Derek trudged across the playground. Although unbelievably embarrassed by what her girlfriend was making her go through, she knew it'd be even more embarrassing to cause a scene in the middle of the park. For now, she would have to play along in a very literal sense. The best way she could reason with herself and keep the proper attitude about her was to regard her situation like a covert mission. Her transgendered alias, "Darlene," would have to behave young, girlish, and overall spritely.
To that end, she skipped as she covered the remaining distance between herself and her target; the jungle gym. A few minutes mingling with the kids should be enough to appease Sonya. Besides, Derek had been wanting another crack at the monkey bars now that she was short enough to keep her feet off the ground while hanging from them.
There was a boy currently making her way across. She waited patiently until he neared the other side, then climbed the ladder and grabbed the first bar. She found that her original athletic traits had been properly translated into agility and grace befitting a young girl. As she glided from bar to bar, she quickly became more adept at moving her small but strong body. At the other side, she leaped off and landed with two feet planted in the sand. She turned around.
The boy was staring at her in a half-empty, half-amused way. When their eyes met, he looked down. Darlene froze. She was making first contact with the other children and needed to play her role carefully.
"Um. Cool swinging," the boy said.
"Thanks," she replied. She may have been blushing, but there wasn't time to waste thoughts on matters like that. She pondered the proper procedure. Introductions were probably in order. She raised her arm, about to extend a hand, but quickly withdrew. Kids didn't often engage in such formalities. "I'm Darlene. What's your name?"
The boy looked her in the eyes again. "Cole. That's my sister, Alyssa." He pointed to a girl in denim overalls currently sitting at the top of the jungle gym's dome. With eagle eyes, she peered out across the playground. "She always plays Castle."
"What's that?"
He shrugged. "She pretends to be a princess and tells us what to do, but I don't play along. It's never fun."
"Sir Cole!" the girl named Alyssa called from her mount. "Bring the new subject to me!"
Cole looked at Darlene with timid eyes. "We could play on the swings."
Darlene looked up at Princess Alyssa, then over to the swings. There was only one swing still open, but the slide was empty. Would it be wiser to ignore her, or see what game she wanted to play?