Chapter Text
It had been a few months since the whole “Betelgeuse had accidentally turned Adam and Barbara into toddlers by losing control of his powers” incident as Lydia liked to call it and both ghosts still didn’t like to talk about it but they had decided to start talking to the Deetzes again so that was good, right?
Well, Lydia still liked to tease them about it (Though she was quiet so they didn’t hear her. She decided to remain quiet whilst teasing them about it) and sometimes Betelgeuse would join in (Only when he was at the house though. This one time he was super loud with his teasing and the Maitlands had gotten so mad, Lydia had to quiet him down).
She was lucky (Him too) that they calmed down rather quickly.
One day however...
“Hey! Adam and Barbara!” Lydia shouted out loud with a snicker. “Worried you’ll turn into toddlers again?”
The Maitlands’ eyes narrowed as they turned towards Lydia, extremely angry. “Lydia Deetz!” they chastised. “Please don’t ever do that again!”
“It’s not like I do it quietly and under my breath, guys,” Lydia replied, rolling her eyes. “Geez.”
“Actually, you do,” Barbara reminded her with a laugh, suddenly a bit calmer than she was two minutes ago. “Don’t judge us but we can kinda hear you when you quietly tease us about our brief stint as toddlers under your breath.”
“Haha!” Lydia fell to the floor in a fit of laughter. “I got you to talk about it, Barb! I got you to talk about it!”
“Lydia Deetz, that is not funny!”
“I thought it was.” Lydia laughed some more. “Come on you guys. What would happen if I were to be turned into a toddler myself?”
“Probably nothing,” Barbara replied, a hint of sadness in her voice as she let out a groan and a sigh. “Cause that’s not going to happen to you.”
“But what if it does?”
“But what if it doesn’t?”
“But what if it does?”
“But what if it-.”
“Come on you guys.” Adam chose now to put a stop to what was almost an apparently long argument between Barbara and Lydia. “Lydia, we all know it’s not going to happen.”
“But what if it does? Betelgeuse said he wanted to show us something and even I don’t know what it is.”
“Consider me shocked if it’s turning you into a toddler,” said Adam, teasingly.
“Adam!” Barbara soundlessly elbowed her husband.
“What?!”
“Apologize!”
“I was only teasing her!”
“Well, it’s made her upset.”
“How did it make her upset?”
“Look!”
Barbara gestured to Lydia, who was tearing up, and motioned a hand towards her a few times. Adam looked over in her direction and saw tears start to stream down her face and he apologetically reached a cold hand out towards her, wiping the tears from her eyes.
“Lydia, look. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have teased you like that. If it does happen, in which I think it won’t, then I don’t think Babs and I won’t have enough experience to take care of you as a younger version of yourself, much less Delia. The only one I can think can take care of a toddler version of you is your own dad.”
“Hey, Lyds! Hey, Babs! Hey, Sexy!” rang out Betelgeuse’s voice across the room. All three of them turned just in time to see Betelgeuse emerge through an open door to the Netherworld. “How’s it going? Oh, hey, Chuck! Hey, Debra!”
“It’s Delia!”
“Whatever! You guys all ready to see this trick of mine I’ve been preparing for a while?”
“No!” all four adults shouted at once.
“Sure! What is it?” asked Lydia
Betelgeuse didn’t even need to speak. He just snapped his fingers and in three flashes of light, the Deetzes disappeared and...in their places stood...
Three toddler versions of them.
“Not this again!” the Maitlands groaned in unison.