I drug my trunk through the bus station to the front entrance where I saw a
rather elderly gentleman who looked as if he was in a total state of
confusion. My great uncle, lord bless him. My uncle looked about at the
other people in the station and finally his weathered blue eyes came to
rest on me. I met those eyes.
He blinked as if he had been shocked by something that tended to run on
electricity.
"Charlotte! My dear niece, how are you? Was the trip alright? Let me help
you with those bags."
All I was able to get in was a 'Hi Uncle Greer. Thanks'
He talked nonstop from us putting the trunk, duffel and such in the back of
his red Chevrolet pickup to the main intersection halfway through sleepy
hollow which was a good thirty miles from Tarrytown.
The town was small about the same size as Greensburg. Tall oaks and maples lined the streets and cats and dogs could be seen at random. Uncle Greer took me by the school to register for the semester. It was a public high school it was kind of big and imposing. Design and building material seemed to date back to the fifties or earlier. Even in the middle of summer the combined appearance of brown brick ivy and high black windows gave me the chills. I noticed the football and baseball fields. They were well kept and I could make out the janitor painting on the yard lines. Once in side the cold halls echoed ominously to our footsteps. The office was just off the main hall. At the front desk was a stuffy looking secretary typing away on a computer. My uncle introduced me and gave her all of the necessary information anything he didn't know I filled in. The secretary, a Mrs. Persimmon, eyed me suspiciously. She had the sourest expression when I spoke up. I could just imagine what I looked like. Some off the street punk with short hair no doubt. When we had finally finished Greer headed for the house. My uncle's house was on the far side of town almost completely isolated on a hill. Nearby were the Hudson River and a creek called the pontaco. The house was really big. Slate blue exterior and great sweeping Dutch eaves seemed to have grown out of the ground. It looked perfect surrounded by the huge oak trees. I grabbed my stuff and crunched across the gravel driveway. Aunt Lorain helped me inside with my luggage. She took me too a room on the upper floor. It over looked the Hudson and had a trellis with ivy directly beneath it. After unpacking I fell onto my new bed and went straight to sleep.
In the morning, or after noon I should say because it was almost twelve o'clock, I took a shower and got dressed. I wore my 'Schroeder' t-shirt and a pair of jeans and some timberland hiking boots. Uncle Richard had left on some sort of business trip early that morning and aunt Lorain had left a note saying she had gone into town to get her hair done. I poked around the cupboards in the kitchen. Nothing even slightly nutritious for my age group. Hmmm. Aha! Town was just three quarters of a mile down the road. I decided that was where I would be going. I jotted a few words on a paper and left it on the table in the foyer. Then I set of down the two lane highway. The gravel was distinctly grayish and rough. I looked around at the trees that bordered the road these woods were down right eerie looking. They gave me chills. It was like there was something in them that could see me but was invisible. On into town I spotted what looked to be like a local favorite the Headless Horseman Café. I went in and ordered a plate of chicken strips with fries on the side and a large cherry coke. In a booth not far from the front window sat a girl with frizzy red hair and pale skin dotted by freckles. She caught my eye and motioned for me to sit with her. I smiled and sat down with a thank you. She introduced herself as Becca Pratt a local. She was my age and seemed to like the same subjects and books. "So what's your name?" "Oh, it's Charlotte Steeple." "Where are you from, exactly?" she asked sharing my plate of French fries. "Greensburg, Georgia. My Nanny raised me so I never knew my parents." "Oh. That's too bad." Becca said sympathetically. "What was your Nanny's name?" "Antoinetta van Guard. It's a strange name." Becca's eyes got really large "you mean the Mystic Antoinetta?" "Yeah how do you know she is a mystic?" I said. Becca grinned "She is my grand mother." I was shocked. I swear I probably looked like a gold fish with my mouth hanging open like that. Then came the giggles. I just couldn't stop laughing.
The town was small about the same size as Greensburg. Tall oaks and maples lined the streets and cats and dogs could be seen at random. Uncle Greer took me by the school to register for the semester. It was a public high school it was kind of big and imposing. Design and building material seemed to date back to the fifties or earlier. Even in the middle of summer the combined appearance of brown brick ivy and high black windows gave me the chills. I noticed the football and baseball fields. They were well kept and I could make out the janitor painting on the yard lines. Once in side the cold halls echoed ominously to our footsteps. The office was just off the main hall. At the front desk was a stuffy looking secretary typing away on a computer. My uncle introduced me and gave her all of the necessary information anything he didn't know I filled in. The secretary, a Mrs. Persimmon, eyed me suspiciously. She had the sourest expression when I spoke up. I could just imagine what I looked like. Some off the street punk with short hair no doubt. When we had finally finished Greer headed for the house. My uncle's house was on the far side of town almost completely isolated on a hill. Nearby were the Hudson River and a creek called the pontaco. The house was really big. Slate blue exterior and great sweeping Dutch eaves seemed to have grown out of the ground. It looked perfect surrounded by the huge oak trees. I grabbed my stuff and crunched across the gravel driveway. Aunt Lorain helped me inside with my luggage. She took me too a room on the upper floor. It over looked the Hudson and had a trellis with ivy directly beneath it. After unpacking I fell onto my new bed and went straight to sleep.
In the morning, or after noon I should say because it was almost twelve o'clock, I took a shower and got dressed. I wore my 'Schroeder' t-shirt and a pair of jeans and some timberland hiking boots. Uncle Richard had left on some sort of business trip early that morning and aunt Lorain had left a note saying she had gone into town to get her hair done. I poked around the cupboards in the kitchen. Nothing even slightly nutritious for my age group. Hmmm. Aha! Town was just three quarters of a mile down the road. I decided that was where I would be going. I jotted a few words on a paper and left it on the table in the foyer. Then I set of down the two lane highway. The gravel was distinctly grayish and rough. I looked around at the trees that bordered the road these woods were down right eerie looking. They gave me chills. It was like there was something in them that could see me but was invisible. On into town I spotted what looked to be like a local favorite the Headless Horseman Café. I went in and ordered a plate of chicken strips with fries on the side and a large cherry coke. In a booth not far from the front window sat a girl with frizzy red hair and pale skin dotted by freckles. She caught my eye and motioned for me to sit with her. I smiled and sat down with a thank you. She introduced herself as Becca Pratt a local. She was my age and seemed to like the same subjects and books. "So what's your name?" "Oh, it's Charlotte Steeple." "Where are you from, exactly?" she asked sharing my plate of French fries. "Greensburg, Georgia. My Nanny raised me so I never knew my parents." "Oh. That's too bad." Becca said sympathetically. "What was your Nanny's name?" "Antoinetta van Guard. It's a strange name." Becca's eyes got really large "you mean the Mystic Antoinetta?" "Yeah how do you know she is a mystic?" I said. Becca grinned "She is my grand mother." I was shocked. I swear I probably looked like a gold fish with my mouth hanging open like that. Then came the giggles. I just couldn't stop laughing.