Nick sank onto the edge of the bed, dropping his face into his hands. What have I done? He thought. I practically attacked her… And she ran off… Oh man! Nick leapt to his feet, pacing towards the window. Dammit… How could I…? Nick groaned, smacking both palms against his temples as he made a half-turn and paced towards the door to the bathroom. "Shit…"

He let out an exasperated sigh and leaned back against the wall, sliding down until his butt his the floor.

At about that time, Nick felt the distance between him and Lydia get even longer, and felt a nearly irresistible urge to jump through the void to be closer to her. Of course, he probably wouldn't even be allowed that luxury.

Lydia…

"-before the baby is born, I'm going to die."

Nick swallowed, and his entire body seemed to jerk in her direction. He closed his eyes, trying to sense her out. She was fine right now, completely safe somewhere to the south-west.

So how did she know she was going to die? And why would she tell him?

Because Tobias might win. Ahriman might win. Everyone wants to kill them… She needs someone who has no choice but to do anything and everything to protect the kid from everything. Someone who can.

Nick rolled his neck on his shoulders and tried to sense his power core, deep inside him like he could when he still had powers. He could feel it, a slight, warm sensation that filled his every fiber with power and strength.

He just couldn't access it.

It was there, and powerful. Nearly as powerful as when he'd stolen all those souls.

She needed someone who could protect the child, should she and Betel be overwhelmed.

But she wouldn't die. She simply couldn't.

Nick wouldn't allow it.

Because there had been something about the way she'd said it. She said 'when I die'. She'd said nothing about coming to the Nietherworld. He had to assume she knew something. Maybe she was going to be exorcised. Something he wouldn't be able to prevent.

Nick lifted his head to glare at the wall across from him.

Dammit… if he was going to protect them, he wasn't going to let something she thought she knew take her out.

He was going to make everything up to her. He was going to take advantage of this 'punishment' and make every little thing up to her. He would protect her, and any children she had with that thing.

Amelia sighed heavily, kicking her heels back against the gnarled trunk of the tree she was perched in. She'd chosen a high branch, though there was no real need: the tree was barren. Just like all the other trees and shrubbery in the gloomy courtyard.

"Milady?"

Amelia's face lit up as she looked down to see Niehest smirking up at her from the cobblestone path. "Hey John." She pushed herself off the branch and fell straight to the ground, landing nimbly on her feet. Showing off just a bit, she threw her arms in the air in a winning pose. "Boy it's great to be dead. So what's up Hurtmieser?"

Niehest lifted a hand and dropped it onto her shoulder. "Are you alright milady?"

Amelia poked him in the chest. "I will be when you stop calling me that. You're supposed to call me Amelia, or Amy. Or anything really, just not milady or ma'am."

Niehest chuckled. "Alright, Amy then. Are you sure you are alright?"

Amelia sighed, and sank onto the nearby bench. "I don't know. I'm so confused." She lifted her head and looked around her quickly. "Hey… are we gonna get in trouble, Nick and me I mean, if I tell you something really weird that happened?"

Niehest frowned, but sat beside her. "Nick no longer feels an obsession for Lydia, does he?" He asked.

Amelia's mouth fell open as she stared up at him. "How did you-?"

Niehest fixed her with a sad smile. "I've told you, this is what happened to me." He sighed, turning his eyes skyward. "I remember everything so clearly. That feeling… that weight being lifted! Freeing you… and then you realize all you want to do is take care of that one most important person, and make sure they are happy and safe in all they do… You can't use your powers…" He sighed again.

"John?"

Niehest turned to stare down at her. "Yes?"

Amelia scooted closer, and patted a hand against his forearm. "I won't make you tell me if you don't want. I have… hard secrets too." She grimaced as she pulled her arm back and began to roll up the sleeve, revealing a series of thin, ropy scars in perfectly straight, parallel rows. "It was so strange though John."

"Tell me. About what happened upstairs." He asked quietly.

Amelia shrugged. "I dunno I mean… he was lying there, staring at the ceiling and suddenly he sits up and starts rambling about how something is gone and he can think and feel without her, and then he…" Amelia's face screwed itself up, a completely baffled expression on her face. "He grabbed me and… spun me around and freaking planted one on me." She shook her head. "He was laughing like a maniac."

Niehest chuckled. "It is a relief. That spell isn't often used in that way, it is used to curse body guards into forever protecting a charge. Nick and I, however, share something in common: we were both obsessed with a woman, completely in love and ready to do anything to have her. And in doing so angered many powerful people. I angered a royal family. The father had a sorcerer bind me to forever protect his infant son, who died on his twenty-fourth year."

Amelia blinked. "Newt is your charge?"

Niehest chuckled. "Yes. When I was charged, I lost every bit of obsession with the woman I'd hurt with my love, and all that mattered was protecting the princeling. And as the years passed, my resentment and hurt fell away, and he became the most important and beloved thing in my life." Niehest sighed. "I felt much the same way I have no doubt Nick does now."

Amelia stared down at her knees. "Wow."

"Indeed. Is that why you are out here? Because he… 'planted one on you' and was acting strange?"

Amelia shrugged. "Yeah… mostly… but… well when he… kissed me he sort of grabbed me. He wasn't hurting me, but it freaked me out." Her eyes clouded over and she looked away from Niehest. "I just… I had a flashback to when Boston would…" She shuddered and shook her head. "I know Nick wouldn't do that, but remembering Boston scared me."

Niehest was silent for a long time, until he finally lifted his hand and rested it on her shoulder. "Nick has done many things, Amelia, that have turned him into an ugly monster. Betelgeuse, Nick and I all have that in common. We're wretches that do not deserve second chance, but have each been given one: Betel has Lydia's love, I have the forgiveness of the woman I loved, and Nick will have the same." Niehest blinked, and suddenly a slow smile spread across his face. "I've almost forgotten, I have something for you. A sign of… friendship." Niehest lifted his hand again and covered the skull-shapped clasp on his cloak. He pulled it free, and handed it to Amelia, who accepted the token with an awed expression. "If you are ever in trouble, hold this in your hand and concentrate on your danger."

"Ask and ye shall receive?"

Niehest chuckled. "Yes. Goodnight, Amelia."

Lydia trailed her finger around the side of the coffin, memorizing the whorls and off-color patterns as her finger rubbed over them. With a heavy sigh, she dropped her hand to the sheet, and chose instead to trace the patterns with her eyes instead.

She didn't know how long had passed before she suddenly became aware of the fact that someone else was in the room, watching her.

"Babes?"

Lydia closed her eyes, her expression hurt. She couldn't face him right now, not with images of her death and his defeat running through her mind.

He stood there for many more minutes, simply watching her. She tried to ignore him best she could, but as she counted four-hundred seventy-two seconds, she decided to roll over and speak, but the sound of him moving behind her stopped her.

He leaned over the coffin and stroked his hand down her back, letting just the tips of his claws graze her. She couldn't stop the shudder that shook her body, and swore she heard him chuckle lightly before he slid his hand beneath the back of her shirt to caress the shivering muscles there.

Bastard.

He removed his hand and leaned down to kiss her cheek before he pulled the sheet up from her waist to her shoulders.

Her chest ached, but she couldn't bring herself to roll over to see him. He pressed his hand to her shoulder before turning and exiting the room, pulling the door shut behind him and silencing the sound of some Spanish soap that Jacques and Ginger were watching.

"I love you Beej." She whispered.

Nick passed back and forth across the room, chewing on the end of his thumb. He had to get out of here! Something was wrong… she wasn't in danger… he didn't think, but something was wrong. Or maybe he was simply paranoid.

And he was worried about Amelia. She'd been gone so lon-

The door creaked open behind him, and Amelia slipped into the room, and odd look on her face. She pushed the door closed and leaned back against it, regarding him with almost sad eyes. "Hey Nick." She murmured.

Nick took a step closer, but the image of her face after he'd kissed her forced him to freeze. "Amelia… I-"

"I'm sorry."

Nick blinked. "What? Why?"

Amelia sighed. "I… I forgot, for a moment I was with you. Not Boston."

Nick's face crumpled and he closed the distance between them, pulling her into a gentle hug. "I'm sorry for mauling you."

Amelia sighed and dropped her cheek to his shoulder, closing her eyes. "Aww don't worry hot shot, you're not so bad a kisser."

Nick chuckled. "Gee thanks. You… alright?"

"I will be when you shut up and kiss me again."

Nick blinked, leaning away as she lifted her head and regarded him with a determined expression. The poltergeist blinked again, unsure of whether he'd heard her right or not. "What?"

"Did I stutter?"

Nick lifted a hand and pushed a strand of hair from her eyes. "Well then-" Still disbelieving, Nick leaned back in and covered her lips with his, moving them against hers as his tongue traced her lower lip, seeking entrance. She automatically complied, parting her lips and allowing his tongue entrance, only to brush her own against it in a quick dance for dominance.

Nick growled quietly, dragging one hand up her back to tangle in her ridiculous hair, the other dropping to her waist, pulling her against him.

She pulled back gasping as his hand brushed down over her rear. "Nick… Nick I… I want you." She muttered, her face turning a brilliant shade of crimson.

Nick's eyes were huge as he stared at her. "Amelia…"

She sighed, and pulled herself closer to him, pressing her cheek to his as her hands lowered to his waist. "I… I don't want him on me anymore. I… want you."

Nick stared at her, his mouth half-open. He stared at her stupidly for another moment before he spun her around and guided her back towards the bed, grabbing the hem of the Led Zeppelin shirt she wore. "Amelia… You're sure?"

Amelia wrapped her arms around his neck and flung herself backwards onto the bed, pulling him down on top of her. "Positive."

"Why?"

The question was quiet, almost whispered into the dark room. Nick lay on his back, one arm bent behind his head, the hand on the other slowly stroking down the length of her spine. She lay on her side with her head on his chest, blind thanks to the fact that her glasses were nowhere to be found, with her right leg tangled up with his.

She shrugged against him before turning her head to plant a kiss on his chest. "I don't know. I thought it was… because when you kissed me… I mean the last person who kissed me… hurt me." She shuddered as his hand suddenly veered off course to trace a jagged scar just below her ribcage. "I suddenly remembered all those times… I don't want to think about him when I kiss you." She shifted so she could nuzzle against his neck. "Because I've decided I really want to kiss you more."

"You have?"

"Yeah."

Nick sighed. "But why? Amelia, I've been horrible to you. And I'm a monster. Why would you want me at all?"

The blonde snorted. "You ain't all bad. When you're not trippin' out, you're okay. I mean, you know good music, you know your movies… and you took me in, even though I ended up taking care of you, I had a friend and a place to stay. And you tried to protect me from your past. And you ain't half-bad lookin'." She teased.

Nick hooked his arm up around her and rolled onto his side to plant a kiss on her forehead. "'Sometimes goodbye is a second chance'…" He murmured.***

"Second Chance by Shinedown." Amelia tilted her head a little, regarding him with a confused expression. "What do you mean?"

"Not all the lyrics fit… but that line…" He nuzzled her cheek. "You're my second chance. I'm free of that… desperate need that I didn't understand. It's gone, and now I have a second chance, with Lydia and with you."

Amelia smiled. "And you're my second chance."

More than a week passed before Lydia felt back to normal. The dizzy spells were gone, as was the nausea. They'd gone to see Nick and Amelia on Monday, and Lydia was ecstatic to see how much better Nick was: already he was filling back out, and his hair was no longer a matted mess of gray.

Now it was the second Monday since the sentencing. She'd missed finals, but having been excused from the assignments assigned during her stay in the hospital, she still managed to pass with straight B's.

Of course, this meant that everyone knew Lydia Deetz was pregnant and had nearly miscarried.

If there was any doubt left, it would be cured the moment she returned: Her stomach had swelled out like a balloon, and even her poncho did little to help. This was something Betel found fascinating, and Lydia constantly had his hands or cheek on her stomach, trying to her or feel the baby.

It was a relief for her, to see this sudden change in him. He was suddenly Daddy Beej, fascinated by the swiftly growing bulge on her stomach.

"Can you feel her yet?" He'd constantly ask her.

Even as they drove back to the apartment after jumping through the void his hand was under the bottom of her shirt, pressing against the side of her stomach. "Ain't we supposed ta be able ta feel her now?" He grumbled.

Lydia lay her hand over his, rubbing the pad of her thumb in circles against his pale skin. "Some people feel the baby this early, some don't. And she isn't exactly a normal baby, is she?"

"I s'pose." He jerked the steering wheel to the right and turned into the parking lot. "Home sweet home Babes."

Lydia snarled and slid lower in the seat. "Don't get out! Quick, let's g-"

"Like look girls: Gothy and the Beast. Like, I can't tell which one is more hideous."

Lydia threw her door open and hauled herself from the seat, stumbling slightly as she overthrew her balance. BJ was at her side in a flash, one hand holding her wrist, the other on her back. He sent Claire a feral, toothy grin. "Hey Skankster! Miss us?" He let go of Lydia and sidled up to Claire, throwing an arm around her shoulders. Grinning from ear to ear as she screeched in horror and tried to push him away, he leaned close to her ear. "I heard ya gave my Babes a hard time a few weeks ago." He whispered. His nails dug into her shoulder, making her squeal and jump again. "She just got outta the hospital. Don't make me hurt you." He made a hacking sound, pooling up a good glob of saliva before he stuck his tongue out and licked her from chin to hairline, leaving an oozing line of thick, greenish slobber.

Claire screamed and kicked him in the shin, shoving him away from her as hard as she could. Betel rolled his eyes and haucked the loogie in a nearby bush before returning to Lydia's side and wrapping his arm around her waist. Lydia smiled up at him before dropping her cheek to his shoulder. "Thanks Beej."

Betel snorted. "Eh. The bitch needed ta be rattled a bit." He shook his head and made a disgusted face. "Blegh. She definitely tasted like a skankster." Lifted his arm and ran his tongue up and down it a few times, ignoring Lydia's disgusted giggles before turning and planting a wet kiss on her cheek. "You taste a helluva lot better Babes."

"I would hope so." She winced as they reached the stairs, putting one hand on the bottom of her stomach. "This is gonna get real old, real fast."

***So I know that song isn't from the nineties. But I was listening to it when I was trying to write that scene, so there you go.

OMG! Another update. And we seriously don't have many more to go. Maybe five. Maybe more depending on how long I drag things out.

Prats 'R' Us: Except really… he hasn't. Think about it. o.0 Now he has no choice but to stalk her and her offspring. I like writing for Vince. It's hard though, to imagine a Vince that has to be something other than a depressive little twit. And oh, their relationship shall be fun.