At first glance, Anthy is a soulless doll that does whatever is required of her by the Victor of the Duels. She is mysteriously aloof, more content with her flowers and animals than with people, though she can be quite friendly under certain circumstances. She seems innocent-a pawn in the duel games, and she doesn't know she is being used or that she can escape if she chooses to do so. She is almost childishly innocent and unaware of everything. In other words, she is a princess who Utena can save and be a prince.

Of course there is more to Anthy under the passive exterior. She is quite manipulative and well aware of everything that is going on. Her thoughtless, almost careless gestures, which might seem innocent, are carefully and callously orchestrated by her and her brother to make people act in certain ways. In many ways, she is quite a heartless bitch, mostly out of necessity. Beneath her sweet façade is a disturbing truth-she enjoys what she is doing even though it causes her more suffering.

Anthy is a victim, not of her brother's manipulations, but of her desire to never feel pain.

When she sealed the "prince" away from the world, she accepted responsibility for the hatred the world threw at her in the form of the Swords of Hatred. Like most victims, she accepted that she deserved this punishment and resigned herself to eternal suffering, but she also made a way to defend herself. She divided herself into two parts, sealing her true self, the self that could be hurt, in a coffin to sleep for all eternity while whatever was left of her would remain to suffer. As long as that part of her was sealed away, she would accept whatever might come, except that which would hurt the most-freedom.

She played the fairytale game with Akio, hurting people whenever it was necessary and not caring about the damaged lives they left behind. She used and manipulated like an expert-and why not? Weren't these people more or less the same ones that caused her eternal torment? Weren't these the same people who wanted to be in a fairytale world without the responsibility of reality and truth? Even those who claimed they wanted to save her, were only going to use her to maintain their fairytale fantasies. She loved Akio, she slept with him, and did his bidding. That was good enough.

Were all the duels and all the deals made to create them an attempt by Akio to save Anthy? First of all, he was unwilling to accept the swords in her stead. Second of all, once he had the prince sword, he didn't try very hard to open the door. He appears content to go on as he is and let Anthy be as she is, all the while playing this game with people, making promises he never plans to fulfill. If they are both happy here, why does Anthy eventually leave?

Happiness can be a relative term. A drug addict is happy when he takes a hit, even if it will only last a little while and perhaps kill him. In Anthy's case, her happiness is the absence of pain, since she has sealed her true self away. She will accept any torture as long as she doesn't really have to feel it. By using and manipulating people, she ensures that no one will be able to rescue her, even if that is the implied purpose of the duels. She wants to stay in the coffin, but if she does, she can never grow up or change in any way. Utena's attempt to rescue her makes her want to leave and no longer be a player in the game.

She stopped being her own victim and now she will have to feel pain, but pain is part of growing up. She will also be able to feel everything else as well-including happiness. The swords of hatred are no longer her responsibility, nor is her brother's game her own. She will grow up, while he will remain an adult playing a child's game.

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