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The girl called Jace looked at Polly, and then by way of saying hello, gave her the middle finger. She had a face like a thundercloud, arms crossed across her chest and very nearly sulking, a desk behind Chris whereas normally she would have been right next to him. The reason for this became abruptly clear as a slim blonde girl tripped into the room, pink-streaked hair piled on top of her head, wearing what appeared to be nothing more than an off-the-shoulder crop top and tiny frayed daisy dukes belted with a big rainbow pin. Her high-tops were purple: her socks were red. Another one of the teenagers. She was pretty, thought Casca, even if she appeared to have misplaced her clothes somewhere.

"I love the senior homeroom soo~ooo much," she said, ignoring Jace's immediate groan of disapproval, the rainbow bangles on her slim wrists jangling as she immediately went to hug Chris around the neck. "Rory says where do we meet for lunch -- oh, hi, Antony!"

She whirled around and smiled at him winsomely with lots of pink lip gloss and very white teeth, ignoring her sister now making throw-up sounds as the blonde girl bit her lip. "Antony, my necklace has mondo caught my hair at the back," she said, "could you pretty please snap the clasp for me?"

"Is it always like this?" Casca said, to nobody in particular.

"Like Sunday," said Wisp, and immediately reversed back into him, sweeping any stray locks of blonde away as she ducked her head forward. She sounded more than a little coy. "Antony I have fully been in class a day already why did you not notice. Hee, hee, that tickles!"

"Oh my god," answered Jace despondently from the back. "Chris, do something. -- Hey, you looking for a fight?" she demanded back, at Polly, having swung from tragedy to pissed-offedness. "I'll eat you alive, kid, don't mess with me. I am major league not in the mood to deal with any gingernuts trying to knock me off my throne."

It was charming, thought Casca.

"Well," said Wisp, putting her thumbs in her belt and smiling even more winsomely, "you'll have to whisper it in my ear!"

"Wisp Darnell stop being disgusting," yelled her sister, obviously unable to take her sister pretty much on the verge of winking and shaking her slim hips. Wisp flapped her hand at the younger girl, and distracted herself again by asking and blinking her big blue eyes -- "Do you know if Iggy's into Riley, Antony? He's into Riley, isn't he?"

"I'll leave the kid for now," Jacoba was telling Christian darkly, "but keep her under wraps, man, I am not in the mood for your weiner little strays. Not with my sister waking up with a case of the skank flu and -- Rel -- " (She sunk back down into her chair.)

"I'm not sure if I can." Casca shrugged his shoulders again artfully. "Not if there's not a teacher around, cher ami."

"Necklace, please," Wisp reminded him, in such heartbroken, hopeful tones that it would have been someone heartlessly unchivalrous to help her out: she also bit down on one lipglossed lip impatiently in a way she had practiced in the mirror beforehand. Unfortunately, the moment that Shade had run out, chaos had started: the first array of paper planes, balls and other small bits of detritus had started to be flung Antony's way, most of it from Jace in the back. Casca had put up his wings unruffledly to shield him from the barrage.

It was at this point that Ms. Lindy came in, obviously to see how the homeroom teacher was getting on with her son, to see the juniors in an utter state of pandemonium. This did not really perturb anyone, as Ms. Lindy did not seem the type to stop it.

Except that she strode behind the desk, hands on her small hips and jangling there all the way, and her voice was like that of a military martinet's. "JACOBA, see me in my office afterwards! Wisp Darnell, you go back to your homeroom and you can also see me during lunchtime so that we can discuss feminine empowerment in context of you rolling up your skirt so much that I can see your underwear! Out! Now!" (Wisp fled.) "The next person to talk out of turn is going to explain why in counselling! Christian, shift that desk over!"

De facto silence fell over the room. Lindy's state of Big Pissed Off turned to smiles as she looked at Polly. "Come over here, honey, and introduce yourself to the classroom as I just mark you down in the roll," she said, "you're the other new girl, aren't you? You too, Casca. Antony come here and tell me quietly why there is not a teacher in the classroom. I will give you a note. Speak now or forever hold your peace."

Casca decided he was going to be homeschooled by Mia.

"Aurora's in the senior school," Lindy told Polly kindly, though it was obvious she was also straining a little, "you can see her at lunchtimes and when you become a senior."

There was again a short silence in the room. There were a few calls of "Hi," and various "Hellos," which seemed to satisfy Lindy's requirements. Shifting seamlessly into the hole left by Polly's introduction ending, Casca simply raised a clawed hand and said: "And I'm Casca. I'm a gargoyle and Ms. Lindy is my mother."

"If you see Casca falling asleep during the day, please just direct him to the nurse," said the school counsellor. "Now, I'm going to take the roll, and then for homeroom we are going to have some quiet prep time as I find out who your sub was meant to be -- "

School went on. Casca took the desk next to Chris'.