Spencers13 1996 — Revised 2001
Beta Reader — Beetle Babe
Beetlejuice & all related charcters © Geffen Film Co.
Story concept & any original characters © Spencers13 (Lacey G)
R — Romance — Drama
Chapter 4 - I've finally foundmyself?
Beetlejuice slowly walked along Winter River Road heading back toward Lydia's house. As he glanced half-heartedly about his surroundings, he wondered why he never spent more time here in the real world. Despite his usual taste for the disgusting and macabre, he found the quaint little highway and thick forests charming. At length, he stopped and gazed into the forest alongside the road. When was the last time he had gone walking in real world woods?
When me and Lyds took Burp and Prune on a camping trip, he answered his own question. But only then, and they did not stay in the trees long. Lydia had transported them all to the Neitherwoods for the night. Beetlejuice thought that they would just have a few laughs and then go home when the trip was over. But a sandworm had attacked the next morning and it was Lydia who distracted it long enough for Prudence and Bertha to get rid of the beast. That was one of countless times Lydia had saved him from not only sandworms, but everything in general. And when had he ever returned the favor? When had he stuck his neck out for her? Beetlejuice raised his hand in front of his face and counted on his fingers the times he'd done something as giving as she always had.
He never made it past his right hand.
His sadness overwhelming him once more, Beetlejuice plunged his hands into his pockets and stepped off the highway and into the forest.
Something gotta do somethin' for Lyds something, his thoughts tumbled through his head as effectively as sagebrush in the Nevada desert. He just could not think. He was too worried about her to think clearly. The change in scenery was an agreeable distraction, though, and he let himself wander for the moment.
He could not tell just how long he had been walking. Perhaps minutes. Perhaps hours. Time seemed to slow around him. Beetlejuice glanced around the thick timbers, confused. Something was amiss. He chance spotted a leaf break loose and fall from a branch not far ahead of him. The leaf fell elegantly inch by inch before his gaze, and eventually slowed its decent to a crawl! Time had slowed down!
Beetlejuice suddenly heard a roaring sound in his ears. It sounded like voices raised in battle, but he could not make out any words. He whipped his head around in circles searching for the source of the sound, but could see nothing but the towering trees and green foliage at their bases. Out of nowhere, Beetlejuice grabbed his chest as he felt an intense pain pierce it. He fell to his knees gasping.
What's going on! I there there's something here There's something here! he thought as he crawled on his hands and knees toward some underbrush beneath a gnarled, dead tree.
Here! Here! his mind screamed at him to clear the brush away. With shaking hands, Beetlejuice pulled away sticks and leaves from where his mind forced him to. At length, he uncovered an extremely weathered rock sticking out of the forest floor. As soon as his eyes rested upon the stone's surface, the voices, the shouting, the pain in his chest all vanished, leaving only emptiness and silence in their wake. Beetlejuice was shaken beyond belief.
"I I know this," he whispered out loud, tracing his fingers along the stone's rough surface. Even though the inscribed words were long since weathered away, he read them like they were just carved yesterday. "Nikulás the Defender. Born 1290, Died 1317. Defended our village bravely, died with honour. Look not for the morrow, look for the now. Rest in peace, dear friend.'"
Only after he had read it, did he realize it was another language.
"This this was me! I remember I defended my village when invaders came to sac it I died defending them"
In an instant, rage boiled hotly within himself and he began to shout at the ancient grave. "Why did you have to live so long ago! Why couldn't you have lived now? When Lydia needed you! When when Lydia needed me" And just as quickly, his rage subsided and left unfathomable depression in its place. "Lydia needed me, and I wasn't there for her. I just let that sandworm take her away. It it should have been me instead."
Beetlejuice sat atop his grave for a long while after that, slowly remembering his life and what he had done during it. After a while, his curiosity got the best of him, and he produced a shovel from the thin air and began to dig up the grave.
Hours passed in seconds, and at last Beetlejuice reached his prize. He dug his fingernails under the rotted coffin lid and yanked with all his might. The lid tore off with an ear-piercing screech, and after over 600 years, Beetlejuice finally saw himself.
A skeleton was all that remained of his once handsome features. His bony fingers still clutched a short sword at the hilt, and his skull still adorned a rusting helmet. He was surprised to see strands of wiry blonde hair escaping from within the helmet, and just as shocked to see that much of his leather tunic and boots seemed to be in good shape considering their age.
He wished Lydia were here on such a momentous occasion. The very thought of her possibly ending up as he did, a skeleton in a forgotten box, choked him up all the more. Trying to concentrate on the moment at hand, he reached into the coffin and gently unwrapped the skeleton's fingers from the sword and lifted it out. Although his body and much of his clothing were ravaged by time, the sword seemed to have escaped time's grasp unscathed. Beetlejuice examined the short sword's intricate carvings closely, and when his eyes at last reached the hilt, approvingly. The handle was rounded so it could be held easily in the hand, and the pattern that adorned it was unmistakable. Stripes. Stripes made of ebony and ivory still shone with stunning resilience.
Beetlejuice bit his lip, Well, it is mine, I suppose. I'll give it to Lydia if she gets better.
Bidding a fond good-bye to his remains, Beetlejuice picked up the lid and was about to replace it, when something else caught his eye. A tattered leather bag sat between the bottom of his feet and the coffin wall. He reached in and picked it up as well. Since he was standing in the grave, he turned and used the forest floor as a make-shift, shoulder-high table top and dumped the sack's contents onto the ground.
Beetlejuice could not help but gasp. Jewelry, gold, silver, diamonds, and coins poured endlessly from the leather bag. He stopped emptying the sack's contents halfway and still had a pile that would make him richer than his wildest dreams!
This this unbelievable! Completely unbelievable! Where did I ever get all this? his mind gasped. Suddenly, he remembered something. A tradition among his village among the Vikings! Yes! He remembered it all now. Everything from his life, he now remembered with vivid detail. When a person well loved died, he was buried with money and jewels as a gift for his afterlife.
"Boy," Beetlejuice murmured, "Who says you can't take it with ya?" He gently placed the riches back in the bag and tied it shut again. After thoroughly searching the coffin for the last time, he said good-bye to himself again and replaced the lid. He took his time shoveling the dirt back into his old grave, fondly remembering the days of his past.
When at last he patted the soil down flat with the shovel, he noticed that it had gotten very dark. Grabbing up his sack of gems and money and his sword, he prepared himself for the walk back to Lydia's house. He noticed that time had seemed to be running at its normal pace again.
Strange, he thought, why did time slow down? Was it just so that I could find myself? Or is there something more? He paused his mind for a moment, examining a tree with someone's name carved into it. Oh, well. I'm sure I'll figure it out sometime Just then, Beetlejuice happened to glance up, and through the trees he saw the distinct silhouette of Lydia's house. Grateful he did not have to walk much farther, he trotted out of the tree line and up to the front door.
He tried the knob. Locked. But it did not bother him much. His fingertip morphed into a skeleton key, and he inserted it into the lock. The door opened with a satisfying click, and he stepped into the dark house then lumbered up the stairs to Lydia's room.
"Chuck and Delia must not be home yet," he mused aloud. He gently placed his sword and leather bag under Lydia's bed for safekeeping then collapsed on top of the sheets exhausted.
Beetlejuice took hold of Lydia's pillow and held it before his eyes while he gently stroked its edges with his thumbs. He brought it to his lips and kissed it tenderly and breathed in her lingering scent. But it did not bring him much comfort, for he was only reminded of her lingering absence. He wished he was in the hospital holding that delicate hand of hers, but Delia would have none of that. Juicing that irritating woman would bring no comfort either. He would just feel guilty for that too.
And what of Lydia? What could he do for her? Beetlejuice pictured her lying in that cold hospital bed, possibly dying, and he gritted his teeth against a flurry of fresh tears. No one had ever made him feel this way before. Why Lydia? He knew the answer to that question, but he dare not utter it now. Words with such meaning should not be wasted on an empty room. Such words should only be uttered to those who bring them about. And it was only Lydia's ears who would hear them.
Beetlejuice held her pillow against himself and cuddled into its warmth, wishing it were her and praying for her life. As he thought of her and the days events, sleep finally took it's hold, and he drifted off.
Beetlejuice was suddenly jolted awake. He glanced over at Lydia's clock. 2:45 in the morning. He was about to shut his eyes again, when he heard someone pounding up the stairs.
"Beetleman!" Charles called from beyond the door. It swung open, and he rushed into the room. "There you are! I've been looking everywhere!" he said out of breath.
Beetlejuice sat straight up, immediately shaking off his sleepiness. "What's wrong, Chuck?"
Charles took a moment to catch his breath. His eyes were red and bloodshot, and he looked as if he'd been crying. After finally composing himself, he still looked as if he would begin crying all over again.
"It-it's Lydia! She's" and he lost his composure completely. "Oh, God, Beetleman! She's slipping away! They can't do anything else for her! She's my only child! What am I going to do!"
Beetlejuice closed his eyes against the pain. Lydia my Lydia is dying. Dying before her time. NO His eyes flew open, filled with certainty at last. He would not let her leave this world without a fight. He put his arm across Charles' shoulders. "We gotta get there, quick! Hold on." He squeezed his eyes shut and a flash enveloped them, and instantly they were standing in Lydia's room at the hospital.
Delia looked up from Lydia's bedside and gasped when they appeared. Beetlejuice rushed over and pulled Delia out of the way.
"Lydia?" he said to the inert form on the bed, completely ignoring Delia's protests. "Lyds, please don't do this to me. Open your eyes!"
Upon the sound of his voice, the EKG machine that measured Lydia's heartbeat began to blip a fraction faster. Her eyes slowly fluttered, then opened.
"Bee Jay?" she whispered, her voice devoid of all life.
"It's me," he whispered back, leaning closer over her. "How are you feeling?"
"I I feel lightheaded so sleepy" came her empty reply. Her eyes began to drift shut.
"Lyds!" Beetlejuice raised his voice. "Don't go to sleep, please."
She smiled wanly at him. "Don't worry, BJ I'll see you soon, right? I'll see you in the Neitherworld soon" Her eyelids began to droop again.
"Lydia! Stop, please! Don't talk like that."
Her eyes shot open as he yelled at her.
"I'd rather see you here in the real world, Babes. You're so beautiful the way you are, alive."
Her eyes widened. "Re-really? B-beautiful?"
"Oh, yes," he whispered, touching her cheek gently. Her EKG machine blipped a bit faster.
Lydia whispered, "I I always hoped you would think me beautiful Beej."
"I do, Lydia. Oh, God, you don't know how much I-"
Lydia suddenly inhaled sharply, and her eyes spun uncontrollably about the room.
"I" she gasped, "I should gasp send you back gasp to the Neitherworld gasp before gasp before I"
Beetlejuice thrust his hand under her head and forced her to look at him. "Don't you do this to me, Babes! I'll never forgive you if you-"
"B-Beetlejuice" she gasped as the EKG machine began to beep wildly.
"Lydia, please, stop it!"
"Beetle juice"
"Please!" he begged of her, tears sliding down his face.
"Beetle-"
"NO!"
What happened next was unbelievable to Charles and Delia. They had been standing at the end of Lydia's bed, watching a ghost plead with their daughter to stay alive, and too riddled with emotions to interject.
Beetlejuice did the only thing he could think of to silence Lydia's call of his name; he pressed his lips firmly against hers.
Delia became enraged and started for them, determined to pull Beetlejuice away from her dying step-daughter, but was stopped by a rough hand on her arm. Charles held on to her tightly and stared at the pair with their lips sealed together.
"Delia, wait! Something is" Charles was silenced by a bright flash of lightning and deafening boom of thunder outside. A wind seemed to pick up within the room. It scooped up some loose papers sitting on the bedside dresser and spun them about the room as if caught in a hurricane. Beetlejuice and Lydia's hair seemed to be caught up in the breeze as well and whipped wildly about their faces.
Charles and Delia stood against the far wall, untouched by the wild winds encircling the pair.
More thunder boomed outside as the whirl wind picked up and spun even faster. Lydia's eyes shot open suddenly as did Beetlejuice's. Both sets of eyes glowed a brilliant white drowning out the colour of their irises.
Suddenly, Lydia's eyes flew shut while her body arched up into the air, and the fingers on her right hand dug into the mattress. Beetlejuice's eyes squeezed shut as well, and he pressed his lips more firmly to hers.
Then, in an instant, the storm passed, the wind ceased its whirling and everything returned to normal.
Beetlejuice lifted his head slightly, breaking their contact, and opened his eyes. "Lydia?"
At the sound of his voice, she opened her eyes and blinked at him. She felt newly energized and alive. The pain and numbness that had pulsed through her body before was now gone.
"BJ?" she whispered, her voice full of life once more.
Beetlejuice gazed down at her and smiled warmly. "Lyds" Without warning, his eyes rolled up into his head, and he slipped away from her, falling in a heap on the floor.
"Beej!" she shouted, leaning over the edge of the bed.
Charles finally found his feet and trotted over to Lydia, leaving Delia standing by herself in disbelief. That ghost that she so hated had just saved her step-daughter's life, and suddenly, she felt guilty for everything she had done to him. It was clear to her now how much this man felt for Lydia. And she could no longer deny him permission to see her For now, she thought.
Charles put his hand on Lydia's shoulder. "Pumpkin? Are you alright? What happened?"
"Dad! I'm fine. Beetlejuice he did something! I don't know, but now he's in trouble!" she said fearfully, trying to scramble out of bed.
"I'll get help," Charles said, turning.
"No, dad!" Lydia yelled, stopping him. "He's dead, remember? If you get doctors in here, we'll be in more trouble than if we didn't help him!"
Charles nodded. "Of course, Pumpkin, but what can we do?"
Lydia stared at Beetlejuice's inert body on the floor, and an idea sparked in her mind. "Take Delia and leave the room for a while. I have a feeling that whatever happened to him has to do with me alone."
Charles began to protest, "But, Lydia, what if Beetleman needs more than just your help? We should be here if-"
"Dad," she smiled, "Don't worry. He's dead. How much worse off can he get? He probably just passed out or something, okay?"
Charles almost laughed. "You're right, Pumpkin." He turned to Delia and took her in his arms. "Let's go, Dear, they need to be alone for now."
For once, Delia did not argue, but she did stop for a moment and turned to Lydia. "Tell him I said thank you."
Lydia's smile broadened. "I will." And they were gone, shutting the door behind them.
With great difficulty, Lydia struggled out of her bed and slid down next to Beetlejuice. Her stiff casts made movement a challenge as did a lingering soreness in her chest and back. When she at last situated herself lying prone on the floor beside him, she whispered into his ear.
"BJ? BJ wake up. Please, Beej, open your eyes."
He lay there, still unmoving.
Lydia tried to work things out in her mind instead of loosing herself with worry. He must have given me all of his energy. That's why he's unconscious; he's drained. Her eyes traced his pale face as an idea formed. Maybe maybe I can give some of his energy back if I kiss him again? It's definitely worth a try
She shifted her body to lay partly on his chest and gently caressed his cheek with the backs of her fingers. Leaning in slowly, she again came in contact with his lips and kissed him deeply.
With each passing minute, she became more disheartened, but refused to release him from her embrace.
After some time, Beetlejuice stirred, and his eyes flew open in surprise. Kissing me! She's kissing me! She's all right! What happened? He was almost too shocked to move, however he was not going to let a moment like this simply pass by. His hands slowly reached up and slid tenderly along her arms and up her bandaged back. It was Lydia's turn to open her eyes in surprise, but closed them immediately as he began to kiss her back lovingly.
They lay on the floor thus, kissing and gently caressing each other's faces until a knock sounded on the door.
Breaking their embrace simultaneously, they glanced over at the door then just as quickly back into each other's eyes.
"BJ," Lydia whispered.
"Shhh not now, Babes. Here," Beetlejuice whispered back as he picked her up in his arms and settled her back in bed. He covered her shivering body back up with the hospital's soft blankets and pulled a chair next to her bedside then plopped down into it.
He took hold of her trembling fingers just as she called, "Come in!"
The door creaked open and Charles poked his head into the room. "Lydia?" Seeing her in bed with Beetlejuice in the chair next to her, brought a great sense of relief, and he stepped fully into the room. "You alright, Beetleman?"
Beetlejuice smiled at Lydia. "I am now."
Now that I read back over this, I find it to be so lame. :P Haha! Oh, well, I just hope everyone's enjoying my old fic.
Thank you for reading, folks!
Next to come...finding another.