“It’s hard to believe there’s really a little boy inside this dress.” she said. “You’ve been every bit the perfect little lady right from the start Billy, but I’m sure when the time comes to be a boy again, you’ll quickly realise that you haven’t forgotten how.” she told him. “I expect it’s a bit like riding a bike… you never really forget how to do it, you just get out of practise.”
Miss Wainwright then turns to Alice and tells her that she was a beautiful May Queen, “The prettiest I’ve seen.” she claimed, before advising the girl to take no notice of anything anyone says. “You’re lucky to have such lovely thick red hair… you’re a proper English rose.” she told her. Alice tells Miss Wainwright that she’s the nicest teacher she’s ever had, and if the war doesn’t end soon, at least she’ll have her class too look forward to. “Oh thank you Alice. That’s a lovely thing to say.” their teacher smiles before turning back to Billy. “And you’ll be off the secondary school in September… are you looking forward to it?” she asked.