Kahlan/Cara
| Pairing | |
|---|---|
| Pairing: | Kahlan Amnell/Cara Mason |
| Alternative name(s): | Kahra, Kahlan/Cara |
| Gender category: | Femslash |
| Fandom: | Legend of the Seeker |
| Canonical?: | No |
| Prevalence: | Popular |
| Archives: | |
| Other: |  |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
This article or section needs expansion. |
Kahlan/Cara is a popular femslash pairing that developed during the second season of the TV show Legend of the Seeker.
Canon
Kahlan and Cara first meet when the latter helps Richard defeat Darken Rahl in S1E22 "Reckoning." Although having just betrayed Lord Rahl to save the Seeker and stop the terrible future she travelled to, Cara leaves with her fellow Mord-Sith. In S2E1 "Marked," after attempting to gain power over her Sisters of the Aigel, Cara is beaten, her Mord-Sith braid is cut, and she is left to die in shame. Cara is found by allies of Richard and he vouches for her value within the group. Kahlan is initially highly distrustful of Cara, and Cara only tolerates her because she has pledged fealty to Richard as the new Lord Rahl. Moreover, Mord-Sith and Confessors are magically designed to be enemies; while the Confessor's Touch renders most people a loyal slave, for a Mord-Sith it leads to an agonizing death. Over the course of their journey to find the Stone of Tears they slowly begin to trust each other, fight for each other, and even come to care for each other as dear friends.[1]
Popular Kahlan/Cara Content Episodes:
S2E8 "Light"
S2E11 "Torn"
S2E14 "Bound"
S2E16 "Desecrated"
S2E19 "Extinction"
S2E22 "Tears"
Fandom
Much of the appeal in the Kahlan/Cara ship comes both from the Madonna/Whore complex[2] and from their inability to ever truly have a physical and romantic relationship. Not only is Cara often written as emotionally stunted or unavailable while Kahlan is in touch with her feelings, their magics are also incredibly incompatible. If Kahlan and Cara become too close, the risk of death-by-confession is inevitable. Since the cancellation of Legend of the Seeker in 2010, the online fanfiction and manip fandom in subsequent years has moved to be predominantly Kahlan/Cara based.
Cara is canonically bisexual, with her first appearance in S1E22 "Reckoning" featuring a sexually suggestive tease regarding warmth under blankets aimed at Richard Cypher. In S2E20 "Eternity" she has sex with her old lover Dahlia, and earlier in Season 2 has a relationship with Leo Dane. Cara's bisexuality is not played as a joke, nor do any of the characters objectify her because of her bisexuality. No in-universe or metatextually-framed homophobia or biphobia canonically or sub textually exists in Legend of the Seeker, however Cara's interaction with Dahlia in "Eternity" is the only on-screen, confirmed queer representation the show offers. Kahlan is canonically heterosexual, only having an on-screen relationship with Richard Cypher.
A large amount of fanshipping comes from Kahlan/Cara subtext in the following episodes: S2E8 "Light," S2E11 "Torn," S2E14 "Bound," S2E16 "Desecrated," S2E19 "Extinction," and S2E22 "Tears." Further subtext includes a moment in "Eternity" when Cara is being rebroken by Darken Rahl, the first image that Cara uses to preserve her mind from the breaking is of Kahlan. In "Bound," after Kahlan collapses she is held by Cara in her lap until she wakes up, and Cara and Kahlan share a short conversation about Kahlan's past abuse from her father. In "Desecrated," while trapped in a tomb that is slowly running out of breathable air, Cara says that she considers Kahlan a friend, then the two engage in a highly homoerotic fistfight over who is going to die so the other can live. In "Tears," Cara is unable to shoot a Con Dar controlled Kahlan even though it would be for the benefit of their mission, with Zedd citing that it is because Cara has grown to care for Kahlan and the rest of their group enough to not instantly want to kill them.
The actresses who played Kahlan Amnell (Bridget Regan) and Cara Mason (Tabrett Bethell) said in an April 5th, 2020 Instagram livestream[3] that they are aware of the fandom shipping their two characters and actively encouraged the ship. There is a deleted scene from the series finale episode S2E22 "Tears" where Bethell breaks character and interrupts the final kiss between Craig Horner and Bridget Regan by kissing Regan herself.[4]
Fanworks
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
Fics
- Can You Get Me Off Your Mind by thrace
- The World Not Reeling by lmPerrin
- Walk Softly and Carry a Magic Sword by Netgirl_y2k
- I'll Carry You With Me (Just Please Hold On) by foibles_fables
- Pull Your Little Arrows Out by hibernate
- Rarely Resisted by 6Dylan9
- Fault Lines by waywordpine
Fanart
- Close - Style Practice by pollylobster
- kahra, Archived version by systemflaw
- have some kahra by plushkiwi
Fanvids
- Kiss me, take me [LotS] Cara/Kahlan by saltybread
- Cara & Kahlan I Only then I am Human by bestiary
- kahlan + cara; call out my name by blckterror
- Legend of the Seeker - Cara/Kahlan - "Cosmic Love" (version 2.0) by mysensitiveside
Archives and Communities
- Kahlan/Cara tagged works on AO3
- Kahlan/Cara fics on FFN
- Kahlan x Cara, Kahra tags at Tumblr
Livejournal
References and Resources
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