Chapter 2
Percy clenched his teeth.
"So technically, I have a bigger Beanie Baby collection than Archie does!" exclaimed the chattering kid behind him. This 10-year-old, Octavian, had been following him around since he stepped foot in the village.
His mother, Sally Jackson, had asked Percy to run to the convenience store to get a gallon of milk. It was about a mile walk from his house, but Percy didn't mind. It was more time to mope. That was, if Octavian wasn't following him.
"Um, hey... Percy, was it?" Said the girl at the cash register.
"Yeah," said Percy, fishing out his wallet. "And you are?"
"My name's Hazel," she said, pointing to her name tag. Percy blushed a little. He would have read the name tag, except for the fact that he was dyslexic. Reading wasn't exactly his forte in life.
"Um, Percy? Is it... Is it true that you live in the house next to the old mansion?" said Hazel, seeming kind of nervous.
"Yeah, why?" he said.
Hazel didn't reply.
As Percy was walking out of the store, Octavian plagued him once again. "You wanna know why she asked about your house?" he said.
Percy tried not to look too irritated. "Why?" he muttered.
"Because people say it's haunted!" exclaimed Octavian.
Percy froze in his tracks. He didn't believe in ghosts, but the image of those blue eyes were burned into the back of his mind. "How?" he asked.
"Well, they say there's this girl who was murdered by her own brother there, and the ghost is waiting for her brother to come back so she can take her revenge! Any guy who goes up there comes back terrorized. They say she makes the blood of her victims run down the walls and screams so loudly your eardrums pop," Octavian explained.
"That's so lame!" said Percy, though he began to walk a little faster.
"It's not!" insisted Octavian. "I believe in it, anyways."
Gods know that's proof, thought Percy, though he didn't have the heart to say it.
"Legend had it that around twenty years ago, she stopped killing the boys. Now she just drives them insane. We even had to send one kid to a mental institution!" exclaimed Octavian.
"Wait," said Percy. "In this legend of yours, what happened to any girls who went up there?"
Octavian shrugged. "The same thing, although their hysteria is usually slightly worse. The legend says that her brother killed her because his girlfriend had bribed him. The girlfriend thought the Ghost Girl was prettier than her, so she told her boyfriend that if he killed his sister, she would... Um, well..." Octavian turned a bright shade of red.
"She would what?" prompted Percy.
Octavian looked at his feet. "Well, the grownups usually leave this part out of the story, but... Archie told me that what really happened was that she... Well, uh, she said she would... You know!" Octavian gestured with his head and gave Percy a hopeless look.
Percy was confused for a moment. Then it dawned on him what Octavian was talking about. Explicit information. He coughed a little bit. "Oh. Okay, then." An awkward silence hung in the air. He did his best to change the subject. "I still don't believe the story. Sorry."
Octavian looked a little angry. "Well, you try spending the night in that house! You'll never come out the same!"
Percy raised an eyebrow. "Was that a challenge?" he said.
Octavian nodded fiercely. "I doubt you'll accept."
Percy did his best to look nonchalant. "Well, you're wrong about that. But, seriously, I can't do it tonight because we have school tomorrow, right?"
Octavian looked disappointed. "Yeah, I guess so."
"I'll do it on Saturday, then," declared Percy. He stopped as they got to the top of the hill, in front of his little red house.
"I'll see you later, then," said Percy, hoping it wasn't true. He walked through the door. The first room he saw when he entered the house was the kitchen. He took off his shoes and set down the milk on the counter. He could hear his family laughing and unpacking in the living room, but he didn't feel like joining them.
He climbed the stairs two at a time and laid down on the mattress that was on the floor in his future room. There were boxes all around, but he didn't have the motivation to open them. He looked to the left and saw a small package that was marked FRAGILE. He reached over and opened it.
Inside was a single object: a framed photo of Percy and his dad. His dad had been a Navy captain, one of the best America had to offer. Everyone always said that he had a way with the water. He could tell where the tides were, and even navigate without a compass even when it was cloudy. He had taken Percy sailing lots of times. Percy had loved the water, and wanted to be just like his dad when he grew up.
That was, of course, until the sea swallowed his father whole. He had drowned along with his crew, and even the ship. No remains were ever found. That was when Percy was eleven. He was sixteen now, and ache hadn't dulled a bit.
Just before his father had disappeared, Percy's mother, Sally, had another little boy. His name was Tyson. He was six now, and the most annoying, endearing little trickster Percy had ever laid eyes on. When Percy turned thirteen, Sally accepted the fact that her husband was dead. She cried for a while, and then got on with her life. She remarried a guy named Paul Blofis, although all three of the Jackson's kept their last names. Paul didn't seem to mind.
Though he hated to admit it, Percy slightly resented Paul. It wasn't that he was a jerk or anything; in fact, Paul was a pretty cool guy. But Percy, unlike his mother, never gave up hope that his father was still alive somewhere. His heart had pushed all logic out of his head, and he was determined to find his father again someday.
Percy stiffened as a cold wind seemed to sweep down his back. He stood up and looked out the window at the mansion. There was no face in the window this time, but he could almost imagine those blue eyes watching him judgmentally, deciding whether or not his blood would be running down the walls soon, too.
Thanks for all the positive reviews, even you people who saying "Annabeth's eyes are gray, not blue!" I know that. Just bare with me and may ever-unfolding plot a little while longer. :D
Anyways, thanks so much! And review!
-Rebel