#i would kill for someone to come into my inbox as Mermista

[chipped-seahawk]

If Mermista was here with you, right now, what would you want to say to her?

"I..." Seahawk shook his head quickly. "I suppose that's irrelevant, considering she's not here with me. What a shame. Let's move on."

[catrasredemption-moved]

Finn Prompt-a-palooza!

Here we go, finally! All four of Finn prompts from my inbox. I hope everyone enjoys!

I love all of the ficlets you've been posting here! Would you be willing to write more stories with Finn, especially when they first come under Catra and Adora's care, getting used to everybody?

Finn liked Catra better.

That was how Adora felt, at least, given the way the child seemed to cling to Catra. And she was trying really, really, really hard not to be jealous, because it made sense that Finn would latch on to the only other person like them.

But she always itched to reach out and comfort them whenever they were scared or anxious. She wouldn’t, because that would just scare them more. But the temptation was strong.

“It’s okay,” Catra assured Finn as he hid behind her leg. They had decided to rip off the band-aid and just introduce them to the entire Princess Alliance at once, after warning their well meaning friends to not overwhelm the child.

“Here.”

Catra easily picked Finn up, letting them stand on her chair and get a better look at everyone. “That’s Scorpia over there, she’s the one who gives really good hugs.” Scorpia beamed and waved. “And that’s Perfuma, she’s the one who restored most of the palace gardens. Those blue roses you like are hers. That’s Netossa and Spinnerella, they’re married like me and Adora, and they travel a lot and bring back awesome snacks. Don’t… Don’t try the chocolate, though. You might be allergic.”

They all grimaced a little, remembering Catra learning that about herself the hard way. “That’s Mermista — she’s the queen of Salineas, and I know that place is all water and it sucks, but she’s still cool.” Mermista threw a mock scowl in Catra’s direction. She stuck her tongue out over Finn’s head. “That’s Frosta, she’s the princess of the snow kingdom.”

Finn’s eyes lit up. “I’ve never seen snow.”

Catra bit down a groan before saying, “We’ll have to visit some time, if Frosta’s okay with it.”

“Of course, Kitty. I know how much you love the snow.”

Brat, Catra thought, resisting another, very mature tongue sticking out. “And that’s Entrapta. She’s the one who makes all the cool robots and stuff.”

“Oh, you like my robots?” Entrapta asked happily, already producing some new project from somewhere. “Wanna see what I’m working on?”

Finn looked at Catra, equal parts anxious and excited. Catra helped them off the chair. “Go on.”

They immediately ran over to Entrapta, watching her with wide eyes, while everyone just sort of stared at Catra. She raised an eyebrow back. “What?”

“Pretty sure they’re all just surprised you can talk to a child without terrifying them,” Glimmer teased. Catra hissed at her.

Finn, meanwhile, was starting to open a little, wandering around the table. Perfuma saw them coming and produced a blue rose, sticking it in their wild hair. They grinned and giggled.

“Can I give you a hug?” Scorpia asked excitedly.

“Little bones,” Catra reminded her as Finn nodded. Scorpia adjusted accordingly so as to not accidentally squish Finn, but they didn’t seem to mind. Adora wrapped her arms around Catra’s waist, resting her chin on her shoulder, and smiling as they watched Finn cautiously inspect Mermista, who was being surprisingly patient.

It was going to take awhile, Adora knew, for Finn to really adjust to all of them, but especially to going from no parents to two (possibly overbearing) moms, and an entire gaggle of aunts and uncles ready to dote on them at all times. The wait was worth seeing that smile on Finn’s face as Frosta produced a small snowstorm over their head.

It would be worth it.

* * * * *

Catra and Adora and the first time their child gets a really bad cold?

“Guys, it’s just a cold—”

“They won’t stop coughing! What if they can’t breathe? Or—”

Glimmer rested her hands on Adora’s shoulders, squeezing hard. Catra was still peeking into Finn’s room, watching them sleep fitfully.

“They’re fine. I promise. It’s a cold. Didn’t you guys get colds when you know what don’t answer that, I don’t want to hear about what terrifying medical system the Horde had. Just… trust me, okay? The healer said Finn is okay, they just need to stay hydrated and sleep. Okay?” Adora nodded, chewing on her thumbnail. “Catra, do you — and she’s gone.”

Glimmer sighed, looking into the room. Catra and Melog were sitting on Finn’s bed, Catra carefully checking their temperature with her hand.

“Okay, but if they’re like Catra, then how do we know they’ll be okay?” Adora asked anxiously. “Like, really know? The medicine the healers use doesn’t always work on her, remember?”

“And yet she’s still around to be a pain in my ass.” That got Gimmer a small smile.

“But what if they have some rare disease from living on the streets or—?”

“Adora, do I have to get Bow up here to hug you?”

Adora hesitated before nodding. Glimmer sighed, disappeared, and reappeared with her husband, who wrapped Adora in the kind of tight hug only Bow could give.

“Where’s Catra?” he asked, looking at Glimmer. She nodded to the bedroom. Catra was now scratching Finn’s ears while Melog cuddled against their back.

“Hovering.”

It wasn’t really that surprising that Adora and Catra would be overbearing parents. Their own childhoods still haunted them. Who had taken care of them when they were sick? Who had rubbed their backs when they coughed, checked their temperatures, made sure they stayed hydrated and ate something, even just a ration bar?

Glimmer had a feeling she knew the answer, and it was exactly why they were acting the way they were now. They didn’t want another kid suffering the way they did.

“Okay, but what if they—”

“Adora,” Glimmer cut her off firmly. “Stop imagining worst-case scenarios and just go sit with your kid and wife, okay?”

Not that Glimmer thought hovering was necessarily the right answer, either. But at least Catra would keep her from spiraling into all the ways a cold might kill Finn.

“Right. Okay. Right.”

She threw her arms around her friends before hurrying into the room.

—————————————————— 

Most of the day was a blur for Finn. They remembered people talking, something cold against their forehead, sitting up to drink water. But mostly everything was hot and spinny.

It was dark when they woke for real, feeling a little better. Melog purred against their back, and they smiled, reaching back to pet the alien cat.

“Did Mom tell you to stay with me?”

Melog made an almost amused noise and tilted their head to the other side of the bed. Finn looked, and nearly laughed.

Catra and Adora were both sitting on the floor next to the bed, heads resting on the mattress, fast asleep. It looked really uncomfortable. But it made Finn feel better as they snuggled back down under their covers to sleep. They were sure both women had spent all day worrying and pacing because that was what they always did when they were worried. And Finn was someone they worried about now.

They had someone who worried about them. It made them feel pleasant warm as they fell back to sleep.

* * * * *

could you write something where little finn gets separation anxiety after catra and adora take them in? Thanks!

Adora and Catra were surprisingly busy people. Being the hero of the universe and the person who kept the queen’s life from falling apart were both a lot of work.

(That was how Catra described her job to Finn, anyway, despite Glimmer’s glare and protest that she could keep her life together just fine.)

They always made time for Finn, though. Finn never felt alone or neglected, not like they had when they were living on the streets. No matter how tired their new moms were, they always made a point of spending at least an hour (usually two) with Finn in their room after dinner. They’d let Finn talk about whatever they wanted — what they had learned that day, what hell they’d wrought on the unsuspecting Bright Moon guards, how they were finally learning not to hoard food anymore — until someone fell asleep (usually Adora, on Catra’s shoulder, snoring while she and Finn quietly teased her). Finn felt good. Loved.

“I don’t wanna go to the North. It’s cold.”

“Tell me about it,” Catra muttered, already grimacing at the thought. And they were still in Bright Moon. Glimmer clapped her on the shoulder.

“But you get to help take down the old Horde base! Remember how much you hated that place?”

“Not helping, Sparkles.”

Adora rolled her eyes, ruffling Finn’s hair. “You don’t have to come if you don’t want to, kiddo. There’s plenty of people to stay here and watch you. Or you could go visit Plumeria. I’m sure Perfuma would love to have you.”

Finn momentarily brightened at the thought before their expression fell. “But…”

“We’re coming back,” Catra assured them. “It’ll just be for a few days.”

“And we can call every night!” Adora added. Finn shifted slightly, staring at their feet.

“I guess… that’d be fun.” They hadn’t spent much time in Plumeria. Sometimes they went with Catra while she meditated with Perfuma (Finn had tried once, and had completely failed at it, but Perfuma assured them it was okay), and it was nice there.

Perfuma, of course, was delighted at the prospect of having her adopted nibling stay with her while Catra and Adora were away. She already had an entire room set up for them by the time Glimmer dropped them off (after lots of hugs from both moms and promises to call and they would always be available if Finn wanted to talk).

“Are you hungry?” Perfuma asked brightly. “We were just about to sit down for dinner. Scorpia’s visiting tonight, too!”

Scorpia was great — Perfuma was great, and Finn loved them both a lot. But that didn’t stop them from bouncing anxiously all throughout dinner, checking their tracker pad every five minutes. Adora and Catra had said they would call, they had promised, and Finn knew they took their promises seriously. Adora had explained once that it was a really important word for them, so when they promised something, they meant it. But what if they were distracted? What if they were tired and fell asleep? What if Adora forgot the charger, or—

“Finn?”

They looked up, blinking rapidly, to see Scorpia and Perfuma watching them with shared concern. “You okay, buddy?” Scorpia asked, tilting her head.

“Um… yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. I’m fine.”

The tracker pad went off, and Finn immediately dove for it, trying not to look too anxious as they answered.

“…hate the cold—”

“Oh, shush — hey Finn!” Adora said, beaming when she saw the child. Catra was huddled up next to her, wrapped in a blanket and visibly shivering. “How’s it going?”

“It’s warm,” Finn said, grinning back. Catra stuck her tongue out at them.

They talked for almost three hours, until Glimmer yelled for them to shut up and go to sleep and they were getting up at dawn no matter how little sleep the women got. Catra yelled back that she wouldn’t move until she actually saw Glimmer out of bed.

“I should’ve stayed with you,” she informed Finn wryly. “All those two have done is argue the entire way here.”

“That’s all they ever do.”

Catra made a show of putting a hand to her heart, as if offended. “Scorned by my own child.”

Adora rolled her eyes, shoving Catra back. “Talk to you tomorrow, Finn. Sleep well. Love you.”

“Love you!” Catra added.

“Love you too. Don’t freeze.”

Their smile faded when the screen went dark. 

“Finn?”

They jumped, looking at Perfuma. She and Scorpia had left the child to have their privacy while they talked. She was standing in the door now, watching them with a small smile. “Did you have a good talk with your moms?” They nodded slowly. “Good. Can I show you something?”

“Sure.”

Finn followed Perfuma out of the tent and to the Heart Blossom. They already knew where they were going. “I’ve seen the meditation room—”

“But you’ve never seen it at night,” Perfuma said, leading Finn up the hidden stairs. That was true, Finn supposed. The room was flooded with sunlight during the day, lighting up every corner. Now it was softly lit by moonlight, giving it a comfortable, warm feeling. “You miss your moms, huh?”

“No,” Finn said quickly. “I’m fine.”

Perfuma smiled a bit, going to sit in her usual spot and gesturing for Finn to join her. “Has Catra ever told you why she started meditating?” They shook their head slowly. “She… went through a lot of bad stuff when she was a kid, and she used to get really upset and anxious about it. She had a hard time processing those emotions, though, so I offered to help her. Adora did more than I ever could, but I taught her some slightly healthier coping mechanisms, and she really took to meditating after… a couple years.”

The princess chuckled. Finn tilted their head. It was hard to imagine Catra ever being anxious or scared. She seemed so confident all the time. “Does she still…?”

“Feel that way? Sometimes,” Perfuma said. “Don’t tell her I told you, though. I just want you to know that it’s okay if you’re unhappy right now.”

“Do I have to meditate?”

“No,” Perfuma assured them. “But we can talk about it, if you want to tell me what’s wrong.”

Finn blushed, ears drooping. “It’s dumb.”

“I’m sure it’s not. Do you miss them?”

“I… guess, yeah,” they admitted reluctantly. “What if they don’t come back? Or something happens? Or Aunt Glimmer forgets them?”

Perfuma coughed, clearly trying not to laugh. “I don’t think Glimmer would forget them. But I understand what you mean. It’s scary to be away from them, isn’t it? Even though you know they’re coming home and they’re going to call you every night, it’s still scary.”

“Yeah,” Finn muttered. “Like I said, it’s dumb.”

“Of course it isn’t dumb. They’re your mothers. You miss them. There’s nothing wrong with that.” Finn wasn’t convinced. “Adora and Catra used to have a hard time being away from each other, you know.” Thy looked up in surprise. “After the war and everything. They had to learn that the world wouldn’t end if they didn’t see each other for a few hours. Do you think that’s dumb?”

“No.”

“Then why are your feelings different?” Finn didn’t have an answer. Perfuma gently ruffled their hair. “It’s okay to feel what you feel. You should talk to your moms about it. I bet they’d understand better than you think.”

“Okay,” they said quietly, nodding.

“Did that help at all?”

“A little.” And it did. Especially knowing Adora and Catra had been the same way once. Maybe Finn could talk to them about it.

Perfuma cupped their cheeks and gently kissed their forehead. They smiled a little despite themselves.

“And they’re not your only family,” she assured the child with a smile of her own. “We’re all here for you. I promise.”

* * * * *

ooooo I wanna join the Finn prompt too if it's okay? 🥺🥺 I thought of them (+ glimbow's kids too if u want?) accidentally triggering their moms with throwaway comments abt the FZ or Prime's ship or smtg? like mb gushing that those places look oh so cool in the books bc they're kids and like... one's a wasteland the other's a battleship, I can see them going "why did aunt scorpia even rebuild!!!" or "damn I wish I went there!!!!" without realizing how much those places actually destroyed ppl 😔

Finn thought space was cool.

They weren’t wrong — it was cool. Adora had spent hours on Darla’s deck just staring out the huge windows, watching the stars and planets slowly drift by. Stargazing was her favorite relaxing activity. It was even better when Catra joined her.

Catra… had complicated feelings about space. It wasn’t the stars’ fault that every time she looked at them she heard the faint echo of all beings must suffer to become pure. Maybe someday she could stare at the sky with the same fondness her wife and child felt.

For now, she was content to lie with her face buried in Adora’s chest, listening to her heartbeat and the reverberation of her voice as she talked about the constellations.

That was where she was now, with Finn’s excited voice rambling on about school. Well, it was sort of school. It was the kids spending several hours with George and Lance a couple times a week learning everything they’d ever need to know about history, with guest appearances by princesses with specific knowledge or experience (Entrapta had been allowed to teach exactly one lesson).

“Grandpa Lance and Grandpa George were telling us about the war today.” 

They had insisted on being “Grandpa” to every single child they taught, after a pointed look at their own childless son and daughter-in-law (not for a lack of trying on their part). To be fair, Adora and Catra had gotten a head start, taking Finn in they were nine or ten. Everyone else had to get their kids the hard way. It made for some interesting age differences.

“They said it’s not really history yet because it’s still in the fairly recent past, but since all of our parents were in it, we should probably know about it.” Catra frowned, making a note to find out what exactly was in that curriculum. Finn knew the overtures of the war, but none of the details. Including the things Catra had done. She wanted to keep that way as long as possible. “They said knowing about the space stuff was important but they didn’t know much, so they asked ‘Trapta’s weird friend to help.”

Catra went stiff; the slim fingers in her hair hesitated for a moment before sliding down between her shoulder blades, gently but firmly rubbing her back.

“Hordak?”

“Yeah, him.”

The image of Hordak trying to teach a bunch of kids would have been hilarious if not for the fact that he knew everything.

“What did he tell you?” Adora asked, remaining calm while Catra tried to breathe through the sudden rush of emotions.

“He talked a lot about planets and all the places Horde Prime had been.” Finn’s voice dropped a little. “He was really bad, huh?”

“The worst,” Adora said, finding a knot in Catra’s back and gently trying to sooth it away.

“He talked about Horde Prime’s ship, too. A real spaceship!” Taking deep breaths was starting to get harder. The hand on her back moved to her head, gently scratching her ears. Catra didn’t want Finn to see breaking down — didn’t want them to think it was their fault for bringing it up. Adora had gotten the silent signal. “You guys were actually on it, right? And Uncle Bow and Aunt Glimmer? What was it like?”

Catra’s control was starting to unravel. “You know, kiddo,” Adora said carefully, “it’s kind of hard for us to talk about that. Like how it’s hard for you to talk about living on the streets, you know?”

“Oh.” The word was regretful, rather than the disappointment Catra would have expected. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay! I know it all sounds really cool when someone else tells you about. Like you said, it’s more recent than the things you normally learn about. Sometimes people need more time to heal.”

That last sentence was for Catra as much as Finn. There was a shuffle of feet through grass, and then Finn was on top of Catra, hugging her tight. Adora crushed them both in her arms, smiling.

“Why don’t you go find Uncle Bow and Aunt Glimmer? We could camp out tonight. Set food on fire.”

“You’re supposed to cook the food, not set it on fire,” Finn said with a small giggle.

“I have a natural talent. Go on.”

Adora waited until Finn was well out of ear shot before sitting up, tugging Catra with her. “Okay, breathe.” She rubbed her hand slowly up and down Catra’s spine as she spoke. “Follow me. Just breathe. It’s okay.”

Catra took several shaking, too fast breaths before she managed to fall into rhythm with Adora’s hand. “D-Damn it,” she hissed, pounding her fist into the ground. “Why the fuck are George and Lance letting Hordak teach kids?!”

“I don’t know.” There’d have to be a talk about that. “It doesn’t sound like he got into too many details, though.”

“And he had to bring up the fucking ship. Did Prime just fry all his common sense out of him?”

Adora tucked her wife under her chin, pulling her into a gentle hug. They stayed like that until the anxious purr in Catra’s chest finally faded, until the tremors stopped, until she could open her eyes without seeing a haze of green. Another storm successfully weathered, at least until it returned to haunt Catra’s dreams.

“Am I ever going to be able to talk about it without wanting to throw up?” Catra asked quietly after a moment.

“I don’t know,” Adora said honestly. Catra drew back to look at her.

“How do you do it? You were there too.”

“I hate talking about it. So much. But the only reason I was there was for you. So… having you close by helps.” She smiled weakly. “Guess this means we’re stuck together.”

“Oh, the horror.”