Beetlejuice… Will you be mine? May I possess you, heart, body and soul, rights and legalities? No? Well, it seems that I still don't own Beetlejuice… Too bad. Probably don't own Lydia either…

--

Almost surprisingly, no further talk of punishment was forthcoming, either that night, or the next morning. So she supposed the two week grounding still stood. Though she wasn't sure herself, and suspected her parents weren't either, exactly what it was she was grounded from. That had simply never been brought up.

She was still a wreck, but she'd always been a fast healer, and what had been ugly black and blue marks the day before, were now rather a sickly shade of green. She figured walking still wouldn't be fun though, and planned to ask for a ride… Until she got downstairs, and found both her living parents already gone. "Now what?" She muttered, wondering what could have the two up and around so early.

"Lydia, hon!" Barbara grabbed her in another of her patented motherly squeezes, having appeared from pretty much nowhere. Lydia wondered if that had ever made her jump… It such as heck didn't anymore. "Your parents went out for breakfast, so it's just us this morning! I made you and Adam a huge stack of pancakes…"

Out for breakfast? She started to question it, then realized what was really going on there. They wanted to talk about Beetlejuice, somewhere that their daughter, who presumably didn't know about him, wouldn't overhear. A tiny smirk settled on her face, and she followed Barb without a word, in the mood for some of her fantastic cooking.

She thought about goading Barb, seeing how far she could press questions about something she wasn't supposed to know about enough to be questioning. It was kind of the way she got her amusement out of life, picking at things that should probably be left alone.

But for once, common sense prevailed. Common sense, and the fact that having him around for a while, would probably be a heck of a lot more fun than just a little awkward silence now. So she enjoyed the hot breakfast, and the company of her foster family. For a while, she could play the role they wanted her to play. Mostly though, she was distracted by thoughts of what a certain poltergeist might be up to…

Ghost parents were great, but they couldn't exactly offer a ride to school, so Lydia stepped out into the front yard alone, giving the world around her a long, slow examination. She was a bit puzzled as to why, just in sight around the side of the house, her broken bike now seemed permanently embedded into the side of an oak. But other than that, everything seemed… disappointingly normal.

Sighing, she started down the road to school, resigned to plodding through another mundane day at junior high. There was still a slight limp in her leg, but she pushed the pain back, and offered a dull eye to the beautiful fall day. She didn't know that he'd really be back, of course. She'd just assumed he would. But with things the way they'd turned out with her mom…

She didn't want to think that. Her whole life she'd been compared to her mother, and somehow never managed to match up to the older goth. She couldn't stand the idea that he felt that way too.

Still brooding, she just about jumped out of her skin when he grabbed her by behind, and spun her, grinning. The strangled sound that had risen in her throat became a single, angry word of accusation. "You!"

"Course me!" He cackled, enjoying the way her face went pale, then red. "You, let your guard down, babes. Can't do that. Don't know what kind of perverts might be stalking these roads…"

An exasperated sound escaped her lips, but already she was smiling. She was definitely a girl who could appreciate a good scare. "What are you doing, anyway?" She muttered, giving him a good-natured shove as he released her. "Shouldn't you be off raising hell somewhere?"

"Eh." It seemed to be a sound of dismissal, as he gazed down at her accusingly. "You don't want me to walk you to school, Lyds? Just say so."

Something approaching a soft look touched her face, followed by a slow smile. "What would you want to do that for?" She joked, considering him through a raised brow. "Haven't you caused me enough trouble?"

"Nah," He waved this away, "'M just getting started, kid."

They walked side by side after this, Beetlejuice paying considerably closer attention to their surroundings than she was. Of course, her center of attention was obvious. And he was doing his best not to show how much he was eating it up. "You think it's a weird name?" She prompted suddenly, deciding to get him talking again, and not above using an insult to do it.

"Lydia?" He smirked, not quite looking at her. "Hell yeah. Why you think I don't use it?" The kid was baiting him, which was fine, but she'd have to do a hell of a lot better than that. "I mean, what was your moms thinking?"

She made an indelicate noise, and he waited in amusement for her to break the silence again. This was his game, the sooner she learned that, the better. Sure enough, less than a minute later, her eyes had drawn unerringly back to him again. "So… why are you walking?" She pressed this time, apparently finding something odd in this. "I don't think I've seen your feet on the ground once, since I've met you."

"And that's been such a long time, huh babes?" His mouth twisted, as he looked down at her. "See, it's like this. I'm not your run of the mill ghost, Lyds. People have a lot less trouble seeing someone like me, than your dead friends back at the house. And for some reason," Here he paused, a low cackle escaping him, "For some reason, seeing me just floating along as I please, can really shock the shit out of the living!"

This surprised Lydia, enough that she actually let on, stopping and staring at him. "People can see you?" She echoed, having long accustomed herself to a life where only her family kept her from thinking she was crazy from seeing ghosts herself. Then a wariness settled over her. "Wait, what do you mean, not a run of the mill ghost? How are you different?"

"Hmm… Stronger, for one thing. Hell of a lot stronger. To the point where it doesn't matter if you're the sort that would rather ignore the dark and creepy… You're not going to be able to fucking ignore me."

He lifted his hand, and summoned a small ball of light, the heat and brilliance of it so intense that she had to step back, and avert her eyes. It was like a small sun… And didn't seem to take more effort than blinking, for him. "Get the point, kid?" Another gesture, and the miniature star went out. "I'm not just a ghost, I'm the ghost with the most." There, he'd said it. And it was about damn time.

Turning his attention back to Lydia, he saw that her eyes were maybe just a little more wary, which he hadn't really intended, but also decidedly intrigued. "The ghost with the most, huh?" She echoed slowly. From her, it didn't even sound dirty. "That's gotta be fun."

"It can be." He assured her, more than a little amused by her reaction. Looked like this kid was going to be fun too. "'Cept then they come in, and put this binding on you, 'cause you're too damn strong… And then you find yourself jumping one or way or another, anytime someone says your damn name!"

"Bum deal." She said again, her eyes narrowing a bit. "It's too bad you don't have someone willing to send you whichever way you want, if you'll just ask… I mean, someone who knows your name already, and might be willing to risk a few scares, you know?"

By this point Beetlejuice had stopped, narrowing his eyes as well. "You saying what I think you're saying, babes?" He prompted softly. "What about all that shit you said before… About not making deals with the dead?"

"Kinda already blew that, when I promised to bring you back last time." She pointed out, suddenly aware that she'd found his vulnerability, and savoring it, quite visibly. Beetlejuice just continued to stare, skeptically. "I mean, that's what you want, right? Its not just getting on this side, you don't like being tied down at all. You wanna go where you want to, when you want to."

By this point he was openly frowning, because that was exactly what he wanted. And she just turned a faux innocent look up to him, and smiled. "Right?"

"Yeah…" He agreed slowly, not sure he liked where this was going, just the same. "So what's in it for you? 'Cause I sure as hell don't buy that you'd be doing it out of the goodness of your heart, babes… World don't work that way. And I am not," And he bit his teeth at this last, "A toy for you to play with until you get tired of me, and then put away. Got it?"

For some reason, his words struck a chord in her. There was just a little too much earnestness in this, as if it were something he'd been through before. This was a man who'd decided long ago that he didn't like being used… And if she really wanted to keep him around, she'd have to make it clear every step of the way that this wasn't what she had in mind. But did she?

Her face serious, she examined his angry features, his wild green eyes, and the dangerous set of his mouth. She wasn't scared of him, but she didn't doubt for a second that if she gave him cause, she'd be given good reason to be. He was not the kind of guy you messed with…

And she admired that in him. The smallest hint of a smile tracing her lips again, she stuck out her hand, in a clear invitation to shake. "You don't give me a reason to absolutely hate you, Beej, and I'll be your doorman. All right?"

Beetlejuice drew back a little, hissing, looking at her hand like it was going to bite him. But then his mouth drew into a reckless grin, and before she could change her mind, he had his hand firmly around her wrist, squeezing hard. "You just made a deal with the dead, babes." He informed her, in no uncertain terms. "Don't think it ain't binding as anything."

She was about to answer, when a spark of blue iciness traveled from his hand to hers, making the skin tingle as it traced its way across her flesh, and down somewhere into her chest. She started to yank her hand away, but he had a good grip, and wasn't about to let go, chuckling softly now. "Think I was gonna make another deal, without it being bound, kid? I don't make the same mistake twice…"

He finally released her, and she clutched her hands together, trying to shake off the lingering trace of electricity. That sense of cold was still inside her, like a piece of himself he'd given her, and for the first time since summoning him, she actually felt scared, because she didn't know what it meant. That slightly mad grin of his wasn't helping either…

Suddenly furious, she reacted without thinking, giving the dangerous ghost a solid kick in the shin. Howling in surprise, he stumbled back, looking at her a bit like she was the crazy one there. "You dumb ass!" She hissed, resorting to language she didn't normally use. "You think that's the right way to make me not hate you? Putting some kind of curse on me?"

Rubbing his leg, Beetlejuice was quickly laughing again, apparently in too good a mood to have it spoiled so easily. "Wasn't a curse… exactly." He denied smugly. "Just want to make sure you keep your side of the bargain, is all."

"I was gonna anyway." Lydia's anger was spent quickly, and she laid her hand over her chest, wondering at that sense of cool. He just stood there smirking, well aware that she wasn't mad anymore. She wasn't sure if it came from the ring she wore under her shirt… But it didn't feel like it came from there. It was strange, but… not bad. Kinda like a ghostly touch that stayed with her.

Lydia closed her eyes, and sighed. Looked like she'd be playing by his rules, after all… She'd kind of figured. But that didn't mean this wasn't still her game, did it? And thinking this, Lydia couldn't help but smile.

--

He had to admit, it surprised him a bit, how easily she was taking this. He was also glad she hadn't tested it right away, he wasn't sure exactly what would happen to her if she tried to go back on her word. Come to think of it, maybe I shouldn't have done that…

Beetlejuice had changed suits, Lydia reminding him of his own words, as well as her mother's, and letting him put two and two together for himself. Not that a change of clothes really disguised who he was… But for now, he wore a suit he hadn't in a while, with a long trench, and a brimmed cap. Both, actually, far worse for wear than his normal clothes.

They'd walked mostly in silence, with him making a glib comment from time to time, mostly because she always had some dry remark to answer him, and he thought it was funny. Like when he pointed out a couple squirrels getting frisky, he commented aloud on whether or not they knew they were getting it on out of season.

To which she replied, "You'll notice the one doing the chasing isn't the one that'll have to find food for the kids, right?" Which he'd then challenged her on how she knew that for sure, since he'd known some women in his time…

Basically it was harmless, asinine banter, each one trying to get a rise out of the other. It wasn't until they got into town that Beetlejuice realized the odd sight the two of them had to be, walking along together like this, chatting like school chums. He sneered at one old lady who looked particularly indignant, only to have her huff and storm off… As well as she could storm, anyway. "Look me up when you're on the other side!" He yelled after her. "You'll be a hell of a lot more fun when you're dead, trust me!"

This of course, made them squarely the center of attention for every eye on the street, and those who hadn't found the pairing odd before, certainly did now. Lydia just snickered, ducking her head so that her hair fell over her eyes. "Beej, you're an idiot…" She mused, still not annoyed with him. Well hell, could he do anything wrong in this kid's eyes?

Before he could ask her this, and he fully intended to, just to see how she'd word her smart-ass reply, an even odder pair than the two of them came running up the sidewalk… At least to his eyes. Pixie-girl and gangly-girl didn't spare him a glance, just stopping before Lydia, out of breath. Especially the short one, with the load of books.

"There you are, Lydia!" The one that was all joints and bones grinned, a smile oddly large for her thin face. "Man, you look like shit! Feeling better yet?"

Lydia smiled, what he suspected was a rare, honest smile, and looked embarrassed. "I'm fine." She murmured, falling behind her veil of hair a little more. "Parents reamed me out though… How about you two?"

An awkward silence followed this, and the two exchanged glances. "My mother said you're a bad influence," The small girl said softly, "And she doesn't want me to hang around with you anymore." A pause, then softly, "Sorry, Lydia. I told her I was gonna anyway, and she got pretty mad… So I'm grounded. Except for school, of course."

"My mom said the same thing…" The taller girl waved this away like it was nothing. "I told her it wasn't your fault, it's all that Claire Brewster!" There was that name again… "As if you could be a bad influence! You never miss school, you've never been in trouble with the cops, and you get the top marks in your grade! But, um…" A nervous little laugh. "I'm grounded too. Mostly for talking back, I think."

Beetlejuice considered the two, the one at least obviously older than Lyds. Girl made funny friends, but they seemed pretty loyal. "I'm so sorry…" Lydia was murmuring, looking bright red, an odd color on her pale skin. "I gotta stop letting her push me into saying stupid stuff. I didn't mean to get you in trouble too."

"No problem, Lydia…" The tall one began, about the time Beetlejuice got tired of being ignored.

"Hey, babes." He interrupted, giving her a miffed look. "What am I, not here?" Lydia blinked, lifting her head, and looked at him as if she'd indeed forgotten he was there. "You gonna introduce me to the peanut gallery, or what?"

"Oh…" She said it slowly, apparently turning it over in her head again that they could see him. The two were now looking at him oddly as well, maybe having figured they weren't walking together before. "Um… This is Prudence," She indicated the sprite, "And Bertha." Her hand waved to the toothpick. "And um, guys, this is…"

And here she paused, absolutely dumbfounded as how to introduce him. "Beetle- uh…" He watched her with a smirk, one eyebrow raised. "Mr. um… Beetle…" And here she stopped again, before offering in an uncertain voice, "Man?" He just about choked, looking anywhere but at the confused goth, with a grin.

"Mr…. Beetleman?" Prudence echoed, as if this were a particularly odd name. Which he supposed it was. "Um, how nice to meet you, sir…"

At being called 'sir,' Beetlejuice did choke, turning his back as he bent into his knees with soft laughter, only slightly maniacal. Bertha however, wasted no such pleasantries. "You're lying…" She sing-songed, seeming no less than delighted with the fib. "You don't want to tell us who he is, do you?"

"Um… no." Lydia agreed, a spark of humor touching her own face. "He's just a friend that mom would kill me if she knew I hung around with."

Beetlejuice sobered quickly, turning back with a raised brow at the girl calling him her friend. But after a minute, he smiled again. "Sure, babes," He agreed, with just a slight twist of mischief to the words, "Don't want them to know the truth, now do we?" He snagged her around the shoulders, and pulled her to his. "But I think we make a damn cute couple, personally!"

At this, Bertha's jaw dropped, and Prudence stared, while Beetlejuice wiped his dirty knuckles off on his even filthier coat. The first sound to break the silence after this was Lydia's snickering. She sounded like she was having trouble breathing. This was followed by a solid shove to his side, making him stumble back. Well, not really, but he did it for effect anyway.

"Get off me, you idiot…" She gasped, still trying not to literally fall over laughing. "See what I mean?" This to her living friends, who were now at least smiling, if not laughing. "Can you imagine if he pulled that in front of my mom?"

He straightened up slowly, tugging his coat into place, and trying to look offended. "'M hurt, Lyds." He muttered, utterly straight-faced. "Thought I was your type…" At this she just snorted, and he sighed, as if in defeat. "Well hell, you can't blame a guy for trying…"

"Um, actually, I think a lot of people would blame you for trying…" Prudence noted, in her smaller than life voice, trying to fight a smile of her own.

"Come on Pru!" Bertha laughed, giving her a solid whack to the back, and almost knocking her over. "He was kidding! And you can just see Lydia hanging out with someone like…" And here her eyes danced, "Mr. Beetleman… Can't you?" She apparently, had no problem seeing the amusement in this.

"I don't know…" Prudence was still uncertain, but trying to pretend she didn't agree was a wasted effort.

"Here kid, hold this for me…" Beetlejuice muttered, brushing by her, and dropping a large hairy spider on her head. "Otherwise it won't last 'til lunchtime. Seriously, I got like no willpower…" It was a cheap scare, but he didn't want to waste the effort of thinking up something bigger, and she was starting to annoy him.

The redhead, much to his surprise, scooped the spider off her head, and looked at it with wide, admiring eyes. "I've never seen a wolf spider this size before!" She marveled, actually gaining a little animation to her voice. "It might be a new subspecies!" And she dropped her books, and then and there, started digging through a heavy tome titled, 'Entomology Explained.'

Beetlejuice had to wonder if anything scared kids these days. "Keep it," He murmured, feeling generous, "I'll catch something else for lunch." Turning to Lydia, he added in a stage whisper, "Your friends are nuts, you know that, right?"

"And who was going to eat a spider for lunch?" She pointed out scornfully, though the glint in her eyes betrayed her.

"What's crazy about that?" He frowned, tugging his hat lower over his eyes, as if in a sulk. "Spiders are chock full of protein, and good stuff like that. Anybody in their right mind ought to be eating them, you ask me…"

"He's right, you know." Prudence piped up, still with her nose about three inches from the page she was reading. "Insects and arachnids are the highest source of protein you can find in the world… Lots of indigenous people rely on them as a staple food source."

The last thing he had expected of course, was for the kid to agree with him, and he looked at her a little oddly for it. He'd have to keep an eye on that one… "Shouldn't you still be headed for school?" He prompted, just a little wryly, as he himself couldn't give a damn either way, them being late.

A shout of true horror made him jump a little, as the little redhead grabbed up every book there like her life depended on it, shoving the spider back at him, and running as fast as she could in the opposite direction. Lydia and Bertha laughed, falling into a more casual step behind. "Miss Perfect Attendance…" The tall girl mused to herself. "If she's late, she'll never forgive us…"

"You coming, Bee- Ah, Mr. Beetleman?" Lydia prompted, glancing behind her at the bemused poltergeist, who currently seemed to be chewing something.

"Right behind you, babes." He assured her through his mouthful of spider, grinning to let her see its legs still stuck between his teeth. A look of true disgust and awe crossed her features as she stared, before Bertha, who had noticed none of this, reached back and snagged her by the arm, pulling her forward.

Falling into step behind them, Beetlejuice chuckled, wondering at himself. A couple of days before, if someone had asked him if he was going to be hanging out with some kid on a regular basis, Olivia's brat least of all, he would have asked them what they were drinking, because it was a hell of a lot stronger than what he was. And here he was, tagging along after three of them…

Beetlejuice buddy, what the hell have you gotten yourself into this time…?

The school wasn't far from there, as it turned out, and Beetlejuice had the unexpected reward of several older teen girls, all in skirted uniforms. Well aware he was staring, he didn't need to be reminded of it by Lydia, who elbowed him none too gently in the stomach. "You know, there are cops who keep an eye on this place…" She murmured, for him alone. "Stare all you want, but try not to be so obvious about it."

"What the hell is this place?" He muttered, opting for paradise himself, with not another guy in sight. "Some kind of convent?" Not that it mattered to him…

"Miss Shannon's is an all-girl school." Bertha piped in, giving a rather nervous glance around the schoolyard. "You better hurry up, and say goodbye Lydia, before Claire shows up…" Her own hand was tightly on her book bag, as if this were a weapon she'd resorted to before, and thought she might have to again. "After what happened last time, I mean."

"Too late…" This was said so softly, Beetlejuice wasn't certain how the girl expected her friends to hear, but ever watchful Prudence was staring off at a rather large gathering of giggling older girls, clutching her own books tightly. "They've seen us."

They had indeed. "So which one of those breathers is this Claire I've been hearing about?" Beetlejuice asked in a low voice, trying to tell them apart himself, and pretty much failing. "They all look alike to me, babes."

"Bleached blonde hair, blue eyes, and a sprayed on tan." Lydia murmured, getting a look to her face that said if he wasn't going to cause trouble for the girl, she had no problem looking for another fight herself. "IQ of mayonnaise."

Beetlejuice eyed them dubiously, as they came closer. "You just described the lot of them, kid." He muttered, resigned to waiting for the girl to make herself known.

It didn't take long. "Lydia Deetz!" The clear ringleader of the group greeted the girl, singling her out. "Are you actually being dropped off for school by the garbage man? That is so classy…" Sniggering, cruel faces hung on the blonde's every word. "Is he your dad, or are you two like, an item? Because I must say, you are dating up…"

Lydia started forward, a scathing retort clearly on her tongue, but Beetlejuice's hand on her shoulder stopped her, and made her look up at him in puzzlement, anger still flashing in her eyes. "Wait for it…" He murmured, a twisted smirk of his own promising something that would undoubtedly land him in trouble with the old bat, if she ever caught wind of it.

Before Lydia could question him, Claire suddenly yelped in surprised outrage, spinning on one of the girl's behind her. "You kicked me, you horrible bitch!" She shrieked, started towards the hapless girl, who clearly had no clue what she was talking about.

Before Claire could reach her, another of her goons to the side gave her another kick, hard, almost making her fall. Now more stunned than outraged, Claire turned on her too, her lips moving, but no words coming out.

Again, from behind, one of the girls kicked her, this time squarely on the ass, and sent her toppling forward. At this, even some of her own cronies giggled at her. How easy it was to turn such status hungry cliques on themselves, he mused. Hadn't changed in the last hundred years, or the years before that. Probably never would.

Claire pushed herself up on her hands, sputtering indignantly, her voice raising to a truly horrific shrill now. "How dare you!" It was almost more of a wail, than an accusation, as if she were already fighting back tears. "You're all nothing compared to me! You hear me? Nothing! Without me, no one would even look at you stupid bimbos twice!"

This was of course, exactly the wrong thing to say, especially since not a girl there had failed to notice the fall of her defenses, and her momentary show of weakness. They gathered around her like any pack whose leader has fallen, and with a decidedly malicious deliberation this time, began kicking her again as she lay there, one after another.

"Beej!" Lydia hissed, her anger quickly turning to pity. "Stop it! That's enough!"

Beetlejuice just chuckled. "I stopped a while ago, babes." His job done, he turned, and waved carelessly over his shoulder, certain this dull town had to have something left to offer it. "Enjoy school, Lyds… I know you will." And he strode away, cackling like a madman.

That, all in all, had turned out pretty damn well… Teach her, messing with his Lyds…

--