We're the best. We're the beautiful. We're the Ghostbusters.

Hope didn't know where she was or where any of the others were. She couldn't see them anywhere in front of her or behind her. She tried swimming this way and that way, hoping to stall herself in the tunnel she was in long enough to at least see one of them, but failed.

"Egon! Ray! Winston!" She yelled out, hoping to hear a reply, but nothing except for the sound of the flowing slime returned her calls, "Anyone!"

She felt another pull on her leg and was again dragged under like before. She thrashed against the river of slime that pulled her in its currents, feeling her lungs wanting air. She surfaced and coughed, breathing in air again before being drug under once more. Her mind drifted in and out, the day of the accident flashing before her eyes.

Hope sat on the bathroom floor again this morning after emptying her stomach contents into the porcelain throne a moment before. She had been throwing up a lot lately and she was tried beyond belief. She pulled herself up from the floor and washed her mouth out, brushing her teeth afterwards.

She picked up the phone beside her and Egon's bed and dialed the familiar number.

...ring...ring...ring...

"Hello, Institute of Advanced Theoretical Research. How may I help you?" The woman Hope had come to know as Lisa answered.

"Hi, Lisa. It's Hope. Could I speak with Egon?" Hope replied, rubbing her stomach as she laid down on the bed.

"Oh sure Mrs. Spengler!"

"Lisa, I'm not Mrs. Spengler yet." Hope laughed.

"You've got the ring." Lisa laughed back, "Hold on and I'll patch you through."

"Thanks." Hope listened to the cheesy 'on hold' music and then to the small rings that followed.

"Hello?" Egon's voice sounded through the phone, making Hope smile.

"Hey you." She answered.

"Hope? You alright?" Egon asked as he sat down at one of the stools in his lab at the Institute.

"No, I threw up up again this morning." Hope sighed and closed her eyes, relaxing into the comforter on their bed.

"Why don't you call the doctor and set up an appointment? You could have the flu. It's been going around here like crazy." Egon replied, worry fluttering in his voice.

"I hate doctors." Hope groaned and rolled on her side, pulling her knees to her chest.

"I know, but it would make me feel better if you saw one." Egon spoke seriously as he played with a pen in his lab coat, "Please Hope. I don't want this to get worse."

"Fine...for you, my lovely future husband, I will see a doctor today." Hope smiled and then yawned, feeling sleepy again, "Alright. I love you, Egon Ezekiel Spengler."

Hope laughed into the phone after a moment, knowing the use of Egon's middle name annoyed him.

"I love you too, Hope Liwel Stantz." Egon mocked back, Hope knowing that there was that familiar smirk on hi face.

"I'll see you later then." Hope laughed again and sighed, "Bye."

"Bye." Egon hung up first and Hope stared at the phone a moment before dialing the doctors office. She set up an appointment and hurried to get ready. She walked out of the house an hour later and headed straight to the doctors, being taken ten minutes after arriving.

"Hello, Ms. Stantz. I'm Dr. Salt, I'll be taking care of you today." The small woman closed the door behind her and sat down in the chair by the counter. She looked over a folder she had, running her finger along a chart inside of it and then looked back up at Hope, "Would you mind if I took some blood. You haven't had any work done in years."

"No, not at all." Hope replied though she hated the thought of a needle sticking out of her arm while blood pumped into a tiny vial. Dr. Salt pulled out the tools she needed from the cabinets above the counter and prepared Hope's arm.

"Tell me, what's wrong? You said over the phone that you were throwing up and were tired all the time." Dr. Salt asked as she pricked the small needle into Hope's arm. The tiny vial attached to the needle began to fill with blood immediately, "For how long?"

"It's been about a month now. The throwing up didn't start till last week. I've been tired and moody, um achy, no fever or anything though." Hope answered, trying to keep her eyes from the second vial that was beginning to fill.

"Alright, well it could be the flu. It's been pretty terrible this season. Have you been sleeping?" Dr. Salt replied as she took the second vial and placed the third one on the needle.

"Yeah, but I wake up in the middle of the night sometimes and can't go back to sleep." Hope thought about it as Dr. Salt spotted the ring on Hope's hand and turned back to the vial.

"Who's the lucky guy?" She asked with a smile.

"Oh, uh his name's Egon."

"Interesting name." Dr. Salt gave a small laugh and removed the third vial and then the needle, placing a band-aid in their place.

"Interesting guy." Hope laughed and rubbed the band-aid gently. Dr. Salt placed the vials into her lab coat pocket and threw the needle along with her gloves out.

"I don't want to offend you, but are you two sexually active?" She turned back to Hope a sheepish look to her face.

"Oh, um...yes." Hope replied after a moment.

"Do you use protection?The pills or condoms?"

"Yes, every time." Hope answered again, becoming confused as to why she needed to know.

"If you weren't about to be married I wouldn't offer this as the first explanation to what you've been feeling," Dr. Salt answered calmly, picking up the folder from the counter, "but you may be pregnant, Ms. Stantz."

"H-how would I find out?" Hope asked once her mind caught up with everything that had been said.

"Well, we can test the blood I've just taken down stairs in the lab." Dr. Salt offered, seeing that the woman before her was in shock.

"Um, okay. Yeah, would it be alright if I wait here?" Hope breathed out, still trying to comprehend everything she had been told.

"Of course. It may take an hour or longer though."

"That's fine." Hope spoke softly, eyes down at the floor. Dr. Salt gave a nod and left the room, closing the door behind her. Hope leaned back on the bed like thing she sat on and stared at the cork board ceiling, thoughts running wild.

"Ms. Stantz?" Dr. Salt walked into the room with a piece of paper in her hand and stared at the sleeping woman, "Ms. Stantz?"

Hope's eyes fluttered open as she sat up to look at her doctor. Dr. Salt closed the door and sat down in her swivel chair, moving closer to Hope.

"Are those the results?" Hope asked, noticing the paper. Dr. Salt nodded and looked down at the paper, reading over what it said, "Am I?"

"Yes, you're pregnant. A little over a month." Dr. Salt gave a small smile, unsure how Hope would take it. Hope stared off blankly a moment before a wide grin spread across her face.

"I'm pregnant." She whispered to herself, the idea making her happy. She laid a hand over her stomach and bit her bottom lip.

Hope left the doctors with a bright smile plastered onto her face, reaching her eyes. She got into her car and pulled out of the parking lot heading down the street. She pulled up to a red light, having it in her mind to go and see Egon at the Institute.

"He's going to be so happy!" Hope smiled at herself in her rear view mirror and looked back at the lights, waiting for the go ahead. The red turned green and she pulled out into the intersection, smile still on her face as though it may never leave. Nearly halfway across she was suddenly jerked to the right as the car went rolling across the intersection, slid while upside down, and stopped when it hit a street light.

The car that had hit her was stopped in the middle of the intersection. The driver's head was against the steering wheel, front windshield shattered, hood smashed, and engine smoking. People around gasped and screamed as they looked between the two mangled cars, whispering to one another and themselves.

Hope could hear people outside her car and tried to make a sound for help, but none came except her heavy, rough breathing. She smelled gasoline and burnt rubber from somewhere and tried to open her eyes. Her vision blurred in and out as she blinked back the tears. She cough twice and felt the blood seep from the corner of her mouth.

Her arms dangled down, fingers grazing the ceiling of the car as blood dripped down her arms to her fingers and onto the fabric. Her head hung lamely, her once blonde hair now red and clumped as it touched the ceiling below her. Her seatbelt was still on and tighter then it should be, making it hard for her to breathe. Her legs dangled similar to her arms, motionless and in pain with shards of glass stuck in them. Her head felt fuzzy with pain and a sharp stab was a constant in her chest.

For a moment all she could do was listen to her slow breathing; deep, wheezy, rough, and forced. She looked out the front windshield that was shattered and missing chunks. Her vision blurred in and out again as she felt tired.

She saw the feet of people standing around her car and tried to form words. She raised her hand to the people outside as high as she could and let it fall with the last of her energy.

Sirens sounded far away, both ambulance, police, and firemen alike. Wheels screeched as they came to a stop and suddenly there was a loud bang on the door beside Hope. The door was ripped free and Hope saw a firemen reach into the car, yanking at the seatbelt.

Hope found her voice and screamed out as loud as she could. The belt broke with the fireman's tug and Hope felt herself fall from the seat onto the ceiling that had become the floor.

"Medic!" The fireman called out as he drug her from the car as gently as he could. Hope stared up at the sky, buildings seeming to form a sort of tunnel and blinked slowly. Hope was lifted into the ambulance and was soon driving off towards the hospital.

"...m-my..." She breathed out quietly. She knew there were people around her, working on the wounds she had, but didn't care even when one leaned down to her lips to hear what she was saying, "...m-my...m-my b-ba-baby..."

"Did you see a baby back there?" The medic asked the other that had begun hooking Hope up to an IV drip. They shook their head, continuing with what they were doing, "Ma'am there was no baby."

"...h-here..." Hope moved her hand over her belly, trying to explain the best she could in her state. The medics looked down at where her hand rested and then at each other, exchanging the same look. Hope saw the medic closest to her move their lips, but couldn't hear what he was saying. The last thing she remembered was his lips moving and then unconsciousness taking her.

She woke up sometime later in a hospital bed to the beeping of the heart monitor by her head. She looked around the room the best she could and stopped at the door when it opened to reveal a man in a white lab coat.

"Mr. Stantz, I'm Dr. Klein. How are you feeling?" He asked as he walked closer and looked at the paperwork at the end of the bed.

"...hurt..." Hope replied, licking her dry and cracked lips. She took a deep breath, wincing at the sharp pain it caused.

"Short breaths for now. Three of your ribs were broken and your left arm is also." Dr. Klein set the papers back down and moved closer to Hope, hands in his pockets, "You have a slight concussion and your pelvic bone was fractured."

"...my...baby..." Hope gasped out, tears floating to her eyes. Dr. Klein looked down at her, eyes sorrowful.

"Ms. Stantz...I'm very sorry, but the impact killed the fetus." He watched as Hope fell apart into a series of silent tears, "Your brother is outside. Do you want me to send him in?"

Hope gave a small nod and the doctor walked away, his footsteps being replaced with heavier ones as Ray rushed into the room.

"Hope..." He began as he slowed his step, coming closer to her, "I'm so sorry Hopie..."

Hope outstretched her arms to him, crumpling into tears as she waited for him to hug her. Ray took her in his arms and held her, rocking her back and forth as she cried.

"HOPE!" Egon's voice called out from behind the door as Ray and Hope stared at it, hearing voices telling Egon to calm down.

"Y-you c-ca-can't tell h-him Ray!" Hope sobbed, pulling back from Ray's arms to look him in the eyes, "Please, n-not e-ever."

"Hope, I can't d-"

"Promise m-me!" Hope cried out, her cut up hands gripping his forearms, "Y-you have t-to p-promise."

Hope stared up at her brother, begging him to make the promise to her. Ray nodded his head once and licked his lips nodding again and again and again.

"Hope!" Hope and Ray looked over at Egon, who had burst through the door. It took only one glance at him for her to begin sobbing again, Egon thinking because of the accident Ray knowing otherwise. Egon rushed forward, taking Ray's place on the bed holding Hope, "Every thing's okay now. You're fine."

Ray walked from the room and spotted Winston and Peter. Both of them stared at him, waiting for an explanation to everything that had happened, but all Ray could do was shake his head and sit down beside them.

Egon held Hope tightly against him, whispering in her ear. She sobbed harshly into his shirt, clinging to him for dear life until she fell asleep in his arms in the hospital, thinking of what could have been.

Hope fought against the slime that held her prisoner and swam up, gasping for air when she reach the top. She spluttered a few times, huffing and crying because of the memory the slime had forced her to remember.

"Hope! Over here!" Winston called out from a platform to the side. He leaned over the side of the platform he was on with a hand outstretched, waiting for her to take it, "Take my hand!"

Hope raised her right arm out and as she was pulled along in the current her hand latched onto Winston's. Winston pulled Hope onto the platform he was on, coughing and gasping like a fish, tears still falling from her eyes though no one could tell with the slime on her face. She wiped the slime from every where on her face and neck, looking over at him.

"You alright?" He asked as took another deep breath again and sat up. Hope gave a nod and flopped down beside him, taking several deep breaths. Hope looked back at the river of slime and then to the opening in the tunnel where she had come in from, waiting to see one of the others, praying that she hadn't lost one of them like she had lost the baby.