My name is Marie-Pierre Lemay, but I prefer to be called Nadine, which is the name of my godmother and appears in my Christian full name. I am from Montréal, Canada, French is my mother tongue. My parents are both diplomats.

They are stationed in Brussels for the next few years, enough for me to complete my high school education. Dad is ambassador in Belgium; Mom is ambassador to the European Union. They heard about O&P and thought it would be a good idea to send me there, as we could see each other from time to time. In addition, they said it would be a good opportunity to make friends and perfect my English skills. They also added that I would benefit from a good environment, in matters of structure and discipline.

I confess I was not too enthusiastic at the idea of going to a boarding school. I am used to private French Catholic schools, where the discipline is not too strict. I was punished often enough, but I only got corner time, lines or detention, nothing too serious. My parents are more severe, they give me spankings, but because of their work, they are most of the time absent from home, so they don’t spank me too often. Because I am an only child, I grow up with nannies. With Aunty Nadine, it was cool, but she was not always available.

Academics were not a problem in Montréal. I had good grades in every subject. But I got bored easily, and I was often caught daydreaming, which earned me most of my punishments, along with disturbance and a reputation of being defiant. I was used to say what I think, which was not always a good idea in a Catholic environment. My bet is that it is better accepted in the homeland of Jean-Jacques Rousseau.

I am tall for a girl, a slim athletic 5’8”. I like team sports. I am particularly good at volleyball, but I play softball and hockey too; I mean real hockey, on ice, and I am not into figure skating, a way to say I can play rough. I am also a good swimmer, any style, and I can swim for long, a couple of hours easily. There is nothing really special about it, but I like cinema, TV series, music and comics from the French-Belgian scholl. I learned a lot of things with all that.

I don’t like having to wear a uniform, but I never attended a class without wearing one, so I am used to it. One thing I cannot get used to here in O&K is my doorless room. Fortunately, I have Athena, a female owl that my fairy godmother Aunty Nadine made for me, to be on guard all night long.

At first, I did not take seriously the rumors about corporal punishments and thought they were meant to make pupils afraid. But I soon discovered that they were more than just rumours. The good side is that, once the punishment is over, there are no hard feelings and the slate is clean. Well, at least until next time…