Princess For Hire. The British Kid Part 3 by Angharad Copyright © 2011 Angharad All Rights Reserved.

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“I’ve been thinkin’,” Becky confided as she did Pauline’s hair.

“That sounds dangerous,” quipped Paul to his now favourite girlfriend.

“Now you hang on there, I’ll have you know I’m a straight A student.”

“I didn’t think you were bent, duckie,” said Paul in a camp way and Becky dissolved in laughter.

“You Brits are so funny.”

“Yeah, I know you only took independence because you couldn’t understand our jokes.”

“No–it wus ‘cos you wouldn’t let us pour the tea in before the milk.”

“Depends if you’re using bone china or not.”

“You mean there’s another form of china?” Becky pretended to look shocked.

“Yes, you use it here for meals–I think they call it ironstone so it can be dishwashed.”

“I was jokin’, Pauline.”

“Gosh–and I missed it.”

Becky glowered at him and he started to giggle–so did she. “You bring a breath of fresh air into this dusty ol’ dump, girl.”

“Yeah, just before they expel me for lying.”

“Nah, being economical with the truth.”

“Actuality.”

“What?”

“Being economical with the actuality, is the quote by Mr Clarke–it came up in an ethics lesson at my last school.”

“You did, ethics?” asked a surprised Becky.

“Yeah, it was easier than cheerleading.” Paul smirked then suddenly ran into the bathroom.
“Hey, you,” said Becky chasing after him. She caught him in the corridor outside.

“We’re going to have to tell the others, aren’t we?” he said to her.

“Just hold fire a moment, girl, we don’t do anything until we’ve spoken with Mr Uchiha–I’ll ask if we can see him at lunch if not before.”

“So what do I do until then?”

“Act like you’re a girl called Pauline Burton.”

“But won’t the teachers know?”

“Um–not necessarily,” Becky blushed.

“What did you do?”

“Well, I kinda made a small adjustment to your records on the computer.”

“You’re allowed near that sort of stuff?”

“Yeah, one of my duties is helping the school secretary with the mundane administration–like student registration records.”

“Won’t they shoot you when they realise?”

“I’ll come clean to the head when we go to see him.”

“Why did you do that–it’s an awful risk?”

“I figured it bought us a little time.”

“Won’t the Airforce query it when you bill them?”

“Hell no, they pay in advance for a P. Burton–they don’t do first names.”

“Um–how are we going to explain how a girl got sent to a boy’s school?”

“A mix up by the Airforce–they do this sort of thing all the time–they have a budget of billions of dollars and personnel force of thousands–mistakes happen–you’re one of them.”

“What am I going to tell my dad?”

“That–I don’t know, girl–but you have a few weeks to think of something.”

“Yeah–I guess.”

“C’mon, let’s go get some chow.”

“Do they do Italian, then?”

“What?”

“Ciao–it’s Italian for whatever they want it to be.”

“No chow–don’t you Brits speak English? C-H-O-W–chow.”

“Oh that chow–it’s a dog–if you’re telling me we have a dog for breakfast, I’m going on a diet of toast only.”

“Geez, Pauline–you’d make a saint swear.”

“Oh gosh, I did that years ago–now they just weep.”

“C’mon, if we don’t go now–it’ll be brunch.”

They dined with some of the other princesses although Paul facing down the larger football player had made its way round the grapevine within hours. So the princesses were the subject of more attention than usual from the other boys.
They’d just finished eating breakfast when Becky and Pauline were sent for by Mr Uchiha, so they made their way to his office. He bade them enter and it was immediately obvious that he was not best pleased.
“Personally, Becky, I’m disappointed in you–leading the others on with what is actually a deception.”

“Yes, sir.” Becky looked at her feet and her shiny black shoes.

“As for you, Pauline–I believe the records say your name is now–I’m surprised you went along with it. I’m pleased you joined the Princess program, because we needed a new face in that–but what a start to get off to?”

“I’m sorry you disapprove, sir, and I apologise for a deliberate deception of the others, however, you weren’t exactly straight with me, were you?”

“Oh, wasn’t I?”

“No, sir, you sent me off with Becky knowing I would think she was a girl until she told me herself. I didn’t do anything different to that.”

Uchiha was caught a little on the back foot. Normally he explained everything about the program to the individual student, but had experimented by using Becky this time, partly because he was sure Becky would achieve a result where he would have failed.

“I see,” said the headmaster, “I don’t think they’re quite the same, but I’d like your thoughts on how we deal with this deception?”

“We carry on, sir,” offered Becky.

“Is that possible?” he looked at her–clearly he didn’t think it was, but he wanted to hear what she had to say.

“Not with just the two of us knowing, but perhaps if we include Sarah and Andrew it could be, and then you’d get some real interactions from the boys to a girl,” Becky had obviously thought about it.

“What if it gets out that Pauline is another boy?”

“Why should it? We’ll all keep shtum, and no one else should be in a position to tell. Pauline already has a more female shape than any of us except Sarah, she’s growing her own breasts; so why should anyone else know?”

“What about Mr Burton? How’s he going to react when he finds out what’s been going on–remember, only you and Sarah have opted to live as girls full time and your families are cognisant of it and generally supportive–Pauline’s father doesn’t know and may well be upset by finding everyone else thinks he has a daughter?”

“He won’t be here for three months–which gives us a chance to think of something–besides, if Pauline’s cover is blown, she can always revert to see him.”

“How do you know he won’t be here for three months?” asked the headmaster.

“My dad called last night and told me he didn’t think he’d be here for three months because he was so involved with the training programme to fly that silly bomber thing. He’s always put his career before me–I’m doing the same to him.”

The headmaster bade them sit down. “I’m not sure I understand what you mean, Pauline.”

“Dad has always put his career first, even when my mum died he only made a token effort to look after me before sending me off to schools–they did a better job than he did, and they weren’t exactly brilliant.

“Last night, something happened–I don’t know what it was–but normally when I get picked on by larger boys, I either run away or get beaten up–sometimes both. Last night, I felt more powerful as a girl than I’d ever done as a boy. If he’d thought I was a boy in a skirt, he’d have probably hit me or I’d have said nothing and let him bully me.”

“I see–that’s pretty deep stuff, I think we’ll need to get you seen by the school counsellor, so she’ll be another in on your little secret. I won’t tell the staff, I’ll let you do that.”

“Do what, sir?” asked Becky seeking clarification.

“I’ll let you tell the staff whatever you believe is going to be the most beneficial thing for Pauline. If you choose to maintain the deception that’s up to you, I won’t correct it but if things go wrong–then we’ll have to rethink things–such as suggesting Pauline is transgender like Sarah. However, people won’t be too pleased that you conned them.”

“So we don’t get caught, sir.” Pauline said smiling.

“This is going to put you under tremendous pressure, Pauline, do you realise this?” continued the head.

“I know, sir, but something in me changed last night and I’d like to explore it some more.”

“I think epiphanies are more the environment of psychotherapists and priests than headmasters, so I’ll make you an appointment with the counsellor–she’s off today, but tomorrow–we’ll leave hints that it’s about the loss of your mother–anyone here could understand that.”

“Fine, sir.”

“Becky, changing the records without speaking with me was a step too far for me to overlook it.”

“Yes, sir, I understand.”

“I appreciate why you did it, but these are legal documents and if anyone ever found out about it, there could be a load of trouble for the school and me personally.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t think, sir.”

“I can’t let you off with just a reprimand.”

“It was my idea, sir, I asked her to do it,” said Pauline.

“Your attempt to save your friend is very noble but means that I have to punish you as well.”

Pauline snuck a peep at Becky who was looking very embarrassed and possibly even tearful.

“I need to make you understand the seriousness of this action, both of you.”

“Yes, sir,” they both said in unison and smirked despite their embarrassment.

“I’m going to fine you a week’s pay.”

“But, sir, Pauline needs to get lots more clothes, she’s borrowing from others at the moment.”

“I know, Becky, but I hadn’t finished. The school will make a grant for her to buy a certain number of items of clothing, underwear and so forth for school use and some casual clothes and footwear. We’ll also supply several school uniforms. We can arrange some clothing via the internet to tide her over, then allow you to buy locally perhaps next week or so.”

“Thank you, Mr Uchiha,” Pauline almost wanted to hug the man.

“I take it Becky and Sarah will help you choose the most suitable attire for evenings and weekends.”

“Oh yessir,” Becky beamed, “you bet we will.”

“I’m not a gambling man, Becky, but if I were I’d just have collected on my stake.” He signed two notes, one for each girl. “Give these to your teachers and my apologies for delaying you. Quite what we tell your father, young lady, I really don’t know.”

“He probably won’t even notice,” Pauline threw back, “I’m not a bloody aircraft.”

“Swearing is not encouraged here, young lady, so please be careful what you say. It’s particularly unbecoming in pretty young Englishwomen, whom I’m hoping will help some of my students learn to speak the language. Some will be fascinated by your accent–but don’t rely on it too much–they’ll soon tire and look for further novelty.”

Pauline looked perplexed, “I thought everyone here spoke English, sir?”

“Not quite–many of them speak American English of a very low form–I’m hoping you’ll be able to help them.”

“I’ll do my best, sir.”

“I’m relying on you to do just that. If you have any problems, do come and see me or the counsellor if that’s more appropriate. Right off you go–this is supposed to be an educational establishment.”

“Yessir,” they said together and he shook his head and grinned.

Mr Swift was not impressed with Pauline’s late attendance to his class. He tutted when he accepted the note from the headmaster. The rest of the class enjoyed the diversion and he spoke nastily to the to restore order.

“Miss Burton, if you’ll be so kind we’re looking at Shakespeare’s the Merchant of Venice, page seven.”

She fumbled with the book eventually opening it at the correct page and a boy at the next desk pointed to where they were. Pauline smiled, they did this last year in English lit.

“So why is Shylock painted in such a dark manner?” asked Swift.

“Anti-semitism, Sir,” answered Pauline, “Jacobean England was quite anti-semitic and it was easy for Shakespeare to use that to create his villain.”

“I see, young lady, you’ve done this play before, I take it?”

“Um–yessir,” she blushed.

“Right, well I hope you’ll keep the ending to yourself–wouldn’t want to spoil it for the others, would we now?”

“No, sir.”

A general titter ran through the class, which Swift allowed to die by itself, although he glared at Pauline from time to time and she felt he didn’t like her.

“Tonight, your homework is to read all of the first act, we’ll read through it tomorrow, and as we somehow have a young woman in this class she will read the part of Portia, assisted by our pseudo-female, Mister Clampett, who will read the part of Nerissa. We’ll decide who will play the parts of the others later.” The bell rang for end of the class.
Mister Clampett, was actually Edward Clampett, who was presently in his alter ego guise of Ellie-Mae, he took the name from the sixties comedy series, The Beverley Hill-Billies. He was hardly a beauty having a rather prominent nose, but he looked reasonably female under the blonde wig and schoolgirl uniform he was wearing.

“You must be the chick who bested Zach Kowalski?” said Ellie-Mae.

“Who’s he when he’s at home?” asked Pauline.

“Our quarterback, all muscle–small brain.”

“Like a dinosaur?” suggested Pauline.

“Yeah, only he don’t know he’s extinct...”

“Yet,” added Pauline completing the sentence.

At lunch, Becky set up a meeting in her room with Sarah, Andrew and Pauline. This was going to be the time for Pauline to come clean and hope the others kept her little secret.

While the students were eating Professor Swift was complaining that it was bad enough with the little fairies running about in skirts without them letting in real girls. His reactionary views weren’t impressing many except one old codger, who wasn’t very impressed with anything that came after the fountain pen, and who believed women should be chained to the kitchen sink.

Not far away, Zach Kowalski who was now a bit of a joke as a hard man, having been faced down by a girl younger than he, and a foreigner to boot, was sulking with his friend Caleb Greensit. “I’m gonna get that stuck up little bitch back, Cale. No one does that to Zach Kowalski.”

“Sure, Zach, just bide ya time.”

“Dunno if I can, Cale, they’s even jokin’ that Mount Pleasant’ll play a girl linebacker next week, because awhat happened in the canteen. Naw, I’m gonna have t’make her pay big time.”

“Okay, Zach, count me in.”

“Thanks, Cale, you’re a real friend. Look at those pussies fawning round her–makes ya sick don’t it?” He indicated the group of princesses and protectors who were sat laughing and joking with Pauline and Becky the other side of the canteen.

“So this bloke, like comes into the stores and says his boss sent him for a long stand.”

“What’s a long stand?” asked Andrew.

“Shush,” said Sarah, “let her finish the story.”

“Anyway, they left him there and went off to deal with other callers an’ he’s lookin’ at his watch all the time an’ they seem to be ignoring him. But seein’ as he’s lower rank than the storeman, he can’t say anything and just waits and waits.

“Finally after like half an hour, the storeman says to him, did you upset your flight sergeant this morning? The bloke says, ‘Yeah, how’d’ya know?”

“The storeman says to him, ‘He just phoned to say you can go back now.’

“What about the long stand?” says the bloke.

“‘Your flight sergeant says you’ve stood long enough–’Long stand, geddit?” At which her audience all groaned.