#ibratice

You want to send me away because you don't have the strength to see me, brother. Because each time you look at me, your conscience torments you. You remember Ibrahim.

Thank you for the ask darling <3333!

So, based on the bits we saw of them in Manisa, I can only imagine their dynamic there as a daydreamer little Hatice having an innocent childhood crush on Ibrahim because of his figure as Suleyman's savior & talented companion and, ofc, her need to find some refuge from the scary reality surrounding her (after all, the flashbacks show her very scared on the carriage and, once in the palace, she turns to look at Ibrahim the minute her mother and Suly start discussing the threats to his life and the uncertainty under Yavuz' rule). I can see her finding him a peaceful person, outside from all the doom and palace rules she knew, as much as Suly did (unfortunately, they have a very similar taste 😭) and cherishing him as some "escape" for that too, maybe interchanging some small talk with the guy sometimes (as she did in Hafsa's flashbacks) but not more than that, as she wasn't only a very quiet girl (possibly hiding her feeling as much she did in s1a), but also a very obedient one ("I always followed the path you and my mother deemed right for me") and I don't think Valide would have left her go too far from her radar either. Things could´ve changed with her first betrothal and then marriage, since I feel Hatice would have tried to make things work or expected for her husband to grow on her, as when she recalls these events she´s rather sad of not even having the opportunity to really get to know him (plus, again, it makes sense for her early characterization as someone with an extreme respect for her family´s decisions even if she clearly didn´t love the guy), and that would mean to let go of any possible illusion or dream with her brother´s companion, only some fondness and admiration remaining, as seen with her smile when Ibro is first mentioned in e1.

Ibrahim clearly never picked on that crush nor corresponded it because, needless to say, she was a child, but also, even as she grew up, I don´t think he could ever imagine himself being seen as other thing outside of Suly´s shadow and he repressed any potential desire to be more than that at that point, starting the show as loyal and obedient as Hatice. Still, I think he was fond of Hati and her interactions empowered him to feel like he belonged to Suly´s family, after all he´s pleasantly surprised to be seen and talked to in the flashbacks instead of being completely left behind. It was only in the conditions of s1, when there´s a new found "stability" under Suleyman´s reign that Hatice could truly dare to dream again and make a move on Ibro, and, giving his confusing and now more distanced position in regards to the Sultan that makes him look back at his origins, at the person he was before Suly, that Ibrahim can also dare to be his own person, have his own dreams, and therefore perceive & accept Hatice´s advances. Because of all of this, I can´t think of their first meeting in Manisa as a very significant moment and I´m kinda struggling to answer the first question, I suppose Suly presented Ibro to everyone once he brought him with him to the palace and the newcomer respectfully saluted them too, with Valide feeling a little concerned (in the way Mahi was when Taslicali was introduced too) over this new acquaintance and his rare closeness w her son & Hati being curious and excited about having someone new with them. It would´ve been kinda cool if her (mental) reaction to Ibro was similar to the one she showed when she met Hurrem, not only finding him pretty but also interesting in contrast to her mother´s defensiveness to the stranger.