DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT IN ANY WAY OWN FILLMORE OR ANYTHING RELATED TO FILLMORE. I DO, HOWEVER, OWN SHADE AND ALL CHARACTERS RELATED TO HER. ANY SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THEM AND ANY OTHER CHARACTER ARE PURELY COINCIDENTAL.

SUMMARY: Someone has vandalized a mural of Principal Folsom made by the art club. While Fillmore and Ingrid are searching for the perp, Fillmore begins receiving helpful tips from Shade, a femme fatale at X who will stop at nothing to keep her identity hidden. But there's one problem: whoever vandalized the painting is equally determined to silence Shade. Can Fillmore and Ingrid find out who Shade is before the perp finds out first? (PG for one slightly inappropriate remark in Chapter 2)

Practically every student at X Middle School were gathered around a particular section of the hallway, where Principal Folsom stood next to a velvet rope, ready to show what was behind the light tan veil on the wall.

"And without further ado, it is my honor to present our art club's newest masterpiece!"

She pulled the velvet rope downward, letting the veil drop down to the floor.

All of the students stood dumbstruck at what they saw, and there were even a few snickers in the audience.

Folsom's hearty smile faded fast.

"What?"

She looked across the audience, as dumbstruck as the people she was looking to. Her focus than turned to the painting.

"What's the matter with you people? It's a perfectly lovely- what the-?!"

For obvious reasons, she joined the audience in staring.

The mural was indeed of Principal Folsom, as planned, but fresh marker ink showed that another artist made some last-minute changes.

In the mural, Principal Folsom smiled down on the onlooking students, but someone had painted her teeth a rotten yellow and drawn a small goatee on her chin. The mural's face had airbrushed liver spots all over, and dirt was painted on Folsom's shirt in the same manner.

Folsom growled and turned toward the quiet man behind him.

"Raycliff! Get me the safety patrol! And make it snappy!"

"Yes ma'am." Without another word from either of them, Raycliff walked off like a silent ghost down the hall.

The screen door to his destination was easy to find, mainly because of the writing on the glass: X MIDDLE SCHOOL SAFETY PATROL HEADQUARTERS AND GLEE CLUB ANNEX. Opening the door, he immediately approached Vallejo's desk.

"Folsom wants you in her office…immediately."

Without a single word more, he left, leaving Vallejo no time to ponder. Instead, Vallejo immediately sent for Cornelius Fillmore and Ingrid Third.

As Fillmore and Ingrid left for Folsom's office, a dark figure, almost like a shadow, eyed Fillmore like a panther eyeing its prey.

Before any of the safety patrol officers took notice of the figure, it seemingly disappeared into the darkness of the hall, never taking its eyes off Fillmore for a second.