So.

And that is where our story really begins...

Turns out, boys do wear skirts. Depending on things like culture and societal norms -- which seemed to the parents to be very silly limiting factors on the expression and fashion sense of a child, so they set about seeing what they could do about it.

They told and showed him that in most of the world, skirts for boys were called, "kilts," and were accepted as normal even in their own country, to a point. Some boys and men in their country were so proud of having ancestors from the kilt-wearing countries that they wore kilts, too!

But, the little boy pointed out that the kilts were kind of limited in colors and designs, and not all that fun-looking. The two parent people had to agree with him and researched some more.

The next examples they brought to their precious child were of the berobed nobles of many cultures, and the rich colours and designs that the robes could be found in. Again, these were available in their own country by those proud of their heritage.

But... the little boy pointed out that the men in the robes could easily be just wearing the robes over their clothing and be expected to remove the robes.

Again, they had to agree and returned to the library.

This time, they had what they thought must be the answer.

Their answer was that it didn't matter, as society and culture are made up of many differences. They asked the little boy if he wanted to wear skirts, was that what this was about?

Well, of course, but he didn't want to offend anyone.

Why, who would be offended by something so silly as the type of garment someone was wearing. That would be quite a strange thing! Laughable, in fact!

The little boy was wise well beyond his tender years. But he also trusted that his parents would protect him -- or see to it he was protected when they were unable to be with him -- if such a thing were to happen.

So it was that it came to pass that the little boy arrived for his first day at the Williston School and was promptly informed by the Headmaster that he would have to return home to dress in a way that would cause less confusion, and would comply with the Dress Code of the rules of the Williston School.

Confused, the little boy used the telephone in the Headmaster's office and his parents retrieved him only a short time after they had delivered him.

The three of them spent the remainder of that day, aside from breaks for meals and enjoying a rollicking good television program together that afternoon, studying this new information the Headmaster provided that was the Williston School Dress Code.

Male students, it proclaimed, would be dressed in a certain way each day, in a way that showed that individuality was allowed -- but only slightly. The little boy cried out at the allowances made, as they were so minor as to be non-existant. He asked what a male student was, and received in reply that it was something he needn't worry about at the moment, but that they (the two good parents) would explain it fully before they returned with the little boy to the school.

Female students, it proclaimed, would ALSO be dressed in a certain way each day, but the individuality that was allowed was much more widely varied and showed much more character allowed. There was also such that said the hair of a female student must be styled long, but again the variety in the hairstyles that were allowed as long as they were long comprised quite a long list, indeed! The hair of the male students was outlined to be preferred to be short and above the collar, but that if longer than that must be worn in a specific type of style with no variation.

The little boy explained that if he had to choose based on this Dress Code, that he would be a female student. He had already surmised that female was different from male, and assumed that the parents that so lovingly went over this material with him would answer his question about what a female student was the same way they had answered his question about what a male student was.

The parents sadly informed the little boy that the Headmaster would consider the little boy to be a male student.

The little boy asked if there was no way he could be a female student, instead?

The parents returned to research and found that because of the difference in the Dress Code, the Williston School was not allowed to actually state that one Dress Code was for male students and the other for female students, due to something called a Sexual Discrimination Law (the little boy was told that he wouldn't need to know what that was in detail until he was an adult). So, if the Headmaster tried to protest, he would be breaking an actual law! So long as the little boy adhered completely to one Dress Code or the other and did not switch between them, the Headmaster could only protest and nothing more. The little boy could not be punished.

The Headmaster did, indeed, protest, but a man named Mister Uhturnee who was a friend of the parents accompanied them that morning and pulled the Headmaster aside to talk when he protested. Mister Uhturnee kept spelling a word the little boy was unfamiliar with, and sounded like a sneeze when he tried to pronounce it privately to himself. Ay See Ell Yoo, Ackloo.

The Headmaster decided that the little boy could be considered a female student as long as he adhered to the Williston School female student Dress Code, and to keep from causing problems with the other students (who might be jealous, the two good parents explained to the little boy) would have to pretend to be named something different and instead of being called he or him or his would have to be called she or her or hers.

That wasn't too difficult and if it meant that he (sorry, she) wouldn't have to wear the boring clothes from the Williston School male student Dress Code, then she would gladly pretend her name was different.