Welcome to Monster High

"Hi, Morticia!"
I sighed, then winced at the sound of my given name. Father gave me a reassuring pat on the shoulder and pushed my toward my "welcoming committee", the one who would give me a tour of the school before classes started after the summer.
"I'm Frankie Stein, your Monster High Older Sister!"
I stared in utter shock and amazement at the stitches and bolts giving off electrical discharge in her neck, but regained my composure and stuck out my hand.
"Um, I am Morticia Grimm, Miss Stein. Or Lady Stein. So hard to keep up with the honorifics," I stumbled out. What was wrong with me? A lady does NOT stumble!
The green and grey-skinned girl giggled and told me it was fine to address her by her first name. I guess after so many years of living as a proper young corpse I was baffled by the use of first names. Maybe taking on the dialect and mannerisms of 19th century England wasn't the best idea.
"Well, er, Frankie, I doubt you could be my elder. I was born in the year 639 AD."
She smiled at me and found it would be of use to introduce me to her friends.
"You'll love 'em, Morticia! Especially Draculaura! She's so sweet!"
As I was led (well, dragged) to the entrance of the high school, I cast one last look behind me to Father, pleading him not to leave me with this stranger for eight hours, but he shook his head (at least I thought he did; his hood was up) and disappeared into a cloud of smoke. I was on my own.

"So, guys, this is my Monster High Little Sister, Morticia Grimm! Morticia, my friends!"
A dark-skinned girl wearing clothing far too flashy for my tastes approached me and introduced herself as Clawdeen. A blond-haired fish girl shook my hand (her webbed fingers felt unbelievably strange) and told me her name and the name of the girl beside her, Lagoona and Ghoulia. Ghoulia was blue-skinned (a zombie, one of many of father's kind-doings) and moaned to me, but I immediately understood her (she spoke in zombie, but her vocabulary was simply superb) and said it was a pleasure to meet them all.
"Ah! I'm Draculaura - sorry I'm late, fashion emergency - and it is SO nice to meet you, Morticia!"
She embraced me, and I immediately knew her as Dracula's daughter. Father once knew him and we met at a conference. He seemed nice enough, but seemed a bit creepy.
"Um, hello, Miss Draculaura. How's your father?"
She thought for a moment, confused that I was asking about him, but immediately lit up as her head filled with memories of meeting him at the bi-annual conference of the undead (held on Hallowe'en, also my birthday), and also meeting me.
"He's great! I bet he would love to see you again, along with YOUR dad! How is Reaper, anyway?"
"Skull and bones, but still thriving and doing his job as if it were as easy as baking a cake."
Her hair was pink and black, held up by two scrunchies (which were small threads of elastic covered in cloth, as I learned), and her skin held a pink tinge over her overall ghostly complexion. But something was off about her face...
"Um, Draculaura, your make-up is off," I said, clasping my hands tightly behind my back. I did not expect what she did next.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
I covered my ears. Who knew a vampire could possess such a set of lungs?!
"Oh my gosh, is it that bad?!"
Note to self: always bring ear plugs when speaking to Draculaura.
"N-no, Draculaura. Your mascara is just a bit clumped. I have some Scary Kay in my bag if you want me to help you," I said, trying to reassure her. She immediately brightened up and abandoned the task at hand (showing me around school and such) and dragged me to the nearest bathroom. I heard Frankie giggle and turned back to see the "ghouls" wish me luck. Dear God...

As expected, Draculaura did not have a reflection. I looked at mine: ghostly (almost glowing) white skin, black eyeliner and grey eyeshadow with black lipstick, and red eyes. Father was afraid people would scream when they saw me, so he gave me red eyes to resemble an albino.
When questioned about my black hair that trailed in a ponytail to the floor, he said I had a pathological fear of scissors from being stabbed by my mum (also explaining the stab wound that caused my original, actual death) and I wanted to dye my hair. Unfortunately, once my identity was divulged to the public, I was no longer Morticia Grimm, I was the Grim Reaper's daughter to be feared by all.
"What's the matter?"
I awoke from my reverie and remembered about Draculaura. Grabbing my bag, I quickly removed the Scary Kay Ultimate Volume mascara and some Brain Tissue Pink lipstick, along with a healthy amount of make-up remover.
"Thank you sooooo much for helping me out, Morticia! I owe you! Looking good is like, so important to me!"
As she wiped away the make-up, I couldn't help but feel sorry for her. Depending that much on appearances? Well, if I never knew what I looked like, if I couldn't even take a glance in the mirror to fix my hair, I guess I'd be cross, but appearances didn't matter. It's the quality of the soul, not the body, that gets you into the light.
"Um, sure, Draculaura, it's not a problem. Open your eyes as if you were applying mascara so I can do it."
She obliged and inside, I giggled at her face while I applied it.
"There. Right as rain. Now for the lipstick. I've never used it before since I'm not the biggest fan of pink, so you can have it. Father plucked it off of one of his victims as the corpse lay dead in the street for me to wear at Homecoming, but honestly, I don't believe it was very kind of him to steal..."
It was obvious that the vampire's glee at getting the lipstick (I honestly didn't know what the big deal was) and happily applied it.
"This is limited edition! Only one hundred were released by Scary Kay! Your father is awesome!"
Indeed he was, but theft, just for a tube of lipstick?

"Oh, Draculaura, I LOVE what Morticia did for you!" Frankie said as she saw the vampire girl. "How sweet!"
"It wasn't that much of a deed, really..." I muttered, but no one, not even the wolf girl with hyper-sensitive hearing, noticed.
"Speaking of make-up, where's Cleo? I thought she'd be here to heckle the new girl," said Clawdeen sarcastically. Oh, great. Another popular girl to heckle the poor freshman. After nearly fifty years of this (I started going to high school back in the sixties), I'd mastered the act of pretending to give a rat's derriere about what people thought of me, but I wasn't about to let this "Cleo" person intimidate me.
"Sorry I'm late, ghouls. I was just organizing our fearleading training schedule for the summer. Who is this?"
I smirked. "Morticia Grimm, Miss Cleo. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
Holding out my hand, I waited for her to shake it with disgust, as people of her kind always did. However, she surprised me by shaking it and welcoming me to the school.
"Erm, thanks. So, when will I be receiving the actual tour?"
Frankie yelped. "I totally forgot! We have to go through everything--"
"It won't matter until she gets her schedule next year. Calm down, Frankie," Clawdeen.
"Right. I'll just show you to the classrooms, gym, auditorium, creepateria--"
"Hold on just a mo', Frankie. Creepateria?"
She nodded as we walked the halls. "Yep. It's a play-on-words for cafeteria."
That's just stupid, I thought to myself.

The school contained far more secrets that I'd previously thought. Spiders, frogs, and so many other different animals walked the halls like it was completely normal. I cringed as a bat flew overhead.
"Afraid of bats?" asked Draculaura, appearing next to me as Frankie led me to the "creepateria" (I will never stop thinking that name is utterly stupid).
"No, I just have bad memories from them," I muttered, hoping she didn't hear me.
"Well, the bats here are super sweet!"
Having studied bats while Father and I lived in Romania, I told Draculaura some myths about vampire bats.
"They only need a tablespoon of blood a day, and it's usually from cattle. Their bite is so tiny, you can barely feel it," I told her, breaking off Frankie's hand when I stopped short. Odd.
"...I wonder how long it'll take her to notice," I muttered. I will admit, I am a trickster. For some reason, pranking has always been my forte. While I never do anything rash or cruel, every prank always has its advantages. While holding Frankie's dismembered hand, I examined the stitching and staples that had come loose. She was more a rag doll than anything. I half expected stuffing to start coming out of the open wound. But since the hand was technically dead, it didn't bleed, as it had already scarred over.
"FRANKIE! YOUR HAND!" Draculaura yelled. So much for my testing.
"What?! OH!"
She ran over and stuck the hand back onto her wrist. I thought she'd have to withdraw a some thread and a needle to sew it back on, but no, she simply stuck it back on and all was well. Peculiar indeed.

"Do you like to swim, play any sports, do you know any gymnastics or dance moves?"
I chuckled awkwardly. "I play chess, I'm more of a, what you would call, braniac, and I love experimenting. I also really love history...when people aren't asking me for homework help."
Frankie smiled at me, then beckoned Ghoulia over.
"Ghoulia happens to be the smartest ghoul at school! Think you can match her?"
"I'd think not. I do possess a rather high IQ, but I wouldn't think of it."
"How high?"
"Eh, 138 the last time I took the written exam for it."
"That's really high!"
"Rather normal for someone like me, though," I said, utterly embarrassed. If any blood was coursing through my veins, my face would be tinged pink.
"Someone like you? What do you mean?"
"Oh, nothing, Miss Draculaura."
Clawdeen approached me as I entered the history classroom. "So, why do you address everyone with 'Miss' or 'Sir'?"
"I sort of raised myself in the Victorian era, as Father was dealing with so many slayings. I lived in the garden house of Queen Victoria's castle, serving as a maiden to help dress the Queen and gather her dresses. My primary language is English, but I happened to pick up some Romanian and Dutch when we were living abroad," I explained. Truthfully, it was out of politeness rather than my customs.
"Well, it's sweet and everything, but a little weird."
"Well, I suppose none of you would be accustomed to it, being raised in a modern society," I muttered dejectedly. If I could find ONE person (or intelligent life form, since so many monster-human hybrids walked about this godforsaken school) who accepted me for who I truly was, I would be perfectly fine. Unfortunately, the horrors of high school would never permit it. Sixty years and counting of this and I was already growing depressed.
"So, you have to be on time for class, unless you want to be sent to the Headless Headmistress's office. Lunch depends on your schedule, but you can also bring if you want. Other than that, there really isn't that much of a dress code. Just be here at like, eight, and follow the schedule that you'll get the first day. Of course it'll be tweaked a bit with your extracurricular activities, which will really help you get into a good college," Frankie rambled on. It was the same with every school I'd ever been in. I just wanted to go home.
"That sounds fine. I'm feeling a bit lightheaded. I need to get something in my stomach," I said, looking to my growling tummy. The only way the reanimation spell Father put on me when he first decided to keep me alive would work was if I took care of my body, and that included feeding it.
"We'll go to the creepateria! If it's open, that is," my rag-doll Monster High Elder Sister said, taking me to the lunch room. I kept a good grip on her arm, since I knew that was the only thing that WOULDN'T come undone.

"Anything you want to eat, go ahead!"
"I just need to settle my stomach. After this, I'd like to meet the Headmistress and discuss my schedule. Or do I do that with the secretary?"
Clawdeen looked to Draculaura, who looked away.
"Miss Draculaura, what's the matter?" I asked, grabbing a piece of chocolate cake and a salad, making SURE there were no human organs in it.
"Oh, nothing you need to worry about, Morticia. I, ah--"
"Why on Earth are you covering your salad with chocolate syrup?" Cleo asked in disgust.
"It goes great with everything. Well, not EVERYTHING, but you know. I love the stuff."
It was true I harbored an unhealthy obsession for the marvelous confection. Raisinettes, Hershey bars, chocolate kisses, chocolate heads, fondue, anything with the word "chocolate" in it and I made sure to pick it out in the market when the maid who handled shopping wasn't looking.
"Hey, can the Reaper PLEASE bring me to the light?! I'm TIRED of haunting the girl's bathroom!"
Everyone (besides me) shrieked. A young ghost, one of a human-Harpy hybrid who possibly died at Monster High, with a black blouse and skirt caked in dried blood, was giving me the saddest puppy-dog eyes she could muster. But I was used to it.
"Spirits," I said, scoffing. "Just because I'm the deathbringer's daughter they think I can show them the light. You still have business on Earth, Avia! You need to figure out what that is, and then you'll see the light."
Avia nodded and retreated into the floorboards.
"They follow me like lost hounds!" I muttered, stabbing a chocolate-syrup-drenched mushroom with my fork. "And every time they see me, they think I can lead them into the light. Father just whisks their souls from their bodies! He can't send them into Oblivion, and neither can I!"
"That must reek," Frankie said sympathetically.
"Imagine having someone stalking you constantly, then magnify that by about, oh, I don't know, how many ghosts roam Earth's soil? Over TWO BILLION!"
"Any way you can get rid of them?"
"Unless they finish their business on Earth, they can't leave. Most never show themselves, but trust me, the ones that do get on my nerves."
"Well, why don't we try to find out what business Avia has left on Earth?!" Draculaura suggested. "She's probably the one who keeps flooding the bathrooms!"
"Well, ghosts who use water to cause havoc usually died under aquatic circumstances, like drowning."
Clawdeen and Cleo looked to each other uneasily.
"What's going on?" I asked. Though most people had their reasons for keeping secrets, if it meant the passing on of a ghost, I was well for it.
"Avia Harper, the daughter of one of the Harpies, drowned back in '83. Someone pushed her into the pool and she couldn't swim," Cleo finally said.
"Oh, my gosh! Why would someone do that?" Draculaura asked, shocked someone would kill someone else. Of course, I was the daughter of death himself. I'd seen my fair share of murders, including Jack the Ripper's victims.
"It was supposed to be a prank, but no one knew she couldn't swim."
Clawdeen narrowed her eyes at the Egyptian princess. "You didn't have anything to do with her death, did you?"
"Of course not! But she's never revealed herself until now."
Ghoulia groaned. She was at the foot of the table with a large, dusty tome in her hands.
"Is that the yearbook from '83?" Draculaura asked. The blue-skinned girl nodded and opened to a page, blowing the dust in our direction and making us all cough.
"Hey, look. 'Dedicated to Avia Harper, age 15, who drowned in the Monster High school pool.' Look, here's her picture!"
The photo was in black and white and faded incredulously, but we could make out the beaked and winged girl in a white dress with feathered gold hair.
"Poor thing. I wonder who did it to her," Clawdeen said, looking at the photo that took up most of the page.
"I can find out," I said casually, taking another bite of my chocolate-drenched salad.
"How?"
"Oh, Father keeps records of every murder committed for reference. Since so many are committed, he categorizes them by year and state, province, or country if there weren't many committed that year. I can get Nevermore to bring them over."
"Who's Nevermore?" asked Draculaura.
"My pet raven. I'll summon here. Give me just a moment."
Removing one of my scythe earrings, I held it so it extended into a full sickle, going eight feet in length. with a three-foot-long blade. I tapped the bottom of my scythe on the floor three times, until massive thunderclouds appeared and lightning struck.
"Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling,
By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore,
`Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou,' I said, `art sure no craven.
Ghastly grim and ancient raven wandering from the nightly shore -
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night's Plutonian shore!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'"
This was the spell I wrote to summon my darling raven. She always knew what I needed, even when I simply called her name to bring me a quill and vial of ink.
The girls at the table shivered. I looked to them, then chuckled at their fear.
"Father said I was destined to take the scythe from the moment he took me into his care. I can only do a few spells, like summoning Nevermore, but he'll teach me more whence I am ready. In several thousand years, I'll take my father's title, rank, and powers."
"Um, okay then. Hey, look at the window!" Clawdeen said, ever-so terrified by simple uttering of Edgar Allen Poe's poem verse.
And indeed, in the window was Nevermore, clutching a tome with the correct year and state I meant for her to bring. I put the scythe down and opened a small window as to let my pet in, letting her perch on my shoulder as I carried the book to the table.
"Let's see... May 24th, 1983. Eighty-five murders in this state, sweet heavens. Fifty-three murders in the first degree, twenty murders in the second degree, eleven in the third degree, and one act of manslaughter. Manslaughter, that's what we need. Hmmm..."
I flipped to the one page that held the data for the act of manslaughter, but upon seeing the picture of the woman (who, upon committing the act, was no older than Avia) that killed Avia by "accident" looked so painstakingly familiar.
"This looks like a young Headless Headmistress," I muttered, thinking back to the first time Father and I met her.
"What?! Lemme see!"
Everyone crowded around the tome, and then looked back to the yearbook for the name printed under the murderess's picture.
"That IS the Headless Headmistress!" Cleo exclaimed.
"We've GOTTA bring this book to her and get to confess!" Draculaura said, making a grab for the book, but it disappeared in smoke. I'd struck it with my scythe, which then shrunk back into an earring. As I placed it back in my pierced earlobe, I attempted to explain to them the laws of nature.
"We cannot divulge this information to anyone. Father's the only one, along with me and his assistants, who can know of every murder committed, intentional or not. Even bringing the tome here would get him in such a fit he'd ground me for the next fifty years. I would wipe your memories if I knew how."
"Then, what're we supposed to do? Let the principal get away with murder?" Clawdeen said angrily.
"Well, technically, she just pushed her in the pool. That doesn't explain the scratches and bite marks and blood, though," I mused, sending Nevermore off with the tome.
Lagoona gasped. "The piranhas!"
"You ignoramuses! You put flesh-eating fish in the school pool?! What next, barracudas and electric eels?!"
What imbecile would put students' lives at stake simply for the sake of getting them to swim faster?!
"Well, we at least need to let Avia know that she died at the hands of the Headless Headmistress. Still, it doesn't explain the blood on her dress."
"What do you mean?" Frankie asked, utterly confused.
"I mean, if she died under brutal circumstances, like getting eaten alive by piranhas, then she'd be haunting the school pool or pushing other people to her own fate. But she's only been causing the bathrooms to flood.
"Ahhh-AHHHGHH-UGH-unnnnnn," Ghoulia groaned.
"She drowned BEFORE being bitten. I'll bet they fished her body out of the pool before they could start taking chunks of flesh out of her body," I exclaimed.
"Okay, TMI."
"Surely you've seen someone being eaten before?" I asked. If this was truly a school for monsters, they'd have had their fair share of brutal murders and dismemberment.
"Well, we have to find Avia and tell her we know how she died, then she go to the Headmistress and give her a scare of her own," Clawdeen said, chuckling.
"How? She's probably in the basement."
They all stared at me.
"Oh no, I am NOT luring her out!"
"Come on! You're the only one of us who actually SUMMONS ghosts!"
"But then I'd have to give every ghost in this school a sense of closure and send them to the light."
"Then simply go in the lavatory. The one that was most recently flooded," Ghoulia groaned, though her words were less eloquent when coming from her mouth.

I tiptoed through the water. The girl's restroom on the ground floor reeked of mold, mildew, and toilet water. I cursed Father for giving me a sense of smell, and shuddering with each step my heels made on the tiled floor. Thank Hades I was wearing my six-inch pumps, or my shoes would be...ugh.
"I feel like I'm going to vomit," I muttered, holding onto the sink for support from the wave of nausea that washed over me.
"Just call her!"
Scowling, I walked into the middle of the bathroom.
"Oh suffering spirit, hurt and 'lone,
Reveal thyself to me, so that I can return you home.
Summon your strength, and I'll set you free.
Spirit of Avia Harper, come to me!"
I know, not the most eloquent and wordy of spells, but it was written ages ago when I was very young.
Avia's spirit, after a few moments, appeared in front of me, her Monster High fearleading uniform so sopping wet and bloody it looked like it came from a horror movie.
"Avia, we know who did this to you. We know who pushed you into the pool."
"Y-you do?!"
"You don't?" Cleo asked, stepping into the bathroom.
"No. I..it was my initiation into the Fearleading Squad. I had to hold my breath under the water for two minutes with the piranhas in the pool, but as I was about dive in, someone pushed me. I could stay in the water, but I couldn't swim. Terrified, I began gargling water and it poured into my lungs. I was unconscious before the fish started tearing at my clothes and wings. I still have no idea who pushed me, though, so I just flood the girl's bathroom. I don't even know what year it is."
"It's been twenty-eight years since your death, Avia," I said, biting my lip. "And it was the Headless Headmistress who did it. I have proof. Now, you can go scare her and go to Oblivion."
"But, all I ever wanted was to be a fearleader!"
"...huh?"
"I don't care about the principal, though it does make really good blackmail for you guys. I want to do a routine, and be solid! Oh, please, Miss Grimm, can you make me solid?"
It was true I could make a ghost solid, but only for three minutes.
"Only long enough for you to do a routine."
"That's all I need! It would make me so happy!"
Those eyes, those gorgeous yet so sad eyes...
"Fine."

And so the fearleaders taught Avia a routine, me sitting with the rest of the others in the bleachers. It took a few tries, but finally the poor ghost got it down pat.
"Now, make me solid and record it! I wanna send it to my parents!"
Ghoulia readied her camera, and I sighed. Summoning the other scythe earring, I held it out so it resembled my father's, and slashed through the ghost of Avia with the blade.

Her skin was no longer green and pale, but cream-colored and radiant. Her hair and beak glowed, along with her wings, and surprisingly, the Monster High uniform was newer than ever.
The routine went on, and at the three minute mark, the girl returned to her spirit form, but...was glowing. The room filled with golden light, and she didn't have blood or scratches or tears or anything on her!
"Thank you, ghouls of Monster High!"

And just like that, she was gone. The light show was over. And the three-o'clock bell rang.
"That was amazing!" Frankie yelled after the routine. "Can you get the tape to her parents, Morticia?"
"Sure. I mean, I'll try. Thanks, everyone. It was...fun."
"As if you ever had a doubt!" Draculaura said. "It's always an adventure here!"
"Well, Father is waiting for me outside in the chariot. I can't say I'm looking forward to exorcising ghosts, but everything else...it's really something with you people. I'll try to stay in town for summer, maybe meet up with you guys."
"We'll walk you to the front," Frankie said, grabbing my arm and leading me to the front of the school. As sure as sunshine, the Death Chariot, being pulled by the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse with Father at the reins, was waiting for me with black smog pouring out from underneath it.
"See you when the term starts," I yelled to them, making sure I had everything before climbing into the seat next to Father. I waved goodbye before he cracked the reins and the horses shot off into the late-afternoon sun.
"Did you enjoy your day at Monster High School?" he asked, voice barely above a whisper.
"Yes, Father. It was fun."
"I heard about the exorcism. Your punishment is to dig ten new graves for the cemetery before midnight."
"Yes, Father," I muttered dejectedly.
"But...tonight, we will ride. The maids are sewing your cloak as we speak."
My eyes lit up. "Really, Father? I can help you with work?!"
"You hath proven yourself, though in doing so you went against my orders. We have lots to do. Cutting the strings of eight-hundred and sixteen lives, reanimating new corpses, and building coffins. My assistants could use your help."
"But you said we'd ride tonight," I muttered.
"...I haven't taken you to get new school clothes in quite some time, have I?"
And at that moment, as I leaned against my father's shoulder, burying my head in his robe and taking in the sweet smell of death, I knew that my year at Monster High would prove to be very interesting. Interesting...and fun.