Two hundred of the most beautiful, rich and famous people who have ever lived, fall to their knees and begin to chant. Electric blue eyes pulsing with the rhythm.

"It's ancient Sumerian," Egon says inside Ray's ears. Ray knew that but he can't understand it all. "They're summoning Gozer, of course. And trying to loosen Trevor's soul's grip on his body."

Then, the most mundane thing happens next. Bronsdown gets out his phone. He digs around in the pocket of his silky robe and pulls out a smart phone. Then he unlocks it, which takes two tries, and he fiddles with the menu a bit and opens an app. It's so ordinary a moment as to be absurd under the circumstances. He holds it up and the little rectangular screen bathes Trevor in its blue light. Trevor squeezes his eyes shut and won't look at the phone.

"This is what we've come to? Apps?" Venkman bitches. "Remember good old fashioned haunts with card catalogs, Ray? Kids these days."

"What are we waiting for?" Janine asks. "He can't zap us all at the same time, can he? Let's blast these creeps."

Ray stands protectively over Callie, who is waking but groggy, and talks fast and low to the huddle, "Let's see if they can pull Gozer out of YouView during this ritual. They intend to put Them inside of Trevor but they need Gozer's essence on this plane first. We go too soon and Gozer retreats back into YouView. We'll attack mid transfer when Gozer is vulnerable, okay? Spray the crowd and toss traps down from up here on this entry level landing. You guys go left, you go right. On my call. Get ready."

Meanwhile, Bronsdown's screen has begun to glow blindingly bright. The Gozer worshippers don't look so hot. As their chant grows louder, they've start looking gaunt, corpse-like, even the living ones. Their glowing eyes make them look like they're being burned alive from the inside by blue flames. It seems they, too, are being used as batteries, and though they can move and chant, they are merely puppets under Bronsdown and Gozer's control. Their power and beauty is being used as bait and food for Gozer, fueling the ritual that pulls Gozer from YouView.

Out of the blazing phone screen in Bronsdown's hand, coils a luminous, snaking, muscular blue slither. It's not a substance exactly. It's a horrible, slinking, unformed mass of ill intent. It's a parasitic, sentient stain on our Universe. And It wants Trevor.

Phoebe rolls the Gozer Grinder to the top of the stairs. She turns to Winston and Venkman. "When Ray says go, make us a path."

Ray waits until more of the undulating Gozer essence has been pulled into real world space by the dedication of it's worshippers, who are even now, surrendering their power and beauty to It, draining themselves, believing they'll be renewed again after Gozer takes a human host and comes to rule here. They falsely believe they'll be even more beautiful and powerful than ever when this is done, and immortal too, probably. None of them realize they're worshipping a cosmic tape worm that will drain them all to death and never give back what It has taken.

"On your mark. Get set," Ray prays that as Gozer pulls Itself into this room, it releases its hold on the people it was sucking the life out of through the app. It's just a leech. It's not a god at all. Never was. Hopefully people all over the planet are waking up and unfreezing, no longer captive batteries. Watching the coiling mass of Gozer goo surging out of his phone and slithering over Bronsdown's hand, writhing and dripping onto the slab, Ray sees their chance. Bronsdown is too distracted to stop and throw more lightening at them. Not wanting to risk Trevor longer, hoping his timing is right, Ray shouts, "GO!"

Janine and Gary rush the railing and toss frisbee traps down into the crowd. As the discs pop open, they pull the dead celebrities into their searingly bright cone of light, shredding the last of their glamour away and revealing the sickening horrors they really are beneath.

Venkman and Winston hose their high capacity pnumatic mood slime sprayers over the living members of the crowd while running down the stairs ahead of Podcast and Phoebe, who ride the Gozer Grinder down, standing on its heavy wheeled base. No mere squirt guns, these sprayers can cover the crowd quickly, an updated version of what they once sprayed the Statue of Liberty with. They're effective but not precise and the slime is getting everywhere.

The living, slime-coated celebrities snap out of their trance, as the dead ones get sucked into more traps, dropped from above by Janine and Gary. Podcast flings discs behind him, into the wake of the Grinder's passing, to keep the worshippers from rushing in at their backs. They make it to Trevor at the center, crashing to a hault at the foot of the altar. They're surrounded now.

As they come into awareness, the living Gozer worshippers reel in shock and confusion, swatting the corpses off of themselves, as their disentigrating dead celebrity counterparts clutch and claw at them, trying to resist the traps. A chart topping pop singer, screaming in terror, punches a 1930's child star in the rotting face. Then, hit with a splash of sweet pink mood slime, he instantly calms and giggles. As more and more celebrities are covered in the positively charged slime, the famous faces can't quite remember what they were so desperate for just a moment before. They're dazed, giddy, exhausted.

Phoebe throws a lever and a bright, fuschia light blazes from the maw of her machine, which begins to suck the oily, stringy, blue ectoplasmic mass of Gozer away from her brother and into itself.

Chapter Text

Inside his head, Ray hears Egon warn him, "Patrick Bronsdown is possessed. He's not alone in there, Ray."

Winston drops his slime sprayer, grabs his proton thrower and hits Bronsdown's phone with a narrow proton stream and knocks it out of his hand, into melted oblivion. Bronsdown screams in rage, looking at his now empty but impossibly unburnt hand. The energy he's channeling is protecting his body in some way.

Retreat back into the app for now impossible, the ropes of glowing Gozer goop that have been oozing Their way into meat space, begin to writhe and thrash frantically. Phoebe's Gozer Grinder machine pulls It's tendrils in like spaghetti on a fork. It shouldn't be able to scream because It doesn't have a mouth, but It does. Gozer screams in agony inside everyone's head. Bronsdown screams with it.

The screams motivate the few celebrity Gozarians, who haven't been slimed or trapped yet, to surge at Phoebe and Podcast, trying to rip them away from the machine. Venks and Zedd fight them off. Zeddemore zaps the dead ones and Venkman sprays the living ones. There's something wonderful about shooting these privileged modern monarchs right in the face with a steady stream of pink pearly goo.

With Gozer weakening and distracted, fighting the machine, Podcast scrambles in low, under the action, and yanks Trevor down off the altar. Gozer's power loses it's grip on Trevor when he's pulled from its loci and splashed with crossfire slime. The two boys army crawl away through the slimey celebrity melee.

Patrick Bronsdown thrusts his fists into the tendrils of Gozer's remaining energy as It fights against the sucking tide of Phoebe's machine. He tries to physically pull it free, to keep it here in our reality. He's roaring, shrieking, making sounds no human voice box should be able to make. The sickly blue veins are pulsing and spreading up his neck.

This famous, wealthy, beautiful man, who has had every privilege, every power that our world can offer, handed to him at his birth, still wants more. There can never be enough for men such as this. Hollow men with an insatiable lust for power. Men who have become nothing but a bottomless hunger for more. He wants to rule. He wants immortality. Neither Bronsdown nor Gozer will accept defeat.

It shouldn't be possible, but Bronsdown is winning. He's somehow coiling the Gozer energy around himself, backing away and keeping it from the sucking maw of Phoebe's device. Phoebe, outraged, is trying to increase the vacuum power of her Grinder. Gozer's time inside the almost infinite power source YouView has made the parasitic creature incredibly strong.

"Slime Bronsdown!" Ray is yelling. That creep is supernaturally enhanced. They have to reduce his advantage. Dispossess him immediately. Winston and Zedd, down on the floor in the center of it all are too busy fighting blue goo strands, famous ghosts and possessed celebrities to hear him.

Below Ray, famous people slip and slide in the slick pink ectoplasm that coats them and the ballroom flooring. They call out for their personal assistants, their drug dealers, their agents, their mommies. Wigs and toupees askew. They groan and giggle and flop. Only the ones smart enough to lay down and slide themselves to the dryer edges of the ballroom are able to leave. Anyone who tries to stand, especially in heels or leather soled dress shoes, takes a topple as though standing on a sheet of ice.

Bronsdown looks around in frantic desperation, Gozer's electric blue gloop form coiled around him like an anaconda, then he drops to his knees, places both palms on the slimey floor, and screams something in Ancient Sumerian. Ray catches "arise" and "rule" but not much else.

Horrifyingly, glittering blue electric currents gush from Bronsdown's palms, through the selenium tracery in the marble floor. Then, the mood slime coating everything and everyone begins to change from its lovely rose color to a cold, throbbing, greedy blue.

Gozer and Bronsdown are charging the mood slime and almost everyone down there is covered in it.

"Get out of the slime!!" Ray and Janine are yelling from the entry level above, waving their arms.

Callie pulls herself to the railing to see what's happening. Her disc traps and proton pack are useless against what is going on below.

Podcast and Trevor have made it to the edge of the room and they quickly climb onto a sofa to get off the floor. It's the most high stakes game of Floor is Lava ever.

Phoebe and the Gozer Grinder are in a small slime free island in the middle of things, up against the foot of the altar. Venkman and Zeddemore have had their backs to her, shielding and circling her. Some is splattered on her jumpsuit, but none is touching her skin. After decades of soaked suits, Egon designed some to be ectoplasm resistant in the early 2010s. Phoebe is trapped but okay. Venkman and Zeddemore are pretty slime coated and standing in puddles of it. And it's too slick to run even in their boots.

Gary is screwed. He was halfway down the slime coated stairs, trying to get to Phoebe by sitting down and carefully butt sliding down to the ballroom level. Trying to walk down the frictionless, ice-like steps would be certain injury or death. He can't get up and run. So he just yells in frustration and fear as the electric blue energy wave rushes up the stairs and over him.

Venkman and Winston are caught by the spreading blue stain, too, trying to keep their posts beside Phoebe and the Grinder. They can't shoot their proton guns into the slime because that would fry every person currently standing in the highly conductive pool of mood slime. Mood slime that is now being charged by Gozer Itself, in It's purest, greediest, most unstable form. Winston, Venkman, Gary, all the celebrities, everyone left on the floor and stairs would be cooked alive by the volts, all while feeling each other's excruciating pain as they boil to death in proton slime. Pass. No, thanks. But Venks and Zedd don't know what to do as the pink slime changes to blue around them and rushes up their splattered legs.

Gozer wants Phoebe. Robbed of Trevor, the energy vortex demands a new vessel, for It is still far too vulnerable to survive in our dimension without a host, without its servants Zuul and Vinz Clortho to force Their birth into this plane and allow It to form It's own body from the minds of It's victims. It must possess a human vessel. It cannot possess Bronsdown because he is already occupied.

Patrick Bronsdown's eyes glow bright cyan as he chants and chants. The cyan ropes of Gozer's electric energy tendrils, coil down his body and flow into the slime. Around him, the glowing blue slime begins to gather, pooling and pulling at itself. Gozer is forming a human shaped body out of nothing but mood slime, ego, insatiable hunger and evil intention.

The Gozer slime body reaches for Phoebe, It's arms stretching into tentacles that snake around her arms and legs, dragging her away from her machine and towards Itself. Gozer sends a bright wave of blue slime to knock the Grinder over, but it keeps running. It's opening begins to slurp at a puddle of the blue ectoplasm, which beads and runs towards it, moving like liquid mercury across the floor.

Ray and Egon realize what is happening at the same time and without discussion, Egon peels himself out of Ray's body, which Ray feels as a sudden drop in temperature and an unpleasant stretching, nauseated sensation.

Then Egon is suddenly visible beside him, a full body manifestation, a golden, glowing phantom of himself in his jumpsuit, boots and glasses, crazy hair and smartass smirk, looking less than half his age at death. Looking the age he was when The Ghostbusters fought Gozer for the first time in 1984. Egon looks so young and handsome, Ray's heart does not burst with love but it wants to.

"Egon!" he says, tears springing to his eyes against his will. Smiling anyway, "Hi, honey."

"Remember I will always love you," Egon says, looking into Ray's eyes and cupping his cheek. His deep voice is exactly as Ray remembers it across the decades.

Then, he goes to save Phoebe.

Egon can walk right down the stairs through the slime without slipping because Ghost. His passing leaves a lovely, golden radiant path through the harshly bright, screen blue slime. Halfway down the stairs, Egon brushes a hand over Gary who then shifts from blue to glowing gold.

"Ohhh wow. Trippy," Gary gasps and can move freely again. Grooberson's eyes are wide and starry and his mouth goes slack with suddenly understood mysteries of the universe. He's been Spenglered.

What is the opposite of insatiable, parasitic, Desire for More? A being who has everything they need. A person with Purpose so clear, it can not be manipulated or twisted. A being who lived a life of service. An entity dedicated to the protection of others. Dr. Egon Spengler.

So in the end, what happens is this- a glowing, golden wave of pure satisfaction pools and pours through the slime coated room, radiating out from Egon's luminous spirit as he calmly walks over to the kneeling, chanting Patrick Bronsdown. All the celebrities, Zedd and Venkman, are now coated in recharged golden Bliss. They feel awash with Generosity, Purpose and a sense of Enough. Above all else, Love.

Egon bends, plunges both transparent hands into Bronsdown's chest and yanks the ghost that rides him out of his body. Bronsdown collapses, a husk.

The ghost is Ivo Fucking Shandor, because who else would it be?

The only person more stubborn than that Gozer loving jackass is Egon Spengler. Shandor and Spengler do not give up, even dead. Egon has wanted to kick his ass for a very long time.

Clearly, when Gozer ripped Ivo's own mummified body in two and discarded him, back in Summerville 2021, this nasty ghost bastard had orb zoomed out to LA and possessed his own grandson's body. He'd probably been ritually preparing Patrick to host him since his birth. It's clear, even in death, Shandor had backup plans. This temple. His grandchild. Generations of Gozarian celebrities amassing fame and wealth. All Gozer bait.

Shandor's ghost roars and tries to call upon Gozer to help him. Gozer doesn't care about him and never has. Keeps oozing and coiling over Phoebe whose eyes are beginning to glow blue.

"Why won't that creepy old guy die already?!" Podcast screams out, recognizing the glowing blue ghost man as the living corpse from Shandor's tomb at the mines.

"Get him, Granddad!" yells Trevor, jumping up and down on the sofa.

Egon takes Ivo out like the trash.

A wave of Egon's hand brings Phoebe's machine upright again and then he simply tosses Shandor's ghost into the mouth of the Grinder, which sucks Shandor in like a branch into a woodchipper. The machine exhales his particles back to this earthly plane as sparkling white and gold flecks of pure positive energy, which instantly disappear into the ether.

"Nice job, Dad!" yells Callie. Egon waves up to her.

Then, Egon spares one last look up at Ray who says "Pumpernickel" under his breath fruitlessly, unable to control his Beloved now just like always. Tears streak his cheeks.

And then, Egon's Ghost runs and tackles Gozer's horrible goo and greed miasma of a body and easily rips it away from his grandchild. Freed from the blue tentacles, Phoebe falls to the floor into the glowing, golden pure Love slime, where she laughs like a little kid splashing in a rain puddle.

Then, surrounded by his friends and family, who know and understand him like never before, who all love him very much, Dr. Egon Spengler jumps into the hot pink, proton bright maw of the Grinder, taking Gozer with him, exiting our plane of existence forever.

In a final flash of golden, sparkling light, it's finally over.

Chapter Text

Ray goes back to Ray's Occult Books and sleeps.

He sleeps for a week.
His bones are tired.
His eyes are tired.
His brain is tired.
Most of all, his heart is tired.

Egon is gone.

You'd think Ray would be used to his husband's rather dramatic exits by now, but no. Every time Egon leaves him, Ray dies a little. He feels hollow without him.

On the eighth day, Ray wakes up, eats something, showers, and gets to work.

Dr. Raymond Stantz rage cleans.

He purges clutter and burns useless old papers in a trash can out back. He donates the best junk and puts piles of unwanted smaller things out on the sidewalk in cardboard boxes marked "FREE". New York makes them vanish in minutes. He sorts and reorganizes. He scrubs his whole world with hot soapy water.

And he cries.

And he talks, out loud to an Egon who is no longer there to listen. Sometimes he yells at him for being such a stubborn ass. Sometimes he weeps and begs him to come back. Sometimes he asks for his forgiveness, even though he knows it has already been given. Sometimes he just talks aloud about their mutual interests. Sometimes he reminisces about the adventures they had.

Janine comes by.

"Egon came to me in a dream while we were out at his farm before LA," she announces, bustling in with two big shopping bags full of new clothes in Ray's sizes. "He wanted me to buy you some things."

In the bags are mostly his favorite brand of black cotton T-shirt over and over, his favorite style of pants in 4 dark colors, some buttery soft pajamas and boxers, and a dozen seamless socks in both black and in crazy patterns for silly days. A few nicer items for special occasions. Date clothes, potentially. Funerals, most likely.

It is all things that fit, things that he likes. Things that someone who knows him intimately has picked out.

Janine stands in his bedroom, hands on hips, determined look on her cute face, "Look, Ray, Egon made me promise to do this. I'm sorry. I realize this invades your privacy. Would it be okay if I clean out your closet?"

And then Janine mercilessly raids his closet and gets rid of almost all his old clothes. He gets to keep his softest, oldest favorites, but everything else is donated. Some kid who is into GrandpaCore will probably rock his stuff, wracking up likes on FashioGram.

At one point, Janine has him try on a couple sweaters and blazers, and as she brushes her hands over his shoulders, to adjust the drape of something, her touch makes Ray feel a flutter inside his chest. She looks up at him, admiring the way he looks and makes a pleased sound.

They haven't discussed what happened between them the night before the battle, yet.

Ray suddenly feels squirmy and conspicuous beneath her gaze but...does not hate it. He likes the way she is looking at him, quite a bit.

"You were really badass with those frisbee traps, Janine," Ray tells her, green and brown eyes taking her in. She smells wonderful up close, green tea and lavender.

"Thank you," she responds, grinning proudly. "I think I trapped John Belushi and Gilda Radner in the same trap! I wonder if they had fun in there together until we let them out?"

Ray says, "Thank you for the new clothes. Thank you for, um, everything." He knows it's insufficient but he's too heavy inside to share everything he feels right now.

"Egon picked the clothes out, Ray. The man made me take very specific notes in my sleep. Bossiest dead person I ever met," Janine says, wiping a tear away. "But you're welcome, honey. You look great. You're welcome for...everything else, too."

Then she kisses him goodbye, on the cheek, but lingering a moment, as though she has more to say, but just then, the shop bell downstairs rings and she says, "Sounds like you have a customer. I'll see you in Oklahoma soon. I'm really glad you're doing this. Take care of yourself, Dr. S."

Then, he packs.

He packs all of his things. His personal library. Photos and treasures and tools.

He is going to go live in Egon's house in Oklahoma with Callie, Phoebe and Gary. This will be Trevor's apartment now. Ray feels a bit like Bilbo Baggins leaving Bag End to Frodo. Trevor can have it, a place where he can stay, rent free, in New York while attending Columbia this fall. He is 18 now, the exact age that undergrad Ray had been when doctoral student Egon had approached him in the cafeteria, wanting to talk about ghosts. The man and the ghosts would change his life forever.

Ray owns the bookstore's building outright, his last gift from Ghostbusters' fame and the booming 90s economy. He will leave it to Phoebe and Trevor in his will. They can sell it for a hefty profit someday. Start a business or buy a house or become evil geniuses and take over the world or something. He doesn't care. In his refreshed grief, he feels weirdly unattached to everything. Cleansed.

Ray's employee Sabrina will run the shop full time now. She is better at customer service anyway. It was probably past time he let her take over. Sabrina is excited, eager to update the place. Keeps talking about inviting the divine feminine into the space and such things. Hosting covens, meet ups and book clubs. Selling fair trade coffee alongside the tea. Ray would hate it, the invasion of all those people, all that change. People might actually have the nerve to buy the books and take them away. The shop is one more thing making it that much easier to see his way out.
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One of the last things Ray packs is his small shrine to Egon. The wrapped Twinkies have been sitting there for months now and they are still looking remarkably fresh, he notices. He doesn't pack those. But the photos and other things, he tucks away in a lovely, carved rosewood box. As he picks up the bundle of Egon's letters to set them inside, Ray feels...funny.

The tiniest electric charge zips up his arm.

"Remember, I will always love you," those words came back to him.

"What if he was literally telling me to remember the words 'I will always love you'?" Ray ponders.

"I will always love you."

18 letters. 4 spaces. Could it be? Was it not just sentiment, but a coded message?

The mathematical gears in his brain turning, Ray realizes "I will always love you" could be the key phrase to unlock a Vigenère Square, a 16th-century cipher that uses a keyword or key phrase, to generate a series of different Caesar shifts within the same message. To scramble words and letters into nonsense order so that they can't be understood by outsiders.

Hands shaking, Ray opens Winston's letter from Egon, the one full of numbers.

Then he gets out his trusty pencil and notebook. Opens each of Janine's letters. The letters that it seems clear now aren't meant for Janine at all.

Putting all the words into the pattern dictated by Egon's letter to Winston, the code now unlocked by Egon's last words to him, he rearranges letters within words and words within sentences. Puts the sentences in different orders. Ray rewrites each letter. He has to jump up and bounce and pace between each one. Eat a Twinkie. Craves a cigarette for the first time in ages. Almost makes some phone calls but finds he can't talk.

When he is done decoding Egon's letters, he goes to bed. Then he gets back up and drinks a glass of water. Then he goes back to bed again, and sleeps without dreaming.

Chapter Text

Ray decodes and rearranges all Egon's letters, there is one for Callie, a letter for Phoebe and one for Trevor. Even a brief note for Gary. There are three letters for Ray.

We'll concern ourselves with Egon's letters to his husband, all written in late 2020:
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Raymond, my love,

You know I never wanted to sell my proton pack or ghost trap designs to the Department of Defense. They would surely use the proton technology on living people. The military would use my life's work to bring buildings down on top of children. Never.

What you do not know, is that I have invented many other things. Over the decades, I have sold hundreds of inventions. I currently hold 2,346 patents. My work is in modems, hearing aids, smart phones and vacuums. Tech companies all over the world paid me ridiculous sums for gadgets.

I have invested the money. You're rich, Ray. All of you.

If I give the fortune to Callie or the kids now, the fight with Gozer will take it from them. The kids will just throw it all towards stopping the trap system from failing and they'll wind up Gozer's guardians forever, stuck out at the farm, lives lived in vigilance and servitude. No, I can not have that future for our family. The traps must fail! You all must banish Gozer forever.

Only after Gozer is gone, give them the money.

The bank account numbers are in Winston's letter. There's more paperwork on my patents hidden in Columbia's library, tucked into a textbook I wrote 42 years ago. The call numbers are in the key letter, too. I am quite certain no one has ever checked that book out. Only you or I would want to read it. I couldn't leave a financial trail in the lab and let Janine find it too early. She would force me to pay my debts with it and I don't want those corporate bastards to have a cent. My estate taxes that will inevitably fund the military industrial complex are bad enough to contemplate.

There is an account for Janine, as well. For her many years of kindness and friendship.

And one for you. Let me take care of you, Ray. Don't give it all away. Live, Stantz, you've earned it. Promise me you will live.

Raymond, I know what I have to do next, what will happen to me, and I am at peace. I can see so much from here, but I can not see how to change my fate. This is the only way. Sacrifices must be made. I am not afraid.

I will see you in your dreams.

Love always,

~Egon~
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My Ray,

Soon.

I am so tired of waiting and fighting. Waiting and fighting. Over soon.

I am ready to rest.

Do you remember that tropical vacation we tried to take in 1987, when we ended up investigating a haunting at the resort and never even set foot on the beach? Neither one of us was ever good at resting.

If you are reading this, I am finally learning how to rest.

When you are ready, I will be waiting for you. Whatever the next phase is after this lifetime, we will be together again.

As you know, matter can neither be created nor destroyed, and so, I must still exist in some infinite form. Raymond, wherever I am now, I am still loving you. I will always love you.

Ask Janine out already, Ray. You never could tell when someone is flirting with you. Wasn't crawling into our bed a big enough hint? She really likes you.

So do I. I want you to be happy. Please try.

Always,
Spengs
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Dearest Ray,

I have spent too much time close to Gozer's gate in Shandor's tomb. They pull at me, the energies that converge there. The voices. The portal. It has begun to unravel my hold on the present moment. My PKE readings are off the charts. My body loses its grip on my soul. I am sometimes only a consciousness, an entity outside of time.

From here, Ray, I can see Everything.

The future. The past. What could have been. My only wish is that you could see it with me.

You will. We will.

There are many Universes spread out before me.

And I am with you in almost every one. Even the one where I am blonde and blue eyed and you have red hair. Though, there is one odd world where I have married Janine and you have been with Venkman for forty five years. Can you imagine? Our other selves were quite happy in that dimension, to my surprise. Other than them, almost all the versions of us, in all the Multiverse, are together.

But we are not. You and I are apart.

Do not blame yourself, Ray. Or at least, share the blame with me. I shouldn't have kept secrets and I shouldn't have left you. You should have believed me and come to find me. We could have done so much better by each other in this life. I am forever sorry, Raymond.

I am certain we will have other lifetimes together to try again and get it right.

I can see you from here, Beloved. Burning like a candle flame in the dark, keeping busy around your shop in New York. Your energy is visible to me across all spacetime. Did you know? I could find you anywhere.

I will.

Don't forget to drink some water. You've been sitting there decoding a long time.

I will always love you,

Your Egon

Chapter Text

Two years later, Callie and Gary get married in front of the family farmhouse.

Where Gozer's trap system used to lie in the bare dirt, is now a beautiful garden buzzing with honey bees. Small but already growing, cherry trees in full, fluffy pink bloom line the long driveway. Daffodils poking their heads up everywhere. The collapsing old barn has been replaced by a glass and steel laboratory structure, strung with festive white string lights for the occasion. All the piles of rusty junk Egon had used to scare curious townsfolk away have been recycled or dumped. The old farmhouse has been painted a fresh milkpaint white, and all the crumbling trim has been repaired and the drafty old windows replaced. The guests can't see it from where they sit, but there's a sizeable addition on the back of the farmhouse, too. They've enlarged the kitchen and added a full Father In Law suite for Ray on the bottom floor. And the top floor has extended office space for Callie and added guest rooms for their frequent visitors.

Time for the ceremony.

The sun is just beginning to set and there's a string quartet playing softly as everyone finds their seats in the garden. Rows of little gold chairs and a flower arch have been set up. Candles glow in the softening dusk light.

Callie walks the aisle alone because she doesn't need anyone to give her away or give her permission. She is fully her own person. Radiant in a cream and blush colored lace gown. Her bouquet is a wild riot of berries and dandelions and creamy roses and herbs. As unconventional as the bride and her path to this moment.

Gary is barely holding up. He is awash with tears. Has anyone ever been as in love as Grooberson is in this moment? Yes, of course, but he's gone all wobbly anyway. He feels like the luckiest guy in the world. Winston gives Gary a fatherly pat on the back and Trevor gives him a nudge and he manages to pull himself together. There is a single dandelion tucked behind his ear.

Winston has the honor of officiating. He got his license off the internet just for this when Callie and Gary asked if he would do their vows. He's looking dapper in a sharp charcoal suit, a cluster of dandelions and rosemary pinned to his lapel.

Callie and Gary stand, holding hands in front of Winston beneath the arch. Trevor and Ray beside Gary. Phoebe and Janine beside Callie. Podcast is filming the nuptials from the side. Venkman is on the front row, trying to pretend he's not tearing up and is only jokingly dabbing his eyes with a hanky.

The ceremony is short and sweet. The party afterwards is long and boisterous.

Lucky is there. Her Dad's plus one. An hour into the party, she looks beautiful and nervous as she walks over to Trevor and asks him to dance. He doesn't spill punch all over himself at her approach, so that's cool. They dance. Later they slip away and talk. And that is also very cool.

Janine and Ray dance together. They both have moves. Ray is the kind of big guy who is light on his feet and can really turn up on the dancefloor. Janine is tiny and graceful and easy to fling around. They have a ball.

Venkman needs a hip replacement and won't admit it, so he doesn't dance, but he sits with Winston and his wife Tiyah, holding court and cracking jokes.

Most of Summerville is there. Not just because they want a peek at Dirt Farmer's family and all the spiffy new renovations that have happened at the spooky old place, either. They're also here because two of the town's heroes are getting married and no one has forgotten the summer before last and how the Ghostbusters saved them all from Gozer's grip. Summerville is proud of the Spenglers now and happy to pretend they always were. There's even a little Spengler museum and Ghostbuster's themed gift shop in an old storefront downtown now.

Egon is everywhere.

Egon Spengler is a breeze blowing a few stray rain clouds away from the party. He's the moonlight that caresses Callie's pretty cheek. He's in the music and the food. In hands held under the table. In Trevor's courage. He's in Ray's heart and the sparkle in Janine's eyes when she looks at him. He's in the precise angle of Phoebe's jaw when they finally kiss Podcast for the first time, over on the porch swing, when no one is looking.

Egon is everywhere.

The End