The Crown Prince Thinks I'm a Guy

Chores and Funny Boys

It may seem quite simple, but becoming a boy is harder than it sounds. You may try to act like one, but people will always smell through your disguise.

"Dis yar new protege, Old Man?" the large bull of an innkeeper shouted as he patted my mentor on the back with an unceremonious strike of his paw. "Acts too girly, eh? He too respectful to be yar shtudent!"

I worried for the old man because I was pretty sure I had heard some bones cracking at the point of impact. Regardless of my woes, Farseer only smiled benevolently and massaged his back with his walking stick. "Oh, you know how these things go, Freud. The older one gets, the more one wants a little granddaughter!"

"HA HA HA!" the innkeeper's boorish laughter managed to cause vibrations that shook my heart. "D'ja hear dat, Janmira? Dis bastard wants a li'l boy to be his granddaughter. He don't even see ya as a lass at all!"

I halfheartedly laughed along, wondering if the silence from our other hooded companion would mean someone would have to die later in the night... I shook my head, and chided myself, 'No scary thoughts! No scary thoughts!'.

Janmira, the ghost, became a tiny bit more human-like as the time I spent with her grew. I would continuously be shocked whenever our skin touched and I would find it warm. In some moments, she would smile and laugh and most surprisingly, eat like a normal girl. Well, I suppose she really isn't a ghost, but I still couldn't stop myself from flinching whenever I see her face. The slightly older girl definitely had the same face as the one I had hurt in my past life. No matter how much time I spend with her, I don't think I could ever get used to her face.

"Well now, Freud, you know why we've come here. The boxes are out there in our carriage. Have Monty get them and we'll be on our way," Farseer said with his ever gentle grandpa smile. "Now that I think of it, Monty must be around six now?"

"Seven, ya old bastard!" Freud, the innkeeper, bellowed laughingly. "Time passes by so fast! He's practically old enuff to go to a school now."

Farseer nodded. "Yes, it does. This little one is going on seven as well."

The innkeeper turned his attention to me and surprised me by kneeling down in front of me. "Boy, don't just stick to dis old bastard! Go to school, too. That old man will just make an alcoholic out of ya!"

I laughed sweetly. "I know, sir. I'll do my bestest to remember your advice."

"HA HA HA! Ya got a cheeky li'l one this time, Farseer. I like 'im!" The innkeeper stood up and went behind the counter, probably to start piling the wine into their storage rooms.

Almost as though I have already done this before, I headed for an empty table and sat myself down. Sitting with the silent ghost beside me, I thought back to the past few weeks.

After escaping from the royal capital, our trio had gone on a pilgrimage around the Kingdom, delivering boxes of wine and other products to inn after inn. There might have even been a few times when we had made transactions with a wealthy family or a noble house. In all those times, I had acted as the old man's new mentee. No one seemed to find us suspicious in those times. Farseer was well liked and even Janmira was greeted by a couple of people a few times. The only problem I really had was the amount of interest they showed me. People would always laugh about how a prim, little boy like me was under the tutelage of a man like Farseer. I suppose my mentor wasn't known as a gentleman around these parts.

It has exactly been three months since I had left my life as a princess. Acting like a boy was easy at first, but clothes and appearances can only get you far. There were too many times when I had almost greeted a curtsy instead of a bow. Too many people had pointed out my strangely formal way of speaking as well, not too mention my subdued movements.