Monster High: Season of the Witch

4. A Headless Headmistress

Headmistress Bloodgood was a sight to behold.

In a striking velvet suit and slicked back bun, she sat before Beatrix and Autumn with impeccable posture.

The headmistress's detached head was upright on the desk, staring at them. Out of politeness, Beatrix avoided looking at where Bloodgood's neck abruptly ended.

Over the past week, Beatrix and Autumn had traveled to Oregon by train, taken a shuttle up a perilous mountain to Monster High, decorated their dorm room, and bought Autumn countless school supplies from the student store.

Beatrix was going to have a fresh start in New Salem and she could hardly contain herself.

"Beatrix Felicity Ravenwood?" the headmistress asked.

"That's me."

Bloodgood's body flipped through a stack of forms. "Novice witch?"

"If novice means newbie, then yes," Beatrix said.

"To be clear, you understand that you'll be Autumn's student aid for her sophomore year? As well as a part time member of the creepateria staff?"

Beatrix nodded.

"Very good," Bloodgood said. "Since you aren't a formal student, you can't attend Autumn's classes with her. You'll only accompany her during certain intervals of the day. This includes escorting her to Study Howl and ensuring she gets to academic buildings safely.

"You will assist Autumn if she needs medical or emotional aid. Because Autumn tears limbs easily and is often unable to repair herself, you'll be on standby during her Physical Deaducation class. And for your creepateria job, you'll be reporting to Marsha, our head lunch lady, at nine o'clock sharp every morning."

Although lunch duty didn't sound particularly exciting, Beatrix assumed it would be better than working for her aunts.

"Thank you again for letting my friend come," Autumn said.

"It would have been dreadful to lose a student like you. You're going to make a valuable addition to our halls, regardless of your..." Bloodgood glanced at Beatrix. "... special accommodations."

Autumn nudged Beatrix.

"Oh, right. Thank you, headmistress," Beatrix said. "I swear I won't cause a stir."

"I'm sure you'll try your best," Bloodgood said. "There is one last requirement you must comply with. You will attend the Monster Sensitivity Seminar—or 'MSS'—every Saturday. MSS welcomes newly transitioned monsters who possess more human traits than usual.

"The seminar educates them on their changing bodies and how to navigate our diverse school. You will lose your status as Autumn's aid if you don't attend."

"Got it," Beatrix said.

Bloodgood's body shifted her head closer to the girls. "Now, what I am about to tell you must stay within the walls of this office."

"Yes, ma'am," Beatrix and Autumn said in unison.

Bloodgood lowered her voice. "A witch's presence at this school is untoward, as you know. I only considered this because Autumn wrote such a moving scholarship essay about inclusivity and being raised around magic-folk.

"You're going to be met with some hostility here, Beatrix. Nevertheless, I believe this is the first real step towards officially letting witches attend the school. Therefore, it's of the utmost importance that you be on your best behavior. And no magic. One strike, and you're out."

Beatrix smiled. "You can count on me."

However, she still didn't understand why the anti-witchcraft rule existed.

As she was about to ask, Bloodgood picked up her head and stood. "Thank you for visiting me this morning. You better head over to Autumn's first class."

Beatrix and Autumn rose. While Autumn thanked Bloodgood for her time, Beatrix was glad to get away from that severed head and start her first day of work.

When Beatrix swung open the office door, she collided with a wall and was nearly knocked off her feet. Strong fingers grabbed her and steadied her.

"Bea! Are you okay?" Autumn cried out.

The world spun and Beatrix blinked to clear her vision. She then realized she hadn't slammed into a wall. Rather, she'd slammed into a tall guy's chest.

The first thing Beatrix noticed was the guy's buzz cut, light gray skin, and the fact that he was gripping her arm.

He wore a leather jacket and a silver chain necklace. A small contraption was attached at his belt—a retractable staff of some kind. Beatrix couldn't tell what the staff was meant for.

What really stood out was his eyes.

Where his eyes should have been white, they were jet black. He had no irises to be seen.

Beatrix couldn't tell if he didn't have irises at all, or if the colored part of his eye was also black. Either way it was indistinguishable. His eyes were so dark they looked hollow; like bottomless caverns Beatrix could stumble down.

His gaze sunk into hers, his large frame imposing.

"Grey," Bloodgood said. "Meet our new arrivals."

"What's a witch doing here?" he immediately asked, releasing Beatrix. His voice was deep and rough.

Beatrix's heart dropped. She wasn't wearing any of her traditional witchy attire; instead, she'd opted for some inconspicuous black jeans and a matching blouse to fly below the radar. She'd even hidden her crooked witch hat in her dorm closet.

How does he know my identity?

"Let's speak inside," Bloodgood interjected, gesturing for Grey to enter her office. "Have a good first day, ladies."

Grey brushed past Beatrix. By the look of him, Beatrix assumed he was visiting Bloodgood for disciplinary reasons.

"Wait," Beatrix said.

Grey paused in the doorway. His dark eyes met hers again.

"How can you tell I'm a witch?" Beatrix asked. She couldn't bear not knowing.

Grey glowered. "I can spot a claimed soul a mile away."

Without further explanation, he disappeared into the office, leaving Beatrix and Autumn in the hallway, stunned.

"A claimed soul?" Autumn broke the silence. "I thought you had it until your sixteenth birthday."

"That's what I thought too..."

While Beatrix's family had pledged allegiance to devils for generations, Beatrix still needed to formally sign her soul away to make her contract official.

How can Grey tell my soul won't be mine for much longer? How does he know anything about my soul at all?

Thinking of his blacked-out eyes sent a shiver down Beatrix's spine. Beatrix didn't think blending in would be this hard.

The scarecrow linked her soft arm in Beatrix's. "We should go."