2
"That was quick," noted the tall, powerfully built man, glancing up from where he sat replacing the long laces of his work boots.
"I cut it short," replied the other as he exited the still warm and ticking vehicle, closing the heavy door over with insufficient force to shut it flush. "Something-"
The seated man closed his eyes. "Oh, no."
"…strange happened."
"Always?"
The newcomer nodded.
"I know you, Ray. You won't let this go. When did you want to go back, check things out?"
Ray considered. "Honestly…I don't know if it was a place…so much as a person."
"Random kook?"
He began to describe the incident with the PKE meter.
Heels could be heard clicking toward their location. "Ray?"
"Huh?" he responded, cutting himself short.
"Are you leaving again soon?"
"I wasn't," he answered, watching the petite woman hawk the windshield of the '59 Cadillac ambulance he'd just parked in the garage.
She eyed him dubiously over the tops of her severely angled eyeglasses. "Then you could at least introduce your guest to us."
"My guest?" He squinted toward the passenger seat, gradually making out a pale face he'd initially written off as light reflecting softly off the glass. He cut his eyes toward the other man who rose slowly, staring at the vehicle.
The woman rolled her eyes and blew noisily through her pursed lips. "Greetings. Welcome to Ghostbusters Headquarters," she said, marching toward the door to swing it wide. She was surprised to see that Ray's guest was much younger than she'd originally guessed. The stranger gazed expectantly at her for a moment, then unbuckled her seatbelt and took her time sliding from the Ectomobile's passenger seat.
"Who's that?" asked the other man.
"I…I don't know," Ray replied breathlessly.
No one moved or spoke for a moment. The teenager stood calmly surveying her surroundings. "Dr. Stantz?" the receptionist prompted uneasily.
Ray moved swiftly, approaching the girl he recognized as the same one he'd seen when the PKE meter had malfunctioned. "Uh, hello," he said awkwardly. "I-I'm Dr. Stantz, and, um, this is my colleague, Dr., uh, I mean, Winston Zeddemore. This is, uh," he stammered, focusing on the tiny woman with the richly hued dark auburn hair.
"Janine Melnitz," supplied the redhead, offering a slender hand bedecked with bohemian chic silver and bronze rings at the end of an arm that clattered with junky, but fashionable bracelets.
The pale girl smiled faintly, making contact with the offering, but only lightly passing her hand through the grasp of the other. "What…is this?" she queried, her voice soft and breathy.
Janine was surprised. She turned her body and glanced upward. "This is the Ghostbusters Headquarters. Don't ya know anything about us?" She cast an accusing eye at Dr. Stantz.
He shrugged. "I didn't see her get in the car."
Winston scoffed, "She was sitting right beside you, Ray."
"No, she wasn't," he insisted weakly. "Well, if she was, I never noticed her."
"What's your name?" Janine tried, bending toward the stranger.
"Mm-manda," came the reply, the first syllable sounding more like a soft grunt.
"Would you like a tour of the facility?"
"'kay," Amanda answered with a shrug.
Janine took the girl by the hand and glared Dr. Stantz's way as they strolled off together. He turned to look at Winston and shrugged.