Amity's eyes snapped open and she gasped, sitting up in her bed in Blight Manor and panting. She held her head in confusion, reluctantly trying to recall the dream she just had in an effort to decide if she was going crazy or not. She slid her tangled legs out of her sheets and off of the bed and stumbled to her bathroom to splash her face with water. Ever since her excursion to the Knee and acing her exam, her dreams have been… uncomfortable, in one way or another as though opening the blocks caused by the power glyphs had messed up her brain. They weren't dreams she could talk about to anyone either, considering their embarrassing content and the unknown figure it was with.

The alarm by her bed began to hum its pleasant tune for several seconds before it became irritated that it wasn't being poked into silence; it's soft hum becoming more of a screech. She raced to the alarm to shut it off, poking it in its singular eye to get it to stop screaming while drying her face with a towel. The dream interpretation would have to wait, as she was certain it was just one of those teenage things that had been talked about in health class. Today was the first day of the new semester; she had a new chance to present her abilities to the Emperor's Coven, she had overcome needing a training wand, and improved her magic more in the last few weeks than in the last year. There was no way this day could go poorly.

Amity stepped into the shower, her mind struggling to recall her dream despite her attempts to ignore it, and she lingered in the warm water longer than she should have, thinking about it anyway. It had started out innocently enough, with her going through a typical day of classes at Hexside until she found herself in her abomination class. She had walked up to the front of the class, her pot of abomination goo sitting to the side. She commanded it to rise, but nothing happened. Taking the lid off of the pot, and looking in, there was only a dark void until a pair of arms dragged her in. She didn't remember feeling any fear at being sucked into the darkness by an unknown entity, but she did remember things feeling… weird afterward.

"You're going to be late, Mittens!" called Emira, her voice shaking Amity out of her trance.

"Right. Coming!" she replied, shaking her head again. She turned the water off and stepped out, quickly drying off and getting into her school uniform before tying back her hair. "Abomination, collect my text books." she said, the purple mud in a bowl in the corner of her room oozing out of its container and standing. She had discovered that she could now store enough abomination goo to construct an adult witch sized abomination for hours at a time. The longer she was able to keep its form, the more intelligent and in synch it was becoming, requiring less concentration to hold it together.

The abomination groaned its affirmative, wandering around the room and picking up several books that were scattered about on her bed and desk. Amity hurriedly applied her make up before giving herself a nod in the mirror and charging down the stairs.

"Amity!" Odalia called. "Stop trouncing around the house like an ogre! Your father and I would like a word."

Amity slowed for the last few steps, her abomination heavily descending the stairs as well. "Did I do something wrong?" she asked, confused. She had aced her exam, beating not only Ed and Em's score, but her father's as well. She was actually looking forward to going back to school today, but that could certainly change in the next few minutes.

"No, dear. At least not yet." Odalia said, gesturing to Amity's usual seat at the dining room table. Hesitantly, Amity did as expected, her anxiety at being late for her first class back at school beginning to gnaw at her. Alador sat in his usual chair, his attention on an engineering theory scroll, and Odalia stood behind him, her arms draped over the high backed chair. "We simply want to congratulate you on your performance last semester."

Amity eyed her mother suspiciously. She knew she had done well, but considering her failure at the Covention, the close calls she had in Latissa and Acetabela, and the late night she'd had at the library had definitely set her back. Her parents weren't ones to offer encouragement, especially a week later.

"That being said…" Odalia continued, and Amity couldn't help but roll her eyes. "We can't stress enough just how important networking can be for your future."

"Networking?" Amity asked, confused.

Odalia gently slapped Alador on the shoulder, gaining his attention. "Hmm? Oh, right… we have been informed that you don't intend on going to Grom this year."

Amity's face reddened with anger, though mostly at Boscha. It was the only explanation as to where they would have gotten word that Amity didn't plan on attending the dance. "Uh, I just thought my studies were more important…"

"Your studies are important, of course." Odalia continued. "But you need to start thinking of your social standing after school. Being Grom Royalty and defeating Grom itself goes a long way to solidifying one's place in the hierarchy of The Boiling Isles."

"But I…"

"Now then, off to school. You're going to be late after sleeping in. Be sure to keep your eyes open for any worthy potential partners for Grom."

"But…" The wordless gaze from her mother and inattentiveness of her father was enough of a sign that arguing wasn't going to do Amity any good, and she stood from her seat. "Yes, mom." she replied in frustration, returning to her abomination's side and pulling on her boots. She left through the front door with her gooey servant in tow, her mind now far from the dream that had woken her up that morning.

A blue banner hung wide over the pathway leading to Hexside's entryway, reading 'Welcome To The New Semester' in large gold letters, and students all seemed to be gathering at the school at once. One boy was tying his unicorn up to the hitching post nearby; while beside him, another student threaded a fiery chain through the front tire of their devil's ride; a two wheeled vehicle powered by spirit energy with a large yellow eye below the controls that passed for a headlight. New semesters were often a time for students to reinvent themselves; from the preps becoming bad boys, the posers straightening up, and the bullies… tending to remain as they were.

Amity approached the stairs of the school, her abomination still close behind and mirroring her movement. Skara, Amelia, Cat, Seline, and Solis were standing at the base of the steps talking about their upcoming classes when Amity joined them. She held her books to her chest, feeling an air of anxiety after allowing the Banshees to lose their game in Acetabela, and yet she was greeted with smiles from the group. "Hey guys…"

"Hey Amity!" Skara grinned. "I heard you rocked at your exam!"

Amelia gave her a friendly nod, not unusual for her; though Cat crossed her arms and looked away, giving her a cold shoulder. Seline smiled shyly from the corner of the group, but her single eye seemed focused on what Amity was going to say next. Solis, on the other hand, seemed to get more nervous than usual when he noticed her beside him. "Uhm, I, uh… I should get to class!" he stammered, rushing away from the school.

"Thanks, Skara. Uhm, does he know he's going the wrong way?" Amity asked, looking back at Solis.

"Oh, he said his first class was meeting outside." Seline said in her small voice.

Amity pulled her schedule from her pocket and growled. "Abomination Education 201 - Gather at the Grudgby Field." she read aloud. She had somehow forgotten after her parents brought up Grom. "Thanks. Maybe I'll see you all later." she added, the other students issuing a cavalcade of goodbyes and waves. As she turned away, Willow and her friend Augustus passed by, and Amity reflexively turned her attention away from them with a frown in an effort to keep up appearances. Her abomination did the same, and she could hear Willow stop, and feel her eyes on her back, but she continued on until she caught sight of a pleasant view of a young girl in a white uniform that brought a smile to her face. "Hey, Luz!" she said with a wave. "Congrats on getting in." Both Amity and her abomination lifted a hand to the side of their mouth to whisper. "And not being in the baby class."

Luz returned the smile and lifted a hand. "Thanks, Amity! Up top!"

Amity had brought up the gesture with her siblings earlier in the week; something Luz had shown them during their escapade in the library, and was now working its way slowly through the school. With a twinge of pride at being able to share it, Amity clapped Luz's hand with her own. The abomination at her side clapped a gooey hand against Luz's face as it mimicked her movement, unfortunately just off target. Amity grimaced for a moment before walking past Luz toward her first class with an awkward smile. Had she messed it all up? Did Luz think she was stupid now, unable to control her abomination properly?

"No, that's ridiculous. Why would you care anyway?" she thought aloud. She wasn't even sure Luz considered herself her friend, so what did it matter what she thought?

"Care about what?"

Amity's attention went from scattered to focused in an instant as she nearly ran into Boscha walking toward the school's main doors. She carried no books, as usual, but rather had a towel covered object in her hand. "Hey, Boscha. What's that?" Boscha's smile lifted in a smirk, and she lifted the towel to reveal the tiny bars of a cage. Amity leaned down to inspect its contents, lifting her lip in confused disgust. "Is that the pixie waiter from McClauneck's?"

"Yeah. After our loss against Glandus, I just had to buy something so I went back to the restaurant and bought him. Now he's my pet!" Boscha explained. The pixie waiter looked disheveled, his tiny insect wings sagging and his little McClaunek's uniform was a mess. He was sitting with his back against the far side of the cage, a frightened look on his face.

"Do you even know how to take care of a pixie?" Amity asked, standing straight as Boscha lowered the towel again. "And why did you bring him to school?"

Boscha shrugged. "Dad says he doesn't want him in the house, so I thought I would bring him here for now to spend time in the Beast track coral with the others until I figure out what to do with him. Isn't he cute though?"

Amity felt a little responsible for the poor thing's current predicament, having not stood up to Bria and letting Glandus win, but it was hardly her fault that Boscha decided to purchase a fast food industry employee as a pet that she had no idea how to take care of. "Sure." she replied absently, holding back her suspicions that Boscha had informed her parents about her choice to not attend Grom. "We'll talk later, okay? I've gotta get to class."

"Okay, see you at lunch!" Boscha said, continuing on toward the school.

"Be careful with that thing. I don't think Principal Bump wants an infestation this early in the semester after everything that's happened last month."

"As if that would happen." Boscha called back.

Amity shrugged and continued onto the Grudgby field to where Mr. Homunculus and the rest of the class were waiting. The abomination professor looked mildly disappointed at her arrival, his eyeline settling on Amity's lapel for a moment, obviously surprised that she hadn't worn the Top Student badge he had awarded her with again at her exam. He carried on regardless, addressing each student in turn. "Welcome back… almost everyone." he said, causing each of the students to look around curiously to see who hadn't advanced. "Let's begin with some basic review and concentration drills. To start, we're going to play a simple game of Grudgby." he said to a few groans from the crowd. "Or rather, your abominations are going to play a simple game of Grudgby. I see some of you have already honed your concentration skills by keeping at least one abomination with you before class even started. Bravo, to you!" he continued, gesturing toward Amity, who smiled with pride. "In that case, this review should be easy. As for the rest of you, it should at least be entertaining." he chuckled before his smile faded in impatience. "Well? Get to it!" he shouted.

With both excellent abomination skills and an intimate knowledge of how to play Grudgby, the drills were more boring than informative for Amity, though the escaped Choosey Hat that crawled into the class and threatened to devour one of her classmates had certainly added some excitement to the start of the day. Her second period Advanced Class Abomination Nation was something she was looking forward to though. She entered the class, her abomination still in tow, and chose a seat at one of the desks closest to the front as she usually did. Standing at the forefront, writing their name on the board was Professor Orobas. They were one of the more decorated demons at Hexside, and their position as a scholar was well known. They had pale skin, an elongated muzzle, and a pair of horns that jutted straight up from their hair line of short black hair that was combed back. They wore floor length robes of dark blue overtop of their Oracle track colors and an intricate gold and red velvet medallion hung around their neck.

As the class filled up with most of the same students from Amity's previous class, Professor Orobas turned and surveyed the occupied seats. "Good morning, everyone." they said, crossing their arms behind their back and stepping out from behind their desk. "Welcome to Abomination Nation. Some of you may be wondering why an Oracle professor is teaching an Abomination class." they paused, allowing several murmurs to ripple through the room. "As abominations are controlled for extended periods of time, they have a tendency to grow in intellect and will, sometimes causing them to wrestle free of their master's control. I'm sure many of your parents can recount to you the events of one student during their time that summoned an army of abominations that became too much for them to control. The abominations gathered into a single being and caused a swath of destruction across Bonesborough before it was finally destroyed. It is my duty to teach you how to keep that from happening again."

Orobas paused to let the students take in what they had said, seemingly organizing papers on their desk. "Professor Orobas?" Amity said, raising a hand. "That still doesn't really explain why the Oracle Coven is teaching this class."

"Ms. Blight, is it?" they asked, focusing on Amity. "I am here to differentiate the students that are likely to lose control of their abominations from those that are not. As some of you may have deduced by the title of the course, the Emperor has growing concerns that free abominations could potentially be a threat to our current form of government and the Titan's Will itself."

"But don't abominations come from the Titan?" Amity asked, genuinely confused by what the professor was trying to convey.

There was tension in the Professor's expression. "It is believed that the subconscious of Abomination Track students may have an adverse effect on their control over their creations."

"You mean like dreams?" Amity asked, her cheeks reddening. Were Abomination dreams actually dangerous?

Orobas nodded. "That is one avenue that could be detrimental to one's control. Strong emotions, dreams, subversive thoughts. These are all things that could affect a student's abomination magic. That is why an Oracle is teaching this class." they said, accentuating their coven while they continued to focus on Amity. It was clear that this professor wasn't as impressed with Amity's family name and school record as Mr. Homunculus was. "Now then, you should all have the new text. We'll go through the introduction as well as Chapter One…"

Amity sat in her chair while the rest of the class began filing out of the room, and she worked her lips back and forth, trying to decide whether to ask Professor Orobas about the odd dream she'd had that morning. According to their teachings, dreams about abominations could mean all manner of things. Even something as simple as stress pertaining to the topic could have an impact on one's subconscious, and she had certainly been stressed lately, both about her magic and a certain human that had arrived on the Boiling Isles. Deciding against informing the Professor, Amity collected her books and handed them to her abomination, standing and making her way to the door.

"Ms. Blight?" Professor Orobas asked from their desk. "Did you have something to add?"

Amity paused for a moment, and was about to speak when the first student of the next class entered the room and she turned to face the Professor. "No, ma'am. I… just wanted to say that I enjoyed your class." It certainly wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the full truth either. "I'm looking forward to it."

Orobas let out a quiet grunt and nodded. "Very well, Ms. Blight. I look forward to it as well."

Amity frowned, but nodded. She cast a glance at the entering students, commanding her abomination to force a path through the stream of people that were coming into the room and exiting behind it. Her third period was free today, in order to prepare for the coming presentation for the Emperor's Coven presentation that she was scheduled to perform on behalf of the Abomination track. She made her way to her locker and rapped her knuckles on its face, waking the creature and causing it to open its toothy mouth out of reflex. "I don't suppose you have any advice, huh?" she said to her abomination as she transferred her books from its grip to her locker. The creature only groaned, but she continued anyway. "I mean, is it weird that you didn't actually see an abomination in the pot? What if it was…" she trailed off, her face warming. "No. That would be even more weird, wouldn't it?"

The abomination groaned again, almost reassuringly.

"Spending time with Luz is… nice. You've never had a friend like her before, but you never expected her to be attending Hexside." she continued, beginning to pace back and forth while she spoke to the abomination, though more in self reflection. "So you two go to the same school now, that doesn't change anything." she sighed, hearing the tell tale sound of a door gently closing nearby. She spun around, trying to find what had made the noise, but there were no nearby doors that could have opened or closed, and she frowned. "This school keeps getting more and more odd." she said to herself, continuing to look up and down the hall as she began to make her way toward the exam room where the inspection presentation was to take place.

The exam room was the same as she had done her own exam presentation in, though this time each seat was filled with the best students from every track, as well as Principal Bump and an unfamiliar woman that Amity assumed was the inspector from the Emperor's Coven. She seemed like a strict woman; with sharp features, raven black hair pulled back into a tight bun, and small round spectacles that shielded her eyes despite the darkened room. Her uniform was a drab grey, with black leather gloves and a shoulder pad on her left, opposite of a gold Coven badge on her chest. Despite her smile, she was suspiciously eyeing every person in the room, and her eyes darted toward Amity like a predator's as she and her abomination entered.

Amity took a seat in one of the rows, her abomination standing beside her. The lights lowered even further, and the Potion Track presentation began. Sedgwick, the Potion Track's honor roll student, stood on the stage behind a counter with various bottles of multicolored, bubbling fluids lining it's top and shelving. Amity hadn't interacted with Sedgwick much, as he was another prime target of Boscha's that she bullied for being of a higher caliber alchemist than she was. He was a short witch with short dark hair, a lanky frame, and early acne across his face that he surprisingly didn't cure with potion magic. Amity shielded her eyes, expecting Sedgwick's presentation to go embarrassingly awful when he shakingly picked up one of the bottles. He paused, realizing he had forgotten to introduce himself. "Oh, uhm… I'm… My name is Sedgwick, of the uhm, Potion Track."

Principal Bump frowned slightly, steepling his fingers as he cast a glance at the inspector seated beside him. She looked bored, and seemed to have more interest in the other students in the room.

Sedgwick seemed uncertain for a moment before taking a breath and continuing to pour a drop of the first liquid into a large beaker. He set the first bottle down, then picked up another, flipping it in the air before catching it again and pouring some of its contents into the beaker before sliding it away. Amity raised her head at his display, suddenly becoming impressed as he confidently tossed and caught bottles and flasks, shaking the beaker between flourishes, and even began to dance as though there was no audience until finally the beaker was filled with a smoking red ooze with a floating purple cloud that somehow kept its cohesion within the liquid. He lifted the bottle with a satisfied smile, and descended the steps off of the stage. He approached the inspector with the bottle, and offered it to her as his confidence seemed to wither as he approached and met her intimidating gaze.

"I offer you this, uh, gift on behalf of the… Potion Track." he said, his hands shaking again as he held out the beaker.

The inspector held up a gloved hand in rejection. "I'm not here for gifts, young one. I am here to judge your magical power… er, skills."

Principal Bump's friendly expression faded to one of quiet annoyance with the inspector. "I will take your gift, Sedgwick." he said, extending a thin, boney hand to take the beaker. He touched the beaker to his lips and tipped it back. As the red and purple ooze ran into his mouth, the wrinkles around his lips and the spots on his hands began to fade slightly, taking decades of age off of his appearance as the beaker emptied. "Ah… Very good, Sedgwick. An impressive display of potion magic; wouldn't you say inspector?"

The inspector nodded, though her scowl didn't disappear. "Oh yes. Very impressive." she said absently. "Let's get on with the others now, shall we?"

"Of course." Principal Bump gave the beaker back to Sedgwick, motioning for him to take a seat before twirling a finger that banished the counter and its contents off of the stage. Next was the Plant Track, and Amity watched with mild disinterest as the various most skilled students from each track performed their presentations with equally impressive displays until finally, Principal Bump called upon her. "Next is the Abomination Track, represented by Ms. Amity Blight."

Amity stood and approached the stage, her abomination close behind. She took her starting position, copying a toned down form of her exam presentation, solely showing her skills in abomination magic. She still had the rest of the day to get through after all, and there was no reason to wear herself out for the inspector. Her abomination followed her steps like a dance partner, and her control of the hulking form was perfect, eventually ending with the creature raising her up into the air with one hand as she posed with her arms outstretched and her head held high.

Finally, the abomination eased her gently down to the stage floor and she stepped aside. "And that concludes the presentation from the Abomination Track." she said, bowing in unison with her partner.

Principal Bump applauded with a pleased look, and turned to the inspector. "That was some real Hexside magic, huh?" he asked, bumping her with a friendly elbow.

The inspector had been watching each of the presentations with growing interest since Sedgwick's failed to impress her. "Yes, this is… good." she grinned, reviewing the occupants of the room. "But let's see if your students can put up more of a fight!" she said, dropping her clipboard and approaching the stage.

Principal Bump let out a pleased laugh. "Yes, yes!" he exclaimed before the realization of what the woman had said reached him. "Wait, what?" Amity reached back to hold the chubby finger of her abomination, a sudden wave of anxiety sweeping through her at the surprise of the inspector approaching the stage. Fight an Emperor's Coven member? The woman's smile widened, revealing sharp teeth and a long tongue that stretched out of her mouth and swept across her face in hunger. Her body began to elongate and grow, and Principal Bump stood. "Is, uh, this part of the inspection?"

Amity couldn't be sure what exactly was going on, but she steeled herself and gestured toward the transformed inspector. "Abomination! Fight!" she ordered, and her companion charged forward, wrapping its arms around the inspector's growing head.

The inspector's body continued to grow and contort; her legs merging into a serpentine tail and the rest of her body rippling with muscle as she quickly dwarfed the abomination. She flung it into the air with a whip of her head before catching the creature in her jaws and swallowing it whole. She reared up on her tail, eyeing Amity with large hungry eyes. "The magic at Glandus High was tasty, but I hope yours will be more filling!" she announced, her voice taking on a far more malevolent tone.

Principal Bump moved between the monster inspector and Amity, shielding her from its attack. "Amity, stay back! She's an imposter!" he shouted, tracing a defensive spell circle.

The creature drew in a breath, surprisingly taking the spell circle with it. Sucking in the glowing circle of magical energy seemed to draw out the life from Principal Bump as well, and the elderly teacher fell to his knees, his skin growing grey and sagging from his bones enough to reverse the effects of Sedgwick's earlier potion.

All the fears that Amity had thought that she had done away with suddenly came flooding back to her. She felt like she was facing Bria again, or the Slitherbeast, or even her mother. She wasn't going to run this time. She forced herself to hold her ground, and not knowing what else to do, she attempted to summon a fire blast. As she drew the spell circle however, the monster inhaled again and she watched the small glowing ring shimmer and break down, being drawn into the monster's mouth. It felt like all of her energy was being torn from her body, being forced through her heart as it skipped several beats. Her vision blurred, and she felt nauseous and cold, as though her magic was escaping through her outstretched fingertip. She fell to her knees beside Principal Bump, but as hard as she tried to hold herself up, the light of the room turned to darkness. The last thing she saw was the large creature pull itself up onto the stage and reach out toward the Principal, saliva dripping from her hungry jaws, and she couldn't help but be certain that this is how it was going to end.