Madeline Gregory's Story

Normal people usually shed out cold sweat when they know they are bound to come across something eerie but not Madeline, in fact it was so normal for her that ordinary people grew skeptical of her abilities. She could care less about what they think, like the scientist who insisted on tagging along their current case. She did feel sorry for the newlyweds though, who would want to start a marriage with paranormal activities?

Her thoughts were then interrupted as Lexi started teasing them about comfort, she stayed quiet but gave off a shy smile. The girl had managed to snag the front seat again, next to Jack of course. She knew she would never have the courage to do that so she preferred seating by the first row just beside the entrance as Gabe sat in between her and Phoenix while Ramona and Cody sat with the scientist at the second row.

Both Phoenix and Cody retorted back on Lexi's teasing which made Maddie giggle as Lexi distributed the case files, she grabbed one herself but laid it down on her lap. She had reviewed the case over and over, she was usually the one in charge of the telephone so she knew first hand what the clients needed and not to mention she was the one who had listed the contents, it was just Jack who had finalized it and made it look official.

And even before she had drifted back to her thoughts, Phoenix began distributing some of her new babies and imply instructions. It made her smile, knowing that it will make solving the case easier. She wore her headset and tried testing it, "Working good so far" She pipped in and tested the hi-tech bracelet. "Where do you even get these stuff?" She wowed in amazement.

"Couldn't you just scream really loud if you're in trouble? The house isn't that big." Cody then stated. It made Maddie shake her head slowly as she turned around to widen her eyes at Cody. She placed her pointer finger on her lips and said, "Shh Cody... Don't start now. We're not even there yet." She then chuckled and playfully put out her tongue. "Maybe you are all just hungry. Brought some cupcakes, something sweet should start the case well." She then did her own distributing as she passed everyone the small cardboard box of cupcakes. She smiled and made sure that Gabe got the first two cupcakes, knowing her friend's appetite for anything.

Ramona Payne

"Oh, I'm just dandy, thanks for checking." Ramona responded from the back of the van in an overly pleasant voice, sarcasm obviously intended. She gave Alex her trademark friendly smirk before adjusting her tush on her seat and leaning forward so she could see past Cody, who was sitting to her right, and get a good look at the town from the window. It was a quiet, sleepy little town, it sort of reminded Ramona of where she grew up. She smiled slightly and continued to glance around the van once again. On her left sat Lawrence, the scientist who was tagging along with them for this case, something that Ramona wasn't at all happy about.
"Ready to see some ghosts?" Alex asked him from the front seat, obviously trying to pull his leg. Ramona smiled mischievously, joining in, "Well, when you do, and you need, you know, to jump into someones arms," Ramona bit back a smirk and spread out her arms, "I'm your girl." She held back a laugh and instead gave him a big, cheesy smile, then turned around before he could say anything to her.
"Put these on, like this." she heard Phoenix saying and she quickly focused her attention on her, realizing that she was passing out the new gadgets for the case. She listened carefully as she continued on, "I have calibrated them such that they all use the same frequency. Simply press the button here to talk, and people, please don't lose them okay? Or things are gonna get ugly." Ramona gave a couple small nods of understanding. When the box came to her, she took hers, looking down at it for a moment before she put it on. "Working good so far," she heard Madeline say. "Yep, me too," she confirmed.
Ramona watched as Phoenix produced another box from her bag, which evidently had a plain metal bracelet for each member of the team, nothing on it but a little button. When she got hers, she held it up to look at it, her face clearly revealing her thoughts of is this really necessary..?
"Press the button twice, and your current position will be sent directly to my laptop. Only use the bracelets when you are in serious trouble. You know what they say, safety first." There was the answer. Ramona sighed the smallest bit and shrugged, figuring it wasn't too big of a sacrifice if it kept everyone safer and made Phoenix's job easier, so she slipped it on.
Just then, she heard Cody pipe up from next to her, "Couldn't you just scream really loud if you're in trouble? The house isn't that big." Ramona smirked and looked to Phoenix, curious what her response would be. But just then, Madeline stepped in to mediate, "Shh Cody... Don't start now. We're not even there yet. Maybe you are all just hungry. Brought some cupcakes, something sweet should start the case well."
Ramona couldn't help but grin, typical, cheery Maddy. The box got passed around, and when it finally reached the back of the van, she gladly took one. "Ah, don't mind if I do." she smiled and took a huge bite out of hers, "Mmmmm, delicious." she said, with her mouth still partly full. She swallowed, then spoke, raising her voice so she could be heard from the front of the van, "You know what else'd be nice though? Some music." she had a feeling Jack wouldn't be all over the idea, wanting them to mentally prepare and such instead, but she grinned and continued, "I mean it. And if not, you know I'll just start singing instead." and to prove her point, began to sing the chorus of Elton Johns 'Bennie and the Jets', nodding her head along as she sang and nudging Cody, trying to get her to join in.

"Well, when you do, and you need, you know, to jump into someones arms, I'm your girl." Alexandria snickered at Ramona's comment, fighting back a fit of laughter. Trying to act natural, she turned back to face the road and twisted the rear view mirror so that she could perfect her hair- Phoenix having reminded her about it. Before she even had a chance though Jack's hand was twisting it back into it's original position. "Don't touch" He said simply and she groaned but obeyed. Flipping down her mirror instead, she made sure her hair was perfectly positioned. She stopped though as she heard Phoenix rummaging through her bag of gadgets. Alex's eyes twinkling in curiosity, she turned towards her and watched in awe as Phoenix pulled out various devices.

Her gadgets never failed to impress her and just like Madeline, she was also curious as to where Phoenix finds them. She quickly grabbed the ear device and tried to copy how Phoenix put it on but to no avail. She sighed, untangling her hair from it. "I never know how you put these on" She muttered placing it on her lap instead. She would probably get someone to help her put it on when the investigation began. She grinned as she caught sight of the bracelets. "I suppose you got these for a reason, not just because they looked good?" She winked, strapping it on and examining it carefully. It was very simple, only having a small button situated on it. As she had thought, Phoenix explained the bracelet's use.

She nodded, wandering if 'I broke a nail' was considered an emergency. She grinned as she heard Madeline mutter her favorite words and her eyes went wide with excitement. She licked her lips, her eyes following the cupcakes as they travelled the car all the way into her lap. "Sweet!" She said, grabbing one and licking off the icing. "Get it, sweet?" She said, giggling at her own horrific joke. She closed her eyes, enjoying the sweet sugar as it filled her mouth and danced across her taste buds. She nodded like a maniac to Ramona's suggestion of putting on music, teasingly grimacing as Ramona started to sing. "Make it stop!" She shouted teasingly, grabbing at her ears for emphasis.

Jack noticed Cody looking out the window and he gritted his teeth, knowing she had probably seen the stalker who tagged along during investigations. Him, Cody and Phoenix were the few people who actually knew about him and for some reason, they had all silently agreed not to tell anyone. Jack had no idea where he came from, all he knew was that he was messing with investigations and could be a serious threat to the safety of the P.I.T members. Although Jack wasn't really compassionate, he felt like a father to all the PIT members due to him being older and would rather die than see them being hurt.

Deciding he'd deal with the problem later, he forced his eyes back onto the road. He could feel the commotion erupting up just as soon as it had calmed down again as Phoenix handed around the various gadgets. Keeping his eyes on the road the entire time, he kept one hand on the steering wheel before reaching back with his free hand to grab the devices they were going to need this investigation. Placing them on the dashboard, he allowed his eyes to quickly sweep other them. "Great job on the devices" He called back to Phoenix, nodding in approval. She really was born to be the Head of Technology and despite her young age, she was still the best person for the role.

He tensed as he heard Cody beginning to bait Phoenix but Madeline quickly intervened and he let out a sigh of relief. He declined the cupcake, wanting to keep his head focused on the case at hand. They were so close now. So very close. "You know what else'd be nice though? Some music." Ramona called out from behind him and he was about to give her a simple no when she started...singing. He groaned, knowing very well that she wouldn't stop until she got her way. "Fine...But only once" He said, flipping on the radio to his favorite channel. Classical music filled the vehicle and he could hear Alex groaning from beside him.

"Really?" She said before quickly changing the channel to some new popular radio station. Loud pop music filled the car, replacing the calming violins with a very repetitive song. This was going to be a very long five minutes.

Amelia "Cody" Coulde

Cody looked over at Maddie as she gently reprimanded her. She shrugged with a blase "Sorry", before Maddie segued into the glorious bounties of cupcakes. Cody grinned wide, and punched the air as best she could in celebration. She also let out a woop. Because, cupcakes and ghost hunting, there was never a better day than one that included both.
"Huzzah!" She cheered, as she retrieved a cupcake for herself. She took a big bite, filling out her cheeks like a squirrel for a minute before she swallowed it down. She grinned and maneuvered her phone out of her pocket. With one hand, she quickly texted Blake, listed in her contacts as "Brother Mine". She actually had two contacts for Blake, one was for texting him stupid stuff, the other was for the more serious pass betweens of info, which was listed as simply "Blake". This way, people wouldn't get suspicious of knowing she texted her brother all sorts of dumb little things, but the text history was regularly cleared. They didn't know who "Blake" was, far as Cody knew, and she had a few contacts that she'd never actually texted.
i get cupcakes hahaha :)
She put her phone back and smiled to herself. She hear Ramona start singing, and felt the nudge of encouragement. She'd happily joined in at once, but as soon as she opened her mouth, Jack had put the classical music on. She let out a loud groan, but the grin on her face probably gave away it's teasing nature.

--

Blake Coulde

Blake had just about arrived at a local library, a red bricked old looking building, when his Cody-specific text alert went off, playing a stereotypical "badum-tsh" drumbeat. He pulled it from his pocket, his hand brushing against his inhaler, and checked it.
i get cupcakes hahaha :)
Well, that was pointless. He put his phone back into his pocket, rolling his eyes at his little sister. If she received any kind of sweet that Blake didn't get, she'd do this. Every time. Blake hung and shook his head, huffing a quiet chuckle. Oh well, they were siblings, picking on each other was their job. He briefly considered starting the history research without Cody, but he shook his head. He'd wait, at least until he could text Cody without fear of someone reading it over her shoulder accidentally. Especially Jack Baker. He knew where the library was now, and he'd read the signs, so he figured that was good enough until Cody texted him to come too. He estimated that the truck had plenty of a lead on him now, they wouldn't notice him following the same route to the house. He pulled back out of the parking lot, turned his car, and headed out for the street with the haunted house.

Lawrence Caine

Just three minutes into the drive, Lawrence found himself asking a very, very important question: was his research really worth sacrificing his long-term physical comfort? Really, the thought of spending even a second longer in this sardine tin of an automobile was already the stuff of nightmares… ‘We’re almost there, Caine. Get a hold of yourself,’ he thought, rubbing thumb and forefinger across his brow. Thank goodness he’d at least grabbed a window seat or he might have already gone mad.

“Comfortable back there?” He was spared the task of conjuring a civil answer when several other members of this ‘Investigation Team’ protested in his stead. He could only give a wry smile before leaning against the window. The cold glass cooled his temper some… right, he didn’t want to cause trouble. There was no point in getting complaining when it would only beget more irritation. With that, he glanced around the cramped space – everyone in the back seats were in the same boat, anyway. Well, they certainly couldn’t be happy with him, the extra, taking up room and all. “Ready to see some ghosts?”

‘Yes, about as ready as you are to give up the front seat…’

“Well,” cut in one of the other girls from beside him, “when you do, and you need, you know, to jump into someone’s arms,” cue the cheesy grin, “I’m your girl.”

Pff. It was almost amusing, how serious this group was about ‘paranormal investigation’. Well, at least they’d give him the data he needed for his report. ‘Just a group of ghostbuster fanatics… how stupid.’ Right. Avoiding conflict. That was a thing he was trying to do, wasn’t it. “I’ll keep that in mind,” Lawrence finally replied, managing a polite smile. Although it was clear he was still unconvinced, at least it wasn’t as outright condemning as his thoughts.

Sudden movement from someone on the other side of the vehicle caught his attention. Oh, it was the kid – name, what was the name... he was going to have to learn these names quickly – she was passing around the tech for the day, it seemed. ‘Oh, earphones and safety alarms. I feel oh so very safe, now…’ His first reflex was to just take one, but his more rational side stopped him. Seeing as he was an unexpected visitor, it made more sense that he wait to see if there were any headsets and bracelets left over.

… but then the cupcakes came around.

“Thank you. Don’t mind if I do,” he nodded to the other girl, name escaping him… McGreg… no… Gregory, Madeline Gregory, before taking one of the delightful little treats for himself. Hell, who cared if there were extras or not – he would have to be mad to pass up a sweet, especially when his own sugar stash was trapped under a rather random arrangement of legs. Just one bite, and he could feel energy beginning to build again. Oh, these were fantastic. If there were any extras left, he was certainly claiming one.

But as soon as he was done with his snack, the impatience returned in full force. Lawrence shifted, trying to find a more comfortable position. All he managed to do was knock his cap into his eyes. Readjusting it, his inner child finally won out, and he started the telltale question, “Excuse me, but are we there y – ”

A sudden bout of singing cut him off, and the psychologist literally had to stop mid-facepalm, reminding himself why he was where he was. Only after the radio was set (onto a rather annoyingly catchy tune at that) did he affirm once more, at the risk of sounding like a petulant child, “How much farther do we have to go?”

So, was his research worth the cramped spaces, talkative group, a dearth of lollipops, and having pop music imprinted onto his mind for the next week and a half? So far, the answer was leaning dangerously close to ‘no’… but hey. Too late to turn back.

(super short post, I'm sorry xD I just wanted to post this before the moment passed)

"Hey! I have an excellent voice." Ramona stated, getting this jokingly, over the top offended on her face when Alex put her hands over her ears to block out her singing, while shouting, "Make it stop!" She could honestly understand why though, as she had been purposefully singing just a BIT off-key, knowing it would make it even more likely for Jack to cave and play some music. Which, he did, but unfortunately, it was none other than the boring, sleepy, classical station.
Ramona let out a heavy sigh, "Awwww, come ON." Just then, Alex changed the station to a mainstream pop station. It was definitely a step up from Jack's musical selection, but still not exactly what Ramona had in mind for the remainder of the trip. She still couldn't help nod her head along to the beat as she took another huge bite out of her cupcake. She swallowed, then spoke up, "What about the seventies station?! Who doesn't love the good ol' seventies?" she looked around the van to see if all were in favor, but before anyone could say anything, she broke into an extremely pitchy rendition of September by Earth Wind and Fire, grinning and watching Cody, expecting her to join in.

Maddie could help herself but too giggle at all the commotion, she knew it was their way of coping up with the unspoken word- fear. Yes, the group has been dealing with this kind of stuff for a long period of time (though no one really knows how long since some of them just popped out from nowhere and started tagging along in assignments) yet fear was one thing they could never eliminate.

Even Maddie herself couldn't explain the agitation in her feelings. It was a mix of excitement, adrenaline rush, sadness, shock and she could go one with the list. And if, and only if, they have proven that some element exists in the case, then they are in for another rush of different emotions.

Sometimes ghosts makes their selves felt by sharing their emotions to the humans. If they died because of an accident great sadness and longing for someone can envelope an investigator. If they died because of murder, it is sure that you'd feel hate, remorse and anger. What's worse is they could become violent. It all really depends on how an investigator would prepare their selves on what lies ahead.

Maddie then hummed with the tune and swayed her head, nodded and gestured at her nose at Phoenix as the cupcake frosting covered her nose. And just as she heard their guest about to pipe in an impatient question of, “Excuse me, but are we there y – ” Ramona then began rocking the song 'September' and filled the van with her energy. She gave the scientist an apologetic smile as if saying, "Sorry, but you signed up for this."

She then turned her gaze back on the driver's seat and continued to shake her head and giggled as she saw the frustration in Jack's eyes when she sneaked a look at the rear view mirror. She caught herself staring too long in his captivating eyes, one of the few things she constantly notices about him. She then quickly pulled her gaze away and looked outside the window to see that a few concrete houses has started filling up the once empty road side. Which probably means they're near. She hugged her backpack tighter and braced herself for the case- hopefully they'd get the much needed information and fast.

Just then a familiar face flashed in her mind, it was the guy who kept on showing up in their assignments. He called introduced his self as Blake and somehow he always managed to supply the answer to one of the missing links in their cases, she knows how Jack and the rest feels about the stranger but she felt like he really never meant any harm. She smiled and continued to look at the colonial designed houses. She wished she could live in one of those- haunted free of course.