Prince Taylor now has holidays and can be who he wants. Does he want to go back to the institute?

(images done by ai)

It was time for the holidays, and Niki and I were in a limousine to spend the holidays at his grandmother's. Let me tell you, she lived in the middle of nowhere. Niki's grandmom lived in an old cottage in the middle of the countryside. It was surrounded by farm animals, such as cattle and sheep. In the back of the house were some woods. The cottage was a nice white-washed cottage that even had a thatched roof. It had lovely flower beds in front of it.

Niki's grandmother was standing at the doorway, waiting for us. She was a small, plump woman with rosy cheeks and a huge smile on my face. She told me that she knew that I was a prince, but she did not want to curtsy to me as her old bones could not cope with it. She also suggested I call her Claire, as I already had a grandmother. I agreed to call her Miss Claire. Niki and I would be in the same room, which excited us both. There were no cribs or baby things like we were used to at the institute, and Miss Claire did her best to make me feel welcome. For the first time in weeks, I started smiling. I felt so free here.

Miss Claire told us she got instructions from the institute. We should still dress and act like girls. That meant being ladylike, polite, and submissive. We were to look pretty all the time. On top of all this, we were to sleep in a nursery. This was the same letter my parents got when I went home for Christmas. My parents did everything the letter said. Miss Claire did not. She threw the letter in the fireplace and said that while we were here, we would be the children that we were meant to be. We would not be told what to do. The only thing that we would have to do was still wear diapers, as our bladders were now too weak.

Then Miss Claire said that she would like to speak with me in private while Niki is unpacked. She heard that I was unhappy at the institute. I told Miss Clara that I did not agree to be a sissy. I was forced to be one. I accepted being turned into a sissy because I did not want to be punished, and besides that, everyone else was the same. However, I do not understand why they destroyed my bladder and made me start lisping. My grandmother said I did not have to go back. Miss Claire put her hand on my shoulder and said Niki would be devastated if I left the institute, but she understood me. Niki was born feminine and had no problems being a sissy. However, this was Nik's choice. Miss Claire told me that I had to decide my identity. I had to decide if the institute was a good place for me.

When Niki came out, he had some play clothes on. It was leggings and a top with a fairy on it. Miss Claire told me that I should get out of my school clothes. She asked me if I wanted to wear girly clothes like Niki or if I wanted to wear boy clothes. I was silent for some time until Niki started laughing and said that I had forgotten how to decide for myself. We were so used to the institute deciding. I whimpered that I would like to wear boy clothes, so before I knew it, I had on jeans, a T-shirt, and old, worn-out sneakers. I no longer had any pastel-coloured frills on my body. I was a boy once again.

Niki's only comment was to say that I looked different. Then he looked me in the eye and said the time for talking and whining was over. We were on holiday, which meant that we did not have to listen and should have fun like kids should. Niki then told me he wanted to show me the best place on earth. He dragged me into the woods behind his grandmother's house. To me, it just looked like any other I have seen, except this place had a campfire and a cave in which he made a cosy hangout area. Niki told me that this was his magical forest. I laughed at this and said there was nothing magical about it. This made Niki roll his eyes and explain that I was not a child of the magical forest. When I was a child, I could see the magic in the forest. A child of the magical forest can see things such as unicorns, fairies, elves, and magical plants. When Niki asked me if I wanted to be a child of the magical forest, I became very enthusiastic and told Niki I would do anything to become a child of the magical forest.

It did not take me long to forget the troubles I was having at the institute. I was smiling once again and happy for life. We spent a lot of time in the magical forest or helping Granny bake and do chores. Niki showed another side of himself. He always had some fun adventures for us to try in the magical forest. It could be to try and find a fairy or leave carrots out for the unicorns. It could be searching for lost gold or exploring the forest for new magical creatures. I will be honest; I did not see any, but Niki saw them, and that was good enough for me.

Niki's parents did not visit, and they most likely did not know that he was there. Niki did not talk about it. I could also see that he was very close to his grandmother. She doted on him and would praise him to the sky. She never talked about or mentioned Niki's sissy ways; she just respected and supported that this was part of who Niki is. I will be honest and say that I was jealous of the relationship that Niki had with his grandmother. She hugged him a lot, and they had lots of heart-to-heart discussions. At times, I thought being part of a royal family was more like a business than a family. Everything we did was based on duty and our public image. Even as children, we were in the public eye, and at times we were more like puppets than children. I know one thing for sure: I never got as many hugs and smiles as Niki had from his grandmother.

One day, while we were playing in the magical forest, Niki told me that his cousin would be coming for a visit. When I saw who Niki's cousin was, I nearly fainted. It was Emma. You probably forgot who Emma was. She was the girl that I met on the train on the way back to the institute after the Christmas holidays. Emma was the same age as Niki and me. When I saw Emma, I was flabbergasted. The world can be so small at times. Niki asked if we knew each other. I said we met on the train. Niki seemed delighted that we already knew each other, as it meant we could have more fun.

Niki also saw that there seemed to be an icy atmosphere between us. He told Emma not to worry; I was a prince, as I was still a human. This was not the problem. When Emma and I were together, she told me she felt bad about the way she treated me on the train, and the press even asked her about me, including the person who wrote that book about me. She felt so guilty. I smiled and said I thought she was nice on the train, and the media can be vultures. Emma smiled when I told her that I was not mad at her and to just forget it and have fun.

Emma did tell me it was strange seeing me in boy clothes. I told her I was still getting used to being a boy again. The only thing that could show that I was at the institute was that my hair was long and I still had to wear diapers. Emma did not tease about this. She told me she noticed the diaper bulge in my jeans. This made me joke about it, and I told her that that was one good thing about dresses ... they hid the diaper. Then I got serious and told Emma that I still had a problem giving up the baby things. I showed her a pacifier that was in my pocket. Emma just smiled and said that the baby things were now just a habit I got used to. Emma assured me that it did not make me weird. She told me she had some strange habits as well, such as having a rubber sheet on her bed and not being able to sleep without her favourite stuffed animal. There was something special about Emma. She had the same gift as Niki. She could see the positive side of everything.

My mother was busy doing her national tour, so she did not have time to visit me. My grandmother told me that she would be visiting. Miss Claire was busy cleaning every corner of the house, and I had other worries. I needed to talk with Niki before my grandmother came. As we sat down next to the campfire, I told Niki that I would not be going back to the institute. This was so hard to tell Niki, especially as he had tears in his eyes. He was silent for a long time and then said that he would miss me so much, but at the same time, he would miss me. I understood why he was so sad. Niki and I have become irreparable. It would be hard to think of life without him in a week.

Granny visited. This meant that the paparazzi were camped near the cottage. My sister, Julia, came with my grandmother. I was so happy to see my sister. Miss Claire managed to curtsy to my grandmother despite her bad back. My grandmother did not say anything, but I told Miss Claire that my grandmother was the queen, but she was my grandmother when she was here.

When my grandmother and I were alone, she told me that she was so happy to see me smiling. She wanted to know if I wanted to go back to the institute. I have always been honest with my grandmother and told her I was unsure. I did not like the way the institute manipulated me. I was allowed here to dress as a boy or a girl, and I liked that. However, being a boy was not what I expected. I felt as if the clothes were uncomfortable. I also liked some of the things we did at the institute. I had friends there. I was confused.

Granny told me that she understood it. When Granny was my age, she went to a boarding school and hated it. However, she was confused as to whether she wanted to be there or not. Grandmother was honest and told me she did not want me at the institute, but she felt it was important that I decide. This confused me. Adults always seemed to want to decide, saying children were too young to do so. In a way, it would have been easier for me if Granny had decided!

I showed Julia (my 7-year-old sister) the magical forest. When I told her there were magical things, such as fairies, Julia told me that she thought that she had seen one. This was a downer for me, as I had not seen any yet. So the five of us played together. Emma and her little sister, Nki, Julia, and I played nonstop in the magical forest. Julia did not comment on whether I was dressed as a boy or not. When I asked her about it, she said, “ You do not understand; I do not care what you wear. It's who you are that matters to me, and you are a nice brother .”

When we were asleep that night, Julia asked me why I could not sleep. I was embarrassed to tell her. Julia put a chair against my bed, with the back of the chair facing the bed. She told me that I was used to sleeping in a crib, so the back of the chair was like a crib bar. It did work. I slept like a baby. The next day, Miss Claire heard about this, so she put a toddler bed in my room. It didn’t have bars like a bed, but had small sides so I couldn’t fall out.

Granny decided to stay for the rest of the holidays, which made us all happy. Niki was not that happy at times. When he was with others, he was smiling. When he was with me, I could see how unhappy he was. He told me that he was afraid the institute would close, and what would he do then? Even if the institute did not close, Niki told me he would feel alone because I would not be there. I did not know what to say.

Still, we had so much time when we played in the magical woods. Emma and I were always together. We even told each other that we were best friends. Now that I had two best friends, Niki and Emma, Julia did not think that Emma was my best friend. Julia thought that we were in love with each other. This was a ridiculous thing to say, as we were only 10 years old, and 10-year-olds did not fall in love with each other.

Blake visited us as well, He was delighted to see me in boy clothes but told me that I needed my hair cut. The problem was that I now felt so uncomfortable with the boy clothes and being a boy. The clothes did not feel nice on me. I was confused. This was what I wanted in the institute, and now that I was a boy, I did not discuss this with anyone. I knew what Blake would say. It's not as if I was a lot with Blake. He was always by Niki's side. I know I said that 10 years cannot be in love, but Niki and Blake did look as if they were in love with each other.

One day, when Miss Claire was braiding Niki's hair, I asked if she could braid my hair. My granny was a bit confused about why I wanted this. I said that I am not a boy, and I am not a girl either. I felt as if I were a mix between a boy and a girl. Granny unexpectedly understood this. She thought I could be gender-fluid. I hugged Granny and felt so happy that someone understood how I felt. Granny told me that I was old enough to decide who I was. Emma also hugged me and told me we would always be friends, no matter what I wore or what pronoun I used. Of course, Julia told everyone that we were in love.

I told Granny that I wanted to go back to the Victorian Virtue Institute. I did not like the way they treated us, but I otherwise liked what we did there, and I had friends there. Miss Claire told me that this week of holidays was important for me as it was a chance for me to decide who I was.

Granny said she would respect my decision to go back, but she would speak with Madame Criben as there would be conditions for my return to the institute.