Prologue
Her heart raced. Rain filled her eyes, making it close to impossible to see. Susannah picked up the skirts to her once beautiful wedding dress. It was now torn, covered in mud, and soaked. Her legs ached from all the running, but she couldn't stop. Because if she did... He'll kill her. His words echoed in her head, tormenting her, mocking her. She kept going, running down the hill. She was sure another house was located at the bottom of the hill, it was her last chance. But it was to late. She heard someone growl her name. Her head whipped around and before she could even scream, she-
When she awoke, she was in the hotel. Her wedding dress was fully repaired, and any scratches she had were gone. Susannah noticed how cold she was, she rubbed her bare arms and looked around. It was her room, all of her things were gone. The room looked like it had been cleaned completely. The door suddenly opened. Susannah jumped around and found herself face to face with a maid. It only took her a moment to realize that the maid couldn't see her. No matter how loudly she yelled the woman wouldn't even look at her. Susannah followed the maid out of the room when she finished cleaning. She followed the maid around, mainly out of confusion, but also because she didn't know what else to do.
It wasn't until she overheard two maids talking, that she figured it out. Susannah Simon had gone missing. She had gone missing. But she was right there. But then it dawned on her. She was dead.
Hector "Jesse" de Silva was your average teenage boy (or so he liked to think). He got good grades, wasn't horrible at sports, and was pretty sociable. There was just one thing that made him slightly different. Okay, a lot different. He could talk to the dead. Well... He could do a lot more with the dead. But that was besides the point. He was what one would call a mediator. He helped spirits resolve whatever problems they have so they can move on. He was pretty good at it too, but his dad still worried about him. Jesse was the only child of Amelia and Joseph de Silva. They lived a pretty happy life, it wasn't perfect. Their apartment often leaked, and their neighbors were pretty loud. But they were happy. That is, until Amelia died. She was hit by a drunk driver while jogging one morning. Jesse's dad took it pretty hard. It took a long time for him to move on and be happy again. But he did. And that's were this story begins.
Joseph had fallen in love, and then married his therapist, Margaret. Jesse liked the woman, he really did. He just wasn't prepared for all the changes that came with his fathers new happiness. Moving to California was one of them. That's how he found himself in the sunny airport of Carmel, California. His new stepmom and step sister standing eagerly next to his father. His stepsister, Shannon held a sign that almost as big as her. At the age of twelve, she was pretty short and socially awkward. But her brains were far superior to her size. She was a genius. All throughout the wedding, Shannon engaged Jesse in complex conversations, that even he had some troubles keeping up with. If he needed help with school, she'd probably be the first person he'd consider asking for help. He quickly walked towards them, hoping they'd put down the sign quickly. Jesse appreciated the gesture, but it was still pretty embarrassing. He greeted his father with a firm handshake and quick hug. Margaret jumped on him once he was released from his fathers embrace. She spoke quickly about the house and his room.
"Oh Jesse you'll love it! You're room has a great view of the ocean and-" It felt strange having Margaret call him by his family nickname, but comforting in a way too. Shannon looked over the sign and pushed into the conversation. "I wanted to get that room, but Daisy refused to go in there no matter what I did, so you know..."
Daisy was the family cat. Jesse wasn't sure what to make of the creature. Last time he saw it, it had tried to bite his hand off. But Shannon reassured him that Daisy was very friendly, you just had to get to know her. He wasn't sure if he believed her, but he was willing to put up with it. Actually he was willing to put up with just about anything to see his dad look so happy. The way Joseph looked at Margaret made Jesse want to gag, but it also made him want to smile. His father had been through a lot, it was good that he had found someone to share it with.
"Jesse, did you notice that when the plan landed, the tail of the plan kicked up a little?" Shannon's lisp from her braces had improved greatly from the wedding Jesse noted as she proceeded to tell him all about wind velocity. They went and got his bags, he and his dad shouldering most of the weight. Jesse let Shannon take his backpack, because she looked like she really wanted to help out. On the ride home, his father explained about the school he was going to be attending. Jesse half heartily listened. While he cared about his education, all he really wanted to do is change out of his hot clothes (if he had known it was so hot, he wouldn't have worn a jacket) and fall asleep. His fatigue was momentarily forgotten as the ocean entered his eyesight. He sat up a little straighter and practically put his nose against the window. He had seen the ocean before, but this... This was so much better.
"Isn't it gorgeous?" Margaret had turned around in her seat, a soft smile illuminating her face. Jesse could see why his father had fallen for her, she truly was beautiful. He nodded wordlessly and turned back to the ocean. Maybe California wouldn't be so bad.
They arrived at the house quicker than he expected. Jesse grabbed his bags and followed his father to his room. It was simple, much like himself and his father. But it had touches of Margaret in it. The bedspread that had been picked out for him, throw pillows that filled the window seat, and so on. It had been a long time since Jesse had seen a women's touch in his life.
"How is it?" Joseph looked at his son worryingly. He wasn't wrong to worry. Jesse had often refused to move into certain buildings with no explanation. Of course, Jesse had a reason. But it wasn't one he was willing to share with his father. This reason, was the same reason he wouldn't have moved into this house under different circumstances.
It had a ghost.
a/n hey guys! So it's been awhile since I've written fanfiction... a really long time. But I'm trying to get into the swing of things again, so any support you can show me would be greatly appreciated! Reviews help a ton, so if you would leave one... Anyway I'd like to point out a few things. One, you might notice that I only gave Jesse one stepsibling. Shannon (that some of you might recognize as Doc's crush). While I want to keep this story similar to the books, I am going to be taking quite a few artistic choices. Like Susannah's origin and so on. So please tell me what you think, leave suggestions, theories or even funny stories about yourself. What I'm trying to say is... I want to hear from you!
MagpieFeather.