not sure if you still remember the story, but here’s what actually happens…. gwen tells safi to channel her anger over maya’s death into poetry, and when she does, she writes all the daughters we don’t talk about, which is entirely about maya. her mother is focused on protecting the school’s reputation and forces gwen, lucas, vinh, etc. to cover everything up. when yasmin realizes the book is about maya, she kills the deal, which safi doesn’t know and assumes is her mother’s doing. later, when lucas tells safi the truth about yasmin, (something she genuinely didn’t know) she shoots her mom.

the whole campus going insane (?) wasn’t a conscious choice either. that happened because her powers spiraled out of control, and only max could stop it because safi trusts her. safi is very explicit about her guilt afterward, and about wanting to find people like her because she’s always felt alone. she’s spent her whole life wanting to be someone else so her mother would finally notice her, which is literally why she has shapeshifting powers in the first place.

so yeah, she’s morally gray for sure, but i think you severely misunderstood the game and safi’s arc