Mystral

Mystral.

Author's preamble: This is not the story I envisaged when I started typing. Those who know my stories know how I do like my characters to lead lusty lives. This story is about the development of three children and there is no sex in the story.

~oOo~

"Girls wear such pretty clothes Mummy," said the seven years old boy. "Why can't I wear pretty clothes?"

Cathy Jones was sitting on the sofa with her son Peter on her lap. They had been watching some TV together but his question had come out of the blue. Cathy took a deep breath and let it out in a long sigh. "Because boys and girls are different, sweetheart, so they wear different clothes."

"But why can't I wear pretty dresses Mummy?"

"Because you're a boy." She used the voice of a parent saying that's how it is, but she noticed the tears coming from the little boy's eyes. She hugged him close and could feel the sobs wracking his little body. When his sobs ceased she dried his eyes and got him to blow his nose before she carried him upstairs and put him to bed. Returning to the sofa with a glass of wine she pondered long and hard. Mentally she shied away from the idea that kept coming into her mind but Peter's tears had pierced her heart so she finally accepted what she saw as inevitable: but she would be there for him, however things turned out. Next morning, after leaving Peter at the school gate, she went into town and visited a department store to make a few purchases. As usual, she was outside the school gates when he came out after school and he held her hand as they walked home.

Cathy knew she had a couple of hours before her husband Dave would be home so she led her son straight up to his room. Peter wondered if he had done something wrong because he was sometimes made to stay in his room as a punishment but he knew he hadn't been naughty and that in itself was an unusual situation for Peter was frequently in trouble. Normally he would be left in front of the TV to watch his favourite shows so he was alarmed at this change in routine. His Mummy pushed him gently into the room and his eyes went straight to the bed on which was displayed a yellow gingham print cotton dress with a short pleated skirt.

Mummy got down on one knee and undressed him: he was too young to be embarrassed at being naked in front of her. She reached to the bed and showed him some pretty pink panties decorated with little white rabbits. Raising his feet one by one she slid the garment up to fit snugly. Standing, she picked up the frock and she noticed his eyes glistening and an excited grin spread over his face as the material slipped down his up-stretched arms and settled over his body. She had him sit on the bed, pulled a pair of white ankle socks onto his feet then slipped patent leather girly shoes on. Not a word had been uttered between them from the moment they had entered the house.

Standing behind her son, she shuffled him to her bedroom and stood him in front of her full length mirror. His hand covered his mouth as he gasped at the pretty little 'girl' staring back at him. Yes, thought Cathy, you are a pretty girl but I'm going to let that hair grow so we can do something with it. By the time he turned round to her she was already down on her knees to receive the biggest hug and kiss. This time his tears were of joy. He followed her downstairs, conscious of how his legs felt different, bare as they were, with the light material brushing over his thighs at each step. When his Mummy settled on the sofa, he jumped onto her lap.

She just held her precious, unusual son for a few minutes while he chatted happily. Then she stopped his bubbling joy and became very serious. "Peter, I can see how happy you are dressing like a girl but you must promise Mummy that you will never, never, never tell anybody about it. Not even Daddy for a while. People expect boys to dress as boys and girls to dress as girls but boys are not supposed to dress like girls. Some people, even your friends that you play with, may call you nasty names, so don't say anything to anybody. When you come home from school until Daddy is coming home, you can dress as a girl but you cannot play outside, only in the house. And don't tell even Bryan."

Peter's eyes went wide open when she mentioned Bryan. Peter and Bryan had met the day they started school together and had been inseparable ever since. Often Bryan had come home with him and Mummy, they would play together then Bryan's Mummy would come and collect him after tea. Just as often Cathy would collect Peter from Bryan's house.

"But Mummy, Bryan already knows I like girls dresses. He saw that I often looked at girls during playtime so I told him I just liked the clothes and wished I could wear them. He said I should have a sister like Violet then I could borrow her things."

"Well, we'll see about that but for now keep this a secret just between you and Mummy. Now let's watch TV." She flicked the remote: the screen lit up and soon Peter was laughing and shouting at the screen.

She watched the screen and laughed with him at appropriate points but her mind was churning over the complications that were already gathering. She was almost certain that he would tell Bryan sometime soon because the two of them were thick as thieves. Should she pre-empt the revelation and try to instil some caution in them both. She would have to prepare Dave sooner than she thought too because the boys would usually play together until they all sat up to the table for tea. No, better that Peter should change back to boy's clothing before tea, and then at least Mrs Dobson wouldn't see him dressed up. She sighed. Even she will see it some time, it was almost inevitable. She would cross that bridge when she came to it.

When the cartoon on the TV ended, Peter jumped down then asked excitedly, "Mummy, may I go and look at myself in your mirror again please?"

"Yes Poppet. You may always look at yourself in my mirror." She watched her young son skipping towards the stairs. She called after him, "But not too long. Daddy will be coming home soon." She sighed again and smiled at his back: he did look pretty and she had decided that her son would make his own decisions about what he wanted to be as he grew up. She would be there to guide him.

After a few minutes Cathy ascended to her bedroom and leant against the door frame watching him twist and turn to see what he looked like from the back. She quietly found her Polaroid and when she returned he was just standing in front of the mirror looking at his pretty reflection. She moved to get the angle she needed and Peter jumped at the flash. "OK young man; let's get you back in boys' clothes before Daddy gets here."

They were both a little sad when she pulled the dress over Peter's head then removed the shoes and socks before she pulled the panties down and off. She dressed him in his normal clothes, hugged him and promised that he could dress up again tomorrow. They went about their usual pursuits until Dave arrived, sat down for their meal then Peter settled in front of the TV while his parents remained at the kitchen table with Cathy trying to think of the best way to say her piece.

Eventually she looked her husband straight in the eyes and said, "Yesterday Peter asked me why he couldn't wear pretty dresses like a girl. Dave, when I told him that boys don't wear pretty dresses he cried so bitterly, it broke my heart to hear him."

Dave, like any other father of a growing boy, had had great hopes that his son would be a big strapping lad but now accepted that Peter was never going to be a big boy. He was one of the smallest boys in the class and his body had a thin wiry frame. Peter and his best friend Bryan were bundles of energy: running, jumping, climbing, burrowing, always exploring, so their muscles developed normally but Peter was never going to be big.

"So this morning I bought him some pretty dresses and when we got home from school, I dressed him in girls' clothes. Darling, he was absolutely thrilled to see himself in the mirror." She showed him the Polaroid and said, "He's very pretty and look at the joy on his face."

"So what are we going to do?" Dave loved his son and, when he saw the happiness bursting on Peter's face in the picture, there was no way he could deny the boy.

""I'm going to let him dress up every day after school but he must never go outside dressed as a girl and he must not tell anybody else. But there's a possible problem: Bryan already knows that Peter wants to dress like a girl. Apparently Bryan just told him he needed a big sister like his Violet so he could 'borrow' her clothes. I'm betting that he won't react badly if his best friend wears dresses at home. I'm going to bring him back with us after school then dress Peter and watch the reaction with my fingers crossed." She sighed. "Dave, I want to support Peter if he continues along this road. It may be just a passing fancy that will gradually disappear, or he may want to be a woman when he's grown up. Whatever the future, will you be with me so we can guide him through what are going to be difficult years?"

"Whatever he needs, Precious." Dave responded without hesitation.

Cathy took hold of his hand and squeezed it. "Thank you Darling. Don't be surprised to see a boy playing happily with another boy in a dress when you get home tomorrow. But Dave, sooner or later Sally Dobson will learn about Peter's - well call them differences. So I propose I have a talk with her when she comes to collect Bryan and, if it goes well, she will see the new Peter."

"Do you want me there when you are explaining to Sally?"

"Yes please. If she sees that you are happy with the whole thing it may help her decision." She stood up from the table and hugged her husband and kissed him. "Thank you."

When it was Peter's bed time she took him upstairs but instead of his pyjamas she tugged the panties up his legs then pulled a pretty nightdress over his head. She led him to her mirror and inwardly rejoiced as she was awarded a huge grin. "Would you like to say goodnight to Daddy?" He turned and his eyes were wide with surprise. He jumped up and down in excitement. She smiled and led him carefully down the stairs in the long nightie, letting him continue on his own to his Daddy sitting on the sofa.

Dave was relaxed on the sofa and had no plans for the evening except a couple cans of beer and watching some TV with Cathy. He was looking at the screen then saw something pale and pink in the corner of his vision. He turned his head to see his son wearing a pink nightie. Peter climbed onto his lap. "Good night Daddy."

Daddy got a hug and a kiss from his son which gave him time to get his brain into gear. He smiled and lifted Peter off his lap so he could get a proper look. "Oh, how nice you look. Good night Little Girl." He ruffled the boy's hair and watched him skip back to his Mummy. She picked him up and carried him to bed. While she was tucking him in she asked, "If you are going to dress like a girl, you need a girl's name. What would you like to be called?"

"I don't know Mummy. Can I use your name Mummy? I like Mystral. Please?"

Mystral was a family tradition down Cathy's matrilineal line, Cathy thought. All of her family's firstborn girls have Mystral in their name so if my son continues and expands he would become like a daughter: Mystral would be perfect. She kissed his forehead and, as she was leaving his room, said, "Good night Mystral." Peter, or Mystral as he thought about his new clothes, was too excited to sleep for a long while but he loved the way they felt around his body. Mystral was the name that was in his mind as he fell asleep.

Cathy returned to Dave and they watched TV all evening; she had a couple of vodkas to match his beers. She told him of their son's female name which made Dave chuckle. Otherwise there was nothing much to discuss about their plans so they retired as usual although their sleep was not untroubled, both having incoherent dreams about their boy.

The household was back to normal next morning. Peter was told to wash properly. Girls didn't have dirty necks did they? He completed his morning ablutions, even scrubbing his neck with the face cloth then he dressed in his school clothes although in his mind he knew he would wear nice clothes after school. They had breakfast, Dave drove off to work and Peter held Mummy's hand as they walked to school.

That afternoon she got chatting to Sally Dobson as they waited for the hordes to emerge from school: nothing out of the ordinary, just two young mums talking about the parking around the school, the price of bread, Ms Browne's impossibly black hair. . . the usual gossip. When the boys and Bryan's sister Violet arrived, Cathy asked, "Bryan would you like to have tea with Peter?" She glanced at Sally for approval and saw the smile and nod of permission. Grabbing the boys' hands she called, "See you later Sally."

Peter was a bit dejected. If Bryan was going to be there, he wouldn't get to dress up but Mummy bent down, squeezed his hand and whispered that it would turn out right. Cathy sat Bryan down in front of the TV with a glass of milk and a banana, telling him to wait there for a minute while she took Peter upstairs to her bedroom. Quickly she undressed him: a clean pair of panties and a pink dress that was all frills and came down to mid calf. "This is your party dress, Mystral," she said as she was fitting the socks and shoes. Mystral looked at himself in the mirror and again gasped in amazement. "Shall we see if Bryan likes Mystral?"

As they walked hand in hand down the stairs, Cathy called out, "Bryan, would you come here please?" He arrived at the foot of the stairs as Mystral descended the last four steps. His eyes opened wide with glee and he shouted, "Yes, Peter. You did it." He grabbed Mystral's hands and together they were jumping up and down and dancing. When the two had bounced off some of their joyous energy she said, "Bryan, this is Mystral. He would like to be your friend."

"Mystral. You are so pretty. Yes we can be friends. It's like I've got a boy friend and now a girl friend." Holding hands the two ran up the stairs to play in his room. Cathy's heart filled with joy when she saw the instant switch in Bryan's eyes and their mutual joy at the transformation. It had gone down better than she could ever have expected. With a smile about her face she prepared their early evening meal.

After a while Bryan and Mystral settled on the sofa watching cartoons in just the same position as always with their tousled heads together as they giggled at the onscreen antics. Dave was happily amused to see what was, by all appearances, a boy and a girl playing together. Bryan was calling his best friend 'Mystral', Dave noticed. They all sat up to the kitchen table for their meal then Cathy told Mystral and Bryan to go to his room to play and stay there until she called them. When Mrs Dobson arrived to collect her son, Cathy invited her in and offered her coffee which she declined.

"Sally, this is a bit difficult so I'm going to jump in with both feet. Our son Peter prefers to dress as a girl. I don't know if this is just a passing phase in growing up or if it is a life change. Time will tell. But I bought some dresses and yesterday I put him in one. Here's a picture I took and you can see they joy on his face." She passed over the Polaroid she had taken.

"Oh, what a pretty 'girl' she looks. Can that be the little ruffian who plays with my Bryan?"

"The very same little monster! That's one of the things we . . ." Cathy indicated herself and Dave, "need to discuss with you. What do you think about your son's best friend wanting to dress as a girl?"

"Cathy, this is not really a surprise to me. Bryan told me some time ago that Peter wanted to dress up so I could see this coming. John and I talked it over the other day. Attitudes are changing: if that is what Peter wants and if Bryan is happy, we will not have a problem."

Cathy smiled her thanks then went to the foot of the stairs and called for the children to come down then returned to her place on the sofa. Hand in hand they came downstairs and stood at the door. Bryan was his usual scruffy self but he was holding the hand of a 'girl' in a party dress.

"Mrs Dobson, please say hello to Mystral."

"Mystral is a lovely name," exclaimed Sally. She held out her hands, inviting Mystral to approach her. Shyly, Mystral and Bryan walked to his Mummy. "I love your party dress Mystral."

"He's very pretty Mummy," said Bryan. "It's like having a best friend and a girl friend at the same time." Sally saw that there was complete acceptance in him: Bryan was happy to have a girl friend.

"They both understand that Mystral cannot go outside to play;" said Dave, "only Peter can go out. Isn't that right children?"

"Yes Daddy." "Yes Mr Jones." They chorused.

"Come on Bryan, time to go home. You'll see Mystral tomorrow. Good night Cathy, Dave. I'm glad you shared this with me."

At bed time Cathy put Mystral to bed in his nightie and kissed him good night. Mystral soon went to sleep.

Dave was just thinking about going down the pub for a game of darts when the phone rang. Cathy answered. "Oh hello again Sally." Dave only heard one side of the conversation: just the odd yes, no or hmm until she said, "Yes come on over. We can have a glass of wine together. See you soon. Bye."

"That was Sally."

"I gathered that."

"She and John are coming over. They want to talk about Peter and Mystral. Nothing bad, she assured me. It's strange: we see each other and chat every day but I don't really know her. Maybe this evening we can all get to know each other."

The Dobsons arrived about 15 minutes later: she had a bottle of wine in each hand and John held a couple of four packs. Soon the two women were side by side on the sofa, each with a glass of wine while the men sat on the comfy arm chairs with their beers.

It was John who started the conversation. "Sally and I talked about this possibility earlier, after Bryan mentioned it, so it was no great surprise when it happened. Sally tells me that Peter, or maybe I should say Mystral, loves to dress up and, from hearing Bryan's babbling, he thinks Mystral is his friend who likes to dress as a girl and he is happy for 'her'. We think you are wise to restrict 'Mystral' to the house but it places a restriction on our sons' play."

Sally continued, "Peter and Bryan are used to coming to our place or yours pretty much equally and I'm happy with the arrangement. Those boys are inseparable. I have plenty of Violet's outgrown frocks and such. Violet is our daughter, eighteen months older than Bryan. Peter could still be Mystral in our home." She looked at Cathy and Dave, trying to gauge their reaction.

"I like it," enthused Cathy with nodding concurrence from her husband. "What about Violet? How will she react? And particularly, will she keep it a secret?"

"Violet is nine-going-on-sixteen," Sally chuckled. "She's a sensible girl and, to be honest, she gets on better with Peter than she does with her brother. She is also a bossy bitch and I would not be surprised to see her take over dressing Mystral, become a big sister as it were."

"Oh, that would be lovely if it happened."

"Sal and I would like to make Mystral a family secret - both our families." John paused in reflection for a few seconds. "We could have family trips out. Our car windows are shaded at the back so we can easily 'smuggle' Mystral in and out of the house." He was warming up to his idea. "Maybe to an out of town McDonalds or we could all go to the beach for the day."

The conversation drifted away from the children to a general 'get to know you' chat. Dave was manager of his company's IT department and Cathy was happy being a stay-at-home housewife and mother. Sally worked part time behind the counter at a local bakery. The hours, ten until two o'clock suited her: she could take her children to school and be there to collect them in the afternoon. She didn't need the money but the job got her out of the house each day and she enjoyed meeting the customers. John was an engineer who could virtually name his price. His hobby was invention and he had several lucrative patents on the knick knacks he had designed.