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pointed to a few pictures of Screecher monsters on the board. Jasper couldn’t help but notice that Felix was looking particularly uneasy.
    â€˜Screechers do not eat people,’ said Stenka. ‘Their aim is to frighten you. But, like all monsters, they will bite when cornered. And the effect of a monster bite can sometimes be a fate worse than death.
    â€˜Then, there are the Scramblers,’ Stenka continued. ‘Scramblers are basically nuisance monsters. They hide things, confuse brain signals – whatever they can do to annoy their victims. Have you ever had that dream where you’re running and running but never seem to get anywhere?’ Stenka waited for the murmur of agreement to die down. ‘Chances are a small type of Scrambler was inside your ear, making you feel all that frustration.’
    Jasper knew that dream. He’d had it before. He couldn’t believe there had been monsters inside his ears!
    â€˜Other larger species of Scramblers play practical jokes to confuse and annoy their victims,’ Stenka told the class.
    â€˜But that’s not very bad, is it?’ interrupted Saffy. ‘Not like being eaten.’
    Stenka turned towards Saffy. ‘What you don’t seem to understand, Ms Dominguez , is that while only a Muncher will eat you, a Scrambler could easily fry your brain, like water thrown over a computer’s hard drive. And while a Screecher’s aim is to frighten rather than kill you, many of their victims are frightened to death .’

    Saffy was silent.
    Stenka smiled and looked around at the rest of the class. ‘Then there is the Morpher order. Morphers are highly dangerous, and very difficult to catch. As the name suggests, they can change shape, which makes tracking them difficult. But worst of all is what they do to their victims.’
    Stenka waited for the suspense to build. She seemed to be enjoying this. ‘You see, Morpher monsters morph their victims,’ she whispered to the silent class. ‘Some morph their victims into lemon trees or sausage dogs, which may not sound so bad. But a particularly nasty type of Morpher could even turn you into a monster. Well, a half-monster anyway. You’ll learn more about morphing in your second year.’
    Jasper could tell by the looks on everyone’s faces that they hoped they wouldn’t be here for a second year. He glanced across at Felix, who looked completely horrified.
    â€˜Each order has hundreds of monster species that belong to it,’ said Stenka. ‘But every monster, in every order, has a weakness – be it that a bowl of apple jelly will shrink them to the size of an ant, or that pressing their bellybutton will send them into a deep sleep.’ She passed her cold, beady eyes over the class, daring anyone to snigger.
    â€˜No monster likes the light. Monsters only ever attack in darkness,’ Stenka said as she passed up and down between the couches. ‘So once it is dark, you will find that knowing an individual monster’s weakness is extremely useful. You will learn to find their weakness. And you will learn to catch them all.’
    Then her voice softened slightly and her eyes glinted with a memory. ‘Ahh, so much to look forward to. The fear, the excitement, the danger ... I sometimes wish I could go on a Hunt again myself.’
    Saffy nudged Jasper. ‘Don’t worry. I won’t be here long enough to learn anything,’ she whispered to him.
    Jasper wondered if Houdini had worked out an escape plan already.
    Stenka spun around and rapped her stick on Jasper’s couch, making him flinch. He was sure she knew what he’d been thinking. She glared coldly at Jasper and Saffy.
    â€˜We have dealt with all kinds of students here,’ Stenka said. ‘No matter how smart or how clever you think you are. We have seen it all before. And we have won. We always win. There is no escaping us.’
    Jasper felt his gaze harden.