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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In the last segment, Sophia was leaving Dr. Bill's office and ran into Dan as he was heading toward his office. Dan invited Sophia to join him in his office for a short chat. And now, the story continues...

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Part 13 — Wednesday, July 14, 2004 (afternoon) (Bastile Day!)

"Sure, but rehearsal is in half an hour, and I don't want to be late."

"Come on in then." He opened the door he happened to be standing next to and beckoned for me to precede him. "Ladies first," he quipped.

"Awww, Dan. Come on."

"Just helping you to stay in character."

"Character? Oh, you mean my being a girl right now."

"Being? Did something change while I was away?"

"You were gone?"

"I had to take care of a family matter yesterday, and the others were keeping an eye on things here for me. I was just returning to my office to catch up on things."

"I hope things are okay." I guess even shrinks have family lives. I wonder if he's got kids, too. He's got a ring.

"Of course, and even if they weren't, they'd be nothing for you to worry about. So, why did you need to see Bill again today?"

"Well, apparently Becky thought I needed to."

"Becky?"

"Uh-huh. She scheduled me for the meeting with him today. Yesterday's was scheduled by Mr. Smith, so I could practice without losing these things." I pointed at my chest, "or my wig."

"Let's go back a bit. I knew you were going to get the glue. Mr. Smith told me he intended to talk with you about that. But, why did you need to talk to Becky?"

"I don't know. She just asked for it at breakfast and I figured I should take it as an order. I mean, if someone on the staff suggests something, isn't that just a nice way to tell us?"

"Okay, I can see where you're coming from." Then, with a frown on his face, Dan asked, "What did you and Bill talk about, just now?"

I hoped I wasn't in trouble for talking to another shrink. "It's okay if I talk to one of the other shrinks, isn't it?"

"If you need to, of course. You can talk to anyone you want. But, since I'm assigned to you, I'd like to hear your story. Later, I can look up what they had to say."

"Okay." Wait, "look up what they had to say?" I bet they have records on us, and Becky had to write something up about yesterday. "Ummm, he told me about various ways that you can slow down puberty, or even give someone a different one, even before they're sixteen." I looked up, as I heard him catch his breath. "I dunno why he told me, and he even seemed a little surprised himself. He said something about two recommendations or something."

Dan had an unusual expression on his face, which was a bit surprising, "So, you didn't ask for this?"

"Good grief, NO. I don't want to want to REALLY be a girl. I just need to learn to be one, so when I dress this way, I do it right and don't make fun of the girls that NEED to be girls, but were born wrong."

When his expression hardened, I became worried that maybe I'd said something wrong. I guess I squirmed a little.

"Oh, sorry, Sophia. I didn't mean to worry you; it was just that I was surprised." He paused a minute and took a breath. "Why don't you tell me about your chat with Becky?"

"Don't you have notes from her? From your comment earlier, I thought you all had to make lots of notes."

He gave a little chuckle. "Yes, I'm sure there are, and I will look them over later. I'd just like to hear your thoughts now."

We went on to discuss what I'd said and what we'd talked about. We got to the point where he asked me a question I'd been dreading, ever since I'd talked with Dr. Bill.

"You didn't tell her the full reason you feel so strongly about not clowning, did you?"

"No, sir," I quietly replied, looking at the floor.

"I take it Bill already talked to you about how important it is to not hide things from the support staff?"

Even quieter, "Yes, sir." I was sure I was in trouble now. Would they throw me out of the school?

"Sophia, you are NOT in trouble. You're still learning." I looked up at that. "We're here to help you, and if we get some information that's wrong or, as it appears to be in this case, incomplete, we can come to the wrong conclusion. This time, no harm's been done. Well, apart from some embarrassment for you, I suspect."

He paused, and looked at me. I'm sure I must have turned bright red, 'cause my face felt really hot.

"It's okay, you can learn from embarrassment, too." He paused then, and I tried to relax a little. I could feel my heart beating pretty fast. "In this case, I believe that Becky honestly believed you wanted to BECOME a girl for the rest of your life."

"What? How could she get that idea? You knew I was just learning to act the part, didn't you?"

"I certainly thought so, and do now."

"Then, how could she so quickly get a different impression?"

"I suspect, the way you answered her questions may have had something to do with it. I'll clear things up with her later. Right now, I'm trying to understand what you might be hiding that would have cleared things up."

"I can't tell you."

"Can't or won't? No, don't tell me now. I suspect I know the reason, but you need to come to trust us yourself. We really ARE here to help you." He paused then. "Does Renee know?"

I nodded. "That's good. You should NEVER hide anything from your study partner, even if you decide to hide something from somebody else. Always remember that."

"Ummm."

"Just remember not to keep secrets from Renee." He paused, "And, yes, I know she's not shared all of hers, but give her time."

I looked at him quizzically; I knew she'd not talked much about her past, but was there something there that explained why she was afraid of people. I nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Sophia, you're not in any trouble, really. In the future, if you don't understand something or why you're being asked to do something, PLEASE ask."

"Okay." I paused momentarily, then asked a question that had been worrying me. "You don't force a kid to take medicines, do you?"

"Where did that come from?" he paused. "No, you're concerned about the medicines to delay puberty, aren't you?"

I nodded. "I'm sure Bill told you that such medicines are only given after extensive discussions, and once we AND the pupil are convinced they must be."

"He said that, but after I got told about it, without even asking..." I let my voice trail off."

"I'm sorry that happened, but since it did, it doesn't hurt you, does it?"

"No, I guess not. It just feels like something I won't be talking about with others, if you know what I mean."

"You mean hide it?" He had a frown on his face.

"Sorta."

"No, you don't need to hide the information. If you run into someone that you think needs it, by all means, share. But, rather than tell them all of it, you're probably better off suggesting they talk to their staff support person."

"It's more ... What happens to a kid who has used the medicine, and then goes home after graduating. I think, if it were me, my parents would be asking a LOT of questions."

"You have a point there, and you can be sure the school does take care of anyone that might need our help." At the questioning look on my face, "No, don't worry about it now. It'll be years before it could be an issue for you, even if you were in that situation."

I guessed it was like my dad said about that Need to Know stuff. "Thanks, Dan."

"You're welcome. I'd better send Mrs. Russell a note, explaining why you cut rehearsal today."

"She'll kill me."

"No, Sophia. Your welfare comes first. If the staff says you need to miss something, that's all there is to it. And, for your benefit, if you see another pupil that needs help, don't hesitate to help first, and get approval later. There's NOTHING more important to us than the health of the pupils."

Wow. Heavy stuff... I dunno how that hooks in with the stuff I've thought about before, but, wow!

"Why don't you go back to your room and rest a bit? That'll allow you to think things over and get your thoughts sorted. I'm sorry you went through this, but hopefully you can learn something as well." At my nod, "You can meet the rest of your year when rehearsal is finished."

"Thanks. I think I do need to do some thinking."

Back in my room, I had almost an hour to think things over before Renee got back.

"You okay, Dan?"

"Hi, Renee, Yeah. I ran into Dan on the way out of my appointment with Dr. Bill today, and we talked for most of the time."

I could see she was about to ask me more, but I figured it would take a while, so I suggested we wait until after dinner, so we didn't miss the meal.

Arriving at dinner, I was faced by a lot of questions about where I'd been during rehearsal. Luckily, Keith intervened, "Sophia was talking with Dan about some things. I should remind you all of something you were all told on your first day here. Your well-being comes first in this school. If you or another student needs help, that help IS made available. If anyone on the support staff deems it's important, you will miss activities or lessons, and if it's lessons, help is available to make sure you don't miss out."

I heard Mark groan at this. "Yes, Mark, you will have to make up the homework. It's NOT a free ticket to skip work."

"A guy can hope, can't he?"

"This is serious, Mark."

"Sorry."

"Another point is that if any of you need help, you have only to ask. If you see someone that needs help, and YOU can provide it, you should. If not, call for help. Don't leave another student needing help."

Ingrid asked, "What happens there, if we are late to a lesson, or miss it?"

"Good question. It shows you're thinking about this. Contact anyone on the support staff, or if someone else on staff is available, get their attention and they'll take care of things."

He then looked around to see that we'd all gotten the message. "Enough of that heavy stuff, I don't know about all of you, but I'm hungry, and all the other tables have their food."

Pru and Sally jumped up. "Sorry," they said in unison.

"No, it's not a problem. I delayed you, because you all needed to hear this and remember it. But, run along now."

Hmmm. Sounds like what the shrinks say goes. I wonder how they handle disagreements? I gave a sigh, and Keith turned to me. "Is there something worrying you?"

"Politics, I think."

He must have had some idea about what I was talking about, 'cause he just said. "Every organization has some. We generally don't have too much, and mistakes are rectified. I think Becky wants to talk with you briefly after we eat. No, there's nothing to worry about, she just had a talk with Dan."

I was still a bit nervous, but I guess I hid it well enough. The remainder of dinner was uneventful, and was over before I realized it. I must have been more nervous than I'd thought, 'cause I just didn't recall what I ate.

"Remember, meeting in the year room, once Pru and Sally are done." Ingrid said, as she and Fran headed out. Wayne followed them, and Mark stayed behind.

"Something up, Mark?" Keith asked.

He looked over at Renee and me and shrugged his shoulders, "Sorry about the homework comment earlier. I'm afraid it's a habit I have."

"It's okay. Many times, a little levity can be helpful. You'll just have to learn when. It'll come with time."

"Thanks, Keith." With that, he made his retreat.

Wow, if Mark can recognize his mistake, that's big. While I was lost, thinking about Mark's turn around, Becky approached me.

"Sophia, I just wanted you to know that I had a talk with Dan this afternoon, and he cleared up some things for me. I wish you'd told me your other reasons for working so hard at this." She indicated how I was dressed. "I know you feel you couldn't, but it might have been better for you to have done so."

"I'm sorry, Becky. I never lied to you."

"I know, but without all the information, and I'm afraid to admit, going in with a preconception, I jumped to a conclusion that may not have been warranted."

"I'm sorry."

"I know; so am I. I just want you to think about what happened."

"Becky, they do need to get on, and I already gave them the trust lecture."

She laughed. "Thanks, Keith." Then turning back to us, "Now, you see why I keep him around."

Renee and I joined their short laugh. I could see how her little joke had reduced some building tension. Maybe that's what Keith was trying to say to Mark.

"Go on now, you two," she directed.

As we headed for the year room, Renee asked about that conversation.

"It's related to the stuff this afternoon and my talk with Dr. Bill and Dan. It's going to take some time to tell you all about it, but I will."

"Okay. You're not in trouble, are you?"

"Apparently not, but I'll tell you I WAS worried there a while. I did learn a few things, I think."

We arrived at the year room, to find everyone there.

"You're probably wondering why I invited you all here tonight," began Mark.

"You didn't do it Mark, Ingrid did."

"I know. But, I always wanted to say that," he quipped.

"What's this all about, Ingrid?" Sally asked.

"We need a year leader, and last night Dan and I were talking."

"That's Sophia," Mark interrupted.

"Sorry, right. Sophia and I were talking. SHE mentioned that we'd not chosen our leader yet, and I figured we should get it done on our own, before they make us."

Wayne chimed in, "So-So-o-phia wou-u-ld be g-go-o-od,"

We were all quiet at this, as Wayne hadn't contributed much except occasionally in private conversations.

"Yeah, she would," agreed Mark. "She figured out a way for Wayne and me to be able to work on our homework together."

Before things got out of hand, or there was a stampede, I said, "I think Ingrid should be the leader, She's the one that plans stuff, like having this meeting. Besides, Mark, I was just lucky, any of us could have come up with the answer."

I wasn't sure how much effect my comment had had, but it seemed to solidify the interest in the two of us. Eventually, Ingrid recognized that we were talking in circles. "How about we vote?"

"How do we want to do this?" Sally queried.

"I asked Kate, and she said there's a special application that controls voting for year leaders. I guess they've had problems before, so there are some rules on it. We can't vote for ourselves or our study partners–and the application makes sure of this. I sent you all a link to the application, so you don't need to go through the menus to find it. Once we all vote, we'll be presented with the winner, the standings, or if we all want, the details of the vote. I'd suggest that none of us look at the details. The election won't be unanimous, anyway." She laughed a little at the end.

"See? Ingrid found another answer," I said as I pulled out my PDA and saw the link she'd indicated. I quickly arranged to pick her name, and clicked send."

A bit later, all of the PDAs chimed.

"That's the signal that the votes have been tallied."

We all looked. "

Mark quickly went up to Ingrid, and got on his knees. "All bow before our fearsome leader!"

"I'll show you fearsome, you clown," Ingrid rejoined.

There was some general bantering at that. Wayne came up, and told me he still thought I'd make a better leader. I thanked him, but assured him Ingrid would be fine.

That evening, interspersed in our studying I told Renee about my various meetings during the afternoon.

"Wow, that's freaky, Dan. I'm glad they'll be able to help Fran, though."

"Yeah, me too, but it makes me worry more about how she'll be able to go home. And, it's one more thing about this school that I'll have to keep to myself once we graduate. Oh, I mean, we can talk about it, or maybe with others from the school. What do you think outsiders would say?"

"That's no joke! It'd hit the tabloids, big time."

"You know, it's a wonder it hasn't already hit them. I mean, it's obvious this school's been here a while. It's hard to believe that no kid or member of their family has ever spilled the beans."

"You know, you're right. Ohh, maybe they ship us all off to a hidden moon base when we graduate."

We both had a nice laugh at that.

"Um, I don't think we should talk about this last bit to the others, at least not yet."

"Why not? I think it's funny." she asked.

"Oh, it is, but, it might make them think about the school in more ways than as a school. There's an awful lot that is way different from any other school I've heard of. What if there's more?

"You don't really think they'll ship us off to the moon, do you?"

"No, but, things really aren't adding up. Stuff like them helping the transsexual kids and dress-up like this." I pointed at myself. "I can see how the dressing does teach you something. I've already learned a lot and I've only been doing this for two days. I'm beginning to understand how much more I have to learn."

"That's a little strange, I'll admit. But, why not share the joke?"

"Things are adding up in a way I'm not sure I like. Saying it might get some of the others worried, too."

"You're worried?"

"Uncomfortable is probably a better term."

"Then just stop the dressing."

"Oh, it's not that. It's like there's something in the back of my head trying to get my attention, and I can't figure it out. It's like I know something, but can't remember it. Sorry, I'm always bugged when that happens."

"Why don't you talk to one of the shrinks about it?"

"Don't you think I've wasted enough of their time the past two days? I mean, not being able to tell them about Fran almost got me making this permanent."

"Maybe you, no WE should talk to Fran, and explain what happened."

"I guess we do owe them that explanation." I sighed.

I looked at my PDA. "Well, there's no time for that tonight. We've still got a few lessons to get over, 'cause of all my extra stuff this afternoon."

We settled down and finished our work with minutes to spare before our self imposed deadline at curfew.

"Can you braid my hair tonight, so I don't wake up with the spiders?"

"I can try. I used to help plait some of the younger girls' hair back at the orphanage. But, they had pretty straight hair."

"This isn't curly. It's wavy."

"Okay, only if it were curly, you'd probably not have to worry so much."

I laughed, but then wondered if that was really the case. I'd have to ask when I went to the salon the next time.

We looked around for some hair ties, figuring that braiding without them wouldn't do much good. She then braided my hair, and it felt kinda funny. No, that's not right. I'd been surprised at the feeling of the hair around my ears and face, but now it was gone again.

--- Thursday, July 15, 2004

Waking up the next morning was less difficult. The braid HAD helped keep my hair under control. I wondered if a simple ponytail would do as good a job. Getting up, I padded to the bathroom and took care of business, then looked at myself in the mirror. I'd seen myself previously, but I was still surprised. I looked an awful lot like Karen, and couldn't see any of Kirk. That hurt a little, 'cause, while he'd teased me, he'd also been my best friend until he got shipped back to Grandma and Grandpa's for high school. Am I really turning into my sister? Maybe I should talk to Dan about this if things get bad.

I checked my schedule then, using the big screen on my computer. What's this? Swimming evaluation right after breakfast. No–a good half hour later. Yeah, they'll probably talk at us some before they test us.

I started to get my outfit together, and was mostly dressed when I heard, "You decent, Dan?"

"Yeah, come on in, I've got a question."

"The swimming, right?"

"Yeah, how did you guess?"

"There's a couple of bathing suits in the closet, and you'd best get a swimming cap to give your hair some protection."

I gulped. "Okay, pick one out for me, please?"

She laughed. "You'll be okay. She went in, and after a minute, came out with a bag. She reached in, and pulled out two tiny pieces of material.

"Noooooo."

"Oh, Dan, you'll be sooo cute in a bikini."

"Renee ... Please," I begged.

"Okay, sorry, I couldn't resist." She tossed the suit on the bed, and pulled something else out of the bag. "Here's the real suit, it's a racing suit, kinda tight all over, but it covers you to the neck. Your forms won't show."

I gave a sigh of relief. "Thanks. I was afraid that," pointing at the bikini, "that was all there was."

"You ought to know better. There were several suits, really. You do have another issue though. Do you mind showing?"

I looked at her blankly for a minute, then I KNOW I turned bright red. I seem to get embarrassed a lot lately. "Ohhh. Yeah." Then, I remembered what Dr. Bill had said about something to hide my friend.

"Maybe there's something in the drawer," I said, as I walked over to the bedside table again. "Dr, Bill said it'd be under the forms box." I looked in, and saw three different gaffs, just like he'd said. One looked like it wouldn't show under my old jockeys, so I figured it would have to do for swimming. "Yeah, it's here. I guess it's a good thing I talked to him. I know the theory behind this torture device."

"Torture device?"

"You recall your classes on boys and girls?" At her nod, I continued, "Well, it has to be bent backward and held in place."

"Ewww. That sounds yucky."

"Yeah. I'm not looking forward to it." I tossed it into the bag with the rest of the stuff. "No reason to put it on before I have to."

Then, I remembered the braid. "Thanks for the braid. It worked like a charm."

"Well, it's a mess now. Do you want me to fix it, or wear your hair back down?"

I thought. "I'd best wear it normally. We'll have to wash after swimming, and I think the wet braid might be hard to get out."

"Yeah, let's go into the en-suite and I'll un-plait it for you now."

We did, and then I brushed out my hair like I'd been shown.

"That's pretty good. You're a quick learner."

I nodded. "I guess it goes with my mimicking ability."

We finished getting ready, and left our bags by her door. Our plan was to come back after breakfast and get our suits on, then put something on over them. The bags had our clean change for after swimming.

Kate was at our table for breakfast, and I noticed that Renee was more subdued than normal. I mean, she's usually quiet when we're out of our rooms, but this was more.

"Hello, Sophia. Are you ready for your swimming evaluation this morning?" Kate asked.

"I think so. I'm planning on changing back in the room after breakfast and carrying some clean stuff for changing afterward."

"Good plan. Since you've got that covered, we may as well tuck in once the food gets here." She went on to greet the rest of the year. Renee responded with one syllable responses. Wow, that's worse than she was with Keith. I thought it just was men she had trouble with.

After breakfast, we returned to the room, and as soon as we got inside, "Are you okay?"

"I'll be okay in a minute."

I didn't say anything then, but I stayed with her until she seemed to be doing better.

"Thanks, Dan. We'd best get ready."

"You going to be okay?"

"Yeah. I'm okay now."

"Okay. Talk to me later if you want."

"Maybe." I looked at her with concern. "Okay, I'll try, but we DO need to get ready."

"I know, but you come first!"

She gave me a quick hug, "I'm okay now, really. Go and get ready."

I went into my room, and quickly undressed, laying it on the bed. Next, was figuring out the gaff. I was supposed to shove my balls up into my body but when I tried, they kept falling out. Dr. Bill had said they should pop in with a little discomfort and stay, but it didn't want to work. I sighed. Okay, I'll pull this gaff almost in place and try to move things fast. Well, it sorta worked, but it hurt, sorta. It's supposed to work. Maybe it'll get better.

I pulled the swim suit on over the gaff, and got dressed, with a turtleneck in place of the blouse I'd been wearing earlier. I put my clean unders and the swim cap into the bag, and checked everything.

I called out, "You ready?" at the same time she said the same thing.

I made my way to the door. I laughed a little, but stopped 'cause it was really uncomfortable. I guess I should have changed at the pool or something.

We headed out, and others were coming into the hall at the same time. I was quieter than normal, 'cause I was just very uncomfortable. Apparently it was affecting how I was walking.

"Are you okay, Sophia?"

"I think so."

"Do you need to go see the docs?"

"NO!" I quieted down. "Sorry, I saw him yesterday and the day before. That's enough for one week."

"If it keeps up, you should go and see him again," Ingrid interrupted.

"Yes, mother."

"Silly! If something hurts, it's usually a hint that it needs to be fixed."

I must have jumped a bit at the last word. I didn't want to get FIXED, like the puppy we'd had in Naples.

As things seemed to be going a little numb, I figured I'd be okay. "It's getting better."

"All right then." She looked at me, then shrugged.

I managed to walk more evenly the rest of the way to the pool. Arriving there, I got out of my clothes, took one of the provided towels, and wrapped it over me. I thought it was a little cool, but Sally said it was a great temperature for swimming. I dunno. I kinda liked warmer weather. It wasn't long before the eight of us were standing together in a corner of the pool room. It was a nice sized pool. I was still a little uncomfortable, and wished it would just go away. My discomfort was distracting me enough so I didn't hear someone come up behind us, well, me.

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, I'm Jonathan Fields, but you can call me Jon. Today we have your swimming evaluation, which is to determine your relative skill levels and see what kind of teaching you will need. First, are there any non-swimmers?" He looked around. "Your profiles said you were all swimmers, but we've found it best to ask anyway.'

"Here's the test. You'll jump into the pool here at the deep end and then swim four lengths, without stopping. You may use any stroke you wish. When you return to this end the second time, you will touch the wall, then move back about two meters and tread water until I blow my whistle, or you can't any more. The goal is for you to tread water for two minutes. Once you finish that, you'll get out, and wait for the rest of your class to finish." He paused, I suspect waiting for questions.

"Passing gives you a basic certification. Those that pass can choose to take the advanced tests if they like. Those that do not pass will have a chance to re-take the test at a future date, and remedial lessons will be available. Most classes have at least one student that, even after remedial classes, cannot pass the test. They will continue to receive training until they can pass. It's a safety thing. All pupils should be able to swim to some extent. It is also not unusual to have someone in the class breeze through all the tests and be certified as a lifeguard, though usually not until year two or three."

He then asked if any of us had questions. There were a few, but they were quickly resolved. I did notice that Renee seemed to keep me or one of the others between the teacher and herself. What IS her problem? I resolved again to find out and help her with her issue. We ended up doing the test in pairs. As it turned out, Renee and I would go second to last, with Mark and Wayne last.

We watched Ingrid and Fran take to the water, and both managed to pass easily. My discomfort distracted me some, but I looked to see if Fran had figured out the gaff, and it looked like she had. Maybe I could ask her. I shook my head, and turned to watch Sally and Pru.

Wow, Sally just flew through the water and was back treading water before Pru even turned back on her last length. The instructor's whistle came just after Pru started treading. Instead of getting out, Sally stayed with her and encouraged her to hold out. I think Sally's encouragement is what helped her to pass.

At our turn, I put down my towel, and walked to the side. I saw some strange looks from Mark and Wayne, but hoped it was for the obvious reason, not because something was showing. When I jumped in, the cold bit right through me, and I gave a yell while still under water. That just made things worse. I started swimming, using Renee, who was in front of me, to keep me going. I kicked enough to breathe, but otherwise let my legs trail, as that hurt less. When we got back to the deep end for the treading, I just couldn't kick much and I reached for the side before Renee, and just hung there for a minute.

Climbing out was misery, but I think I must have managed to mask it because the teacher didn't say anything. He did come over though. "Is there anything wrong?"

"No, sir."

"I was just wondering, because you didn't seem to remember you had legs, either while swimming or treading water.

I'm sorry; maybe I hit my toe or something." He looked at me, "We'll schedule remedial lessons to help you remember they're there."

"Thank you, sir." I felt so embarrassed to have flunked. I usually swam much better. I couldn't wait to get this torture device off.

Mark and Wayne went on to pass as well.

"I'm glad most of you passed on the first try. Once Sophia completes her remedial classes, she'll be fine. Does anyone desire to take the advanced test today?"

Sally and Mark volunteered. Mark managed to pass the test, barely. But the surprise was Sally. She breezed through the test and came up looking like she was ready for more.

"Okay, good efforts all of you. I'll log your levels. Go ahead and shower and change."

Getting back to the changing room was a chore with the low grade pain, but once I was able to get into the shower, and get the suit and device off, the sharp pain came back suddenly and then seemed to ease off. I must be doing something wrong. Based on everything I've seen here, I can't believe it's supposed to be so painful. But, who can I ask? Just standing there in the warm shower helped relax me more than I'd expected. I still wasn't used to the breasts, or the hair. It seemed to take forever to get the soap out. I was used to a quick rinse.

"Sophia, are you going to stay in there, like forever? We do all need to get through, and you're hogging that one," Ingrid said.

"Sorry, just getting the stuff out of my hair. It takes longer than I'm used to." I heard some laughter from the outside. Then, as it seemed to be rinsed as well as it was going to be, I shut off the shower. Pulling down the towel I dried off quickly, then wrapped it around me like I'd seen my mom do on occasion. "Next," I said, as I popped out of the shower and moved over to one of the changing rooms to get dressed.

Classes went normally, until my deportment class with Kelly. I was walking a little slower than normal, due to some residual pain in my groin.

"Good afternoon, Sophia. I've heard good reports on your progress from the other staff."

"Ummm." Okay, I'm a great conversationalist.

Kelly laughed. "I'm not checking up on you, Sophia. Several happened to make a point of letting me know how well you seemed to be handling things."

"Oh, well, um, what do we do today?"

She laughed a bit again, "Okay. We'll start with a review. Let's see you walk across the room and back."

I tried keeping my steps short, but I guess she could see something.

"Are the shoes okay?"

"Umm, yes."

"You seem to be a bit stiffer walking than last time. You sure the shoes didn't rub?"

"Yes, ma'am." Well, nothing for it. I sighed, "I had some trouble at the swimming evaluation this morning."

"You hit the wall or bottom?"

"Umm, no." Okay, out with it. It'll come out sooner or later, anyway. Sighing, "I had problems with the gaff."

"I see. Several youths have had difficulties, but that was trying to put them on wrong."

"I think I was following Dr. Bill's directions."

"I'm not an expert at putting them on, but perhaps you should go back and see him about it. My understanding is that they can be uncomfortable and take some getting used to, but they shouldn't cause long term pain. Perhaps you should go back to see him and show him what you're doing." I must have jumped, or started at least, "You don't like that idea?"

"I've already seen him twice this week."

Kelly thought for a few minutes. "Maybe you could ask another pupil to help you out?"

"Who could I ask?"

She smiled, "Quite a number of the pupils in the older years have considerable experience, but, you probably don't want to just go up and ask one, do you?"

"Ummm."

"Don't worry. Why don't you ask Andy? You've indicated you already know him. I'm sure he'd be glad to help out."

"Andy knows... wait, you and the others said he knew a lot about hair and makeup and such, and he's been through a lot of mix-up days, hasn't he?"

"Yes, and, like you, he's not clowned through them, though, you might think he would." She picked up her PDA, which had been sitting on the table beside her, and keyed something in. "Let me make a quick note."

She's warning Andy. Now I can't get out of it.

After she put her PDA down, she sat there a moment, "Enough is enough, you're not here for that anyway, so on to our topic. Your basic walk looks okay, but we'll work some more on it when your issues are resolved. Today, we'll start by watching a series of people, both, male and female, walking. I want you to see if you can make any generalizations about their arm motions."

She showed me a series of short clips. In some, two guys were walking side by side, then a guy and a girl, then two girls. Then the sequence repeated with other people. At first, I thought I saw a pattern to the arms, but after a bit, I wasn't sure.

"Did you notice anything?"

"I thought so, at the beginning, but now I'm not so sure."

"What did you think you saw?"

"Well, the guys seemed to have their palms to the back and swing the whole arm, if not the shoulder even; while the girls had their wrists partially to the front, and swung from the elbows more. Then, you showed some pictures of girls with their palms back, and they were swinging their arms from the shoulders, too. I didn't see too many guys with their wrists forward, but there were some that were swinging from the elbow."

"That's actually very good."

"But, a bit later, you had girls walking like gorillas, and guys that had their arms going like the girls earlier."

"Yes, that was intentional. I'm glad you were able to pick that out. There ARE differences in male and female walks, but they are neither one nor the other. As you saw, there is rather a wide variety of both. In your maths, have you looked at curves of things happening?"

"Yes. Even some grade distributions in my old school in Athens."

"Did they show a hump in the middle, and then peter out to one end or the other, sort of a bell shape?"

"Most of them, yes."

"Good. That's the way it is with walking. The average guy and girl do walk a little differently, but there are some girls that walk more like the average guy, and vice versa. There are many reasons for the difference. The two biggest of them are the hips that girls have, and the bulky muscles boys can develop. In the case of the girls, the bones in the arm actually have a little bit of a bend to allow them to not hit their hips, but they are also conditioned to not hit themselves naturally, and this imposes a little difference in how they swing their arms. With boys, the bulkier muscles make it easier to swing from the shoulder, and also tends to cause the wrists to make the hands turn the knuckles toward the front. A side effect of this arm swing can be seen, in an exaggerated way, when boys and girls run. Have you ever seen a guy accused of running like a girl?"

"Yeah, I was when I was little."

"I'm sorry to hear that, but it may explain something. In any case, it's caused by the fact the average girl's wrists are toward the front, which when they're running, causes them to swing over the shoulder on the same side, rather than across toward the opposing shoulder, which wrists down or to the back causes."

"Wow, I'd never thought of it that way. But what do you mean, by explain?"

"Your arm swing is fairly neutral already. You swing from the elbow, but don't exaggerate it too far, and your wrists point toward each other rather than to the front or back. That puts your walk between the two peaks of the bells I talked about earlier."

"Is that good?"

"It means you can retain your normal arm swing, and it won't detract from your presentation. Some people have to learn to swing their arms differently, just like learning to walk. It can take a long time. Why don't you also ask Andy about that, when you talk later?"

Maybe, I don't need to be bothering him with this. I can ask about the arm stuff next rehearsal. Yeah, the rest, I'll think of something. "Umm, okay."

"Don't worry, Andy's a good kid."

How'd she know I wasn't gunna do the other stuff? Maybe she doesn't. Oh, I'd best answer. "I know. It's just embarrassing."

"I can believe it, but if you think about it, it's probably easier than a lot of the other things you've done since you got here." She pointed at how I was dressed.

"Bingo. Thanks for reminding me." Hmmm, maybe? Nah, it's not that important.

She smiled. "We're all here to help you be all you can. Now, as I said, your arm swing is fine. Don't be self-conscious about it at all. I know, it's easy for me to say, but I'm serious. Just concentrate on your walking for another week, and next week we'll start showing you how to do makeup, and take better care of your hair. You should be happy with your progress."

"Thank you, um, Kelly." She smiled at my remembering to call her by name.

"Fine, off you go, then."

I left, with a lot to think about. I was surprised at the compliment, and a bit anxious about working with Andy, despite the help he'd provided earlier. I wonder how Renee's session with Simon went?

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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 immesurably! Any problems remaining are mine and not that of any of these remarkable ladies.

Comments are greatly appreciated!