26. Soprano Hunting
The Ghost Busters were lounging in their lab/room, taking a break from the fruitless efforts they were putting forth toward capturing the Opera Ghost. They were getting very discouraged, so they figured they would come up with some new strategies to catch the phantom. Their brainstorming session turned into Venkman and Stantz playing checkers and Spengler poking at his mold and fungus collection. The only idea they had come up with before Dr. Venkman had suggested a game of checkers was that when they saw the ghost they should not run at him and yell "charge". Now they were all brooding to themselves as they moved the checker pieces, or in Egon's case a rare species of African mold spore. They were all angry at themselves for having such a hard time catching just one ghost. The Ghost Busters could catch the most terrifying of specters in a mater of hours, and yet it was taking them weeks to capture the Phantom of the Opera, and he couldn't even fly.
Dr. Stantz was pondering what move he should make next when Peter suddenly exclaimed, "I HATE HIM!" and slammed his fists down on the checker board, tipping it and all the pieces on the floor. Ray gave a startled yelp and Egon jumped a foot in the air, dropping the Petri dish he had been holding. Egon dropped to his knees to search for any fungus he had lost, and Ray put his head in his hands, sighing.
"God, Venkman, why did you do that? You scared me half to death and you ruined out checker game. I was about to win, too…" said Dr. Stantz.
Peter, still fuming, replied, "Sorry, but I'm just getting so fed up! That Opera Ghost is making me so angry. I barely even care about the money any more, I just want to have him gone so we don't have to deal with him!"
"Yeah, we need to come up with a good strategy or lure him into a trap" Said Ray.
Egon looked up at his colleagues and suggested, "It would be nice if we knew where he lived. Maybe then we could plan an attack, or an ambush!" Ray and Peter turned in their chairs to face Egon, who was still sitting on the floor.
"That would be nice, but we have no idea how to find that out" Peter said, sounding extremely regretful.
Oddly, though, Dr. Venkman's comment made Spengler smile. "There's the thing, there might be a few people that can help us. I think I know at least three people here at the opera house that know where the Phantom lives."
"Who?"
"For one there's the ballet teacher, Madame Giry, she seems to know all about him. Then there's his Persian friend, who we know has been to the ghost's house. Remember, he said so after the xylophonist auditions. Last there's Christine Daae, that brunette soprano that seems know the phantom so well." Peter and Ray raised there eyebrows and nodded, impressed with Egon's knowledge. Dr. Spengler continued, "Personally, I think that we should talk to Christine. It would probably be easiest to get information out of her."
Venkman smiled, "Yup, pretty and, most likely, gullible. We'll bring her back here; she'll spill everything we need to know."
Ray laughed and exclaimed, "Let's go find Christine Daae!" The three men dashed out of the room and took up a new sport; soprano hunting.
They must have been wearing their lucky underwear because they stumbled upon Christine very quickly. They found her headed back to her dressing room after rehearsals for Don Juan, humming to herself as she walked. She jumped as the Ghost Busters ran up to her, Ray was in the front yelling "Miss Daae! Miss Daae!" She stopped walking and stood in front of them, looking scared.
Ray gave her a warm smile and said, sounding out of breath, "Christine, you're just the person we wanted to find!"
She looked skeptical. "Why?"
"Oh, don't worry, we'd just like to take you back to our room and ask you some questions about the Phantom of the Opera. Don't worry; we're doing this to everyone. Please don't think that we're seeking you out individually, we're trying to go through all the opera house's staff. No one's had any good information so far…" Peter explained, improvising on the spot.
"Do I have to come with you?" Christine asked.
Egon chuckled and said, "Yeah, you do." Ray grabbed her wrist and the four of them began to walk back to the lab. Christine was still a bit skeptical about the going back to their room part of the deal, especially since she was still wearing her costume for Don Juan, but she followed the exterminators nonetheless.
They walked into their room and pointed Miss Daae to a chair. She sat down while Ray and Peter pulled up three other chairs. Egon, meanwhile, was searching through their "scientific" equipment. Peter looked at him curiously, "What are you doing Spengler?"
"We left our lie detector back in New York."
"Damn, it would have been very helpful right about now!"
Christine looked at them questioningly and asked, "Well, didn't you realize it was gone when you interrogated those other people?"
Egon uneasily replied, "Uh, well, I guess we just, um, didn't think to use it on the other people. The idea just now came to me…"
She raised an eyebrow, "Yeah. And why didn't you already have three chairs set up? Dr. Venkman and Dr. Stantz had to get them."
Peter cleared his throat and chuckled nervously, "Oh, that doesn't matter, let's just get on with the questions."
Ray said, "Yes, let's. Spengler, you record her answers. Venkman, watch her body language, see if you can catch whether she's lying or not."
Peter grinned, "Her body language? My pleasure." Christine grimaced, really wishing she had gotten to change dresses.
Egon looked over at Ray, frowning. "Why do you get to ask the questions?"
"Oh, come on Spengler, it doesn't matter. Let's just get this over with." The other two Ghost Busters nodded and Ray began the interrogation.
"Christine, have you talked to the Phantom of the Opera?" Asked Dr. Stantz.
Christine was determined to answer the questions she was asked, but at the same time give nothing away that Erik wouldn't have wanted her to tell his adversaries. She replied, "Yes."
"And what did you talk about?"
She smiled, "Politics."
"What else?"
"The stock market."
"Anything else?"
"Yeah, you guys."
"Really? What did you say?"
"Erik thinks that you're not very smart, and that your uniforms look stupid."
"Erik?"
"That's the Phantom's name."
"A ghost has a name?"
"How many times must someone drill this in your heads, he's not a ghost!"
"How do you know this, Miss Daae?"
"He's solid."
"Some ghosts can take on solid forms. When you are near him, do you feel cold?"
"No."
Peter laughed quietly and asked, "Do you get a warm, fuzzy feeling?"
Christine looked at him like he was crazy and replied, rather unconvincingly, "…Not really."
Dr. Venkman was still smiling but he asked very seriously, "Christine, are you or are you not romantically involved with said phantom?"
She looked incredibly surprised; she had certainly not been expecting that question. After a moment she angrily replied, "What? Why do you need to know that?"
"I'm just a naturally curious person. Genetics, my darling. Yes or no?"
"Dr. Venkman, I'm not sure how I should answer that question. You know, I really have to go. I'll see you guys around." And she sprang up from her chair and ran out of the room.
Ray and Egon turned angrily to Peter, "Why did you have to ask that, Venkman?"
"Come on, I was curious! Besides, it could have meant something…"
Egon sighed, "Whatever. Come on, let's go see if we can't find her again and convince her to answer some more questions. Don't be so blunt next time, Peter, ask questions like that gently."
Dr. Venkman rolled his eyes, "Aye-aye, captain."