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Chapter 2

Waking up the next morning wasn't the most happiest of moments. Trying to sleep with two decent sized lumps on my chest wasn't conducive to a good night's rest. I kept stirring throughout the night which led to some… well let's just say that my dreams were unusual and leave it at that.

I dressed in the same yoga outfit that Dani had gotten me the night before and after our morning time in the communal bathrooms, which I'll have to go over at some other occasion, we headed down the hallway, crossing over into another building that was attached to the dorms. I did get a brief look at the outside world through two levels of security glass. It seemed to be warm and that the sky was clear, but there wasn't anything else in sight; just a random countryside scene from Anywhere, America.

A quick trip down a single flight of stairs brought us to another short hallway with a single door. The Wardrobe room should have been called a room so much as a warehouse. I was bewildered at the amount of everything that was available.

"Dani? Who are these people again?"

She threw me a smile over her shoulder. "Amazing, huh?"

I nodded. Rows upon rows of hanging clothes stood before me, not to mention pegboards of packaged material, what looked like socks, underwear, assorted girlie necessities were scattered throughout the room.

"The boys have one just like this on the other side. There is a uniform during school hours and another for special functions, but for nights and Sunday's you're on your own," she explained.

At the mention of uniforms I looked my friend over. At first I had thought she was just trying to make a fashion statement, or maybe to look extra cute this morning dressing up as she had, but now I was looking at her outfit as a person that actually had to wear something that girlie. "Oh, you're kidding."

"Afraid not. My orientation counselor explained it as immersing yourself into the role that is expected of you. Regardless of how you look right now, you still hold yourself… your body image, as a guy."

We stopped in front of a set of black, gray, and white plaid skirts. Dani picked one at random from the rack and held it up for me. "Wearing something like this will be a constant reminder that you are a girl and to act accordingly: walk with poise, cross your legs when you sit, you get the idea. 'Cause if you don't, then you wind up flashing everyone what you are wearing underneath."

I couldn't get the mental picture of a busty Catholic school girl out of my head. Granted the outfits were nothing like that. I watched, kind of in a stupor, as Dani held the skirt in front of me. It came about half way down my thighs.

"It's the tall girls that get screwed with this particular skirt."

I looked at hers, and it came maybe an inch or two above her knees. Great, I have long thighs, which meant I was going to be flashing more leg. She put that skirt back, pulled another from a bit further down the line, and handed it to me.

"Here, we'll grab you the rest of your uniform and you can try it out for size," Dani informed me as we moved to the opposite side and pursued the white button down shirts. After we had procured a really low cut vest, a black tie with silver stripes, black knee high nylon socks, and to my horror, something Dani called booties, which looked like high heeled boots with the calf portion ripped off, I was led to a dressing room.

~O~

"Kristyn, you need to hurry it up a little. We're running behind schedule."

I was already dressed. The thing was that I really didn't want to step outside of the booth I was safely content with sitting in. I felt as if my entire body was on display. The shirt I was wearing had almost no sleeves, just little poofy things at the shoulders, and the vest curved under my breasts, squishing them together, up and out. Not that the bra I had to use wasn't doing that in the first place. Dani had to run back and switch out a few things, and had helped me considerably along the way, but she hadn't seen the finished product. However, with a resigned sigh I stood and caught my balance. High heels were the devil. They weren't outrageously high, maybe a couple of inches, but they made my already sleek legs even longer, my butt stick out and by balance compensation, my breasts stick even further out.

A light knock sounded at the booth's door and it opened a second later.

"Oh, my god! You're a darling!"

Great.

She skittered forward, loosened the tie around my neck and popped the top button. "You don't have to wear them like a guy," she informed me as she pulled it loose from its knot. "But you do have to know how to make a Full Windsor. It's more symmetrical."

While she fussed at my tie I went ahead and complained. "Why heels? I'm going to wind up killing myself on some stairs and bleed all over the place."

She giggled to herself. "Always use the banister to balance yourself and shift your weight to the balls of your feet. You won't fall. Besides, believe it or not, girls wear heels on occasion. You'll wear them during school hours so that they become second nature. Afterward you can go around in flip flops if you want."

She turned me around and checked me out to make sure I didn't wear anything backward, I guess. "Leave your hair. You have a meeting with Dr. Shanahan for your orientation and then they'll probably send you straight to the stylist, like they did me."

I had no idea what I was supposed to do with my hair in the first place, but from the look of Danielle's there was a bow that was probably going to be in my future at some point.

~O~

I only almost killed myself once on the way to the administration offices. Turning on polished floors in the shoes I was wearing wasn't really recommended. Who makes shoes with virtually smooth soles? The only part that actually gripped well was the heel which consisted of about a square centimeter of traction. So, lesson one in walking in slippery hells… sorry, heels (Freudian typo)… was that one doesn't lean into a turn. If one does lean, then one must go ahead and throw ones self on the ground or suffer a dislocated elbow while trying to catch ones self.

I was still rubbing the red mark on my elbow when Danielle held the door to the main offices for me. A spartan receptionist desk was the only piece of furniture in the small room, manned by a fairly buff guy with a high and tight haircut, white business shirt and a thin black tie. He nodded to Danielle and thumbed to an open door to the right of his desk.

"Dr. Shanahan is expecting you. Go on in."

"Thank you," Dani chirped.

She led me to the very first door on the left which was wide open, and knocked on the frame. "Dr. Shanahan, Kristyn is here for her orientation."

The blonde lady, in her mid thirties, behind the desk, typing away on her computer keyboard looked up with a smile. "Danielle, always a pleasure to see your smiling face in the morning."

"Thank you, ma'am."

I was almost expecting Dani to curtsy, with her finger on her chin, the way she was grinning.

"And you must be Kristyn?" she asked in an almost non-questioning tone. "Come in and have a seat." With a look at Dani she nodded. "Excellent work last night and this morning, Danielle. She almost looks ready to start her day." Before Dani got a chance to respond, this time, she was sent off. "That'll be all for now. I'll alert you when you can retrieve her."

The door closed behind us as I sat down. My skirt bunched up under my butt until I scooted up and ran my hand underneath to smooth it out. When I looked back up I saw Miss Shanahan smiling at me with a knowing grin. "Very good, Kristyn. You see you have some things to learn."

Without having to be prompted, I crossed my legs at the knee, which to my shock almost seemed natural given my trim legs and lack of male equipment to get in my way.

"Dealing with the heels without too much trouble?"

I frowned. "I almost took out a wall right around the corner, but yeah, I guess."

A laugh showed faint lines to the either side of her mouth. "Very good. It's important to immerse yourself into womanhood. Your future sanity depends on it."

Well that was ominous.

Once she sat herself behind the desk, she intertwined her fingers and set them in her lap. "What has Danielle had to say about your being here?"

A strand of hair took its chance and escaped from the confines of the bulk of my hair, falling across my right eye. It was becoming natural, already, to brush it away, but it was still a pain. "Um… well, we haven't really had too much time to talk. Between being drugged, transforming, and sleep, we've just been…"

"Catching up?"

I shrugged. "Sorta."

"You two are the first people that have known each other outside of the Center. It was rather fortuitous for your friendship to already be cemented before coming here. Considering the nature of your talent, it would have been very hard to explain your house exploding."

"Yeah," I hadn't really thought about it as of yet. "I guess I ought to thank you for that. My dad…"

She nodded. "Most likely would have been killed in the fallout."

I looked down, thinking about that happening. "He thinks I'm dead, doesn't he?"

When I looked back up at her, her face wasn't somber, but there was a considerable lack of emotion showing. "I think you understand why we have to keep your status and this facility a secret."

I nodded. "I've read enough comics and books. People wouldn't understand. We'd be lab rats if not burned at the stake."

"Very true." At my silence she added, "After a few months, when you become acclimated to our routine and learn your role here, we allow a visit of a sort. You won't be able to tell him, of course, but seeing him and how he's moving on with his life is allowable." At the disbelief I was showing on my face, she softly smiled. "We aren't monsters here, Kristyn."

I found myself looking back down and fidgeting with my hands. "What's the catch?"

"Catch?"

"Yeah," I answered. "Are you some secret government covert project that is looking to take advantage of kids with superpowers?"

A throaty laugh filled the air. "My, you do read a lot, don't you?"

I just nodded and gave her a tentative smile.

"Kristyn, the answer to your question is, yes."

Hold on. Wasn't there supposed to be a rule that the secret organization that you were drafted into was supposed to keep it a secret? "Uh…"

Her eyes drilled into mine with knowledge that I lacked. "Tell me, realistically, what would you expect to happen to someone in your situation?"

"Um…"

Her eyes thinned a little. "Enough with the uhs and ums, please. You are a lady now. You must act like one," she informed me in a polite even tone. "Think about what you are going to say and then tell me."

My back straightened. I was more conscious of my posture, for some reason. She wanted the straight poop, well, I guess I'd give it to her. "I expect that we would be trained in some way, for a specific purpose, that would be for the good of America. But, that isn't always the case. What you may think is for the good, other people would consider evil or self-serving."

She didn't confirm or deny what I speculated upon.

"The young adults here at the Center, your soon to be classmates, will finish their education as normally as possible, but your extra-curricular activities will not be sports or dance." She let that settle into me before continuing. "Your school day will begin at eight o'clock in the morning and will continue until two o'clock. Thirty minutes will be your allotted time for lunch at noon. Then at three you will have sessions dealing with control and use of your talent. At five you will be released to your own devices, which will include homework, physical fitness, and personal time. Dinner is at six o'clock."

I didn't even have a chance to comment before she rapid fired the rest of my schedule. "That is your schedule for Monday through Thursday. Friday and Saturday will be for special training depending on your talent. Sunday is your own to do as you will."

Opening her drawer she produced a mobile phone, or what I thought was a mobile phone. It had a little leather carrying case and I took it as she handed it to me.

"We try to stay up to date with today's technology and use it to our advantage."

I undid the Velcro closure and pulled it out. "It's an iPhone."

"Not exactly, but the technology is extremely similar. You might say that we have access to certain patents that make our life here more pleasant. Peruse the applications at your leisure. You will find a class syllabus for the remainder of your education here at the Center. Apply yourself, Kristyn. We expect exemplary testing scores, as at some time in the future your life might be teetering on the line of whether you remember your education and training."

They were turning us into spies?

"We took the opportunity of your father being at work to download the music playlist that was on your own iPod as well as the documents that were on your personal computer from your former house." I almost let out a relieved sigh. "We want you to be comfortable here, Kristyn. We want you to give your training priority attention. However we also understand the lives of teenagers. If you like, you are more than welcome to pursue personal relationships with the others, but you need to restrain your feelings. In other words, don't get attached. In a couple of years you or your friends might be shipped off to your first assignment." She shook her head. "You'll cover that in your sex education orientation."

"Uh…" At her sharp look I apologized. "Sorry, I mean… I already had sex ed in junior high."

Her lips quirked. "Believe me, Kristyn, you haven't had our version. I hear it's quite revealing."

Pictures of a classroom with a large bed flashed in my head. No… just no. A topic change was seriously needed at that moment. Stopping myself from saying, 'um', once more I asked, "What am I going to be training for?"

Dr. Shanahan shrugged. "Could be any number of different positions. Over the next week, you're going to be tested psychologically, mentally, and physically to determine your current status. We'll decide then what you are best suited for. But I will tell you that you will be grouped with two others for initial talent training."

There were others like me? She held my interest.

"They are Psychokinetics like yourself. Although their specialties differ."

That confused me. "Dani said that I was an Electrokinetic."

"You are. It's a subset of Psychokinetics. Your specialty is electricity as you already know. The others are Max Stevenson, a Hydrokinetic, and Heather Davis, a Photokinetic."

Ah. "Hydro is water, but what's Photo?"

"Light."

How do you manipulate light? That had to be seriously messed up. It's light, it's dark, it's light. Seemed kind of boring to me; a human light switch.

"The basics for control of your talents are virtually the same, so you will be training with them at first."

I nodded in assent.

"I do have a request, if you are willing."

With a tilt of my head I was at least willing to listen.

"Ray Lomax, our most recent student besides Danielle. He's had a very rough time with his transition, and he voluntarily cut his personal relationships off with the rest of the class. I'd consider it a personal favor if you'd be willing to befriend him."

I've seen this one before, and no thanks I really don't want to hook up with a guy right now. "I'm not into guys, Dr. Shanahan."

Her smile only reached to her lips. "He's not into girls, Kristyn. No need to worry there. However, the signs are there for… lets just say that I'm worried about him."

"You think he might hurt himself?"

"Or others," she nodded.

That's where my eyebrows shot up a little. "And you don't think that he might hurt me?"

"You have a very powerful defense mechanism, Kristyn. Fear or anger will set it off at the moment. I'm not worried about you."

I pondered that statement for a while. "What's his power?"

"He has Photographic Reflexes. He has to see something done, no matter how complicated, and then he can reproduce the same operation."

"You mean like a doctor?"

A nod was returned. "A doctor, pianist, Tae Kwon Do master. Whatever he learns he can apply virtually instantaneously."

How incredibly cool is that? "I'll see what I can do. I wasn't really Mr. Socialite back at my old school."

"Just try, that's all I'm asking."

~O~

The meeting went on for what seemed like forever while we worked on the little details of my new life. I had to choose a middle and last name to go along with the first that Dani had given me. And thus was born Kristyn Anne Keys.

It was seven thirty in the morning and I felt like it was already late afternoon when Dani came back to retrieve me for breakfast.

"Is your brain fried yet?"

I was about to respond and forgot I was walking in what amounted to ice skates on the polished floor. A little slip later and I was resetting my posture and shortening my stride.

"I'm sorry. What did you ask me before I almost gave myself a concussion?"

Dani's giggle is really cute, by the way.

"I asked you if your brain was fried."

"Meh. It was about what I expected. Secret government agency looking to overthrow the world."

Her eyes rolled. "Well it does sound all nefarious if you describe it like that."

"Yeah, all we need is a hard core military type to head the school, you know, with an eye patch and a jagged scar on his cheek."

Dani's eyes went wide. "Got it."

"What? You're kidding." She shook her head.

"Nope, calls himself, the Colonel. He's got the scar, but no eye patch."

"Creepier and creepier."

Breakfast was in full swing by the time we arrived. Thankfully, the whole 'having to wear school uniforms' wasn't a joke that Miss Shanahan and Dani had made up. All the girls were dressed exactly like I was. I felt very relieved, that was, until almost every person in the place stopped what they were doing and stared at me. God, I hate being the new guy… girl.

"You must be the new girl?" a white-haired girl asked me. And I don't mean platinum blonde, or gray; I mean white. "I'm Heather." Recognition of the name gave me something to smile about. "PK'ers unite, amiright?"

Amazingly enough I understood her. PK'er-PsychoKinetic. See, I'm not quite as slow as certain people are led to believe. "Yo," I responded. That brought a giggle from her. Okay, what is it with the giggling. Will I eventually wind up performing this very feminine stereotype as well?

She turned to the black-haired girl in front of her who was studiously combing through a really old book. Coincidentally she was one of the ones that hadn't ogled me from the start. "This is my BFF Debbie." When the girl didn't look up, Heather smacked her on the arm. "Debs, newbie."

The girl looked up. "Hey." And then straight back down, she looked at her book. Heather rolled her eyes. "She gets this way whenever they give her a new book. It's really annoying. She's an Omni-Linguist. No matter how old or dusty the book, she can read it."

I was ready to head for the hills. It was like she had one too many shots of espresso in the morning. I was seriously considering maybe an IV of caffeine hanging beside her bed or something.

She pointed at the head of the line at the purple haired girl. "That's Sheri, she's a Token-Reader. Next to her is Rita." She whispered conspiratorially to me, "They're an item, so hands off," she said with a wink. "Rita is an Eraser… memory, not like live bodies or anything." Heather paused for a second to mock shiver and take in another breath. "And the last two, " she pointed at a redhead, I mean really red, not like normal orange-red, but like fire engine red, "Lili and Lara." Lili was a brown haired girl. "They're like totally 'Wonder Twin's Power Activate' since Lili showed up last fall."

I glanced at Dani who was holding her hand over her mouth, trying not to laugh.

"So, I heard you were a PK'er what's your specialty?" Heather finished, almost bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"Um…" Dammit, forgot. So I started over. "Electrokinesis."

Her eyes widened. "Freaking awesome!" After a brief pause and an inward thought she actually bounced and pointed at me. "That was you last night! Holy crap, you have that much power?"

Now the other girls were interested in me as well, and not just looking at me like today's science project. Debbie even looked up from her book.

"What?"

Dani's hand took my elbow. "You kind of knocked out the power grid when you were in the clinic. It's shielded, that's what makes it a big deal. They were ready for you and you still knocked it out."

I was stunned for a second. "Oh… well, cool."

After shuffling through the line and acquiring a pretty decent looking omelet with a side of bacon, I was about to step out of line. Dani stopped me. "Protein and more protein? You're never going to gain weight like that. You're a stick. "She looked at the tray of biscuits, dropped two on my plate and smothered them with sausage gravy. "There, now you won't make the rest of us look like pigs."

Heather waved at Dani and I, pointing to the remaining two chairs at her table where Debbie and her were sitting. As we approached I noticed the segregation of boys and girls, boys being about five rows away. "Is there some rule about mixing with the guys?"

Dani shrugged as she sat her tray down. "Always been that way I guess."

"What?" Inquired Heather.

"Guy's side, girl's side," Dani explained.

She nodded. "I've been here since I was eleven. Just Lara, me, Brian, and Christopher. Even then we were separated."

I casually glanced over to the guys' side to tell if I could… yep there he is, I bet. "Is that Ray Lomax over there by himself."

Heather looked over her shoulder and then her eyes bugged. "Oh my god! Are you boy crazy already? Normally it takes a few weeks to get used to the new body before the hormones make you insane."

My mouth just unhinged. I was sitting there with a half chewed bite of omelet for the world to see. Dani looked stunned. Debbie quirked an eyebrow in my direction.

Swallowing the egg I clarified as quickly as I could. "No. No boys. I like girls." From the look on Dani's face I had to repeat myself. "Really. Girls only." Hold on. "What do you mean a few weeks and hormones?"

Dani took this one. "After your first period."

"I'm eating here," Debbie groaned without looking up from her book.

Dani rolled her eyes. "Well, your hormones really kick in."

One revelation after another. "Period?" I squeaked in almost a whisper.

Heather patted my hand with sympathy. "Fully functional, sister. Get used to it."

My fork clattered on my plate, and Dani joined Heather in my first female bonding episode. Except the second Dani touched me, her hand clinched and she jerked her eyes closed. Before I had a chance to become concerned they opened again. She cringed.

"Twenty-two days away for you, sorry."

"What?"

Heather shrugged. "It's almost like clockwork for a newbie. Twenty-four days after transition, usually to the minute, you start your cycle. I think Dani had a vision that you weren't going to make it that long."

This was confirmed with a sympathetic nod of my friend's head. "Sorry. Oh, and you might want to go ahead and stock up on maxi-pads; your first one is gonna be messy."

Debbie huffed in annoyance. "I'm EATING here!"

~O~

My schedule for this week did not include any regular classes. The ones to control my power were still there. I suppose that it was because that was a priority over traditional learning. In place of math, science, language arts, and others, was testing of every type imaginable. I really hate tests.

The first item on my schedule was a trip to the salon. Leave it to a government run agency to put every important thing on hold for appearances sake.

Dani was nice enough to escort me to the salon so I didn't have to revert to the Map application on the iPhone. Before leaving she pointed down the hall. "Last door on the left is the clinic. That's where you go for your physical." With a guarded look on her face she included, "Good luck with that one."

Another ominous topic. Wonderful.

There were two women inside, looking like they were setting up the place for business for the day, one a middle-aged brown haired lady, and one younger, college-aged blonde. I didn't even have to knock before the blonde saw me.

"You must be Kristyn!"

Great, bubbly. After experiencing Heather for thirty minutes this morning I'd had all the bubbliness I could take for one day.

"Yes, ma'am."

She giggled and looked at her co-worker. "Sweetie, I'm not that much older than you. My name is Sandra and this is Minnie."

I nodded a greeting at each of them. "So, what's first?"

Sandra pointed to the reclined chair in front of the sink with a gouge taken out of the middle. "Just have a seat right there and don't lean back until I get your smock attached."

After that duty was done she had me lean back where my neck was placed into the gouge and my head was hanging backward into the seat. It felt weird, but comfortable.

"First time in a real salon?"

"Yeah, I usually go to a barber for a trim every once in a while. They never washed my hair though."

She smiled at me as she adjusted the temperature of the water. "Well, those days are over, honey. Here, you get treated like the princess you are."

Princess? Hardly. "A haircut is going to make me a princess?"

I was drenched to the scalp a few moments later. "It's not just a cut and style. You're getting a manicure, pedicure, a few lessons in hair care. The really fun stuff won't be for almost two months." I gave her a inquiring look as she worked some shampoo into my mop. "Your skin is too new right now. No hair on your arms or legs, or anywhere else for that matter, and your pores are clear. That'll change. So, today we're just polishing the body up, so to speak."

Whatever she was doing up there was sending tingles down my spine. I never knew something as simple as someone washing your hair could feel so good, so I just let myself experience the pleasure. One thing I was aware of was that my nipples were tightening up. In this body, that has such a distinct feel to it that there could be no other explanation.

It wasn't until she turned the water off and her hands had been removed that I entered reality again.

~O~

My nails had been extended. Major league annoying. It wasn't crazy or anything, but I had already realized how much this was going to change the way I do things, pick things up, scratch, you name it. The feeling of my nails were different as well. It felt like there was a tiny, constant pressure on top of them. It didn't hurt, it was just different. That and they were gray. Sandra wanted to go with girlie colors, but I got by with telling her I wanted my nails to match my clothes. She thought that was very feminine of me. Ha! It's the little victories.

The next experience of the day was like walking into a dungeon and not knowing whether or not there was a demi-lich hiding behind one of the doors.

"Miss Kristyn, I'm Dr. Litchburg."

He didn't seem very undead. No protruding bones, or necrotic flesh. I think I'd been spending too much time role-playing. "Hi."

I was handed a flowery pink hospital gown and was shown where to change. Most of the examination was fairly straight forward, pulse, blood pressure, reflexes, blood samples, eyes, tongue, the average check up. It was when I was led to a room that had a chair/table with these bendy metal things at the end that I started to get nervous. A nurse was called in to sit on a stool beside the table when I was asked to have a seat and put my legs in the stirrups.

"Won't that… I mean…"

The nurse gave me a compassionate gaze. "Kristyn, all women go through regular gynecological exams. It's nothing to be afraid of, and the doctor is very professional."

My face felt like it was on fire, but I pushed myself to sit down and assume the position. The nurse set a thin sheet over my exposed parts until the doctor was ready so that I could at least have some modicum of dignity left. It wasn't until she removed the sanitized covering off of the instrument tray that I really started to freak out.

"What are those for?"

I saw a shiny tube looking thing with handles that looked suspiciously phallic in nature.

"This is a speculum. It's used to help the doctor open your entrance up so that he can make sure everything is alright inside. The other is a swab. The doctor will take it and insert it inside so that it brushes your cervix. It's for a test called a Pap Smear." The look in my eyes wasn't pleasant. "Don't worry, I'm right here."

She took hold of my hand and squeezed it reassuringly and then called out, "We're ready for you doctor."

A knock sounded at the door and was followed up by the doctor entering, closing the door and pushing the tab at the knob to lock it. A tug on my hand and the nurse was explaining. "That's so we aren't interrupted. We take your privacy very seriously."

The doctor didn't even look at me until after he washed his hands and put on some latex gloves. "All ready, Kristyn?" He didn't wait for a reply. "I promise to be as evasive as possible."

I nodded quickly and then found a point where the ceiling met the wall and tried to tune the rest of my body out. It was a trick I learned when receiving shots. I hate needles and usually if I could ignore what the doctor or nurse was doing then I wouldn't feel the pain as much.

"I'm going to perform the pelvic exam in a moment. To do this I'll need to insert…"

"Just do it," I said through clinched teeth as I tired to refocus on the point I picked out.

"Very well. Just relax."

The nurse squeezed my hand again. One of the doctor's hands set low on my abdomen, and the other…

A whimper escaped my mouth as I felt something enter me. It didn't hurt, but it felt cold and slimy. My vision blurred a little as tears fell from my eyes. I hated this. I hated it with all of my heart. When I was a guy, the worst the doctor would do was to say, 'turn your head and cough', a quick grope later and it was over. But this… this was so much more humiliating.

Then his hands were gone. My breath rushed out and I sniffed in relief that it was over.

"Now for the swab," the doctor announced.

Something else took the place of his fingers, from before. It was much colder and just as slimy, not to mention much bigger. My breath caught in my throat. I couldn't keep my attention focused any longer.

"What's happening," I said as I started flinch away.

The nurse squeezed my hand again. "It's the speculum that I told you about before. Just relax, he's almost done."

My face screwed up and something deep inside me felt like it was being scraped with a Brillo pad. I flinched again as another whimper was added to the mix. A snap sounded a moment later and then the pressure of whatever was inside me eased back to normal.

"There, all done."

A tissue appeared in my hand and I wiped at my eyes and nose, trying to reclaim my dignity. The sheet was replaced and the doctor stood, looking very uncomfortable and sorry for what he'd had to do. He gave me a courtesy nod and exited the room. The nurse picked up one of my legs and then the other to return them to the floor as I sat up. I have no idea why, but I broke out in deep sobs at the invasion of my body. The whole process was unfeeling and clinical where I knew somewhere deep inside me that I knew anything that was supposed to be going on down there needed to include… I don't know… love?"

The nurse led me to a restroom where I could clean up the mess that was left. It was equipped with a bidet of which I made lengthy use. My eyes were red and somewhat swollen when I looked into the mirror, so I splashed some cold water on my face and patted it dry before returning to my clothes behind the privacy screen.

~O~

The doctor's personal office was warmly decorated with rich woods and medical texts, not to mention a large ornate desk, separating him from me. The nurse was there again and sitting beside me in adjoining armchairs.

"My apologies, Miss Kristyn. I realize that the female version of a physical examination is much more embarrassing than the male's. However, it is something that needs to be done to insure your constant good health. If any problems arose, there wouldn't necessarily be any warning signs or symptoms. Tests like the pap smear can give us an early warning for cervical cancer, for instance. Early enough to be treated successfully. So try to keep that in mind for the next time. It's your health on the line after all."

Whatever. Why don't you let me shove that thing up your butt and we'll see who's singing Dixie afterward.

He smiled primly and then looked at his notes. "You'll be happy to know that you are in perfect health so far. We do have to complete the blood work, but I don't expect to find anything out of the ordinary. Your current vital statistics are height: five foot six inches, weight: one-oh-eight I'd like to see you add about five to ten pounds to that by your next physical. Once you start your workout routine you'll naturally gain a little muscle mass, but body fat is what I'm looking at. Your body mass index is a little on the low side. Nothing that would be harmful, just go a little heavier on the complex carbohydrates, baked potatoes, white meat fruit would be good. Don't load up on sweets or empty calories for the weight gain or it will probably go straight to cellulite in the future."

He looked up at me and my blank face. "Any questions?"

I just shook my head.

~O~

Expecting free time around here was a luxury and with thirty minutes until my next appointment with the first of a series of psychological profiles, I decided I would try to go ahead and see if I could get in early. The added time for lunch would be a blessing. I disliked shoving food in my mouth and then rushing off to whatever was next. Besides, if I was to follow through with my promise to Dr. Shanahan then I'd have to do it at one of the meals. The guys and girls didn't look like they interacted too much otherwise.

I did get a use out of my iPhone when I pulled up the application and tied it into my schedule so I could find out where the Center's psychologist was located. I frowned when I saw that I needed to take the stairs to the second level. Someone was bound to find my broken body at the foot of the stairs. When I entered the closed off stairwell I looked at the grips on the edge of each step. There just wasn't enough to make me feel comfortable, so I removed my booties and padded up to the next level with confidence before putting them back on and checking out the cell for my next instruction.

"Yes, may I help you?"

The room was set up with two lab tables in the center, surrounded by simple stools. At one of the tables were three booklets and two pencils. One guess who those were for.

"Hi, I'm Kristyn Keys. I have an appointment in about a half hour, but my physical was over early."

The lady in the knee skirt and crá¨me colored shirt gave me a closed lipped smile. "I'm Doctor Tipps. Want to go ahead get it over with?"

"If you don't mind?"

She swept her hand to the table and the booklets. "Not at all. You have an hour to complete the three tests." I followed her over to the table and sat at the indicated stool. While I tried to figure out a way to cross my legs without looking like I'd never done it before, she continued with her instructions. "It's very important that you answer as truthfully as you can on these tests. Some questions won't have a definitive answer, for those just answer as best as you can by picking the closest answer to what you believe, or the greater or lesser evil, if you like."

The students at my school had to take one of these last year. I knew exactly what she was talking about. Some of the questions were just stupid, but served some greater purpose I presumed. She held her finger up and retrieved a countdown clock for me. After setting it and giving me the go ahead, it was started and then set down in my line of vision.

The first booklet was almost the exact same test I took last year, so I zipped right through that. The second booklet was a little weirder. Three sequential pictures were shown and I had to write a short paragraph about each of them stating what I saw, or a very short story. The last booklet was the weirdest. I was ahead of schedule with a half hour left so I took my time trying to decipher the meaning behind why they wanted to know about how often I masturbate, and my thoughts on being spanked and spanking others.

I quirked an eyebrow up at the doctor who seemed to take a perverse pleasure at seeing my reaction. "Just answer as best as you can."

Oooo-kay.

The questions only got worse. As they delved into the darker aspects of someone's personality with questions like: Name as many ways to physically hurt someone as you can. Name as many ways to emotionally hurt someone as you can. I still had one more page to go when the alarm went off.

The doctor noticed that I was almost finished and looked very interested. "Go ahead and complete the last page. I'll extend the time."

The last question was one question and the allowed space was the rest of the page.

Q: Your mother and father are sentenced to death by dismemberment. You are given the chance to save one from death. Given that you love both equally how do you determine their fate?

In my mind there wasn’t really a question. It was more practical than anything else. If you loved both equally then you wouldn't be able to choose without driving yourself nuts with grief. So I wrote: Flip a coin.

~O~

My hand was still cramping when I stopped off at one of the restrooms on the way to the cafeteria. The hot water felt good as I massaged the soft patch of skin under my thumb. I had a strange urge to scrape under my fake nails while I was there, but it wasn't like I had been digging in the dirt or anything, so I just dried my hands and left. My fingers kept moving of their own volition feeling the abnormal added length of the nails and the smooth, unblemished polish on top. Everything about being a girl was just so strange.

There was nobody there in the seating area so I took my time to see what there was behind the cold windows. Keeping the thought in mind that I was supposed to gain some weight, I chose a potato and popped it in the microwave while I perused the rest. The grilled chicken salad looked pretty good, for some reason, but then again the prepackaged cheeseburger claimed a little place in my heart. Sigh. I went with the salad. If I was going to be working out anytime soon, I needed to eat light and healthy. The cheeseburger would just slow me down in the long run.

Picking up some silverware, some oil and vinegar packets, and a few tabs of butter I chose a table.

~O~

The potato filled me up and I picked at the salad, eating mostly the veggies and the chicken, leaving the actual salad portion behind. My thirty minutes was used up and I heard the mutterings and clicking of shoes coming from down the hall. Dani was the first one to show her face.

"Kris! Oh, you already ate?"

Pushing away the salad I nodded. "Got out early."

"Cool, well you can talk this time while I eat." She smiled and set a satchel down in front of one of the chairs at my table before clicking off to see what there was to eat.

Heather bounced into the room. How she did it on those heels, I have no idea. "Krissy baby!"

No, thanks, I don't need a new girlie nickname. Debbie was close on her heels, sans old dusty book. She just gave me a look. "We aren't going to be talking about any bodily functions today are we?"

I gave her a shake of my head. "I promise."

"Cool, I wanted to have the spaghetti today and that would just be…bleh."

There's something to be said for guys turning into girls. It was just so much funnier when a girl grossed you out. All thought went out of my head when I saw a new girl enter the cafeteria. She was unescorted and cute as all get out in her school uniform. Dani arrived just in time with her food.

"Who's she?"

Dani smirked and bumped me. "That's Christopher."

"No — way."

"Way. Remember, he's been doing this for years. Lots of practice time. She's damn good with make up; taught me a lot."

That brought my attention away from the long curly blonde hair he was sporting and back to Dani. "She?"

She nodded. "It's kind of good manners to refer to someone as how they are, yanno. How they present themselves."

"Yeah, I guess that makes sense." Then another thought came to me. "Does… she go by Christopher when she's dressed up?"

"Nuh uh. Christina or Tina."

Heather set her tray down and grinned. "I love it when Tina comes out to play. She's so much more fun than Christopher is, plus bonus points for a shorter name."

Dani took her chance to gobble up her tuna salad. Ugh. Tuna breath.

"Does she sit with the guys still or…"

"No, way. Tina's all girl!

Different strokes I suppose. Besides, who was I to poke at someone because they don't like the gender they were forced into? More power to her, I say.

"Hi girls. Mind if I sit?" Tina was standing right there, talking and I couldn't tell at all that she was actually a guy.

Heather looked almost crestfallen. "Deb's sitting here."

I grabbed my tray and stood up. "Tina, sit here. I'm already done. I can pull a chair up."

She gave me a brilliant grin in response. "Thank you, Kristyn. That's so sweet of you." Her heels clicked on the hard tile as she moved around the table and I tossed my trash. "Hi Dani."

Danielle blushed. Holy cow! She had a crush on Tina… and she had a crush on me. Indecisive anyone?

"Hey Tina. You look really cute today."

Tina preened. "New hair. They got the real stuff in last night. When I went to browse the new shipment I nearly peed myself."

Debbie sat down right then and sighed. So much for not having any discussions about bodily functions. I gave her a grin instead and pulled up a chair. There wasn't much room at the table anymore so I sat back and crossed my legs.

Tina turned back to me. "So, welcome to womanhood. Survived your first physical I see."

That brought my cheeriness down immediately. "I really don't want to talk about that right now." Debbie mouthed a thank you at me, which lifted up a corner of my mouth.

"That bad, huh."

Dani looked like she was concentrating a little too hard on me. I just nodded and watched Tina stir her nuked soup.

"I never had the opportunity to have that particular thing done in my previous life. I was still too young." I kept forgetting that Christopher/Tina had been there since she was ten.

"Be thankful," I commented. "Oh, there's Ray Lomax. I better go get this done." Looking over to Dani I whispered, "Wish me luck."

"Oh! You got your nails done!" Dani noticed. I waved them at her. "Gray? I bet Sandra was pissed."

I shook my head. "It's all in the manipulation. I told her I wanted them to match my skirt."

Tina giggled away. "Good call!"

As I approached the boys side of the cafeteria their conversation came to a whispered halt. I noted Brian scoot a chair out beside him and lean back to stretch his muscles. It was good for a laugh, but definitely not a wise flirting tactic. I pointed my finger at his crotch, mimicking a gun and said, "Zap!"

His returned frown was enough to sate me for a little while. When I passed the other occupied table there was additional empty one between them and Ray who had his back to me while he was doing something on his iPhone and slurping away on a soda. Without asking, I pulled out a chair and sat down, slowly crossing my legs.

Ray Lomax had his lime green hair cropped in a business style haircut except it was a little spiky at the fringe. His face was baby smooth. I doubted he had even started shaving yet, but his lips were full and… never mind. I could probably say, with what was left of my masculinity intact, that he was cute. Some girls, most definitely not me, might think that he was really cute. However, the expression on his face told me what my opinion was worth. I wasn't wanted there, nobody was wanted at his table. So, I jumped in with guns blazing in a strong whisper.

"You know and I know that Shanahan has something up her butt about your attitude. Seeing as how I'm the new girl, I get the honor, nay the privilege, of bringing you out of your shell. So, how about we sit here and talk about absolutely nothing worthwhile. I won't quiz you about your feelings and you won't ask about how I had my first pelvic exam today. We can kill several birds with apathy. I get to look like I'm helping out, and you get to look like you're socializing and get the shrink off your back."

His annoyed expression fell from his face during my little tirade-slash-plan, and his lips turned slightly upward. I think it may be the first time he actually had smiled since he had been at the school. It looked like the effort hurt him.

"Sounds like a plan."

Almost everyone was looking at us with interest, especially the boys. Most especially Brian. But his face was turning a kind of puce color. I reached up my hand and scratched an imaginary itch on my cheek with my middle finger.

"Who was that for?" Ray asked.

"Brian." I rolled my eyes. "He tried to pick me up last night. I hadn't even been a girl for more than a few hours and he thinks I'm going to let him bone me."

Ray's lips pressed together and his shoulders started shaking. At first I thought that he was having a seizure, but in the end he was snickering. It wasn't a full blown laugh, but it would do for now.

"Okay, so how do you want to do Operation Get Shanahan Off Our Butts?"

He licked his lips, which I didn't watch. And I was definitely not watching how his smile made his face even cuter… as some girls might think. "Any ideas?"

I pondered our predicament for a moment. "Okay, Heather over there thinks that I have the hots for you." His eyes widened a little, but I cut that little idea in the bud right then and there. "I just asked if that was you sitting by yourself over here. Remember I had a important mission from our little miss doctor?"

He nodded in understanding and relaxed.

"You're cool, Ray. Nothing to worry about from me. I'm still very into girls and I heard you were still into guys." He looked down at the table and nodded again. "Anyway, if I'm right about Heather, she's going to have it all over that I want your hot and sexy man body…"

I had to stop, because Ray laughed out loud. I had to lean back a little. It scared the shit out of me. It was a great big bark of a laugh almost echoing in the cafeteria. "Holy crap, Ray! You need to calm down, or they'll think I drugged you," I said with a playful grin.

I scooted my chair closer to him and leaned in. "We're going to flirt a little. I act interested, you act interested. Get the idea?"

"We can't go overboard," he warned. "Shanahan would smell a rat."

"Okay," I acquiesced. "Then I'll leave it at this until tonight. Let's hook up… not that kind of hook up. Let's eat dinner together, maybe go for a walk."

"Good idea. Not really a date, but a date."

"Exactly." I looked back at my table and the look on Dani's face. It wasn't entirely pleased. "Alright, I'm gonna go back to my girlfriends. But I'm going to give you a nice big smile. When lunch is about to end, come over and ask me to eat dinner with you tonight."

That's where I almost lost him. His frown was back.

"Ray, Heather's not going to be able to spread the news if there is no news to spread."

He nodded, but I could tell he wasn't very happy about the situation.

"Great, see you in a few." I grinned, as advertised, and touched his hand before heading back.

On my way, my panties bunched up. Talk about your timing. Of course a lot of people were looking at me. As a result, the irritation made me swing my hips a little more to try and loosen the wedgie. Dani's mouth dropped open and Heather's eyes lit up with delight. Tina was holding her hand over her mouth, trying not to giggle and Debbie just raised her eyebrows at me.

My chair was still waiting for me as I slid into it and crossed my legs again.

"Shake that thang, girl!" Heather urged.

"I have a serious wedgie right now. I wasn't flirting."

Tina snorted a mouthful of soda and started coughing. Dani, of course, gave me a disappointed leer and patted her friend on the back. I wasn't flirting!

The conversation took a turn for the normal, for once. Debbie was actually able to eat her spaghetti without any nasty visual imagery. Heather treated us to some low key gossip about one of the teachers catching Sean Hunter masturbating in the stairwell by the clinic, the very one that I used that morning. She didn't know how accurate the information was considering the boy in question was a serious weirdo. He is a Medium, and often talks to dead people, spirits, ghosts, whatever you want to call them. Not to mention he has a secondary power of Spirit Possession. The ability to take over your body and do whatever he wants to with it. Like I said, spectacularly creeptastic . Luckily he had little to no control over that particular power. His victim, for lack of a better word, had to agree to the process and go into a slight meditative trance in order for it to happen. So it was pretty much a useless power.

So, I had another mission to find out if Dead-boy over there happened to have a crush on little ole me, and if he was acting out his fantasies in the stairwells with me as a subject, 'cause I gotta say… ewwww!

As I was debating the pros and cons of pulling the boy aside for a little talk I was interrupted by all of the girls halting their chatter at once and looking behind me. Oh crap, I forgot.

Spinning around in my chair, I looked up at Ray standing there trying to look like he wasn't nervous and did this thing all the time. God, I remember how awful that felt in high school, and I unknowingly just forced him into one of the most embarrassing situations guys can be in, asking a girl out in front of all of her friends.

"Hey Kristyn."

"Oh, hi Ray," I replied as sweetly as I could. I vowed to make this as easy for him as possible to make up.

He shifted a little from his left to right foot and scratched behind his ear with one finger while taking quick glances at the rest of the girls. "I w…was wondering if you'd like to have dinner with me tonight."

I gave him a bright smile and shifted my legs so I could cross them the other way. Given the position I was currently in it was playing havoc on my hips. His eyes dropped down and took them in. Whoops. "I'd love to, Ray. Thank you for asking."

Okay, maybe that was a little too much. His mouth broke another grin out for me. "Cool, then six o'clock okay?"

Heather grabbed me by the arm. "What time is your testing over with this afternoon?"

I really didn't know. "Hold on a sec." Pulling out my iPhone I checked my schedule. "Four-thirty."

Heather looked back up at Ray. "Better make it six-thirty. She has to have time to get ready."

Oh crap, what did I just get myself into? With another nod, Ray backed away and headed down the empty hallway to his next class.

Heather still hadn't let go of me. "Oh — my -- god. You ARE boy crazy already!" Without any confirmation or agreement on my part the perky white-haired girl took the reins in hand and spurred the other girls at the table into action. "We have the Center's first official date to plan for, and only an hour to do it in. Dani, you're in charge of the dress. Something sultry, but not too revealing, and sexy shoes, of course Ray's tall, so we need at least something in four inches. Tina, we need your mega make up skills. Debs, light of my life, you're of no help whatsoever."

Debbie gave Heather a scathing look and then leaned in to kiss her cheek. "I love you too sweetie."

That perked Heather up even more. "Okay, I changed my mind. You can make it down here and set up the table. Flowers, candle, decent settings, oh and see if you can get them to lower the lighting a little. I've got the perfect hair in mind. That's my job."

Dear Diary, I thought I was doing a favor for a new friend, until my head exploded when I tripped over my four inch heels to the waiting concrete below, in the candlelight. Man, was I embarrassed.

With a second thought Heather turned to her girlfriend. "Hey. How come you've never taken me on a date?"

I tried to find something else to look at when Debbie's eyes flicked to me in annoyance. Toni was getting into the excitement that Heather seemed to be spreading. "I can't believe he asked you to dinner. Lomax hasn't talked to anyone other than to reply with the absolute minimal answer. He must really like you."

Dani didn't seem all that pumped about the situation, but I guess she was sucking in the surrounding good feelings. "I tried talking to him once. I got a one word answer; that was it."

"Well, I can tell you that he was really nervous and a little excited too." I looked at Tina when she spouted off that revelation.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm an Empath, remember? I thought he was going to start something when he came over here. I wanted to be prepared, so I read him."

Nervous and Excited? Nononononono.

Toni leaned forward. "You don't look so good. Are you okay?"

I'm fine, I think I may hurl in a second, but otherwise.

Photo Credit: Kristen K.