Why is Braith so annoying in Skyrim? I recently wrote an article about the most annoying characters in the game, and Braith was one of them. But there actually may be a reason for the child to be so antagonistic towards everyone. Let’s try and understand Braith and maybe we’ll be able to sympathize with her.
First of all, let’s talk about one of her more unfavorable traits, other than being disrespectful.
Bullying
You may have seen that often, Braith bullies Lars Battle-Born, who’s a shy and apparently mentally weak child. Braith threatens to punch him if he doesn’t give her any money. And she’s very disrespectful towards him, even more so than any other character.
- “Stupid Lars Battle-born. I fight him almost every day. But it’s not much of a fight, ’cause he don’t fight back.”
There aren’t many children in Skyrim who bully others like this. Often, when someone bullies or threatens others, it’s because they’re mentally stressed as well. A disrespectful personality and a frowning face are one of the many manifestations of one’s own agony.
But there is another reason why Braith bullies Lars. It’s because she actually loves him, and wants him to be confident and kiss her, as she says. We can hear this dialogue when Lars asks you to get Braith to stop bullying her. Bullying your crush is certainly not an effective way to win their love…
Amren and Saffir
Let’s also talk about Braith’s parents to uncover if her personality was caused because of problems within the family.
At a certain point in the game, you can hear Saffir and Amren arguing about the lost sword of Amren’s family. Saffir clearly declares that she will leave if Amren goes to find his sword. Maybe disagreements and arguments like this are common in the household. And that certainly is not a good environment to raise a child in.
The Father
Amren is a mercenary and a former soldier. He goes away at certain times to hunt bounties. And in one conversation between Amren and Braith, we can understand that the child wants to go with her father.
Braith: “Papa, the next time you go away, I want to come with you.”
Amren: “When I go away, I go to war. That’s no place for a little girl.”
Braith: “Every knight needs a squire. I could help you with your sword, things like that.”
Amren: “Nice try, blossom, but I’m not a knight, I’m a mercenary. The answer’s still no. Besides, your mother would miss you too much.”
Braith: “Yeah. Right.”
Notice how Braith says “Yeah. Right” in a disappointed sort of way. That may explain that her relationship with her mother is not very good. It’s also clear that the girl likes her father more than her mother. Let’s take a look at another conversation between the father and the daughter.
Braith: “Papa, I want to talk to you…”
Amren: “Hmm? What about?”
Braith: “Well, there’s this boy, and…”
Amren: “Listen, Braith… Why don’t you talk to your mother about this, okay? There’s a good girl.”
Apparently, Amren doesn’t like to discuss such subjects and redirects the kid to her mother. Does Amren not know that Braith’s relationship with Saffir is not very good? Or is he also somewhat neglectful of his daughter?
You will also get the notion that this boy Braith is talking about is probably Lars Battle-Born.
There’s one line of dialogue that confirms that Amren really does love his daughter. More so than her mother.
- “Sometimes I miss the soldier’s life, but when I hold my daughter in my arms, I know I’ve made the right choice.”
The Mother
Saffir is the mother of Braith, and as I said in the above section, she’s quite neglectful of her daughter and it’s obvious that their relationship isn’t the best. We discussed information about Braith’s question about a boy with her father above. Because Amren tells her to speak with her mother about that, she actually does. Let’s see what Saffir has to say.
Braith: “Mother?”
Saffir: “What?”
Braith: “I wanted to ask you something. It’s about a boy…”
Saffir: “Not now, Braith. Go… go ask your father.”
She simply disregards Braith’s question and tells her to speak with her father. We know that the child already did. Her family won’t support her, or at least listen to her, about her young love… It’s sad, really. Saffir is even somewhat annoyed by her daughter. This next conversation proves it even further.
Braith: “Mother? Can I talk to you?”
Saffir: “Not now, Braith.”
Braith: “But…”
Saffir: “Not now, Braith.”
Saffir is not a working woman. As a mother, she’s entitled to take care of her daughter. But as we can see, she is a very neglectful parent. Braith is very young and needs constant guidance. We do not know if she gets it from her father, but at least he’s nice to her. Saffir, on the other hand, is a disappointing parent.
When we speak with Saffir, she’s neglectful, just as with her daughter. But she sometimes tells things that prove that she’s indeed very neglectful of her daughter.
- “My daughter Braith says I read too much. “Play with me, mother!” Girls need to learn how to take care of themselves.”
Very irresponsible of her, wouldn’t you say? Braith is very young and not even in her teenage years. What does Saffir expect her to do, really?
Saffir is an avid bookworm. She reads and reads all throughout the day, and this is one of the reasons for her negligence. She also wants her daughter to read books, and says that she’d steer clear of fights if she was into reading. Just because Saffir likes reading, it doesn’t mean that Braith has to like reading. If Saffir is a responsible mother, she would accompany her daughter when reading. Maybe she could read to her, and teach Braith to be a reader. But as we discussed above, she’d prefer if her child would take care of herself.
The distant relationship with her parents may be why Braith is so antagonistic
It’s clear that Braith doesn’t get the attention a child needs. Her mother would much prefer to read than spend time or even talk with her daughter, and the father is a working man who’s negligent (not deliberately) of his daughter to a certain extent. The trouble within the household is a perfectly valid reason for a child to be antagonistic, violent, and disrespectful. This is the case with Braith. She cannot be blamed for being annoying. So the next time she insults you, don’t judge her. The child is in pain.
What do you think? Why is Braith so annoying in Skyrim? Let us know!
