Cloud & Aerith : Timeless

Cloud & Aerith : Timeless

Barrer & Tifa : Longing

Finding someone who thinks you’re interesting enough to talk to you every day, whether they’re a friend or a lover, is one of the best feelings ever.

some people don't get that mai touching zuko's scar in such a casual, intimate way is so important because she's also seen numerous times touching his face without his scar in the scene. why? the framing of zuko's scar is most often to associate him with ozai and the hurt the fire nation has caused him. by depicting his interactions with mai often without his scar as the focus of the image or even in the frame at all, it emphasizes how zuko doesn't connect mai with that anger and that pain. mai is the one good thing the fire nation has given zuko; mai is the one person zuko trusts and loves (besides iroh) from the fire nation. furthermore, mai casually touching zuko's scar at the beginning of book 3 as they exchange a tender kiss reinforces from the get-go that mai doesn't care about his scar. this is not to say that she doesn't recognize the source of his scar and what it means to zuko, but simply that she loved zuko before his banishment and she still loves him now, and likewise, zuko knows this and couldn't be more grateful for it. mai is the only one zuko allows to consistently embrace him, touch his face (framed with or without his scar), etc.

when song tries to touch zuko's scar, he stops her. it hurts too much. he isn't ready to bear that weakness. he isn't ready to admit that his father never cared for him, and that he's facing an impossible task. when katara touches his scar, it is juxtaposed with song in that katara offers a chance to heal him, to (superficially) remove his pain and his debt to his father. her touch comes at a moment of hurt, of shame, of confusion for zuko. he doesn't know who he is and or why he so desperately craves his father's approval, and that's made clear when he betrays katara's trust only moments later by joining azula. this juxtaposition is so so powerful, and it's one of my favorite parallels in the show.

but when mai touches his scar? the first time, on the ship, zuko is still lost, no doubt. and her attempt at humor falls a little flat, sure, but it's not as if she was unaware of zuko's situation, and she immediately reassures him afterwards - with her words, and with her touch. she's there. she reminds him there's no use worrying about what he can't change. and so, zuko leans in, both his scar into her hand and his lips into her kiss. amidst all of his hurt and confusion, mai is peace. mai is comfort. mai is happiness. as a result, in their following moments throughout all of book 3, zuko's scenes with mai often don't involve his scar. why? because zuko can express himself truthfully around her - the truth that he loves her, and the truth that he loves how she loves him despite his mistakes and despite the hurt he's caused. mai is the only part of the fire nation that never hurt him (and, painfully, she is one of two parts of the fire nation that he must hurt before he is redeemed); consequently, zuko is most open both physically and emotionally around her. thus, as the narrative concludes and zuko's redemption is complete, they embrace without his scar in the frame - because zuko is no longer bound by his pain, no longer trapped by his father.

(and maybe, around mai, he never had been.)

Final Fantasy VII Remake (2020)

More gigantic FFVIIr spoilers. Post-Dreamweaver.