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Not part of Riordanverse
The following article/section is from the Paola Santiago continuity under Rick Riordan Presents and not the Riordanverse canon. |
“ | You can’t believe everything you hear in the stories. We’re not always beautiful women. We take the form of whoever we think has the best change of of being picked up. It’s not our fault most people are easy to manipulate. | ” |
–The Hitchhiker to Pao on their methods in Paola Santiago and the Forest of Nightmares. |
The Hitchhiker is a mysterious shapeshifter who stalks Paola Santiago as she looks for her missing father.
Paola Santiago series[]
Paola Santiago and the Forest of Nightmares[]
When Pai is in Rock Creek, they appear to her in the form of a woman. After telling Pao a story about their husband leaving them with no money as they were visiting a sick sister, they attack the girl, only stopping when a voice speaks through them before leaving and erasing Pao's memory of the encounter.
As she travels through the Mojave Desert, the Hitchkiker is seen by Pao, who want to pick them up, but Johnny, the driver, doesn’t notice and drives past them. They later appears as a boy Pao's age trying to hit a ride, she asks John to pick them up, but they are invisible to Johnny.
As Pao and Naomi are reaching the California-Oregon border, the bus they are on stops and lets them on, this time as a man in a Santa suit who starts bothering the female passengers. However they skip Pao and Naomi after catching a glimpse of Pao's magnifying glass. When Pao berates them and they finally comes over to the girls, they attack them after seeing their eyes change color, causing panic on the bus. They then start to change shape, which triggers Pao's memory of the encounter in Rock Creek. The ghost then turns into the man and boy Pao saw before the Cadejo attack. The bus driver, who was driving at a high speed, pulls over and all but Pao, Naomi, and the ghost get off. The Hitchhiker says it was ordered to follow Pao before going to kill the other passengers. They laugh as Pao and Naomi get lost in the woods. They come face to face with Pao and Naomi, along with the rest of the Niños de la Luz, after they escape from a Duendecillos prison. They comes at the group and Pao and the niños attack them. During the fighting, the Hitchhiker tells Pao that those are her will never accept her and that he can tell her about her father if she stands down. Repressing the urge to have her questions answered, she rejects the chance and keeps fighting. They get the upper hand and Franco tries to use his device. Pao, who has a new plan, tells him to stop but he ignores her. Franco's plan backfires and the Hitchhiker knocks him out. Pap cuts off two of the ghost's arms and lures the Hitchhiker back into the cell where the green lights appear. After rejecting their offer again, Pao asks to be her father and the lights take her somewhere.
Appearance[]
The Hittchiker is a being who can take the form of whoever they kill, be it one at a time or all at once. They wear red clothing.
Personality[]
The Hitchhiker is cruel and sadistic.
Abilities[]
- Shapeshifting: The Hitchhiker is able to change its shape, taking the forms of the victims they kill.
- Mnemokinesis: The Hitchhiker can alter the memory of others, causing them to forget the encounter.
Trivia[]
- The Hitchhiker is similar to the story of Lydia, a ghost in Jamestown, North Carolina where a teenage girl asked young men to bring her home, only to learn the following day she died years before.
Paola Santiago series | |
Books: | Paola Santiago and the River of Tears | Paola Santiago and the Forest of Nightmares | Paola Santiago and the Sanctuary of Shadows |
Main Characters: | Paola Santiago | Dante Mata | Emma Lockwood | Bruto | Naomi |
Secondary Characters: | Maria Santiago | Ondina | Marisa Martínez | Carmela Mata | Beto | Joaquín | Kit | Robin Long |
Minor Characters: | Karen Lockwood | Sal | Franco | Aaron | Johnny | Shadow Dante |
Mythical Creatures: | Chupacabra | La Llorona | Ahogada | La Mano Panchona | Lechuza | Duendecillos | Cadejo | The Hitchhiker | El Cucuy | Falsita |
Related Content: | Tehlor Kay Mejia | Rick Riordan Presents | Bruto and the Freaky Flower | Disney+ series |