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Ghostbusting by Maidenjedi
Summary: "To go tramping around a supposedly haunted house on Halloween? Sounds pretty ludicrous to me." Jeff Spender, Diana Fowley, casefile, humor.
TITLE: Ghostbusting AUTHOR: Maidenjedi RATING: PG-13 ARCHIVE: List archives, otherwise please ask. KEYWORDS: Fowley, Spender SPOILERS: None, really. DISCLAIMER: Not mine, thank you very much. SUMMARY: "To go tramping around a supposedly haunted house on Halloween? Sounds pretty ludicrous to me." *** For the Halloween Challenge. I went over 1000 words, though. Author's Notes at the end. *X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X* "Are you sure this isn't just some kind of joke, Agent Fowley?" Jeff was looking down at the file on his desk, his nose wrinkled and mouth pursed. Diana sighed heavily. Three months in this office, and he still didn't get it. "I'm positive, Agent Spender. Reports of paranormal phenomena come through this office all the time. It's partly why we're here." "To go tramping around a supposedly haunted house on Halloween? Sounds pretty ludicrous to me." She hated it when he said ludicrous. "What do the reports say?" "Oh, slasher movie stuff. Some kids going up to this old house on Halloween, they don't all come back. Police searched the premises and found nothing. This was thirty years ago, the standard urban legend. Bloody Mary, that kind of thing." "And?" "Residents complaining of odd noises, what sounds like human screaming." "Could be screaming, Agent Spender. Could be kids thinking they'll be funny. How'd this end up at the Bureau?" "Well, cops didn't want it. They've been investigating similar claims for about ten years and nothing new ever comes up. One of them had heard of Mulder's work and sent it over." "And that's ludicrous to you?" He looked agitated. "Well, yes. They obviously thought it'd be funny to watch Spooky Mulder try to unravel this 'mystery'." "Why the ironic tone?" "There's no mystery! Just kids playing pranks. I'm not going ghostbusting in the guise of doing a real investigation." She picked up the file. "Says here that at least one teenager has died each year for the last ten years, all on Halloween, and none of the bodies have been found." He snorted. "Runaways." "Or murders." "No evidence. No bodies. This is ludicrous!" That word again. "Why? This is a perfectly legitimate investigation, it fits the criteria for this office. Unsolved. Maybe paranormal." "Yeah, well, this is why Mulder has that reputation." "No, Agent Spender," she walked over and grabbed the file off his anally neat desk. "Agent Mulder has that reputation because he wants to believe. Remain the skeptic, and you might climb the ladder yet." Diana turned sharply and walked out of the room. Jeff stared after her for a second, then followed, having to take bigger steps to catch up to her. ---------------- It was getting dark by the time they got to the house at 4213 Ridgemont. "Skinner couldn't have been serious about this." Diana didn't bother replying, but gave her partner a piercing glare that shut his mouth. They got out of the car and climbed the small hill that led to the Victorian house. The building had long been in need of paint, and the wood was rotting on the porch and around the windows. A chill in the air added to the mood, and Diana thought some Danny Elfman music would complete it. The stairs creaked under her feet, and the door was locked. Jeff tried knocking. "Nobody lives here, Agent Spender." "Yeah," he said. He was distracted, listening for some sign of life. He knocked again, and Diana bit back a venomous comment on his investigative skills. "Try the knob." "Right." He reached for the knob, but the door opened first, swinging out of his reach. "What the heck?" Jeff squeaked, jumping back. A loud meow made Diana laugh. "It was a cat, Spender." He scowled and walked in ahead of her, hand on his holster. She chuckled again, under her breath. They walked around the ground floor, careful not to make too much noise in case there were lurking pranksters. Diana thought Jeff might have been right, nothing to this case but urban legend, but she'd studied parapsychology for too long to mistake the sudden drop in temperature for just a freak draft. "Agent Fowley? You still here?" She stared around the room, what might have served as a dining room at one point but just collected dust now. Diana was certain she felt something, something waiting to lure her to a clue. "Still here, Spender." She felt it before she saw it. A trick of the light, Jeff would say derisively, but there was no mistaking the shape of a woman, staring at Diana as if it wanted to talk. A genuine haunted house, she thought. Not just shades of lives past. Jeff came into the room and shivered. "Is there an open window in here?" He caught the look of wonder on Diana's face. "What?" She pointed. The image faded, and Diana blinked. "I don't see anything." "We need to look around more. Turn on the lights." There was no electricity in the house, so Diana volunteered to get their flashlights. She dug around in the trunk and came up empty-handed. So much for Boy Scout Spender always being prepared. Later she wouldn't know if it was the moaning sound of the wind or just plain intuition that had her running back up to the house. She didn't hear him screaming until she got to the porch. "Agent Spender?" Another scream, coming from upstairs. She sprinted up the stairs, cursing her high heels when her left foot broke through the wood. Stuck for the moment, she shouted, "Agent Spender! Are you alright?" The cat mewled loudly from the top of the stairs, but Jeff didn't answer. "Jeffrey!" Silence. Diana got her foot loose and took off her shoes before going on. She took out her gun and stalked around the hall corner, the cat following her closely. Jeff stood staring into a room, his face white and hands shaking, his weapon clenched in his fist. "Agent Spender? What is it?" He pointed with his free hand. "Look." She looked. On the mirror, traced in what looked like old blood, were the words "Bloody Mary". A very decayed body lay heaped on the floor, its skeletal face grinning up at them. Blood stains streaked the walls, the tub, and the sink. But what had frightened Jeff Spender was not the gruesome remains, but the specter staring at him and not reflected in mirror at all. While they stood looking at the scene, the bathroom door slammed shut. Jeff jumped and screamed, covering his mouth this time. Diana just stared at the door. The cat hissed and ran back down the stairs. She wondered if the cat didn't have the right idea, but she was too annoyed with her partner to do anything about it. "Do you have a pocket flashlight?" The house was dark as pitch. "N..no." "Okay. We need to get forensics out here, we need to report this. Let's get out of here, shall we?" Diana tried to sound soothing, but mostly she was too pissed off. They went downstairs and Jeff made for the door. It didn't open. "What?" Diana pushed at it. Locked, or stuck. They took turns kicking it. Despite both of them being in prime physical condition as per F.B.I. standards, the door stayed locked and intact. Diana studied her partner's shaking profile. It was going to be a long night. ---------------------------- AUTHOR'S NOTES: This is where the story ends, at least for now. I intended to just write a 500 word blurb where Diana plays a Halloween prank on her skeptical partner, and have her call him a "twitchy little ferret" (I'm dying to use that one in a Spender story), but this came out instead. What happens next? If you know, by all means, write it. This was just a little Halloween treat for the Wives at the Harem. Feedback or criticism welcome at texgoddess@yahoo.com
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