Ghost of the House (#wattys2016)

Chapter Nine: Nel

Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god! Wilslyn for life! I did say they were the best ship, right? I continue you to watch them, because now Willie has a chance to respond and I can't wait to hear what she has to say, hopefully something positive. "You're right." Willie confirms.
"Oh thank god." Joslyn lets out a breath of relief. "You see I wasn't sure if... And with you and Reddington... But I thought I had to... Oh, I'm babbling again, please shut me up." This time Willie takes the reigns and kisses Joslyn. I love this moment, don't get me wrong, but I can't help but wonder about Simon.
"Wait, what about Simon?" Thanks, Willie.
"That's what I meant about being an idiot and never doing what I'm supposed to, I should be smitten with Simon, but instead I chose you." Aww.
"Well I'm glad you did." This perfect little moment almost makes me forget about what a terrible person I am and how I could've actually torn them apart last night, almost. I have to do what I'm supposed to do, Joslyn has to be right; I need to help them, but how?

***
"Oliver!" I need your help. He looks at me and shrugs inquisitively. "I need to help Willie and Joslyn unlock the secrets of the afterlife." It sounds completely sane to me, so I almost don't understand why he seems so confused, then I remember. "It's a long story, but I need to help them by showing them something, something amazing, something real paranormal." Since he can't speak, he mouthes out the words 'who are Joslyn and Willie' to me.
"They're the adorable couple that's in the library right now, but don't go in there, they are not to be disturbed." I declared and Oliver's eyes went wide. "You can't go in there because they just kissed and it's super cute and well you wouldn't understand my fascination but you know... Just leave those people to me." Oliver looks completely offended by what I had said and, after a moment, I knew why. "Yes, I know, I know. After they're gone, ok? For now I need you to help me figure out how I'm going to help them." Even through all my efforts to help Willie and Joslyn, I'm still a terrible person; a while ago, Oliver had tried to kiss me but since I don't actually like him I told him I just wasn't ready, I promised I would do it sometime in the future. Well, 'a while ago' translates to 2 years ago and Oliver has been on my back about it ever since. Me mentioning Willie and Joslyn kissing pisses him off because I'm freaking out over them kissing but not fulfilling my own promises. I ignore my horribleness for a second and wait for Oliver to come up with something, but he doesn't. I look around the room, which is the ballroom, and- wait, the ballroom. That's it! The ballroom is the heart of the house, so it holds all kinds of ghostly powers. "Thanks Oliver." I say, though he didn't really help at all; in fact he kind of made me feel worse, but that's beside the point.

I waste no time in floating through the ballroom doors just to open them up and slam them as loudly as possible. The first ones to arrive at the scene are, of course, Joslyn and Willie. "Harriet, what are you up to now?" Joslyn questions, sounding somewhat inquisitive and somewhat annoyed that her and Willie were disturbed. Well Joslyn, I'm doing what I should've done since the very start, helping you. I open the doors to reveal the grandeur inside. Their eyes shine from the light of the room and their smiles widen from the sight. "I think this room could use some exploring."
"But can't you feel it already? It's so cold in there." Cold spots are common signs of ghostly activity.
"Exactly my point my dear Willie, this could possibly be the heart of the house!"
"The Doctor wouldn't want us going in there."
"Are you really still caught up in what the Doctor wants? Besides, what is he expecting to find if he doesn't mess around in the most haunted of rooms?"
"For an experienced paranormal investigator, you're very reckless."
"No Willie, I'm just willing to take the necessary risks."
"Well I'm not." She takes a step away from the open doors and Joslyn grabs both her hands before she can get any farther.
"Please darling, for me?" As much as she tries to fight it, Willie is putty in Joslyn's hands.
"Huh... If we get caught I swear..."
"We won't get caught, I'll even close the door behind us."
"That's probably not the best idea either."
"Too late, I'm pulling you in and shutting the door." Just as promised, Willie was flung into the room and the door slammed behind her. "This is fantastic." Joslyn gushes. "Thank you Harriet!"
"Yes, thanks a lot Harriet." Willie says sarcastically. Sorry for trying to help, jeez.
"Ah!" Joslyn yelps and immediately the other is facing her.
"What is it? Was I right? Should we get out of here?"
"No, no, they're all here, you can feel them all."
"I know, I can feel them too."
"So why aren't you happy? This is great, we're in the heart of the house!"
"But the Doctor-"
"Willie, if you mention the Doctor one more time I'm just going to go on assuming that you'd rather be with him than me."
"Oh don't be silly, of course I'd rather be with you. I'm just... I'm just a rule follower."
"What a surprise."
"You know what, what do you want me to do? Tell me something to do and I'll do it, pick something crazy, pick something stupid, pick anything." The challenge surprises me, but I'm interested to see what stupid thing Joslyn might tell Willie to do.
"Hm, tonight at dinner I want you to confess every little thing we've done today to the Doctor."
"Um, everything?" Willie asks with a gulp.
"Well, everything about coming into this ballroom that is the heart of the house and playing around with ghosts, all of that kind of stuff."
"All right, I'll do it." They shake hands to make it official.
"Now that that's settled, let's dance." Joslyn takes Willie's hand and pulls them together.
"You really think I know how to dance?"
"Move your feet, sway your hips and spin around, that's all you need to know." Huh, Joslyn has the same method to dancing that Oliver and I do. The start to move across the dance floor in a slow circular motion, eventually gaining speed and creating a comfortable rhythm; it looks so much fun, I kind of want to join them, maybe I will. I situate myself right next to them and move the same way they do, careful not to reveal my presence, though I'm sure they can already feel it. I wish that Oliver was here to dance with me, but I can't see him in the crowd of ghosts. I continue to dance on my own with the girls by my side as the dance builds to a rapid pace, it's crazy, it's wild and it's a ton of fun. It reminds me of being at the Halloween party, before I drank the punch. Actually, this is better, because this is the most happy I've ever felt; I care about the people next to me, I feel like I have a purpose, I'm doing good for once, I feel so alive despite the impossibleness of that, I'm-I'm...
"I'm having the time of my life!" I cry out to the glass ceiling. It's not until I notice that Willie and Joslyn have stopped dancing that I realize what I've just done.
"Joslyn, you heard that right?" Willie questions nervously. Joslyn is smiling.
"Yes, yes I did."