Chapter 3
By the time Beetlejuice closed the door, he wasn't sure what he should expect next, but he had a feeling that he was going to regret it a lot more sooner than he thought a while ago. The room he now entered was still pitch-black, and he waited for any kind of sign that could show him his way out of it. It wasn't really him to go along with some bitch he barely even knew and follow that little scheme of hers, but he wanted all of this torture to over and be left alone in some corner, pondering what could actually make his afterlife worth to keep him going.
Before he could make another move, he was temporarily blinded by a ray of light that went through his direction for a second. But when he opened his eyes again, the poltergeist was taken by complete surprise at the sudden change of his surrounding enviroment. He looked at what appeared to be the basement of a house that was illuminated by the afternoon sun, and he could see the place was lit up by the few shafts of light that were going through some old floorboards that were nailed in the already existing wooden wall to cover a damage the owner of this house couldn't afford for whatever reason. Not that he was very interest in knowing who the occupant was, for the moment.
Still, whatever stunt this Clotho character was trying to pull, he had to admit to himself that she did a hell of a good job compared to all the psychological warfare and harassment he could get from a senile old hag like Juno. However, as much as he enjoyed her little mindfuck, he needed to find a way out.
The hard thing was he wasn't sure any long if he could get any living person to call his name three times and get back to the one place it all stated, the pathetic excuse of a waiting room he wanted so bad to get out in the first place.
Not in the mood to think too much about it, let alone the few choices he had, which weren't many, he decided to sit to one of the stay chairs that he spotted in the middle of that room and wait till night has fallen, and then go to explore the house the redhead woman had sent him to. He could either pretend to go sleeping, or wait there full awake and ready to go out. If it was the later, the closer thing to a companion he could get would be memories.
Though what memories would be? Memories of an unspectacular mortal life that was ended in an equally unspectacular manner six hundred years ago, or the last memory of how close he was to be totally free from the afterlife that limited him as far as he could remember by marrying this breathing teenager?
He seriously doubted the little minx had wanted to keep her part of the bargain, but he would make sure to pay a visit to her once he got thought all the antics and petty stunts the old woman threw at him. He only had to wait for some time, so that he could grab the opportunity and carry on with any plan he could come up to force Lydia to seal up their deal, even if it involved going a bit down the line to show all the consequences of her actions from now.
With not any mood to keep his train of thought going, the poltergeist proceeded to sit in one of the stray chairs in the middle. It was homely and old-fashioned, and the top of it was covered with some sort of white table-cloth. Beetlejuice realized by a mere glance at it that it was just one of the many objects that he now noticed to be discarded around the place, giving him the impression that the occupants of the house weren't the standard ''happy homemaker'' type of people like that Maitland couple was. Probably they wouldn't mind any stain that he left in that old table-cloth, so he tried to feel comfortable while siting his ass on it, crossing his hands and leaning his head slightly towards into the empty space between him and the only door that could lead him out.
Even though he thought it was rather uncharacteristic for him to wait and miss all the action that could go on upstairs, and maybe a chance to have a bit of fun scaring the hell of these people, the poltergeist just waited there and decided it was best to buy his time with a trip through memory lane. He recalled that last one bit where Clotho told him that she will let him know when the time comes, or something like that.
The dead were not known to have any need for sleep, but the waiting has taken its toll and Beetlejuice got tired of watching the space that separated him from his only exit, making him feel rather exhausted and without further noticing it, the poltergeist was slowly drifting into a serene sleep.
Little did this poltergeist knew that if he were to dream, it wouldn't be the dreams that he wanted to see, but a vision of what happens after tonight may be, just like Clotho warned him. The only remarkable thing was that he wasn't snoring or making any obnoxious sleeping sounds, just his non-existant lungs breathing the air in and out, now that Beetlejuice, the once proclaimed ''Ghost with the Most'', had actually come to settle with a feeling he thought he lost completely once he died, which was the simple need to rest with an afternoon sleep. And that's all the man needed right now.
Lydia was still trembling by what the old woman had said a moment ago. What the hell did she mean by what she just heard about her life? Was there really another version, anything that is more ''truer'' than the seemingly now happy existence she led? She knew for fact that if she didn't ask the person in front of her now, she probably wouldn't get the kind of answer that she wanted to hear.
''All right, I don't know who you are or what you want, but if you come any closer, I'll..''
''Or what, little girl? Your surrogate parents, the Maitlands will come to your rescue, or that I am gonna leave you with no option that you'll be forced to call out the one person you hate to get you out a moment earlier from the day of your reckoning, huh?'', Clotho interrupted, puffing more smoke out of her sliced throat, obviously not liking how Lydia attempted to approach her, and it definitely wasn't working on her.
''And don't worry about him or any of the perversion acts he could try on you, because I've already dealt with him nice and neat, just like I am about to do to you.''
With that last statement, Clotho moved further in the direction of the raven-haired teenager, until there was no room for Lydia and her back pushed against the wall. The old woman then kept a distance from the girl, picking up from where she left off, eyeing her rather mercilessly with her blue orbs.
''If you wonder who I am, well, it will be a bit hard for your young brain to conceivably comprehend, but no, I'm not the old caseworker named Juno, the person I assumed those Maitlands have told you in great detail before their departure, am I right?''
Lydia only nodded, trying to hold back any tears that were forming at the mention of the only people she considered both as friends and real parents. Once Clotho noticed the few bits of salty water that were threatening to fall at any minute, he rolled her eyes and tried to sound as motherly as she possibly could, though she failed miserably at that.
''I'm sorry for bringing this up, but I don't know how am I supposed to do business with you, when a lot of things are at a stake, and a part of you is the ''murderer'', too. So if you want to co-operate with me, fine. But tell me how are we going to make it easier for both of us and get on with what I am about to show you ton...''
''What the hell is so important to tell me when you know that I am not in the mood to play any of your damned silly games of yours? If you want a suggestion, you could go to whatever bureaucratic hell hole you came from, be it Juno's desk, or wherever you belong. And next time, try to invade the illusions of some other girl and mind your own fucking business, huh? What do you say to that, you weird excuse of a witch hag?'', Lydia yelled with all of her might to her, trying to get Clotho to leave her alone.
Clotho, for her own part, didn't say a word and dragged on her cigarette, in a vain attempt to find the right words for moments like that. She though it best to let the adolescent girl to continue her own ranting, whether or not she was aware of the fact that it wouldn't help her one bit from evading what was inevitable fo her to happen.
''Don't get me wrong, lady, but if I'm not horribly mistaken, it was your kind, really, who'd taken Adam and Barbara Maitland away from me, away from my live. Yeah, I could move on and pretend that it didn't happen, but it's not easy for me without them. Sure, I have made a few friends out of that school I am going to, but it would be nice if you could have given me more time with them. Is it more to ask from you, people, more to...well, I don't know, though you could have...you know...given me...given me a break?'', the raven-haired teenager now said in a rather calm way, after the hard yelling she had given to Clotho only a few seconds ago.
She didn't see any reason why should she cover this up, and she now let her tears fall freely and roll her cheeks. When they rolled down her porcelain skin, they glistened in the moonlight that was slowly coming into the night sky.
The old woman didn't say anything for a while, and restrained herself to watching Lydia now sinking in behind the wall she was cornered, and covered her face in her arms that were resting in her knees, sobbing a bit louder than before. It took a few minutes, but her sobbing was ceased and she tried to raise her head to see if Clotho would get tired of her and go away. Unfortunately for her, she was still standing in the same place, only leaning her head closer to take a good look at the girl's face. She could see that the girl was tired of crying anymore and there was a hint of determination now in her face that made her believe that there was still a chance to make her co-operate after all.
''Promise me that it could suddenly end at any time, and I may give it another thought. In the meantime, why don't you tell me who you are, really. What did you try to tell by me being part of a ''murderer?'', Lydia responded, reassuring herself that perhaps the old hag didn't have any clue about the Maitlands, no mater how hard she tried to seem as if she knew something about them, but she didn't, for all she could tell.
Cloth was a little apprehensive for a while, but after Lydia stood to her feet, she let a heavy sigh and when she unrolled her eyes, she looked up at her to find any hostile sign that could ruin any of her intended plans. Once she saw that Lydia, despite the uneasiness and untamed nature she showed minutes ago, was somewhat more open to take this all in, she started talking again.
''I am not sure how much should I give away about me, but I could at least let you in at this. My name is Clotho, and the little figure you scared out of its wits happened to be my younger sister, Atropos. Or was it Lachesis? Anyway, I can hardly keep track of them as it is. You wouldn't really want to have a kid sister running around you all the time, would you?'', Clotho said, a little smile forming in her lips, as though she tried to laugh at a private joke of hers.
Lydia was left with a confused look on her face when she mentioned that model incident before her entrance.
''Well, would you?'', Clotho repeated in the hopes of getting an answer this time.
Once Lydia realized that she was still staring at her, she tried her best to look as if she paid attention to her little comment and tried to answer as straight and direct as she could, though it was somehow even harder for her to find the right words at the right time.
''I,I, well, I didn't know who or what it was. I thought it was one of Adam's tricks to get his model figures to look alive and breathing, but not like this, to be honest with you. How did you get them to be so small, by the way?''
''I am not sure if you'll find interesting at all, but it all depends on where they enter something like that Winter River model, and I wished I could tell more about these tricks of ours, but we have a busy schedule to keep, so we better keep going.'', Clotho said, turning her back towards Lydia to walk in the direction of the portal that was widely shut fo all this time, only to start opening again, letting the green light and aura permeate the attic once again.
''Going where?'', Lydia asked.
''Only you can tell where you are supposed to be now, and I am just a guide. And for your information, sweetie, you'll always get the right answers if you start asking the right questions. And once you get to ask the wrong questions, don't expect to get any answer at all. Okay, will you come, now?'
Reluctantly, Lydia nodded and without further ado, she marched straight into the portal ahead of Clotho, not really caring whether she would catch up with her.
''Damn kids don't have any respect for anything these days. Got to teach her a lesson in vulnerability.'', Clotho said to herself, rolling her eyes and snapping her fingers in where Lydia was now in the black horizon.
Once in there, she noticed a change in her clothing. She was no longer wearing her remaining school clothes, but the clothes she was wearing when she first spotted the Maitlands from that attic window when her family first moved in, which was also the day she discovered the handbook. She was also wearing the very hat that covered her head from all that sunlight that same day.
She had no idea those would still fit her after all this time, but she was feeling like home now that Clotho put them on her. On her left hand she felt like she was holding a heavy object, and when she turned it to her face to inspect it, to her surprise, she saw it her old Nikon camera and there still some film left inside, though she couldn't really recall the last time she used it after the incident.
She was about to test it, when the voice of Clotho boomed in from behind.
''I knew you'd feel like your true self if I coaxed you into what you refer to as ''the other side'', by giving you back your true colors. Maybe you will be more willing to listen to me now that I made you ready for your last trip in the mysteries of your life.''
By the time she finished her last sentence, Clotho ended up right next to her, both females illuminated by the green glow.
''Still, a change in scenery should be what we need to see now, huh, sweetheart?'', Clotho asked, only to see a not-so interested Lydia staring into the endless void with not any real expression to her face, whatsoever.
Not bothering to make her talk for the present, the old redhead gestured her right hand up and the green light was replaced by an ethereal smoke that covered their ankles and allowed some form of natural lighting to illuminate them as if they were outside to take walk at the park on a sunny day, though it didn't have any blinding effect on them.
''Oh, by the way, I gave you a close replication of that old camera you had, if you want to take some pictures, but it won't be for souvenir reasons, no. The purpose of taking pictures in this last trip may be to get a series of images from your current lifetime, but if you feel uncomfortable with that, there are other methods towards this end.''
When Lydia heard that she probably didn't need the Nikon camera with her, she left her object fall next to her, as if she felt a burning sensation going through her hand. Instead of hearing it shattered into million pieces and bits of shreds, as it would normally happen, the photographic equipment was mysteriously vanished in the smoke and continued to fell as if the ground at her feet would be like a quicksand for it.
''Sometimes we have to give up the things we hold dear, or helped us form a perspective for our live up until a certain point.'', Clotho responded, turning her head to her right to see a Lydia Deetz that was somewhat saddened at the loss of the only ''friend'' she had before her new life in Winter River, namely the lenses of the camera that would help her create her own sense of reality, even if the images that came out would be still and unmoving in their frames.
''I'm sorry about that, Lydia, but in the end, you have to ''unlearn'' in order for you to start learning how to live again. And to do that right, you really have to stop thinking in terms of how you once saw the world. You can't always keep all these emotions hauled up in you forever.''
Lydia didn't respond to the older woman's comment, only giving her a look that said how exposed and naked she felt now that the few mental walls and barriers that surrounded her almost her whole life were beginning to fall apart, one by one. She didn't know what the feeling was, but she felt the need to start crying again, and she left a few bits of tears fall over her cheeks once again.
''Now, now, young girl. Crying won't help you a bit. I just wanted to make you see what you were trying to avoid, not make you feel miserable. I am not here to say what could make you feel healthier in your mind, but it's time you saw the errors of your ways, and why it was you who caused yourself to feel ''utterly alone'' at one time.'', Clotho said in an affectionate tone, though it didn't move Lydia one bit.
''Well, you're wrong. I still feel so lost and alone without it, and I don't really know what's the right thing to do now.'', Lydia said in between her new sobbings, trying to wipe her new tears that were staining her pretty face of hers.
''It's like I can't really go back to...Hell, I am not even sure how am I supposed to take all this. You mean that by acting that way, I'm condemned to repeat that no matter what I do to stop it? What can I do for it? Is it really too late, or there's still hope that I cou...''
Clotho raised her hand as a way to make the girl stop her line of questioning, and with a smile forming in her lips, she responded.
''I know I am gonna have to make a divergence from the route I planned for you, but would you like to get a few glimpses of the life you held up to that point and the people you never got to meet in person, because one misfortune led to another? If you think it's a complete waste of time, I could carry on as scheduled so that we don't miss any of the details that you may have to see at some point or anoth...''
''No, no, I, I think that I could use some nice trip through the only good times I had in my life, but where do we really start?''
''Why don't we go ask, or better yet, see the one person you were looking for in your lifetime but never found it in anyone, like...your mother, perhaps?''
Lydia's heart was swelling with an unusual amount of joy at the mention of her mother, the mother she never really knew and whose image could perhaps help disperse the last clouds that were shrouding her mind for as far back as she could remember. She didn't know if she should trust her woman with a matter like this one, and yet she thought that there was nothing to lose if she tried to.
Wiping the last tears in her eyes and with a newfound confidence feeling the very essence of her darkroom-like existence, she let her mouth open to let the words she longed to say for what seemed to be an eternity to her.
''Take me to her. Please.''
''I am afraid I won't be able to take you to her in the present, but the past, well...that's another story. Let's go to it, shall we?''
And with a gesture of hands, the black void was slowly forming into what seemed to be a hospital room. Lydia couldn't believe as she saw the blackness giving away to let the interior of what appeared to be a hospital corridor. She could have sworn she heard a baby's crying, and she rushed through the long corridor to see where that sound was coming from, not caring whether Clotho would follow her. There wasn't anyone in the corridor, except a surgeon who she went right through him as though she was a ghost, but she didn't want to hear the explanation for this.
She searched for the sound until she could get to find the source of the noise. She stopped at a widely shut door, but thought it best to observe the scene from the glass window next to the door. The sight of what was inside that room caught her by complete surprise, when she saw a brunette woman holding what seemed to be her baby. At close inspection, she could notice that this was a baby girl and had a tuck of brown hair in her head. A bracelet was in the left hand of the baby and the name in the collar was as following.
''Lydia Deetz''
Now she was sure. Now she was convinced that her only real wish in the world had come true at last. She only let a few words escape her lips, as her hands pressed against the glass, her hat falling behind her to the floor.
''Mom!? Mom, is that you? Mom!?'', Lydia asked to herself more as a whisper and not towards her.
And she started crying again, but those were tears of joy, because she was able to get a glimpse of what the person who gave birth to her, the woman who brought her to the world, was like. And she would make sure that this time she will get to know her better than she was allowed to. If only that was true, but the real lesson was about to start for her.
