It was a beautiful morning, which required going out doors and enjoying the spring air. Yuya skipped along cheerfully. His birthday was today and he was turning nine years old. Excitement was making him jittery. He couldn't wait for his papa to get home and celebrate.

"Oh Miss Yuya, please marry me!"

"No! Marry me!"

"You are the most beautiful maiden I have seen in all the land." A burst of laughter erupted behind Yuya.

Pausing in mid step, he turned to face his addressors. The last thing he wanted to see was Shingo's face early in the morning with his three flunkies Ootomo, Yamabe and Kakimoto. Yuya puffed up his cheeks in frustration. The jokes about his appearance always annoyed him.

Shingo and his flunkies were sitting on an outcrop of rocks a few feet away. Once his attention was turned to them, they dropped down to the ground and approached him in strides.

"What do you want…?" Yuya grumbled in response.

"Ah, that is not a face a lady should make!" Shingo flipped his hair back dramatically and smiled gleefully at his own horrible joke.

"But he looks so cute when he does it!" Ootomo quickly bounced the joke back.

"Ahhhh, leave me alone!" Yuya attempted to walk away but Yamabe and Kakimoto stepped in front of him to bar his path.

"Where do you think you're going pretty boy!" Shingo stepped forward, and sneered down at Yuya.

"Anywhere away from you!"

"Why are you so cold to me? I just want your attention, Ba~by!" Shingo dragged out the syllables for a lasting effect that just irked Yuya even further. Shoving the flunkies to the side, Yuya strode past them.

Shingo followed quickly after, keeping pace with him.

"Ah, don't be mad. I was only teasing. You know we don't think any different of you, even if you are a transvestite."

"A what now?" Yuya turned on his heels, anger flashing across his features.

"A trans… vesilite? What is that?" Kakimoto asked confused.

"Transvestite, it is when a guy looks like a girl! I learned it from papa." Shingo proceeded to explain, sticking his chest out with pride for knowing a complex word.

"That is not what it means!" Yuya snapped back frustrated.

"How would you know?" Yamabe snarked back.

"Unlike some people who pay their way to the top and don't even bother to get an actual education, a transvestite is when a male or female dresses as the opposite gender!"

"Che – my daddy is the Viceroy of this castle and can easily throw you into the dungeon so do not make me angry." Yuya rolled his eyes at Shingo's threat. Shingo always used his father's position as a means to get his way. "And besides, the two are basically the same thing." Shingo shook his head as if to say Yuya was an idiot.

"They are not!"

"Either way, I think a dress is more fitting for you anyways." Ootomo piped in.

"Or maybe Yuya is actually a girl disguised as a boy…" Kakimoto added on merrily.

Losing his temper, Yuya stormed away, and shouted over his shoulder, "I am not a girl who dresses as a guy, nor am I a guy who will EVER dress as a girl!"

…..

5 Years Later…

…..

"Here Yuya, put this on for me!"

"WHY SHOULD I?" Yuya was helplessly cornered in the woman's dressing room.

"Because I want to see how this dress looks and you are my best model. We are similar in body size and appearance after all." Chizu explained as if it were obvious.

"I refuse!" Yuya made a mad dash to escape but more maids blocked his route. "Ahhh, come on! Just leave me alone!"

"Not until after a quick remodeling." Aiko stepped closer to him, easily towering over his short stature.

Chizu, Sakura, Aiko and Koko were the youngest maids in the castle and some of his closest friends. Due to his father's position as the royal Jester, he was often attending parties with his father and getting to know the staff of the castle.

…

"Please Prince Reiji! You are almost 16 and must have a suitor before your coming of age ceremony!"

"I already told you, we are on the brink of war and our attention cannot be averted by such distractions such as balls or courtships."

"Have you ever even glanced at a lady before?" His mother, Himika Akaba asked with exasperation.

"Yes, once or twice, but it was just a passing glance. I will find my partner when I am ready but right now we need to maintain vigilance and prepare our borders for the possibility of a war."

Himika sighed in defeat. Her son had always been the more serious type. Even since he was a child, he would focus most of his time in his studies and closely observing his father's negotiations. He rarely spent any time with children his own age, claiming they were far too inferior, immature or uneducated.

"Now I have a very important meeting I must attend to, please excuse me." With a quick bow, he departed down the hall to his designated conference room.

…

The four maids had way too much fun at Yuya's expense. In the end, he was dressed in red silk, he had a full on manicure, his hair was actually somehow braided and they attempted to add on makeup but that was when he made a break for it.

Bursting out of the doors, he bolted a few steps forward and crashed heavily into another person. Yuya slumped to the ground in a heave of cloth, and limbs. Sitting up, he rubbed his throbbing skull, jumped to his feet and bowed his head in apology.

"I am so sorry! I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings." His voice came out a little higher than he had intended due to his hasty escape and having the wind knocked out of him.

The sudden clashing noise had the maids bustling to the door. Yanking it open, they all peeked out in curiosity before turning three different shades of pale white to pink.

Yuya kept his head bowed until he received some type of response but when none came, he dared to peek up. He immediately straightened in surprise and his face flashed a full spectrum of color and emotion. His first reaction was surprise, to horror, followed by embarrassment, fear and lastly confusion. Each emotion was clashing to take precedence, which resulted in a mixed awkward expression.

In front of him stood none other than the price Reiji Akaba. He quietly was brushing himself off and not bothering to look up, but after he had rearranged his clothes, he turned his attention to Yuya. His expression quickly took on surprise and a smile before he covered it up with his usual poker face.

"I… I… I am so sorry!" Yuya squeaked out. He quickly averted his gaze and tried his best to dispel his flushed face. 'Please don't recognize me, please don't recognize me…' Yuya silently chanted the words over and over again. If Reiji recognized him now, he wouldn't ever be able to show his face again in the castle.

"That was dangerous. A lady shouldn't go dashing through the halls. Please be more careful next time." Reiji quickly flashed him a charming smile and then carried on his way.

Yuya paled and his body froze. "Lady… he thought I was…" The stone fixture his body had somehow froze itself into slowly seeped away and in replace, a dark aura started emitting from him. His eyes starting twitching and he whipped around so fast that it startled the on looking maids. His expression was dark and an evil smile was playing across his mouth. Letting out a maniacal laugh, he crept over to the door and yanked it open forcefully, the maids all bolted away and hid in the corner, afraid of his dark overpowering aura.

"He called me a lady! Prince Akaba actually thought I was a lady! Who wants to take responsibility…?" Yuya asked out with a creepy smile.

"Yuya!" A voice called out from behind and smacked him upside the head. Yuya toppled over forward, causing him to land face first into the floor. The dark aura immediately dispersed and he sat up rubbing his aching nose.

The maid's shoulders relaxed with the timely arrival of Yuya's childhood friend Yuzu. She was the best at calming Yuya down.

"What is going on here?" Yuzu demanded with her commanding tone.

"Well…" Koko glanced at her fellow maids who were also twiddling their thumbs in reluctance to be the first to speak.

Feeling responsible, Chizu spoke up, "we kind of forced Yuya to be our model and Yuya may or may not have run into Reiji in the middle of it all."

"He what!?" Yuzu declared in surprise. "What happened after that?" Yuzu's interest was piqued which made the other maids perk up in glee.

"When we were about to add the makeup, Yuya slipped past us and made a break for the hall." Sakura quickly continued the story with enthusiasm.

"Yea, and on his way out he crashed straight into the prince!" Koko added ecstatically

"And to our surprise, he actually called Yuya a lady." Aiko broke in.

"Which in turn caused him to go out of control…" Koko shivered at the memory.

"That is until you intervened!" Chizu concluded.

The girls were all finishing each other's sentences, eagerly recapping the intriguing encounter.

Yuzu silently listened to the story and when they all finished, the maids leaned in closer, awaiting Yuzu's reaction. Yuzu calmly sighed and turned her attention to Yuya who was still checking to make sure his nose wasn't broken.

"I see…" was her only response which disappointed the girls, they expected a bigger reaction. "Come on Yuya, your nose is fine and we have an appointment." Yuya stopped his inspection and looked up curiously.

"Appointment?" Yuzu didn't bother to respond but rather proceeded to exit the room with Yuya following behind confused. As he exited the room, he waved his farewell and closed the door behind them. Picking up his pace to walk beside Yuzu, he turned his attention to her and saw that her eyes were distant and deep in thought. She was only half conscious of what was around her and proceeded to navigate around the halls with some unknown goal. Yuya knew not to bother her when she got like this so he just followed behind silently, observing his surroundings.

….

Reiji's attention was nowhere near where it needed to be. Even as the nobles discussed important information about trade and taxes, his mind kept wandering back to the mysterious girl he had ran into in the hallway. Her flustered expression upon his arrival had been amusing and she was stunning in appearance. Although she did not look overly familiar, he had a sense of deja-vu which him puzzled. Granted, Reiji didn't focus much attention to anyone, but he would at least remember a face like hers. Sighing, he drew back in his chair and stood up. The gathered nobility all paused in their debate and news to turn their attention to the prince.

"Please excuse me. There is an urgent matter I must attend to. Please carry on without me and report back when this meeting has concluded." After excusing himself, Reiji navigated his way back to the hall in which he first encountered the mysterious girl. Just as he had anticipated, she was nowhere to be found. It had been a little over an hour since he had last seen her, so it was no surprise that she would be elsewhere.

"Ahhh, come on Yuzu. We are back to where we started. Can you please just tell me what is on your mind or at least stop dragging me around?" At the sound of approaching footsteps and voices, Reiji turned his attention in the direction of the voices to see Yusho Sakaki's son and a young lady dressed in pink walk around the corner.

Yusho Sakaki use to be the royal jester of the palace. He was well known and liked by the people because of his selflessness and humor. Reiji was also very fond of the jester; he was noble, kind, strong willed and lit up the halls of the castle; however, three years ago, he randomly disappeared, with no clues as to why or how he vanished. His son was appointed the title jester in his absence and Reiji had caught glimpses of him before but never particularly paid any attention. Now that Yusho's son stood before him, he could see the similarities.

As soon as the pair saw him, Yusho's son froze in place and paled. As quickly as he could, he grabbed his goggles from on top of his head and pulled them down and then quickly ruffled his hair. The action was suspicious and peeked Reiji's interest. Striding forward, he halted a short distance away and used his height as an advantage to appear intimidating.

…..

Yuzu had yet to speak a word. Her head was still bowed downwards and she kept her eyes locked to the floor deep in thought. Yuya tried to bear with the awkward silence but as soon as he noticed their location, his frustration poured out.

"Ahhh, come on Yuzu. We are back to where we started. Can you please just tell me what is on your mind or at least stop dragging me around?"

Yuzu finally snapped out of her zone and glanced around confused, not realizing they had walked a full circle, with a few minor detours. As her eyes scanned her surroundings, they immediately fell on the third occupant in the hallway and she slowed to a halt. Yuya followed her gaze in confusion and he paled in horror. 'The prince came back?' Yuya immediately yanked his goggles down and ruffled his hair, hoping to dispel any similarities to his previous appearance, however, that action was far too obvious and had the prince striding over to his location. The prince stopped directly in front of him, arms cross and usual poker face in check. His stance spoke more than his words, he wanted an explanation and now.

Yuzu quickly bowed her head and greeted the prince warmly, acting as if everything was perfectly normal.

Yuya in turn awkwardly bowed his head in greeting and mumbled out, "Go… good evening."

"Evening." The prince replied indifferently. Yuzu glanced between them, unsure of what to do or say so she remained quiet to watch the scene play out.

"Can I… help you?" Yuya asked with uncertainty. 'Calm down Yuya, it's not like you did anything wrong. Play it cool!'

"The nobles are currently in a meeting, afterwards, they will be attending a short tea party, care to join us?" The question was not the response he was expecting.

"Sir…? If that is what you wish." Yuya crossed his arm over his chest and bowed again, showing respect to the prince. The prince's orders were absolute. Reiji paused for a moment longer to observe the pair before turning on his heels and walking away.

"I think my heart may have just stopped for a few seconds." Yuya slumped to the ground, eyes still watching the corridor where the prince had been just moments before.

Yuzu stretched out her arm and placed it against to wall to support herself, she was also in shock.

"Why did he come back?"
"I don't know, but I thought I was dead for sure." Yuya stood back up onto jelly feet, feeling numbness spread through his legs. He was going to need a minute to calm down.

"I doubt he would kill you for cross-dres…" Yuya quickly cupped his palm over her lips to silence her and glanced around the halls.

"Shhhhhh… don't ever mention that again. The last thing I want is for that to get around, or worse, for Prince Akaba to learn about it"

"Oh sorry."

…

As Reiji walked away, he couldn't shake the feeling that Yusho's son was hiding something. Was he perhaps the female he encountered in the hall? If that was the case, was he really a female in disguise or did the boy just have a hidden passion. Interest peaked, Reiji smirked at the possible ideas and proceeded back to the meeting room.

Asking Yusho's son to attend the after party was just an excuse to discover the truth and get to know the boy more. In truth, the encounter in the hall was the first time he got a really good look at him, and he couldn't lie, the boy's features were surprisingly gorgeous.

Pausing outside the large double doors, Reiji readjusted his collar before stepping back inside. The group of men paused only momentarily to observe the new occupant but once they recognized their prince, they jumped back into their discussion. Taking his seat at the head of the table, Reiji clasped his hands together and rested them below his chin deep in thought. Now he needed to formulate a plan.

….

Yuya made one quick stop to his room to change clothes and bring a bag of tricks to entertain the guests before heading to the refreshment room. Inside, maids were bustling around to set up the tables and get the food organized. A few pushed past him in a hurry as he entered through the large doors.

With a quick glance around the room, he found a good spot to set up his bag of tricks and plan his performance. Just as he had finished setting the stage, the doors were pushed open and a flood of voices entered the room.

Yuya watched in silence as each nobleman entered the room in twos and threes, chatting amongst themselves while a few took no time getting to the refreshment table. The last person to enter the room was prince Reiji who proceeded to observe the room as Yuya did and then locked on with his display. Yuya gulped at his intense stare and started shaking as the prince slowly approached him.

"Thank you for taking up my offer. May I ask what you have planned?"

"It's… um… I am going to be doing a mixed show. Some juggling, a card trick and a… a…" Yuya grew quiet as the prince squatted down and started rummaging through his bag of tricks out of curiosity. He handled each item in the bag carefully, replacing them with just as much delicacy before standing and nodding his approval.

"I look forward to seeing your performance."

Yuya stared on confused as the prince proceeded to walk away. 'What was that about? He has been acting weird since this morni…' Yuya's heart skipped a beat, 'he doesn't suspect, does he?'

Yuya's thoughts were cut short as a couple of nobles gathered around eagerly. Shaking off the thought, Yuya bowed deeply to his onlookers before straightening with a big smile. "Ladies and gentle! May I please have your attention to my spectacular performance!?" As he declared his opening act, more nobles gathered around.

He started off slow, showing a feel simple acts and quick slip of the hand tricks, but his nerves were on edge and they were continually weakening the longer his show proceeded. The Princes gaze never left him and it only seemed to get more intense as the show dragged on. When the prince stood and approached slowly, Yuya's concentration broke and the items he was juggling crashed to the ground. Surprised at his own clumsiness, he altered the mistake by playing it off with another trick by making the items on the floor disappear by desperately drawing the crowd's attention to a white and gold cloth that he waved around in mesmerizing curves and waves, all the while, he quickly kicked the items under the table and knocked up a ball with his feet again drawing the audience's attention away to his random foot movements. Fooling the nobles was a simple task but he could tell Reiji was fully aware of his mistake and attempt to cover it up. Reiji amusement was blatantly obvious. He was aware of Yuya's hyper awareness to his presence and was purposefully making him feel nervous. Yuya was only digging his own grave further by showing his emotions so clearly on his sleeve. He knew this, but he couldn't repress the lingering thoughts of the morning events.

After what felt like hours but only turned out to be 40 minutes, Yuya called a close to his act and quickly packed back up his things as the nobles dispersed. Reiji watched from a distance, and waited for the last noble to be gone before approaching behind the squatted Jester who twitched slightly to his presence but pretending to not notice. Smirking, Reiji cleared his throat and Yuya reluctantly paused in his cleaning to turn his attention to the prince.

"That was a good show. I hope to see more of them in the near future."

"Th… thanks." When Reiji made no attempt to move, Yuya stood up completely and silently waited for him to finish speaking.

"Met me tomorrow at noon, I have something I would like to discuss with you." Yuya tensed but nodded his head in understanding.

"Once you have finished packing, you are free to head home." With that, he turned away to bid his guests a good evening.

Glad that he was finally free, Yuya quickly stuffed his items back into his bag and darted out of the room. He was heading straight home and taking a long nap.

….

His home was just down the hill from the castle, nestled in-between a few trees, mostly hidden from view. Their home was decent sized, much more spacious and decorative than most homes in the village, especially since times were difficult and many were stuck living in the slums.

His family had also started out small, just barely getting by, but due to his father's popularity and respect, they had been awarded this luxury. Now with his father gone, Yuya worked hard to pay off the house and provide for his mother. She in turn sewed and sold fine dresses at the market as well as pastries she had baked in her spare time.

Arriving back home, Yuya spared no time rushing inside, taking his shoes off and bolting for his bedroom. Prying his door open, he shut it behind himself and slumped into bed. His brain hurt from all the activities that had occurred that day.

Rolling onto his stomach, he buried his face into his pillow and drifted off to sleep.