Might be working this weekend. If I am this is an early chapter, if not it might be a bonus.
"That's the new Hallow'ed girl, isn't it?" Gris asked. She and Fenella frowned after Ethel and the third-year yeti she was following.
"What was that all about, Mildred?" Fenny asked.
"I don't know. So, who are the other teachers?" Mildred lied and fishing out her welcome pack.
"Well. you met Cackle." Gris started, confused about the change in subject. Mildred ignored the exchanged 'look' between them and opted instead looking through her timetable.
"And Miss Hardbroom." Mildred reminded. "What about her?"
"We'll come back to HB." Fenny said a smirk flickering across both their faces. "What lesson do you have first?"
It was very odd how the time tables went right through one twelve o'clock to the next. Even her rest was scheduled. Mildred made a note to ask which was which midnight. Back to the task at hand however and she saw the first lesson after her first tutorial would be Chanting. With a Miss:
"Baton." Gris said. "But she goes by Miss Bat most of the time nowadays. It's her favourite transformation. So is now Bat by name and fruit Bat by nature. She's a vegetarian vampire, with an odd sense of humour."
Fenny screwed up her face in disgust. "And odd sense of taste. Seriously. Don't eat anything she offers you. I've heard her snacks have taken out girls whose normal diets would consist of an environment risk."
"Gross." Mildred winced with a giggle. "Then I've jewellery, charms and sigils making with- oh. There's two names here."
"Ah yeah. Miss Mould and Ms Nightingale. They're our sort of crafts and art teachers." Fenny said.
"Don't you mean arts and crafts?" Mildred asked.
"No."
Gris smiled, "They do art but then they do a bit of everything too, like spell theory and craft stuff."
"Though everyone says Nightingale's trying to get Bat's chanting job."
They headed back toward the main stairs. Mildred still with her nose in her welcome pack, listening to Fenny and Gris's chatter.
"Or Bat's a bit paranoid Nightie's after her job?" Gris continued. "We're not sure. But Nightingale is a wonderful singer."
"But apparently, they're both MUCH better then Granite, the old teacher."
"Any way Mould and Nightie work in tandem. One of them," Fenny explained. "Moldy by the way. She's a Gargoyle. And turns to stone during the daytime."
"Complete with lichen. She'll be you're spellings teacher in third year too. Well, part-time obviously."
"And the other, Night'gale is a bird at night. We've had her most last year she's really nice. But Cursed, poor thing."
"Like the swan princess?" Mildred asked.
"Exactly." Fenny and Gris agreed.
"So is she Miss Nightingale because she becomes a Nightingale? Like Miss Baton is Miss Bat?"
"Oh no. She turns into a huge raven, weirdly."
"Right. Of course. So, Daytime lessons Nightingale, Night time ones are with Miss Mould?" Mildred said, trying to get it right way around. "And it depends when your lesson is to who you have?"
"You got it. Both are a bit vague and obsessed with being one with your …materials..."
"Who's you're favourite then?" Mildred asked, not noticing the trail off. "And if it depends on daylight, does one do work more in the winter and then they swap for the summer?"
She too trailed off at no response, and turned back to them. Fenny and Gris had stopped in their , no. That wasn't accrete description. The older girls hadn't just stopped. They'd froze half way up the stairs, two feet pausing misstep then landing heavily with a jolt. And a sort of hush had fallen over some of the girls milling about in the hall way. All at the sound of squeaky footsteps thudding their way. Some students turned a little hesitantly turned towards the sound; There was a restrained slightly panicked look on Fenny's face and Griz was gnawing on her lip a bit.
And Mildred realized she'd never thought that monsters might get nervous too.
A/N I wanted right from the start for the not the school to be bigger as such but more functioning, with adults around and stuff? If only for more 'staffroom shenanigans'. Originally was going Widget and Nightingale, both from NWW but I love Mould regardless what she becomes, so swapped it. She's not the only new face who might pop up but the majority of the focus will still be on the '98 squad.