Out of the thick ectoplasmic clouds of the Ghost Zone, a long building took shape. Melinoe's hard scowl softened as she realised that they had finally arrived. She had lost track of time, but they had been flying a while in silence. The long building had light purple brick walls and small dreary windows. There was a pair of heavy double doors in a small alcove up a short staircase. Melinoe's scowl softened further in sympathy when she realised that despite Rosie calling this place an orphanage, it looked more like an oppressive school or prison. All that was missing were some metal bars on the windows. There weren't any colourful paintings stuck to the glass, no toys littering the steps, there wasn't even a grassy lawn outside for children to play on. Rosie came to a floating halt a few yards from the front double doors. Danny pulled the speeder over to her, coming to a stop beside the ghost and Tucker seamlessly took over the speeder controls when Danny crossed the vehicle's interior to open the hatch.
"Thanks for bringing us here Rosie. Why don't you go off and play with some of the other kids? I'm sure we can find Madam L by ourselves," Danny suggested.
"I should take you straight to Madam L," Rosie pointed out.
"You've already done lots. We'll let Madam L know you brought us here. But we've gotta find someplace to park the speeder so it can't drift off into the Ghost Zone. It might take a while since it needs something secure and big enough to tether itself to," Danny replied. Rosie chewed her lip indecisively for a moment before shrugging to herself.
"Alright. See you guys around then," Rosie decided and flew away, disappearing into the building with a half-hearted wave over her shoulder.
Danny slammed the hatch shut and returned to the front of the speeder, leaning over Tucker's shoulder to survey the building approaching.
"Take the speeder that way. If Leto's expecting us through the front door, we're not going in the front," Danny ordered, pointing to the side of the gloomy building. Tucker gave a quick obedient nod and turned the speeder away from the front doors as Danny requested. Melinoe carefully stood up and edged closer to the front as well to peer over Tucker's other shoulder.
"You should stay in your seat until we actually stop," Danny muttered, glancing at her from the corner of his eye.
"You're not," Melinoe retorted, not moving.
"I'm used to standing in a moving speeder," Danny replied. Melinoe shrugged and watched the building below intently. Danny smirked and turned his gaze back to their destination.
"What are we looking for exactly Danny?" Tucker asked.
"A back door. Open window. Even a big air vent would do. Just not the front door. I want to try and get in without Leto knowing," Danny answered.
"If I went in, I might be able to blend in better than you adults," Melinoe mentioned casually.
"You're older than a lot of the kids in there. Besides, a teen your age wouldn't necessarily want new parents. A ghost your age would strike out on their own. Maybe make friends with an older ghost who could guide you. As adults, me and Tuck can say we're looking to adopt," Danny corrected.
"I'm not exactly an adult Danny. You don't know that there aren't any ghosts my age," Melinoe argued.
"You're not leaving this speeder Mel," Danny decided firmly. Melinoe huffed in irritation.
"What if you need back up?" Melinoe challenged.
"This isn't exactly our first time going into the Ghost Zone to rescue Sam," Tucker interjected carefully.
"Wait, what? Mom's been kidnapped by ghosts before," Melinoe gasped.
"Yeah, and by the time we actually got there, she had practically escaped. We kinda messed up her escape attempt," Danny admitted, rubbing the back of his neck.
"So why aren't we waiting out here?" Melinoe pointed out.
"Because we were faster last time to get to Sam. And even if she had escaped the ghost last time, she wouldn't have been able to get out of his realm. This time, she's had a lot of time to get away and since I don't see a blown-out wall or someone hiding on the roof, she's still captive. Also, this time, sounds like she went with Box Lunch to protect you. She's not gonna try and escape until she's sure you're safe," Danny reasoned.
"Why do you keep calling Rosie Box Lunch? You said it's her ghost name, but she doesn't even answer to it," Melinoe questioned. Danny blinked before turning his full attention back to the orphanage.
"I told you not to ask about that," Danny reminded her. Melinoe huffed loudly again.
"There's an open window!" Tucker exclaimed, pointing to a window with a grin. Danny leant forward and nodded.
"We're a long way from the front door here. Looks like a good spot to sneak in. Okay, pull the speeder a bit further, try and find a patch without many windows and we'll tether there," Danny decided.
"Tether?" Melinoe repeated.
"Since gravity is a bit weird in the Ghost Zone, in order to make sure the speeder can't drift off, we need to kinda anchor it to something in the Ghost Zone. It's just a stream of energy from the speeder to whatever we're tethered to. We can tether to anything solid. Even a lair's door if we have to. But islands or buildings are better. More secure. This way, we don't have to land the speeder on solid ground and turn off the engine. Before we could tether, we would have had to park on the roof. Now we can park anywhere around this building," Danny explained.
"But you told Rosie that it needed something big to tether to," Melinoe recalled with a frown.
"If I told the truth, Rosie wouldn't have left us," Danny admitted. Melinoe nodded in understanding.
A few minutes later Tucker found a safe spot to tether the speeder. Melinoe watched Danny and Tucker hop out of the open hatch to land on the narrow strip of cracked rock surrounding the building. It was barely wide enough for a person to walk comfortably on. Tucker clung nervously to the building while Danny strolled casually with his hands in his pockets. Melinoe scowled at the men as they disappeared through the open window, Danny first before waving Tucker to follow. Tucker was supposed to find Sam while Danny was looking for Leto. Melinoe was meant to stay in the speeder, Danny had added the doubtful comment that Sam could find her own way out to the speeder but Melinoe knew that the man only said that to convince her to stay put. Melinoe growled in frustration to herself and paced the length of the speeder three times before she turned back to the hatch and tapped her foot and folded her arms stiffly.
"I'm done sitting on the side lines," Melinoe grumbled to herself before double checking her hip and smiled when she found the blaster Madeline gave her still there. She checked her wrist and nodded to herself when she was happy with the weapon secured there. Nodding to herself once more in determination, she backpedalled a few steps before sprinting to the hatch and leapt through the air.
She squeaked in alarm when she nearly lost her footing, but she regained her balance. Keeping a wary hand on the chilled brick wall, Melinoe edged along the narrow path. She gulped down any lingering doubts as she reached the window. She propped her hands on the thick windowsill and hoisted herself awkwardly into the building. She yelped as she fell forward through the window and landed on a lumpy mattress. She blinked at the room she found herself in. The walls were painted a faded light blue and there were a few worn toys littering the ground. The floor looked to be wood, despite the grey colour and there was a ratty blue rug. There were six beds, all aligned against the wall, three on each side of the room, with a small bedside cabinet holding a metal lamp with a bare lightbulb. Melinoe pulled herself off the small single bed she had fallen on. She took a deep steadying breath before creeping across the room, scanning the beds nervously, her hand hovering over the gun clipped to her hip.
She reached the door without incident and found it ajar. She carefully pulled it open and poked her head into the dark hallway beyond. She looked left and right and finding no one else in view, she slipped out of the bedroom. She sighed away her nerves uselessly and chewed her lip anxiously, trying to figure out which direction to head in. She heard a loud thud towards her left and with an involuntary squeak she rushed in the opposite direction. She silently berated her fear and squared her shoulders, striding far more confidently then she felt down the hall. Once she had put some distance between the thud and herself, she plucked up the courage to pop her head into the numerous doors lining the hall. Most were bedrooms, similar to the one Melinoe had found herself in originally. Some looked a little like classrooms with rows of tables and chairs and a dusty blackboard on the wall. Some looked like art rooms with paint strewn on the walls and paper splattered with colour hanging from the ceiling or littering the floor. Melinoe's fear soon faded into pity and sorrow. This orphanage felt sad. The flashes of colour seemed false, a cracked mask for the depressed building to wear. The more she saw, the more Melinoe wanted to leave, taking as many ghostly children as possible. She couldn't imagine living in such a cold, sorrowful building.
Melinoe took a strengthening breath and popped her head into yet another door. This one was different from the other rooms for two reasons. One was the fact that this room didn't try to hide its miserable setting behind colourful pictures and worn furnishings. It was a dark office with grey filing cabinets lining the wall, so many cabinets, Melinoe didn't bother trying to count them. Some of the drawers were open and some were shut with files poking out the top or sides. Taking the central position in the room was a large black desk, littered with papers. The second reason for the room being different was the fact that it was occupied by a woman sitting behind the desk staring at her with surprised glowing yellow eyes. The woman's shoulders slumped, as though a heavy weight pushed down on them. Her dull orange hair was messily pulled back into a bun, although random locks had escaped the bun and hung down, framing her worn light green face. The ghost, as Melinoe realised what she had stumbled onto was just that, rose out of her seat slowly and stepped around the desk. She wore a blue moth-eaten gown with a faded white apron over the top. The ghost flashed the teen a careful smile, it didn't look like it belonged on her face, sadness and exhaustion hung in those empty yellow eyes.
"Hello. Can I help you?" the ghost asked, folding her hands calmly in front of herself. Melinoe hesitated a moment as she scanned the ghost standing in front of her. The ghostly woman, while sad and tired looking, didn't feel dangerous. In fact, her aura screamed single mom to Melinoe, recognising the look from her own mother on bad days.
"I'm, um, looking for someone," Melinoe began, not even sure where she was going with her admission.
"Oh, who might you be looking for? I might know where they are," the ghost offered. Melinoe chewed her lip uncertainly before taking a deep breath.
"There's been a mix up and I think my mom is here," Melinoe ventured.
"Oh dear. I'm sorry to hear that. Was it a recent loss?" the ghost inquired sympathetically.
"Oh no, my mom isn't dead. I didn't mean in the Ghost Zone. I meant here, in the orphanage," Melinoe clarified. The ghost blinked before smiling carefully at Melinoe and holding a welcoming hand out to the teen.
"Well, if she's here, I'll be able to help you find her. Now, what did you say your name was dear?" the ghost assured. Melinoe smiled nervously and obediently followed the ghost out of the office.
"Everyone just calls me Mel," Melinoe answered, deciding not to tell this ghost her full name. The ghost nodded.
"And I didn't catch yours," Melinoe added hopefully.
"Oh, most of the kids here call me mom," the ghost replied with a dismissive wave. Melinoe frowned slightly.
"But what's your name?" Melinoe pressed.
"Let's try in here dear," the ghost suggested and opened a door. Melinoe frowned at the ghost but peered past the ghost to see her mother being held by a familiar ghost inside. Before Melinoe could make sense of the strange sight, the ghost beside her snatched her forearm and pulled her further into the room, ignoring Melinoe's soft pained grunts.
Hmm, anyone guess that Melinoe might go AWOL?
Any guesses on who the ghost with Melinoe is?
So, we're due another special chapter. Any ideas on who's point of view it'll be from?
Until the next chapter.