Here is chapter 4 as promised! Review please!
This chapter has been updated! Spelling and grammar have been improved as well as punctuation. Also, there are added bits that were not there before! It may be wise to re-read this chapter if you wish to pick up on some extra stuff! Thank you!
Spencers13 2001-2002
PG-13 — Sci-Fi/Fantasy — Action Drama
Story concept, Endri & Kyle © Spencers13
Chapter Four - Secret Agents
Real World
Peaceful Pines, Connecticut
Late Afternoon
The streets of the quaint little town of Peaceful Pines usually had few travelers. Everyone knew everyone. Everyone knew what every little shop along the main street contained. It was a wonder the little businesses stayed open considering they rarely had any patrons. There was just not much to do and look at.
"How boring," Kyle commented. His partner only hummed in reply. "So, where should we start looking?"
The two men walked slowly along the main street of the town, both carrying large duffel bags containing their myriad of technical equipment. To the few passersby, they looked quite odd. Kyle and his partner both wore long black trench coats. Where Kyle had snow white, spiked-up hair and wore a blue button-up shirt with gray cargo pants, his partner had long pale-blonde hair that cascaded past his shoulders to the bottoms of his shoulder blades and wore a white cotton shirt with his blue jeans and leather pouches still buckled to his thighs.
"Put your glasses on and look over there," the man said, indicating northeast. He was already sporting a pair of dark sunglasses partially hidden in his long bangs.
Kyle reached into one of the many pockets on his pants, produced a pair of identical shades and perched them on his nose. He spun on his heel to look in the direction his friend was pointing and pushed a tiny button on the arm of his glasses.
"Whoa" he whispered in awe. His sunglasses, which he mechanically altered with a few microchips, transparent screens and miniature input devices that could pick up invisible waves of energy, conveyed brilliant green waves emanating beyond a groove of trees about two miles up the road. "Look at those Alpha waves! I've never seen anything like it. This has got to be our ticket to the Neitherworld."
"Calm yourself," his partner reprimanded. "We still have to determine if it's what we're looking for. Do you feel like walking?"
Kyle glanced back to the source of the energy waves. "Not really. Where are we gonna get wheels, though?" He looked back to his partner who seemed to be eyeing up a black Jeep parked up the street in front of the town's only bar. "You know, if we steal that, we could get the law after us, and that's something we can't afford right now," he pointed out.
The blonde nodded. "I know, but when would you ever pass up the excitement?"
Kyle grinned. "You know me too well. It's almost scary."
"Let's go."
The two men piled their duffel bags into the back of the Jeep and climbed into the front seats, thanking the small town for its low crime rate. The doors were unlocked. Kyle reached up under the dashboard on the driver's side and twisted several wires together. The engine roared to life and they peeled away from the curb heading for the wooded highway in front of them.
A middle-aged, balding man staggered from the bar searching through his ring of keys closely. He looked up, ready to put his key into the door of his vehicle, only to find it missing. He scratched his head in confusion and dazedly searched around for it, looking under pieces of stray paper lying on the sidewalk.
Ding-Dong!
"I'll get it!" Delia Deetz called to no one in particular. Charles had gone out to the art store at the Mondo Mall on an errand for her, and Lydia was up in her room.
Delia's brow furrowed. Lydia came home to visit, but all she does is stay in her room. That poor girl is too depressed. She needs to get out into the open and do something besides brood. She reached the front door and opened it. "Oh goodness" she said quietly, staring at the two strange men on her doorstep. "May I help you, gentlemen?"
The tall blonde man stepped forward, flashing her his wallet with a badge and ID inside. "Yes, Ma'am. This is Special Agent Bennington, and I am Special Agent Endri. We have been receiving reports of unusual activity in this area. Have you noticed anything out of the ordinary?"
"Oh, my! No, I haven't seen anything," Delia said a bit frightened. "What has been going on? I'm always the last to know these kinds of things."
"I am afraid that's classified information, Ma'am," Endri said coolly. "May we come inside and have a look around?"
"Of course!" she piped. "I don't think you'll find anything, though. I haven't seen anything different lately."
Kyle stepped inside, closely following Endri. "We'll decide that for ourselves, Ma'am."
The two men proceeded to walk slowly through each downstairs room. The waves of energy were so strong inside the house, that they couldn't tell exactly where they were emanating. Delia stood in the doorway of each room watching them move systematically from front to back. Every so often, they would glance at each other shaking their heads.
Endri stood next to the fireplace in the living room, frustration drawing his pale lips into a thin line. He knew it was here somewhere. However, if he knew it was here, then it must know they were there as well. If only he could get away from that woman's prying eyes, he could search more thoroughly.
He glanced up into the mirror above the fireplace and froze. A thin, pale face haloed by shoulder-length, raven-black hair stared back at him from around the corner in the kitchen. Endri spun on his heel causing his coat to flare out and watched as the girl's face disappeared around the corner. He listened carefully and noticed light footfalls ascending the stairs to the second floor he saw earlier.
Endri turned to Delia calmly. "May I look around upstairs, Ma'am?"
"Oh, yes," she agreed quickly and stepped forward a few paces. To deny them access to anything would warrant suspicion on her part. Even though she had nothing to hide, she still felt the need to cooperate with the handsome government men. Perhaps she could show the muscular blonde her bedroom
Endri looked over to his partner and nodded almost imperceptibly. Kyle returned the slight nod and turned to Delia. "So, what can you tell me about this house? Has it had any history of strange occurrences?" he asked, distracting Delia long enough for Endri to slip away unnoticed.
He climbed the stairs without making a sound, which was odd considering his coat should at least swish against his pants. Nevertheless, no sound emanated from him as he walked into each open room on the second floor, coming at last to Lydia's closed door.
Endri knocked quietly, thinking maybe the girl he saw actually lived here and wasn't what he was looking for. Better safe than sorry. A soft click sounded from the knob and the door opened a crack. That same face he saw in the mirror appeared in the small opening.
"Yes?" she asked, already suspicious of the dark-clad intruder.
"Hello, I am Special Agent Endri. My partner and I are in the area investigating unusual activity. Have you noticed anything out of the ordinary?"
Lydia glanced from side to side up and down the hallway. "No, just you. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm busy."
The door slammed in his face. His forehead wrinkled, and his lips pursed with anger. "I have no time for this" he mumbled, his teeth grinding together. She's hiding something. I feel it. And this door will not block me. His hand flew to the knob and tried to turn it. Locked. However, instead of fury crossing his pursed lips, a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. He turned the knob again, this time not ceasing in his attempt. The old door knob creaked and groaned, and finally, a sharp ping sounded as the locking mechanism twisted and shredded apart. He flung the door open and stepped swiftly into the room.
"Just what in the hell do you think you're doing?!" Lydia practically screamed.
Endri simply stared at her from behind his dark glasses. "My job," he said, his voice bearing no tone. He went about the room, opening her closet and shuffling through her clothes, checking in dresser drawers, looking behind furniture and anything else he could think of. His physical searches turned up nothing, but his visual searches were undoubtedly in the right direction.
In his glasses, he saw it. It floated about the room and seemed to regard him with the same curiosity he felt for it. Endri wasn't surprised that the invisible entity was in human form, but that was all he could discern. It was only a two-dimensional outline filled in with the most intense energy waves his glasses had picked up so far, obviously making it the source. At length, he stopped his fake searching altogether and simply stared at it across the room. It seemed to be leaning in the corner.
Lydia was becoming more nervous as the seconds progressed. "What are you looking at?" she asked suspiciously.
Endri whirled on her. "Something I suspect you are involved with." He grabbed her arm and held her in the strongest grip she had ever felt. "I believe you have some information I require."
She yelped in surprise as well as pain, trying desperately to pull away. Instantly, Endri was struck from behind, and he stumbled to the side, releasing Lydia. He turned slowly, and, even though his eyes were hidden behind the shades, his scowl was evident as he glared at the invisible figure which had moved from the corner and stood close by her.
"You caught me off guard once no more," he said to the empty space next to her, coldly.
Delia bounded into the room closely followed by Kyle. "What's going on in here?" she demanded.
Endri leaned against Lydia's mirrored dresser nonchalantly. "Just wrapping up everything. Let's go, Kyle, before we overstay our welcome." Kyle nodded, perplexed, but turned to leave anyway. "Thank you for your hospitality, Ma'am. You've actually helped us a great deal," Endri commented to Delia before gently shaking her hand. "We'll let ourselves out. Thank you again." He left the room, following his partner.
Delia turned to Lydia after she heard the front door close. "Weren't those two nice? So polite and handsome!"
Lydia scowled. "Do not let them back in the house, Delia. I don't trust them."
"Nonsense," she waved her hand as if to brush off Lydia's comment, "They were nice men from the government. They have every right to go where they please. Our tax-dollars are paying their salaries so they can keep our country safe. If they need in the house to check for anything, it's obviously for a good reason." She clapped her hands together happily. "Oh! This is so exciting and inspirational! I'll be in my studio creating."
Delia skipped out of Lydia's room, leaving her step-daughter to roll her eyes in annoyance.
Kyle drove away from the Deetz house slowly. As soon as they were out of sight, he pulled off to the side of the road and behind some bushes. The two men sat in silence for a moment in the ever-dimming daylight. The sun had almost set completely by now, and it would be dark within minutes. The trees surrounding them cast tall shadows across the road, giving it the appearance of a long, striped snake.
"What's your take on that place?" Endri asked suddenly, breaking the dark silence.
Kyle licked his lips as he thought. He drummed his fingers against the steering wheel of their stolen vehicle, unsure how to proceed. "Well it's definitely putting out the strongest Alpha waves I've ever seen in my whole career. But there was no source that I could see. I'm guessing it was the house itself, and since it's so big, that's why the waves are as potent as they are. But those people couldn't live in a phantom home, so that one is out the window right away. The woman seems clueless," he sighed, rubbing his temples. "I don't think anything phases her, to tell you the truth. She's so damn pushy! After you left to go upstairs, she had me critique her art ugh" he shivered.
"What about that girl?"
Kyle shrugged. "Didn't have enough time to check her out. She looked scared and mad all at once. What did you do? Freak her out in all your subtle ways?"
"Funny," Endri said, but no amusement reflected in his voice. "Why did you take your glasses off?"
Kyle rolled his eyes. "That woman. 'You can't see my work properly if you wear those dark things. Take them off,'" he mimicked Delia in a high-pitched voice.
"You didn't see what I saw, then," Endri replied, taking no humor from his partner's comment.
Kyle finally turned to face him. "You saw it?! It was there?!"
"Felt it too," he said rubbing at his shoulder. "It's power is unbelievable. I grabbed the girl and tried to get her to talk, then it attacked me."
Kyle snickered. "That's your problem. You're too pushy with women. Now, if you were more like me: suave, sexy, a real gentleman I'm sure you'll have more luck with the ladies."
Endri decided to ignore his friend's comment. "I think she knows. She seemed to be very nervous like she was hiding something she didn't want me to find."
"You don't think she knows about us, do you? That we're not really from the government?"
"Don't be naïve. I'm talking about the ghost. The girl may even be protecting it," Endri paused, lost in thought. "We need to get her alone on our terms. I'd like to ask her some questions." He paused, again in thought. "Hmm we should also stakeout the house. The woods surrounding it should provide adequate cover. You go rent a room for us at the local inn while I surveillance the house for now. I have a feeling" he drifted off as he dug around one of their duffel bags in the back seat, producing a pair of headphones and a receiver.
Kyle grinned. "You bugged the room. Nice."
"I'm a lot more sly than you may sometimes think, my friend. Now get going. I'm not sure when I'll be back."
"Okay, I know how you get when you have a 'feeling'. Take it easy, we've never dealt with anything quite like this."
Endri jumped out of the passenger side of the jeep and clunked the door shut. "Don't worry about me, you just worry about setting up your equipment in the room," he said through the open window. He turned and walked off back toward the house.
Kyle put the jeep in reverse and backed it out from the bushes, then took off toward town.
This venture was certainly turning out to be quite interesting.
"Who were those guys, Babes?" Beetlejuice asked, his form materializing next to Lydia's.
She walked over to her door and slammed it shut, taking some time, then, to examine her broken lock. "I don't know," she said, attempting to lock the door then turn the knob. It opened repeatedly. Her lock was ruined. "The guy said they were from the government," she scowled.
"What were they here for?"
"The 'Special Agents'," Lydia said, flexing the first two fingers on each hand imitating quotation marks, "said they were looking for unusual activity in the house."
Beetlejuice drifted up into the air and floated leisurely above her mattress. "Unusual? Hah! Boy, did they come to the right place!"
Lydia plopped down on the bedspread below him and leaned back on her elbows. "Yes, and that's what has me so scared. What if they know you're here?"
Outside, the wind rustled the leaves of the large oak tree that grew next to Lydia's balcony. A dark figure perched among the branches, but stayed still in the breeze. Only his long hair and coat flowed amidst the leaves. He sat and listened and watched.
"So what?" Beetlejuice's voice, picked up by the tiny microphone hidden under the lip of Lydia's dresser, rang clear in Endri's headphones. "They can't do anything to me. And if they try, I'll just 'juice' em."
"It's not as simple as that, Beej," came Lydia's melodic voice. "They probably have special weapons and traps. Devices that could hurt you or worse. You know how government types can be. I think we should lay low for a while."
"And the best place to do that is the Neitherworld, Babes. So let's take off."
Endri held his breath. The Neitherworld! I knew it! Somehow, I need to get them both for a little discussion. This may be trickier than I thought.
The conversation in the room, though, was not finished, so he opted to continue eavesdropping. Maybe they would say something else of value. Like how to get there.
"I can't, BJ. I promised my parents a visit. I can't just leave now. I've already been gone one day and spent almost all day in my room today. I owe them."
"But Lyds," Beetlejuice protested. He floated down from above and sat beside her on the bed, "I don't wanna leave you."
Lydia smiled up into his swirling green eyes, feeling as if she could just collapse against him and forget everything. "Then stay, Beetlejuice. I could never ask you to leave. Not now."
Beetlejuice felt the uncontrollable need to blush and did so.
"Thank you."
"For what?" he asked.
"For saving me from that creep. What did you do? Punch him?"
He snickered. "More of a 'whack' than anything. And he better've learned his lesson No one messes with my friends." He hooked her small chin between his fingers and lifted it slightly, "'Specially you, Babes."
Lydia smiled, but it faded quickly. "I really think he knew you were here, BJ. He was watching the room like he was looking at you. He even spoke to you after you hit him. I could tell he wasn't looking at me when he talked."
Beetlejuice sighed. "You're right, Lyds. I kept moving around to see if he really was looking at me, and everywhere I went, he followed. I don't know how he could see me though. I was invisible." He fell back to the comforter and crossed his hands behind his head, staring up to the underside of the canopy.
Suddenly, he lost himself. His thoughts tumbled around his head endlessly, and he felt like he was on spin cycle in a washing machine. Visuals drifted past his closed eyes, all of them Lydia. He wished at times he didn't feel the way he did now about her.
And how do you feel about her? his mind asked.
Beetlejuice could not answer.
Oh, come-on. I know all about these fantasies you've been having, his mind taunted. I know what your heart's been whispering.
She's Human alive, he retorted to himself.
What does that have to do with anything? You know what conquers all. And you can't deny the way she looks at you sometimes.
She just missed me, that's all. We've been apart for over nine years.
The perfect set of circumstances to make two people realize how much they cared about each other.
Beetlejuice opened his eyes and blinked. It was true. Being apart from her for so long made him realize that he truly cared more for her than mere friends. But it was still Lydia. He felt so guilty for thinking of her in any way other than friends. The memory of her as a teenager was still fresh in his mind.
Lydia's grown face floated above his gaze and smiled down at him. "You're quiet all of a sudden, Beetlejuice. What are you thinking of?"
"Oh-uh n-nothing." He bit his lip. "Just letting my mind wander" to you.
Lydia's eyes lowered, and a look of disappointment flashed across her features. "Oh, okay," she mumbled, then her face slipped from his sight. She drew her knees up and cuddled against them.
Beetlejuice sat up and rested his hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong, Babes?" She simply shook her head. "You mad or somethin'?"
"Why should I be?" she shrugged.
His hand slipped from her shoulder. "I don't know"
A few seconds of awkward silence floated between them.
"So-uh since you're staying, I'd like it if you toned down your powers a bit. Don't do anything to draw attention to yourself," she said, changing the subject.
Beetlejuice drifted off of the bed a few inches. "Can I still float?" he grinned.
Lydia giggled. "Sorry, no." He fell back to the mattress making her bounce. "You require your powers to float. As long as you aren't using them for anything, they'll stay low, right?"
"Uh, huh," he yawned.
She laughed once more and slid off of the bed. "I think it's time for bed. Why don't you change while I brush my teeth?" She dug around the top shelf of her closet, pulling out a small bundle of fabric. "You'll stay in here with me again. I still don't want Delia and Father knowing you're back."
Beetlejuice gripped the covers tightly at his sides. "You sure you don't mind me staying with you? I mean, I still think the floor is just fine"
"Nonsense," Lydia said, tossing him a pair of white pajamas. "Here. I know these aren't your favorite beetle pajamas, but they'll do for now. I took the liberty of swiping those from father earlier today. I had a feeling you'd be staying with me again." She winked at him.
He blushed, as he had begun making it a habit within the last two days. "Thanks, Babes."
Lydia winked once more at him before leaving the room to brush her teeth.
Beetlejuice took the time she was gone to collect himself. He changed quickly into the plain white pajamas she gave him, then took to pacing the length of the room. His thoughts tumbled through his head once more.
She's beautiful.
"She's Human!"
You want her.
"No! It isn't right. She's my friend. She's alive."
She wants you.
"That's ridiculous! No, she doesn't."
Make her yours.
"I can't." Beetlejuice halted in his tracks as light footfalls reached his ears from the hallway.
She's coming back. Take advantage of your time alone together.
He closed his eyes, willing his tormenting mind to be silent. The door creaked open, and Lydia stepped into the room wearing a thigh-length, dark-grey nightgown. It buttoned up the front, loosely holding her frail frame in its folds. It's long sleeves dangled down into points level with the hem of the revealing nightdress.
Beetlejuice gulped.
"Ready for bed?" she asked, oblivious to his sudden unease.
"Uh yeah. S-Sure, Babes," he stuttered.
They both climbed into Lydia's queen-sized canopy bed. She clicked her bedside lamp off and snuggled down into the sheets while Beetlejuice struggled to get comfortable. He finally settled and closed his eyes, begging that sleep take him over before his thoughts when an almost imperceptible tremor emanated from the space at his back.
"Lyds?" Beetlejuice rolled onto his back and turned his head to face her, but her back was pointed toward him. "You okay?"
She stayed still. "Sorry, Beej. I'm a little cold, I guess."
That little voice in Beetlejuice's mind ran down his back and tickled at the base of his spine. Now Do it She wants it He hesitated only a fraction of a second, then rolled over completely, curling his arm around her midsection and pulling her back into the curve of his chest.
"Beetlejuice?" came her voice. She didn't seem angry, only curious, and he was happy for that.
"I know I'm not the warmest thing in the world, Babes, but at least I can insulate you," he grinned into the back of her hair.
Lydia giggled. "Thanks, Beej. Actually, I rather like this."
"Me too," he whispered before placing an indiscernible kiss into her hair. "'Night, Lydia."
"Goodnight, Beetlejuice."
Silence issued through Endri's headphones. Quietly, he leapt from his perch in Lydia's old oak tree and landed in the grass below on all fours. He walked slowly back toward town, deep in thought.
The ghost's name was Beetlejuice, and he seemed to be at war with himself. He and the girl, Lydia, appeared to either be together or would be soon. The fake secret agent chuckled to himself at the absurd thought. His light mood fell immediately, however, as something seemed to strike a chord in him. Shaking his head, he directed his thoughts back to the task at hand.
Beetlejuice and Lydia could apparently travel back and forth to the Neitherworld at their leisure. How? He didn't know. He needed both of them together to answer some questions, but capturing a ghost was something he had never tried to tackle before. Perhaps his partner, Kyle, would have some device in his extensive collection of electronic goodies that would aid them.
By the time Endri reached town, he was at a steady jog.
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Uh oh! Trouble's brewin'! Like I said before, review and let me know what you think of not only these 2 new guys, but the whole plot so far. Thanks so much for your reviews so far! *hugs you all*