History Main / TearsOfRemorse

* In the ''XY'' arc of ''Manga/PokemonAdventures'', [[spoiler:Shauna does this after it appears that she may have killed Viola, while brokenly asking if she really did this. While she was possessed and brainwashed at that moment, this shows that she's not under complete control.]]

[[folder: Art]]

* In the final issue of the original ''ComicBook/HarleyQuinn'' comic, [[spoiler:Harley encounters the little girl she promised to save from going blind, only to do so anyway when offered the reward]]. We see a close up of her (Harley's) eyes, and she is very clearly trying to hold back her tears.

* In ''Fanfic/{{Heirverse}}'', [[spoiler:Aizen cries alone when he smashes the chessboard in Ch.5 of cwst and though he doesn't actually cry after Jac attempts to rape Gin in ''I love'', it's heavily implied that he's holding back because he doesn't want to look weak in front of Gin]].

* Navarone does this in ''FanFic/DiariesOfAMadman'' after making his first sapient kills. Celestia also later breaks down in tears when she sees what Navarone has become, partly due to her actions.

* ''Fanfic/ScarTissue'': Asuka often cried when she remembered how she had treated Shinji [[AfterTheEnd for several months]] after [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the Third Impact.]]
* ''FanFic/AProtectorsPride''. Yuzu is depressed and tearful in the epilogue over having enjoyed seeing [[spoiler:Hell]] suffer and having wanted to see more of it until Ichigo talks it over with her.
* ''Fanfic/ChildrenOfAnElderGod'': After [[spoiler:an EldritchAbomination possesses Rei and uses her body to hurt Asuka physically and emotionally,]] Rei cries, blaming herself for Asuka's pain since she was unable to stop that cosmic horror.
* In ''Fanfic/TheKeysStandAlone: The Soft World'', Ringo sheds a huge number of these after he throws John over the side of the mesa, which snaps him out of the mind control he'd been put under.

* In ''Fanfic/KaraOfRokyn'', Val Colby cries after being forced to kill his uncle ComicBook/LexLuthor to save a lot of people, including Franchise/{{Superman}}.
-->He began to cry. "I didn't wanna kill him."\\
"I know," she said. "I don't think you had any choice. You did the best thing you could, given the circumstances. Does it make you feel bad?"\\
He nodded, the tears running down his face.
* ''Fanfic/TheBoltChronicles'': When Bolt finally realizes that he has wrongly mistreated Mittens because of his re-awakened latent prejudice against cats in "The Blood Brother," he tearfully apologizes to her. Mittens [[{{Forgiveness}} forgives him]].
* ''Fanfic/Ben10Unlimited'':
** Verdona sheds these when she apologizes to Ben for neglecting him when she was grieving for the rest of her family, feeling that she otherwise would have lost Ben forever.
** Seeing Conner risk his life against [[spoiler: the released and vengeful Galatea]] leads Kara to regret how badly she treated him, and she sheds these as she apologizes to him.
* ''Fanfic/EverydayLifeWithUltimateGirls'':
** [[spoiler: Sayaka gets this after Makoto's speech, because she doesn't think she's a good person after doing the bad deeds necessary to become an idol herself.]]
** [[spoiler: Mahiru sheds these when she realizes her father was never lazy, but couldn't get work due to his anxiety disorder, regretting how she had belittled him as a deadbeat.]]
** [[spoiler: Hiyoko sheds these when she realizes that those she had turned her back on still came to rescue her during her near rape. She cries over how she made Mahiru smash her camera and how she had mistreated Mikan throughout their time in school]].
* In ''Fanfic/LostLatte'' Sora cries after yelling at Mashiro.

-->'''Roo:''' ''*sobbing*'' ItsAllMyFault! He never would've left if it wasn't 'cause of me. [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone I didn't mean to make him feel bad.]] I just...I just wanted him to be my big brother...

* In ''Literature/DragonBones'', Ward cries tears of remorse after [[spoiler:killing Oreg, on Oreg's request]]. He's inconsolable, even though he did do it on purpose and it was the right thing to do. He still killed an innocent sentient being, and that's against his nature.
* In Creator/GrahamMcNeill's ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' Literature/HorusHeresy novel ''False Gods'', when Horus mortally wounds Temba, Temba recovers from the Chaos taint, realizes the scale of his betrayal, and sobs.
** In Creator/BenCounter's ''Galaxy in Flames'', after [[spoiler:Aximand]] kills [[spoiler:Torgaddon]], he sobs, [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone asks what they did]], and speaks of how they had been their brothers. [[spoiler:Abaddon]] (who merely thinks WasItReallyWorthIt) thinks he needs to be watched.
* In Creator/JamesSwallow's ''[[Literature/BloodAngels Deus Sanguinius]]'', [[spoiler:Sachiel]], realizing the Chaos taint, weeps partly from remorse -- partly because Stele had made a fool of him. [[spoiler:Arkio ''wails'' MyGodWhatHaveIDone, but is not clearly crying when he is freed from taint.]]
* Ian in ''An Echo in the Bone'' (''Literature/{{Outlander}}'' series) after he [[spoiler:kills Mrs. Bugg accidentally]].
* In Creator/GrahamMcNeill's Literature/{{Ultramarines}} novel ''Dead Sky, Black Sun'', after Uriel has learned that Pasanius's augemtic arm was tainted, and he knew it, he finally has a chance to confront Pasanius over it. Pasanius sobs as he says how could he have told Uriel that he was tainted, unclean.
** In ''The Killing Ground'', [[spoiler:the gravely wounded Lord of the Unfleshed weeps with horror at the killing he and the other Unfleshed did while their minds were controlled; Uriel comforts him before the MercyKill]].
* In Creator/LFrankBaum's ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz'', the Tin Woodman [[TenderTears cries]] because he stepped on a beetle and killed it. He ends up rusting from all the tears and Dorothy has to oil his joints so he can move again.
* Creator/WilliamShakespeare's Sonnet 34
-->''The offender's sorrow lends but weak relief\\
To him that bears the strong offence's cross.\\
Ah! but those tears are pearl which thy love sheds,\\
And they are rich and ransom all ill deeds.''

* In the first few cantos of the second part of ''Literature/TheDivineComedy'', the ''Purgatorio'', a soldier mentioned had been a brutal, bloody bastard his whole life, but when struck down in battle, he cried a SingleTear of repentance, which is enough to send him to Purgatory instead of Hell.

* In Creator/BarbaraHambly's ''[[Literature/ThoseWhoHuntTheNight Blood Maidens]]'', Lydia remembers how a companion died, feels guilt, and tears start to her eyes.

* In ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', [[spoiler: [[BloodKnight The Hound]]]] literally ''[[ManlyTears sobs]]'' when he recounts not interfering when the Kingsguard beat [[spoiler:Sansa]], threatening her with a knife and trying to rape her to her younger sister. However, it's also implied that he [[spoiler:might regret not having raped her]], although he may have just said that to piss off the sister.

* In ''Literature/GalaxyOfFear: Spore'', ActualPacifist Fandomar weeps openly as she [[spoiler:tries to contain TheVirus]]. She hasn't killed anyone, but even when people are in spacesuits, throwing them out of airlocks isn't something she's happy about.
* In Creator/JohnMilton's ''Literature/ParadiseLost'', Eve cries after her dream, not so much from remorse as having feared wrongdoing.
-->''the gracious signs of sweet remorse\\
And pious awe, that feard to have offended.''
* Creator/JaneAusten
** In ''Literature/NorthangerAbbey'', after being rebuked by Henry Tilney, Catherine flees to her room and cries, feeling mortified by her mad imagination.
** In ''Literature/SenseAndSensibility'', Marianne realizes how poorly she treated her sister, Elinor, and cries... whereupon ''Elinor'' has to comfort her. Elinor is the one with the sense, Marianne the one with the sensibility/sensitivity.
* In Creator/StephanieBurgis's ''[[Literature/KatIncorrigible A Most Improper Magick]]'', in the BackStory, their dead mother had ruined their father's prospects by using magic before the squire. She had cried for a week after.
* In ''Literature/{{Divergent}}'', [[spoiler:after Al almost kills Tris, she next sees him bawling his eyes out with regret]].
* In ''Literature/TheLionTheWitchAndTheWardrobe'', Mr. Tumnus cries uncontrollably when he confesses that he works for the White Witch and planned to hand Lucy over to her. Lucy lends him her handkerchief, which he keeps as a memento, and which Mr. Beaver later acquires from him and shows to the Pevensies as proof that they can trust him.
* ''Literature/{{Edgedancer}}'' (a novella of ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive''): [[spoiler:Nale]] breaks into tears upon his HeelRealization.
* ''Literature/LittleWomen'': After Jo causes Amy to fall through thin ice and almost drown, she cries tears of remorse while telling their mother about it.
* Daylen in ''Literature/ShadowOfTheConqueror'' is ProneToTears, and they're usually (but not always) out of remorse, as he's an [[TheAtoner Atoner]] with a LongList of crimes in his past.
* Used to powerful effect in ''Literature/LesMiserables'': Hardened ex-convict Jean Valjean has never shed a tear since he was imprisoned nineteen years ago. But in the midst of his inner conflict after the Bishop of Digne shows him mercy when he least deserves it, he instinctively and half-consciously robs a little boy of a forty-sous coin. When he finally comes out of his mental fog and [[HeelRealization realizes what he's done]], he tries desperately to find the boy and give him back his money, and after failing to do so, he collapses and sobs for hours in remorse. This marks the beginning of his [[HeelFaceTurn transformation]] into a virtuous hero.

* Shed by ComicBook/CarolDanvers in ''Fanfic/APrizeForThreeEmpires'' when she finds out she unknowingly killed her friend Raza’s brother during a battle.

* In the ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' episode "Phantom", [[spoiler:Chloe cries over Lois' body when she arrives too late after she is stabbed. Then it turns out that [[SwissArmyTears her tears have healing properties]], and Lois is completely healed [[EquivalentExchange at the cost of Chloe's own life]]]].

* A huge TearJerker in ''Stiletto''. [[spoiler:When Chloe is attacked by a gangstar, Doomsday kills him. To protect Davis, she dumps the body; when she sees that TheseHandsHaveKilled, she falls to her knees, shaking, and starts to cry.]] Crosses with MyGodWhatHaveIDone and possibly TearsOfFear.

* Creator/JohnWoo's ''Film/TheKiller'' has more than one scene of Chow Yun-Fat's HitmanWithAHeart shedding ManlyTears.

* In ''Film/TheCryOfTheChildren'', the mill owner's wife breaks down sobbing after the little girl she refused to adopt later dies of overwork at the mill.

* The titular character in ''[[Film/{{Emma2020}} Emma (2020)]]'' is shown crying several times after humiliating Miss Bates at the Box Hill picnic. In this case, it's not just the one incident that she's remorseful over - her thoughtless insult, combined with Mr. Knightley's [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech reaction]], made her realize that her behavior toward Miss Bates has always been terrible, while Miss Bates has been nothing but kind toward her.
* Creator/JohnWoo's ''Film/TheKiller'' has more than one scene of Chow Yun-Fat's HitmanWithAHeart shedding ManlyTears.

* The newly-forged Darth Vader in ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'', after killing a roomful of untrained "younglings" in the Jedi Temple and then a roomful of surrendering [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness Trade Federation leaders]] and their bodyguards.
* In a daydream sequence from ''Film/AChristmasStory'', Ralphie's parents shed these after they find out that the cause of Ralphie's blindness was from a bar of soap used to wash out his mouth when he said the "[[PrecisionFStrike F-dash-dash-dash word.]]"
* ''Film/XMenOriginsWolverine'' has [[spoiler:Kayla]] shedding a single tear when Wolverine muses the folktale that he is just a [[UnwittingPawn fool who got played]] due to the fact that [[spoiler:she is blackmailed into working for Stryker]].
* ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'':
** In ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'', [[BigBad Thanos]] sheds these when he learns that in order to get the Soul Stone, [[spoiler:he has to sacrifice the person he loves most]]. In spite of [[spoiler:Gamora's]] belief, [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes Thanos really does love her]], and it almost breaks him when he knows [[KillTheOnesYouLove what he must do to complete his goal]].
* In ''Film/OzTheGreatAndPowerful'', Finley suggests confessing all rather than facing the wicked witch. Tears might help — he suggests an onion.
* At one point in ''Film/TheHiddenFortress'', Princess Yuki runs away and stands on a mountaintop crying her eyes out for her friend's HeroicSacrifice, since she's too proud to let anybody see her vulnerable side.
* ''Film/AmazingGrace'' has a variation; a former slaver has been haunted by the atrocities he oversaw for decades, and finally writes his confessions during the film. He cries as he describes his crimes, but since he says he ''couldn't'' weep until he stopped hiding and running, the tears are seen as a cleansing force.

* In ''Film/MidwinterNightsDream'', Lazar cries when he goes to visit the mother of his best friend, whom he killed in a drunken bar fight.

[[folder:Video Games]]
* 'VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'': [[spoiler:[[ParentalSubstitute Master Eraqus]]]] and [[spoiler:[[LikeASonToMe Terra]]]] both have this, in that order, due to a very important piece of plot. Also comes packaged with various flavors of {{Heel Realization}}s and a side order of MyGodWhatHaveIDone.
* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'': At the end of the game, Snake stands before the grave of his mentor The Boss, with his newly awarded title of Big Boss marking him as her successor. As he reflects on the conspiracy that forced him to have to kill her, Big Boss does all that he can do given the top-secret nature of what really happened and salutes the grave of his mentor. As this happens, a single tear of remorse flows from his eye as the gravity of what he had done and what he has lost weighs down on him. This marks the StartOfDarkness for Big Boss's character; nothing would ever be the same after this.
* Shizumaru Hisame from ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown'' [[ApologeticAttacker bows down and apologizes]] whenever he defeats an opponent. However, if he uses his [[FinishingMove Zetsumei Ougi]] to kill the opponent, he breaks down crying instead.
[[/folder]]

* If you look closely, you can see that in ''WesternAnimation/IceAge'', Diego has tears in his eyes when he realizes that Manny forgives the humans for killing his wife and child and that he nonetheless is willing to helping the humans to get their baby back, while Diego himself is about to lead Manny, Sid, and the baby into an ambush set by his clan.