Ben sat with his friends in the crowded hallway outside the nurse's office.
Everyone was talking about the epidemic.
"I wonder if we'll get to go home," a ghoul murmured.
"I hope we don't need shots," said a three-eyed monster.
Suddenly Mog shouted, "My purple spots are getting bigger!"
His girlfriend, Lilly, looked nervous.
"If those spots keep growing, your whole body will be purple."
"My spots are growing too," said a goblin. He looked around.
"Everyone's spots are growing!"
"This is awful!" cried Jen, jiggling nervously.
"What's happening to us?"
"What are you worried about?" asked the goblin.
"You were purple already!"
Ben looked at his own hands.
His spots were getting bigger and bigger too.
He looked at Waldo and Gaby. They were completely purple by now.
Mr. Freaky hurried down the hallway, his noses wiggling wildly.
"We have a serious problem," the principal announced.
His spots were growing as he spoke.
"Mayor Hubbletree is sending over a health inspector to look into this epidemic. He's very upset.
He plans to build a concrete wall between Monsterville and People Place.
I don't think he'll ever let his students visit us."
Ben and his friends exchanged looks.
He'd already told them about the concrete wall.
Mrs. Germ, the school nurse, came out of her office.
Usually she was large and blue. But by now she was large and purple.
"I can't find any information about this epidemic, Mr. Freaky," said the nurse.
"Monster flu usually causes green spots, not purple."
Mr. Freaky scratched his head. "What does that mean then?"
"It means that we don't know what this disease is," said the nurse.
"It must be more serious than we thought."
Everyone gasped. Mr. Freaky's noses wiggled more than ever.
"I'm placing Monster Academy under lockdown," continued Mrs. Germ.
"Until everyone is well, we have to be quarantined."
"What does quarantined mean?" Mog asked Waldo.
"It means we can't leave," said Waldo.
"That way we won't spread the disease."
Ben heard Winnie gasp nearby.
"Lockdown?" she echoed.
"I was going to practice broom flying after school today!
I have my flying test soon."
"Yeah! I have a violin lesson today," complained another monster.
"I wanted to go home and watch TV!"
Mr. Freaky held up a hand to silence everyone.
"This is nothing to worry about, students.
We'll try to turn this into something . . . fun."
"Fun?" repeated a skeleton. "Since when is living at school fun?"
The new cooking teacher strode over.
"The cafeteria trolls and I can cook a lovely dinner for everyone.
How does frog brain stew sound?"
Murmurs of excitement ran through hallway.
"After school I'll set up some games in the gym," said Mr. Gwarg, the PE teacher.
"Can we fly brooms in the gym too?" asked Winnie hopefully.
"No," said Mr. Freaky. "Unfortunately, Miss Bungle is still out sick."
"Oh," said Winnie in a small voice.
Then she murmured something else that Ben couldn't hear.
He stole a glance at her. "Poor Winnie," he thought.
She loved broom flying, and she couldn't wait to pass her flying test.
Once she got her license, she could fly all over Monsterville on her own.
He felt sorry for her, but he was glad to see that she was sitting with her friends and not with Zork.
"It seems that everyone feels well despite the spots," Mr. Freaky was saying.
"So I think you can all go to class."
The students groaned.
"When the school day is over, we'll have fun," Mr. Freaky promised.
"Now I must get back to my office to alert your parents about the quarantine."
"Attention, students." At the end of the day, Mr. Freaky's voice came over the loudspeaker again.
"We have set up activities throughout the school.
Please try to have some fun.
Even if we are all suffering from a terrible epidemic, things are still totally under control!"
The bell clanged, and students dashed into the hallways.
"I'm playing volleyball!" called out a fish monster, racing toward the gym.
A group of trolls, goblins, and skeletons raced after him.
Ben floated at the top of a stairwell.
"Maybe I should look for Winnie," he thought.
Maybe if he tried again to explain about the locked door, she would understand.
Maybe he could even tell her about how he couldn't float through walls like a—
"Oh! Ben! There you are." Suddenly Waldo was standing in front of him.
"We must solve this mystery," the wizard declared.
"What mystery?" asked Ben.
Waldo adjusted his glasses.
"The mystery of who tried to ruin my talk potion."
Ben nodded slowly. "There are definitely some weird things happening at this school."
"It can't be just a coincidence," said Waldo.
"First purple fog filled the gym during the Monster Mash dance.
And now we've all turned purple!"