#and the tenacity that human beings possess even when faced with circumstances so beyond the scope of anything you could imagine

[lvllns]

every time i see someone say that the darkness outside is a romance set in space i’m like. not.......really.

[ottovonruthie]

RWM: The Wolf Den

I got up to chapter 23! This is what I think about the characters so far.

Amara's tenacity and her drive to improve her situation illustrate the human spirit's resilience. She's like a strategist, always seeking ways to change her fate, even when the others don’t have the same drive as her. Her past as a freedwoman adds depth to her motivation. Having tasted freedom, she knows what she's fighting for – a return to a life of her own choosing. This memory serves as a powerful catalyst for her actions.

Dido's repulsion of men after her traumatic experiences shows the deep impact that past events can have on our relationships and perceptions. Her repulsion is a deeply human response to the traumatic experiences she endured, the forced prostitution and exploitation. These experiences have left scars that extend beyond physical wounds, affecting her emotional and psychological well-being. Her instinctual avoidance of men highlights the profound loss of trust that can result from such trauma, as well as the emotional walls she's built to shield herself from further harm, especially with her relationship with Niccandrus.

Cresa, her story is the saddest to me. Forced prostitution and then losing child while still choosing to be kind. You can tell every scene that she’s in that the loss of her child is a wound that cuts deep into Cresa's core. The pain of separation and the absence of her maternal bond leave her in a state of profound grief and emptiness. She seems so detached from the world around. The profound grief she feels speaks to the complex emotional landscape that accompanies the loss of a loved one or an irreplaceable bond. 

Victoria's situation is particularly heartrending because she appears to be isolated, lacking the kind of close relationships that others around her seem to possess. The presence of companionship and emotional connections that characters like Amara, Dido, and the others have further emphasizes Victoria's sense of isolation. Amara and Dido have their music and Menander and Niccandrus respectively, Beronice have Gallus foolishly, Fabia have her son, Paris, Cresa still have the memories of her lost son, while Victoria doesn’t seem to have anyone. This isolation is a poignant reminder of how our relationships and connections can shape our identity and well-being. I think Victoria thinks she has Felix, in which she don’t. Her interactions with Felix, while seemingly providing her with some form of companionship, underscore her sense of being trapped and devalued. In a way, she's caught in a cycle where her interactions with him perpetuate a perception of herself as having little value beyond her role as a sexual object.  Victoria's perspective on sex as a form of esteem highlights her search for validation. In her circumstances, where other forms of connection and recognition are lacking, she may perceive her interactions with Felix as a source of validation and affirmation, even though it's a distorted view.

Fabia's encapsulates the harsh realities of societal expectations, the transient nature of beauty, and the challenges that individuals face when their perceived value is tied to external factors. Her journey from a life of slavery to her losing her worth as she ages is an exploration of the vulnerability that comes with such circumstances. Fabia lost her value as she became older, which is the heartbreaking representation of the societal emphasis on appearance and youth, particularly for women. The notion that one's worth diminishes with age is a pervasive theme that resonates beyond the book's setting. It sheds light on the challenges individuals encounter when their identities are tied primarily to their physical attributes rather than their intrinsic qualities or accomplishments. Fabia's journey also invites us to consider the limited opportunities and options available to individuals trapped in low-ranked positions. More importantly, the empathy that the other women in the story feel for Fabia's plight makes sense, because they know this too is the future that is awaiting them.

Beronice, young and dumb.Her ability to maintain a sense of hope and romance despite her circumstances is a testament to the power of the human spirit. It's a reminder that even in difficult situations, the people still seek connection and the potential for happiness. More importantly, the abusive nature of this relationship also gets swiped under the rug. 

All of these women are such good examples of how trauma plays on someone.

[youngrevolutionary]

Hey you awesome person you! I was wondering if you wouldn't mind the random question? Tell me, all the reasons that make you love Seifer? I am asking just out of curiosity, cause I have always wanted to hear someones opinion of him besides just 'hes cool' and you of course love him so much so would you mind? I know it's hard to sum it up, but only if you want to of course c: ♥

This is the hardest question in the world for me to answer about Seifer because there is so much that I honestly cannot condense into a single answered ask.

But sure, let’s have a go of it! —

(Sidenote: If you haven’t read this fantastic article, I strongly suggest at least skimming over it because when I first discovered it, I had this realization that my crazy ideas for Seifer were validated because other people saw him this way too. There’s a reason why my his URL used to be misplacedxheroics, and this is it.)

So let’s talk about Seifer Almasy. Such a complex and beautiful character, and as biased as this will sound, he’s the only character that had so many different facets. You can look at him and see a villain, a tragic dreamer whose heroics were sorely misplaced, treasonous war criminal, the politically driven young revolutionary, a manipulated boy pretending to go to war, a sociopath, a romantic, Squall’s opposite/opposition/defender/friend/brother –

He’s portrayed to be so unlikable in Canon, but you can’t NOT love him because of the way that he’s so passionate, so driven and powered by his individualistic ambition.

We have more insight into who he was and the reasons behind his choices than anyone else in the game, even more so than the protagonist of the story – Squall.

Never mind what fandom insists. Seifer wasn’t a bully; he wasn’t some mindless, one-dimensional villain. They gave him more than just one character trait, they gave him depth and facets and insight into a character that was in our grasp– and he slipped away from us before we had a chance to save him.

He’s an individual. With a complex personality. He exists in a savage world that people so adamantly defend and stand on the sides of good or evil. Seifer is the character who independently chose his own side. Even in Garden, Seifer wasn’t necessarily on the side of Garden or it’s mission and when he sided with the Sorceress, Seifer had his own personal dream that he so desperately wanted to fulfill.

Despite his tenacity and his persistence to follow his own path rather than ‘think and act like machines,’ as Cid was so abhorrently against, he was called problematic, he was called ‘beyond troubled.’ He was written off by his Instructors, the administration, and peers as a hopeless failure.

For why? For having a dream? For being cultured? For possessing the insight to a greater world than being a mercenary?

There’s so much that I could discuss, dive so deep into his character and go through every single event in the game to further drive my point home but this would be a literal novel.

Despite fanon, Seifer is not the villain —Seifer Almasy is a victim of circumstance. He’s a victim of a destiny solidified by the very person he calls his rival. He’s repeatedly abused, manipulated and mistreated by his superiors and peers and literally NO ONE speaks out.

The adults in his life (Seifer is 18, canonically.) treat his ambitions like a plaything. They berate and punish him, and when he finally breaks, they send his peers to fight him instead of trying to bring him back from his path of self-destruction.

If there’s any character in FFVIII that has any redemption for the way Seifer was treated, it would be Squall. He is the ONLY character in the entirety of that game that gave a damn about Seifer. Seifer tries so, so hard to get Seifer back on their side. He talks to him, not at him. I have heaps of respect for Squall because of this – he’s the only person who treated Seifer like a human being, but he was too far gone.

And don’t get me started on that downward spiral into madness…

Seifer fights so hard to do everything in his power to save face. He fights, grits his teeth and presses on, despite his role as the Sorceress’ Knight, despite knowing he’s in too deep and is being controlled, manipulated, abused, indoctrinated and sees no way out.

He’s eighteen; he’s only a boy. He’s scared to death, but despite everything, he’s still fighting. He’s never going to stop, defiant to the bitter end but like hell if he would ever let any of the people in your party see that.

Oh, and he killed Odin. So yeah, he’s pretty much fucking cool.