From: "A.K." <andrej@andrejkoymasky.com>
Sent: Sat, August 25, 2007 9:19 am
Subject: The Gilded Cage 5/11 (Historical)

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THE GILDED CAGE
by Andrej Koymasky (C) 2007
written on November 8, 1993
translated by the author
English text kindly revised by John

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USUAL DISCLAIMER

"THE GILDED CAGE" is a gay story, with some parts containing graphic
scenes of sex between males. So, if in your land, religion, family,
opinion and so on this is not good for you, it will be better not to
read this story. But if you really want, or because YOU don't care, or
because you think you really want to read it, please be my welcomed
guest.

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CHAPTER 5 - Allies and adversaries, illness or sin...

After the queen mother's funeral, Jakobus faced his father. He had asked
himself a thousand times how he should do it - he could deny everything
and say he just wanted to try his page's livery and then therefore...
but Walterus was in their hands, and he didn't know what the youth could
say... He could say that... but what if not the truth? No, he had to
face the consequences of what he had done. It was a question of honesty
and of dignity. What could they do him? To disinherit him? At least then
he could possibly get out from that gilded cage and live freely and in
his own way... To exile him? He would have to make his life abroad, in
one way or another, and he would be even freer...

But he was aware that the real problem was not what they could do to
him. The true problem was poor Walterus. Walterus was finding himself in
that predicament only because he had asked him to make love with him.
No, Walterus had not to pay for his fault. Already Lukas had lost his
job because of him...

Thus, when the attendant asked him if he was ready to meet his father,
Jakobus had reached his decision. He said, and insisted on this point,
that the page had just obeyed to his orders, therefore he asked he
didn't get punished for his cause.

King Heinrich reacted to the news in an extraordinarily calm way. He
didn't get upset, he didn't raise his voice, he didn't use harsh words.
At Jakobus's insistence, he gave the order for the page to be freed, but
discharged and accompanied at the kingdom's borders - exiled. He didn't
allow Jakobus to see him, to talk with him or even to write to him.

As for Jakobus... The king said he hoped it was only a youthful sin
(although serious, very serious) and gave orders for the prince to be
more strictly looked after. His pages had to be trusted people and of
some age. Therefore, besides Petrus who remained the page-chief, Roland,
a married man of forty-two was assigned to him, and in the place of the
young Heinriks another married man of forty-six, Martinus, was assigned
to him. The king moreover gave the order Jakobus could never meet
anybody except in the presence, in the same room, of one of the noble
guards. The only exceptions were the royal family members.

Then the king took leave of his attendant and said to Jakobus that also
the queen had to be informed about that matter.

Jakobus was bewildered, above all for the apparent lack of emotion of
his father. He had listened, judged, announced his sentence as if the
problem didn't concern him, didn't touch him.

His mother's reaction was quite different. First of all she asked her
husband why they had to be so unfortunate to deserve such a firstborn,
after all they had done to make of him a future king, deserving the
name. King Heinrich answered her coldly that Jakobus would have to rule
from the throne, not from his bed!

Then queen Margaretha struck the note of the moral and of God's law and
asked Jakobus how he could not feel ashamed to "covet a person of his
own sex and moreover of such a low social status!"

Jakobus was about to ask her if he could be more easily forgiven if he
had done it with the blood prince of some neighbouring kingdom, but
understood that it was better to keep silent.

The queen concluded her second phase of her lamentations ordering her
son a long meeting with the father confessor.

Jakobus sarcastically thought of the father confessor of his cousin
Johannes... But said only that he would certainly do so.

Then the queen struck the note of "We bestowed on you too much freedom
and trust..."

Jakobus was about to react, asking her that he had yet to understand
where and when he had been free... but again kept quiet. And the king
added that he had already provided a remedy for this point.

Then the queen asked Jakobus to swear on the Bible that in future such
things would never again happen. But the king told her that the word of
a prince was worth a thousand oaths and that he already got their son's
word and that was enough! Jakobus was about to say it was not true, he
never gave his word... but again preferred not to answer back.

And finally the queen said to her son, "I hope, Jakobus, I would never
again to suffer such a trauma from one of my children! I hope, Jakobus,
that the seriousness of what has happened is completely clear. I hope,
Jakobus, that it has really been only a youthful sin as your father the
king affirms... even though in two months there could be your
investiture as the Crown Prince and your accession to adulthood!"

King Heinrich vigorously affirmed that the ceremony would take place
exactly as previewed and that the increased responsibilities of the
prince would help him to understand how an heir to the throne has to
act.

Jakobus went back to his quarters crestfallen. Neither his father nor
his mother had in the least worried to try to understand what he was
feeling, what he needed, the real sense of what had happened.

Friedrich had had an inkling that something serious concerning Jakobus
had happened, and the vague and evasive answers of his father and mother
had roused and increased his suspicion. Friedrich was now fourteen, he
was no more a little child but an adolescent. Thus in the end he decided
to directly ask Jakobus what had happened. At first his brother was
evasive as well.

"Jakobus, I'm your brother! Between us we've always had understanding
and love. Why don't you open your heart to me any more?"

"Oh, Friedrich... I would like to, but... you are still a little boy,
how could you understand certain matters? I think that papa and maman
would not like me to tell you..."

"Yes, that's obvious. But have you already forgotten that we swore to
never desert each other, never ever, whatever could happen? Who do I
have here besides you and Stefanie? And you, besides us two? Have we now
to start to come apart, to betray our oath?"

"No, Friedrich, my well loved brother, no. Well, then listen..." Jakobus
told and explained everything to him, starting from that month three
years before, up there in the mountain with his cousin Johann.

Friedrich was listening to him seriously, asked questions, reflected.
When Jakobus had finished telling his long story, for a while they both
remained silent.

Then Friedrich asked, "But you, Jakobus, never felt attracted towards
the other half of the sky?"

Jakobus smiled at that definition and answered, "No, Friedrich, never. I
always remained... in my half of the sky."

"And... do you feel comfortable, in it?"

"Very comfortable."

"You... you did... it with three people, correct?"

"Yes, correct."

"And you always enjoyed it?"

"Yes, always very much."

"You never had any doubt or remorse?"

"No, never. Even though they say it is evil, it is a sin..."

"Oh, that! But they also say that masturbating is a sin."

"Yes, they say so..."

"And yet I do it, and... not only I!"

"Oh! And who taught you?"

"Nobody. I mean... once, two years ago, I caught one of the servants'
sons dong it, and it seemed he was enjoying it, and I understood that it
was what our father confessor calls to play with the pudenda... so, out
of curiosity I tried it, and... well, it's good, whatever they say about
it."

"Yes, but it seems that love-making between two males is something
horrible... they say. Something to be ashamed of, they say."

"They say, they say! But if for you it is the only good thing... how can
it be evil if you don't harm anybody? And anyway, if your nature is
such, what else can you do?"

"I don't know... Avoid it, I suppose."

"Yes, like if they tell you to avoid eating or breathing!"

"What should I do, Friedrich?"

"Bah... they say it could be a youthful sin, don't they?"

"Yes, our father says so. And also the father confessor." Said Jakobus.

"Oh, the reverend father confessor! Ours, possibly. But according to
what you told me, the father confessor of our cousin Johann seems to
think of it in the opposite way, doesn't he? And to be just a youthful
sin, it seems that the reverend father is somewhat far from his youth.
So, then, which of the two priests is right? They, the grown-up people,
tell so many absurd things... They say we have not to lie, but then in
politics or in diplomacy falsehood becomes an art. They say we have not
to kill, but then there are the public executions and wars, and also
killing becomes an art, and iseven blessed by the priests! They say that
a man has to have one only woman, the one he marries, but then they have
a secret mistress, possibly even more than one, just like our father!"

"What? Our father?"

"Oh yes, didn't you ever become aware oy that? The marquise Cecilie
Melanie..."

"But... how can you know about it?"

"When grande-mère Bianca was still living, I've overheard her telling
maman not to complain, because at least papa had just one mistress,
Cecilie Melanie, while her husband had had affairs with at least half of
the court ladies."

"Who, grand-père Jakobus?"

"So said grande-mère, and I don't see why not to believe her words.
Thus, you see, if they say one thing but then do the opposite, what
right do they have to tell us what we have to do and what we have to not
do?"

"Yes, you're right."

"Therefore I think that you should be allowed to live what you feel,
what you desire, as long as you don't harm anybody. All summed up I
believe that our papa does more harm making love with the marquise
Cecilie Melanie, than you doing it with a man."

"Why? If he loves the marquise, who does he harm."

"He harms maman, who suffers for it!"

"Yes, that's true. But also papa had been forced to marry with maman
only for political reasons. He too was harmed, therefore."

"You are right. This is why I will refuse marrying with a woman I didn't
choose. And when I choose, I'll be faithful to her."

Jakobus looked with admiration to his brother and thought he was much
more mature than his young age.

"The problem is that, now, I will be watched on sight. Do you know that
I am allowed to talk in private only with you and Stefanie? With anybody
else there should always be a noble guard in the same room."

"Ah... and this to prevent you from retiring with a man?"

"Of course."

"Then they should have a noble guard at papa's elbow too" the young boy
said decidedly.

Jakobus smiled.

Friedrich asked him, "Papa knows nothing about you and Johann, does he?"

"Oh no. And neither does he know about Lukas. Only about the poor
Walterus, who has been exiled. I begged Johann to help Walterus in my
place, but he refused. He said he could not get involved with these
matters and risk exposing himself..."

"He disappointed you, didn't he?"

"Yes. And then, he also married..."

"It is possible that he likes both men and women..."

"I doubt it... but I really don't know. He also married just for
political and economic reasons. Everybody comes to a compromise, lives
by half-measures..."

"You, Jakobus, will not marry?"

"No!"

"But... and who will then be your heir?"

"Will you marry, Friedrich?"

"I really think so. But only when I will meet the woman I can love."

"Well. I will name your firstborn boy as my royal prince. It already
happened in our family."

"It could be a solution. Provided they allow you not to marry"

"They cannot force me, especially when I'm king."

"Jakobus?"

"Tell me, Friedrich..."

"Thank you for having opened your heart to me. Continue doing so,
please. Between us, no more secrets, alright?"

"Alright, little brother. And thank you to you for your understanding
and your affection..."

"I love you, Jakobus. You are the only true friend I have, you know it.
And since I was a baby you have been the only one to give me all the
affection I needed. You can count on me, as long as God keeps me alive."

The two brothers shook their hands, then they tightly embraced. Jakobus
was feeling better now that he had opened his heart to Friedrich. He
knew he was no longer alone.

On May 12, Jakobus turned eighteen. The investiture ceremony, because of
the court mourning, was moved to June. In the presence of all the court,
of the bishop, of ambassadors, State ministers, Jakobus received his
ermine cape and his royal prince's crown. As a consequence of that a
prince's throne was placed to the right of that of the king and queen,
in place of that which had been the queen mother's.

Another consequence was that new quarters were assigned to Jakobus. Now,
besides his bedroom with the adjoining the attendant and the page's room
and the private bathroom, there were also a study and a lounge, all
connected with the anteroom. An officer of twenty-eight, count
Valerianus, was assigned to him as attendant. The new crown prince's
quarters were in the west wing of the Palace, that is the most ancient
part, detached from the royal family's quarters. This, in theory, should
have give him greater freedom. But in fact the number of staff he would
have around, night and day, had increased so he was even more controlled
than previously.

"Oh, Friedrich, when could I ever find the man of my life, if I am alone
not even for an instant? Now I can't even escape in secret by my window
- under it there is the moat and nothing to grip to climb down! Are you
aware that the only moment when I am really alone is when I am in the
toilet?!"

"My poor Jakobus. I think we have to fool them with some stratagems..."

"But how?"

"I have some plans..."

"Really? Tell me!"

"Let me keep them secret, for the moment... But remember I am working
for you..."

"I don't think we can succeed, but I thank you. You really are adorable,
Friedrich!"

As crown prince, Jakobus was very busy. Besides his tutor's lessons,
going on as before, he had now also to take part in some State meetings,
and official ceremonies and parties. His attendant also acted as his
secretary and prompted him about his thousand engagements. By evening he
was usually so tired that he fell asleep like a log. But he was missing
having a lover more and more keenly. Somebody or other was always with
him and yet he was feeling more and more alone. The only relief he could
get was when he met with Stefanie and Friedrich.

In September he attended the party thrown by his cousin Johann for the
birth of his first child. The party took place in the ground floor halls
and in the winter garden of his city mansion. Jakobus, as his role
demanded him, was wandering here and there always escorted by his
attendant and stopped to exchange two words with the various aristocrats
invited to the party. But his attendant, even though he had the order to
never leave him alone, thinking that amongst all that crowd the prince
would anyway never be alone, began to content himself to keep an eye on
him more and more by fiat. And when a damsel made sheep's eyes to him,
he let himself be taken in and forgot his duty.

Johann went near Jakobus, "My dear cousin, my nephew Caroline is
fascinating your handsome attendant, as I asked her to do. Follow me,
hurry up!"

"Where?"

"Come!"

Jakobus observed his attendant going out to the garden with the pretty
Caroline on his arm, and followed his cousin. Johann took him to the
library and from there, up a spiral staircase hidden behind a bookcase,
to a small and comfortable room almost totally taken up by a wide bed.

"This is my secret shelter, Jakobus. I bring my little friends here. I
want to make love with you... And you also, my poor friend, must be
dying from the desire to assuage yourself."

"Yes..." the prince sighed.

"We cannot absent ourselves for too long. Let's undress, come on!"
Johann invited him, beginning to undress.

They made love almost wildly, eagerly, especially Jakobus. They reached
a violent orgasm and Jakobus unloaded in his cousin, who with real gusto
had let him penetrate him. While they were dressing again, Jakobus was
looking at the lewd paintings between the ceiling's gilded stuccos.

Johann told him, "You have to get engaged to some noble lady, and then
marry her. So they will stop watching over you, and then you can have
all the adventures you want."

"Get engaged? Marry? I? Never!"

"You are silly. You know the saying, don't you? Take a wife, then love
whoever you want! This is the rule. If you knew how many married men
have also a lover... even a male lover. At the court, I already
discovered seven of them, just amongst us young aristocrats."

"Seven? Who are they?"

"Get married. Join us and I will introduce them to you."

"No, I will never marry."

"You are crazy. Crazy! Do you want to become a martyr?"

"No. I just want to be myself. Not to wear a mask."

"Not wearing a mask means being naked! You will change your mind, straw
hero!" Johann said to him as they were going into the hall again.

The attendant was still in the garden courting the pretty Caroline and
was aware of nothing.

"Think about what I told you, Jakobus. You will have eight allies at
court, if you follow my advice."

"What is that, a new political party? Marry a woman and fuck a man? Are
you in a confraternity?"

"No, nothing formal. We just help each other. It is not always easy to
find a handsome available youth. So at times we signal our conquests to
each other. There is, for instance, a pleasing young official in the
Herald's College who is always readily available... as well as the young
coachman of one of us... At times we also organize private parties for
men only in the hunting lodge of one of us, with a dozen boys paid to
let us amuse with them... It is a pleasurable life. Wouldn't you like
it?"

"I don't know, cousin. How different you are from the Johann who
introduced me to love... No, I really don't think it would interest me
to be one... one of you."

"Think about it. If you change your mind... you know where to find me."

Jakobus thought about it. In some moments the idea to be able to freely
make love was appealing to him, but... freely? After all it was in
hiding anyway, in secret... No, what he wanted was something different.
Surely not some parties with paid boys! He talked about it with
Friedrich and his brother said he agreed with him.

Then Friedrich asked him, "Jakobus, is there somebody you like? A man
with whom you would like to start a relationship?"

"Yes, there is somebody I like. But hopelessly..."

"Who is he?"

"He is one of my noble guards. His name is Reinhardt Martinus. He is
twenty-two, and really beautiful..."

"Yes, I know who you mean. He has a clean and likeable appearance. But
why you say it is hopeless?"

"Because I have not even the smallest sign he could be interested in me,
or that he could like making love with a male.And for what? To get a
refusal? Or, even worse, to get a yes and pass on to him the destiny of
Walterus and Lukas? No, I am really afraid I have no hope..."

"Do you feel like coming with me to the Palace archives?"

"To the archives? To do what?"

"I have something very interesting to show you. Forgotten but useful
things... Are you coming?"

"Alright."

The two princes went to the archives. Jakobus' escort guard remained at
the door and Friedrich greeted the archivist.

"I would like to see those papers I am studying..."

"Certainly, Your Highness, I will bring them down at once..."

"You don't need to, I know where they are. Come Jakobus... Afterwards
we'll put them back in their place, mister archivist."

"As Your Highness wishes."

Friedrich took Jakobus in the next room and from there to the next one.
He moved the tall library ladder on its castors and nimbly climbed it.
Without any hesitation he pulled out two big volumes and brought them
down.

"What are they?"

"In 1632 king Heinrich I had the Palace renovated to make this new
Palace..."

"Yes, I know."

"He really had to remake just the new facades to unify and connect the
two earlier ajacent buildings, that is the Ranald II castle of 1338 and
the ducal Palace of Otto III the Solitary of 1467."

"Yes, I know also about that. He didn't have enough money to have
everything demolished and rebuilt ex novo..."

"Happily for us... Because, you see, the architect who merged the two
buildings and gave the actual appearance to the royal Palace, was given
an order - to let, connect and complete the whole system of secret
passages that existed in the two previous buildings. The same ones that
our grand-père Jakobus II almost certainly used to reach his lovers. And
here there are all the drawings of the 1632 project, and in these pages
all of them are clearly marked. Look..."

"Wow, it is almost a web!"

"Yes, an entirely forgotten web. And if we take these two pages out from
this volume, and these six pages from this other volume, nobody else
would ever know where they are, besides us two..."

"But... tearing books..."

"We'll cut these pages carefully so that nobody will notice. I have a
very sharp blade with me to do it."

"But... why to spoil these antique books?"

"It is the price of your freedom, Jakobus. Don't you understand? Look
here, a secret passage ends exactly in your study. You can leave your
quarters unseen and reach almost any part of the Palace! Don't you
understand?"

"Oh, by Jove! Free to move... or almost."

"That's it."

"But you... how could you manage to find them? To know they existed?"

"The last one who knew about these passages, and only by hearsay, was
grande-mère Bianca who, when I was a child, told me about them, as in a
tale... and she is no longer with us... But I remembered it and carried
out my researches and... And I thought that if I found the original
renovation projects, I could also find... these!"

"You are a genius, Friedrich!"

"Then, we now cut them. Then tonight we will start to explore the
passages. Are you game?"

"Tonight?"

"Yes, look. One is here, that is the room where I sleep. I will try to
open it and to come to your study. We will meet there. The first who
comes, waits."

"But they can possibly be blocked... and perhaps make a noise opening
the accesses, after they have been unused for so long..."

"Well, it is worth trying, isn't it? Tonight, Jakobus?"

"Yes, tonight."

They met and started the exploration. Besides the dust, everything was
in perfect order and working. And also fascinating. Narrow corridors,
stairs, spy-holes, sliding or pivoting panels thanks to ingenious
mechanisms. There were accesses in several rooms, including the king's
bedroom and the throne hall, or in the most unthinkable places like the
great wardrobe, the armoury, the kitchens and the coaches depot. There
were spy-holes looking into the queen's bedroom, the Council room, the
Cabinet of the Prime Minister. That system of secret passages told
stories of intrigues, secret loves, espionage. And above each spy-hole,
above each access, there was a wooden cartouche with the name of the
room to which it connected painted on it. Here and there, there were
ventilation holes towards the outside of the Palace, narrow slits from
where was possible to catch a glimpse of part of the surroundings; then
there were also niches to put lamps or possibly weapons...

Friedrich and Jakobus spent several nights exploring all that labyrinth
and getting to know and remembering it all. They could not try all the
accesses, because often there were people on the other side. But during
the day they inspected some of those rooms to discover where the secret
access was. They were all very cleverly hidden by panelled walls,
friezes, pieces of furniture, fireplaces... They spent almost a whole
month filling the eight pages they had stolen and other white sheets
they had put together with notes, remarks, comments.

They both were excited and Jakobus felt like if he was once again a
small child living an incredible adventure. But above all the thought he
could leave his rooms unknown to everybody, and being able to spy on the
others besides being watched on, excited him very much.

"Do you know why king Jakobus II, who was possibly the last one to use
them, never revealed their existence to his son, our father Heinrich
IV?" Jakobus asked Friedrich one day.

"Well... grand-père died all of a sudden, thus he possibly had not the
time to tell him. And possibly before then he told him nothing because
he wanted to be free to use them to reach his mistresses without our
father knowing it and controlling him..."

"Yes, that could be. Possibly in ancient times they were used more for
espionage and intrigues than for amorous encounters, and each king
showed their existence to his heir..."

"Yes, Jakobus! It is surely so! Do you remember the sentence that papa
pronounced at your investiture as crown prince?"

"Well, he pronounced so many sentences..."

"No, the one he spoke when he handed you that roll of white sheets
sealed with his personal seal..."

"Ah, towards the end, when he then embraced me and said - the secrets of
the kingdom and of the Palace belong also to you, my son..."

"Right! Once those secrets were really unveiled and they were not State
secrets, and those sheets were not white sheets, but... maps like this
one!"

"Yes, it is possible..." Jakobus said, thoughtful.

"Be that as it may be, we two now know them!"

During their explorations they discovered something - that maman, queen
Margaretha, had a lover too! He was the commander of the noble guard,
the duke Wlatimir Marwin Andreas!

"And then, they judge me!" Jakobus just exclaimed, frowning.

Friedrich squeezed his hand in a gesture of understanding and
solidarity.

Friedrich and Jakobus gradually started to "equip" the labyrinth of
secret passages - oil lamps, clothes to change into when they entered it
in order not to make themselves dusty, a casket closed by a key with all
the secret passages maps and their notes... They also agreed on signals
to make before opening a secret passage in their own rooms.

Jakobus thought that if he had known those passages on the night when
his father's attendant burst into his bedroom, he could have hidden
there Walterus there and nothing would have happened... but unhappily
history is never written using "if"s...

Who knows where Lukas and Walterus were now? Who knows what they do for
a living? Jakobus was feeling responsible for their destiny and
regretted not to be able to do anything for them. And Johann had refused
to take care of that. Jakobus had difficulty recognizing the handsome,
cynical cousin as his Johann, filled with the joy of living, who first
had made him enjoy the feeling of freedom.

Jakobus had also found a way to use the secret passages in daytime. At
times he said to his attendant, "Please, go in the antechamber, I want
to be alone for an hour or so..."

The attendant went out - the prince, from the study, could go only into
his bedroom or into the anteroom where he was, and from the bedroom he
could only go back to the study or go to the anteroom... therefore the
zealous attendant was assured- if the prince only desired some solitude,
that could also be allowed...

Then Jakobus quickly slipped into the secret passage and went to spy on
the various rooms. He never discovered anything really interesting, but
something pushed him to go on... And one day he overheard a piece of
conversation in the trophies hall between his cousin Johann and the
count Karl Anton.

"... as always. And besides the boys, there will be a surprise..."

"What surprise?"

"A surprise, as I said, therefore you will see it. You will like it, I'm
certain."

"Come on, give me at least a clue..."

"A young man of indescribable beauty..."

"And... is he available?"

"More than available. Of blue blood, a foreigner, but above all really
hot-blooded..."

"Do I know him?"

"No, but you will get to know him... and very intimately. Don't fail to
come!"

Jakobus could not hear more because the two youths had left the hall.
But two things made him think - he now knew who was one of the "eight",
and a hot-blooded aristocrat, very handsome, foreigner, would take part
in the confraternity... who could he be? As far as he knew there were no
foreign aristocrats at court or in the city... He talked about it with
Friedrich but his brother had not heard about him either.

Another thing they discovered, and this time it was Friedrich, was that
the commander of the noble guard, besides being the queen's lover, was
also the lover of her first lady in waiting! The court was a real den of
contorted sexual relationships and they wanted to stop him from living
his own relationships! The prince was feeling more and more furious.

On December 8, there was the presentation at court of the new noble
youths who had come of age. This time Jakobus participated sitting on
his princely throne. They were practically all of his age and he was not
presented on that occasion because there had already been his
investiture as crown prince. And now the youths, one after the other,
after having paid homage to the king and the queen, saluted him at
attention and he answered their salutes and, when it was worth it, he
undressed them with his eyes. Many of them were attractive in their
tight gala uniforms. Ah, if he could just be free to court them...

During the party that followed the presentation, Jakobus circulated
around the hall to talk with the presentees who had attracted his
attention and lit his fantasies. And he invited those who seemed to him
more likeable and interesting, to go with him, in the following days, to
train in the armoury or at the manege...

That is until the queen took him to one side and said, with an icy
voice, "I think that you would do better to spend less time with those
young men and more time with the damsels, don't you agree?"

"Oh, maman, they all are just silly little goslings!" Jakobus answered
with a fatuous smile.

Later, after the party, he was summoned by his father and mother.

"Jakobus, your behaviour worries us. We have forgiven you, and perhaps
too easily, your casual affair with that servant, because we had
presumed it was just a crush due to your young age. But now..." the king
started to say.

"Father, after that episode nothing even similar happened again, you
well know it. Almost one year has elapsed and..."

"Of course, you are well watched now. But today everybody could notice
how you addressed all your smiles and time to the presentees and not to
the damsels!"

"It was their party! You too, papa, talked more with them than with the
damsels!" Jakobus answered in an amazed tone.

"But I am not a youngster as you are! I am not presumed to hang round
the damsels. It would be only natural if you did... And the answer you
gave to your mother when she commented on it leaves me astounded. Are
you certain that instead the real problem is not rather the fact that we
were wrong in considering what you did just a simple accident and that
you on the contrary are a poor sick person attracted to your same sex
instead than to the other one, as God commands?"

"I feel perfectly sound. If I was sick, you would have to entrust me to
medical care..." Jakobus answered.

And evil befell him for it!

In fact the king started to have him subjected to medical visits. The
physicians, after having carefully checked him, told the king that the
crown prince was physically absolutely healthy and normal, and that the
only one possible course was to make him undergo a psychiatric visit.
Therefore the famous psychiatrist and hypnotist doctor Syebault was
summoned to the court from Paris. He wanted first of all have a long
private interview with the prince. Then proposed him to put him through
one or more séances of hypnotic sleep.

Jakobus was suspicious. "What would be the use of making me sleep on
command?"

"Above all, to discover whether you are or are not suffering from
homosexuality, and then, in case you are, to discover its actual cause
and finally to heal you."

"I don't like the thought you play with my mind while I am unconscious."

"You see, Royal Highness, during our previous interview you have always
been on the defensive. You have very skilfully eluded all the questions
I asked you about your sexuality, even the most forward ones. Now, if we
can now establish that you are not suffering from homosexuality, all
ends here, as this is the problem about which I have been called here.
But if you are suffering from it, I can treat you..."

"You want manipulate my soul..."

"Oh, come on! The soul doesn't exist!"

"Don't let the queen hear you or she will have you fired on the spot!"
Jakobus laughed.

"It is your psyche..."

"All right, you want manipulate my psyche."

"Heal it, if it is ill."

"Could you make me become a... homosensual if I'm not?"

"Homosexual, you mean. No, I can only heal you."

"A real physician has also the power to make somebody ill, if he
wanted..."

"Your Royal Highness is also an expert in medicine and psychiatry?"

"No. But they already are manipulating my physical life, I don't want
now to undergo an attempt to manipulate also my inner life."

"Manipulate is a bad term. Maybe heal, if there is an illness, something
anyway still to be demonstrated."

"To desire a person of his own sex is a scandal for our society, is a
sin for the church, and is an illness for you doctors... An illness
cannot be either a sin or a scandal. Why don't you all come to an
agreement and meanwhile leave me in peace."

"I don't believe in sins... and will not say so to you mother the
queen..." the doctor said grinning and Jakobus smiled.

Then the prince said, "Listen. I don't want to waste more of your time.
Tell me just one thing - are you persuaded that the homo...sexuality is
an illness? And why? Can you prove it for me?"

"Well, illness - let's start from here. Illness is an alteration of an
organ and or of its functions. Now, it seems that your physical organs
are all healthy and that they function normally. Therefore the court
physicians have said that you don't have a physical illness. But man is
not just physical, he has also a psyche. The psyche is the sphere of all
a man feels, and it moves and works through the mind, the intellect and
the subconscious. And the psyche also directs our sexual drives. When it
is healthy it directs them towards the opposite sex, when it is ill it
directs it towards our own sex and feel repulsion for the opposite sex."

"I never felt repulsion towards women, never!"

"Yes, you said so. But you feel attraction towards your own sex, it is
not so?"

"And with that?"

"One of the two statements has to be untrue. It is not possible to feel
attraction towards two opposites poles at the same time."

They continued to discuss...

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CONTINUES IN CHAPTER 6

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In my home page I've put some more of my stories. If someone wants to
read them, the URL is

http://andrejkoymasky.com

If you want to send me feed-back, or desire to help revising my English
translations, so that I can put on-line more of my stories in English
please e-mail at

andrej@andrejkoymasky.com

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