Cinderjuice

A Beetlejuice fanfic by Lady Norbert

Author's Notes: I didn't intend to make Charles the narrative character for this final chapter (except for the last bit), but it worked. I also didn't intend to post this final chapter tonight, but I know people are waiting for it and I'm not patient myself.

We'll leave it here; the sequel is going to take some time for me to work out exactly what happens, because I know how it ends but not much else.

Chapter Twenty: Believe It Or Not

"Remind me again how to work this thing, Pumpkin?"

Lydia chuckled. "Here, Dad. Look through the lens here, and press this button."

"I can do this. Are you excited?"

"A little nervous, but yes."

His smile was proud, and just slightly sad. "My little girl's all grown up," he said, kissing the top of her head. "Come on, we don't want to be late for your ceremony."

Eighteen years of loving and worrying and never quite understanding what went on in his daughter's head - Charles could hardly believe how fast they'd gone by. When the Deetz family had first moved to Peaceful Pines, he'd worried about Lydia a lot. She was so shy and withdrawn - but something about life in the sleepy hamlet had transformed her. She had grown, almost without his realizing it, into a strong, confident, creative young woman. Camera in hand, she was college-bound and ready to take the world by storm.

He'd never really 'gotten' his precious Pumpkin. Her love of dark things, weird things, creepy things... it mystified him. But they seemed to make her happy, so who was he to argue? Sure, she was a peculiar child, but she was also affectionate, respectful, and a good student. And he loved her.

The school gym was decorated in the Peaceful Pines colors of green and white. Lydia went to line up with her black-robed classmates, while Charles and Delia found seats among the crowd. "Oh, Charles," Delia gushed, glowing, "how did this day come so fast?"

"I don't know. It's like I turned around one day and she was grown."

They listened politely to the string of predictably dull speeches, clapping as the individual students were called up to receive their diplomas. Charles did his best to follow Lydia with the camera, pressing the shutter button repeatedly and hoping that at least some of the pictures would turn out well. "How does she do this so effortlessly?" he wondered.

When her turn came to get the diploma, Charles had to force himself to pay attention to taking the photos instead of just watching. When had she gotten so tall? When had she turned into an adult? Wasn't it just last week that he was pushing her on the tree swing at their old house? Why did that seem like it was so far away? He watched through the camera, dutifully snapping photos, as she shook hands with the principal and grasped the ribbon-bound scroll.

And then suddenly, the air was filled with mortarboard caps with green and white tassels, flung skyward by joyful graduates, and it felt like something undefined had come to a very abrupt end.

"Glad this isn't a very big school," Charles muttered as they dodged through a small sea of people.

Out in the fresh air again, they found Lydia, who was chattering excitedly with Bertha and Prudence. "Dad! Get a picture of the three of us!" She wrapped her arms around the shoulders of her two loyal friends.

"Sure, girls, say cheese!"

"Cheese!" Their grins were almost wild - full of hope and just a little anxiousness about the future.

"So what are your plans, girls?" Delia asked.

"We're both going to Boston College," said Prudence. "We were able to arrange it that we can be roommates! Bertha's going to study biology, and I want to be an English teacher."

"Wonderful! You'll have so much fun!"

"Hey, Lydia," said Bertha, "why don't you give me your camera? I'll take a picture of you with your mom and dad."

"Thanks, Bertha." Lydia handed over the camera and took Charles's arm, smiling up at him. Delia arranged herself on Lydia's other side. "Cheese!"

While Bertha showed Lydia the digital image she had just captured, and Lydia started babbling something technical about what the camera was able to do, Charles heard a new voice calling. "Lyds!"

"Lydia, look! It's BJ!" said Prudence, pointing.

Charles bit back a groan. Sure enough, the blond young man was navigating through the crowd. He glanced at his daughter, whose face had brightened instantly at the realization the boy was there, and resigned himself to it.

"You made it!" Lydia exclaimed. "I wasn't sure you would!"

"Took a little longer than I thought it would," he said apologetically. "But I'm here."

"It's so nice to see you again, BJ!" Delia trilled. "We're having a little get-together back at the house, you simply must come home with us! Bertha, Prudence, your parents are coming too, aren't they?"

"Yes, Mrs. Deetz!"

"I tried to have your father cater the party, BJ," she added, "but I couldn't reach him! Is he out of town?"

"Oh - heh, yeah." The boy rubbed the back of his neck. "He'll be gone for a while, actually. He got married."

"You're kidding." Charles couldn't stop himself. He glanced at Lydia, who for some reason seemed to be fighting down a rather strong giggle. "I mean... congratulations."

"Thanks. He's pretty happy." BJ's face was calm, but his eyes kept straying to Lydia, and every time they did he looked as though he wanted to laugh too. Kids.

It wasn't a very large party. Zipporah and Danforth and May and Clyde had all made the trip, of course, for their niece; Charles sometimes thought the only thing they had in common with one another was the fact that they loved his daughter. Bertha and Prudence came with their parents, but as they had their own celebrations to attend, they didn't stay long. Eventually, he realized that neither Lydia nor BJ were in evidence either, and he went looking.

They weren't in her bedroom, which was a relief to his sensibilities. He just wasn't ready for that.

He finally found them on the porch, side by side, leaning so that they were half-seated on the railing. Remembering his previous spy effort after the prom, he hesitated to watch them again; on the other hand, it was broad daylight this time. It wouldn't hurt to watch for a minute or two, he decided. Carefully, casually, he opened the window, then ducked off to one side to peer around the frame.

They were turned to face each other, meaning that he was viewing their faces in profile. BJ was telling Lydia something; exactly what, he couldn't quite hear, but she kept putting a hand to her mouth to stem a tide of laughter. There was a small pause in the conversation.

"So how is your godfather?" Lydia inquired.

"My - oh." BJ snorted. "Entirely too pleased with himself, if you ask me. You'd think he masterminded that arrangement all by himself."

"Well, he did have a hand in it."

"Not that much."

"Still." She smiled at him. "How about your neighbors?"

"They said to tell you congratulations. On graduating, I mean. You have to come say hi one day soon; they still can't believe... well, you know." He smirked. "That I got this lucky."

"Sweet talker."

Her tone was dry, very nearly sarcastic, but her expression... Charles peered through the curtains a little more intently. She was glowing. There were no two ways about it - his little girl was smiling at this boy and glowing.

"Yeah, well, I try." BJ gave her a lopsided grin, then leaned over and kissed her on the forehead.

"Charles, where have you been?" Delia asked as he rejoined the others in the dining room.

"Oh, just checking on the kids."

"You don't mean spying, now, do you?" she teased.

"I wasn't spying. Just making sure everything's okay."

"Well, is it?" asked Zipporah.

"...actually? Yeah." He sat down. "I don't think I've ever seen her look that happy."

Meanwhile...

Outside, BJ was snickering. "Chuckie really needs to learn to stop trying to eavesdrop."

"Shush, he might still be listening."

"Nah, I saw him walk away. So what do you wanna do now?"

"Hmm. It's June, we're in New England... this is peak season for June beetles to be in the woods, if you want to go for a walk."

He gave her a reverent sort of look. "I am so your idiot."

"Yes, you are."

~Fin~

(For now)