"Simone! Please stop daydreaming! Have you heard a word I said?" Lady Hawley spoke testily to her daughter, who was gazing dreamily out the window of the carriage.
Simone thanked her lucky stars that mind reading was not one of her mother's gifts.
"Sorry Maman, I drifted off for a moment. You were discussing my French grammar were you not?"
"No dear, that was some time ago! I was saying that in Miss Pauline's opinion, you have advanced as far as you can under her tutelage. If you are to speak fluently to your cousins in Lascaux this summer, you will require intensive sessions with a native French tutor."
"But why?" Simone queried.
"Speaking French for an hour a day with Miss Pauline is not like being in French society, Simone. You must speak French continuously my dear, to achieve fluency. Miss Pauline has recommended a tutor in the city, a native speaker with wonderful credentials. She has an exclusive school in Knightsbridge, where she teaches members of England's most distinguished families. Her name is Mademoiselle LeFevre."
"Is she coming here?"
"No my dear, you and Miss Pauline will travel to London. Our town house is being decorated, so I suppose you must rough it at the Dorchester. You will spend a week with Mademoiselle LeFevre, speaking only French. It will improve your fluency immensely my dear. I know your cousins will be impressed!"
Simone knew that her mother was anxious that she should impress her aunt and her cousins when she visited them in France later that summer, and the idea of spending time in London alone with Miss Pauline was exciting. A few days later, she and Miss Pauline took the train to King's Cross. They were met at the station by James, the chauffeur at the Hawley's London residence, who took care of their baggage and delivered them safely to a sumptuous suite of rooms at the Dorchester Hotel.
Miss Pauline had been selective in the information she had given to her employer about her old friend Mademoiselle LeFevre. She had not mentioned, that before moving to her present address in Knightsbridge, Mademoiselle had begun her teaching career in a tiny upstairs room in Soho. It was on the drab, street-level façade of this premises that Mademoiselle LeFevre first hung out a brass plate advertising "French Lessons". Her name was placed in bold letters over a small inscription that included the key words "Strict Disciplinarian".
After two years of building her clientele in Soho, Miss LeFevre was approached by the valet of a gentleman who wished to try her services. The valet arranged an assignation at an exclusive and discreet London hotel Miss LeFevre proved to be so well-qualified that her new client eventually bought her a house on a quiet, tree-lined, Knightsbridge street, handing her the deed the following year, on her birthday. Here, the Earl of M***** could visit her without concerning himself about being seen on Soho's seedy back streets.
At her new address, Mademoiselle LeFevre attracted a better class of clients. Many of these personages held important positions in English society and would not be seen dead entering her old premises. At first, her new clientele consisted mainly of the Earl's friends, but soon word spread more widely among members of the English gentry. These were mostly men who had acquired a taste for the cane at Eton or Harrow or had received over-the-knee spankings from a nanny or governess and become fixated on repeating these stimulating experiences. There were also a few couples and some wealthy single women who enjoyed receiving or giving discipline, bondage and punishment.
Mademoiselle LeFevre first became acquainted with Miss Pauline when the latter arrived in London as a near-destitute widow in her early thirties, with few prospects. Miss Pauline answered an ad in a tobacconist's shop and was interviewed by Miss LeFevre a few days later. Miss LeFevre needed a young woman to act as her assistant during certain procedures. She explained coolly and frankly that Miss Pauline would also serve clients who wished to discipline a submissive female. Mademoiselle LeFevre noted approvingly that Miss Pauline's voluptuous figure made her perfect for this role. The remuneration and the conditions were far superior to the life Miss Pauline had imagined herself leading in service or, even worse, on the streets of London. She gratefully accepted the position and soon found she had a natural talent for it.
In spite of her devotion to Mademoiselle LeFevre, Miss Pauline's ambition was to be a Governess. From playing this role for naughty "boys" (and a few "girls") it was a natural transition for her to eventually become a real Governess. During her five year tenure with Miss LeFevre, she received a set of recommendations from members of the English nobility. These letters and her excellent contacts, brought her placements that culminated in the position she now held with the Hawleys.
Miss Pauline knew Miss LeFevre could immerse Simone in conversational French, but she also hoped her old employer would give the girl an advanced course in the secret education that Miss Pauline had been providing for Simone. The girl had already crossed over into the realm where pain and pleasure intermingled and became a greater sensation. Miss Pauline hoped that Mademoiselle LeFevre could show Simone how to surrender more fully to a true Mistress and thus find the path to her own Mistress-hood.
On their first night in the Dorchester, Miss Pauline discouraged Simone from joining her in her connecting bedroom. Simone was annoyed, but Miss Pauline was firm.
"Tomorrow you have your first lesson with Mademoiselle. It's important that you make a good impression. You don't want to be tired. The Mademoiselle is a wonderful woman, but she is demanding and stern with those who do not take their studies seriously." Simone was downcast, but she obeyed her Governess and early the next morning, after breakfast, they took a cab to Knightsbridge.
Mademoiselle LeFevre met them in an elegantly appointed drawing room. She embraced Miss Pauline warmly, and seemed delighted to see her old friend. She was a tall woman with a narrow waist cinched into a corset and an ample bosom that impressively filled out her high collared dress. When she turned her attention to Simone, the conversation began in French.
"Bonjour Mademoiselle Simone. Ecoute moi. Ici, nous parlons seulement en Francais. Comprend?"
"Oui Mademoiselle!"
"Your accent," Mademoiselle LeFevre continued in French, "is fair. But in pronunciation as in all things, please copy me closely. You sound uncomfortable with the French language, as though you are holding your words at arm's length, or touching something distasteful. This is understandable for a beginner, but it is important to be at home in your new language. A lady must be at ease. Our role in society is to put others at their ease. Is it not so? To do this, we must be at ease ourselves."
She looked at Simone with a ferocious directness. Her gaze was all the more intimidating because it was so effortless and even casual. Simone realized that it was the most natural thing in the world for Mademoiselle LeFevre to dominate the room and everyone in it.
"Je suis la Maitresse, Mademoiselle. La Maitresse de cette maison. In my house, I am what matters. How do my guests feel? How do you feel at this moment? This is of no consequence. What matters is how I feel. When I am comfortable my guests are comfortable. If I am displeased, they will suffer agonies. I will teach you to speak French and to be at home in France. But first I will teach you to be Mistress of yourself in every situation. While you are here you must copy me: my accent, my inflections, my mannerisms, my gestures, and by the end of your stay, Mademoiselle, you will be a Mistress like me."
Simone was rarely at a loss for words, but at this terrifyingly fluent monologue she just nodded her head, her eyelids fluttering nervously.
"Bien sur!" Mademoiselle Lefevre smiled and then burst out laughing. Her laughter shattered the icy mask she had assumed, and she stepped across the room and embraced Simone warmly. Then, taking Simone's hand, with a sisterly air, she drew her out of the room, through the hallway and up the elegant, curved wooden staircase.
