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Draco and Mimzy St. George were part of the group of parents that took the tour of the school first. Mr. D'eath led the tour, in his usual, dour manner.

"And this," He explained with a long, rattling sigh. "Is the Home Ickonomics room. As you can see, the student bodies learn such important tasks as *sigh* burning food, overloading sewing machines, and managing a chequebook."

Some parent snapped a picture with their iCoffin. Mr. D'eath trudged ahead.

"And here is the music tomb. All sorts of horrible sounds come out of here every day and make their way into my woefully unsoundproofed office."

A vampire parent spoke up.

"Is this vhere my little darlink Bittany plays in the ogrestra? She wants to be a great musician someday." Mr. D'eath shrugged.

"Well, that day certainly wasn't yesterday..."

"Bloody bats!" Draco commented to his wife. "I know Grim Reapers are, well, grim, but this one is our daughter's guidance counselor?"

"He does seem rather...depressed, for someone guiding young futures..." Mimzy agreed. "But the school does seem quite grand, doesn't it?"

"It's no Castle Avalon, but it seems sufficient." Draco replied. Mr. D'eath cleared his rattling throat.

"Ahem. If you please, keep the chatter at a minimum as we proceed to move to the Drama Class room, where our students work hard to remember their lines and steps, and more often than not fail...."

"And here we are back at the Clawditorium, which ends the tour of the school. I'm sure most of you were thoroughly bored and I don't blame you if you pull your children out right now." Mr. D'eath sighed as Draco, Mimzy and several other parents all filed back into the Clawditorium.

Never one to be silent, Draco spoke up.

"Nonsense! This school is exactly what I wanted for my daughter when she told me she was thinking about transferring out of Avalon."

"Really?" If Mr. D'eath had eyebrows, he'd be raising them. "Even with the drafty classrooms, deadly catacombs and the nearly-every-semester threats to destroy or close down the school?"

"Sir." Draco stood up and stretched, showing off his impressive ten-foot wingspan. "I come from Avalon. And on Avalon, if our children wish to embark on a quest, we bid them the fondest of fare-thee-wells and hope that they will be successful in their conquest. We do not raise our hatchlings to complain about drafty rooms, nor catacombs, nor school-destroying threats! I stand here now in your Clawditorium, which clearly has not been destroyed in your school which has clearly not been closed. I see these things and I know that my daughter, along with all of the other students here, are being successful in their quests!"

Mimzy started to clap, and several other parents joined in. Mr. D'eath shrugged.

"I suppose so. In a few moments, you'll be free to meet individually with each of your child's creatures. Then I'll take the other group of parents on the *sigh* grand tour. Again."

Draco sat down with a flourish.

"Hexcellent! I can't wait to hear from Draconia's Drama teacher. I'm sure she's inherited my flair for entrancing the public."

Conferences went very well for the St. Georges. It seemed that Draconia was doing very well in the cornertomb classes such as Mad Science and Physical Deaducation, despite some reports of her awkwardness. Draco assured Coach Igor and Mr. Hackington that as she became more used to her wings over the upcoming decades, her tendency to smack others in the face with them would die down.

For the very last conference of their day, Draco and Mimzy sat down in the Clawditorium dressing room with Mr. Where. The Drama Class teacher clasped his gloved hands on his clipboard and smiled at the pair, even if they couldn't see it due to his bandages and the fact that he was utterly invisible underneath them.

"First off, allow me to say that it has been a pleasure to have Draconia in my class for the last two years, Mr. and Mrs. St. George."

"That's Sir St. George, actually. I wasn't knighted by King Arthur himself to be called 'Mr.'" Draco replied. He didn't intend to be rude, but on Avalon, the titles bestowed by the Once and Future King were not something to be taken lightly. Mr. Where nodded.

"Of course, my apologies. Sir Draco St. George, Lady Mimzy. Your daughter has shown immense skill when it comes to the scripting side of drama class. In fact, the presentation the Headmistress aired at the beginning of the day, Draconia wrote most of the script for that."

Draco smiled, his golden face lighting up in pride.

"Of course, our daughter has had the complete works of Spooksfeare to study in the libury back at our cavern. She draws hexperience from all of the classical sources."

"At the end of this Screamester, the entire Drama Class is going to be putting on a play that they themselves have created in entirety. Writing, directing, acting...It is a daunting challenge, but I do believe my students are up to it. However, in the case of Draconia..." Mr. Where relied on his classical acting acumen to dramatically pause. Draco and Mimzy leaned in closer.

"I am afraid that her on-stage skills are far below those of her peers."

"What?!" Draco blustered.

"She claims to suffer from stage fright. Last year, she was the understudy for the main role in 'My Scare Lady,' and when she was called to perform, she stood on stage rigidly and stammered for five solid minutes. I had hoped that time and understanding would help her to overcome this affliction, but this year she her solution seems to be to simply avoid going onstage at all instead. It is dramatically affecting her grade in this class."

"Oh my, we didn't know she was avoiding doing her schoolwork." Mimzy spoke up, tapping one claw against her chin. "She's always been a bit shy - for a dragon, especially, but she's made so many new friends here at Monster High I rather supposed she'd gotten over it."

"In small group stitchuations, she does do well." Mr. Where replied. "I've discovered that pairing her with Draculaura, another standout drama student, she'll open up during re-hearse-als. I believe she doesn't think I notice that she's managed to remove herself completely from on-stage performing, though. She's stage managing one production, doing the lighting for another, working the control room for the Dance Class, et cetera. I'm afraid the simple fact is this: if Draconia does not perform on stage at some point during this Screamester, I cannot in good conscience pass her in Drama Class."

Draco stood up and dramatically stretched out his wings.

"This-this cannot stand! The family name St. George would be forEVER shamed if our daughter could not pass a SIMPLE drama class! All dragons have a flair for the dramatic - it is ingrained in us since our HATCHING!"

Mr. Where could not help but applaud Draco's grandiose statement.

"Indeed, when I traveled with the Tormentuous Traveling Troupe, we had a dragon lead who simply DEVOURED the scenery in our plays. Sometimes literally! I honestly believe that if Draconia applied herself, she could be a tour-de-force on the stage. I do hope that you'll speak to her about this."

"You can believe that we will." Mimzy answered. "Draconia gets such good marks, it would be a shame for this to be a blemish on her record. We'll discuss it with her when we arrive back at the Looking Glass."

"Mark my words," Draco's deep voice rumbled as he held a claw dramatically in front of him. "My daughter SHALL appear on stage before the end of your Screamester...and she shall have the GREATEST performance Monster High has ever seen!"

"Just so long as she appears on stage, that's quite good enough for the grade." Mr. Where replied, scribbling some notes on his clipboard. "Now, if you will hexcuse me, I have to meet with Mr. and Mrs. Phaidin, and it often takes us quite a bit of time to find each other."

Everything about this school was just confusing. Slender sighed, looking over the note his daughter had given him that morning before he left once more.



Slender sighed as he wandered down the halls. With all of the monster and creatures around, he just couldn't understand why Sally seemed to like it here so much. Of course, he knew she had to find her own place in the world, some place where she could truly be happy. He was, of course, happy enough in the forest, but, for someone who wasn't truly born in the forest, Sally needed to find her own place amongst the other monsters. If that meant spending everyday in a confusing building full of strange monsters, so be it.

As he passed each of the classrooms, noticing the creatures and parents in them talking, he started to get a better idea of what all of this really was about. Unfortunately, it vanished again once he reached the room that read “Mr. Mummy.”

He walked inside and Mr. Mummy stood, nodding to him with a smile, “Ah, Mr. Slender, please, come in.” he gestured to a chair beside his desk and sat back down.

Slender nodded as he walked over and sat down, “Please... Call me Dave.” he said begrudgingly.

Mr. Mummy just smiled, “As you wish.” he folded his hands and leaned forward “If I may start off, Dave, by saying that Sally is a pleasure to have as a student. She never starts any trouble, always does her work as she is asked, and pays attention during class...” he cleared his throat, “..I think.”

Slender straightened up “What do you mean you think?” he asked quickly.

Mr. Mummy held his hand up and just gave a serious look, “I do not think she fully understands the material as she thinks she does.” he explained, “She finishes the work, yes, but it is almost always wrong answers. I can tell it frustrates her when I try to explain it to her... at least her posture suggests so anyway.”

Slender shook his head, folding his arms, “Are you trying to tell me you think she's slow?” he questioned, his expressionless face hiding his irritation better than his tone.

Mr. Mummy sat back with a sigh, “Please understand, it's not that I believe she is slow, she just has no prior schooling to fall back on.” he explained, “With most other subjects, that would be alright, but math is a little different. I just think she would do better in a more standard class than Algrrrbra.”

Slender slumped his shoulders, leaning back. This was all getting overly confusing again, “What are you suggesting?”

Mr Mummy sat up, leaning forward again, “If she is willing, I could tutor her after school, help her to get the knowledge she needs to excel. She has such a wonderful learning drive, its refreshing. Most students can't stand my classes.” he cleared his throat again, “But, she is willing to learn. I am willing to help her, whatever the cost.”

Slender thought for a moment. He hadn't asked Sally much about how her studies were going, mainly because he couldn't understand why she wanted to go through it. But, if this was what she wanted, he wanted to help her. He looked at Mr. Mummy and nodded, “I will speak with her about it. If she is as willing as you seem to think, there may be no problem.”

Mr. Mummy stood with a smile and held his hand out to him, “It's been a pleasure to meet you, Dave. I do look forward to talking with you again.”

Slender looked at his Mr. Mummy's hand, then up at his face and just nodded as he stood, “Yes. A pleasure for me as well. Maybe next time will be better circumstances.” with a nod, he turned and walked back out of the classroom. Mr. Mummy just lowered his hand, before shrugging and just returning to the stack of papers on his desk.

The conferences went on for hours; longer than even a full day of school. But finally, parents and creatures alike were satisfied with the discussions. Some parents were pleased; others were not.

As the last parents, a pair of zombies, lumbered down the steps, the Headmistress turned to the rest of the Creature Faculty. Many of them were completely hexausted from the day. Mr. Hack rubbed his neck and grumbled.

"Pfagh! 'Not my precious whelp! They couldn't possibly be failing Mad Science! He's so smart at home!' These parents don't want to face the fact that their special snowflake monsterlings might not be the next Wailbert Einslime!"

"I had a very good hexperience with all of the gore-dians today." Mr. Where replied, re-tying a bandage around his wrist. "They appreciate my flair for the dramatic when it comes to discussing their children."

"I just hope that the advice we've given them is taken to heart," Mr. Mummy chimed in, holding a hand over his chest cavity. "Even if their heart happens to be sealed somewhere in a canopic jar in Egypt, like mine is."

"I don't know about the rest of you," The Headmistress piped up as she locked the giant doors to the school. "But I think I'll take a long soak in the tub tonight. Tomorrow is going to be just as long."

"A long soak in the tub and maybe a long, tall glassful of something sparkly." Ms. Kindergruber replied with a twinkle in her eye. "Until tomorrow, fellow Creatures."

"Until tomorrow."

The two Peryton coughed loudly at the gremlin’s smog, husband looking to wife with an expression of “why did we decide to sit behind HER”.
Both looked relieved when the crotchety old monster trundled away, and equally relieved they realised they wouldn’t have to watch some student video.

“Where’s the betting it was full of sentiment and supposed to warm our hearts?” Fawna shook her head.

Oscar chuckled. “I think we dodged a bullet there.”

“Maybe we should thank her.”

Both stood and consulted their map.

“I’m certain this place gets more of a maze every year.” Dr Hartley complained. “I believe they do it on purpose. I remember getting lost all the time even as a student here, I’m convinced the building itself moves around.”

Fawna laughed. “no my dear, you just have terrible direction sense. “

He snorted. “Fine, you lead the way. If we get lost, it’s your fault.”

“I will! Just you watch. Now let’s see, first meeting is… Boosic? Oh dear, let me see… “ She lead the way tentatively, her husband peering at the map over her shoulder critically. “stop it, you’re putting me off!”

“I don’t like these conferences, makes me feel like I’m back in school.” Oscar shook his head, shuddering a little.

“I don’t mind it so much. I enjoyed school.”

“of course you did, you were popular! One of the fearleaders. How I ended up with the prettiest ghoul on the squad I’ll never know.” Oscar grinned and squeezed his wife’s hand.

She flushed a little. “oh YOU. You know I always had a thing for the nerdy types. “ She grinned. “plus I knew I could cheat off your bitology exams” She cackled. “oh, here we are.”

They gave a tentative knock on the door of the boosic room and were greeted by a bearded skeleton who smiled toothily and invited them in.

“ahh, you must be Herr and Frau Hartley. Come in come in, sit. “

Doctor and Mrs Hartley exchanged glances, and found somewhere to sit.

“so…” Doctor Hartley began, trying to break the ice a little.

The teacher smiled and failed to introduce himself, launching straight into his talk.
“Ahh yes, Perry Hartley. An interesting boo that is for certain. “

“interesting.. how?” Fawna looked suspicious.

“Oh ja… he has… a strange relationship with attention. Very odd for a musician. Loves to play, but hates to be heard. It’s very difficult I find to get him to perform for the class, I am certain he is holding back but I am not sure quite why. He needs encouragement, something to bring him out of his shell perhaps. Build his confidence maybe?”

Fawna and Oscar looked at one another, frowning.

“I’ve… never thought our son needed more confidence. Are you SURE we’re talking about the same faun?”

The teacher nodded. “Ja, ja, indeed. As I said, it is a strange attitude. He will happily critique other students, he loves to make the jokes but he does not seem to enjoy performing for an audience. He spends classes talking with his friend, doesn’t always pay attention. I feel like he is… isn’t really wanting to be there you know?“

“hmm.”

And so the meetings continued, with similar discussions. Perry was easily distracted, seldom paying much attention in class and was considered by most of the faculty to be a troublemaker. While he wasn’t flunking, he wasn’t excelling either. He hated giving presentations and seemed to resent having to stand up and talk in front of the class. Considering the majority of his classes involved a large presentation element, his reluctance to participate was not encouraging.

Coach Igor was the only teacher with much positive to say.

“Oh yeah, kid’s got skill that’s for sure. I mean he’s fast, he’s agile. But I can’t keep him on the team if he doesn’t buck up academically. I don’t want to have to kick him off the team, he’s a good kid. Team player, doesn’t let an injury phase him but he knows he’s gotta fly straight or he’s outta here. “


Doctor and Mrs Hartley ate their lunch in sullen moods.

“So what do we do? “ Oscar asked.

“Well you’re his father; perhaps you should speak to him.”

“Why me?”

“Well you know, stag to stag or whatever you want to call it.” She shrugged. “He never listens to me. “

“Nonsense, you’re far better at that sort of thing than me.”

“Pah, are you nuts? You know I don’t do well with that emotional namby pamby stuff.” She made a face.

Doctor Hartley sighed. “ok, we do it together then. “

“Agreed. Who knows, maybe this new boo in his life will cheer him up. What was his name? Vinnie Lovecraft?”

“Yeah, be interesting to meet the kid. They certainly seem to have been spending a lot of time together.”

The dark shadow who had snuck in during the Headmisstress's speech had found himself staying in the back of the group during the tour, though he found himself more lost than ever. Even after the tour, he hadn't had the chance to really speak with any of his sons creatures, namely because he didn't know exactly who they were, causing him to wander from classroom to classroom, usually almost interrupting other conferences.

He laughed to himself as he sat in the creepateria with the other parents, not even noticing the normie woman across from him.

"Maybe I should have checked with Mottie first, find out who I'm supposed to be talking to." he said to himself. He tucked his wings loosely into his back, his antenna twitching curiously. He just smiled, enjoying the destruction he's cause himself for once. "What a mess."

He glanced up, seeing the woman this time, and just smiled, "I do hope you're having an easier time with this than I am." he laughed a little.