History Literature / SplitHeirs

Knowing Gudge will kill her horribly for this supposed adultery, Artemisia has Ludmilla, her elderly handmaid, take one boy and the girl off to her brother Prince Mimulus, who's gone into the forest leading a band of rebels. However, Ludmilla confuses them, leaving her with the girl. Artemisia, having already declared she bore a son, must raise the girl as a boy.

* NoBisexuals: Gudge acts like Arbol (supposedly) having sex with Lady Ubri shows he's straight, not gay as he'd fired, when of course the bisexual option is also there (assuming this was true).

* MistakenForGay: Prince Arbol spending so much time with Wulfrith is mistaken for them being lovers, which worries one councilor, inspiring his father Gudge to behead the fellow for suggesting the idea. Gudge is later simply overjoyed to see Wulfrith (Arbol's twin, though he's unaware of this) having sex with Lady Ulbi [[MakingLoveInAllTheWrongPlaces while in the library]].

** Remulo and Rommis, two boys raised by a wolf in a story from Odo. They're based on Romulus and Remus, legendary founder of UsefulNotes/{{Rome}} pretty clearly.

* RoadTripAcrossTheStreet: After getting mistaken for Arbol losing his viginity when Gudge walks in on him having sex, Wulfrith ends up following Gudge on a celebratory tour of the capital's taverns. Wulfrith's internal narration describes Gudge going through a cycle of drinking at a given tavern until he feels like urinating, leaving the tavern to urinate against its wall and hopping on his horse to ride it to the next tavern. It's pointed out that taverns are sometimes right next to each other.

* HiddenBackupPrince: Gorgarians people believe that twins are a sign of infidelity, so when Queen Artemisia gives birth to ''triplets'', she gives two of them to her handmaid who gives them to two other families to raise as commoners. The rest of the book is a hilarious deconstruction of PrinceAndPauper tropes.

* BalefulPolymorph: Clootie and Wulfrith learn how to turn different animals into each other, with the former also planning on using this against the Gorgarians. Later Clootie ends up transforming multiple people while fending them off. However, he can't predict what anything will turn ''into'' and can't reverse it either.

* LogicalWeakness: Clootie tries to fend off an angry mob by [[BalefulPolymorph turning many into animals]]. They observe he [[MagicalGesture needs to make gestures]] though, grabbing his hands and tying them so he can't cast the spell. Additionally they [[BoundAndGagged gag him]], so he can't [[MagicalIncantation speak incantations]].

* RoadTripAcrossTheStreet: After getting mistaken for Arbol losing his viginity when Gudge walks in on him having sex, Wulfrith ends up following Gudge on a celebratory tour of the capital's taverns. Wulfrith's internal narration describes Gudge going through a cycle of drinking at a given tavern until he feels like urinating, leaving the tavern to urinate against its wall and hopping one his horse to ride it to the next tavern. It's pointed out that taverns are sometimes right next to each other.

* PrinceAndPauper: A large part of the plot is a {{parody}}. Three triplets (all identical, except for the fact one is [[HalfIdenticalTwins born female, and two male]]) get inadvertently switched. First when the boys are being sent into hiding, as their sister was supposed to be sent out with them. Their mother is forced to raise her [[RaisedAsTheOppositeGender as a son]]. Once they finally reunite, with none knowing they're siblings, it happens again when Wulfright (one of the sons) becomes foodtaster at the palace for his sister Prince Arbol, with their mother planning to swap them when the succession has taken place because Arbol's secret (along with hers) might come out otherwise. Then they get switched again... and [[UpToEleven it gets crazier from there]].

* RoadTripAcrossTheStreet: After getting mistaken for Arbol losing his viginity when Gudge walks in on him having sex, Wulfrith ends up following Gudge on a celebratory tour of the capital's taverns. Wulfrith's internal narration describes Gudge going through a cycle of drinking at a given tavern until he feels like urinating, leaving the tavern to urinate against its wall and hopping one his horse to ride it at the next tavern. It's pointed out that taverns are sometimes right next to each other.