Beatrix glanced around to see if anyone else was taken off guard by the news of Gilda Goldstag's alleged cause of death. However, the rest of the class hadn't seemed too shocked by it, as if they'd suspected murder already. She noticed Orion the werewolf narrowing his eyes at Guillermo, almost accusatory, and she didn't understand why.

Beatrix grew frustrated that her knowledge was limited to what Autumn and the lunch ladies told her.

Jackson piped up, "I was wondering how death in the monster world worked."

Jackson's interest was enough for Grey to take the reins.

Grey wiped the white board clean, then he took a black marker and drew a thick line down the center.

On the left side of the line, he wrote "The Living." On the right, "The Living Dead."

"I'm going to assume everyone understands the basic concept of death when it comes to the Living," Grey began.

Jackson raised a hand.

"No need for that. Say it," Grey said.

"Sorry, sir. Uh, I mean…" Jackson went red but finished his thought. "When a Living person's time has come to an end, they pass on to the afterlife."

"You're missing a fundamental part," Johannah said. "Reapers. Reapers are the spectral entities that sever a soul's ties to life and grant it safe passage to what lies beyond the veil. Isn't that right, Grey?"

Grey looked like he didn't want to dwell on Reapers for long. "Correct. Anyway, in the afterlife, the souls of the deceased are judged and it's determined what will become of them. This process is crucial to maintaining the balance and order of nature.

"However, when it comes to the Living Dead, it's a different story. A majority of monsters successfully evade the afterlife and either remain in their physical bodies postmortem or take a new form altogether.

"For example, look at ghosts. They are previously mortal souls who now exist in limbo. Whether they have unfinished business, purposely avoided the grave, or have been cursed to stay put, they aren't following the natural cycle of 'life to afterlife.'"

Jackson looked up from the rigorous notes he was taking. "So you're saying that monsters, including ghosts, have cheated death?"

"Yes," Grey said. "They've cheated death. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Monster souls are hiding from their demise, clinging as hard as they can to a rare existence that lingers between life and the afterlife. Monsters are unnatural, they actively disobey the laws of nature."

"You keep saying 'they' as if you aren't a monster too," Beatrix said. She wanted to needle him.

Grey's black eyes flicked towards her.

"He's the son of the Grim Reaper," Johannah explained, likely sensing the tension. "Grey's position in the monster world is unique. He's a neutral party when it comes to the Living and the Living Dead."

"If you're a Reaper, and monsters are cheating death, aren't you supposed to…" Jackson trailed off.

"Send monsters to the afterlife?" Grey finished. "It's not that simple."

"There's different sets of rules at play when it comes to the Living Dead," Johannah said. "There's treatises, eons-old agreements that prevent Reapers from collecting monster souls whenever they please."

It was like Grey could read Beatrix's thoughts, because when Johannah was done, he said, "With all these restrictions in place when it comes to a monster death, you must be wondering how it's possible that Gilda Goldstag died."

This is where Johannah took the reins back. "We don't want to upset anyone, but it's important to know that supernatural beings still have to be cautious of danger. Just because you've gained strength and grown claws doesn't mean you're invincible. Monsters can still face death under certain circumstances.

"Although Reapers and natural causes of death don't affect the Living Dead, we encourage you to exercise caution around the following: stakes to the heart, beheadings, being set on fire, silver daggers, and mobs of humans."

Beatrix held back a cackle. Johannah's list of things to avoid sounded beyond reasonable.

Grey added one more thing to the list. "And be wary of more powerful monsters."

"Like you?" Beatrix asked.

He stared at her, his eyes unreadable.

"Earlier you said that Reapers are a neutral party. That makes it sound like you're not a true monster at all," Beatrix challenged. "Witches aren't technically monsters either. I guess we have a lot in common. Interesting how that works." Her pent up frustration at Grey was slipping out.

"I'm a monster, but I'm not only a monster," Grey said. "I'm the Lord of Death." He looked very self-important standing before Beatrix.

It drove her batty.

"You mean your dad is the 'Lord of Death.' You're only a high schooler," Beatrix said.

"I'll take over my father's position eventually. You're arguing semantics."

Beatrix mockingly laughed. "Oh really? Well, as a witch, I'll eventually be an ally to devils in the underworld. So I guess you could call me a 'Lady of Hell.' Doesn't that make me monster-enough, by your standards?"

"'A Lady of Hell?' Funny. You've never been a monster in the first place, and you never will be."

The rest of the class moved their heads side to side, following the verbal sparring match between Beatrix and Grey.

"Excuse me? You act like you're the expert on witches. What do you know?"

"I know that witches are nothing more than glorified humans that meddle in things they have no business meddling in," Grey spat. "And running errands for a devil doesn't make you a 'Lady.' It makes you a slave."

"Sorry I'm late!"

A balding middle-aged troll walked in. He clutched at a binder full of lesson plans.

Johannah sighed in relief. "Mr. Gore, glad you could make it. We were just about to go over the basics of monster transformations."

Mr. Gore began lecturing, and Grey cleared the white board and quietly took a seat.

Beatrix's blood boiled as she glared at Grey for the rest of the hour.