Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Every hero needs a sidekick, right?”

“Catra, no! That’s not how it was.” Adora’s voice quivered. Her fingers ached from holding her weight, but she didn’t dare try to raise her hands to the ledge in case the thin webbing broke from the strain.

Catra’s laugh sent a feeling of cold seep deep into her core. The laugh brought back memories, painful and half remembered, of when they were younger, weaker and desperate. It reminded her of when Catra was about to do something very, very bad.

Her attention was brought back to Catra when she crouched, leaning on her sword and steadily avoiding eye contact.

“The sad thing is, I’ve spent all this time hoping you’d come back to the Horde, when you leaving was the best thing that ever happened to me. I am so much stronger than anyone ever thought.”

The blade of She-Ra’s sword cut through the spider’s webs, and Adora’s heart jumped into her throat as she was left hanging from one arm above the seemingly endless abyss. Catra… wasn’t being serious, was she? She she had to be kidding, right? She wasn’t actually going to let her plummet to her death. But… she didn’t seem like she was kidding.

Catra glanced to the side, her expression turned melancholy and… something else. Something sharp and painful.

“I wonder what I could’ve been if I’d gotten rid of you sooner…” Catra finally looked at her, a sad smile now replacing the unreadable expression as she cut through the last of the webbing.

A shriek tore itself from her throat as she plummeted down, hands flailing for something, anything, to grab onto. Finally one hand found purchase on a tiny ledge, the sudden force of the stop making her arm feel like it got ripped out of it’s socket.

She looked desperately up at Catra standing above her, her sword in one hand, expression grim. The look made Adora feel sick.

“I am sorry!” she called out, heart clenching in fear and regret “I never meant to make you feel like you were second best!”

Even as she said that, the past slowly realigned itself, memories rearranging to bring forward in painful clarity every time she got praised while Catra stood behind, silent and ignored, every time she beat her in training and wrote off her quietness afterwards as tiredness, every time she took Catra’s word that she was ‘fine’.

“Please, don’t do this!”

Catra was still for one painful, suspenseful moment, then she raised her hand. The one holding her sword. It took a mere moment for Adora to realize what she was about to do.

“Wait, you can’t leave like this!”

Catra’s hand froze mid-swing. Her face finally lost it’s blankness, leaving an angry snarl in it’s place. She lowered her arm and crouched down and Adora fought to keep eye contact, even as her vision blurred.

“And why the hell not?” she hissed, leaning down and glaring at her.

“Because…” Adora trailed off, blinking the tears out of her eyes “Because I know you still care about me, deep down.”

There! Catra’s expression flickered for a split second before it went back to her snarl, but it was enough to encourage Adora to go on.

“Please don’t do this, you don’t have to do this. I just want to start over, can’t we start over? Don’t you remember all the times we talked about what our lives would be like if we’d just leave? Please, come with me.” she pleaded, desperately looking for any glimmer of care or friendship in her former friends gaze.

Catra looked away, shoulders hunching forward and expression tightening “You left me with no one, sorry doesn’t change that. Do you even know what it was like, going back to the Horde without you and having to explain how I failed over and over?”

Adora gulped and took a breath, letting it out slow as she tried to breathe through the tightness in her chest “I know I shouldn’t have just up and left you. I know saying sorry won’t undo what you went through. But please, Catra, I-” her voice broke, throat closing painfully for a moment “I miss you, so so much. Please, come back with me. We promised we’d look out for each other, didn’t we? Nothing bad can really happen as long as we have each other.”

Catra’s head whipped around to look down at her again, eyes widening as finally, finally , her blank mask was wiped away. Eyes wide, lip shaking, she stared down at her looking torn and in pain and so incredibly lost.

Catra let out an angry shout as she slammed the sword into the ground, hiding her face in her hands. Adora fought back the instinct to call out again, knowing it was better to let Catra work through it instead of interrupting and inevitably getting that anger aimed at her when she was dangling at the edge of a cliff. Even if her arm did feel like it was about to fall off.

Finally, Catra’s shoulders slumped as she looked at her, resigned.

“Out of all the things you could have said, and you went with that.”

For a split second Adora thought Catra was going to leave her there, but the she leaned onto her stomach and reached down, grabbing her wrist and pulling her up.

And suddenly they were face to face, Adora still blinking through her tears and Catra avoiding her gaze, both of them stil gripping eachothers hands like a lifeline. Finally, Catra growled and pulled her hand away, getting up and walking towards the broken achway.

“Let’s just get out of here.”

Adora was left to scramble after her, having to double back to grab her sword, feeling only a little guilty to nearly have left it behind. As she turned to follow Catra, she noticed Light Hope standing in her way, looking down at her expectantly.

Adora glared up at the projection, feeling an inexplicable surge of anger at the program. Where’d she get off appearing now? Where was she when she was literally holding on to dear life?

“You must let go.” said Light Hope, image flickering as she motioned at the doorway Catra had exited through as if she didn’t notice Adora’s expression “You will never obtain your true potential as long as you maintain your attachments. They will only hold you back.”

“Screw you.” said Adora and walked past her.

“She-Ra, wait.” she heard Light Hope call out to her. She kept walking.

At the end of the hallway, she stopped and turned, locking eyes with Light Hope once again “I am going to save this world, and I am going to do it with my friends beside me. Also my name is Adora.” with that, she turned and ran down the hall after Catra, leaving a shocked Light Hope in her wake.

She found Catra waiting for her by a blocked off doorway. She tried to catch Catra’s eye again, but the other was adamant on looking at everything but her. Transforming once again, she made quick work of the debris, slashing and hacking again and again until, suddenly, they were blinking into sunlight.

She turned, only to see Catra briskly walking into the forest. Her heart jumped into her throat and she lunged after her, her extra leg length easily letting her catch up to her and grab her hand. She didn’t hold on tightly or use her supernatural strength to keep her still, simply held on with two fingers gently looped around Catra’s wrist.

Like always, that was enough to get Catra to still and, even though she didn’t turn around to face her, Adora could tell she was paying attention with the way her ears were turned back towards her.

She opened her mouth, but her mind blanked. She knew what she wanted to say. She wanted to beg Catra to come with her again, but she knew dragging her back with her against her will won’t do anything but drive an ever wider wedge between them. As much as she hated to admit it, it was up to Catra and only Catra on whether or not she came with her.

So, she sighed and instead said “You know I want you to come with me. I don’t want to take away your choice though, so how about this; my offer still stands, if you choose to join the Rebellion, I’ll do everything I can to convince everyone to let you. And if-” here she broke of, but forced herself to continue despite how wrong the words felt in her mouth “even if you choose to stay with the Horde, I’ll respect that.”

With that, she let go of her wrist and stepped back.

Catra whipped around and stared at her, obviously shocked.

She took a step forward, then hesitated “You’re… you’re not gonna try and convince me to see the error of my way and join your merry band of princesses?” she asked, head tilting to the side in obvious confusion.

Adora shook her head and smiled at her frenemy sadly “I won’t force you into a choice you don’t want, no matter how badly I might want to. If you join the Rebellion, I want it to be by your choice, not because I made you. Otherwise, I’m no better than the Horde.”

Catra stared at her, blinked a few times, looked away, then back, then away again, as if she didn’t know where to look. Finally, she nodded, a slow single nod first, then multipule quick ones after it.

“Okay… I’ll see you around, Adora.”

With that, she turned around and quickly marched into the forest, in the direction of the Fright Zone.

Adora watched her go, a smile on her face even as she felt her heart stutter and ache. She stood and stared even long after she was gone, only turning and heading back home when the sun began to set.

It was full dark by the time Catra managed to drag herself back to the Fright Zone. She would have gotten here sooner, but her head felt like it was full of cotton and her damn eyes insisted on randomly leaking, and she downright refused to let anyone see her crying, especially now that she was Force Captain.

She had a reputation to uphold, after all.

Sneaking back into the base was easy enough, Catra evading the guards and cameras with practiced ease. She’d been doing this for years, ever since she found a way to break into the kitchen and found the little red berries Adora loved so much that the recruits were never allowed to eat. She could still clearly recall the ecstatic expression on Adora’s face when she showed her her find.

Her heart clenched and she shook her head, stopping a moment to collect herself before she pushed her emotions down and continued back to the prison cells. She could sort through… that, later. For now, she had a crystal to deliver.

She could hear the two of them chatting from down the hall and she couldn’t help a snort. Really, it was no surprise the Horde was doing to badly if they didn’t even notice one of their prisoners was not staying imprisoned. She wasn’t sure if she should feel glad or ashamed.

Sliding the door open, she was greeted by the sight of Scorpia and Entrapta chatting away merrily, apparently not caring the slightest bit about the repercussions if they happened to get caught by someone other than her.

“What is the prisoner doin… of, who cares.”

Scorpia’s face brightened up at the sight of her, then quickly morphed into concern when she got a good look at her.

“Catra! What happened? Do you need first aid? Do you need me to tenderly nurse you back to health?”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” she moved around her and stepped up to Entrapta, holding up the shining crystal. Entrapta let out a happy squeal and snatched it up, immediately going into a dialogue about it and it’s relevance to the rest of her tech, most of which was lost on both of the rooms other occupants.

“I’m just gonna go and catch some rest. Don’t let anybody else see Entrapta up and about, alright?”

Goodbyes and wishes of sweet dreams followed her as she walked back into the hallway. It felt… odd, having people outside of her actual seem to care about her well being. It left a warm feeling in her gut, which quickly turned acrid and cold as she thought back to Adora’s offer.

Stepping into her private captain’s quarters, she let the herself fall into her bed as the door swooshed closed behind her.

Even if she did accept her offer and defected, she knew for a fact she wouldn’t be receiving nearly as warm a welcome as Adora had. She didn’t have the legacy of She-Ra to hide behind, and then there was the whole attacking them and kidnapping the crown princess thing as well. Honestly, it would be a miracle if they didn’t execute her on the spot.

And what would happen to Scorpia and Entrapta? Leaving them here, at the non-existent mercy of Shadow Weaver would be beyond cruel, especially since they’d be getting the brunt of the fury at her leaving as well.

As much as she’d hate to admit it, even to herself, the two idiots had grown on her. Even if the pair of them did make her want to tear her own ears off most days.

The thoughts wound themselves around her head, keeping her up until the sun rose and shone right into her face, reminding her that no matter how badly she wanted to curl up and not leave her bed for a few days, she was Force Captain and she had a job to do.

She went through the daily motions, morning drills, obligatory scolding of her team when Shadow Weaver was watching from the shadows, sneaking the cook a pack of tobacco in exchange for some decent meat to apologize to her team for the scolding, the nods and gazes that told her they understood, even if they weren’t too happy with her (everybody’s gotta at least appear to be looking out for themselves around here, weakness was always exploited after all), then off she was babysitting Entrapta along with Scorpia to make sure the sounds of the workshop didn’t bring any unwanted visitors to their door, before she finally collapsed back into bed at the end of the day.

Rinse and repeat, day after day. They seemed to pass by in a blur, hours whizzing by as she numbly went through her tasks and ignored the curious and worried looks she was getting.

Through the haze, she began to pick up on whispers, from cadets, guards, cleaning crew, of half formed plans and ideas. Of life outside those walls that separated them from the rest of the world. Of running away. Of freedom.

For the first time, Catra actively wondered exactly how many of them defected, how many disappearances the Horde hid from the troops. She wondered how many of them actually got away.

She began seeking the whispers out, hanging out in vents, around dark corridors, listening in on these private conversations. She knew she should file a report on this, knew she would be persecuted along with these defectors if she didn’t. She kept her mouth shut.

It was both surprising and not that this many people only within her region thought about defecting. The Horde tried washing these thoughts out of their brains when they were still young, but it was an unsaid truth it was only partially successful.

It worked on some. And those someones would turn them in in an instant if they so much as suspected someone of being a traitor. It was simply safer not to trust anyone, when even thinking of running away would result in execution.

Still, the wishes and whispers persisted.

Because as much as the Horde tried to teach them not to trust each other, that it was simply right to turn in their allies and friends if they betrayed the Horde, friendships and alliances still grew like stubborn weeds in the concrete.

So when she heard Kyle and Rogelio quietly discussing escape plans, she said nothing and moved on. It wasn’t her problem. Even if they were her team.

And if she noted the voice of Lonnie along with theirs a few days after, well, she wasn’t going to be a snitch.

One slow afternoon, she did run into them -  literally. She stared at a startled Kyle on the floor and equally startled Lonnie and Rogelio a few steps behind. She could see in their eyes that they knew she knew. None of them moved, waiting for her to make the first move. Her eyes flicked between them, the soldiers, her team, the people she knew all her life, the traitors.

“The view from fourth lookout tower is lovely this time of day. Nice and peaceful.” she eyed them, trying to see if her message got through.

Lonnie seemed to catch on first, grabbing the boys around the arms and giving her a nod before she all but dragged them past her down the hall. Catra watched them go, iddly wondering exactly what kind of punishment would await her if Shadow Weaver foud out. She found she didn’t quite care.

A few days later, as she and Scorpia were listening Entrapta go on and on about her newest gadget, she interrupted her rant mid sentence with a qustion that’s been bugging her for days.

“Hey, Entrapta.” she waited to see she had the princesses attention before continuing “would you, by any chance, be able to hot-wire one of those hoverjets? Make them untraceable?”

She could see Scorpia giving her a calculated look from the corner of her eye and prayed that she wasn’t one of the manically devoted ones. That if she didn’t agree, she would at least keep her mouth shut.

Entrapta grinned at her, oblivious to the silent panic Cantra was in the middle of “Of course! What kind of mechanic do you take me for? It would be a piece of pie, I could do it with a blindfold on and my hands tied behind my back! But-wait-” she gave Catra a look “Why would you need to hot-wire the jets? Don’t you have the access codes?”

And there it was. Catra quickly glanced away from Entrapta’s gaze, only to find herself face to face with a blank faced Scorpia. The blank mask made her heart sink more than the anger, betrayal or confusion she expected to see. She quickly turned her eyes back to Entrapta.

“Just...thinking. You know,” she motioned with her hands and lowered her voice “Of leaving.”

The words had the same effect as dropping a gong on the floor between them would have. Both of her comrades (friends?) jumped, Scorpia looking shocked and Entrapta just confused.

“Why would you want to leave? I thought you liked it here. And you just made Force Captain. Wasn’t that, like, your dream or something?” Entrapta punctuated her point by pointing a wrench at her Captain’s badge, still shiny and new.

“I thought I did.” Catra looked away, getting up from her chair to pace the room, suddenly too restless to sit still “But-this-this isn’t what I thought it would feel like! I thought I’d finally feel like I belong, like I’m respected, like I’ve finally accomplished something! So, why do I-” she looked at them, letting her cool mask drop for a moment “Why do I feel more hollow than ever?”

“Catra,” both of them looked at Scorpia, who had risen from her chair to come stand in front of her “If you’re serious about this, have you even thought about what the Horde would do if they caught you? Where you would go if you got away? What you would do once you weren’t a part of the Horde anymore?”

To Catra’s immense relief, she didn’t sound angry or accusatory. Just worried. It gave her the strength to say her next words, even as she hoped she wasn’t making a huge mistake.

“I did. Adora, she-she offered to vouch for me. If I decided to join the Rebellion. I know.” she held up a hand, silencing Scorpia’s protests “I know they would most definitely mark me a criminal. Probably wanna behead me or something. But I just can’t stay here any longer. It’s driving me insane. The longer I’m here, the more I see how trapped I am! How we’re all just slaves of the Horde!”

She shut her mouth with a snap and took a few deep breaths, eyes darting between them. There, she said it. Now, to see if they were with her, or if she’ll be seeing the inside of a re-education cell very soon.

Entrapta slowly got up from her position on the floor to stand before her, giving her a serious look Catra didn’t see from the princess often.

“You’re sure you wanna leave?” she asked, voice unusually even.

“Yes.” was her decisive reply.

Entrapta looked into her eyes for a few moments, before she grinned and nodded “Okay, I’m in.”

Catra let out a relieved breath before turning her attention to Scorpia “So, what do you say? You in for a little rebellion?” she tried to sound light, though it came out a tad breath instead.

Scorpia frowned and turned away from them, walking up to the little window to gaze out at the Fright Zone. Catra’s stomach plummeted to her feet. She glanced at Entrapta, who motioned at Scorpia and made a hitting motion with her wrench. Catra quietly shook her head and joined Scorpia at the window.

“I know it’s a lot to ask. This is your home. But even you can see it. We’re all just slaves to Hordak. We’ll never we free as long as we’re here, no matter how high in rank we rise.”

They stood in silence, Catra watching Scorpia as she stared out the window, the seconds ticking by, Catra feeling every second weigh on her until she wanted nothing more than to bound out of the room and run, but she forced herself to be still and wait.

Finally, Scorpia sighed and turned to her, a small smile on her lips “Okay, I’m in. So, what’s the plan.”

Catra grinned back at her “Well, first we’ll need some supplies and a jet the Horde can’t track…”

It took a few days to get everything in order, then all too soon, it was time to put their plan into action.

They’d decided that sneaking out would cause the alarm to go up far too fast, since a missing princess and several soldiers would not go unnoticed for long. So, they opted for a different plan; simply walk out.

It was nerve wracking, presenting a made up plan, a recon mission, even more so to explain why exactly she needed six people for the mission. Luckily, Catra had lots of practice on bullshitting her way throgh life, so soon enough Shadow Weaver approved her plan, simply to be rid of her for a day.

Catra had smiled sweetly and walked out without a word.

So here they stood, at the ass crack of dawn, her and Scorpia standing watch and waiting for the others while Entrapta tinkered away with the jet’s tracking system. Catra felt downright jittery, every person passing them making her feel as if Shadow Weaver was onto them, that they would get caught when they were so close to freedom. A subtle glance to the side affirmed that Scorpia wasn’t faring any better. There were just so many things that could go wrong.

Finally, she spotted Kyle, Lonnie and Rogelio walking up to them, obviously having rolled out of bed just before coming out. She eyed them, hoping her gamble would pay off.

Even though she knew they were planning the same thing she was, there was no telling whether they would have said anything. And they weren’t the subtlest of people. It was simply safer not to tell them in advance. But, that also meant she had no way of knowing if they would go along with her plan, or if they’d panic and rat them out.

So, she saluted and motioned for them to go inside. Soon enough, Entrapta announced that she was done and they were on their way.

Catra sat in the front, watching as the Fright Zone slowly gave way to lush forest, before turning and heading straight for the heart of Bright Moon.

“Uh…” she turned to look at Kyle, who was eyeing the window with alarm “I thought we were heading for Plumeria?”

“Nope,” answered Catra “We’re defecting.”

Best to just rip off the bandiad, right?

The three soldiers jumped to their feet, Kyle shocked, Lonnie and Rogelio wary. In the end, it was Lonnie who asked the question.

“And how do we know this isn’t a test for us?”

Catra leaned back in her seat, tail curling around it “If this was a test, you wouldn’t be together, armed, not to mention the supposed mission is in the official records. “ She paused, giving them a moment to take it in before she continued “Besides, we’re not going to Bright Moon. I am. The rest of you are going with Entrapta back to her castle, where it’s safe.”

With that she turned. She didn’t have to mention how she already knew they were planning an escape of their own, that she could have handed them over to Shadow Weaver at any time. They were smart enough to know it. Soon, she heard them conversing quietly in the back, excited and worried voices mingling as they chattered.

To be honest, she was feeling excited as well. Even with all the worries and years of training baring down on her, reminding her exactly what she was risking, she couldn’t help but feel light and confident for the first time in a very, very long time.

All too soon, the jet was silently dropping to the ground right outside Bright Moon’s inner territory and it was time to go. Everyone rose as she stood in front of the doors. She turned to see everyone giving her worried glances, the same thing on all of their minds.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” asked Scorpia “You could come with us.”

Catra smiled and shook her head “Thank you, but no. If we don’t want to live out the rest of our lives as outlaws, one of us needs to go talk to the rebellion about pardoning our… crimes. And I’ve got the biggest chance out of all of us of actually getting that done.”

She pressed the button to open the doors when she felt the wind being knocked out of her as she was lifted off of the ground in a hug.

“Stay safe!” cried Scorpia, Entrapta joining their tearful goodbye a moment later, enveloping the both of them with her arms and hair.

Despite herself, she smiled at them “I’ll try.”

She was set on the ground, and with a nod to everyone and final wave, she grabbed a pack with her belonging and walked out. She could hear the jet’s engines start back up, heard it lift into the air and fly away, but she didn’t dare turn back and risk losing her nerve.

As she walked along the path towards the main gates of the city, she could see the guards spot her, her sensitive ears picking up the commotion up in the watchtowers as they realized exactly who was coming towards their front door.

By the time she was at the front gates, she could hear a number of people standing and talking rapidly behind them.

As the gates swung open to reveal a whole battalion of soldiers as well as the queen of Bright Moon herself, she felt an odd sense of calm take over. Making eye contact with the queen, she slowly raised her arms and laced them behind her head, sliding to her knees as she voiced the phrase that’s been stuck in her head for weeks.

“I am Catra, Force Captain of the Horde. I’ve come to join the Rebellion.”

Chapter Text

Well, to be fair, it did go better than expected. They didn’t execute her on the spot, nor did they demand her head. Though queen Angella looked like she very much wished to snap her neck with her bare hands, she had ordered her to be put in the high security dungeon while they ‘decided what to do with her’.

Really, the four guards stationed outside her cell were a bit overkill, in Catra’s opinion. Two would have sufficed. Not to mentioned the heavy chains weighing her down, keeping her flush against the wall. She jiggled them and chuckled when the guards outside the door jumped.

Honestly, you’d think they have Hordak himself in here.

But, the chains really were heavy. As in, heavy duty enough she wasn’t entirely sure she could get out of them if she tried. Not that she was going to try, it would kind of undo the whole surrendering thing she did. But being unable to move, to dodge, to protect herself if needed didn’t sit well in her gut.

Adora had promised the Rebellion were good. That they wouldn’t hurt her… well, not more than she deserved. She promised to vouch for her if she decided to switch sides. But, the thought wormed into her head despite herself, what if Adora had lied? What if it was simply a tactic to get rid of a member of the opposing team, to get her to turn herself over to the Rebellion’s mercy?

No… no, Adora wouldn’t do that.

She might be a princess now, and an icon of the Rebellion, and a defector, but she was till her friend. She… she was still the Adora she grew up with...right? She wouldn’t betray her. Even if… she kind of already did, once.

Catra growled and shook her head. No! She couldn’t think like that. Deep breaths, keep calm. It wasn’t like she could back out now. And she had to be composed when the queen decided to finally grace her with her presence and ‘talk’.

She must have been down here for hours now. It was kind of hard to keep track. There were no windows and from what she glimpsed as she was dragged down here, she was at least 2 floors below ground. The only way in or out of the cell was the small, heavy iron door, past 4 guards and another set of heavy double doors even She-Ra would have had trouble punching through.

The guards would likely have the keys, though maybe she’d need a password for the main entrance to the dungeons? Hard to say, who knew how the rebels ran their cell blocks.

Not that she was planning an escape. Well… she was, but it’s not like she was going to go through with it. It was simply a habit. Always have a way out. Having a plan gave her comfort, made it easier to stay calm.

She ignored the pang of guilt at the thought.

Did Adora even know she was here?

The thought gave her pause. Would Adora find out, or would the queen try and keep this a secret? No, the queen wasn’t a fool, word would get out sooner or later. But how long could she keep Adora in the dark? The thought sent a feeling of ice through her spine. She was essentially at their mercy, with there being a good chance no one on this side knowing she was there and everyone on the other side unable to help.

Adora. She had to get to Adora.

Involuntarily, her arms tensed as a full body shiver overtook her. She glanced desperately at her chained arms, stretching them as high as she could, testing how much give she had, if she could slip her arms out of the shackles. No luck. Alright, the wall then. Maybe the brickwork was loose? If she could get enough force behind her pull, she could probably dislodge the bricks holding the chains in place, causing them to loosen enough to slip out. Just as she was about to put her half formed, desperate plan into action, a sound caused her to pause.

A heavy door creaking, then slamming shut. Several hurried footsteps on rock floors. Heading closer. Heading towards her.

Her breath stuttered out, uneven. She forced herself to lower and slacken her arms, to lean back against the wall and relax. Breath in, count to 5, hold, one two three, release for 5 beats. Repeat.

She only managed to get through the repetitions three times before the door to her cell swung open.

There stood the queen of Bright Moon herself, in all her tall, angelic glory. Angella stepped inside the cell, two new guards following close behind. The queen looked quite out of place in the tiny, dirty cell. If the grimy surroundings bothered her, she didn’t let it show. She only had eyes for Catra, giving her a cool, neutral look that made Catra’s blood run cold worse than her fury would have.

Catra looked away first, eyes darting off to the side as the silence dragged on. It seemed the queen was waiting for her to make the first move. Fine by her.

“Where’s Adora?”

Catra winced. That was not what she had meant to ask. She’d meant to ask something akin to ‘what do you plan to do with me?’ or ‘is there a way I can persuade you not to execute me?’.

The queen, to her credit, gave no reaction. She simply tilted her head to the side a moment, letting the question hang in the air between them before she answered.

“She is in her quarters. Sleeping. It is rather early, as you must know.”

Catra frowned and looked back at the queen. That was not what she had meant, and they both knew it.

“Does she know I’m here?” she tried instead.

The queen leaned back and inspected the wall to her right as if it suddenly became oh so interesting. It made Catra want to rip her hair out. If she could reach it.

“She will be informed when necessary.”

That’s...no. No. No no nonono. This was bad. Catra pushed herself against the wall, any semblance of confidence gone in the wake of the statement. If Adora had no idea she was here, she couldn’t help her. Which meant Catra really was on her own. Staring down the queen of the land she up until very recently tried to conquer. The thought made her glad she skipped breakfast that morning, because otherwise it would have been on the floor in front of her now.

She raised painfully wide eyes to the queens cool ones, feeling like a mouse cornered by the cat.

“Now,” said the queen, stepping closer “Why don’t we start from the beginning, hm?”

Adora groaned and rolled over, pulling one of the too soft pillows over her head to muffle the sound. Why was everyone being so loud this morning? Not for the first time, she envied Glimmer and Bow for being such heavy sleepers while she awoke at the slightest sound. A glance at the ornate clock on her bedside table confirmed that it was still much too early to get up.

Ignore it, just ignore it, they’ve gotta stop sometime soon, right?

She contemplated getting up, yanking the door open and politely demanding they keep it down. But that would require her getting out of the warm bed. And actually wake herself up. Which was what she was trying to avoid in the first place.

People were still talking outside her door. Right outside her door. Why couldn’t they move further down the hall? Was one night of decent sleep truly so much to ask for? Stewing in her annoyance for a few minutes longer, Adora finally growled and yanked the covers off of herself.

Stomping over to her bedroom door, she yanked it open and glared at the two startled guards.

“What,” she growled, sleep slurring her words “is so important that you have to discuss it right outside my door this early?”

She didn’t raise her voice or make a threatening gesture; it was not needed. The guards sprung apart, looking extremely guilty. She pinned a tired look at the younger one, raising one blond eyebrow at him.

“Well?”

The young guard shuffled and looked at his older partner for support. The older, gray haired guard shook his head and motioned towards Adora as if to say ‘this is on you, buddy’. The younger guard gave him a betrayed look as he turned back to a sleepy Adora.

“We were just discussing who the new prisoner was.”

Adora frowned and blinked “New prisoner?” she asked, suddenly feeling out of the loop. Usually, she was called in in case she was needed on sight during delicate negotiations or events. Maybe they just hadn’t sent for her yet?

The young guard nodded and leaned in, saying in a conspiratorial whisper “I heard from Timmons it was one of the Horde Force Captains. Apparently, she just walked right up to the gate! Can you believe that? They have her in the dungeons now, not to worry, she won’t be going anywhere.” the guards smile slowly dropped as he caught sight of Adora’s expression.

She stepped out of her bedroom, gripping the guard by the front of his leather doublet, pulling his face inches from hers “Which? Did you hear a name? What did she look like?”

“I-” the guard looked downright baffled now, blinking rapidly “I dunno! The one with the brown ears and tail! How am I supposed to kno-woah!”

Adora shoved the guard away, bolting down the hall as she muttered curses and twisted around baffled castle inhabitants, leaving two very confused and slightly frightened guards in her wake.

Why didn’t anyone wake her?? She thought as she vaulted over the staircase, yelling an apology at the startled maid at the base of it as she raced past. It was Catra, it had to be, there was no other feline Force Captain in the Horde, so why had no one woken her?

It was no secret her and Catra had been (are...were) close, so by all right she should have been informed! Unless…

Her run slowed down to a jog as a thought struck her. Queen Angella knew they were close. Did she not tell her on purpose? Adora shook her head. No, the queen wouldn’t do that. The messenger must have just gotten lost or something. Yes, that must be it. With that, she doubled her speed towards the dungeons.

Coming upon the heavy double doors leading to the dungeons below, she eyes the two guards outside it, weapons drawn and tense, though they relaxed when they saw it was only her. She moved to walk past them but, hesitantly, they crossed their spears in front of her.

Adora stopped. The guards exchanged nervous glances. Adora glared. The guards shuffled, but did not let her through. Finally, Adora had had enough, adrenaline still pumping.

“Move.”

The guard on the left gulped “Sorry, ma’am, but we’re under orders to no-”

“Move, or be moved.”

The guards exchanged another look, before they hesitantly stepped apart, letting her through. Adora rushed past, not sparing them a backward glance as her eyes darted around the dark corridor, following the only sound in the echoing space through the twisting corridors.

The second door held another pair of guards, but this time they simply jumped out of her way. Adora didn’t stop and ponder why. She just barrelled into the door, swinging it open so hard it slammed into the wall with a clang as she finally slowed to a stop, breathing hard.

Four pairs of startled eyes stared at her, shocked. Yet another pair of guards (really?), Angella and.. and Catra. Once their eyes locked, Adora nearly choked on the emotion rising in her throat.

There she was. In.. chains, surrounded. But she was there. And she came here willingly, if what she heard was true. So…

Adora smiled, feeling encouraged when Catra returned her smile with a small, relieved one of her own. She stepped towards her, only for the moment to break when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Adora turned her head and locked eyes with Angella, who was shooting worried glances between the two teenagers.

“Adora, good morning.” the queen settled her gaze on her “I-” she hesitated “I did not wish to wake you so early in the morning.”

“...” Adora glanced between her and Catra “Why is she chained up? I thought she came in peace.”

Adora tried to take another step towards Catra, but the hand on her shoulder held her firmly in place. She frowned down at it.

“She may have said she came in peace, but I cannot simply forgive and forget all the crimes she’s committed against us in the past.”

Adora finally stopped trying to push past, stilling instead as her mind whirred. Slowly, she straightened up and gave the queen her full eye contact. She’d foreseen this, and so she was prepared.

“That may be so,” she began, slowly, each word deliberate and clear in the confined space “But so have I. Our circumstances are near identical. We were both with the Horde, we’ve both done bad things under orders, we both left to join the Rebellion. Except that I wield the sword of She-Ra.”

The queen took a breath, likely to contradict her, but she went on before she could get a word in ”If me being She-Ra was the only reason I was pardoned, well, that would be awful hypocritical, wouldn’t it? And if that wasn’t the case, well…” she shook off the queens hand and took a step closer to Catra “I guess I’ll have to be chained up and punished, same as her.”

The queen looked supremely uncomfortable, all eyes focused on her. All except Catra, who was staring at Adora’s back in open wonderment, going unnoticed by everyone else.

Angella looked away first, hands clenching, mouth drawn. After a few slow, tense moments, her shoulders dropped and her hands loosened at her side as she finally glared at the two of them.

“Fine.” she said, raising herself to her full height “But!” she added, raising a hand to stop Adora’s thanks in her throat “She is on probation. If she gives me any reason, any reason at all, to suspect she’s still allied with the Horde, she will be tried and punished to the full extent of the law. And the repercussions will fall on your head as well, Adora.”

Adora nodded, grinning “You won’t regret this, your majesty!”

Angella sighed and ran a hand down her face, turning towards the exit “I already do.”

Adora ignored the comment in favor of leaping the remaining distance between her and Catra, unlocking the chains and helping her unwind them excitedly. As soon as Catra was freed, Adroa grabbed her by the hand and all but dragged her out of the cell, down the hallway and out into the castle hallways proper.

She didn’t stop until she’d put some distance between them and the dungeons, then she stopped and turned, grinning from ear to ear at tense Catra.

“You’re here.” she told her, still grinning.

“...yea.” murmured Catra, shooting her a wary glance from beneath her bangs.

Adora’s face softened “You’re really here.” softer this time.

Catra caught her eyes and stood straighter, giving her a single, sure nod “I am.” her eyes flicked down her body and she snorted “Nice pajamas.”

Adora looked down at the white & blue top and shorts that Glimmer convinced her to wear to bed and laughed, a gleeful and watery sound, then she tugged Catra towards her and hugged her tight. Catra tensed for a moment, tail twitching behind her, but as Adora nuzzled her wet face into the crook of her neck, pulling her closer, she melted,clutching at Adora just as tightly. It felt as if a huge weight she wasn’t aware of suddenly lifted from her heart. She laughed again, tears falling steadily now, Catra hesitantly rubbing her back only making them fall harder.

She was here. Catra was here. With her. They were finally, finally together again. And maybe things were still broken and jagged between them, maybe they now had a whole ton of issues to deal with, maybe things won’t ever go back to the way they were before.

But that was fine. They were together, and that’s all that mattered.

Slowly, hesitantly, Adora pulled away, wiping at her eyes, pretending she didn’t see Catra do the same.

She turned and motioned for Catra to follow her as she smiled “C’mon, I haven’t had breakfast yet and you must be famished.”

Catra stared at her retreating back a moment, two, then slowly, hesitantly, she followed.

Chapter Text

This felt so weird.

No, not weird. More like some sort of fever dream her mind conjured up. Yea, that seemed to fit more. Because there is no way on this big green planet that Catra went from receiving thinly veiled threats from the queen of Bright Moon to sitting in the common room kitchens watching Adora make them omelettes in the span of 10 minutes.

The brightness of the room did not help. Everything here was bright. It felt like someone put the exposure on max. Every surface was shining and bright and glittering annoyingly at her. And would it kill them to put some damn blinds on those windows? The sun shone straight into her eyes, making her squint and creating a halo of light around Adora's head.

She refocused on Adora, who was humming away as she chopped some sort of mushrooms, her back to her. To anyone looking in, it would seem like either a calm scene or as if Adora was ignoring her. But between them, the message was clear; ‘I trust you enough to let my guard down and turn my back to you knowing you won’t hurt me’.

Which was stupid. And reckless. Catra had been on the enemy side less than 12 hours ago. Even ignoring all the sharp utensils littered throughout the kitchen and the lack of other people around, all Catra would have to do would be to sneak up behind her and it would all be over.

She stayed where she was and watched quietly.

“I’m surprised this place is so empty.” she finally said, after several minutes of silence.

Adora briefly glanced at her over her shoulder from her position in front of the stove, giving her a shrug as she pulled out some meat from the fridge.

“This is technically the captain’s kitchen. I’m pretty sure the main one is full of staff.” Her blue-grey eyes flicked back to her for a moment before she refocused on the food “I’m pretty sure your arrival was what got every guard out of here.”

“Ah.”

They lapsed back into silence. Adora stirred the diced meat into the omelette. Catra swung her legs. Adora folded the omelettes over. Catra eyed the shiny porcelain plate that was set in front of her. Adora sat on her right, like always. They stared at their plates. It smelled amazing. Neither touched them.

“Okay, that’s it.”

Catra jumped from her seat, pacing a circle around the kitchen counter. This should be fine. She should be calm, shouldn’t she? So why did she feel so… off?

She stopped and stared at Adora over the counter, voicing the question that’s been on her mind since Adora dragged her out of the dungeons.

“Where do we go from here?”

Adora flinched, eyes darting away and to the side as she slouched.

“I have no idea.” she put her hands on the counter, folding them over nervously as she glanced at Catra from under her lashes “I honestly didn’t think we’d get this far. I mean, I expected queen Angella to at least, like, demand some guards on you or something! Although, I guess She-Ra is as good a guard as you can get…”

“Yea, I didn’t think she’d just let us walk out of there either.” Catra snorted “Telling the queen of Bright Moon she can essentially stick it where the sun don’t shine? When did you get to be do rebellious, Adora?”

Adora flushed and covered her face with her hands, groaning.

“Gods, don’t remind me! I won’t be able to look her in the eye ever again!”

Catra laughed, finally moving around the counter to sit beside her again and patting her on the back before digging into her late breakfast. Adora peeked at her from behind her palms, smiling slightly at the delighted sound Catra made.

“Ohmhyghod, wha’ is ‘his?” she asked around a mouthful, eyes shining.

“Bacon. I had the same reaction when I first tried it. Sure beats the sludge they gave us back in the Fright Zone, huh?” said Adora, bumping Catra with her elbow as she dug into her own meal. Catra made an affirming noise, shoveling more of it into her mouth.

“Say, I think I saw a coffee pot somew-”

“Adora oh my god, you won’t believe what we just h-aarhg!”

Everyone froze.

Adora and Catra slowly turned around to stare at a shocked Glimmer and equally astounded Bow behind her. There was a pregnant pause as each occupant of the room processed who it was they were seeing. Glimmer was the first to snap out of it. With a battle cry, she launched herself towards the ex Force Captain at full speed, tackling her to the ground before anyone else could react.

“Glimmer, no! She’s on our side!” yelled Adora, grabbing hold of the back of Glimmers cape and pulling.

“I won’t let you hurt anyone else!” yelled Glimmer, trying to get her fingers around Catra’s throat.

“Everyone in this castle is a maniac!” choked Catra.

“W-what is happening?” mumbled Bow.

“Okay, that’s it!”

For a second time in as many minutes, everyone froze as a blinding golden light filled the room. She-Ra pried Glimmer and Catra apart, looking every bit the terrifying warrior. Satisfied the pair were no longer attempting to kill each other, she set them down five feet apart and stood between them, arms crossed.

“Glimmer,” she began, trying to keep her voice level “Catra is on our side. She defected, like me. She won’t hurt anyone, I promise.”

Glimmer gave Adora a disbelieving look “You cannot be serious. Are you seriously going to trust her, after everything she’s done?! You don’t know what’s going on inside her head, she could just be using you to get some intel or something back to the Horde!”

“I know Catra better than anyone. I believe her. And it’s not like she can do anything, since I’m not to let her out of my sight. Queens orders.” Adora detransformed, a little warily, still keeping herself in between them and her sword drawn. Just in case.

Bow stepped up to Glimmer, laying a calming hand on her shoulder “I mean, if Adora says we can trust her, I say we give her a chance.”

Glimmer shot Bow a betrayed look, then turned back to Adora. Her eyes slid to the side, catching Catra’s gaze. Glimmer glared. Catra glared back.

Finally, Glimmer huffed and ran a hand through her hair, turning away from Catra’s eerie dual colored eyes “Fine.” she turned and pointed a finger at Catra “But if I get so much as a hint that you’re up to something, I’ll drag you to the dungeons myself!”

Catra rolled her eyes, leaning against the chair behind her as she gave Glimmer an unimpressed look “I already got that speech from your mom. And frankly, it was a lot more intimidating coming from her.”

Bow tightened his hold on Glimmer’s shoulder as the tiny princess growled. Adora tugged at Catra's arm until she sat down, though she still refused to turn her back on the other two.

“Who wants chocolate chip pancakes?” asked Bow, nervously eyeing the two.

Breakfast was a quiet, tense affair after that.

Catra and Glimmer silently glared at each other from across the counter the entire time, Adora attempted to make enough small talk for the both of them, before just giving up and eating her pancakes in silence, and Bow sat as a buffer in the middle, wondering exactly how his life decisions brought him to this point.

But even with all that, breakfast had nothing on the crushing silence that enveloped them as soon as they finished and all filled into Adora’s room. Everyone stood in their own corners of the room, looking around and avoiding everyone else's eyes.

The ladies might have been willing to let the silence drag on even further, but Bow had had enough.

“Alright," he said, clapping his hands to get everyone’s attention “Since Catra is new here, Glimmer, why don’t you give her the royal tour? Get to know each other a little?”

“E-excuse me?” she spluttered, leaning so far back in her seat on Adora's desk only her hands kept her from tumbling backwards onto the floor. Catra would have found it comical in any other situation.

“Yea!” exclaimed Adora, looking equal parts relieved and worried at the idea.

Glimmer looked back and forth between the two of them, waiting for one of them to be the voice of reason and say that was a terrible idea. Surprisignly, it was Catra who did, in the end.

“What happened to ‘I’m not to let her out of my sight’?” she drawled from her crouched position across the room. Glimmer really hoped she stayed there.

“I’m sure Glimmer can handle keeping an eye on you.” said Adora, leaning over Catra and giving her an earnest, trusting look “I know you wouldn’t do anything to hurt her.” and icing on the cake “I trust you.”

Catra groaned, roughly rubbing the palms of her hands over her eyes in frustration “I hate it when you do that.” she mumbled, loud enough only for Adora to hear. Adora gave her her best ‘innocent’ eyes and whispered back “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Dragging her feet, Catra stood and walked to the door, waiting.

Glimmer blinked. What… just happened? She glanced at Bow, who shrugged and motioned towards the door. She rolled her eyes and huffed.

“Fine.” she announced, summoning up every ounce of manner lessons she had undergone to accept gracefully “But I still say this is a stupid idea.”

She and Catra eyed each other in front of the door. Catra motioned for Glimmer to lead the way. Glimmer opened the door and made a sweeping motion with her arm “After you.”

Warily, Catra slipped through the door, giving Glimmer an unimpressed look once she was on the other side. Glimmer sighed. This is going to be the longest hour of her life.

“And finally, we have the royal gardens. I would tell you about it’s history and construction, but I’m pretty sure you don’t care.”

“And you would be right.” came the reply behind her.

Glimmer huffed. Honestly! Where does she get off acting all mighty and aloof? She was a prisoner in one of their cells less than three hours ago! Besides, no matter how cool Catra attempted to play it, Glimmer had caught the way she eyed the sweeping tapestries, the vast library, the glittering ballroom. She was impressed. Would it kill her to at least not look so damned bored?

Striding ahead, she made her way to the entrance to the castle on the other side, hearing the other match her steps five feet behind. Lost in her thoughts, Glimmer didn’t notice the footsteps fade until she was standing in the middle of the elegantly crafted wooden bridge.

Whipping around and searching the shore of the pond the bridge suspended over, she found Catra walking along it’s edge. Going around the pond. The very long way around. A frustrated growl escaped her as she rubbed her temples. Why did she have to make everything so difficult?

“There’s a perfectly good bridge right here, why are you going around?” she questioned, hands crossed in front of her. She did her best to look tall and imposing.

Catra twitched and stopped, but didn’t come any closer “What does it matter?” she called out across the water.

“It matters because you’re being purposefully difficult!”

Catra glared “I am not. I just-” her eyes darted down, an uneasy look slipping past the mask of indifference for a moment before she got her face back under control “I don’t like ponds. Or any large bodies of water.”

“Just use the bridge then! It’s not like I’m going to push you in or something!” Glimmer called back, then paused. This time, Catra really did wince, face twisting as she turned away. So it hadn’t just been her imagination. Before she could call out anything else, Catra turned and started to march along the bank, steadily looking away from her.

Hesitantly, Glimmer moved to catch up, unsure of what just happened, though she was sure to leave some room in between them in case Catra decided freedom wasn’t worth it after all and lashed out. It wasn’t until they were standing in front of Adora’s room again that Glimmer realized Catra had led them all the way back.

Silently, Catra slipped inside, sauntering over to the window sill and planting herself on it, glowering and pointedly ignoring everyone.

As soon as she closed the door behind her, she found herself under the twin gazes of a worried Bow and Adora. She caughted delicatly into her hand.

“What happened?” asked Adora, staring at Catra across the room “Did you two get into a fight?”

“No.” even to Glimmer, that sounded petulant. Straightening, she nodded in Catra’s direction and lowered her voice “What’s with her and water?”

“What?” Adora looked confused, glancing back and forth, before something seemed to dawn on her. She frowned and leaned in close, her whisper barely loud enough for Glimmer to hear “You mean as in, big bodies of water? Streams, pods, oceans?”

Glimmer nodded, causing Adora to sigh and shake her head. She no longer seemed upset, she seemed more...regretful. Glimmer tugged her arm and whispered “What happened?” but Adora only shook her head and mouthed ‘later’.

The rest of the day passed in a blur of halfhearted conversations and careful tip-toeing around a certain feline young woman, who spent the majority of it by the window. Twice Adora managed to pull her to the group, get her to participate in the conversation, but both times Catra slunked away to her window within the hour.

Adora grew more and more worried with each passing hour. By the time they decided to call it a night and went their separate ways, leaving her and Catra alone at last, she felt as if her every nerve was on high alert.

Slowly, she approached the window, taking a seat across from her friend. Adora tilted her head, attempting to catch Catra’s gaze, but the other was steadily staring out the window, ignoring her. Sighing, Adora reached out and lightly wrapped two fingers around Catra’s wrist.

The effect was immediate. Catra’s head snapped up, gaze catching on hers. Adora gave her a soft smile and gently gave her wrist a tug.

“Hey.”

Catra sighed, some tension leaving her body as she slouched forward.

“Hi.”

Adora scooted closer until their knees were pressed together, just like they used to do when they’d whisper to each other after lights out whenever Adora slipped down into Catra’s bunk. Which was practically every night, the last few years.

“I can tell something’s wrong. What is it? Is it whatever happened when Glimmer gave you the tour?” But Catra was already shaking her head “It’s not that.”

Adora held back asking what did happen on the tour. Later, she can ask later. For now, she had other worries to deal with.

“What is it, then?” she leaned forward and bumped her forehead against hers, taking Catra’s hand in both of hers “You know you can always talk to me. I won’t judge.”

Catra made a muffled sound, eyes darting to look out the window “I don’t fit here. I don’t even know why I’m trying. It’s obvious they don’t want me here, either.”

Adora leaned back slightly “Catra-” but Catra was avoiding her gaze, so she put a hand on either side of her face and gently tilted her face until they were looking eye to eye again. She gave her a reassuring smile “I know how you feel.” and to Catra’s sceptic look “No, really. They might have been… warmer, to me, because of the whole She-Ra thing, but I felt the same when I first came here. I felt like I was too different, like I’d never fit in with the other princesses, that they only spared me the time of day because I was She-Ra. Everything felt alien. But, over time, I got used to how things are here. I made friends. I’m happy here.” here, she beamed, gently squeezing Catra’s cheeks between her hands before she let go “And you will be too. Just give it time.”

Catra stared at her in silence for a few beats, pupils impossibly wide, before she nodded. She leaned back and ran a hand through her hair “I’ll give it a chance.”

Adora smiled proudly “That’s all I’m asking.”

Catra hummed and slipped from the window sill, smiling slightly “I’m gonna get out of your hair and go to bed.”

Adora nodded, still smiling, even as her heart gave a sad little thump at the thought of Catra leaving so soon.

“Goodnight, Catra.”

Catra nodded, already at the door.

“Goodnight, Adora.”

Saying the bed was too soft was an understatement. As soon as she sat, the thing damn near swallowed her up. Grumbling, Catra tossed and twisted until she was in a semi-upright position. Finally somewhat settled, clean and dressed for bed, she stared at her final task for the day.

The communicators were one of Entrapta’s brilliant ideas. Thin and sleek, it resembled a metalic bracelet, but it functioned like a comm, with neigh infinate range. She was lucky the guards didn’t confiscate it along with the rest of her things. She has no doubt the queen would have branded her a traitor and demanded her head then and there if they found out what it was.

Pressing two hidden buttons on either side of the device, she watched the center of the bracelet light up a faint blue. Hesitantly, she leaned in and spoke.

“Catra here, team come in.”

There were a few tense seconds as Catra waited for a reply, growing more and more worried as she waited. Just as she was ready to bolt down the hall, drag Adora out of bed and go search for her team, Entrapta’s voice cut through the heavy silence.

“Catra!” the scientists chipper voice erased the tension that had begun to creep up her spine “There you are! We were starting to think we’d have to bust in and break you out.”

“No, no, I’m fine.” she replied, a small smile on her lips “You guys all get to your castle alright?”

“Yes, we ditched our ride halfway up the mountain. I set it to autopilot and sent it out to sea.I really wish we could have kept it though, the parts would come in handy around here. Ooh, here’s Scorpia. Scorpia, come here and say hi to Catra!”

Catra had to stifle a laugh as a loud bang sounded through the comunicators tiny speakers, followed by some muffled arguing and shuffling before Scorpia’s voice cut through Entrapta’s distant indignant protests.

“Oh, Catra, thank goodness. We were all so worried they’d tossed you into prison, or worse!” she sounded tearful, from the relief or imagined scenes, Catra wasn’t sure.

“Nope, it went as well as I could have hoped.” she lied. No need to make her team even more worried. God knows they’d probably storm the castle if they heard half the stuff she'd gone through today.

There was a scuffle for the mic on the other side, and a moment later Entrapta’s voice came through again.

“Any idea when it’ll be safe for us to come over there?”

Catra lowered the hand that held the bracelet and glanced around her too large, too fancy room. Her reflection frowned at her from across the room.

“Not sure yet. I think it’s best they get used to having me around before I suggest bringing five more Hoard soldiers into their castle.”

“Fair eno- Scorpia, no, do not poke that button, you will initiate the self destruct, just let me hold it, there, see- fair enough. Keep us informed on how it’s going.”

Scorpia’s earnest voice joined Entraptas “Yes, please do. The rest of the gang are sleeping already, but I’m sure they’ll be relieved to hear you’re alright. We all miss you. Stay safe!”

Catra laid two fingers over her lips, the grin stretched almost painfully wide across her cheeks as a pleasant, foreign warmth filled her chest “You too. Say hello to the rest of the team. Catra out.” she turned the device off and put it back on her wrist, staring up at the canopy of her bed.

Slowly, the warmth of the call faded, leaving Catra feeling alone and cold in the overstuffed bed. She turned onto her side, twisting and turning as she attempted to find a comfortable position to sleep in. But, even as she finally found a decently firm spot on the very edge of the bed, the cold silence of the room fed her uneasiness with every second that ticked by.

She was alone. The absence of several others, breathing and snoring nearby, was loud in the utter silence of her new bedroom. It felt… wrong, this silence. As did the absence of a warm body beside hers, but that particular absence was one she was used to by now.

Although… the certain someone she was missing was no longer miles and miles away. In fact, she was right down the hall. She could easily slip into her room, nudge her over and curl up like she used to. But, no. That was then. Now, Catra wasn’t sure she’d be welcome in Adora’s room after dark. The thought made her chest clench.

Huffing, she rolled over and stubbornly closed her eyes. But even as the minutes ticked by, the silence only seemed to grow, like a dark smog slowly enclosing on her, making her feel on edge. Another ten minutes and Catra decided, screw it, what’s the harm in trying?

Throwing the covers off of herself, she padded on bare feet out her door, down the hall and silently slipped into Adora’s room. Then she paused, staring at the lump of blankets on the other end of the room. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all. Maybe she should just go back to her room, try to tire herself out, maybe run a couple laps along the corridor? This was a stupid idea. She should go. As her hand hovered above the doorknob, a quiet yawn made her freeze, a feeling like freezing water going down her spine.

She stayed still. Maybe she was still asleep? Adora was a pretty heavy sleeper. As long as she moved slowly and quietly, she should be able to slip out of the room without waking her.

“...Catra?”

Or not. Tail twitching behind her, Catra turned and smiled nervously at a sleepy Adora, who seemed to have a horrible case of bed head. Catra’s lips twitched upwards into a grin. She must not have put it up tonight. She always forgot to do that if she got to bed late.

“What are you doing? Did something happen?” Adora seemed to wake completely at her last question, sitting up and starting to throw the covers off of herself.

“No!” though Catra’s word made her stall, now Adora looked even more worried. Catra felt like smacking herself. Good job, idiot.

“I meant-” she leaned against the door, tail wrapping around her leg “It’s silly. Sorry for waking you. I-I should go.” again, she made to leave, and yet again, Adora stalled her as her hand hovered over the doorknob.

“No, don’t go. Come here, tell me what’s wrong.”

Catra didn’t didn’t move, didn’t look over her shoulder at Adora. Instead, she slowly let out a breath and leaned her head against the polished wood of the door.

“I just couldn’t sleep. The damn bed was too soft and the room was as quiet as a crypt.” shame colored her cheeks. She felt so stupid saying it out loud, like she was five again and having nightmares.

“Ah.” a beat “Catra, look at me.”

Reluctantly, Catra turned her head. Adora was still sitting up, a sad little smile on her lips “It’s fine. I couldn’t sleep when I first got here, either.” she seemed to have an internal battle for a few moments, then an expression of decisiveness crossed her face and she scooted further down along the bed, patting the now empty space beside her. She didn’t say anything more, simply laid back down and settled herself into the sheets again, confident that Catra would come.

Catra came.

She hesitated at the edge of the bed, unsure, but a moment later she slipped under the sheets beside her friend. The whole thing felt so achingly familiar and yet foreign at the same time. On the one hand, they’d shared a bed countless times over the years, Catra’s bunk becoming ‘their’ bunk the last few years. But, on the other hand, they’d never shared a bed like this. The bunks back in the Fright Zone were bare and small, just large enough for one person to sleep on without falling out if they were careful. Back there, they’d split the bed, Adora having to sleeping on the upper half and Catra on the lower half, or else risk one or both of them falling out of bed in the middle of the night.

Here, though, even this smaller bed was spacious enough for both of them to lay on their backs side by side. Not that either of them slept on their backs. It was more the knowledge that they could, if they wanted to.

Unsure how to feel about this, Catra turned over onto her side, back to Adora and wrapped the covers more snugly around herself. But even with the newness of it all, there was an underlying familiarity around it that made Catra relax into the, thankfully, firm bed. Minutes passed, the two simply getting reacquainted of the familiarity of another body beside theirs.

Just as Catra was blissfully beginning to drift off, a warm hand lightly touched her back. Catra went still at once, but otherwise didn’t make a move to turn or shift away from the touch. Adora stayed still as well, simply keeping her hand on Catra’s back, seemingly unsure. Sleepy and warm, Catra shifted closer to Adora until she felt her back press against the others torso.

She could feel Adora’s exhale on her neck. For a short moment, Adora went as still as Catra had been, arm hovering above her, but then she relaxed, the arm wrapping around Catra’s waist and pulling her flush against her chest. They seemed to settle in at the same time, their breathing growing slow as eachothers heartbeats lulled them to sleep.

Chapter Text

They were laying side by side on the warm roof, the sun gently warming them. Adora blinked sleepily, lulled into relaxation by the warm sun and the hand holding hers. She turned her head to the side and smiled at Catra.

Catra, seemingly feeling her eyes on her, caught her gaze, warm smile mirroring hers as she gave their joined hands a gentle squeeze. Adora smiled wider and turned onto her side, the other copying her position a moment later. She gazed at Catra, at her messy brown hair, the freckles she’d counted many times back when they were younger and she couldn’t sleep, at the mismatched eyes that gazed at her with such warmth it made something in her chest flutter unexpectedly.

“I wish we could stay like this forever.” Murmured Catra, shifting so close their noses were almost touching.

“Me too.”Catra laughed a little, pressing their foreheads together as she gazed into Adora’s eyes again.

“Then let’s. Stay together, I mean. Nothing’s stopping us now. We can go where we want and do what we want. Be-“ Catra’s eyes clicked down to Adora’s lips for a second before meeting hers again “Be with whoever we want.”

Adora nodded, their noses brushing together with the action. She brought a hand to hesitantly rest on Catra’s waist, relaxing again as Catra brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

Adora’s poor heart thumped against her ribcage sporadically as her mind blanked. It wasn’t what she was expecting, and yet, somehow, it was exactly what she was expecting on this warm roof. What she’d wanted to do for a while. Speaking of... She glanced at Catra’s lips, instinctively leaning forward and pressing her lips to hers before she could second-guess herself.

Catra made the cutest little squeak, but not a moment after she melted into the kiss, one hand going to the back of Adora’s neck to pull her closer. Adora did so gladly, wrapping her arms around Catra and tugging her waist flush against hers, grinning into the kiss as Catra made a satisfied little sound in the back of the throat.

They broke apart for a moment, both breathing heavily and grinning so wide it was near painful. This time, Catra leaned in, running a hand through Adora’s loose hair and-

“Wake up sleepyhead!”

Adora shrieked, sitting bolt upright in the bed, eyes wide. Or, as upright as she could get with someone laying halfway on top of her. Disoriented, she glanced down at Catra, who was currently buried under the covers and grumbling obscenities into her stomach.

“Wh-what the hell?!”

Adora blinked at Bow, who seemed to be having trouble closing his jaw. Catra finally poked her head out from under the covers, glaring at Bow like he had just committed the worst sin imaginable. For a few moments, they stared at each other, then Catra hissed and curled back up, pulling the covers over herself again.

Bow blinked, jumping when he heard the rattle of metal on metal as the guards standing outside the bedroom door peeked in, seeming to be in about as much shock as Bow himself.

Adora, meanwhile, sat as still as a statue, eyes still wild as her mind attempted to wrap around the recent events. She and Catra had been talking, and then they had been kissing, and then Bow shouted and woke her up – no, wait. She’d been sleeping. And she’d dreamed the rooftop and the conversation and the… the kiss. The kiss between her and Catra. She dreamed about kissing Catra.

The thought settled into her mind, heavy and all consuming. Slowly, she lowered her gaze to the top of Catra’s head, once again buried into her stomach, legs tangled with hers. It was a familiar sight, one she’d wake up to often, especially in winter when they’d have to huddle for warmth. But somehow, now, with the dream and the not-real kiss fresh in her mind, Adora felt her face heat unexpectedly.

A loud clatter finally tore her attention from Catra to her bedroom door; one of the guards had dropped his lance while he was trying to muscle his way past Bow.

Well, it seemed she wouldn’t be getting any more sleep today.

With a sigh, she shoved her turmoiled thoughts and sudden rapid heartbeat to the back of her mind. She shifted the covers off of herself, gently prying Catra’s arms from around her waist, murmuring a quiet apology as the sleeping girl grumbled and shifted to curl up into a ball.

In a few quick strides she was standing at the doors and giving the guards an unimpressed look. The one who had been wrestling with Bow now took a step back and grumbled a semblance of an apology.

“What is it?” she asked, trying not to sound quite as annoyed as she felt. She was pretty sure she failed.

“Uh…” was the guards reply. His partner shoved him slightly and stepped forward, giving a salute and glaring at the lump of sleeping teenaged girl on Adora’s bed.

“The prisoner was not in her room this morning. We thought she had tried to escape, so we came to wake you.”

“Ah.” Adora made a shooing motion at the pair of guards “She wasn’t escaping, she’d been with me all night, everything’s fine. You can go now, thank you.”

The guards exchanged strangle looks and walked off, hurried whispers filling the hallway as they walked. With a relieved sigh, Adora closed the door behind them and leaned against it, very much wishing she’d gone to bed a little earlier. A cough brought her attention back to Bow, who now looked sheepish rather than on the verge of a full on panic.

“What was Catra doing in your room all night?” he asked.

“Sleeping.” Answered Adora with a shrug, as if it were obvious. She walked back to the bed, giving the lump under the covers a poke and earned an angry hiss in reply.

“Er…” Bow trailed behind her, eyeing the lump under the covers warily as Adora gave it another prod “Why was she sleeping in your bed?”

“Ah.” Adora looked back at him, seemingly catching onto his questions now. Suddenly, she looked nervous, shifting from foot to foot as her shoulders hunched forward slightly. They both ignored the now very still lump beside them.

“Catra was having a little trouble sleeping last night. You know;” she made a half formed motion with her hands “Like I did when I first got here. I offered to let her sleep over in my room for the night. And-“ she hoped to the gods that her face wasn’t as red as it felt “And there’s no other comfortable place to sleep aside from the bed, so we shared.”

“Oooh.” Bow nodded, rubbing the back of his neck now.

Adora’s eyes darted down, landed on her bed and immediately skirted over to the other side “Is that alright?” she asked his boots.

“Oh, yea, sure. No problem. I just came to wake her up for breakfast, but when she wasn’t in her bed this morning I got a little… nervous.”

“Okay.” Adora’s shoulders sagged in relief, memories of the talking-tos she’d gotten whenever they had gotten caught sharing a bed flashing through her mind. It was fine. Bow said it was fine and they weren’t in the Fright Zone anymore and they weren’t going to get in trouble for seeking a little consolation.

A few seconds ticked by in silence, none of them saying anything.

“Well,” Bow said brightly, clapping his hands “Breakfast is ready, so come and get it soon before all the bacon is gone.”

“We’ll be right down.”

The sound of her door shutting brought with it another bout of silence.

Slowly, Adora turned and stared at her bed. Or rather, the person still curled up in it. The dream came back to the front of her mind, the feeling of dream Catra’s lips on hers leaving a very real tingling sensation behind.

She shook her head. It was just a dream. People have weird dreams all the time. Especially her. Between half remembered, terrifying memories and the power of She-Ra giving her extremely odd and trippy semi-prophetic dreams, this ought not to even rank in the top ten. Glimmer had mentioned Adora needing to go out more, go on a date or two, as well.

Yes, that was probably it. Her mind just had what Glim said and Catra sleeping in her bed and mushed them together in her sleep. It was fine. With that particular thought process stopped and shelved way up high and far away in her mind, she put a hand on the lump of sleeping Catra and gave her a gentle shake.

She got another hiss in reply.

With a sigh she took hold of the blankets and rolled them back, revealing the shock of wild brown hair and a disgruntled looking Catra, squinting up at her.

“Time to get up. C’mon, I’ll show you where Bow hides the breakfast cupcakes.”

“Whaza brefast ‘upcake?” grumbled Catra, hiding her face in the crook of an arm.

Adora had to cover her mouth with a hand to stop the giggles from escaping. Catra was never a morning person, and since every other cadet got scratches and bruises whenever they had to wake her up early, the task always fell to Adora. And after many, many years of dragging her friend out of bed in the morning, Adora knew the routine like the back of her hand.

Leaning forward, she rested her chin on Catra’s shoulder.

“Hey.”

Grumbling, Catra attempted to roll away form her and pull the covers over herself again, but Adora had anticipated the move and had placed a knee on the edge of the blanket, so she only ended up uncovering herself more.

“You have to get up.”

“Noooo.”

“C’mon.”

“’s too early.”

“It’s really not.”

“It is for me.”

“See, you’re talking, therefore, you’re awake.”

“’m sleep talking.”

Adora felt around atop the covers for Catra’s waist and, finding it, began leveraging her other arm underneath her. Catra, knowing where this was inevitably going, attempted to half heartedly wriggle out of her grasp but, within a few seconds, she felt a strong pair of arms wrap around her waist and lift her off of the bed.

Suddenly upright, bright sun blazing right into her eyes as her feet dangled above the ground, Catra grumbled half hearted insults as Adora gently placed her down onto the ground and began fixing the covers into their proper position, humming happily.

Catra meanwhile stood and glared at the window, shivering in the early morning chill. It was definitely too early for her to be up.

Adora, satisfied her bed was as neat as it could get, straightened and beamed at Catra’s glaring face. She poked her side as she passed, heading for her closet and starting to sort through the many clothes hanging inside, most of which she wouldn’t wear if she could help it.
She saw Catra head for the door of her room from the corner of her eye and smiled. She really hadn’t changed a bit.

As she held up a light blue shirt for inspection, she heard a muffled thump. Grin spreading across her face, she called out “You alright there?”

A pause.

“The door got in my way.”

Adora snorted “How rude of it. I’ll have to give it a piece of my mind later.”

She could hear Catra’s laugh, high and joyful for a moment before the door muffled the sound. Still, Adora stayed still and listened to it as it drifted down the hall, only continuing to look for a suitable shirt after it was out of her range of hearing entirely.

Only then did she resume her search, a soft smile firmly in place as she finally settled on a loose light blue and yellow shirt, pulling it on and beginning to search for wherever she’d left her boots the night before.

Chapter Text

Bow beamed, pulling the linked trio of girls along behind him through the busy streets. Two thirds of them might have been in an abysmal mood during breakfast and morning, but he refused to let it get him down when they were about to eat in one of his favourite places.

He had considered briefly waiting until the afternoon lunch rush died down in the constantly busy streets, but one glance at the pair of short and grumpy ladies who looked one wrong move away from a brawl, and he decided he did not want to risk them being hungry as well as grumpy.

Spotting his favourite little hole-in-the-wall, he made a beeline for it, using one arm to elbow his way there while the other arm held onto Adora. Once finally inside the little restaurant, he breathed a sigh of relief. Those streets could really make anyone feel claustrophobic.

“Alright ladies!” he said, beaming at the ruffled trio staring back at him “Time to eat until we burst! Let’s find a booth.” and with that he set off in the direction of his usual seat, the girl trailing a couple steps behind.

Bow slid into the circular booth, Glimmer immediately slipping in next to him, Catra and Adora sliding in opposite them. Before any of them could voice their thoughts, a waiter rushed over, greeted them and plopped four menus in the centre of the table, rushing off again towards the kitchen before any of them could react.

“Four of the usual drinks!” Bow yelled after him, before leaning back and pushing the menus towards the girls “You guys pick what you want, it’s on me.”

All three hesitantly picked up the menus, Glimmer intrigued, Adora confused and Catra looking downright perturbed as she looked over the menu. Belatedly Bow realized she’s probably never seen food like this before. Coughing, he leaned forward.

“I’d recommend going for any of the noodles, they’re the best in town. Just maybe not the black ones, they might be a bit too spicy if you’ve never had anything similar before.”

Catra glanced up, narrowing her eyes “So you’re saying we can’t handle a little spice?”

Bow leaned back, laughing nervously “T-that’s not what I-”

Adora straightened up “I’ve tried all sorts of stuff; I can totally handle it.”

“No, really” Bow said “It’s pretty spicy, I don’t think it’s a good idea for yo-”

“Aha!” yelled Catra, startling the couple in the booth behind her “So you don’t think we can take it!”

The waiter, drawn in by the clamour, strolled over and deposited four large creamy looking drinks on the table “Ready to order?” he asked.

“Uh…” murmured Bow at the same time Adora and Catra yelled “Yes!”

They stared at each other across the table for a moment before Adora took the initiative and beamed at the waiter “Two spicy black pork noodles, please.”

Groaning, Bow covered his face with his hand as he leaned forward “Make that three.”

“I’ll have the sweet and spicy chicken noodles.” added Glimmer, more invested in how this will play out than on the food at this point. She knew exactly how spicy Bow liked his noodles from the one time she made the mistake of trying them. She never planned to make that mistake again.

The group lapsed into silence as they waited for the food to arrive.

“My life just flashed before my eyes!” cried Adora, face red and eyes glossy as she used both hands to fan herself.

“I… kinda like it.” commented Catra, bringing another bite of the noodles to her mouth.

“Glimmer!” moaned Adora, resting on the table beside the devil noodles “Help me!”

“These aren’t event that spicy.” Bow said between mouthfuls.

“Yes, it is!” Groaned Adora, groping around for her smoothie and slurping up as much as she could to relieve the burning in the mouth and throat.

“Are you gonna finish yours?” asked Catra, eyeing her plate, her own now empty.

Without a word, Adora pushed her plate towards Catra, who dug in with fervour. Glimmer eyed Adora, still fanning herself, and pushed her milkshake in her direction. Adora pulled it closer and sipped at it, giving her friend a grateful look.

Glimmer had considered warning the pair exactly how spicy the food would be. But… this was just so hilarious to watch, now that she wasn’t on the receiving end. Besides, she told herself, best they learn for themselves.

“Okay,” said Bow, his own plate long empty as well “Who wants ice-cream?”

Catra glanced up from the last few bites left on Adora’s plate, mouth full, tilting her head to the side slightly as she frowned “Ice… cream?”

A beat passed in silence. Then two. Then three.

“You’ve… never had ice-cream?” asked Glimmer, her voice a mixture of amazement and horror.

“No..?” said Catra, looking from her to Bow, feeling like she was missing out on some vital information.

“Oh, I’ve heard of that. It sounded pretty good.” murmured Adora into the table.

“Are you kidding me?! No, get up, all of you!” yelled Bow, shooting out of his seat and shoving past Glimmer towards the cash register “We are fixing this right now!”

Catra watched his retreating back, brows furrowed, turning to mouth ‘what the hell?’ at Adora. Adora shrugged in response and finally straightened up to finish off the rest of the smoothie.

The nights here were much cooler than in the Fright Zone. The thick cotton blankets might have been a help, but the warm weight against her back was what lulled Catra into another strangely peaceful sleep.

That was, until a buzzing on her wrist woke her.

Blearily, she leaned up and stared at the device on her hand, even through the fog of sleep very grateful Entrapta had made the little communicator silent. Adora might have been a deep sleeper, but a high-pitched buzzing like the ones Entrapta had first proposed would have woken even her up.

For a moment, she contemplated letting it buzz away on her wrist and go back to sleep. But no, there was no way she could go back to sleep now, the questions already forming in her mind would keep her up until dawn.

At least if she got up, she could chew out whoever had the bright idea to call her at this ungodly hour.

Slowly, she slid Adora’s arms from around her middle, slithering out of the comforting warmth of the bed onto the cold stone floor. Looking back for a moment to make certain Adora hadn’t stirred, she silently walked out of the room and down the hall into her own, sitting down on the floor beside the bed as she activated the device.

“This is Catra, why in the name of god are you calling at three in the morning?”

“Finally!” Lonnie’s voice, slightly robotic due to the tiny speakers in the communicator, rose with each word “We barricaded ourselves into the castle as much as we could, but we can’t hold them off forever, and we don’t have enough supplies to hole up somewhere in here  for long!”

“Lonnie, Lonnie, back up, barricading yourself from who?” Catra hissed into the comm, though she could already image exactly who the ‘they’ Lonnie was referring to were. She really hoped she was wrong.

Please let her be wrong.

“The Horde. They found us.”

Catra didn’t ask her to elaborate. She could image the situation quite clearly, and it left a cold feeling in her chest. Her team stuck inside the castle, with few supplies and fewer weapons beyond the few robots and machines still left in the place. The Horde, either outside or marching towards them, likely both outnumbering and outgunning them.

The situation was grotesquely bleak no matter how she looked at it.

She sat in silence for a moment, mind running in several different direction before she mentally pulled herself together and focused on thinking of a plan that would get all her teammates – her friends, out safe.

“OK, Lonnie, breathe and focus. Where are the rest of the team?”

“Uhm… Entrapta and Scorpia are at the front of the castle putting up a barrier, Kyle and Rogelio are looking for weapons in the barracks. Or what’s left of them.” Answered Lonnie, audio slightly distorted, most likely from interference or the com being shaken.

“Alright, this is what you need to do; get Kyle and Rogelio, forget the weapons, they’ll outnumber you either way, look for food and water, some knives if you can find them. Then get to Scorpia and Entrapta and tell them so send all of the combat able robots to the wall facing side of the castle.”

“Wait, why? Wouldn’t it make more sense to have them with us?”

“Lonnie, shut up, we do not have time for this. Once you do that, get everyone to the cliff facing side of the castle, then order the robots to attack the Horde. Climb out through a window and down to ground level; use ropes or something, any kind of vehicle will be too loud and give you away. Head for the Whispering Woods; look for the big ugly metal tower and I’ll meet you there.”

“I-okay. Thank you, Catra.”

Catra paused, fingers hovering over the bracelets power buttons “Just stay safe until I can get to you.”

“Yes, Force Captain!”

The bracelet powered down, sitting silently in her hands as she sat in the suddenly deafening silence.

She had expected the Horde to look for them, sure, but she never imagine they’d find them so soon. She figured they’d try to keep the news quiet, lest any other soldiers got the idea to defect. But maybe the news finally got out? Or someone had seen them make a run for it when they left? Lord Hordak must have been exceptionally pissed to put so many resources and manpower towards finding them. The thought sent a chill down her spine.

If the Horde was this desperate to get their hands on them, what would they do if they caught them?

Feeling nauseous, she got to her feet and ran for the wardrobe, pulling out her pack and the few meagre belongings that were returned to her after her short stay in the dungeons. No food or water – whatever, she can find some on the way, no use trying to raid the kitchens and potentially getting caught.

All her things packed away, she ran to the window, opening it wide and sitting on the ledge. It was quite the drop, but there were plenty of small handholds all the way to the ground, so as long as it didn’t suddenly start, she should be fine. Planning her route, she shifted her weight and-

“Catra?”

Catra froze, barely balancing on the sill, the very blood in her veins turning to ice. In her hurry to go and get to her team, she forgot one very important thing. Maybe the most important right now. Slowly, she turned so that she could face the door.

“Adora! I can expla-“ she was cut off, the other storming into the room towards her and seizing her wrist in an iron grip.

“Are you leaving?!” she hissed, denial and betrayal making the words come out choked and broken “Or, were you planning to leave the whole time?” she asked, letting go of her as if burned, eyes wide, silently begging her to tell her it wasn’t true.

“No! Adora, of course not!” Catra jumped down form the window ledge, taking both of Adora’s hands in hers, voice desperate and higher than she could remember it being in years “But the Horde, they found my team, I have to go to them, I have to help!”

“Your team?” asked Adora, voice small, face now unreadable.

“I-I didn’t defect by myself. The gang all came along.” Catra admitted, eyes falling to the floor between them “We split up, I went to you and they holed up in Entrapta’s castle until I could be sure it was okay for them to come here.”

“Why didn’t you tell me this? I thought you trusted me?”

The hurt in Adora’s voice made Catra want to shrink down to the floor, swear to the heavens that she really did, to please forgive her, she just… didn’t know who to trust anymore.

She swallowed down her panic and looked Adora in the eyes “I was fine risking myself, but if all six of us showed up together and the Queen decided we weren’t worth the risk… Adora, I’m their leader! I’m the one that planned the escape, the one that lead them out! If anything happens to them now, it’s on me!”

She was breathing hard, hands gripping Adora’s far too tightly.

“Okay.”

Catra heard her sigh, but kept her gaze away from her face, not wanting to see the betrayed look or the blank mask. She wasn’t sure which one was worse. Pale hands came into view, gently tilting her face to look Adora in the eyes.

“Then let’s go. You’re already packed, right?” she asked, eyeing the pack slung into Catra’s shoulder.

“I-what?” she asked, dumbfounded “You’re… not gonna rat me out to the guards?”

Another look of hurt flashed across Adora’s face before it smoothed back out to unreadable. Catra immediately felt terrible, but the words had just burst out of her.

“No, you idiot. I’m coming with you.” Adora replied, moving to stand by the window and inspect the wall below much like she had a few minutes prior. Catra stared at her back, feelings of guilt slowly being washed away by sheer relief and… something else.

She moved forward, wrapping her arms tightly around Adora’s waist as she buried her face in the other’s back “Thank you.” She whispered, so quietly she was half sure Adora didn’t so much hear her as she had felt her lips move against her back. She ignored how stiff Adora was under her arms.

After a moment she let go and moved to stand by the window, nodding towards the cool, calm night beyond.

“Let’s go save our friends.”

Chapter Text

She figured getting to her team on time would be the biggest challenge. She was wrong.

It took the two of them no time at all to get to the crystal tower, now that Adora had some experience navigating the Whispering Woods. The much, much bigger hurdle made itself very clear once they arrived. The other team hadn’t made it there yet.

Catra looked around anxiously, attempting to pick up the sound of footsteps out of the hundreds of other noises from the forest around them. It shouldn’t take them much longer to get here, they were even closer to the rendezvous point than she and Adora were. Unless… unless they got captured before they could make it.

“Maybe,” she began, tail swishing behind her nervously “we should head towards them and try to meet them on the way? The Horde might have cut off their most direct route.” She turned, one eyebrow raised in question, to find Adora frowning at her.

The silence stretched on just long enough to be uncomfortable before Adora looked away and crossed her arms.

“We should wait here.”

Now it was Catra’s turn to frown “Why? One side of the path to here is blocked by a cliff and the other by a river, we couldn’t miss them even if we were blind and deaf.”

Adora sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose as she shook her head, taking a step away from her. Catra felt an unpleasant squeeze in her chest as she watched her pause, then move even further away.

“It’s not that.” Adora finally said, staring into the woods around them and decidedly away from her. 

“Then what?” Catra hissed back, taking a step closer.

Adora took another step back, a look of guilt flashing across her face for the merest instant before it went right back to the unreadable mask she’s been wearing since they set off. Catra didn’t think she’d ever hated an expression more.

“I’m just… not sure I can trust you right now.” Adora finally said, the words leaving her mouth quiet and fast, as if that would soften the blow they dealt.

“What?” gasped Catra, the uneasy tension in her chest blossoming into hurt. It felt as if someone had taken ahold of her ribcage and squeezed.

Now Adora finally looked at her again, still with that damned unreadable look on her face, voice empty as if she was reading a field report instead of talking to a friend “You withheld the truth from me, when you could have asked for my help. When you should have asked for my help. And then suddenly you and me are running out into the Woods, by ourselves, without anyone else knowing we’re even gone, because of a distress call you allegedly got. And now you suggest we go into the deeper part of the Woods, closer to enemy territory, where none of our allies could reach us in time if anything went wrong. You have to admit, none of it helps me trust you… more. I say we wait here.”

“I…” Catra attempted to think of a response, but her mind felt horribly blank, like her brain had been replaced with buzzing static. She looked from Adora and into the Woods, itching to run into them and find her friends, but at the same time not wanting to leave Adora here by herself and confirm her suspicions.

It wasn’t until this moment that Catra realized exactly how fragile their relationship still was.

Finally, when the silence stretched past uneasy and into turbulent did Catra finally find the words to say “Okay, we’ll wait here.”

And they waited, the sounds of the Woods around them seeming to grow louder to fill the deafening silence between them. Catra wasn’t sure what was worse: losing Adora’s trust so fast when she’d just begun to get it back, the fact that she didn’t want to sit and wait beside her but instead went to sit on a tree root several feet away, or feeling as if she’d picked Adora’s side over her team’s. 

Which was ridiculous. They all are, or at the very least, will be on the same side. And they’re Adora’s friends too. She just couldn’t understand it. The Adora she knew would have bolted into the woods right beside her in search of their friends. Catra wondered for the first time if it wasn’t only her that had changed during their separation.

Just as she was about ready to drag Adora into the woods by force so she could prove that she hadn’t betrayed her, the sound of a crash and curses sounded from the Woods.

Both of them sprang to their feet, Catra low to the ground and Adora unsheathing her sword -she didn’t even notice her bring that, did she sleep with the thing?- as the branches before them parted to reveal a soaking wet Kyle, half carried by Rogelio, followed by Scorpia, Entrapta and finally an angry Lonnie bringing up the rear. All five visibly relaxed at the sight of Catra.

“There you guys are!” said Catra, straightening up from her crouch “I thought you’d gotten captured on the way or something.”

Adora nodded at her former teammates, giving them an awkward nod “Hey.”

“We almost did, when we had to fish Kyle out of the river.” grumbled Lonnie, shooting a glare at a sheepish Kyle, who hid his face in Rogelio’s neck when Catra shot him an unimpressed look “I’d love to sit and catch up, but we’ve got a whole battalion on our tails, so we really should get going before they catch up.”

“Right.” Catra nodded, turning away from the group and taking a few quick steps towards the woods before slowing to a halt. 

Now that her team was with her again, she really wasn’t sure what to do. Her first instinct was to head back to Bright Moon, but now that she had a moment to think about it, bringing half a squadron into the castle, followed by a whole battalion knocking on the city gates, probably wouldn’t go over well with the already on edge queen who was one wrong move away from throwing her back in the dungeons.

They couldn’t very well stay in the Woods either, and Thaymor and Scorpion Hill were too close to the Fright Zone to be any safer. Which meant their only safe direction to head in was… the Crimson Waste. Not a much better option, really, and likely an obvious one that would occur to their enemies as well, but at least it might give the Horde soldiers some pause before they followed them.

If they’re lucky, they might even leave them be.

She started towards the Northwest at a brisk pace, the others jogging to keep up. Well, with the exception of Scorpia, who only had to lengthen her stride a bit and caught up with Catra in seconds.

“Uhh, hey, Wildcat, not to question your judgement or anything, I’m sure you’ve got a foolproof plan to get us out of this, but why are we heading up North?” she asked, ever optimistic and trusting, even with a battalion hot on their tails and a tense silence hovering over the group like a dark cloud.

“We’re heading to the Crimson Waste,” she answered, then briskly turned her head to glare at the rest of the group behind the pair of them, half ready with arguments on their tongues “And before anyone tries to argue about it not being safe, it’s the only direction we can go in without going closer to the Fright Zone or bringing the enemy to Bright Moon’s doorstep. So unless anyone has a better plan, hush up and focus on not giving away our location.” She gave Kyle a pointed look.

No one argued, though from the looks on their faces, none of them were too happy with the plan either. Whatever. They can be mad at her all they want, so long as they follow her lead and stay alive.

Catra ignored the stare Adora was burning into the back of her skull and doubled her pace.

She’d never been to the Crimson Waste before, but luckily, the massive expanse of sand and rocky ravines was hard to miss.

Not so luckily, now that she looked out at it, the place didn’t have much in the way of cover they could use to hide. Deciding any direction away from the approaching enemy was a good one, Catra picked a semi-visible path that lead into a deep gorge and walked, trying not to let her nerves show. If she showed any signs of panic or doubt, the rest of the group would begin to panic as well, and that won’t end well for any of them.

“Alright,” she said, not liking the way her voice carried and echoed as they entered the path between the cliffs “Let’s try to move fast. Until we put enough distance between us we’re practically sitting ducks out in the open like this. Entrapta-” the woman perked up at the sound of her name, humming excitedly “-any chance you can scan the area for a place we can hole up in until the battalion leaves?”

The woman beamed and saluted. “Sure thing boss!” she said, scaling the edges of the gorge until she was sitting at the edge high above them, pulling bits and pieces of scrap seemingly out of thin air.

“Oh for- stay out of sight!” Catra shouted up at her. She glared and fought the urge to point a very rude gesture up towards the princess as she waved cheerily down at her and went right back to fiddling with her scraps, still very much in plain sight.

She contemplated sending someone up there to keep an eye out, but ultimately decided it wasn’t worth the effort. Not like two sitting ducks are better than one. 

“So,” Adora began, speaking up for the first time in more than an hour. “What’s your plan now?”

Catra ignored the distrustful tone and puffed out her chest slightly, attempting to project the image of a confident leader. She was mostly sure she succeeded.

“We wait for Entrapta to finish building whatever it is she’s working on, so that we have a general direction we can head in. Then we find a nice, safe place to wait ‘till the Horde soldiers either pass us or until we’re sure they’re gone, then we head back Bright Moon the long way around, just in case we bump more of them on the way back.” she gave Adora a flat stare. “Any objections?”

Adora shook her head, turning away to stare up at Entrapta above them, happily fiddling away.

Catra stared at her back, waiting for her to say something more. After a few minutes, when it became clear Adora had no plans to say add anything, Catra huffed and sat herself down next to Scorpia instead.

“She’ll come around, just you wait.” Scorpia whispered loudly.

“Yea.”  Catra nodded, not feeling particularly sure of the fact.

It was only a minute later that Entrapta swung down to them, smiling at her in a way that told her she knew what she was about to say wasn’t going to go over well with the rest of them.

“So,” she began, twirling the new device in her hands around and around. “I’ve got good news and bad news. Good news, I see a deep ravine not far from here. Bad news, it seems like the Horde soldiers aren’t turning around. They’re heading our way pretty fast, in fact.”

Catra groaned and rubbed her temples. Of course. Why in the world would they ever get lucky? 

“Everyone, move out. We have to beat them to the ravine before they can spot us.”

Catra, like most Horde soldiers, hadn’t known much about the Crimson Waste. It was an area both the Horde and the Resistance avoided, a desolate desert neither side felt any inclination to inhabit. And standing at the edge of a steep drop, she was glad. 

Because, it seems someone already had.

Below them stretched streets and markets, houses built along them and into the very walls of the gorge. The sun was well on its way to the highest point in the sky, leaving the streets mostly empty, the various people inhabiting the hidden city appearing to all unanimously disappear out of the heat. The few that were outside were sitting around in small patches of shade visible from their vantage point, nursing drinks or sitting in front of spinning fans.

Feeling the unmerciful sun beat a stifling heat into her back, she could understand why.

Entrapta stood at the edge, bouncing from side to side on her hair, only Scorpia’s claw on her overalls keeping her from topping over the edge and down to her death. Though Catra doubted anything short of the end of the universe could truly kill the mechanic, considering how many explosions she’d survived already during her time in the Fright Zone.

“Well? Are you gonna stand there all day, or are we going down there where the sun won’t burn us all to a crisp?”

Catra turned to give Lonnie an unfriendly look, but followed her to the wooden stairs leading down to the city all the same, the rest of their party following close behind. Scorpia stopped her short just as they were about to reach the bottom, and at Catra’s questioning look silently wrapped a sand coloured cloak around her shoulders.

Ah, right. The Horde symbol on her back probably wouldn’t have made her very welcome. She turned and watched as the rest of her team pulled matching cloaks from their bags and wrapping them around their shoulders.

And with that, they set off.

They walked along the sand covered streets, windows shut and doors locked to them wherever they looked. Even Scorpia had to give up on hiding out in one of the houses after the fifth time her cheery greeting went ignored.

With their best option for a hideout seemingly out of the question, they instead headed for one of the small alleyways that separated the buildings. It may not be the most secure, but at least it was out of the sun and away from prying eyes.

Everyone settled in for the long haul, laying down their bags and leaning against the walls, though they all still stole anxious glances at the end of the alley from time to time. They may not have been visible from up above, but anyone walking by and looking in their direction could easily spot them. 

Adora stood a little way away from the rest of the ex-Horde soldiers, having a hushed discussion with an awkward-looking Entrapta who seemed to be caught between sheepish and relieved.

She really needed to talk to Adora, though she still didn’t have a clue what to say to make things right between them again, to clear up what happened before the distrust between them festered into something worse. 

“Seems you’ve gotten yourselves into quite a predicament there, kitten.”

Everyone in the party jumped, Catra finding herself with arms full of a startled Kyle as she swung around to hiss at- Adora?

Catra blinked, dropping Kyle to the floor as she swung around to stare at Adora, who stood beside Entrapta right where she was before, looking just as shocked as she felt. She turned and glared at the second Adora standing at the edge of the alley, leaning against the wall and giving her a wide grin.

There was a flash of light behind her and a second later, She-Ra was standing at her side, sword raised and face furious as she glowered down at the other-her. Other-Adora gaped for a moment, seemingly caught off guard, before she grinned and clapped her hands in excitement.

Her began to shimmer, turning into a sparkling black mass as her body seemed to stretch and change until another She-Ra stared back at them, looking delighted and… was that smugness?

“Now, what in the world could have brought the great She-Ra to our doorstep, hm?” she asked in Adora’s voice, sauntering closer. 

Adora raised the sword and pointed it at the other’s throat, glower deepening. The other-Adora-turned-She-Ra merely gazed down at the blade curiously.

“Now now, there’s no need to for that. Especially when I’ve come to give you a warning from the goodness of my heart.”

She-Ra lowered her sword slightly, face scrunching up in a frown as her double beamed at her. Catra was staring past them though, ears twitching as she strained to listen. She was pretty sure the streets weren’t as dead silent when they had first arrived a couple minutes ago and- there. Just at the edge of her hearing, heavy footsteps and the clanking of armor.

Ears flicking down flat against her skull, she glanced behind her at her team, then past them at the other end of the alley, leading off into more winding streets. She couldn’t pinpoint exactly where the footsteps were coming from, meaning the Horde soldiers had probably split up upon entering the city and sweeping the area from multiple directions.

They had a shot of slipping from alley to alley and away from the city, but with the sheer number of them, there was a very real chance they’d be spotted long before they made it anywhere near the edge of the city. And splitting up was out of the question, they’d be even more vulnerable if they got caught.

She turned back to the pair of She-Ra’s, sharing a look with the one at her side before both turning to look at the double, grinning back at them like the cat that had gotten the cream.

“What’s your game?” asked Catra, putting a hand on She-Ra’s sword arm, lowering it gently until it was pointed at the ground, but still in the newcomer’s general direction.

The other-She-Ra’s form shimmered again, becoming slightly shorter and slimmer, tail growing from behind them and pale skin turning green. The black shimmer disappearing, they gave a low bow.

“Double Trouble, at your service.” They straightened up, grinning at the pair of them as they clasped their hand together in front of their chest “Be honest, were you impressed? I only got a quick look at blondie before I made my appearance.”

Catra glared at them. A shapeshifter. And one not allied with either the Resistance or the Horde, from the looks of it. Which made them much less trustworthy. But… but at the same time, someone with their abilities would be invaluable if brought over to their side. 

“And what would you want in return?” she inquired.

“Oh, I’m just looking to ally myself with the winning side. My talent is much more than just changing shape, and that in itself is a rarity, I can assure you of that.”

They flung out an arm “I don’t just change to look like someone else. I study them, learn to mimic their movements down to the tiniest twitch, become them-” they paused “-For a price, of course.”

“Of course.” Catra nodded and glanced behind them. The footsteps were drawing nearer with every minute that passed. They didn’t have much time left before they were found.

“Fine, we’ll discuss the terms and payment later. For now-” the shape shifter perked up “-draw the soldiers deeper into the city and away from the entrance so we can get away. Once we’re safely far away, we’ll meet up in the gorge and we can head to Bright Moon and get the first payment. Consider this first job as a trial, to see if you’re really as good as you say you are.”

Double Trouble grinned and bowed to her “An audition, then. I won’t disappoint,” they announced, adding a wink at the end.

Catra rolled her eyes. “You better.”

And they were off, their form shifting to resemble that of Kyle as they turned a corner and began shouting, causing a commotion that could probably be heard from all across the city. 

The rest of them headed towards the other end of the alley, waiting for a moment as Catra listened to make sure there weren’t any soldiers on this side anymore before bolting across the street. They made it a full circle through the surrounding streets, sticking to the shadows and alleyways, taking the long way back to the exit in case any of the soldiers had stayed behind.

Once they reached the stairs Catra realized another problem. The stairs hugged the steep walls, inclining up and above all the houses in a dizzying zig zag pattern. All in plain sight with nothing to hide behind. If any of the Horde soldiers so much as looked in their general direction, they would be sitting ducks to the blasts of their weapons, with nowhere to go but further up or back down to the city.

Catra felt a hand on her arm and turned to look at Adora, who looked back at her with an uneasy expression.

“Are you sure this is a good idea? We have no idea if we can trust Double Trouble, they could be working for the Horde for all we know! And you want to bring them into Bright Moon with only a promise? When they made it clear they’re only in it for the money?” she hissed.

“You brought me into Bright Moon with only my word that I wasn’t with the Horde anymore.” Catra hissed back, not understanding why Adora chose now, of all times, to start being difficult “And I gave you much more of a reason not to trust me than they did.”

Adora looked at her boots, shoulders tense and hands gripping her knees “I still don’t like it.”

“You don’t have to like it. You just have to tr-” Catra bit off the rest of the word before it could leave her mouth, eyes widening slightly as Adora’s head whipped up and she gave her a look that spelled out exactly how much she trusted her in that moment, even with no words leaving her mouth.

“... fine.” she finally ground out, as a boom echoed from the other end of the city. 

Before Catra could say anything more, Adora was already on her feet and running up the stairs. Catra cursed and bolted after her, the rest of the team following at her heels. Scorpia gave her a reassuring smile and patted her back briefly as she ran past.

They finally stopped only when they reached the gorge again, all squeezing into a crevice in the wall face. Adora was the last to slip in, pressed side to side against Catra and very decidedly looking away from her, even turning her head away to watch the entrance when Catra tried to catch her eye.

She wanted to speak up and get this talk over with now, but with the rest of the team practically pressed into their backs she stayed her tongue and settled in to wait for their new ally in the tense silence.

She had hoped at least some of the others would have picked up a conversation, but it seemed everyone had caught onto the tense mood, even Entrapta and Scorpia staying unnaturally still and quiet as they waited.

After the better part of an hour, they finally spotted a lone Horde soldier running in their direction. Everyone tensed up and squeezed further back into the crevice, Lonnie and Kyle giving grunts of protest as they were squished into the wall.

The soldier’s form shimmered and changed until it was Double Trouble running towards them, grinning ear to pointy ear as they skidded to a halt.

“Sent them on a wild goose chase-” They choked out, panting. “I’d say I bought us about an hour, hour and a half at most before they realize you’re not in the city anymore.”

Catra nodded and stepped out of the crevice, everyone else filing out into the open with relieved sighs. She stepped up to them and gave them a quick pat on the arm.

“Good job. Now let’s get out of here before we melt.”

Double Trouble preened, falling into step beside Catra as she led the way towards the Whispering Woods. She absently answered their questions, which seemed to have no general topic or reason, but most of her attention was on a different blond, who walked silently at the other end of the group, practically feeling her displeasure radiating from her.

It’d be fine. They just needed to get back to Bright Moon, settle things with the queen, then they could finally have the privacy to talk this out in peace and everything could go back to normal. She repeated the thought in her head like a mantra, even as a small voice in her head whispered that it wouldn’t be nearly that simple.