It all starts with a single glance. She has raven hair, a deep black the same shade as her fingernails, lipstick, and knee-high dress with white polka dots covering it. Whoever she is, she demands attention, and all eyes, not just Evan's, are on her. Earth to Evan, he imagines Andy telling him, Stop drooling over the rich snob, please. At least he assumes she's rich. Her clothes sure look expensive. As does her makeup. Even her hair looks professionally done. Did she wake up looking that good? If so, Evan was jealous. His hair was a nightmare to deal with. All he needed to know now was her name, and he probably wouldn't have to wait long for that information.

Evan watches from his seat as the teacher walks up to the front of the room to introduce herself, her blue heels clacking against the tile floor as she does so. Her mouth, currently coated with red lipstick, twists into a smile and Evan can't help but feel there's something a little off with this woman. Her skin is oddly pale, like raw chicken at the supermarket, and her head way too large for her body, with a pile of thick brown hair currently pulled into a bun. Beneath a pair of thickly rimmed glasses, she has a pair of piercing green eyes and they're currently scanning the room. For what exactly, Evan doesn't know. Ugh, why green? Evan shudders, before reminding himself once again that this is a fresh start. Forget about the Monster Blood. It's for your own good.

"Hello students, Welcome to English II. You may call me Mrs. Maaargh. I want you to remember that. Not "Mrs. M or anything like that, you will address me by my full name." The teacher speaks. Her voice comes out a lot more gravely than Evan expected.

Mrs. Maaargh writes her name on the chalkboard and Evan studies it closely. Maaargh. With three Es. That's going to be fun to spell, he thinks. The hell kind of name was that, anyway? It sounds like someone clearing their throat and hacking up a loogie. Like a smoker having a coughing fit. Like a monster growling. Stop it. Evan tells himself. She's probably a nice lady, just a little strict. You've had awful teachers before and survived.

"It's nice to see so much fresh meat here today. Excuse me, I mean fresh faces. Dark Falls isn't used to this many new students, so this semester should be.. exciting." Mrs. Maaargh begins to laugh, a kind of mad cackle. Evan isn't sure what's so funny, and neither does anyone else in the class.

"I guess we have YOU to thank for that, don't we, Lucy?" Mrs. Maaargh turns her attention to the raven-haired girl.

Lucy. So that's her name.

"Well come on, introduce yourself. It's not often Dark Falls High gets a student of such prominence." Mrs. Maaargh says, before she brings Lucy up to the front with her. Well, maybe it would be more accurate to say she pulls her, right of her seat. Mrs. Maaargh is already proving to be one aggressive woman. Lucy looks a little startled, before regaining her composure. It's hard to read her face after that, but Evan's attention remains fixed on the girl.

"Hello. My name is Lucy Dark. You might have heard of my family, the Darks."

"Dark? You mean like Larry Dark?" a boy with blonde hair interrupts Lucy's spiel.

Evan can tell she's irritated, her dark eyes casting a cold glance in the guy's direction, but she continues. "He prefers Lawrence, but yes. It's true, my father has appeared multiple times in Forbes Magazine for his various.. Investments. Most recently and most importantly, he has purchased the town of Dark Falls. He plans to make it better than it's ever been."

Her father owns the entire town? Evan can hardly believe it. Much less comprehend why someone would do something like that. Because he's rich, Evan, Andy would probably say. Rich fuckers will do whatever they want to inflate their egos. I mean come on, just listen to the name. Dark Falls. The guy's totally vain to buy a place like that. That whole family is full of selfish assholes.

No. Evan tells the imaginary Andy bickering in his head. Lucy's different, he can tell already. Who cares if her Dad may or may not be a jerk? Andy was so quick to judge people. Although more often than not she was right about them. Still, Andy wasn't here right now. It was up to Evan to make his own judgements. Not that he was ever very good with that, but he'd have to try.

"Isn't that wonderful? It's been so long since our small town received so much attention." Mrs. Maaargh licked her lips, making a wet noise that made Evan instantly uncomfortable. "Not to mention, he'll finally be tearing down that awful factory, and its place.. something new, like a phoenix born from the ashes. That's a little literary metaphor for you. You should remember it going forward."

Factory? Evan knows she must be talking about the old chemical plant on the outskirts of town. That place was in rough shape. Like it hadn't seen use in decades, which was probably true. As for all the stuff about Phoenixes, Evan has no idea what Mrs. Maaargh is going on about.

"Lucy.. you said your family is living in the *ahem*, the Dead House, didn't you? Not that any of the rumors about it are actually true, but I'm afraid that name has stuck." Mrs. Maaargh asks, a strange smirk on her face.

"Yes, he plans to renovate that old place into a house my whole family can live in. And for the record, I do believe in ghosts, Mrs. Maaargh. Ghosts.. and especially monsters. What about you? Do you believe in monsters?"

She turns.

It takes Evan a few seconds before he realizes Lucy's staring right at HIM as she asks that question. This is it, he realizes. His big secret's out!