Go along to the kitchen with Morgan and Fay

"Come along to the kitchen with us," Fay says. "We promise, we'll get you to your House. Eventually. Morgan, take her bag."

Your teeth are still chattering.

Morgan reaches out for your luggage.

You put a hand on your bag. "W-wait a minute, let me put something on," you say. "It's my first day here, but naked is definitely not in the dress code."

Now that you're out of the Chilly Tarn, your draconic blood helps you drive off the cold and wetness on your skin. After some blotting with your travel towel, you're dry enough to dress.

You reach back into the bag and find the first approximation for an outfit you can. It's your old field hockey uniform, a red sleeveless top and matching pleated knee skirt and stockings. By good fortune, it's a close approximation to House Leontes' color. And at least you still have dry shoes.

"You were a forward," Fay says.

You laugh. "Midfielder," you say. "Well, midfielder, such as it is for field hockey. I was fast, but always better at blocking and passing than shooting."

Morgan laughs. "Fay's an equestrienne. She knows nothing of these sticks and balls of which you speak."

"I played polo," Fay protests.

"One afternoon," Morgan says. "You fell off." Looking at you, standing comfortably in your brief sports uniform and barely shivering anymore, Morgan frowns. "I'm surprised the Chilly Tarn bothered you at all, just looking at you. Oh well, let's up the road." She goes to a shed beside the dock and pulls out a little hand-cart that looks like it belongs in a garden. She loads everyone's luggage. "First years push," she says, sounding like it's a law of nature.

The cart is well cared for and rolls up the graveled path from the dock. Around the first bend, the stone paving starts, cracked and weed-grown. As you follow the wavering incline up the face of the bluff, the stone paving becomes cleaner and sharper-edged, and the weeds and cracks disappear, leaving neat green lines of moss outlining each paving stone. Morgan and Fay follow, chattering about returning Minervals and about the Master of House, Oscar Whiptail.

"Can you believe Pip is back, and she's a prefect," Fay says.

"I was convinced we wouldn't see her again, or that she'd come back in Beavertail this year, or even Leontes," Morgan says. "No offense, greenie," she adds for your benefit. "Her grand romance has gone walkabout on her." Morgan coughs. "I suppose there must have been some grand rehabilitation at the end of last term. A prefect. Did we run short, somehow?"

"Can't say. Mostly Minervals can't be bothered, unlike the greedy slimers in Draconis, or the Lions and Beavers with all their duty and honor rot," Fay says, not bothering to cushion her casual remark for your sake.

The heat of exertion in pushing the cart up the hill helps complete your re-warming. You still feel the twinges in your muscles from fighting the Chilly Tarn. You'd swum around ice floes before with far less difficulty, so this lake must have some unusual power to steal heat from you.

The Cook shoos you out of the kitchen and off to a vacant preparation room where you lean against a table, sipping a mug of ginger tea. Fay and Morgan are drinking something that smells of cinnamon and roses.

"So why did you think I would like Minerval?" you ask Morgan.

The tall, skinny brunette looks at you, looks at Fay, and looks back at you.

"Do you date boys or girls?" Morgan asks.

"Date?" you say. "I've been studying, practicing, and being examined practically non-stop for the past five years. When would I ever date?"

"We were guessing girls," Fay says.

You blink. "Oh? What would that have to do with Houses?" you ask.

"Everything," Fay says. "Minerval favors boy-boy and girl-girl, and frowns on boy-girl romances, especially exclusive ones. It's bad for learning and teaching if you only ever have one partner for sex magics."

"Or so they say," Morgan says. "Or so we say, I suppose. Minerval. Leontes tends to favor what Minerval disfavors, and they do alright. Pip got in trouble because her One True Boy was House Leontes, about as much as that he was One True Boy."

"Beavertail says they're good with anything, anyone, with anybody," Fay says.

Morgan laughs. "Just don't keep dinner waiting on them," she says. "And Draconis..." she trails off. "Easy to get their attention, hard to trust anything they say or promise. Especially what they promise."

"So do both of you date girls?" you ask.

Fay laughs out loud. "What, you didn't notice?" she says. Fay and Morgan hold up their left hands next to one another. Each smallest fingernail was illuminated with the same design. "We date each other."

"Part-time," Morgan clarifies. "Minerval tolerates a little bit of full-time, but it's frowned on, like Fay says."

"So why exactly is it that you think I'd like to transfer to Minerval?" you ask.

"We could show you," Fay says. "Well, unless you're in a hurry to get to House Leontes."

Morgan nods emphatically.

"So...show me?" you say.