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There's an interesting duality in that "moe anime" tend to either feature girls being either extremely charming and cheerful or going through hell.

Personally, I associate moe with charming, cheerful girls and a warm fuzzy feeling. However, when a girl with moe potential is distraught, it's usually deeply moving. It's an entirely separate feeling though.

I'm also not sure I'd call the feeling protective. I usually want to see the girl get hurt - not for sadistic reasons though, more like a masochism by proxy because of what it makes me feel. I suppose that others may have a different stance on that though.

P.S. I remember that on the occasions that I've discussed Matsuri Shihou - one of my favourite characters from a moe anime - with other fans, some of them seem to like her as a tragic character, which would of course probably involve the second feeling. Whereas for me, I strongly associate Matsuri with liveliness and charm regardless of what she goes through at times in the series.