A/N As you all read on, you may notice that I took a few liberties when writing this section, and in a few cases I completely changed the plots of some episodes (DISCLAIMER: I try to avoid doing that unless it's absolutely necessary for my story to work). This is mostly because I need things to fit with my other fanfic "Olive's Last Partner", but it's also often to smooth over continuity issues with the show itself. (For example, in "Oscar of All Trades" there's never been a Department of Science, yet we see two scientists pictured earlier in the timeline in "Fistful of Fruit Juice"?!) Just please know that I am probably 100% aware of these changes, which I am allowed to make as a non-canonical fan fiction writer. :)

DISCLAIMER: I realize most of you already know the above. That was just for the trolls who don't.

OTHER DISCLAIMER: In addition to changes, there will also be some (not many, but a few) lengthy explanations for things for the same reasons, as well as more stuff about home lives. You have been warned, but I needed them to make things work.

Anyhoo, that's enough of that. Enjoy the beginning of Part 2! And I gotta say, this chapter's title is my favorite of all the titles ^_^

Two kids sitting side by side.

One a boy, one a girl.

One four years old, the other six.

One with glasses and braces, the other without.

One with long hair in a braid, the other's close-cropped.

One holding a medical journal, the other clutching a teddy bear.

Both blonde.

Both brown-eyed.

Both wearing long-sleeved recruitment T-shirts.

And both very, very nervous.

They were each seated in the two chairs in front of Ms. O's desk, waiting for her to return and view their Odd Squad Academy test reports. But in the meantime, they had nothing to do but worry about what she would think of them. See, these two kids were different from normal recruits because they both qualified for Head of Department roles. The only problem was whether Ms. O actually needed two Heads of Departments at this time. Or even whether she needed any new agents at all.

Eventually, the boy tried to make small talk. "I wonder what's t-taking her so long, heh," he said in a squeaky stutter, looking over at the girl expectantly.

The girl didn't return the glance, but kept staring straight ahead. "I don't know," she said, sounding annoyed with him. "I'm a recruit, not her adviser."

The boy pursed his lips and looked away. "Okay then," he mumbled. But it wasn't too long before he tried again. "So h-how long were you in th-the Academy?"

"Four years," came the terse reply.

He whistled. "Wow. Th-that's my whole life. S-see, I was only there for six months—"

"It's because the position I want requires it," she cut him off. "And I need four more years of working on it here before I can get the job."

"Oh. I'm sorry, I-I-I didn't know. So...you kn-know what you want to d-do, then?"

The girl made no reply.

"I'll, uh, t-take that as a yes," he said, looking down at his lap. "I wish I knew what I wanted to do. My teacher, th-this guy named Peter, he just told me I'd be good at that sort of thing. Y'know, b-being Head of Whatever. I'll p-probably end up trying different things, heh."

That got her interested. "What do you mean?" she asked, turning her head sharply to look at him for the first time. "How did you pass the Odd Squad Test?"

"Huh?"

"You just said you don't know what you want to do. But in order to pass the test, you have to declare a Department so they can give you a special exam. You can't pass the test without it. So how did you?"

The boy shrugged. "I d-dunno. Peter told me to do s-something I was good at."

"And what is that?"

"Building stuff."

"Hmm." The girl thought for a moment. "Like gadgets? Did he have you build gadgets?"

"Um...I g-guess so?"

"Aha. That would be Sci—"

"Wait," he stopped her. "I d-don't want to do that, though."

The girl gave him a quizzical look. "Why not?"

"Well, it's...it's kind of p-personal. It was either j-join Odd Squad or do what my g-grandma said and become an altar boy for the r-rest of my life, heh. She didn't want me to become another scientist like my dad..." He trailed off, hugging his teddy bear tighter.

Suddenly taking pity on him, the girl didn't know what to do. She prided herself on being good at identifying and solving problems, but this was something different. She wasn't very good at reading people. "Oh. I see," she said finally, racking her brains for something, anything, she could say. What do people talk about when there's nothing to talk about? she wondered. The weather? We're inside. Jobs? We don't have those yet. Home life? Any more than what he already said is against Odd Squad rules. What about—wait a minute...

"You know, I never got your name," she realized aloud, holding out her hand. "Mine's Opal. What's yours?"

The boy looked at her hand, then rewarded her efforts with an awkward smile. "Oscar," he said, taking her hand and shaking it. "N-nice to meet you, Opal. Oh, a-and the bear is Norman."

"Nice to meet you both, Oscar and Norman," she said stiffly, but now with a smile of her own to match.

* * * * *

"RECRUITS! ! !"

Oscar and Opal whirled around to find a small yet intimidating older girl of about seven with short, sideswept curly hair and wearing a purple suit. "Ms. O!" they both shouted in unison, scrambling to their feet.

"Sit back down!" she ordered, to which they quickly complied. "Now," she went on, making her way to the armchair behind her desk and grabbing a juice box, "are you the two recruits that Agent Obfuscolina and Agent Peter told me about?"

They both nodded.

"I see." Sitting down, Ms. O pulled out two heptagon-shaped files and opened the first one. "So you're Opal," she read, "and you qualify for Head of Medical Department."

"It's my goal to be the next Dr. O," Opal affirmed with another nod. "I've already learned the recipe for pickle poultices and how to identify symptoms of the Honking Cough. I've also—"

"That's enough, Opal," Ms. O interrupted, holding up a hand. "It just so happens you're in luck. Ozzington, our last Dr. O, retired over twenty years ago and no one's been able to fill the position ever since." Ms. O moved on to the next file. "And your name is Oscar, and you qualify for..." She stopped and squinted at the transcript. "The Limit Does Not Exist, parentheses-gadgetry?" Ms. O looked up at him. "Why did Agent Peter list you like that?"

Oscar looked embarrassed. "Because I don't know what I want to do," he replied meekly.

"Then how did you—?"

"He passed the Odd Squad Test because he's good at building gadgets," Opal interrupted. "But he doesn't think he wants to head the Department of Science because his grandma said he wasn't allowed to be another scientist like his dad."

Oscar blushed and looked down at Norman.

"Is that so?" Ms. O said. "Well, he's got a point about not going into Science. We don't have that department anymore, actually."

"You don't?" the two recruits asked, surprised.

Ms. O shook her head. "Dr. Ozzington was also the lab director, and all of the scientists at the time loved him. When he left and no one was qualified to fill the position, they all quit. I had to turn the old lab into a gift shop so we wouldn't have wasted space. But on the other hand..." she eyed Oscar pointedly, "...if you wanted to, we could make you lab director and you could rebuild the Department of Science. That way, the Investigation agents wouldn't have to make and repair their own gadgets anymore. How does that sound?"

"I d-don't know..." Oscar began to fidget. "C-can I think about it?"

"Well..." Ms. O thought for a long moment. "I really would prefer you go into Science if you're good at it, but if you don't feel that you should... I suppose we could give you temporary jobs in the different departments while Opal finishes her medical school and gets her nursing prerequisite out of the way. Yes, that's what we'll do. That way, if you find you're a better fit in another department, we can put you there. I also recommend you visit the labs at other Odd Squad branches, just to see if you'd like being lab director after all. And then when that's all done, of course, I'll make you and Opal partners and you can do your three years of Investigation together."

"Do what?" Opal asked, confused. "What do you mean, three years of Investigation?"

"Obfuscolina didn't tell you?" Ms. O asked, equally confused. "Oh well, I'll explain it to you now. According to the Odd Squad Rulebook, anyone qualified to be a Department Head has to first spend three years working in the Investigation Department. And since you and Oscar are both qualified and joined at the same time, I'll have you do your three years together. For lack of training, I don't expect you to be the best in the field, it's just for the experience. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Ms. O," the two recruits said in unison.

"Good. Now, what's next?" Ms. O flipped through both of the files. "Let's see...good training scores...you've both had your tour of HQ... aha, badge numbers! 56 for Oscar and 44 for—uh-oh..."

"What is it, Ms. O?" Opal asked worriedly.

"It's your number," Ms. O explained. "Odd Squad badge numbers are decided by adding up the letters of your name. The problem is, according to the rulebook there can only be one agent with any badge number per department. And we already have a nurse named Agent Otha, and her number is 44. So when that happens, the rulebook states we either have use a different name or add another letter to your first name."

While Opal thought this over, Oscar had an idea. "W-what about adding the f-first letter of her last name? Opal, what does your l-last name start with?"

"P."

"Okay, so P is the sixteenth letter of the alphabet," Oscar began.

"Right, and if I add 16 to 44," Ms. O grabbed a pencil and did some quick calculations on the back of Opal's file, "then that equals 60. Nobody in the Medical Department has a badge number of 60, so looks like it's all yours." Reaching into a desk drawer, she pulled out two badges numbered 56 and 60. "Now, before I can give these to you, there's one last page that you each need to fill out." Ms. O took the back page from each file and gave them to the two agents. The page was titled, "Aging Options and Consent Form", and below the title were three check boxes and a brief description of each option. At the bottom was a dotted line and some fine print.

"What's this for?" Oscar asked, adjusting his glasses to see the writing better.

"This is where you decide how you want to age while you're an Odd Squad agent," Ms. O said. "You have three choices: age like normal and leave the squad when you turn thirteen, keep the age you are now—so Oscar, you would stay four and Opal would stay six—and be that old until you quit, or age very slowly and put off your final decision until you're close to turning thirteen. I need to know so I can activate the right component in your badges."

The two recruits stared at it. Neither was sure what to say.

"Okay...um, do you both want the third option, so you'll have more time to decide?"

Still no comment.

"I NEED A DECISION, PEOPLE!"

"Third!" they gasped out suddenly.

"Good. Now put a check in the box and hand it back to me when you've signed and dated it. Today's date is August 4th, 1996, by the way." For a moment her eyes looked distant, but then she blinked and was fine again.

Opal and Oscar did as she said, and Ms. O filed away the papers again. "That's all I have for you," she said, pressing a hidden switch on each badge and handing it to them. "Your locker number is the same as your badge number, and you should find your uniform capsules there. Opal, report to the Medical Bay immediately, and Oscar, start at the Tube Lobby for now. Welcome to Odd Squad, agents."

The recruits-turned-agents took their badges eagerly, Oscar grinning like a puppy and Opal unable to hide a smile behind her stoic demeanor.

But their excitement was short-lived. "Well, what are you waiting for?" Ms. O shouted. "GO!"

In a panic, they hopped up and bolted out of the office—or at least tried to, in Oscar's case. He ended up smacking his face into the glass door, and out of nowhere an air raid siren sounded. "Sorry!" he called. "My nose d-does that and I don't know how to s-stop it!"

Ms. O sighed and shook her head. Hope I don't regret ignoring his oddities... she thought to herself, sipping her juice box.