Title: The Christmas Promise
Authors: Susie and Jenn
Rated PG
Summary: A little girl asks Ray for help
Warning: this gets a little emotional.
Disclaimers: D.I.C. owns The Real Ghostbusters.
Copyright: 2003
Beta read by Sandy Fiebranz
The sun shone brightly through the bedroom window, but Ray Stantz had already been up for a few hours. He was excited and full of erratic energy. Today was the day he was going to be Santa Claus for a group of children at the 'Angel of Mercy Orphanage.' Ray was fixing breakfast when he saw Egon walking into the kitchen.
"Good morning, Ray."
"Good morning," Ray replied as he buttered Egon's toast. "Hurry and eat then get into your outfit."
Egon looked down at his blue jumpsuit. "I believe that I am in my outfit, Ray."
Ray shook his head. "No, not that! Get into your reindeer outfit. You and Winston both promised to be reindeers!" Ray looked at the door, wondering how long Peter and Winston would take.
"My reindeer outfit? You want me to put it on NOW?" Egon asked. Then for the first time, he noticed that Ray was wearing the Santa outfit minus the beard. He drew his hand over his face as he reminded his enthusiastic friend, "Ray, the party's not until two o'clock. Why are you dressed in your Santa outfit now?"
"Why wait until the last minute?" Ray answered cheerfully as he walked over to the fire pole and yelled upwards. "PETER! WINSTON! GET UP NOW! BREAKFAST IS READY!"
Peter Venkman moaned as he tried to hide deeper under the covers. "Please tell me I'm dreaming," he mumbled.
Winston shook his head. "'Fraid not, my man. Ray is calling us."
Peter leaned over and stared at his radio clock. The fluorescent light beaming back at him read 7:30 a.m. "Oh man, it's not even morning yet! I'm going to go back to sleep and then I'm going to stuff Ray into a box and mail him to my dad!"
Winston was about to say something in response when Ray marched in. "Come on, you two! Get up!"
"Ray, do you know what time it is?" asked Peter.
"Yeah! It's 7:30 and we've got to get ready for the children. So get up, get dressed and come down for breakfast."
"Rayyyyyy," moaned Peter. "The party's not until two. I'm going back to sleep."
Peter started going back underneath the covers when Ray grabbed them and pulled them off. "I said get up and I mean now! Get up!"
Peter grabbed the covers back from Ray. "Raayyy!!! I mean it! DON'T PUSH YOUR LUCK!" Peter exclaimed. "I'm going back to sleep."
"Me too, m'man," Winston said. "Ray, get a grip, will ya? It's 7:30."
"But guys, I'm so excited! Come on, it'll be great!" Ray said.
"Yeah Ray, it'll be great, but it'll be great at two and until then, I'm staying in bed!" Peter snapped.
Ray sighed. "Fine," he muttered and walked into the kitchen.
"Raymond, Peter does have a point," Egon said. "We don't need seven hours to get ready."
"All right, all right," Ray said. "But Peter better be up before two because that's when the party starts!"
The time slowly dragged for Ray as he kept looking at the clock. "Egon, can I get them up now? Please!" he begged.
Egon looked up from the book he was reading. "You're real excited about this, aren't you, Ray?"
"Are you kidding? All those kids sitting on my lap and wanting me to make them happy. Do you what that feels like?"
"No, Tex. Tell me what it feels like," Peter said as he and Winston entered the kitchen.
"There's no other feeling like it in the world and I love it," replied Ray.
The guys smiled at each other. Finally, it was time for them to go and Ray was so excited that Peter couldn't stop him from talking about it on the whole ride to the orphanage. "This is going to be so fun, guys!" Ray said when they finally pulled up.
"We know, we know," Peter shook his head, smiling "But do I really have to wear this elf outfit? It looks silly on me - and these tights! They're so… tight!"
"Peter, you promised to be my elf! Now don't ruin this for me."
Peter rolled his eyes, silently wondering what he had gotten himself into this time. "Okay, okay! I'll be your elf, Santa."
When they arrived, the kids were in the middle of a Christmas party. Miss Emily Kat looked up when she saw Santa, his reindeers and a very handsome elf walk in the door. "Look, children! It's Santa Claus!"
All the children screamed as they ran over to Santa Claus. The elf jumped out of the way before the children knocked him down, but Santa was totally in his element. "HO, HO, HO! Merry Christmas, children!"
"Merry Christmas, Santa!" they all screamed.
"All right, children," said Miss Kat. "You'll all get a chance to tell Santa what you want for Christmas. Now form a line."
The kids lined up to wait patiently. Egon smiled and took a picture of Ray loving this whole event. Each child went up to Ray and told him what he or she wanted. Ray handed them gifts from the bag. They weren't always everything they wanted yet, but he told them maybe they'd get a surprise for Christmas.
One kid asked for a bicycle and another asked for a football, which Ray happened to have in his bag.
"Thanks Santa!" Erin May said and hugged Ray as she ran off after he handed her the doll he had in his bag.
Ray smiled, waving. Another girl, named Steph walked up to him. "Can I have a pony, Santa?" she asked.
"Well, I'll see what I can do, sweetie, but no promises," Ray said. "How about this for starters?"
Steph opened the present he handed her and smiled when she saw it was a toy pony. That seemed to satisfy her. She hugged him and ran off to play with it.
***
Ray stretched his arms as he stood up. Peter walked over to him. "You okay?" he whispered.
"Yeah. I just need to take a break… uh, you know… uh, the little men's room."
The children giggled. "Santa has to go to the bathroom!" said Erin May as she covered her tiny hands.
"Well kids, even Santa's got to go," said the elf Peter. "But while he's gone, I'll let Miss Kat sit on my lap and tell me what she wants."
"You're not Santa Claus!" protested Steph .
"Oh, I'm sure Miss Kat won't mind."
Miss Kat giggled. "Now Peter, behave! Not in front of the children," she whispered.
"Miss Kat's sweet on Santa's elf! Oh gross!" said Erin May.
"Yeah, that's gross!" Steph agreed.
"Besides," added Erin May. "I want him."
****
Ray came out of the bathroom and standing by the door was a little girl. She had long red hair and green eyes. She was wearing a pink dress and black buckle shoes and holding a rag doll. "Well hello, little girl," Ray said in his jolliest Santa voice.
"Hello."
"So, would you like to tell me what you want for Christmas?" Ray asked, smiling at her.
"No," she replied, shaking her head. "What I want, you can't get me."
"Well, I'm Santa. I can get anything."
"Okay. I want my parents."
Ray's heart dropped down to his feet. "Your parents? Honey, I'm not sure I can do that."
"My name is Jenny Sue, not honey and I knew you would say that. You lied to me! You said you could do anything!" At that, Jenny Sue ran down the hallway. Ray felt like he had been kicked in the stomach. He ran after her but lost her. Sadly shaking his head, he returned to the party.
"All right kids, Santa's back!" said Miss Kat.
Winston was the first to notice that Ray was upset about something. "Hey Homeboy? What's up?"
"Jenny Sue wants her parents. I can't give her that, Winston."
Miss Kat looked at Ray strangely. "Whose name did you say?" she asked.
"Jenny Sue," answered Ray.
"That's impossible. Jenny Sue died last year when she fell through the ice on Christmas Day," Miss Kat said.
"What?" Ray asked. "That's horrible! What happened with her parents?"
"They're dead too," Miss Kat explained. " They were killed in a car crash. They died before she did, and Jenny came to us last spring."
Ray stared at her and nodded tearfully. The day finally ended and the guys headed home. Ray noticed something had followed them to the firehouse when he stepped out of Ecto.
"I knew you weren't really Santa," Jenny Sue said. "You're a Ghostbusters Dr Ray Stantz."
Ray lowered his head. "Okay, I'm not. I'm just one of his helpers, but I'd really like to help you."
"You would do that? Why?" Jenny asked.
"Because my parents died too and I'd give anything to have them back," Ray whispered.
Jenny looked down at the ground, "Your parents are okay, Dr. Stantz," she continued looking at the ground. "I promise."
Ray glanced up at her, "Really?"
She nodded. "Yes. They've been looking after me and they're proud of you. Honest," she stated.
Ray had tears in his eyes. "Well, I'll help you find yours. I promise."
Jenny Sue nodded, reaching out to hold Ray's hand and he smiled.
"C-Can I stay here until you do?" she asked.
"Of course," Ray said. "I'm sure the guys wouldn't mind."
"Not in the least," Egon agreed.
"Hey, big guy. If her parents are dead too, why aren't they together?"
"I don't have an answer for that, Peter. Maybe her parents aren't in the same timeline as she is," Egon replied.
"Well, we've got to find them. A child shouldn't be separated from her parents in life or death," Ray said.
"We'll find them, Ray. I've just got to see if I can set the PKE Meter to their frequency." Egon walked over to Jenny Sue, who was clinging to Ray. "I won't hurt you, little one," said Egon, but Jenny Sue wouldn't let him near her.
"You better take the reading, Ray," said Egon. " I want to see if Jenny Sue's reading is the same as her parents, but she won't let me take a reading of her."
Ray nodded and took the reading. Jenny kept clinging to Ray.
"Come on, kiddo," Peter said. "Why don't we get you settled in upstairs, okay?"
Jenny Sue nodded shyly. "Ray, will you come?"
"Of course," Ray beamed.
They took her upstairs to the guest room. Jenny Sue looked around, frowning a little.
"It's not much I know, but well, we don't usually have kids stay with us," Ray admitted.
Jenny Sue smiled. "It's okay, Ray. Can I do some things to the room?"
"Sure kid, anything you want," Ray agreed. "Uh, within reason of course, and call me
Uncle Ray."
Jenny Sue ran over and hugged him. "Thanks, Uncle Ray."
Peter smiled. "And you can call me Uncle Peter."
Jenny Sue looked over at Peter. "Do I have to?"
Peter pretended to be hurt. "Well, you called Ray Uncle Ray and he's my brother."
"He is not!"
"Jenny Sue, would you call Peter uncle for me?"
Jenny Sue thought for a moment. "Okay, but only for you, Uncle Ray." She then turned to Peter. "Uncle Peter, do you have anything pink? I love pink."
"I'll see what I can do."
Winston came into the room. "Pete, Egon wants to see you now."
"What's up, Winston? Does Egon want me too?"
"No Ray, just Peter."
Peter went with Winston downstairs, where Egon was sitting on the couch. "The Ghost Master has Jenny Sue's parents," Egon said.
"I thought we trapped him." said Winston
"There must be a new Ghost Master .My readings confirm it." replied Egon.
"Who has my parents?" cried Jenny Sue.
. "The Ghost Master," Egon said.
Ray stared at him. "How's that possible? He's in the contianment unit."
"Someone else took over." said Winston.
Jenny Sue turned around and put her head against Ray's chest and cried her heart out. She knew her parents were lost to her. No ghost ever escaped the Ghost Master.
Ray tried to hug her tightly, but his arms went through Jenny Sue's body. "Hey, it'll be okay. I made a promise didn't I? I intend to keep it. You'll see your parents for Christmas."
Jenny Sue wiped her eyes. "R-Really?" she asked.
"Of course. Come on, let's go upstairs and play a game or something, okay? We'll let these guys handle the problem," Ray winked at Egon, Peter, and Winston.
The guys watched as Jenny Sue and Ray headed upstairs. Peter glanced at Egon and Egon raised an eyebrow at him.
"What is it?" Winston asked. "What are you two thinking?"
"Just that Ray's growing awfully attached to Jenny Sue," Peter said
"So?" Winston asked.
"Winston, she is dead," Egon reminded him. "If Raymond keeps on growing attached to her like this, well…" Egon didn't have to finish - Winston already had gotten the idea.
"Oh man," Winston said.
"Exactly. We have to find her parents," Peter stated. "Or this'll kill Ray."
"Oh man," Winston repeated.
***
"Yahtzee! I got another Yahtzee!" said Jenny Sue, all excited.
"Wow! You sure did. That makes… uh, let me see."
"Five! I've got five Yahtzees." Jenny Sue got up and did a victory dance and sang, "Ooo I'm good; yes I am. I'm the champ!"
Ray laughed then Jenny Sue grabbed at his arms. "Dance with me, Uncle Ray!"
Ray got up and did a silly little dance with her. Slimer had floated into the room and excited by the two, joined them. They all danced until Ray and Jenny Sue fell down laughing. Jenny Sue hugged Ray. "I love you, Uncle Ray," she proclaimed.
"I love you too, Jenny Sue."
Jenny Sue smiled. "Uncle Ray?" she asked.
"Yes?"
"I-If we can't find my Mommy and Daddy… and I'm stuck here, will you be my Daddy?" she asked seriously.
Ray almost gasped when she said that. "Uuuhhhh…" He was speechless.
"I-I mean if you don't want to, that's okay," she lowered her head.
Ray smiled, "Of course I want to," he said as he hugged her.
She beamed.
****
Egon shook his head. He was coming up for Ray and Jenny Sue and heard everything the two had said. "Raymond, may I see you for a moment?"
Ray nodded and walked from the room with Egon. "Yeah?"
"Ray, you can't be Jenny Sue's father."
"Why not? She needs me"
"Ray, think for a moment. She's dead!"
"Well, so is Slimer!" Ray protested.
"Slimer's different and you know it."
"I don't care, Egon! I'm going to be Jenny Sue's father if we can't rescue her parents."
Egon shook his head and sighed. "I know where her parents are, so get your gear and meet us downstairs."
"What about Jenny Sue?"
"Janine said she would watch her."
Ray nodded and turned back to Jenny Sue. "We're going to save your parents from the Ghost Master. Janine's going to watch you."
"Can't I go with you?"
"No sweetie, it's too dangerous."
Jenny Sue ran to Ray. "Be careful. I don't want to lose you too."
Ray nodded. "I won't go anywhere - I promise," he said.
The guys left with sirens blasting. Egon used his PKE meter to track down the Ghost Master. "Ray, you must listen to me on this!" Egon exclaimed.
"No!" Ray snapped angrily, "Just because you never had anyone ask you to be their father doesn't mean you can tell me what to do!"
"Egon's right, Ray. You know he is," Peter said, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder.
Don't we have a ghost to bust?" Ray snapped.
"Which way, m'man? I need direction," Winston asked from up front.
"Here, in this alley!" Egon called back. Winston swerved the wheel to the right and ended up in a dark alley.
The Ghostbusters got out and Egon reset his PKE Meter. "I'm getting a strong reading that way," he said as he pointed down the end of the dark alley. Setting their throwers they marched down the alley only to come to a dead end.
"Egon, there's nothing here!" said Peter. "Nothing but a brick wall."
"No. Wait - it's here." Egon moved his hand along the wall and blinked in surprise when his hand went through it. "Gentlemen, I believe I have found what we're looking for. Follow me." He then walked through the wall, the rest slowly following him inside. They no sooner got inside when hordes of ghosts attacked them.
"There's too many!" cried Ray as he was being pushed back.
"We got to retreat!" called Egon as he kept firing. Suddenly the Ghostbusters were in trouble - big trouble. They yelled as a big gust of wind swooped them into the air and they landed in a big dark cage.
"Welcome, Ghostbusters. You are now my prisoners." The Ghost Master, who was just as fat and ugly as the old one had been, turned to a small figure standing in the shadows. "You did a great job, my child."
The figure came out from the shadows. Ray's heart fell when he saw that it was Jenny Sue. "Why?" he asked
Jenny Sue only shook her head.
The Ghost Master pulled Jenny Sue to his side. She winced because he hurt her when he grabbed her. "Jenny Sue is one of my children and she knows not to disobey me."
"She's not one of yours, you creep! Jenny Sue is her own person, uh ghost!" Ray cried as he tried his best to get out of the cage. The rest of the guys pulled him back.
Jenny Sue turned back to The Ghost Master. "I did what you wanted. You have the Ghostbusters. Now let my parents go."
The Ghost Master stood up. "You don't tell me what to do, child." He raised his hand and lightning shot from his fingers, the bolt hitting Jenny Sue. She flew across the room and hit the wall.
"JENNY SUE!!!!" The Ghost Master turned and laughed at Ray's angry outburst, but the youngest Ghostbuster was angry. His eyes were almost glowing; he was so upset. "No one hurts Jenny Sue on my watch!" Ray suddenly began to pull at the cage, not heeding the electrical shocks going through him - he was so angry, he didn't even feel it. When Ray finally broke free, the guys stared at him. He ran over to the Ghost Master and aimed his particle thrower. "You're mine!" Ray said.
"Uncle Ray, no!" Jenny Sue screamed.
The Ghost Master laughed. "Uncle Ray? Oh, I like that! How sweet!" he sneered. "It's a shame, Dr. Stantz, a shame that now you'll have to watch her perish a second time," he said as he started to wave his arm.
"NO!" Ray cried and shot at him. The other guys added in their own firepower.
"Should've thought about removing our packs, you brainless idiot!" Peter yelled as the Ghost Master glared angrily at them. "Looks like you're fired, bozo."
"Yeah," Ray said. "Never mess with any of the Ghostbusters - Jenny Sue included. She's one of us!"
"Really?" Jenny Sue asked, wide-eyed.
"Really," Ray said, smiling.
Jenny Sue returned the smile.
"RAY, THE TRAP!" Egon yelled.
Ray threw out the trap. "Jenny Sue, you may do the honors," Ray said as he pointed to the trap.
Jenny Sue nodded as she started to step on the trap and glared angrily at the Ghost Master. "Your parents will be trapped forever!" he cried. "Without me, you will never get them back!"
Jenny Sue hesitated. Peter called out, "Jenny Sue, the trap!"
"But my parents!" she exclaimed.
Ray called out, still trying to hold the new Ghost Master in his beam. "I made a promise and I'll find them. Don't listen to him!"
Jenny Sue suddenly stepped on the trap and the new Ghost Master was sucked in." My Uncle Ray doesn't lie to me, bozo."
Suddenly the darkness left and light came into the room, revealing two ghosts standing inside the room. The Ghostbusters exchanged grins.
"Hey, Jenny Sue? Are those your folks?" asked Winston.
Jenny Sue looked over at the two ghosts. "No. They're Uncle Ray's parents."
Ray turned around and looked at his parents with wide eyes. "Hello son," said his father.
Ray nodded. "Hello."
Peter stared at him. "Ray? Is that all you can say?"
"I'm glad to see them, Peter. I really am but I promised to find Jenny Sue's parents." He took out his PKE meter and scanned the area. "Egon, take a look. I think her parents are behind this wall but something is interfering with them being able to come through the wall..."
Egon turned his PKE meter in the direction Ray had scanned before and nodded in agreement. "You're right, Ray. Okay, then. Let's break this wall down by firing at a lower frequency." Together they fired, creating a hole in the wall, and once the rubble cleared away, two ghostly figures stood on the opposite side of the hole and held their arms out towards Jenny Sue.
"Momma! Papa!" Jenny Sue ran up to her parents and hugged them. Happy tears stood in her eyes.
"Thank you, sweetie," Misty said, smiling. Jenny Sue's mother turned to Mr. and Mrs. Stantz and continued with a soft smile, "and thank you for watching after her."
Jenny Sue's father turned to Ray. "Thank you for helping her to find us."
Ray's parents smiled, floated over to Jenny Sue's parents, and shook their hands. Jenny Sue hugged Mr. and Mrs. Stantz and thanked them herself and then she went back to her parents and continued to hug them. Ray started to walk away, leaving her with her parents. Jenny Sue ran up to him and tugged on his uniform. He turned around with tears in his eyes.
"I-I'm sorry, but I have to leave you, Uncle Ray," Jenny Sue said, staring at him
"I-I know," he said, lowering his head. "I know you do."
Jenny Sue's eyes watered. "It's not fair. I wish you could come with us, or we can stay with you."
"I-I know it's not, kiddo," Ray said. "But I can't go with you, and y-you have a better place to go than here. Your parents need you."
Jenny Sue nodded. "I-I know, but I don't want to leave you, Uncle Ray."
Ray got choked up. "You have to, kiddo. You have to."
Jenny Sue gave him a big hug. "I love you, Uncle Ray."
"I love you too," Ray whispered as he tried to hold back his tears.
Jenny Sue waved as she and her parents slowly disappeared. "Merry Christmas, Uncle Ray."
Ray turned around and rubbed his sleeve across his eyes. Peter started towards him, but Ray's father stopped him. "Please let his mother talk to him."
Peter nodded.
Carolyn went over to her son. "Hi, baby. I miss you."
Ray looked at the ghostly image of his mother. "I miss you too."
Carolyn reached out to stroke his face. "My little Ray all grown up… Don't be sad. Someday you'll be a father."
Ray stared at her. "Yeah? How?"
"You will, sweetie. Someday, you'll be a father. Now your father and I must go."
"Do you have to?"
"Yes, but remember: we will always be watching over you."
Ray 's father moved over to stand beside his wife. "Goodbye, son. Like your mother said we'll always be watching over you." And at that, they were gone.
Ray sank down to his knees and cried. Peter walked up to him, wiping his own eyes. He realized how bad this must've made Ray feel: he had seen his parents again, plus he had to say goodbye to Jenny Sue. He knelt down beside Ray and tried to hug him.
"Oh Peter," Ray whimpered, his body shaking as he cried in Peter's arms.
"Hey! Come on, buddy. You've got family! You have us, remember?" Peter whispered as he hugged Ray. Finally Ray's shaking stopped and he looked exhausted. "Come on, Tex. Let's go home," Peter said.
Ray nodded and they took him home. For the next couple of days, Ray spent the time lying on his bed staring up at the ceiling.
Egon looked at Peter and Winston after checking on their friend. "Ray's been lying in there for two days straight. I knew that he was getting too close to Jenny Sue," he sighed.
"Well, we better snap him out of it," Winston said sensibly. "It's Christmas Eve."
"I've got an idea," said Peter, stroking the bottom of his chin.
"What's your idea? " Egon asked.
"Just follow my lead."
Winston and Egon exchanged glances, shrugging their shoulders as Peter turned around. They watched as Peter went upstairs, singing very loudly - and very off key: "Deck the halls with boughs of holly, fa la la la la la…! 'Tis the season to be jolly! Fa la la la la la la… Come on Ray, what's the next line?"
Ray slowly sat up. "Follow me in merry measure, fa la la la la la la…"
"Yeah! That's it!" cried Peter. "I knew that you'd know it, Ray!"
"Let's finish it before Peter starts caterwauling again," said Winston to Egon as they went upstairs. "While I tell of yule-time treasure! Fa la la la la laaaaa…"
Ray smiled. "Hey, it's Christmas Eve and Peter's actually singing Christmas songs! Let's sing my favorite, okay?"
"Okay, Tex. We'll sing your favorite but only once, not twenty times like you did last year."
The Ghostbusters all started to sing Here Comes Santa Claus and Peter got his wish. They didn't sing it twenty times - they sang it thirty times - at least it seemed that way to him. Peter smiled when they stopped. "Feeling better, buddy?" he asked.
"Yeah," Ray wiped his eyes. "Thanks, guys," he looked down at his watch and smiled "Hey guys, it's Christmas! It's midnight."
"Yeahhh!!!" Slimer got all excited and swooped around the room.
Ray smiled at Slimer. "Well, I can only think of one good Christmas song to sing at midnight," he said.
"What's that?" Winston asked.
"Silent night… Holy night… All is calm, all is bright…" the guys smiled and joined in.
The End
Authors: Susie and Jenn
Rated PG
Summary: A little girl asks Ray for help
Warning: this gets a little emotional.
Disclaimers: D.I.C. owns The Real Ghostbusters.
Copyright: 2003
Beta read by Sandy Fiebranz
The sun shone brightly through the bedroom window, but Ray Stantz had already been up for a few hours. He was excited and full of erratic energy. Today was the day he was going to be Santa Claus for a group of children at the 'Angel of Mercy Orphanage.' Ray was fixing breakfast when he saw Egon walking into the kitchen.
"Good morning, Ray."
"Good morning," Ray replied as he buttered Egon's toast. "Hurry and eat then get into your outfit."
Egon looked down at his blue jumpsuit. "I believe that I am in my outfit, Ray."
Ray shook his head. "No, not that! Get into your reindeer outfit. You and Winston both promised to be reindeers!" Ray looked at the door, wondering how long Peter and Winston would take.
"My reindeer outfit? You want me to put it on NOW?" Egon asked. Then for the first time, he noticed that Ray was wearing the Santa outfit minus the beard. He drew his hand over his face as he reminded his enthusiastic friend, "Ray, the party's not until two o'clock. Why are you dressed in your Santa outfit now?"
"Why wait until the last minute?" Ray answered cheerfully as he walked over to the fire pole and yelled upwards. "PETER! WINSTON! GET UP NOW! BREAKFAST IS READY!"
Peter Venkman moaned as he tried to hide deeper under the covers. "Please tell me I'm dreaming," he mumbled.
Winston shook his head. "'Fraid not, my man. Ray is calling us."
Peter leaned over and stared at his radio clock. The fluorescent light beaming back at him read 7:30 a.m. "Oh man, it's not even morning yet! I'm going to go back to sleep and then I'm going to stuff Ray into a box and mail him to my dad!"
Winston was about to say something in response when Ray marched in. "Come on, you two! Get up!"
"Ray, do you know what time it is?" asked Peter.
"Yeah! It's 7:30 and we've got to get ready for the children. So get up, get dressed and come down for breakfast."
"Rayyyyyy," moaned Peter. "The party's not until two. I'm going back to sleep."
Peter started going back underneath the covers when Ray grabbed them and pulled them off. "I said get up and I mean now! Get up!"
Peter grabbed the covers back from Ray. "Raayyy!!! I mean it! DON'T PUSH YOUR LUCK!" Peter exclaimed. "I'm going back to sleep."
"Me too, m'man," Winston said. "Ray, get a grip, will ya? It's 7:30."
"But guys, I'm so excited! Come on, it'll be great!" Ray said.
"Yeah Ray, it'll be great, but it'll be great at two and until then, I'm staying in bed!" Peter snapped.
Ray sighed. "Fine," he muttered and walked into the kitchen.
"Raymond, Peter does have a point," Egon said. "We don't need seven hours to get ready."
"All right, all right," Ray said. "But Peter better be up before two because that's when the party starts!"
The time slowly dragged for Ray as he kept looking at the clock. "Egon, can I get them up now? Please!" he begged.
Egon looked up from the book he was reading. "You're real excited about this, aren't you, Ray?"
"Are you kidding? All those kids sitting on my lap and wanting me to make them happy. Do you what that feels like?"
"No, Tex. Tell me what it feels like," Peter said as he and Winston entered the kitchen.
"There's no other feeling like it in the world and I love it," replied Ray.
The guys smiled at each other. Finally, it was time for them to go and Ray was so excited that Peter couldn't stop him from talking about it on the whole ride to the orphanage. "This is going to be so fun, guys!" Ray said when they finally pulled up.
"We know, we know," Peter shook his head, smiling "But do I really have to wear this elf outfit? It looks silly on me - and these tights! They're so… tight!"
"Peter, you promised to be my elf! Now don't ruin this for me."
Peter rolled his eyes, silently wondering what he had gotten himself into this time. "Okay, okay! I'll be your elf, Santa."
When they arrived, the kids were in the middle of a Christmas party. Miss Emily Kat looked up when she saw Santa, his reindeers and a very handsome elf walk in the door. "Look, children! It's Santa Claus!"
All the children screamed as they ran over to Santa Claus. The elf jumped out of the way before the children knocked him down, but Santa was totally in his element. "HO, HO, HO! Merry Christmas, children!"
"Merry Christmas, Santa!" they all screamed.
"All right, children," said Miss Kat. "You'll all get a chance to tell Santa what you want for Christmas. Now form a line."
The kids lined up to wait patiently. Egon smiled and took a picture of Ray loving this whole event. Each child went up to Ray and told him what he or she wanted. Ray handed them gifts from the bag. They weren't always everything they wanted yet, but he told them maybe they'd get a surprise for Christmas.
One kid asked for a bicycle and another asked for a football, which Ray happened to have in his bag.
"Thanks Santa!" Erin May said and hugged Ray as she ran off after he handed her the doll he had in his bag.
Ray smiled, waving. Another girl, named Steph walked up to him. "Can I have a pony, Santa?" she asked.
"Well, I'll see what I can do, sweetie, but no promises," Ray said. "How about this for starters?"
Steph opened the present he handed her and smiled when she saw it was a toy pony. That seemed to satisfy her. She hugged him and ran off to play with it.
***
Ray stretched his arms as he stood up. Peter walked over to him. "You okay?" he whispered.
"Yeah. I just need to take a break… uh, you know… uh, the little men's room."
The children giggled. "Santa has to go to the bathroom!" said Erin May as she covered her tiny hands.
"Well kids, even Santa's got to go," said the elf Peter. "But while he's gone, I'll let Miss Kat sit on my lap and tell me what she wants."
"You're not Santa Claus!" protested Steph .
"Oh, I'm sure Miss Kat won't mind."
Miss Kat giggled. "Now Peter, behave! Not in front of the children," she whispered.
"Miss Kat's sweet on Santa's elf! Oh gross!" said Erin May.
"Yeah, that's gross!" Steph agreed.
"Besides," added Erin May. "I want him."
****
Ray came out of the bathroom and standing by the door was a little girl. She had long red hair and green eyes. She was wearing a pink dress and black buckle shoes and holding a rag doll. "Well hello, little girl," Ray said in his jolliest Santa voice.
"Hello."
"So, would you like to tell me what you want for Christmas?" Ray asked, smiling at her.
"No," she replied, shaking her head. "What I want, you can't get me."
"Well, I'm Santa. I can get anything."
"Okay. I want my parents."
Ray's heart dropped down to his feet. "Your parents? Honey, I'm not sure I can do that."
"My name is Jenny Sue, not honey and I knew you would say that. You lied to me! You said you could do anything!" At that, Jenny Sue ran down the hallway. Ray felt like he had been kicked in the stomach. He ran after her but lost her. Sadly shaking his head, he returned to the party.
"All right kids, Santa's back!" said Miss Kat.
Winston was the first to notice that Ray was upset about something. "Hey Homeboy? What's up?"
"Jenny Sue wants her parents. I can't give her that, Winston."
Miss Kat looked at Ray strangely. "Whose name did you say?" she asked.
"Jenny Sue," answered Ray.
"That's impossible. Jenny Sue died last year when she fell through the ice on Christmas Day," Miss Kat said.
"What?" Ray asked. "That's horrible! What happened with her parents?"
"They're dead too," Miss Kat explained. " They were killed in a car crash. They died before she did, and Jenny came to us last spring."
Ray stared at her and nodded tearfully. The day finally ended and the guys headed home. Ray noticed something had followed them to the firehouse when he stepped out of Ecto.
"I knew you weren't really Santa," Jenny Sue said. "You're a Ghostbusters Dr Ray Stantz."
Ray lowered his head. "Okay, I'm not. I'm just one of his helpers, but I'd really like to help you."
"You would do that? Why?" Jenny asked.
"Because my parents died too and I'd give anything to have them back," Ray whispered.
Jenny looked down at the ground, "Your parents are okay, Dr. Stantz," she continued looking at the ground. "I promise."
Ray glanced up at her, "Really?"
She nodded. "Yes. They've been looking after me and they're proud of you. Honest," she stated.
Ray had tears in his eyes. "Well, I'll help you find yours. I promise."
Jenny Sue nodded, reaching out to hold Ray's hand and he smiled.
"C-Can I stay here until you do?" she asked.
"Of course," Ray said. "I'm sure the guys wouldn't mind."
"Not in the least," Egon agreed.
"Hey, big guy. If her parents are dead too, why aren't they together?"
"I don't have an answer for that, Peter. Maybe her parents aren't in the same timeline as she is," Egon replied.
"Well, we've got to find them. A child shouldn't be separated from her parents in life or death," Ray said.
"We'll find them, Ray. I've just got to see if I can set the PKE Meter to their frequency." Egon walked over to Jenny Sue, who was clinging to Ray. "I won't hurt you, little one," said Egon, but Jenny Sue wouldn't let him near her.
"You better take the reading, Ray," said Egon. " I want to see if Jenny Sue's reading is the same as her parents, but she won't let me take a reading of her."
Ray nodded and took the reading. Jenny kept clinging to Ray.
"Come on, kiddo," Peter said. "Why don't we get you settled in upstairs, okay?"
Jenny Sue nodded shyly. "Ray, will you come?"
"Of course," Ray beamed.
They took her upstairs to the guest room. Jenny Sue looked around, frowning a little.
"It's not much I know, but well, we don't usually have kids stay with us," Ray admitted.
Jenny Sue smiled. "It's okay, Ray. Can I do some things to the room?"
"Sure kid, anything you want," Ray agreed. "Uh, within reason of course, and call me
Uncle Ray."
Jenny Sue ran over and hugged him. "Thanks, Uncle Ray."
Peter smiled. "And you can call me Uncle Peter."
Jenny Sue looked over at Peter. "Do I have to?"
Peter pretended to be hurt. "Well, you called Ray Uncle Ray and he's my brother."
"He is not!"
"Jenny Sue, would you call Peter uncle for me?"
Jenny Sue thought for a moment. "Okay, but only for you, Uncle Ray." She then turned to Peter. "Uncle Peter, do you have anything pink? I love pink."
"I'll see what I can do."
Winston came into the room. "Pete, Egon wants to see you now."
"What's up, Winston? Does Egon want me too?"
"No Ray, just Peter."
Peter went with Winston downstairs, where Egon was sitting on the couch. "The Ghost Master has Jenny Sue's parents," Egon said.
"I thought we trapped him." said Winston
"There must be a new Ghost Master .My readings confirm it." replied Egon.
"Who has my parents?" cried Jenny Sue.
. "The Ghost Master," Egon said.
Ray stared at him. "How's that possible? He's in the contianment unit."
"Someone else took over." said Winston.
Jenny Sue turned around and put her head against Ray's chest and cried her heart out. She knew her parents were lost to her. No ghost ever escaped the Ghost Master.
Ray tried to hug her tightly, but his arms went through Jenny Sue's body. "Hey, it'll be okay. I made a promise didn't I? I intend to keep it. You'll see your parents for Christmas."
Jenny Sue wiped her eyes. "R-Really?" she asked.
"Of course. Come on, let's go upstairs and play a game or something, okay? We'll let these guys handle the problem," Ray winked at Egon, Peter, and Winston.
The guys watched as Jenny Sue and Ray headed upstairs. Peter glanced at Egon and Egon raised an eyebrow at him.
"What is it?" Winston asked. "What are you two thinking?"
"Just that Ray's growing awfully attached to Jenny Sue," Peter said
"So?" Winston asked.
"Winston, she is dead," Egon reminded him. "If Raymond keeps on growing attached to her like this, well…" Egon didn't have to finish - Winston already had gotten the idea.
"Oh man," Winston said.
"Exactly. We have to find her parents," Peter stated. "Or this'll kill Ray."
"Oh man," Winston repeated.
***
"Yahtzee! I got another Yahtzee!" said Jenny Sue, all excited.
"Wow! You sure did. That makes… uh, let me see."
"Five! I've got five Yahtzees." Jenny Sue got up and did a victory dance and sang, "Ooo I'm good; yes I am. I'm the champ!"
Ray laughed then Jenny Sue grabbed at his arms. "Dance with me, Uncle Ray!"
Ray got up and did a silly little dance with her. Slimer had floated into the room and excited by the two, joined them. They all danced until Ray and Jenny Sue fell down laughing. Jenny Sue hugged Ray. "I love you, Uncle Ray," she proclaimed.
"I love you too, Jenny Sue."
Jenny Sue smiled. "Uncle Ray?" she asked.
"Yes?"
"I-If we can't find my Mommy and Daddy… and I'm stuck here, will you be my Daddy?" she asked seriously.
Ray almost gasped when she said that. "Uuuhhhh…" He was speechless.
"I-I mean if you don't want to, that's okay," she lowered her head.
Ray smiled, "Of course I want to," he said as he hugged her.
She beamed.
****
Egon shook his head. He was coming up for Ray and Jenny Sue and heard everything the two had said. "Raymond, may I see you for a moment?"
Ray nodded and walked from the room with Egon. "Yeah?"
"Ray, you can't be Jenny Sue's father."
"Why not? She needs me"
"Ray, think for a moment. She's dead!"
"Well, so is Slimer!" Ray protested.
"Slimer's different and you know it."
"I don't care, Egon! I'm going to be Jenny Sue's father if we can't rescue her parents."
Egon shook his head and sighed. "I know where her parents are, so get your gear and meet us downstairs."
"What about Jenny Sue?"
"Janine said she would watch her."
Ray nodded and turned back to Jenny Sue. "We're going to save your parents from the Ghost Master. Janine's going to watch you."
"Can't I go with you?"
"No sweetie, it's too dangerous."
Jenny Sue ran to Ray. "Be careful. I don't want to lose you too."
Ray nodded. "I won't go anywhere - I promise," he said.
The guys left with sirens blasting. Egon used his PKE meter to track down the Ghost Master. "Ray, you must listen to me on this!" Egon exclaimed.
"No!" Ray snapped angrily, "Just because you never had anyone ask you to be their father doesn't mean you can tell me what to do!"
"Egon's right, Ray. You know he is," Peter said, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder.
Don't we have a ghost to bust?" Ray snapped.
"Which way, m'man? I need direction," Winston asked from up front.
"Here, in this alley!" Egon called back. Winston swerved the wheel to the right and ended up in a dark alley.
The Ghostbusters got out and Egon reset his PKE Meter. "I'm getting a strong reading that way," he said as he pointed down the end of the dark alley. Setting their throwers they marched down the alley only to come to a dead end.
"Egon, there's nothing here!" said Peter. "Nothing but a brick wall."
"No. Wait - it's here." Egon moved his hand along the wall and blinked in surprise when his hand went through it. "Gentlemen, I believe I have found what we're looking for. Follow me." He then walked through the wall, the rest slowly following him inside. They no sooner got inside when hordes of ghosts attacked them.
"There's too many!" cried Ray as he was being pushed back.
"We got to retreat!" called Egon as he kept firing. Suddenly the Ghostbusters were in trouble - big trouble. They yelled as a big gust of wind swooped them into the air and they landed in a big dark cage.
"Welcome, Ghostbusters. You are now my prisoners." The Ghost Master, who was just as fat and ugly as the old one had been, turned to a small figure standing in the shadows. "You did a great job, my child."
The figure came out from the shadows. Ray's heart fell when he saw that it was Jenny Sue. "Why?" he asked
Jenny Sue only shook her head.
The Ghost Master pulled Jenny Sue to his side. She winced because he hurt her when he grabbed her. "Jenny Sue is one of my children and she knows not to disobey me."
"She's not one of yours, you creep! Jenny Sue is her own person, uh ghost!" Ray cried as he tried his best to get out of the cage. The rest of the guys pulled him back.
Jenny Sue turned back to The Ghost Master. "I did what you wanted. You have the Ghostbusters. Now let my parents go."
The Ghost Master stood up. "You don't tell me what to do, child." He raised his hand and lightning shot from his fingers, the bolt hitting Jenny Sue. She flew across the room and hit the wall.
"JENNY SUE!!!!" The Ghost Master turned and laughed at Ray's angry outburst, but the youngest Ghostbuster was angry. His eyes were almost glowing; he was so upset. "No one hurts Jenny Sue on my watch!" Ray suddenly began to pull at the cage, not heeding the electrical shocks going through him - he was so angry, he didn't even feel it. When Ray finally broke free, the guys stared at him. He ran over to the Ghost Master and aimed his particle thrower. "You're mine!" Ray said.
"Uncle Ray, no!" Jenny Sue screamed.
The Ghost Master laughed. "Uncle Ray? Oh, I like that! How sweet!" he sneered. "It's a shame, Dr. Stantz, a shame that now you'll have to watch her perish a second time," he said as he started to wave his arm.
"NO!" Ray cried and shot at him. The other guys added in their own firepower.
"Should've thought about removing our packs, you brainless idiot!" Peter yelled as the Ghost Master glared angrily at them. "Looks like you're fired, bozo."
"Yeah," Ray said. "Never mess with any of the Ghostbusters - Jenny Sue included. She's one of us!"
"Really?" Jenny Sue asked, wide-eyed.
"Really," Ray said, smiling.
Jenny Sue returned the smile.
"RAY, THE TRAP!" Egon yelled.
Ray threw out the trap. "Jenny Sue, you may do the honors," Ray said as he pointed to the trap.
Jenny Sue nodded as she started to step on the trap and glared angrily at the Ghost Master. "Your parents will be trapped forever!" he cried. "Without me, you will never get them back!"
Jenny Sue hesitated. Peter called out, "Jenny Sue, the trap!"
"But my parents!" she exclaimed.
Ray called out, still trying to hold the new Ghost Master in his beam. "I made a promise and I'll find them. Don't listen to him!"
Jenny Sue suddenly stepped on the trap and the new Ghost Master was sucked in." My Uncle Ray doesn't lie to me, bozo."
Suddenly the darkness left and light came into the room, revealing two ghosts standing inside the room. The Ghostbusters exchanged grins.
"Hey, Jenny Sue? Are those your folks?" asked Winston.
Jenny Sue looked over at the two ghosts. "No. They're Uncle Ray's parents."
Ray turned around and looked at his parents with wide eyes. "Hello son," said his father.
Ray nodded. "Hello."
Peter stared at him. "Ray? Is that all you can say?"
"I'm glad to see them, Peter. I really am but I promised to find Jenny Sue's parents." He took out his PKE meter and scanned the area. "Egon, take a look. I think her parents are behind this wall but something is interfering with them being able to come through the wall..."
Egon turned his PKE meter in the direction Ray had scanned before and nodded in agreement. "You're right, Ray. Okay, then. Let's break this wall down by firing at a lower frequency." Together they fired, creating a hole in the wall, and once the rubble cleared away, two ghostly figures stood on the opposite side of the hole and held their arms out towards Jenny Sue.
"Momma! Papa!" Jenny Sue ran up to her parents and hugged them. Happy tears stood in her eyes.
"Thank you, sweetie," Misty said, smiling. Jenny Sue's mother turned to Mr. and Mrs. Stantz and continued with a soft smile, "and thank you for watching after her."
Jenny Sue's father turned to Ray. "Thank you for helping her to find us."
Ray's parents smiled, floated over to Jenny Sue's parents, and shook their hands. Jenny Sue hugged Mr. and Mrs. Stantz and thanked them herself and then she went back to her parents and continued to hug them. Ray started to walk away, leaving her with her parents. Jenny Sue ran up to him and tugged on his uniform. He turned around with tears in his eyes.
"I-I'm sorry, but I have to leave you, Uncle Ray," Jenny Sue said, staring at him
"I-I know," he said, lowering his head. "I know you do."
Jenny Sue's eyes watered. "It's not fair. I wish you could come with us, or we can stay with you."
"I-I know it's not, kiddo," Ray said. "But I can't go with you, and y-you have a better place to go than here. Your parents need you."
Jenny Sue nodded. "I-I know, but I don't want to leave you, Uncle Ray."
Ray got choked up. "You have to, kiddo. You have to."
Jenny Sue gave him a big hug. "I love you, Uncle Ray."
"I love you too," Ray whispered as he tried to hold back his tears.
Jenny Sue waved as she and her parents slowly disappeared. "Merry Christmas, Uncle Ray."
Ray turned around and rubbed his sleeve across his eyes. Peter started towards him, but Ray's father stopped him. "Please let his mother talk to him."
Peter nodded.
Carolyn went over to her son. "Hi, baby. I miss you."
Ray looked at the ghostly image of his mother. "I miss you too."
Carolyn reached out to stroke his face. "My little Ray all grown up… Don't be sad. Someday you'll be a father."
Ray stared at her. "Yeah? How?"
"You will, sweetie. Someday, you'll be a father. Now your father and I must go."
"Do you have to?"
"Yes, but remember: we will always be watching over you."
Ray 's father moved over to stand beside his wife. "Goodbye, son. Like your mother said we'll always be watching over you." And at that, they were gone.
Ray sank down to his knees and cried. Peter walked up to him, wiping his own eyes. He realized how bad this must've made Ray feel: he had seen his parents again, plus he had to say goodbye to Jenny Sue. He knelt down beside Ray and tried to hug him.
"Oh Peter," Ray whimpered, his body shaking as he cried in Peter's arms.
"Hey! Come on, buddy. You've got family! You have us, remember?" Peter whispered as he hugged Ray. Finally Ray's shaking stopped and he looked exhausted. "Come on, Tex. Let's go home," Peter said.
Ray nodded and they took him home. For the next couple of days, Ray spent the time lying on his bed staring up at the ceiling.
Egon looked at Peter and Winston after checking on their friend. "Ray's been lying in there for two days straight. I knew that he was getting too close to Jenny Sue," he sighed.
"Well, we better snap him out of it," Winston said sensibly. "It's Christmas Eve."
"I've got an idea," said Peter, stroking the bottom of his chin.
"What's your idea? " Egon asked.
"Just follow my lead."
Winston and Egon exchanged glances, shrugging their shoulders as Peter turned around. They watched as Peter went upstairs, singing very loudly - and very off key: "Deck the halls with boughs of holly, fa la la la la la…! 'Tis the season to be jolly! Fa la la la la la la… Come on Ray, what's the next line?"
Ray slowly sat up. "Follow me in merry measure, fa la la la la la la…"
"Yeah! That's it!" cried Peter. "I knew that you'd know it, Ray!"
"Let's finish it before Peter starts caterwauling again," said Winston to Egon as they went upstairs. "While I tell of yule-time treasure! Fa la la la la laaaaa…"
Ray smiled. "Hey, it's Christmas Eve and Peter's actually singing Christmas songs! Let's sing my favorite, okay?"
"Okay, Tex. We'll sing your favorite but only once, not twenty times like you did last year."
The Ghostbusters all started to sing Here Comes Santa Claus and Peter got his wish. They didn't sing it twenty times - they sang it thirty times - at least it seemed that way to him. Peter smiled when they stopped. "Feeling better, buddy?" he asked.
"Yeah," Ray wiped his eyes. "Thanks, guys," he looked down at his watch and smiled "Hey guys, it's Christmas! It's midnight."
"Yeahhh!!!" Slimer got all excited and swooped around the room.
Ray smiled at Slimer. "Well, I can only think of one good Christmas song to sing at midnight," he said.
"What's that?" Winston asked.
"Silent night… Holy night… All is calm, all is bright…" the guys smiled and joined in.
The End