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The wind whips over the thin spandex covering her body as gravity tugs her down towards a cement grave just for the elasticity of the web to transform her descent into an arch. The rush is to die for, and it is one of the only feelings that Adora couldn’t give up now that she is Spider-Woman.
Adora’s earpiece crackles as she whips around a medium-sized skyscraper. A voice cuts through the static, “The police report identified the strange creature in the junction between West 40th Avenue and Gold Street by the Daily Bugle.”
“Just wonderful. At least this time when they slander my name they can get a picture of my good side,” Adora quips back as she runs along the edge of a building.
“I don’t think any of their photographers are fast enough to.” Another voice laughs through the static from the earpiece.
“You don’t have faith in them, Glimmer?” Adora jokes as she lands on a light pole a few blocks from the disturbance.
“Oh, no way they get a good shot, Adora.” Glimmer returns.
“Guys,” the male voice cuts in, “we agreed on using code names while we are on this channel. It’s secure, but it’s not that secure.”
“Fine fine, Foxtrot.” Adora sighs, “where exactly is this thing?” She begins scanning the destruction: flipped cars, dents in buildings, knocked down streetlights, dozens of police cars surrounding a manhole, and luckily, no bodies.
“The police broadcast was saying it had just entered the sewer. They are waiting for better-armed reinforcements before they go after it.”
“Well looks like the Daily Bugle won’t be getting its picture this time” Adora dives for a nearby manhole.
Every cell in her body goes into overdrive the second she lands on the ground: danger. She flips back into the air as a hulking creature swipes at her. Its form shines in swaying overhead lights: inky black with a face full of razor-sharp teeth. Without a second of hesitation, the creature pivots to strike with its claw again. Adora ducks under the attack and lands a solid punch into the abdomen of the creature; however, as Adora attempts to pull her hand away, the inky substance of the creature latches onto her followed by a punch that sends her flying back several feet into the sewer water.
Adora clenches her side as she leaps out of the water to narrowly avoid another attack. The impact of the creature slamming into the ground shatters the stone pavement and shakes the nearby ground.
“Guys,” Adora winces into her headpiece, “I don’t think I am gonna be able to beat this thing with brute force alone. Do we have anything on what it is?”
“Unfortunately no” Bow responds on the other end, “whatever this thing is, it’s brand new. If you can sample its skin, we might be able to figure out what it is. I don’t think we can take it right now.”
“Excellent,” Adora says as she dives in between the creature’s legs as it charges for another attack.
As the last of her moments dies down, Adora pivots to her feet and launches two webs that latch onto the back of the creature. A match of tug of war begins to play out as Adora struggles to hold her ground against the creature. She slowly starts to slide toward it as it attempts to break the web.
“It's not very smart,” Adora notes more to herself than Bow or Glimmer, “it could easily cut the webs with its claws, and yet it's not.”
“Spider-Woman,” Glimmer pipes up. “I picked up some stuff on the police scanner. The officers scared the creature into the sewers with high-pitched sounds.”
“Thank god there is something,” Adora says as she drops her hold on the webs. The creature flies forward crashing into a nearby wall and exposing sewage pipes. “Glimmer how mad would you be if you had to clean the suit again this week.”
“Adora, you are already covered in sewer gunk.” Adora can practically hear Glimmer roll her eyes.
“Guys! Code names!” Bow cries out.
“Sorry!” Glimmer and Adora respond in unison.
“Also sorry for this one,” Adora cringes as her webs attach to the sewage pipes next to the inky beast. “You might wanna look away.”
With one quick tug, the pipes come flying off the wall covering the creatures in a myriad of sludge. Adora begins slamming the pipes together as she approaches the creature creating a high-pitched ringing noise that suffocates the air. The inky black skin of the creature begins to peel away into vein-like structures, revealing a humanoid-like body on the inside. Unfortunately, the creature can stitch itself back together before Adora can get a good glance at it. Right as she is about to continue her pursuit, members of the SWAT force begin descending into the manhole above. Adora decided it was time to go, and she took off in the opposite direction pulling a piece of her web that had been attached to the creature with her.
---
After a nice hot shower, Adora returned to the living room, Glimmer’s, and Bow’s 2-bedroom apartment. It wasn’t much of an apartment. It only had one bathroom, a cramped living space, a tiny kitchen, and a less-than-ideal location crowded by other apartment buildings, but it was affordable and that’s all that mattered.
Adora plopped down on the couch and peered over Bow’s shoulder at his computer. “Any luck figuring out what the thing is?”
“Nope, just dead ends…” Bow sighed as he leaned back into the couch. “These genetic compounds are like nothing in any biological database, and I am no biologist.”
“Where’s Glimmer? Isn’t biology like her thing?” Adora asked as she got up to pour a glass of water from the fridge.
“She's getting the car checked out. Remember how the horn is making that goddess-awful grating sound?”
“Yeah, and such a noise will not fulfill her need to honk out assholes on the road” Adora leans back against the sink as she stares into space. Her eyes slowly begin to refocus on the calendar by the fire escape: October 28th. Adora almost drops her glass, and by almost, she dropped it, caught it, placed it on the counter, and then slumped to the floor as her vision began to sting at the edges.
Bow took almost no time to feel the change in the air leaped off the couch and rushed over to check on Adora. Bow always joked that his superpower was to read the energies in the room.
“Adora,” Bow asked, his voice painfully sweet, “what’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Adora said as she shifted her eyes away so they wouldn’t meet boys. She could barely lie as is. She couldn’t lie to Bow, or Glimmer for that matter. It’s how they found out she was Spider-Woman only two weeks after being roommates.
“You’re crying Adora,” Bow wipes away a few of the tears. “That doesn’t seem like nothing.”
Adora remains quiet for a while. She hasn’t told either Bow or Glimmer about Catra, well not directly. She mentioned that her inability to save a good friend from dying is what inspired her to use her powers for good, but she never said who the friend was or that she wanted to be more than friends, or that she had spent 3 years looking for her. Maybe it was time to tell the story.
Adora sighs, “I feel like this is something Glimmer should hear too.”
“200 bucks to fix a fucking car horn. Give me a fucking break!” Glimmer says as she swung open the front door. As soon as she surveyed the room, her frown shifted to worry.
---
After Glimmer was brought up to speed, Adora began “You know that friend that inspired me to be Spider-Woman? Well um… today is her birthday. The first birthday she’s had since I found out she was gone.” Adora takes a deep breath as she realizes her whole body is shaking. While her spider-sense protects her, it also amplifies anxiety, and Adora has a lot of anxiety to go around.
“It’s ok Adora,” Bow encourages,” take your time. We aren’t in any rush.”
Adora lets out another deep breath and reduces the amount she is shaking. “She just meant a lot to me. I was raised in an orphanage for 15 years of my life until my Aunt and Uncle found me. Catra was like my best friend there, but also so much more than that. We always looked out for each other, and… I loved her. I never got to tell her that.”
Adora pauses. “When my Aunt and Uncle showed up wanting to take me home, I begged and pleaded with them to take Catra with me. Their kind hearts couldn’t say no, so we were going to stay together. However, Sharon Weaver, our foster mother, would never let that happen. She was already outraged that I, her star pupil, was going back to my family. She always thought Catra held me back, and as one last act of hatred against Catra, she sold Catra to the Horde for Goddess knows what work. I was away with my Aunt and Uncle when this happened, so I couldn’t stop it. I couldn’t save Catra. I made a promise to her that we would always stick together, and I failed her.
Adora takes a long pause before continuing. “My Aunt and Uncle got the place shut down shortly afterward. It was barely a legal battle. Miss Weaver got sent behind bars, but Catra was still gone. We tried putting up missing posters, checking other foster homes and orphanages, checking homeless shelters, and working with the police, but nothing seemed to work.
“Then about a year ago, I got bit by a radioactive spider, and I went looking for her myself. I started interrogating each criminal I faced. Most gave little to no useful information, but every once in awhile I would stumble upon a lead. Eventually, it led me to the Horde. I stalked out an upper member of the gang by the name of Hordak. I took him down with ease, and then I beat the information out of him. He told me that Catra was dead. That she failed a mission and was dead because of it. I was so angry… I took it out… I took it out on him. I wanted him dead for taking Catra… to her death, but I… I couldn’t…”
The remaining words that fall from Adora’s mouth are choked with sobs and impossible to decipher. Bow and Glimmer envelope Adora from both sides in a hug.
“It’s okay, Adora. Just breathe with us,” Bow says as he and Glimmer start letting out slow and easy breaths. Adora's breath stutters for a bit before it falls in unison.
“I’m sorry guys… it’s just.” Adora begins.
“Stop, stop. Adora you don’t need to be sorry for being vulnerable,” Glimmer says, “we are here for you even at your lowest.”
“Thank you, guys. I don’t know how I got around before I met y’all.” Adora smiles weakly, a few stray tears still trickling down her face.
“We’re glad we can help,” Bow says as he pulls back from the hug, “how about we order pizza tonight and have a movie night.”
"That sounds nice." Adora stifles a sob as Glimmer pulls up the list of movies she demanded that Adora watch.
---
Bow and Glimmer walk down the brick hallway, dim lights flickering overhead.
“The biology department is a bit… uh…” Bow begins.
“Old.” Glimmer finishes for him as they stop at a door marked BioInformatics lab. Glimmer fiddles around in her coat for the key, “Yeah, well Brightmoon University isn’t really well known for its science degrees.”
“Right you are,” Bow agrees as Glimmer unlocks the door and ushers them both in.
The lab is rather cramped as old computers hang down from dusty shelves and cabinets lie locked and closed marked with hazardous symbols. Normally, Glimmer has the lab to herself. Only two students in the biology department are signed up for BioInformatic research, and Glimmer has only seen her counterpart once: at the beginning of the semester when they got their keys. However, there she is sitting at one of the two computers; her different-colored eyes shifting from one screen to the other until she lifts her gaze to the newcomers.
“Hey Cyra,” Glimmer says cheerfully as she leads Bow to the other computer.
“Sup Sparkles,” Cyra says as she stashes something into her backpack. The motion is so quick that Glimmer isn’t able to catch what it is even if she was paying attention. Instead, she is rolling her eyes at the nickname Cyra gave her after their first interaction.
“It’s been a whole two months since we last saw each other, and you remembered the stupid nickname you came up for me.”
“Did I call you Sparkles back then? Don’t remember. You just always look like someone barfed confetti on you.”
Bow begins awkwardly glancing between the two girls afraid of what Glimmer’s response will be, but the room breaks into laughter instead of thrown fists. To say the least, Bow is confused. Glimmer is not the type of person to like being insulted to the face, even if for fun.
“Who’s your friend? Crop top?” Cyra asks as one of her ears twitches.
“This is Bow, and Bow, this is Cyra” Glimmer says as she flourishes her arm in Bow’s general direction. “He was interested in my research, so I thought I would show him what I have been working on.”
“I thought we were…” Bow begins right before he is elbowed by Glimmer. “Right, of course, your research.”
“Anyways, I was about to get going,” Cyra says as she stands up from her desk.
“Don’t only cats have two different colored eyes?” Bow asks as he shuffles trying to get a better look at it.
“Hey look Crop Top,” Cyra grits out, her entire demeanor shifting, “it’s none of your business.”
Bow puts both his hands up in the air, “Didn’t mean to offend.” His words roll off followed by a nervous laugh.
Cyra collects herself and makes her way to the door, “Fine, whatever. It’s rarer in humans, but nonetheless, I was born with it”, and then she is gone.
“Sorry about Cyra,” Glimmer starts as she logs into her computer, “she doesn’t like talking about personal things. I would have warned you about that, but this is like my second time seeing her. She’s a ghost. I don’t know how she gets her research done.”
“It’s fine,” Bow says as he grabs a seat and wheels it over to Glimmer’s station, “Honestly, I was kind of surprised you didn’t punch her for calling your style confetti vomit.”
“I would have if it was anyone but Cyra. She likes throwing shit for the fun of it. She can also take it, so at least it’s fair .”
“Fair enough. Well then, let’s get this sample of the monster analyzed, so we can get out of here. The lack of windows is really killing the vibe.”
Glimmer rolls her eyes.
---
Catra’s plan had gone off without a hitch. She had got the information she needed about Kyle, and so what if she had “repossessed” some gems that belonged to a financial backer of the Horde? She was about to make a clean escape through the hole she had made in the window when she spotted a female figure in white spandex leaning against the wall next to her escape route.
“You know stealing is illegal right?” the woman said as she pushed off the wall.
“You know vigilantism is illegal right?” Catra retorted back as she unsheathed her claws. She leaped at Spider-Woman who ducked out of the way at the last minute. She’s cocky. Doesn’t see me as a threat.
“Oooh, low blow. What’s your stick anyway? Half-human, half-cat?” Spider-Woman jokes as she shoots two webs to trap Catra’s hands against the window. Catra cuts through them like butter.
“At least I’m half and half. You are just a woman who dresses up like a spider. I bet you make those webs yourself.” Catra inches closer to the window ready to make her jump.
“Wait, how did you know that?” Spider-woman almost looks taken aback by that statement. So easy to read.
“Lucky guess,” Catra shrugs. “Look, princess, I don’t need the gems; I just came here for information. Now that I have it, how bout I give you the gems, and we let bygones be bygones.”
The way Spider-Woman squirms after the princess comment causes Catra to chuckle.
Spider-Woman attempts to re-take control of the encounter by putting on the stoic heroic voice, “You know that’s not how this works.”
“Figured,” Catra breaks for the window before getting flung backward by a web. She slashes through the web while rolling to her side.
Spider-Woman launches over heels aiming a punch square at Catra's stomach. Weaving to the side, Catra grabs Spider-Woman by the arm and uses her moment to swing her to the ground. The sound of skin colliding with the pavement echoes throughout the room.
To make sure her chance of escape is secured this time, Catra follows Spider-Woman to the floor straddling her waist. With one quick swipe up her claws, Catra slashes both web shooters on Spider-Woman's wrists.
"Shouldn't have confirmed my lucky guess, princess." Catra teases. Spider-Woman shivers under her. "Ooh, do you like me? That's so embarrassing for you."
Catra sprints to the window, but before jumping out, she turns and smiles, "I had a good time. Maybe we can have a second date."
Catra leans backward and plummets out the window. After a few seconds of free-falling, she spots her vigilante friend diving after her. I guess she had a spare.
Pulling out her grappling hook, Catra fires it into a nearby building and swings around the edge of the building into a crowded street, before ducking into an alleyway.
Her fur rescinds back into her body alongside her tail and ears in a matter of seconds. Then she is back out on the street blending into the crowd. She just barely spots Spider-Woman scanning the throng of people looking for her.
Catra smirks to herself.
---
Bow eases himself back into the couch with a bowl of cereal in his hand when Adora bursts out of her room.
“Catch any criminals?” He asks as he reaches for the TV remote.
Adora starts pacing back and forth in front of the TV as Bow waits for his answer.
“I think we have another super-villain,” Adora spills out.
“Two in one week. That must be a record.” Bow turns the TV on and switches it to the food network. “What’s she like? I can probably get a profile on her started.”
“She’s like a half-cat, half-person. IthinkshecanshiftbetweenthetwobecausewhenIwaschasinghershedisapearedintothestreetand…”
“Adora, slow down and have a seat. I can’t get all that written down if I can’t understand you.”
“Yeah, sorry. Didn’t mean to get so crazy there. It’s just…”
“Just what?” Bow takes a big bite out of cereal.
“ShewaskindofprettyandIthinkshewasflirtingwithme.” Adora looks like a guilty puppy.
“Wow wow. She was flirting with you?”
“I mean I think she was,” Adora pauses and then whispers the rest “She called me “princess”, and she was like checking me out.”
Bow puts down the cereal onto his lap and starts scratching his chin. “Ok, so you might have the hots for one of your villains? I mean it’s not like you can go on a date with them because then you would have to tell them your secret identity and then put up with them doing crimes.”
“I know it’s impossible. It’s just… I haven’t felt this way in a long time since y’know… Catra.”
“Does she remind you of Catra?”
“I mean kind of.”
“You shouldn’t be looking for a Catra replacement. That’s not fair to whoever you would date.”
Adora sits and brews on Bow's words before she lets out a defeated sigh. “You’re right. I should let this one go.”
Bow smiles and pats Adora on the back. “Proud of you. Also, Glimmer is gonna flip when she hears about this.”
“Oh please don’t tell Glimmer!”
---
Scorpia and Adora have been gym buddies since the second week of college. They are in two of the same Sports’ Nutrition classes, and once finding out that neither of them had a gym partner, they both offered at the same time. Then they spent 5 minutes stumbling around their words trying to accept the other’s offer.
Now, the two of them were lifting weights. Adora always had to go down a few pounds to not lead onto her heightened strength, but it did enough to keep her in shape when she wasn’t punching people. Right now, she wishes she had taken the day off. Her back was a mess from earlier today.
Scorpia was just putting the bar back onto the rack when she asked, “So Adora, my roommates, and I are having a Halloween party tomorrow if you want to come?”
“Sure!” Adora said as she lies down on the bench. ”Can I bring some friends?”
“Oh of course. The more the merrier I always say, but Cyra might get a little mad.”
“Is she the roommate that has almost blown up the apartment on multiple occasions?”
“No, that's Entrapta. Cyra’s the one with the attitude.”
“And the one you like,” Adora teases as she pretends that lifting the bar is an extremely difficult challenge.
Scorpia starts blushing, “Shhh don’t say that she might be listening.”
“From what you’ve told me, I think we’d know if she was here. It’s kind of funny. You talk so much about your roommates, but I haven’t gotten to meet them yet.”
“They’re both, what’s the word, hesitant around people. Entrapta’s pretty introverted and Cyra doesn’t like talking about herself. Therefore, they sometimes keep to themselves.”
“I assume the Halloween party this weekend was your idea, then?”
“It was Cyra’s. She’s always wanted a Halloween-themed birthday party.”
“That’s so cool. Was she born on Halloween?”
“Nope. A few days before that. The 28th to be exact.”
“Awesome! I had a friend that was born on the 28th.”
“OMG! They can be birthday buddies! You should bring them to the party.”
Adora is about to explain why she can’t bring Catra but just nods her head instead. The middle of the gym is no place to have a mental breakdown over your dead best friend.
Instead, she changes the subject, “So you gonna ask Cyra out before the party?”
Scorpia scratches the back of her head, “Well… y’know…”
“Mhm,” Adora delights in her friend being flustered.
---
Adora’s earpiece crackles as she lands on an abandoned factory on the South side of Etheria. She shudders, cursing herself for not switching to the suit with better insulation. She was not prepared for the Fall nights to start getting so cold yet.
Adora asks over the earpiece, “So this is the place that Oozy was last seen?”
Glimmer sputters in, “You called it Oozy!”
“I mean it does ooze,” Bow responds, “also yes this is the last known location.”
“Do you have a better idea, Glimmer?” As she lowers herself through one of the propped-open windows.
“CODENAMES!” Bow practically shouts.
“Sorry.” both Adora and Glimmer say.
The trio falls silent over the comms as Adora slinks her way along a decrepit walkway that looks like it could give in at any moment. The area below her appears to have been cleared out of all the heavy machinery to make room for what looks like a laboratory: a few desks, a strange vat, and a medical table.
Adora lowers herself down onto the floor and almost gets her foot stabbed by some glass. In fact, the entire floor is covered in shards of glass.
Adora is about to report her findings when a familiar voice calls out to her.
“Did you know breaking and entering is a crime?” Atop the vat, Adora spots the source of the voice: two multicolored eyes. One is like the color of the sky and the other is like a gold bar.
“It’s you again,” Adora states as she focuses her eyes on the cat-woman.
“Is this the one Adora has a…” Adora cuts the audio before Glimmer can finish her sentence.
“I think we are after the same thing, princess,” the cat-woman says as she pounces to the ground.
Adora gulps. Her throat suddenly dry. “And that is?”
“Giant ooze monster. Might have seen it when you fought it on the news a few days ago. Ringing any bells?”
Adora releases a breath she didn’t realize she was holding. “Yeah, I’ve seen it. Why do you care about it?”
“The person inside the monster was my friend before he was turned into a giant sludge monster.”
“What happened to him?” Adora asks as she starts to circle closer to the cat woman.
“The Horde happened to him.”
“Shit…”
“Yeah, he owed them a little too much money, and they took him off the street and turned him into that… He's not a bad kid.“
“Why’d he take out so much money from the Horde then?”
“Look, princess. Not all of us are born from money. We do awful shit just to get by, so before you start pointing your finger at those less fortunate than yourself, at least take into consideration why they did it.” The cat woman's fur stands up on edge as glares right through Adora. She lets out a sigh and her fur goes back down, and she whispers the rest, “the poor kid was just trying to pay medical bills for his mom.”
“Goddess, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”
“It doesn’t matter what you meant to say. What does matter is that we have to get that kid back to his mom, ok?”
Adora nods.
“He’s not here anymore, and I don’t have any good leads on where he would go next. What I do have is this.” The woman walks over to Adora with a flash drive in hand. “It’s all the info I could glean from this place. Warning though: a lot of it is pretty… gruesome. Maybe you can find something I didn’t.”
The woman turns around to leave, but Adora reaches her arm out and grabs her by the shoulder.
“How can I get a hold of you?” Adora asks.
“There should be a .txt file with a phone number on it. Till next time princess.”
Adora simply waits and watches as the woman jumps back up to the railing, and just before she slips out the window, she turns to Adora and shouts, “You can call me Black Cat by the way.”
“See ya around Black Cat,” Adora calls back with a weird, light feeling beating throughout her chest.
---
“Are you sure it's a smart idea to go to the party in your Spider-woman costume?” Glimmer asks as she adjusts her witch's hat in the rearview mirror.
“You already know there are going to be a dozen Spider-women there. I will blend right in, and it's an older version. Plus we have to be ready if Oozy attacks again.”
Glimmer’s eyes meet Adora’s in the rearview mirror, “You seriously think Oozy is going to show up at a random Halloween party?”
“I mean there’s a chance.”
“Adora already makes like a billion costumes for herself,” Bow chimes in as he climbs into the car, “Let her have this one.”
“Oh by the way,” Adora says as she adjusts her seat, “What did y’all find out from the sample and Black Cat’s data?”
“It’s clear whatever is attached to this kid is parasitic in nature and not of this Earth.” Glimmer answers as she puts the car into reverse.
“The data says the sludge was found on a meteorite that crashed outside of town.” Bow adds as he slides the bow off his back and places it at his feet.
“Well, that really helps us find this missing kid.” Adora sighs as she leans back into her seat.
“It might,” Bow responds, “I have been scanning admittances into hospitals around the city to see if there are any young males with drained vitals indicative of a parasite checking in.”
“Wow, how did you manage that tech wizard?” Glimmer jests as she eases into the breaks.
“One of my fellow classmates helped out with it. She’s like the goddess of hacking.” Bow states triumphantly as he checks his cell phone for any reports.
Anytime Bow mentions a girl in a positive light, Adora always catches Glimmer giving him dirty side eyes. It’s quite funny that neither of them has realized that they are into the other. Adora thought when they offered to share a room it was because they were already together and not just because Adora needed a place to stay. Almost two months later, they are still without a clue. Adora chuckles to herself as she stares out at the passing traffic.
---
The party starts in 15 minutes, and Catra hovers above the bathroom sink. Patches of fur stuck out along her body. She focuses all of her mental power on subduing the patches of fur back into her body. At this point, she is sure her transformation will soon be permanent.
“You ok in there, Wildcat?” A chipper voice calls out, “the party is going to start soon.”
Returning her gaze to the mirror, Catra notices the patches are gone. She sighs and opens the door.
“Yeah sorry, Scorpia.” Catra says, “I think it's something I ate.”
“Uh ok,” Scorpia says wanting to add more. Instead, she pivots to a new topic, “well everything is set up. We got games, booze, music, and costumes. Well except for you. Are you sure you don’t want to borrow a costume? I have a Spider-woman one from last year that was too small for me. It would probably fit you.”
Catra winces at the name. Just yesterday, she probably gave Spider-woman the most metaphorical bitch slap possible. Might be taking it a bit too far to pretend to be her.
“I think I will be…” However, before Catra can finish speaking, there is a loud knock at the door. “Well, you better go let the guests in.” She should probably be a better friend.
Catra departs and claims a spot in the kitchen: a place with ample escape options. Even though she had initially wanted this party back at the start of the year when she first met Scorpia and Entrapta; however, with all the stuff going on with the Horde and Kyle, her mood for partying has been greatly soured. She pours herself a shot of straight vodka and downs it with no chaser.
A few guests filtered into the kitchen throughout the night. Catra interacted with the few she knew such as Mermista and Sea Hawk: two characters she had met in her Earth Science LAC. They were both wearing sea-themed outfits. Mermista was dressed up as a mermaid, because of course she was, and Sea Hawk dressed up as a pirate. After the two sea-faring party-goers vanished, Catra dropped off the counter and made her way into the living room.
Upon entering, Catra caught sight of Sparkles and her friend, Crop Top. She dodged and weaved her way through the throng of people before landing in front of the two clowns. Sparkles wore a witches costume that looked like a rainbow dragon had barfed on and Crop Top was Robin Hood. Of course, he had to have a bow.
“Cyra!” Sparkles calls as she spots Catra’s, “what are you doing here?”
“Oh, I live here.” Catra responds, trying not to react too much to her “other” name.
“You live in a house, in Brightmoon!” Crop Top shouts.
“Yeah, well it technically belongs to Scorpias’ family,” Catra says, “so we just get to rent it for dirt cheap. Otherwise, there’s no way we could afford this.”
Crop Top looks like he is about to say something before his face shifts from happy and calm to concerned.
“Is something the matter, Crop Top? You’re not that mad about the house thing, right?” Catra teases.
“No, it’s nothing. I just forgot I left a load of laundry in the laundry machine.” That didn’t quite check out in Catra’s mind, but she wasn’t going to make a big deal out of it. “I should get us some more drinks. Do you want anything Glimmer? Another Rum and Coke.”
Sparkles pauses and looks at Crop Top like she is trying to decipher a message then a realization dons on her face.
“Oh sure,” Sparkles blurts out, and then Crop Top takes off toward the kitchen.
It is at that faint moment that Catra’s ears pick up on a strange static noise coming from Crop Tops's ear: an earpiece. Why is Crop Top wearing an earpiece? She decides to let it go when a scream erupts from outside.
If Catra was still there, she would have spotted the confused look on Glimmer’s face when Catra vanished into the horde of confused bystanders.
---
Adora had honestly just stepped away from Bow and Glimmer for maybe 5 minutes to go use the restroom. While washing her hands, she noticed a strange figure creeping along the property lines. She reached into her pocket, slipped on the mask, and climbed out the window onto the roof. During this process, the creature had moved to its hind legs revealing its large shadowy form covered in ooze.
“We have a red alert. Oozy is here.” Adora whispered into the earpiece. Red hot panic filled Adora’s lungs as she quickly leaped off the roof into the backyard. The creature had jumped her and now towered over her from atop the roof. Adora needed to get the creature away from the house, too many bystanders. Someone could end up getting hurt. It hits her: there was a park just a few blocks down that she saw on the drive over.
Before Adora could shout a distracting insult, a guy in a pirate outfit notices the large beast hovering above him, and he screams. The creature startled by the sounds leaps toward the pirate. One quick web rips the pirate away from certain pancake-hood, but now the creature is surrounded by a bunch of drunk college students.
Adora dreads the worst as a chunk of stone hits the creature square in the face followed by an “Over here dick face.” Adora scans the area for the source of the voice. One of the trees in the direction of the park sags under the weight of a familiar face: Black Cat.
Oozy leaps towards the tree as Black Cat pounces to the ground and takes off running down the block. Unfortunately for Adora, they are in the suburbs of Etheria, meaning she has nowhere to swing from.
While not as fast as either Black Cat or Oozy, Adora manages to break through the tree line of the park just in time to stop Oozy from running a claw through Black Cat.
Exerting all her strength to hold Oozy’s claw from being plunged into Black Cat, Adora shouts, “Mind rolling out of the way this thing is heav..y.”
“I don’t know.” Black Cat responds, “I kind of like the view.”
Adora would blush if another swipe from Oozy’s other arm didn’t dissipate the moment. The two rolled backward; side by side, they faced Oozy straight on.
“Any good plans?” Adora asks.
“Yeh, you go left, I go right. After that, we claw him out of there,” Black Cat announces as she darts to the right. Adora follows on the left firing webs to distract Oozy, so Black Cat can move in for the swipe.
A large chunk of ooze smashes against the ground jagged from the claw marks. Black Cat rolls to the side as Oozy strikes the ground near her. Following the strike, Oozy launches dirt and gravel into the back of Black Cat causing her to crash into the ground. The creature attempts to push its advantage by leaping into the air to crush Black Cat with its landing.
Adora flings a web that grabs Black Cat by the leg and pulls her out of imminent danger just as Oozy careens down. Black Cat pulls herself to her feet alongside Adora.
"Well, that didn't work." Adora quips.
"You don't say," Black Cat grits through her fanged teeth.
"Last time I fought Oozy…"
"Wait, wait. You are calling him, Oozy!? That's so stupid."
"Why does everyone hate that name?"
Oozy charges toward them causing them to dive in opposite directions.
"Oozy's weak to loud, high-pitched noises," Adora yells over the carnage.
"How does that help?!" Black Cat shouts as she leaps into a nearby tree in order to avoid another attack from Oozy.
"Foxtrot," Adora hisses, "Did Queen ever get the car horn fixed?"
"Oooh, good idea. Sending her now," Bow's staticky voice relays back.
"I got something! We just gotta keep Oozy distracted." Adora calls out as she watches Oozy rip the tree Black Cat is perched on out of the ground.
"Mind helping with the distracting part then?" Black Cat yelps as she leaps to another tree.
"You seem to be having a lot of fun," Adora teases, "I would be such a bad friend if I interrupted that."
"Wow," Black Cat swings off of a branch, gliding past Oozy tearing another large chunk of ooze. "Three dates and you are friend-zoning me. You wound me, princess!" Black Cat dramatically swoons as she lands next to Adora.
Adora feels her face grow hot. The moment is quickly dispelled by Oozy releasing a gut-wrenching roar into the now November night sky. The two attempt to dodge out of the way of Oozy's most recent charge, but it moves faster this time. Its claws connect with both Adora and Black Cat, sending them crashing into a nearby tree. A pile of leaves collapses on top of them as Oozy kicks the dirt getting ready for another go.
However, a loud screeching sound fills the park followed by the beam of headlight illuminating the creature. It shakes violently as strips of its ooze peel off the creature in flakes. Eventually, it regains its composure and takes off into the treeline.
Adora pulls herself off the ground only to realize her arms rest between Black Cat's form. The two lock eyes before Adora's gaze drops down to Black Cat's lips. All the circuitry in her brain must have been damaged from that last hit because she pulls her mask part way up while Black Cats edges herself up to meet Adora's lips. The entire world fades away as Adora's entire focus fixates on the way Black Cat's lips move against her own. She wished the moment could last forever, but after a few blissful moments, Black Cat pulled away, regret brimming in her eyes.
"I shouldn't have done that," her voice sounds weak and hushed like a whisper.
"Hey, hey, hey," Adora tries to calm her, "it's fine. I wanted it."
"It's not that. I am waiting on someone."
"Waiting on someone?"
"I know she's out there, and it’s kind of stupid. But she's all I've ever wanted. I just need to find her again. I am sorry for leading you on like that."
Adora can't help but smile. It reminds her of herself in those two years when she looked at every street corner hoping Catra would just be there with her stupid soft smile. It hurts to be turned down like this, but she knows what it's like.
Adora pushes herself off the ground and then offers a hand to Black Cat.
"Never seen someone smile after being turned down " Black Cat chuckles.
"I've just been there. Holding myself for someone. Hoping she'd be around the corner." Adora pulls down her mask. "I hope you find her, and if you don't, you know where to find me."
"Alright, princess. I will keep that in mind."
"Do you think we should follow Oozy?"
"It's probably long gone by now, but if I had to take a guess. I bet it is stalking this neighborhood."
"What makes you say that?"
"Kyle's mom lives near here, and since the creatures hate noises, we just gotta check the quietest places."
"That's actually a pretty good idea. Wanna meet here tomorrow to do some searching?"
"Sure, princess. I gotta get going though. Promised some friends I would hang out with them." Black Cat scales a nearby tree and looks over her shoulder, "see you later!"
"Bye Cat!" Adora calls back. After Black Cat's form disappears into the night she scans the treeline for Glimmer's car.
"You kissed her!" Glimmer screams over the earpiece!
---
Catra slips back into her room after the fight with 'Oozy.' She changes out of the jumpsuit Entrapta fashioned for her. Slipping back into her leather jacket, white tee, and jeans, she enters back into the party where she spots Scorpia and Entrapta.
"Was taking a nap. What did I miss?" Catra asks as she slides in between her two friends.
"Everything," Scorpia says, "Spider-Woman and this cat lady fought a weird goo monster. Everyone's been talking about it for the last thirty minutes."
"Damn," Catra pretends to act shocked, "Can't believe I missed the best part."
Entrapta momentarily looks perplexed at Catra, and then it dons on her face, which she then promptly hides her expression.
"I think I am going to go grab some drinks real quick," Catra announces, "be right back."
Catra dips past the crowd into the kitchen where she notices Sparkles and Crop Top with their backs facing her. She walks up to them, throwing her arms around their necks, and says, "what's up losers?"
---
Adora, Bow, and Glimmer had been discussing the encounter with Oozy after Adora got back from the park. They had also been roasting Adora for kissing Black Cat and promptly being rejected. Adora was in the middle of taking a sip of her beverage when a figure approached Glimmer and Bow from behind wrapping her arms around them. She didn't even hear what the newcomer had said. Instead, she was transfixed by the face she could make out anywhere.
"Catra?!" Adora gasps, almost choking on her drink.
Catra's eyes light up as they land on Adora. Catra then smiles and tenderly says, "hey Adora."
Adora rushes to wrap Catra in a bone-crushing hug.
“Y’know, Adora, you should really not be wearing your work clothes right after stopping the bad guy,” Catra teases, her voice brushing across Adora’s ear.
“How?” Adora asks completely ignoring Catra’s words.
“How what?”
“How did you survive?” Already seeing Catra’s confused face, Adora continues, “I went looking for you, and then Hordak said you were dead, and I was so devastated. I thought you were dead.” Adora is crying into Catra’s shoulder at this point.
“I faked my death to get out of the Horde,” Catra squeezes Adora, “I didn’t know that news would get around to you. Then again, I didn’t have any way of knowing you were Etheria’s friendly neighborhood Spider-Woman.”
Adora stills in Catra’s arms before weakly claiming, “Oh, it’s just a costume…”
“Sure, it is Adora,” Catra chuckles, “and we totally didn’t just kiss…”
The pieces click and Adora’s face becomes a deep red, but before she could sputter a reply, Catra’s lips are on hers again.