I wanted to think up something really fancy for this disclaimer… But for once, I'll keep it simple. Beetlejuice is not mine. Though I would like him to be. Though I would swim an ocean, or cross a desert, if I could have him. If he is by any chance, for sale for that price Mr. Burton, contact me. Until then… This is fan fiction, and making me no money… or beetles.

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Okay, I expected this to be a one-shot… But heck, it looks like I was wrong. It might be a two shot, maybe a three-shot. And I still have two more Halloween ones I want to write, on two more of my AU's, before Halloween! Can you say, no more free time? I knew you could…

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Lydia was furious with herself, and currently taking her frustration out on the length of fabric lain carelessly across her desk. She had three days to finish her costume… Three days! What was worse of course, was that she hadn't heard from Vincent in all this time. Not so much as a peek in her mirror. And as hard as she tried, she couldn't reach him, the way she had Ginger. Maybe because he wasn't in front of a mirror himself, when she tried?

She accidentally snapped the thread, again, and her head slumped in something remarkably like defeat. Her first dance, actually having a boyfriend to go with… A Halloween Dance, no less… And it hadn't occurred to her to invite him. She had to be the dumbest girl in the living world.

A sigh escaped her lips, as she reached for her spool, trying to figure out how to salvage her last few stitches. "I need his telephone number…" She muttered to herself, holding part of the fabric back with her teeth, as she tried to make an unnoticeable knot. Did the Neitherworld even have telephones? She needed to pay more attention to these things.

"Hey, babes, guess what?" The words, so out of the blue, made her give out a little shriek, and spin in surprise, to find Beetlejuice standing behind her, wearing a god-awful red tux. "I got the job! Guess we know how this party's gonna go…" He looked as amused with catching her off guard though, as any plans for Halloween.

How it was going to go? Yeah, right… Like anything was predictable with this guy. Lydia's lips drew up in a smile, despite her current frustration. "Absolutely freak-tacular?" She prodded, a somewhat devilish glint to her own eye. "Damn it Beej, I can't wait!" Then, in a thoughtful aside, with just a hint of goading, "Who would have figured you for actually wanting to do real work…?"

"Hey now, babes," He frowned, with an attempt at seriousness, "I'll have you know, bio-exorcism is definitely real work. I mean, you think scaring the living out of their hard earned houses and cash is easy? Fun… Yes. But easy?" There was a heavy sound behind her, as he fell carelessly onto her bed. It made her wince a little… One day he was going to end up breaking it. That would be fun to explain. "You try it sometime."

"I'd love to," She murmured dryly, turning back to her sewing, "Just a few problems with that… One being that I'm still actually alive."

"Ah, you'll get over that." He waved this away like it was nothing. "Anyway, just thought I'd spring the news on you before I get started…" A low cackle filled the air, as already, he was fading from sight. "Now babes, I got some props to start collecting!"

The very idea of Beetlejuice 'collecting props' for a Halloween Dance, made even Lydia a bit uneasy. She frowned, casting a glance at where he'd been only a moment before, and wondered what the private prep school was in for now.

Oh well, it'd probably be fun… She just hoped he didn't kill anyone. At least not anyone she liked.

She wasn't alone for long though, before a soft sound greeted her, like someone clearing their throat to announce their presence. She turned her head sharply this time, certain the sound came from her mirror, and her heart instantly flooded in relief. "Miss Lydia? Are you…?"

"Dressed! Yes!" She hissed, dropping everything, and running to reach through the mirror, actually dragging the poor prince into view. To say that this surprised him would be an understatement… "Vincent, thank god you decided to call me! I've been trying to get a hold of you all week!"

"I- is something wrong, my Lydia?" He asked haltingly, clearly wondering what he was in for now. "Has something happened?"

Lydia released him, slowly, reminding herself that by now, he had every right to expect trouble from her. Even more slowly, she smiled. "Halloween is in three days, Vincent…" She murmured, a small sigh falling from her. "And I forgot to make plans with you. I was afraid that I wouldn't even get to see you, on my favorite holiday!"

"Ah." He immediately looked relieved, which was of course, perfectly understandable. "That is of course why I've tried to reach you myself, dear Lydia… I was wondering how we might spend it, our first Halloween together. I'm not certain about your world, but in the Neitherworld, it is not a day we take lightly… Of course if you wish it, I could simply plan something as a surprise?"

But here he paused, seeing that Lydia was just bursting to say something. "What is it?" He puzzled. "Did you already have something in mind?"

A laugh fell from her, she just couldn't contain it. Relief, excitement, anticipation… "Do you know how the living celebrate?" She prompted, practically bouncing on her toes. Vincent shook his head slowly, clearly not certain what to expect. "We dress up! As anybody, anything… The scarier the better! Don't you get it?" Again, he shook his head.

Lydia made a small sound of impatience with her tongue. "It's the one day of the year that you can come on this side, Vincent, and no one will look at you any different than anyone else!"

Surprise colored the prince's face, and then slowly, unhappiness. "You find me frightening, Lydia?" He murmured slowly, this clearly being the last thing he wanted to hear. "I hadn't realized… I thought perhaps…"

"You?" Lydia's eyebrows went up into her hair, and she cracked a small smile, trying not to blush. "No way, you look great…" And at this, he answered with pretty much the same attempt not to be embarrassed, "Just, not quite human. Er, living, I mean. But on Halloween, no one will notice that." Then she paused, tilting her head in thought, as a belated question finally formed. "I mean, you can make people see you, can't you?"

"Yes, of course!" He seemed to be growing excited too. "The living world, really? I've never visited the living world before… And no one will find my presence strange?" He licked his lips, eyes dark with thought. "And in your world… How would we celebrate, my Lydia?"

"Well…" Lydia drew back from the dresser a little, putting on her slyest face. "There's this dance at our school… There'll be decorations, food, and tons of music. What do you think?"

"A, dance?" She thought he looked a bit disappointed. "But Lydia, we can go to any number of dances in the Neitherworld, any day of the year. Is not Halloween supposed to be special? Should we not celebrate it in some way out of the ordinary?"

Lydia was a little caught off guard, she hadn't expected him to dismiss the idea like that. But then, she supposed that dances were probably pretty routine for a prince… Her disappointment showed on her face, without her making any effort for it to, and Vincent paused, seeing that she really had set her heart on it. "What is it, Lydia? Why is this dance so important?"

"Well, I guess, because I've never been to a dance before… Not with a boy." She couldn't help but feel a little crestfallen. She'd thought he would love the idea! Dancing was how they'd first met, after all.

"Really?" He looked astonished. "Never been to a dance?"

Lydia shook her head, still frowning. "Our school has dances every so often, but no one ever asked me to go with them. And now I have a boyfriend to go with me, and Halloween is actually the one day you can come to a dance with me…" This was followed by a small sigh. "I guess I never thought you wouldn't want to. Sorry."

Vincent looked distraught. "Please do not apologize, my Lydia. I hadn't realized that this meant so much to you! Of course I will accompany you to your dance." She looked up at him dubiously. "No, in fact, I insist! I will be your escort to this dance, and somehow, I will make it an evening to remember!"

"You don't really have to, Vincent," She denied slowly, "I forgot that you must go to dances all the time…"

"Yet you do not, Miss Lydia, and I am the one who should have realized this." He reached through the mirror, and touched her chin lightly, bringing her eyes up more, so that her head was held high. "You shall be enchanting, I am certain of it! And I shall be the envy of every young man there…" At her look of embarrassment, he smiled. "No, I am certain of it! I shall have to fend off your would-be suitors from all sides!"

At this, Lydia couldn't help but laugh, all too aware that his words were anything but true. But for now, she went along with the joke. "And you shall fend them off valiantly!" She teased, making him straighten up a bit, and look pleased, clearly not aware she was kidding. "Oh Vincent, I can't wait for you to meet my friends!"

And here, even the brave prince hesitated. "More, friends, like Beetlejuice?" He pressed slowly.

Lydia just grinned, shaking her head. "Nah, there's only one Beej. I mean Bertha and Prudence, they're gonna get a kick out of meeting you!" He relaxed, just a little, at this reassurance.

"Then, may I meet your parents as well?" He prompted, after a moment more. Now it was Lydia's turn to freeze. "That is, if they too will believe I am living, as you say… Perhaps I can offer some words of reassurance, that may lead to us having their blessing?"

Having their blessing… He made it sound like he was proposing! Lydia eyed him thoughtfully, remembering that he was bending for her, and she should probably do the same for him. "Yes…" She finally murmured, with visible reluctance. "Okay, you can meet them. Just for a few minutes." From the look on his face, he was well aware that he'd scored a victory. "But now, what about a costume?"

"A costume?" He seemed a bit surprised. "You wish me to 'dress up,' as well?" Lydia just nodded, grinning. His features turned thoughtful. "Well, I really don't know what sorts of costumes are generally used in the living world… Is one really necessary? I don't wish to make a scene."

"Hmm." Lydia dropped her chin to the back of her hand, considering him. "Well, Halloween is for making scenes, but… You can't go wrong with a prince costume." His eyebrows flew up a little at this, but now, her wheels were really turning out something she liked, and her eyes gleamed with mischief. "The prince of the dead, playing the part of a living guy, playing the part of the prince of the dead…" A light laugh fell from her lips. "And I'm already working on the perfect dress to match!"

With these words, she straightened up abruptly, looking at him with pure fiendish joy in the little curve of her lip. "Prince and princess!" She said aloud, pleased at her game. "Just for the night!"

She didn't really notice how closely Vincent was watching her now, or how much he too, seemed to approve of this idea. "So you will be my princess," He prompted slowly, "For one night?" She nodded absently, already turning over in her mind the adjustments she could make to her dress. She did not notice therefore, Vincent's suddenly very real smile. "Done." He said softly, drawing back from the mirror, "I will begin preparations at once."

And like that, she was alone.

--

"Oh, Lydia, your first date!" Barbara seemed more excited over the prospect that she was herself, and certainly more excited than her real parents, who both had rather grim expressions. Lydia therefore, didn't have the heart to correct her. "Vincent… Since you said he'd moved away, I thought we'd never get to meet him!"

"Well, he's really only in town for the one night… Halloween's kind of a big thing in his family." Lydia fidgeted as the ghost woman's expert fingers tugged and twisted at her hair, feeling rather like a bug in a trap. "I don't know why I have to wear my hair up… It looked fine." She squinted at her image in the mirror, as the ebony strands were twisted up into a topknot, which cascaded haphazardly along her head. It looked good, she had to admit it. But she hated having her hair messed with!

"The real question," Adam interjected, smiling, "Is how your young friend feels about ghosts. Because I might just have to have a talk with him, if he starts putting the moves on you."

Lydia made a face, but was in fact thinking of something somewhere along these lines herself. Would he try to kiss her tonight? She'd never been kissed, and the idea was more than a little unsettling… And exciting. She'd already decided that if he did try, she'd let him. Maybe even kiss him back. But of course, Adam needed to know none of this.

"Somehow, I don't think he's afraid of ghosts." She demurred, doing her best not to fidget under their stares. This was maddening, she couldn't wait to get out of here! But a promise was a promise… And her parents may well have found out about anyway. Better like this, where she could control it. And the fewer secrets she had to keep, the smaller the chance of getting caught. Theoretically, anyway. "He's got kind of his own creepy vibe, I don't think seeing you two would unsettle him much."

Barbara sighed. "Well, it would be nice." She mused aloud, turning her eyes to Lydia's father with a smile. "Remember when Olivia first brought Edmond home, Adam? He couldn't see us at all… It was years before he could." A small pause, then, "I'm still not sure how that worked." She admitted, a question that had come up before, and to her knowledge, never received an adequate answer.

At her words though, Lydia felt a sudden flare of alarm. She'd forgotten! Of course he would see Adam and Barbara, and she hadn't told him anything about not being supposed to! Oh, and she'd thought she'd covered everything… "I wouldn't be at all surprised if he could see you." She found herself saying aloud. "He seems like the kind of guy who would." There, it was flimsy, but maybe…

The doorbell rang at this moment, and it went down Lydia's spine like a lance of ice. Suddenly it was hard to breathe, hard to think… And moving? Utterly out of the question.

"I'll get it." Edmond muttered darkly, really more of a growl, making Lydia absolutely wilt. She would have to have an overprotective father, when it came to boys… Honestly, she never would have guessed it.

The door swung open, almost challengingly, and Vincent stood there with a small expression of surprise on his face, clearly having expected it to take longer than this. Lydia sighed, and curled her fingers at him in sympathy. Vincent's eyes though, were already all for her. "Dear Lydia…" He whispered, his breath audibly catching in his throat. "My word, you're… stunning!"

Lydia looked down at herself, a mass of spider webs, lace, and black satin, and allowed a small smile. The whole thing was done up with a massive satin ribbon, bright red, that curved about her entire body twice, before tying over her shoulder. Lace gloves, and a spider broach, completed the ensemble, and… Well, aside from the fact that it was Halloween, it really was the type of dress she'd want to wear to any formal event. Even if tiny spiders were tangled into almost every inch of lace.

Next she considered him… He was dressed in velvet, rich dark red, and a sort of deep burgundy, trimmed here and there with threadwork of midnight blue. It was almost gaudy, and yet he had no trouble pulling the richly made clothes off. High boots, a sweeping cape… And a crown, completed his 'costume.'

Her breath caught in her own throat briefly, as she wondered if his crown was real. "Vincent," She murmured, finally escaping Barbara's readying grasp, "You look wonderful." A small laugh escaped her, as she added, in a joke for them alone, "Just like a real prince!"

"My word," Barbara murmured, looking at him appraisingly, "He is cute, isn't he, Lydia?"

Lydia of course, did her best to turn bright red, knowing he could hear her foster mother. Vincent meanwhile, had the decency to look as embarrassed as she felt. "And would you be Lydia's mother, or her foster mother?" He asked at length, once he'd had a chance to fight down his awkwardness.

The ghost woman blinked, not certain at first that she was really being addressed, only to find Vincent's gaze locked firmly on her. "You can see me?" She asked at length, more than a little astonished, and visibly pleased. "Adam, he can see us!" She grabbed for her husband's arm in excitement, while he too stared, stunned.

"Well, yes…" Vincent agreed slowly, clearly puzzled. "Was there a reason I shouldn't?" He glanced sideways at Lydia, to see if perhaps he'd done something wrong.

"See, I told you," Lydia managed to say smugly, her head meanwhile feeling like it might float right off her shoulders, "If anyone else could see ghosts, it would be him." She tried to give him a warning look, but had to banish it quickly, at a glance from her mother.

"So you are Lydia's foster mother, then?" He pressed, trying to grasp to something he could understand. "And then you must be Lydia's birth mother?" He added, turning to Olivia. For now, he left the puzzle of trying to sort out her 'fathers.' "It is an honor to meet both of you."

Everyone present was now looking at him a bit oddly, as much for his deliberate and flowing manner of speech, as his ability to see the dead. But Olivia had a different question. "You told him about the Maitlands?" She asked softly, protective, as ever, of her ghostly friends. "Lydia, I thought we discussed this…"

"But he's the only one I told, mother!" Lydia assured her hurriedly, moving over to Vincent's side, as if to face her parents as a united front. "In more than twelve years! I knew if anyone would understand…"

Vincent was now looking from one to the other, quite concerned. "Forgive me," He said at last, looking displeased with himself, "I hadn't realized it was held in such secrecy. I hope I haven't gotten Miss Lydia into any trouble, on my account?"

"Miss Lydia…" Adam chuckled, adjusting his glasses, while slowly, everyone else there began to relax as well. "Well, you can't say he's not polite, Edmond." He continued smiling as the prince took this turn of events too, in his own gradual manner. "So what's in the box, young man? A present for our Lydia?"

Until that moment, Lydia hadn't even noticed he was holding a box. In fact, if she were put to it, she'd swear that he hadn't been, only a few minutes before. Now though, he lifted it with a gleam in his eye, and a pleased expression. "A loan from the castle treasury, just for the night." He murmured, clearly enjoying the suspense he was building. "After all, if you are to be my princess for the evening, dear Lydia… You should wear a crown."

Lydia was almost certain that the world stopped spinning at his words, and was only gradually aware of her parents chuckling at his little 'joke,' even her protective father smiling. And then of course, Vincent had to go and open the box.

The laughter stopped. Everyone there was simply too stunned, Lydia among them. If anything was more obviously a genuine crown of precious metal, inlaid with very real diamonds, Lydia for one, had never seen it. It curved on gossamer threads of silver, or maybe white gold, and was positively dusted with gems, every one of them a perfect brilliant transparency. The only black jewel among them was the crown jewel itself, easily the size of her thumb tip, and teardrop shaped, to rest perfectly along her forehead.

For a long, long moment, no one spoke. Lydia was trying not to look terrified. Vincent began to look as if he suspected he might have done something wrong. And finally, bless her, it was Barbara who broke the silence, which for once, Lydia didn't know how to. "My god, it looks real…" She whispered, her lips curving in appreciation. "I can't believe he went all out like this, Lydia!"

"He must, really want tonight to be special." Lydia agreed, her throat more than a little dry, but a smile somehow finding its way to her tight lips. "Vincent, you... shouldn't have." And god help her, the dance hadn't even started yet.

Clearly not certain if she meant that literally or not, Vincent hesitated before lifting the crown, tiara, whatever, from the wooden case, and approaching her with a somewhat forced smile. "I simply could not have you wearing any less, my Lydia." He murmured, gently setting the fantastic piece against her hair.

His Lydia? No way her dad hadn't noticed that. Yes, yes he was frowning… "It's beautiful." Lydia whispered, catching, and holding his eyes for a moment, trying to show him that she really was grateful. "I'll make certain the royal treasury gets it back in one piece."

"Just as long as you get back in one piece." Her father interrupted, even as her mother's face suddenly brightened, and she bolted from the room. Lydia wasn't sure what had possessed the woman now… Until she returned with her camera. Then she went pale.

Ghosts after all, didn't photograph well.

She gave a sudden, sharp squeeze to Vincent's hand, trying to convey her alarm, as Olivia demanded that they 'get in, so she could get a picture.' If Lydia couldn't hear her heartbeat pounding in her ears, she would have sworn it had stopped. Then, 'click,' and…

Whizzzzzzz… Olivia looked down at her camera in horror, as it proceeded then with making a series of sounds that cameras simply weren't supposed to make. "Oh no, no…" She murmured, tapping it gently against her hand, and then getting down on the floor, then and there, and starting to take it apart, her daughter's big moment forgotten.

"We'd better get going." The goth girl managed, reflecting that if this was just the beginning, this might be a very complicated night. "We don't want to be late." Just when Lydia thought she'd escaped every hurdle pretty well though, her father opened the door again, and uttered those words that every teenage girl fears on a date…

"Don't worry. I'll drive."

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