The Academy of S.I.D.E.

No. 2: Masquerade

"The chapters you need to read are 24 and 25," Ms. Harding said as the final bell rang. "You need to finish them by next Monday. Other than that, have a great weekend!"

Virgil slung his bag over his shoulder and started to leave.

"One minute, Mr. Hayashi," she added. He backtracked.

She clasped her hands. "I'm a little concerned about your grades. From what I'd heard from your previous teachers, English is your best subject, and, well... I haven't seen anything from you that proves that."

He shrugged. "I got a lot going on. I'm on stage crew, and we're doing a Shakespeare play this year, and Halloween's coming up soon, so---"

"You've barely been passing. You did the bare minimum in all of your assignments, and in a couple, you almost didn't even reach that."

Virgil looked at his feet. "I don't need to go all out. As long as I pass, I'll be fine."

Ms. Harding's look turned sympathetic. "Is there something going on at home?"

Of course. If a student has a problem passing, it's either because they're lazy or they've got a personal problem. "No, ma'am," he answered. "School's just hard for me because---"

"You have ADHD, yes, I know. But that's no excuse for your grades so far." She sighed. "I'd just like you to put in a little more effort, all right? Try harder."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'll do that." Virgil left before she could press it.

"Man, what a bitch," Nox muttered as the two of them made their way down the stairs. "Just when you think she's actually decent, she pulls the 'no effort' card."

"She's kinda right, though," he admitted. "I haven't been putting in a lot of effort."

"Well, not her fault that the U.S. school system sucks balls. The fact that you know the material should be enough."

Virgil sighed and pushed the front doors open. The crowd of students pouring out of the school gave him a wide berth---by now, he'd gotten a reputation as "the scary kid", and the only people willing to hang out with him were the people in crew. And he really only interacted with them during rehearsals.

His phone buzzed in his pocket. He dug it out, frowning slightly.

Mom: I'm going to be working late today, so the house'll be empty. Klaus's already been fed.

Virgil: Got it thx

Named after the Umbrella Academy character, Klaus Hayashi was the most insane cat in the history of ever. He was also extremely good at pretending that he hadn't been fed, which caused a problem for Virgil and his parents.

Virgil put on his headphones and pulled up Spotify. This Is Halloween began to play as he cut across the green with a smile on his face.

"Dude, it is barely October," Nox said.

"Nightmare Before Christmas is a year-round classic," Virgil countered. "And as long as it's October, every day is Halloween."

"Suit yourself."

The two of them walked past the arts wing and rounded the corner, Nox humming along to the music despite himself. Virgil breathed in the fall air, feeling pretty good about the rest of the day.

That mood lasted until two of the Trolls grabbed him by the arms and dragged him behind the school.

"Any particular reason you're doing this?" he asked.