-1Nothing Is Forever: The Search for the Dead Stone

Written by Chibikan

AN: TITLE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN BEETLEJUICE

THANKS TO: My Imoutochan for being my beta

Prologue:

"Happy Birthday Dear Lydia, Happy Birthday to you." sang her mom and dad and friends as the candlelight danced on the words Happy 18th Birthday.

"Come on Lydia, make a wish!" Bertha urged her friend.

Lydia blew out the candles, with only one wish in mind. She was eighteen years old, and all she wanted to do right now was run up to her mirror and say those words that would take her to the place where she best belonged. She wanted to share her birthday, and a piece of cake with her best friend. But her parents and only two LIVING friends had planned a small party for her while she was out running errands that her parents had made her go on just to keep her out of the house since she got off school for the day. So, she couldn't exactly abandon them for her bedroom/Neitherworld. That would be rude. And it was nice of them to throw her this little party. She wondered what HE had planned for her birthday. Briefly she wondered if he would see her differently, no longer as a child but as a woman.

Finally, the cake was all but gone, her presents had been opened, and her friends had to go home. Swiping one last piece of the chocolaty confection, Lydia thanked her parents and hurried up the stairs and into her room. She grabbed a brush and raked it through her hair and applied a little make up. Finally, she was all ready to go and began her chant.

"Though I know I should be wary, still I venture someplace scary. Ghostly haunting I turn loose, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!" She cried out. She vanished from her bedroom and on a long highway. Her clothes had changed, but not to what they normally were. Her red spider web poncho was now a halter top, very revealing by the way. And on her waist was a black, super-mini skirt. Her legs were accented by a pair of fishnet stockings and her shoes were simple, basic black tennis shoes. "Huh, that's weird. Deadly-vu, but weird." Lydia looked down the highway and saw the familiar neon lights of the Roadhouse. Now, why had she been dropped off so far from his place? She shrugged and simply began the walk down the path. She knocked on the door, but received no answer. "That's odd, I told him I'd be coming today. I wonder if he forgot and went out?" She thought. Lydia looked through the filthy windows as best she could, but all was dark. Finally, she simply put her hand on the doorknob and turned, it was unlocked. Lydia walked in. "Beetlejuice? Jacques? Guys? Anybody here?" she called. It was so dark. Since when did Beej keep it so dark in here? Even when he was out, Jacques or Ginger was usually here. But now, there appeared to be no one. "Guys?" She found a light switch and pulled on it. The lights came on instantly.

"SURPRISE!!!"

Lydia's eyes bugged out. She was surprised. There in front of her stood her friends, all of them, around a well piled table. Presents galore awaited and in the middle of it all was an enormous cake. And not a typical Neitherworld cake, with dead stuff or beetles, but an actual chocolate cake with chocolate icing with the words "Happy Birthday Babes" in red. Jacques and Ginger had excited smiles on their faces, and there was even Monster, Vince, Bea and Gnat, and there, with the biggest smile of all on his face, not wearing his normal black and white suit but a handsome maroon tuxedo and top hat, was Beetlejuice. Most surprising of all, he was clean! His hair was brushed and his teeth weren't even green, they were a clean white.

Her grin must have reached to the ceiling. Here she'd come, thinking she'd just be spending a quiet with him, bringing him a piece of cake. And here he'd gone through the trouble and time of planning a surprise party for her. And he'd even washed, he HATED bathing and yet he'd done it, for her. And inviting his parents and Monster, and even Prince Vince. Needless to say, he wasn't exactly on speaking terms with any of these, but he'd known that she'd want her other friends there too and had invited them for her. She fought back tears of joy, of gratitude.

"Hey Babes! Don't you like it?" Beetlejuice asked, surprised at the tears. Maybe she didn't. Maybe this was a mistake.

She shook her head fervently. "No Beej, it's wonderful. Thank you." She threw her arms around him. He was such a great friend. "I love it." She pulled away from him and was pleased to see that his yellowish eyes appeared to be glowing with happiness.

"See, Be-atlejuice, I sold you, she would love eet." Jacques said to the poltergeist.

Lydia gave Jacques a friendly hug. "Jacques, it's good to see you. Thank you all."

"Hey don't thank us, it was all Beetlejuice's idea, Lydia." Ginger told her. "And I even made up a new dance just for the occasion." She began doing her little tap dance routine.

"It was a pleasure to be here for your birthday, Lydia. It is always a pleasure to see you." Vince kissed her hand. "And, if I may say so, you are most beautiful this evening."

Lydia curtsied, remembering he was a prince. "Why thank, Your Lowness."

"Miss. Lydiuh!" exclaimed Monster-From-Across-The-Street, as he swept her into a great big hug, being careful not to crush her. "Happy Birthday!" His dog, Poopsie, yipped in agreement.

"Thank you, Monster." When she was released, she bent down and patted Poopsie on the head gently.

"Should we do ze gifts first?" asked Jacques. "Zen, we have enough room to cut ze cake."

The skeleton made sense and soon Lydia found herself being ushered to Beetlejuice's favorite chair. Usually, if they did anything like this for her, which was not common, BJ's gift always had to come first. But this time, he waited patiently (quite uncharacteristic of him) as her lap became piled with all sorts of neat and interesting gifts from the Shocking Mall. Lydia was pleased with them all, but then, Beetlejuice stood in front of her, holding out one last gift, his. A fine velvet box, rectangular shaped. She took it, dumbfounded. Since when did Beetlejuice buy such extravagant things? She opened the box and there, in a layer of cushion, was a locket of solid gold. A simple oval with some sort of rune etched into it. She could only gasp and look at her friend in shocked delight.

"Beetlejuice, it's….beautiful…" She pulled it from the cushion.

"It was nothing Babes, I just found it in my attic this week, and I thought…all I really did was get it a chain that would fit you and…" For the first time in the many years she had known him, Beetlejuice fumbled for words. "It's really nothing special…..it won't even open…." He blushed big time.

She undid the clasp and put it around her neck and kissed his cheek gently, in a friendly manner, or so he thought. "I love it!" She looked into his yellow eyes and he into her midnight blue ones.

The mood ended when a tremor shook the roadhouse violently. She was thrown off her feet and back into the chair, and Beej on top of her. They weren't the only ones knocked off their feet as the tremor ended as suddenly as it came.

"You okay, Lyds?" Beetlejuice asked her.

"Yeah, but what was that?" Lydia asked. She looked over at Prince Vince, as prince he should know, and he looked pale, even worse than usual which was difficult as he was dead. She then noticed that all around them, everyone seemed a bit more on edge. Something was up. "Prince Vince?"

The Prince gestured out the window, at where the three moons should be side by side. One was missing, and it's place a dust storm seemed to reign. "It's…it's begun…." he stammered fearfully.

AN: What's begun? Stay with me, and you'll find out. Oh, I really dislike the title of this. So I am holding a contest. EMAIL ONLY!!! NOT REVIEW!!! Email me your ideas for titles. I will accept title ideas up until next Saturday night. The winner will have his/her title idea be the title for the fiction. I will only accept submissions that are emailed or pm-ed. If it is in the review itself, it will be disregarded and barred from entry. I will not run the risk of being accused of having an interactive fiction. So emailed or pm-ed submissions will be considered.