flower OF THE qliphoth : a TEAR grants fansite

Taken name: Tear Grants
Given name: Mystearica Aura Fende

Superficially, "Mystearica" can be broken down into two English words: "mystery" and "tear". Both base words tie in to Tear's character significantly.

At first, Tear is a mystery to Luke, or at least contradictory. First having barged into his home and attempting to assasinate Master Van, and then, after ricochetting them both into far away lands, appearing calm, collected, and not out to murder anyone...Luke doesn't know what to make of her. Even as they travel together, she's decidedly mysterious about her life, only telling what she needs to. Ironically, of all of the characters, the most secretive one becomes the most trustworthy: while outgoing Anise and extroverted Guy are discovered to have (or have had) traitorous intentions, Tear remains true in spite of her enigmatic nature.

"Mystery" also reflects Tear's general disposition. Not only cryptic about anything concerning herself, she hides her true feelings from those around her. Raised as a soldier, she prefers to be seen as strong, and represses any emotion she feels would prove her as being otherwise. As time goes by, Luke begins to see past the barrier, and her mysterious nature, at least for him, is somewhat diminished.

The more pivotal of the two words in my view is "tear". A tear is a symbol of crying, which represents a wide range of emotions, from being upset to anger to happiness. Ironically, the name "Tear" is given to an emotionally-detached character. Throughout the game, Tear faces many hardships and at times seems on the verge of tears, but always witholds them, even when her comrades tell her it's alright to cry. At only one point in the story does Tear visibly cry: when Luke returns from certain death after destroying Eldrant and releasing Lorelei, in order to keep his promise. This event is so significant and powerful, for most of the shot we only see an up close view of Tear's face, eyes hidden behind her hair, the majority of her feelings expressed through the tear.

Personally, I was gripped by this scene. Despite everything that had happened to Tear - the loss of Hod and her parents, her brother becoming twisted and forcing her to fight him to the death, the miasma infection that could have killed her - what finally brings her to tears is Luke's return from death. Perhaps she was brought to tears because one of her wishes came true, and deep down she didn't expect it to. In any case, her tears realised her transformation: she overcame her suppression of her emotions, the one thing inhibiting her from connecting with others.

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