Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Libby patiently waited at her desk. Usually, a certain friend of hers would be the first to arrive. Usually before her, or arriving with her.

 

"He's late...." She murmured quietly. The classroom was already full of students, so she kept her voice down. She glanced around the room another time, wondering where her friend was.

 

Much to her relief, she caught a glimpse of an orange form passing through the door and flying through the rows of desk until he stopped, floating in place beside her, unnoticed by the other students.

 

"Sorry, I'm late!" The orange form floating beside her was a friendly ghost who we can just call Ollie, with bright yellow eyes, a purple nose, and swoovy hair.

 

"She's not here, is she?" Ollie, with bubbling excitement, looking across the classroom, including the empty desk in front of his human friend with overwhelming joy. "Man, I was hoping to get to see her in person before she arrived!"

 

Libby looked at her friend with confusion. "Um, who is she?"

 

This seemed to snap Ollie into realization, as Libby was unaware of who he was looking for. Or what just happened earlier.

 

"Oh, Libby, it's just wonderful!" Ollie wasted no time. "So, the other day, I haven't exactly been to Scratch's house or paid any attention because I was so busy....but this morning, I was in a big rush because I overslept, and as I tried to get myself ready, I look at Scratch's house and saw some family in there."

 

"A family?" Libby looked at him with surprise.

 

"Yeah, I saw a dad, a mom, and a little boy," Ollie continued. "I think they even have a daughter with them. I didn't see her, and I didn't have a chance to because I was in such a rush to meet you here, but I heard her. You should've heard her voice. So excited, with cheer and joy. I think we're going to like her!"

 

He added with another fit of enjoyment. "I think she's going to our school."

 

Libby knew Scratch. She wasn't really a big fan of the ghost, often preferring Ollie and Geoff over him. As far as she knew, Scratch was rude, selfish, and had no manners. And unlike Ollie, he was not so fond of humanity.

 

"Ollie, I hate to be that person, but...." she started, trying her best to lay it down as easy as possible. "Knowing Scratch, the family won't be sticking around long."

 

"Come on, Libby, we don't know that," Ollie scoffed with a playful smile. "This might be good for Scratch. The family will stick around, Scratch will warm up to them, and eventually start to love them like a real family."

 

He then added. "Speaking of the family, I was thinking I could go introduce myself, and become good friends. That way, you won't be the only human that knows I exist."

 

Libby frowned. "I'm not sure if that's a good idea."

 

Ollie would have responded. Tell her not to worry. That maybe one or a couple more humans knowing wouldn't be such a bad idea. Ollie was fond of humans and enjoyed helping them, and one of the things he never liked about his afterlife was not being able to talk to them.

 

It was the sole reason why he befriended Libby, so he wouldn't be lonely and so that she could have a friend herself. And the reason why he wanted to befriend the new girl, who just so happened to walk through the door with their teacher, Lightfoot.

 

He knew it was likely the girl he never got to see in person. The one who supposedly moved in with her family. He took in all her features immediately as Lightfoot spoke.

 

Her dark brown hair tied into a ponytail, her chocolate eyes, and the way she dressed with her white shirt, blue vest, pink and purple skirt, white socks and yellow and pink sneakers.

 

Everything about her was well, majestic, even her voice. Ollie watched with the class as the girl, named Molly McGee, introduced herself.

 

Of course, there was a concerning part. Scratch was also here, and he seemed hellbent on making Molly mess up. When Molly started tripping and slipping through the classroom, it was because Scratch had made her trip on ectoplasm.

 

Ollie ended up flying forward, away from Libby, and pulling Molly back when she started to trip and fall towards the floor. Even though Molly was no longer slipping, Ollie could feel the stares of the other students directed at her.

 

"I, uh, like to dance?"

 

Ollie could hear the students giving out applause. He released Molly and flew back to Libby's desk. It was then that things took sharp turn when one of the students spoke.

 

Andrea Davenport, social influencer, future disrupter, and the school's official goodwill ambassador. Ollie wasn't exactly the kind of person to hate anyone. He didn't even hate Scratch. He just tolerated his behavior.

 

And did the same for Andrea. She wasn't a bad person, but she left a bad taste in Ollie's mouth. And the reason why just happened.

 

Molly mispronounced Andrea's name. Twice. Ollie had been to the school for quite a long time to know Andrea quite well and what happened to the students that made the mistake of saying her name wrong.

 

When it was clear Andrea was far from pleased, Molly was dismissed to her seat. Which happened to be the empty one next to Libby.

 

Ollie was still invisible, unseen by Molly, and took notice of his friend speaking up to the new girl.

 

"Hey, in the first grade, there was a girl named Libby. She was bright eyed and full of promise. Until one day, she called Andrea 'Ann-drea', and from that moment on, she was an outcast, forever shunned from respectable society."

 

"What happened to her?" Molly asked.

 

"Oh, she's me. And don't get too close. I think I almost got her down."

 

Ollie saw Molly turn her head as Libby tried to get Andrea's attention. As usual, the popular girl ignored her. Glancing at Molly, Ollie could see her talking to Scratch.

 

The blue ghost talked about how they could safely call the day ruined. Talk about how Molly could just pack up her bags and leave.

 

Maybe Libby was right. Maybe it wasn't that simple for Scratch to just accept that a family had moved into his home. However, that didn't mean Ollie had no sense of determination in his ghostly body.

 

"I think I'm going to try to make Molly's first day better," he spoke up.

 

Libby heard him. "You sure? Not that what you're going to do isn't good, but this is Andrea. Once you mispronounce her name, it's over."

 

"Molly shouldn't let Scratch and Andrea bring her down," Ollie protested. "What kind of ghost would I be to not bring some good into Molly's new life? She just moved in. She can't be started off with a bad school day."

 

"Ollie, you are genuinely one of the kindest ghosts there is in Brighton," Libby spoke, before frowning as she looked at Andrea. "But are you sure you can complete with Andrea?"

 

Ollie looked at Molly again. "Libby, as one of the kindest ghosts there is, it's my job to bring good and joy to Brighton. Of course, that means trying to lighten a new kid's first day and trying to keep Andrea from making them feel worse than they already have."

 

--

 

The rest of the day was the same. Ollie got to work on helping lighten Molly's first day, despite the downsides that clearly involved Andrea.

 

What was Andrea's problem? That was what Ollie always thought at the beginning, when he was just an early fletched spirit.

 

Ollie wouldn't say his efforts were the best, but he did try. Andrea just so happened to be everywhere Molly was. It was almost like she was relishing in her misery. Something the orange ghost didn't like. But regardless, tolerated. He was the kindest and most sweet ghost in Brighton after all. After Geoff, of course. He was the type to hate anyone regardless of what they did.

 

That was how he was for the rest of his afterlife. Even if he couldn't do something about Andrea, besides maybe giving her a scare and risk causing a panic, he did try to help Molly.

 

Closed a locker another student had purposely left open so Molly couldn't hit her face on it. When her classmates all mercilessly threw dodgeballs at her, Ollie used his ghost powers to stop the balls, then threw them at the students that tried to throw them at Molly. Which left them shunned with surprise.

 

Then there were the colorful posters with inspiration messages he put up to try to encourage Molly. Despite his efforts, he felt like the day wasn't any better.

 

He followed the girl into the bathroom, frowning as he watched her face the mirror, telling herself it was going to be fine.

 

He felt bad for her, and decided to make his presence known. He was no longer invisible, and opened his mouth to speak. "Hey, um....Molly McGee, right?"

 

Molly paused, and turned around, seeing Ollie's orange ghostly form right in front of her eyes. "A-another ghost?!"

 

Ollie brought his arms up, worried that he might have spooked her with his presence. "Don't worry, I'm not going to scare you. As a matter of fact, I just want to help-"

 

"Ghost hug!" Ollie was cut off by surprise when Molly suddenly latched onto him, pulling him into a tight hug as she wrapped her arms around him. "Wow, you're much softer than Scratch. It's almost like you guys are made out of cotton candy."

 

"I guess it can be like that, but that's not the case," Ollie spoke as Molly let go of him. "It's only ectoplasm, if I'm being honest."

 

"I can't believe there's two of you guys," Molly smiled. "I almost thought Scratch was going to be the only one ghost here in Brighton."

 

"Surprising isn't it?" Ollie chuckled, before reaching his hand out for a handshake. "I'm Ollie."

 

Molly eagerly shook his head. "It's so nice to meet you, and I'm guessing you already know I'm Molly, right? You did sorta ask."

 

"Yep," Ollie nodded. "If I wasn't in such a hurry, I would've gladly welcomed you. I can't believe we're neighbors now."

 

Molly's eyes widened. "You live next door?!"

 

"I live across the street," Ollie corrected.

 

"That's amazing!" Molly beamed. "I live with a ghost, and a ghost is my neighbor! Could Brighton get any better than this?"

 

As Molly and Ollie conversed, Scratch just so happened to be arriving. The blue ghost narrowed his eyes as he recognized the orange ghost speaking with Molly.

 

"I see you've met Ollie Chen," he flew up in between them with a sigh. "Brighton's engoodifer."

 

"Engoodifer?" Molly looked at Ollie. "Wait, do you actually do good for Brighton?"

 

"Yeah, it's been who I been since I was, well....alive," Ollie started to explain. "Since I'm a ghost, I can't do a lot of things without being seen by other humans. I do try my best though to make Brighton a better place."

 

"Haven't been doing a good job lately..." Scratch murmured under his breath.

 

"Sweet baby corn, you totally get me," Molly's eyes sparked. "I want to do everything in my power to bring joy and happiness to the world and make it better place, and Brighton is definitely a great start."

 

Scratch rolled his eyes. When Molly had moved in the other day, he was immediately reminded of Ollie. She was joyful, kind, sweet, not to mention having the delusional belief to make the world, let alone Brighton, a better place.

 

He never understood why Ollie, a ghost, of all people wanted to continue this belief after his death. After all, wasn't he aware that doing this might get him into the flow of failed phantoms?

 

"You know, Moll, you ruined this day than anything I could have done."

 

Molly frowned, now remembering why she was in the bathroom to begin with, as Scratch continued. "I mean, that was some primo stuff back there."

 

"No, no," Molly denied. "I can turn this around."

 

"Nah, this time, like you, it's over. So let's go home, pack your bags, I'll call a moving van, and you get out of here."

 

"There's still the assembly!" Molly protested.

 

"And what do you think is going to happen in there?" Scratch raised a brow as he tried to get his point across. "Some kind of miracle where suddenly everyone likes you? It's done, Moll. You have no future in this school or this town."

 

Ollie narrowed his eyes as Molly seemed discouraged, and spoke up. "He's wrong, Molly," he continued as he got her attention. "Think about it. Sure, maybe your first day didn't go as well as you hoped, but.....perhaps things can be better."

 

"Really?" Molly's face softened. Scratch knew what was happening, and still wanting the girl out of his hair, tried to discourage her further.

 

"No, not true!"

 

"It's not about the first day, Molly, it's about everyday!" Ollie continued.

 

"NO, IT'S NOT!"

 

"So just keep being your joyful self, and one fine day, someone will be your friend," Ollie floated over, then wrapped his arms around Molly's shoulders. "You shouldn't let Andrea bring you down, so just keep trying."

 

Molly smiled. "You're right, Ollie. I shouldn't let one mistake ruin my life. I'll keep trying and trying, and I'll make a bunch of friends!"

 

Scratch couldn't believe it, looking at the two with disbelief as he floated in front of them. "You just gave someone you hardly know.... inspiration....in a bathroom."

 

"Yeah, it's kind of my thing," Ollie shrugged. "I once possessed someone so they could give some encouragement out to someone that really needed it during a funeral."

 

Scratch could barely take it, in anger, he morphed into one of his horrifying forms, towering over both Ollie and Molly. "YOU ARE SO-"

 

The moment Andrea walked in was what set the next chain of events. Ollie didn't even have time to warn Scratch as the girl saw the sight before her, letting out a bloodcurdling scream before losing consciousness, falling to the floor and causing panic from Molly.

 

The next thing he knew, he was in the backstage with them, and Scratch had opened up the curtains. Ollie watched as the audience composed of many students looked at Molly in the most negative light he had ever seen.

 

"It's Molly McGee!"

 

"What's she doing with Andrea?"

 

"Seriously, who does she think she is?"

 

"She's the worst of the worst!"

 

Ollie was left floating there, in the darkness, away from the prying eyes. He continued to watch as the kids began to think that Molly was some kind of monster.

 

Andrea was still laying in Molly's arms, motionless. Ollie had an idea, but it involved one of his ghostly powers. Something he wasn't so fond of.

 

But the more he saw Molly continuing to get shunned, with her not seeing any way out, he decided to risk it.

 

Ollie phased right Andrea's unmoving body. Once his spirit had taken over, Ollie, now possessing Andrea's body, pulled himself out of her arms and on his feet, facing the crowd.

 

"Hey, hey, gang! It's me, Andrea Davenport! Give me that applause already, what do I gotta do?"

 

As the audience applauded, mostly with confusion, Molly noticed that there seemed to be something off. She turned behind her to see that Scratch was still there, but no signs of Ollie.

 

That only meant one thing as Molly turned to look at 'Andrea'. "Ollie?"

 

The orange ghost currently in possession of the girl winked in response before facing the audience. "Okay, thank you, where to start?"

 

Ollie continued. "First, I'm over the whole 'Ann-drea' 'Ahn-drea' thing. Pronunciation is really big of a deal, and life is just too short. You can call me 'Ahn-drea' 'Ann-drea' 'Or-drea' 'Au-drea'. Whatever. I say, go nuts. Get creative! Have some inspiration!"

 

He then continued as he got to the point. "Now, I'd like to bring it down a little bit, get a little serious, because there are two girls out there having a really rough day. Neither of them deserve to be treated like the worst of the worst, no one does! So, on my behalf, give a great big Brighton Middle School cheer for...."

 

"Libby Stein-Torres, and...."

 

Ollie, with Andrea's hand, reached out and gently pulled Molly to his side and smiled at the audience. "Molly McGee!"

 

The audience roared with applause, allowing both Molly and Libby to take in all the volume of cheer.

 

To think they were giving them mistreatment, treating them like an outcast, treating Molly like a monster. Molly glanced at Ollie, still in possession of Andrea, who smiled.

 

The orange ghost then decided it was time to release Andrea, so he slipped out of her body, causing the girl to fall back onto the floor as he flew over to Molly.

 

"So, um....that was a close one, huh?"

 

Molly, out of sight from the audience, pulled Ollie into another tight hug. "Yeah, but hey, at least it worked out."

 

--

 

When Andrea had woken up, she was left confused, by the roaring applause and the orange liquid-ty stuff that drained out of her ear.

 

The rest of the day went off as normal for Molly. None of the students ignored, and they were actually treating her a lot better after what Ollie did, which Molly was very much grateful for.

 

Including Scratch. The humiliation reminded him of how he was treated in the ghost world, and he would've done the same thing if Ollie didn't beat him to possessing Andrea.

 

By the time it was evening, the students started leaving. Some took the bus, and some, like Molly and her brother, were being picked up by their parents.

 

Ollie was watching as Molly started to walk towards her parents' car, and Scratch decided to talk to him before leaving.

 

"That was a real....good thing you did there, kid," Scratch started. "I was getting worried there for a sec."

 

"I had to, it was the right thing to do, Molly wasn't even a bad person," Ollie shook his head, then looked at Scratch. "Wait, you were worried?"

 

"It was looking bad."

 

"You sure there's not another reason?" Ollie raised a brow. "Like, perhaps, you cared?"

 

Scratch glared at him. "What? No way? She was going to jail, and she would've taken me with her if you didn't do what you just did!"

 

"Sure thing," Ollie rolled his eyes, before sighing as he crossed his arms. "Scratch, I know Molly just moved in. But, maybe that's a good thing."

 

Scratch looked at him with an incredulous look as Ollie continued. "You may not want her around right now, but the longer she and her family sticks around, the sooner you'll end up attached to them and you'll end up actually caring for them and loving them, like a true family."

 

"You're wrong, kid!" Scratch jabbed a finger at Ollie's face in denial. "Super wrong! Double wrong with a capital R! No way that's ever going to happen!"

 

Ollie knew it. He just knew. Molly was the sweetest girl he ever met. Something told him that her positive bright personality was going to soften up Scratch, and in no time at all.

 

And speaking of Molly....

 

"Scratch!"

 

Suddenly, much to Ollie's surprise, Scratch was surrounded by a purple aura, and almost like some sort of force, he was dragged into the car belonging to Molly's parents.

 

Sitting in the backseat, Molly noticed Ollie through the window, and waved at him. The orange ghost waved back as the car drove off.

 

"So, it was you apparently, and not Andrea," Libby slowly approached him.

 

Ollie turned to her, scratching the back of his head nervously. "Yeah, I ....I didn't know what to do. I really don't like possessing people, but things were looking really bad and...."

 

"It's okay," Libby smiled. "You did the right thing like you always have. I appreciate what you did, though I feel like Molly deserved it more than I have."

 

"Are you kidding?" Ollie gently placed a hand on Libby's shoulder. "You've been an outcast way longer than Molly had. If anything, you deserved to no longer be one just as much as her."

 

"Brighton really does need you," Libby chuckled. "You really are one of the only nicest ghosts out there, besides Geoff that is."

 

Ollie frowned. "Yeah, but.... sometimes I feel like I'm not doing enough for Brighton. Like the best I can do is keep innocent people from losing their life, giving them anonymous yet inspirational messages, and possessing someone and letting that person have the credit. I wish I could do more."

 

"I think you've done plenty," Libby told him.

 

"Yeah, and...." He then perked up. "It may not be easy, but perhaps I can figure out ways to do better for Brighton. Maybe Molly can help me."

 

"I see you became really good friends with her," Libby noted.

 

"Yeah, and she gets me!" Ollie lit up. "She wants to make Brighton a better place, just like I do. I think if we work together, we can enhappify and engoodify Brighton."

 

"Enhappify?" Libby tilted her head. "That's a new one."

 

"Molly's own word for it," Ollie shrugged. "I honestly think it's better than what I came up with."

 

"Well, I have to head home, Ollie," Libby told him. "Just do what you need to do. And don't worry, you're doing just as well for Brighton."

 

"Oh, don't worry about it," Ollie smiled. "I got this."

 

--

 

Ollie got to his house soon after parting ways with Libby, heading to his room and laying on what he called his own bed. It was the most extraordinary day of his afterlife.

 

The earlier morning he had realized that a new family had moved into the house across the street from him, and he had got to meet the girl from that family at school.

 

And he managed to do some good, including saving that girl's reputation and restoring his only human friend's. Needless to say, things had gone downhill at the start and he was able to stop the chaos.

 

He couldn't help but set his mind on Molly. He flew up to the window and glanced at Scratch's house. He saw Molly at the top window, who noticed him.

 

Smiling, she started waving. Ollie couldn't help but wave back.

 

Maybe Molly could help him change Brighton. For the better.

Chapter Text

Ollie had a lot on his mind, mostly about Molly. He was hoping to meet her again, and was also excited about meeting the rest of her family. He spent the school day with Molly and never got the chance to talk to Darryl.

 

Not to mention her parents were likely familiar with Scratch. Maybe they would be thrilled to meet him? If he was honest, it would have been refreshing to get to talk to human adults again.

 

Ollie made his way back to the middle school, phasing through the door and heading into the classroom. He had gotten there extra early as none of the students arrived.

 

He had a few minutes to wait on Libby.

 

Ollie wasn't like the other ghosts. He was everything a ghost "shouldn't be". Kind, friendly, selfless, caring. Not to mention he would rather help humans and spread hope than heartlessly scaring them.

 

He never liked scaring people. He considered it cruel, especially if it was taken to an extreme level. He was the only ghost with higher morals after all. It was why he was considered an outcast, besides, well, his old life.

 

Ollie just couldn't accept that he was no longer human. He was so young. He refused to accept that he was ready for his afterlife. It was the main reason why he had spent most of his afterlife on Earth, mainly in Brighton.

 

Why he bothered to go to school. And why he was friends with Libby.

 

Speaking of Libby....

 

"Morning, Ollie."

 

He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a whisper. He looked around, noticed that most of the students had just arrived into the classroom. Including Libby, who was already seated at her desk, looking at him while he was unnoticed by the other students.

 

The orange ghost floated over to greet her. "Oh, morning, Lib!" He was back to his usual enthusiastic self. "What's on the agenda for today? Anything exciting to look forward to or...."

 

"Nothing much," Libby shrugged. "This friday I'm going on a camping trip with the Wilder Scouts. You can come too if you'd like."

 

"Oh, I'm most certainly going to be there," Ollie beamed. "This is going to be so fun. We get to have a campfire, roast some marshmallows, share scary stories...."

 

As Ollie went on about the fun he and Libby would have during the trip, Molly just so happened to be walking in....with her brother, Darryl.

 

"Oh, hey Molly!" Ollie greeted as the girl sat down in her seat next to Libby. "Ready for another school day?"

 

"Oh, yeah, I just know it's going to be fantastic!"

 

Ollie glanced away to notice Andrea taking her seat at the front. He remembered that the whole fiasco that happened the other day was because of her.

 

All because Molly said her name wrong.

 

"Well, Molly, some advice..." He started. "Don't let Andrea or anyone else bring you down. Just be confident and you'll have the most amazing, fantastic day."

 

Molly smiled at him. "Oh, I most certainly will take that advice. I definitely won't let anything ruin such a wonderful day. Or any wonderful day at all."

 

It wasn't long until class started by the time Miss Lightfoot arrived. Ollie spent most of the class listening to the lesson. Scratch, who had also arrived with Molly, spent the entire period sleeping.

 

Darryl didn't pay much attention. However, he was genuinely curious. Molly told him about Ollie. And had told Mom and Dad. Just when he thought Scratch would be the only ghost they'd be familiar with.

 

Libby was paying attention in class, but as she was, a paper ball was thrown onto her desk. She uncrumpled it, and quietly read it.

 

"Talk during recess?" She read, sounding confused for a minute, then read the last part. "Ollie."

 

Libby glanced at the orange ghost, and then looked at some of the students, and spotted one in particular, Darryl, who was straight up looking at her. With expectance.

 

--

 

It was about time for recess when Ollie finally got the chance to speak with Darryl. Apparently, his new friend's younger brother.

 

And the little boy was at the swing sets, having planted himself down on one of the seat, and casually swinging back and forth.

 

"So, um, Darryl, right?" Ollie approached him, making himself more visible. "I got your note. Wanted to talk?"

 

"Yeah, that's me," Darryl nodded. "You know, Molly spoke a lot about you after school the other day. Also the part where you kinda possessed Andrea."

 

Ollie frowned. "It was for a good cause. Your sister was in a tight spot and I wanted to help."

 

"I think it's cool that you did it," Darryl grinned. "Are you here in school all the time? Do you actually live across the street, in that fancy house?"

 

"Yeah...." Ollie nodded. "I'm a kid, so I couldn't accept that I was dead. I just wanted to keep being human. Besides, one of my friends goes here, so I got good company."

 

He then added. "And yes, I do live across the street, so that makes us neighbors, in a way."

 

"Must be fun to haunt a school."

 

Ollie stiffened. He should've expected this. He heard stuff like this before. Mainly from other ghosts. Like how lucky it would be to haunt the school from time to time. How fun it was to scare the teachers and the students.

 

Probably not that surprising to hear from a human kid.

 

"I don't haunt the school."

 

Darryl looked at him. "Really? You don't even scare anyone?"

 

Ollie shook his head.

 

"Not even the teachers?"

 

"Scaring's just....not my thing."

 

Darryl scoffed. "You're a ghost and you've never taken that opportunity? Not even once? I definitely would've pulled a bunch of pranks, especially on the teachers."

 

"Hate to disappoint," Ollie scratched the back of his head. "But I'm not that kind of ghost. I'm more about helping humans and giving them hope. Not really into scaring."

 

As Darryl was swinging, his seat suddenly flew off, much to Ollie's horror. "DARRYL!" The orange ghost quickly flew back and before Darryl could even fall down face first, he quickly grabbed the boy and pulled him back.

 

Holding Darryl, Ollie slowed down to allow him to land on his feet. After releasing him, Ollie took a look around. The students had witnessed what happened. Some horrified, like Molly and Libby, others amazed, as if they thought it was a stunt.

 

Ollie looked at the ground, spotting the broken seat. "Okay, the swing set might get condemned....no worries, right?"

 

--

 

"They condemned swing set...."

 

Ollie followed Darryl through the hallways after recess. As soon as it got to the teachers, and even the principal, attention, the swing set was immediately condemned.

 

Darryl wasn't exactly thrilled. Ollie, on the other hand, tried to lighten up the mood as they moved through the hallways. "I know it may sound bad, but there's still other things to do at the playground. And maybe they'll get the swing set fixed."

 

"Or maybe not," Darryl frowned, before perking up. "But hey, appreciate the save by the way. You even made it look like I did a daredevil stunt back there."

 

"Well, not my intention, the stunt that is, but you're welcome," Ollie nodded.

 

"I'm surprised that you never took the opportunity to at least pull one prank on the school," Darryl noted. "That's probably just me. Not sure if Molly told you, but I have a reputation for visiting the principal's office."

 

"I feel like you'd be good friends with my sister," Ollie smiled. "She doesn't get sent to the principal's office, but she did get a lot of her gadgets confiscated."

 

This caught Darryl's attention. "Sister?"

 

"Her name is June, and she was honestly quite a good inventor," Ollie explained. "She and I were quite close."

 

"Does she go here?" Darryl asked. "I certainly like to meet her, maybe even hear about her gadgets."

 

Ollie frowned. "I haven't seen her since I became a ghost."

 

Darryl raised a brow. "She didn't die with you?"

 

Ollie shook his head.

 

After a moment, Darryl asked. "Can you tell me more about her and her gadgets? Whatever she came up with must've been really cool."

 

"Well, I suppose I could...." Ollie started.

 

Molly watched as Ollie and Darryl talked about June in the hallway. She smiled, enjoying the sight of her new friend bonding with her brother.

 

"I can't wait to introduce Mom and Dad to Ollie," she said. "They're really going to love him."

 

"Of course they would," Scratch rolled his eyes. "He's everything us ghosts are against. Kind. Sweet. A goody two shoes."

 

"I think it's just great that Ollie is all that," Molly crossed her arms. "Is it bad that Ollie doesn't want to scare humans and instead, help them?"

 

"If the ghost council wasn't constantly ignoring him, I bet he'd already be sent to the flow of failed phantoms."

 

Ollie was indeed an unique ghost.

Chapter Text

Libby appreciated Ollie. It didn't matter if Ollie was a ghost. He appreciated him, and he was there when she needed it. When Ollie wasn't out trying to do good for Brighton, he spent his time with her.

 

 

 

 

Helping out with homework and good projects, giving her handfuls of advice, and of course, trying to get her to look on the bright side of life. 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course, thanks to him, Libby was no longer shunned by Andrea. As a matter of fact, ever since Ollie possessed her to help both her and Molly, Andrea hasn't even said a word. Just flat out ignored her.

 

 

 

 

However, Ollie was Libby's only friend. People would believe that being a ghost was pretty much the most amazing thing ever. 

 

 

 

 

 

You got to turn invisible, go through solid walls, scare people, and pull some of the most unimaginable pranks. But there were also downsides.

 

 

 

 

 

One of those was that humans weren't supposed to be aware of your existence. The only reason why Libby knew about Ollie, along with some ghosts he was awfully familiar with, was because Ollie wanted a friend that was human. Plus, she was an outcast, so she was very lonely.

 

 

 

 

 

When Molly arrived, Libby wanted to be her friend. Even more now that even Ollie started to like her. The orange ghost had gone on about how sweet Molly was and how she completely got him.

 

 

 

 

 

Almost like Molly was a living version of him. Ollie even expressed his desire to start working with her. More the reason Libby wanted to be friends with her.

 

 

 

 

 

Ollie was genuinely excited when Libby told him she was going camping with the Wilder Scouts. Libby, didn't exactly express any interest. The whole thing was her mother's decision so that she could get fresh air and be around kids her own age more.

 

 

 

 

 

Regardless, Ollie was ecstatic. The orange ghost was helpful in helping Libby get ready for the trip, packing the necessities. Which apparently was a lot considering that the human's bag was big and more heavier than usual.

 

 

 

 

 

It was a hassle getting the massive bag onto the van that was picking her up, but by the time they finally got in, they took their seats in the back, and the van got moving.

 

 

 

 

"Isn't it exciting, Lib?" Ollie was shaking with excitement. "We're going to have all sorts of fun on this trip. I'm talking campfire, marshmallows, perhaps a hike. Maybe you can tell everyone that horrifying ghost story you told me about last summer."

 

 

 

"You mean, Howlin' Harriet?"

 

 

 

"Yeah! I know I'm not the scaring type, but it is in the campfire spirit."

 

 

 

 

 

"I suppose it is," Libby thought for a moment. "I remember you saying you were going to invite Blair. I'm guessing she wasn't up to it?"

 

 

Ollie shrugged. "She said camping wasn't her style. I asked Jeff, but he said he and Geoff were busy."

 

 

"Scare reports?" Libby raised a brow.

 

 

"Exactly," Ollie sighed. "I've been dead for like a year and I still don't understand why the Chairman wants everything to be so.... miserable. I constantly hear about the flow of failed phantoms and how everyone considers me lucky that I wasn't thrown in yet."

 

 

 

"What's so bad about the flow of failed phantoms?" Ever since she met Ollie, Libby had been curious about other ghosts and how the rules worked.

 

 

Ollie had mentioned the flow of failed phantoms sometimes. The ghost council pretty much ignored him due to his past and his friendly nature. 

 

 

 

 

"I'm not entirely sure," Ollie explained. "Many ghosts act like it's the worst place to be sent to. Like a maximum security prison. Or...."

 

 

 

Ollie shuddered as the word unnerved him. "The bad place."

 

 

The van stopped to let someone else on the bus. And that someone, much to Ollie's joy, turned out to be Molly. Libby watched as Ollie flew over to greet her.

 

 

 

If Ollie loved Molly, perhaps Libby would love to be her friend as well.

 

 

--

 

 

Camp Brighton. 

 

 

 

 

 

Ollie recalled the days when he and his family sometimes went camping when they were out. Talking campfires, marshmallows, the fresh breeze. Every bit of it.

 

 

 

 

 

Now he got to experience it, but with friends. Ollie mainly stuck with Libby, though did talk with Molly every once in a while during the trip.

 

 

 

 

Of course, he noticed that Scratch was with them. He hoped that the blue ghost wouldn't do anything to ruin the trip. He had spent most of the day helping Libby, considering that the girl wasn't at all experienced in wildlife.

 

 

 

Helping her when she was fearful of swinging a rope across a river. Scaring away a hive of bees when she got stung. Helping clean the chocolate and marshmallows off her face when she failed to catch the s'mores.

 

 

 

 

After all, Libby was Ollie's only human friend. Blair, Geoff, and Jeff were nice to talk to, but at the time Ollie met her, he didn't want to lose his humanity. He died too soon after all.

 

 

 

By the time it was nightfall, the girls had their sleeping bags out, and the campfire was blazing with pure light.

 

 

Things were going well when Molly asked about stories. Ollie smiled and flew up to Libby, whispering in her ear. "This is your chance. Tell them about Howlin' Harriet."

 

 

 

 

 

Libby nodded, then turned around to face the girls. "A story? I've got one."

 

 

 

 

"Okay. Let's hear it, Libby."

 

 

 

 

 

 

"This is the haunting tale of Howlin' Harriet!" 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With that said, Libby began her story. Ollie listened with anticipation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Many, many years ago, there was a bloodthirsty criminal named Harriet."

 

 

 

 

 

 

"What was her crime?" One of the girls, Sheela, asked. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"She sold uncured salami on Wednesday."

 

 

 

 

 

 

"What?" Molly was a little bit off by the detail.

 

 

 

 

 

"Laws were different back then," Libby clarified.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Harriet was chased out of town by the angry citizens of Brighton. As she was running, she tripped on the tracks and fell in the way of an incoming train!

 

 

 

 

 

 

And all the folks of Brighton found were her mangled toes. And now, on nights like tonight, when the moon is full, her ghost roams this very woods, howling in pain, looking for the toes of unsuspecting campers to replace the ones she lost!"

 

 

 

 

 

With grabbing the leg of another girl, Kat, for emphasis, they screamed with horror. Except Molly.

 

 

 

 

 

"Pretty good!" She perked. "I was kind of hoping for a happy ending where Harriet befriended lonely campers. You know, flip the scripts on ghosts or whatever. But scary's good too."

 

 

 

 

 

As Molly sat down and pulled out what was a notebook, Ollie glanced at Libby. "You really got the scare on," he chuckled. "I knew Howlin' Harriet was a great campfire story."

 

 

 

 

"I guess it was," Libby shrugged. 

 

 

 

 

 

Ollie didn't know why, but he felt some sort of presence. Ghostly presence. Now that he remembered, he didn't see Scratch for the entire day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Wait, have you seen Scratch?"

 

 

 

 

 

Libby looked at him, with confusion. "No. Was he with us?"

 

 

 

 

 

"I'm pretty sure I saw him with Molly on the van, and after we were dropped off," he explained. "I haven't seen him all day."

 

 

 

 

 

Soon, an idea that he most certainly didn't like popped into his ghostly mind, causing him to let out a sigh. "I really hope he's not going to do what I think he's going to do. Otherwise, once again, I'm not going to be Mr. Nice Ghost."

 

 

 

 

"Whatever it is, pretty sure he'll have to go through you first."

 

 

"Most certainly."

 

 

 

They prepared to go to sleep. Calling it a night. Kat was anxious about the possibility of the ghost being real, having put on thick layers of socks to protect her feet.

 

 

Sheela said she didn't believe in ghosts, through the fact that she shut her sleeping bag made Ollie think otherwise. Molly played along with her words, even forcing a laugh.

 

 

Things were looking peaceful. Until he heard it. Until they all heard. Howling echoing through the trees with the bristles of the blowing wind.

 

 

 

 

 

"That.....was from a wolf....right?" Ollie genuinely hoped it wasn't the ghost from that tale.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The girls on the other hand were in a panic. Even more, when they all saw something step out. It wasn't like any other ghost. Black, more devilish, with massive green glowing eyes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was black in a twisted way. It was more demon than ghost. Its messy hair stuck up, branches hanging out. Its body had frecks of green, and another distinguishing feature was that it was missing toes on one foot.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Howlin-" Ollie started, then he remembered something and seethed as his ghostly body shook with anger. "Scratch...."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kat, Sheela, and Libby took off running in fear. Molly stayed behind, unamused. The ghostly creature started to charge itself towards her, but before it could get its claws on her, Ollie flew in.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The orange ghost got in front of Molly, and began to change his form, growing massive in size as he towered over the creature with sharpened claws, fangs, blood red eyes, and a long, slithering and hissing snake tongue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"You know, Scratch...." Ollie growled as he faced down the creature. "I know it's important for you to work on your scare report, but dressing up as Howlin' Harriet to scare Molly and Libby, along with those girls, to do it? That's a new low, even for you."

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Well, I might have been actually able to still scare them if someone hadn't stolen it!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ollie stiffened, as he saw Scratch, the real blue ghost and not the black creature he was protecting Molly from, show up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"And what's this? What's with all the sticks?" Scratch pulled one of the sticks from the creature's hair and poked it in the eye with it. "It's a bit too much, Geoff."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Geoff?" Ollie was left confused as he reverted back to his normal form. Even more than the fore mentioned ghost appeared behind Scratch, with a bunch of what seemed to be leaves and twigs on his head.

 

 

 

 

 

"Aw, really, Scratch? I don't know. I mean, I think my detail work really helps set the allusion."

 

 

 

 

 

 

He then noticed Ollie, the orange ghost looking at him with straight up confusion, not entirely understanding what was going on. "Oh, hey Ollie! I heard about your camping trip. And who's your friend?"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scratch looked at Geoff with shock, looking back and forth at him and the black creature. "But if you're....then this...."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Realizing just who the creature was, Scratch was taken with fear as he laughed nervously at the enraged ghostly creature, putting the twig he had taken from it back into its hair.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The creature let out an ear piercing roar before charging at Molly. Ollie let out a worried cry and before he swept up the girl in his arms, flying upwards and hoisting her out of the monster's reach.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Harriet?" Molly was surprised as she looked down, the ghostly beast facing both Scratch and Geoff and letting another loud screech. "Howlin' Harriet?"

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Yeah, definitely her alright," Ollie nodded. "I nearly thought she was just a made up myth Libby heard. But no, she's real."

 

 

 

 

 

"How do we get rid of her?" By the time Scratch and Geoff got away from Harriet and were now floating with her and Ollie, she had an idea. "What if we give the thing she's been looking for?"

 

 

 

Ollie looked at her with shock and disbelief. Scratch grinned as he rubbed his hands, like a villain planning an evil scheme. "I like it! Whose toes are we taking? The pink haired girl, right?"

 

 

 

Ollie gave a sharp glare at the blue ghost before facing Molly. "I get that toes are what she wants, but don't you think that's a little-"

 

 

The orange ghost paused when Molly leaned over and whispered something into Ollie's non-existent ear. After a moment, he understood and smiled. "I know exactly the person for the job."

 

 

"You and Geoff keep her away from the campers!" Molly faced Scratch. "Especially the pink haired one."

 

 

"And we'll get some toes."

 

 

 

 

Ollie flew away with Molly while Scratch and Geoff went to take care of Harriet. The ghost managed find Libby hiding behind the van that dropped them off at camp.

 

 

 

"Libby!" Ollie set Molly down, then flew up to his friend with concern. "Are you okay? Harriet didn't get you, right?"

 

 

 

 

"No," Libby shook her head. "I'm fine....I.... I'm sorry....I never thought she was-"

 

 

 

 

"It's okay, I didn't think she existed either," Ollie assured. "Molly has an idea. You can still craft, right?"

 

 

 

 

 

That made Libby perk up. "Craft? Of course! What do we need to craft?"

 

 

 

 

"Harriet is here because she need toes to replace the ones she lost," Ollie explained. "Let's make her some."

 

 

 

 

And so they got to work.

 

 

 

Molly had seen Ollie talk to Libby a few times. During the trip and the few days since her first day of school. At the beginning, she thought he fixed her reputation because well....as Scratch said, he was one of the kindest ghosts there was.

 

 

 

It seemed like Ollie and Libby knew each other. Quite well. Like they were close friends for quite a while. Seeing Ollie help Libby during their camping trip was more proof of that.

 

 

 

Not to mention Ollie seemed angry when he thought Scratch was trying to scare both her and Libby.

 

 

Libby was fairly good at crafting, and was able to do the finishing touches on the crafted replacement toes while Scratch and Geoff dealt with Harriet.

 

 

"They're so real," Molly said when Libby showed her the fake toes after she finished.

 

 

"I used my foot for reference," Libby told her, even lifting her own foot and wiggling her toes for emphasis.

 

 

Soon, they made it back to the campsite, and placed the fake toes into one of the sleeping bags. Then they hid in the bushes and waited.

 

 

 

Soon, Harriet arrived. She looked into the sleeping bag, and smiled with glee once she spotted the crafted toes. She slowly picked them up and placed them onto her toeless foot.

 

 

In a swish of beautiful light, her body began to change. Once a terrifying shadowy monster, was now a beautiful green ghost in her place. Ollie watched as she smiled, then turned around, floating deeper into the trees and fading away.

 

 

 

What an eventful night for everyone.

 

 

 

--

 

 

"I think you and Molly are going to be great friends."

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone was packing their bags to return home, with Libby taking the time to talk to Ollie afterwards about something important: asking Molly to be her friend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"You sure?" Libby said, a little doubtful. "You know I'm not really good around that many people, if I'm being honest."

 

 

 

 

 

 

"After what you did? I guarantee," Ollie smiled with confidence. "I mean, if it wasn't for you, Harriet would've have gotten her hands on REAL toes. And we definitely wouldn't want that."

 

 

 

 

 

 

"True," Libby shrugged, before holding a blue friendship bracelet she had been working on throughout the trip. "Think she'll like it?"

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I don't doubt it," Ollie nodded. "She completely gets me. If anything, she's definitely into those as well."

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Alright," Libby smiled. "I'm going to go for it."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ollie watched as his friend turned around and began making her way towards Molly. As expected, she asked the girl if she wanted to be her best friend, holding up the bracelet as a sign.

 

 

 

 

 

Molly's response? The girl squealed with joy before tackling Libby into a hug. What made it even better? When everyone got onto the van, Molly and Libby were sitting together, happy.

 

 

 

 

Ollie decided he would catch up later, watching to have a word with Scratch. Shortly after the van left, he spotted both Scratch and Geoff nearly, writing in their scare reports.

 

 

"Well, as long as no one tells the Ghost Council about Howlin' Harriet, I'd say our scare reports could be pretty good this month, huh, buddy?"

 

 

 

 

"Sure hope the Ghost Council definitely doesn't find out."

 

 

 

Both Scratch and Geoff turned around to see an unamused Ollie, glaring daggers at Scratch. "You'd definitely be in big trouble if that were to happen, Scratch."

 

 

"Are you still mad about earlier?" Scratch asked, looking at him incredulously. "Kid, come on. You know the scare reports are important, right? If Geoff and I don't do them, we-"

 

 

"Get sent to the flow of failed phantoms?" Ollie rolled his eyes. "Yeah. And you just had to do it in my presence. And two of the people you tried to horrify were two of my friends."

 

 

"Scaring kids is one thing, but pretending to be Howlin' Harriet to do it? That's pretty messed up if you ask me, considering she was actually real."

 

 

 

"Kid, this is our business!" Scratch flew up, hovering over the orange ghost. "If we have to do scare reports, we have to do them. Even if we have to scare a few of your human friends."

 

 

"Scratch," Ollie started. "I may not scare humans as much as you and every other ghost....but..."

 

 

Ollie started grow in size, his claws sharpening, growing sharp fangs and towering over Scratch. "I made it my mission to protect humans....so if I need to, I CAN BE JUST AS HORRIFYING AS EVERYONE ELSE."

 

 

Scratch stiffened. Ollie can be a terrifying ghost if he needed to. After a moment, Ollie reverted back to normal, and made his way over to Geoff with a more positive attitude.

 

 

"Anyway, it's nice to see you, Geoff," Ollie greeted. "I was actually planning on inviting you on this trip. Maybe next time, if you're not too busy, we can go camping and you'll get to join in all of the activities."

 

 

"That's a great offer, Ollie," Geoff greeted. "I would be so excited to attend when that happens."

 

 

"Great!" Ollie began to fly away. "Anyway, I told Libby I'd catch up, so I gotta go now. See you around."

 

 

 

Ollie started to fly away. Just as it seemed he was no longer in the forest with them, Ollie came back, giving Scratch another sharp glare. "And don't even think about scaring humans, especially Molly and Libby, when I'm around."

 

 

 

With that, the orange ghost finally left.

 

 

Scratch sighed. "How the Council haven't even thrown him into the flow of failed phantoms, I'll never know."

 

 

"I think that's great, though," Geoff said. "I like having the kid around. He's not a bad kid. He just wants to protect the humans. And he does care about his friends after all."

 

 

"He's setting himself up for that fate," Scratch shook his head. "Why can't he just accept that he's dead? That he's no longer human? There's no turning back."

 

 

"He died really young," Geoff frowned. "It's not always easy to accept that you're no longer alive, and most certainly not easy to move on."

 

 

 

"It's been over a year since."

Chapter Text

About a year ago....

 

Andrea. That was her name.

 

Ollie wasn't really the type to hate people. Well, he did see ghosts in a negative light in the past. Seeing them as cruel, heartless monsters that relished in the fear and misery of innocent humans.

 

Since the beginning of his afterlife, he moved past that mindset once he realized that ghosts were actually misunderstood. That when it came to scaring humans, they didn't really have a choice.

 

He thought ghosts were bad until he realized that ghosts were misunderstood. Maybe the same could be said for Andrea. But he didn't know that. On one hand, she could be misunderstood. On the other....she might actually be as bad as Tammy Myers.

 

There was a girl at Brighton Middle School. By the name of Libby. Quiet and shy, with a love for turtles and some sort of conspiracy theorist, Ollie actually thought she was interesting.

 

However, he noticed another detail. She was an outcast. As the days went on, the students at the school would constantly avoid her. No one would sit with her at lunch. People would turn her away. She would get ignored. There were times when Libby bumped into opened lockers and had numerous dodgeballs pelted at her during gym class.

 

 

Ollie didn't understand. Looking back at every time this happened, there was one person. One person that left a very bad taste in the ghost's mouth. Someone always had the wide disgusting smirk of the most snobby girl. Smiling like she relished in the girl's pain.

 

Andrea.

 

And he found out why when a new student asked another what the deal was, and the reason appalled him. So much, that he couldn't even comprehend it.

 

Libby mispronounced Andrea's name. It happened sometime during third grade from what he heard. Andrea preferred to be called 'On-drea'.

 

Mispronouncing her name wrong.....it was such a big deal, and Ollie didn't understand why. When someone said Andrea's name wrong, it was almost like they saw it as some sort of crime. Andrea would look at the 'monster' with fury.

 

Was mispronunciation really an excuse to make someone an outcast? Ollie obviously thought not.

 

The orange ghost once talked to the one ghost he was really close with. Blair. The green ghost was once an ordinary human girl in her twenties, who basically haunted an old rental store since 98, after dying from getting hit by a car while attempting to return an extremely overdue VHS tape, with her favorite movie, Blood Mansion.

 

 

Ollie was extremely close with Blair as the two understood each other when it came to mistakes they made in the past and very much regretted. Ollie sometimes visited her, talking about how his day went, checking up on her, and sometimes even having movie nights.

 

Ollie told Blair about Libby one day, and how the poor girl was constantly being treated like an outcast because of a small mistake.

 

"Typical," Blair rolled her eyes after Ollie told her about the stuff involving Andrea. She was obviously annoyed by the behavior of the particular girl.

 

"Ollie, not sure if you've noticed it, but Andrea is just your typical, snobby rich girl. I had some of those kids to deal with back in my high school years."

 

She then went on. "They always think that just because they have all the money in the world, they can just walk all over people and act like they're so special."

 

She then added. "And all this because of a mispronunciation? Talk about being petty."

 

 

"Besides from that, Libby didn't do anything wrong," Ollie frowned. "From what I've seen, she's shy, smart...she doesn't deserve this treatment."

 

He then added. "Every time I see her, she's smiling, like she actually enjoys seeing Libby treated the way she does. It infuriates me....I wish I could do something to make her stop."

 

"You could...." Blair shrugged. "I mean, you are a ghost. You can easily put her in her place. I mean, a good scare always shows someone who they're messing with."

 

"I'm not that kind of ghost...." Ollie frowned.

 

Ollie wasn't like other ghosts. He was everything a ghost was against. Kind, sweet, friendly, polite. And so against scaring.

 

The boy recalled how being terrified by ghosts was what led his father to become the one thing he regretted becoming.

 

A ghost hunter. Soon, it was just his father, his mother, then him and his sister. Even to this day, Ollie regretted what he did.

 

It was the main reason he started helping ghosts after his death, when he realized that ghosts truly weren't as evil as he thought, and some, especially Geoff, can be just as kind as he was.

 

Blair shrugged. "I mean, even if you can reveal yourself to humans, it's not like telling her off is going to do anything."

 

 

"I just.... can't...." Ollie hesitated. "You know how I can feel about the subject."

 

"Alright, I can respect that," Blair nodded. "But still.... there's nothing you can do about Andrea."

 

"Maybe I can help Libby at least," Ollie lit up. "She seems lonely. Maybe she needs a friend."

 

 

Blair paused, then started staring at him, with shock. At the start, the conversation was about Andrea and how much of a bully she had been towards Libby. 

 

 

 

But Ollie seemed to care about her. Still, the subject of friends was unexpected. He wasn't planning exactly what she thought he was, right?

 

 

 

The boy noticed the look she was giving him and frowned. "I know what you're thinking. It's a thought. It's been a few months since.....you know, but...."

 

 

"I don't have to be familiar with Ghost Council or their rules to know that revealing yourself to humans might not be a good idea."

 

 

"Well, yeah," Ollie nodded. "Don't get me wrong. Having you, Geoff, and Jeff as friends had been great. But....ever since I died, I was never able to see my family. To reconnect. Mom, Dad, June. And I was never able to communicate with other humans."

 

 

"Only help them without them even realizing it."

 

 

Ollie was incredibly fond of humans. Ever since he died and came to terms with the fact that he was a ghost, he made it his mission to protect them.

 

Tending to the elderly, saving multiples from death, communicating through written messages, sometimes possessing someone and letting said person take the credit for his good deed. Sometimes, he'd go full ghost when the human in question was in danger, either from another ghost or another deadly force.

 

 

None of the humans knew a ghost was protecting them.

 

 

Even though he could talk to a few of the ghosts, Ollie still wanted to talk to humans. And the moment he saw her and how she was treated, Ollie wanted to talk to Libby.

 

 

"I mean, it is just one human," Ollie added. "Just one. And she seems lonely. Maybe she could be the one. She could use a friend."

 

 

 

"Not completely sure I can talk you out of this," Blair sighed. "If I were you though, I'd look out for the Ghost Council. I keep hearing about the flow of failed phantoms. Based off what I heard, I'd consider you very lucky you weren't thrown in."

 

 

 

"It can't be THAT bad."

 

 

It wasn't the first time a ghost had told Ollie about how lucky he was that the Council haven't thrown him into the flow yet. He was told many stories about the place from so many ghosts, most of whom were terrified to be subjected to such a fate.

 

 

 

The ghosts talked about the flow of failed phantoms like it was some sort of horrible prison, full of nothing but pain and agony. With how Ollie constantly tried to help humans, some ghosts were surprised he wasn't thrown into the flow.

 

 

Blair had only recently heard the stories about that horrible place, having spent years in the old rental store. With Ollie being her close friend and all, Blair was most certainly concerned with the idea of Ollie getting the fate so many ghosts have ended up with.

 

 

"I wouldn't recommend finding out," Blair shook her head worriedly.

 

 

 

Ollie turned his head and looked out the window. His mind drifted off to Libby. Blair could be right. It was probably a bad idea. But....it was only one human. What could go wrong?

 

 

-- 

 

 

"Okay, maybe I got a little too excited...."

 

Unconscious on the ground, was the girl he was trying to befriend. Libby. Tall, with long hair, and a green sweater. Ollie perhaps should've taken into account that seeing a ghost materialize in front of you might be a bit of a shock.

 

He thought he did things right. First, he followed Libby to her home after school, which happened to be a local bookstore he had seen a few times.

 

 

Book Marks The Spot.

 

 

When Libby was alone, Ollie took the chance to introduce himself. Tried to in a way that wouldn't stress her. Being an echoing, disembodied voice, and then materializing in front of her.

 

Unfortunately, Libby fainted. Either from fear or shock. Ollie took the time to find her room and lay her down on the bed, then patiently started to wait for her.

 

 

He recalled his old life. When he was alive, talking to humans was so....so easy. But when he was dead....Libby was the only human he talked to for the first time. She looked at him like he wasn't even human (which was true, but still).

 

 

Ollie snapped out of his thoughts when he realized that Libby was about to wake up. Ollie slowly approached her, glancing at her face.

 

Libby was slowly opening her eyes, but the moment she saw Ollie's ghostly face up close, she nearly jumped. Startled, she shot back up, accidentally hitting her head against Ollie's.

 

The ghost flew back, clenching his throbbing forehead as Libby clenched hers. After a minute or two, the girl looked at Ollie again, who was still in a daze from the accidental headbutt.

 

She stared in disbelief. Was she hallucinating? Or was that actually a ghost in front of her?

 

 

As he was recovering from the blow, Ollie glanced at Libby, who was staring at him with shock. "Are.....you...?"

 

Meeting her gaze, Ollie chuckled nervously, trying his best not to spook the girl any further than he already had. "A ghost? Yeah...."

 

He then scratched the back of his head. "I'm sorry if I gave you....well, a scare. Believe me, it wasn't my intention. I should've taken into account that maybe seeing a ghost in person might put you off a little."

 

Libby stared at him for a moment. From the looks of it, it seemed as though she was trying to process everything. Ollie couldn't blame her.

 

He grew curious as the girl worriedly reached into her pocket, and spoke into what looked like a recorder. "Supernatural theory no. 37. Ghosts do exist!"

 

 

She then glanced at Ollie for a moment, a look of reconsideration on her face. "Yet, they're....more friendly than I expected."

 

Ollie looked flattered at that statement. Libby put the recorder back into her pocket, then glanced at the orange ghost again, her face dripping with anxiety, along with some curiosity.

 

"How long have you been here?" Libby asked. "In my family's store exactly?"

 

Ollie shook his head. "Don't worry, I'm not haunting your store. I already living with a few other ghosts somewhere else."

 

"Oh.....why are you here then, if that's not the case?"

 

 

"Well.....I saw you at school a few times."

 

 

This greatly surprised Libby. "You have? How? I didn't think...."

 

 

"Not officially," Ollie clarified. "I usually just stay invisible and listen to the teacher. And sometimes I explore the school when I'm not in class."

 

 

Ollie also sometimes eavesdropped on conversations between students. Not that he was going to mention that to Libby. She would probably be less willing to accept him as a friend if she thought he knew some secrets that he didn't need to know about.

 

 

"Oh..." Libby wasn't sure what else to say at the moment as she looked at the ghost floating in front of her. 

 

 

"Again, sorry if I scared you earlier," Ollie chuckled nervously. "I guess it's kinda been a while since I spoke to humans. When I was alive, it was simple. I guess as a ghost, there's some complications."

 

 

"It's alright," Libby nodded. "I'm kind of easy to spook anyway."

 

 

"Oh, well...." Ollie shrugged. "Glad to know it wouldn't just be because I'm a ghost. Because when it comes to scaring.....just not my style if you know what I mean."

 

 

"You don't scare people?"

 

Ollie shook his head. "Not really that kind of ghost."

 

"That's refreshing....." Libby noted, before asking out of curiosity. "Why are you here? I know you said it's because you've seen me at school, but surely there's another reason."

 

 

"Well....." Ollie started. "I.....I wanted to be your friend."

 

 

Libby looked surprised. "Be my friend?" She's been an outcast for a long time, and she was so shy and awkward. Due to her reputation, many of the kids at school ignored her. So a ghost wanting to be her friend was a little....off putting, to say the least.

 

 

Ollie nodded.

 

 

"Why?" Libby asked, unsure why a ghost of all things considered wanted to befriend her.

 

"Well, I noticed that you're....well, lonely at school," Ollie started. "No one sits with you at lunch, everyone keeps shoving you away.....and there's Andrea of all people."

 

He frowned, recalling the times he had seen that sneer on the girl's face before continuing. "And you seem like you need it."

 

Libby found it touching. Strange, but touching that a ghost of all people wanted to be her friend. "You really want to?" She asked, a little doubtful.

 

"I would love to," Ollie nodded. 

 

Libby frowned. "Well, I wasn't really expecting this...." She started. "I mean, I'm not really that much of a people person. I've never met a ghost until now...."

 

"So, I take it this may seem a little off putting, but.....I think you and I would be great," Ollie smiled.

 

Libby was still a little put off, even when Ollie suddenly hugged her. "Really?" slowly hugging back, she noticed how Ollie's ghostly body was unexpectedly soft and squishy. "Are.....all ghosts this soft? And squishy?"

 

 

Ollie eventually pulled back, smiling as he scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, it's a regular ghost thing. We're kinda like.....big squishy marshmallows."

 

 

"Well....it was nice to meet you...." Libby smiled, then added as she pulled out a notebook. "You don't mind if I....ask some questions, do you?"

 

 

Ollie eagerly nodded. "Of course. If it's about ghosts like myself, I'll happily answer."

 

 

--

 

 

"And that's how Libby and I became friends."

 

Ollie was telling the story of how he and Libby became friends to Molly at lunch, with Libby present at the time and Scratch watching with boredom.

 

"You and Libby were friends for that long?" Molly's eyes sparkled with excitement. "That's so-"

 

"Not much of a story," Scratch interrupted with an eye roll.

 

"Scratch!" Molly cried.

 

"What? All Ollie did was see her at school a couple times, then showed up in her bookstore," Scratch shrugged. "Not really a story."

 

"Not all stories are long, Scratch," Ollie said. "I might have left out the part where it took Libby to get used to having me as a friend."

 

"And eventually I got comfortable with him," Libby added, then narrowed her eyes at Scratch. "At least I didn't meet him the way I met you."

 

"You're still ticked off about that?" Scratch raised a brow.

 

 

"Uh, yeah, Scratch," Ollie crossed his arms. "In case you've forgotten, Libby has anxiety problems, so scaring her was NOT appreciated."

 

 

"Well, I was a scare short and she just so happened to be available."

 

 

Ollie sighed. "Why am I the only ghost that doesn't waste his time with scaring?"

 

 

Scratch smirked. "You say you're the only ghost that doesn't scare? That's really something if you count what happened with Andrea."

 

 

Ollie glared. "That was one time. Andrea was being a bully, and was bothering Libby, in FRONT of me. She wouldn't stop, when I started pulling Libby away."

 

 

Molly noticed that both Ollie and Scratch didn't have the best relationship. Geoff told her that the two had always been at each other's throats due to their opposite personalities.

 

 

"Hey, hey, guys," she snapped her fingers, getting both of the ghosts' attention. "We're friends here, remember? And friends don't fight."

 

 

"We're not friends, I'm cursed with you," Scratch grumbled.

 

 

This caught Ollie's attention, as he looked at Scratch, then at Molly with shock, along with Libby, who was just as surprised. "Cursed? Molly, what did Scratch mean by that?"

 

 

 

"Well..."

 

 

"Oh, when I moved in, Scratch put this cool cursed so that we'd be stuck together for eternity!" Molly answered enthusiastically.

 

 

 

Ollie stiffened.

 

 

 

After a moment.....Scratch could feel a set of ghostly glares that shimmed with fury.