Life Swap

The Professor

"I am fussing...aren't I?" Caroline said, making a face as she buttoned up my salmon pink coat in the ladies at Redhill Station, after making me use the fairly disgusting facilities. "But it does help you stay dry...and we can't rely on the train having a working toilet, whilst Victoria can be a bit of a scrum, even if we are travelling after the rush hour?"

"Mummy...I went before we left home...I can last half an hour?" I pointed out, as she moved on to tidying up the salmon pink bow in my hair, patiently looking up at her, because I realised that she was worrying about my appointment with Professor Hoyte. "And if you have to change me, I don't mind it so much...with you?"

"Oh, Olivia...you are so sweet...sometimes I think you are dealing with all this better than I am, pickle?" She sighed, bending down to kiss me tenderly on the cheek before taking my hand and leading me back out onto the rather windswept platform. It was a cold spring day with grey clouds rushing across the sky, which justified the heavy overcoat, I suppose. "I do hope we are not wasting our time this morning...I do hate you missing school...but Professor Hoyte does come highly recommended, and you seemed to get on okay with him last year?"

"Yes, Mummy," I agreed, although I had no memories of ever meeting the Professor. But I was playing along with her idea that talking to him would help me adjust to the idea of dropping down into year six, although it was perfectly obvious that I had adjusted well enough after my first two days. Charles had argued that it could not do any harm, and having made the actual appointment before the start of term, Caroline was rather reluctantly going through with it. "I will catch up...Miss Clarke emailed you all the work, and I can do it this afternoon...I'll work so hard, I promise?"

"You are working hard...Miss Clarke is really impressed, and so am I...and your behaviour is even better...so, I am not sure what the Professor will be able to do, but we can tell him all about your episodes and see what he thinks, I suppose?"

"And then he will talk to me on my own? Like last time, Mummy?" I asked, although it was Charles who had told me the Professor had talked to Kelly/Olivia on her own, when she was referred to him the previous year.

"I think so...he prefers it...but if you are scared, I'll stay with you?"

"I don't think I was scared last time?"

"No, darling...you weren't...but a lot has changed since then...do you realise that you didn't even moan about your outfit this morning?" She pointed out, as our train pulled into the station and began to slow down.

"It never makes any difference, Mummy?" I pointed out, cheekily.

"See? You really are learning?" She laughed, before helping me onto the train and finding a double seat facing forwards. Despite being dressed up, as always, I really liked spending time with her on my own, whilst not in the aftermath of an episode. I had been happily calling her Mummy for some time, and I had told her that I loved her, on the spur of the moment, whilst in need of comfort, and I knew that I was genuinely fond of her. But our relationship was built on a lie. Not my lie, or hers, to be fair, but nevertheless still a lie. I found it easier to accept the twins as my sisters, because Kelly did not have any siblings, so they were not replacing anyone in my life, and even Charles was becoming more like a father because my dad was such a waste of space. But I had a mum, and I missed her, even if she was not missing me. And yet, Caroline was important to me. If I was stuck in Olivia's body, in her life, I knew that I could really love Caroline. Maybe even as much as she loved me.

However, for one more day at least, I was trying not to think about that, because I was sure that Professor Hoyte represented a chance to do something about the Dream Stone. Felicity and Louise were less convinced, to be honest, because the research Felicity had managed to do on the Tuesday was inconclusive. But I was the victim, and I was desperate. It was impossible that Kelly/Olivia had seen the Professor and not been told about the Stone. Impossible to me, at any rate. Felicity had discovered that the Professor's full name was Professor Randolph Hoyte the third, the grandson of Sir Randolph Hoyte. Felicity had made the point that Kelly/Olivia had last seen the Professor months before she met me in front of the Dream Stone, but I was simply in no mood to listen to reason, and I was sure the trip to see him represented my only chance to get my life back.