"Dead Temporarily"
by Elizabeth Berndt

Note: This dream is inspired by the Real Ghostbusters, a classic cartoon that will never lose its charm.

"I'm dead in love again." -Nine Lives, Aerosmith

Chapter 1 -- Not Among the Living

When I awakened, I wasn't in Martinsville, Indiana anymore. I was in New York.

I had always wanted to go to New York and see "Phantom Of the Opera" for cheap, but I had never gotten the chance and to be perfectly honest, the stigma attached to New York was exactly the reason I never went.

However, I was in New York now and I was dazzled by what I saw. The buildings here were much bigger than the ones in Chicago or Indy. I always loved shopping in the city, but living in suburbia and being overprotected made me a little paranoid. No crime in that, I guess.

I walked into a grand shopping mall much more immense than Circle Center. It was odd that no one seemed to notice I had walked in. It seemed that the shoppers were complaining of a cold wind. I was becoming worried about this little predicament.

I didn't walk, I floated. Now, I knew something was terribly wrong. I wasn't among the living ... I was what some called "living impaired," or to others ... dead.

I didn't wail or weep about my dilemma. I couldn't. There was no reason to. I didn't like being dead. I didn't know how I came to be dead, and it was greatly bothering me. So, I quickly went to the only people I knew I could help me, the Ghostbusters.


Chapter 2 -- Helping a Damsel in Distress

I floated downtown to the Ghostbusters Firehouse, and the original Ghostbusters were there, watching "Murder She Wrote" on TV. Winston would always be the first to guess who the murderer was in the case. Despite my tragic passing, I found this hilarious. It was almost as if they heard my laughter. They immediately turned their gaze to me.

"I-It's a ghost," Peter said, looking a little scared. He never did like spirits that appeared out of thin air. I guess I had done that without even knowing I had.

With a shy bow, I apologized. "No need to apologize, Miss," Egon said, politely.

"I'm Elizabeth. Pleased to meet all of you," I said, with a slight bow.

The four of them began studying me very closely. I blushed in spite of myself.

"Peter's really handsome in person," I thought to myself.

He pointed something out. There was a hole through my heart. I had been shot through the heart, and the wound remained. I couldn't feel anything at all.

"I presume she is here because she wants to find out who her murderer is," Ray said, philosophically.

"No, no, no! I think not! She obviously came here to see me!" Peter said, being a smart-aleck as usual.

"Why don't we just ask her and find out?" Winston noted.

"Precisely what I was thinking," Egon said. There was a period of brief silence.

"Why are you here, Elizabeth?" Ray questioned.

"Frankly, I'm here because I want to live again, but is that even possible?" I asked.

"Yes, there is. But the procedure is experimental at this point. We'd have to retrieve your body. Do you have any clue as to where your corpse might be?" Egon asked.

The others looked disgusted by that question, and Peter's face turned green. "I'm feeling kind of queasy," he muttered.

I closed my eyes and I remembered my murderer's face. I then remembered where he had placed my body …In the ditch, near the New York Cemetery.

"In a ditch, near the New York Cemetery," I answered.

"Put on your rubber gloves, guys. This is going to get messy," Ray warned.

"I am not touching any dead bodies!" Winston said, sticking his tongue out in disgust.

"I'm with you, my man," Peter whispered to Winston.


Chapter 3 -- Reanimation

I floated on my way to the cemetery, following the guys as they searched the ditch for my broken body.

"Over here!" Ray directed. I looked down at my body, and actually, it didn't look too terribly bad. It was evident that I had been dead for only 1 day, and decaying hadn't started yet. Ray, Egon and a reluctant Peter took my body back to the firehouse.

I sorrowfully followed Egon into his lab, where I watched in amazement as he mended the hole in my heart. Then, I watched him place some kind of electric generator over my heart and the electric generator began to spark.

"I hope this works," he said, looking at me, turning the generator on full power.

There was a blinding flash of light, and I reentered my physical body. I was …alive again! I instantly hugged Egon tightly, and then let go.

"It worked!" Egon said, triumphantly, jumping up and down. I laughed. He took me by the hand, helping me off the lab table. He took me out of the lab and said, "Look at this!"

The others were shocked. "She's alive!" Peter said, a huge grin gracing his face.

"I don't believe it. This is incredible!" Ray said, taking my hand in his.

Again, I blushed. I placed my hands in front of me and giggled. "Thank you for helping me. I don't owe you anything, do I?" I questioned.

They all shook their heads from right to left. "Your miraculous rebirth is enough to make our day," Winston said, matter-of-factly.

I smiled and laughed. "You're all very kind," I said. I knew I needed to go back home, but I knew I didn't have any money. "I can't go back home though," I said.

"How so?" Peter questioned.

I pulled out my empty pockets which were full of lint. "This is why I can't leave," I said, a little upset.

"No worries, Janine will have you back home soon. She helps people like you all the time," Egon said, smiling.


Epilogue

Janine gave me enough money to go back home by plane. I hugged her and she said, pleasantly, "Take care!" Before I left, I whispered in her ear, "Be sure to hug Egon for me." I gave her a playful wink, and she laughed heartily.

I left the Firehouse and hailed a taxi to the airport. On my way to the New York airport, all things around me looked whiter than usual. My surroundings became brighter and brighter until everything around me faded.

Then, I simply woke up, realizing that I really must stop watching The Real Ghostbusters … (laugh) Maybe not.

THE END


Fan Fiction by Elizabeth Berndt: August 8, 1999
Editing and Page by Doreen Mulman: August 12, 2000


Dedicated to all fans of Ghostbusters, hoping that in the future Ghostbusters 3 will be made a reality.

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