A day later, the Mansion was up and running. No major events took place, aside from Batty playing the piano for like, ever. This was accompanied by a Fantasia-like sequence. Man, that bat was craaaaaazy.
Gus, on the other hand, was not doing well. Without his ball and chain, the poor thing felt empty. While Ezra happy waved his thumb at guests, Gus just sort of sat there, shivering.
"My...ball and chain. It's gone."
"It ain't gone," said Ezra. "Phinny has it, remember?"
Gus suddenly snapped and grabbed Ezra. "IT'S AS GOOD AS GONE! I CAN'T LAST WITHOUT IT! People aren't afraid of me 'cause I'm SHORT, it was because I would hurt them with the ball and chain!"
"Well, duh!"
"Don't talk that way to me!" growled Gus. "I'll make you Gus's size!"
"How?"
Gus was silent for a second. "I don't know! AAAARRRGGG!"
"Man, you're messed up." Ezra squirmed away from Gus.
"I NEED IT!" moaned Gus.
With a slight shudder, Ezra comforted Gus. "Okay, okay. We'll go find Phineas and get the ball and chain. Just give me a few seconds to..."
"No time! Now!" Gus grabbed Ezra and ran out the door. "Movemovemovemove!"
"Hey, spider!" Ezra tossed a letter to Chula. "Give this to my girlfriend! It tells her where I am!"
"Sure, ghost," called Chula. The second Ezra was gone, the spider went into his trademark, high-pitched laugh. "EEE-HEE-HEE! I just love ruining relationships!" He tore up the letter.
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Gus led Ezra down to the bus station. Without a word, he knocked out the driver, threw him off the bus, and started driving.
"Usually we say a few one-liners when we hiijack a bus," remarked Ezra. "You must be serious, man."
"VERY."
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Phineas sat in his hotel room, studying. "I don't think I can hold out much longer. I'll go insane! But everyone's counting on me. Me! One little ghost who doesn't have any idea what he's doing..."
Phineas started to fall asleep. Suddenly, he jumped up and zapped himself with Ariel's cattle prod that he'd brought along. "AAAAAAAHHHHHHH! Can't fall asleep! Gotta study!"
Just then, something crashed through Phineas's wall. The startled ghost backed up to see that it was a large bus that had burst in. Out, as you guessed, popped Ezra and Gus.
"We're home for the holidays!" announced Ezra. "Even though this isn't home and it's not during any holiday."
Phineas ran over to his best friends. "Guys! It's so great to see you! Uh, is Gus okay?"
"NO, I'M NOT OKAY!" Gus collapsed and then crawled over to Phineas. "I neeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed my ball and chain."
"The ball and chain," nodding, Phineas looked for it. "Sure, it's...uh-oh."
"WHAT?"
"I don't know how to say this, Gus," said Phineas, "but I can't find it."
"WHAT?"
Phineas tried to make him feel better. "You know how they say time heals all wounds? I'm pretty sure it's true. I mean, look at the cattle prod burns I got. They're almost gone!"
"WHAT?"
"Just shut up and hide!" whispered Ezra, pulling Phineas under the bed.
"YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" With that frantic battle cry, Gus began to tear up the room, unleashing his fury.
"Shouldn't we have sent HIM to the scaring competition?" asked Phineas.
Ezra shrugged. "We can't handle another lawsuit."
With a last mutter of "...chain," Gus collapsed again.
"I was at Red Lobster today," remembered Phineas. "Maybe I left it there."
"They let you go to Red Lobster?" grinned Ezra. "Sweet."
"TO THE SEAFOOD!" Gus jumped out the window.
"I guess I get to go with him," grumbled Ezra. "Happy day."
"Right," said Phineas. "And I'll get back to work." As soon as Ezra left, Phineas fainted. He landed on his cattle prod and was shocked awake.
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After the crash, the bus obviously wouldn't run, so Gus and Ezra were going to Red Lobster on foot. It was night now, and the city streets were almost empty.
Ezra was trying to make the best of things by singing, as always: "We're on the road to Red Lobster..."
"No singing!" ordered Gus, shoving him against some trash cans.
Surprised, Ezra got to his feet. "Got it."
Gus approached a woman by a lamppost. "You got a ball and chain?"
"Oh, you're into that stuff? Well, I guess I could work one in, but it'll cost..."
Gus just smacked her and kept walking. "Gotta find it!"
Eventually, they found the Red Lobster, which was closed. "Well," said Ezra, "the Chinese place next door is open."
Gus was about to break the door down when Ezra stopped him. "Are you crazy?" he shouted at the dwarf. "If you break in, the cops'll be here in a second! Just float through the wall!"
"You're not the boss of me." Gus obeyed Ezra, anyway, and floated inside.
Ezra followed him and noticed a tank of live lobsters. "Poor little lobsters. No room to move or mate or anything. They're just waiting for someone to pick 'em out and then..."
"Let's go," said Gus. "It's not here." In frustration, he smashed a window. Police sirens were heard approaching. "Uh-oh. Should we run?"
"In a second." Giggling madly, Ezra emptied the lobsters. "YEAH! Freedom!"
Satisfied, they flew for it. Ezra paused and turned back to the restaurant. The sirens were getting closer.
"Now what?" groaned Gus.
"The lobsters can't run on their own! What do we do?"
"Oy."
The two ghosts grabbed the lobsters and flew for it as the police cars arrived. Suddenly, Ezra dropped a lobster. "Hold it, Gus! We never leave a man down!"
Ezra swooped down and picked the lobster up just as the police car was about to run it over. The chase resumed. Ezra turned to Gus. "What happened to all the lobsters you were carrying?"
Gus's mouth was full. "I dunno."
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Phineas was still studying when they burst through the gaping hole they had already made in the wall from the first visit.
"We dodged the fuzz and brought some friends!" announced Ezra. He tossed Phineas a lobster.
"Eww, get it away from me!" Phineas shook the lobster off. "Did you find the ball and chain?"
"NO!" screamed Gus. "I HATE YOU!"
Music swelled as Ezra began a speech. "Gus, don't you see? You burst through windows, hijacked a bus, escaped cops, smacked me and that...friendly woman around...You had the ball and chain all along. Inside you."
"Bullcrap." Angrily, Gus smacked the wall. The closet opened, revealing the ball and chain. "MY BABY!" Grabbing it, he did a wild dance with the ball and chain.
"Never a dull moment," said Ezra. "What should we name all the lobsters?"