New to PE Recruiting, what to expect with HH intro calls given on-cycle has been delayed?

I’m starting at a T2 consulting firm (CDD-heavy) in a few weeks (chose the later start-date group). Over the past 2 weeks, I’ve been contacted by two HH firms (one “T1,” one “T2”) asking for intro calls.  I hadn’t really explored PE recruiting—I’d planned to focus on ramping up at my job first, learning the ropes, understanding what the gig even is. People I spoke with before accepting the offer told me to just learn on the job, so I've done little prep for the consulting role in the first place, let alone PE recruiting.

That said, I’ve been browsing WSO, but most HH intro-call advice is either very old or very generic (e.g. “be ready for Why PE”). My questions:

• With delayed on-cycle, what should I expect from these calls, and what are HHs expecting from me?
• Do they really expect me to name a niche focus area when I haven’t even started consulting or been placed in a practice? A lot of the advice on WSO says to do this, but it feels weird to say “Oh yes, I want MM healthcare buyout” when I might land in the industrials group in my first year of consulting (I also don't know enough to give a real, honest answer about specific UMM/MM/LMM or growth/buyout beyond the definitions of what each means....)
• How much modeling/technicals should I know before the HH calls? I’m trying to learn basic/paper LBOs, but do I need to prep standard/advanced now? And, once the on-cycle actually starts for 2027, how advanced do they really expect you to model in the interviews? I've seen conflicting reports...
• What’s the new recruiting timeline for consultants? Should I expect on-cycle in Jan or next summer for 2027 roles? And as a non-IB, how much modeling is truly expected?

I’ve scheduled both HH calls for the last week of September.

Thank you!! Sorry for the long post