#also I am noting that yet again emily axford is getting more hate than anyone else at the table for this

[epitome-of-an-openbook]

Fig was also being groomed by Porter - and not just groomed to help him, groomed to be a sacrifice and die. She is allowed to be mad about it.

And should that anger be turned at Porter? Probably, but she has spent a not insignificant amount of time trying to sus out how guilty various Rat Grinders feel about having caused Lucy Frostblade's death. Fig, whose relationship with her friends is more important to her than anything in the world, and couldn't imagine being the cause of one of her friend's death let alone making it impossible for them to cross over to the otherside peacefully or denying them a final resting place that would give closure to their family, spent much of her time trying to understand why the Rat Grinders would abandon their friend without even the respect of last rites.

Also Fig gave Ruben chance after chance after chance to do the right thing (and not just in this episode, but all season long) And on one side we understand Ruben's point of "You killed my friends, I had to psychic scream" but on the other hand Fig's friends are also dying and she is seeing all this work she's put in to try and get Ruben to switch sides and god how many spell slots has she used on this boy that could have been heals for her friends or attacks against Porter? And where was this energy for Lucy, left to rot in the forest, no way to cross over, too late to be revivified, where was her Psychic Scream?

In this moment, in Fig's mind there is undoubtedly a loop of "How much of my energy throughout this past year would have had more successful results if I had put it into my relationships or studies or music? How much help did I deny my friends by wasting my time on this guy?"

What she yells at him is mean and DEEPLY DEEPLY hurtful, but her friends are ALSO dying, she was ALSO groomed to be Porter's tool - why wouldn't she be mad? Why wouldn't she be angry?

Her words were particularly harsh, and turned to the wrong target, and Ruben Hopclap didn't deserve to go to hell (which in terms of hell's he could be trapped in - polka music untangling chords hell, not that bad). But crucifying Emily for playing Fig the way she did isn't the move, because she played her in a way that made sense for both the character and the stakes of the battle.