#shadow weaver shouldn’t be trusted with kids or anything for that matter

[unprocessedissues]

Many people go "her redemption it was sooo rushed!" and what I think they mean is "I want 5 extra episodes of the characters making Catra make it up to them while she whips herself in repentance". As if being vunurable isn't like walking on coal for Catra "I must become a supervillain to hide my vunurability" Meowmeow

I have a lot of thoughts about this.

I think a lot of it comes from our world’s conventional view on consequences. In our world, there are courts, prisons, community service hours, fines and a lot of other avenues to sort of balance it out with the horrid things people do. If you take into account the type of world these guys live in, it doesn’t work that way. Bright Moon doesn’t have a designated prison. Mermista knows that Seahawk has committed arson and she herself has committed arson. The Crimson Waste is supposedly this deadly place where no one is there but you see there’s heaps of people there. They just choose not to leave. The only place explicitly shown to have any form of prison is the Fright Zone. This planet has a different culture than ours, one more rooted in kindness and forgiveness than anything else.

Watching Catra in Season 5, you can see that’s she’s uneasy. She knows she’s probably not welcome. The first one to say she wasn’t hated was Adora. Then Entrapta forgives her. Now, Entrapta doesn’t really understand a lot of what’s gone on emotionally but she knows the gist and I don’t think Entrapta would be one to hold a grudge on Catra because she made a friend in Beast Island and there is no patenting in this planet so stealing her work is just a matter of giving it back. Glimmer is more complex but I think she realises that she herself put Etheria in so much danger with Horde Prime that it would be too much to deal with Catra’s role in opening the portal whilst Etheria is literally being conquered. I’ll probably talk about this more in the future. Plus Catra did save her life despite it being for Adora.

On the general sense, Catra is always situated away from the crowd and only approaches when indicated that it’s fine to. She respects that the gang might be and in her mind and rightfully so, upset with her to say the least. She’s more careful around them. Netossa pins her to a tree and isn’t hostile about it. Perfuma tells her off about Scorpia and she knows to back down because she knows she fucked up. Frosta punches her and acts like how anyone would if they were randomly punched but Catra doesn’t retaliate. Catra knows she has to stick with Adora for the most part because she might make everyone upset. Catra refused to admit she was wrong up until the point she says sorry to Adora. And Adora puts it well when she speaks about “not facing the people you hurt”. It indicates that Catra is now well aware of how much damage she’s caused. And it’s recognising this that makes the arc so rich. The first step to even improving is knowing you messed up. She only jokes about the whole weaknesses thing after Netossa smiles at her when Catra assures her that Spinnerella would be okay. And to a worried wife, that means a lot. That gives them a connection. There are a lot more moments in which Catra shows she’s getting better and this would be too long but the thing is she is getting better. And all the others see that and a lot of the gang are actually emotionally mature to acknowledge that yeah Catra is getting better.

A lot of people associate redemption with some form of karma or like a balance. You gave pain to others then you should receive it too. But the thing is that’s not at all what it should be about, it’s about being better. That’s what ties it all around. The blowback on Catra wasn’t as strong because the characters surrounding her were emotionally mature to recognise that this is going to take time. She’s on a tight lease but in these dire times we can, for the moment, work together and deal with the messy stuff later. If anything, she has a lot to work on with Scorpia and Mermista and if they remember anything from their chipped versions, they’ve both had a decent hit on Catra. But again, priorities. They just got rid of Horde Prime. We can celebrate for a bit.

I think the main point of the ending is peace and hope. There’s no finality in the ending of the series. The BFS are going to go on a magic liberation trip and who knows what else might happen. Catra’s redemption arc isn’t over yet. She still has work to do. I actually wrote a plot for her apology tour that involves her approaching everyone without Adora and apologising because I knew Catra wasn’t done apologising yet.

This got a little way out of hand but Catra just has a special place in my heart. And I cannot even begin to talk about how Catra’s redemption arc becomes more complicated when you consider how much of the abuse from Shadow Weaver she has to deal with in the midst of all this.

Ps. The gang probably interacted with Shadow Weaver enough to realise that yeah she definitely fucked Catra and Adora up.

[maychup]

Part 1

“So, what’s this again?”

Glimmer eyed whatever Catra was holding; a fruit. The ex-horde soldier sniffed it, her tail twitching at the tip as she did so. It’s a wholesome sight. Like a child finding out the wonders of Etheria for the first time.

She picked the fruit from Catra’s hand and peeled off the skin. “We call them Oreng,” Glimmer finished and handed it back to Catra who gave it one more sniff. She cautiously glanced up at Glimmer, narrowing her eyes. Glimmer rolled hers. “Quit being a baby and try it.”

Catra snorted but obeyed. As soon as her fangs pierced the inner skin, Catra pulled back and frowned. “That tastes horrible,” she said.

Glimmer chuckled, taking the fruit away and eating it herself. She digs into the fruit basket and hands another one — a donana — to Catra.

“You have to peel the skin off,” Glimmer points out.

Catra stabs her nail right through it. “Like this?”

“No.”

“That’s how you peeled the oreng.”

“An oreng isn’t a donana.”

“This is annoying,” Catra handed her the donana with a growl.

Glimmer laughs and peels it for her. Catra tries it, and it seems like they found the right one. Catra‘s ears perk after the first bite.

Looks like donana’s the winner.

Glimmer watches her finish the whole fruit in seconds. She’s already digging for a new fruit by the time Catra started licking her nails clean.

It’s been a week since they returned from Horde Prime’s ship. They’ve been busy planning left and right; and Glimmer is in the middle of it all, figuring out what their next move should and shouldn’t be. They’re severly outnumbered. Severely outgunned. Severely out of their element.

Adora’s trying to figure out how to fix the problem on her own, and Glimmer had told her it’s better to work as a team rather than running off into the unknown.

Catra is still a ghost to most of everyone.

Scorpia started talking to her again, though she kept her distance more. Most likely to keep her heart safe. Entrapta, Frosta, and Mermista are still very wary. Hordak can’t even look at her. Perfuma seemed to like her, and Catra looked like she might dive into gardening. Bow is quite possibly the only one one starting to really warm up to her. And Adora—

Well, they talk on their own. Train on their own. Adora says they’re fine, and they’re trying to patch things up slowly but keep away from each other as well.

Catra doesn’t talk much about Adora.

How Catra is with Glimmer, though...

Glimmer wouldn’t call them ‘best’ friends. There was definitely something there, but friends didn’t fit it.

Glimmer found Catra’s favorite spot in the castle, and Glimmer would visit her from time to time to chat. On their free time, Glimmer would introduce Catra to Rebellion things. She can’t quite grasp the concept of ‘food’ just yet, but she’s getting the hang of it.

So far, though? Catra’s favorite is fish.

“Can you tell me more about the Horde?” Glimmer asked casually.

Catra paused, coiling her tail. “What, do you want my whole life story, sparkles?”

That’s another thing.

Catra’s usual spitfire is back.

“You wouldn’t tell me if I tried to torture it out of you,” Glimmer scoffed.

“You’re learning, your majesty,” A smile ghosted Catra’s lips. “Well, when I was a kid, Adora and I wouldn’t follow sleep curfew. I snuck her around the vents and we would stay out and watch the night guards do their thing. We’d prank them sometimes, but we were never caught.”

Glimmer hands her the next fruit. An Ebble. “You don’t have to peel this one.”

“Until one night,” Catra took a chomp out of the fruit, “Adora get stuck in the vent. I had to get Shadow Weaver for help and when we got her out, I got punished, but what else is new. She always hated me for some reason.”

Catra’s coice went low by the end there.

“Catra,” Glimmer said softly.

Catra waved her. “Adora told her that it wasn’t my fault, but she punished me anyway. So, there’s that.”

Glimmer sighs.

Catra’s trying to get into the habit of reminding herself on the little moments where Adora would help her. No matter how little Adora got involved, Catra tried to entwine her positively into her bad experiences.

It’s something her father — King Micah — encouraged Catra to start practicing. Apparently, he used to hold bad grudges on people who shouldn’t be blamed in the first place.

And he learned that from her mom...

Glimmer’s still upset about it. To this day, she’d find an image of her mom and feel a sense of denial, anger, sorrow, bargaining, before accepting that she can’t do anything about it.

She’s gone, and the woman responsible for it stood before Glimmer, living a decent life.

“What was growing up in a castle like for you?” Catra suddenly asked.

Glimmer laughed her thoughts away. “Absolutely boring. Mom was very protective of me so umm —“ her voice shook, and she could tell Catra picked up on it “—B-bow was the only friend I got so —“

“Look, if you want to talk about it —“

“No!” Glimmer said too forcefully. She gathers herself, and she tries again. “No. I’ve already yelled at you about it and punched you multiple times for it. I almost destroyed Etheria because of it, too. I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

“...You sound like you want to.”

“I don’t. I’d... there’s no point staying angry over it when all that’s ever done is bad.”

A silence passed them before Catra broke it.

“We should start a club,” Catra casually said. “Almost-Destroy-Etheria-Because-Emotions-Suck Club.”

“Yeah,” Glimmer shrugged, “I guess we both went a little crazy.”

“A little? You wound me.”

“Yeah, no, you went insane. Off the rails.. I mean, you sent Entrapta — Entrapta — to Beast Island?”

“We can invite Horde Prime to if we somehow switch him around —“

“If Shadow Weaver can’t join, then he can’t join.”

Catra chuckled. She shook her head, a full smile on her face but not quite a laugh. “We’ll get better,” she said more to herself than she did to Glimmer.

Glimmer watched as Catra’s eyes fall to her. She found comfort it in, as well as fear of uncertainty. Her eyes held a wordless promise, and she... could trust it.

With a bit more time, she could see herself trusting Catra.

Glimmer could only nod, handing her another fruit. Pumgranites. “We’ll get better.”

[spookyrobbins]

don’t go (where i can’t follow) 

pairing: catra x adora 

description: 

following shadow weaver's escape, catra's future looks doomed. but with the appearance of her past self and adora, maybe catra can save them and herself.

chapter one. 

time makes you bolder 

links: ao3

Catra let her claws dig idly into the metal walls, a general lack of care permeating her entire being. Everything had crashed down around her. It was only a matter of time before Hordak realized that Shadow Weaver had escaped because Catra was weak, because she was useless. 

She was going to die and nobody would even care to mourn her. Well, maybe Scorpia would. But that was just one more thing that Catra tainted with her darkness. Scorpia represented the only light within the Horde and Catra ruined her. Months ago, she recognized that Scorpia had some silly notion of a crush and she let it continue. It was nice, ya know. To have somebody want you, to look out for you. But she never actively encouraged it. 

No, Catra was too broken for love, too broken for simple affection. Even Scorpia, who was so painfully gentle and thoughtful and kind, elicited a primal response when she touched her. Every fibre of Catra’s being fought against the touch of another. She didn’t deserve anything. 

She veered away from the corridor that would take her directly to her room. Might as well enjoy her last bit of freedom before Hordak inevitably called for her head. 

Would anyone miss her when she was gone? Scorpia would, even though Catra had always kept her at arms’ length. Entrapta barely emerged from her experiments these days long enough to breathe, let alone realize that Catra was gone. 

And Adora, well, that ship sailed long ago. Catra broke their everything. She destroyed it until she thought it would cut into her with every breath. But that only made it worse. Adora hated her. Just like Catra hated her. Adora and her dumb friends would celebrate Catra’s end. Yes, it was for the best. It had to be. Adora could be all bright and shiny and good, while Catra slipped into endless darkness. 

It was just like Shadow Weaver had always said, “You will only drag Adora down.” 

Guess that wouldn’t be a problem anymore. Funny, how Shadow Weaver always won. No matter what Catra did or didn’t do, where she hid, where she ran, Shadow Weaver always got her in the end. Catra never won, ever. She had fleeting moments of victory, but they were always stolen away, be it by Adora or Shadow Weaver or just fucking life. There was no victory for Catra in this lifetime. 

Her chest ached painfully, so much so she paused to lean against a wall, rubbing desperately at her breastbone as if to will the pain away. 

She was going to die today. 

She was never going to see Adora again. 

She would never get to tell Adora- 

“No,” she hissed at herself, anger bubbling over. “No, don’t.” 

But thoughts of Adora pushed their way to the forefront of her mind. Adora’s bright blue eyes that always found hers no matter where they were. Her stupid smile that made Catra’s heart hurt. Her dumb voice and her dumb ideas. Her laugh, her laugh that Catra could just barely remember. All she could hear was Adora’s screams of pain as she raked her claws down her back or her screams when she realized that Catra had kidnapped her new friends. The friends that she clearly valued more than Catra. 

Why couldn’t Catra remember her laugh? It had been perfect. 

But like everything else, it was gone. 

A peal of youthful laughter rang out down a side corridor, causing Catra’s head to snap towards the sound. It sounded almost like, but it wasn’t. 

And there shouldn’t be any cadets in this area. 

Catra moved silently towards the hallway, which she was fairly positive was a dead end. But when she turned the corner, the space was deserted. Her eyes flicked up towards the vent where a small tail curled back into the vent. 

A tail? Who else had a tail like that? 

Casting a furtive glance over her shoulder, Catra hauled herself into the vents. Admittedly, it had been a while since she moved through the vents, but she knew them like the back of her hand. 

A shuffling noise drew her attention forward and she crawled along the vents towards the source. 

“‘Dora, c’mon, focus.” 

“‘m tryin’, kitty, you’re goin’ too fast!”

At the sound of the small voices, Catra’s heart stuttered, her breath catching uncomfortably in her chest. It was just a hallucination. She was going crazy. It was inevitable, of course. Or maybe this was some more magic bullshit like in that stupid temple.

She clearly was projecting voices in her head because she missed Adora. No, she didn’t miss Adora, she missed the memory of Adora. That would explain it. 

Two distinct thuds echoed back up the vents, one barely discernible even with her superior hearing, the other almost masked by the yelp of pain. Catra pushed forward until the top of her head was just hanging out of the vent. 

Sure enough, little her and little Adora huddled together as she checked out a bruise on Adora’s elbow. 

“You’ve just gotta land on your feet next time, ‘Dora.” The little version of her wiped at little Adora’s cheeks, sticking out her tongue in an attempt to make little Adora laugh. The sound of that laugh nearly brought tears to Catra’s eyes. “Hey! What’re you doing here?” A set of mismatched eyes stared up at her, the little one’s mouth falling open as they stared back. 

Catra scrambled back in the vent. A hallucination shouldn’t be able to see her. Not really. Right? Stars, this magic stuff sucked. Had she finally lost it, like Shadow Weaver always said she would? Always said she was no better than an animal. 

“Hey, you look like me.” The little version of her, the hallucination, popped up in the mouth of the vent, her eyes squinted nearly shut. 

“You can see me?” 

“Uh, duh, dummy. Why do you look like me?” 

“Catra! What are you doing?” 

“Talking to the lady in the vents!” The younger Catra yelled back, her voice bouncing loudly. 

“Hordak, keep your voice down, moron,” Catra hissed. “What are you two doing?” 

The little Catra looked away from her for a moment before hauling herself into the vent. “Um, hiding from Shadow Weaver.” 

“No, duh.” 

“Catra!” came Adora’s shrill voice, even louder than before. 

Catra grabbed the little version of her, shoving her behind her. Bracing her feet against the sides of the vents, she let her upper body hang down. “Okay, look, Adora, I need you to keep it down okay. I’ll give you a lift and we’ll sort this out.” 

“Catra?” Adora called warily, taking a half step towards Catra. 

“Don’t trust her! She’s a grown-up!” called back little Catra, who was apparently a total brat. Catra kicked out at her, making solid contact with herself? Well, she kicked the little Catra, who let out an angry hiss. 

Catra motioned with one hand to the little blonde, tamping down her irritation with the older version. “Come here.” Adora shuffled forwards slightly, just beyond Catra’s reach. A noise startled both of them outside the door. There was a quiet tune being whistled and the jangle of keys. “Adora, seriously, come here.” 

“I don’t know you.” 

“I’m a Force Captian and I’m giving you a direct order,” she said in a desperate attempt to appeal to the girl’s intense loyalty and respect for superior officers. Well, the loyalty that existed at that age. 

“Really?” Adora cast a doubtful look her way, one that Catra was all too familiar with. But she could deal with her issues with Adora later. After she dealt with the weird hallucinations that were apparently solid. And there wasn’t really a later for her anyway, so whatever. 

“Yes, really, now come here.” Adora took another half-step forward, which was just enough to allow Catra to grab her shirt and all but toss her up into the vent. She had barely gotten little Adora up when the door swung open and a maintenance woman appeared. 

“Coulda swore I heard something,” the woman muttered to herself before shaking her head and getting back to work. 

Catra exhaled sharply as she dragged little Adora with her. Little Catra, naturally, was less inclined to stay with an unknown adult and had wandered off in the vents. She could faintly smell the girl, but it was hard to distinguish from her own scent. “I’m going to kill myself when I get her, me, whatever,” hissed Catra. “Catra, Catra, this is so not the time for this.” A tail flicked out of sight behind a bend. Glancing over her shoulder to make sure she still had little Adora, Catra took off after the increasingly irritating version of her. 

She managed to snag a fleeing ankle, pulling the girl back towards her. Little Catra dug her claws into the metal, but they weren’t quite strong enough yet to stop her. She kicked out a foot, catching Catra in the ear. 

“Catra, stop, stop.” 

“Let me go! I don’t wanna go to Shadow Weaver! Please!” Catra let the girl roll onto her back but grabbed her shoulders before she could do any more harm. “I’ll be good, I swear.” 

What was left of Catra’s broken heart crumbled in her chest at the look of terror in her younger self’s eyes. How many times had she tried to hide from Shadow Weaver and her magic, only to be caught out and desperately plead to not be turned in. But nobody ever looked out for the weird, scrawny kid with ears. Everyone was infinitely more scared of Shadow Weaver than her and in the Horde, only those with a strong survival instinct make it. 

Hey, hey, I’m not taking you to that bitch. Not in a million years. I’m taking you guys somewhere safe so we can sort this all out.” She hesitated for a moment, relaxing back and giving the girl some space. “I promise I’ll keep you safe, just like Adora.” 

“Promise?” 

“Yeah, kid, I promise.” Catra swallowed against the painful lump forming in her throat. The little girl in front of her just so desperately wanted someone to protect her, to save her. 

“Catra?” 

“Yeah,” both versions answered, moving to look at little Adora. Their heads snapped back to look at each other. 

“I’ll explain later. We need to figure this out. And I’m on a bit of a tight schedule at the moment.” Her breath caught in her chest at the thought of her looming fate. If Hordak knew what had happened, it was only a matter of time before he came after her. And that would be it for her. “Let’s get out of these vents.”

Little Catra dropped down easily, but little Adora refused to move, her tiny hands clutching at the sides of the vent. 

Fighting the urge to roll her eyes, Catra lowered herself down, holding her arms up for Adora. “Adora, just jump into my arms, I’ll catch you, I swear.” 

Little Adora’s eyes flickered between her arms and little Catra before nodding abruptly. “1, 2, 3!” Little Adora launched herself out of the vent, managing to kick Catra in the face in the process, but Catra still managed to steady them. 

“I suppose I kinda deserve that these days,” she mumbled under her breath as she set little Adora down. The two little girls rushed to each others’ side, their hands naturally falling together. Catra gave herself a little shake. It didn’t matter anymore. “Okay, right. We’re gonna go back to my room and we’ll figure out how you guys got here. I need you two to stay as stealthy as possible.” The last thing she needed was Hordak finding these two little girls. An idea surfaced as to keep the girls quiet, but it made her skin crawl. But her issues weren’t important right now. “Stay quiet so Shadow Weaver doesn’t find us, okay?” 

The look of pure terror that appeared in her younger self’s eyes caused a wave of nausea to nearly overtake her, but she pushed it down. She couldn’t even bring herself to watch as little Adora pulled little Catra closer as if her arms could protect them from the world. 

“Alright, follow me.” 

“Yes, Force Captain.” Adora half-heartedly saluted, her bottom lip trembling. 

A smile curved up both Catra’s faces at that. Catra beckoned them forward, moving quietly towards the end of the corridor. 

“D’ya hear that, ‘Dora, I’m a Force Captain!” 

Catra wheeled on them, her eyes flashing dangerously. “What did I just say?” 

“Stealthy as possible, ma’am,” responded little Adora while little Catra just rolled her eyes. Catra bit back a chuckle at that. She couldn’t wait to tell Adora… oh wait, she was most likely going to die. In like an hour. Never mind. No more telling Adora anything.  

“Suck up,” coughed little Catra. 

“Both of you, quiet.” The odd trio moved down another set of corridors before they encountered another person. Little Catra was quick to blend into the shadows, but Adora let out a yelp of fear, freezing in the middle of the hallway. Catra scooped her into her arms, pressing them against the cold steel. Little Catra’s tail wrapped nervously around the older one’s leg while her claws caught against Catra’s trousers. 

Meanwhile, little Adora’s hands clutched at her hair as she pressed her face into Catra’s neck. Catra squeezed her eyes shut as the familiar smell of Adora washed over her. Catra kept them as close to the small corner formed by the thick pipes, providing some cover. If they were lucky, it would just be the typical Horde goons, who were generally clueless anyway. 

Two guards stomped down the hallway, chatting amongst themselves when their radio chimed. “Alert level 3, Hordak wants Force Captain Catra in his chambers. She is not to leave the building.” 

One of the guards spoke into it, “Affirmative, we’ll find the brat.” 

His companion chuckled darkly, “Wonder what Hordak wants with that mongrel?” 

“Fuck if I know. She has it coming.” 

Catra’s claws curled into her free hand, nearly breaking the skin. Another set of claws bit into her legs as her younger self let out an almost feral hiss. She could feel the little girl starting to move out of the shadows, and there was little she could do with Adora in her arms. Desperately, she let out a low, warning trill, hoping the somehow it would make sense to the girl. Little Catra started slightly at the noise, but settled back into the darkness.  

Once the men turned the corner, Catra motioned for her to follow her. She almost set little Adora down before deciding that it would be faster just to carry her. Adora, especially at that age, had an unfortunate habit of stomping around even if she was trying to be stealthy. Catra forced away the slight feeling of relief she got from holding Adora again, even if she was like seven or whatever, as they hurried down the corridors. 

They passed another set of patrols, the three of them crammed in a supply closet. Little Catra had started to sneeze, but Catra covered her mouth and nearly smacked little her when she bit into her hand. 

Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, they made it to her room. Clearly, someone had been looking for her already. Every item was upturned and tossed about, even the files that Scorpia had meticulously organized for her. Because obviously that would be where she was hiding. She rolled her eyes at the incompetence of Hordak’s goons. At least she was intelligent despite what Shadow Weaver had always said. 

Settling the two girls on her destroyed bed, she set about packing a bag. She needed to get out of the Fright Zone, and fast. Hordak didn’t make it a habit of listening to his failed underlings and if he found the little girls, she shuddered to think what he’d do with them. Well, at least do with little her, little Adora might be fine based on the leverage she’d provide. 

“How old are you two right now?” She asked as she stuffed as many blankets into a rucksack. 

The two glanced nervously at each other before Adora answered, “Six, maybe seven? Shadow Weaver only tells me when I’m a year older, so I dunno about Catra.” 

Catra exhaled slowly, trying to balance the panic. Now was not the time to deal with her Shadow Weaver complex. “Did anything weird happen before I found you?” 

“Uh...I don’t think so?” 

“There was a weird popping noise. I heard it. I told you, ‘Dora, I have better ears than you.” 

“They’re just bigger than mine.” 

“Kiddos, now isn’t the time for this. How many ration bars do you two have in your pockets?” 

“None!” Little Catra responded instantly, shoving a sharp elbow into Adora’s side. Catra raised one eyebrow at them. “I’ve got four and ‘Dora’s got two.” 

“Clever girls,” Catra said with a grin. The look on her younger self’s face tugged at her, but she had to stay focused. If she didn’t move quickly, none of them would be getting out of here. 

“Are we going somewhere?” Little Adora asked, her hands twisting in her lap. 

“Uh-huh,” Catra hummed as she stuffed both her and Adora’s Horde-issued knifes into the bag before thinking better of it. “Here, take these.” She handed them to the little girls. 

“Force Captain, we’re not allowed knives.” 

“This is sick!” 

“Shush, both of you, unless you wanna get caught.”

“By Shadow Weaver?” Little Catra asked, her voice wavering. 

Catra let out a shuddering breath. “Worse, Hordak.” 

That seemed to shut them both up quickly. Catra glanced around her room once more. It wasn’t as if she had any belongings of her own anyway. Except for some of the silly pictures and notes Scorpia had left her. Crap, Scorpia. There wasn’t time to find her and she was too conspicuous. 

Grabbing one of her many unfinished reports, she scrawled a note out. 

Sorry, Scorpia. I have to go. I’ll explain later. I’ll see you again. 

She hesitated for a long moment before adding, I’ll miss the super pal trio.  

“You two ready?” The two girls nodded, although little Adora looked terrified that they were leaving while little Catra couldn’t look more thrilled. As they snuck out the room, Catra supposed that this would’ve been her dream at that age. Some mysterious stranger coming and rescuing her from the Horde, taking her away from the darkness. 

After little Adora tripped loudly over a loose screw, Catra picked her up again, hushing her gently as they snuck through the hallways. Adora’s fingers curled around the straps of the rucksack while Catra held her tight with one arm. 

There were even more patrols than before, and if Catra’s instincts were correct, they were all looking for her. She just had to get to the hanger and they’d be fine. Where they’d go after that? She wasn’t sure. 

As they reached the hanger, Catra keyed in her code with her free hand, glancing over her shoulder for any incoming guards. Once the door slid open, she set little Adora down. 

“Okay, I’m going in first and then you two run for the first skiff on the left. Keep quiet and keep to the shadows. Don’t let anyone catch you.” 

“What are you gonna do?” Little Adora stared up at her with those damned blue eyes and Catra’s chest ached. 

Catra let a smirk twist her mouth. “I’m going to make sure nobody can follow us.” 

“Are you sure we should be running away?” 

“Yes, Adora, it’s the only way to keep you two, and me, alive at this point. Don’t worry it’ll be fine.” 

“Yeah, ‘Dora, it’ll be fine,” her younger self mimicked with an eyeroll. 

Catra crouched down to their level. “And, if it looks like I’m not gonna get out of here, you two take the skiff and go. Head towards Brightmoon.” The pair’s eyes went round as saucers. “Ask for She-ra. She’ll take care of you.” 

“Brightmoon? But, but there’s princesses there.” Little Adora’s mouth fell open in abject horror. Catra wished she could’ve gotten a photo just to rub it in her, er, present Adora’s face. 

“It’ll be fine, kiddos.” She winked at them over her shoulder before sneaking into the hanger. Checking briefly to make sure the little ones had actually listened to her, she turned back towards the small number of Horde soldiers hanging about. After watching little her help Adora onto the skiff, Catra made her way to the control office. 

As she suspected, Hordak struggled to control the day-to-day operations without his second-in-command, so no one had removed her credentials from the system. With a few keystrokes, she locked the landing gears on the rest of the skiffs and was in the process of disabling the guidances systems of the larger vessels when the door burst open. 

“Ha! Knew I’d find you in here! Always were a coward, huh, kitty cat?” Octavia loomed in the doorway, her one good eye gleaming with perverse pleasure. 

“Hey, Octavia, how’re things looking these days?” Catra backed off the control panel, but not without tearing at the guidance system with her claws. “Are you sure you want to do this? You’ve only got one eye left.” 

Octavia let out a scream before lunging at Catra. Catra launched herself over the older woman, managing to scrape her claws along the top of her head in the process. She darted out of the control room but found the small group of guards waiting for her with an unfortunate assortment of stun sticks and guns. 

“Aw crap.” 

Her eyes darted around the room, but it was too open. There wasn’t much in the way of barriers to stop a well-placed blaster shot. She was screwed. This was it. 

“Hands up, traitor,” one of the men yelled, brandishing his gun violently. 

In that split second, Catra decided it would be better to go out fighting than however Hordak wanted to torture her. She started to lunge towards the guards when a tentacle caught her around the neck. She thrashed desperately against Octavia, her claws slashing at whatever she could reach. 

“What are you morons waiting for, shoot her!” Octavia screamed as she pulled Catra into a headlock. “Aw, look, mongrel, there’s no one here to save you now. Your dumb little girlfriend’s not he-” 

Boom! 

The ground shook violently as one of the tanks went off. The shot seemed to land just in the middle of the guards, scattering them. Muffled curses and cries of pain echoed in the hanger. 

Catra sunk her teeth into one of Octavia’s tentacles with as much force as she could muster, causing the woman to drop her. She spat out the chunk of tentacle she had taken with her in disgust. 

“Wooohooo! Told you I could use a tank, ‘Dora!” Catra’s focus snapped to the tank that had fired and sure enough, there the little version of her was peering out of the tank. “Hey, you guys!” She called to the disoriented guards. Those who were still standing turned to face the seven-year-old in the tank only to be immediately hit with another barrage. 

“I swear to whoever, I’m going to kill that girl,” Catra hissed as she bounded across the hanger, avoiding the guards lying prone on the ground. “Catra, get out of the damned tank!” 

“This is so cool!” 

Catra scaled the tank easily, grabbing the little girl by the scruff of her neck and pulling her from the tank. “You can play with tanks when you’re older.” Catra tucked her under her arm and ran as fast as she could towards the skiff, but it was so far away and the kid was slowing her down. 

An impact behind her nearly singed off her tail as she leapt forward to avoid the projectiles from what had to have been a grenade launcher. Searing heat curled up her spine as a skiff she sprinted past caught alight. 

Octavia stumbled forward, a frighteningly large gun in her remaining tentacles. With a fearsome scowl on her face, she aimed it towards Catra. Her heart skipped a beat as she tried to speed up. Then Octavia moved it towards the skiff and Catra’s heart practically stopped. 

“Adora! Get going! Go! Take off!” She screamed, veering off towards where she hoped the skiff would end up. Thankfully, as always, Adora was very prepared and the skiff slightly unsteadily moved out of the hanger. 

It was floating just a few feet out of the hanger, but if Catra mistimed the jump, she and her little self would have a very long drop down and even a cat can’t land on her feet from that height. 

She could vaguely hear her little self whimpering under her arm while Octavia’s gun revved up behind them. With a short inhale, Catra launched herself at the skiff, digging her three sets of remaining claws into the metal with a groan. Barely steadying herself, she let her younger self go and shoved little Adora off the rudder. Pushing all her weight into the rudder, she forced the skiff to drop elevation rapidly in time for Octavia’s projectile to whistle past their heads into the muck of the Fright Zone. 

 The two girls clutched at each other desperately, their eyes shimmering with tears as Catra pressed on the gas. The skiff shuddered momentarily before shooting forward. 

Her breath didn’t even out until they reached the empty green space that divided the Fright Zone from that stupid forest. They just had to get into the forest and then they’d be safe. 

“Old me let me drive a tank! Can you believe it, ‘Dora?” Little Catra was the first to speak as the skiff sped over the land, her hands still clutching at little Adora’s shirt. 

Catra bit her cheek at the memory of saying almost those exact same words to the present day Adora last year. These two were so innocent and happy. And everything would eventually go wrong and they’d want to kill each other. 

While Catra would want to kill Adora, but she wasn’t sure if Adora actually felt the same way. It sure seemed like she did when she went all glowy giant lady, but just plain Adora… that was a different story. Catra shook her head violently. That wasn’t important. What was important was getting the kids away from the Fright Zone. Even the thought of what Hordak might have done if he had discovered the younger versions of his failed second-in-command and the princess who had been tormenting his forces was darker than Catra wanted to let her mind go. He lacked the delicate manipulation of Shadow Weaver, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t cause a world of hurt. 

“I didn’t let you drive a tank, you dummy. You just went ahead and started firing.” 

“Well, Octavia is a dumb face.” 

Catra chuckled, steering the skiff towards the forest, “That she is, kid. That she is.”

[shera-dnd]

A Touch of Love

Finally the third and final chapter of A Touch of Glitter

Just kidding I’m gonna make an epilogue, because I want more happy glitras in my life

Also this chapter has no smut, but I’m gonna put it behind the read more link, because it is long af

The last few missions had gone great. The Princess Alliance had stopped the Evil Horde’s advance, they had won every battle and had finally started to push back, things were going perfect. Then why was Glimmer getting berated right now? Could her mom seriously not see the amazing work she was doing?

“And I know you have a grudge against that Catra girl” The queen continued, the mention of her lover’s name snapping the princess into attention “But you cannot just teleport away to fight her every time you see each other. You shouldn’t leave your friends behind and just put yourself in danger like that”

Fighting wasn’t exactly what they were doing when Glimmer teleported them away - unless taming Catra usual brattiness counted as fighting - but she was not gonna tell her mom any of that, so she simply groaned and nodded along.

Without Glimmer’s usual arguments to fuel to discussion, Queen Angella eventually ran out of things to say and allowed her daughter to return to her chambers for the night and as Glimmer walked through the castle’s corridors, her mind wandered to the one place it always did.

It had been weeks since Catra’s little breaking and entering incident and since then they have spent as much time as they could together. They would leave in the middle of a battle to go make out, Catra would visit Glimmer’s room at night to cuddle, they would meet in the Whispering Woods to just walk and talk about their lives and of course, there were all the other fun things they did together, but Glimmer would rather save those thoughts for once she was alone in her room.

Glimmer’s chamber was still just as messy as it was when she left it days ago. Her mother prohibited the castle staff from cleaning it as it was Glimmer’s responsibility to do so. This proved to be quite the blessing these past few weeks as there was no one to catch Catra sleeping on her bed from time to time or the bra that went missing after Catra threw it with particular enthusiasm or the belt Glimmer forgot still tied to her bedpost and now there was no one but her to catch Catra’s tail hanging from her bed.

“Someone got here early” Glimmer greeted jokingly. She teleported up behind Catra and reached to hug the other girl “Couldn’t wait to get some…” Her voice died down as she noticed how Catra held herself, her arms crossed defensively, her ears and tail hanging low as she tried to make herself look small “Is everything okay?”

Catra wordlessly leaned back so Glimmer could hold her. The princess kissed the top of her lovers head and held her protectively in her arms. Catra relaxed in Glimmer’s embrace, sighing as she rested against Glimmer’s body. 

“Shadow Weaver will be taken to Beast Island tomorrow” Catra stated, sounding exhausted.

“That is good, right?” Glimmer tried. Both Catra and Adora had told her stories about that woman and Glimmer would be more than happy to see that witch go away “She won’t be there to hurt you anymore”

“She can still be useful” Catra defended.

“But is it worth the risk?’ She argued “She is dangerous”

“So what?” Catra challenged, pushing herself away from Glimmer “I’m dangerous too, but you’re not sending me away” 

“Catra” Glimmer called, reaching for her, but Catra flinched away “She made your life miserable” 

“I know!” Catra shouted back. She froze, lowering her voice again so they wouldn’t get caught “But I can still...I’m not sending her away, okay?’

“Why are you defending her?” Glimmer asked, her voice heavy with worry.

“Does it matter?” Catra responded, looking away from Glimmer as she dodged the uncomfortable question.

It had become clear to her now. Shadow Weaver hadn’t just hurt Catra, she had sunk her claws so deep into the girl’s heart that she could no longer see herself without her. No matter how toxic and how hurtful Shadow Weaver was, Catra would desperately chase after her love and approval. Glimmer could feel her heart sink.

Glimmer reached for Catra again, her hand running through the white tufts of her hair. Catra leaned in, Glimmer’s touch melting away her worries once more. She leaned towards the princess, allowing the softness of her touch to overcome her worries as Glimmer cradled her face.

“Whatever you do, Catra” Glimmer began. Her touch remained soft, but her tone was resolute “Don’t let her hurt you again. I cannot stand to watch you get hurt” Catra was taken aback by Glimmer’s words, unable to do anything but look in her eyes “Promise me, Catra” She repeated.

“I promise” Catra sighed. She looked away again “Do you mind if we don’t do anything today? I’m not in the mood”

“That is okay” Glimmer assured her “Cuddle night?’ She proposed

“Cuddle night” She agreed, leaning in to give Glimmer a kiss. It was soft and hesitant in a way only Catra’s kisses could be, wordlessly asking to be loved and cared for, something Glimmer would always be happy to do.

~~~

Catra had spent far too long trying to rationalize what she was doing. Why she was still visiting Shadow Weaver’s cell, why she hid her sorcerer badge in her rations, why she still listened to that woman, why she clung to any chance to save someone who would leave her to die without a second thought. She had given up on that effort. There was no point in asking why she did what she did.

Now she clung desperately to Shadow Weaver’s words, hoping that maybe there was even a scrap of love hidden in what she said. There never was, but maybe this time, maybe after Catra did so much to help her she would finally see her value.

“Come closer” her words drew Catra in, she stepped forward, sitting next to her and allowing her hand to touch the white tufts of her hair. This felt wrong.

A wave of revulsion washed over Catra. She slapped Weaver’s hand away and pushed herself back up. There was something profoundly wrong here, she got what she wanted, right? Then why did she suddenly feel like she was gonna be sick.

“What is wrong?” Shadow Weaver asked, sounding almost caring. No, that was wrong too, her tone was cold, calculated, there was no comfort there, only the deliberate prodding at the cracks in Catra’s armor.

“Never touch me again” Catra growled back. Her words cracking the mask of care Shadow Weaver had so carefully crafted, leaving only the anger and cruelty Catra had been so used to seeing.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Shadow Weaver demanded, but she was in no position to demand anything “I try to show care for you once and that is how you repay me”

“You wouldn’t know the first thing about caring for someone” Catra snarled “You put that act of being so loving and nurturing of your little pupils, but you never loved anyone”

Shadow Weaver chuckled.

“So that is what this is about. You think you know love?” She asked, sounding amused “Whoever it is you fell for, girl, don’t bother. No one could ever love you anyway” 

Catra wanted to lash out, to hurt her and make her pay, but Beast Island would do worse to her and there was a better way of getting to Shadow Weaver. Catra stepped on Weaver’s rations, the badge cracking under her foot and releasing a strange blue dust. So that is why she wanted that badge so badly. Catra made a point of swirling her foot around so the dust got mixed with the food.

“Oops” Catra mocked “I hope you weren’t planning on using that for anything”

Shadow Weaver was too stunned to react, there were no words left to challenge Catra now, but even then there was a satisfaction in watching her eyes going wide. Catra wiped her foot clean and marched out of the cell, not bothering to look at her prisoner again and with any luck that would be the last she saw of Shadow Weaver.

Catra maintained her composure as she marched through the corridors of the Fright Zone and made her way to her private accommodations. She checked if no one else was there, locked the door with mechanical movements, and promptly collapsed onto her bed. She couldn’t allow anyone to see her being weak like that, only Glimmer got to see her being vulnerable, but she wasn’t here right now.

Tears ran down Catra’s face. She cried for she was free of Shadow Weaver, but also because she lost the person she had spent her whole life trying to impress. She cried because she truly loved Glimmer, but how could she keep fighting now that she loved her worst enemy? Now that everything she ever wanted in life stood between her and happiness. So her crying grew louder, she cried because she didn’t know what to do, because she was lost, because she was a failure.

Catra didn’t know how long she stayed like that, it was like the whole world had dissolved into tears and nothing else existed beyond this room. A knock on the door and the call of a familiar voice the only things to drag Catra from her stupor.

“Hey, Wildcat, is everything okay?” Scorpia asked, full of worry, her kindness was more than Catra could handle right now.

“Go away!” Catra commanded, using as much composure as she could muster. It was not much.

“If there is any problem you know you can trust me, right?” Scorpia insisted, but Catra knew that if she tried she would just end up getting hurt too.

“Just leave!” She shouted this time, composure thrown to the winds.

“Please just let me help you. I’m sure there is something I-”

“I love someone else, Scorpia” Catra declared. She had to stop this, she couldn’t just lead Scorpia on like that. For a moment she thought that was enough, that this was finally what pushed Scorpia away and the silence that followed nearly confirmed that for her.

“And she is lucky to have you” Scorpia finally said “but she isn’t here right now, so please just let me help, as a friend” Of course that wouldn’t be enough, Scorpia was loyal to the end and she would help Catra even if she never had a chance with her.

Catra sighed and walked over to unlock the door.

“Get in” She asked and turned back to fall on the bed again.

“What happened?” Scorpia asked as she entered the room “I heard you left Shadow Weaver’s cell looking ready to murder someone”

“Shadow Weaver is getting sent to Beast Island” for the second time in the last day.

“Wasn’t she already getting sent there?” Scorpia asked, a little confused.

“I was trying to save her, to prove that she was still useful” Catra admitted, staring at the ceiling “Like this was somehow gonna make her respect me. Shows you how much of a fool I am”

“Catra, you don’t need her respect” Scorpia assured her “And she is the fool here”

“You don’t get it” Catra challenged “She tried to manipulate me, use me, and I almost let her”

“But you didn’t” Scorpia argued “That has to count for something” Catra remained silent, unable to find her words “What did she do?” Scorpia finally asked that dreadful question

“She tried to trick me, pretend she loved me, but she doesn’t know what love feels like” ‘but now I do’ the words were left unsaid, but there was a certain understanding in Scorpia’s eyes.

“I’m glad she helped you, even without being here”  She said, reaching out for Catra’s hand.

“Thanks” She sighed, holding Scorpia’s pincer “I’m sorry I had to break the news like that”

“What? Pfft” Scorpia waved off “What are a few broken romantic dreams between friends?” She joked, there was some hurt in her voice, but it was overwhelmed by the simple joy of helping a friend “I’m just glad you have Adora to help you”

“Adora?” Catra asked, completely confused “Why the fuck would Adora help me?”

“Isn’t she the person you love?” Scorpia asked. Catra simply stared at her like she had gone mad “You were childhood friends, you know everything about each other”

“Yeah, but she doesn’t get me” Catra explained, like it was the most obvious thing “Not like Glimmer does at least”

“Wait! Hold on!” Scorpia interrupted, completely baffled by what she just heard “Princess Glimmer? Angry, bratty, loud and obnoxious. That Glimmer?” Catra was painfully aware that Scorpia was just echoing Catra’s words.

“Yes, that Glimmer” Catra declared, annoyed “And you take that shit back. Only I get to call her out like that”

“Wow, you really do love her” Scorpia stated, realization hitting her and bringing along a wave of strong emotions. She pulled Catra into a bear hug “I’m so happy you two have each other”

“Personal space” Catra pleaded, trying to escape Scorpia’s arms “And we don’t have each other. Last time I checked we were still enemies”

“Oh” The sound dropped from Scorpia’s mouth, just as Catra dropped from her arms “So let’s fix that then”

“What?” Catra asked, caught by surprise

“Let’s go meet her” Scorpia offered “Then you can declare your love for her and you two can be together”

“I can’t just leave!” Catra defended “I’m a Force Captain. I have a job, I have goals. I can’t toss everything aside for one princess”

“Catra, has any of that ever made you happy?” Scorpia asked, taking both of her friend’s hands in her pincers “Your job, your dreams, the Horde, did any of that ever bring you any joy?” Catra didn’t know how to answer that, so she looked away “This is happiness, Catra, I know it’s a little different from what you expected, but you should still take it”

Tears returned to Catra’s eyes as she heard Scorpia echo the same words Glimmer had told her during their first night together.

“I’m such a stubborn idiot” Catra chuckled “Scorpia, help me pack my stuff”

Scorpia gave her a beaming smile, before running around the room trying to organize all of Catra’s stuff for their trip to Bright Moon. As Scorpia packed up her stuff Catra took off her headpiece and gave her one last long look, the mask she only took off when she was alone or with Glimmer. She dropped it on the floor. She wasn’t gonna need it anymore.

[glitradora]

AU where Adora stays with the Horde after finding the sword, and Scorpia decides the Horde is evil so joins the Rebellion, and Catra goes with her after feeling more left out than ever thanks to Shadow Weaver making her feel worse when Adora comes back with the sword and everyone fussing over them so Adora has less time with Catra.

send me an AU and i’ll tell you my headcanons for it

more hc posts

((This starts kinda on Adora’s POV but under read more (cause it’s long af) it becomes really Catra centric. Also, I lowkey love this Au anon thank you so much for sending it. tw: abuse mention (same as the show) ))

When Adora goes back for the sword, the sword she can’t stop thinking about because she’s sure she saw it that morning, Catra is 100% up for it.

She was never one to shy away from adventure - especially if it meant leaving the Horde’s base and Shadow Weaver’s wrath even if for a few moments.

Adora doesn’t want to get her into even more trouble - the two of them are always in trouble and it normally comes down to Adora’s ideas.

Plus it will be a lot easier to sneak out and back in without Catra

(And she could do without colliding with a tree and falling off a cart for the second time that thank you very much)

But Catra looked so happy after they got out and the whole time after they come back

Plus who knows how long she will have to spend with Catra after she becomes Force Captain - hopefully, she can still convince Shadow Weaver to reconsider and make Catra her second in command, but that will take at least a few weeks of buttering up.

So she agrees and they sneak off (Adora refuses to take one of the hover carts so they go on foot)

When the fight with Glimmer and Bow for the sword happens they’re a lot more equally matched. Adora and Catra even almost win - that is until Adora touches the sword and passes out, in her worry to see if Adora is ok Catra is captured as well.

The following scenes are pretty much the same as in the actual first episode. Glimmer is all happy that she has two captures and a first one’s tech.

Bow is a sweetheart and trying to make mindless conversation while making sure Adora and Catra don’t get hurt while going through the forest

When they find the destroyed city, however - Adora is really the only one surprised (and disbelieving)

“This doesn’t make any sense - the Horde would never do something like this” - Those words make Catra stare, is Adora crazy? Is she really so dumb to believe all they were training for was for peace? The way they had been treated all their lives (or at least the way Catra had been treated - hadn’t given her a clue?)

Her confusion is voiced but not by her, the boy speaks up instead and Catra just watches on from the sidelines “Did you really not know any of this? I mean, your army is called the Evil Horde”

Catra would have chuckled at that if Adora didn’t immediately use her angry voice “Who calls us that?”

Catra decides following sparkly is better than hearing more of this. She feels nauseated. How can Adora have never noticed? She knows Adora gets treated better than most at the Horde - being Shadow Weaver’s favorite - but she had been there for most of Catra’s pain. Had been her shoulder to cry on afterward.

She’s halfway there when Glimmer passes by her running and screaming - and if there’s one thing Catra learned is that first you hide and second ask for an explanation.

It’s hard to do much with her hands tied but she’s still able to jump and hide in one of the tree branches as the creature runs past into the clearing where Adora and the other two are.

The fight is fast enough - and she smiles excitedly when Adora grabs the sword. They can finally leave - and with that thing, they will for sure both be promoted.

But Adora is and will always be Adora so of course, she has to try and save the two people who captured them.

Catra even tries to scream her name - but it’s like Adora doesn’t even listen to her.

Or at least for as long as she’s still Adora. Because as Catra looks on a bright blue light covers the whole clearing and Adora’s place is standing a - well a really tall and longed hair Adora-esque person.

They manage to escape shortly after Adora detransforms and the monster comes back to life. While they’re running away Catra pulls Adora off track the last second before the clift their once captures falling down before they can do much of anything about this.

Once back in the Horde Catra is punished for being outside of premise but Adora gets a promotion. She gets a private chat with Hordak himself and once she comes out she brings someone with her.

“Catra, this is Scorpia she will be joining our team”

“Our team?”

“Yeah, Hordak agreed to you being my second in command isn’t that awesome? That reminds me I have to go Shadow Weaver wanted to help me train with the sword”

Catra doesn’t have much more time to ask anything because she’s being hugged by the overly happy girl Adora just introduced her too.

The following weeks run pretty much normal. Except she sees less and less of Adora as time goes on. And more and more of Scorpia. It comes to a point where she’s spending every waking and sleeping moment with Scorpia and seeing Adora only on the battlefield.

Second in command doesn’t even seem to mean she gets to know the strategies beforehand.

I’d even argue she gets closer to Scorpia than in the show - because in the show what’s stopping Catra is Adora’s betrayal and how she found Evil done to others worst than Evil done to Catra.

What stops Catra from forming pure friendship bonds in the show is that the only bond like that she had before (Adora) left her and chose new friends over her and so Catra as a defense mechanism closes herself off from becoming too attached to either Scorpia or Entrapta.

But here she just has a friend slowly having less time for her - there was no betrayal per se.

Adora becoming Force Captain and even more of a star of the Horde is not a surprise to Catra - and when they do have time together Adora is still Adora. Kind and Happy and Playful Adora. She just has less of this time.

And Scorpia is Kind and Happy and maybe a little extreme but Catra has always been a little extreme too. Catra has always been looked down upon by the other recruits for being odd. So they share secrets and insecurities and Catra (the same way as Adora in the actual show) life begins to have more in it than just Adora.

Which is why, despite how difficult it is. And how much it hurts her to have to choose between the two most important people in her life

When Scorpia stops in the middle of battle - eyes wide and trembling all over - and runs off into the woods Catra follows. At first just to make sure she’s ok. Scorpia is a soft heart. Catra learned that. She’s someone who would have been better off away from the fights. But her parents had given the land to the Horde so she never had a choice. She just needs a second to collect herself. Maybe if they take long enough they can sneak back once it’s over and no one will notice the difference.

There’s one problem in that logic you see: Scorpia is not hurt like Catra expected. Scorpia is pissed. And Catra never saw Scorpia even slightly mad at something. So this is concerning.

She’s mad because there were children there. Because as she was taking rebels out of a house as she was instructed to she opened the house to find only kids under 8 or 9. The oldest of whom where trying to defend the youngest with all they could find - sticks and rocks in trembling little hands.

She was mad because this war wasn’t fair and kids should have never had had a part in any of it

She was mad because at first, she couldn’t believe the rebels were hiding behind little kids until she remembered that the Horde had done the same to her and Catra and all the others.

She was mad because some part of her mind remembered this place - the booming city it used to be, full of life and happiness and not war.

She was mad because the Horde shouldn’t be attacking civilians.

Catra understood her anger, in a way. Perhaps she had lost compassion long ago for others and that’s why it didn’t bother her much anymore. Because not doing as she was told hurt Catra or Adora in the end. And that had been the only thing that mattered until a few weeks ago. Protect herself and protect Adora.

But hearing Scorpia - someone she had grown to care about a lot too cares so much. Was starting to turn something in Catra.

Slowly.

She manages to calm Scorpia down - it takes a bit and as they make their way back the battle is long over. And everyone is long gone. Almost.

They’re greeted by Shadow Weaver, who like usual blames it all on Catra. Catra is used to it and is almost glad that after all that Scorpia doesn’t have to suffer more today. Except the pain she’s expecting never comes. After the first slap after which the dark magic would come there’s nothing but a crash to the floor and a claw grabbing her hand and running.

It’s not until she’s at the tree line on the other side looking back over her shoulder while still running to keep up with Scorpia she realized Shadow Weaver is on the floor, her mask broken as she screams after them. Catra doesn’t look back after that and puts all she has into running.

They spend the first couple of nights in the wandering woods. Sleeping in turns, grabbing strange fruits that Scorpia sorta remembers being ok for food. They have no idea what to do. Scorpia is a princess with no kingdom and no allies and Catra is a nobody.

It isn’t until day 3 or 4 when they’re both exhausted and hungry that Catra tells Scorpia about the two rebels she met when Adora found the sword.

They both doubt that they will take them- but Bright Moon is the closest kingdom, and one Scorpia knows the basic route too. So they give it a go.

And it takes a few weeks for everyone in Bright Moon to warm up to the guest and trust them. But they give them shelter and food and Scorpia and Catra are both more than happy to sit out fighting and state secrets for a long while - maybe forever.

The strange boy - Bow, Catra comes to find out - is the most welcoming the fastest and him and Scorpia make fast friends with their big personalities and Happy dispositions. He’s kind and the grumpy princess comes with him more often than not even if she stares at them a bit weird for a bit longer.

Over time they share a bit of their stories and even Glimmer’s features soften and then harden in even more hatred of the Horde.

She only sees Adora almost 2 months later. Catra and Glimmer are out going to an old battle site so they can try and retrieve one of the Horde robots - Catra fought them enough times to be able to possibly help the Rebellion study them and make preparations.

Adora is there, with a small group and when she sees Catra is just like they were children again. She’s happy and then calls out to Glimmer “to release her immediately as she will show no mercy for captures”

Catra never expected to fight Adora- if you had told her at any point in her life she and Adora would be on opposing sides she would have laughed in your face.

But here she is and Glimmer is telling Adora to fuck off and protecting Catra with all she has so what choice does she really have? Glimmer is her friend. Bow is her friend. Scorpia is her friend. And all of them have protected her a million times more in the last few months that Adora has their whole lives.

And it’s not her fault Catra came to later accept. The Horde was hard for everyone and she doesn’t think Adora even noticed Catra’s life and place in the Horde was completely different from her own. Shadow Weaver fully controlled her thoughts.

But right now Catra is fighting for herself, and for her friends. And she’ll convince Adora to see the right side at some point. But for now, she needs to protect her new life.

[lucky-clover-gazette]

catnip

fic request by aliciachan-rp:

Catra gets her hands on catnip. Adora has to keep her out of trouble and away from shadoweaver until it wears off.

catradora | 1754 words | fluff & angst

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Adora had just wanted to stretch after her three-minute nightly shower. Training had been ridiculously stressful today—Shadow Weaver herself had been in attendance, reporting presumably to Hordak. So Adora had gone hard… perhaps too hard, she reflected, as she flexed her leg on her bed, her muscles aching.

“Heyyyyyyyy Adora,” said a voice from behind her back, somehow lacking its usual snarky resonance. Adora raised an eyebrow and turned to face Catra, who leaned against the bunk bed’s post, arms crossed over her chest.

“Where were you today?” Adora demanded, her face quickly turning red. “Shadow Weaver was observing!”

If this surprised Catra, her face didn’t show it. Instead, she just smirked, flashing a sarcastic peace sign instead.

“Was a ‘lil busy today, Dora,” she said, leaning harder against the post. She then stumbled and started to giggle.

Adora scowled. Catra never giggled. Something was definitely wrong.

“What were you doing?” Adora asked, her muscles sore as she stood. She wrapped her arm around Catra’s waist, and the other girl instantly leaned into her, as though by instinct. Adora sat them down, together, so they both sat on the bed’s edge.

Catra smiled serenely and fell into Adora’s lap. Adora, although surprised by this, certainly wasn’t opposed. She began to stroke Catra’s nest of hair as she continued her interrogation.

“Catra, seriously. What’s going on?”

Catra sighed and nuzzled closer. “You’re gonna be mad.”

“Maybe,” Adora said fairly.

Catra groaned and lifted her head, her heterochromatic eyes wide. “I got catnip,” she admitted.

“What?!” Adora exclaimed, pushing Catra off, perhaps a little too hard. “How—who—why—”

Catra rubbed her head and supported her own weight. “I was nervous, last night, about Shadow Weaver’s observation. So I talked to this guy in Unit B, and traded him yesterday’s rations for a baggie…”

“Catra!” Adora scolded. “You need that food to stay strong! And… shit, Catra, you missed the observation, anyway!”

“I know,” Catra said, stretching her arms out in front of her. Suddenly, she became very interested in her own hands. “The whole day’s been kind of a blur, to be honest.”

“How much did you take?”

“The whole baggie,” Catra said. “What, did you want some?”

“NO!” Adora shouted, perhaps a little too loud. Other cadets were beginning to file in for bedtime, also having showered after the simulation. Catra shushed Adora sarcastically, falling on her back onto the bed. Adora sighed and joined her, turning her head so she could face Catra.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Adora said. “You could have told me you were nervous.”

“Pshhhh. I don’t care about anything.”

“Sure, Catra. Sure you don’t.”

Catra froze, as though she suddenly remembered something very important. Her eyes wide again, she brought her hands to Adora’s face, gently caressing one cheek.

“Oh, wait,” Catra said. “I care about you, Adora. Adorable Adora.”

Adora rolled her eyes, but yet again did not pull away. “You’re high.”

“High on luuuuurrrrrrrvvvvveee,” Catra purred, her face making its way to Adora’s neck, already planting small, intimate kisses there.

Adora blushed as the other girl pressed up against her. A sober Catra would never do this at any time but the dead of night, when the others were asleep—there was something so exciting about debauchery so early in the evening.

But, still. Something bothered her.

“Catra,” Adora said softly. Catra didn’t listen, instead using the tiniest bit of teeth to mark Adora’s flesh. Adora frown and moved away, only slightly. “Catra.”

The other girl looked up, disappointed, like a child denied a toy. “Was I doing a bad job?”

Adora groaned. “No, that’s not—trust me, that’s not it. You’re…”

“Yeah,” Catra said, a naughty grin on her face. “I like it, too.”

“Listen,” Adora said, checking around the room for the other cadets, who for the most part seemed wrapped up in their own affairs. “We’re eighteen now. You can’t just be skipping out of exercises. Any day now, one of us could be promoted to Force Captain.”

“You mean you,” Catra whined. “It’s gonna be you.”

Adora frowned. “You don’t mean that.”

Catra looked at her dryly, the most sober she’d been since she entered the barracks. “Uh, yeah. Yeah, I do.”

Adora groaned. “Well, you’re definitely not gonna get it if you skip observations.”

Catra frowned, crossed her arms over her chest, and turned away from Adora. “Hmph,” she said as Adora tapped her shoulder. “Now you’ve made me sad. I feel unwelcome in my own bed.”

“This literally isn’t your bed.”

“Right,” Catra said stiffly, surprisingly affected. “Guess I’ll just go to mine.”

And with that, she climbed up to her top mattress, rarely occupied, most likely covered in dust.

Adora frowned with confusion. Had she actually hurt Catra’s feelings? She did seem more emotional and vulnerable on the catnip…

Adora grunted with soreness as she hoisted herself onto the top bunk, where Catra laid on her said, facing away from her. Adora spooned the cat-girl and patiently waited for any response.

The twitching of her ear was a good sign. Adora pressed herself tight to Catra’s form and scratched just where she liked. After a few seconds, she was pleased to hear the involuntary purrs.

“Damn it, Adora,” Catra murmured. “You never come up here.”

“Well, to be fair,” Adora whispered in Catra’s ear, “neither do you.”

Catra smirked and relaxed. “I think I’m coming down. I feel all weak and weepy.”

“Shhh,” Adora said, pressing a chaste kiss to the crown of Catra’s head. “I’ve got you now.”

“Promise?”

“Yes.”

“Mm.”

“And Catra?” Adora said, pulling at the other girl’s body so she faced her. Catra blinked once, twice.

“Yeah?”

Adora kissed Catra deeply, biting her lip for a few seconds before letting go. “No more catnip, okay?”

“Y-yeah,” Catra shuddered. “For sure.”

“Because your breath fucking sucks.”

Catra laughed, a full belly-laugh, and took Adora’s face in her hands. “You’re such a—”

“ADORA!”

Adora turned her head and froze; standing below the top bunk, dark forms in her wake, was Shadow Weaver herself. She felt Catra disappear below the covers behind her, her petite form undetectable.

Adora sat up and tried her best to act normal. “Shadow Weaver,” she breathed. “Can I… can I help you?”

“Have you seen Catra?” the red-masked woman demanded. Adora shook her head furiously.

“No, ma’am, I have not.”

Adora’s face turned white as she felt Catra shaking furiously against her. She reached her hand beneath the covers and met with Catra’s. She squeezed, hard.

“She wasn’t in training today,” Shadow Weaver said.

“Maybe she’s sick,” Adora postulated.

“Then why are you in her bed?”

Adora felt Catra breathe against her, so vulnerable and afraid. She knew that Shadow Weaver had a special penchant for abusing the scrappy cat-girl, ever since they were kids. Catra rarely ever opened up about it, but when she did… well, it was horrifying. It made Adora want to change things in the Horde, make them better. Teach Shadow Weaver more caring ways. She certainly didn’t loathe the woman who had raised her from infancy, but she wouldn’t call her feelings for Shadow Weaver love, either.

Her feelings for Catra, however…

“Fine,” Adora said, “you got me.”

She hopped off the bunk, Catra’s bumpy form still undetectable in the mess of covers.

“What are you talking about?” Shadow Weaver demanded, as Adora stared at the ground in shame.

“I told Catra the wrong time for the observation,” Adora lied, “so she wouldn’t out-perform me.”

Shadow Weaver didn’t respond for a very long time. “And… why were you in her bed?”

Adora shrugged. “We’re having a prank war in the barracks. Lohni sprayed my bed with stinky sap, and laundry day isn’t until next week.”

Shadow Weaver nodded, although she certainly didn’t seem very convinced. “Very well,” she said. She began to leave, but then stopped and turned back around. “And Adora?”

“Yeah?” Adora said, her heart in her throat.

“You mustn’t worry about Catra out-performing you. She is nothing compared to you. She is nothing on her own.”

Adora winced but tried to not to show it. Shadow Weaver left as abruptly as she had arrived.

Gently, wordlessly, Adora climbed back into bed on the top bunk. She found Catra there, curled into a ball, still completely under the covers.

“Hey,” Adora said as she heard the unmistakable quiet sobs. “Shhh. I’m here. I’m here.”

“T-that’s the problem,” Catra said. “She’ll never… she’ll never see me…”

“Shhh,” Adora continued, snuggling closer. She held tighter than she ever had. “Shhhh, Catra. I see you. I see you. She doesn’t matter.”

“I j-just want it all to stop. T-that’s why I… got the catnip.”

“I know. I know.”

Catra finally revealed herself from the covers, her face stained with tears. She leaned into Adora again, voice quiet and intimate.

“I’ll never be what she wants me to be.”

Adora stroked her hair and pressed her to her chest. “You’re everything, Catra.”

“You’re j-just saying that to make me feel better.”

Adora was surprised to realize that tears were running down her own cheeks. “No, Catra. I love you. I love you, you stoned-off-your-ass cat.”

“I love you too,” Catra said, her voice barely a whisper. “Always have.”

“I… I know.”

They laid there for a few minutes, pressed as tightly as possible, until Catra finally looked up.

“Thanks for covering for me,” she said earnestly. “If she’d found out about this… I’d have been kicked out of the horde. Or worse.”

Adora winced, imagining the abuse. “I’ll never let her hurt you.”

“I actually believe you.”

Adora sighed and looked down. “Now, come on,” she said, already lowering herself to the bottom bunk. Catra sat up slowly, craving more of Adora’s touch. Her expression softened as she realized Adora’s intention.

She climbed down and met Adora on the bottom bunk, regarding the etched drawing of the pair for only a second. They settled into each other and pulled the covers over their entangled forms.

On any other night, Catra would have stayed up late after Adora, watching her serene form after she rested from a long day of kicking ass. Eventually she’d settle at the foot of the bed instead, closer to the door but farther from her love, just in case Shadow Weaver decided to make an appearance. Keeping watch. Standing guard.

But tonight, she was still coming down. So she snuggled closer to Adora, purred deeply, and fell into the deepest sleep she’d had in years.

[cloudybookash-blog]

Just finished the first season of She-Ra and I only have a small amount of complaints that I think fall more into my personal opinion on characterizations and story lines than anything else. 

Love that the princesses that are there from the beginning are cute, gay and happy. Love that for them.

Love the diversity. Glimmer is body divergent but it never addressed as something inherently bad, or as a flaw - homegirl just look like that. Beau (Bo?) being part of the princesses because he is, and all his little background mannerisms where he’s seen cleaning and keeping things neat. 

Scorpia’s entire personality is the greatest, she’s such a realistic character who belongs to a family that gave their allegiance and power source to the horde willingly and she prides herself in her role by taking care of her troops and running a tight ship whilst also being one of the bad guys because well, she was never welcome with any of the other princesses. Her story is so believable and truly underrated. Plus, she’s just very nice. 

The other princesses having such a wide array of personalities (albeit without many complexities, I’ll admit) is refreshing. 

I’m a fan of the art-style, love all the pretty colors (and kind of reminds me of Steven Universe, ngl). Each setting has its own beautiful color palette, which is always helpful in identifying new places and remembering them when there are about 10.

My only problems really came in three (maybe four) people.

1. Adora. If anything I would’ve thought she’d make the perfect villain. First in everything, the favorite, constantly better than her peers with the emotional range of a teaspoon. Yes, yes, she’s fantastic with her new friends but we’ve seen better characters. She’s given multiple occasions to coerce her old crew into joining the rebellion but she never takes them, and when she does it’s done without heart, like I questioned her integrity a couple of times she just didn’t seem all that willing to help her old friends.

Yes, with Bow (apparently that’s how his name is spelled) and Glimmer she’s loyal and caring, thoughtful even. But none of that loyalty and thoughtfulness is present in her previous relationships. Upon finding out that the Horde is evil and that she more than likely was kidnapped as a young child (insinuating that almost EVERY horde soldier was stolen from their families) she doesn’t, not once, speak to her entire old crew and show them what she knows in a way that isn’t overtly condescending.

There’s a moment where I think Catra is going to join Adora, but even then, Adora is only bargaining, and asking Catra to join her because Catra is literally about to kill her. And EVEN THEN she barely tried, rather than apologising for not being aware enough when they were kids to stand up for Catra in a way that would’ve mattered to her, she just goes on about how Catra doesn’t have to do this. This forces Catra to give up her grounds has someone who’s been wronged because the wrong-does refuses to admit fault.

Like I said, my problems are probably all to do with personal preferences of characters. People probably view this as a unique flaw never really had in an MC before. Except, it’s pretty common in male MC’s in high fantasy’s. And I not only read a lot of those, but also hate them specifically because the characters have minimal self awareness and almost 0% integrity anytime they’re genuinely confronted with their flaws.

2. Catra. Listen, she would’ve been a GREAT She-Ra. You can’t deny it. She’s always coming in second best, she can never get ahead, she’s not only hated but has been actively tortured because of her ties to Adora. She’s been told the only reason she’s kept around is because Adora seems to like her. She’s literally alive because some six year old wanted a pet. She would be the first one to have zero (0) reasons to stay with the horde.

Her entire life has been spent in the shadow and to be able to be She-Ra, with enough support could bring her the confidence in her person she so sorely needs. We’ve seen she’s a great leader, although as a villain in a serial she’s obviously going to be beaten time and time again but she does actually have good plans and she has a flare for the dramatic. 

This isn’t Loki-style fanning over a ‘morally-grey’ character this is sadness at the fact people may interpret her character as, ‘people who are ambitious are evil, people who don’t conform to society, or aren’t very charming socially are evil’. Rather than we (the audience) should try being a little more aware of the people around us and how our actions can deeply effect them.

Catra’s personality and in the end her resolve is formed by the actions of Shadow Weaver, Adora, and her team. They bully, ostracize and abuse her (some, unknowingly of course) but that’ s the point. Her ‘evilness’ is brought on by years of people not being self-aware enough to understand the damage they were causing. She’s a great sympathetic villain, I don’t think I’ve ever even felt sympathy for a fictional ‘bad guy’ before so don’t get me wrong she’s fine in her role. I just, personally, would’ve enjoyed seeing her at the forefront of the rebellion rather than Adora.

With a personality that would’ve been open to an underdog scenario, and her persistent attitude (especially if this was fueled by people supporting and relying on her) she could’ve been a great She-Ra.

3. Entrapta. Again this is solely the whole how she’s going to perceived thing, ‘geeks and freaks are weird and societal outcasts are evil.’ It keeps up this narrative of only certain types of people are allowed to be good, there’s a check list of traits you have to have that are unrelated to your ideologies that decide which side you fight for.

Entrapta, like Catra, is treated like an outcast and always (in sinisterly subtle ways that are usually used as comedic relief) made to feel bad for who she is. She’s curious on top of everything else but the lesson we get about her story ark is curiosity killed the rebellion. It’s like saying ‘don’t be too curious’, otherwise you’ll end up with no morals and will be easily manipulated into joining the ‘evil people’.

When, again, the meaning should be that we REALLY need to put more effort into making those in our society who are different know and understand that they’re important. No, this doesn’t mean baby school shooter, incel type people or people who legitimately go out of their way to hurt others for no reason. But, we shouldn’t treat neuro-divergent people with such hostilities (subtle or otherwise) because then WE create the monster. Just as with Catra, Entrapta was created through the actions of her peers towards her person.

I can’t blame either of these villains for choosing the dark side, who wasn't to be good when the people on the good side don’t want you to be, well, YOU.

4. Decidedly, four things that bug me. Bow and Glimmers (already mentioned Adora’s part in this) and extendedly the other Princesses’ treatment of those in the horde they meet. One specific scene got me MAD. Bow is imprisoned and one of Adora’s ex-crew mates begins betraying his own just because Bow is the first person to actual listen and all this kid wants is to have friends, real friends that would do anything for one another and this poor kid is TRYING. Bow’s reaction was abysmal to say the least. At first, he cracks a joke that he doesn’t really have a choice as he’s imprisoned, we get it, funny ha-ha. But, he genuinely appears to believe that the only reason he’s listening is because he’s imprisoned, that he (who gave Adora her chance before even really getting to know her) wouldn’t give the exact same to this kid actively risking his life to relay information about Glimmer. 

Bow’s the puppy-love character whose flaw is (supposed to be) that he loves/trusts too easy. So why is he suddenly not listening to this kid just trying to have a friend who is actively helping Bow and is (possibly) the sole reason they find Glimmer in the end. Without his help there wouldn’t have been enough time to hack into the horde’s tech again to search for her. But, Bow doesn’t say anything when his rescue arrives AND THROWS THIS KID OFF A CLIFF MID-SENTENCE. I don’t know, that felt so wildly out of character.

Glimmer I understand more, she’s hotheaded and originally was VERY against Adora. It took a lot of life threatening situations for her to finally begin trusting Adora. Still, upon getting to know Adora, learning how horribly she was raised, the trauma it’s left her with, Glimmer (not for one seconds) questions whether they should MAYBE check on other horde members, no one should be kidnapped and raised in such an environment only to die for a regime that’s been lying to them. Yet, that’s exactly what happened.

Don’t get me wrong, these are four things that I pretty much understand have more to do with my preferences with characters and story-lines than anything else and like I said, the list (though detailed because I love being negative) is small in comparison to list of things that I like so far about the show. 

Just wanted to get that out there.

Also, does the Voltron fandom follow She-Ra because this ECHOES Voltron vibes and I honestly don’t see a reason why they shouldn’t also vehemently back this show (other than the straights that watch Voltron are too busy getting off on gay men to care or give any ground to a just as diverse, funny, cast that just so happens to have gender flipped the story.)