"Uh, Emil...Ms. Plunkett," Kat asked, "why are you here? Um, if you don't mind my asking."
Emily tried rather unsuccessfully to hide a smirk. "I work here because, as the head of the Midwest United States chapter of the Order of Hunters, I'm the most conveniently located to keep an eye on the field around this town and make sure it's in good repair, and also because I like this part of the country." She eyed Kat closely, and the rabbit-girl squirmed. "Any convenience in keeping an eye on certain potentially troublesome young witches-to-be is merely a happy coincidence. Does that answer your question?"
Cringing, Kat nodded. "Good," Emily said. "Now, your orientation will be in classroom 108 down towards the far end of the main hall. Mr. McCann should be there within fifteen minutes if I can scare him away from his work, or an hour if I can't. He'll explain everything you need to know as students here and show you to your homerooms. Go on, now!"
The five new students made their way out of the office, heading warily down the torch-lit hall to room 108. The hall was empty; presumably the regular students had already gone to class. They reached the room and went in, but there was nobody inside, so they sat down towards the front and chatted while they waited for Mr. McCann.
"So, Colin," Kat said, "how did you accidentally transform someone? Didn't your parents teach you about your magic?"
Danielle scowled; that didn't seem like a very nice thing to ask, and judging by the way Colin hung his head, he still felt pretty awful about it. She wanted to scold Kat, but she doubted her formerly-older sister would listen.
"Uh, no," Colin replied. "I, uh...our mom was an orphan, so she never got taught about it, and the magic only passes to the males in our family, so this was the first we found out about it. We were just rough-housing and I accidentally unleashed some magic on Brian..." He trailed off.
Brianna patted him on the back, trying to encourage him. "Emily found us because was still connected through to our old town for something, and she was able to tell about which family we belonged to and that this was permanent. She told our mom and dad about it and got us moved here." She looked at Danielle, who found it comforting that the mouse-girl shared the same diminished size as her and Kat. "So," she said, "what's it like being a girl? I've been wondering ever since this happened."
Danielle didn't quite grasp the question for a moment, then gaped. "I, uh...um, well...I don't know." She swallowed nervously. "Uh, see, I wasn't a girl until just a couple days ago, either."
She looked anxiously at Colin, but he looked more confused and surprised than put off or grossed out. For some reason, she found this very relieving. Brianna smiled, incredulous. "Really?" She smirked, staring pointedly at Kat. "So that was why Emily was in the neighborhood."
Now it was Kat's turn to look uncomfortable, and Danielle found herself feeling a little defensive of her sister. "It wasn't all Kat's fault," she said. "There were some things that complicated it that I still don't get. I got turned into this and Kat became my twin sister, and then Tanya had her own separate change. And Emily and my mom said there's some complicated thing that means we might be stuck like this for years..." She sighed.
Brianna's expression changed to sympathy, and she put a hand on Danielle's shoulder. "Aww, don't worry," she said. "We can help each other figure this out, okay? If we're stuck as girls, at least we don't have to face it alone."
Danielle didn't really think she wanted help in getting used to being a girl, but she was touched by the gesture, at least. "Thanks," she smiled.
Just then the door burst open, and a rather rather disheveled-looking man ran in. He looked to be in his early 50s, and as far as Danielle could tell, he was an ordinary human. "Sorry, sorry," he said. "I get so wrapped up in my work sometimes, and I just lose track of time. I just wish there were a better wake-up call than Ms. Plunkett's threats; they can be so harrowing...um. Anyway. Welcome to Pine Lake School, we're very glad to have you here. I'm Mr. McCann, and I'm here to tell you about how we do things around here."
He took his place behind the desk, straightening out his shirt, and looked them over. "Quite a crew we have here," he said. "Okay. First things first: we take attendance pretty seriously around here. I notice we have a carnivore in our group, so I'll just say that you're allowed to go out hunting during lunch, but you must remain on school grounds at all other times unless you have written permission or are accompanied by a teacher. Oh, and, uh, please make sure that you're cleaned up before you go back to class; we don't want the other teachers to assume you've burst an artery or something."
Tanya nodded, and he smiled. "Okay, second: please respect the dress code. It's okay to add a personal touch or two to your uniform, but some of the teachers don't take well to students trying to test the limits. Third: please exercise self-control. We don't think non-human students should repress their instincts, but remember that your classmates are trying to study, and it's not polite to provide unnecessary distractions."
Danielle frowned. Non-human instincts? Was that another thing she was going to have to deal with? She hoped not. What would they even be, anyway?
Mr. McCann continued the orientation for some time, and even though he seemed just un-serious to make it not boring, the new students found themselves wondering when they'd get to whatever was next...