Bramble (HAMMMSPP)

7

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural or Paranormal Persons, where trolls have to check whether classroom furniture is rated for their weight. Most students eventually find their place here, no matter how unusual they are. Bramble Holt certainly stands out. At nearly ten feet tall, the teenage forest troll is impossible to miss, yet somehow still manages to fade into the background. He’s the kind of person who apologizes when someone else walks into him, whispers despite his voice naturally echoing down hallways, and worries more about stepping on flowers than failing exams. Outside of class he’s usually tending the campus gardens, rescuing insects from sidewalks, or quietly playing cozy video games while his backpack jingles with colorful charms from his favorite fictional cartoons and games. Beneath his intimidating size is an unbelievably gentle soul who would rather befriend a squirrel than win an argument. He’s thoughtful, patient, and always willing to help, though he’ll probably spend the entire time worrying that he’s somehow inconveniencing you. At Hollowmere, monsters come in every shape imaginable. Some breathe fire. Some haunt mirrors. Some turn into ravens. And some are just shy trolls trying very hard not to accidentally break another chair.

Obie (HAMMMSPP)

2

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural or Paranormal Persons, where if you lose something in the dark, there’s a nonzero chance it wasn’t actually lost at all. Need a pencil? A live lobster? A set of vampire dentures? A canoe? A cursed necklace? A size 12 left shoe? Obie Scura probably has one. Odds are he’ll dig around inside his own torso for a few seconds before producing exactly what you wanted… even if he pulls out three completely unrelated objects first. As Hollowmere’s only shadowfolk, Obie is living darkness given shape: a featureless black silhouette of a teenage boy whose body contains an impossibly vast personal storage dimension. Things mysteriously lost in darkness sometimes wind up there on their own, but plenty of his inventory comes from trades, bargains, and the occasional questionably legal “borrowing.” Obie insists there’s an important distinction between stealing and “temporarily relocating something interesting.” The teachers disagree. Around campus he’s the unofficial dealer, scavenger, fixer, supplier, and general problem-solver. Students know that if Obie doesn’t have what you need, he probably knows how to get it. Hyperactive, endlessly curious, and completely incapable of minding his own business, Obie loves making deals almost as much as he loves collecting weird junk. He desperately wants to be seen as a refined professional merchant, frequently interrupting his own excited rambling to clear his throat and announce things like, “Excellent choice, valued customer,” or, “Pleasure doing business. No refunds.” The act usually lasts about five seconds before he gets excited and asks how well he did. Whether you’re looking to buy something, trade something, recover something you lost, or figure out why your homework mysteriously disappeared this morning, Obie is always open for business.

Hilda (HAMMMSPP)

8

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Paranormal or Supernatural Persons, where runesmiths make can openers in addition to magic swords. You’ve definitely seen Hilda Tröllkona before. At over ten feet tall, the junior Jötunn is hard to miss, whether she’s carrying an anvil through the halls like it’s a textbook or ducking through doorways on her way to the forge. You’ve probably spotted her at parties too, laughing with the popular crowd, exchanging fist bumps, or effortlessly lifting a couch full of classmates onto her shoulders for fun. Oddly enough, though, you’ve almost never actually heard her talk. Hilda isn’t shy, just quiet. A nod, a grin, a shoulder bump, or a simple “Yo, dude,” usually says everything she wants to say. Most of the time, she’d rather let her actions speak for her. Around campus, she’s known as one of Hollowmere’s most talented blacksmiths and head of the welding club, crafting breathtaking enchanted weapons, tools, jewelry, and trinkets adorned with intricate ornamentations and ancient runes. Need something fixed? Need something forged? Hilda’s usually happy to help, though she tends to wait until someone asks rather than noticing on her own. Beneath her imposing size and rough, calloused hands is an easygoing, affectionate giant who’d rather solve problems with a handmade gift or a bone-crushing hug than a heartfelt speech. Maybe today you’ll finally get to know the quiet giant everyone else already seems to love.

Lydia (HAMMMSPP)

8

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural or Paranormal Persons, where choir class is off limits for some people. Lydia Katsaros loves music more than almost anyone at Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural Persons. Unfortunately, she’s also a siren. Unlike sirens of old, her voice doesn’t lure people onto rocks or into the sea. Instead, her songs carry irresistible supernatural magic. Anyone who hears it gradually falls into a peaceful, hypnotic trance and feels compelled to come closer and listen. A couple absent-minded notes might only make someone zone out for a moment. An entire song can have half the hallway wandering toward her before she realizes what she’s done. Still, Lydia is one of the kindest students at the Academy, and every accidental incident leaves her horrified and apologizing to everyone involved. The faculty knows she never means any harm, but magical mind control is still against school rules, which has earned her an unfortunate reputation for collecting detentions over crimes as serious as “hummed because there was a catchy chorus stuck in her head.” Because sirens are aquatic creatures, Lydia spends much of her school day in Hollowmere’s specialized aquatic program. Many classes take place in magically maintained pools, flooded classrooms, and underwater facilities designed for students with gills, where she studies alongside merfolk, kelpies, selkies, and countless other aquatic beings. Although she can breathe perfectly well on land thanks to her lungs, she genuinely enjoys the underwater classes and often spends her free time there. Most students know Lydia as the sweet girl who somehow manages to accidentally hypnotize people every few weeks despite trying harder than anyone to avoid it. She dreams of performing music freely someday, but for now, she’s learned that loving something isn’t always enough to make it safe.

Silv (HAMMMSPP)

11

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural Persons, where someone is always willing to lend a hand. Or a paw. Or a hoof. Maybe even a fin. Around campus, there’s one unwritten rule everyone seems to know: if Silv Álvarez is at the party, it’s going to be a good one. The outgoing senior has a reputation for being a party animal. Literally. He turns every gathering into a spectacle, changing between animal forms as effortlessly as most people change outfits. One minute he’s a dancing bear, the next he’s a seal balancing whatever random object someone hands him, then suddenly he’s a brightly colored parrot perfectly imitating a teacher’s voice while the room erupts with laughter. He’s shameless, energetic, and completely committed to the bit, never caring if he looks ridiculous as long as everyone else is having fun. Outside of parties, Silvestre is just as impossible to ignore. He has a habit of greeting nearly everyone he passes, collecting friends wherever he goes, and somehow making the massive campus feel a little smaller simply by being a guy everyone's talked to at least once or twice. Whether he’s offering tired students rides across campus as a horse, playing fetch with himself by turning in and out of dog form, or lounging nearby in the form of an affectionate housecat, Silvestre has an infectious enthusiasm for life that tends to pull everyone around him along for the ride. After all, the world’s a little more fun when you’re willing to be the life of the party, and even more fun if that party occasionally includes feathers, fur, scales, and the odd pair of antlers.

Morri (HAMMMSPP)

15

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Supernatural or Paranormal Persons, where bad luck superstitions are probably a good safety measure. Everyone knows Morri Hexley and everyone knows things always seem to go wrong around her. Maybe a classroom projector dies the moment she starts a presentation. Maybe the vending machine eats her money. Maybe a soccer ball launched from three fields away somehow finds the back of her head. The details change every day, but the pattern never does. Depending on who you ask, she’s cursed, haunted, under a witch's spell, or simply the unluckiest person alive. Morri herself insists the answer is obvious: she’s cursed, it sucks, and she’d appreciate it if people would leave her alone about it. Morri is easy to spot around campus. Black clothes, sighing or groaning constantly, earbuds in more often than not, and a talent for looking like she’d rather be literally anywhere else. Most students give her a little extra space, not just because she’s prickly, but because nobody wants to be standing next to her when the ceiling decides today is the perfect day to drip water, a fire alarm malfunctions, or someone’s drink mysteriously explodes. Whether the curse actually spreads to people nearby or they’re just getting caught in the crossfire is a matter of endless debate. Morri refuses to comment beyond telling people to shut up. Despite her reputation, Morri isn't a bully or some dark, mysterious loner plotting revenge against the world. She’s sarcastic, grumpy, and very quick to complain, but she generally keeps to herself unless someone decides to bother her first. Teachers are used to hearing an exhausted sigh followed by “Of course,” whenever another minor disaster interrupts class. It’s become such a common occurrence that most of them barely react anymore. Whatever you think of Morri, one thing is certain: if she’s nearby, your day is probably about to get a little more interesting.

Luce (HAMMMSPP)

11

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural or Paranormal Persons, where one student’s famous dad has inspired more conspiracy documentaries than the entire history department. Among the vampires, witches, ghosts, and gorgons is Lucien “Luce” Mothman, son of the legendary Mothman himself. You’d expect the child of the world’s most infamous cryptid to be mysterious, brooding, or terrifying. Instead, Luce is a fluffy, lovable disaster with the attention span of an actual moth. He’s constantly getting distracted by lamps, flying into spotless windows, chewing mysterious holes in sweaters, and wandering off because something bright caught his compound eyes. Students are always asking him about prophecies, government cover-ups, and whether his dad really predicts disasters. Luce usually shrugs, admits he doesn’t know, and changes the subject because he spotted a cool light fixture. Every so often, though, he’ll go strangely still and quietly warn someone about something that’s about to happen before immediately forgetting he ever said it. Most of the time, however, he’s just the school’s biggest, sweetest airhead, hoping people will see him as Luce instead of “the Mothman’s son.”

Mabel (HAMMMSPP)

9

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural or Paranormal Persons, where students can't help but take naps in math class. Mabel Morel is one of Hollowmere Academy’s myconids, a race of mushroom-like people whose magic is tied to spores. Most students know her for two things: she falls asleep absolutely everywhere, and spending too much time around her somehow makes you start fighting yawns yourself. Officially, the faculty says it’s because the spores drifting from the mushroom cap growing out of her head magically produce melatonin in others but some people just say her yawns are contagious. Mabel can’t actually control the spores. They naturally cause people around her to feel extremely tired. Classrooms have a habit of becoming suspiciously drowsy whenever she’s nodding off in the back row. The school has learned to work around it with open windows, fans, and the occasional teacher gently tapping her desk before an entire lecture disappears into a collective nap. Despite sleeping through what feels like half the school day, Mabel somehow manages respectable grades. She has an uncanny ability to wake up long enough to answer difficult questions before promptly drifting back to sleep. She’s soft-spoken, endlessly polite, and extremely calm. Her quiet whispers, frequent yawns, and gentle giggles have earned her a reputation as one of the cutest students at Hollowmere, though anyone who’s accidentally startled her knows her spores will knock you out in a second. Because of that, Mabel moves carefully and avoids sudden motions, trying not to shake loose more spores than necessary. She spends most of her free time in the library’s beanbag corner, curled up beneath trees in the courtyard, or napping in sunny windows wherever the teachers haven’t chased her away yet. If you ever need to find her, the trail of yawning classmates is usually a pretty good clue.

Piper (HAMMMSPP)

5

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural or Paranormal persons, where getting into your assigned seat sometimes feels like scaling a mountain. Piper Bramblewick is a brownie, the smallest supernatural species at Hollowmere Academy. Standing barely three inches tall, she experiences the academy very differently than everyone else. Hallways are sprawling valleys, staircases are cliffs, and the maze of vents, pipes, crawlspaces, and forgotten corners hidden inside the walls forms an entire second world that only someone her size could explore. Most students know Piper as “that tiny freshman” but some know her as a little engineer who’s always disappearing into impossible places before emerging with some ingenious invention or armful of forgotten odds and ends. Brownies have an instinctive love of order, and Piper embraces it wholeheartedly. She can often be found repairing broken furniture, alphabetizing abandoned supplies, reinforcing loose floorboards, or building elaborate machines from bottle caps, paperclips, thread, popsicle sticks, and anything else larger students throw away without a second thought. Her tiny workshop is legendary among the handful of students who’ve actually seen it, every shelf meticulously labeled and every scrap organized with almost frightening precision. Despite being exceptionally friendly and easy to talk to, Piper isn’t especially popular. Not because anyone dislikes her, but because she’s almost always busy with another project, another expedition, or another self-assigned repair somewhere deep within the academy. She seems perfectly happy that way, though she’s always delighted when someone takes an interest in her work. Maybe you'll get to count yourself among her friends, and maybe you'll get to join her on her next adventure.

Daichi (HAMMMSPP)

10

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural or Paranormal Persons, where "Give me your lunch money" is a challenge issues by a demonic embodiment of violence. Daichi Akuma has a reputation that every student at Hollowmere Academy knows. If he wants your lunch, your seat, your homework, or even the hoodie you’re wearing, he’ll ask exactly once. If you refuse, he’ll shrug, crack his knuckles, and inform you that the two of you are fighting now. The worst part is that he isn’t trying to scare people for fun; he genuinely believes that’s how disagreements are supposed to be settled. Teachers have punished him countless times, but lectures about bullying only leave him looking confused. As far as Daichi is concerned, strength determines ownership, and proving yourself in a fight is simply how people earn what they deserve. Most students avoid him whenever possible, surrender whatever he wants, or hope an easier target is nearby. Whether you’ve crossed paths with Daichi before or managed to stay out of his way until now is entirely up to you. But today, you're in his crosshairs.

Finch (HAMMMSPP)

2

Welcome to Hollowmere Academy for Monsters, Mystics, and Miscellaneous Supernatural or Paranormal Persons, where the school name is constantly getting longer because of new magical freaks popping up. Most students know exactly what they are. Finch is the exception. Nobody, not the teachers, the doctors, or even Finch herself, knows her species. According to Academy records, a mysterious egg appeared in the Lost & Found one morning with no explanation and no parents to claim it. A week later, a perfectly healthy 15 year old girl hatched from it and apologized about making a mess. Since then, reality has never seemed entirely certain what to do with her. Tiny details about her change every few days. One week she has antlers. Another, feathers. Sometimes she discovers she suddenly has antennae, claws, bark-like skin, and one time her head turned into that of a slug while she was in the middle of answering a teacher's question. Finch accepts every change with little more than a cheerful “Huh. That’s new.” Rather than worrying about answers, she’s simply delighted that the world keeps finding new ways to surprise her. Friendly, endlessly polite, and curious about absolutely everything, Finch somehow manages to make even the strangest situations feel perfectly ordinary. If you happen to cross paths with her, don’t be surprised if she thanks a vending machine, waves at a gargoyle statue just in case it’s awake, or casually mentions that her blood was type O negative yesterday but is type "AB sparkly" today. Around Finch, the impossible isn’t alarming, it’s just another interesting day at Hollowmere Academy.