Quoted By:
I am surprised no-one has used the MOST OBVIOUS gender attire narrative, the lady on a journey that has to dress as a man to protect her virtue. This happens in a lot of Shakespeare but here is Tad Williams, yay
(...)
Simon could only gape.
Geloë smiled. “At last, one our mysteries begins to speak! Go on, child. Tell them what you must.”
Malachias blushed furiously. “I ... my name is not Malachias. It is ... Marya.”
“But Marya is a girl’s name,” Simon began, then broke off at the sight of Geloé’s widening grin. “A girl... ?” he said lamely. He stared at the strange boy’s face, and suddenly saw it for what it was. “A girl,” he grunted, feeling impossibly stupid.
The witch woman chuckled. “It was obvious, I must say—or it should have been. She had the advantage of traveling with a troll and a boy, and the cloak of confusing, dangerous events, but I told her the deception could not last.”
“Especially not all the way to Naglimund, and that is where I must go.” Marya rubbed her eyes wearily. “I have an important message to bear to Prince Josua from his niece, Miriamele. Please do not ask me what it is, for I may not tell you.”
***
(...) behind him in the doorway were two figures. One was the Lady Vorzheva. The other, dressed in sky blue, stepped past Vorzheva into the pool of light around the wall sconce.
“My lords,” Josua said, “the Princess Miriamele—daughter of the High King. ”
And Simon, gaping, stared at the short, cropped strands of golden hair that showed beneath the veil and crown, shed of their dark disguise ... and staring at the oh-so-familiar face, felt a great tumbling inside him. He almost stood, as the others were doing, but his knees went watery and dropped him back into his chair. How? Why? This was her secret—her rotten, treacherous secret!
“Marya,” he murmured, and as she sat in the chair Gwythinn surrendered to her, acknowledging his gesture with a precise, gracious nod of her head, and as everyone else sat down again, talking aloud in their wonder, Simon finally lurched to his feet.
“You,” he said to Binabik, grabbing the little man’s shoulder, “did ... did you know?!”
The troll seemed about to say something, then grimaced instead and shrugged. Simon looked up across the sea of heads to find Marya ... Miriamele ... staring at him with wide, sad eyes.
“Damn!” he hissed, then turned and hurried from the room, his eyes pooling with shameful tears.
