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Stranger Beetles

"They told me you and your mother died!" Charlies was crying, his tough guy persona shattered into bits. Beetlejuice was feeling real awkward being in the same room, but wasn't exactly in any shape to flee.

"I was taken to the hospital after the avalanche. I was there for weeks. I thought I'd lost you both."

Stranger Beetles

"And how do you know my cousin?"

Stranger Beetles

What if they were on a ski vacay and there was an avalanche? And her dad got stranded, but eventually found. But in the chaos, he was somehow mistakenly informed that his family did not survive. And same for Lydia.

Stranger Beetles

Also I forgot. How did her dad survive again?

Stranger Beetles

SuperBeetural

Stranger Beetles

Charles visibly paled, as though he were seeing a ghost. His hands shook as they reached towards her. It couldn't be, could it?

"Lydia?" His voice broke. He fell to his knees and hugged the girl tightly.

Beetlejuice, meanwhile, could only mentally smack himself for hitting on his best friend's dad.

Stranger Beetles

Lol BJ's thoughts right now: "I was hitting on her dad?! D:"

Stranger Beetles

Charles was setting Beetlejuice up in the recliner in his room. The demon was covered in guaze patches, dressed in sweats, and actually clean for once. He was also awake and moving sluggishly. He gave Lydia a weak smile and wave when she came in.

"Your friend has a very...interesting sense of humor," Charles remarked before Lydia asked him about the picture.

He paused. The man frowned and came over to take the picture gently. "That's my wife," He said, "She passed a long time ago. Her name was also Delia."

He didn't seem to put two and two together. But Beetlejuice, listening from the recliner, did.

"Holy shit," he croaked.

Stranger Beetles

Charles was silent for a while. "You know, I was just kidding about that whole "FBI" thing."

How did he get himself wrapped up in this? He couldn't just put them out now. This girl needed help. But he also couldn't help but wonder how the Maitlands, of all people, were able to deal with this.

His house was a remote lakeside cabin just outside the city limits. When he pulled up, he got the...demon, and carried him inside. He set Beetlejuice down in the tub inside the master bathroom. There was no way he was going to get black demon blood all over the rugs.

"I'll get him fixed up," Charles said. "Why don't you see if you can find something to change into and get cleaned up in the upstairs bathroom."

Stranger Beetles

"Why do I feel like the FBI is going to be on my doorstep tomorrow?" Charles made it back to the truck in record time. Anything to get this foul smelling corpse off his back. He didn't know what the black liquid now staining his uniform was, but he had an idea.

He set Beetlejuice down in the bed of the truck and covered him with a tarp that was back there. Once he was settled in the cab and headed home, he let out a long sigh. "So what exactly is that thing?" He jerked a thumb towards the back of the truck.