AN: And here it is, the sequal to Lincoln Loud and the Ghoul School. Here's hoping I can write this one as well as I did the original. Before I start though, I need to give a few special thanks and explain a few things. First, a special thanks to Mstcano for giving me the idea to make this series an episodic one (I will elaborate in a moment), as well as another idea I will be using in the next chapter or two. Second, to Javimagine, who had noted me a few suggestions for the series, one of which being used right here in the first chapter. And third, I would like to thank certain guests for their recommendations for future chapters as well. I will, of course, credit and thank them again when said ideas get used, but here's a pre-emptive thanks for right here, right now.

Next, a quick explanation of how I'm gonna be writing the story. As I said earlier, it's going to be more episodic, like the show. As a result, time is going to be rather flexible. Unless it is required with regard to plot specific events that need to happen in a certain order, there won't really be much of a timeline. If I need it to be a certain time for a story, it will be that time. If I want to throw in a holiday episode, boom, holiday episode. In addition, I also intend to include chapters starring Zanya, the sisters and crew at Royal Woods, and the Calloway Cadets as ideas come for each of them, either from me or from fans of the story. This leads me to the last thing I wanted to say: if you have any suggestions for chapters for the story, let me know in the review section or by notes. If I like the idea and think I can incorperate it into the story, I will try to do so, and give credit and thanks for it. While I don't have a specific end for this series in mind, I do have a main over arcing plot in mind, as well as character arcs for most of the new characters set up. Odds are, I will probably just keep going with chapters until I finish the main story and character arcs, and then run out of ideas. We shall see as time goes by.

Well, that's enough out of me. Enjoy the story and may good fortune shine on you until we meet again.

A new beginning

It had been a few months since Sigmund Lesrec's invasion of Grimwood's School, and the wounds left by the hunter had finally healed. The damage to the building had been fully repaired, even the tunnel in the basement. Any injuries that the girls and the Louds had suffered had long recovered, and the mental and emotional scars left from the attack were healing nicely as well. Miss Grimwood hadn't reduced her security measures since the incident; far from it. She actually put more magical traps on the grounds, in the basement and even a few hidden alarms in the tunnel before it had been filled in. She was less willing to take chances than she was before. She did, however, relax the rules about going outside, so the students could enjoy nice days without Miss Grimwood or Mr Van Ghoul watching them. That morning, snow was gently falling to the ground, adding to the light blanket that already covered the ground. Gazing out of one of the second floor windows, Sibella smiled as she looked out at the pristine winterland outside. It was so beautiful, she could have just watched it all day. However, that wasn't really an option today. Something exciting was happening that day; they would be welcoming a few new students into the school. The vampiress turned away from the window, looking toward her roommate, Phantasma, who was brushing her hair in front of the vanity mirror. Technically, they shared it, but as Sibella was a vampire (and therefore had no reflection), she never really used it. She quietly left their room, not wishing to disturb her friend. Out in the hall, she noticed her fellow classmates were already all set for the newcomers, for the most part. Winnie had a new ribbon around her neck, Goskui's scales were shinier than usual, and Tanis was nudging Milly through the hall (as the martian was planning to simply sit this one out). "Good morning." Sibella greeted them cheerfully.

"Good morning, Sibella." Tanis chirped in reply.

"Morning, earth vampire…" Milly grumbled, feeling somewhat irritated at being pushed along.

"Do you know if Lincoln is awake yet?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm betting he isn't." The little mummy said. "It is the weekend, after all."

"Hmmm. Someone should wake him. I'm sure he wouldn't want to miss the new students." The vampiress commented with a slight, knowing smirk. By someone, she meant herself, of course. Tanis nodded as she continued to move her martian friend along. The daughter of Dracula chuckled lightly before she made her way toward Lincoln's room, passing some enchanted brooms sweeping up the dust, but leaving the cobwebs. Just the way they all liked it. After a minute or two of walking, she finally arrived at the door to her human lover's room. She gently knocked on the door first, just in case he was awake and getting changed. "Lincoln? Are you awake?" There was no response. She put her ear to the door and heard his soft snoozing inside. She sighed with a smile and gently turned the doorknob. The door opened easily.

Lincoln's room at the school had changed quite a bit from when he first got there. He had put up some more posters of his favorite things, left his life sized Bun Bun in the corner right by his bed, and his laptop set up on a little folding desk right by his dresser. The young man in question was curled up on his large, cushiony comforter, sleeping with the biggest smile on his face. Sibella blushed a bit as she looked at him, thinking it was the sweetest thing she's seen in a while. It's a pity she had to wake him. She quietly strolled over beside his bed, leaned over and tenderly kissed him on the lips. Within a few seconds of the kiss, his eyes slowly opened, gazing blearily at her. "Tee hee. Morning, sleepyhead."

"Good morning, beautiful." He replied with a chuckle, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Am I...late for class?"

"Oh no. However, today is the day we meet our new classmates." The moment she said that, the boy sat bolt upright in his bed.

"Whoa! That's today?" He asked, almost frantically.

"Yes, Lincoln." She replied, the white haired son responded by leaping from his bed and rushing over to his dresser in his orange pjs. "There's no need to rush though. It'll still be about an hour before they arrive." She added just as he started tossing his clothes from the drawers, looking for his best outfit.

"Oh…" Lincoln said, blushing a bit as he looked at all of his things all over the room, the vampiress giggling once more.

"Really excited, are we?" She asked him, ruffling his hair as he tried to clean up his mess.

"Heh heh. Yeah. Not just because we may meet new friends, but because my sister may be joining us as well." He told her, smiling broadly.

"Oh yes. You did say Lucy was interested in enrolling in Grimwood's...but I thought she had to wait until the end of the mortal school year."

"Me too, but she texted me a week or two back, saying to expect her. Not sure how she pulled it off; she was pretty cryptic with her message. Heh. Typical Lucy."

"Well, it would be lovely having her around." Sibella said, helping Lincoln pick up his scattered clothing. "Though if she can still do that appearing trick, it may make it tricky to find private kissing places." The two of them laughed lightly, Lincoln's face going red again. It only took a few minutes to clean up, the lavender ghoul girl leaving the human boy to get ready after. As soon as she was gone, Lincoln turned to the fourth wall.

"Hey there. As you just heard, our school is expecting some new arrivals. One of which is possibly my younger sister, Lucy." He told the viewers as he took the time to find some of his better clothes, setting them on his bed. "So, it's a really exciting time for all of us. I can only hope the other new students will be friendly."

About an hour later, all of the students of Grimwood were down in the entry hall; each and every one of them looking their best. Even the sour looking Milly was in her best space suit. Along with them were Miss Grimwood, Vincent Van Ghoul, Shaggy, Scooby, Scrappy, Matches, and the octopus butler. The middle aged headmistress was just as excited as her students, smiling brightly at them all. "I know you are all as eager as I am to meet our newest students, my darlings..." She said to them. "...and excited to make friends with them. But do make sure to be respectful of them at the same time. Some of them may be rather shy, after all. And, of course, show them all that old Grimwood hospitality and manners."

"Yes, Miss Grimwood." The students all replied together.

"Good, Good." The mystical teacher said with a smile. It was at that moment a knock came to the door. "That should be them." With a wave of her hand, the front door opened, and in stepped five monster teens/children. The most noticeable was a tall, burly minotaur boy with short, curved horns. His fur was a gray like color, his eyes a fiery red. He was wearing a forest green tank top and black shorts, in spite of the cold weather outside. He had some bandages on his leg. Standing beside him was a pale girl with dark gray hair done up in pigtails and a grayish white shirt. She looked almost human, except for the large, glossy black spider body connected to her front of the both of them was a fairly tall teen boy with light, pale blue skin and jet black hair done in almost a pompadour. He was wearing a royal purple sport coat and matching pants, with a crest in the shape of a skull, with an I in one eye socket, an M in the other eye socket, and with elongated canine teeth. He had an aura of confidence about him as he gave the girls a small smile. On the other side of the spectrum was a small skeleton boy who looked like he was no bigger than Tanis, who was peeking out from behind one of the thick legs of the minotaur. He was wearing a black school boy uniform with a tie that looked like it was made of snakeskin, and a brown wig of false hair that hung down to the back of his neck. His skull and bones were shining white, as if they were polished regularly. And finally, a teen girl with long, black hair that stretched down to her hips. She was stunningly beautiful, with long eyelashes, bronzed skin, and possessing an hourglass figure. She was wearing a small yellow crop top and a small skirt covering a small portion of her snake lower half. Her serpent body was the color of clay on the upper side, and sandy yellow underneath. "Hello, and welcome to Grimwood's Finishing School. I am Miss Grimwood, Headmistress of this fine school."

"Good day to you, Miss Grimwood." The half boy, half bull replied with a thick scottish accent, everyone but the serpent girl giving her a polite hello as well.

"A pleasure to meet you all. Would you be so kind as to introduce yourselves, and perhaps share a little bit about yourselves?"

"Gladly. I'll be going first." The minotaur lad cleared his throat and turned to the students assembled. Lincoln was toward the back of the group, so he couldn't quite see him in the crowd. "My name is Silas McRowds, hailing from bonnie ol' Scotland. As ye can tell…" He flexed one of his mighty arms, showing off his muscles. "...I'mma mighty one. Unmatched in strength back home."

"That is impressive." Winnie commented with a smirk, while Tanis and Gila looked amazed. The bull boy smiled appreciatively, enjoying the attention.

"Good afternoon, everyone." The vampire teen boy said as he stepped forward, with poise and dignity. "I am Ignatius Morvis."

"Morvis?" Sibella inquired in great surprise. "As in the Morvis vampire family?" The young man grinned a bit as he looked to Sibella.

"Indeed, Miss Dracula." He replied with a nod of his head and a wink in her direction that made Sibella blush ever so slightly. "An old, respected family, though not quite as famed or accomplished as your own. In truth, I almost didn't end up coming to Grimwood's. My father wanted to send me to an all vampires private school, but I fought long and hard to come here and, as you can see, my persistence paid off." The white haired boy wondered for a moment why he had fought so hard to get enrolled into Grimwood's, but kept the question to himself for now.

"Bonjour, fellow monsters." The lamia spoke up next, giving a warm smile to the Grimwood girls. "I am Avalina Laverns. Born in Tours, France, but my family moved here to the States to be closer to family."

"How are you liking it here so far?" Elsa inquired.

"Oh, we are liking it just fine...except for the sheer amount of vermin around here." Avalina replied, casting a sideways, hateful look toward Vincent Van Ghoul. A look that was just subtle enough not to be noticed by most. Milly had spotted her look, but she kind of had to agree with her. Only one other noticed, but she didn't say anything...for now. "Anyway, my mother wanted to make sure I got the finest education here, and she had heard a great many things about Grimwood's School for Girls...though it seems some things have changed."

"Yeah." Tanis replied with a nod and a smile. "Miss Grimwood had recently started to allow boys to enroll."

"A fine idea." The snake girl said in an approving tone.

"As well as humans." Suki piped up. Avalina flinched when she heard that, even more so when she spotted Lincoln standing beside the kaiju girl.

"I….I see. How progressive." She said with a very uncomfortable smile and a bit of a twitch in her eye.

"Hello everyone. My name is Wendalyn." The arachnotaur girl introduced herself, waving to them all.

"Wendalyn? I heard that name before…" Lincoln said quietly, taking a moment to think where her name sounded familiar. It hit him after a few seconds thought. "Oh right. Clyde, Jordan and Zanya told me about her. He told me that she would be coming to the school."

"My mother and I have been moving a lot over the last few years, always needing to find a new place to live. As you can imagine, between that and...certain obvious issues, it's been kinda tough for me to get a proper education. But then, Mom got wind of Grimwood's, and we trekked across the States to get here; and let me tell you, it was quite the adventure."

"You were in Royal Woods a few months back, weren't you?" The white haired boy said with a smile, getting her attention.

"That's right. How did you know that?"

"My friends, Clyde, Girl Jordan and Zanya, told me about how they met you."

"Oh! Hehehe. I remember them. They were lots of fun to hang around with...and tickle. They were lots of fun to tickle." Wendy said with a giggle.

"I think we're going to get along juuuuust fine." Phantasma commented with a big grin. All eyes then turned to the little skeleton, who was still hiding behind Silas. This only made him want to hide even more.

"You alright there, lad?" The minotaur boy asked, looking down behind himself.

"...I'm fine, thanks…" The child made of bone responded quietly.

"Then why not introduce yourself, little guy?" Wendalyn suggested, giving him a warm, encouraging smile.

"...I'm Mark….and there's nothing to really say about me…I'm nothing special, really..." The little skeleton said. Hearing that made most of the assembled students look sadly at him.

"Now young man, that isn't true." Miss Grimwood said with a soft frown, stepped forward and kneeling close to the insecure bone boy. "I'm sure there is plenty about you that is special, Mark Sk-"

"Please!" Mark suddenly said louder than usual, surprising the mystical head mistress. "Miss Grimwood….don't speak my surname…please."

"Hmmm? Whatever for, Mark?"

"I have my reasons, ma'am...reasons I'd rather not say out loud…" The middle aged witch looked at the skull headed child, who looked pleadingly at her.

"As you wish, Mark...but I don't want to hear you talking like that again, ok?" Mark gently nodded to her. "Very good. Now then, perhaps there is something you are especially good at, or a hobby you enjoy?"

"...I learned a lot about potions and alchemy from my mother...I'm...alright at that...and I do enjoy it..."

"Do you now?" Miss Grimwood said with a smile. "Bet you can't wait for potions class then. Is there anything else you'd like to share?" The pint sized skeleton shook his head to her. "I see. Well, as you wish, Mark." She gently patted him on the skull before rising and looking to the five new students. "It is lovely meeting all of you."

"Er...Miss Grimwood. Are you sure that's all of the new arrivals?" The white haired boy inquired, his eyes scanning the small group in front of them.

"Hmmm. I think so...let me check." Abigail responded, pulling a piece of paper from her pocket. "Mmmm...It seems like it." She added, a slight mischievous smirk on her face as Lincoln's face fell.

"Boo." A soft voice said from right behind him. He jumped and gasped, clutching his heart as he turned around. Standing right behind him, a big grin on her face, was the little gothic Loud, Lucy.

"Lucy!" Her brother exclaimed, smiling and pulling her into a big hug.

"Hello, big brother." She responded, hugging him as well. "Good to see you and the girls from Grimwood again."

"Isn't that just the sweetest?" Tanis asked her friends, giggling.

"You not just whistling dixie, sister." Winnie answered with a smirk.

"Fangtastic to see you again, Lucy." Sibella said.

"Ah yes. Miss Lucy Loud." Miss Grimwood finally said with a chuckle. "Were you surprised, Lincoln?"

"Haha. Yeah. You and Lucy got me good." He said, putting his little witch sister down.

"For the benefit of those who do not know me here…" Lucy said, looking mostly at the new arrivals. "My name is Lucy Loud, and I am a witch."

"You certainly look the part." Wendalyn told her with a small smile.

"Thank you. In addition to studying magic, I am deeply interested in poetry and the macabre." Lucy continued. "I had planned to have a poem ready for when I arrived, in fact, but I was so excited, I couldn't concentrate. Anyway, I hope to be able to hone my magical skills, like my big brother has." She turned to look at Lincoln with a somewhat proud smile, her older brother chuckling a bit, rubbing the back of his head.

"Wonderful." Miss Grimwood said, in as high spirits as most of the others. "It is marvelous to have you all here. I am sure most of you are tired from your trip here, so if you are ready, you will be escorted to your rooms. Otherwise, you may explore the school or get to know your classmates a little better. If you have any questions or concerns, Mr Van Ghoul and I would be more than happy to help you as best we can. Our doors are always open." With that said, Miss Grimwood bid her students a warm farewell as she and Vincent headed back to their offices. The moment they had departed, the students (old and new) split up into groups to speak to one another: Elsa and Winnie moved over to Silas, while Ignatius and Lucy immediately moved closer to Sibella. Tanis and Gila went to talk to the ever shy Mark, and Avalina was engaged in conversation by Gosuki. Finally, Wendy skittered her way over to Lincoln and Phantasma, while Milly simply moved away from everyone.

"I'm glad you were able to make it to Grimwood alright." Lincoln told the spider girl. "Sounded like quite a trip to make on foot...er...so to speak."

"It was." Wendalyn confirmed with a nod. "Especially travelling only by dark of night, to avoid scaring people. Then we needed to find a place to stay, take care of the paperwork, the whole nine yards. But here I am."

"Well, it's great to meet you, Wendalyn." The spirited ghost said, shaking her hand. "I'm Phantasma Phantom, and this is my boyfriend, Lincoln Loud."

"A pleasure." The one son said politely.

"Likewise." She replied. "And please, feel free to call me Wendy."

"And you can call me Phanty, and call him Linky." Phantasma said, giggling as Lincoln blushes softly.

"Hehehe. So, you two are a couple?" The ghostly gal and the human boy nodded.

"Well, we're part of a bigger relationship, actually." Phanty amended. "Lincoln is dating me, Sibella and a girl he knows called Ronnie Anne." The arachnotaur blinked in surprise, looking between the two. "It was my idea, and we're all ok with it." She added cheerfully.

"Really? So…" She started, a playful grin on her face. "...you'd be ok with me dating him too?" Lincoln's face turned a little pink as he looked at her dumbstruck, while Phanty didn't even flinch.

"We'd need to talk it over with Sibella and Ronnie, but-"

"I'm kidding." Wendalyn said with a giggle. "I don't even know him...though he is kinda cute."

"Hehehe. That he is. That he is."

"I must say, it is a true honor to finally meet you in person, Miss Dracula." Ignatius said, gently kissing the back of the vampiress' hand.

"It is nice to meet you as well, Mr Morvis." Sibella replied politely, a faint blush on her cheeks.

"Please, call me Ignatius."

"And call me Sibella." The vampiric young man smiled to her, glancing over toward where Lincoln was standing. A brief look of confusion appeared on his face.

"A mortal? Here?"

"Yes." Sibella replied simply with a nod. "Miss Grimwood thought it would help human/monster relations to start allowing humans to learn along with us, as well as letting boys enroll as well."

"I see. A bold move. How has that been working out for her?"

"Very well. His name is Lincoln Loud, and he is without a doubt the sweetest boy I've met yet." She told him, smiling lovingly at Lincoln as he chatted it up with Wendalyn and Phanty. "...and he is the boy I love." Upon hearing that, Ignatius felt a horrible twinge and grimaced a bit. Fortunately, the daughter of Dracula hadn't seen this.

"I see...he must be quite a human if he has won your heart." He said, maintaining his composure on the outside. On the inside, however, he was glaring daggers at the one son; and he wasn't the only one. Avalina was also giving Lincoln a rather dirty look while Gosuki was rambling on. Meanwhile, Lucy was standing silently beside Sibella, looking up at Ignatius. Shy was one thing that the little gothic Loud was not, but one look at this stunningly handsome vampire...it left her spellbound. Her cheeks turned red and she was utterly speechless. She just stood there as the two vampires chatted, not noticing she was even there at first, until the undead teen boy glanced over in her direction. "Hmmm? Oh, hello there, young witch." He greeted her, causing her to blush even deeper. Sibella blinked and looked down to see Lucy right beside her.

"Oh! Hello, Lucy." Dracula's daughter said with a smile.

"...I'm-I'm Loud Lucy…." The eight year old goth muttered, barely above a whisper.

"Somehow, I doubt it." Ignatius jested with a soft laugh, Sibella giggling a little as well. This made Lucy even more uncharacteristically bashful.

"I mean...Lucy Loud…" She corrected herself after a few seconds.

"Ah. That makes a little more sense." He said, before he bowed his head lightly. "Regardless, it is a pleasure to meet you." Her whole face turned red, her legs getting a little weak. To her, it was like all of her dreams were coming true all at once. She was accepted into Grimwood's school, where she could learn true magic just like her brother, she had the prospect of really turning into a vampire after college, and now, she meets this devilishly handsome vampire. It was almost enough to make her faint; a fact Sibella clued into rather quick.

"Lucy? Are you ok?"

"...phenomenal." She replied simply, not taking her eyes off of Ignatius Morvis.

"Hello, Mark." Tanis said as she and Gila approached the little skeleton, a smile on the little mummy's face. He shrank back a bit, looking as if he was kind of hunched over.

"H...Hello…" He replied with a stutter.

"I'm Tanis."

"And I'm Gila. Pleased to meet you." The Creature's daughter said politely.

"...Pleased to meet you too…" Mark responded meekly and quietly.

"There's no need to be so shy, Mark." Tanis said, gently patting his arm. "We're all really friendly here."

"Well, Milly can be a little crass, but once you get to know her, she's alright." Gila amended with a soft chuckle. The little boy of bone slowly looked at the two of them, both of them smiling sweetly at him, which slowly brought a tiny smile onto his skull.

"There we go. That's a good start." The youngest of the original Grimwood girls said. "Would you like to meet the others now?"

"Er….perhaps later…" The skeletal lad replied nervously, his eye sockets looking at the many groups of much taller monsters and humans. "S-shouldn't overdo it…"

"Aww...at least let me introduce you to Lincoln." Before Mark could say anything, Tanis hurried off to where her honorary big brother was, leaving her aquatic friend with him.

"You don't need to worry." Gila told him as she noticed his bony legs shaking. "Lincoln is really nice."

"I-Is he?" The fish girl nodded to him.

"When I first met him, I was terrified of him too." She admitted, a hand on his back. "But after he learned this, he went out of his way to make sure he didn't make me uncomfortable. Not only that, but he helped me fight my fear of humans."

"...he sounds nice." It was around this time Tanis returned, holding Lincoln's hand as she escorted him over to the fearful skeleton.

"Big brother, this is Mark." Tanis said, though she knew it was somewhat unnecessary. "Mark, my brother, Lincoln Loud."

"Pleased to meet you." The white haired human said, crouching a bit.

"...he's your brother? For real?" Mark inquired, looking between the two in confusion.

"Well, not really…" Tanis confessed, before hugging Lincoln's arm. "But he's as good as my big brother." The middle Loud blushed lightly, chuckling as he hugged the little mummy in return. Gila smiled at the two of them, her own cheeks turning a little red as she gave the human boy a small embrace from the other side. Seeing the affection the three of them were sharing helped put Mark a little more at ease, the skeleton slowly shuffling forward and holding out a bony hand to shake Lincoln's. The one son gently shook his hand, carefully as to not possibly remove a hand or an arm.

"Wow. You aren't kidding." Winnie said, hanging off of Silas' outstretched arm while feeling his solid muscles. "You are RIPPED."

"Thank ye, Miss Winnie." The minotaur lad said with a big grin. "I take pride in me strength."

"We can tell." Elsa commented, chuckling a little as she saw her friend swinging on his arm. She glanced downward and took note of the bandages on his leg. "Hmmm? What's that?" She asked in concern. "Were you injured recently?"

"Hmmm? Oh, that? Nah, happened a few months back." He said dismissively. "It's more or less a scar at this point, but me Mom dinnae want to take any chances."

"A scar? Cool. Can I see?" The young werewolf inquired. Elsa shot her a bit of a warning look, but Silas didn't seem at all bothered. He knelt down and moved the wrappings a bit to show them the scar that looked like it had been caused by a gunshot wound.

"A human hunter took a shot at me." He explained as the two ghoul girls looked at it. "Got me good, I admit, but I gave the donut the slip in the swamps." Winnie sighed as she shook her head.

"Some guys will just shoot at anything that moves, won't they?"

"Aye. Yer not wrong, lass." Silas responded, snorting a bit in anger as he remembered that moment when Sigmund nearly killed him. However, he wasn't about to admit that to them. "...damned careless humans, but I digress. Left a scar worth talking about, and I still have to kinda limp about, but nothing I can't deal with. I'm tough."

"...Avalina? Is something wrong? Am I boring you?" Gosuki inquired, interrupting the story she had been telling about her venture into culinary arts last week.

"Hmmm?" She turned to the young kaiju, momentarily turning away from Lincoln as he chatted with Mark, Tanis and Gila. "Sorry...what were you saying, Gosuki?" Suki twisted her own head around to see what the lamia had been staring at.

"Lincoln?" She inquired, turning back to Avalina. "Why were you staring at him?"

"What? No. I wasn't staring at him." The human/snake hybrid lied. "I...just have a habit of staring off into space."

"Oh. Sorry. It's not a sensitive topic, is it?"

"No. Just kinda inconvenient." Avalina said, waving off her apology. "But enough about that. You were telling me about that souffle?"

"Oh! Right. Well, I had put a few crushed fire beetles into the mix to add a little heat before I put it in the oven. That, I admit, was a pretty big mistake."

"Why so? Fire beetles are delicious, if a little strong." The serpentine girl said. "I use them on my steaks all the time."

"Yes, AFTER their cooked, I bet." Suki guessed, to which Avalina nodded. "But, as I learned, adding fire beetle to uncooked food makes it incredibly difficult to cook it, since the beetle's natural heat resistance becomes part of the dish. So after about twenty minutes, I check the souffle, only to notice it was still very raw. I checked on it again forty minutes later, than an hour, then two hours. By three hours and finding the mixture barely warm, I just gave up and tossed the mixture."

"Well, you live, you learn, oui?" Gosuki nodded in agreement, while Avalina was still watching Lincoln from the corner of her eye. Internally, she was disgusted by his very presence. However, if Miss Grimwood really was accepting HUMANS into the school, then there was little she could do about it...for right now. She'll think of something.

After each of the new students took the opportunity to chat with some of the current students (at least those they cared to speak to), the new arrivals started to head toward their new rooms to unpack and begin getting settled (minus Lucy, who wanted to see the library first, and Ignatius, who went off on his own way). "Thank you for helping me with my luggage, Silas." Avalina said with a soft smile, the minotaur boy beside her dragging his own steamer chest behind him with ease and carrying a few bags over his shoulder.

"Think nothing of it, lass. Tis hardly any effort fer me." He said. "So, what do you think of of the school so far?"

"A little early to judge, but I do think it is a lovely place." The lamia said with a soft smile, which quickly turned into a bitter frown. "I just wish I knew sooner that HUMANS were allowed here…"

"What's wrong with humans?" Wendalyn inquired from behind her, a single duffle bag on her spider back.

"What's right with them is the easier question to answer." She responded distastefully.

"I'm gonna have ta side with Ava on this one." Silas admitted, looking somewhat serious himself. "I cannae say I'm especially fond of humans either. Not that I don't have darned good reasons, mind."

"...what reasons are those?" Mark asked meekly.

"Well, apart from generally treating me and me Mom poorly, they sent a hunter ta try and kill me." He explained, once more snorting in anger. "We never did anything to them. We even tried to keep outta their way...but that was never good enough."

"I admit I've run into a few humans like that…" Wendalyn said, a little upset by this conversation. "...but not all humans are."

"Aye, that is true enough, Wendalyn. But enough of them are like that." Silas replied. "And so long as that is the case, I dinnae think me and the human race will ever get along."

"Amen, brother." Avalina stated in agreement.

"Well, what did humans ever do to you?" Wendalyn asked, frowning at the lamia. However, the serpentine teen had arrived at her room.

"This is where I stop. Again, thank you so much." She said to Silas as she took her bags from him with her tail, bid them all farewell and closed the door behind her. Avalina privately hoped she wouldn't end up with a human roommate, but it appeared she lucked out; her roommate was Winnie. The arachnotaur frowned at the door, shaking her head as they group continued on.

"So, where are you headed, lass?" The minotaur boy asked, looking at Wendalyn.

"Oh, I'm actually down in the basement." The pale spider girl replied cheerfully. "I just wanted to hang out with you guys a little longer before I went to go unpack."

"Heh. Well, if that's what you want to do, I'm nae gonna argue." Silas said with a chuckle. The three of them walked along until Mark came across his room, bidding a quiet goodbye to the others and went inside, where he found that Ignatius was his roommate. The minotaur and arachnotaur continue to chat about this and that for a few minutes before they came to his room. "Suppose I'll be seeing you later then, Wendalyn."

"Yep. See you, Silas." She replied with a wave and smile, skittering off toward the stairs leading back down to the main floor. The young minotaur opened the door and looked around on the inside. He noticed a bunch of posters on the wall: some of Ace Savvy, a few of different reality shows, a few video game poster, and a few MuscleFish posters. These got his attention as he grinned. "MuscleFish? Aw yeah! Good to know another fan lives here." He started to unpack his things and arranging some of the furniture on his side of the room when the door started to open. He turned his head to see who was coming in and, to his chagrin, in walked Lincoln. The white haired boy looked toward the minotaur and smiled a bit.

"Hello Silas." He said politely. "I'm Lincoln. I guess we're going to be roommates." He held a hand out to the half bull boy, who just looked back at him for a moment before sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose.

"The gods are taunting me…" Silas muttered to himself. The look on his face was enough to wipe the smile off of the human boy's face.

"Is...something wrong?"

"...aye." Silas told him, looking rather upset. "Look, lad...I'm gonna level with ya. I don't like humans. Not one bit." He explained bluntly to the somewhat stunned Lincoln. "And I'd as soon eat a cheeseburger as share a room with one…" And with that, he stormed out of the room past Lincoln and out into the hall, the white haired boy just staring at the door as it slammed shut. On one hand, he should have expected that not all the new students would be cool with humans. On the other hand, to end up roommates with someone who didn't like humans...what were the odds? The one son sighed as he walked over to his own bed and grabbed his phone, dialing up his mother.

"Hello?" Rita replied on the other side of the phone.

"Hi Mom. It's Lincoln."

"Oh, hello dear. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, Mom. How about you? Everything alright there?"

"Junior twisted her ankle during practice, but you know how she is. Doesn't let that slow her down for a moment. Otherwise, everything is just grand."

"Good to hear. Lucy just arrived at Grimwood's not too long ago." He informed her, laying back on his bed.

"We know. Lucy texted us as soon as she arrived, but thank you so much for telling us. Have you had a chance to meet the new students?"

"A few of them." He replied. "I met Wendalyn, an arachnotaur. She was pretty nice. My friends had told me about her, though, so I kinda knew what to expect."

"Your friends had met her before?"

"Yeah. Kind of a long story. I'm surprised Zanya hasn't told anyone...which, speaking of telling people, someone might want to tell Leni before she next visits Grimwood's that Wendalyn is half spider."

"I'll be sure to tell her when she gets home."

"Thanks. Anyway, I also got to meet a skeleton named Mark. He was nice enough, but seemed really shy and nervous. He didn't really want to talk to me or anyone else, but with a little coaxing from Tanis and Gila, he talked to me a little bit. And then, I just met my new roommate, Silas, a minotaur."

"Is that so? How are you getting along?"

"...we're not." He admitted sadly. "Right from when I stepped into the room, he told me he didn't like humans and left the room in a huff."

"Oh dear...well, Gila and Milly were the same when you first met them, and you eventually became friends with them, right?" Lincoln nodded his head.

"Yeah...well, Milly would say we're more...on speaking terms than friends, but let's not nitpick."

"My point remains. Give him some time, and I'm sure he'll come around."

"I hope so…" Lincoln muttered to himself. "Anyway, I didn't really get to talk much with the other new students. Avalina, who is half snake and half lady...not sure what kind of monster that is. Gonna have to do some research...anyway, she seemed in a big hurry to get to her room by the time I had a chance to speak with her, and Ignatius, a vampire boy, spent almost the whole time speaking with Sibella and Lucy."

"Well, I'm sure you'll get your chance soon enough, Lincoln." His mother told him in an encouraging voice. "And don't get discouraged about Silas. Just be you and everything will turn out alright."

"Thanks, Mom. Hope I didn't interrupt something important when I called."

Over in the dentist's office where Rita Loud worked, it looked like it had been hit by a floss tornado, or perhaps a floss spewing spider. Minty wax string was all over the place, particularly over the ceiling. Rita's legs were wrapped up as she hung upside down and chatted with her son. "Oh no. We're just...hanging around the office." She said with a slight giggle. Over in the far corner, her boss looked like he had been caught in a spider web, the office receptionist cutting him down with a look of disbelief on her face, while the dentist himself looked rather embarrassed.

"...how did this happen again?"

"At any rate, it looks like something is about to go down here, so I should probably get going. Take care of yourself, dear, and your sister."

"Always, Mom. You too. Love you. Bye."

"Love you too, Lincoln. Bye." Before she hung up, Lincoln could hear a crashing sound coming from the phone.

"Huh...whatever went down must have been big." He commented as he set his phone down beside his laptop. He then turned toward the fourth wall. "Six new students, one of which one of my own little sisters. Something tells me life around here is going to get more 'interesting' than before. But whatever happens, it can't be as crazy as what happened a few months back with Sigmund…" He commented with a chuckle. His smirk faded pretty quickly as he continued to look at the viewers. "...why are you looking at me like that?"