Grim Grinning Ghosts
By: 1000th Ghost
*This is dedicated to my dad because it's Father's Day!*
Write a short fic about ten random songs. Put your respective music player on shuffle, and write a story to whatever song comes up. Sounds easy? It should. Except you also have to write the story in the span of the song you are writing about.
#1: Stop
Sung by: Jimmy Eat World
Don't have to be the prettiest
If you have the mind, the willingness
No one stops a girl who knows what she's got
No reason why
I can't help following with my eyes
Even at my best,
I guess I'm still just one of them.
I see it all in my head.
Cool hands on your steps
You wanna make me mad?
Stop 'cause I am.
You can call this a game.
You can look at my face.
You wanna hurt me baby?
Stop 'cause you have.
Combination of strong and lust
How easily you turn, and turn it off
Do you take what you want
And save it for a better time?
Don't act that way
Honey I don't buy it at all
If you're really as tough as your defenses
Let them fall
I see it all in my head.
Cool hands on your steps
You wanna make me mad?
Stop 'cause I am.
You can call this a game.
You can look at my face.
You wanna hurt me baby?
Stop 'cause you have.
Ahhh...
I see it all in my head.
Cool hands on your steps
You wanna make me mad?
Stop 'cause I am.
You can call this a game.
You can look at my face.
You wanna hurt me baby?
Stop 'cause you have.
You wanna make me mad?
Stop 'cause I am.
You wanna hurt me baby?
Stop 'cause you have.
There was an air of mystery about her façade.
There was nothing mysterious about who she really was.
Leota was cruel and vicious, and everyone knew it, and no one respected it, and everyone feared it. But her ability to keep up this fear was dependent on her secrecy and her refusal to let her guard down.
Until she slipped. Lilian and Emily and their deaths, and now he knew, and suddenly he wanted her out and gone and to stop. He was mad.
But no one did mad like she did.
#2: One Thing
Sung by: One Direction
[Liam]
I've tried playing it cool
But when I'm looking at you
I can't ever be brave
'Cause you make my heart race
[Harry]
Shot me out of the sky
You're my kryptonite
You keep making me weak
Yeah, frozen and can't breathe
[Zayn]
Something's gotta give now
'Cause I'm dying just to make you see
That I need you here with me now
'Cause you've got that one thing
[All - Chorus]
So get out, get out, get out of my head
And fall into my arms instead
I don't, I don't, don't know what it is
But I need that one thing
And you've got that one thing
[Niall]
Now I'm climbing the walls
But you don't notice at all
That I'm going out of my mind
All day and all night
[Louis-Zayn-Niall]
Something's gotta give now
'Cause I'm dying just to know your name
And I need you here with me now
'Cause you've got that one thing
[All - Chorus]
So get out, get out, get out of my head
And fall into my arms instead
I don't, I don't, don't know what it is
But I need that one thing
So get out, get out, get out of my mind
And come on, come into my life
I don't, I don't, don't know what it is
But I need that one thing
And you've got that one thing
Woah-oh-oh-oh
Woah-oh-oh-oh
Woah-oh-oh-oh
[Harry]
You've got that one thing
[Liam]
Get out, get out, get out of my head
And fall into my arms instead
[All - Chorus]
So get out, get out, get out of my head
And fall into my arms instead
I don't, I don't, don't know what it is
But I need that one thing
So get out, get out, get out of my mind
And come on, come into my life
I don't, I don't, don't know what it is
But I need that one thing
Yeah, you've got that one thing
There were two things in the world that he needed. Both were probably things only a depraved man would want.
Money. Lots of it. More than anyone could ever need or use.
His father. Who was dead. So, someone with contact with the spirit world.
The problem was that these two things conflicted with each other because Emily had money and Leota had power. Leota needed to be paid, hence the need for Emily's money.
But Emily he loved. And Leota, he knew, would never be happy with that.
#3: All I Ask Of You
From: The Phantom of the Opera
(Raoul)
No more talk of darkness
Forget these wide-eyed fears
I'm here, nothing can harm you
My words will warm and calm you
Let me be your freedom
Let daylight dry your tears
I'm here, with you, beside you
To guard you and to guide you
(Christine)
Say you'll love me every waking moment
Turn my head with talk of summer time
Say you need me with you now and always
Promise me that all you say is true
That's all I ask of you
[Raoul]
Let me be your shelter
Let me be your light
You're safe, no one will find you
Your fears are far behind you
[Christine]
All I want is freedom
A world with no more night
And you, always beside me
To hold me and to hide me
[Raoul]
Then say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime
Let me lead you from your solitude
Say you need me with you here, beside you
Anywhere you go, let me go too
Christine, that's all I ask of you
[Christine]
Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime
Say the word and I will follow you
[Both]
Share each day with me, each night, each morning
[Christine]
Say you love me
[Raoul]
You know I do
[Both]
Love me, that's all I ask of you.
[Both]
Anywhere you go, let me go too
Love me, that's all I ask of you
"And you can do this for me?"
How pathetic he sounded! How quickly the grand Master crumbled! He sounded like a scared child crying for his Daddy. Which was exactly what he was.
Leota smiled. Oh, how many ways this could be used to her advantage.
"I can. For a price."
"Anything." He was on his knees now. "Please, Madame. Anything you ask."
"I want to live in that house-"
"Mansion."
She blinked. "Mansion of yours. I need my own séance room. And I need access to any comforts I may think of." One mocha finger reached out, trailed down his chest. "Anything, Master George. That's all I ask of you."
#4: Hung Up
Sung by: Madonna
Time goes by so slowly
Time goes by so slowly
Time goes by so slowly
Time goes by so slowly
Time goes by so slowly
Time goes by so slowly
Every little thing that you say or do
I'm hung up
I'm hung up on you
Waiting for your call
Baby night and day
I'm fed up
I'm tired of waiting on you
Time goes by so slowly for those who wait
No time to hesitate
Those who run seem to have all the fun
I'm caught up
I don't know what to do
Time goes by so slowly
Time goes by so slowly
Time goes by so slowly
I don't know what to do
Every little thing that you say or do
I'm hung up
I'm hung up on you
Waiting for your call
Baby night and day
I'm fed up
I'm tired of waiting on you
Every little thing that you say or do
I'm hung up
I'm hung up on you
Waiting for your call
Baby night and day
I'm fed up
I'm tired of waiting on you
Ring ring ring goes the telephone
The lights are on but there's no-one home
Tick tick tock it's a quarter to two
And I'm done
I'm hanging up on you
I can't keep on waiting for you
I know that you're still hesitating
Don't cry for me
'cause I'll find my way
you'll wake up one day
but it'll be too late
Every little thing that you say or do
I'm hung up
I'm hung up on you
Waiting for your call
Baby night and day
I'm fed up
I'm tired of waiting on you
Every little thing that you say or do
I'm hung up
I'm hung up on you
Waiting for your call
Baby night and day
I'm fed up
I'm tired of waiting on you
Sometimes she wondered if she was insane. But, no, she was not insane, she was dead.
That was okay. Being dead was okay. Because George would save her. Because George loved her.
Was she insane, no, but she could hear the tick TICK TICK of the grandfather clock in the hallway as if it was reverberating inside her skull. Which made no sense because she was in the attic, nowhere near the clock.
Also, she did not have a skull anymore, she didn't think.
And every tick of the clock she wasn't supposed to be able to hear was a reminder that tick tock another second had passed when he had not come.
He would come. Because he loved her. And she would wait for him because she loved him. And she would imagine that it was an altar that she had been left at, not a sea trunk in a corner of an attic.
The clock kept ticking, but she didn't mind.
He would come.
He would come.
Her heart beat in time.
#5: Pancreas
Sung by: Weird Al Yankovic
Oooh oooh oooh ee-oooh oooh oooh
Ahh ahh ahh ahh ahh ahh-oooh oooh
Oooooh
I'm always thinkin' 'bout it
I don't know what I'd do without it
I love, I really love
My pancreas
My spleen just doesn't matter
Don't really care about my bladder
But I don't leave home without
My pancreas
My pancreas is always
There for me
Ahh-oooh
Secreting those enzymes (bap bap bap)
Secreting those hormones too
Metabolizing carbohydrates
Just for me
Ba-ba ba ba-ba ba ba ba-ba ba ba
My pancreas
Ba-ba ba ba-ba ba ba ba-ba ba
My pancreas
Ba-ba ba ba-ba ba ba ba-ba ba ba
My pancreas
Ba-ba ba ba-ba ba ba ba-ba ba
My pancreas
Ba-ba ba ba-ba ba ba ba-ba ba ba
My pancreas
Ba-ba ba ba-ba ba ba ba-ba ba
My pancreas
Ooooooh
My pancreas attracts every other
Pancreas in the universe
With a force proportional
To the product of their masses
And inversely proportional
To the distance between them
Woo woo woo woo
Don'tcha you know you gotta
Flow, flow, flow, pancreatic juice
Flow, flow, into the deuodenum
Won'tcha
Flow, flow, flow, pancreatic juice
Flow, flow, into the deuodenum
Insulin, glucagon
(Won'tcha flow, flow, flow, pancreatic juice)
Comin' from the islets of Langerhans...
(Flow flow, into the deuodenum)
Insulin, glucagon
(Won'tcha flow flow flow, pancreatic juice)
Comin' from the islets of Langerhans...
(Flow flow, into the deuodenum)
Lipase, amylase, and tripsin
(Insulin, glucagon)
(Won'tcha flow, flow flow, pancreatic juice)
They gonna help with our digestion
(Comin' from the islets of Langerhans...)
(Flow flow, into the deuodenium)
Lipase, amylase, and tripsin
(Insulin, glucagon)
(Won'tcha flow flow flow, pancreatic juice)
They gonna help with our digestion
(Comin' from the islets of Langerhans...)
(Flow flow, into the deuodenum)
Can't you see I love my pancreas
{Lipase, amylase, and tripsin}
(Insulin, glucagon)
(Won'tcha flow flow flow, pancreatic juice)
Golly-gee I love my pancreas
{They gonna help with our digestion}
(Comin' from the islets of Langerhans...)
(Flow flow, into the deuodenum)
Can't you see I love my pancreas
{Lipase, amylase, and tripsin}
(Insulin, glucagon)
(Won'tcha flow flow flow, pancreatic juice)
Golly-gee I love my pancreas
{They gonna help with our digestion}
(Comin' from the islets of Langerhans...)
(Flow flow, into the deuodenum)
Can't you see I love my pancreas
{Lipase, amylase, and tripsin}
(Insulin, glucagon)
(Won'tcha flow flow flow, pancreatic juice)
Golly-gee I love my pancreas
{They gonna help with our digestion}
(Comin' from the islets of Langerhans...)
(Flow flow, into the deuodenum)
Can't you see I love my pancreas
Besides being the official Master of the Mansion before death (the owner, the host, the soul of the place), there was another reason his leadership was perfect for a retirement home for the deceased.
Other ghosts seemed to possess a problem with their restless bones vs. ethereal states. But not him.
He was, according to records and the attendants of his funeral, buried under a headstone in the yard. And this was true. But if he wanted those same bones up hanging from the rafters, there they were.
Some spooks whispered other things. That wasn't it strange that he was disembodied? Almost as though he had a secret he was ashamed about.
#6: Bittersweet
Sung by: Atomica
The bittersweet and incomplete
The feeling I'm surrounded by you
The great mistakes that people make
I'll always feel a bit betrayed by you
Your anger simply compliments
The feeling I am hunted by you
I've seen your will to overwhelm
Be squandered by the fact you still blame me
The bittersweet and incomplete
The feeling I'm completed by you
The great mistakes that people make
I'll always feel a bit destroyed by you
The seconds pass and complicate
The walls that have been built around us
A taste of losing everything
And one thing i will always love more than you
I told myself I had the strength to overcome
I am one among a million and a part of everyone
I told myself the world is greater than us both
I can barely grasp the magnitude of what it means to hope.
Could a ghost be haunted?
In reality, probably not. Maybe, but it would be no different than a mortal spending time with another mortal.
This was different though. Because he was not spending time with her. In fact, since he had discovered her body in the trunk, since her funeral-that-wasn't (just like her wedding-that-wasn't), she had not seen him at all.
She had heard him though. His presence was everywhere. He was the Mansion, and the walls and the floor and the residents were full of him. It was no surprise that whispers of his behavior slipped in.
Something she could no longer ignore.
#7: The Dance
Sung by: Garth Brooks
Looking back on the memory of,
The dance we shared, 'neath the stars above.
For a moment, all the world was right,
How could I have known, that you'd ever say good bye?
And now, I'm glad I didn't know,
The way it all would end,
The way it all would go,
Our lives are better left to chance,
I could have missed the pain,
But I'd have had to miss the dance.
Holding you, I held everything,
For a moment, wasn't I the king,
But if I'd only known, how the king would fall,
Hey who's to say, You know I might have changed it all,
And now, I'm glad I didn't know,
The way it all would end,
The way it all would go,
Our lives are better left to chance,
I could have missed the pain,
But I'd have had to miss the dance.
Yes my life, is better left to chance,
I could have missed the pain,
But I'd have had to miss...The Dance
Parties were a must at the Mansion. Madame Leota hated them, of course, because they constantly interrupted her séances. But they were part of the social atmosphere that was expected of him, so Master Gracey threw parties.
Emily was a girl of enormous wealth and had been born into the world of parties, but she had been a child, and the parties had ended for her at bedtime. Now she was in his arms, and he twirled her around the room, and she laughed her tinkling laugh in excitement and tipped her head back so her blond curls flew out around her like a halo. He had never been that fond of dancing before, but now he found that he could enjoy it like the best of the ballroomers.
#8: Very Good Advice
Sung by: Robert Smith for Alice in Wonderland
I give myself very good advice
But I very seldom follow it
That explains the trouble that I'm always in
Be Patient is very good advice
But the waitin' makes me curious
And I'd love the change
Should something strange begin
Well I went along my merry way
And I never stopped to reason
I should have known there'd be a price to pay
Some day
I give myself very good advice
Will I ever learn to do the things I should?
I went along my merry way
And I never stopped to reason
I should have known there'd be a price to pay someday
I give myself very good advice
But I very seldom follow it
Will I ever learn? Will I ever learn?
Will I ever learn to do the things I should?
The waiting made her curious.
She gave herself very good advice, such as to be patient, and everything would be okay. Except that standing there and standing there forever with her beating heart left an unhealthy amount of time to think.
"Why hasn't he come see me?" turned into "Why are they talking about him and the fortune teller?" turned into something that could not be formed into a question because it was too maddening.
Insane.
And then a new question "When will he come so I can kill him?"
She could wait.
#9: Bob
Sung by: Weird Al Yankovic
I, man, am regal - a German am I
Never odd or even
If I had a hi-fi
Madam, I'm Adam
Too hot to hoot
No lemons, no melon
Too bad I hid a boot
Lisa Bonet ate no basil
Warsaw was raw
Was it a car or a cat I saw?
Rise to vote, sir
Do geese see god?
"Do nine men interpret?" "Nine men," I nod
Rats live on no evil star
Won't lovers revolt now?
Race fast, safe car
Pa's a sap
Ma is as selfless as I am
May a moody baby doom a yam?
Ah, Satan sees Natasha
No devil lived on
Lonely Tylenol
Not a banana baton
No "x" in "Nixon"
O, stone, be not so
O Geronimo, no minor ego
"Naomi," I moan
"A Toyota's a Toyota"
A dog, a panic in a pagoda
Oh no! Don Ho!
Nurse, I spy gypsies - run!
Senile felines
Now I see bees I won
UFO tofu
We panic in a pew
Oozy rat in a sanitary zoo
God! A red nugget! A fat egg under a dog!
Go hang a salami, I'm a lasagna hog
Georgemily.
Ghost host.
Grim Grinning Ghosts.
M.T. Tomb.
George put his pen down and sighed.
He'd leave the palindromes to the ghost writers.
#10: Madeline
Sung by: The Amorous
Hey Madeline,
This will be the sixth time that I've told you
That I will never fall or be in love with you
As I will not be around, you see
Do you understand,
When I tell you that you're not the one?
I'm sorry, 'cause I'm that afraid to say
Like a thousand times before
'Cause you're boring me and you seem to always talk about your job
I could care less about
And it's always nothing new to say to you
Hey Madeline,
This will be the sixth time that I've told you
That I will never fall or be in love with you
As I will not be around, you see
Did you meet Roxanne?
Oh, tell me, did you get that far?
Oh, baby, were you that upset at me
Like a thousand times before
That when I'm with you, I feel I could do better
'Cause you're nothing new like an old sweater
That I've kept too long and it's time for you to leave
Hey Madeline,
This will be the sixth time that I've told you
That I will never fall or be in love with you
As I will not be around, you see
I'm getting away out of the valley
That we both knew that we both chased
Out of the valley that we hated from the heat
You'll find me today chasing my big dreams
That I told you about from years ago
Or maybe I'll fade away
Oh, Madeline
Hey Madeline,
This will be the sixth time that I've told you
That I will never fall or be in love with you
As I will not be around, you see
Hey Madeline,
I will not be around, you see
She was dead. She was dead, darn it, and no one seemed to give him the benefit of the doubt. That maybe he had to get on with his life. That he could not waste away with the memory of a ghost when there was a living, flesh-and-blood woman who was open and eager.
So the whispers flew, and the truthful rumors started, and Leota assured him that it was fine, and it didn't matter.
Except that sometimes - always - Leota seemed corrupt, and sometimes he just wanted to fade away with Emily.
The End