As Beatrix and Autumn wove through the bustling crowds, glimpses of scales, wings, and horns whipped past on all sides. Monsters of all shapes and sizes flowed through the hallways.
This place is like a labyrinth, Beatrix thought, unsure of which direction they needed to go to find Autumn's first class.
Autumn's arm was still linked in hers, and the scarecrow's grip had unconsciously become tighter. While Autumn's expression was neutral, Beatrix had known her long enough to know that she was terrified.
"You're gonna do great," Beatrix reassured her.
"I don't know. I heard that I'm one of the only transfer students this year. What if my homeschooling wasn't good enough? I might not be qualified to be here. What if I'm the dumbest person in class, and everyone knows it, and I trip and some of my stuffing falls out and—"
"Autumn. Breathe," Beatrix reminded.
Autumn took a breath and loosened her grip on Beatrix. "Right. Okay. It's going to be okay."
In the chaos, Beatrix didn't even notice a hand running past them on its fingertips, similar to a spider.
"Bea! Look!" Autumn pointed.
The pale green hand was surprisingly nimble.
"Someone grab it!" a loud voice shouted over the shuffling of feet and hooves and claws.
Before Beatrix could react, Autumn hopped ahead and snatched up the hand. She held onto it tightly to prevent it from scrambling away.
A girl stepped forward, standing over six feet tall, with the same shade of pale green skin as the hand. Lines of crooked stitches crossed over her entire body.
"You have quick reflexes!" the green girl exclaimed. "Usually catching my hand is a handful."
Autumn giggled at the pun and passed the appendage to her, and the girl hastily reattached it to her wrist with a wonky surgical needle. No wonder her stitches are so crooked, Beatrix thought. Beatrix was tempted to sew the hand back on the girl herself.
"Sneaky little thing," the girl said. Her mismatched eyes met Autumn's. "I'm impressed, my hand evades everyone. With that reaction time, you'd make a good fear squad member."
Autumn beamed with pride. She'd never been complimented on her agility before. "What's a fear squad?"
"It's a team I joined last year as a freshman. We cheer and host pep rallies for the sports teams here. How strong are you?"
"Not strong at all. Look at me," Autumn's straw limbs were a stark contrast to the green girl's study frame. "Even for a scarecrow, I'm weak!"
"That's okay! I'm sure we can find a spot for you. I've never met a scarecrow before! Are you one too?" the girl asked Beatrix.
The question made Beatrix pause. She doesn't know I'm a witch at first glance, like most people. I guess it's not obvious to everyone.
Beatrix figured it was better to not share her identity when it wasn't necessary. "No, I'm just Autumn's student aid."
"Frankie!" someone called.
Beatrix saw a robot, gargoyle, and plant monster waving at Frankie from across the hall.
"I better bolt," Frankie said. "Hope to see you at fearleading tryouts!"
Beatrix watched Frankie journey over to her friends and noticed that the group was glancing at Beatrix suspiciously.
"She was nice," Autumn said, oblivious to the group of ghouls across the hall.
However, Beatrix kept an eye on them. When Frankie reached the group, the ghouls huddled together and seemed to inform Frankie of something.
Frankie then spun around to look back at Beatrix, her voice booming over the crowd. "She's a witch?"
Beatrix's heart dropped for the second time that day.
Nearly every monster in the hall followed Frankie's gaze to Beatrix.
The flow of students diverged around Beatrix and Autumn, leaving them alone in an empty spotlight. Murmuring rose all around them, some curious, some confused, some displeased.
Beatrix became hyper-aware of the sharp talons and teeth around her. Her aunts' voices swirled inside her head. The students at your monster school will treat a witch as warmly as humans do.
"How does everyone know about you already?" Autumn whispered. "I thought you would've been anonymous for a few more days, at least."
Beatrix had no idea how Frankie's friends knew who she was, and having so much attention on her so quickly made Beatrix worry about how Autumn would suffer by extension. The last thing she wanted was for Autumn to become a social pariah because of her.
"You're the transfer student, right?"
Beatrix turned to find two huge eyes peering at her. The eyes belonged to a fish, or rather, a fish girl.
"Oh, uh, I'm not a transfer student. She is," Beatrix gestured to Autumn.
"You must be Autumn Patches," the fish girl smiled.
Autumn was taken off guard. "I thought Bea was the one everyone knew already. How do you know my name?"
The fish girl tucked a lock of curly blonde hair behind a webbed ear. "Bloodgood told me to look out for a new girl starting class today. Perks of being on the student council," she said. Upon the fish girl's approach, the crowd around them had eased and the hall was in motion again. "Are you lost? You look lost," the fish said.
Autumn pulled out her schedule. "Do you know where room 217 is?"
"Clawculus with Mr. Rotter? I don't know any sophomores taking Clawculus besides Ghoulia. You must be a smart cookie. It's upstairs, c'mon," the fish girl grinned. "Name's Lagoona, by the way."
Beatrix didn't understand why Lagoona was being so friendly when everyone else was acting like Beatrix had the plague. However, she was relieved someone was being nice to them.
So she cast her suspicion aside and let Lagoona lead them to the second floor.
