#catherine fe

Eight of Cups represents disappointment, emotional setbacks, betrayal, and injury. It is also a card of paradoxes. In the sky the sun and the moon stand side-by-side, suggesting that our conscious mind and subconscious mind are both wrestling for control over decisions and narratives. Additionally, there are an extraordinary amount of cups, all stacked together. But all of them stand empty, and their arrangement highlights the lack of cups as opposed to their abundance. 

The Eight of Cups can represent misplaced trust and how unguarded vulnerability can lead to drastic consequences if others are cruel. It can also represent a disappointment of expectations, and the importance of walking away from something that is just not fulfilling you. 

I choose Shamir Nevrand choosing to remain in Fòdlan as the connection to this card. She had lost her long-time partner and was forced to work in a strange land for nobles who did not care for her. All of these circumstances underline a lack in her life, despite her various skills and accolades as a sniper and warrior. Shamir herself is also guarded against emotional connections after the losses in her life. 

However, on most routes, she finds emotional fulfilment and connections at Garreg Mach, showing that her walking away from her position as a warrior of Dagda paid off. On the other hand, if recruited on Crimson Flower, Shamir becomes the betrayer and empties her own cups, walking away and destroying all that she cared about. 

Either way, Shamir shows the difficulties and the rewards that can come about from walking away from the known into the unknown.

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