The vice principal doesn't respond; she just continues as though there had been no interruption. "I am not trying to insult you. I am trying to prepare you for what you are likely to face over the next several months. Your fellow students will all have faced fear and hatred from humanity before coming here, and now they have been asked to accept you. It will not be easy for them, and you should not expect them to take to you immediately, nor should you feel resentment when this becomes apparent. You understand, I hope?"
You nod again. The woman seems to be very serious on the topic, and you're extremely mindful of the fact that she can do magic, which is the kind of quality that encourages seriousness in others.
Lady Rastan at least appears satisfied with this. She turns away, walking back up the staircase. You follow her, taking the opportunity to look around you as you ascend.
The entrance hall is lit by an array of gas lamps, sending a warm light over the wooden floors and paneled walls. At various intervals, portraits take up considerable sections of the wall, showcasing what appear to be figures from the history of different species: there's a lot of fur and a considerable reliance on black capes.
You turn your attention back to where you're going as you reach the top of the stairs. There are doors lining the corridor you're walking along, some of which are ajar. It might be your imagination, but it seems to you that several of them twitch slightly, as though whoever—or whatever—is behind them is trying to get a better look as you pass by.
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