KafBlade

KafBlade is the het ship between Kafka and Blade from the Honkai: Star Rail fandom.

Canon
Kafka and Blade are both members of the Stellaron Hunters. Kafka and Blade they are close colleagues and work together often, and Kafka calls Blade by “Bladie” regularly. Blade seems to be okay with this nickname; when the Trailblazer calls him Bladie, Blade threatens to attack the latter, implying that Blade prefers only Kafka to call him that. Kafka knows of Blade’s origins, stating in her Companion Mission that she was sent with Sam to find Blade and return with him under Elio’s orders. Though Kafka says Blade refuses to tell the rest of his past. Considering the story of the "Before the Tutorial Mission Starts", it's known that they text each other and seem to share a friendly relationship. They have a level of respect and trust for one another, as shown in their voice lines about each other, with Blade being loyal to Kafka’s orders and the former worried for Blade’s well-being.

The "Passerby's Ragged Embroidered Coat" relic hints that Kafka was the one who recruited him into the Stellaron Hunters. This is later confirmed by Kafka herself. The relic describes a woman in sunglasses (Kafka), as well as a man in armor that stood in Blade's way to extend him an invitation. Blade refused their offer, resulting in a fight, but the "smiling woman" offered him a deal he could not refuse, and so he accepted.

At one point in the story, Kafka contacts the Astral Express crew. She presents a hologram of Blade and explains that he has been captured by the Cloud Knights of Xianzhou. She wants to bring "her companion" back and asks the crew to rescue him as he is apparently innocent. Kafka also expresses that she wishes to clear both her and Blade's names.

Later, when Kafka escapes imprisonment and is pursued by the Trailblazer, Blade suddenly jumps inbetween and threatens the Trailblazer with his sword. He had also escaped prior to these events. Kafka has no reaction to this, even having her back turned to all of it and walking away calmly. This suggests she knew of or expected his arrival. She tells him to come along as they have two more places to visit before letting herself fall of the roof. Blade obeys her order and jumps after her.

In “Letter from a Strange Woman”, Kafka reaches out to the Trailblazer for help in saving Blade. She plans to save Blade by using her Spirit Whisper to reduce the mara in him. Kafka states while using her Spirit Whisper on Blade, he can only hear her voice and feel her touch, oblivious to everything else. After the quest, Blade talks to the Trailblazer and states that every Stellaron Hunter has a deal with Elio: going on to say that Kafka must’ve sought after something extraordinary and that everything she does comes at a great cost.

Quotes
"My companion Blade has been taken away by the Cloud Knights. I want to bring him back, solve the Stellaron crisis and clear our names."

- Kafka

"Let's go, Bladie. Two more places to visit."

- Kafka

"Bladie... He takes after his name — his fights are a pleasure to witness."

- Kafka on Blade. "The hunt beckons, Bladie. Are you ready?"

- Kafka’s voice line when added to the same party with Blade. "Those who can't bury us, are waiting to be buried, Kafka."

- Blade’s voice line when added to the same party as Kafka.

Fanon
KafBlade is a decently popular ship for both characters.

In regards to their relationship, it is often interpreted that Kafka takes on the more dominant and playful role in the relationship, since Blade is incredibly loyal to Kafka and obedient to her orders. A trope often found is Kafka being able to make the usually cold Blade flustered. Fans also believe that Kafka has a lot of trust in Blade as she was unsurprised to see him protect her from the Trailblazer's pursuit.

Another common way that fans depict KafBlade is with Silver Wolf in a found-family or trio type context. Silver Wolf will usually take the role of the youngest, most child-like one with Kafka and Blade being responsible for her. These fan works aren't strictly in parents-and-child context, but rather a trio of clashing personalities that is depicted as close and always together. Another popular headcanon by fans is that the trio is like Team Rocket, with Kafka being Jessie, Blade being James, and Silver Wolf being Meowth.

Kafka and Blade are commonly both viewed as bisexual by fans of the ship. As some other fans headcanon them as other sexualities (lesbian/gay), there has been discourse surrounding the ship.

Fandom
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Trivia

 * Kafka refers to Blade as "Bladie."
 * In Chinese, she calls him "阿刃 ā rèn", with 阿 being a prefix for names to indicate closeness.
 * Additionally, in the CN text of , she refers to Blade as, "我家阿刃 wǒjiā ā rèn". "我家" literally means "my home", and when put before someone's name, refers to one's romantic partner or children.
 * Blade can be seen holding an umbrella next to Kafka on her splash art.
 * Blade and Kafka can be seen texting in the light cone "Before the Tutorial Mission Starts." The story suggests Blade is irritated by having to take care of Silver Wolf and asks Kafka when the action starts. Kafka thinks he has nerve asking that, telling him that Silver Wolf must pass this assignment. When Blade tells Kafka she's doing well, Kafka is relieved and tells Blade that he is also a reliable operative, to which Blade responds "..."
 * Since Kafka is missing her sunglasses in the illustration, some suggest that Blade could be wearing hers.
 * They are featured together in the collaboration "Cosmic Refreshment Supply", where trailblazers can try their exclusive drinks and get merchandise of them.
 * Blade and Kafka both appear in the 1.2 special program alongside Welt.