The Weekly Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 3313 by Angharad Copyright© 2021 Angharad

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This is a work of fiction any mention of real people, places or institutions is purely coincidental and does not imply that they are as suggested in the story.
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Trish had laid the table in the dining room, she said it was Danni's idea. I thought the kitchen would have been good enough, but rather than create a stir, I accepted what they'd done with good grace.

I heard Simon arrive and him tell David, 'Five mins,' which meant he would rush upstairs and change out of his suit into jeans and sweater or something. I heard one of the girls say something and Simon replied, "Oh, that's news. Okay, who is it?" I saw the back of him fleetingly as he ran up the stairs.

Trish captured our visitor and showed him the large photo of Stanebury, "This is our holiday home, not bad for a chalet, is it?"

"This is yours, really?" gasped Peter.

"Well, not mine exactly, according to Mummy, it was part of the compensation package for marrying Daddy."

He laughed after saying, "Wow."

"Don't be too impressed, Peter, it's cold and damp and it rains up there much of the time, but that is Stanebury, Simon's ancestral home - when his ancestors weren't rustling cattle."

"Hey, d'you think we could do some of that down here?" asked Trish being silly.

"I don't think Daddy ever actually did any of it, it was his ancestors," I said.

"What like Gramps was a cattle thief?" she asked incredulously.

"Why don't you ask him, but be prepared for a rebuttal and being scratched off his Christmas present list."

"Who Daddy's or Gramp's?" she asked as if evaluating if it was worth the risk.

Simon came down and after introducing him to Peter, Trish asked him loudly, "Have you ever rustled cattle, Dad?"

"What? What d'you think I am, a cowboy?" to which I snorted, "Remember I'm a banker but your mother seem unable to tell the difference," he fired back rather curtly while giving me a hard look. Well, can I help it if I react when he says something funny, or funny to me. Danielle was sniggering behind him.

"C'mon, let's eat before this lovely meal spoils," I exhorted and the tension dropped. David decided he wanted to watch some soccer match and decided not to stay but took his dinner with him back to his cottage. I suspect Danni may have felt similar except she wanted to impress and flirt with Peter. I'd play it by ear, if she got too friendly, I would intervene.

Stella arrived with her two and she was introduced and we all sat down to dine, Simon offering all the adults wine, including a small glass for Danielle. I could almost see her chest growing as she was included with the adults. She doesn't particularly like red wine but she wasn't going to turn it down. In a few years she'll be lying about her age, but in the other direction, trying to make out she's younger than she appears. I know, I'm almost at that stage already.

The two men seemed to be getting on quite well, Peter telling Simon he was impressed by the castle and Simon telling him he wouldn't be if he knew what it cost to run and maintain.

"But the estate presumably brings in an income?" suggested Peter.

"Yeah, but since a certain person has been pressuring me to re-wild the grouse moor, it barely covers the costs and despite my affection for the place, I might one day have to sell it," he sighed and ate some more paté.

"You can't do that, Daddy, it's our ancestral home," gasped Trish.

"It's a millstone, lassie."

"But it's the family's home," she persisted.

"Don't you think I don't know that, I was born in the bloody place."

"Shall we change the subject?" I suggested and Tom nodded. He was still giving Peter an uncertain look and when I cleared up the first course, I asked him to come and collect the chicken.

"Did I introduce you to Peter?" I hissed at him.

"Ye didnae but I ken wha he is, not whit he wants wi' ye."

"He wants me to help someone."

"Someone dae whit?"

"I'm still waiting to find out, here use this cloth to pick up the tray it's quite hot," I said handing him an oven glove thing.

The rest of the meal went well, we had roast chicken with all the trimmings, including bread sauce but only Daddy and Simon ate any, I made do with a big lump of David's own recipe sage and onion stuffing, it's even better than mine and mine is pretty good.

We were all relaxed and in a postprandial zone, a bit like post orgasmic one but better, and the wine was flowing easily, even Danni had been allowed a second glass. Stella and I cleared the table and we sniggered as we loaded the dishwasher about Danielle's antics in trying to catch Peter's eye, he was talking business with Simon. All the youngsters except Danielle had gone off to do their homework, she assured me she'd done hers. Tom was still sitting there and had actually produced a bottle of his wine, not one he'd made but a very good Merlot from his own cellar stock.

We returned to the table carrying tea and coffee and cream and milk, I always forget the sugar as I don't use it in either beverage. Danni likes it in coffee, so I sent her to find it, she walked a little unsteadily from the table not helped by the three inch heels she was sporting.

As we sat at the table pouring teas and coffee, I realised Simon and Peter were talking about how he knew me and I heard Simon say, "So you knew her in school and that thug Murray?"

"We all suffered under that psycho," said Peter nodding. "it must have been hell to be the only girl in a boy's school."

"It was," I said terminating the conversation just as Danielle arrived with the sugar bowl and nearly dropped it as she tried to regain her chair. "No more wine for you, madam," I said pointedly at her. I could see that she was thinking of retaliation, usually poking out her tongue but in company she behaved herself.

I sipped my tea, Simon was on black coffee as was Daddy and Peter opted for a cup of tea. Danni dropped two sugar lumps in her cup and giggled at the plopping noise they made. I scowled at her and she stopped.

"The reason I came to see you, Cathy, was...oh excuse me I need the loo." He suddenly jumped up and rushed out to the cloakroom in the hallway. Simon indicated that he liked him and I nodded, I did too. Coming back from the loo, Peter nearly fell over our demon cat, who raced between his legs and up the stairs to Trish's bed. We all chuckled at that, Danni saying where the cat was going after she'd discovered there was nothing else to eat or cadge from us.

"You were saying," I rebooted Peter.

"Oh yeah, the reason for my reacquainting us. It's about my niece, Sarah." He paused and finished his wine and then went back to drinking his tea. "She's my sister's daughter, she's pretty well all the way through a nursery nurse's course but she can't find a job."

"Why not?" asked Tom suddenly lapsing into ordinary English. I had a feeling I might know why, Danni gave me a knowing look which we shared with Stella, who'd stayed enjoying the company.

"Um, she's um, she's like..." Peter was blushing like crazy.

"She's transgender, isn't she?" I said enabling him to get over the hurdle and continue his narrative.

"How did you guess?" he said looking shocked.

"Female intuition," I replied and Danni nearly fell off her chair snorting coffee everywhere.

"Oh. yeah of course, as a mere male I miss out on such things. Perhaps the wine or the company had dulled his wits, but practically everyone else in the room had worked it out except him. I suspect even the cat had done so and run off while thinking, 'Oh no, they're talking trans, so boring.'

"Is she post op?" asked Danielle.

"Just wait a moment, Missy." I pulled rank. "How old is she?"

"Coming up seventeen in the new year."

"So she hasn't had reassignment surgery."

"I don't think - no she hasn't come to think of it because one of the problems she has is worrying about being discovered as a girl with a penis."

"Poor kid," offered Stella refilling her cup and mine.

I now began to wonder if he was begging for money so she could get it done abroad or what?"

"She transitioned about a year or eighteen months ago when she left school after GCSEs and went to the sixth form college. They've been really good but they felt she had to declare her true gender to potential clients, the result is no one wants her."

I shook my head, "Why does she have to declare a body part which probably doesn't function except for urine, I take it she's taking hormones."

"She is now," we had a hell of a fight to get them. It was a familiar tale, "She'd been on blockers since she was fifteen."

"So what do you want me to do?"

"I don't know," he said, "I've known her since she was born, it was obvious she wasn't a boy when she was just a toddler, I love her to bits but she's stuck on this stupid honesty rule and unless she has some sort of work experience in place or organised soon, she'll fail the course." He was nearly in tears.

"So you're looking for a placement?"

"Yeah, but she's coming down to me next weekend, could I bring her to see you, you might be able to suggest something we have all missed."

"Is she a good worker?" I asked and Stella's eyes grew wider.

"Yeah, she's no slouch or lazy bones."

"Have you a photo?"

"Um yeah," he pulled out his phone and fiddled with it for a moment then handed it to me. The photo was of a typical teenage girl with long dark hair. "She's gone blonde at the moment." He chuckled and so did Daddy.

"Pretty lassie," was his opinion, which was shared by pretty well everyone.

"Okay, Peter," bring her over next weekend and leave her with us for an hour or two and I'll see what I can do."

"I haven't told her about you and her being, you know..."

"Cathy, is legally female," said Simon, "so any suggestion of anything else is erroneous."

"Of course," said Peter blushing. He drank another coffee and at eleven o'clock he told me he had to go, some returns to finish before he could go to bed. "Thank you, Cathy, thank you all," he said to everyone still seated at the table, Daddy had gone for his wee dram.

"See you next week with young Sarah."

"When I tell her, she'll be absolutely knocked out."

"No promises, Peter, but I'll see what I can think of."

"You are a beautiful woman and an equally beautiful person, thank you so much," he pecked me on the cheek and walked over to his car. Two minutes later his tail lights were heading out of the driveway.

"You're not going to employ her, are you?" demanded Stella. I said nothing and started picking up dirty mugs. "You are, aren't you? You promised me there'd be no more transsexual people here."

"I didn't actually, but I'm saying nothing until I've met the girl."

Stella huffed and puffed and decided to retreat, going up to bed.

"She's right, isn't she?" said Simon.

"As I told Stella, until I have met the child and assessed her in all sorts of ways, I'm not prepared to prejudge the issue and neither should you."

"Go on, Mum, give her a chance, you'd want other people to do it for me if it was me who was in need." Danni was showing solidarity, "Should I take her to see Pia?" she asked rhetorically, at least I hoped it was, then she did fall off the chair laughing.