Flyingpancakes sent me an ask about the possibility of Yhwach possessing Ichigo and forcing him to fight against Rukia, and while I don't think this is really a possible outcome where's the fun in being a shipper if you don't get to crush one half of your OTP in terrible, agonizing, soul-crushing ways really
Hello, Farewell
by hashtagartistlife
Not again.
Rukia looks him in the eyes filled with self-hatred, dodges the sword that comes swiping at her with deadly precision, and dances out of his reach in a light, fluid motion that does not reflect the state of her heart:
leaden. Filled with dread. On the verge of panic–
but she can't, not here, not now, not when Ichigo is like this. At least one of them has to keep a clear head, at least one of them had to think of a way out of this situation–
Another sweep of Zangetsu, lightning-fast, and blood spurts from the smooth skin of her cheek; his eyes widen a fraction in horror but his limbs do not heed him. Rukia stumbles back, panting, holding back tears. She can't break down, there has to be a way out of this; she needs to clear her head.
"Rukia," comes a voice, hoarse, cracked; she whips up Shirayuki to parry the blow that comes swinging down at her with all the force of an executioner's blade.
"Rukia. You have to kill me."
She shakes her head; her arms shake with the strain of holding up against Ichigo's strength, but she will not give in.
He presses down harder. "Rukia– please."
She has to be stronger than him; she has to resist– but looking back up at him, his pained expression blurring with Kaien's through the tears in her eyes, all Rukia can think is–
Not this. Not him. Not again.
Ok, but you know what KILLS me about the whole ichiruki/kairuki/ichigo-and-his-mother dynamic?
It's that Ichigo and Rukia were each other's ATONEMENT. Ichigo and Rukia were each other's SALVATION from the crushing guilt and despair associated with (what they both perceived to be) their greatest failures. THEY SAVED EACH OTHER. HOW COULD YOU NOT SHIP THEM TOGETHER AFTER THAT? THEY WERE EACH OTHER'S SALVATION.
And THIS, I think, is why they are each more attuned to the well-being of the other than anyone else. (I mean, obviously they care for ALL of their friends very fiercely, but it's also clear they they're special to each other in the way their other friends aren't.) Rukia and Ichigo are each other's second chances; the person that they finally managed to save, after so many years of guilt for failing to save their predecessor. THAT'S why they're so precious to each other. Losing them would mean an even more crushing failure than the first time, because thinking you've achieved something only to have it snatched away from you is far more awful than never having it in the first place, imo.
Honestly, as much as I like to kill one of them off for angst purposes in my art or fics, I feel like it'd make no sense to kill either one of them off in-canon. They mirror each other so beautifully in this; Kubo's achieved such an aching balance in the fact that they are equally each other's salvation that murdering one of them now undermines their entire character development from the moment they realise the other person as their second chance— because their character developments BEGAN by getting over the misplaced guilt they each had about their 'failures'.