Chapter Text
“Feel anything?” Betelgeuse’s voice was so soft Lydia barely heard it. She nodded, feeling electricity travel up her arm.
“What is that?” She asked, her voice catching in her throat. She had touched that scar a thousand times over the past few months and nothing had ever happened before.
“I dunno,” Betelgeuse admitted, not taking his hand from hers. “I just noticed it when you touched mine.”
She traced the scar on his finger and wondered how she had missed it for so long. It was thick and dark, unlike hers. Hers looked much more intricate, almost as if it were a tattoo. His looked like his finger had been sewn back on.
“Why are they different?” She breathed, the electricity from his touch still radiating up her arm.
“I dunno. I s’pose they look like the rings we got, though.”
She looked at him in confusion.
“But, you didn’t even have one...”
Betelgeuse’s body was nearly vibrating when she caressed the scar on his finger. He didn’t even know that he could feel these sensations anymore. He hadn’t felt anything akin to this in his whole afterlife. That’s been the experience from the beginning, though.
‘Cause ya know what ya gotta do.’
Fuck off!
“Why are they different?” Lydia’s voice, coupled with her touch, sent shivers up Betelgeuse’s spine. His mind went to a dark, yet pleasurable, place wherein they wore nothing but those rings...
“I dunno,” he responded, pulling himself back to the moment at hand. Gotta earn ‘er trust. Then, we can see about beddin’ ‘er. “I s’pose they look like the rings we got, though.”
It was true, but he didn’t know if it mattered at all.
“But, you didn’t even have one...”
“Nope,” he reluctantly pulled his hand from hers and pressed the ring firmly over the scar. He didn’t know of anything else to say, but he knew he had to stop touching her if he wanted to take things slow. He didn’t trust himself around her.
‘Not like you did in the first place.’ The voice growled from the back of his mind. ‘If you did, we would be free already.’
Lydia realized that she had always planned to use her father’s ring. From the moment she saw Betelgeuse reading the Neitherworld marriage book, she knew that, if he’d asked her, she would use that ring and marry him without a second thought.
That’s why I am so angry with him. She realized. I would have married him without the pretense. Without the pomp and circumstance. I would have given him his freedom of my own free will.
She shook her head. It didn’t matter anymore. What happened was done. What was coming still shook her to her very core, but there was nothing she could do about it. Not really. She needed to focus on the here and now.
“Next rule?” Betelgeuse asked, rubbing his hand against his new ring. Lydia cursed under her breath. She didn’t know she needed to come up with more rules. She only cared that she get to keep him. Her mind raced and she couldn’t form a coherent thought.
“Okay,” she drew out the word, trying to stall for time. After a few moments, she realized the next thing she cared about.
“Don’t lie to me. About anything. Ever.”
Betelgeuse watched as Lydia seemed to have an internal conversation, absent-mindedly rubbing the ring on his finger. He didn’t know what she was thinking, but he was certain that her mind was reeling. Hell, his mind was reeling. He decided, without much thought, that for the both of their sanities, they needed to focus on the task at hand.
“Next rule?” He asked, wanting to focus the conversation. He hadn’t thought of his next one, but he knew that she would have more requests than he did, at least at first. As she should. After...
‘She’ll get over it. An’ ya need...’
He shut down the voice in his head. He knew that bastard had nothing productive to say. It seemed that, no matter what he was thinking, that damned voice wanted to say the opposite. He was tired of listening.
“Okay...”
Betelgeuse watched her carefully, wondering what she would come up with. She seemed to be struggling a bit and he thought he should step in and maybe help. Before he could speak, she finished her thought.
“Don’t lie to me. About anything. Ever.”
He was almost taken aback. He hadn’t lied to her, not really. Hidden stuff, manipulated, told half-truths, but never outright lied. Had he?
He couldn’t remember. Slowly, he nodded.
“O’ course, Babes. No lies. I’ll answer any question ya ask with the absolute truth.”
His words sounded clunky and disingenuous, but he knew he meant every word.
Lydia’s eyes flashed when he responded, not knowing how she felt. He promised to answer questions honestly, but not to not hide things from me. I should make that a rule, too.
She slowly nodded, accepting that he was telling the truth. She couldn’t get anywhere by assuming he was always lying to her.
“Your turn,” she sighed, leaning back a bit on the bed. She glanced at the alarm clock on her bedside table and realized it was nearing 2 in the morning, No way I’m getting to school today.
“I need ya ta tell me if there’s any harmful thoughts runnin’ through that pretty head o’ yers.”
“Huh?”
“Ya gotta tell me if yer suicidal, Babes. I need ta know.”
If I die, does he lose his freedom? Didn’t I read that somewhere?
“Got it.”
“I mean it, Babes. I need ya ta tell me. I need ta know yer safe.”
“Got it.” She repeated, more firmly. She understood that this was still something of a marriage of inconvenience. Even if I hope for more...
“I need ya ta tell me if there’s any harmful thoughts runnin’ through that pretty head o’ yers.”
The words slipped out before Betelgeuse could stop them. He knew that she would take it the wrong way. That she would believe he was only looking out for his own freedom, but he knew differently. He’d seen it. That day with the note. He knew that her thoughts turned dark more often than either of them would like.
“Huh?”
He shook his head, wondering if he should change the rule entirely. He decided against it and repeated himself, changing the words a bit.
“Ya gotta tell me if yer suicidal, Babes. I need ta know.”
“Got it.”
Her response told him what he feared. She thought he was only looking out for himself.
“I mean it, Babes. I need ya ta tell me. I need ta know yer safe.” He tried to make his voice more gentle, but he didn’t think he’d succeeded.
“Got it.”
Fuck. I should have tried harder there.
He paused for a brief moment, deciding that his next rule would be much more light-hearted.
“When we do consummate the marriage...” Lydia’s voice and resolve had started strong, but she lost it somewhere in the middle of the word ‘consummate’. She hated that word. It made everything feel like a business transaction. She didn’t want to admit to him, though, that she had thought of them in the throes of passion. She didn’t need him to know that he had that affect on her.
“Yeah?” He probed, his voice dangerously close to a chuckle.
“I want to decide....” She stopped again, her cheeks flushing.
“Decide?”
“When...” She paused. “And where.”
“When and where?” He mused. “So, we are gonna consummate it?”
Lydia’s cheeks burned brighter. She hadn’t thought carefully enough about her word choices. She knew she wanted to share his bed, but she didn’t think it was the right time to share that information. Especially since I still don’t know where I stand with him.
“When and where?” Betelgeuse almost couldn’t believe his ears. She’d just said ‘When we consummate the marriage’. “So, we are gonna consummate it?”
He reveled in the blush that rose to her cheeks. His dark flower, having those thoughts... He reached forward and brushed her hair from her cheek, feeling the heat rising. He knew he should keep his distance. His thoughts were already turning dark. He could imagine her underneath him, screaming his name. Begging for mercy. Him pummeling into her...
He kissed her without thinking, hungry for her taste. She froze for a moment, but melded into the heated kiss. He let his hands explore her body, groping her and grabbing her anywhere he could reach. He grabbed her hips and pulled him to her, running his hands up her back and gripping her hair in one hand while his other was free to roam. His fingers fumbled under her shirt, pushing into her bra, and he kneaded her breast gingerly. She gasped softly and he took the opportunity to deepen the kiss, his mind running wild.
Lydia kept her eyes trained on Betelgeuse’s face after he asked if they would, in fact, be consummating the marriage. She couldn’t bring herself to answer. His hand was on her burning cheek before she realized what happened and she found herself leaning into his touch. She saw his eyes go dark as he looked at her.
This look, she recognized: hunger. He wanted her, then and there. She was just about to say something, though she didn’t know if it was to beg for him to bed her or ask him to wait, when his lips crashed into hers. She froze in surprise, but her body quickly responded. Damn me! I don’t want him to stop...
He pulled her close, his hands gripping into her hips so hard she was certain he would leave bruises. She reveled in his touch. When his hands drifted, she silently begged for him to continue, to pull her down and take her. The rational part of her brain screamed at her and tried to remind her that she had wanted to wait, to keep him around, to stop him from leaving and, if they slept together now, she might lose him tomorrow.
Those thoughts were driven from her mind when his hand found her breast. She gasped and he deepened the kiss. She never wanted it to end.
As soon as it started, however, it was over. Betelgeuse gingerly pulled away from her, untangling his hands from her hair and clothes. She whined at the loss of contact and looked up at him, wanting to beg him not to stop.
Betelgeuse forced himself to stop. He knew that, if this continued, he would not be able to stop himself. He could feel his body thrumming and begging for release, but he knew he had to earn Lydia’s trust. Bedding her today would not do that.
He took a deep, shuddering breath and untangled his hands from her, feeling his heart sinking as he stopped touching her. She made him feel alive in ways he had never felt before, not even in his old life.
“Next rule,” Lydia said, her voice quivering and a smile creeping onto her face, “you have to kiss me like that every day.”
“O’ course.” Betelgeuse smirked, his eyes blazing. “But, that means I getta pick two rules in a row now.”
Lydia smiled and nodded, chuckling. “Sure.”
“Ya gotta let me stay in here with you.” Betelgeuse didn’t even realize what he had said.
“Like... Sleep in here?” Lydia was astonished. He’s just gotten his freedom and now he wants to stay with me? In here?
“Yeah.” Betelgeuse grinned. “Amongst other things.”
Lydia didn’t know how to respond. A few moments ago, her body was begging for him only for him to pull away. Now, he wants to sleep in the same bed as her. Well, she supposed, there is the floor, I guess? Maybe that’s what he meant?
Almost as if he could read her mind, Betelgeuse responded.
“In tha bed with ya. Just wanna stay close.”
“Okay,” she drew out the word, unsure of how she felt. She didn’t know if she would be able to keep her resolve with him in that close proximity. She didn’t deny, however, that she wanted him close. She just wanted him close forever...
“What about the other one?” She questioned, realizing he’d said two rules.
“Ya gotta tell ev’rybody ‘bout me.”
“What?” Her heart hammered in her chest at the thought of telling her family that the man that tortured them, nearly killed her father, was staying with her.
“Ya don’t gotta do it taday.” He responded. “Just, y’know, after we... finish the marriage requirements.”
Betelgeuse knew his second rule would be harder for Lydia to keep. He knew she worried about disappointing the Maitlands, not to mention her father. She might have told Delia, though, given enough reason. He chuckled to himself.
“Ya don’t gotta do it taday.” He decided to give her a little room to breath. “Just, y’know, after we...”
His mind exploded with a thousand images of how he would take her, when she was ready. Only when she is ready. He promised himself.
“Finish the marriage requirements.”
He didn’t want to make her squirm any more than she already was. He could barely contain himself as it went, but he hated the term ‘consummate’. It was too formal, too clean, for the thoughts racing through his mind.
He waited a long moment before he spoke again.
“Agreed?”
“Agreed.” Lydia nodded, her cheeks burning red. She didn’t know the thoughts running through Betelgeuse’s head, but she imagined they would be graphic. She knew him well enough to know what kinds of things he might like. She wondered for a moment if she should do any research before their consummation. She didn’t even know where to begin. There wasn’t exactly a self-help book for 'I want to seduce my undead, poltergeist husband'. She sighed and wished she had the courage to just ask him what he liked, but she thought she might explode if she even tried.
“Lydia!”
A familiar and eerie whisper came from the other side of the door, drawing both her and Betelgeuse’s attention.
“You still awake?”
“Otho?”
Lydia wanted to scream.