#princessrbn

Put simply, the Princess Ribbon is a really bizarre piece of foreshadowing which I feel like I cannot reconcile as anything but some kind of warning. The Princess Ribbon is found in a prophecy room with the following two prophecies:

"They'll hear the ring of Heaven's call / They'll see the tail of Hell take crawl"

And then, at the end of that hallway, in a chest in the darkest corner of the Sanctuary, you find the PrincessRBN. And you might think, "Well, that doesn't mean anything inherently. They wanted you to see that prophecy." And you'd be right - This could just be an item. So lets put it on Ralsei, right? And...

The gloves don't fit? The princess gloves don't fit RALSEI? What do you mean? What are you implying? And, well, it's stats:

Attack... Don't you think that's unusual for something Princess-themed? Why would it not be, for example, a Magic? Or Healing? Or graze area? Not to mention - attack on Ralsei? The person who is most vocally about not hurting others? Maybe you want to have Attack Ralsei though. So, boost up his attack with the Ragger2 or the puppetscarf, give him the princess ribbon that doesn't fit, the attack band… But, does that sound… healthy? ...Lets get to some thematic analysis here: What is Heaven? What is Hell? I'm talking allegorically. And, I think we can tell now. I think "HEAVEN" is tied to this idea of actualized identity. And I think "HELL" is being the person you feel forced to be. We see this in a few places. - The Pink boss battle has lyrics mentioning things (And we are still dealing with rough translations) such as "I should be kissing in heaven" or "I should be burning in hell." Heaven would represent the idealized self, while Hell would represent the longing to have the right body - We also see this in Spamton, who is absolutely obsessed and desperate to see Heaven. So he steals someone else's vision for their ideal body and tries to puppeteer it as his own, not because it's who he wants to be, but because it allows him to escape who he is. This doesn't necessarily have to be a gender identity allegory - for example, Spamton could have a specifically trans reading, but it can also just be about his inability to actualize himself as someone successful and happy as he spirals deeper and deeper. (I know a trans-allegory Spamton is a reading some people have, but my point is not that this is right or wrong, just me putting out what I think is a convincing thematic analysis.) THUS. I think this prophecy:

...Is saying that Ralsei is going to hear the call of an actualized identity which will make sense for him and who he wants to be. In this chapter, he sees all these people being happy, expressing themselves, and being open, and I think he wants that sense of being themselves that they all have. And I think this prophecy:

Represents "The Princess" as an identity. It's immediately next to the PrincessRBN, the gloves do not fit (which symbolizing the role not fitting,) and it doesn't give the benefits Ralsei actually wants or needs. Let me move on for a moment to another thematic point: The Boss Weapons. Ralsei has two of them!

The first is the Puppetscarf; symbolizing Spamton. Spamton, as mentioned, represents a desperate yearning for Heaven and self-actualization. Rather than look inward, he desires to simply force himself into someone else's body and steal their ideal self. It doesn't work, and he is bound by green strings - very similar to the ones we see in the Pink boss during her crisis of the self:

And as such, it's description is "For those who abandon healing." It destroys Ralsei's ability to use healing magic, and instead makes him someone who can hurt others better. The other is the Blue Shoes, obtained after beating Pink

The BlueShoes are essentially the opposite of the Puppetscarf: They offer barely any attack at all as a weapon, and focus on defense, magic, and pacifism. They are an excellent item for a Ralsei focused on healing... And they are the first weapon he can get which is not a Scarf at all, in a game where revealing the face is so consistently a part of character development. And they are tied to Blue, the colour and the character, who shows us that extremely feminine masculinity can be wise and guiding. It's not so odd that pacifism is tied to Blue, though. After all, he's the mature one who guides the others on their journey of self-actualization. It's just... Well, it's not the only reference to Blue and Healing and Pacifism

The MonarchRBN and it's meaning:

If I return to the PrincessRBN for the moment, there seems to be yet more intense symbolism regarding it: It's not worthless. It can be forged into a new item Take the PrincessRBN and combine it with the Scarfmark (A weapon for Ralsei made of a book ribbon - A ribbon on Ralsei can use) and you get this:

To clarify, you are taking a ribbon which makes it's wearer better at hurting others and which does not fit Ralsei, forging it with a weapon on Ralsei can use, and ending up with a conspicuously non-gendered piece of armor which seems to match the BlueShoes perfectly and is ideal for healing. And, if you equip Ralsei with it, he says this:

Let me hammer out the symbolism here: You are literally forging a Princess Ribbon with a part that does not fit Ralsei into a MonarchRibbon which matches Ralsei perfectly It's essentially a better BlueRibbon! Oh and... Well, it sure arguably also makes Ralsei resemble Blue, doesn't it? Does that mean anything? Why is the best healer set for him Blueshoes and MonarchRBN? Let me ask - Doesn't it seem odd that Blue is associated with healing? Blue of all things? Why not pink? Or Green? Green was associated with healing back in Undertale and is also a pacifist who heals you. But - Maybe the play is not masculinity as healing. Maybe the play is Blue, the CHARACTER, as someone wise and guiding. And I could see that... Well, except...

LOVELY BOY and it's meaning Quite evidently, the Pink boss fight is about gender identity. I discussed this a little farther up, but the gist is that it is about resisting and making peace with both sides of yourself and loving all parts of you. Pink cannot purely do what the Ghost wants, and the Ghost cannot purely do what the body wants; a balance must be found. This is symbolized by the Pink body and the more masculine, blue-tinged ghost.

Within the boss fight with Pink, Ralsei knows how to talk to her and explain what is happening, and most casual tactics will inevitably realize how important the Lovely Boy act is. The boss fight has an unexplained gimmick of starting you with an extremely low maximum amount of Tension, disabling you from doing anything. The astute among you will notice the allegory at play here, haha. Lovely Boy is an explicitly male-gendered act exclusive to Ralsei, and has this effect of raising the amount of tension you can hold at once. --> Critically, it does not RAISE your Tension. It only raises the MAXIMUM amount of tension the party can have, enabling you to act more quickly. --> The boss fight is otherwise about accepting and loving both sides of yourself, and that even if you do not manifest into the ideal you had in your head there is a path forward which can accept all of you. This is the happy ending Pink receives, and it feels like it's saying something with the whole 'Lovely Boy' thing.

What is the symbolic significance of, in the absolute most clearest Gender Allegory, the key to victory is repeatedly using an act called "Lovely Boy" to improve the amount of tension you can handle? To me, this is saying this male part of Ralsei is important in the matters of gender, especially during a crisis. It is similar to the earlier pattern of Blue as Healing, and compounds onto that.

But... What does that imply? How do we reconcile the overt themes of Ralsei desiring to explore a new identity and present as a Princess, with these other tones telling us that the Princess is something ominous, something harmful, and a consistent tying of a masculine identity to healing and handling tension and the like? And I think the answer is in that Monarch Ribbon: Ralsei isn't a Prince or a Princess. He's a Monarch! His trauma is not in changing his identity, but accepting a part of himself that he doesn't want to admit is there. Here's where I think I'll lose some of you, because this is about to cross over into the RPG mechanics commentary from the gender commentary, and get a lot more into speculation, and some of the implications might be... A little odd from the perspective of a Trans story. But again, stick with me - The point of that last chapter was that ALL gender expressions are valid. This is not about undermining anyone's identity, and we are going to be seeing Pink a lot as a Trans contrast to whatever is going on with Ralsei. And so:

The Prince, and accepting both sides of you

I think that Ralsei is going to realize that he needs all sides of himself in harmony. That is probably a nonbinary identity, but could be something more esoteric or unusual. Masculinity is being associated with healing and love and pacifism not because Ralsei is necessarily male, but because - like pink - you have to accept all sides of your gender and identity and not totally deny a part. You need to live in harmony with yourself, and I think that is where this is going. I think all this theming makes sense if you see it like this: Until Ralsei allows The Prince to exist, at least a little, he isn't actualizing himself at all, but running away from emotions and bottling them up Lets think for a moment: What is the deep secret that Ralsei is hiding? What part of him does he not want the world to see? It's not the Princess - He was totally happy to try that out with Kris, openly, it's just that he felt he needed permission to present a certain way. He also seems to like being a butler, a surfboard, a cube, a stool, and a horse. He even steals Ralsei Rancher to be a horse in his room whenever he wants. Ralsei is fine with expressing identities. What he's really hiding from? What he really wants to avoid? That part of himself he hasn't told anyone about - What is it? What made it click was when i was discussing it with a friend and they said, "It seems like Ralsei wants to be anything but The Prince." And I think that's the play

Because, what Ralsei is? I think he's a black mage. He uses Fire. His intended role in the party is that of a brutal attacker who burns enemies to death. When we meet him, he resembles a cloaked wizard, and then a black mage from Final Fantasy. Black Mages are male; White Mages are female - well, traditionally. Your party is a Fighter (Kris, magicless physical battler,) a Magic Warrior (Susie; a magic-using attacker,) Black Mage (Ralsei, who is SUPPOSED to have purely attack magic,) and White Mage (Noelle.) This is a perfectly generic, balanced RPG party. Just as Susie has forced herself to learn healing, Ralsei is forcing himself into the role of a healer as well. We even see Noelle talk about the Ice Palace boss in Dragon Blazers:

The "Mage" left the party. That's Ralsei. Mages are attackers. Ralsei isn't "The Prince, the sweet little goat boy healer." The Healer is Noelle, the Girl - She has better healing magic and better pacify. Ralsei is "The Prince, The Black Goat Who Burns People To Death With Fireshock." And Ralsei does NOT want to be that person. What do you do if all you are and all you were ever meant to be was to be a person who kills others? Looked at this way, I think a large amount of idiosyncrasies seem to make sense.

Why is he mad this chapter? Because he sees all these people expressing their own identities, and the identity he is suppressing and hiding and can't be is "The prince who kills people."

Why is the role of a princess related to the prophecy, "They'll see the tail of Hell take crawl?" Why is Ralsei "Watering their own thorns" (title information?) Because the idea of The Princess is wrapping Ralsei up in another identity to avoid the one he is running from. It's pretending to actualize instead of actually facing your inner demons and facing your identity. I think that being a Princess is going to be a part of who Ralsei is - but just like Pink, he will need to realize that both sides of himself deserve to coexist and need to be loved.

Why does Ralsei think the prophecy will change through pacifism? Because that is the single choice he is making which pushes ALL of himself against fate. It's a rejection of who he was fated to be - The Prince Who Kills Enemies.

Why does he resemble Asriel? Maybe he doesn't. Maybe, just like Spamton, he is wearing someone else's ideal self as his own. Maybe that, too, is why he doesn't even want to address the implications of that fight. Many people have noted how Ralsei seems to resemble the 'ideal' Dreemur Kris could never be. Maybe we've never seen his real face?

Why is he fine being a Butler in the Queen's Mansion, but so angry at it here? It's because he realizes he's layering himself in identities to hide from who he is and who he always has been. It makes him realize he is denying this part of him. And maybe that is foreshadowing for "The Princess," and why the PrincessRBN is like that

Why is what he is hiding tied to Fire Magic? Because his identity as The Prince is about burning people to death, and he is afraid of people knowing. This one in particular - What else could it mean? We ONLY have an association with The Prince and Fire.

Why is Blue associated with healing? It's not JUST that Ralsei has to accept The Prince to feel truly comfortable - it's ALSO that it shows a path where a male identity can be tied to healing. The Prince does not always have to be feared. The Prince does not have to be someone who kills people with fire.

Why is Ice themed so heavily? Because fire protects you from the cold, and accepting that side of yourself is needed

Why is Flowery on one hand aggressively pushing this Princess identity, and on the other literally shoving Ralsei into a closet and giving him anxiety about how Asgore will never accept his identity and taking away his voice? Maybe it's thematic. Maybe this is all just pushing him farther from who he really is

Why the reveal at the end with the toxic seeds? Because this new identity Flowery is pushing him towards might not go well for Ralsei

But, though The Prince might be what Ralsei is denying, him adopting an identity much more similar to The Girl has value and is a part of him. Ralsei taught Susie healing. He taught us pacifism. These choices mattered. Ralsei's Healer identity - the one traditionally female - mattered and is much closer to who ho wants to be. Do not mistake me saying he is running from being The Prince to mean that he must therefore not be The Princess. It's just, becoming The Princess is not going to help what he is actually hiding. So I think Ralsei is going to realize a part of himself is there he has tried to deny. And he's going to realize that Fire Magic can do other things, too

But, do I have any actual evidence for a more... Nonbinary or trans-adjacent interpretation of Ralsei? Well, a little:

Ralsei and Orange

Monarch Butterflies. Monarch Ribbon. First, the weaker part. Do you remember that puzzle in chapter 2 which seemed to foreshadow arcs? The one where Berdly ponders why the pieces don't fit together. And it shows a Purple Home representing Susie, a happy bird representing Kris, and warmth representing Noelle? It had an oblong shape representing Green for Ralsei, and an Orange shape of a party member we hadn't seen. Well, consider this solution:

A hatless Ralsei facing forward, split between Orange and Green, the two halves a part of whole. Yeah? And, Orange would represent fire. Orange is The Prince he is running from. And, well, there is also one more thing: Ralsei's parallels with Orange the CHARACTER

Ralsei seems to have an intentional parallel with Orange. She is INSISTANT she is a human (A flower transitioning to a human) even though what she wants to be is obviously something different than the others' human identity. It just makes her defensive and easily crumble. But when people question this identity, or she is unable to perform in a human identity, it pushes her into a sort of dysphoric sadness. She is initially characterized as being extremely defensive about being human.

Ralsei meets her and proceeds to treat her in the same manner that Flowery was treating him - Immediately declaring her a "Mouse" as Flowery calls Ralsei "Raly" and "Princess," and doing a bunch of extremely infantilizing things asserting this identity onto her until she cries. Neither Ralsei to Orange, nor Flowery to Ralsei, tend to engage on any actual level and instead are just telling them what they should be. Like Ralsei, Orange is an extremely GNC character. At one point we see her being bullied by a fox, who says Asgore will want more of a female presentation out of her. The fox also criticizes her lack of a fluffy tail. This is similar to how Flowery tells Ralsei to conceal his identity, only for Asgore to tell Kris that Ralsei does not have to hide who they are.

The ultimate conclusion to all this is Susie having a discussion with her in a cafe scene - She asks why it is important she is Human, and Orange just says "Because… it's what we all decided." Susie basically tells her that she doesn't have to force it, and that it's okay to just be "Orange" and that you can't go wrong just being yourself. So, Orange is a character who is forcing an identity onto her self which does not actually fit - Just like the Princess Gloves imply, just like Spamton, just like Mew Mew before the battle ends. Thus - Orange is not a mouse. But, she's not a human either. Don't you agree that if you read her as a parallel to Ralsei, that is interesting? I think it would work very well in the context of a story where Ralsei realizes he doesn't have to force an identity!