Jasmine Ann Masters was dead. I collapsed next to Jazz and felt hot tears run down my face. Sure we fought and were rude to each other, but Jazz and I loved each other like only siblings can. And Jack stole that.

Once again I felt my blood boil from anger. Jack would die for what he has done. Vlad came in and lifted Jazz's body up. He held it close and I watched as tears fell onto the floor by his feet. Blue smoke came out of my mouth. I turned around and stared into a ghostly face.

Vlad followed my gaze and gasped when he saw Jazz floating on the stage. He gently set her body on the ground and kept looking between the body and ghost. I stood near Jazz's body and stared at her ghost. The sight was almost too much to bear.

One thing I noticed about Jazz's ghost was that she wasn't wearing a funeral shroud. Jazz looked at me sadly and then back at Vlad. She floated over to us and started to speak. "What happened to me?" Vlad blinked as if he didn't know how to answer.

Ghost Writer's warning came back to me again. Jack got rid of the bodies of souls that he stole. That was another step he had to go through to create his minions. He wouldn't leave Jazz's body behind like this unless…

I bit my lip and felt blood trickle down my chin. Then I reached up and felt the tips of my ears. They came to little points at the ends. Jack was trying to turn me evil by placing traps that would make me angry. Why was this happening now? I had been angry before but my physical appearance never changed.

Vlad was still staring at Jazz and I waited anxiously for my face to return to normal. After what seemed like forever I felt my ears round and my teeth shrink. Vlad reached out and pulled Jazz into a hug. When they stepped apart Vlad looked tired and weak.

He lifted Jazz's poor body again and looked back at her ghost. "You need to leave." He told her. "If you stay here then I'm afraid that a certain ghost will turn you evil." Vlad gave her a halfhearted smile. "We'll take care of your body." Jazz smiled at us and flew away.

I was staring at Vlad. How could he not be mad in a time like this? He calmly walked out of the room. I followed Vlad until me came to the main entrance. Vlad gave me one of his halfhearted smiles and opened the door. We left the mansion and walked until we were off the property. Then we entered a forest.

Finally my curiosity won in a silent struggle with my pride and I asked, "What are we doing?" Vlad simply smiled at me. Eventually we stopped walking until we found a weeping willow tree. Vlad set Jazz's body down under the tree. Tears sprang to my eyes again as I looked at her lying there.

Vlad looked at me and spoke. "When Jazz was younger we used to live in the country." I didn't react. "She loved sitting in trees and reading… especially in weeping willows." Tears fell onto the forest floor and I realized that they were mine. I bent down next to Jazz's body and pushed her intangibly into the ground.

After I straightened up I looked at Vlad. He took one of the little guns he had and used a small beam to carve words into the tree's huge trunk.

Here lies Jasmine Ann Masters

Daughter, sister, and friend

She will never be forgotten in our hearts

1989-2006

Then he set the gun on the grave and said, "I believe you Jazz. Ghosts exist. I'm sorry that we tried to convince you that you were wrong." He sighed and turned to look at me. His eyes were red rimmed and puffy. I still wanted to hit him for not wanting to get revenge on Jack.

"Come on Danny." he said. "We have to stop Jack before he kills anyone else." He sighed and we began the long walk back to the mansion. The whole way we were both silent. Every now and then Vlad would look like he was going to say something but thought better of it.

When we finally got to the door he spoke for the first time. "Danny, I know you want revenge on Jack." I stared at him. "Revenge is what villains do Danny, are you a villain?" I was going to immediately say no, but then I realized that I wasn't so sure. I wanted revenge so badly, but how much would I risk getting it?

Vlad looked worried for me and entered the mansion. We walked through the foyer and I noticed that Vlad picked up a larger gun. There was a noise in the basement and it continued without stopping.

Instead of bothering to try the stairs again I simply phased us through the floor. We walked around the huge basement looking for ghosts. Suddenly we came to the furnace. Vlad looked at it and gave a relieved laugh. "The furnace must have been causing all of the noise." I wasn't so sure.

We heard a crash come from behind us. My ghost sense went off and Vlad aimed his gun at the noise. A small ghost slave floated out and I saw that this was one of the children that Jack had killed. Vlad lowered his gun but I charged an ecto-blast in my hand. None of the ghosts I had met today were very trustworthy.

It floated a little bit closer but saw my hand. Then it stopped and looked pleadingly at Vlad. Vlad's eyes softened and he said, "Danny, get rid of that ecto-blast." The tone of his voice was shockingly commanding, and I felt the green light around my hand fade.

The ghost came up to Vlad and hugged him. I glared at the thing but Vlad simply looked in pain. Suddenly I looked closer at the ghost and saw that it was squeezing the life out of Vlad. "Danny!" he said in a breathless whisper. "Don't turn evil." The ghost vanished and Vlad did too. A small note fluttered to the floor and I picked it up.

Young Daniel,

If you are reading this then it means that my slave has successfully captured your father. He always was soft with children. I have written this letter to make a proposal to you. If you surrender to me then I will release your father and take you instead. But if you don't come your father will die. Meet me in my lab.

I read the letter with growing anger but I calmed down as quickly as I could. A fortune cookie I had once had said, 'Revenge is its own executioner.' Jack clearly had created a trap, but I had no idea how not to get caught.

The idea came to me piece by piece. I found all of the things I needed in Jack's mansion. He was a billionaire after all. When I had found all that I needed I changed into my ghost form and flew down to Jack's secret lab. Once again I was wearing a bed sheet.

Jack was waiting for me and sighed when he saw that I was wearing the cloth. Vlad was in the corner with a gag around his mouth, but at least he was still alive. Jack gave me a look like I was some pathetic child. "Really Daniel do you think you can get away with the same trick that failed before?"

I tried not to smile. Jack wasn't the only one who could make a plan. He walked up and placed one foot on the cloth draped over me. Even though I was expecting what would come next I had to stay calm. Sure enough Jack blasted me with his eyes.

Just like the first time I flew back. And sure enough the sheet ripped off, but unlike last time there was another sheet underneath the first one. Jack looked at me and looked dumbfounded. There was a sheet on the floor by his feet and I was still wearing one.

Vlad looked scared. He had no idea that I was still alive, and neither did Jack. Jack glanced over at Vlad and saw that Vlad believed I was dead. Jack looked back at me uncertainly. My face was bland as he scrutinized me. Then he blasted me painfully into the wall.

Two rings flashed up and down and… I looked exactly the same. I stood up and Jack gasped. My hair was still white, I was still wearing a bed sheet, and I had green eyes. In the corner Vlad had started silently crying. He thought that he had lost his daughter and son on the same day. I wanted to go and assure him that I was not dead, but then I would ruin my plan.

Jack was still staring open mouthed at me. I blinked slowly and looked back trying to hold in a smug remark. The great Lord Plasmius had been fooled by some black hair covered in flour, a three bed sheets, and contacts colored with non toxic food coloring.

He shook his head and regained his composure. "Well Daniel," he said with a wicked smile. "It seems as if my pets got to you before I could. Well this is a pleasant surprise." Jack let out a wicked laugh and I knew that this time he thought for sure I was dead.

Not a terrible chapter. I feel really bad for Vlad though.