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Student Exchange

"Yang!"

"Ugh what?" The charcoal colored cat jerked fully awake as he heard his name.

"Back among the living are we?" Professor Grumbole stood at the front of the lecture hall. Despite there being literally three hundred other college students crammed into this room the old bull had somehow zoomed in on Yang.

"Um... Sorry..." Yang apologized in the tone of a grumble. There were over three hundred of them in here... He was hardly the only one to doze off during one of Grumbole's infamous lectures about the history of historians. Why was alone he called out?

"Well good, guess that means we won't have to hold a second drawing after all," Professor Grumbole responded. "You can visit the office of admissions after and they'll get you set up."

"Oh... Okay will do..." Set up for what? Yang was suddenly rather curious on what he had just slept through. There was a lot of murmuring from other students throughout the hall but he couldn't quite make sense of it. There had apparently been some kind of drawing... And it involved another school? Really, would have been nice if someone was willing to just explain.

"Now then let's return to our lecture," Professor Grumbole apparently had no intention of repeating what the drawing was for. "Now when we last left off... I think I was talking about the first time a historical record was ever recorded in blue ink instead of black. It was quite the scandal at the time as you might imagine..."

"Ugggggh," Yang felt his willpower to stay awake and find out more fading as Grumbole began to speak again. These lectures were literally the worst. Why did he always go into them anyway? This was a math class! Yang made an adamant effort to stay awake... But he failed.

He was eventually roused by the noise of everyone else packing up once the class was finally over. Most students were in a hurry to get to another class. For Yang this was his only class for the day. This meant he could head back to his dorm and collapse into precious slumber... But he supposed he probably should find out what that drawing was all about first.

In was about a twenty minute walk to the office. When Yang arrived he was surprised to find there was someone waiting for him.

"Oh hey you must be Yang!" A blue jay behind the front desk waved a wing at him. "We were waiting for you! It's quite a lot of excitement right? Congratulations!"

"Um right..." Yang didn't want to admit he didn't actually know what he was here for. He was trying to think of a way to ask for more details without giving away that he had no idea why he was here. "Out of curiosity... How did this whole drawing work?" He worried that might be too vague, but it was also easy enough to explain away if needed.

"Oh well every student in both schools is entered in the drawing," the bird explained. "Then one student from each school is picked for the exchange program!"

"The exchange?" Yang found himself asking before he could stop himself. His tail thrashed slightly in irritation that he had shown his ignorance of what was going on.

"I admit it's a bit strange," the bird didn't seem to notice, or she didn't care. "But the exchange program has been going on for several years. I think it started as some kind of international outreach program. But basically each student studies at the other school for six months and returns to their own school."

"Oh I see," Yang muttered. An international program? Wait... Did that mean he was going to get to study abroad for six months? That was actually kind of cool! "What country is the other school in?"

"You know is has such a funny name," the bird chattered away happily. "They called it Lemuria. Anyway, the bus is going to be here to pick you up in about an hour, so you're probably going to want to get packed right away."

"An hour!?" Yang nearly fell over. He had to be on a bus to leave for a six month trip in just an hour! How was he supposed to pack in that time.

"They're very strict too," the bird explained. "They'll leave with or without you."

"Ugggh," Yang growled. He had about a million questions about where he was going and how this program worked... But there was no time for that! He had an hour to get to his dorm, pack all his stuff and get it back here. He took off running, his paws slamming against the pavement. As soon as he was home he dug out a suitcase. He started to throw clothing in, a toothbrush, just about anything he could think of. He was sure he was missing a lot of things but he just didn't have time.

A few minutes later he was running back to the office with a suitcase in tow. There was no way one bag was going to last him six months... But he supposed he would be able to do laundry and get food there. He didn't have time to worry about it though. He didn't have time to worry or think until he was finally sitting on the bus.

He was the only one on the bus when he took a seat. He was hoping to catch a glimpse of whichever student he was doing the exchange with... But he supposed they must have come in on another bus. He was by himself as he sat in silence when the bus pulled out from the school. He started to wonder if he needed a ticket or something... The bus was probably going to take him to the airport. Was someone meeting him there? He had so little information about what was going on.

He tried not to think about it and instead just looked out the window. He watched the scenery go by as the university disappeared into the distance. Then the bus pulled off onto a road and-

Was suddenly on a completely different road.

Yang blinked and looked around out the window. The scenery had completely changed suddenly. The road was now made out of some kind of tan colored brick... The trees along the road were oddly shaped and far too colorful. There blue leaves and purple leaves and orange and yes green. Beyond the trees an expanse of hills seemed to stretch into the horizon. Other than the road the bus drove along there was no sign of civilization or anyone close by. It was like being in a completely different world!

Yang realized it was obviously a trick. Probably a projector or an image on the window. He opened the window to confirm that the world was still normal outside the bus. Yet... As the window slid open he saw the same alien world on the outside. He reached a paw out the window to verify it was an actual window and not just some kind of screen.

"Okay... That's..." Yang wasn't sure what to make. It still had to be some kind of elaborate joke. He got up and walked to the front of the bus. He was sure he could get the driver to explain things to him. However as soon as he got to the front he found the driver's seat empty. The steering wheel and pedals moved on their own as the bus continued onward to its destination.

"Now I'm officially freaked out," Yang muttered. He was stuck on a bus with no driver going who knows where. He could try to find a way to escape... But jumping off of a moving buss didn't seem like it would be ideal for his health. With no other options he sat back down in his seat and tried to think through what was going on. Obviously, it had to be some kind of trick. But how was it being done? Was he really on a bus? Well... He was sure he got on a real bus... And if it was a bus it had to be going somewhere right? The only thing he could do was wait and hope that somewhere wasn't off the side of a cliff.

Eventually... The bus did reach its destination. It wasn't off the side of a cliff... But it wasn't quite what Yang was expecting either.

"You have to be kidding me," Yang muttered as he stepped off the bus to find himself standing before a massive castle. It looked like it had come right out of a storybook... And based on how colorful the bricks making up the castle was a storybook of faerie tales.

"Ah, I see the new student has arrived. Pleasure to meet you, I'm Dr. Kendal." It was a purple scaled dragon that spoke. An actual dragon. He was a humanoid animal like Yang... And he wore a pair of long black pants but no shirt. This was likely a result of the large wings sticking out of his back. The dragon was easily at least two feet taller than Yang. "Welcome to the University of Lemuria. You can call me Professor Kendal. Consider me your official line of contact within the university. I'll get you set up with your classes as well as a dorm, come along."

"Dr-..." Yang threw a paw over his mouth to stop himself from stammering the word dragon. If that was a real dragon... And not a some kind of fake... He wasn't going to admit to just now learning they exist. Instead he followed the dragon into the castle. As he did he could see other students and faculty moving through the halls. They were... Odd to say the least. Many of them were normal looking animal people like Yang... Except their fur was often oddly colored. There were fur colors in blues and greens, even purple like the dragon's scales. The students were also oddly dressed... Often wearing robes or archaic looking clothing.

"So this university is the finest in our entire country," Dr. Kendal spoke as he led Yang through the halls. "You're quite lucky to get to study here. Though you may find that our curriculum is a little different from yours. Don't worry though, we'll help you get placed in classes appropriate to your previous experiences."

"Yeah that's um... A thing..." Yang was still trying to process the fact he was walking through a castle and talking to a dragon. Yang was slowly starting to accept this might actually be real. It would be hard to fake all of this... But then what did that mean?

"Right up these stairs will be your dorm," Dr. Kendal spoke as he led Yang to a spiral staircase. The gray cat followed the dragon up until they were outside a door. "Now then... I'll leave you to meet your roommate in a moment... But first let's get you sorted into your proper class." The dragon pulled a what appeared to be a thin stick from his pocket. "Take this."

"Eh?" Yang took the stick. "What is it?"

"A wand," Dr. Kendal spoke matter-of-factly. "Go ahead and try to use it."

"Use it?" Yang laughed nervously. "You're kidding right." He could buy into a lot of things... But now he was given a magic wand and just told to use it. No... He could maybe accept dragons were real and just lived in some far off land. But magic? That wasn't possible. "I... Don't understand."

"Surely you've had some training?" Dr. Kendal replied. "I know that it's not practiced as much at your school but they didn't neglect your studies completely did they?"

"Um... Well about that..." Yang stammered. He felt embarrassed that something was being expected of him. He felt more embarrassed that he half considered that maybe this could be real. "Just magic isn't real! I mean why would I..."

"I see..." Dr. Kendal looked slightly downtrodden. "Then I believe we'll have to start you out at the most basic level. Try giving the wand a wave though, just so it can perform the official assessment."

"But it's not like it's going to do anything!" Yang protested as he flailed the wand. He then dropped it let out a yelp. "It bit me!" Well... That wasn't quite right. A stick couldn't bite someone... But there had been a sharp pain as he was waving it.

"Likely just a bit of feedback," Dr. Kendal responded. "You'll learn to avoid having that happen as you study."

"Study what exactly!?" Yang asked exasperated and threw his arms up. He then paused as he noticed his sleeves slid down his arms. "Wait what?" His hoodie was a bit too big on him. He also felt his pants loosening. "What did you do to me?"

"Technically you did it to yourself," Dr. Kendal replied. "But we can get into the technical aspect one you start classes. That wand has a special enchantment on it. It's used as a sort of placement test to determine where all new students start."

"What does that mean?" Yang squeaked. Was his voice getting higher pitched. He looked down at the wand and bent down to pick it up. As he did his pants and underwear began to slide down from his waist. Yang grabbed them desperately trying to get up.

"Well you see, you're going to have to start things at the very basic level," Dr. Kendal replied. "And we like to make sure you won't feel out of place with the other students at your level."

"What... What does that mean?" Yang's voice was definitely higher pitched and squeakier now. His pants were getting more difficult to hang onto as the sleeves of his hoodie sagged over his paws.

"Well I mean..." Dr. Kendal paused trying to think of a way to explain it. "You would feel awkward if you were the only twenty year old in a room full of kindergartners right?"

"WHAT!?" With that Yang realized the exact nature of the changes that were occurring to him. He was turning back into a little kitten. "But but! I'm in college! And... I'm only here for six months!"

"Six months in your time," Dr. Kendal nodded. "But time is a little more fluid here... I'd say one month in your time is about a year here."

"But that..." Yang flailed. As he did he lost his grip on his pants and underwear. He was now a rather young kitten dressed in very oversized hoodie. "That would mean I'm going to be here for six years!" At this point he wasn't going to protest the impossibility of time passing differently in two different areas. He had already experienced too many impossible things today.

"That's right!" Dr. Kendal nodded happy that Yang had figured it out. "But don't worry, time will absolutely fly as you continue your lessons! Now then... You head inside your dorm and I'll get your schedule set up for your first day of magic kindergarten!"

"But! But!" Yang tried to object but the dragon had already left. The kitten was standing there naked except for his hoodie now before a large door he couldn't even reach the handle of. He had to be only five or six years old! He supposed that made sense if he was in kindergarten... But! None of this made sense! Just a few hours ago he was in a normal lecture and his normal age! Now he was a tiny kitten again and being expected to learn magic in a castle!

Yang sagged into himself defeated. He resigned himself to his situation and tried to at least get into the dorm. He had to jump to reach the handle... He barely managed to avoid slipping out of his hoodie. The door opened, and he tugged his suitcase inside as well as his discarded pants.

"Hello?" There was a green furred raccoon inside the room. He was laying on his back on the top bunk of a bunk bed and dressed in a pair of shorts and a vest.

"Um... Erm..." Yang struggled to speak. What was he supposed to say? The raccoon was younger than the age Yang had been a few minutes ago. Looking at the raccoon he was more than twice Yang's size now! Yang might have been slightly taller before his transformation... But now the raccoon was a little intimidating. "Uhhhh," Yang tried hard to think of something to say. He didn't succeed.

"Oh you must be the exchange student!" The raccoon smiled. "I guess you must be really new to magic if you're looking like that. Well, everyone has to start somewhere."

"This is a common thing?" Yang managed to ask at least that.

"Little bit..." The raccoon shrugged. "Some people it can take them a long time to save up the money to get admitted here... And so naturally that means they haven't had proper training yet... Anyway! I've got the top bunk already! And other than that... Do what you want... Oh I'm Theo by the way."

"I'm um Yang..." Yang wasn't really sure what to say here. He was a six year old kitten, he wasn't wearing pants, and he was talking to a green raccoon in magical castle. What the heck was he supposed to say in this situation? "I guess... I will um just unpack then..." The kitten squeaked and slowly lugged his suitcase over to his bed.

"Do you need any help?" Theo asked.

"No I got it!" Yang felt slightly indigent. He may have the body of a small child right now but he could still take care of himself! He found a set of drawers near the bed that he opened up and began to unpack his clothes into. He then paused as he stared at the clothes.

"What's wrong?" Theo asked

"None of my clothes fit..." Yang muttered.

"Could always make do without," Theo said in a voice that Yang was unsure if it was a joke or not. "I know some of the dragons do that and no one seems to care."

"WHAT!?" Yang's ears flattened. "I can't just run around the school naked!"

"Why not?" Theo asked.

"It's not proper!" Yang whined. He couldn't do that! Right? He looked through his outfits... He had a lot of hoodies. They were too big and it was difficult to move around in... But he supposed it was better than nothing.

"So how long you studying with us for?" Theo asked

"Six months..." Yang sighed and collapsed onto what was now his bed. "Which I guess is six years here." So this was his life now? Well... He supposed learning magic might be pretty cool... Even if it meant being a little kitten. At least by the time he went back to his old school he'd be back to normal.

Wait...

If six years passed he'd only be twelve when that happened! He'd still be just a little kid! He couldn't go back to college as a little kid!

Yet... He didn't seem to have a choice.

He swallowed nervously and closed his eyes. For now... It seemed he had no choice but to accept his new surroundings... At least the magic part would be cool.

The End