Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Holt slouched down in his chair, scowling at the floor. “This is dumb,” he groused. “We don’t need to leave Monster High, things are fine there.”

“No they aren’t,” Mrs. Hyde said. “You’re late getting home every night, Jackson comes home with new bruises, you’re both exhausted, and your grades are starting to slip.”

We’re not exhausted! Jackson protested. And our grades are fine. We got a B on our last test. Holt nodded.

“Exactly,” he said. He repeated the statement out loud, and Mrs. Hyde shook her head.

“Jackson, your last test was on Mad Science, your best subject. The last time you got less than an A, you had a fever of one hundred and one.” Jackson stayed silent, and Holt’s face warmed.

“Okay, so we haven’t been doing as well as usual. But we can work harder!”

“I’m sorry, sweetie, but we think this is for the best. Headmistress Crone is excited to welcome you both.”

Both? Jackson repeated, sounding panicked. Did she tell her about me too?

Holt repeated the question, and Mrs. Hyde blinked.

“Well, no- I thought we’d tell her today.”

No- we can’t, Jackson said firmly. I’m not going to make myself a target before I’m even a student. Holt nodded firmly, sharing the message with Mrs. Hyde.

“Jackson’s right,” he added. “We don’t know how they feel about normies.” Their mother sighed.

“Alright, if you don’t want to tell her, then we won’t. We’ll just have to make sure she knows you need to keep your headphones.”

“Or,” Holt said. “We could not bother, and go back to Monster High. The teachers there know already and won’t fight us on it.”

“Nice try, Holt.” Mrs. Hyde put a hand on his shoulder. “I know you’re both nervous, but I think Gravedale will be good for you. Headmistress Crone told me about one of the teachers, Mr. Schneider. She thinks he would be a good fit for you.” The door burst open, making them both jump.

“Mrs. Hyde, I presume!” A woman swept into the room. She had blue spiky hair, light blue skin, and an iron fist. Literally- it was her left one. She stuck out her right to shake Mrs. Hyde’s hand, and then Holt’s. “Welcome to Gravedale High! What do you think so far?”

“I like it,” Mrs. Hyde said. “I think it will be good for Holt to transfer here. Just one thing- he needs to wear his headphones at all times. Maybe not permanently- but for now, I’m afraid wearing them isn’t optional.”

“That won’t be a problem,” Headmistress Crone replied. “I’ll let his teacher know. Speaking of-” she sat down behind her desk and leaned on her hands. “I heard you mention Mr. Schneider. Would you like to be put in his class, Mr. Hyde?” Holt shrugged.

“I guess.” Headmistress Crone raised an eyebrow.

“You don’t seem excited about it,” she noted. “We have other teachers- you’re welcome to pick someone else.” She reached into a drawer and pulled out a small stack of papers. “Here, look them over.” As Holt reached for the papers, she looked at Mrs. Hyde. “Here at Gravedale, students have the same teacher for all of their subjects,” she explained. “Holt will be with his chosen teacher the whole time.” She returned her focus to Holt. “So choose wisely, young man.”

Holt ignored her, flipping through the papers.

Not him, Jackson said firmly, as Holt scanned the file for a teacher called Coach Cadaver. Holt agreed- the teacher looked angry and mean, even in his photo. Basically the adult equivalent of a high school bully- and he had a description to match. He continued sorting through the files, and no one stood out from the others. Any of them would be fine, Jackson commented. I don’t have a preference; you can pick one. Holt finished reading the description for a Mrs. Weber. There was just one more. Moving it to the top, his eyes widened, and Jackson gasped. Is that a normie? he asked. Before Holt could repeat the question, Headmistress Crone tapped the paper.

“This is Mr. Schneider,” she said. “His class is full of troublemakers, but he’s an excellent teacher- they’ve settled down significantly since he started teaching here.”

“Him,” Holt said firmly. “I want to be in his class.”

Holt- Jackson started.

“Excellent! I’ll let him know. Welcome to Gravedale, Mr. Hyde.” She stood. “We’ll see you tomorrow- Mr. Schneider will have your locker number, and any textbooks you need when you arrive.” Mrs. Hyde and Holt stood as well.

“Thank you, Headmistress Crone,” Mrs. Hyde said. “I’m sure Holt will love it here.” She looked at him, the “and Jackson” heavily implied. Holt smiled back.

“I’m sure I will.”

Chapter Text

You can’t be serious, Jackson said. He’d spent most of the night trying to convince Holt to reconsider, to no avail. Holt shrugged on his backpack.

“I think it’s going to be better here, J,” he said. “If they hired a normie as a teacher, then they probably won’t react that badly to us.”

That’s what we thought about Monster High, just in reverse. At least some monsters there accept me, we don’t know if that will happen here. What if it’s worse?

“Relax,” Holt said. “Headmistress Crone said we could keep the headphones. I’ll attend all our classes until you’re ready.”

That doesn’t seem fair to you, Jackson fretted. Oh! What if I do the assignments for my best subjects, to lessen the workload for you?

“If it makes you feel better, that sounds good.” Holt smiled. “You ready?”

As I’ll ever be.

Holt walked out of the house to the bus, which was just pulling up. The driver- a pale man with white hair and a purple outfit greeted him as he boarded. After nodding to him, Holt walked to the back of the bus and sat next to a window. It was empty.

We must be the first ones on the stop, Jackson noted. Holt hummed in acknowledgment. He looked out the window, watching the scenery go by. After a moment, someone cleared their throat. Confused, he turned toward the sound. In the seat to his left was a floating hat, glasses, and a vest. Holt blinked.

“Er… hello?”

“Hi!” the other teen- it had to be another student- moved, sliding into the seat next to Holt. “I’m Sid. Are you new to Gravedale? I haven’t seen you before.” Holt nodded.

“Yeah, today’s my first day. I’m Holt.”

“Who’s class are you in?”

“Mr. Schneider’s.”

“Oh, that’s my class!” Sid exclaimed, his voice brightening.

Well, thats lucky, Jackson said. Maybe he’ll take you to the classroom.

“Cool,” Holt said. “I don’t actually know where his room is. Would you mind showing me when we get to school?”

“Sure!” Holt smiled at the other teen’s enthusiasm.

“Thanks. I appreciate it.” The two of them continued talking, raising their voices as more students entered the bus. Soon, they arrived at the school. Sid led Holt off the bus and into the school, chatting with him the whole way.

“You’re gonna love it here,” Sid as they walked in the door.

We’ll see, Jackson murmured. Holt sensed his hesitation, and cleared his throat.

“I’m sure I will if I meet more monsters like you,” he said to Sid. The invisible teen laughed.

“No one is exactly like me, but they’re alright. You’ll see what they’re like when you meet them.

Well, that sounds promising, Jackson said sarcastically. Holt slipped behind Sid, close enough to follow but hopefully out of earshot.

“Relax, J,” he murmured. “I’m sure we’ll be fine.” It was weird being the one to reassure Jackson- usually, he was the one reassuring Holt when things went wrong for them, or when he was stressed.

I know, but I’m nervous, Jackson replied. Before Holt could respond, Sid dropped back, taking his arm.

“Here we are!” he said, reaching for the door handle. He opened the door and led Holt inside. A normie seated behind the desk looked up, grinning.

“Sid! And you must be Holt?” Holt nodded, and the teacher continued. “Welcome to Gravedale- I’m happy to have you in my class.” He gestured at the desks. “I put your textbooks and your schedule on your desk- you’re behind Sid, actually.” he smiled at the invisible teen. “Speaking off, Sid, thank you for helping Holt find the classroom.”

“No problem, Mr. S!” Sid walked over to his seat, and Holt followed, sliding into his seat behind him.

“Holt,” Mr. Schneider said, drawing his attention. “If you have any questions, feel free to ask me or anyone else, alright?” Holt smiled, nodding.

“I will- thank you.”

“Of course.” The teacher sat down at his own desk, and soon, the other students in the class came in and sat down, chatting with each other. The bell rang, and Mr. Schneider stood, moving to lean against his desk.

“Kids,” he began. “We have a new student joining our class.” he gestured at Holt. “Holt, why don’t you tell us a bit about yourself?”

“Okay.” Holt turned so he could face most of the class. “My name is Holt Hyde. I’m a DJ, and I love music- it’s my favorite subject.”

“Cool!” a swamp monster grinned. “Welcome to the class, DJ dude!” Introductions were made, and Holt nodded along. When they were done, Mr. Schneider directed their attention back to him.

“Alright, let’s get started.”

Right away, Holt realized that their plan for Jackson to do the homework for his best subjects and for Holt to do his meant he was going to have a very long day. They were given homework for math, and while Jackson tried to guide him through it, it wasn’t working.

The exponent means you multiply the number by itself, Jackson explained patiently. You don’t multiply it by three. Holt sighed, putting the sheet into their backpack.

I can’t do this, he thought, knowing Jackson would hear him. They didn’t like communicating through thoughts if they didn’t have to, but it couldn’t be helped. It would be better if I just let you do it.

Okay, that’s fair, Jackson admitted. Sorry.

Hey, don’t sweat it. I’ll be fine. He leaned on his hand, sighing. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t bored, but he’d just have to hold on till the next subject. With any luck, it would be one of his.

The bell rang, and Holt sat up straighter as the other students put their homework away and pulled out a different textbook. He fumbled in his pocket for his schedule, pulled it out, and searched for the next class. He cheered internally when he saw it- geography, one he was better at. They started by reviewing the last chapter, which Holt was grateful for. He took notes, with Jackson helpfully reminding him of things he couldn’t remember the exact phrasing of.

After they watched a video pertaining to the next chapter, Mr. Schneider gave them some time to read it. Holt did so, taking notes simultaneously, and was done only a short time before the bell. Prepared now, he looked at his schedule for the next class. Science. He wasn’t awful at science, even though it was more Jackson’s thing.

When it came time for homework, he received his worksheet and stared at it for a moment. Then, with a sigh, he put it in his bag.

Holt? Jackson asked, surprised. What are you doing? You don’t need me to help you with science.

No, but I know it’s your favorite subject- I don’t want to take that away from you. I’d feel awful if someone did music for me while I watched.

But you’re going to be bored! Go ahead, I’ll be fine.

No way, bro, Holt replied firmly. You said it yourself- you’d do homework for your best subjects, in exchange for me attending all our classes. I won’t hear any arguments.

Okay, Jackson said after a moment. Thanks, Holt.

No problem, J.

The rest of school went by alright. Holt was bored- which wasn’t anything new, really- but he enjoyed being in class and listening to Mr. Schneider’s lessons. The teacher was clearly passionate about the subjects he was teaching, unlike some teachers at Monster High such as Mr. Hack. Still, Holt couldn’t shake an uneasy feeling. He found himself wishing frequently that Jackson could take part in person.

When the final bell rang, he walked to his locker and put his books in it, except for math, which Jackson would need. He met up with Sid and walked with the invisible teen to the bus.

“So,” Sid said as they sat down in their seats. “What do you think of Gravedale?”

“It’s alright,” Holt said. “About as good as school can be, you know?” He bumped Sid’s shoulder with his own, grinning. “At least I have a friend- thanks for sticking with me today.”

“No problem! I’m always happy to meet another showman.” At Holt’s inquiring gaze, he gasped.

“I didn’t tell you! I guess in the excitement over getting a new student, I forgot. I’m going to be a comedian- stand up comedy, specifically.” Holt grinned.

“That’s cool! Show me what you’ve got.”

“You don’t have to ask me twice!” Sid told him a few jokes, and Holt laughed. Jackson did as well.

I like him, he decided. He’s a good friend for you.

For us, Holt corrected. I’m sure he’ll like you too.

We’ll see.

Holt and Sid continued chatting the whole way to Holt’s stop. When he spotted the familiar roof, he nodded toward the window.

“This is me,” he said.

“Okay,” Sid replied as the bus stopped, and Holt stood. “See you tomorrow!”

“Yeah, see you.” Holt smiled at him, leaving the bus. When he got outside he waved, and Sid waved back as the bus pulled away. After it was gone, he walked up to Jackson’s room and took off his headphones.

Your turn, he said. Jackson chuckled, somewhat nervously.

“Yeah, it's only fair- considering how boring some of class was for you. I’m sorry about that.”

Hey, Holt admonished. None of that. We agreed, remember- besides, it wasn’t that boring. Or at least, not any more than what school is normally like.

“Okay, if you’re really alright with it, then so am I. I still feel bad though.”

There’s no need. I’m sure tomorrow will be better.

-

The next day was not going better, but it wasn’t going worse, either. Math and Geography were okay, but Holt refrained from sharing thoughts during Science, arguing with Jackson that he should be able to discuss it himself, not through Holt.

After Science, Holt dug out his schedule and brightened. Their next class was art. Sure it wasn’t music, but anything artistic was okay with him.

Mr. Schneider gave a brief lesson on sculpture making, then presented them with clay to work with.

“Make whatever you’d like,” he said. “When you’re done, I’ll get them fired for you so you can paint them. And don’t worry if you don’t finish before class is over, you’re welcome to take them home with you or finish it next week.” The class eagerly got started, chatting as they shaped their clay into what they wanted.

Holt started shaping his into the chameleon he and Jackson had, Crossfade. He wanted to make something they both liked, and Crossfade seemed perfect. He was half done when the bell rang, as were most of the others.

“Put your creations in your locker, and then head to lunch,” Mr. Schneider said. They all left, chatting as they went to their lockers.

This isn’t so bad, Jackson said. I’m not ready yet… but maybe soon. Holt grinned.

Awesome! he thought. You’re not going to regret it.

“Hey,” a voice said suddenly from behind him. Holt turned, coming face to face with a gargoyle.

Oh no, Jackson said. Holt frowned.

“Hey,” he said cautiously. The gargoyle sneered, confirming Jackson’s fears.

“You’re new here- part of the troublemaker class.”

“Yeah, so I’ve heard.” Holt lifted his chin. “But they don’t seem like troublemakers to me- unlike some monsters.” He made a point of looking the gargoyle up and down, and the other teen laughed.

“Not bad, new kid. But don’t cross me, or my class. We’re a lot tougher than you lot.” He walked away, and Jackson sighed.

Meet Manny 2.0, he said.

I take it this means you’re not going to be ready for a while, Holt said, resigned.

No- I’m sorry.

Don’t worry about it. He is a lot like Manny- I get you not wanting to risk it. Holt frowned as he followed the class to the creepateria. They’d been so close, but it looked like things wouldn’t be as smooth as he thought.

Chapter Text

Mr. Schneider frowned to himself as he finished grading Holt’s science quiz. It was perfect- no mistakes. He glanced at the teen, who was leaning on one hand and staring out the window. Since he’d come to Gravedale, Holt seemed bored during class, which wasn’t shocking. School wasn’t always fun. But now, he had doubts.

Holt completed his homework on time, and did well on it- especially science. His answers to the questions suggested an interest in the subject as well as an in depth understanding. With that in mind, Mr. Schneider was starting to suspect he was bored because he knew the material already, so the homework didn’t take him long. It was posible that at Holt’s old school, they’d been ahead of where his class was. The bell rang, and his class stood, chatting as they gathered their things together. Mr. Schneider cleared his throat.

“Holt, can you stay back a moment?” he requested. “I’d like to talk to you.” Holt blinked.

“Sure,” he said, his voice hesitant. He sat back down, and stayed quiet as the other students left. After the door clicked shut, Mr. Schneider leaned forward.

“Holt, I was wondering- have you learned any of what I’ve been teaching at your previous school? If you have, I’m happy to give you something else to do until we catch up.” Holt shook his head.

“I haven’t learned any of this before. Why?”

“Well, I’ve noticed you seem bored when we get to the end of the lesson, and you all have time to do homework,” Mr. Schneider explained. “I thought that if you learned it already, you finished your homework quickly and had nothing else to do.”

“No- I’ve just been saving math and science to do at home, so there’s not much to do during class.” Mr. Schneider raised an eyebrow.

“Alright,” he said slowly. “I suppose that makes sense. But Holt, why are you waiting till you get home to do the assignments?” Holt’s expression darkened, and he stood.

“That’s not any of your business,” he snapped. He walked to the door and opened it, and Mr. Schneider winced as he slammed it shut behind him.

“That could have gone better,” he said with a sigh. He stood, making a decision. Holt didn’t seem particularly happy in his class- he semed to like Sid okay, but Mr. Schneider had a feeling the invisible teen wouldn’t be enough to keep Holt in his class if he didn’t figure out what was going on. “Though that might not be such a bad thing,” he murmured as he left his classroom. “I might not be a good fit for him. He might be better off somewhere else.” With that sombering thought, he started quiet the rest of the way to Headmistress Crone’s office. When he reached it, he knocked lightly.

“Come in!” Headmistress Crone called. He entered, and she looked up and grinned. “Mr. Schneider, good to see you! I was going to call you in- how are things going with Holt?”

“That’s actually what I’m here for, Headmistress Crone.” Mr. Schneider moved closer. “I’m not sure I’m a good fit for him.” He sighed. “I’d keep trying, normally- but since he’s new, I thought maybe he would be better off with someone else. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll happily take him back. But I want him to be with a teacher who works for him.” Headmistress Crone frowned.

“That’s odd,” she said. “He specifically requested you.” Mr. Schneider blinked in surprise.

“Really?”

“Really,” she confirmed. “He went through all the teachers, and chose you.”

“Well that’s slightly reassuring, I suppose. Thanks, Headmistress Crone.”

“Of course, Mr. Schneider- and don’t worry, I’m sure you’re fretting over nothing.” Mr. Schneider smiled ruefully.

“Probably. I’ll give him some more time- it has only been a week.” He left and headed back to his classroom, deep in thought. The news from Headmistress Crone changed things- if Holt had requested him, then his theory that he wasn’t the right teacher for him lost some ground.

I’ll just have to be patient, he thought. As he neared the corner, he heard a voice- Holt’s voice. He slowed, inching forward.

“I hear what you’re saying, Jackson, but you won’t know if you don’t try,” Holt was saying, leaning against the lockers with his arms crossed. “It was just one student, every school has someone like that. Maybe the others will be better.” There were a few moments of silence, and the teen sighed. “Fine. If you don’t want to, I won’t make you.” Mr. Schneider frowned. He didn’t see a phone, but then- who was Holt talking to?

“Holt?” he said. The teen froze, turning to stare at him, his eyes alight with panic.

“How long have you been there?”

“Only for a moment.” Mr. Schneider stepped closer. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Holt looked away, his face flushing.

“Alright, if you’re sure.” Mr. Schneider tilted his head. “Shouldn’t you be at lunch?” He winced internally, half expecting to get another angry response.

“I’ll head there in a minute,” Holt replied. “I just…” he glanced at Mr. Schneider. “I felt bad, about what happened in the classroom. I’m sorry for snapping at you. I get that its weird.”

“Oh.” Mr. Schneider smiled. “That’s alright- I’m sorry I pried. So long as you get your homework done, it shouldn’t matter to me when you do it. But if you need to talk, I’m right here. You can tell me anything, and I’ll help you however I can.”

“Okay.” Holt said. He smiled. “Thank you.” Mr. Schneider nodded.

“Of course. Go on ahead- I’ve got to grab my lunch from the classroom, then I’ll join all of you.” Holt nodded and walked away, and Mr. Scneider smiled to himself as he continued to his classroom.

It’s a start, he thought. Since it was Friday, with any luck, Holt would have some time to think over what he’d said over the weekend, and would make more progress.

-

Holt waved at Sid as the bus drove away. After it was gone, he walked inside, pulling off his headphones as he pushed the door closed behind him.

Not a bad day, Holt said. Mr. Schneider is pretty cool. I would have gotten detention for that at Monster High.

“Yeah.” Jackson said quietly as he walked upstairs to his room.

“Yeah”? Holt repeated, a trace of concern in his voice. That’s all you have to say? Are you alright?

“I’m okay,” Jackson reassured. “I just…” he hesitated. “I was thinking- maybe I’ll go to school Monday?”

Uh, of course you’re going to school on Monday. You’re always at school.

“No, I mean- me, personally. Not watching through you.” Holt gasped.

J, are you serious? He said, his voice excited. That’s great! What brought this on?

“Mr. Schneider,” Jackson confessed. “He was so patient with you, and I think I’d like to be in class myself- I don’t know if I want to talk with him or anyone else myself yet, but I want to be part of class. Maybe I’ll just wear a hoodie and keep the hood up, so no one can tell I’m not you.” he winced. “I know that defeats the purpose-”

No no, that’s fine! It’s progress! Holt said. I’ve got a hoodie in my closet- you can use that. It’s a little big for us, remember?

“I remember.” Jackson grinned. “Mom said we’d grow into it- good thing we haven’t hit a growth spurt yet. Thanks, Holt.”

No problem, man! This is gonna be fangtastic! Jackson laughed.

“Don’t get too excited, it’s not Monday yet. I could still change my mind.”

But you won’t, Holt countered. I can tell- you’re excited about this.

“Maybe a little,” Jackson admitted. “I was thinking I could put on some gloves too, to hide my hands. Between that and the hoodie to cover my face, I think this could really work.”

I do too. And hey, Jackson?

“Yeah?”

I’m proud of you. You're gonna do great.

Chapter Text

Mr. Schneider moved back to his desk, having just finished placing his students’ tests on their desks for when they came in. He smiled to himself as he sat down. He was looking forward to the start of the day, hopeful to see if his talk with Holt had had any effect. If he wasn’t mistaken, the bus had just arrived, so he’d see in a few moments.

In the meantime, he kept himself busy with going over his lesson plan for the week. When the door opened, he looked up eagerly. A figure stepped through, a hood up over their head and pulled low over their face. Mr. Schneider’s heart sank. If he wasn’t mistaken, that was Holt- and it didn’t look like their chat had changed anything. The teen kept his head bowed forward, and didn’t say anything as he slipped into his seat. Mr. Schneider sighed.

Well, he thought, determined. I’ll just have to keep trying then. He refused to give up- it just wasn’t in his nature. He’d never given up on a student before, and he wasn’t about to start now.

After the other students came in, he stood and started class. To his surprise, Holt raised his hand to answer questions and voice thoughts more often than he had the entirety of the last week. He spoke softly and kept the hood over his face, never looking up, but it was progress. When the first period ended, he was one of the students to turn in homework, having finished it already. When his turn came to put the sheet on his desk, Mr. Schneider smiled up at him.

“I’m glad to see you enjoying yourself, Holt,” he said warmly.

“Yeah, well,” Holt said, a touch of a smile evident in his voice. “You convinced me, when we last spoke, that attending a new school isn’t so bad.” He turned and went back to his seat, and Mr. Schneider gathered the papers, slipping them into a folder to grade later on before moving on to Science.

“Alright class,” he said, standing. “We’re going to start learning about DNA- and I have an experiment for you to do.” His students started whispering, and he smiled. “After a quick lesson on the basics.” A few of them groaned, but settled down as they grabbed their books. True to his word, he kept the lesson brief. The experiment he had in mind didn’t take long, but he wanted to give them plenty of time.

He gathered plastic bags with a strawberry in them from his desk drawer, where he had them hidden until it was time, and a few paper towels and rubber bands as well.

“I’m going to get out the other ingredients,” he said as he started passing them out. “In the meantime, you can start squishing your strawberries.”

“Really?” Frankentyke said eagerly. He brought his fist down on the strawberry, and Mr. Schneider winced.

“Carefully,” he cautioned. “You don’t want the strawberry to come out the top- if you lose it, you can’t finish the experiment. After you finish squishing your strawberry, find a partner to do the experiment with.” He handed the last strawberry to Cleo and went back to his desk, ignoring the chatter and moving chairs. He wasn’t surprised- so long as they squished the strawberries at some point, he didn’t mind if they found partners first. He gathered the other ingredients and supplies, spreading them out on his desk.

When he turned back around, he smiled. The kids had pushed their desks together, giving them more space to work with their partner.

“Alright,” he said, handing out the instructions. “You can grab what you need when you’re ready for it.” He gestured to his desk, where there were empty beakers, and beakers with dish soap, water, and rubbing alcohol. “There are enough beakers for all of you, but only take one of everything else. One set of measuring spoons per group.” He walked over behind his desk and leaned against the back wall, smiling as his kids started talking, excitement showing on their faces. Soon, they got up and started gathering what they needed. Once they were done, he sat back down. “When you’ve finished, take notes and compare your strawberry’s DNA to your partner’s,” he said. “I want you to have fun with this. Shake it around, pick it up, move it- whatever you’d like, just make sure to take notes on what happens when you do.” The kids nodded, and he pulled out their homework to start grading. Occasionally he glanced up to make sure things were going okay. When they started finishing, he took note of their reactions.

Reggie and Vinnie finished first, and Vinnie was swirling his beaker around while Reggie watched, eagerly taking notes.

Cleo and Duzer were bent over their beakers, and Cleo was using the toothpick to swirl her DNA around it.

J.P. and Blanche were using their toothpicks too, but they were pulling the DNA out of the beaker entirely.

Gill had his beaker in his hand, covered the top of it with his other hand, and was shaking it hard while Frankentyke watched eagerly. Mr. Schneider shook his head, chuckling slightly. So long as the mixture stayed in the beaker, he’d take it.

Finally, Sid and Holt had combined their two DNA strands into one beaker, and were taking turns swirling it around and moving the DNA with their toothpicks, and taking notes. Mr. Schneider smiled. Holt still had his hood over his face, but he seemed just as excited as the other students. If didn’t know better, he’d say he was a different person. As he was finishing up the last sheet, he glanced at his watch.

“Start wrapping up, kids,” he said, looking back at the paper. “The bell’s going to ring soon, then we’re headed to gym.” After a moment, he heard footsteps. He glanced up just in time to see Holt bolting out the door, the door slamming behind him. Mr. Schneider dropped his pencil and jumped to his feet. “I’ll be right back,” he said, walking quickly to the door. He opened it and, hearing footsteps off to his left, started off in that direction. Somewhere in the hall, another door slammed. The bathroom, most likely, considering all the classrooms had students, and he presumed Holt wanted to be alone. When Mr. Schneider reached the bathroom, he opened the door quietly. Sure enough, Holt was inside, talking to himself.

“This was a bad idea!” He was saying. “Why didn’t we look at the schedule last night? I can’t do gym! Everyone will see me! This was a mistake, you need to take over. Where are your headphones?” Silence, and then- “What do you mean you don’t have them?!” More silence. “No, I can’t go back! Monster High had some problems, but I had some friends at least! We have no idea how monsters here will react!” …. “No, Mr. Schneider doesn’t prove anything! He’s a teacher, they can’t bully him!”

“Holt?” Mr. Schneider called, stepping inside. Holt gasped and yanked open the door to one of the stalls, darting inside, and the teacher frowned. “Are you alright?”

“Yep!” The teen squeaked. “Totally fine! You can go!” Mr. Schneider stepped closer.

“I can’t do that, Holt. Can you tell me what’s going on?”

“I can’t,” Holt said, his voice high with panic. “You’ll all treat me differently.”

“I can’t speak for the others,” Mr. Schneider said. “But I promise I won’t treat you any different if you tell me what’s wrong.” Mr. Schneider leaned against the counter. “But I won’t force you. I’m willing to wait till you’re ready.” After a few minutes of silence, Holt spoke, his voice quiet.

“At Monster High, I got bullied a lot. It was bad, and teachers didn’t do anything to stop it. I had some friends who liked me, which made it better, but they didn’t know how bad it was, and didn’t do much about it. I don’t want that to happen here, too.” Several pieces clicked into place then. Mr. Schneider stood up straight, heart racing as he thought through everything. What he’d overheard on Friday. Holt requesting him personally to be his teacher. His argument that just because Mr. Schneider was treated well didn’t mean he would be. The hood. He was still missing a few details, but…

“Jackson,” he said carefully. “Are you human?” There was a moment of silence, and then the stall door opened a crack to reveal a blue eye framed by glasses.

“How did you know?” he asked, his tone resigned. Mr. Schneider shrugged.

“I took a guess, based on what I overheard on Friday. I’m not sure exactly how this works, though. Is it that you’re half human and half monster?” The door opened, revealing a black haired teen with a yellow streak through it.

“Yeah- but at monster high, they called me a normie,” he said quietly. Mr. Schneider’s heart ached at the sad tone of the teen before him.

“Well, nobody here will call you that,” he said firmly. Jackson looked hesitant, but stepped out of the stall.

“Are you sure?” he asked. Mr. Schneider nodded.

“I’m sure. This is the first time I’ve heard ever that term.” He sighed. “I can’t promise you you won’t get picked on- Coach Cadaver isn’t fond of humans, and his class tends to follow his lead. And my students sometimes tease and insult each other. But they don’t target anyone specifically, and if anyone else does, I wouldn’t be surprised if they defended you.”

“Okay,” Jackson said slowly. “Holt and I each did the subjects we were best at at Monster High. Can we do that here too?” Mr. Schneider nodded.

“I’m fine with whatever you both want.”

“Thank you.” Jackson gave him a shaky smile. “I’m glad you’re taking this well. Do you really think the class will accept us?”

“I think so,” Mr. Schneider said carefully. He didn’t want to speak for his class, even though he doubted it would be a problem. “But we have to go talk to them. Are you ready?” Jackson nodded.

“Yes,” he flipped his hood up, pulling it low. “But for now, just them.”

“That’s fine.” Mr. Schneider put a hand on his back, leading him from the bathroom. “Come on. I’m sure they’re wondering what happened to us.” They walked back to the classroom, and Mr. Schneider held the door open for Jackson before walking in himself. His students were watching him with varying expressions of curiosity and concern, the latter directed at Jackson. “Class,” he said. “Holt has something to tell you.” Jackson took a deep breath.

“The thing is,” he said. “I’m half human.” He pulled his hood down, and the students gasped. He winced, and Mr. Schneider put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it in a hopefully comforting manner. It must have worked, because Jackson sent him a grateful smile before turning back to the class. “My name is Jackson- Holt and I have the same body, but we’re different people. When loud music is playing, Holt takes over, and when there isn’t, I do. Hence the headphones- I didn’t want to reveal myself to anyone at first. At my old school, a lot of the other students picked on me because I’m human, and the teachers didn’t care. I…. didn’t want it to happen here.” He rubbed his arm, looking down at his feet.

“Oh, that’s so sad! Really it is!” Blanche said. Jackson looked up, startled, and Mr. Schneider smiled at his class. All of them looked sympathetic, and even annoyed on Jackson’s behalf.

“Totally uncool,” Gill agreed. He stood and went to Jackson’s side, putting an arm around him. “You should have told us earlier, human dude. We wouldn’t have treated you any different.”

“Yeah, man, our teacher is human!” Frankentyke said. Jackson sighed.

“Exactly- he’s your teacher. You have to respect him.” The class laughed, and Mr. Schneider chuckled slightly. Jackson looked around, confused. “What? What did I say?”

“We don’t have to respect Mr. Schneider,” Cleo said. “We do because he’s a great teacher.”

“Yeah.” Vinnie leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. “Before he showed up, we chased away tons of teachers. So many that Headmistress Crone was going to have us all expelled.” he grinned. “Teach was the only one that didn’t give up on us.”

“And we didn’t make it easy,” J.P. put in. “That first week, we were all certain he’d leave like all the others.”

“But he stuck with us, and didn’t react to any of our taunts. Plus, he helped us when we needed it. Remember Sid’s tonsils?” Reggie asked. The class nodded.

“I had a sore throat,” Sid explained for Jackson’s benefit. “We don’t have a nurse, so he drove me to a human hospital- and brought the whole class to visit me.”

“So you see?” Gill said, squeezing Jackson lightly. “We don’t respect teacher dude because he’s our teacher, we respect him because he cares, and he taught us to care about each other. And you’re one of us now, so we care about you dudes too.”

“Oh,” Jackson’s face warmed. “Er…. thank you.”

“No problem.” He led Jackson back to his seat, and then sat down at his own desk.

“And hey man, if anyone does want to pick on you, they’ll have to go through us!” Frankentyke said. The others voiced their agreement, and Jackson smiled.

“Thanks, guys,” he said softly.

“No need to thank us,” Cleo said “We look out for each other here.”

“If you’re okay with it, I’ll let Headmistress Crone know about you both,” Mr. Schneider cut in. “She should probably know that Gravedale has two new students rather than one, and she won’t stand for bullying either.”

“Not physically, at least,” Reggie said. “Arguments happen a lot here, and she lets students and teachers sort that out. But physical bullying is against school policy.” Jackson shrugged.

“It was at Monster High too, but it didn’t stop anyone,” he said. “But I appreciate you telling me!” He quickly added on. The other students stared.

“Whoa,” Sid said. “It’s good thing you transferred here!” The class nodded.

“Your old school sounds just awful,” Blanche said. Jackson shrugged.

“It wasn’t all bad.”

“Well,” Mr. Schneider said firmly. “This one is going to be better. We’ll make sure of it.” The bell rang then, and he smiled. “There’s the bell- come on, let’s head to the gym.”

-

The final bell rang, signaling the end of the day, and Jackson smiled to himself as he stood, shutting his textbook. Gym had been great, and the rest of the classes had gone well too. It had been nice to take his hood down and talk with everyone face to face, and get to know them all. When they’d returned from the gym, Mr. Schneider had given him a chance to introduce himself again, telling everyone what his favorite subjects were. All in all, the day had been good.

Someone’s in a good mood, Holt said. Jackson smiled.

“I am,” he said quietly. He’d explained to the class that he and Holt preferred to talk verbally, rather than through thought, so he wasn’t concerned about strange looks from seemingly talking to himself. “I don’t know what I was so worried for- I mean, I do- but I’m glad it turned out there was nothing to worry about.

I told you, Holt said smugly. Jackson rolled his eyes.

"Yeah yeah, you were right. Are you happy?"

Very. Holt softened his tone. I’m glad you feel comfortable here, J. I think Gravedale is going to work out well for us.

“Yeah.” Jackson smiled at Sid, who was waiting for him by the door- the invisible kid still wanted to be his friend, which he was relieved about. “I think it will.”