This chapter describes some bullying in the school and how our friends circumvent it.

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Martina’s Story.

Chapter 6

Myself. Martina, A sexually dysphoric child whose sexuality has not
yet been ascertained but who chooses to present as a girl.

Beverly. My adoptive ‘aunt’ who is a mature shemale and my most supportive adult friend.

Chenille. My older half sister.

Jennifer. Aunt Beverly’s adopted daughter.

Beatrice. Aunt Beverly’s second adopted daughter and Jennifer’s younger sister.

Sian. My lesbian mother who is married to —

Margaret. Who is Chenille’s lesbian mother.

Sissy. My and Chenille’s transvestite shemale father.

Sandie. My doctor, psychiatrist and sexual counsellor.

Judge Elizabeth Porter. The judge who ruled that I should be allowed to live and dress as a girl.

Angela Hunt. Jennifer and Beatrice’s natural blood mother who is now married to Aunt Beverly who is a shemale.

Baroness Wemite’ Sian’s old School Chum

Peter. Baroness Wemite’s son & Melanie’s older brother

Melanie. Baroness Wemite’s daughter and my best school friend.

Rosemary & Monika. Two bullies in the junior school.

Lucinda. A previous victim of the two bullies and our fourth study mate.

Charlotte & Betty. Our other two remaining study mates.

Miss Frobisher. The Headmistress of St Angela’s

The remainder of our fourth year at St Angies passed without incident. During the summer we spent a fortnight in Amsterdam then relaxed for four weeks back home at our cottage-cum-farm. During this time, Lucinda’s relationship with Peter, Melanie’s brother, blossomed. Lucinda stayed as a long-term houseguest at the Earl of Wemite’s house during the rest of the summer holidays.

At home, Beatrice and I had to help out at the stables most days but the long summer evenings enabled us to meet with Melanie, Lucinda and as oft as not, Peter after our daily duties were over. From our saddles we often watched the sun setting from the top of The Dumplin.

Weekends usually found we four girls shopping, whilst Peter played cricket for the local village team. On Friday and Saturday evenings we went clubbing. Our mums were usually to be found in town as well and we invariably met up in the evenings before returning home together. The bizarre fact was that because of our three way gay relationship, we had little need to go searching for boys. At the end of an evening’s dancing, we three savoured the certainty of a night together at our cottage, whilst Peter escorted his house-guest Lucinda home to Wemite Hall. It was an idyllic month and we all regretted its passing.
September found us returning to St Angies as fifth formers and looking forward to a year of heightened responsibilities coupled with greater freedoms. If we wished, we could now go to town every weekend.

Lucinda blossomed as a sportswoman and won trials playing for junior teams at national level. Despite only being a fifth-former with two more years to go at school, she was unanimously elected as sports captain of the school for she was popular and athletic as well as beautiful and brainy. We three study mates envied her her good fortune but we were not jealous. Lucy just did not incur jealousy; she was too nice a personality.

During November that year there was a fire at one of the other dormitories. Fortunately it was not serious and, more importantly, nobody was hurt but it meant that the dormitory needed refurbishing because of smoke damage. The pupils from that ‘house’ had to ‘bunk up’ with other dormitories until well into March.
For the lower school it was fairly easy to shuffle girls around to make extra space in the larger open plan studies but for the upper school things became a little awkward.

Sixth formers were cramming for university exams but it was usually possible to move an extra girl into the two-roomed studies provided they were friendly and studying the same subjects.
Consequently, fourth and fifth formers suffered most from the overcrowding because they had the smallest study areas with the least useable surplus space.

Fortunately most girls found space amongst their friends in other ‘school houses’ but for the less popular girls it was left to the school to organise the temporary arrangements.

To this end a school lottery was organised and names were taken out of two hats like a football draw.
It was just our luck to get Rosemary and Monika, the two most hated bullies in the school.
As their names were called a huge gasp of relief went around the common room as all the other girls relaxed. Once those two had been drawn the rest of the lottery was bearable. For us four however, the draw was a catastrophe. It would be hard enough having to endure the two of them bunking on ‘put-you-ups’ in our study, but those two bullies were the worst possible pair to have to suffer.

It was obvious that Rosemary and Monika were not too happy either. They knew we four to be their nemesis when it came to stopping their bullying antics. Oft-times we had intervened when we saw them making life hell for some junior pupil in the lower school. Lucinda was particularly adept at preventing this bullying because she was games captain and therefore enjoyed an early promotion to prefecture status. Normally, prefects were elected from the upper sixth form but the school games captain was an important student appointment that invariably carried prefect status. The games captain was second only to the head girl in the prefect’s hierarchy.

Nevertheless, the allotment of Rosemary and Monika was for us a disaster. Our intimate personal relationships would have to be curtailed and I would have to extremely cautious about hiding my boy-girl bits. God forbid if Rosemary or Monika discovered my secrets.

Immediately after the draw, I made an appointment to see Miss Frobisher to declare the problems and potential for disaster. In her study we talked at length.

“I quite understand your predicament Martina but this is an emergency,” explained Miss Frobisher “it’s only from November until March.”

“But it’s not that simple Miss Frobisher Ma-am.” I confessed nervously.

“Why?”

“Well, and please, I beg you, don’t let this go further.”

“Well, out with it young lady. I’ve always been fair with you.”

“Well it’s my friends, Beatrice, Melanie and Lucinda.”

“Yes, I know who your study companions are, and fine girls they are too. Particularly Lucinda, she’s an excellent pupil. Though I’m pleased with all four of you. I’ve got high hopes for you four.”

“But. You don’t understand. It’s my, - you know, - my trans -.”

“Yes, I know all about that too. Your mother’s keep me well up to date on your medical condition. You’ll just have to be careful. Lock the bathroom door when you attend to your ablutions. Come to think of it, I should presume you’re doing that anyway.”

“Well, - no, - actually,” I confessed. “That’s just it.”

Miss Frobisher’s eyebrows rose questioningly as she held me in her stare.

“Go on.”

“Well. That’s just it. I don’t need to lock the door with my friends.”

“What are you telling me Martina? Are you saying that Melanie and Lucinda know about your condition?”

“Well, - eehmm, - yes, - actually.”

I stared at the floor like a deer caught in the headlights. The silence became oppressive as Miss Frobisher recovered from the shock. I had to admire her though. She hid her feelings well.

“You mean, Lucinda and Melanie. They’ve seen you, - they’ve seen your, - your bits-, your genitalia!” She corrected herself as she struggled to find the correct words.

“Yess.” I croaked as fear took my breath.

“Oh my Gosh! And what was their reaction?”

“They, they’re sympathetic. They don’t mind.”

“Well let me be the arbiter of that. I’ll have to speak to them and Beatrice for that matter, but of course, Beatrice has always known, as have your two older sisters. I know the set up with your families and I’m not judgemental. But Melanie and Lucinda! Why on earth didn’t you come to me when they found out?”

“Well they didn’t seem too bothered, in fact they thought it was weird at first, then they became sympathetic.”
Suddenly Miss Frobisher’s expression became serious.

“Has anything unsavoury been happening?”

Here I lied point blank knowing I would have to warn the others when they were questioned.

“No Miss Frobisher.”

“Well thank heavens for that. I’ll speak to Beatrice, Melanie and Lucinda later. As to Rosemary and Monika, well, I know they are two of the most unpopular girls in the school but I can’t expel them for that. I’m also pleased that you four have worked hard to stamp out their bullying. Yes I keep my ear to the ground and I know what happens.

Unfortunately, despite your good efforts on the bullying front, I can’t be seen to show favouritism to you four by altering the result of the draw. That’s what the draw was all about. I’m afraid you four will have to work together to protect your secret. There’s little I can do unless Rosemary and Monika do something seriously wrong. Besides yours is one of the corner studies and bigger than the others. That’s all for now. Tell the other three I will speak to them this afternoon before prep and thank you for telling me about the situation in your study. That’s all.”

I left feeling a huge load off my shoulders and rushed to warn my friends not to reveal our little intimacies.

“And she wasn’t upset!” Gasped Lucinda.

“No. I think she’s rather relieved. I suspect she’s been waiting for one of you to turn up all tearful and hysterical at her study door. Now she knows that you girls all know, I think she’s quite relieved.”

“Well that figures.” Agreed Beatrice.

“Yes let’s keep it that way. We’re all as pure as the driven snow, is that agreed?” Finished Melanie.

“Well you’re a bit slushy.” Giggled Lucinda.

“Watch it!” Squealed Melanie as she playfully pinched Lucinda’s exposed bum.
Lucinda was only wearing her gym leotard and leggings.

Lucinda retaliated by spinning around quickly then skilfully whipping her leg up and wrapping it around Melanie’s neck. This dragged Melanie’s face into Lucinda’s crotch.

“Mmmph!” Squawked Melanie as she struggled momentarily then smiled as she found herself in one of her favourite positions.

“Cave!” Gasped Beatrice as the doorknob rattled.

Lucinda whipped her leg away just before Rosemary and Monika entered carrying their essential luggage.

“Oh, it’s you. It’s customary to knock. We weren’t expecting you until after prep tonight.”

“Miss Warburton has started the move early. Some of us have a free period this afternoon so she told us to move now.” Replied Rosemary.

“Well you’re foldaway beds are going there and there. It’s going to be a squeeze.”

“I think we should toss for the beds then it’s all fair.” Snapped Monika.

“Dream on girls. You’re only guests here, and uninvited ones at that.” Snapped Beatrice.

Monika looked slightly surprised. She had been expecting any argument to be led by Lucinda. Beatrice’s aggression had set her back. It unsettled Monika and Rosemary for their perceptions of our group structure had been shown to be inaccurate.

“That’s not fair!” Protested Rosemary. We should draw lots.

“Alright then, we’ll make this democratic,” suggested Melanie, “let’s vote on it.”

That settled any further argument for we of course, outnumbered Rosemary and Monika four to two. Rosemary and Monika now knew their place. Angry at their frustrated efforts to dominate or even to achieve a semblance of parity the bullies grudgingly opened their put-you-up folding beds.

“Not there!” Ordered Beatrice. “That blocks the path to the bathroom. One by the window and one by the opposite wall.”

“It’ll be draughty by the window!” Protested Rosemary.

“Too bad. You can turn up the heating if your cold.”

“Huh!” I don’t see why you and Martina can’t stay at home until things are sorted out. It’s easy for you to travel over the Dumplin.”

“We’ve paid for these boarding rooms just like everybody else. You’ll just have to lump it until March!”

“So what about our clothes and stuff not to mention our books.”

“They’re putting extra clothing lockers in the middle baggage room so they won’t block the fire exits at the end landings.”

“That means we’ll have to go into the corridor to get our clothes.”

Beatrice became tired of the constant whingeing.

“Look like it or lump it! We’re all girls together here. If you don’t like juniors seeing you in the corridor in your underclothes too bloody bad. As you just said. It’s only until March.”

The pair realised finally that they would get nowhere and grudgingly relocated their beds. In truth, they did not impinge unduly on the floor space and when the beds were folded away, there was still enough room for six to sit around the study table. Fortunately, our study was one of the end corner studies. The longer outer gable wall with the extra side window, gave it slightly more floor space. This was why Miss Frobisher had allowed the bullies to remain together. The four end corner studies on each level were the only ones with space enough for six at a squeeze. Miss Frobisher also knew full well that we four were the only ones in the fifth form who were strong enough to resist the two bullies.

With the bed arrangements settled, we went down to lunch but not before dropping by into the Library to discuss our situation.

“Mum’s the word now. If Mrs Frobisher asks, we’re as pure as the driven snow right!” Commanded Lucy.

We all agreed, and also concluded that we would have to pretend to be modest little straight-laced puritans to enable me to hide my special bits.

“It’s going to be a strain until March,” sighed Melanie as she reached her toes under the library table and probed my crotch.

“Stoppit!” I whispered hoarsely. “You’ll get me bloody horny and I can’t hide it in my knickers anymore. It gets too big!”

“Mmm. I know. Delicious isn’t it?” Giggled Mel.

“Stoppit!” Grinned Beatrice. “Come on now Mel. Be fair to her. Stop making her horny!”

“Yes. This is serious.” Frowned Lucy.

“We don’t know what they’re like,” offered Melanie. “What if they turn out to be a horny pair of nymphomaniacs?”

“It still won’t wash,” argued Lucinda, “if they find out about Martie they’ll use it to whatever advantage they can screw. It’ll be a real bummer, not just for us but Miss Frobisher as Well.”

“Not to mention the school’s reputation.” Added Bea for good measure.

“We’ll just have to be careful.” Declared Lucy as she rose to go into the refectory.
We followed suite for there was little else we could add. We would need to find out just what the bullies were like when living cheek by jowl with us.

In the refectory the bullies spotted us at our usual table and moved to join us.

“Oh shit!” Cursed Melanie as she spotted them approaching. “Look who’s coming to join us.”

“Don’t object just yet,” cautioned Lucinda, “we have to sound them out and find out what their expectations are. Remember we’ve already got them on the back foot over the bed arrangements.
The bullies took two spaces beside us and tried to engage us in conversation. We simply replied in monsyllibillic yes’s and no’s until they realised we were not in a talking mood.

“It’s no good ignoring us,” objected Monika, “we’re going to have to talk sometime.”

“About what?” I asked.

“Well, -“ Monika looked nonplussed for a moment. “Well, about living arrangements, bathroom rotas, who showers first, all that sort of stuff.”

Reluctantly we knew this would have to be sorted but not because Monika and Rosemary wanted such arrangements. Previously, we had enjoyed some very open and easygoing arrangements. We had been so intimate and open about our lives; we had never bothered to lock the bathroom door or even the lavatory door. There were going to be some big changes. Cleaning was also going to have to be organised. We all acknowledged that Lucinda produced the most muck because she practised on the hockey fields nearly every evening. Her hockey kit was often to be found hanging in the shower if all the dryers were busy when she returned.
Because of our close friendship, we had accepted her washing hanging up and usually put it aside when we showered. If we remembered, we hung it up again or the last person to shower did so. Sometimes we forgot but it did not become an issue. Lucinda invariably checked last thing at night. She had to if she wanted dry hockey kit in the morning.

It was a dead cert that Rosemary and Monika would start by making Lucinda’s kit an issue. Realising that there needed to be some hard bargaining, we finished our meal and returned to our study with the new additions in tow. Once back in the study we squeezed up on the extra seating and fell to organising rotas and drawing straws. The dealing went on for about an hour with an agreement to return to any issues after a week of experimentation. Then we retired to the common room were other girls sympathised with us privately.

“It must be a real bummer with those two,” whispered Jillian Cotter who had suffered more than most at the bullies’ hands.

“We’ve thrashed out most issues and we outnumber them anyway,” confided Bea.

“Well just watch them,” cautioned Jillian. “They cause endless trouble in our dorm. They’ve got more tricks than a troop of monkeys.”

“Caution noted,” smiled Bea as she flipped two piklets out of the toaster and buttered them before handing one to Jillian.

“So tell us some of their favourite tricks.”

Jillian took the proffered titbit then gave Beatrice a rundown of various tricks and devices the twins used to foment trouble.

“They love to start arguments then divide and rule.”

Finally Bea thanked Jillian and agreed to chat some more later on in the week. For now, forewarned was forearmed. On the way back to our study, Beatrice met me on the stairs and guided me to a quiet corner. There she gave me a string of does and don’ts and I was grateful.

“So whatever you do, try and make sure that you in particular, are never alone with them. They pretend it’s fun but it’s not. Then when you protest they accuse you of being a spoilsport or some other type of whinger. Just make sure you’re always with one of us. I know you can easily handle either one of them alone, but they work as a pair.”

I thanked Beatrice and we entered the study before the others returned. Even before I had started undressing to shower, Beatrice ran a check on our clothes and books.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Making sure everything is as it should be. No laddered tights or snapped bra straps when we rush to get dressed in the morning. Jilly Cotter warned me.”

“Is that what they do?” I gasped as I hesitated by the bathroom door.

“Yeah. Then the next morning they are ever so generous offering to lend one of their spares. Then they manipulate that favour to squeeze some advantage later.”

“Well you keep an eye on stuff while I shower.”

“You bet.” Agreed Beatrice as she stripped ready to take her turn.

When I emerged from the shower I had my bathrobe over my towel and explained that I had rearranged Lucinda’s hockey skirt over the radiator.

“What about the blouse?” Asked Lucinda.

“That’s on the side of the bath until everybody’s finished, then the last one can put it back on the shower curtain rail.” I replied, making it abundantly obvious that whoever was last was expected to hang it up.
Melanie got my drift and smiled knowingly. She was last in the shower rota and would make damned sure that Lucinda’s blouse was properly hung up to dry. It was a clear demonstration of how our friendship worked and how we expected the bullies to fall into line. We were playing them at their own game.

Finally we all sat around chatting in our bathrobes, sleep-suites and knickers until lights out.

In the morning we found the first evidence of the twin’s handiwork. Somehow, Lucinda’s blouse had fallen into the shower tray and was still soaking. Before either Rosemary or Monika could offer to lend her a dry fresh blouse, I magicked one of mine and offered it to Lucy. Fortunately Lucinda and I were of similar height and build so it was easy to refuse the bullies offers.

In class, Melanie asked me about it. I explained what Jilly Cotter had told Beatrice and Melanie smiled knowingly.

“Two can play at that game.” She smirked. “I know I hung that blouse up OK. I even used clothes pegs.”

“Of course you did, but they are free to sneak into the bathroom during the night without any of us noticing. We wouldn’t notice from the privacy of our cubicles, would we?”

“I suppose they are trying to make us feel vulnerable.” Continued Melanie. “In the end they think one of us will have to sleep on one of the put-you-ups just to watch the bathroom door overnight. Well it isn’t going to happen.”
I grinned at Melanie’s determination. She could be quite single minded when she got the bit between her teeth. Unbeknownst to any of us, Melanie borrowed her brother Peter during the following half term and they made some small changes in the study and bathroom.
During the rest of the week a few small irritating events occurred in the bathroom but we were usually prepared. What we needed was the evidence but we didn’t know that Melanie had already made arrangements

When the second semester came around, Melanie kept quiet about the alterations. She did not reveal the tiny camera that her brother Peter had carefully concealed high in the decorative plaster frieze around the cornices. It was perfectly hidden and the thin white wires led conveniently behind the frieze until they could descend undetected down behind the high woodwork into Melanie’s cubicle and into her P.C. The camera scanned the whole of the study room and the bathroom door but not our bedroom cubicles.

In the bathroom Melanie had secreted a second camera concealed inside the ventilator grill high in the ceiling. This looked down on the whole bathroom and lavatory cubicle. Again none of us knew anything about this. By the time the second semester started, Melanie was armed. As usual, Beatrice and I arrived early in the morning for we were local girls. Lucinda and the bullies had to come from farther away and they arrived later.

Later that afternoon, Monika and Rosemary returned from their half term break and our study life returned to its usual tense standoff.

That very evening they resumed their usual tricks and the following morning Beatrice found her new bottle of shampoo empty. It was not a calamity but enough to raise the tension.
Angrily she accused the bullies but of course they claimed it must have tipped off the shelf during the night. Beatrice was left fuming but Melanie kept her council.

Melanie was waiting for more incriminating evidence; better evidence by far than a spilt shampoo bottle or a pair of laddered tights. She intimated to me that she might set a trap for the bullies but I had no inkling of the extent of Melanie’s secret preparations.

“Just wait Martie,” she intimated to me one afternoon as we loitered on the hockey field near the goalmouth out of earshot from everybody.

Monika had fouled another girl and her leg was badly cut by the hockey stick. As the goalkeeper, Mel was far from the cluster of angry girls that had gathered around the scene in the opposite goalmouth. I of course was excused hockey because of my ‘condition’. Whilst training for cross-country, I had simply stopped by Mel’s goalmouth during the stoppage on the field.
My eyes widened with curiosity at Mel’s warning.

“Wait for what!” I gasped.

“I’ve just got a feeling about those two. Just be patient.”

Reluctantly I held my peace and suffered in silence with Beatrice and Lucinda as the bully’s dirty tricks war hotted up. That’s not to say that we didn’t have blazing rows with the pair and indeed, Lucinda actually came to blows with Monika one afternoon when everybody else was out. As ever, Monika cunningly set up the confrontation and Lucinda was portrayed as the villain. Monika certainly came of worst in the physical sense and everybody rooted for Lucinda, but Monika’s bruises were purveyed as evidence of Lucinda’s assault and she had her weekend town privileges curtailed until Christmas. Everybody was sympathetic with Lucinda but in truth, the town visiting rights were of little importance to Lucinda. For on Saturdays and Sundays, she was nearly always to be seen practicing her hockey or captaining the team against other schools.

Despite the injustice to Lucinda, Melanie kept her counsel and demanded I kept mine. I knew Melanie was up to something big but I was buggered if I knew what. She obviously had something up her sleeve.
The truth became apparent one December day at the end of term after the school’s end of term Christmas party. I had secretly drunk a little bit too much smuggled alcohol and Melanie had discreetly escorted me back to the study where I slumped on my bed and she left me as she returned to the party. There were no boys at the party but girls can enjoy themselves without male company.
The fifth form had produced an ‘ad -hoc’ series of comic sketches and that coupled with the sixth form’s contributions had entertained the rest of the school. I of course, missed the fun having been put to bed early. The girls returned later and found me snoring, oblivious to their return.

In the middle of the night however, I suddenly felt sick and staggered drunkenly to the bathroom. Being young of course, I woke with the inevitable erection and worse followed. As I lurched uncertainly towards the bathroom in the dark, I tripped over Rosemary’s bed and she cursed as I landed on top of her.

“Get off you stupid bloody cow!” She cursed.

“Sorry,” I slurred and flailed awkwardly as I eventually staggered to my feet.

Unfortunately my drunken efforts had left me vulnerable for in my haste, I had not bothered to fling a dressing gown over my shoulders. In just my maroon cotton interlock regulation knickers and with my tits bare, I proved too much of a morsel for Rosemary’s salacious needs. She groped my delightful tits then attempted to cop a feel of my cunt through the heavy cotton interlock of my school regulation knickers. That night I was not wearing my usual 'all-in-one' for I had been too drunk and unmanageable for Melanie to dress me when she helped me up to bed. The double barrier of sleep suit and knickers might have prevented Rosemary making sense of the unexpected profile inside my knickers.

As her hand found its target I kicked out angrily but not before Rosemary had groped the stiff erect boy bits where there should have been a smooth girl’s honey pot. Rosemary fell silent as I lurched off to the bathroom but she knew now that things were obviously not quite right with me down there.

If Rosemary was nothing else, she was quick thinking and ever alert to a trick. She followed me silently into the bathroom and found me bent over the bath spewing my guts up. She poised behind me silently then jammed her hand under my deliciously shaped teardrop butt and delved again into my sex. I let out a squeal of protest and swung around furiously to swipe at her face. I connected perfectly and caught her a perfect fist on her cheek.

She let out a howl of anger and before I knew it we were fighting furiously on the bathroom floor.
Fortunately I was stronger than Rosemary and just managed to keep her feverish hands from dragging my knickers down. When the others arrived to sort out the commotion, they found me sat astride the bully with her wrists held firmly in my grip. Unfortunately, the excitement had roused me further and my stiffy was straining furiously against the constraint of my knickers.

“What the hell’s going on?” Demanded Monika as she lurched forward to protect her crony.

She grabbed my arms to try and break my grip of Rosemary’s wrists but Lucinda had already anticipated the move. With lightening quick reaction born of her athleticism, Lucinda dragged Monika away whilst Beatrice and Melanie restrained Rosemary as I finally recovered my temper and struggled to get off the prostrate Rosemary.

“There’s something not right with her down there!” Screeched Rosemary as she nursed the swelling bruise under her eye.

“What d’you mean?” Demanded Monika.

“She’s got something strange inside her knickers. Just look! It’s all lumpy and stuff.”

There was a stunned silence as all eyes fell to the erection tenting desperately inside my knickers. Fortunately the quick thinking Beatrice snarled angrily.

“Of course she has. It’s her special dressing! That’s why she’s excused strenuous games. That’s why she only does dance and cross country running.”

“What’s wrong with her!” Demanded Rosemary.

“It’s nothing to do with you,” I snarled as tears began to flow.

“So what is it?” Added Monika, stirring the pot maliciously.

“It’s nothing to do with you!” I screeched again.

“She’s some sort of freak!” Persisted Rosemary.

At this Lucinda proved her true worth as a friend. The favour in the stables all those years ago now drew priceless dividends. She turned on Rosemary and Monika and spoke softly but with such menace that they fell silent. As I stumbled out of the bathroom, I could see Rosemary visibly tremble so I listened outside the bathroom door. Not for nothing was Lucinda the games captain for she was one of the tallest girls in the school and she could easily imply a real physical threat. She spoke softly but there was no misunderstanding the threat in her voice.

“Listen you pair of nasty little bitches. I’ve had it up to here with you two! We’ve known privately for years about Marina’s problem.

We know she’s had a problem with her girly bits all her life. What you felt were the special dressings she has to wear.
You nasty little bitches don’t need to know what it is, but I can assure you we’ve lived with it long enough to know that she is very sensitive about it.

What’s more, Miss Frobisher knows about it and she’s met Martie’s doctor. If Miss Frobisher is happy about Martie’s problems then it’s got nothing to do with you. Now if I hear the slightest whisper of Martie’s problems anywhere in the school, I’ll make sure you never walk off the hockey field during the next games sessions. You’ll be carried off.”

This was very real threat for most of us had at some time felt the power of Lucinda’s lithe stunning frame when striving to win the hockey ball. Indeed Lucinda rarely played with her ordinary classmates. Instead she trained with the older girls in the first eleven after normal classes. When our class had a games period Lucinda was as often as not in the library catching up on prep.

I crept away to my bed still feeling sick but it was no longer booze, it was fear!

‘Thank God for friends like Lucinda,’ I thought as the other girls returned to their beds.

In the morning I woke expecting a hangover but it never materialised. Perhaps it was my age, or getting rid of the poisons by vomiting during the night. Whatever the reason, I woke with a pretty clear head. Fortunately it was Saturday so there no lessons as the school prepared to close for the Christmas Holidays. I met Rosemary sporting a splendid bruise under her eye as she exited the bathroom.

“Look what you’ve done you bitch!” She snapped.

“Well don’t grope people where they don’t want to be groped!” I retorted angrily. If you had been a boy, that would have been assault!” +

“What would?” She demanded.

“Groping my knickers when I was drunk.”

“I didn’t grope you. You lay on top of me!”

“You bloody liar!” I snarled. I stumbled because I was drunk”

“Yeah, and if Miss Frobisher knew you had been drinking, you’d be expelled.”

“Why you spiteful sneaky cow! So you’d shop another girl because she got drunk at the party. I wasn’t the only one drinking illegally.”

“No but you were the only one to get drunk and then try and clamber into my bed under the pretence of being too drunk.”

My jaw dropped with shock, as I stood speechless with indignation.
She used my stunned silence as evidence of an admission and turned to the rest of the girls.

“See. She doesn’t deny it.”

“Why fuck you!!” I screeched. “You followed me into the bathroom and groped me again! I wouldn’t touch you with a barge pole!”

“So who would you touch?” Taunted Monika, taking up the baton.

I realised I had gone too close to the real circumstances of the relationship between the four of us and I was close to giving our secrets away. I just cursed and scuttled into the bathroom.

“Oh fuck off! You’ve just got twisted imaginations!”

I slammed the door and locked it noisily to emphasise my privacy. I heard the bullies chuckling then I heard Beatrice snap at them before she knocked on the door.

“Will you be long Martie?”

Wet from the shower and naked, I stepped out then slipped the lock and peered round the door. Beatrice entered, noticed my erection and frowned nervously before re-locking the door. Then the bullies called out.

“Why are you locking the door? Are you feeling each other up?”

Beatrice embraced me and kissed me softly on the forehead as she whispered.

“Fuck them. Just let them try something. Shall we shower together?”

“No. I’ve got to sort out some final notes I’ve got to hand in.”

I finished showering then made sure I was well covered before I ran the gauntlet of the bullies’ barbs. In my cubicle I was dressed in minutes and shuffling through my notes as Beatrice re-emerged. The bullies had left to get their books from their temporary lockers in the middle recess halfway along the old dormitory block.

At breakfast, several girls asked how Rosemary got the black eye but she wasn’t talking. However, I saw her and Monika whispering to some of their sycophants and realised something was brewing. I motioned to my friends and we concluded that Lucinda’s warning had been ignored. Gossip was one of the bullies’ main weapons and few people can resist licentious tit-bits, especially the bullies’ cronies.

“We’re going to have to watch it.” Sighed the disappointed Lucinda. “My warnings obviously didn’t work.”

We finished our breakfast in silence then Melanie took me aside as we returned to our study to continue packing for the Christmas Holidays.

“Come into my cubicle later,” she whispered, “after Lucinda’s left for home.”

“Why?” I asked.

“There’s some stuff I want to show you!”

“What? I asked curiously.

“Just wait. If Lucinda’s warning doesn’t work. What I have to show you certainly will. After lunch come to my cubicle
while Bea is helping with the horses and Lucinda’s mum comes to collect her.”

Within seconds of rising from lunch, I was with Melanie staring at her computer screen. A few keystrokes brought up her video evidence and I gasped with shock. Monika and Rosemary were caught almost every night sneaking into the bathroom to assuage their lesbian lust.

“Oh my God Melanie! This is dynamite!”

“Yeah. It’s good stuff but how are we going to use it?”

“Just show it to them. The threat will be enough. If they try to pooh-pooh it, we can threaten to put it on the Internet! We can use gossip as well as them but the Internet, well that’s much better.”

“That’s what I thought. But we’ll have to edit the background. So that it doesn’t look like our bathroom. Then nobody can trace it back to us. I’ll get my brother Peter to help during the hols. He’s doing computers in the sixth form.

“Is there anything else on there. Have you got her groping me as I bent over the bath?”

“Yes but that would be a dead giveaway. We all know where that happened.”

“True.” I agreed ruefully.

That evidence could only be used as a last defence. If push came to shove with Miss Frobisher and the school authorities.

“What about when I stumbled over her bed and fell on her?”

“That’s here as well. It’s not very good though. You were arseholed and your hands did land on her tits as you fell.”

“It was an accident!” I protested.

“Well the camera doesn’t help either way. Look.”

I studied the video and grimaced. Melanie was right. I had tripped over the end of Rosemary’s bed and fallen sideways. As I flung my hands out to save myself, one of them had landed directly on Rosemary’s chest. And Rosemary had a fine chest!

“Well everybody knows I was pissed.” I pleaded.

“Tell that to the governors. Then the shit would really hit the fan. No the best evidence is the bathroom stuff. The worst is, we’ll have to remove the cameras during the holidays. I’ll do it during the hols when I come to help Miss Smith with the horses.

“Yes! I was wondering about those. Why didn’t you tell us about them? I’ll bet you’ve got all sorts of stuff!” I growled accusingly.

“It’s for our protection.” Replied Melanie. “I’ll bet you’re glad now that I did!”
I fell silent. It was truly fortuitous that Melanie had taken it upon herself to rig the cameras. Now we had some real evidence!” I changed the subject and mentioned the horses.

“Does she pay you to look after the horses?”

“No. I do it because I like the horses. There’s only her horse and the other two school ponies. All the other ponies and horses go home with their owners. I check them over during Christmas and see they’re fed. They’ve got warm looseboxes and the run of the paddock anyway.
I do it to give Miss Smith a break and it’s only a couple of times a day to check they’re OK, letting them out and putting them in.

Miss Smith goes to her divorced sister’s for Christmas Eve to Boxing Day. Family stuff, she’s got a niece who’s starting here next year. It mean’s I have the run of the school whilst nearly everybody but a few overseas students go home. Two of them are having Christmas with us, because our mother’s are friends.

“Oh.” I observed. “Those two Malayan girls; the twins?”

“Yep.” Replied Melanie.

They were two lovely girls a couple of years younger than us. Melanie looked out for them and they had often visited us in our study. They hero-worshipped Lucinda, as did nearly all the younger girls, mainly because of Lucinda’s successful campaign to stamp out the bullying by Rosemary, Monika and the rest of their gang.

Melanie finished downloading the video on her discs just as the door opened and Rosemary appeared with Monika. Their parents accompanied them but nothing was said about our fight. I suspected that their parents were already aware of their daughter’s reputations. Miss Frobisher’s ‘end-of-term’ reports were nothing if not accurate and all embracing. She called a spade a spade as I had learned to my to regret a couple of terms earlier when my academic performance had disappointed my mummy Beverly. That Easter holiday I had lost all privileges and been denied a trip to Amsterdam with my sisters.
The atmosphere in our study was courteous but formal then the fathers left with their daughters to inspect the repair work to their dormitory block. Their mothers waited in our study and I could sense that they wanted to discuss something. Eventually, Melanie sensed that they wanted to speak to me alone so she offered to make a tray of tea and she left me to face the mothers. As soon as we were alone the women waded in.

“What exactly happened?” Asked Rosemary’s mother.

I explained what happened whilst leaving out the drunkenness part.”

“And you say it was an accident.”

“Yes. The bed was here and I tripped over it during the night. I needed the bathroom urgently.”

“My daughter says you assaulted her.”

“I tripped over and fell on her. It was dark and I just flung out my hands to save myself.”

“So you don’t deny you landed on her, - her chest.”

“No, I don’t deny it. It was an accident. She took offence and struck out.”

“Do you not get on?”

Here I could be truthful.

“Frankly no. She’s a guest in here. We did not invite her here. We have to get along until the fire damage is completed.”

“Do you normally fight?”

“No. She followed me into the bathroom and I just swung around and lashed out after she attacked me.”

“She says she was going to talk to you but you just hit her.”

I wasn’t sure if I should tell the whole story for I wasn’t sure where this was going. I didn’t know that Rosemary’s mother was a lawyer.

“She’s got a strange way of talking then.” I mumbled.

“What d’you mean?” Pressed Rosemary’s mother.

“Can I be blunt?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“And alone.” I added.

“There’s no need to be afraid of Mrs Adam’s, Monika’s mother. We don’t keep secrets from each other.”
Being young, I was not alert to the legal dangers of not having a witness to protect me but I felt that Melanie’s video would support my statement if push came to shove.

“I’d prefer to speak alone,” I persisted.

“Why. Don’t you trust us? I’m a well respected barrister, you can trust me.”
Like a fool, I trusted her when she said she was a barrister.

“All right then. If you want it both barrels, she groped me whilst I was being sick over the bath and I lashed out. I caught her on the cheek.”

“You used a lot of force. Her cheek is cut and it’s very bruised.”

“She jabbed me hard where it hurts. She shouldn’t grope people!”

For a moment, Rosemary’s mother sat silent as she digested my defence. Then she resumed her attack or inquisition.

“My daughter says you’re not right down there. She says there’s something wrong.”
This made me angry and I suddenly felt on firmer ground.

“You bet I’m not right down there. And I’m very sensitive about it. That doesn’t give her the right to grab me and try to pull my knickers down.”

“She says it was just a playful prank.” Retorted Rosemary’s mother.

“Yeah. Some prank. Would she buckle the wheel of a paraplegic’s wheelchair, would she tease a Down’s syndrome child, would she break the crutches of a cripple?”

For a moment, the woman was taken aback. And she glared at me.

“Of course she wouldn’t!”

“Well why did she attack a girl with my personal problems, my, - my b, - my bits?”

The woman hesitated again as I set her on the back foot.

“Rosemary didn’t know you had sexual problems.”

“They’re not sexual problems, they’re unusual genitalia. Anyway, that’s nothing to do with you! That’s between my doctor and the school authorities.”

“What. You’re saying the school knows that you have problems.”

“Yes! Of course they do. Just as my regular study companions know. They treat it like they would treat any other disability. Just like Wendy Dobson has to wear callipers. Just like Sylvia Wilkins and June Winthrop live on the ground floor because they’re wheel bound. Nobody tries to bully them, except your daughters that is; and Lucinda soon put a stop to that! The school accepts infirmity and stuff. I’ve got a problem with my genitalia. So what?”

“Are you saying our daughters attack girls in wheel chairs?”

“Oh attack is too crude a word. Let’s just say that paraplegics don’t like to wake up and find the wheels of their chairs missing.”

“But that’s just a schoolgirl prank.”

“Other girls don’t do it. Other girls go looking for the wheels and offering to help every-which-way.”

“Are you saying it was not a joke?”

“Don’t ask me ask Sylvia and June. They nearly missed an exam- an important national exam. Lucinda mustered the hockey team to carry the girls to the classroom. The exam was just about to start!”

“The loss of dignity nearly put Sylvia off taking the exam.”

“How so?”

“The chairs were set up on some books and some wooden blocks so that they could sit properly to the table. Try shifting around to get your arse comfortable and rearranging your posture when your seat is wobbling and you can’t adjust your position.”

“I’ve never heard anything about this! Nobody has ever mentioned any of this.”

“Yeah. Surprise, surprise! Well they wouldn’t would they? The staff still don’t know who hid the wheels. Suddenly half way through the exam the wheels turn up by magic in the lavatories during break time. Miss Frobisher had to personally approach the invigilator to supervise the adjustment to their chairs so that Sylvia and June could have their wheels back. The invigilator was not amused and the school’s reputation was shot to hell!” Your daughters are a pair of bullies. Vicious bullies.”

“How dare you say that! You’ve no proof!”

“I heard them gloating about it a week later. Only I know they did it and even then I couldn’t prove it.”

“So it’s your word against two of them!”

“Exactly!”

She fell silent for a moment as her brain ticked ominously.

“So it’s the word of a sexually dysfunctional girl against our two daughters.”

I could see exactly where this was going so I just shrugged.

“There speaks a lawyer,” I riposted cynically.

“You can stop being cheeky right now young lady!” Snapped Moniker’s mother.

“Yes and I can stop this interview as well.”

So saying, I stood up and stalked angrily into my own private cubicle. Melanie heard my chair scrape back and sensed that it was time to bring in the tray of tea and biscuits. Unbeknownst to me, she had been listening at the door. The mothers took the proffered dainties and made polite conversation with Melanie. Melanie ever so politely ‘name-dropped’ her father’s title and immediately the two mothers were fawning all over her. Even I was suddenly re-invited to share tea. I began to understand how and why Melanie had developed such a well-honed ‘bull-shit’ radar.
After the fathers returned with their daughters they finished the biscuits and left. I did not need to repeat the conversation to Melanie but she silently led me into her study and showed me her pleasant surprise.

“This is all on video and what’s more, If I search back, we might have got them gloating about it in the lavatory.”

I gasped with relief. No wonder Melanie had been quite happy to leave me alone with a shyster lawyer! It was all on video!

“How did you know they would try and trap me?” I asked.

“Just look at their daughters. Like breeds like. I was pretty sure they’d be nasty bits of work, just like their daughters. Now let me search through all this stuff. There’s days of stuff to trawl through. Can you remember an approximate day when they were gloating?”

I had to confess that I couldn’t and I felt a little stupid.
Mel giggled.

“It’s a pity you aren’t a full girl, then you’d remember.”

“How so?” I asked.

“Most girls keep diaries, if only for their periods. I’d have noted something like that! But then, you’re too naíve.”
I was about to remonstrate when Melanie stopped the disc.

“This looks promising. It’s daytime and they’re laughing; then you walk in.”

So saying she stopped the images and played it back. We listened and smiled.

“Bingo! See, I can read those two bitches like a book. You were silly to go into the bathroom alone, I thought we’d agreed not to leave ourselves vulnerable to them”

“They were laughing so I knew they were in a good mood. I’d already heard what I wanted to hear.”

“They’re never in a good mood. You were daft to go in alone. Still, no harm done and we do have the evidence.”

We listened to the bullies’ conversation and hugged each other as they incriminated themselves about the wheelchairs.

“We only use this if push comes to shove. OK.” Said Melanie.

I kissed Melanie passionately then she backed up the disc and locked it in her strong box.

With our evidence secure, we finished packing and prepared to go down for the Christmas Holidays.
It was during the holidays that Miss Frobisher visited my parents. It appeared that Rosemary had made claims about my having assaulted her and she advised us to get a lawyer. Tearfully I phoned Melanie and told her the situation.

“Not to worry, darling. We just release a copy of one of the discs to their lawyers. Peter has already done a job on it. It looks as though they were doing it in their bathroom in their own block before the fire.”

“How did he do that?”

“We simply placed the camera in their bathroom inside their ventilator. The fire didn’t affect their study and bathroom, so it’s unchanged. They only moved out because of all the workmen and equipment. It was a stroke of luck. Come and look at the video. It looks exactly as if they were doing it in their own study and bathroom."

Without a second thought, I rode over the following morning and gasped at the pictures. Melanie smiled.

“Peter’s a wiz with this stuff. You could never tell unless you put the video through a computer and studied the digitalised imagery.”

I peered as hard as I could at the pictures but I simply could not make out the joins.

“There’s a price though.” Giggled Mel.

“Go on, “ I sighed.

“Peter wants some of the footage of Lucinda taking a shower.”

“Oh that’s just sick! For God’s sake, she’s his girlfriend.”

“Well you know what boys are like. He probably wants to impress his mates.”

“Let me speak to him. That’s just stupid. If Lucinda ever found out, it would be over in a flash.”

Armed with my arguments, I quickly shamed Peter into recognising the stupidity of his ambition. Not only would he lose Lucinda’s affections but she would never forgive Melanie for videoing her without her knowledge or consent. In the end, Peter accepted a doctored film using our bodies and the bullies’ heads. It worked well. We remained anonymous, whilst he had some bizarre footage to impress his mates at school. Men! I don’t know!!

Once we had the doctored film of Monika and Rosemary gloating about the wheelchairs, we sent it anonymously to their parents. The assault case was dropped overnight and Miss Frobisher returned to tell my mothers of her relief and surprise.

“I just don’t understand it. Apparently some sort of evidence has turned up about the wheelchairs incident.”

Fortunately, I was able to declare in total honesty that I had nothing to do with any ‘evidence’. It had all been down to Melanie and Peter.
As I said in the beginning, Melanie was a tough, streetwise little cookie. A good friend but a dangerous enemy.