Monster High: Who's That Ghoulfriend? (Monster High: Ghoulfriends Forever) (9 page)

“You are officially the worst liar in the Boo World, and I do mean worst. Seriously, I’ve
seen trolls lie more convincingly than you.”

“
S’il ghoul plaît
, Deuce, do not tell anyone what you overheard. I can’t explain right now, so you’re just going to have to trust me. Do you think you can do that?”

“I think so,” Deuce said with a smile.

“Wonderful,” Rochelle said as she once again looked at her watch. “Now I really must be going. Mr. Mummy might worry if I’m late to Catacombing.”

Rochelle waved good-bye to Deuce and turned to leave.

“Rochelle?”

“Yes?” the hardheaded ghoul responded.

“Did you forget that I’m in Catacombing class with you?”

“
Boo alors
! But of course,” Rochelle said with
a smile as the two made their way toward the ornate gold elevator to the Catacombs.

So loquacious was Mr. Mummy on this particular day that Rochelle was unable to tell Venus and Robecca about her conversation with Deuce until after the period had ended. As soon as the bell rang, the granite ghoul motioned for her friends to stay behind. And when the last of the students moved out of earshot, Rochelle quickly brought Robecca and Venus up-to-date.

“What society could Medusa be referring to?” Venus asked, seated at a table in a corner of the Catacombs classroom.

The stone-walled room, located within the vast collection of underground tunnels, was surprisingly lively, as it was crammed with colorful furniture crafted out of bones, stones, and twigs.

“You don’t think she meant the Society of Fangs and Fur, do you?” Robecca whispered, and then quickly looked over at Mr. Mummy to make sure he hadn’t overheard.

“Becs, the Society of Fangs and Fur is a beauty salon. It’s not a real society,” Venus explained while shaking her head.

“Well, she certainly didn’t mean the Frightingale Society,” Rochelle added as Mr. Mummy began to eye the trio curiously.

Wrapped in crisp white gauze and wearing a tweed suit, their always-dapper teacher approached the threesome.

“Ghouls, I realize you might be disappointed that you didn’t get to dig today, but believe me, my lecture was very important. And I promise tomorrow you’ll be back up to your elbows in sand.”

“Oh, it’s not that, Mr. Mummy. We just lost track of time, which, of course, I do all the time. Ugh! Why do I keep uttering that dreadful word? I don’t even like hearing the word
time
, never mind saying it! And yet I just did it again!” Robecca babbled as Venus eyed their teacher.

“Mr. Mummy, you know a great deal about both the Boo World and the Old World, don’t you?” Venus inquired, her vines bristling with curiosity.

Mr. Mummy always loved a compliment, especially concerning his intelligence. And so
he lowered his head in false humility and nodded.

“Venus, I may not be a scaraoh, but I have a B.A. from King Tut’s Teachers College, which is one of the finest universities in the world. Gill Baits once went there.…”

“You mean he’s an alumnus?” Rochelle asked, looking for clarification.

“No… he once went there… for a meeting. Or actually I think he might have gotten lost and stopped for directions,” Mr. Mummy clarified quietly.

“I feel like I’m always asking for directions. If only my father had thought to put a GPS system in me,” Robecca muttered to herself.

“Regardless of who attended your college, you know a lot about the world,” Venus again complimented
her teacher. “And that’s why I want to ask you a question.”

“Venus, gargoyles consider announcing that you are going to ask a question
très
redundant,” Rochelle said, prompting her friend to smile.

“Point taken, Rochelle. Now, Mr. Mummy, have you ever heard of a society that might elicit fear in other monsters?” Venus asked.

“And she’s not talking about the Frightingales, even though we all know that Cleo and Toralei have been known to elicit fear in those around them,” Robecca added, shaking her head at the mere thought of the difficult duo.

“Let me think,” Mr. Mummy said as he rubbed his chin. “There was the Society for Furless Werewolves, but it’s been years since anyone’s heard even a growl from them.”

“Furless werewolves?” Rochelle repeated back to Mr. Mummy. “
C’est très
bizarre.”

“The Society for Furless Werewolves was formed by a group of aestheticians hoping to make a killing in the hair removal business,” Mr. Mummy explained.

“Anything else?” Venus pressed her teacher. “Maybe something a little more sinister.”

Mr. Mummy paused, swallowed audibly, and then looked around nervously.

“What’s the matter, Mr. Mummy?” Rochelle asked. “Are you worried someone might overhear what you have to say?”

“As a teacher, I do not like to repeat rumors or really anything that has not been proven scientifically. What’s this about anyway?”

“We’re doing a project in Monstory about
secret societies,” Venus spouted off quickly.

“In that case, I definitely won’t share this with you. Students should never reference rumors in an academic paper,” Mr. Mummy said, and then turned to leave.

“Wait!” Robecca blurted out in a panic. “You don’t understand. Mr. Mummy, um, we’re supposed to write a made-up story inspired by real events. I suppose it’s what you might call… historical fiction?”

“Well, in that case I guess it’s okay,” Mr. Mummy said before taking a seat at the table. “There have long been rumors in the Old World that there is a secret society whose members believed in a hierarchy of monsters. That some species were more important than others.”

“And have you ever heard rumors about this
group in the Boo World?” Rochelle asked as she tapped her sharp claws against the top of the table.

“Not that I know of, but alas, there is much I don’t know.…”

“Yeah, us too,” Venus mumbled.

R
obecca, Rochelle, and Venus rode the elevator up from the Catacombs in silence, each mulling over what Mr. Mummy had said. The idea of a creature hierarchy was a hard concept to fathom, as they had been raised to believe that all monsters were created equal. As a matter of fact, outside of Cleo’s mention of her aunt Neferia believing that some monsters were superior to others, the trio had never even heard of such a thing.

“Rochelle, smile! Miss Sue Nami says smile! Now!” Trick grunted angrily at the gargoyle as she stepped off the elevator and into the main corridor.

“
Pardonnez-moi
, Trick, but this is not a police state. I do not have to smile unless I want to,” Rochelle huffed intensely.

“Miss Sue Nami says everyone must smile. No more sad!” the troll declared before waddling off down the hall.

“So now she’s trying to
mully
the students into being happy?” Venus asked Robecca and Rochelle. “I don’t think she understands that the longer Headmistress Bloodgood is gone, the more the students fear the threat of the wall. I mean, just this morning I heard Blanche and Rose Van Sangre talking about their plan to shave off their fangs and
pass themselves off as extremely pale normies.”

“That is absolutely ridiculous,” Rochelle declared loudly.

“I know, right?” Venus agreed with Rochelle.

“Actually, Venus, I was referring to your use of the term
mully
. How many times must I tell you that it is not a real word? And,
chérie
, I only say this because you are my friend and I wish you to speak correctly—” Rochelle responded before pausing abruptly. “
Regardez
, something’s happened to Madame Flapper!”

Miss Flapper was leaning against Jinafire Long as she slowly made her way down the main corridor. With both Jinafire’s green tail and gold arm wrapped around Miss Flapper for support, it appeared as though the teacher was too weak to walk on her own.

“Eek! Look at that poor hem!” Robecca squealed, staring at a large tear along the bottom of Miss Flapper’s billowy coral dress.

“Forget the dress; look at her hair,” Venus chimed in as she inspected the normally fastidiously groomed teacher’s tangled locks.

“Perhaps she fell,” Rochelle theorized. “Or attempted to take food from a troll? They’re notoriously territorial about their ghoulash and pus pastries.”

“There is an old Fanghai proverb: A successful plan of attack requires much research,” Jinafire said to the visibly rattled teacher as they passed by Robecca, Rochelle, and Venus in the hall.

“Jeepers creepers, what happened?” Robecca called out to Miss Flapper and Jinafire.

“
F
ū
rén
Flapper was walking along the edge of
town when a normie saw her and then attempted to kidnap her,” Jinafire explained.

“I was so scared. He tried to kidnap me just like Headmistress Bloodgood,” Miss Flapper muttered softly.

“So a normie did this to Miss Flapper?” Venus pondered with genuine surprise.

“No. Luckily she was able to dart into a nearby Thornberry bush until the man retreated back across the border,” Jinafire explained. “But, of course, Thornberry bushes are filled with thorns; hence her disheveled appearance.”

“Scariff Fred says the man was a spy sent to gather information on us. But of course he wasn’t expecting anyone to see him, which is why he tried to take me,” Miss Flapper explained, furrowing her brow.

“With all due respect, Madame Flapper, are you sure the normie was trying to kidnap you and not simply have a conversation with you?” Rochelle asked directly.

“I know you’re scared, and I wish with all my heart that I could allay your fears and tell you that the normie just wanted to chat… but I can’t.…” Miss Flapper stated dramatically before wiping away a lone tear.

“Our teacher must rest now,” Jinafire said as she continued down the hall with the tousled woman.

“What a load of garbage,” Venus muttered to Robecca and Rochelle as soon as the two were out of earshot.

“News flash: Miss Flapper escapes normie abduction!” Spectra Vondergeist called out as
she came floating down the hall with her iCoffin in hand. “Check out my blog for the latest information!”

As the ghouls continued down the main corridor, they noticed a most unusual pairing passing out flyers in front of the Vampitheater—Cy and Miss Sue Nami.

“What’s this about?” Robecca asked as she took a flyer from Cy.

“Non-adult entities, Operetta will be performing her new song tomorrow, ‘Give Us Back Our Rockin’ Headmistress, Normies.’ I’m really hoping it will help boost morale,” Miss Sue Nami stated matter-of-factly.

“Boost morale? The title of the song sounds like it’s promoting the idea that Headmistress Bloodgood was kidnapped by the normies, and we
all know that’s not the case,” Venus confronted Monster High’s acting headmistress.

“Non-adult entity, you are irritatingly right. But as I have learned, there’s no point arguing something unless you have proof. So in the meantime, I’m doing my best to keep the other non-adult entities hopeful.”

“But what do you have to do with Operetta’s gig?” Robecca asked Cy.

“Nothing. He just happened to be walking by when I realized I needed another pair of hands,” Miss Sue Nami barked. “The concert will take place tomorrow at lunchtime in the Creepateria. I expect to see all three of you ghouls there.”