* * *

The professor headed down the large stairway that emptied back into the lobby. Bubbles was close behind him, although she wouldn't leave the room without taking Octi with her, which she held in her arms as she followed. Neither of them had changed out of their sleepwear. They didn't have the time to do so…the professor wanted an explanation for what had happened in their room now.

He rang the bell on the desk, and after a few moments, Mr. Fenton arrived and said cheerfully, "Ah yes, is there something I can help you with?"

"There certainly is," the professor said with a frown. He quickly described what happened to them back upstairs, and Mr. Fenton listened carefully, his cheerful expression fading a little. As he concluded his description, the professor asked, "Now what in blazes is going on?"

Mr. Fenton sighed, "Oh well, I suppose you were bound to find out sooner or later. We've…err…had a few problems like this in the past. Crazy rumors that the hotel is haunted…"

"H-haunted?" Bubbles whispered. She clutched Octi a little tighter.

"Yes, but they're just rumors, mind you," Mr. Fenton explained. "I'd rather you not go spreading these rumors around yourself; it's extremely bad for business. Although there is, confidentially, very strong reasons for it to be true…"

"Such as?" the professor asked.

"Hotel Vananda's history, mostly," Mr. Fenton said. "It's been around for a long time, and there have been more than a few deaths that occurred over the years within these very walls. That's not even including everything that might have happened before our records were kept. Before the hotel opened as such, it was many other things in the past…the building was used as a hospital during the Civil War, and long before that, there used to be a monastery at this site, just to name a few."

"Hmm…" the professor said, scratching his chin. "I see…"

"Professor?" Bubbles said, tugging on his arm, "I wanna go…I don't wanna sleep in a haunted house…"

Mr. Fenton smiled again and said, "Don't worry about it…what few incidents have been reported in the past have been rare. I'm sure you'll be fine for the evening."

"Okay, but if it happens again, I'm going to demand a refund," the professor said firmly.

"Yes sir," Mr. Fenton said, dropping his eyes. "I understand."

The professor nodded and turned around to start heading back upstairs. Bubbles followed him closely behind, saying, "Professor, do we have to stay here? If it's haunted…"

"Honey, like he said, there's nothing to worry about," he said, pulling out their room key as they approached the door. "Probably nothing else will happen."

"Okay…" Bubbles said, not entirely convinced. The professor put the key in the lock as Bubbles looked off down the hallway, wondering aloud, "Maybe we should go look for Blossom and Buttercup, what do you think?"

When she turned back to face the door, however, the professor was no longer there. This startled her, as she hadn't heard the door open. Reaching down and grasping the doorknob, she tried it, only to find it still locked. "Professor?" she shouted.

No response came. Bubbles tried to see into the room with her x-ray vision, but saw nothing but a haze. Why isn't it working? she thought. "Professor…? Hello?" she shouted again. Again, no response, and now she started to feel afraid…Where is he? Wh-what's going on?

The lights in the hall dimmed suddenly, and she cried out in shock. They flickered a few times, then went out entirely. Octi fell from her hands, and she took off down the now nearly pitch-black hallway in a panic, not even caring where she went…

* * *

"Ugh…there's just no end to this place!" Buttercup exclaimed as she and Blossom flew quickly down the corridors, non-stop. Every turn they made seemed to just lead to another long hallway; they couldn't even find the stairs anymore.

"The scream came from this way," Blossom said. "I'm sure of it, we're not far…"

When they rounded the next corner, they both came to a stop. Halfway down the hall, they saw a woman slumped up against the wall. The front of her was turned away from them, but even from behind, they could tell by the red hair that she was the same one they had seen, and the same one Buttercup had seen at the window earlier. She sounded like she was crying.

Blossom and Buttercup exchanged a glance to each other. I knew it, Buttercup thought, I'm not crazy, we actually saw her! Both of them warily moved closer, and Blossom asked gently, "Are you all right, ma'am?"

The woman looked up as they approached, and they both gasped in alarm…there was a huge slit on her throat, and blood was covering the front of her dress from it. With a wound like that, she shouldn't have been alive, yet she didn't even seem to notice it. Tears filled her eyes and she said in a panic, "Help me! H-he's trying to kill me! Don't let him g-get me!!"

Blossom could barely form any words at this sight, but managed to say, "What the…"

Bounding up from the ground suddenly, the woman reached out and grabbed Blossom by the front of her dress in desperation, shaking her and yelling, "You've got to do something! HE'S GOING TO KILL ME!!"

"Lady, calm down!" Buttercup said, reaching over to put a hand on her shoulder and hold her back, "Who's trying to kill…you…" She trailed off, and just stared in awe. The woman was no longer there. One moment, she was in front of Blossom, and the next, she was gone, in the blink of an eye.

Blossom didn't even know what to think, "But…but she…"

"…What the heck's going on…?" Buttercup whispered, equally stunned.

"There's got to be a reason for this," Blossom said. "There's just got to. Maybe it was just an illusion…I know, both of us saw her, but…but she can't have just…"

"I don't think we were seeing things," Buttercup said, pointing at Blossom's dress, "Look…"

Looking down, Blossom saw bloodstains on her dress from where the woman grabbed her. Cringing, she touched it with her hand…it was real, and it was still wet, even. She raised her hand up shakily, staring at the blood that was now on it. It didn't disappear, like she half-expected, but remained as real as before.

Buttercup watched her stare silently at her hand, and asked "Blossom?"

After a few more moments of silence, Blossom finally said, "We need to find the professor…right now…"

* * *

Professor Utonium was a little fascinated by this whole thing. Even though he figured in the back of his head that all this nonsense about ghosts was untrue, it still intrigued him. If only I had more time to study this, he thought as he inserted the key into the door to their room.

The key wouldn't turn, though. Surprised by this, he tried again, and it still remained locked. He glanced up at the room number to make sure he was in the right place, but saw that the number plate read 392 instead of 309. "Hmm…I don't know how we got off-track, Bubbles, but…"

It was then that he noticed she was nowhere in sight. "Bubbles?" he called out. He waited for a response, but there wasn't one. Where did she run off to? She should know better than that. Maybe she went back to the lobby… He turned around and looked for the staircase that lead back downstairs…

It wasn't there…he found a staircase leading upwards, but not back down. Confused, he climbed the stairs and continued to call out, "Bubbles? Can you hear me? Bu—…"

He broke off as he suddenly became aware of something: music coming from upstairs. It was faint, but unmistakable. He reached the top of the staircase, which ended in a single door. The music was definitely coming from the other side of the door. He carefully opened it up and peeked inside.

The door led to a large ballroom. Lights from the corner of the room lit everything up brightly, and both the walls and the ceiling of the room were mirrored, making it look a lot larger than it actually was. A chandelier, consisting of a large number of reflective crystals, hung in the center of the room. The dance floor was polished brightly, and none of the mirrors had any smudges on them either.

The room wasn't what immediately grabbed his attention, though…it was the large crowd of people inside the room. Couples were dancing out on the ballroom floor, while others sat at tables scattered around the edges, or sat up at the bar off to one side. The slow dance music that filled the air came from a small jazz band on a raised platform to one side.

While the professor gaped at the room, a man in a suit nearby strode up to him and said, "Welcome back to the party, sir. I trust you are enjoying yourself?" The professor just stared silently back, and the man continued, not even seeming to notice that the professor was still in his sleepwear, "May I get you something to drink?"

"Uh…no, no that's all right," the professor answered. The man in the suit nodded and returned to his position off to the side. The professor thought, This can't be…these people shouldn't be here. It's absolutely amazing! I'd say this goes far beyond just a simple haunting…this is an amazing phenomenon!

He started walking towards the bar, when a gunshot rang out, shattering one of the ceiling mirrors. Everyone screamed and lay flat, covering their heads…the professor was stunned, but followed suit. A man wearing a tuxedo was still standing in the center of the ballroom, a smoking gun held over his head. His face looked like it was filled with a mixture of anger and amusement…clearly, he wasn't in his right mind.

"Quiet!" he yelled across the ballroom, and everyone fell silent. "Thanks…now that I got yer attention…it's time ta wrap this party up! Say goodnight, everybody!" He pulled his tuxedo jacket open, and revealed several sticks of dynamite strapped around his chest and waist.

Panic set in the crowd again as everyone started running for the doors. The man was already reaching for the detonator, though. The professor was frozen to the spot, though, and was thinking, It's all just an illusion, it's just the ghosts, it can't hurt you… He instinctively threw his arms up in front of his face, though, as the man clicked the detonator and erupted in a ball of flame that expanded outward quickly, filling the room and knocking the professor off his feet…

* * *

Bubbles flew blindly down hallway after hallway. It was dark and scary, and she just knew she had to get somewhere safe. Eventually, her initial panic died down, and she came to a stop…it was still quite dark, and she had no idea where she was. It's okay, it's okay, stay calm, she thought…The professor can't be far, just keep looking for him…

She started to fly again, but suddenly found herself feeling weaker. It took some effort just to fly a few feet, before she had to land again. She leaned against the wall, panting, and thought, What happened? First my x-ray vision, and now my flying? This was starting to make her feel even more frightened than before. You just need to find someplace safe, she told herself…Maybe one of the rooms are unlocked, just find a light switch or something…

She felt along the wall until she found a doorknob, and twisted it. It was unlocked, so she carefully opened the door. To her surprise, there was already light coming from inside. She shielded her eyes a little, waiting for them to adjust to the light as she walked in.

She wasn't 'inside' anymore, though. She emerged into what looked like a garden, lit by lanterns, and by the full moon overhead. There were people tending the garden as well, men in simple brown robes, with shaved heads. Monks, Bubbles thought. That Mr. Fenton said something about monks living here a long time ago. Am I…am I seeing their ghosts? She was frightened, but none of them had made any kind of threatening movements, so she stayed where she was.

One of the monks, this one wearing a gray robe, came up to her and said, "Ah, Sister Anne…I'm glad you could make it, we need you to help Sister Mary repent her sins…"

They think I'm someone else, Bubbles thought. "Umm…o-okay…" she said.

"This way," the monk said, leading her through the garden. She looked around at all the beautiful flowers the monks had planted, and it brought a smile to her face. Her fears started to subside a little, and she thought, This isn't as bad as I thought meeting ghosts would be…I expected them to be all scary, but they're really nice…

As she was lead further into the garden, she became aware of some screaming sounds in the distance. She gasped, but the monk assured her, "It's all right, it's just Sister Mary. They started without you already."

"Started…what?" Bubbles said, her fear starting to build again.

They came into a clearing, and Bubbles covered her mouth, stifling a cry. There was a circle of monks and a few nuns around a raised pedestal, a few of them holding down a nun flat against it. This nun was screaming and crying, as the other monks and nuns were doing things to her…torturing her, with all kinds of crude implements. Bleeding cuts covered every inch of her body, and they were just ripping her abdomen open with a large metal hook. Bubbles shook with revulsion, thinking, Oh…my…god…

The monk next to her seemed completely unfazed, and said, "They're waiting for your help, Sister Anne…"

Bubbles just took a step back…she felt sick, and she wanted to get out of there. "N-no…" she said, "…I can't…"

The gray monk looked at her sadly and said, "Sister Anne…I'm disappointed." Out of her peripheral vision, Bubbles suddenly noticed a circle of monks surrounding her from behind. The gray monk continued, "It would appear that you have sins you need to repent for as well…"

"What?! No!!" Bubbles said, turning and trying to run, but the monks had already closed in on her, grabbing hold of her. She struggled to get free…it should have been a piece of cake, but she felt weaker. Her strength was diminishing, too, just as her flight had…It still took a half-dozen of them to pull her to another pedestal and hold her down, but normally, it would have been easy to break free from their grasp.

As it was, she could only struggle, now almost completely panicked. "No, no! Please! It's a mistake, I'm not Sister Anne, I'm not! Let me go! Please!" Her pleads weren't doing any good, though, and she fell silent as the gray monk loomed over her. She bit her lip and shook uncontrollably with fear, watching him stare down at her.

"Do you repent, Sister Anne?" the monk asked.

Bubbles stammered, "R-repent? Repent what?"

The monk didn't answer…instead, he withdrew a large metal hook and slowly lowered it down to her stomach. Bubbles began breathing heavily, not taking her eyes off of it, and as it approached, she started babbling again, in tears, "No no, it's a mistake, it's a mistake, please don't, oh my god oh my god…."

She cringed as he traced the tip of the hook slowly across her stomach, scratching it lightly, but not so much as drawing a drop of blood yet. He repeated, "Do you repent, Sister Anne?"

At this point, Bubbles was willing to say anything…she sobbed, "Yes, yes, please, I repent, I repent, just please…don't hurt me…"

The gray monk smiled, and lifted the hook away from her. Bubbles gave a shaky sigh of relief as he turned around and started to walk away. He spoke as he left, "She repents, my brothers and sisters…see that she dies quickly."

Before Bubbles could protest, she saw one of the other monks lifting a large executioner's axe above his head. Bubbles struggled, but still couldn't break free…she screamed at the top of her lungs and clenched her eyes shut as the blade swung down at her…

* * *

"Professor? Professor!" Blossom called out, as she and Buttercup continued down the endless halls. She was getting tired, and landed on the ground resting against the wall. Buttercup landed across from her and did the same, as Blossom said, "Just a few more halls…I'm sure we'll find him…"

"You said that eight halls ago," Buttercup reminded her. "I think we're going in circles…"

Shaking her head, Blossom said, "We can't be…look at the room numbers, they keep changing." As she glanced up at the door nearest to her, she saw the number 322 and said, "Wait, if we just follow these, it should lead us back to our room, 309…I hope…"

"Sounds like a plan, let's go," Buttercup said. She started to fly, but had to strain just to get a foot off the ground. She landed, panting, "Bloss…something's wrong…I can't fly…"

Blossom tried to fly, and had similar results, "I'm tired, but not that tired…we never had a problem flying before like this! Are we losing our powers or something?"

"It sure feels like it…" Buttercup said. She tested her legs, then ran down to the end of the hall, following the doors, "C'mon, I'm not going to wait around…we hafta keep looking for 'em…"

"Yes, definitely," Blossom agreed, running right behind her. They rounded the corner and looked down at the length of doors. Blossom pointed, "Hey! There's our room! 309!"

As they jogged quickly over, Buttercup pointed at the ground, "Look…" Blossom stopped in front of the door and reached down, picking up Octi off the ground. While she did this, Buttercup tested the door to room 309, and finding it locked, knocked on it, calling out, "Professor? Bubbles? You there?"

There was no answer, but then suddenly they heard a piercing scream down the hall. They both glanced at each other…there was no mistaking this one. "Bubbles!" they said together, and immediately ran as fast as they could in the direction it came from. They rounded the end of the corridor and spotted her, lying on the floor, curled up into a little ball with her eyes clenched shut and shaking uncontrollably.

They hurried over, and Blossom gently shook her, "Bubbles? Are you okay?"

Bubbles slowly opened one eye, then started looking around in confusion, "Wh-what? Girls! But…but…"

"Where's the professor?" Buttercup asked.

"I…don't know," Bubbles said, slowly coming out of her protective ball and climbing back to her feet. "We…we got separated…after we found out the hotel was haunted…"

"Haunted?" Buttercup exclaimed. She paused as another thought occurred to her, "Bubbles, can you fly?"

"No, it stopped working," Bubbles said. "My super-strength is going away now, too…"

Uh oh, Blossom thought. This is not good…why are we losing our powers? Maybe it has something to do with these ghosts…whatever the reason, all I know is that we need to find the professor and get out of this place as soon as possible! I don't want to spend another minute here…

As she was thinking this, images suddenly flashed before her eyes…she saw each of them as clearly as though they were right in front of her. One of them was Buttercup, covered with bleeding cuts and slumped against a wall, unmoving. Another was of Bubbles, lying on her stomach with blood on her back and in a pool around her on the ground, and reaching up weakly. Another was the Professor, clutching a bloodied arm and limping as fast as he could as though he were trying to run, with his leg twisted at an unnatural angle. Then she saw herself…hanging upside-down, her skin looking like it had been ripped off, drops of blood falling from her…

Blossom screamed, falling to her knees and covering her eyes, trying to shut the images out. Bubbles and Buttercup both gasped and came to her sides, saying, "Blossom! Are you all right?" The images had stopped, but Blossom wouldn't open her eyes…she thought, W-was that just an illusion? Or…or is it a premonition? Did I j-just see…the future? Oh god…we're going to die here…