#mine: mahoutsukai | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

sunkteethfallacy · 2 months

Text

A Princess Among Us: Arthur Granvelle is a Trans Girl

First, canon:

The established world of Vollmond is split between humans and wizards. Literally, in more extensive analysis, this is clearly a divide between goyim (mostly Xtians) and Jews, but in this specific case it is used to evoke something else.

The king and queen Granvelle are two humans, but Arthur was born a wizard. This was hidden by the two as well as it could be, but the moment it got out rumors ricocheted around about the queen cheating on the king to birth a wizard (a nonhuman). The queen could not tolerate her child being magical or the rumors about this, and chose to abandon Arthur in the northern wilderness to die. Later, in Arthur's location story, the queen is seen deliriously loving and protecting a small bird as her 'human' son in place of Arthur.

I tend to write/visualize Arthur and the overall setting as though transphobia does not textually exist - I prefer the use of allegory here, personally, along with other canonical hints that transphobia itself just doesn't exist in Vollmond (see this very good post about deltarune that i think about often) - but in this case it is quite literally that the queen wanted a human son, in which case 'human' and 'son' mean the same thing.

This is strengthened by Arthur feeling like she gets to be her "real self" with Oz/oji3 +in the North, where she gets to be a wizard and use magic and act without restraint around people who love and accept her as the little girl Arthur, and not as the failed nonhuman prince of Central.

And then, of course, this is all stripped away from her at the onset of puberty, LITERALLY on the day of her 13th birthday. She is stolen from this sanctuary and taken back to Central to stand straight and tall as prince and boy for a mother that will not even look at her (where her being a wizard is an open secret - where everyone knows that she's a freak and different.)

Something essential to note is that Arthur is the type of person who does not discuss her own suffering in a personal sense, that she is the type of person to ignore her own pain and instead focus on how things must have hurt others. She has only ever brought up how the pre-abandonment period must have hurt her mother, but not how Arthur herself felt or was treated during it. She goes out of her way to not mention the fact she was abandoned. She doesn't even like talking about how much pain she was in being taken from Oz, the person she actually considers to be her guardian, though it is more likely to come up because the feeling is much more raw. We can only assume based on how she is treated now, 17 and with her otherness an open secret, though it's also been mentioned that certain things have gotten a bit less painful over the 4 years she's been back... to put it lightly, even before being left for dead it wasn't great for her in the castle.

She does not like being a prince, except for the political opportunities it gives her to help others, namely other wizards (people like her). Look at this 4koma. She does not feel like she belongs. She pushes herself to be like her father because she's the 'prince' - but also, let's face it, her mother isn't the best role model (but Arthur still wants her love and acceptance [whole event]). She goes out of her way avoid being angry [ch4] because she's a wizard and people will be scared of her, and perhaps also attribute that anger to other wizards.

And then there's the amount of times she disguises herself as her 'Artie' persona, or transforms into anyone else at all, excited and overly willing to be anyone but the Central prince. (1, 2 [though she feels awkward and disparages herself for not being able to 'roleplay' well], 3, 4, 5: [Arthur Bday 2023 Q&A TLed by oshaberiduo on twt], 6, etc)

She's also been associated with butterflies, a sign of transformation and rebirth, a fair amount of times, and shooting stars, something similarly transient and beautiful (2) just as much. She wants to be a flower yet to be discovered or named.

She wants to be herself without expectations. She wants to be loved for who she is and as she is.

Of course, canonically it's good on some level that she was taken from Oz, as she cannot tie her happiness to him the way she does and continue to have a healthy relationship. She's dependent on him labeling their relationship (one everyone knows to be family), she's terrified of him not loving her (because they're the one who saved her when she was abandoned), and she's willing to die if it lets her continue to be loved/repays her 'debt' (because she thinks Oz is still """mad""" at her for """"leaving""””).

That said, I do think Arthur will remain in a political role in Central, but not as prince. She will be the wizard princess of Central, putting together both families she loves and getting to live as her true self with no pretense while helping the citizens she loves and working to make people like her safer. She will be the master of both worlds and live a much healthier life because of this, confident in taking the necessary steps to get to that point because she will always have people by her side.

Second, sources:

Every Mahoyaku character has a main source that's reflected in their names, influences their stories, and thus ripples onto the people surrounding them. Figaro is from the Barber of Seville. Oz is from the Wizard of Oz. Arthur is King Arthur. etc etc.

King Arthur’s story has a lot going on in it, as mythology often does, but the gist is that Uther Pendragon (the former king) seduces his enemy's wife with the help of the wizard Merlin, who in return for his services only requests that he be able to raise Arthur for a while. Arthur only finds out he's the king through a lot of winding circumstances; You know them. Read Arthuriana yourself - there's a lot. The point is that Arthur is the True King from a so-called 'disreputable union' raised by a magician.

But they also have secondary sources, sources the characters were not named after but heavily influenced their stories and personalities. Figaro’s is the Little Mermaid (see everything about her but especially June bride 2021 cardsto). Chloe’s is Cinderella (LOOK AT HIM). Shino’s is Robin Hood (Sherwood. Everything else). etc etc. And Arthur? Arthur is Ozma of Oz.

Ozma's story goes like this: the princess of the city of Oz, Ozma, is stolen by Ozpinhead (the titular Wizard of Oz) and given to the northern witch Mombi. Ozma's identity is hidden by transforming her into a boy who goes by Tip. Ozma lives her childhood as the boy Tip, not knowing her true identity, and going through many hardships under the tutelage of the unkind witch Mombi. Though, importantly, there he learns about magic, and uses it to both escape Mombi and go on a great adventure where he makes a lot of friends who love him dearly and has a lot of fun. Through various circumstances, the truth of Ozma's existence comes to light - she is a Girl, a Princess, and the true successor of the throne of Oz. Tip is frightened by this, but only because he doesn't want to change. He fears that if he changes, the people he loves will stop loving him. It's only through the encouragement of his friends and loved ones and the reassurance that they'll love her no matter what that she gains the courage to go through the process of becoming her real self again. She is still herself, just different!

………….

It's hard to explain just how point for point this is to people who haven’t personally read either or both stories. Either the plot point is exactly opposite, or exactly correct, to the point where it’s clear that the story goes beyond simple inspiration for Arthur's own.

Instead of being a princess kidnapped by Ozpinhead (the Wizard of Oz) and given to the northern witch Mombi, Arthur was abandoned by the royal family and taken in by the Northern wizard Oz (...the Wizard of Oz), though it’s clear the general view of the events has twisted itself into Oz themself kidnapping Arthur. This is not something Oz contests for various reasons, most of which consist of the fact that Oz was a cruel wizard before meeting her, and very much doesnt want her to idolize them (because if she ever finds out…). Arthur made Oz softer than even Oz's own friends could comprehend even with thousands of years of experience with him. But, again, Arthur was taken back to the royal castle of Central, away from Oz and oji3 (away from the place where she was accepted and could express herself fully), where she’s forced to posture as a Prince and Boy (though her secret is not much a secret here).

Arthur's biggest fear is of changing. That she’ll grow to be someone Oz doesn't recognize, that politics will change her, that Oz will stop loving her, that she’ll be left behind by the people she loves. The only thing that assuages that fear is Oz telling her that they love her, have always loved her, and no matter what, they just want her to be safe and happy and love the world she's in. That they haven’t abandoned her, and never will. Never could. And having the support system of not only Oz and oji3, then her friendships with the Central wizards, and then indeed the entire manor having her back in their own ways and giving her a space to openly, shamelessly partake in a part of herself she's still struggling to be able to fully express on her own terms.

Knowing she has a way forward to her true self that won't leave her closed off from the ones she loves and allows her to help them in ways only she can - that’s Princess Ozma!

tl;dr: There's a lot that goes into this: her simultaneous pride and fear of her 'other'ness; her day-to-day performances of her role for her mother (and the other Central officials) which still cant help but burst at the seams with her difference and is only alleviated (briefly) by returning to the place where others are like her (while knowing it's not her 'real home'); her abnormality being an open secret weaponized against her in vulnerable moments and especially for the sake of politics; her bone-crushing fear of being left behind by the ones she loves if she is totally, wholly honest with them about her desires and what she wishes to be (and where). Being literally based on an iconic transfeminine princess certainly doesn’t lend the reading any less credibility.

Basically, this is my little girl.