She fixed Daisy with a look. "Or maybe they alter how you see the world." She leaned back against her desk. "It's risky. Know what you're about to do, before you do it. If it sounds too good, it usually is."

She went on with class, ending as the ball sounded. Daisy rose, stretching, and Cedric was beside her. "Want to get lunch now?" He asked her.

Daisy nodded. "Yeah. Then you can show me to my next class." Her ears lowered. "Thanks for the help. It's appreciated."

He waved off the praise. "I'm a student too. I know how hard it can be to find where things are." He slapped her back and dashed ahead. "This way!"

But a new student got in the way. "Where'd you get that mutagen? The one that made you a mouse like that. I want one. Can you spare one?"

Daisy stopped, staring at her, a cat, looking at her with wide eyes. "I have no idea. It happened just before I came to this world." Daisy paused, then shook her head. "Sorry, I don't have any."

The cat wilted. "Oh, I wanted to become a mouse, too." She pouted. "You're lucky."

Daisy sighed. "I don't know if lucky is the right term."

The cat slapped Daisy on the chest, causing a jiggle. "That is lucky." She then darted off.

Daisy shook her head, and hurried to catch up to Cedric. "Sorry."

He didn't seem to have noticed. He was just waiting for her. "You made a new friend?"

Daisy shook her head. "Not sure I'd call her a friend. She was more curious."

He laughed. "I guess that makes sense. But it's not that surprising. You're a new student, and you're a brood mouse, which is a little unusual. You'll probably be getting a lot of attention, and that can feel nice, or not. Depends on the person, and the attention." He squeaks as Daisy puts an arm over him. "Oh, uh." He looked up at Daisy. "You seem happy."

"I'm glad you're not bothered by the attention I'm getting." She gave him a soft squeeze. "Let's get lunch."

Together, you go to a place many mages stop for a meal, and you're seated at a table, with Cedric across from you. You both ordered, and you wait quietly for your food to arrive.

Daisy smiled at Cedric, tail lashing behind her. "I can't wait to find out what sorts of magic I might be good at. A pity you have to go through all the boring stuff first."

Cedric grinned back at her, his own tail swishing behind him. "I'm sure you'll find something you're good at." He took a sip of water. "You seem pretty strong, so you can probably do a lot of things."

Daisy inclined her head. "I know I can do strong things, but some magic would be nice too." She wiggled her fingers. "Maybe I'll figure out how to get home."

He tilted his head. "Get home?"

She looked around, and lowered her voice. "Home, to the world I came from."

"Oh!" He didn't sound entirely surprised at the idea. "This world isn't so bad, is it?"

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"It's great." She nodded. "Still getting used to it." She turned an ear back. "If I went home like this, it'd be a complete panic situation. Better to stay here like this, for sure."

He was about to answer, when their food arrived. Daisy was presented with an enormous plate. The platter held a slab of meat the size of a car tire. Her eyes lit up, and she grabbed it with her hands, ignoring the knife and fork. She took a huge bite, and chewed happily. Her stomach let out a loud rumble.

Cedric stared at the display, and then smiled. "Wow. You have a appetite to fit, your, um, frame." He watched her for a time, forgetting his own food.

Daisy paused, and looked at Cedric, then her meal, and chuckled. She wiped her mouth with a napkin, and began to eat with the tools provided. "Sorry, I'm hungry. Am I grossing you out?"

He shook his head. "Not at all. I was impressed. Your appetite is quite amazing." He picked up his own knife and fork. "I just hope you leave room for dessert."

Daisy grinned. "Dessert? What kind of dessert?" Her ears were folded back in a relaxed posture, but she couldn't hide the way her tail was wagging behind her.

Cedric grinned. "They have a nice selection of pastries, ice cream, and cake. I recommend the cake."

She looked to the menu. "Hm. Do I get a dessert? I don't have any money yet."

Cedric waved Daisy's concern away. "They charge student accounts, and you have money going there. You're fine." He resumed eating.

She watched him eat, while she ate, and considered his words. She was glad to have made a friend, though she weighed how she felt about a friend she wanted to pin to the ground and do terrible things to. Keeping that thought to herself, they had a delightful lunch, perhaps a bit fuller than most lunches tended to be.

When done, they rose, Cedric leading the way to the next class. Daisy was excited. She was having a good time, even though she was a student once again. It was nice to get to do things she hadn't been able to do before, and magic was one of them. She flexed her fingers with readiness. "Let's ace this class!" She declared, and the teacher looked at her.

"I'm glad you're excited, Miss Daisy." He looked amused. "But it's a lecture class."

Daisy shrugged. "I can ace that too!" She wasn't sure how, but she entered the class with a smile and a content swish of her tail. She would take so many notes.

***

The class passed quickly, and she had a mountain of notes to show for her efforts. The class covered the history of magic and the basics of magical theory. It was a lot of information to process, and she was glad to have her typing skills to rely on.

Sifting back and forth through those files, she looked up as her door opened without a knock. Elina strolled in. "Daisy, you're a student now?"

"Yes?" Daisy wasn't sure why this was being questioned. "I want to learn magic."

Elina's expression went through a lot of changes at that statement, before settling on a kind of mild amusement. "If that makes you happy, but you are still my subject, unless you plan to give up that money."

Daisy shook her head. "No, that's my money. I'll need it for the school, and for myself." Daisy lifted her chin. "If that's a problem, you can find another brood mouse, but I don't want to give up my studies."

Elina held up a hand. "I'm not asking you to quit, but I am demanding a turn." She pointed to the bed. "Lay down, and let's start."

Daisy nodded, and moved to lay down. She was a bit nervous, but Elina had a job to do. She was aware that she was a subject of study, and she'd have to get used to that.

Elina settled next to Daisy and began patting her down, feeling where various muscles started an ended. "This is what you're being paid for, little miss mage. This armor is getting in the way. Remove it. You're in the city now, and the school is a safe place."

Daisy hesitated, but she took off her armor, and sat up. Elina was staring at her with a smile. "What?"

"I heard you started without any clothes, and weren't bothered." She nudged Daisy to lay back. "Brood mice aren't known for their heavy armor use. It gets in the way of their ability to attract a mate."

Daisy snorted. "I'm a warrior and an adventurer. And now I'm a student, too. I'm not going to be a brood mother, I have things I want to do."

"Right right." Without the armor in the way, Elina got to her inspections, as detailed and invasive as anyone could fear. "The mutagen was thorough. Some people get only part way to a given species, you know. You've become almost a pure animal folk mouse, rather than a transformed human. That's impressive. Most don't get that far."