A New Life (Sequel to 'Beetlejuice: A Blast into The Past')

Chapter 13: Shopping

Remus was leaning on Betelgeuse, which he noticed.

"Rem? It's time to go to bed." To help Remus get up, he patted his shoulder. "Rem?" He got a better look at the adolescent, who was dozing off on his shoulder. Betelgeuse was at a loss for what to do because he had never faced a situation like this before. "So, what do I do now? I don't want to disturb Rem because he's sleeping. At the same time, I'd want to do some shopping for him!" In hushed tones, he inquired of the skeleton and spider, not to disturb the sleeping adolescent

"I'm not sure, Betelgeuse. I guess you'll just have to carry him." Ginger grumbled as she walked out the door to practise her contemporary dance.

"Ginger I-! Ugh!" Before getting up, he returned his gaze to Remus, delicately sliding his arms beneath him and drawing him onto his lap. He strolled up to the guest bedroom door and gently pushed it open. He carefully placed Remus on his bed, then stood and stared at him for a few moments.

"When he sleeps, he's kind of adorable!" Betelgeuse mumbled to himself as he carefully took the blanket from beneath Remus and draped it over him, snuggling him in. He tucked the blanket under his chin so that just his head was exposed. He turned around and came back up to the kid, softly kissed his forehead before departing. Betelgeuse tiptoed approached the door, careful not to walk on the squeaky floors. He grinned as he gazed at the calm juvenile before softly closing the door. He drew out a piece of paper and the orange crayon that came to mind first. He worked slowly and carefully as he wrote 'gon owt 2 get Rem some fings,' trying to keep his handwriting understandable. 'I'll be bak in a few owers,' he grumbled as he read his own words. It was hardly legible and might have been written better by a four-year-old. Remus's statements when he learned he couldn't read helped him feel better about it.

"Beej, 775,000,000 people are illiterate! There's no reason to be ashamed!" He silently walked away after nodding at what he had written and placing it on the table. He was at a British shopping centre with a snap of his fingers. He didn't know why, but he had the impression that wearing British attire would make Remus feel more at ease and at home. Betelgeuse glanced about, perplexed and unsure of where to go. He walked to the Halifax bank and snapped his fingers in his pockets, feeling $1000 materialise in them. He was met by a middle-aged man who inquired how he might assist him.

"Hi. I was wondering if I could exchange my money for British pounds?"

"Yes. I can assist you with that, sir." Betelgeuse handed him the money, and he got some back which consisted of 36 £20 notes, 1 £1 coin, and two 20p coins for a total of £721.40. He accepted the money and went shopping. Primark was the first store he came to. The clothing was plainly not of the highest quality or even extremely attractive. Betelgeuse walked through the store for a time, feeling all of the different fabrics. He ended up at the underwear area, where he chose a pair of beautiful black sports socks with grey stripes along the top. Betelgeuse discovered a lovely set of normal black socks, each with a distinctive design, for only £5 in each 5-pack. Getting Remus two sets made sense. Three of them were striped in varied sizes and colours. One was a polka dot, and the last one was checked. The sizes were one size universal fit, so he didn't have to worry about that. Betelgeuse took a glance at the boxer shorts next to them and decided to leave them and go pay.

There was an exceptionally large line, with individuals of all ages in it. When he realised he didn't have to pay tax in the UK, he was astonished. He examined the cash and saw that, except for the altered currency symbol and face, the British notes were quite identical to the dollar bills he was familiar with. He eventually paid the £10 for both pairs of socks using one £20 he got and was given £10 back before he continued on his way. He was given a large paper bag for the two packs of socks which was a bit extreme, but he didn't mind. Everything else he would get would go into it. He then went into Next and browsed around. He discovered a pair of mid-blue denim jeans in Remus's size. Betelgeuse picked them up and they were only £25 and continued shopping. A light blue marl t-shirt was also discovered. He selected several sizes and was approached by a young man, presumably in his late teens, who asked if he needed any sizing assistance. Being a demon with a plan, he gently rejected him. He wandered inside the changing rooms and assumed the form of Remus. He then removed the shabby torn up jeans Remus wore and examined the bruises and scars along his thighs. There were handprint bruises all over and on the back was cuts from a belt. When he realised Remus was a 'XS' in British sizing, he went up a size for comfort. It's possible that being dangerously underweight and 4ft 4 had something to do with it. He reverted to his normal shape and proceeded towards the cashiers, knowing he wouldn't be able to take them. On the way, he saw a blue and white striped bedding and added that before Betelgeuse gladly paid a total of £50 with three £20 notes and received £10 change. He walked out of the store after placing the clothes in the Primark bag he'd been handed. He went into New Look and looked around. He chose to travel up the escalator to the top floor because the lower floor was just for women's clothing. He took a step back to see how people boarded and disembarked. He realised he had to climb them like steps and gingerly went on. He was dragged up into the men's section by the moving stairs. He found a couple pairs of denim jeans and chose a light and dark blue pair. He shuffled among them until he found R's size, then proceeded to the cash registers. When he was finally summoned to pay, the male employee scanned his jeans.