Peter walks into the bedroom area carrying a suitcase and a bouquet of flowers. He looks around the empty room, noticing something different about it. "Dana, it's your prince!" he calls. He looks around the bedroom area, then turns all around the room, finding no trace of the clutter that once occupied most of the space. "Oh, no. Oh, no…she cleaned!" he grumbles as Dana enters the room wrapped in a towel with her hair dripping wet.
"Oh, hey. I was just taking a shower," she says.
"Are you all squeaky clean now?" Peter quips.
"Yes, I'm very clean," she says, rolling her eyes. "Did the guys find anything at my apartment last night?"
"Well, they stayed there all night, went through all your personal stuff, made a bunch of long-distance phone calls, cleaned out your fridge, tried on some of your underwear…"
"Peter…"
"They found a little bit of pink slime residue around the tub, but that was it," he says, being serious for a moment. Dana shakes her head as she sits down on one of the beds.
"Great, now what?"
"Now, you're going to get dressed and get crazy with me on the streets of Manhattan tonight."
"Woah, I don't think I need to be going out…"
"No, this is exactly what you need, I have got you a babysitter! The whole thing's wired!"
"Peter, I don't feel right leaving Oscar alone in a strange place with a strange person."
"Strange person? Try Janine Melnitz…"
"Yes?" Janine asks as she enters the room, carrying Oscar. Dana walks over to them, smiling and tickling Oscar's cheeks.
"Hey, you!" she says as she takes him from Janine's arms.
"Janine, beautiful timing…I was just telling Dana how you'd happily baby-sit Oscar tonight," Peter says, making a pleading motion while Dana's back is turned. Janine glares at him and sighs.
"I don't want you to go to any trouble…" Dana starts.
"Oh, no! I'd be happy to. He's such a sweet baby, I don't mind at all," Janine says, tickling Oscar while smiling at him.
"Well, if you're sure, thank you." Dana carries Oscar away as Peter quickly slides over to Janine.
"You owe me," she whispers angrily.
"Oh, come on…like you really had anything better to do tonight than sit at home with a frozen dinner watching TV and moping over the fact Egon's completely oblivious towards you," Peter whispers back. Janine starts to deliver a come-back, until she realizes he's completely right. She sighs and shakes her head as she turns to leave.
"You still owe me for the flowers!" she says as Peter ushers her out of the door.
"The flowers! Right…first chance I get thank you buh-bye!" He shuts the door behind her and turns back to Dana as she sets Oscar down in the center of four pillows on one of the beds. She turns around to be greeted by the bouquet in Peter's outstretched hand, his smile clearly visible behind them. She smirks as she takes them.
"Thank you," she says as she smells them. Peter holds up the suitcase.
"And that's not all. I got you some things from your apartment, some provocative ensembles and combinations that I'll leave totally up to you."
"Well, alright, but after dinner don't try any of those old cheap moves on me."
"Oh, no, I've got totally new cheap moves."
Downstairs in the lab, Winston reclines back at one of the desks with his feet up, taking a well-deserved nap. Meanwhile behind him, Ray and Egon work inside a bathroom converted into a darkroom. A table with pans of the developing chemicals sits against one wall with a line for drying photographs above it. Against the other wall is a machine that resembles a photocopier called a Spectrogram positioned in front of the toilet. A red light fills the room from the bulb over the sink and mirror. Egon holds up a giant magnifying glass to one of the drying pictures Peter took of Vigo in the museum. The picture shows a transparent ripple around Vigo's body, as well as distortions in the painting's background.
"We were right, Ray…multi-planer emanations. The painting is some kind of gateway," Egon tells him.
"Well, here's your next month's cover of GQ…check out the aura on this sucker," Ray says as he removes the photograph from the analyzer with a pair of tongs. He holds it up to the line and clips it to it. "There's definitely a living presence there."
"Let's try running this wider shot through the spectral analyzer," Egon suggests as he looks at the picture Ray hung up. Ray removes the picture from the stopper pan and turns to the machine. He sets it down and inserts it into a slot. Egon sets down the magnifying glass and crouches down to a keypad on the device. "I'll turn up the renkins." The picture begins to slide through the machine.
"So, what do you think…Chinese?" Ray asks.
"How about Italian?" Egon suggests.
Meanwhile at the museum, Janosz hurriedly scuttles about the restoration room, removing easels and paintings from the center of the room, leaving a wide open space in front of Vigo. Vigo, however, does more than stand there as he sees through another's eyes. He watches as Egon removes the photograph in front of him and carries it past a body not his own towards the line. He watches as he hangs it up in front of him, watching as feet not his own move him closer into the image.
"What the hell is that?" Egon asks, holding up his magnifying glass. Ray looks through it over his shoulder, then steps back with a solemn expression on his face.
"That's it. That's the connection we've been looking for."
"The river of slime," Egon utters. The picture that was once Vigo's full form is now that of a giant space swirling with supernatural energy. Romanesque columns line either side of the massive river, waterfalls flowing into it from between them. In the center of it all floats Vigo's head, larger than life and twice as ugly. His skin appears to have more texture and his eyes are sunk back into his head. Two small lumps protrude from the top of his forehead, while his eyes are as empty and hollow as his soul must be.
"This must be the dimension of origin for the river," Ray says, unaware that his eyes had just flashed with energy. The small lock on the door begins to glow with the same energy as it slides into place.
"Which means there's a doorway somewhere underground as well which would serve as the point of origin for the river in our realm. It MUST be where Vigo is harnessing his power. If we find it, shut the door…"
"Then Vigo is cut off!" Ray says with a smile.
"Precisely! Let's get the others." Just as Egon stands up, suddenly the picture bursts into flames. Both of them jump as the rest of the pictures flame up as well, including the chemicals in their pans.
"What the hell!" Ray exclaims.
"Uhh…Ray…?"
"We need a blanket or a hose or something!" Ray says as he turns for the door. He pulls at it, but it won't budge. He tries to open the lock, but it's jammed. "Why the hell is this closed! Winston!" he calls.
"Winston!" Egon joins in, both men banging on the door as the flames begin to engulf the room. "WINSTON!"
Outside, Winston falls back out of his chair as the sudden commotion wakes him out of a sound slumber. He shakes his head, trying to get his bearings.
"FIRE! WINSTON, HELP!" he hears from within the darkroom. He scrambles to his feet and grabs the fire extinguisher off the nearby wall. He runs to the door and tries it, finding it locked.
"Step back!" he shouts.
"Get back!" Egon says, pulling Ray to the far wall.
"Great, what're we gonna do, put our heads in the toilet!" Ray asks. Winston holds up the extinguisher and with all his might rams it into the door. Once, twice, three times and he breaks off the piece with the lock. He jumps into the room, grabbing the hose and squeezing the handle, sending out the fluid within over the burning area. Within seconds, the fire is out, leaving nothing but a smoldering mess.
Peter heads down the stairs, wearing one of his best suits and ties, adjusting the sleeves of his jacket with his coat hung over his arm. He reaches the landing and throws it on, looking over at Janine at her desk.
"Janine, could you call a cab for me, please?"
"Yes, Dr. Venkman. Your wish is my command, Dr. Venkman. Anything else, Dr. Venkman? A kidney? A lung?" Janine responds sarcastically, picking up the phone.
"I could do with less sarcasm. That's my shtick." Peter adjusts his collar as he turns to the sound of bodies sliding down the fire poles. He stares dumbfounded as Egon, Ray and Winston stand before him, each one wearing waders and rain coats.
"Great, you're still here!" Ray says. "We have incredible news!" Peter looks them all over.
"Wait, don't tell me…all you can eat bar-b-q rib night at the Sizzler."
"No, we analyzed the photos you took of Vigo, and the Spectrogram shows a river of slime flowing behind him," Egon says.
"Just like the one I saw underground," Ray adds. "We're heading down into the sewer and subway system now to see if we can trace the source of the slime flow.
"Yeah, c'mon, change your clothes. We'll wait for you," Egon says.
"Yeah, Egon thinks there might even be a huge breeding surge in the cockroach population," Winston says.
"Hello, boys," Dana says from the stairs. The boys all turn to look up at her as she comes down, their jaws all dropping to the floor. She wears an elegant dress and looks simply beautiful as she moves down the stairs and stands next to Peter.
"Hi," they respond quietly.
"Dana, the guys are going down to the sewer to look for slime stuff, and Egon thinks there may be a huge serge in cockroach breeding. You wanna blow off this dinner thing and go with them?"
"Your cab's outside, Dr. Venkman," Janine calls from the desk. Dana smiles at Peter and starts for the door.
"I'll hold the cab," she says as she goes. Peter looks at the guys, smiling smugly.
"Women, huh?" He follows her towards the doors with a victorious smile as the guys turn towards Ecto-1, defeated.
Deep below the city lies hundreds of miles of track and tunnel. The New York City was always evolving since its inception in 1904. As new more efficient routes were dreamed up and opened as well as the amount of riders on certain lines dropped, lines or stations were closed to be more cost-effective. These were often left dark, cold and buried, some of the lines used as an alternate when needed or for commercial transit. This particular tunnel was one of the forgotten ones.
Egon, Ray and Winston move carefully along the tracks, the only light coming from the tunnel above, the mining helmets they wear, and Winston and Ray's flashlights. The silence in the tunnel is deafening save for their light footsteps and dripping water somewhere nearby.
Winston spans the walls with his lights, looking as they crack and chip from age and lack of care. Years of spider webs line both ends of the wall, hanging down off the ceiling. He uses his shovel as a walking stick as he goes. Ray holds a pickaxe on his shoulder as he fumbles in the darkness with an old transit map he acquired from the hall of records. He struggles to hold onto the axe while holding the map at the same time and checking their location with his light. Egon carries his shovel over his shoulder as he pays attention to the PKE meter held out in front of him. Suddenly, the silence is broken when Winston trips on a piece of track, startling the others.
"Will you be careful!" Ray exclaims.
"Sorry!" Winston says as he regains his footing. "I hate this."
"According to this old transit map, there should be an entrance somewhere along here…" Ray says.
"I'm not getting anything yet," Egon says, looking around before returning to his meter.
"At least it's too dark to see the cockroaches," Winston mutters, carefully looking around.
"Forget about the cockroaches, it's the subway rats you gotta worry about," Ray says as he folds up the map and puts it into a pouch on his belt. "They can be as big as beavers."
"Yeah, sometimes they grow to four or five kilos," Egon adds.
"H-Hey, enough, alright?" Winston says, starting to get a little jittery.
"Listen to 'em. You can hear them scratching behind the walls," Ray continues as Winston nervously looks around. "There must be thousands of them!"
"Hey, just shut up about the damn rats!" Winston shouts.
"Okay, okay!" Ray looks around the tunnel. "Hello!" he shouts for no particular reason, hearing his echo coming back at them as his voice bounces off the walls in the large, empty space. Ray looks at the others, laughing like a little kid. Egon and Winston exchange glances before Egon looks down into the darkness.
"Hey!" he shouts, his voice coming back. Winston shakes his head, deciding it was definitely a good tension breaker.
"Hello!" he shouts down the tunnel. They wait, but hear no sound. Suddenly, the PKE Meter starts to go wild.
"WIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINSTONNNNNNNNNN…" a booming inhuman voice says from behind them. Their eyes grow wide as they turn around, slowly backing up as they look nervously down the tunnel.
"O-Okay…I'm outta here!" he says. They turn around only to come face to face with a horde of disembodied heads. Their screams fill the tunnel as each one floats before them in a grizzly state of death. The trio tries to move in different directions, screaming at the top of their lungs, but find that they're completely surrounded by the grotesque heads. They turn around again only to find empty track. They stop screaming as they look around, seeing that all the heads are gone. The tunnel grows silent once again.
"What the…?" Ray asks, panting.
"Before we go any further, I think we should get our proton packs," Egon suggests. The other two nod in silent agreement. They turn around and start back the way they came, slowly and quietly walking down the tracks. They stop as they hear a rumbling sound.
"What's that?" Winston asks.
"What's what?" Ray asks.
"Sounds like…a train…"
"Nuh-uh, these lines've been abandoned for 50 years."
"Oh…" Winston says, thinking that in their line of work what the hell did that really mean? They start down the tracks again, but this time the sound grows louder, accompanied by the grinding of the wheels on the track as the brakes are applied. Ray's eyes open wide as his heart begins to thump with fear.
"Probably in one of the tunnels above us," Egon says, trying to fight back his fear with familiar logic. They all look up at the dark ceiling.
"I dunno, sounds pretty close to me…" Winston says. They look back down when the tunnel begins to grow brighter. In the distance, they see a singular light as the sounds of an old-fashioned steam engine grow louder and closer. The transparent train comes into view, showing no signs of slowing as it barrels down on the three Ghostbusters. They shout as Ray and Egon dive off to the side, leaving Winston screaming on the track as the train meets up with him and passes right through him, sending his helmet flying to the floor.
As the caboose passes, Winston stops screaming, paralyzed with fear as he shakes his head, trying to recover from the experience. Egon comes down from the small platform against the wall and runs over to him, looking down the tunnel after the train.
"I think that was the old New York Central, City of Albany! Derailed in 1920, killed hundreds of people! Did you catch the number on the locomotive?" Winston turns around slowly, following his gaze down the tunnel.
"Sorry, I missed it…" he says, resisting the urge to clock Egon one. He bends down to grab his helmet and puts it back on.
"Something's trying to stop us, we must be getting close," Egon declares.
"I really hate this," Winston mumbles. He stops and looks around. "Where's Ray?" Egon finally notices Ray missing as well, and joins him in searching around the tunnel. "Ray?"
"Ray?"
"Guys!" They jump as Ray comes up from behind. "Ooops, sorry…I found it!"
"What?" Egon asks.
"Over here, there's a hole!" He leads them over to his hiding place by the wall and they follow.
"What about the packs! What about the packs!" Winston asks deaf ears.
Their tools cut through the rocks that have crumbled onto the stairwell, jogging them loose and sending them down the stairs beneath them. The Ghostbusters fight to keep their balance as they climb over them and proceed down to the first landing. They stare in awe as they look beyond the archway into the large chamber.
The station curves up to a rounded roof, every square inch covered in old tile work as was customary for the period. Protective rails stand at the edge of the platform, covered in years of rust and neglect. The platform itself is littered with garbage and chunks of debris from the walls and ceiling that have come loose and fallen. Decorative lamps line the walls and either side of the tunnel entranceway, covered and filled entirely with cobwebs like the rest of the area. The entire station is filled by the pink glow coming from the bubbling river of slime.
"Huh? What'd I tell ya? Wasn't lying, was I?" Ray asks as the three of them look down at the river from the edge of the platform.
"Incredible. You know how much negative energy it must have taken to generate a flow of this size?" Egon asks, astounded.
"Hey, New York…what a town," Winston says sarcastically.
"Alright, let's see how deep it is," Egon says. Winston pulls the end of the measuring line from its spool on his belt and dangles it over the edge. He drops it into the river and the sinker on the end begins to take it down.
"Six feet…" Winston calls as he watches the markings disappear through his hands. "Twelve feet…?"
"Twelve?" Egon asks. Winston tries to stop the line, but feels it move faster.
"Hey, something's pulling it!"
"Well, hold on!" Ray says.
"I'm trying! Give me a hand!" Egon and Ray rush over to him, holding on to him as the spool begins to spin faster and faster.
"Get his belt off!" Ray exclaims. They try to fumble with it when the spool runs out and Winston is pulled into the river.
"Winston!" Egon calls. They see his head poke up halfway down the tunnel before the current takes him around the bend and once again out of sight, his cries bouncing off the walls. Egon and Ray exchange a glance, then take a leap off the platform and into the slime after him.
Miles away in a contrasting setting at the fabulous Armand Restaurant, Dana and Peter sit at a table inside a very elegant and fancy restaurant. The well-dressed patrons sit at their tables and eat horribly overpriced food in their attempts at a civilized New Years Eve. Dana holds up her wine glass smiling behind it, initiating a toast.
"Here's to the most charming, kindest…"
"Oh, it's me," Peter says jokingly.
"Yes, it's you," Dana continues, "…and most unusual man I've ever broken up with." Peter gives her a look, but she gives him a playful smile. They tap glasses together and Peter smiles as he takes a sip. Peter sets his glass down and tries to get serious for a moment.
"Speaking of breaking up, why did you dump me?"
"I didn't dump you…I was protecting myself. I mean, you weren't very good for me, y'know. You know that, don't you?"
"Hell, I'm not even good for me."
"You're much better than you realize. You don't give yourself enough credit."
"Thank you. I need this kind of support on a daily basis. If I had that, I could definitely have myself whipped into shape by the end of this century." Dana leans in, smiling seductively.
"Then why don't you just give me a jingle in the year 2000?"
"Why don't I give you a jungle right now?" They lean in close to each other and lock their lips into a passionate kiss.
With one Herculean effort, Ray pushes the manhole cover up and off to the side, gasping for air from the strain and the slime choking him. He scrambles up the ladder and onto the street, slipping and sliding as he struggles to stand up. Everything from his boots to his gloves are covered in the slime, steadily dripping down his body as he struggles to regain his bearings. Winston comes up next, extremely annoyed.
"Nice going, Ray! What're you trying to do, drown me!"
"Oh yeah, Zeddemore; like it was my fault! You were too stupid to drop that line!" Ray says, carrying on unusually. Winston stands up, his fists clenched and baring his teeth.
"Hey, you better watch your God damn mouth or I'll beat the shit outta you!"
"Oh, yeah? Well any time, asshole!" Ray takes a swing at Winston, but it slips on contact. Winston dives at Ray and they begin to grapple as Egon lifts himself through the hole. Complete control and understanding, the one thing any scientist strives for. Egon, as a man of logic, had allowed most of his emotions to fade over time, giving him complete control of his own personal being and a full, uncomplicated understanding of himself. When he feels a burning from within he recognizes as rage, he instantly knows it's not of his own volition. With his two friends going at it a few feet away, he looks down at his slime covered clothing and realizes they're not in control.
"Stop it, both of you! Take off your clothes now!" Egon says, diving between them and separating them. He begins to rip off his clothing with Winston following. Ray debates whether or not to complete the punch he began, but decides to do what Egon says. Within seconds, all three men are standing in their soaked long johns with their gear on the ground below them. Winston and Ray both feel their thoughts clearing.
"What the hell? I was ready to kill you!" Winston says, amazed and confused.
"It's this shit. It's pure concentrated evil," Ray surmises.
"And it's all flowing…right to this spot," Egon says, looking behind them. Winston and Ray turn to follow his gaze, realizing that the manhole cover they had emerged from was located mere feet away from the steps of the Manhattan Museum of Art.
Louis fumbles through his keys until he finds the right one, and then inserts it in the bottom drawer of his desk; hastily repaired with some boards and nails. He opens the lock and pulls it out, revealing a tin box inside. He grabs it and places it on top of his desk, fumbling through his keys once again.
"What're you doing?" Janine asks, holding Oscar while feeding him.
"I'm going to take care of that ghost!" Louis opens the box and pulls out a pair of mechanic's beige coveralls. He opens them up and holds them against his body, allowing Janine to see it. On the chest area is a black and red crochet name tag that read "Tully" fastened to the suit with safety pins. On the right arm is a patch of a poor rendering of the no-ghost logo, also fastened with safety pins. Louis looks up at Janine and smiles. "My ma made this for me down in Florida. I've been waiting for the right occasion to use it."
"It's…nice, Louis," Janine lies, giving him a look as he kicks off his shoes and begins to step into the suit. "Why do you wanna be a Ghostbuster anyway? You're already a great accountant."
"Well, I dunno…I figure if one of the guys get sick or something I could fill in." Louis zips up the front. Janine looks at him worried as the phone begins to rings. She runs over to her desk as he reaches back into the drawer and pulls out a pair of rubber gloves and boots similar to the ones the Ghostbusters wear. After being fully dressed, Louis heads over to one of the wooden lockers against the wall and opens it up. He pulls out a proton pack and one of the belts and begins to put them on. Janine quickly hangs up the phone, watching him and adjusting Oscar in her arms.
"Uh, Louis, I don't think you should be doing that!" Janine says, jogging over to him.
"Don't worry Janine; I know exactly what I'm doing!" Louis says with a confident smile as he clips the belt strap of the pack around him. The phone begins to ring again, and Janine looks back at it. She turns back to him.
"Don't…move!" She runs back over to her desk. While her back is turned, Louis' smile quickly fades and he stumbles a bit.
"Boy this equipment's heavy!"
Peter and Dana look towards the door as they hear a commotion coming from the foyer, some people obviously trying to get in. Peter laughs to himself how even in a classy joint like this you can't help but find some crazies. It wasn't until he heard one of those crazies call his name that he realized they were his crazies. Egon, Ray and Winston rush past the Maitre d' and come straight to their table. Peter and Dana eye them strangely as they stand before them, wearing nothing but their long johns and boots and covered entirely in the slime, each one talking a mile a minute about psychomagnetheric slime flows and other big words that was starting to give him a headache.
"Boys! Boys! You're scaring the straights, okay? Is there anyway we can talk about this tomorrow?" Peter asks, annoyed.
"No way, it's hot and ready to pop!" Egon exclaims.
"It's all over the city, Pete—well, under it, actually," Ray says.
"Rivers of the stuff!" Winston adds.
"And it's all flowing to the museum," Egon says.
"Yeah, the museum!" Ray says excitedly, thrusting his arm back to point in the museum's general direction from the restaurant and accidentally causing a glob of slime to fly from his hand and onto the dress of a nearby patron. She screams out in disgust as Ray turns back to the table, embarrassed. "Sorry…" he utters.
"Wait, do you mean…my museum?" Dana asks them, a little concerned.
"I was gonna tell you between the desert and the cheese course," Peter says, turning to her. He places a hand on hers reassuringly. "You can never go back there again. We're gonna find you a new job and…uh-oh…"
"There they are!" the Maitre d' exclaims to the two police officers he pulled inside the restaurant. The officers approach the table, looking down at them.
"Ghostbusters, you gentlemen are out of uniform," the senior partner says.
"Uh, we had a little accident, but forget that! We have to see the mayor as soon as possible!" Ray says.
"Uh-huh, well right now we need you to step outside. Let's go." The officers grab Ray, Winston and Egon and pull them to their feet, forcibly dragging them towards the door. Peter stands up.
"I, uh…" he says, making a motion that he has to go. Dana nods.
"I understand," she says.
"Finish your desert, it's already paid for." Peter throws down his napkin and jogs after the officers and his friends. Outside, Peter grabs the officer's arm and stops them.
"Woah, officer! Hold up a sec," Peter says. The officer turns around to look at him, but finds Peter staring at his nametag.
"What the hell are you doing?" he asks, growing annoyed.
"Getting your names so I can tell the Mayor why we didn't tell him sooner that the world was coming to an end…starting with New York," Peter says with a smile. The officers exchange a glance, unsure of what to do. The senior partner shrugs and turns to Peter.
"You wanna see the Mayor? Fine. Let's go."
Louis walks down into the basement, positron rifle drawn as he looks around the room carefully. The green ghost peeks up through the desk, watching him carefully. As Louis reaches the landing, the ghost flies out of the desk and tries to pass through the wall, but the ecto-field in place keeps him from doing so. He looks back at Louis, then begins to fly towards the stairs. Louis, satisfied the room is clear, turns and begins to start for the stairs when he comes face to face with the ghost.
"Gotcha!" he exclaims, hitting the trigger on the proton gun. The ghost dodges as the beam flies out, and the recoil sends Louis crashing back into the control console, hard. He shakes his head, not noticing the pack had smashed the switch for the ecto-field, causing it to short out and turn off. Louis regains himself and runs up the stairs after the ghost, not seeing the slime rising up from the crack in the floor once again.
Louis chases the ghost into the garage bay, propping himself up against a column before firing again. The ghost makes one final dive to the wall and passes through, leaving his slime behind on the tiles as the beam hits. Janine ducks as it flies over her head, screaming out.
"Louis!"
"Oops!" She stomps over to him and grabs the rifle away from him.
"That's enough! I'm trying to baby-sit here while you run around trying to be something you're not and gonna wind up killing someone doing it! Either take that God damn thing off now or go home, you got me!" She slams the rifle down on the ground and storms off and back up the stairs. Louis stands there, terrified beyond belief. He was chased by a terror dog and possessed by an evil spirit, but THAT had to be the scariest thing he ever faced.
The police car leads Ecto-1 through the gate and onto the Gracie Mansion grounds. They stop outside the front door and their occupants emerge.
"Oh, the Ghostbusters!" the excited doorman exclaims, quickly opening the door as the cops lead them inside. "Hey, you guys got another proton pack? My kid brother really wants one."
"The proton pack is not a toy," Egon says frankly as he walks inside.
"I guess he's right," Ray says shrugging as he follows behind Egon.
Dana enters the firehouse as Janine comes down the stairs. She stops short when she sees her, and then continues down, a curious look on her face.
"You're back early. What happened?" she asks.
"Oh, Peter was arrested," Dana says as she removes her coat and stops by the base of the stairs. Janine shakes her head.
"Typical."
"How is everything?"
"Oh, everything's fine. He's such a good baby. He was a little fussy at first, but we gave him some French bread pizza…passed right out."
"Oh," Dana says, trying to hide the strange look she wants to give Janine. "We?" she asks, realizing her words.
"Oh yeah, Louis is here. He's upstairs with him now in fact."
"Ah, well, I think I'll just head on up," Dana says, forcing a pleasant smile. Louis Tully was alone with her baby. Not good. She starts up the stairs as Janine heads over to her desk.
Louis walks around the bedroom area, carrying Oscar who chews on a toy. Louis paces back and forth, gently rocking the baby as he tells him a story.
"So, these dwarfs had a limited partnership in a small mining operation and then one day a beautiful princess came to live with them. They bartered room and board in exchange for housekeeping services, which was a good deal for all of them because then they didn't have to withhold tax and social security, which I'm not saying is right but it's just for the purposes of this story so I guess it's all right…" He stops when he sees Dana smiling in the doorway. "Oh, hey!" he says, giving her a nervous smile. She realizes that Louis probably still has a crush on her after all this time.
"Hello, Louis," Dana says, walking over to him and taking Oscar. "Hello, you!"
"You're back kinda early, aren't you?"
"Well, Peter had to go to work. You know, I was watching you…you're actually very good with kids." Louis blushes and looks down at the floor.
"Well, thanks. I practiced a lot on my hamster." Oscar gives a big yawn, and Dana looks at him, giving him an impressed expression.
"Well, it looks like he's tired. I'll put him down, Louis."
"Sure, okay. No problem." Louis turns and heads out of the room, shutting the door behind him as Janine comes up the stairs. "She's putting the baby down."
"Did she tell you the guys were arrested?" Janine asks him.
"They were! Oh, boy! What do we do?"
"I don't know, don't even know where to call. I'm hoping someone will call soon looking for bail money." She stretches and yawns.
"You look tired. Listen, why don't you go home and get some rest?" Louis says, concerned.
"Oh, thanks, but I don't think Dana should be left alone right now."
"That's no problem, I'll stay with her," Louis volunteers, trying to hide his excitement to the idea of being alone with Dana all night.
"I don't know…" Janine ponders.
"I promise not to use the proton pack anymore," he says, raising his hand like a scout.
"Well, alright. I'll leave my number by the phone, call me immediately if you hear from the guys or need anything."
"You bet!" Janine waves as she heads back downstairs to get her coat and head for home.
Lenny is already extremely annoyed. Not only does he have to leave his New Years party full of extremely important people to his political career, but he has to leave them for the Ghostbusters. His butler leads him to his office and opens the double doors for him. Lenny enters his lavishly furnished office where the Ghostbusters stand waiting with Hardemeyer in a chair.
"Lenny!" the Ghostbusters say in unison. Hardemeyer shakes his head as Lenny looks over Egon, Ray and Winston.
"What the hell is this, a slumber party?" Lenny asks. Hardemeyer chuckles. They begin to explain their appearance when Lenny raises his hands. "I don't want to hear a thing about it. I've got over 200 of the heaviest campaign contributors in the city out there eating bad roast chicken and I'm in here with you putzes. You got two minutes, make it good." He takes a seat in a large chair. The boys exchange glances, wondering how to go about this. Ray takes his cigar out of his mouth and begins to speak.
"Well, first of all, Mr. Mayor, it's a great pleasure to see you again, and we'd just like to say that almost 50 of us voted for you in the last election."
"I appreciate that," Lenny says sarcastically.
"I'm just sorry we always have to meet under these circumstances," Peter says with his sweetest smile from the couch across from Lenny. Lenny just nods his head, giving Peter a dirty look.
"Mr. Mayor, we're here tonight because there's a psychomagnetheric slime flow of immense proportions building up under the city," Ray continues, getting right to the point.
"Psycho what?" Lenny asks, blinking.
"Psychomagnetheric," Egon says, trying to clarify it for Lenny.
"Big word," Peter adds.
"Negative human emotions are materializing in the form of a viscous psycho reactive plasm with explosive supernormal potential," Egon finishes. Lenny looks at them all like they're nuts.
"Does anyone speak English here?" Lenny asks. Hardemeyer starts to say something, but Winston cuts him off as he crouches down by Lenny's chair.
"Yeah, your honor. What we're trying to tell you is all the bad feelings, I mean all the hate, anger and violence of this city is turning into this sludge. Now, I didn't believe it at first either, but we went for a swim in it and almost wound up killing each other!"
"This is insane!" Hardemeyer interjects, "I mean, do we really have to listen to this?" Peter gets up and walks over to him, waving his hand in front of his face.
"Can't you stop your lips from flapping for two little minutes? Lenny, have you been out on the street lately? Do you know how weird it is out there? We've taken our own head count; there seem to be 3 million completely miserable assholes living in the tri-state area!"
"Oh, please!" Hardemeyer mutters. Peter turns to him and leans down on him.
"I'm sorry, 3 million and 1."
"Hey!"
"And what budgey brain here doesn't realize is that if we don't do something fast this whole place will blow like a frog on a hot plate," Ray says.
"Yeah, right," Hardemeyer says. Lenny stands up, clenching his eyes to fight back his tension headache.
"I didn't understand one damn thing any of you just said, and frankly, I don't care. You say the city's in trouble? Well, when it happens we'll deal with it, that's it," Lenny starts for the door.
"But, Lenny…" Peter starts. He turns fast and points at him.
"I don't wanna hear it, Venkman! I don't give a shit how many registered voters I'm gonna save or what kind of ancient evil is gonna drop down where. All the hate is causing this? Well, what do you want me to do, go on television and tell 8 million people they have to be nice to each other? Being miserable and treating other people like dirt is every New Yorker's God-given right! Your two minutes are up, gentlemen, goodnight!" The butler opens the door and Lenny storms out.
"You're making a big mistake, Mr. Mayor!" Ray shouts after him as the Ghostbusters run to the door as it shuts behind the butler.
"A very newsworthy mistake," Peter adds. "I bet the Times would love this and you know the Post…"
"Woah, woah, woah! Now wait a minute!" Hardemeyer tries to interrupt, standing up.
"I could see the headlines," Winston says, "'Mayor Hides Slime'."
"'Times Square Slimed'…" Ray starts, thinking.
"'Slime Square'," Egon suggest.
"'Slime Square'!" Ray agrees. The others all nod along with that idea.
"Fine, fine, fine…now, before you go running off to the newspapers with this, would you mind telling this slime business to some of our people downtown?" Hardemeyer asks with a kindly smile. The guys all exchange a glance.
"It has to be done right away," Ray says.
The double doors swing open at Parkview Hospital as the orderlies usher the Ghostbusters through, each one bound in a straight jacket. Egon, Ray and Winston all struggle against their confines, screaming about helping people and the world being in danger. Peter walks along calmly, his mind wander to where he should be, having dinner with Dana and possibly a special desert. But no, instead he's here, deemed insane, and about to be locked up for what very well may be the rest of his life…which may not last past midnight. Hardemeyer walks with the head doctor behind them, stopping in the hallway.
"The mayor wants to keep them under strict observation for the next few days. We think they're seriously disturbed and potentially dangerous."
"Well, we'll see what we can do," the doctor tells him.
"Thank you, doctor," Hardemeyer says, shaking his hand. The doctor continues down the hall after the Ghostbusters, as Hardemeyer watches them with an extremely smug smile on his face. He takes in a deep breath as his annoyance has just been alleviated and proceeds to leave the hospital.
