Holo ..... Holo ....
Holo, Holo, Holo, Holo, Holo, Holo, Holo, Holo, Holo, Holo, Holo.
Holo!!!!!
Holo from Spice and Wolf (Ookami to Koushinryou) ....
........
Holo!!
She is the best anime/manga character there is, full stop. Season 3 of the anime already please!!! >.<
In all seriousness, Holo makes me all fangirl. She's aloof, clever, charming, seductive (and knows it) ... more than once casually wrapping men around her little finger in elabourate mind games that both psychologically and intellectually dominate her male merchant counterparts.
And unlike every other fucking female character in anime/manga who seem to think the whole 'silent, demure, and blushy-blushy cutesyness is how females should be' ... or even worse, the "revolutionary" 'gruff, 16, unabashed douchebaggette' ... she's an actualized female role doing a profession that females were typically (in which the anime and manga covers extensively during one story arc) warded away from. Heaven forbid if a woman earnt gold, rather than credit, so that they could freely spend their excess wealth.
Wonderful character that not only refuses to be cookie-cut into a role, but also discovers means to make the system work for her and best her competition without resorting to excessive violence or criminal activity.
So that is why Holo is my all-time favourite anime character ....
Yuuko from Holic is a close second.