Act 1, prologue: A Promise in the Shadows

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It was a particularly cold night, a deep darkness, as the moon struggled to reveal itself through the thick clouds. The holwing wind made the trees sway, groaning in the gloom. In the open-air cemetery, where the silent witnesses of old times layed, the unease sense was almost palpable, a desolation that seemed to envolve the place with every wind blow.
Sophia, with her heavy dress and silent steps, had just revealed herself in the light of a nearby lamp, leaving a narrow alley, accompanied by a strong and austere man. Sophia's father, Edmund, was influential and feared in the region and was returning home with her after a social event, however, he decided to slightly divert his path for a short round. His concern for his family's property and investments led him to inspect the cemetery, now neglected and disturbingly exposed, three years after the start of the Black Death.
Among the rotting bodies, Beetlejuice moved with disconcerting intensity, searching for anything valuable, as soon as a cart unloaded, he moved to this new location. His carefree and irreverent behavior was evident as he manipulated the corpses with an almost frenzied dexterity. His eyes, darkened like two black spots on his face due to the low light, were an almost savage sight, his actions did't went unnoticed by passersby.
Sophia's father advanced with firm and quick steps, approaching Beetlejuice with an expression of absolute disdain. "Even the lowest scum have learned to respect the dead, what do you think you're doing?" he shouted, his voice resonating with an authority that seemed to fill the cemetery.
The thief, oblivious to the gravity of the situation, slowly turned around, a disdainful smile on his lips. "Me? I like to think that I'm giving a better destination to things that they will certainly no longer use". His voice full of sarcasm, directly challenged the power that Edmund represented.
The tension was palpable. As he continued to make ,threats and try to intimidate Beetlejuice, Sophia, hidden in the shadows, felt a mixture of fear and inexplicable fascination. Despite her father being an imposing figure, the strange young man faced the situation with a confidence that delighted her. Sure, the desecration of the dead made her shudder and the smell was unbearable, but there was something morbidly magnetic about the situation. Beetlejuice showed no signs of submission, instead, he continued to work, completely disregarding the presence of the intruders. Sophia, despite her natural shyness and respect for her father's suffocating presence, couldn't take her eyes off him. The way he challenged the established order was fascinating.

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In the upcoming weeks, Sophia's life became a silent search. Observing Beetlejuice from distance, through the windows of her residence or during discreet walks, she began to feel a deep curiosity, along with a new kind of anxiety. The way he defied norms and lived freely enchanted her. Every sight of him was a mixture of wonder and desire, a desire to escape the restrictive and controlling life she knew, and he was the representation her feelings, as if all her inappropriate thoughts formed a whole new person. Finally, after the torturous weeks that followed, Sophia decided to act, she could no longer return to the confines of her existense, not after that encounter in the graveyard. She would run away and find Beetlejuice, she intended to confess her feelings and then they could run away, with her dowry's money that she would bring hidden, they could start a new life, just the two of them.
However, what that young woman could never imagine, was that this was also the day of his honeymoon. After meeting and marrying Dolores, an enigmatic and seductive woman, in a matter of days, joining together in a profane celebration, just like them, the moment came for the consummation of the vows. Dolores, however, had planned something dark: poison him to take his soul and ensure her own immortality. Sophia ran hurriedly through the deserted streets, the cold wind hurted her face like small cuts, while the sound of her own footsteps echoed in her nervous mind. Every corner felt like a eternity and every noise from the street seemed amplified in her troubled head, but the confidence in her feelings and her perfectly put together plan drove her forward, with her heart fixed on one person.
When Sophia arrived, she found the most horrific scene, Beetlejuice was dead from poisoning and with an enraged expression due the betrayal. His body was already pale and cold. Rage that resulted in Dolores' brutal death by axe, the woman's body was completely dismembered, causing blood to spread everywhere, soaking all the floor. Sophia then walked over, heartbroken and with eyes full of tears, kneeling beside Beetlejuice and crying over his limp body, the feeling of despair and desolation growing every second, "I love you" she whispered, her voice weak and broken by pain, almost inaudible. "And I promise that I will love you in every other life, we will meet again, and no matter what happens, I will never forget you." Sophia's lament seemed to echo through the village, the sound of crying and sharp sobs, her promises of love and devotion caught in the darkness of that night.

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Sophia's father after finding out what had happened, warned by his employees, was furious and decided that the situation needed to be resolved quickly and effectively. To protect the family's honor and avoid any scandal, he arranged a marriage for Sophia with Anthony, a man who was as cruel as rich, known for his brutality and power. Sophia's marriage to Anthony was the realization of her nightmares, he was ruthless and treated her with scorn, isolating and keeping her locked up, away from any possibility of escape and under strong physical violence. Sophia's life alongside Anthony was full of suffering and fear. Anthony, interested only in her wealth, constantly mistreated her. A few months after their wedding, Sophia, now at the age of 25, was brutally murdered by Anthony, who had already completed his goal and no longer needed her. Her life was ended short and filled with abuse, a cruel act that sealed her fate.
After Sophia's death, a heavy air enveloped the room, as if the world was suspended in dark mourning. That seemed to announce the sadness of an unfulfilled promise, in the dim light, the cycle of life and death continued. Time advanced until a baby's cry broke the silence. Her new life began as a child again, eyes opening to a world that was at once so familiar and so new. As the seconds passed fast, memories of her past life began to emerge, like scattered fragments of a distant dream. The love and the promise made to Beetlejuice, the losses and the very curse that now followed her, became clear in her mind. She slowly understood that she was doomed to repeat her story, trapped in an endless cycle of reincarnation, always seeking to find the one to whom she had promised eternal love, and then she heard "Welcome to the world, Olivia".

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Notes: Beetlejuice's medias will be mixed up (these works do not belong to me and all rights are reserved), so we'll use a lot of information from the 1988 and 2024 movies, but using the personality of the characters from the Broadway musical. I'm looking for someone to help me with beta reading the English translation.

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