Irhaboggle Pride (2019) Spectrum

Violet

For the first part of Ozma Tippetarius' life, the world was dark gray and earthy brown. Raised as a servant boy, Tipp had chores around the clock. Often, they were physically demanding. And always, they were dull and frustrating. Tipp's "caretaker", Mombi, made sure to dole out only the worst and lowest of jobs. Although she was Tipp's legal guardian, and even though she'd raised Tipp from infancy, there was no love between them, and Tipp was more than happy to run away the moment he could. After spending his whole life on a grungy old farm with nothing but dull and faded hues of sickly yellow and dirty brown and smoky gray, he was ready to move onto bigger, better and brighter things.

As Tipp traveled across Oz, colors finally entered the picture. There were bright and dark reds, for blood spilled in combat. Sometimes, the combat was only a little street brawl with another young ruffian. Other times, the combat was of a more metaphorical nature, political skirmishes that always left a dash of red somewhere. Tipp, after all, had spent some time as a solider, so he got to watch Oz's political decline in real time.

Then there was the orange of Jack Pumpkinhead's pumpkin head. Jack was Tipps' first real friend, having been created by Tipp as a prank against Mombi. Tipp gave Jack life, and when Mombi looked about ready to end Tipp's for such a stunt, the pair ran away together, starting off the grand and crazy adventure that would change Tipp's life forever.

Then there was the yellow brick road, and all the rolling golden fields of corn and hay. For the first time ever, Tipp was happy to see a farm. Mombi's had been dirty, dark and dismal, painfully small and unsuccessful, constantly ugly and in disrepair. It was all colorless and gray. As such, back then, Tipp had despised farms and come to associate them with only dark and dreary, ugly colors. But after seeing the rest of Oz, he had a change of heart. These yellow fields were truly something to be proud of!

Then there was the almost-blinding green of the famous Emerald City, grand and sprawling. Tipp traveled to and through it many times on his adventures, and it never failed to fill him with awe. Even in the darker corners of the city, green was everywhere.

And then blue, the bright cyan of the sky, and the cerulean of the water. Back with Mombi, even the sky and water had been dull and gray, ever-overcast and slightly tainted. But here, in any place that wasn't near Mombi, the blue was beautiful and clear. But perhaps the prettiest blue of all was in the skirt of a young girl named Dorothy Gale. She was a peculiar but kindhearted child who became one of Tipp's closest friends.

And it was during one of their adventures that an old secret was unburied. Tipp was the long-lost Ozma of Oz, having been secreted away from the palace as an infant and handed over to Mombi by the Wizard of Oz, who'd usurped the throne and wiped out the rest of the Ozma line. But now that Tipp was back, the country was quick to welcome their new Ozma. It didn't matter that Tipp knew nothing about royal life, the Ozians were desperate to have an Ozma again. So Tipp accepted the job, but the transition was hardly easy.

First and foremost, another part of the secret was that Tipp's gender had been switched. Born female, raised a boy. But as soon as Mombi's curse was broken, Tipp's female body returned. That meant Tipp didn't just have to adjust to a new physical form, but how people were going to react to that form from that day forward. It was strange to be called "ma'am" or "queen" instead of "mister" or "boy". And gone were the days of rugged pants and tattered shirts. Now all that awaited Tipp were luxury dresses of the finest fabric, dotted with all sorts of little gems and décor. Now Tipp was beautiful, instead of handsome. Delicate cheeks caked in makeup, jewelry hanging from neck and ears. And no longer was Tipp's hair cropped, uneven and disheveled. Now it was long and silky, always braided and adorned.

ooo

Tipp lounged on a golden throne in an emerald palace, staring out a window at the bright blue sky with tired eyes. The current outfit of choice for the new Ozma was a violet robe. It had not been Tipp's choice, but one of the many servants of the palace.

"You must!" the servant had cried, shoving the deep purple robes at Tipp. "Tis a royal color!" And Tipp was forced to don the rather garish and excessive outfit. It was comfortable, if nothing else, but it was not Tipp's style. It was just too... much! Even the color made Tipp feel out of place. As the servant had said, it was a royal color! But Tipp hardly felt royal. This was all just so new!

"Violet," Tipp grumbled, toying with the robe. "I hate violet!" Now, this was not necessarily true, but Tipp had been forced to see so much violet over the past week that it was starting to get old. Every noble, royal and aristocrat that Tipp was forced to meet always had some form of violet on. And now, Tipp was expected to follow suit.

But every once in a while, Tipp was free to shed the royal persona that Oz wanted to see. Tipp could sneak out, dressed like a boy once more, and run freely around the city without anyone ever even noticing. Tipp would visit old haunts, running wild and free, like the reckless little street urchin of the past. Tipp would pull off old stunts, pranks and tricks, going on new adventures just to bring back some of the good old days.

But as the years passed, Tipp became to acclimate to being the Ozma. With increased age came increased wisdom. Tipp did still yearn for the past, occasionally, but now it was getting easier to rule the country, and in time, Tipp stopped dreading the violet robes. Tipp also finally adapted to having a female body, slowly but willingly changing into a girl until, once again, gender matched sex and presentation. Soon, being a girl felt as natural and easy and familiar as being a boy ever had!

Oz was a very marvelous land, full of all sorts of marvelous creatures. As such, Tipp was well aware of how many different types of everything that there were, including gender. Although the most common was boy/girl, that was very far from the only set. There were people who fell in between, or outside, and sometimes, there were people who felt like a combination of many things. And sometimes that combination was static while, other times, it was fluid and changing. Getting to meet people like this, scattered across the country, gave Tipp a lot to ponder. Eventually, Tipp even wondered if there was a bit of genderfluidity involved in this story.

To be born a female, then switched and raised as male, then switched back again... And Tipp had come to feel comfortable in either role. So perhaps Tipp was genderfluid, or another type of gender-neutral, since either gender suited Tipp. Even though Tipp was now a female and a woman, Tipp wasn't opposed to being a male and a man (or any combination thereof). Tipp felt as though going back and forth between these binaries would've been no trouble at all, but Tipp didn't feel a certain pull towards one or the other either.

And perhaps that was part of why Tipp stopped dreading wearing violet. From the stories Tipp heard, violet was sometimes associated with gender neutrality since it was a mix of red (pink) and blue. So, in time, violet took on a new meaning for Tipp, and that was why Tipp began to enjoy wearing violet. It wasn't just a symbol of status, but self-expression and freedom.

"You look so gorgeous in that new dress, your Ozness!"

"Thank you, it's a new one, a beautiful shade of violet!" A twirl and a smile.

"It is very befitting of you, your honor,"

"Yes, it most certainly is..."

AN: Once again, Oz seems to have a history with America's queer story, so here's another ode to that. And I know Tipp is technically MTF, but I wanted to dig a bit deeper than that.