||Devil's Advocate||Betelgeuse x Adam x Barbara

(𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐄𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧) How to Calm a Demon

The Maitlands often liked to go up to the roof after the Deetzes had turned in for the night and gone to bed. Sometimes, they allowed Lydia to sit with them and stargaze when the teen either had a bad dream and wanted to talk to or spend time with them or if she couldn't sleep and came out to the roof to think. Often times, Lydia fell asleep on the roof of the house and the Maitlands couldn't bring themselves to get her back inside and help her back down to her room and get her back into her bed - staying with her until she woke up again a few hours or so later.

So it came as a surprise to them when Betelgeuse was the one who came out onto, or rather teleported onto the roof when they were mid-conversation.

They stopped talking and turned towards him, noting that his hair was purple - unlike how it had gone back to its usual shade of green earlier when he was happier, using his powers to make the rest of the Maitland-Deetz family float around in midair much to everyone else's enjoyment.

Barbara motioned for Betelgeuse to come and sit by them, a warm and soft smile flashing across her face. "Did you want to join us?"

When Betelgeuse didn't say anything as a response to the female ghost's question, Adam and Barbara looked worriedly at one another before turning their attention back towards Betelgeuse. A sliver of blue sifted through his hair before expanding and fully covering the entirety of it.

"Beej?" Barbara cocked her head to the side, looking confusedly at the demon. "You okay?"

Once again, he didn't seem to say anything in response, but Adam and Barbara eventually watched him nodding. Flashes of green and pink shot up through his hair - but the blue didn't go away, instead remaining. Not to mention that he still seemed down. A major change from earlier that day.

Did the Maitlands need to repeat what they and the Deetzes had told Betelgeuse that late afternoon? God, they sure hoped they didn't.

When he stayed where he had been for a while longer - not doing as much as going to sit over by the Maitlands, Barbara kept her attention focused on him, tapping an empty spot on the roof next to her. He sighed, his hair becoming fully green as he started slowly moving towards where both ghosts were sat and sat himself down next to Barbara.

Things went silent, although briefly, then Barbara spoke up in concern. "You okay? Do you not want to talk?

"Fine." Betelgeuse, whose attention was focused over towards the edge of the roof, looked from Adam to Barbara and back to Adam again - clear confusion washing over him. "What're you two up to?"

"Stargazing. Did you want to do it with us?" asked Barbara, turning her attention away from the night sky and towards Betelgeuse - same as Adam. "We don't mind the company."

Betelgeuse's hair briefly became blush pink before going back to green with a little hint of yellow in it. He couldn't find the right words to say for a while, then he looked from Adam to Barbara before looking up at the sky and the stars. "No. Tis fine. You guys can stay out here and stargaze. I can-..."

As Betelgeuse stood up to head back inside to the attic, Barbara turned her attention over towards him, fake sarcasm in her tone. "You better not still be depressed and thinking you're alone and that we don't care about you, mister. Because we do care about you. There is no reason for you to still think that. Remember earlier, when you used your powers to make us and the Deetzes float in midair? That was after we told you that we cared about you."

Betelgeuse sat back down where he was previously, and refocused his attention up towards the night sky. Memories of what Barbara had just mentioned filtered throughout Betelgeuse's mind as he relaxed just a little. "...yeah."

Things went silent rather quickly, Betelgeuse laying down on the roof and resting his hands behind his head and glancing up at the stars. Looking down, Adam and Barbara noticed that he had his attention focused on one particular area of the sky. They lay themselves down on the roof as well, also resting their hands behind their heads as their gazes flicked up towards the exact same area of the sky Betelgeuse was looking at.

"What're you looking at, bud?" Adam asked, turned and looking over at Betelgeuse.

"The star that is my namesake. I spent night after lonely night looking at and/or for it in the centuries of which I was here in this world. I'm used to that, so it's a bit weird looking up at it with you guys."

"Well, Adam and I can go back inside and spend the remaining hours of the night inside the attic. Leave you be to do your stargazing. If you want us to, that is." Barbara, followed closely behind by Adam, stood up to head back inside.

"NO!!!"

Adam and Barbara, halfway to the window to the attic, spun on their heels to face him - the both of them looking at him with confused, but soft looks on their faces that transitioned to looks of worry when they took notice of the state he was currently in. His hair was now a darkened blood red shade, his eyebrows were furrowed, his eyes were narrowed, his hands were clenched into fists, and he looked like he was about to catch on fire.

Barbara and Adam immediately rushed over to calm the maddened demon down, Barbara sitting him down on the roof and kneeling down next to him. Adam, hand now resting on the demon's back, started rubbing comforting circles into his back. But that was doing nothing to calm the demon down. In fact, he was on the verge of having a panic attack if evidenced by the color of his hair lightening from the darkened blood red that it had had been to a lighter orangish red.

Barbara placed a hand on Betelgeuse's shoulder in an attempt to calm him down. But she was having no luck. "Betelgeuse, you-"

"No! No! No! No! No! You are not going back inside and leaving me out here all on my own again!" he was now grabbing at his hair, his eyes squeezed shut as he kicked and squirmed in the Maitlands hold.

This was more of a tantrum than it was a panic attack.

Turning and looking over towards one another, Adam and Barbara nodded as they thought up what to do about all of this. They stayed that way for at least a little while longer. Then something came to the two of them. The only way they could calm the demon down and prevent something from happening to the house (the last thing they knew they wanted was for Charles and Delia to blame them if the house burned down. They wouldn't hear the end of it for weeks in the Netherworld) was to assure Betelgeuse that they would stay outside on the roof with him.

Barbara, a soft and warm smile appearing on her face, rested a hand under Betelgeuse's chin and turned his head so that his eyes were focused solely on her. "Betelgeuse, calm down, please. We'll stay out here on the roof with you for a little while longer, then the three of us can go back inside since it's nearing morning and the sun's just about to rise. Does that sound okay?"

He calmed down immediately, the orangish red color of his hair quickly being replaced by its usual shade of green. His expression softened immediately and he slowly shook his head from side to side a few times before focusing on Barbara then looking at Adam. His attention flicked back up towards the dawn sky - its orange and yellow colors slowly transitioning to  the regular blue that indicated a warm and sunny day.

"It's fine... I don't mind staying out here a little while longer..."

Stripes of yellow and pink appeared next to one another in Betelgeuse's hair as he looked over towards and teasingly winked at the Maitlands - both of whom were now laying on their backs on the roof and watching the sunrise.

"... but only if you promise me that you two and I have a make out session together later on in the day, okay? Babs, Sexy?"