The Daily Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 2334 by Angharad Copyright© 2014 Angharad All Rights Reserved.

It had been a trying day, Danni got involved in a squabble with another girl who said her brother said she was a boy. Danni got very upset and the other girl pushed her over and yanked at her panties only to discover her mistake. I had to go and get Danni, who was still upstairs lying on her bed and crying.

Apparently the girl had been suspended for unladylike behaviour. When I spoke with Danielle she simply said she couldn’t go back there, it would be too embarrassing.

“So you’re going to let some bully win, are you?”

“She pulled my panties down, in the playground. Several girls saw it.”

“Saw it?”

“My fanny.”

“So, no one is going to believe that you’re anything but a girl, are they?”

“But it’s so embarrassing.”

“Why did she think you weren’t a girl?”

“She said her brother played football against a boy call Danny Maiden, and my name being Danielle was too big a coincidence.”

“Yes, but it’s Danielle Cameron.”

“She wouldn’t listen to that. I’m not going back and I’m certainly not playing soccer again.”

“What about the other players?”

“Stuff them.”

“And the ladies club team.”

“They weren’t much good anyway.”

“So you’re just going to walk away from the things you love because some girl bullied you.”

“In front of others, Mummy. She humiliated me.”

“No, you’re the one humiliating yourself letting a stupid girl win. The girls who saw you, assuming they actually saw anything, will spread it far and wide on the school grapevine, that you’re all girl—which you are.”

“I can’t face them.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m not a proper girl am I?”

“You’re certainly whining like one.”

“What?”

“You sound like a six year old who’s had her dolly taken off her. If you had an ounce of the boy you used to be inside you, you’d be fighting back.”

“How?”

“By turning up in school and acting like nothing happened and by continuing to play soccer to your best ability. Make team captain or top scorer or something, make a positive impact.”

“But it was the soccer that gave me away.”

“Did it? It might have caused her to suspect something but as it’s a well known fact they don’t do gender reassignment on children, you can’t have had that done, ergo, you must be a normal female.”

“Oh, I hadn’t thought of it like that.”

“Obviously. Look, Danielle, I spent my whole life wanting to be a girl, then when I got there, or started the transition, I spent most of my time hoping no one would discover my dreadful secret. In the end, the only people it really mattered to were Daddy, Simon, and you kids. Simon was the most difficult because he obviously felt I’d deceived him, although I hadn’t deliberately, and after thinking it through over a month or two, he decided he still loved me—which was good because I loved him to bits.

“I spent a couple of years dreading being exposed, but even when it happened, people were either very good about it or it didn’t matter because they weren’t important to me or my family.

“I know your road to becoming female was different again and that since you’ve been ambivalent at times, but for the moment you’re in a female body, or as good as, so you have to make things work or life will become intolerable. You’re young enough to develop a very female body shape, so you have a potential to be a very convincing young woman; in fact, a very attractive young woman. Make the best of it, stare down those who doubt you and be the best you, you can be—and Daddy and I will support you every step of the way, as will all your sisters.”

She looked at me with tears running down her face. “I’ll be the best I can, Mummy, as long as you’re there to help me.”

“Do you doubt I will?”

“No, Mummy, I don’t.”

We hugged and she came down and ate with the rest of the litter, who were very interested in verifying the rumours they’d heard of the playground encounter. When they did, they were outraged and I had to advise them that any of them doing anything about it other than being astonished that anyone could doubt their sister was anything other than a girl, would be counter-productive. The girl who’d attacked Danni had been suspended, so the school had dealt with the discipline element, and their job was just to support their big sister. I think they understood, I’d find out in the next few days.

With that happening, my fears about Stella went on the back burner until she tarted herself up and went off with dear Roger again. This time Trish, who was still angry about what happened to Danni, went out with a camera and hid in the drive way—in my bike workshop to be exact, and managed a photo of Roger the dodger, when he collected Stella. She was rather pleased with her cleverness, so perhaps a career as a sniper or paparazzo was calling her.

If he was a spy, he obviously wasn’t a very good one, and we sent off his likeness to Jim to circulate and try to identify. Personally, I’d be surprised if his name was even Roger, but perhaps it was and she’ll come in saying it was nice while it lasted but he’s gone back to his wife or whatever and she’ll be back to normal.

Of course, what I want doesn’t happen unless I give exact instructions to the universe, and I suppose in dealing with Danielle’s little contra temps, I must have forgotten because Stella came home with eyes sparkling saying she was engaged. It wasn’t what I wanted to hear and I congratulated her and cringed inside. I sent a message to Jim and also one to Henry. If I was wrong, Stella would probably never talk to me again, nor would she understand or appreciate my motives, which I believed were honourable—more than I suspected of Roger, or whatever his name really was.

It was late when I went to bed and received a text from Henry thanking me for my email, I also sent him a photo of Roger, and he’d keep it quiet for now although like me, he was aware of Stella’s previous fragility on matters romantic. Perhaps she will get to kill me this time, it would mean I wouldn’t have to do it again, so every cloud has a silver lining however small.