Eiko Carol

Character
Name:	Eiko Carol
Occupation:	N/A
Relationships:	Dagger (friend/'rival'), Steiner (friend), Zidane (friend/love interest), Freya (friend), Vivi (friend), Quina (friend), Amarant (friend), Blank (acquaintance), Marcus (acquaintance), Cinna (acquaintance), Baku (acquaintance), Zorn and Thorn (enemies), Beatrix (acquaintance), unnamed grandfather, Kuja (enemy), Mog (moogle), the moogles
Fandom:	Final Fantasy
Other:
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Eiko is a main character in the Square Enix video game Final Fantasy IX.

Canon

Labelled as 'boisterous' by the official guidebook, 'adorable' by some, and 'annoying' by many, six year old Eiko boasts the title of being the youngest ever main character in Final Fantasy.

As the sole survivor of her race following the recent death of her grandfather, Eiko survives with the help of her moogle friends. While she is highly intelligent for her age, often acting far more mature than her tiny stature would suggest. However, her personality doesn't let fans forget that she is just a six year old.

Eiko was caught stealing food from the dwarves in Conde Petie, and met an ironic fate snagged on a bush. This allowed Zidane and his party to catch up with her effortlessly, where Quina promptly left in pursuit of Eiko's pet moogle, Mog, claiming she looked tasty.

Eiko understandably panicked at the thought, slipped free from the branch that had her snagged, and fell straight into Zidane's arms. This sparked a surge of six year old naivety, where Eiko fell 'in love' with Zidane, and wanted to do everything she could to get between him and Dagger, having sensed the closeness between them.

Eiko's character changed little throughout the storyline. She was arguably closest with Vivi, likely due to them being of a similar age, while she developed a fairly strong dissent towards Dagger, even going so far as to call her a 'rival' for Zidane's affections. She does eventually grow closer to Dagger however, giving up on her attempts to steal Zidane away from her, and even goading the potential relationship at times.

Eiko's most pivotal moment was at Mount Gulug, where her closest moogle friend, Mog, achieved Trance in a desperate effort to protect her from Zorn and Thorn. Eiko discovered that Mog was actually the Eidolon Madeen, taking the guise of a moogle in order to watch over her. Mog's transformation left behind a single souvenir; the ribbon that Eiko had given Mog for her birthday.

Fandom

Shipping

Eiko's very young age makes her almost impossible to canonically ship, short of extreme paedophilia.

When Eiko is successfully shipped, it's usually several years post game, where she's grown older. Eiko is most commonly shipped with Vivi, due to their similar ages.

Links & Resources

• Eiko Carol tag at Archive of Our Own