#also I'm sorry that I so often veer from what you suggest nour

[thelastspeecher]

👻 - Spy au. An unusual call for the spy agency. apparently a school is being haunted and students can't leave the school. ones that do get possessed by spirits so old they still call people 'governor'. Going undercover, Stan and Angie equip themselves with the school's new uniform, new school Id's and enough holy water to drown every vampire to exist ever, they plan on freeing the school and possibly adopting a young ghost who jus tneed s new home?

👻- As a ghost

I veered very far from this.  I got a sudden burst of inspiration today for Stangie being de-aged at a school and a ghost being involved, but it was not at all like what you suggested.  But...maybe your suggestion is sort of the sequel to the ficlet I wrote.  Like, things escalate after my ficlet, and more ghosts get involved, and since Stan and Angie have some experience with this haunting already, they get sent in.  Well, you’ll see what I mean when you read what I’ve written.

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              “Rememberwhen our jobs made sense?” Stan asked Angie. She looked at him, confused.

              “Whattayamean?”

              “We usedto go on missions that made sense,” Stan explained, his voice echoing in theempty hall.  “Steal somethin’ back fromthieves.  Go to a party and punch a warcriminal.  Stop a dictator from startingWorld War III.  But now?  Now we’re six years old, investigating rumorsof a ghost at some school.”  He pouted, agesture which only served to accentuate the roundness of his cheeks.  “I didn’t go through months of espionagetraining for this shit.”  Angie noddedsilently.

              “Iagree.  Our missions really took aturn.”  She sighed.  “At least this is a short-term one.  We’ll be back to normal once we’re donecheckin’ this place out.”  She scratchedher cheek.  “Uh, unless we find evidencethat suggests this place really is haunted, in which case we’ll be put in thefield with backstories and everything immediately.  But I doubt that’ll happen.  Once we finish our quick survey, we’ll beheaded back home.  I’m sure of it.”

              “Thatbrings me to my other point,” Stan said. He glared up at a poster in the hallway that reminded students to go tothe library.  “We’re just doing fieldwork!  We don’t need to be kids to dothis.”

              “It’s toreduce suspicion.”  Angie frowned.  “Though now I know my ma runs theorganization, I do question the motive behind this specific age.”  She picked at the princess costume she waswearing.  “Our current appearances are not necessary fer this mission.”  Stan nodded emphatically.  He had protested vehemently at the costume he’dbeen given.

              “Wecoulda done this by acting like kids who are ‘too cool’ to dress up for aschool Halloween…festival…party…whatever this is.  I didn’t have to be wearing a damn copcostume.”  They passed a glass classroomdoor.  Stan glowered at hisreflection.  “A bunch of strangers kept askin’me if I wanted to be a police officer when I grow up.  Hell, no!”

              “At leastsomeone went out and bought that specifically for ya,” Angie grumbled.  “Our own daughter wore this dress lastyear.  And she’s taller ‘n I was at herage.”  As if to emphasize her point, hertoe got caught on the hem of the dress. She tripped and fell.  Stan chokedback a laugh.

              “You allright?” he asked.  Angie sat up, thedress’s skirt fanned around her.

              “Yeah, I’mfine.  At least no one other ‘n you was ‘roundto see that.”

              “It’spretty convenient that the Halloween shindig thing is outside the school,instead of inside.”

              “Mm.”  Angie got to her feet.  She brushed dirt off her costume.  “First mission I go on after comin’ back frommaternity leave, and it’s this,” she muttered to herself.  Stan nudged her playfully.

              “Hey, atleast we’re on it together.  It’s been awhile.”

              “It has.”  Angie smiled at Stan.  “It’s nice to be out in the field with youagain.”

              “Yeah.”  They beamed at each other.  The warmth of the moment was ruined by a lowhowl suddenly making its way down the hall. The lockers lining the walls rattled ominously.  Angie and Stan instinctively stepped closerto each other.

              “It’sprob’ly just the pipes or somethin’,” Angie said.  She swallowed.  “Which- which room was it, that we were s’pposedto look at?”

              “25,”Stan answered.  He looked around thehall.  His eyes landed on the sign postedoutside the classroom with the glass door he had seen his reflection in.  “That one.”

              “Okay.”  Angie smoothed the fabric of her dress.  “Let’s check it out.  Then we can rendezvous with Ford and Fidds.”

              “Yeah.”  Stan marched over to the door and turned thehandle.  The door slid opensilently.  Angie and Stan stared into thedark room, neither of them willing to go in after hearing that howl.  “Well, guess I’d better-” Stan started,taking a tentative step inside.  The lightsflickered on.  Stan blanched.

              “Maybethey’re motion-sensitive?” Angie suggested. Stan rubbed the back of his neck.

              “Maybe.  But nowhere else has had lights that turnedon automatically.  Why would they havethat sort of light in just one room?”

              “They don’t,”a cheerful voice said.  “That was me.”  Stan and Angie’s heads whipped around.  They both gaped at a wispy, ethereal figuresitting on top of the teacher’s desk, idly inspecting its nails.  The being was transluscent, aside from adistinct splash of red in a thin line around its neck.  There was only one conclusion.

              “G-ghost,”Angie stammered.  She grabbed Stan’sarm.  “That’s- what-”  The ghost looked over at them.  It cocked its head curiously.

              “Strange.  Usually kids your age are a bit more, let’ssay…receptive to the existence of ghosts. You don’t seem surprised to find a ghost here as much as you are in finding a ghost at all.”  The ghostgrinned.  “You’re a couple of cuties,though.  Look at your costumes!  A police officer and a princess.  How sweet.” The ghost sighed happily.  “I loveOctober.  For the whole month, I can takea corporeal form.  Well, in exchange for,hmm, let’s call it ‘borrowing’ a young child.” The ghost’s grin broadened, revealing large, sharp teeth.  “Maybe if I borrow two kids, I’ll be able totake a corporeal form for November, too!”

              “We’regoing,” Angie whispered in Stan’s ear.  “We’regoing, right now.”  She and Stan sprintedaway from the classroom as fast as they possibly could.  Angie lost one of her shoes, and Stan’s hatfell off, but they didn’t stop, terrified that the ghost was right behind them.

              Finally,they burst out of the school, tumbling down the stairs leading to the mainentrance.  Fiddleford, who had beenhovering nearby, waiting for them to leave, swooped in.  He crouched next to Stan and Angie.

              “Is theresomethin’ wrong?” Fiddleford whispered.  “Didsomethin’ happen in there?”  Angiewrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace. “Okay, somethin’ didhappen.  What?”

              “Ghost,”Angie mumbled.  Fiddleford frowned.

              “What?”

              “Dude,there was actually a ghost in there,” Stan hissed.  He was still shaking from nerves and fear.  “A ghost that steals kids.”

              “Oh.  Oh, shoot, we didn’t-”  Fiddleford ran a hand through his hair.  “Really?”

              “Yes,really!” Stan said, stomping his foot.

              “We didn’texpect there to actually be a ghost.  ‘Speciallynot one that targeted children.”  Fordwalked over.

              “How didthe fact-finding mission go?” Ford asked. Stan glared at him.

              “Angieand I almost got kidnapped by a ghost, asshole.”

              “Wait, areal ghost?”

              “Yes!”

              “Wow,” Fordsaid softly.  “And it was going to kidnapyou and Angie?”

              “Yes!  Do either of you ever actually listen?”

              “We’llhave to tell HQ right away,” Fiddleford said to Ford.  Ford nodded. “I know we were goin’ to dawdle around the fair fer a bit longer, but thisinformation is too important fer that.”

              “I agree.”  Ford looked at Angie, who was still huggingFiddleford.  “Angie, are you all right?”

              “Stan ‘nI almost got killed by a ghost,” Angie said, her voice muffled by Fiddleford’sshirt, which she was burying her head in. “No.  I’m not.”

              “Yeah, webest be headin’ out now,” Fiddleford said briskly.  He stood up, now holding Angie.  “Stan, you look a bit shook still.”

              “Maybe,”Stan mumbled.  He could feel himselfcontinuing to tremble, but didn’t want to admit it.

              “Sendingthem in at this young of an age probably wasn’t a good idea,” Ford said.  “I mean, we got some cute photos, but even ifthey’d been a couple years older, they wouldn’t be having as strong of areaction to the ghost they claim they saw.”

              “Shut up,Ford,” Stan said.  “We did see a ghost, and no shit, this was tooyoung!  We didn’t need to be this smallto- eep!”  Stan let out a small squeak as Ford picked himup without warning.  “Hey!  Put me down!”

              “No.”  Ford looked at Fiddleford.  “Let’s leave, before we attract anyattention.”

              “Fine byme.”  Ford and Fiddleford set off towardsthe van they had taken to the school. Ford frowned at Stan.

              “Where didyour hat go?”

              “Up yourbutt,” Stan said snidely.  Angie giggled.  Ford sighed.

              “Somehow,at six years old, your jokes are more mature than usual.”