How I spent my Summer Vacation: I became a Girl!
By
Rebecca Coleman

Note to readers: The “How I spent my Summer Vacation: I became a Girl!” is an ongoing in-universe serial that appears each Saturday Evening in the “Benton Evening Post” the story focuses on the ongoing struggle of Emil “Emily” Anderson as she strides to adopted to her new life in a small southern town that straddles the hill and the delta. The story chronicles her daily life and sometimes that of her aunt Flora as they try to figure out what direction she wants to take her life.

-6-
St. Clara Roman Catholic High School
(Aunt Flora point of View)

“Father will see you now.” A young baby face nun said to me as she appeared in the doorway. She looked like she was still in her twenties. No doubt she was one of those women who had heeded the call early in life. Her dark brown eyes seemed to sparkle and she seemed friendly enough.

“Thank you sister.” I said smiling as I stood up and followed behind the nun as she guided me down the long hallway. This hallway has changed very little in the twenty eight years since I walked down it. The air still smelled, the faint strains of sisters praying the rosary still filled the air and I swear I heard the phantom crack of the cane bringing penitence to the bottoms of naughty students. I nearly jumped out of skin, to many memories of being caned by the sisters her came flashing back.

“Something wrong Ms. Anderson?” The baby face nun said as she turned around and looked at me. “You seem a little pale.”

“It just strange to be back here after so many years.” I said, flushing a little. “Brings back a lot of memories. Some are good and some are bad I guess.” I said as I scratched the back of my neck. I mean how could I explain to a nun of all people that I had once been a little hell raiser. I was thorn in the side of many of the monks and nuns who had taught here. I believe I'd even driving one nun to drinking.

“I understand. Abbess Fox still remembers you.” The nun said smiling and then she giggled a little. “To this day she still thinks of you as a demon who took the form of a human girl and was sent here to cause as much confusion and havoc as possible. She swears on the Holy Bible that you always had a pair of horns sticking out your head.”

I blushed a little and shifted my eyes toward one of the now empty classrooms. Sister Fox? Oh I remember here, she was a young, mid thirties and she did her best to curve my tomboyish nature. She had to push fifty something now. I thought she would have retired by now. Well if she was still around, no doubt Emily would put her in the grave. The more time I spent around my niece the more I came to the understanding that she was just like me at that age.

“I'm sorry!” The nun giggled. “But you are something of an urban legend among the sisters here. Abbess Fox and Sister Summer speak of you in a hushed tone of voice.”

“Well..” I said blushing a lot. “I did cause a lot of trouble when I was here.” I was glad for the conversation. Soon I found myself climbing a concrete set of steps. I found myself looking down. When I was in school, boys used to hang around the bottom of the steps, hoping to catch sight of our panties. That seems like a long time ago though, a lifetime ago. Some girls used to flush red when one of the boys caught sight of her panties, some the more adventurous ones would wear lacy white ones. Hell, one girl even wrote her boyfriend's name on hers.

“Do boys still hang around the steps?” I ask as I pointed down toward the first landing.

The nun paused and sighed as she turned around and nodded her head.

“Yes, they do. Abbess Fox though has a creative punishment for them though, those who get caught are given six strokes of the cane by Father George and then are given a choice of either wearing a girl's uniform for six weeks or doing six weeks detention after school.” The Nun said as she shook her head.
“Has it worked?” I asked as I kept looking down. We truly never leave high school do we?

“Yes and no. Some boys want to wear the girls uniform because it looks cooler, they say the skirts are cooler than the woolen trousers, and the woolen blazers they are forced to wear. We generally allow them to wear the uniform.. girls want to wear the boys uniform because they claim it is more modest than the skirt and white blouse with sweater and a lot warmer. We allow that too.”

“Wow..” I said stopping. “When did St. Clare's become so progressive?” I said blinking as I waited for the nun to bite my head off.

“Thirteen or so years around. Around two thousand nine. We kind of had to change with the times.. it been a good change. I wish a few other things would change though. I think the cane is outdated. But if I may speak the truth Father is afraid of Abbess Fox. I think we all are.” The nun said as she looked around.

“And the diocese is okay with these changes?” I asked as I peered around. I was now in the part of school I'd dreaded going into the most when I was still a schoolgirl. The upper floor. The floor where all the teachers had their offices and where Mass was held daily. I knew I had one more floor to climb before I would come to the office of the Headmaster. Being summoned to see the Headmaster was dreadful on its own. But having to climb three flights of steps and walk down three long hallways. Was just sheer mental torture.

“The diocese has bigger problems to address than what uniform the students here wear.” The nun paused and sighed again. “Sexuality in our own diocese and in the church has really wounded her. But she was rotten and needed to purge herself. I just feel for Our Lady. To see her church being so abused, so tortured by rotten men, it really undoes the good she does. But like Old Luther in his day and age that forced the church to purge herself. I think all the cases of our sexual abuse committed by Father priest and Brother monks will force us to take a good, hard look in the mirror. Hopefully this would spark the change we need. Also with so few young men entering the priesthood, the number of future priests is on a sharp decline. That is what the diocese has concerned herself with. Not what uniform the students here wear.”

I blinked and blinked again as I took a step back. Maybe, just maybe the nuns here were not as bad as I remember them. I was starting to warm up to this nun. Maybe she could become the kind of mentor that Emily would need in her life. Kind of a big sister-like figure. Since her flesh and blood sister was too busy to even call and check in on her.

“So do students still tell those old ghost stories about this part of the school?” I asked after around four minutes of uncomfortable silence had passed. We were now climbing the stairs to the third floor.

“Oh yes.” The nun said, smiling a little. “People still report seeing a ghostly nun floating around here each afternoon. Sister Mary it seems her name was. She hung herself from the rafters after she missed her period. Or she became pregnant by one of the young men here. Her ghost is still said to roam this part of the school.” The nun paused and turned around and then she grinned a wicked grin.

“And since we Little Sisters of Saint Clare of New Orleans all dress the same. And she was a sister nun you could talking to the ghost nun right now!” She lifted her lips a little to show her teeth.

And I jumped back a little.

The nun started to laugh a little as she peered toward me, I'd never seen a nun laugh before and it was the most frightening thing I've ever seen. Finally after a few moments she settled down and then smiled as she peered toward me.

“Forgive, I'm sorry if I'd frighten you with my teasing. I just had to, to prank the once feared Flora Anderson would earn me so many brownie points with Sister Summer.” She said, smiling sweetly as she closed her eyes and folded her hands in the middle. I then caught sight of something. A small plastic figure that showed a girl wearing what looked like a cheerleading uniform. The style of the figure reminded me of those Japanese cartoons my niece loved to watch.

“That figure?” I said pointing toward the nuns wrist.

“Oh this?” She said lifting her dress and pulling back the sleeve. “Oh yes, this! You see, I love anime and love manga! I have since I was a little girl. And my sister, my blood sister, got this for me. It is from this anime called 'Pretty Celestial Soldier.' It is my favorite anime.” She said smiling.

“Oh my niece loves that Japanese cartoon! She wants to cosplay as Pretty Celestial Soldier Saturn for an upcoming anime convention. Her hair is the perfect length. So she just needs outfit.” I wanted to add 'And a pair of boobs' but I decided to leave that off for now.

“Oh what is your niece's name?” The nun said as she peered toward me.

“Emily Hannah Anderson.” I said blushing a little. “She really loves some Japanese comics and Japanese cartoons.” I said, forcing a laugh. As I rubbed the back of my neck.

“How old is she?” The nun asked.

“She'll be fifteen soon. She is going to repeat her Freshman year here. Her mom passed last All Soul's Day and she has been staying with me since then. We just moved here from Vicksburg, to many memories you know. Wanting to get a fresh start and all. Plus Mercy was really getting to me.” I said, rubbing my neck and forcing a laugh.

“Oh Mercy? As in Mercy Hospital? A hospital run sister nuns the Sisters of Mercy and Healing?” The young nun asked as she peered toward me. “I heard it was haunted by a demon that once possessed the soul of a nurse who did horrible things while she was alive. I heard the demon still haunts Mercy but the ghost of the nurse haunts another hospital in Jackson.” The nun said as she titled her head to the side.

“You know a lot about the paranormal for being a nun.” I said, sighing as we entered the hallway that would take us down to the headmaster office.

“I should teach Demonology.” She said, “And the Biblical Studies. Tell your niece she'll need the Manga Bible edition for my class. And that I also chair the Anime and Cosplay Club.” She said, holding up her finger.

Okay that threw me for a loop! Demonology? Biblical Studies using a Japanese comic book? Anime and Cosplay Club? This was not the Saint Clare I remember from my girlhood. This was, this was weird. This was insane! This was pure bedlam!And yet it gave me hope that my possible transgender niece could attend school here and float through four years schooling and at the end get her diploma and walk off that stage and never see this school again.

“Something wrong Ms. Anderson?” The nun said with a smile.

“It's just that this is totally different from the Saint Clare I graduated from.” I said blushing a little. “It's like a totally different school but not. Like I'm sure there are still blood stains from that massive brawl between St. Katherine's Episcopal School and us in two thousand. You know.. the whole silly rivalry between Protestant England and Catholic Ireland like most of the basketball team was Irish.” I said, chuckling a little.

“Oh no!” The young nun said brightly. “I had those floorboards torn up, salted and burned because I was afraid some poor misguided soul would scrape the blood up and use it as an offering in Satanic Mass!” She said as she winked and smiled. “But we still don't have a chemical lab. Not after some poor misguided teenager decided to mix a dozen different chemicals together and that caused a big boom!”

“It was all in the name of science!” I muttered as I peered toward the nun. “All in the name of science!”

And that was the last bit of conversation I had with the nun. For soon we arrived at the door that was centered with a thin strip of brass and engraved into the brass was one simple word. 'Headmaster'. I took a deep breath. It had been some twenty eight years since I'd stepped foot into that office. But I had to remind myself I was not a school girl anymore, I was a fully grown woman with two degrees under my belt. And besides I was doing this for Emily after all! And so with that in mind I pushed open the door and stepped inside.

-7-
Father John Trent, Headmaster of St. Clare High Schoolgirl
(Aunt Flora point of view)

Well talk about life throwing you a curveball. The boy who took my virginity at senior prom, the boy who had once tossed four dozen cherry bombs into the back alley behind the school and blown a dozen metal trash cans from here to kingdom come was now a priest! A freaking priest! A bloody, freaking priest!

“Johnny?” I said as I peered across the desk. “Johnny Trent?” I said as I took a deep breath.

The priest blinked and blinked again as he peered toward me. He then sighed and leaned back into his chair. Without saying a word he reached up and removed his collar and started to rub his neck. There was something amusing in the way he muttered something under his breath as he tossed the collar to the side.

“Ms. Anderson.. it's been a while.” He said coughing a little. “You were the last person I expected to see in my office today.” I could tell he was trying to be formal. But how could formal talking to guy who took my  virginity ? Well he did not steal anything, I gave it freely and rode him like a bucking bronco all night till his mom walked in to see what all the fuss was about. She took one look at eighteen year old me, straddling her son and then walked right out of the room.
I think I heard her crying later that morning in the bathroom and between sobs she said. “I don't want to have grandchildren yet?” Well I was not ready to become a mother yet. Little did she know and little did I know that I was barron at the time. So motherhood was always out of the question for me. When you're eighteen years old, it is a blessing because you can sleep around with whoever you want without being concerned about what is going to come from it. But once you reach your thirties, and you find yourself alone, without a husband or a child, the truth starts to dawn on you. And you feel like part of your life is missing something.

“Indeed.. Listen John.. I have a favor to ask of you.” I said, taking a deep breath.

“Please, it's Father now..” He said turning his chair around so he could look out the window.

“I'm not calling the boy who I gave my virginity to 'Father' so you can toss that out the window or write it down on a piece of paper and shove it up your ass.” I said growling a little as I stood up and leered across the desk. “Listen, I have a niece who is about to enroll here and I want to make sure she is not going to get into any trouble with the staff here.” I could be a real bitch when I wanted to be one.

“I thought you had a nephew Ms. Anderson..” John's voice trailed a little.

“I have a niece, her name is Emily Hannah Anderson and she will be starting school here in the fall.” I said leering toward John who seemed to shift his weight around as he looked around the room. He seemed almost afraid to speak. But finally he stuttered out a few words.

“I mean I would have to get the bishop's approval for that.. and of course the dioceses would need to be informed as well..” He said a little. I think he was finally catching on to what I was saying.

“To hell with the dioceses.. Listen, I'm only sending Emily here because you guys are giving me a steep discount on the tuition because I work at a Catholic Hospital and I attended school here. I myself have not stepped foot into a church since my sister passed away a year ago.” I said leaning over the table. “I can save myself and Emily a ton of money by simply enrolling her in public school. But I'm sure her education would suffer. So Johnny boy, I'm going to ask you a simple question. Would my wonderful niece Emily encounter any problems here at this school.”

John swallowed hard and gazed into my eyes before he swallowed hard again.

“No ma'am.. I'll make sure of that..” muttered under his breath that I just noticed seem haunted with the odor of garlic and cheap chuck steak. 

“Good man,” I said, almost purring. “Another thing if any of the nuns here lay so much as one finger upon her. I'm going to tear this diocese a new asshole.. trust me, what those old men in Rome have forgotten is that the world has grown up. Social Media is a powerful weapon. And I have another niece who is very savory when it comes to how to use social media. I also have another nephew who's going to an Episcopal priest. Given the shoestring budget this parish has. I'm sure they can ill afford to lose one family.. much less a dozen or maybe two dozen.”

Okay I was blowing smoke. But come on, who could blame me? I had to hammer this guy hard and let him know that I had clout and beside this was for Emily, not me? My Emily.

“I will not be threatened in my office! Ms. Anderson I kindly ask you to leave.” He said coughing.

“That is not a threat, Father. That is  a promise. Now it seems, somebody made a typo on the enrollment sheet 'Emil' is supposed to be 'Emily' and the middle name is not supposed to be 'Henderson' but 'Hannah'. I'm sure it is well within your power to correct that simple mistake, without having to inform those above your head.” I said as I leaned over and patted John on the cheeks.

“Of course.. there was a typo and I will personally see to it that it is corrected before the start of the school year.” He muttered as he started to sink down into his desk. I towered over him and looked down at him. I wanted him to see the fire that flickered in my eyes. To feel the venom that dripped off each word that my forked tongue whispered.

“See that you do.” And with that I left. As I strolled out the door I smiled a little. It felt good to let the old Flora out. The one who shook this school to its very foundation! The one that made heaven and earth tremble! And as I walked down the hallway, I found myself starting to giggle. If Emily was anything like her dear old Auntie. Then this school was in for a shock. And best of all she knew not to pull that shit with me.