but it has changed some of the dangers. We want you to be prepared and we want you to find your way. Now, you all are under an obligation to follow the rules of conduct here. You all have power to some degree or another. Some small, others great. And with great power comes… Anyone?”
“Great responsibility,” about six different kids all said more or less simultaneously.
“Nope, that’s Stan Lee. The word I was going for was temptation. Temptation to use your advantages against those without advantages. Now, this isn’t like using a talent for singing to win a contest or allowing a naturally high IQ to achieve the highest grades. I’m talking about using your strength or telekinetic power or telepathy or ability to shift into a veritable killing machine to intimidate or bully your peers.
“Don’t. Period. When we find you doing it, we’ll send you home, no second chance, no matter who you are.
“There’s also a second reason. Not to steal Mr. Jenks’s thunder, but let me kick off your survival lessons with one of my own observations. The supernatural world is a violent and dangerous place. It is also a murky, mysterious place where things aren’t always what you think. Assuming you are superior to someone else and using your abilities against one of your peers might result in them kicking your ass. It’s one thing to be physically imposing like… what’s your name?” Chris asked the giant werewolf boy.
“Delwood,” he said, tying to be cool about it but just looking smug.
“Right. So Delwood is an imposing guy. What you might not know is that he is also a werewolf. That makes him strong and tough with a second form about the size of a black bear. You might be thinking he is the most dangerous student among you. But you would be very, very wrong. There are at least a couple students here who are vastly more dangerous… and you probably won’t be able to point them out for a least a few weeks, if even then. There are also those among you who have yet to fully develop their abilities. So no bullying, no use of magic against each other unless supervised, and no violence.”
Delwood the werewolf looked seriously displeased. In fact, he started looking around the room like he was going to find whomever Chris was talking about and take back the title of most dangerous right then and there.
“Sorry, Delwood. I didn’t mean to pick on you. But my warning is valid. Let’s say one of the twins over there,” Chris said, waving at the blonde Viking witches, “—got ahold of a strand of your hair. She could cast a spell on it and pretty much make you her bitch. Not that she would, I’m just making a point. As time goes on, you will all learn more about your classmates. I guarantee you will be surprised.”
I glanced at the twins and the one I had begun to think of as a bit stuck up was blushing furiously and looking embarrassed and her sister first went wide-eyed, then glanced at her sibliling with an I told you so look.
“So I might suggest you work with each other and not against one another. Look at it this way. As Gina said, the supernatural cat is out of the bag. Which is my fault, by the way. The world knows you exist. And people, no matter what race or species they are, tend to be intolerant at the best of times. You’ll do better together rather than separately. The connections you make here might just change your life… or save it.
“That’s it. So now we can eat. Right Gina?” he asked. She nodded and flashed a quick smile, but her eyes studied him even as she was standing up. Before she could speak, Chris turned back to us.
“One last thing. Your welcome packet has a contact number in it for the Demidova Corp. If you need me, really need me, call that number, give your name, and ask for me. You will be patched through to myself, Tanya, or one of our team. But that’s for serious problems and emergencies because Gina and her staff more than have things under control.”
“I think we can manage,” Gina said dryly but still smiling. “All right, if you will all file in an orderly fashion out this side door and down the hall to the first left. Dinner tonight is a buffet style and I think there is something