Chapter 17

Rescue in the Ghost World

After Jinx took Libby away from her, Molly desperately tried to think of a way to bring Libby's spirit back to her body. Both Molly and Scratch returned home with Libby's body as they explained to the McGees what happened.

As they returned to the attic, Molly and Scratch wrapped up Libby's wound in bandages so that it would hopefully heal when they bring Libby back. They soon surrounded Libby's body with candles in order to find a way to bring Libby's spirit back, but had no luck so far.

"Ugh! Contacting Libby isn't working!" Molly complained. "Also, are these candles fake? I'm pretty sure that we need real candles for this to work!"

"Well, don't look at me! Libby is usually the one who knows about all this nerd stuff!" Scratch replied. "I don't think we will be able to bring back Libby this way."

With a defeated sigh, Molly laid back down on her bed. "There has to be someone who can help us out!" Molly soon paused as she thought of an idea. "Scratch, what's the preferred spelling of Geoff?"

That was when Scratch knew exactly what Molly was thinking.

"Oh no." Scratch didn't like the idea, but knew that he didn't have a choice. "The spelling is J-E-"

Before Scratch could say another word, Geoff appeared from a portal to correct him.

"Oh, Scratch! That's not how my name is spelled! You already met Jeff, remember?"

Geoff was about to go on about his partner before Molly interrupted to tell Geoff the bad news.

"Geoff, we have an emergency! Jinx just killed Libby and took her to the ghost world!" Molly explained.

Geoff was horrified by what he just heard. He couldn't believe that the world would be cruel enough to separate Molly and Libby like that!

"What? That's terrible! What can I do to help?" Geoff asked, willing to do anything for his friends.

"Take me to the ghost world!" Molly replied without a second thought.

Truthfully, Geoff didn't know how to do that. Throughout his afterlife, he had never seen a single human enter the ghost world.

"Molly, I know that you are worried about Libby, but are you sure this is a good idea?" Scratch asked.

"Scratch is right! I don't think I can ever bring humans there!" Geoff explained before he opened the portal to find some help from the ghost world. "I'll see if I can get some help in the ghost world."

Before Geoff could float through the portal, Molly stopped him at the last second.

"No! Libby needs me! I am not going to leave her behind!"

With that, Molly jumped through the portal Geoff created. Instead of entering the ghost world like she expected, Molly somehow found herself separated from her own body. Confused, Molly looked at her hands to see that they had a golden-like color. She soon floated in front of a mirror to see that she had a golden ghost-like appearance.

"Huh? What happened to me?" Molly asked in shock.

Once he realized what was going on, Scratch said, "Molly, you are a wraith now! You're separated from your body so it can't feel anything!"

"I feel nothing." Molly's body said with complete indifference, much to Molly's discomfort.

"That's creepy, but since I'm technically not human, you two can take me to the ghost world, right?" Molly asked.

"Yeah, I suppose." Geoff couldn't argue with that.

"Then come on! We can't keep Libby waiting!" Molly said before she floated over to Libby's body and held her hand. "Hang on, Libby! I will be there for you soon!"

With that, Molly, Scratch, and Geoff floated through the portal to enter the ghost world. At that moment, Molly looked around to see a town filled with ghosts floating around. Molly couldn't believe that she had known Scratch since she was a child, but was only now able to visit the ghost world.

As much as she liked to explore this new world, Molly knew that she couldn't let herself get distracted.

"So, Libby is supposed to be around here somewhere, right?" Molly asked Scratch.

Scratch nodded in response. "It seems so! I'm pretty sure Jinx took Libby to see the Ghost Council! They should be over there!" Scratch pointed to a platform in the distance that had the chairs that belonged to the Ghost Council.

"Looks like we'll have to be sneaky!" Geoff pointed out. "It won't be easy with your bright gold joy energy."

"Okay! Okay! Okay! I'll uh- I'll try to blend in!"

Right as Molly said that, she accidentally touched a section of town, transforming it from its usual depressing state to a more happy and colorful appearance. At that moment, Scratch placed a hand over his face in annoyance.

"So much for being sneaky!" Scratch let out an annoyed sigh.

"Hopefully no one saw that!" Geoff hoped as he led Molly and Scratch away from the section that was turned to joy.

Meanwhile, Jinx led Libby through the ghost world so the Chairman can decide Libby's face. Before long, Libby found herself face to face with the same ghosts she met back at the feast from Molly's house. She looked up at the Chairman in terror, silently wondering what is going to happen to her.

"Ghost Council, I wasn't able to kill off Molly, but I was able to capture her girlfriend instead." Jinx explained as she gestured towards Libby's spirit.

"Excellent work, Jinx!" Grimbella complimented. "With their love no more, Brighton can now go back to its miserable state."

Libby couldn't believe how cruel the Ghost Council was. She was disgusted that they tried to kill Molly just because she was in love with her.

"Why are you doing this?" Libby demanded. "Molly and I were happy together! Why couldn't you just leave us alone?"

"The Chairman can only feed on negativity, so we cannot allow any joy in your town!" Sir Alister explained.

"Now the Chairman shall decide your fate!" Lucretia added.

Before the Chairman could make his decision, a sobgoblin appeared, carrying what appeared to be a lamp in its hands. Curious, Jinx floated over to the sobgoblin to see what it was holding.

"Hey, little sobgoblin. What you got there?" Upon noticing how bright and colorful the lamp was, Jinx floated back in shock. "Aah! This lamp is covered in joy!"

That was when Libby realized that Molly somehow managed to find her way into the ghost world and is now coming to save her.

"Jinx, find the joy and eliminate it quick!" Bartholomew ordered.

With a nod, Jinx floated away, ready to kill Molly for good. This left Libby worried for her best friend.

"Molly, please be careful." Libby whispered, hoping that Molly would be okay.

As Molly traveled further in the ghost world with Scratch and Geoff, she silently hoped Libby would be okay. After everything she and Libby had been through together, she was not going to lose Libby again.

Determined to save Libby no matter what, Molly floated further into the ghost world until she took notice of a familiar face. Molly and her friends were surprised to see Jinx, along with an army of sobgoblins behind her. With a glare, Molly clenched her ghost hands into fists. It was because of Jinx that Libby died, and Molly would never forgive her for what she had done to her best friend.

"Where's Libby?!" Molly demanded, unable to hold back her anger.

"Oh, don't worry! You will be joining your girlfriend soon enough!" Jinx mocked as she brought her attention to the sobgoblins. "Capture them!"

At that moment, Molly, Scratch, and Geoff flew away as Jinx and the sobgoblins gave chase. They pursued Molly and her friends throughout the town. It was easy for Jinx and the sobgoblins to keep track of the trio, especially with Molly accidentally transforming everything she touched into positive energy.

Before long, they ended up reaching a dead end. They desperately looked for a way out, but it was too late as they were already surrounded.

"Oh, corn! We're trapped!" Molly gulped.

With a sinister grin, Jinx said, "I just gotta know, McGee! Did you really think you could escape us? Cause that golden energy of yours is pretty hard to miss! Sobgoblins, drain her!"

Once Jinx gave the order, the sobgoblins began to surround Molly as they began to drain her of the joy she once had. Molly collapsed on the ground, feeling all her joy and happiness being drained every passing second.

"Molly!" Scratch rushed over to Molly's aid.

Molly weakly looked up. "I suddenly feel like giving up."

Both, Scratch and Geoff watched in horror as Molly started to feel weaker and weaker. Geoff soon thought of an idea as he flew in the crowd of sobgoblins to keep them distracted.

"Geoff!" Molly and Scratch gasped as their friend was surrounded by the sobgoblins.

"Don't worry about me! Go save Libby!" Geoff urged Molly and Scratch to leave as he fought back against the sobgoblins.

Still weak from being attacked by the sobgoblins, Molly couldn't even float from the ground. That was when Scratch picked up Molly in his arms to take her to Libby.

"Don't worry, Moll! You will be with Libby soon!" Scratch assured.

"Not so fast!" Jinx stood in Scratch's way. "I won't let you get away from me!"

Before Jinx could do anything, Molly took her by surprise when she touched Jinx with what little joy she had left.

"Aah! She touched me!" Jinx screamed as her ghost form started to get covered in flowers.

With Jinx distracted, Scratch carried Molly away from Jinx and the army of sobgoblins. Molly slowly recovered as she noticed the platform where the Ghost Council was at. Knowing that this was where Libby was, Molly desperately reached out her hand.

"L-Libby!"

Seeing Molly this weak caused Scratch to feel bad for his best friend, but he was going to reunite her with Libby no matter what. "It's going to be okay, Molly! We're almost there!"

As Scratch was helping Molly in her weakened state, the Ghost Council was ready to bring judgment on Libby. Despite how brave she was trying to be, Libby couldn't stop trembling in fear. The Chairman was about to banish Libby to the Flow of Failed Phantoms before Molly and Scratch showed up.

"Libby!"

Upon hearing Molly, Libby turned and rushed over to embrace Molly in a hug. Libby took a closer look at her friend to see how weak she was from the sobgoblins.

"Molly, what happened? Are you okay?" Libby asked, concerned for her friend.

"I am, now that I'm with you!" Molly gave a weak smile.

Unfortunately, Molly and Libby's reunion was cut short when the Ghost Council interrupted.

"That is quite enough!" Lucretia spoke up. "We had a feeling that you would betray us, Scratch! Not only did you bring a human here, but you have also befriended said human! That is a serious charge!"

It was at that point when Scratch has had enough of being pushed around by the Ghost Council. Threatening to send him to the Flow of Failed Phantoms was one thing, but threatening to hurt his friends was going too far.

"You know what? Maybe I did befriend a human, and I don't care anymore! Molly is the best friend I could ask for!"

"Aww, Scratch!" Molly smiled, despite how weak she felt.

"I am not going to help you separate Molly and Libby! They are perfect together and I don't care if you send me to the Flow of Failed Phantoms!" Scratch yelled.

"Oh, don't you? Perhaps you would care if we banished your friend instead!" Molly and her friends turned around and were all shocked to see Jinx, who managed to capture Geoff.

With Geoff captured, the Chairman raised his skeleton finger and summoned the Flow of Failed Phantoms. All Molly and her friends could do was watch as their friend was sucked into the flow.

"Geoff!" Molly, Libby, and Scratch gasped.

"Tell Jeff I love him!" Geoff yelled before he got sucked into the flow.

Silence filled the ghost world as the trio of friends tried to comprehend what just happened.

"Now, what was it that you said before, Scratch? You don't care that we send you to the Flow of Failed Phantoms?" Sir Alister mocked.

With a nervous chuckle, Scratch replied, "Uh, I don't remember saying anything like that!"

Before Scratch could react, he felt a strong wind pulling him back. Once Scratch started to get sucked into the flow as well, Molly and Libby grabbed his hands in an attempt to save him. Unfortunately, Scratch knew that there was no saving him. With a sad smile, Scratch decided to say one last goodbye to Molly.

"Molly, it looks like this is it!"

"No!" Molly tightened her grip on Scratch's hand. "I'm not letting you go!"

"Listen, I am happy that we got to be best friends! Being with you has been the highlight of my afterlife! And Libby? Take care of Molly! She is going to need her second best friend when I'm gone!" Scratch started to tear up as he gave one last joke.

Unable to hold on any longer, Scratch was soon sucked in the flow as well. It was all too much for Molly to take in. This had to be a nightmare! Scratch, Molly's ghost friend who had been with her since childhood was now gone forever.

Upset over the loss of her best friend, Molly clenched her fists and turned to the Ghost Council in rage filled tears. "You monsters!"

"It was about time we sent Scratch to the flow." Bartholomew said with no remorse. "I do not know why we kept him around for so long."

"Neither do I. Now, there are two more ghosts to deal with. What shall we do with the two lovebirds, Mr. Chairman?" Grimbella asked the Chairman.

In response, the Chairman summoned the Flow of Failed Phantoms once more. Both, Molly and Libby screamed as they tried struggled to fight back against the strong wind. It didn't do any good as all they could do was claw at the ground to avoid getting sucked in. Tears formed in Molly and Libby's eyes as they faced each other one last time.

"I'm so sorry I couldn't save you, Libby!" Molly cried. "This is all my fault that you died. Maybe you were better off without me."

At that moment, Molly was caught by surprise when Libby placed a comforting hand on her own hand.

"No. None of this was your fault, Molly! Ever since we met in first grade, I enjoyed every moment we spent together! You have changed my life for the better and I couldn't imagine my life without you!" Libby said with a reassuring smile! "I love you, Molly!"

Soon, Molly smiled back. "I love you too, Libby!"

As they held each other's hand, Molly and Libby closed their eyes before they ended up joining the rest of the ghosts in the flow. With Molly and Libby gone, the Ghost Council decided to get back to work.

"And that, as they say, is that!" Sir Alister said, glad that there is no one left to oppose them.

Grimbella nodded in agreement. "Should have done this ages ago if you ask me."

"Well then, back to work. Jinx, clean yourself up." Lucretia told Jinx, who was still covered in flowers from her encounter with Molly.

"Yes, ma'am." Jinx replied.

Before the ghosts could get back to work, thunder could be heard in the distance, followed by what sounded like Molly's laughter. They all looked around, confused before one by one, the ghosts that were trapped in the Flow of Failed Phantoms managed to break free.

"You guys just made a big mistake!" Molly's voice could be heard in the distance. "You forgot, everything I touch turns to joy, and that includes your stupid Flow of Failed Phantoms!"

Before long, the rest of the ghosts were set free, including Libby, Scratch, and Geoff. All three of them watched as Molly approached the Chairman.

"Light is more powerful than darkness! Hope is more powerful than fear! Love is more powerful than fear! And joy? Joy is way more powerful than fear will ever be!" Molly yelled. "Libby and I are happy together, and we won't let you take that happiness away! Don't tell me that being Libby's girlfriend is wrong! You're wrong!"

"Molly." Libby smiled, touched by how much Molly cares for her.

At that point, the Chairman has had enough of Molly and her friends. He was not going to let Molly destroy the order that he worked so hard to create with her joy. The Chairman slowly rose from his seat, towering above Molly and Libby.

Just like that, all of Molly's bravery was replaced with fear. The girls backed away as the Chairman slowly approached them. Not wanting to stay around any longer, Molly grabbed Libby's hand as they both floated away with the Chairman giving chase.

"Molly!" Scratch gasped as he and Geoff tried to help out, only for Jinx to block their way with her scythe.

"Not so fast! We'll deal with you two traitors after the Chairman banishes your friends!"

Lightning flashed as Molly and Libby tried to escape from the Chairman. The two friends soon found themselves trapped on a nearby platform as the Chairman caught up with them.

At that moment, the Chairman summoned an army of sobgoblins to attack Molly and Libby. The girls tried to float away, but there were too many sobgoblins surrounding them. Before they knew it, Molly and Libby ended up getting drained of all their joy to the point where they collapsed on the ground. They both lost all joy and were drained of all their color. Not even Molly's joy could save them this time.

Seeing his chance, the Chairman summoned a tornado to create a new Flow of Failed Phantoms, with Molly and Libby being the first victims. Despite how weak they felt, Molly and Libby turned to face each other and began to slowly crawl to one another. Once they were close enough, they held each others hands. If they were going to be banished, they would at least be together.

Suddenly, a bright light began to envelop Molly and Libby's wrists, where their friendship bracelets were supposed to be. The Chairman watched in shock as color slowly began to be restored to Molly and Libby's ghost forms. As they slowly got up, the girls tightened their grips on each others hands. The light began to gleam even brighter, thanks to Molly and Libby's love for each other.

The amount of joy was too much for the Chairman to handle. He soon let out a loud screech as he was enveloped in the light. Before long, the light dimmed down, and Jinx and the Ghost Council were shocked to see that there was nothing left of the Chairman, apart from his cloak.

"The Chairman!" Grimbella gasped, horrified that Molly and Libby managed to destroy the Chairman with their love.

With the Chairman gone, Molly and Libby reunited with Scratch and Geoff as the group of friends shared a group hug with each other. After breaking from the group hug, Molly turned to Jinx and the Ghost Council with a glare.

"I'm leaving, and I'm taking my friends with me! And after we return to the human world, Libby and I will be each other's girlfriend if we choose so! Anybody got a problem with that?!" Molly threatened the ghosts.

"No! No! No!" Jinx and the Ghost Council shook their heads, each of them too scared to refuse Molly's wishes.

Just like that, Molly's angered expression immediately turned to a cheerful smile as she gave a thumbs up. Once they were ready to leave, Molly and her friends floated towards a nearby portal as they returned home.

At that moment, Molly and the others made it back to Molly's room, where Molly and Libby returned to their bodies. Once she woke up, Molly immediately rushed over to Libby.

"Libby, are you okay?" Molly asked, worried for her friend.

Soon, Libby slowly opened her eyes. "M-Molly?"

Overjoyed, Molly embraced Libby in a tight hug. Libby smiled before she happily hugged Molly back. The girls were unable to hold back their tears as they were happy to finally be reunited. Before long, Molly's family could be heard from downstairs as they rushed up to Molly's room.

"Libby!"

Darryl, Pete, and Sharon rushed over to Molly and Libby and embraced them in a group hug.

"We are so glad that you are awake!" Sharon breathed a sigh of relief. "Molly, you did it!"

"I always knew you would!" Pete smiled. "And I didn't lose any of my hair over it!"

"Just mine." Darryl said, remembering how worried he was.

"You should have seen Molly back there!" Scratch exclaimed before he pretended to be Molly. "Take that, Chairman! You want to take my best friends away? I'm gonna enhappify your face!"

"Well, yeah! I did kind of kill the Chairman with kindness." Molly admitted. "Guess he wasn't able to handle my love for Libby."

At the mention of Molly's love for Libby, Molly's family stared at her in surprise.

"Are you saying that you two are actually together now? Did you confess your love for each other." Pete asked, feeling hopeful.

In response, Molly and Libby turned to face each other. They both shared a couple of smiles before holding each other's hand. That was all the family needed to see to get their answer. They all cheered, knowing that Molly and Libby are now each other's girlfriend.

"Aww! This is so sweet! I have to tell Jeff about this!" Geoff said as he floated away to return to his partner.

After everything that Molly and Libby had been through together, their friends and family were happy that they were now together. Now that Molly and Libby are officially a couple, they knew that this was the beginning of a bright future together!