Sleeping Beetle

A Beetlejuice fan fiction by Lady Norbert

A/N: It seems that my author's note on the previous chapter confused some people, for which I apologize. As I said, I wanted to watch an episode of the cartoon featuring the Fairy Godfather, so I could be sure I was keeping him in character, but that's not possible. Apparently I do need to explain why - simply put, he's an original character. I invented him for this series. I was having a chuckle at my own expense, but I guess he fits in so well that other people are also forgetting that he's not actually part of the canon! That's a first for me, so thank you!

This chapter is dedicated to my friend and fellow Beetlejuice fan bd-z, in honor of her recent birthday. Happy birthday!

Chapter Sixteen: Undo This Fearful Curse

It was odd, Lydia thought, that such a little thing could make such a difference to her courage.

It was now three days, Neitherworld time, since Beetlejuice's unexplained disappearance. She was perfectly well convinced that Vasile had somehow masterminded the whole thing, even if she couldn't be sure how he did it. She was also reasonably certain that whatever had been done was not permanent. After all, they were irrevocably bonded - by hand, by word, and by magically binding contract. Had Vasile managed to cause Beetlejuice to vanish for good, Lydia figured she would know it somehow. She might even have vanished right along with him.

In any case, she would be faring very poorly without her new bird friend. The sparrow (or whatever it was) had returned faithfully many times since bringing the first offering of berries. Sometimes alone, sometimes accompanied by other ghost birds to whom it had apparently related her plight, it came again and again to bring small bits of sustenance. Lydia was growing ill and paler than ever, and without these gifts, she would have been far worse. But it wasn't just the food, desperately needed though it was.

"Hope's the thing with feathers that perches in the soul," she told her little friend on one visit. "That's what Emily Dickinson said. I think she nailed it, because you're the thing with feathers that's bringing hope to my soul. I don't know what I'd do without you."

The bird responded with a few intelligent-sounding peeps, and nudged another berry toward her hand.

When she heard the rustling outside her window in the late afternoon, she assumed it was her little friend again. But upon moving to the casement, Lydia found instead a small parachute tangled in the thorny vine which grew up the side of the castle, and a small box dangling precariously from it.

"Brother ex machina, if I don't miss my guess," she mused. "Thank goodness for Neitherworld television to keep him up to speed; I have no idea if Tumblr's on top of things or not." With some stretching and difficulty, she managed to retrieve the package, and she eagerly brought it to her bed in order to spill and survey its contents.

Fruit, mostly; that was to be expected. A small bottle of water was tucked into each of the box's four corners. "Carefully balanced - well, that makes sense," she noted, wolfing down chunks of banana. She was trying not to eat too fast, but her stomach was all but screaming at her. "And a letter, of course. Let's see what the dear prince has to say about all this."

My dear Lydia,

We're terribly worried for you. It's very difficult to keep from bringing on a rainstorm every minute in my anxiety for your well-being. I just hope that the castle doesn't somehow prevent this package from reaching you intact.

Vasile has imprisoned Beetlejuice in one of the castle towers, although I'm uncertain which one. The Fairy Godfather is inclined to believe that his magic will have once again transferred itself to you for safekeeping, so you may find a way to utilize it to locate him. I would suggest doing so early in the morning, as soon after daybreak as possible, so that you have plenty of time to formulate your escape.

Donny has been researching the best way to defeat Vasile. I think we can all agree that his destruction is an unfortunate necessity; unfortunately, most of the methods would require access to his mortal body. The only way he can be brought down now would be to set fire to the castle while he's asleep inside it.

I hesitate to bring forces to liberate you when you're in such perilous circumstances. So long as you are held so tightly in the enemy's grasp, I dare not risk his retaliation. But between yourselves, I suspect you and Beetlejuice can manage it once you're reunited.

If it's any consolation, I've composed a sonnet for you. I hope you'll enjoy the enclosed.

Yours,

Vince

Lydia smiled, shaking her head over the end of the letter. "Locked in the tower, huh? Kind of overdramatic and overdone, but that's pretty par for the course in this place."

She returned to the window. "I think I see my little friend heading this way," she mused, peering into the distance. "Oh, no, the sun's almost down! Hurry, buddy!"

But it was too late. The bird was still some way off when twilight was officially upon the Neitherworld, and as it finally drew near to her window, it let out a terrified sound. Lydia gasped in horror as, with a great rush of feathers, a large owl swooped down and tried to grab her friend. "Get away!" she cried, reaching out as far as she could to swat at the predator. It swooped widely around and began flying toward her, and there was something menacing in its expression. Menacing - and familiar.

Deadly-vu... that's not a real owl at all! It's Vasile!

The little sparrow-or-whatever dropped its gift of food, but began charging with all its might toward Lydia's casement, either trying to protect her or looking to be protected by her. Or both. It couldn't move as fast or as lithely as the owl, however, and Lydia was frozen with indecision. Should she try to knock the owl aside? Slam the window before he could reach it? Who knew what he'd do to her - would he attack in owl form, or would he change back in order to do something far worse?

Before she could break free of her stupor, however, the decision was taken out of her hands by magic. Literally, that is - from out of seemingly nowhere, a bolt of bright purple energy struck the owl from behind and below, knocking it off course. Vasile gave an almost indignant hoot as he circled around, searching for the source of the power. Before he could decide to come back at her, Lydia reached out to catch the injured bird and hurriedly shut the window.

"Are you all right? Oh, no, you're bleeding!"

She stared in dismay at the small ruffled figure in her hands. It peeped at her, sadly and almost apologetically. "No, no, don't say that - you were very brave! He's just a big bully. Come on, let's get you cleaned up... maybe this Avatar of Life thing will help you heal faster."

She might have been imagining it, Lydia reasoned, but her little friend did seem to improve the longer she tended to it. Upon clearing the blood away from the wound, she found it looked much less severe than she originally feared. She gave the miniature hero a drink from one of the bottles Vince sent, and some seeds out of an apple, and it sure did give the appearance that it was reviving.

"You'll rest here tonight," she said. "I'm not stirring out of this room before daybreak anyway. Once the sun is up, I've got to find my husband - then we can figure a way out of this crazy castle." She paused, and glanced at the shuttered window. "I wonder who shot that magic bolt at Vasile. Whoever it was, I'm grateful."

Lydia hadn't really expected to sleep much, after the trauma of the evening, but actually having food in her stomach did wonders for her ability to rest. She was awakened by the chirping of her small friend, who seemed to be trying to direct her attention to the shaft of light creeping in through the window shutters. "Morning already? Thanks, little guy." She stretched, and scratched her fingers through her tousled hair. "Okay. First breakfast, then Beetlejuice."

Breakfast actually being an option was a tremendous relief to her sensibilities. "I think now I'll be able to give the magic a try. Let's see... is there something I can say that'll get his powers to lead me? And will it be strong enough to outwit the castle when it tries to put me back where I started?" she wondered, giving her feathered companion a few more apple seeds.

She reread Vince's letter, in case it contained some sort of clue in the wording, but there wasn't anything there she could discern. "Well, let's try the sonnet," she decided. "It can't hurt."

Soft as a lily and snowy white,

Life as sweet and brief as breath;

Black as raven's eternal night,

The sacred darkness master, Death

They dance the dance of endless time,

A waltz unending as the sea

As written out in ancient rhyme

And given birth by prophecy

Each bears within their secret heart

A portion of the other's grace,

And nothing dares force them apart;

These lovers transcend time and space

Forever entwined in one shape be

Like tears wept by eternity.

Lydia had to read it three or maybe four times, committing the lines almost to memory. "Well, his poetry certainly has improved," she remarked, "but what does... wait. Black and white - and tears? The yin and yang pendants!" She reached into her neckline and withdrew the yang pendant Lady Delphine had given her. "Of course. She said they were to remind us that even when we're apart, we're still together. We can't really be separated, no matter what happens."

Resting the pendant in the palm of her left hand, she pointed it at it with her right. "Find the yin," she told it. "Show me the way."

The white spot in the middle of the black field seemed to flash. The whole charm slowly lifted into the air, trying to move toward the door; it tugged at the end of the chain, like a dog running to the end of its leash. "C'mon, birdy buddy," Lydia said, "let's go find Beetlejuice." The sort-of sparrow hopped onto her hand and crawled up to her shoulder, peeping encouragingly.

Mustering all the courage she could find, Lydia opened the door and stepped into the corridor. "Not today, castle," she muttered. "You are not keeping us apart any longer." The pendant floated before her as she walked, now and then swinging to the left or right.

"It's working," she mumbled excitedly to herself. "I've never seen this hallway before!" There was an odd groaning, creaking sound; it was like the castle itself was protesting her movements. "Oh, get over yourself. I'm more powerful than you."

She almost turned back when she rounded a corner and came face to face with a portrait of Vasile, intimidating and fierce, glaring at her with those horrendous red eyes. "Don't even try it," she hissed.

As she reached the door at one end of a long corridor, the pendant seemed to grow almost excited, straining against the confines of the chain as though frantic to get to its other half. Lydia chuckled quietly. "Yeah, I know how you feel."

The door was locked; she probably should have expected that, really. "Let's see. How to get past this using Beej's powers," she mused. "I need to say something to unlock it, or transform it, or something - but what should I say? 'Give me a skeleton key'?"

A ridiculous idea came to her, and in spite of how frayed and taut her nerves were, she couldn't help chuckling for the first time in days. "Worth a try, I guess. Hey, Feathers, I've got a joke for you. When is a door not a door?"

The bird on her shoulder gave a quizzical chirp. "When it's ajar," Lydia declared, pointing. To her immense delight, magic jolted from her fingertips and struck the door, transfiguring it into a jar. Somewhere deep within the castle, something made a noise of tremendous frustration, and the jar on the floor rocked violently on the spot like it was trying to turn back into a door.

"I think I'll just bring you with me," she said, picking it up, "so you don't get any ideas. I'd smash you, but knowing the Neitherworld scriptwriters, I may end up needing you on my quest." Glancing at her avian companion, she added, "Hacks, the bunch of them."