Kieran

The night of graduation proved to be just as exciting for everyone as prom had been. The ceremony took place unsurprisingly on the final day of the school year, a Friday, and a list of the graduates was included in the programmes Mr. Where had made for the event. The list looked something like this:

Bram Devein

Clawdeen Wolf

Clawd Wolf

Cleo De Nile

Deuce Gorgon

Draculaura

Frankie Stein

Ghoulia Yelps

Gory Fangtell

Gil Weber

Holt Hyde

Jackson Jekyll

Kieran Valentine

Lagoona Blue

Neighthan Rot

Operetta Phantom

Spectra Vondergeist

There were also several students at Monster High who'd been there long enough that you'd have expected them to be graduating, but they hadn't finished getting all of the necessary credits yet. There were also some people who were graduating early. The ceremony was honestly the only thing going on that day, and all of our classes consisted of free time since exams were over.

Each graduate was asked to pick an escort out of the teachers and staff at Monster High, but they also had the option of not having one (which is what I did). Jackson chose Mr. Rotter for his escort and so did Holt, though he admitted that he would have chosen Mr. Phantom if Operetta hadn't done so first.

Jackson and I planned on spending the afternoon together before the ceremony and since my mother would be attending, she came with me and finally got to meet Sydney and Aidan, as well as Blythe, who I was surprised to find out had started transforming into Hailey sometimes.

"We can't really tell what the trigger is yet, but it seems to be one that has to do with her emotions," explained Sydney. "Oh, by the way, Jackson, I found something upstairs I thought you might want to have. Hold on..." She stood up and went into another room for a moment, then came back holding a thick, leather-bound book. She held it out to Jackson. "Here," she said.

Jackson's eyes lit up in recognition. "Is that what I think it is?" he asked his mother, taking the book from her hands.

Sydney nodded with a smile. "Your great-grandfather's journal," she replied, "I found it hidden in a box upstairs."

As Jackson opened the book, Dr. Jekyll's handwriting could be seen on the first page: The Scientific Journal of Dr. Henry Jekyll. The pages following contained many theories, formulas, experiments and their progress, and everything about the potion that created Mr. Hyde in the first place was written in the journal as well from what I could see. "Wait, did you say I could have it?" he asked, probably to ensure that he hadn't heard wrong.

"Yes," said Sydney.

"Awesome! Thank you," replied Jackson.

"So did you guys find out what your final marks were?" asked Mom.

"Yeah, they told us yesterday," I answered, "I like to think I did pretty well. And Jackson did pretty much perfectly in most if not all of his classes." Jackson blushed slightly at those words.

"Excellent," said Rose, "I'm glad to hear that."

"So am I," added Sydney. "And Holt did well in his classes too, I take it?"

"Yeah, from what I heard," replied Jackson, "He always does really well in music, though, so I'm not surprised."

When it was finally time to leave, Sydney offered to drive Mom and I over with the rest of them, to which we agreed, and as it turned out there was a graduation dinner to attend before the actual ceremony. Thankfully, it was also being held at the school so it wasn't as if we had to do any more driving than we'd already planned on. Throughout the dinner, there were some students and staff who made speeches and one even thanked the kitchen for the meal and gave one of the kitchen staff a gift—though we never did find out what was inside.

Once the dinner was over, everyone made their way down to the clawditorium and while Jackson and I went to get our graduation gowns, Mom and his family all went to find seats. The teachers had all of the graduates line up outside for the procession, which felt like it lasted longer than it really had if I was being honest. Headmistress Bloodgood stood on the stage along with some people who would be presenting awards.

Once the procession was over, we all took our seats at the front of the clawditorium, and Headmistress Bloodgood began speaking. "Good evening, everyone. I would like to thank everyone for coming and to welcome this year's valedictorian, Frankie Stein, to the stage."

Frankie looked nervous as she made her way up to the stage, her bolts sparking slightly as she was careful to avoid touching the microphone. "Hi, everyone," she spoke clearly and concisely, "and congratulations to my fellow Monster High graduates. My name is Frankie Stein and I'm honoured to be speaking to all of you tonight. To the other graduating students of 2015, I along with everyone else here at Monster High wish you all the best of luck as you move forward in unlife. You've all come so far and overcome many challenges to get where you are today and I know that as we all go forth, we'll keep on striving to achieve our goals, no matter what the universe may decide to throw our way. Thank you."

At least two other people gave speeches as well, Mr. Hack and one of Monster High's alumni, before the choir performed the first song they would be singing tonight. Following that, Headmistress Bloodgood returned to the podium. She had to wait a moment for the applause to die down and when it did, she made her speech.

"The graduating class of 2015 has accomplished so much over their years here at Monster High, setting quite the high standards for future graduates. I would like you all to know that we are exceeding proud of each and every one of you. As Miss Stein mentioned previously, you have persevered and overcome many obstacles in your path to where you are today. But there are many here at the school who have played major roles in the lives of these young monsters, and I would like to give a special thank-you to them as well. Would the parents and guardians of these students please stand?"

They did so, and everyone gave another round of applause. The same thing happened when she asked the teaching staff and faculty members at Monster High to rise, and once that was over Bloodgood continued, "Graduates of Monster High, we will now present your diplomas. When I call your name, please make your way to the stage."

Then came the process of everyone receiving our diplomas, and following that was the handing out of awards—and not just to the graduates, but to a lot of students at Monster High. I didn't receive one, but I wasn't bothered by that; I honestly hadn't expected to anyway. Jackson, on the other hand, received several academic awards with Holt getting a music award from Mr. Phantom.

Once everything was finally over, Jackson and I were both too tired to do much else and decided to head to our respective homes to get some sleep. As I drifted off, I found myself wondering what the future might hold and where we would go from here.

I supposed that only time would tell.