Playing her way - Conclusion

© D.L.

Mrs Rogers had just arrived in the canteen with Mr and Mrs Bridges, when Mrs Milligan came running across with an iPad in hand.

"That girl!" the headmistress exclaimed, "excuse me, it seems I have an issue to sort out."

"Where is she, I'll kill her!" shouted a very irate Julia, as she hobbled into the canteen as fast as her crutches could carry her.

"What's the matter Julian? Or should I be calling you Generation2K?" Svetlana answered from across the room, "Annoyed that your secret is out."

"I am NOT a boy," Julia raged as she tried to hop across the room swinging her crutch at the other girl.

"Funny, I don't know many girls who can pee standing up, and as a new student currently staying in the infirmary and excused from games, nobody has had opportunity to verify either way."

Svetlana had gone to the nurses’ office to buy some tampons. The nurse ran a small chemists chop from her office selling personal hygiene products so the girls didn't need to travel into the town. The nurse was out of the room when Svetlana walked in. Julia, unaware that the nurse had left, was making use of the toilet facilities in the infirmary. Given one of her legs was plastered, and the other hurting due to bruising, standing up and sitting down was proving awkward, especially in the confines of a small bathroom. The nurse had suggested that reaming in an upright position aided by a female urinary device may be more comfortable and convenient for urination. Julia was trying out the device, and hadn't shut the door fully. As she had her back to the door, she didn't see Svetlana photograph her with her phone.

"Svetty, darling," Berry interrupted in a condescending tone, "have you never tried peeing standing up, it’s very liberating, and very handy at gigs where the toilet facilities are lacking."

"I do it all the time when in costume," Jane added, who was currently living up to her nickname of CutieKitten by wearing a fake leopard skin skirt with a tail hanging out the back, and a pair of furry ears on her head, "When I'm in a full cat suit, it is often easier than trying to peel off enough clothes. I deliberately build in a suitable access when designing them."

"You should speak to the nurse, she stocks the necessary equipment," Berry added.

"What have you got against Jenny anyway?" Jane asked, "Are you just annoyed that you are no longer the richest girl here?"

"Svetlana isn't the richest anyway, even excluding Jenny if she was here," Anna stated, joining the conversation. Turning to Svetlana she added. "In fact, given that your father’s football club will be issuing a press statement in a few minutes declaring bankruptcy, you will be lucky if you can even afford to stay on beyond this term. He's going to have to sell a lot of assets to cover the debts and live as frugally as possible."

"What?" Svetlana screamed. "Well if I'm out of here, so are you, so you have no room to gloat. In fact, one of his assets is a big share holding in this school, so you may all be in trouble."

"Enough," Mrs Rogers shouted, causing the room to fall silent. "Firstly, Julia is not Generation2K. This is the second time this week you have accused a student of being transsexual. Any further wild accusations from anybody and they will be finding they will be the ones proving their femininity to the rest of the students. You might also want to think before you try and slander anybody else, as your father has enough issues without trying to fight off libel cases, and I know several students who have access to the right people and funds to be able to sue your family.

"Secondly, Mr Gurevich has already sold his stake in this establishment. We may have to tighten our purse strings slightly, as he was going to sponsor several school activities this year, but I already have an alternative revenue source secured, and the new shareholder is interesting in investing more money.

"Thirdly, I think you owe Miss Jones an apology for false accusations and invasion of her privacy."

Svetlana looked between Julia, who had calmed down but was still being restrained by a couple of friends, and the headmistress. She used the silence to weigh her options, as the other students waited for her response.

"This alternative revenue source; it wouldn't by chance be a profit sharing agreement with Generation2K for videos she makes while here? I concede I may have gotten the wrong people, but it is an awful big co-incidence that I found Julia in the bathroom. There is also the issue that several of the girls here are beta testers for Rampant Squirrels, or whatever it’s called, so must have close ties to Generation2K or one of the other server members.

"I have absolutely no problem proving that I'm female. I've tanned myself on nudist beaches many times and am willing to bare all. I challenge Emily and Julia to do the same. The photographic evidence against Julia, and the fact nobody who isn't on the school payroll can vouch for her, would seem rather compelling. Emily is a beta tester and therefore has close person ties to this conspiracy. Her only alibi is Anna, and we all know how easily she can be bought, plus Anna is a huge Generation2K fan and would probably be willing to share a room with him anyway."

"Stop right there," Mrs Rogers stated. "This nonsense has gone far enough!"

"Challenge accepted," Julia shouted.

"Fine, I'll do it as well," Emily stated reluctantly, "but only if it is just the three of us together with an independent witness to report back to everybody else, assuming we can find a person we can all agree on. I'm not willing to parade around naked in front of the whole school."

"This is completely unnecessary, and this school will not tolerate public nudity," Mrs Rogers tried to regain control of the situation. She could guess what Emily was planning to do to herself, if not already done, having discussed the possibility on the first day of school. However, the headmistress was not certain how well the stunt could be pulled off.

"You can't prevent us undressing in the privacy of our own rooms," Svetlana replied, "I like Emily's idea. I nominate Francine. She isn't a gaming fan, and is wealthy enough not to be bribed."

Nobody voiced any objections.

"Alright," Mrs Rogers conceded, "But I get to dictate the where and when. I want to speak to each of you individually first to make absolutely sure you are happy to do this and not being pressured into something you will regret later. Svetlana, Emily, Julia, Francine, please accompany me to my office."

The headmistress called Svetlana into her office first, while the other girls waited outside. She then proceeded to lecture the student for five minutes. Mrs Rogers made it clear that Svetlana was in serious trouble, and that she would be reporting her behaviour to her father, who had already stated that any further incidents would mean a loss of privileges. The only thing keeping her in school being that her father was too busy to collect her, and the likelihood would be that she wouldn't be coming back when term ended.

The headmistress then pulled Julia in to reprimand her for accepting the challenge after she had already told the girls not to take the matter further. She also pointed out to the girl, that her actions had effectively bullied Emily into having to also accept the challenge.

Sending Julia back outside, she then brought Emily into her office.

"What is your plan?" the headmistress asked. "Can you pass naked like you suggested? Do you need time to prepare?"

"I plan to expose myself, in all senses of the word," Emily replied. "I haven't had time to glue myself, and I don't intend too. I saw the look of annoyance on Dad's face when he came in. I won't be staying here anyway, so what does it matter?"

"On the contrary, I don't think that is certain. I have been working on them all afternoon, and I think I may yet persuade them to let you stay. Don't give up just yet."

"Okay, but I don't see a way out of this one. Just make sure I go first, before Julia, so she doesn't have to be embarrassed. I don’t want her suffering because of me."

"I'll have a word with Francine and see how best to approach this," the headmistress replied, "I think it best to pre-warn her. I have a feeling on how this might pan out, and it may be your favour."

Mrs Rogers sent Emily outside to wait, while she called the elder girl in to discuss her role.

~o~O~o~

The four girls where called by the headmistress into the nurses office. The Headmistress had gone in first to have a word with the nurse beforehand.

The two adults stood to one side to observe the proceedings from a distance.

"Right," Francine stated, "It is my understanding that I'm to arbitrate in this matter. Svetlana has questioned the gender of Emily and Julia. I am to examine all three girls, starting with Svetlana, to determine if they are indeed female."

Turning first to Svetlana, "I believe you, as challenger, have to first prove that you are indeed female, so my question is, just how far are you willing to prove yourself, bearing in mind, you can't ask either of the other girls to do something that you are not willing to do yourself. In other words, strip."

Svetlana kicked off her trainers, removed her blouse and jeans, unbuckled and discarded her bra, then removed her panties. She stood in full view of the other girls wearing nothing but a pair of short socks.

"You know, I'm not one hundred percent convinced yet," Francine pondered, "Those breasts look a bit to firm and plump, they may be surgically enhanced."

"These are real, I have not had a boob job," Svetlana replied, placing her hands on her hips, her body language showing her annoyance.

"I think we perhaps should apply the tampon test," Francine added, "How about you get up on the stirrup chair so we can get a better view."

"This is ridiculous," Svetlana grumbled as she climbed into the chair and spread her legs.

"If you are unwilling, or physically unable due to being male, then we can always call this off," Francine smiled, enjoying making the other girl uncomfortable, "Just be thankful I didn't opt for the dildo test instead. Having a twelve-inch purple cock rammed up you could potentially be a lot more uncomfortable than a relatively small tampon, especially if you've never had anything that big inside you. The more you moan, the more I'm going to take that as you being male."

Svetlana took the tampon offered by the nurse, removed the packaging and carefully inserted it into herself while the others watched.

"Satisfied now?" she asked.

"Okay, I'll accept that you are most likely female," Francine conceded, "you can get down from the chair now. Emily, your turn next."

Emily turned her back to the three other girls. She reached round and unzipped her dress, letting it fall to the floor. With shaky hands she briefly fumbled with the catch on her bra, before it too, fell to the ground. Finally, taking a deep breath, she dropped her panties before spinning round to face the waiting audience.

Julia gasped at the sight of the obviously male genitalia hanging between Emily's legs.

"I was right!" Svetlana exclaimed.

"Hold it!" Francine shouted, "We all agreed that I'm the one who decides who is and isn't female here. Let me examine the evidence. Chair please, Emily."

Emily jumped into the chair and waited, uncertain of what was going to happen next. She couldn't bear looking at herself, so focussed her attention to Francine. She couldn't take looking in Svetlana's direction as her gloating would have been too much, and she didn’t want to risk the sight of her naked body to cause any physical reaction in her own, although having spent a week seeing Anna naked as she changed for bed, Emily was used to the sight of naked girls.

"Starting from the top, facial shape is more oval than square. Jaw line is slightly pointed. Breast development appears normal: average size for her age. Areolas are of a suitable size, and no obvious chest hair. Waist is slightly narrower than the hips. Moving down, the clitoral hood appears to be larger than normal, but not large enough to function as a penis. Labia are above average in size, but could easily be fixed. I'm guessing the hymen is still in place, so the tampon test wouldn’t be appropriate. I can see why you were embarrassed to have to appear naked in front of others. Given all the evidence, I'm happy to declare you as being female."

"What? Are you serious?" Svetlana shouted. "He is obviously male, and those breasts are obviously glued on."

Emily glanced at her chest. The breast forms where not even a B cup and not the best of colour matches having been bought mail order. Not expecting to have to strip, Emily hadn't bothered to hide the edges very well.

"Yes, I am," Francine replied, "You asked me to decide, and I say she is female. It will be my word against yours when we go back out there."

"Actually, it will be three against one," Julia stated, as she pulled her t-shirt over her head and unclipped her bra. "Because I doubt Emily is going to disagree, and I'll quite happily back up Francine."

Emily, realising what Julia was doing immediately looked away. Before anybody could object, Julia had let her underwear fall to the floor.

"Emily, get up, it's my turn in the chair. Could you give me a hand, I'm not sure I can get into it easily with this caste."

"Given your injuries, don't bother with the chair," Francine stated, "I can see enough with you standing to declare you to be female, unlike the other two, I'm not seeing any evidence to suggest you are anything other than a normal girl."

"What's the matter Emily?" Julia asked, "Are you afraid to look at me? I wouldn't have stripped off I didn't feel comfortable in being seen. After all we are all girls here."

Emily turned and looked at Julia, although was having trouble seeing due to the tears forming in her eyes.

"Thanks, that actually means a lot to me," Emily stated, jumping down from the chair and retrieving her clothes.

Feeling uncomfortable, Emily started to dress. The nurse came over and picked up Julia's clothes, and started to help her into them, realising that the girl couldn’t bend down and pick them off the floor very easily by herself.

"So, Svetlana, are you going to drop the matter or cause further trouble?" the headmistress asked.

"Why are you doing this? Don't you care about him being here?" Svetlana asked Francine.

"Honestly, I don't care if one of the students is male, and neither do most of the others. That isn’t just my opinion. While you have extra English lessons, to talk proper like what we do,” Francine said the last part of the sentence in a tongue in cheek thick local accent, “The debating club meets to discuss stuff. One of the things we debated at the end of last term was the scenario of a transsexual student. Jane had suggested the topic after Generation2K had announced that she was seeking a place at a private girl’s school. Not that any of us knew that she would be coming here. We all have private rooms to change in, so it’s not as though we have to worry about voyeurism. In fact I know several girls who would be delighted to know their favourite online celebrity is at school with them. We even debated what we should do on finding out, and the consensus ended up being keeping the issue private."

Francine then added, "What the girls do care about is you swanning around here like lady muck, lording it over everybody else. You're always wondering why Anna is so popular. You've made her so by treating her so badly, everybody feels sorry for her having to put up with your bullshit. I don't think there is a girl out there who won't be pleased to see you go. Perhaps with you gone, Anna can finally focus on her education instead of picking up after you."

"If I go, so does Anna," Svetlana stated.

"Not necessarily," Emily stated, "Anna has told me a lot about her relationship with your family. Your father gives her almost as much money as he gives you. However, unlike you, she doesn't go out and spend it all on designer clothes and salon visits. She can probably pay for her remaining years here out of her savings. Can you do the same?"

"Anna has enough friends here who would probably chip in to keep her here if she does run short," Francine suggested.

"Assuming I can even earn enough to stay here myself, I would certainly help her out," Emily stated, "that is if I don't get forced out before then."

"I will also add that the school fully supports Emily being here," Mrs Rogers declared, "That includes the board of governors, which included your father before he stood down from the position. He also agreed to have Anna swap rooms and share with Emily, despite her being male."

"Also, as a paid employee, Anna's money is perfectly safe," Julia stated. "Yours on the other hand? Let's just say that the Inland Revenue don't take kindly to people trying to get out of debt by gifting large sums to relatives. My Dads a lawyer, and has been involved in quite a few cases of tax invasion."

Svetlana didn't know whether to believe the girl, or if she was just trying to wind her up. Either way, she decided she best check her bank accounts that evening, and if needed, move some cash around.

Everybody except Svetlana was now dressed, and started to leave the room. The Russian girl swiftly started to put her clothes on so that she could follow.

Svetlana was still looking slightly dishevelled as she came into the canteen just in time for her to hear Francine state, "I have examined all three students, and can declare that they are all girls. So unless Miss Gurevich wants to carry on making a fool of herself, this matter is over."

Svetlana decided not to say anything further, instead leading the returning girls over to the hot and cold buffet that the school provided for evening meals, the rest of the school having already started while the girls were out of the room.

Berry, having already finished eating, and still feeling partly responsible for her mother causing the girl's injuries, came over to carry Julia's plate for her. The other girls chose their food, and returned to their respective tables.

~o~O~o~

The canteen slowly emptied as the girls left for the various clubs and activities that were available to them. Emily, having started eating later than everyone else, was one of the last to finish. She sat sipping her apple juice, watching her parents speak to the teachers at the other end of the room.

The constant glances in her direction from her parents were making her uncomfortable. Finally deciding she had enough, she downed the last of her drink, and took her plates and glass back to the collection point.

"I'm going to lie down in my room," Emily told her friends before heading out the door.

"I don't think she should be alone right now," Wendy stated, afraid that Emily might not be in a good state of mind.

"I'll go make sure she is alright," Anna replied, "It's my room as well, so she can't ask me to leave."

~o~O~o~

Emily was sat on her bed propped up against her bean bag, using it as an impromptu back-rest. Her laptop was resting on her knees, and she was blowing some more stuff up on the Moonlight server.

A knock came on the door. Anna, who was half-watching Emily, and half-sketching on an art pad, got up from her own bed and went to the door. Looking through the peep-hole she saw the group of people outside and let them in.

Mrs Rogers led Emily's parents into the room. Emily, seeing who had come in logged out of the server and her game, and put the laptop to sleep.

"This is where your daughter has been staying," Mrs Rogers explained. "She was originally going to have a room to herself, for obvious reasons. However, the accident has meant that part of the building, including several student bedrooms, has had to be evacuated. This has left us slightly short on space, so Anna, who was already aware of your daughter’s physical characteristics, volunteered to room with her. Anna's father has approved of the arrangement, and I have already shown you the letter that suggested you would approve as well."

"While I'm sure Anna is trustworthy, considering the amount of deception going on, do you actually trust our Child to behave?" Arnold enquired.

Anna couldn't help but starting to giggle, "Don't worry Mr Bridges, I'm perfectly safe from Emily. I'm a blue belt in Taekwon-Do, she isn't going to force me into anything I don't want to do. She's the one who has to worry about me. Besides which, I'm not a lesbian and have no intention of becoming pregnant before I'm at least twenty five. However, if her staying here is dependent on having a room to herself, then I'll move out. I can always go back to sharing with my half-sister, even if it means having to effectively be her slave."

Emily didn't say anything. She knew she was breaking her parents trust, but even so, her father’s insinuation still hurt. Especially considering her at times very obvious first crush had been on a boy. Something he was aware of due to the trouble it had caused at her previous school and something which had never been denied, at least to her parents. She had tried to deny it at school for self-protection, but it didn't work. Emily couldn't look at her parents so closed her eyes, which despite her best efforts, were starting to water. A solitary tear rolled down her face to be quickly wiped away.

Marilyn looked at her son. The person in front of her was obviously Jason, but at the same time, it was hard to picture him as a boy. At a quick glance he could almost be mistaken for his cousin Susan. The dress and cardigan didn't look out of place, and the longer hair pulled back into a simple pony tail seemed to suit him. She could tell that her son was nervous by the way he was fiddling with the position of his skirt and rubbing his bare feet together. His toenails sparkled in the early evening light, the dark blue glitter polish reflecting in the sunlight. She couldn't remember the last time she had seen his feet, as he always wore socks at home. Thinking back, she wondered if the polish was a new thing, as it did look slightly worn. Strangely, his fingernails were plain, but then she hadn't seen nail polish on any of the girls, so assumed it might be frowned upon as part of the school dress code.

Mrs Bridges had spent most of the previous afternoon, and half the night, watching videos of her child’s online activities. Susan had emailed a playlist that she had created that highlighted some of the best bits. With her husband, she had used YouTubes' ability to play at double speed to catch up on the activities, mainly focusing on the 'talky' episodes where Jason had vented his feelings. She also thought back to earlier in the day when she had first saw her child.

It was mid afternoon, and the Bridges had been going through the documents that the school had been given. The headmistress decided that a break was in order, and suggested talking a walk in the fresh air. Marilyn could see that the headmistress was trying to sell them the idea of Jason staying at the school, and had already admitted there was a benefit for the school if he were to stay. They had toured some of the outside facilities, calling in on the sports complex, where there was a fully equipped gym, and the swimming pool where a number of girls were practicing laps. One of the places they had visited was the squash courts. Looking down into the playing area from a viewing platform on an upper floor, they had seen a group of girls messing around in an informal practice. It took a couple of minutes to realise the happy excited girl bounding around in a short skirt with her pony tail flapping wildly was their son. The way he was laughing and giggling with the others was so at odds with the sad withdrawn individual they were familiar with. He seemed so relaxed and carefree.

Emily hadn't noticed that she was being watched. The lights in the court were bright in comparison with the relatively dark observation platform, making it difficult to see if anybody was there, even if she had thought to look in that direction, which she hadn't bothered to do.

"Am I even going to be here, or is that question academic?" Emily had asked softly, bringing Marilyn back to the present. "If you are going to drag me off home, then it won't matter what room Anna is in."

"We will let you know in the morning," Emily's mother declared, giving a stern look to her husband, who was probably going to say something else. "We have things we need to discuss. Get a good night’s sleep, and don't worry. Tell me honestly, irrespective of if Anna is your roommate, do you want to stay here?"

"Yes, I like it here. I want to be able to stay," Emily sobbed.

After looking round the room, Marilyn led the visitors out, to give the girls some peace. They headed down to the reception where Mr Jennings was waiting for them to arrive. After collecting the cases from their car, Mr Jennings gave them a lift to his house in the nearby town for the night.

~o~O~o~

Emily felt the warmth of the autumn sun on her face as she exited Wymondham Abbey, having just taken part in the service. She was dressed in her uniform, as were a number of the girls with her. She wasn't overly religious, and wouldn’t normally have considered going, but Wendy had persuaded her to try it.

St Marys, despite the religious name, was not tied to any church. It was not compulsory to attend a service, but left the decision up to the students. They did facilitate any student wishing to worship, and ran a shuttle service for any students wishing to attend any of the various churches in the town. The Abbey, the United Reform Church, the Baptist Church, and the City Church were all within walking distance of the town centre.

Janette, the eldest girl present being in her final year, called the other students to order, and once everyone was accounted for, led her fellow students up the path leading back into the town. When off school grounds, the students were required to stay in groups and be on their best behaviour, or risk being banned from leaving school.

~o~O~o~

Arnold had been surprised to hear that his son wasn't at the school when he arrived back Sunday morning. By the time he and his wife had breakfast, and Mr Jennings had run them back to the school, Emily had already left.

Mr and Mrs Bridges were sat on a bench together, overlooking a neatly cut green. They were watching a group of younger girls learning to play Crocket from Mr Jennings. They turned to see the bus drive up to the main entrance and come to a halt. Marilyn spotted her child exit the vehicle and line up with the other girls to enter the building and swipe their security cards to denote they were back on school grounds.

Spotting her parents, once Emily had completed the task of signing in, she excused herself from the crowd and headed over to the bench. Her parents stood up as she approached, and suggested they should take a walk round the grounds and find somewhere quiet they could talk. Emily nodded, and led the three to a secluded spot in some woodland, away from the other students.

Satisfied that they were far enough away as to not be overheard, Emily asked, "So, what happens next?"

"Jason," her father stated, causing her to wince, "while I don't agree with what you are doing here, I feel you are old enough to start to make your own decisions, and probably mistakes, in life. If you want to stay here, then that is up to you. However, if you do so, you will be doing it without our support. We will not pay a penny to your education here, and won't bail you out should you run out of funds. Although from what I have seen, you seem to have the situation under control financially, for which I'm impressed. You want your independence, you can have it, but don't come crying to us if you get in trouble, or the other students turn on you for being male. You will have to remain here until the end of term, no matter how bad the situation may get. You've made your own bed, so now you have to lie in it."

"You can come home for half-term if you wish," her mother added, "but while at home, you will need to return to being our son. I'm not willing to have to explain to all our neighbours and friends why we suddenly have a daughter and not a son. I assume you can manage that?"

"As long as I don't have to shave my head or anything else stupid," Emily replied, "Although by the time half-term arrives, I may find it difficult to have to hide myself again."

"We realise that may become harder to achieve over time," her mother declared, "Especially if you go down the road of blocking or inverting your puberty."

Emily looked up in surprise. Her doctors had tried to issue blockers before, and while she did have a short course, the prescription hadn't been renewed.

"We have discussed signing over your guardianship over to Mrs Jennings," Arnold told Emily, "Although she is connected to the school through her husband, she is independent of the bureaucracy here, and can therefore make decisions regarding your future that are unbiased by the business relationship you have with the school. That would include full authority for authorising any medical procedures deemed required by your doctors. Mrs Jennings has offered to make arrangements for you seeing a physiatrist and endocrinologist. That is if you agree."

"I've never met her," Emily replied, "but if you are willing to do that, and she seems to support my need for medical intervention, then I don't have a problem."

"You'll like her," Marilyn stated. "She's here this morning, so that you can get acquainted."

"Emily," her father said, causing her to smile, "I think it’s time we headed back and got this paperwork signed."

Emily led the family back to the school offices. Mrs Jennings was sat having coffee with Mrs Rogers in her office when they arrived back. After Emily had been introduced to her new guardian, Marilyn carefully reviewed all the paperwork that Mrs Rogers had prepared for them, and was the first to sign the documents, before overseeing her husband, to make sure he signed in the correct places.

~o~O~o~

It was shortly after two in the afternoon. The Bridges had joined their daughter for lunch, a traditional roast dinner, before setting off for home. Mrs Roger, Wendy and Anna looked on as Emily hugged her mother and then shook hands with her father.

Emily waved as the car drove out of sight as her parent left without her. A tear rolled down her face, more from happiness than sadness. Her parents hadn't exactly welcomed the change, but at least they hadn't completely disowned her. The return home may be awkward, but that was in the future. For the time being she was where she wanted to be, and more important, what she wanted to be: a schoolgirl at a prestigious girls' school, surrounded by close friends that accepted her for who, not what, she was. Anna, her roommate for at least the rest of the term, and money permitted, possibly the rest of her school life, put her arm around Emily in a comforting hug.