The door began to open, and the last of the students quickly hushed themselves. A bright, cheerful voice rang out from the doorway as their professor let herself inside. “Good morning, everycreature!”

“Good morning Professor Silverstream,” they replied in unison, doing their level best not to stare too obviously as their teacher made her way up to the front of the room.

Professor Silverstream had always stood out. As the only hippogriff on the School of Friendship’s faculty, her lanky frame put her shoulders about level with the top of the other staff members’ heads. Her large blue-white striped mohawk even scraped the top of the doorway as she entered. Rumors abound that she was connected by blood to Mount Aris’ royalty, making her taller than average even by the standards of her species. She clothed herself conservatively, much like Headmare Starlight, with a simple shirt and waistcoat fastened around her torso and a skirt whose hem would typically hang to her knees.

But what really drew the eyes and attention of the class - indeed the entire school - as if it had a gravitational pull of its own, was her midsection. That Professor Silverstream was pregnant was no surprise to anyone; she made no secret of her intensely loving relationship with Guard-Captain Gallus. The pair of them had married shortly before she took the job at the school. No, what never failed to attract attention was the scale of that pregnancy.

The latest of many satirical rumors stated that ‘Professor of Applied Laughter Studies’ wasn’t a job that suited her, and that the headmare was considering her for ‘Dean of Advanced Wideness and Waddling’ instead.