Ghost World, Part 2

Lily was at something of a loss as to how she was going to investigate her possible lead. As she was wandering vaguely around the neighbourhood trying to think of an idea, she saw Lawrence mowing his front lawn. For the want of anything else to try, Lily decided to ask him if he had seen any small green creatures lurking around anywhere.
  “Hey, Lawrence,” Lily said brightly, as she sauntered up to him. “What’s up?”
Lawrence looked up and switched off his lawnmower. A slightly haunted look entered his eyes as he watched Lily approach him.
  “Oh, hello Lily,” he said cautiously. “What can I do for you?”
  “You seem a bit edgy, Lawrence,” Lily remarked. “Is something wrong?”
  “Well, that depends on you, doesn’t it?” Lawrence replied. “Have you come to involve me in some hair-raising adventure?”
  “No, not necessarily,” Lily returned. “I just want to ask you a question.”
  “What kind of a question?” Lawrence asked suspiciously. “The last time I agreed to let Charley ask me a question, he ended up giving me sole responsibility for three people’s lives, and we both know how badly that turned out, don’t we?”
  “You sound like you’re afraid to get involved again,” Lily remarked. “I thought you liked joining in with our adventures.”
  “I used to enjoy hanging out with you guys a lot, yeah, but you’ve got yourselves into some pretty freaky stuff recently, and I want no part of it!” Lawrence said with feeling. “That tournament in Scotland we all had to do, that was okay, if a bit uncomfortable at times. That thing Charley set up with the power rings and the swamp monster, that was just plain dangerous! And then that thing with the bomb shelter… I’m sorry, Lily, but I’m not going to play with you guys anymore!”
  “Wow, I’m sorry our adventures have affected you like that,” Lily replied. “I guess none of us ever realised how you felt. I’m not asking you to get involved with anything, though – I just want to know if you’ve seen any small green creatures lurking around.”
  “That sounds like an adventure!” Lawrence exclaimed in horror. “I don’t want to get involved in another adventure!”
  “Really, Lawrence, it’s just a question…” Lily began
  “La-la-la, I’m not listening!” Lawrence said loudly, turning his lawnmower back on. “I can’t hear you talking about small green creatures, so you may as well just leave me alone. La-la-la-la-la-la!”
Lily moved on from Lawrence’s front garden, feeling that he had been really rather unhelpful. She then spotted George coming down the street towards her, so she went up to meet him, hoping that he would be a little more willing to lend a hand.
  “What do you want?” George snapped irritably.
  “I want to ask you a question,” Lily replied.
  “Get lost, weirdo!” George snarled.
  “Hey, I thought you were on our side now!” Lily objected.
  “Why would you think that?” George glared.
  “Well, because you and Mona had that heart-to-heart about Angela, and you came to an understanding,” Lily pointed out. “Don’t you remember?”
  “Yeah, of course I remember,” George scowled. “I had a chat with Mona and we worked everything out and came to terms with things, so I agreed not to go looking for revenge any more. That doesn’t mean I want to get caught up in your crazy adventures. Angela went looking for trouble, and look what happened to her. I want well out of anything you lot are involved with.”
  “Oh dear,” Lily sighed dismally, as she watched George stomp off in the opposite direction. “I don’t think my mission is going very well.”
Lily resolved to go and join Mona and Dottie through the magic portal, although the question as to what she had seen in the garden was still niggling at the back of her brain. As Lily made her way back towards Mona’s house, she didn’t notice a strange beam of energy form on the pavement from above. She also didn’t notice a small green figure materialising on the tarmac behind her. Lily did notice, however, when a voice called out to her just as she was about to step onto Mona’s front path.
  “Hey, Lily, wait up!”
Lily swung around and gaped in surprise at the short green alien figure that was approaching her.
  “Good God, FX!” Lily exclaimed in sheer surprise. “What the hell are you doing here?”

Mona and Dottie had split up and searched the entire house, but there was no sign of anyone to be found.
  “Where are they all?” wondered Dottie, as she and Mona met up in the kitchen.
  “Hmm, y’know, I think Danny said he was on his way to school,” Mona suddenly remembered. “I guess we’ll just have to wait for him here until he gets back.”
  “That could take a while,” Dottie remarked. “It’s not even lunchtime yet.”
  “Well, what else can we do?” Mona sighed.
If Dottie had anything further to say on this matter, she did not get a chance to voice it. There was suddenly a terrific crack of red lightning in the room, which heralded the arrival of a blue-skinned vampire-like ghost. He wore a black suit and a cape, and his piercing yellow eyes fixed themselves on Mona. He smiled, and she glowered.
  “Now what?” Mona fumed. “Who the hell are you?”
  “Greetings, Mona the Vampire,” the newcomer said in rich, deep tones. “Do not be alarmed – I am here to help you. My name is Vlad Plasmius.”
  “You know, Mona, if Mum-Ra’s told Danny to look out for a vampire ghost, this guy seems to fit the bill much better than you do,” Dottie opined.
  “Yeah, you’re right,” Mona agreed. “That’s your little game, isn’t it? Mum-Ra sent you here to… to… well, to do something evil that’s been specifically designed to inconvenience me.”
  “I know not this Mum-Ra of whom you speak,” Vlad replied levelly. “I do, however, know Danny Phantom, and I share your enmity towards him. I am here to help you defeat him.”
  “Oh, Jesus Christ, this is all I need!” Mona exclaimed angrily. “Look, I really don’t care enough about Danny Phantom to feel any enmity towards him, and I don’t want your help to deal with him. I just want to explain to him that there’s been a colossal mistake and then I want to go home!”
  “Nonsense,” Vlad disagreed. “I observed the fight in which you engaged with Danny Phantom – you and he are enemies, and you wish to destroy him. I am here to help you.”
  “Look, I really don’t…” Mona began to object, but then she changed her mind and decided it might be quicker and easier just to go with the flow as far as this mysterious vampire ghost was concerned. “Okay, fine, you worked it all out – I hate Danny Phantom and I want to destroy him. How can you help me?”
  “By giving you one of my fantastic ghost-busting inventions,” said Vlad, making an arcane gesture in the air with his right hand, which caused a shimmering silver shortsword to appear in his grasp. “This sword is imbued with the power to bring a human-ghost hybrid, such as Danny Phantom, to his knees, as soon as it makes contact with its victim. It will render him completely powerless, and then you can destroy him.”
  “And you made this sword, did you?” Mona asked with feigned interest, as she accepted the glistening metal weapon from Vlad. “How do you know it works?”
  “It has been tested on another human-ghost hybrid,” Vlad explained. “The only other in existence, in fact.”
  “So he’s destroyed now, is he?” Mona asked languidly.
  “No,” Vlad replied simply. “The effects are… not permanent. However, they will last for quite sufficient time for you to destroy Danny Phantom!”
  “Okay, great, thanks,” Mona smiled with false gratitude, as she tested the feel of the sword in her right hand. “I’ll use this on Danny when he gets back, then.”
  “There is no time for hanging around!” Vlad declared. “You must strike now, when he is least expecting you. I will use my fantastic ghost powers to transport you to his school!”
As Vlad began to weave a transportation spell, Dottie looked at Mona with an expression of some alarm. Mona opened her mouth to object to what Vlad was doing, mainly because she was not keen on appearing in the middle of an American High School carrying a deadly weapon, but the spell was cast too quickly. There was a flash of red light, and Mona and Dottie found themselves standing in a grassy courtyard, surrounded by school buildings.
  “Well, I guess we’re here, then,” Mona remarked needlessly, concealing the sword behind her back. “I suppose we might as well try to find Danny.”
  “You’re not going to use that thing on him, are you?” Dottie asked worriedly.
  “No, of course not,” Mona laughed. “I just want to talk to him about Mum-Ra. But I’ll keep this sword with me – I like the poise.”
  “Well, I suppose you know best, Mona,” Dottie said doubtfully. “Who the hell was that vampire ghost anyway?”
  “Oh, I don’t know,” Mona shrugged. “I don’t think he’s anything to do with Mum-Ra. Just forget about him; he’s done us a favour in a way, transporting us here. Now if we can find Danny, convince him that he’s been tricked by Mum-Ra, get him to close that portal in my wardrobe by means of his family’s extensive computer equipment, go to Mum-Ra and then convince him to back off, we might be back home in time for supper.”
  “I think you’re being overoptimistic again, Mona,” Dottie opined. “Still, I suppose all we can do is try. How do we find Danny, then?”
  “Wander around the school and peer into classrooms, I suppose,” Mona replied listlessly.
  “Why don’t you turn into a vampire and locate him by magic?” Dottie suggested brightly.
  “There’s not enough cover from the daylight to do that. No, I’m afraid we’ll have to do this the old-fashioned way.”

Lily could scarcely believe her eyes. With everything that she had been through over the past couple of months, she had not given Fantastic Max and his friends a second thought since they had parted company. Now, after she had decided to call it a day with her fruitless search for a small green creature, one was coming right up to her, seemingly in order to initiate a conversation.
  “Was it you?” Lily asked blankly, as FX stood before her. “Were you the green blur I saw in Mona’s garden yesterday?”
  “I can’t deny it,” FX grinned sheepishly.
  “But… but… why?” Lily stammered, unable to comprehend this strange situation. “I thought you’d left town ages ago – what were you doing in Mona’s front garden?”
  “Ah, now we reach the ticklish question,” FX replied. “You see, I really shouldn’t have been in Mona’s garden, and I really shouldn’t be here now talking to you.”
  “But why not?” Lily questioned blindly. “And I still don’t know what you were doing there in the first place.”
  “It’s complicated,” FX told her. “I’ll explain everything to you, but I’d rather not do it out here on the street. You’re on your way into Mona’s house, I deduce – perhaps we could discuss the matter further in there.”
  “Um… yes, okay,” Lily replied, unable to think of any reason to object to this suggestion. “Just tell me something first – is your being here anything to do with Mum-Ra’s plan?”
  “Well, yes and no,” FX replied evasively. “I mean, not directly; Mum-Ra doesn’t know we’re here, or anything like that, but our purpose here is to do with how Mona deals with things like his evil plans.”
  “Oh, you’re confusing me already,” Lily sighed. “Come on inside, then, and you can explain to me exactly what’s going on.”

Fortunately, Mona’s house was quite deserted, except for Fang, who was fast asleep on an armchair in the living room. Lily and FX entered the room, and sat down on the sofa. Lily looked at the little green alien expectantly, so he ploughed into his explanation.
  “When I lost the Ambassador, the Intergalactic Council had every right to carry out all sorts of ridiculously harsh punishments on me,” FX explained. “However, they let me off, on condition that I spied on Mona and relayed information about her adventures back to the Council.”
  “But why?” Lily asked, quite taken aback at this revelation.
  “They were… concerned about her motives for doing what she does,” FX replied carefully. “My mission is to prove to them that Mona is a force for good, and not for evil.”
  “Oh, but she is!” Lily cried. “She definitely is! You can’t let some freaky alien council come down here and try to destroy Mona because they think she’s evil.”
  “I don’t intend to, believe me,” FX said earnestly. “The Council has been nothing but pleased with the reports I have given them so far; I’m sure I’m managing to convince them that Mona poses no threat to anyone, and that she’s a terrific force for good. The only trouble is that I’ve been a bit… conspicuous.”
  “How so?”
  “My mission is to observe and report, but not to get involved. But I’ve found it impossible just to stand by and watch while you lot get into trouble. If the Council ever finds out that I helped Mona drive that evil virus that Mum-Ra concocted out of her body then I’d hate to think what they’d do to me!”
  “You were there?” Lily queried. “In that kitchen, with all the singing, you were there?”
  “I was in the back garden, actually,” FX told her. “But I interfered in the mission, which I’m not supposed to do. Mona and I fought as allies, and I don’t feel right spying on her like this. I’m anxious – more anxious than you know – to show the Council the truth about her good works, but I’m also too involved for my own good. The fact that we’re here now having this conversation is testament to that fact.”
  “What do you mean?”
  “The only reason I’m telling you all this is because you caught sight of me, when I was attempting to spy on what Mona was up to from her own front garden. I should have stayed in the ship – all I succeeded in doing was giving you a false lead for your current adventure. I’m sorry for this, Lily, I really am!”
  “So, you really shouldn’t be here now talking to me,” Lily realised. “You’re putting yourself in further danger just to stop me from following a false lead. I guess that proves that you’re on our side, but still it’s a pretty sneaky thing to do, flying around spying on us like that, you know.”
  “Yes, I do know,” FX assured her. “I hate doing it, but I have no choice. And now I’ve put you in a very awkward position as well! I must ask you not to tell Mona (or anyone else, for that matter) any of the information I have disclosed to you, otherwise I’d hate to think what would happen to me.”
  “You’re really afraid of this Intergalactic Council, huh?”
  “It is not for myself that I fear,” FX said somberly. “It’s for my friends; they’re the reason I agreed to take on this mission. If the Council stripped me of my magic and took away my intergalactic passport, I wouldn’t be able to sustain Max and AB as they are now. Max would become a babbling baby, and AB would turn into a pile of building blocks.”
  “I can understand that,” Lily accepted. “I’m not going to enjoy keeping this from Mona, but thanks for coming to tell me, FX; I know you’ve put your neck on the line to do it.”
  “You know, as we’re on the subject, you might as well know that it’s not just Max and AB who’d lose their intelligence if my magic was revoked,” FX said cautiously. “You may not realise it, but you and Mona would lose one of your greatest allies.”
  “We would?” Lily questioned without comprehension. “Who?”
  “That cat,” FX replied, indicating Fang’s sleeping form. “He played with my antennae when I was here last, and it made him hyper-intelligent, just like what happened with Max.”
  “But… but…” Lily stammered. “Fang can’t talk!”
  “Yes he can,” FX contradicted her. “And he can read, and work out complex mathematical equations, and all kinds of other stuff.”
  “No way,” Lily laughed disbelievingly. “Mona would have told me if…”
  “He has chosen to hide his intelligence from Mona since the two of them had a slight argument,” FX continued to explain. “But he’s been using it to help you lot out for ages. Do you recall a visitor to your darkened bedroom, who told you that Mona was becoming a werewolf and that she needed your help?”
  “Oh yeah, I’d forgotten that,” Lily suddenly remembered. “Are you trying to tell me that it was Fang?”
  “Yes, it was.”
  “But… but I recognised the voice. Does that mean that Fang was…”
  “Yes, he was the one who found you in that bomb shelter and telephoned the authorities,” FX confirmed. “Now, don’t go telling any of this to Mona. I’m only telling you in order to illustrate how valuable an ally Fang is, and how much it will benefit you if I’m able keep my magic powers.”
  “Yes, I see,” Lily said, in a state of shock. “So, you’re serious, right? Fang can talk? He was the one who rescued us from the hole? The mystery rescuer knew my name, though – how could Fang know my name?”
  “Fang has known all of your names for years,” FX shrugged. “The fact that he can now pronounce them in English is no more remarkable than the fact he can speak English at all. Look, Lily, I really must be going now – I’ve tarried here for too long. Just remember what I told you, okay?”
  “Yeah, sure,” Lily replied, somewhat distractedly. “Thanks for the info, FX.”
  “And not a word to Mona, right?”
  “I’ll be good.”
  “Excellent,” FX beamed. “Well, good luck sorting out Mum-Ra and everything – I must return to my observations. Rocket and Roll!”
FX disappeared in a magical flash. However, Lily hardly noticed this. She had now got off the sofa, and was approaching the chair where Fang was lying on his back, snoring peacefully to himself.

Mona and Dottie peered into the math classroom through the small round porthole of glass at the top of the door.
  “There he is,” said Mona.
  “Which one?” asked Dottie.
  “The one with black hair, second row from the back, next to the Goth girl.”
  “Ooh, he’s cute,” Dottie remarked.
  “You think so?”
  “Well, don’t you?”
  “I don’t know. I guess he’s okay.”
  “So, what’s the plan?”
  “There’s a janitor’s closet just over there,” said Mona. “In a minute, you’ll go over there, open the door, and hide behind it. You can look after this sword for me as well. The moment Danny comes out of class, I’ll grab him, push him inside, and then you come in and shut the door behind us all.”
  “Then what?” Dottie queried.
  “Then we’ll explain to him all about how he’s been tricked,” Mona explained.
  “You think he’ll trust us after we’ve shoved him into a closet?” Dottie wondered.
  “You got a better plan?”
  “No.”
  “Right, then get over there and take your position,” Mona ordered, thrusting Vlad’s sword into her cousin’s grasp. “Look, they’re starting to pack their books away.”
Dottie darted over to the janitor’s closet, opened the door and waited behind it. Mona waited for the classroom door to open and then she crouched behind it, until she saw Danny come out of the room. In one fluid motion, she rushed up to him, grabbed him firmly with both hands, and pushed him backwards, through the throng of teens, into the open closet. Dottie then sneaked around the door, into the closet, and shut them all in. She also had the good sense to turn on the light.
  “Whoa, hey, what is this?” Danny protested squeakily. “What’s going on?”
  “We want to talk to you, Danny,” Mona replied levelly. “Do you remember me? We met this morning.”
  “Huh?” Danny queried. “Are you some kind of lunatic? I’ve never seen you before in my life!”
  “Oh, I’m sorry, I was forgetting,” Mona smiled toothily, as she allowed her vampire form to overcome her. “How about now?”
  “Jesus Christ, you’re the vampire ghost!” Danny exclaimed.
  “Look, I’m not a ghost,” Mona snarled. “But I am a vampire, and I want to talk to you. Danny, I’m not your enemy. I’m just a normal girl who can turn into a supernatural creature, just like you… well, except for the girl part. We’re on the same side.”
  “What do you know about me?” Danny asked suspiciously. “There’s no one else like me!”
  “But I am like you!” Mona insisted, and she did a quick transformation to human and back to convince him. “My name’s Mona Parker, and I turn into a vampire to fight evil. Isn’t that something like what you do?”
  “We know you belong to a family of ghost hunters,” Dottie added. “You turn into a ghost to fight other ghosts, can’t you? That’s exactly what Mona does, except she’s a vampire instead of a ghost.”
  “But… but…” Danny protested. “That mummy told me you were evil and you wanted to kill my family!”
  “He was lying!” Mona exclaimed. “The mummy’s name is Mum-Ra, and he has a major grudge against me. He’s trying to use you to get to me, but he’s the real enemy!”
  “I didn’t think he looked trustworthy when he first came to see me,” Danny admitted. “But I didn’t want to doubt his claims that he was on my side just because he looked like a monster.”
  “Yeah, he used the same line on me,” Mona sympathised. “Fed you all that crap about having to wear the semblance of evil, did he? He went on about how you must sympathise with him, having to fight evil as a supernatural creature yourself, I expect. I know he can be very persuasive, but Mum-Ra really is the evil monster he looks like.”
  “But you look like a monster as well,” Danny objected. “How do I know you’re not the one lying to me, and why is your friend carrying a sword?”
Dottie hastily shoved the sword behind her back, while Mona turned back into her human form.
  “Do I look like a monster now?” she asked.
  “No, but it could be a trick,” Danny replied. “Oh, now I don’t know what to think anymore!”
  “Look, I’m telling you, I have no interest in killing your family!” Mona exclaimed. “I just want you to help me close the magic portal that Mum-Ra’s put in my wardrobe and then you can forget the whole damned thing! Why would you trust the word of an undead mummy over someone who’s exactly like you?”
  “Maybe that’s what you’re counting on, huh?” Danny frowned. “Man, I need some time to think about this. I’m out of here!”
Before Mona could object, Danny turned himself into a ghost once again. Mona felt her hands slip through his incorporeal flesh as he rose up into the air and disappeared through the ceiling.
  “Well, that could have gone better,” Mona remarked dryly. “Come on, let’s go upstairs and see if we can track him down.”
Dottie opened the closet door, whereupon she and Mona were greeted by the anxious, expectant faces of two teens who were waiting outside. One was the black-haired Goth girl who had been sitting next to Danny in class; the other was a slightly geeky-looking black kid with glasses.
  “Er, hey there,” said the Goth girl tentatively. “Have you guys got our friend Danny in there?”

Back in his human form, Danny rushed into the bathroom and turned on a tap.
  “Man, I’m having serious problems with this one,” he twittered, as he began to splash cold water onto his face in a futile attempt to clear his head. “How am I supposed to know who to trust?”
Danny looked up into the mirror in order to appraise his confused features. The face he saw staring back at him, however, was the menacing cowled visage of Mum-Ra. Danny took a step backwards in alarm.
  “Oh Jesus, not you again!” he exclaimed unhappily. “Why can’t you all just leave me alone?”
  “Have you done it, Danny?” Mum-Ra intoned. “Have you destroyed Mona the Vampire?”
  “No, I haven’t,” Danny replied defiantly. “She says you’re the real enemy and she doesn’t want to kill my family, and I just don’t know who to believe!”
  “I see,” Mum-Ra said coolly. “I believe I explained to you, Danny, that you and I are the same in many ways. That should be enough for a basis of trust between us.”
  “Well, Mona’s more like me than you are,” Danny countered. “She doesn’t look like a monster all the time, for one thing.”
  “Looks are unimportant,” Mum-Ra returned dryly. “It is what lurks beneath the surface that counts. However, if you still doubt what I say about Mona the Vampire, I suggest you take a look at this.”
Mum-Ra’s dead face melted away, and the image in the mirror changed into that of Danny’s own kitchen. Mona and Dottie were clearly visible, as was Vlad, which was what really caught Danny’s attention. As Danny looked at the image and concentrated hard, he began to make out what the characters were saying to each other.
  “I hate Danny Phantom and I want to destroy him,” Mona was telling Vlad. “How can you help me?”
  “By giving you one of my fantastic ghost-busting inventions,” Danny saw Vlad reply. “This sword is imbued with the power to bring a human-ghost hybrid, such as Danny Phantom, to his knees, as soon as it makes contact with its victim. It will render him completely powerless, and then you can destroy him.”
The image of the kitchen faded, and Mum-Ra’s face reappeared. He was now wearing a cool, confident smile.
  “You see?” he crooned.
  “I’ve seen that sword before,” Danny realised. “Mona’s companion is carrying it with her. They really do want to destroy me, and they’re in league with Vlad Plasmius!”
Danny turned on his heel and ran from the room.

  “Fang,” Lily crooned softly, as she stroked the cat’s soft brown fur. “Wake up, will you? I want to talk to you.”
Fang opened his eyes very slowly and made a soft mewing noise. He exposed his underside and began to claw at the air.
  “No, you can’t placate me by showing me your tummy,” Lily told him obstinately. “I want to talk to you and, what’s more, I want you to talk back.”
Fang yawned languidly and began to close his eyes again. Lily experienced a moment of doubt about what FX had told her, which was precisely what Fang had been planning. His eyes snapped open, he leapt off the chair and he began to sprint for the open door. Lily scrambled to her feet and slammed it shut. Unable to check his speed, Fang bashed his nose against the door, and fell backwards with a disgruntled yowl.
  “Ha!” Lily cried triumphantly. “Come on, Fang, I know you can talk, so you might as well say something to me.”
Fang said nothing. His gaze darted up to the door handle, and an expression of deep thought registered on his face.
  “Considering whether you can leap up and get this door open, are you?” Lily noticed. “Well, you know as well as I do how much the handle sticks. Only a human hand would have the necessary strength and leverage to open it, so you may as well just give up, because we’re not leaving this room until you speak to me!”
Fang turned around and walked away from the door, clearly in a very bad mood. He leapt up onto the sofa and curled himself into a tight ball.
  “You know, Fang, I’d hate for us to still be in here when Mona gets back,” Lily said with mock innocence. “I’d have to tell her why we’re shut in, and I don’t think either of us wants that, do we?”
Fang sighed resignedly. It surprised Lily quite significantly to hear a cat sigh, but that was nothing compared to the astonishment she felt to hear the hissing parody of a human voice that then escaped from Fang’s mouth.
  “I heard everything that little alien told you,” it said icily. “I considered leaving the room as soon as he mentioned me, but I thought that would look suspicious. Why is it so important to you to hear me talk?”
  “Wow!” Lily exclaimed in an unusually high voice. “This is incredible! I mean, I’ve seen some pretty incredible things, but a talking cat… wow!”
  “Yes, well, now we’ve established that I can talk, how about you open that door?” Fang suggested testily.
  “Hey, no way,” Lily laughed. “I’ve got so many things to ask you. Why won’t you talk to Mona?”
  “Mona appreciates me more as a silent confidante,” Fang explained. “There is no merit in my discussing things with her – she just needs me to listen and understand. But I’ve been using my new abilities to help her no end – I made sure she realised that she was turning into a werewolf, I woke her up when Freddy Krueger was trying to kill her in her dreams, and I showed her that vortex that’s in her wardrobe. I don’t have to talk to Mona in order to help her, you know.”
  “But you’ve been doing other things as well, haven’t you?” Lily pressed. “Why wouldn’t you tell me who you were when you discovered the bomb shelter, or when you came to tell me about the werewolf situation?”
  “Because you would have gone blabbing straight to Mona!” Fang hissed. “I don’t want her to know that I can talk, and you mustn’t tell her!”
  “Mona’s my best friend. I can’t lie to her.”
  “You don’t have to lie to her! Just don’t go telling her everything you’ve found out today!”
  “How did you find us, Fang?” Lily suddenly asked. “When you rescued us from the hole, how did you know where we were?”
  “Mona had been away for nearly two weeks,” Fang told her. “I was feeling very lonely, with only Mona’s parents for company. One evening, as I was sitting opposite her dad, I suddenly realised I could read the front of the newspaper he was looking at. Now, I don’t know why he hadn’t read the front page himself, but I saw clearly that it said that Mona, you, Charley and Dottie had all gone missing. I knew Mona was in Camelhot, but I was really worried about what had happened to the rest of you. I took it upon myself to search this town up and down until I found you. It was out in the woods that I heard your plaintive cries for help, Lily. No human ear could have picked them up, but a cat’s ear – closer to the ground and infinitely sharper – could, and it did. I was so relieved to have found you. The tricky act of dialling the telephone almost floored me, but I managed to do it, and everything worked out all right in the end.”
  “That was a pretty amazing thing to, Fang,” Lily said quietly. “If it hadn’t been for you, I don’t think Dottie would have made it.”
  “Well, I’m a part of this team, and we help each other out in times of trouble,” Fang replied nonchalantly. “However, as I think I’ve proved, I don’t need to go around chatting to you lot everyday in order to do that.”
  “Yes, you’ve done an excellent job.”
  “So you won’t go blabbing to Mona?”
  “I’ll be good,” Lily smiled sweetly.
  “Good,” Fang approved. “Now, please will you open that door? I need to go out into the garden.”
Lily opened the door, and Fang trotted sedately out of the room. Lily stared after him, still finding what she had heard and seen hard to believe.
  “Fang can talk,” she muttered to herself. “Man, I never would’ve seen that one coming.”

Mona stared at the two teens in annoyance and surprise. Dottie hastily concealed the sword behind her back.
  “We saw you take Danny in there,” said the black boy. “Where is he?”
  “He… left,” Dottie said lamely.
  “Oh, right,” said the Goth girl. “Why’d you take him in there?”
  “To talk to him,” Dottie explained. “Aren’t you curious about… erm, how he managed to leave without using the door?”
  “No,” came the reply.
  “Then you know about the ghost thing?” Dottie deduced.
  “Of course,” said the Goth girl. “We’re Danny’s best friends. I’m Sam Manson, this is Tucker Foley. Who the hell are you two?”
  “I’m Dottie Hall,” said Dottie, then she looked expectantly at Mona, thinking that she had answered enough questions now.
  “I’m Mona the Vampire,” Mona obliged. “An evil mummy has told Danny that he has to destroy me because I’m evil, but I’ve been trying to convince him that he’s been tricked.”
  “Then you’re from the Ghost World!” Sam exclaimed, an expression of understanding suddenly registering on her face.
  “What Ghost World?” Mona asked, somewhat irritably.
  “The Ghost World beyond the Fenton Portal,” Tucker put in. “That’s where you’re from, right?”
Mona just scowled in reply, but something had clicked in Dottie’s brain as she had heard Tucker’s words.
  “The Fenton Portal,” she repeated. “That’s what you call the wobbling green vortex in Danny’s basement, yes?”
  “So you do come from the Ghost World?” Sam prompted.
  “Well, we arrived through the portal,” Dottie conceded. “But we don’t come from any Ghost World – we come from a parallel dimension.”
  “So, are you guys evil or not?” asked Tucker brightly.
  “Not!” Mona replied sharply. “But we need to convince Danny of that.”
  “Seeing as you’re his friends, perhaps you can help us,” Dottie suggested.
  “Well, I’m not so sure about that,” Sam demurred. “How do we know for sure that you’re not evil?”
  “Jesus, we don’t have time for this!” Mona fumed, pushing past Sam and Tucker and striding off down the corridor. “Come on, Dottie – we have to find Danny.”
Dottie began to follow Mona. Sam and Tucker decided that they should find Danny too, so they followed Dottie.
  “Look, we know that Danny is a human-ghost hybrid, but how did he get to be that way?” Dottie asked.
  “Oh, it was his parents’ fault,” Tucker replied blithely. “They’ve been amateur ghost hunters for twenty years, and they recently built this machine that accidentally made Danny able to turn into a ghost.”
  “Careful, Tucker,” Sam warned. “We might not be able to trust these guys.”
  “I thought the entire family were ghost hunters, based on what we saw in the basement,” Dottie continued. “Is that right?”
  “Well, not really,” Tucker replied. “Danny’s the only one who really fights ghosts. Jazz – that’s his sister – doesn’t really believe in them, and his parents just spend their time making useless ghost-catching gadgets that don’t work. Well, except for the Fenton Portal and the Fenton Thermos; they do work.”
  “What’s a Fenton Thermos?” Mona demanded suddenly.
  “Tucker, shh!” Sam hissed.
  “Fine, just forget it,” Mona snapped. “I don’t really care anyway. Where’s Danny got to? That’s all I want to know.”
  “He’s probably in the bathroom,” Tucker provided. “He always goes in there when he has stuff to think about.”
The four of them had now reached the floor above. Mona soon identified the boys’ restroom and went striding into it, followed closely by Dottie, Sam and Tucker.

Max and AB looked suspiciously at their colleague as he appeared on the bridge and sat down at the surveillance console.
  “Did you get your air, FX?” Max asked in heavy tones.
  “Sure did,” FX grinned back. “I’ve really managed to clear my head, y’know?”
  “That’s good,” Max remarked. “Perhaps we can get on with our mission, then? You remember the mission, don’t you, FX? To observe Mona’s movements – to observe, not to interfere with – and report back to the Council.”
  “I know why we’re here, Max,” FX replied dryly.
  “I think Max is merely trying to remind you of the point that getting involved with Mona’s missions is not a good idea,” AB put in. “Just in case you’re entertaining any further ideas of making contact.”
  “I said I’d be good, didn’t I?” FX said irritably. “Our mission is very important to me, you know, and I wouldn’t put it at risk.”
  “No one has forgotten that the mission is important to all of us,” Max said coolly. “That’s why it’s also important to all of us that we stay up here and just observe what’s going on down there.”
  “Which is precisely what I’m doing!” FX snapped, indicating the console in front of him.
  “I never said you weren’t!” Max snapped back.
  “Yes, you did!”
  “No, I didn’t!”
  “Well, you certainly implied it!”
  “I implied nothing!”
  “If I may,” AB cut in. “I think we’re all in agreement about how important it is to appease the Council, and I’m sure FX realises that Max’s concerns are genuine and not unfounded, and that Max realises that FX takes those concerns on board and will stay here with us from now on.”
  “Of course I do!” Max and FX both yelled.
  “Well, there’s no need to argue then, is there?” AB reasoned calmly. “Now, why don’t you both mind your instrument panels while I fix up a round a warm milk for us all?”
  “Yeah, thanks AB,” Max smiled, now placated. “That does sound good.”
  “Well, that’s everything sorted then, isn’t it?” AB said approvingly, as he began to walk sedately towards the kitchen area.
  “I despise warm milk,” FX muttered thornily to himself, as he and Max turned their attention back to their observation panels.

  “Jesus Christ!” Danny exclaimed, as Mona crashed into him in the restroom doorway. “Oh no, it’s you again!”
  “Look, Danny, I’m not your enemy – you have to believe me!” Mona exclaimed irritably. “Mum-Ra is an evil, lying fiend!”
  “No, you’re the evil one!” Danny cried. “And you’ve captured my friends!”
  “Hey, man, we’re not captured,” Tucker assured Danny, as he, Sam and Dottie came into the bathroom as well. “We wanted to come. I believe what these girls say; it’s the mummy who’s the enemy.”
  “You reckon?” Danny wavered. “Sam?”
  “Hey, I don’t know,” Sam shrugged. “It’s your call, Danny.”
  “Look, I’ve explained to you what’s going on, and I’ve showed you that we’re both in the same boat in many ways,” Mona reasoned. “What makes you doubt me, Danny?”
  “I heard you talking to Vlad Plasmius,” Danny declared. “Mum-Ra showed me – you said you hated me and you wanted to kill my entire family.”
  “That’s taken completely out of context,” Mona scowled. “I was just trying to get rid of the guy.”
  “What about my breath, then?” Danny queried. “When you were in the kitchen this morning, my breath went all icy, and that only happens when there’s a ghost around.”
  “Well, I don’t know what to tell you about that,” Mona sighed. “I’m not a ghost and I never have been – I’m a vampire. If I wanted to kill your family, don’t you think I’d have tried to do it by now? All I want is for you to close the portal in my wardrobe, then you don’t ever need to see me again!”
  “Sounds pretty reasonable to me, Dan,” said Tucker.
  “Yeah, why not?” Sam relented. “This girl seems genuine enough.”
  “All right,” Danny finally agreed. “I’ll close your portal, Mona the Vampire, but I want you and your sword-wielding companion on the other side first. You go home right now, and leave my family alone, and I’ll use the Fenton Computer to locate and close your portal when I get home.”
  “That’s all I’ve ever wanted,” Mona smiled happily. “Thanks, Danny; I hope we never see each other again. Come on, Dottie.”
Mona and Dottie left the restroom, then Mona was forced to transport them back to Danny’s house by magic, seeing as they did not know the way on foot. They were soon back in the basement, and had entered the Fenton Portal.
  “So, do you really trust her?” Sam asked Danny, as the three friends made their way to their next class.
  “I don’t lose anything by believing her, do I?” Danny reasoned. “If she’s not really trying to destroy me, I have no interest in her whatsoever – there’re enough ghosts for us to deal with already without going looking for more.”
  “Are you going to close her portal, then?” asked Tucker.
  “Well, I’ll try,” Danny replied. “I mean, I really want to, if I can make the Fenton Computer work properly.”
  “I’ll come around after school to help you,” Tucker offered. “If I can’t make that baby sing, no one can.”
  “Yeah, I’ll come too,” Sam added hastily.
  “Thanks, guys,” Danny smiled gratefully. “Man, I hope we can get it done quickly, then we can forget all about vampire-human hybrids and mummies, and go back to what we know – ghosts!”