Petra is a character in the video game Fire Emblem: Three Houses, belonging to the Black Eagles house under Edelgard von Hresvelg. She originates from the archipelago of Brigid as its princess. Years prior to the start of the game, an independent Brigid allied with Dagda to fight the empire of Adrestia. After Adrestria won the war, Brigid was reduced to a vassal state, and Petra was sent to be raised in Adrestria as a hostage, with her life as a guarantee of good behavior from her grandfather, the ruler of Brigid. Despite the awkward situation, Brigid learns the language of Fódlan well enough and can make genuine friendships with the other students at Garreg Mach. She also appears in the sequel, Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes.
In both Three Houses and Three Hopes, Petra's goals are generally the same: to gain allies and reclaim autonomy for Brigid, whether by befriending Edelgard (what she will do by default if not recruited) or via Byleth and their students. If she is recruited by Byleth to the player's team, she eventually becomes Queen of Brigid and regains its independence with Byleth's support.
Petra has been generally well received. Her status as a hostage is dramatically interesting, with Polygon writer Daniel Friedman noting the tension of the relationship between her and Edelgard due to this.[3]The Mary Sue writer Madeline Carpou commented that they "side-eye[d]" the Black Eagles for forgetting that she was a prisoner of war, feeling that the alienation of foreign cultures in games like Three Houses was too easily remedied. They praised the sequel, Three Hopes, for establishing a relationship between her and Dedue, another foreigner, allowing them to support each other in their progress.[4] Writers Rebecca Katherine Britt and PS Berge identify her as one of the few racially diverse characters in the game, noting that fan content often represented that fact.[5]RPGFan writer Kyle Kortvely considered Petra one of his favorite characters in the game, commenting that he intentionally played in English instead of Japanese because of her broken English in this version.[6]
Comic Book Resources writer Noelle Corbett considered her the best female character in Three Houses and one of the best Three Houses characters overall. She praised various elements of Petra's character, including her kindness, the importance of Brigid in her life, and her ability to overlook the association of certain friends to the people whom she hates. She also appreciated that she was a foreign character in the game's world, which she felt added depth to the game.[7]
Petra's relationship with Dorothea, nicknamed "Doropetra," has been a generally popular one, described by Rebecca Katherine Britt and PS Berge as being a moderately popular one. They noted that its popularity was derived in part from it being the only romantic paired ending that Petra has with a woman, and one of only a handful of romantic relationships between women in the game. They also discussed how fan content of their relationship is made more explicit than the canon moments between them.[5]Gayming Mag writer Aimee Hart discussed the relationship between Petra and Dorothea, finding it an underrated ship. She praised the ship due to Dorothea's goal of finding someone to take care of her when she loses her looks, and how romantic it is for Petra to sweep her off her feet as a princess. She also discussed their shared disdain for imperial nobility, namely Dorothea being abandoned for not having a Crest and Petra's mistreatment as a prisoner of war. She also appreciated that Petra did not shame Dorothea for wanting to find stability, praising the story for depicting Dorothea as Petra's most-loved person in their paired ending.[8][9]The Mary Sue writer Princess Weekes felt surprised that the ship between Petra and Dorothea was not more popular.[10]
References
^ abc"Petra". Behind the Voice Actors. Archived from the original on July 28, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
