"Thanks," he says.

Oh, that's clever, she wouldn't've thought to use the knife like that.

"Paul showed me." Paul appears to be the moose totem.

Mmhmm. She's not allowed yet but it's still neat to watch.

"Watch all you want," he shrugs. Carve carve. "Parents won't let you?"

They would, but they're not here to say that. It's complicated.

"Are you that new weird monster I heard somebody talking about?"

Yep. Unless there's been somebody else too, she guesses.

"I haven't seen any other weird monsters, just the regular kind."

That'll be her, then. She's not sure what people will have been saying about her.

"I didn't hear much, I'm not here that often."

She nods.

She's from another world, where there aren't critters or avalons at all as far as she knows, and her kind of magical person just lives like anybody else. It's been kind of an adjustment, being here. Neat seeing all the different kinds of people, though.

"Huh, I wonder why you never went into hiding."

She doesn't know enough critter history to know why critters did, but even if magical girls had a reason, it wouldn't really work - they're not a species, they're just humans who got magic, it can happen to any girl.

"Some critters think they're humans for a while."

Yeah, it's really not the same though. Like, it does run in in families but only a little, they've done science about it.

"Huh. So just, surprise, your kid's magic now even though you aren't at all?"

Yup. And it's not that big of a deal, usually, 'cause people know it can happen.

"Were your parents surprised?"

She didn't start out with parents - that's even more complicated and she doesn't want to talk about it - but the people who raised her were very surprised, yes. Mostly because the very first thing she did was leave. She found some better adults to adopt her, though, it was really good.

"...how do you not start out with parents?"

"Is this actually a two sided conversation, I can't tell," comments the peryton.

Yeah, it is, she's telepathic.

She probably started out with parents, technically, but she doesn't remember them or anything. It's not a happy story.

"I think it's sort of rude to telepathically whisper especially when he has to talk out loud back," says the peryton.

It'd be rude to broadcast to the whole room when people are trying to do stuff, but she can include the peryton, sure. She just said she probably started out with parents but doesn't remember them and that it's not a happy story.

"The word for that is orphan," says the peryton.