Chapter Three

Bobby opened his door, seeing Sam on the porch.

"Hey, Sam," said Bobby. He looked around the yard behind Sam. "Where's Dean?"

"Well, you see, that's the problem," said Sam. He looked at the empty space beside him. "Dean's standing right here."

"He is?" asked Bobby.

"Yep," came Dean's voice from the empty air. "I'm here."

Bobby's eyebrows raised. "He's invisible?"

"Not quite," said Sam.

Dean suddenly appeared out of thin air, closing his eyes in concentration. He opened his eyes and smiled. "Hey, that's getting easier."

Bobby rolled his eyes. "You know, it's you idjits' fault I have gray hair." He let them into the house, heading for the living room. "What happened this time?"

"We were investigating a haunted town, and then this ghost portal thing exploded—" began Dean.

"You idjits were messing with a ghost portal?" said Bobby, sounding angry.

Dean frowned. "You mean there really is such a thing as a ghost portal?"

"Of course there is. How do you think ghosts get into our world in the first place?"

"I just thought they were always here," said Sam.

"If that were true, the world would be full of ghosts of every person that ever died," said Bobby.

Dean frowned. "Then where the hell do they go?"

Bobby rolled his eyes. "The ghost zone."

"The ghost zone?" asked Sam.

"When someone dies, their spirit is taken to the ghost zone by reapers," Bobby explained. "After spending a while there, they move on to either heaven or hell."

Dean tried to wrap his head around it. "So this…ghost zone…is purgatory?"

"As close to purgatory as you can get," said Bobby. "There are portals between the ghost realm and ours that allow ghosts to travel back and forth. Some are manmade—like the one you two tussled with—but most are natural." He looked Dean up and down. "You got any other symptoms?"

"Just the invisible thing," said Dean. "Where do we start?"

Bobby handed him a book. "Research."

The three split up, looking through their respective books. Bobby and Sam sat in the living room, and Dean was pacing in the kitchen. He was so engrossed in his research that he wasn't paying attention to where he was walking.

Sam took a breath, looking up from his book for a break. Sam's eyes widened as his jaw dropped. "Dean…"

Dean didn't look up. "Yeah?"

"Look down," said Sam. Bobby looked up, and his jaw dropped also.

Dean looked up at Sam, frowning. "What?" Sam motioned towards Dean, and Dean shut the book, looking down at his legs. His jaw dropped also. His torso was sticking out of the kitchen table; he had walked right through it. Dean dropped the book, which fell onto the table with a thud. "What the—"

Dean turned in place, watching as his body moved through the table. He walked to his left until he no longer stood in the table. "What the hell is happening to me?"

"If I didn't know any better…" said Bobby, "I'd say you were a ghost."

Dean stared at him. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm missing a crucial prerequisite to being a ghost. Like, say, dying!"

"Dean, you can disappear and reappear at will, and you can move through solid objects," said Bobby. "If that isn't a ghost, I don't know what is."

"So you think this explosion turned me into a ghost?" asked Dean.

"I don't think he turned into a ghost," said Sam. "As far as I can tell, you're still alive. You eat, you sleep, you have a pulse. I think this portal just gave you the…properties of a ghost."

Dean raised an eyebrow. "So you're saying I have ghost powers?"

"You got a better idea?" said Sam.

"It's just freaking nuts!" said Dean.

Something began whining, and the brothers turned to see Bobby holding an EMF meter.

"I think Sam is right, Dean," said Bobby. He held up the lit up EMF meter. "You're lighting up Spook City." He turned the meter off.

"Great," said Dean. "Got any ideas?"

"No," said Bobby.

Dean turned and began to head back to the kitchen, but he felt awfully light. In fact, he couldn't even feel the thud of his feet on the floor. He was stopped when the top of the archway to the kitchen appeared in front of his face.

Dean sighed, not even turning around. "I'm floating, aren't I?"

"Yeah," came Sam's shaky voice.

Dean looked down toward his feet to see about four feet of empty air underneath him. He concentrated on getting back down, and he suddenly fell to the floor. As he straightened up, he looked up in shock at Bobby and Sam.

"I can fly?" said Dean skeptically. He looked down at his now earthbound feet and back up at them. He broke into a huge smile. "Awesome!"

As he spoke, a stream of fog came out of his mouth—as though the room were cold—but he was the only one. The house suddenly rocked around them, causing books to fall.

"What the hell was that?" said Bobby.

"Ah!" came a voice from outside. "A new ghost-child to hunt! Come out and face me, that I may add you to my collection!"

Dean exchanged confused looks with Sam. "What the hell?"

The three of them rushed outside to find a ghost hovering thirty feet above the junkyard.

"Oh, Lord," Dean muttered. "Look at him."

He had a battle suit on, a gun on his arm, and green flames for his hair.

"Ah-ha!" said the ghost. "The ghost-child emerges! Come, so that the mighty Skulker can vanquish you!"

Dean frowned. "Is he talking to me?"

"Who knows," muttered Sam, grabbing a salt gun. "But he's toast."

He pulled the trigger several times, but "Skulker" dodged every one. They even tried throwing iron, but it didn't work.

"Well, if the usual weapons don't work," said Dean, smiling, "time to try some unusual ones."

Dean squatted down and jumped into the air. He took to the sky, rising higher and higher. Apparently, flying came second nature.

"Oh, this is amazing!" Dean exclaimed as he soared towards Skulker.

Skulker raised his gun and pointed it at Dean. Dean froze as Skulker shot what looked like a green energy ball at him. The ball hit and sent Dean reeling back. He glared up at Skulker.

"Alright, that's it," muttered Dean, clenching his fists.

The next second, this white energy shot out of Dean in a circle from his middle. The energy covered him and as it faded, he changed. His regular clothes were replaced with what looked like a biohazard jumpsuit. It was black with a white stripe around his waist, a white collar, white gloves and white boots.

Dean looked down at his gloved hands in shock. "Son of a fucking bitch!" He stared at the jumpsuit in horror. "I'm wearing spandex!"

Another blast from the gun had Dean dodging and flying towards Skulker. He raised his fist back, nailing Skulker in the jaw. Skulker went flying.

Dean stared at his clenched fist. "I've got super strength! Nice!"

Skulker zoomed toward him, and Dean kicked him in the gut. Dean took a few hits but he gave more. Pretty soon, Skulker zoomed away.

"This isn't over, ghost-child!" Skulker called.

Dean dropped down to the ground with ease, looking at Bobby and Sam. "That was sweet! Did you see me kick his ass?" They were staring at him. "What?"

"Your face…" said Sam in shock.

"My face?" asked Dean. "Did that ghost bastard do something to my face?"

"Your eyes are green," said Sam.

Dean stared, waiting for something else. "Yeah…"

"No, I mean, like, lime green," corrected Sam. "Neon." He squinted his eyes, looking closer. "If I didn't know any better…I'd say they were glowing."

"Glowing?" asked Dean.

"And your hair," said Bobby. "It's white."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Great, I got grandpa hair."

"No, not like that," said Sam. "It's like you dyed it white."

Dean moved to one of the junk cars, looking at his reflection in the side mirror. His hair was pure white, almost like snow, and his eyes really were glowing.

"Holy crap," said Dean. "I'm Cyclops' spectral twin."

"How did you change like that?" asked Sam.

"I don't know," said Dean, looking down at his "costume." "It just happened." He looked once more at his reflection before facing Sam and Bobby. "I should so have a name."

"A name?" asked Bobby.

"Yeah, you know, a superhero name," said Dean.

Sam rolled his eyes. "Well, for now, just change back."

Dean clenched his fists and concentrated. The white energy shot out of him again and covered him, changing him back. Dean patted down his shirt, jacket and jeans before looking at his reflection to see green eyes of the non-glowing variety and sandy blonde hair.

"Thank God," said Dean.

They headed into the house and sat down.

"Man, what is happening to me?" said Dean. "I mean, invisibility, walking through walls, freaky spandex morph, flying, setting off EMF meters…" He trailed off, not even finishing his thought.

Sam looked up to see Dean staring into the kitchen, his mouth open. "Dean?" Dean plopped back against the back of the chair. "Dean?"

"You know, back at the Fenton house," began Dean, finally looking at Sam, "when that kid Danny walked into the room, the EMF meters went off." Sam's eyebrows raised. "I think someone's not telling us something."

"What does it mean?" asked Sam.

"It means we're heading back to Amity Park."