A New Style of Education: Hidden Gifts©
By: Annette MacGregor

An authorized story, based on the characters and environment of A New Style of Education by Karen Page.

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Part 16 — Sunday, 18 July 2004

After making sure my floor was clear enough - I'd left my desk chair over by the settee from when Ingrid and Fran had visited - I did my Katas. It felt good to get really loosened up. Renee popped her head in, and we worked a little bit on her falling, and I showed her some stretches that would help with her flexibility and make some of the stuff she'd do later come easier.

Breakfast was quiet, after which the eight of us headed to the Common Room together. I need to see about a travel toothbrush if we're going to come here a lot, after meals... It's too much trouble to go up to my room and come back, but I also don't want to develop cavities like my Dad did. At least they put a toilet, no, they call it a loo, and sink closet in the room. Hmmm, they probably want to encourage the year to congregate here. We'll see. I did go in, rubbed my teeth down, and rinsed, anyway. Then, 'cause I didn't want them to think I was strange, I flushed the toilet anyway and washed my hands.

Coming out, I looked around. Mark had something going on the big TV, and Wayne, Fran and Ingrid were watching as well. Sally and Pru were off in a corner talking to Renee, so I headed over, hoping I wouldn't be interrupting.

"Hi, Sophia," Pru greeted me, effectively cutting off anything that might have been going on.

"Hi. You two trying to recruit Sally to our little exercise sessions?" I smiled, so they'd know I was teasing.

"After Pru's description, I was thinking about it," Sally admitted. "Do you think it's too late?"

"Nah, in my old dojo, kids were joining all the time, and it's not unusual to have students of many skill levels. It's actually a good thing, as it allows us to help each other. So, even if you wait a few months before joining, it'd be fine. I bet, if you started in a month, and work as hard as they do, by the end of a year or two, you'd all be pretty close in basic skills."

"Maybe. But, that's not really what we were talking about." Renee and Pru nodded in agreement.

"Sorry to interrupt. I'll head over and see what Mark's got going on the tube - no that's the TV."

"No. Please stay," Pru interposed.

"If you're sure?"

"Of course we are. How else do we get you to help us pick out our clothes for tomorrow? You'll still do it, won't you?"

Smiling, "Sure. But, you had me going there. I thought I was intruding on something." Not much going on now… "Do you want to take care of it now?"

They looked at each other then Sally said, "Why not? They'll probably be tied up for quite a while with that."

We took the stairs, and crossed the bridge to the dorm wing, then continued to our floor. At Pru's room, Renee took leave of us, and headed to our rooms while the three of us went on in.

"If I recall correctly, you were both looking for something on the formal side, say a tuxedo?"

"Da… Sophia!"

"Just kidding; do you want to have similar outfits? Renee and I could probably match as well, and end up like we were in uniforms. Though, that'd take some doing, as our complexions are different."

They realized I was joking, I think. In any event, we started with Sally. As her closet was a tad crowded for the three of us, Pru stood in the doorway. "Let's start at the top, and work down. If it's like my closet, there should be a wig or two in here so you can hide your curls, or you can try to do something different with your hair, but I bet the salon's already booked solid. Come to think of it, that's probably what a bunch of kids were doing with their PDAs right after Mr. Hobson made the announcement."

I noticed a questioning look on Sally's face, and turning, saw it echoed on Pru's. "When Mr. Hobson announced Mix-up Monday, a bunch of kids in the upper years pulled out their PDAs."

"You saw that?"

I nodded, "I didn't know why, but talking to you, it suddenly made sense. They were probably all trying to squeeze in appointments for their hair or something at the salon."

Both of them nodded. "Makes sense," Pru rejoined.

Sally brought things back to what started the slide off topic, "A wig? You're kidding, right?"

I shook my head, "Nah, if you recall, I didn't have this much hair when we first met." I pulled open the door, and, yep, there was a slide out with two heads. "I'm guessing you'd do something to hold your hair down, and then pull this over it. Maybe they have some tape that doesn't pull too much or something."

"I don't have to wear that, do I?"

"I don't think so. If you're worried, we can check with one of the older kids or you can always poke your support person. I know Dan's been really helpful for Renee and me."

"I think I'll just go with my hair, as is, for Monday and see how it goes. Maybe I'll give the wig a try next time. I'll have to think about it though."

"Okay. Then, we need a shirt. I always picked that out first; and then got some jeans or slacks that went with it in my old school." I guess most things go with jeans, come to think of it. That thought led to some more thoughts on what I meant by going together. Then, seeing that she'd made a selection, I filed things away to think about later.

She picked out a nice plaid. That would work well with some chinos. But then, most of what was in the wardrobe coordinated easily. I guess they figured most of us couldn't coordinate without the help. Hmmm, I'd not noticed that there wasn't much in the way of play clothes in my closet, either. That explains why folks are always so neat around here.

"A pair of Khaki's should work well. Then, you pick the belt and shoes."

"They match, don't they?" She sounded anxious as she asked.

"That's what my dad always said. Though, now that you mention it, an awful lot of kids never bothered. It's not any more work, so, why not make them match?" I paused to make sure they were following me, "Now, for the harder part; your socks should complement your shirt without drawing attention to your ankles. Based on what I've seen so far, that should be pretty easy." Sure enough, the drawer had a selection of mostly blacks and browns, though there were some navy and green socks too, in addition to the whites for exercising.

"Not white socks?"

"Maybe over here, but, I was always taught that white socks were for Phys Ed and such. I don't think I ever saw my dad in white socks except when he was playing tennis." I stopped, suddenly realizing that some kids DID wear white socks all the time. "I just remembered that I saw a lot of kids wearing white socks in my old school. So, maybe it's okay over here. I don't think I could do it though."

"Maybe you're right. I never paid it much attention, but I can't recall my dad doing it either."

I was a bit embarrassed at the next bit. It felt weird talking about boys' underwear with two girls. Putting it off, a little, I pulled open the drawer that, if it was set up like mine, probably had the undies; I was in luck, I think. "Umm, you have two choices for undies. One kind is loose, the other more like panties." I indicated them, "most kids I knew tended to go with those. Only the bigger kids wore the boxers." No, I'm NOT going to say why they claimed to be wearing them. Please don't ask! Luckily they both just nodded. "Last, is a t-shirt that goes under what you picked."

"What about...?" Her voice trailed off, but she pointed to her breasts.

"I don't think you're supposed to wear a bra. Wait, I can check that." I pulled out my PDA, to send Andy a note. He'd been so helpful earlier, and he'd probably know since his partner was a girl.

>> Andy, got a minute? >>

"I'm asking Andy. He's helped me before, and Stacy's his study partner. So, he probably knows." They both nodded understanding.

<< Sure, mate. What's up? <<

>> I'm helping some in my year figure out what to wear for Monday. And, we had a question. >>

<< The answer man at your service, though I'd have figured you knew enough about ladies wear by now. <<

I could almost hear some laughter in his response.

>> I'm helping a girl. >>

<< Ahhh, right, your study partner's a girl. Let me guess. She wants to wear her bra. <<

>> How'd you guess? >>

No reason to correct him, as I'll be able to pass the answer on to Renee later anyway.

<< It's the only bit of clothing that would be problematic. She can probably go ahead and wear it, if it doesn't show. To be honest, most wear a sports bra. The key being they don't want anything obviously girl showing when she's presenting as a guy. At least half of the older girls have to wear the compression shirts. But, since Renee's not that big, she might be able to get away with her bra, as long as you can't see the strap lines, but a sports bra under a t-shirt under a normal shirt should be more than enough.<<

>> Thanks, Andy. >>

<< Any time mate. Have fun. <<

"Okay, apparently it's one of those 'it all depends' things. He said you can wear a bra if it doesn't show, but that most girls end up wearing a sports bra under a t-shirt. The key is nothing showing." I pointed with my PDA, "He did say that some girls have to wear the compression top instead of a t-shirt to hide things."

"Oh, you mean that stiff t-shirt out there?" There was a bit of a question at the end.

"Probably, if it's like my stuff, it's in the drawer in the table by your bed."

They nodded, understanding.

"Do you mind if I try, and you correct anything I do wrong?"

"Umm. You sure?"

Sally giggled at my nervousness. "Yes, but you can wait out there, while I put on the undies. Then, I'll be as dressed as I was for swimming."

I visibly relaxed. Leaving the closet to her, "Okay then. I'll wait out here." Pru and I went and sat, she on the sofa, while I took the easy chair.

"I think she was joking with you earlier."

"Thanks, Pru. All I got was the picture that she'd forgotten I was a guy, and I was panicking."

She giggled at this, "No, we've not forgotten, otherwise we'd not have asked you to help. Though, you do make a nice girl."

Now, I knew she was jerking my chain, but I decided to not rise to the bait. "That's the idea. Though, you'd best not tell my family about this, after we graduate! I don't think they'd understand." No, as open as mom and dad were, I didn't think they'd understand why I was doing this. To be honest, I wasn't a hundred percent sure myself, but it felt like the right thing. To honor those that needed to change, and to better understand half the people in the world, yes, this is the right thing for me to be doing.

"No. And, I'll not be telling them, or my folks, about these Mix-up Mondays when I send my next letter, either. We'll probably learn something useful from them, but my little brother would give me real grief. At least there's enough other stuff I don't mind talking about."

Further discussion was interrupted by Sally emerging from her closet. She didn't look happy, and I think I could guess why, considering how she was more developed than anyone else in our year. Her first words confirmed it. "I have to wear the compression top, don't I?"

I looked at Pru, who looked at me. "Maybe; you can probably get away without it Monday. I'm sure they'll expect a few little mistakes." As I thought about what I'd just said, I realized it probably really was true. "At worst, they'll quietly tell you after breakfast, and ask you to go change before our first lesson."

"I was afraid you'd say that, so I may as well." She went over and pulled out what looked like a t-shirt from her bedside table drawer. Based on what I'd found in my drawer, I didn't want to ask if there was something else in there. No, not something I needed to think about; at least not yet.

I could see how tight the top was, and was glad I didn't have to wear one! It seemed a tad thicker around the waist, as well. Watching her struggle to get into it, Pru and I jumped up, to help.

"Not the most comfortable thing I've worn, but now that it's on, it's not too bad. I mean, it's no worse than a wet suit, and easier to move in." She swung her arms around, and bent over. Standing up again, "I'll not forget it's there though."

Wow, she's worn a wet suit! Awesome; I'll have to ask her about it later. "It might go on easier, without the normal t-shirt."

She nodded at this, and Pru offered, "I'll be glad to help if you want." Then, she looked at her slim frame, "I don't think I'll need it."

I reached out to her. "You look fine."

"For a bean pole, maybe. It's okay, really. Unless either of you start growing, I'll be able to reach things neither of you can." The last was said with a smile.

I didn't really feel like a shrimp, but, I'd had a big growth spurt last spring that took me to almost 160 centimeters. I liked that - it sounded bigger than 5 feet, 4 inches. Remembering how Kirk had grown during middle school, it gave me hope that I wasn't done yet. It wasn't that much fun being the shortest guy in the family. "Let's see how the rest goes together."

Sally quickly put on the rest, only struggling a little when the buttons opened the wrong way, and not having an issue with the zipper at all. She did muck up the belt, but that was minor.

"That's better than I did with the zipper. Their swapping the side threw me the first day."

"When the shirt buttons were on the wrong side, I twigged that the trouser zip would be, too."

"Just one thing, and it's not real important, the shirt line and trouser line are supposed to line up. And the buckle edge is right there with the other two. Oh, and now that I'm looking, the belt is on backwards. Guys loop it the other way. Only someone in the military would be upset by it being off, but if you're going to do it, you probably want to do it right. And, the shirt will probably fit better, if you tuck it the way it was designed to be tucked."

"She rearranged things, and told me, "You're right, it does seem to fit a little better."

"The back can be neater too, by putting pleats on the side, but that's another military thing. I guess hanging with marines rubbed off more than I thought."

They both laughed with me at that.

Once Sally was ready for the world, I decided to tease back a bit. "It feels a bit strange calling a bloke like you, Sally."

"Oh, yeah; you said we had to come up with names. How about, Roger?"

"Works for me, but, what about you? Will you remember it?"

"Yeah, it's the name my parents would have chosen had I been born a boy."

"Sounds good, shall we help Pru now?"

Going through it with Pru was faster, as we'd already discussed most everything when Sally was getting ready. Despite the comments, she had a bit more trouble with the buttons than Sally had, which made me feel a bit better.

"So, Roger, what's your mate's name?"

Sally looked at Pru. "Do you have something picked out? 'Cause if you don't, I think Harry, after the prince, would be great."

I tried to do a mock curtsey to Pru. "Command me, Your Majesty."

"That's Royal Highness to you, maiden." Then to Sally - or should I say, Roger. "These colonials, they just can't keep things straight." We all collapsed into laughs and giggles at that. They did explain my mistake though. Apparently only the queen is a "Majesty". I found it somewhat confusing, but resolved to do some research to figure it out. Surely it couldn't be that complex. Little did I know.

I reminded them to post their male names to the directory and headed back to my room. Walking down the hall with my heels clicking, I thought some more about things with the school that I'd need to not include in letters home, or even talk about after graduation. Not having kept real secrets from my parents before, this felt a little funny.

I quietly entered my room, and heard Renee practicing on her chanter thing, so, sitting on the settee, I decided to think about what Monday meant to me. I had thought that the purpose of the mix-up day was to help us learn a bit about how the other sex lived, and to help us realize that the person is not what they wear. Okay, maybe not quite in those terms, but that's where I ended up after thinking about it.

But, it seems so arbitrary to just say "dress like a girl" or "dress like a boy" or even dress like neither and both. And then to not provide any other real guidance than we can get from each other and the other students unless we explicitly ask; that doesn't make sense to me. It occurred to me that MAYBE they didn't provide more guidance to just to encourage us to work together. Could they be that devious? Then, recalling how unhappy Renee was, and come to think of it, how Fran had looked at having to dress as a guy, I wasn't sure that forcing this on us was a good thing. What would they do if one of us actually got sick at having to change how they were dressed?

The last combination of thoughts brought me back to Pru's comment about writing home. How much more will I run into that I can't talk about? Heck, technically I've slept with a girl. And, come to think of it, we almost share a room, being as that door's not been closed since the first time we opened it. How would I explain that? No, it's going to be far harder than I thought to be able to keep talking to my folks, without something coming out that might end up hurting some of the kids in the school.

"Lost in thought?" Renee had come in, while I was thinking.

"I guess." I smiled. "I was wondering how or even if, I should tell my folks about this or mix-up Monday or a bunch of things. I mean, I really can't see explaining this," I pointed at myself, "to my folks. They MIGHT understand, but..." my voice trailed off at the end.

She came over, and sat beside me on the settee. "There's enough other stuff going on. Is it important that you tell them about this?"

"Probably not, right now; I guess I'm just worried about letting something slip out after we graduate and it somehow coming back to haunt Fran or one of the other kids that are able to be themselves here."

"We've a long time to figure all of that out, you know. As long as you're careful in your letters, why worry now?"

Smiling, "You're right, you know. I don't need to." I don't know why, but her presence there on the settee felt good.

"Good, then, do you think we can go and eat?"

"Oh, is it that time already?"

At her nod, we were off.

Following the meal, "Renee, I'm going to try to grab Dan for a minute, do you mind?"

"No, let's go."

We walked over to the Year Four table, where Dan was talking to Stacy and Andy about something, so we stood back a bit, and waited so he could see us, but we were not listening in.

Seeing me, he turned, "You two may as well come over and join us."

Upon joining the three - the rest of year four had gone off - Dan started, "I was just letting Stacy, and as a result, Andy, know that you were having issues with the attire for tomorrow, Renee. I let June, the top girl, know earlier. This is so you have a few others keeping their eyes on you in the event you need help. I know Sophia will be there for you."

Renee just nodded, and I responded, "Thanks, Dan. It's on a sorta related matter that I wanted to talk to you."

"Really?"

I nodded, "Yesterday, Tracy told me that I had to dress as Dan for the first part of the day tomorrow, because, I'm mostly living as Sophia now. I didn't think this made sense."

"You're worried it may set you back on what you're attempting to do?"

"That's a big part of my worry, yes."

"Stacy, you and Andy can take off now. If something comes up that you need to know, I'll get in touch."

They nodded, and as they were departing, Andy said to me, "Buck up, mate. You'll be fine!"

I smiled my thanks.

"We should talk in my office, I think."

Is there a problem? I hope I didn't stick my foot in it, again.

"I want to check with Kelly and confirm a few things."

"Okay."

When we arrived there, he indicated we should have a seat on the settee, while he went over to his desk. "I'll be with you in just a minute, I want to call Kelly."

I could understand his calling Kelly, as she would be likely to know if taking a day as Dan would hurt things. I was sitting there wondering if that would be an issue, and still a bit worried about the effect of Dan on Renee, when I felt her hand grab mine and give me a quick squeeze. I looked over, and saw a hint of a smile on her face. I smiled back, and we just sat there, holding hands. I was surprised, but it was strangely comforting.

Dan's getting up from his desk pulled my attention back, "I have some news from Kelly."

That got my attention; I wondered what she had to say. Dan came over, and took the chair facing us.

"As it turns out, the answer could go two ways. If you were transgendered, and trying to transition now, the decision would be mine to make, though I'd take her input into consideration, as your wellbeing comes first. However, since you've indicated that you are a boy that is taking this step for other reasons, the question comes down to whether a day as Dan will harm you, or what you are learning. Kelly indicated that from her observation, your progress has been far faster than she'd expected so that a day as a boy would not likely interfere with you achieving your goal."

"So, I'm Dan, tomorrow."

"I didn't say that - yet. You did say that this was just part of what you were worried about. What was the rest?"

I glanced at Renee, took a breath. "I was worried about how Renee would react to Dan. She'll be having a hard enough day as it is."

"That's commendable. Renee, do you think having Dan around tomorrow, instead of Sophia, will make a difference?"

She shook her head. "I trust her - I mean him," came her quiet reply.

I squeezed her hand in thanks. "You'll tell me if you have a problem, even only a little bit?"

She nodded agreement.

"Then, I think that settles things. You were going to call me or any of the support staff if there was an issue, anyway, so, I see no reason why you can't be Dan tomorrow, and as Kelly indicated while we were talking, it wouldn't hurt you to give yourself a rest. It might help your perspective."

We thanked him for his help, and headed over to the dorm wing and our rooms.

Rehearsal, though longer than the ones we'd been through during the week seemed to go well. As it was ending, Mrs. Russell announced, "Stacy, Fran, Renee and Sophia, I need to speak to you all before you leave."

We put away our instruments, or in my case I put the hammers away, and joined her where she was waiting. I hoped it wasn't a problem, since three of us were first years.

"Now, before any of you start worrying, other than Stacy," she started.

"Don't tell me you need me to work with these three; I thought they were doing okay," Stacy broke in.

"No, you're right, they're doing fine." She turned back to us. "Renee and Fran, you've both been doing well, but as I said earlier, I'll be swapping you back and forth between first and second, until we figure out where to leave you, and I want you to switch tomorrow. You are both doing VERY well, and this is not intended, in any way, as criticism."

They looked at each other, and nodded. I mean, what else could they do? It would probably be a bit more work for them, as the parts were different. But, had I mucked up? No, she'd said we were all doing okay. A new instrument already?

"Don't look so worried, Sophia. I was just letting you know that you'll be having your first piano lesson right after dinner, in the parlour."

"Okay." I wondered a bit at this, but, shrugged it off as being nice to warn me in person. "I'll see you there."

She acknowledged my response, "Stacy, as you've guessed, you're just here to hear that Fran and Renee will be changing seats tomorrow so you're not surprised." Then she looked at us all. "Any questions?"

When none of us appeared to have any, she sent us off to get ready for dinner.

After yet another delicious meal, most of the years headed toward their common rooms. As we reached the entry hall, I said "'bye," and went into the music parlor, no, it's probably one of those Brit our things, parlour for my lesson. Seeing nobody there, I sat down at the piano, figuring I should warm up a bit. It was a pleasure just doing exercises on this instrument. After a few minutes, I was almost on autopilot, just letting things flow.

A sneeze startled me out of wherever I'd gone, and I came close to knocking over the bench as I sprang to my feet.

Behind me were Mrs. Russell and an older man.

"Sarah, surely you didn't have me come here to teach a child like this?" He started, but, another sneeze, which he covered with his hand, interrupted him.

"Sergei, before you come to a conclusion on whether she's worthy of your talents, do me the favor of listening."

He started to swell, as if to make a retort, but it was stopped by another sneeze. He ended up continuing, "My apologies, Sarah. For you, I make the exception today."

"You may as well. You're here after all, you old fraud."

"I blame it on getting bumped into coach on the flight back from Kiev." He managed to stifle a sneeze. "Allergies," he said with a sigh. "Always worse after a flight. Are you going to introduce me to this young lady? Or are we going to continue to stand here?"

I was dismayed, at first, then startled by their familiarity.

"Sophia, Sergei just arrived from Heathrow. He'll be evaluating where you are in your studies. Sergei, this is Sophia, a new student here at the school. Some of her previous teachers thought she had potential, and I tend to agree. Do you recall the test our teacher put us to?"

He nodded, "The single note detuned?"

"Yes, Sophia managed that better than either of us."

"I must see then." With that, he pulled a hammer out of his bag, and went over to the Steinway, and seemed to select one note at random.

I always thought the name hammer was a bit strange. I guess it does look a little like a small hammer, but with the hole in the head to fit over the tuning pegs, you'd never drive even a tack with it. I smiled a bit at the thought of someone trying.

He made a sound, which could have been a snort or something, but it got my attention. "Now, Miss. Your scales again, please. Tell me which note I adjusted."

I did a simple scale, and it was readily apparent which note he'd messed up. When I got that right, he pulled a piece of music from his bag and popped it in front of me. "Take a minute, then play this. Sarah says you know the routine."

I was nervous enough when I'd done it for Mrs. Russell. I was doubly so now, but at least I knew what to do. I scanned the piece, and saw he'd not randomly picked the note, as the one he'd detuned was one that figured prominently in the piece. Remembering what Mrs. Russell had said last time, I kept the piece in a major key, as I transposed it down, and played it, though a bit roughly.

I was about two thirds through the page, when I first heard, then felt an explosive sneeze from the teacher behind me. It threw me off, and as I started to go again, he stopped me.

"Sorry for ze sneeze, but also, this is enough." He offered me the hammer. "You can fix it, can you not?"

I took the hammer, "Maybe, but not very well, sir." I don't place his accent. With a name like that, who knows?. At least I can understand him.

"Ve shall see. You know it is only one string, which is it?"

I struck the key, while looking inside. Yeah, it's got three strings. And, I'll have trouble reaching them while playing it. Danged skirt. I slipped out of the shoes, and moved the bench a bit, figuring I could kneel on it.

"Explain what you do, before you do it." He barked.

"Sorry, sir. I need to see and reach the strings to know which you adjusted." Thinking hard, "If I were just tuning the piano, I'd hold two, strike the key, and use the hammer to adjust the note. I've only tried twice before, and never on such an instrument."

"Is good. I play note." He stopped to sneeze into his hand — I cringed a bit, and then figured he'd left his handkerchief somewhere - before striking the key slowly over and over.

I reached in quickly to dampen the strings. The dissonance made my back shiver. I quickly narrowed it down to one string, and attached the hammer. "Are you sure you want me to try to fix it?"

"Yes, ye...Aaaa-choo, yes," he said, recovering from another sneeze. I really hope it's allergies. No. Pay attention. It's flat, so I have to tighten the string. I gave the hammer a light tap with my other hand and he started hitting the key again… Nothing. I hit it harder, knowing I needed to get it to budge, but not wanting to overcorrect.

He let me struggle with trying to get it right for a few minutes or so. I'd think I had it, but when I let the three strings play together, I'd realize they were not together. I finally stepped back. "I'm sorry. I cannot tune it, now."

"Typical. You should have admitted earlier." He turned toward Mrs. Russell. "Surely."

"Wait, Sergei. Sophia, why did you say you couldn't tune it now?"

Looking at the floor, "I'm sorry, Mrs. Russell. I was getting frustrated, the three strings aren't tuned exactly the same, and I can't figure out what the tuner did to make them sound right to begin with."

"Child, what do you mean they're not tuned the same? You match two, three times, then mess it."

"No, sir. There at the end, I just listened to the other two strings, and that's when I realized they weren't the same."

"No, this cannot be. Hammer." He held his hand out to me, so I passed it to him. Without stopping to say thanks, he turned to the piano, and first checked the note. I saw him get it almost right; then he played some things with one of his ears toward the open sound box. "Hmmm" He got up and went over to a bag I'd not seen earlier, and pulled out a small black box. He did something to its face, and then started striking the key and the ones adjacent to it. He eventually stood up and turned back to us with what I can only describe as a bemused expression. "The child, she was right. The strings, they ARE off just a little. How you know, Sarah?"

"Sergei, we trust our students, here. If Sophia had not had a reason, we'd have trusted her to tell us. NOW are you satisfied that she's the student I said?"

He had another fit of coughing and sneezing, and I wondered if he really was just suffering from allergies.

"Perhaps, I think on this and get back to you. I go now home." With that, he put his black box and hammer in his bag and left.

He seems very strange. Well, I can put up with anyone, if I have to. I wondered if I'd alienated him by showing him up. I'd not meant to, but Mrs. Russell had asked. I wasn't sure if I should just head back to join my class or wait for her return. Knowing the entrance was just the other side of the entrance hall and I'd have to go past them if he'd not left yet, was enough to convince me to wait.

I turned and looked at the piano. I felt as if it had betrayed me somehow. I should have been able to manage to match one note; okay, getting the whole thing tuned individually and together was beyond me, but still, getting the one…

"Sophia, good. I'm glad you waited. You did VERY well." She pointed at some chairs, so I took one and waited for the "but".

"I'm sorry that Sergei was playing the eastern master so hard today."

My head jerked up at that. "P-playing?"

She smiled. "With a name like Sergei, he figures it's expected, and he's managed to convince quite a few that his English is broken." She shook her head. "Don't let him fool you, we grew up in the same area and went to school together. Just be yourself, be confident in what you can do and tell him when you don't understand or are unable to do something. You impressed him by recognizing the slight variation in the strings by ear alone. I suspect he'd have heard himself, it if he'd not had a head full of cold, or whatever."

"You mean he'll teach me?"

"When he's available, yes; at least for now. He really IS a good teacher."

We talked a little more, and then a thought occurred to me. "Umm. He knows about the school, doesn't he?"

She gave me a strange look, "What do you mean, dear?"

"That I'm really a boy?"

"I see what you mean. No, now that you mention it, We'll have to see what happens. I'll make a note to make sure he's only here when you're Sophia. Will that do, at least for now?"

I nodded, "Yes, Mrs. Russell."

"You're a good kid, Sophia. And, I'm sure that you and Sergei will get along fine." She stood then, "Now run along and join your mates.

We left the parlour, and she took the stairs while I crossed the entry and headed for the common room. So, I'll HAVE to be Sophia, at least some of the time, after I've learned as much as I can. I guess that's not any worse than doing it now. As I walked, I wondered if Renee and the others would still be there…

Sure enough, most of them were there. Mark saw me come in and called out. "Sophia, do we have to wear skirts?"

Deciding he was probably joking, I tried to get into it. "Why don't you ask our fearless leader?" I pointed to Ingrid.

She shook her head. "Don't ask me, I just work here. Besides, I don't have an option for a skirt tomorrow, nor did I see any kilts," the last with a smile on her face.

"Mark, I think the rule for Monday is anything on the girl's side of the closet. I just have to wear skirts for the class I'm taking." I said, trying to honestly answer his question. "You were probably told about the special aids in the bedside table." He looked at me blankly until I pointed at my chest. Then, he got what I only describe as an "evil gleam" in his eyes. I wonder what he's up to now.

Discussion went on about other things for a while. After a bit, Renee and I decided to head for our rooms and go over our lessons one last time before bed.

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Author's Note: I want to thank Karen for allowing me the pleasure of continuing this story and I hope you all get as much pleasure out of reading it as I've had writing it. I also want to thank the individuals that proofed and commented on the story as it developed and moved toward what you see posted here (Karen, Penny, Gabi and Holly). Their comments and criticisms helped immeasurably! Any problems remaining are mine and not that of any of these remarkable ladies.

Comments are greatly appreciated!