The Southern Raiders

To be perfectly honest, Zuko and Katara snuck up on me. I didn’t expect to love them like I do and I didn’t expect to have such feelings about them even now like I do. I was going to post screencaps of their scenes in different episode but it was this one here that sealed my everlasting love for these two. “The Southern Raiders” produced such a beautiful and poignant display of how Zuko got Katara, how when she had to explain her feelings to Sokka and Aang, of why she had to seek her mother’s killer out, she didn’t have to have explain a thing to him. He understood it and was ready to help her in whatever she needed. Their teamwork when getting on that ship (and those matching clothes OH YE GODS MY NINJA BABIES) had me rejoicing. They complimented each other in their fighting styles and didn’t miss a beat. Katara let loose and it was only with Zuko that she was able to let loose and come to the decision of sparing that man’s life, because what she needed was someone who would let her vent in her way, to respect her choices no matter what it was. I loved that Katara delved in such a personal and raw time in her life with Zuko, it showed the trust that she had in him and it showed the turning point from hatred and anger to forgiveness and friendship. I loved that Zuko showed such concern for Katara, wanting to have her rest and knowing she was exhausted, and this was when her back was turned. I loved that Zuko seemed to be in such awe of Katara and her abilities. I loved that Katara finally forgave Zuko and reached a new level in their already layered relationship. That hug melted my heart because it signified so much, so much that has happened, so much that has changed and so much more to come with them.

This is one of the ships that I will never understand why it didn’t happen. Zuko and Katara had it ALL. Trust, friendship, sacrifice, understanding, loyalty, concern, devotion, connection, EVERYTHING that makes a relationship work. They went from hatred to understanding to hatred again to forgiveness to almost dying for each other. Their relationship was complex but it was beautiful and it was progressive since season one. I fully expected them to become canon in the end and I will be forever disappointed that it didn’t. However, it won’t stop me from loving these two and appreciating what I got with them. They will always be one of my top OTP’s of all time.

The Unburnt, they called her, and Mother of Dragons. Her word was their law.

chapter 4-5

Can we just talk about how not even death can stop these two from helping and protecting each other? In Ichigo’s case, he made it clear: That the only way Orihime will get hurt or killed is if he is lifeless on the floor. So much resolve to protect someone that is not seen with others, even when he was first starting out. And what makes this more profound is that he wasn’t close with Orhime at this point. A friend of a friend, the brown-haired girl. How many times have we seen this resolve and this determination with Ichigo—>Orihime in later chapters? Chapter 282 and 283? Chapter 451? Chapter 350, ESPECIALLY CHAPTER 350? He will not stop, he will not quit, he cannot function until the girl he calls his nakama is alright. In thought, in action, in feelings, she must be okay or he won’t be.

Orihime’s scene in chapter 5 speaks to the devotion that she has for Ichigo and this is when her feelings were just starting out. She was DEAD. D-E-A-D on the floor. Her soul was what was in Acidwire’s hand and you know what? Even her soul couldn’t let Ichigo get or stay hurt. She was literally fighting tooth and nail out of Acidwire’s grip and didn’t give a damn what happened to her. 

This is what I mean when I say that IchixHime put each other first and have done so time and time and time again. Their sole focus is at times to make sure the other is okay or they won’t be,  they can’t be. It’s ridiculous (and in such a good way) how attuned these two are to each other’s emotions and I personally cannot get enough of this aspect in their relationship. I adore these two and I always, ALWAYS WILL.

#THE MUSIC IN THIS SCENE #OMG

art by PR, edited by me

“I just locked myself away and formed a little diary and experimented with voices… I ended up making him within the realm of a psychopath kind of like zero empathy or very little to no conscience towards his acts which is fun because there’s no real limits on their boundaries to what he would say or how he would say something or what he would do… it’s always a very personal process in terms of how you land in your characters shoes, so to speak, it’s a combination of reading all the comic books I could and the script, and then just really closing my eyes and meditating on it. Chris and I very much see eye to eye on how the character should be played, and that was evident from the first kind of meeting we had on the project. We both had identical images in our minds and so I went away, found it, came back.”

-Heath Ledger