Philip the Fool, A Choking Giant, and the Deceptive Pair of Slacks

“Philip the Fool, still hunched over and his left arm twisted in a rather uncomfortable way from his street routine, came into my boarding room, a mice infested walk-in pantry located in the back of the bar where he would conduct his knave meetings. See? No rats. I was already moving on up in the world.

“‘A message is being hand delivered by a foot messenger at midnight tonight. Do you have a seal of Duke Pelican?’

“I flipped close my pocket knife blade and blew the wax shavings from the bottom of a scarlet candle. ‘Just finished. Duke Pelican, huh? He seems pretty clean. So that begs the next question. What well tailored slimeball is supposed to be receiving the message?’

“Philip the Fool straightened up to an upright position and rubbed at an ache in his lower back that didn’t seem fake. ‘Knight Di’ Lando.’

“‘That would explain it. Sort of.’ I said. I swung my legs down from my hammock so I was in a sitting position and slid the carved candle into a draw string pouch slumped on the floor that housed various assortments of counterfeit wax seals. ‘It doesn’t explain what Pelican would possibly want with Di’ Lando.’

“‘Maybe he doesn’t wash his wrinkled hands as much as we think. Either way, just make sure you get that letter from the messenger before it reaches Di’ Lando’s place.’

“‘Consider it done.’ Philip the Fool had started to remove himself from my doorway when I added, ‘I think you are forgetting something.’

“‘Oh? And what’s that?’ he said, half turned.

“I gestured a thumb at a pair of black slacks covered in dried mud that hung from a stretch of rafter. ‘I need a few coins to get them cleaned.’

“Philip the Fool thinned his lips in annoyance for a moment before removing two copper coins hidden behind a soiled head bandage and flicked them at me. As I caught them, he said, ‘Be more careful this time,’ and left.

“With the coins in hand, I listened to floorboards creak as he practiced his stagger until he was safely gone from The Choking Giant Bar. I counted to ten in my head before getting up, walking to the opposite wall that was hidden in shadow by the slanted angle of ceiling, and removing a perfectly pressed pair of black slacks. I hooked the clothes hanger the clean pants were hanging from on the rafter next to the suit and pulled away the mud covered pair. What looked like old slacks were actually a deceptively folded torn piece of black fabric I had gotten from a disregarded commoner's cloak.

“I held up the prop and smiled to myself.

‘The Fool falls for it every time.’