Silver Shadows

Start of Something New

Phil looked in the mirror and sighed. He tugged his long ginger hair and glared at the boobs he was starting to get. Puberty sucked. He was wearing a stolen pair of boxers and his older brothers black tee shirt, which made it a little better, but he knew he'd have to put his dress on before he could go downstairs. Today was his eleventh birthday, and that fact alone made him want to cry.

Wiping his eyes of any tears, he went into his bedroom and found the purple dress his mother had laid out for him. He tugged it on, ignoring any mirrors, and tied his hair back before making his way downstairs. When he walked into the kitchen, his parents stopped their conversation and smiled at him.

"Oh darling, you look so beautiful!" His mother exclaimed, rushing to hug him. It felt like a stab in the heart. "You're my little princess."

He coughed and nodded, biting his lip so he wouldn't cry. He didn't want to be eleven, he didn't want to be a princess and he most definitely didn't want to be a girl. He wasn't a girl, why couldn't anyone else see it?

As he sat down, his parents handed him a couple of boxes. He had asked for video games, movies and a new notebook for his birthday. It was a long shot, but he could dream. With a huge fake smile, he opened the first box. Inside, he found a makeup set. His mother gushed over how he would look so gorgeous with his makeup done.

He wanted to scream.

The next box had a movie in it, but it was a barbie movie. He was eleven years old for God's sake - he wasn't a baby anymore! He didn't want to watch barbie's!

The final box was shaped like a notebook and he held his breath as he tugged the wrapping paper off, filled with hope for one decent present. He stared at it and sighed. Of course not. It was a notebook, but it was pink and fluffy and called a Princess Diary. He thanked everyone for their gifts and pretended to look at the movie.

Before he could excuse himself, there was a knock on the door. His older brother went to answer it and came back with a letter addressed to Phil. The young boy snatched it from his hand and opened it.

Dear Phil,

Don't worry, your family can't read this. All they will see is a birthday message.

My name is Sir. Redwood, and I am the headmaster of Silver Shadows Academy. Silver Shadows Academy is for teenagers, like yourself, who have families who don't accept them as they are - gays, lesbians, asexuals, aromantics, pansexuals, bisexuals, and, of course, transgenders like yourself. This letter means that you have been accepted to join our academy, and we eagerly await your reply.

Your family will be told that you won a scholarship to a very prestigious school, where you will be attending for the next five years. No other details will be given. One of our proxies will be coming to pick you up on September 1st.

Yours Faithfully, Frederick Redwood

Phil smiled at the letter, hope filling his heart. Could this all be true? His mind screamed at him, telling him that it was fake, a prank. Before he could do anything about it, there was another knock on the door. His father got up to get the door this time, and he came back a few minutes later with a mischievous looking, ginger haired man. He grinned at Phil, before looking at the rest of the family, who were all gathered around curiously.

"Mr. Redwood here says that he has a scholarship to offer Phillipa," Phil's father told them all, looking a little in awe of the entire situation, like he couldn't believe it was happening.

"Isn't that great, darling?" Phil's mum asked him, a smile on her lips. Phil nodded eagerly. Mr. Redwood smiled at Phil, a gleam in his eyes.

"This is a very prestigious school and extremely hard to get into. You should be very proud of your child." Phil felt himself smiling at the gender neutral term child. It felt a lot better than "darling" or "princess." It made him feel happy and even more excited to go to Silver Shadows Academy.