A quick PJO Ghost story in honor on Halloween (at least here in the states). NO spoilers for The Lost Hero.

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING.

by: Toph's Hammer

"Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for things we did not do that is inconsolable."

The sun had just set behind the row of trees, the shadows clawing at the sidewalk as dusk fell in earnest. Jake shifted his backpack again, groaning under the workload his teachers had assigned. It wasn't his fault that his math homework took him twice as long as everyone else! And the detentions! Just because his last test had spontaneously burst into flame didn't mean he was some sort of raving pyromaniac!

Jake shook his head. If he could only get through this year with half decent grades, then maybe, just maybe, he could go to high school. He had talked about it with his mom and they had agreed he could attend Eastlake High if he worked at Burger King on the weeknights. It would be hard, but they had to make ends meet, and Jake agreed, family came first…too bad his father hadn't ascribed to that theory.

Shaking his head, he glanced up. The moon was eerily full, its pale face glaring down through the crisp autumn air. A harvest moon. Turning a corner down a tree-lined lane, he stopped and began to pick his way down the cracked concrete sidewalk. He was almost ready to turn down his street and head home when a he heard a rustling in the bushes. Jake stopped, staring curiously at the slightly swaying hedge. Suddenly, a dark shape lunged out at him.

"Boo!"

"AHHH! What the h—!" Jake yelled, tripping over the uneven sidewalk and landing on his back.

Out of the bushes had lurched a hunched figure, one leg dragging slightly behind the other, scraping against the underbrush. His mouth was twisted in a sneer, a bit of dried blood dripping down from his under his matted hair. For a moment he held the pose, before dissolving into laughter.

"Oh, you should've seen your face!" The figure (it was a young boy, Jake realized) was nearly bent double, his hands on his knees. "Did you see him, Sam! He looked like he almost peed his pants!"

A ghost—Sam, Jake assumed—stepped out of the adjoining hedge, cackling with laughter. "I can't believe he fell for it! What are you, in fifth grade?"

"No, eighth," Jake snapped. "And why are you dressed up like that anyways? You look stupid."

The two boys stopped laughing and stared at each other.

"Wait…?" Sam asked, "you really don't know?"

"No…."

"It's Halloween, doofus!"

Oh….that explains a lot. Jake studied his trainers for a moment before pushing himself up off the ground. "Well, I'm going home now," he muttered, pushing his way past the two boys. "Goodbye."

"Bye, loser!" the zombie called. "Watch out for werewolves!"

Jake kept his head down and continued walking. The monotony of his feet padding against the sidewalk slowly allowed his mind to drift. He was a bit depressed that he had somehow managed to miss out on the fun of Halloween in and amongst the busyness of school. Oh well, he shrugged, there's always next year.

And yet as the moon beat down and illuminated the street below, everything now seemed to be bathed in an eerie light. The dogs' howls were suddenly mournful, the rustling of the bushes, sinister. It was an unconscious tension, and while Jake knew his fear was a bit irrational, he could help but shiver.

When he turned the corner toward home, everything seemed to change. Mist had descended on the path, soaking up the moonlight's warmth. The moaning wind suddenly quieted and the dogs fell silent. Even the birds seemed to sense the chill, and Jake suddenly felt a tingling between his shoulder blades. He was being watched. The bushes rustled, and he whirled around, only to find nothing.

He turned and continued walking, picking up his pace without looking back. Suddenly a twig cracked and a rattling, mismatched step sounded behind him. Fear coursed through his body and he broke into a run. His escape lasted two steps before he felt a hand at his back and abruptly, he was wrenched off his feet.

"Now, now little demigod," a hot voice hissed from behind his neck. "You mustn't run. It only makes things worse."

Slowly, Jake turned and found himself face to face with his worst nightmare. The creature (that was really the only word for it) was at once frightfully beautiful and horrifically grotesque. Were it not for the narrow red eyes and forked tongue that flicked out from a fanged mouth, Jerry would've thought the torso of the creature was that of a beautiful woman. Curly black hair framed a heart-shaped face with full lips and a dark, toned stomach shone from beneath a small t-shirt.

Below the waist, however, her feet were mismatched, one of shiny bronze that clanked clumsily on the pavement, the other the hoof of a donkey. She seemed to wobble slightly on her feet, before pressing a dagger to Jake's neck.

"It's been a long time since I've tasted the flesh of a half-blood," she smiled. "Any last words?"

Jake managed a strangled gasp.

"Hey ugly!" The voice came from over Jake's shoulder, "over here!"

The creature (an empousa, Jake would later learn) whirled, the dagger momentarily leaving his neck as she moved around his body to get a better view.

Jake turned as well and saw a boy a few years his senior wink over at him, his messy, slept-in black hair framing a pair of intense, sea green eyes. He wore an orange shirt with the words Camp Half-Blood stretched across its chest and in his right hand he held a gleaming bronze sword that he twirled almost casually.

"You know, Kelli," he said, "this is really getting old. I mean, what is this, the third time we've met?"

"Perrrrrrcccy Jackson," Kelli the empousa said. "I thought you were dead."

Percy seemed to shrug, a lopsided smile on his face, "well, I can't please everyone."

"No, you misunderstand me," Kelli smiled. "I'm glad. This means I get to kill you myself."

Suddenly, Jake was thrown roughly to the ground, skidding across the pavement as Kelli, growling under her breath, threw herself at Percy. Their blades clashed roughly in the night air, sparks flying into the mist.

Scrabbling on his hands and knees, Jake crawled toward the hedge, about to stand and run when he felt a hand on his shoulder push him back down.

"Stay here," a voice hissed.

Jake turned, roughly brushing off the hand. His connected with something solid, but when he turned to look, there was nothing there. Were it not for Percy and Kelli fighting in the background, Jake would've sworn he had imagined the whole thing.

"Wha—?"

"Shhh," a hand clamped over his mouth. "Wait here."

The pressure on his mouth suddenly vanished, and Jake was left watching as Percy was driven back by Kelli's furious assault. Unlike the empousa, however, Percy seemed to be enjoying the fight, a slight smile on his face. Jake watched as his sword flashed out, clipping Kelli on the shoulder.

The empousa's hissing only seemed to redouble as she drew back, a hint of blood dripping down her arm. Percy took the moment to glance in Jake's direction.

"You know Wise Girl, any time would be great."

At the mention of the name, Kelli seemed to freeze, "she's here too!"

Percy only smiled and for once, Kelli appeared tense, her beady eyes darting back and forth in the moonlight.

"Where arrrrreee you?"

Suddenly, the voice Jake had heard earlier spoke, "right here."

Before Kelli could even turn, a bronze dagger sprouted from her chest. The empousa grimaced, a look of surprise on her face, before slowly, dissolving into dust.

To Percy's right a tall girl with curly blond hair and deeply tanned skin suddenly appeared, whipping an old, tattered Yankees hat from her head. Her eyes were a stormy gray and her face wore a determined scowl that Jake was glad wasn't directed at him. She wiped the dagger disdainfully on her jeans before smiling and walking over to him.

"Are you alright?" She asked, her voice soft and kind.

Jake nodded, not sure what to say.

Percy came over to stand next to the girl, gently laying a hand on her shoulder.

"Annabeth…" he said, "we need to go."

"Yeah, I know," she waved him off before turning back to Jake. "There's a Mr. Brunner at your school, right?"

"Yeah…"

"Give him this," she said, pressing a small bead into his hand, "he'll know what to do."

"But—"

"Just do it, Jake," Percy smiled. "Trust me."

"How do you know my name…?" But before Jake could even finish his question they were gone, dissolving into the mist on the heels of a salty breeze.

For a moment, Jake said nothing, then he shook his head. It was impossible…he had to be dreaming…soon he'd wake up, snug and warm in his bed and everything would go back to normal. But when he reached into his pocket, he felt the bead the girl named Annabeth had given him and knew he wasn't in his bed. He pulled it out and turned it over in his hand. It was ivory white, with three small markings engraved on the surface. One appeared to be a trident, the other an owl, both intertwined amongst an olive wreath.

Strangely reassured, Jake slipped the bead into his pocket and hurried home. The night was suddenly clear.

The next day Jake knocked nervously on Mr. Brunner's door. Normally he didn't spend too much time talking with teachers outside of class, but Jake liked Mr. Brunner, though he thought his enthusiasm for ancient history was a bit strange. He seemed to make all the myths sound real, as if the heroes in them had actually lived. Sometimes while he was in class, Jake let his mind travel, pretending he was Heracles fighting the Nemean Lion or Icarus flying on wings of wax.

When Jake stepped inside the office, Mr. Brunner motioned him into the chair across from his desk, turning his wheelchair to face him. The bearded man looked over at him, his kindly face smiling gently.

"What can I do for you, Jake?"

Jake paused for a moment, rolling the bead over in his palm.

"Well sir, I was told to give you this."

Silently, he reached out and slid it slowly over to his teacher.

Seeing the bead, Mr. Brunner's smile disappeared. He picked it up, letting it roll between his fingertips.

"So you saw them then…Percy and Annabeth? How were they?"

Jake scratched his head. "I saw Percy, but he called the blond Wise Girl."

Mr. Brunner sighed, a wistful look on his face. "It's been a long time—too long—since I've heard that name. They were always so close…" He trailed off before snapping his attention back to Jake. "Forgive me," he smiled, "some memories never fade. Now tell me, what happened?"

"Well after they killed Kelli…" Jake's eyes widened, suddenly understanding what he had said. "They didn't actually kill a person! No, she was more of….of…an animal. Actually, I'm not sure what she was, but they aren't murderers! I'm not a murderer! Oh…"

"Jake," Mr. Brunner said calmly, "I know you're not. I understand. I was just asking because I haven't seen them in a long time."

The way his teacher said long made the hairs on Jake's arm stand up. It was the same way his mom talked about her sister who had died of cancer ten years ago.

"But they said they knew you. Did they go to school here?"

"No, they didn't go to school here," Mr. Brunner sighed, "but I did know them. I taught them both at a summer camp—they were two of my greatest pupils…until the accident."

"Accident?" Jake asked, "they looked fine to me."

"Jake, listen to me." His teacher sat forward, his eyes suddenly serious. "I know what you saw last night, at least to a degree. It was a full moon and you were walking home from school, it was late and you were probably alone. Out of nowhere, you were attacked. It was a creature you had never seen before, in your case, an empousa. She probably called you something strange, a half-blood or a demigod."

Jake felt his skin prickle, a cold shiver running down his spine as Mr. Brunner continued.

"Then, just as you thought you were going to die, or maybe wake up from one of the strangest dreams you'd ever had, something happened. A boy and girl, usually about eighteen years old, suddenly appeared out of nowhere. They called themselves Percy and Annabeth. They saved you, defeating the monster and setting you on your way. But before they left, they gave you a bead and told you to come see me."

"How did you know that!" Jake blurted out.

"As I said before, Percy and Annabeth were two of my best pupils. A son of Poseidon and a daughter of Athena united against the Titans. It was one of the greatest forces this world had ever seen. The gods honored them—they were truly heroes. But one day…one day it all came to an end." Mr. Brunner seemed to collect himself, bracing for what came next, "Ares said it was an accident and Hera flat denies it, but the end result was the same. Percy and Annabeth were dead, killed in an act of revenge by the very beings they had fought to protect. Poseidon raged and Athena roared but in the end, the memories faded and everything went back to normal."

"Gods? Poseidon? Athena? Aren't those just myths?"

Mr. Brunner smiled sadly, reaching down and pulling a glass jar from his desk. It was filled with hundreds of white beads. Beads identical to Jake's.

"When they passed on to the Underworld, Hades, owing them a favor, granted Percy's last request. Once a year on a full moon, they would be allowed back into the world of the living to help another demigod find his or her way. It was their way of showing the gods they were wrong…of showing them their arrogance."

Jake glanced uneasily at the jar, "but there are tons of beads in that jar."

"Two hundred and twenty four to be exact."

"But that would make you…"

"Very old indeed," Mr. Brunner chuckled, leaning forward in his wheelchair. "Now tell me Jake Fletcher, what do you know about a place called Camp Half-Blood?"

Thanks for reading! (Oh, and if you're wondering, Jake's last name is my clue as to his godly heritage) Please review!