#brain empty just catradora

[gimme-tea-bitch]

Self abuse and cruel masks, or “How Shadow Weaver Weaponized Catra and Adora’s Kindness”

Oh boy, it’s been a whole like, week?? since i’ve made meta? My brain is no longer in Catradora brainrot!

Jk, this is another analysis that i’m writing late after work because my head is empty, 1 thot.

So, on my drive home I realized something, both Adora and Catra are extremely compassionate. Which look, i get it, you’re like “Tea, dipshit, how did you only just realize this?” and look, i get it! I know they are compassionate, we see that in the show, but, that’s not the point i’m making, so let me clarify.

Catra and Adora are EXTREMELY compassionate. I would go as far to say that they are possibly some of the most inherently compassionate characters in the show. And like, Adora is obvious, but the important part to remember here is that, Catra is also included here.

The realization I had is that, Catra and Adora both want to help people, they both care about others, care about the little guy, so how did we get Catra to becoming a villain, you may ask? Well... it’s the abuse, I feel like that’s clear and that we’re on the same page. Many of Catra’s negative traits are a result of or greatly worsened by the abuse she endures from the Horde, and Shadow Weaver especially. So, let’s begin.

At her youngest, at least that we get to see, we see Catra being pretty much exclusively good, barring 1 instance. We see her playing with Adora, and we see their fierce love for each other begin its bloom. She’s playful and happy, and so is Adora, they just work together beautifully from the get go, becoming fast friends. The one instance we see that is different is what we see in “Corridors” i think the episode is called? When she is having flashbacks on the ship. We see Adora coming to comfort Catra after she lashed out. And in her emotional state, we see that she’s hurt Adora.

Now, it is key to remember context here. Catra is a child, her whole, short life, she has been raised in a culture where you become strong or you die. So joy and care are hard to come by. We also see early on, that Weaver’s abuse began very young, in earlier seasons where a Catra that barely looks any older than this season 5 flashback, is restrained by Weaver’s magic.

Knowing all this, it’s unsurprising that Catra would become scared that Adora would leave her for her “new friends” a child’s mind isn’t rational, and a child being abused is even less so. The key here, is that Catra expresses remorse. She is upset that she’s upset, but she’s more upset that she lashed out and hurt Adora.

As Catra grows up, we see her become more cruel, unsurprisingly. Because it’s the Horde. Every cadet either bullies, or gets bullied. But, Catra is not egregious in her cruelty. She doesn’t attack or bully anyone nearly as heavily as her peers. In fact, the person she bullies most is Kyle, and even that is limited to verbal jabs, something that it seems literally everyone does. This is in a culture where we see signs of cadets physically intimidating and shoving each other. The scene where Lonnie and two cadets corner Catra after Adora deserted comes to mind. And yet, up to this point, we don’t see Catra engage in that. So how does that happen? If Catra’s abuse is tied to Weaver’s abuse, why has she not become a villain already?

Enter, Adora. Adora is by no means innocent here, she’s part of the Horde, and just like Catra, engages in verbal jabs at other cadets, but just like Catra, she doesn’t seem to ever go further than that. And the common thread here is that unlike seemingly every other cadet here, Catra and Adora have something that no one else has. Love. See, they meet young, they become best friends early, and fast, and fiercely. Their whole lives, they have loved each other. And that love, I think at least, guards them against becoming the monsters the Horde wants to turn them into.

Now, I did say at the start that Weaver weaponized their kindness. So let’s explain that. We see that up until Adora leaves, Catra and Adora are possibly some of the nicest cadets the Horde has, baring Scorpia who doesn’t even insult people. So what happens? How does Catra become a villain seemingly instantly? Because Weaver takes the one thing that has helped Catra stay “good” Weaver takes her love.

Now I can hear you screaming  “Tea! Tea! Weaver doesn’t do that! Adora leaves her and betrays her!” And to that I say, does she? We’ve so far focused on Catra, let’s examine Adora a bit more. We know very early that Adora has a strong sense of morals justice, (side note- we also see that Catra has a sense of justice and morals in the fact that she treats others kindly when they are kind to her, and that even when given power, she doesn’t use it to abuse.)

Adora’s sense of right and wrong is a crucial trait in how everything goes pear shaped. See, Weaver has goals and to achieve them, she needs Adora who she senses is strong, but Adora is fiercely kind, and wants to help everyone, so why would she help Weaver and the Horde commit mass murder? Well, it’s easy, propaganda. That’s right! The horde’s propaganda machine of brainwashing children is reliant on the fact that they think the rebels are evil. So to do this, they make up stories about the horrors that the princesses do. historically speaking the Horde isn’t doing anything new. They’re doing the same thing any historical empire does to justify killing their enemies. Dehumanize and demonize them, until even the “good ones” don’t know any better.

And it works! Of course it does! This is particularly effective against Adora because of her strong morals. She’s so focused on saving others that she doesn’t even register that this is a trick. Now Adora has a target, and it all falls into place. Because Adora is inclined to help others, all Weaver had to do now is feed that fierce compassion, tie it to her self worth, and voila. You have a young girl who’s looking to die for a good cause. Adora still loves Catra, and Catra still loves Adora, but. Adora gets manipulated into a martyr. She is convinced that if she doesn’t save everyone that she’s worthless, that her only value is how much of herself she can give.

So did Adora really have any choice when it came to taking the sword? Of course not. She could’ve handled it better. If Catra and Adora communicated better they could’ve avoided a lot of that suffering, but we’ve been over why they didn’t and how their abuse made them hide their emotions from each other, so let’s move on.

Adora never had a real choice, Weaver made sure of this. Weaver;s entire ploy weaponizes Adora’s kindness and compassion, but instead of weaponizing it to hurt others like she intended, she weaponized it to hurt Adora. Because if Adora can’t help, doesn’t help, then, in her mind, she should just be dead. Being dead is the only thing that can excuse her not sacrificing herself. And this, this care for others, that turns into hatred for herself, is what weaponized Catra’s kindness.

When Adora inevitably leaves, Catra loses the one thing that helped her endure it all, Love. Without it, all the abuse and the manipulation and the trauma, they come crashing down on her. Because that bubble of love is no longer holding those things back. That defence against Weaver, the support of Adora is gone, and she’s alone with just herself to fight back. And that’s too much for anyone, much less for someone young and suffering for this long.

The thing is, it’s not instant. I’ve built it up like it flips a switch and bam, she’s a villain. But that’s not true. Because we see that Catra still cares about people. She becomes more aggressive and violent. But she relates to Entrapta, helps her feel better when she gets left behind. She does show kindness, even after becoming a villain. And look, yes, she does use this to manipulate, but, it works because the basis of it is true. Because underneath the manipulations, she sees someone suffering and wants to help, but the only way she can allow herself to do that, after all this, is by making it seem pragmatic.

Weaver’s abuse does a lot, it causes a lot of harm to both Adora and Catra, and the effects of it ripple through so much of their lives. This is just one of many facets of how these two have been hurt. And all this it’s undone eventually. As much as some people wanna paint Catradora as abusive, it’s not. It’s quite literally the opposite, it’s healing. It’s a return to form. Because we see in season 5 how they each dismantle the weapons that Weaver put into their hearts.

Catra’s villainous mask is stripped away and she is laid bare, her weapons dismantled. Her goal gone. And the thing that she comes back to, when all that is dust, is the love that carried her so far. “Corridors” is beautiful because it’s Catra coming to terms and accepting that all this, it was to cover the fact that she loves, she loves so much, so fiercely, so wholeheartedly, she loves. And it hurt to lose that. But she still loves anyway, despite the hurt, despite the loss, she’s still full of a love she can’t get rid of, a love she didn’t know what to do with anymore. And she chooses to give it again. She chooses to give that love again. And in turn she dismantles Adora’s weaponized kindness.

Adora, who’s kindness and caring was turned into a blade. A sword hanging over her head, waiting to drop at any moment. Catra chooses to love Adora again, and she chooses to love Adora in spite of this sword. Adora, who’s whole life, who’s whole sense of self is carried in the weight of this blade waiting to kill her is told that she’s loved. Regardless of if or when the blade will drop, regardless of if she sacrifices herself, she is loved because she is Adora, she is loved because she is enough on her own. And that, that love, it removes the sword. It unties it and sets it on the floor.

Idk, it just it makes me so emotional. And i’ve made myself cry again. I think, an important thing to take away from this is that, just because someone is kind, doesn’t mean they can’t be cruel. abuse can turn that kindness into cruelty. And sure, we’re not cadets in a war machine, but, there’s people out there who are abused, and that abuse can make them unkind or rude, just idk, it’s really nice to see that it’s possible for people who’ve done shitty things for the wrong reasons to remember that they can be kind. That you do not lose your capacity for love and compassion just because you’ve made the mistake of being cruel. I think that’s important. I think it’s important to tell people that fire can destroy everything around you if you let it, but it can also provide warmth and comfort, and that’s you can choose what kind of fire you want to grow into.

#spop #meta #catra #adora #FUCK shadow weaver

[riceccakes]

1 & catradora :)

trope writing prompts: send a number and a pairing :)

hi anon, you didn’t pick a category so i’m choosing my favorite out of the three, hope thats okay !!

“What, you’ve never thought about us?”

-

Adora was leaving. She was brought into Hordak’s office and left with a bittersweet smile. Catra didn’t need to even ask; Adora got the promotion. This would’ve been something to celebrate, had the promotion not meant moving across the country to the sister company, Dryl Inc.

“Hey, this doesn’t mean I’m gonna fall off the face of Etheria,” Adora said as Catra helped her clean her desk. “I’ll still call and I’ll visit every now and then.”

Catra kept her mouth shut, biting her tongue. It was too much at that moment, to try and even put into words what she was feeling. Instead, she hastily scanned Adora’s file cabinet of folders and tossed whatever the woman wouldn’t need.

Adora was Catra’s first friend at Prime Co. The desk job was going to be temporary, answering phone calls and trying to sell merchandise to make money while she looked for something more permanent. But, her and Adora started on the same day, were in the same training session, even were in the same group for “Team Building Exercises.” When the scheduled lunch time came around, Adora sat down at Catra’s empty table with a smile.

“Do you like tuna?” she asked. She stopped, shaking her head, “Was that stereotypical? I’m sorry, I should’ve worded this better.”

Catra kept a close eye on her, not responding as Adora pulled out three sandwiches, four bags of chips, two large cookies, and four juice boxes.

“I saw you weren’t eating so I thought I might offer one of my sandwiches,” Adora started, holding two of the three up, “I have two roast beef and one tuna, but I should’ve worded this all better.”

She began muttering to herself, fiddling with the plastic wrapped sandwiches and Catra finally reacted. She laughed, taking the tuna out of her hand and opening it.

“You’re fine, dummy. I like tuna.” She bit into it, glancing up to see Adora’s pink cheeks trying to hide.

They’d been at the company together for almost two years and while Catra was still coasting along, sure she’d stay until she found a more suitable career, Adora was excelling like no other coworker. Their boss, Hordak, had been giving her a bit of extra treatment, at least Catra noticed. She was sure Adora would be chosen for the new promotion Hordak announced a few months ago and wasn’t surprised today when Hordak called out from his office for Adora to see him.

When the last bit of Adora’s desk was in the box issued by Hordak, the picture frame of the two girls from the holiday party on top, Catra sighed.

“How long until you have to leave?”

“About a week,” Adora answered, lugging the box towards the elevator. “I have to pack my apartment too and everything.”

“Right,” Catra looked at the floor, wrapping her tail around herself. She stayed a few feet from Adora, wishing the elevator door wouldn’t open. She hissed at the sound when it did.

Adora stepped in, calling out Catra’s name. “Help me move out?”

Catra rolled her eyes, “Of course, idiot.”

When Catra clocked out, she drove to Adora’s almost too quickly. She hadn’t realized how much she dreaded that office; without Adora, her deskmates were bland and boring, lunch was a drag, and the empty space next to her hurt her heart more than she wanted to admit. 

Catra called out over the next few days, opting to help Adora move rather than endure more nine hour shifts in her newfound hell. She was silent for almost all of the packing sessions, still too upset to see Adora go. (Deep down in her heart, Catra hoped Adora would say no to the promotion. She hoped Adora would want to stay with her and not leave and keep working together and play pranks on Kyle until they retired. She hoped she wouldn’t have to ask Adora this, she hoped Adora would just know.) 

Catra knew Adora was talking, but the sentences never stuck in her mind. She was too busy wrapping dinner plates in old newspaper and bubblewrap and trying her hardest to stop her shaking hands from dropping any.

When she placed the last one in the box (all of them in tact, a feat in itself) she heard Adora say, “Let’s get drinks.”

It’d be only one more day before Adora had to leave. Catra placed the last box in the moving truck and nodded. Her tail wrapped around her again and she felt her ears drop. Adora placed her hand on Catra’s shoulder and she shuddered, quickly pulling away. Another time she’d deal with all the thoughts in her head, all the words she was screaming in her throat, all the “Please don’t go.” “You don’t need a new job.” “I’ll just make Hordak give you a raise, that’ll be enough right?” “Who am I supposed to make fun of Kyle with? Lonnie? She’s all talk and no bite, she’s always eating lunch with him and Rogelio.” Another time she’d deal with all of those thoughts, that’s what Catra told herself.

At the bar, Catra and Adora found a booth in the back. It was closed off from the rest of the patrons, perhaps for the better because Catra didn’t want anyone else to see her cry. (She wasn’t banking on it happening but she’d been close to doing so the past few nights, maybe this night would be what broke her.)

“Oh, come on, Catra,” Adora kicked her leg under the table. “Lighten up, I told you this isn’t goodbye.”

She sulked in her seat, swishing the vodka soda in her cup.

“You know, I asked Hordak if I could bring you.”

Catra froze, “What?”

“I’m supposed to be some department head when I get to Dryl Inc. I asked if I’d need an assistant or something but Hordak wouldn’t budge.”

“Assistant, really?”

Adora raised an eyebrow, “Oh, so you’d rather I just go and not make an effort to try and bring you?”

Catra’s eyes widened, Adora’s tone sounded insulted. She shook her head, “Wait, that’s not what I--”

Adora laughed, kicking her leg again, “I was just joking, Catra.”

Catra’s ears fidgeted, her mind trying to understand why Adora tried to get Hordak to let her leave too. “Why’d you ask him?”

Adora gulped, taking a long sip from her beer, “Well, I just. You know, it’s always been you and me at the company and well. I don’t know, I just thought,” she paused, finishing her drink. “What, you’ve never thought about us?”

The emphasis on the word scared Catra, much deeper and closer to her core than the thought of Adora leaving at all. Of course she’d thought about them, the two of them as more than friends. All the movie nights in Adora’s apartment after a long day at work, all the fast food deliveries to the office when Catra would reluctantly stay overtime since Adora was. All the times Adora’s blue eyes sparkled in the dingy office lighting (seriously, how did her eyes do that?) and all the times Adora’s laughter perked her tail in delight. She thought about all the company parties they attended, about Adora dressed up in a long dress with her hair pulled back and her neck exposed and that stupid perfume that made Catra’s hands twitch because she just wanted to grab Adora’s waist and kiss her. Of course she thought about it all.

And even while she wanted to say all of it then, her throat closed up and Catra just stared at Adora.

“Oh.” Adora reached for her beer again and brought it to her lips, eyes widening at the clear bottom. She placed it down with a blush, looking down at the table. She whispered, “Well, I have, a lot. I’ve always been too scared to try anything, for example, right now, because clearly you haven’t and I’ve made this weird.”

Catra desperately wanted to correct her, wanted to reach across the table and yank her shirt to pull her into a kiss. But she was stuck in her spot, staring at Adora who still looked gorgeous even when she was sad.

“I just like having you around and you’re really soft and you’re always nice to me,” Adora continued. Her voice was barely audible but Catra made it her mission to hear every last word. “I’m just really gonna miss you.”

Catra heard the sentence, felt her heart jump out of her chest at the notion of Adora missing her at all. She internally slapped herself across the face and finally forced her body to move. She jolted up, slamming her knees on the underside of the table as she grabbed Adora by the collar and kissed her.

Their teeth crashed and Catra knew her knees would turn into a bluish, purple color but she didn’t care. Adora’s lips were soft and tender and that stupid perfume she wore made her quietly moan as she pulled away for air. Adora pulled her back in, placing a few more gentle kisses, more successful ones at that, and let out a shaky breath.

“What the hell was that, Catra?”

With her heart rate settling, Catra kept her eyes shut. She didn’t want to sound stupid, didn’t want Adora to know just yet she was melting like putty, so she forced her brain to regain consciousness.

“If you wanted me to come with you, you should’ve just said so,” she breathed. Adora kissed her cheek and she cursed under her breath, “You’re packing up all my shit, though.”

#ricewrites #catradora #catra #adora #spop #office au #one shot #anon

[brightmoonprincess]

Request for... are you okay with Glitra? Can I suggest Adora thinking Glimmer likes Bow, but Catra suspects she likes Adora. Catra confronts Glimmer, but then Glimmer confesses she’s both Catradora, and cue Catra realising she’s attracted to Glimmer and some Glitra smoochies??

I love glitra!

less specific but I went for a glitra confrontation, hope you like it!

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

Adora snores. She’s slumped over, with her head resting on the table and her hand still gripping a half-empty energy drink can. 

Catra yawns. She’s barely awake, but she’s playing with Adora’s hair rather than reading anything from her textbook, fingers combing through the thick blonde ponytail.

“Your second derivative is completely wrong,” Entrapta scolds Glimmer, who scrunches a handful of pink hair in her fists and groans loudly.

Yep, it was another all-nighter for the crew. The semester’s procrastination finally caught up to the three struggling students. It seemed like a good idea for them to all take their classes together-- that is, until all of their study sessions together ended up including no studying whatsoever. They begged Entrapta to help, enticing her with promises of all the tiny snacks they could afford, if she managed to help them pass the final.

It’s 3:45am.

Glimmer pushes herself away from the table and stands up, slamming her hands onto the wood. “I can’t take this anymore! I’m going on a walk to wake up,” she declares. 

It’s overly dramatic, and Catra rolls her eyes at it. But then she says, “Actually.. I’ll come with you.”

It’s late and she’s sleepy and stressed, so Glimmer doesn’t think too much of it. They both grab their jackets and head out, leaving a sleep-talking Adora and an Entrapta who is recording it all.

- - -

The campus is dead quiet. Which makes sense, given that is the middle of a night on a weekday. The air is chilly, but refreshing. The two walk beside each other, a couple feet apart as they stroll down a path.

It isn’t often that Glimmer and Catra are alone. The time they spend together is usually in a group setting, like during a study session or a weekend outing with everyone else in the friend squad. At this point, they would consider the other a friend, sure. But if you asked either of them, they would both say they’re absolutely nothing like the other. So. They don’t hang out alone much.

They don’t say anything to each other for a while. It’s a little awkward, Glimmer thinks, but her brain is too fried to make any small talk. Catra probably won’t care, though, and she appreciates her for that. 

It ends up being Catra who finally speaks up, saying, “Hey, I wanted to talk to you about something.”

“Oh! What’s up?”

Catra stops walking and sighs. “I’m just going to say it,” she starts. “Listen, I get it. My girlfriend is beautiful and talented and incredible in every single way. But all your desperate pining is really starting to get on my nerves, alright?”

On some level, Glimmer knew this was coming. It had to, eventually, right? But that doesn’t stop her from saying, “Haha… What are you... talking about…?”

Catra gives her an unwavering deadpan look.

“Fine, fine,” she admits. There isn’t any way out of this that isn’t awkward, so she realizes that she might as well put it all out there. “... Was it really that obvious?”

“Glimmer, this morning you spent the entire lecture staring at the back of Adora’s head and sighing.”

Oh. Oops. Glimmer looks away sheepishly and says, “Ok, you’re right. I maybe-kinda-sorta still have feelings for Adora. I’ve been trying to let it pass, I swear! But… they just haven’t yet.”

She looks back at Catra, who is staring at her with those intense eyes. It makes Glimmer feel dizzy.

“I want to lose either of you as friends, and I don’t want to have to avoid either of you... But, I’m sorry,” Glimmer continues. “I care about you-- really!-- and I don’t want to make things uncomfortable for you... Er... please don’t be angry at me?”

“I’m... not angry,” Catra says, in a strained voice that lets Glimmer know she’s still working on not getting angry. “I get it. She’s still your best friend. Maybe you can, I don’t know... turn down the thirst a bit?”

“Right. Sorry about that,,” Glimmer agrees. “If that’s the case, then we should probably stop all the flirting that we’ve been doing, too...”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on there,” Catra stops her. “We’ve been doing what?”

“... Really? I’m not trying to change the subject, but… C’mon, Catra. Don’t act like you don’t flirt with me all the time.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Glimmer returns the same deadpan expression. “Last time we went to a party together, you literally licked my cheek and said I tasted like glitter.”

“That was to annoy you! Not to flirt with you!” Catra argues, her voice higher-pitched and her cheeks cherry-red. “I don’t like you.”

“Well maybe I don’t believe you!” Glimmer says stubbornly. 

With that, Catra grabs Glimmer’s face and kisses her.

Glimmer’s eyes widen. A few fluttering moments pass, and she’s too surprised to react. But the shock is overwhelmed by the want, and she starts kissing her back almost frantically.

It’s not delicate, and it’s a little clumsy. The tension that hung between them like tightly wounded thread flows out all at once, as if a dam had been broken down. Glimmer bites down on Catra’s lip. Catra moves her hands to Glimmer’s waist, pulls her closer until they’re pressed against each other as closely as possible.

They don’t break apart until they’re practically breathless. They aren’t sure who, but someone finally does. They immediately take a step back and stare at each other for a moment, panting.

“... Catra, what the fuck was that?”

#glitra #glitradora #spop

[prince-toffee]

I don’t care if the character is good. I care if the character is interesting. I don’t know where the morality police came from, I don’t know why people try to justify actions of villains, I don’t know why all characters need to be good. I don’t care if they’re justified, or right. ‘Do I care when they’re on screen?’ is the right question. The character can be a pure saint, but what does it matter if they’re pure good if they’re boring to watch? I love villains, love, love, love villains, but if a villain is just... boring, then what the hell is the point of even showing them on screen?!

For me spop is a prime example of this. I’m sorry, I really am, but I don’t care about... anything in that show, except for Hordak, Entrapta, and maybe Shadow Weaver. The Princesses do nothing for me. This one’s the sassy one, this one’s the hippie one, this one’s the blue one, again. I don’t care. I’m sorry. We learn nothing about them! We have no flashbacks, no lore, nothing! Show me Mermista’s father. The Whispering Woods are apparently sentient, can Perfuma talk to it? Show me how Frosta’s parents died, and give her a consistent personality. In her bio it says Netossa doesn’t have a kingdom, why? Show us Spinerella’s kingdom. Show me Entrapta’s backstory, her parents, her childhood, explore her kingdom! I’m interested, show me more! Show me The First Ones, they’re evil or something right? That was the plot twist, right? I think? Why weren’t we shown a satisfying and fulfilling climax where Adora kicks their asses? Show me George’s past battling against the Horde. Angella is immortal according to her bio, maybe. Show me that!

This show is bone dry! No meat! This show somehow manages to be empty and slow and drag while also going at break neck speeds. The only character I can’t complain about, who is my favourite Princess is Glimmer. Glimmer is great, I love Glimmer. Not s1-3 Glimmer, s4 Glimmer. Compromised Glimmer. For three seasons Glimmer was just another Princess, Adora’s best friend. But after Angella dies, then it gets fascinating. Glimmer has the responsibilities of Queen thrust apon her, and all those lines spoken in season 3 are paid off, Glimmer slowly becomes her mother even though she doesn’t want to be, she doesn’t want to be a coward, she wants to be at the frontlines helping her friends. And that pressure forces her to consult Shadow Weaver and go down a darker path. Her rise to power paralleling Catra that season, and then her descent catalysed by desire for power paralleling Shadow Weaver who forges the same relationship with her as with Micah, it’s all great. Glimmer wants to, is responsible for, protecting her kingdom, the whole world and as the Horde grows in power she feels the need to use increasingly more drastic measures to protect everyone.

Glimmer isn’t at her best in this season, but she is the most interesting at this point. And then in s5 she likes Bow I guess. The Mara Razz stuff is also pretty interesting, but that was in s4 and by that point I was just turning off my brain. I kinda feel like s4 was a filler season.

And then, when I’m given so little, we get to Hordak. And he, I cannot stress this enough how much this means to me even though it is the bare minimum, he has a flashback, an artistic, stylised flashback! With a thematic colour palette. With a tease that will be paid off, of our endgame bad guy. A flashback that tells us about the character’s backstory, about the lore of the universe, about themes that are relevant to the whole meaning behind the character and to the conversation he and Entrapta are having in that moment. We see the world from his perspective, we don’t agree with him, but we understand him. And guess what? That scene wasn’t even originally meant to be apart of the episode! Because of course it wasn’t! Because spop is the definition of white bread!

Fuck! Shadow Weaver does it even better! She has an entire episode dedicated to her, and it’s all a flashback, it’s amazing, we see her younger, we see what makes her go down a darker path, we see a meaningful relationship between her and Micah, we see LORE, LORE, LORE, I LOVE LORE, it’s lore that makes no sense timeline-wise, and complicates everything even more without expanding or explaining anything, and not paying it off later, but at least it’s something. I love Shadow Weaver, from her design, which is perfection to her voice which is gorgeous to her actions and writing which is marvellous. I love this irredeemable pure evil disney stepmother because she’s interesting, she’s fascinating! She steals every scene she’s in! Shadow Weaver is the best character in this entire show. I can’t stress how amazing Weaver is, and we all slept on her. I swear she’s like the only competent character in this entire show. She’s refreshing.

And to show you that I’m not just an edgy loser that hates heroes because they’re dumb and villains rock, I’ll say this. Not even Horde Prime is as interesting as those two. He’s this universe conquering monster that is pure evil and that is right up my alley, I should love him.... but I don’t. He sucks. He’s nothing. I feel nothing. I’m not intrigued, not interested, not captured. You know why? Because he’s a reskinned Princess. He’s not important, he doesn’t matter, he’s a cardboard cut out. He alludes to somethings that may or may not have happened in the past, we never see any of it. He’s like a weird Catradora shipper for some reason? He’s this super powerful monster that destroyed planets, he conquered half the universe, he brainwashes half our main cast, and the planet, and yet... I feel nothing... because deep down you know... that this is the last season and the hero will win and there will be no lasting ramifications, and if there will be we won’t see it. Oh no he couldn’t trace them because the ship blah blah blah. Fuck you. Sucks. The heroes are untouchable, he’s not scary, he’s incompetent, oh so you can just mind control people? and you didn’t do that right away, why? He’s stupid. And yeah Hordak is stupid too, but Hordak has a backstory and a love interest and thematic meaning, unexplored, but it’s there. Prime has nothing. I don’t know who or what he is. He’s an after thought. And what contributes to me not giving a fuck is the fact that s5 as a whole is terrible and it rots my brain, and I turned off my brain as I skimmed that season, I blacked out.

Anyway back to Hordak and Weaver. It’s strange when we get to them, because Hordak, in particular, is so unimportant and is so separated from the rest of the show, it feels like he’s in a completely different show from the rest of the cast. Even Weaver is important, she’s directly connected to Adora and more importantly Catra. Hordak? Sure his actions matter to the plot, his backstory and his lore matter to the plot, but he himself doesn’t matter. Sure the portal is the catalyst for the s3 finale and it calls Prime, the clone trauma is important to Catra’s arc in s5, but Hordak the person, is unimportant, Hordak the individual doesn’t matter. He’s less then a side character. He’s so disconnected from the entire show. He feels like he’s in a completely different show. Which strangely enough was welcoming for me. It felt like I could just like Hordak and Entrapta in that small corner of the fanon over there, away from all the drama. Hordak, from his design to his personality to his existing backstory, was so different and stood out from amongst the crowd.

At first it was wow this guy looks cool I’ll proceed to theorise what he’s about, and then when we actually got a story behind him at first I was disappointed, but I quickly began digging into the potential of it and you couldn’t stop me. An exiled and shunned clone with a genetic disease who wishes to prove himself to an uncaring god, his mental state is so fascinating to pick apart, don’t tell this isn’t the most interesting thing in this show... I don’t know what the conclusion of this cluster fuck is.

i hate wrong hordak

#salted toffee #this went off the rails quick

[catrasredemption-moved]

oooo okay okay dw abt "doing it justice" bro I love ur writing just do ur thing!!! n e way so, catradora + sleep paralysis for the prompt? 🥺🥺 everyone always talks abt them sleep fighting nd idk i think a worse nightmare for either of them would be like seeing SW just standing there watching them sleep while unable to move and even though they know it's not real it just.... oof u know? 🙂

Okay I couldn’t decide who to do it for, so.... have one for each of them XD

Adora

She didn’t usually let on about how much seeing Shadow Weaver hurt Catra had hurt her. It felt too much like encroaching on Catra’s trauma. And yeah, that was stupid. But Adora couldn’t help how her brain worked.

But she relived those horrifying moments in her dreams. The fear and pain in Catra’s expression. The pure hate in every word Shadow Weaver spoke. Her own, crushing helplessness as she watched her friend, being hurt right in front of her, unable to do anything.

Adora’s eyes snapped open as she sucked in a sharp, uneven breath of air. Just a nightmare. The same nightmare of Shadow Weaver and Catra, nothing new, nothing...

Shadows moved in the corner of her eye.

She tried to sit up, tried to make a noise of some kind, any kind, but she couldn’t even twitch. Her gaze snapped to the left, scanning the air above Catra. Nothing. She was seeing things. It was just a dream. Was... Was it darker in the room? Were the shadows longer? No, she was dreaming. She couldn’t move, she was dreaming, she had to wake up, she had to... to...

The shadows swirled above Catra. Adora tried to yell, to choke out some kind of warning, anything, she had to help Catra, she had to save Catra, but she couldn’t move, she couldn’t get to her, she was three feet away and useless, absolutely useless, she, she, she--

“Ah!”

It felt like a switch was flipped -- one minute Adora couldn’t move, the next she was rolling, almost out of control, on top of Catra. She moved fast, tucking her girlfriend under her chin, her legs wrapping around Catra’s and holding her tight, her arms winding around Catra’s body, one hand resting against the back of her head and the other bracing her neck, pulling her in.

“Ow! Adora, what--?”

Catra cut off abruptly, realizing Adora was tense. “You okay?” she ventured cautiously after a moment. Adora nodded once, silent. “Do you need anything from me?” Another nod. “Is it to stay right here and don’t move so you can protect me?” A third nod. “Okay.”

Catra reached the best she could to tug the blankets over them (with a little help from Melog) and they settled back in together. Adora fell back to sleep eventually, although her grip on Catra never loosened.

Catra

Horde Prime and Shadow Weaver competed for the honor of being the most horrific monster in Catra’s dreams. Horde Prime had the shock factor on his side -- a lot of trauma in a relatively short period of time -- versus Shadow Weaver’s endless knowledge of all the ways to hurt Catra without lifting a finger.

It was no surprise her brain would eventually team them up to get the most out of her nightmares.

Shadows were on the edge of her consciousness as she woke up, not quite shaken, but absolutely on guard. Just a nightmare. Nothing new, it was fine...

Insolent child.

Catra tried to jump, to pull away from the hateful voice. She couldn’t move. Oh little sister. Air turned icy in her lungs. Don’t drag this out. It’ll only bring you more pain.

NO.

Catra tried to move again, eyes flicking about, finally catching a hint of green at the edge of the shadows. Her heart felt like it was going to pound out of her chest. No no no no no no nononononono--

Talon-like shadows brushed against her face. Don’t worry. We’ll have this all fixed in no time.

It was just like when Horde Prime had controlled her. Trapped inside her own body, unable to run, unable to warn Adora, unable to do anything while something else used her like a puppet...

Something gentle touched her cheek. A shriek built in her throat before she realized how familiar the sensation was. Like something warm and soft had pressed against her. Welcoming. Loving.

Melog.

She closed her eyes, trying to breathe, and after a moment her muscles began to unlock. She sat up as soon as she could, clinging to Melog as she looked around.

But the room was empty. No creeping shadows. No green light. Just her, Melog, and...

“Catra?”

Adora. Catra looked back at her, wide-eyed. Adora was yawning, half sitting up and watching her with worry in her gaze. “S’wrong?”

“Nothing,” Catra mumbled, lying back and down and curling into Adora’s side. Melog sandwiched her from the other side, and Adora immediately understood. She nodded to the alien cat, wrapped Catra in her arms, and hugged her close, making sure she was protected on all sides as she slipped back to sleep.

#Sam Writes #askbox fic #catradora #Mystery Person #Sam Answers

[sevens-evan]

the louvre by lorde + catradora

i swear you people are reading my mind all the time, there’s literally a question abt this song on the catradora related uquiz i’ve been making. anyways! modern au, two dumbasses meet at a party.

send me a song + a ship and i’ll write you a ficlet based on the vibes

“‘Scuse me!” Adora squeezes between two girls, both of whom glare at her as she passes. She tries to smile apologetically, but it comes out as more of a grimace as she steps over a spilled drink on the floor.

The house she’s in is shaking with the music that pumps through it. Back in the living room, where Adora is headed, thirty or forty people are crammed in like sardines, pressed up against each other to the pounding bass. Adora is carrying drinks in her hands, one for herself and one for her friend Bow. Adora pushes and apologizes her way up the hallway until she’s on the edge of the living room, a few feet from the writhing dance floor.

Bow is probably somewhere in the middle. Adora sighs heavily, frowning down at the drink she had grabbed for him, and decides that if he wants it, he can come find her. Instead of trying to look for him in the darkened room, she walks along the edge, stepping over one or two passed-out forms and a lot of discarded plastic cups, until she reaches the door that leads out onto the deck.

Outside the house, which has black paper taped across all of its windows, it’s actually bright and sunny out. The deck wraps around the house, and is a hell of a lot less crowded than the inside of the house. Adora squints against the sunlight and starts to walk away from the door, towards an empty patch of deck off to her left—

—and walks straight into another person, spilling the drink in her left hand all over their body.

“What the fuck?” the person says. Adora stumbles back, pulling both drinks as far away from the stranger as she can.

“Shit, sorry,” Adora says. The stranger glares at her, and Adora notices suddenly that she’s spilled her drink on the most attractive girl she’s ever seen in her life. Long, curly hair held back with a bandana, tan skin, sharp jawline, freckles, and captivating eyes—one blue, one greenish-gold.

And a red t-shirt completely soaked in alcohol.

“God,” the girl says, rolling her eyes. “Can you watch where you’re fucking going?”

“Sorry,” Adora says again, wincing. “Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.”

“Yeah, clearly.” The girl looks down at her shirt and sighs. “Whatever. I guess I’ll go fucking wring the tequila out of my shirt.” She steps past Adora, and Adora will later blame her actions on the three shots she had in the kitchen before heading out to the deck, but she follows.

“I’m really sorry,” Adora says again, dropping the now-empty cup in a trash can by the door. “I haven’t seen you at one of Sea Hawk’s parties before.”

“Yeah, and I’m thinking I won’t come to another one,” the girl says, stepping through the door and back into the house. Adora follows her, wincing in embarrassment.

“Right,” she says. “That, uh, probably wasn’t the best introduction to them, but his parties are usually really fun!” The girl pauses, two steps up the stairs to the second floor of the house, and turns to stare at Adora.

“Dude, why the fuck are you following me?” she asks. Adora blinks.

“Sorry!” she says. “Sorry, I wasn’t trying to be weird or anything. If you want me to go away, I will.” The girl stares at her for another long moment, utter confusion in her eyes.

“I literally could not give less of a fuck what you do if I tried,” she says, and turns around to climb the stairs. Adora’s kind-of drunk brain decides that there’s a loophole there: if this girl doesn’t care what Adora does, that means Adora can keep following her.

“Sorry again,” Adora says, climbing the stairs behind the girl. The upstairs of the house is much quieter. There’s nothing up here for partygoers except the bathroom, and since Sea Hawk’s house was built kind of sloppily and all the individual stair-steps are slightly different heights, no one drunk enough to cause a problem makes it to the upstairs bathroom anyway. “But, at least it probably won’t stain? I’m Adora, by the way.”

“Good for you,” the girl says. They reach the bathroom, which is unoccupied, and she flicks the lights on. Adora hovers awkwardly in the doorway, unsure what to do or where to go. She just knows that this girl is more interesting than anything happening downstairs.

The girl takes her shirt off.

Adora makes a choked noise and averts her eyes immediately, staring a hole in the fish-patterned shower curtain across the room. The girl laughs, a high-pitched squeaking sound that Adora immediately falls in love with.

“Chill,” the girl says. “They’re just tits.” Adora does not chill. “Besides, isn’t that why you followed me up here? I figured you were trying to hit on me.”

“Uh...” She’s not...wrong, but Adora hadn’t exactly thought things through before she followed the girl up the stairs.

“Dude, it’s literally fine.” Adora, still staring resolutely at the shower curtain, hears the faucet switch on. “I don’t care if you look.” Slowly, Adora pulls her eyes back across the room, but she keeps her gaze firmly fixed on the girl’s face and refuses to look lower. The girl glances up at her, an amused look on her face. “You said your name was Adora, right?” she says. Adora, pretty sure that she’ll start babbling if she opens her mouth, nods. “I’m Catra. You always this afraid of girls you think are hot?”

“That’s a big assumption,” Adora says. “What makes you think I think you’re hot?” The sentence doesn’t quite make sense in her intoxicated brain, but she goes with it.

“Why else would you throw a drink at me?”

“I didn’t throw—” Adora begins, indignant, but she’s interrupted by Catra laughing again.

“You know what?” she says, wringing her shirt out in the sink (and Adora does not look at the way her arms flex as she does so, absolutely not). “You’re fun to mess with, Adora. I’ll forgive you for the drink if you come dance with me.” Adora blinks, trying to compute Catra, dancing, dancing with Catra, Catra maybe touching Adora while dancing—

“Yep,” Adora says, unable to agree fast enough. “Sounds good. Let’s do that.”

#catradora #catra #adora #spop #my fics #fic: catradora #i like this one thanks anon #anon #answered

[hollow-haven]

Catradora. Something soft pls

I know I said drabble requests but Scone gets a whole ass fic because why not.Title: After it allWord count: 1730Rating: General

“AAaddooorraaaaa, I’m tirreeddd.” Catra groaned while she flopped herself down on the blonde’s lap. “I’m just gonna, stay here.” Catra told her, the Magicat purred and laid on her lap. Adora looked down at Catra with surprise. They had just finished their meeting about what to do next for Etheria after the defeat of Horde Prime. Adora was surprised that after everything they’ve been through, Catra was just to lay down on her lap and complain how tired she was?

Adora looked down at her, Catra still had some scars on her here and there. Her new outfit looked fitting to her from Adora’s angle, yet didn’t. Adora looked at her mismatched eyes, her head tilting as her slightly while she wondered what to do next. Adora was so surprised, she never had Catra be this close to her without fighting her in a very long time. It felt so odd to her, especially since Catra was just sitting on her lap purring loudly like old times. Adora didn’t know what to do. She just sat there on her chair, looking at Catra in surprise. Catra squinted at her, stopping her purring and looking annoyed with her.

“Heellooo Etheria to Adora heeelloooo.” Catra waved at her. Adora blinked and looked at her in surprise. Adora’s eyes widening and bits of her hair falling from her ponytail.

“Oh um…hey Catra.”

“Hey Adora. You’re my bed now. Get used to it.”

Catra hasn’t changed much, Adora realized.

“That’s fine but…wouldn’t you want to sleep on an actual bed?” Adora asked raising a brow at her. “There’s a lot of rooms in Brightmoo-”

“Adora, there’s no spare rooms.” Glimmer quickly added in while she looked at the hologram on intercom. She hummed and swiped a few things here and there, then began typing. “I can understand if you two need space, but there’s a lot of rebellion fighters sleeping in the castle and it’s going to take awhile to well…empty out any rooms since we need to focus on the rebuilding efforts. Plus…Catra is literally laying down on your lap and you’re letting her stay there. Why don’t you just let her use your bed?”

Adora blushed at the suggestion. Catra, use her bed?! That was a shock. Adora would have never thought- “If you’re going to take me to your bed you’re going to have to carry me because I don’t feel like walking.” Catra said looking at her sharp fingernails. Catra was oddly out of character even for Adora at this point. Adora couldn’t help but growing suspicious. Since when did Catra get so bossy?

“Fine. I’ll take you to my bed then.” Adora picked up Catra with both of her arms. Catra mewled in surprise, blinking. She was expecting Adora to just well…stay there. Laws of the cat laying on a human and all. Adora broke a sacred rule among cat lovers and she wasn’t sorry for it. “My bed is far more comfortable than the other beds in Brightmoon anyways.” She told her with a smirk. Catra pouts at her smirk.

“Just shut up and take me there already, Adora.” Catra hissed. Adora laughed. Glimmer looked on in surprise.

“Taking her to your bed just like that then?” Glimmer noted with a grin on her lips. She pointed at the two of them, noting how Adora was carrying Catra bridal style. “I thought you would put up more of a fight, but Bow still owes me money then.” Glimmer responded with a smug expression. “So tell me, have you guys well…told each other yet?”

Catra and Adora looked at each other confused. “Told each other what?” They both asked in unison.

“That, well…” Glimmer made her hands fold into the perfect shape for one to make sock puppets. She pressed her hands together and made kissing noises. “Oh Adora I missed you so much, I’m so happy to finally be with you. Hiss. Hiss. Purr.” Glimmer mocked Catra’s voice. “Oh I love you Catra! Mawh mawh mawh.” Glimmer pressed her hands together more, her expression stayed that same smug expression while the two looked at Glimmer in shock and their faces turned red. “Mawh, mawh, mawh. I love you so much Catra, let’s get married and never have to leave each other ever again. Mawh mawh.”

“Queen Glimmer of Bright Moon!” Adora gasped out, shocked.

“Sparkles!” Catra equally yelled out in shock.

“I’m not lying though!” Glimmer slammed her hands on the table, her look striking fear into their souls. “Ever since me and Catra came back from Horde Prime’s ship all you’ve been doing is giving each other bedroom eyes!! I’m sick and tired of this romantic and possibly sexual tension! Just kiss and get married already! Queen’s orders!” Glimmer grabbed the end of her cape, flipping it with her as she turned around. Glimmer teleported away, assuming she was done being third wheel to Catra and Adora’s antics.

Adora and Catra looked at each other with confused and scared looks. The blush still on their faces. Adora smirked and opened her mouth to say something then Catra added, “No. I’m not going to marry you. Sparkles is not the boss of me.”

Adora’s smirk turned into a frown. “B-”

“What is marriage anyways?”

Adora soon realized that Catra didn’t know what marriage was. Adora didn’t know much of it herself until Spinerlla and Netossa came into the picture. The two were married. So Adora hummed as they walked out of the war room to Adora’s room. Adora had to think, and thinking of an explanation to a concept she barely understood was harder than she thought. “Well, marriage is kind of a fancy way of saying you want to be with someone for as long as their alive. You know how we have our squadron back in the Horde? And we stayed with them until we become Force Captains? It’s like that…but with two people, and you get to pick who you stay with.”

“So it’s basically a fancy way of saying partners for life?”

Adora nodded. Catra gave her a sort of look that told her that everything came together.

“We should get married then.” Catra told her with her ears perking up. Adora froze. Catra pouts and waves her hands in front of her face. “Heellooo Etheria to Adora?! You’re really doing this again?! Are you sure you’re not brain damaged?!” Adora looks down at Catra, her face was one of pure shock.

“A-are you sure about that?!” Adora asked her, Adora picked up the pace, walking a little quicker to her bedroom.

Catra sighed, waving her hands around. “Sure why not, I mean since we are on the same side now, why not make it official right?” Catra responded nonchalantly.

Adora wanted to scream.

If Catra didn’t stop she was going to scream.

Once they got to her room, Adora kicked that door open like it owed her lunch money. It was probably broken in some parts but she didn’t care. Adora was trying her best to suppress her emotions. Catra looked a little worried…maybe saying that was a bad idea. Adora was going insane. Catra leaped off of her hold, landing on her feet on the ground. Catra took a good look around the room before looking back at Adora who was closing the door. “Hey. You. Bed. Now.” Catra commanded. Adora blinked.

“What?”

“You heard me. Bed. Now. You’re acting crazy.”

“You’re the one who’s acting crazy!”

“Oh, are we really going to argue over this?”

“Yes, we are.”

Adora and Catra looked at each other. Both females sharing grins while they prepared for their ritual. “Oh you wanna fight huh?” Adora asked her with playfulness in her expression. Catra nodded, her claws retracting and her tail lashed about. Her haunches rose as well as her fur. The both of them look at each her. They were ready. “The first one to touch the bed has to admit their crazy.” Adora proclaimed.

“I can agree to those terms.” Catra replied, with their wager set the two began battle. Catra being the first one to launch at Adora. Adora moved herself to the side, barely dodging Catra’s attack. Catra was able to counter and used her agility to turn herself around and grab Adora by her waist, pushing her to the bed. Adora attempted to push, pull, or even stop herself but the momentum was so strong that Catra pinned Adora to her bed.

Catra looked down at her, grinning widely while her tail lashed about. Catra’s pupils turned from their natural slits to wide dilated pupils. Catra was treasuring in this moment. Adora heard her loud purrs. It was obvious that the Magicat was enjoying this. Adora in a sense enjoyed their swift battle too, even if she lost. The two stared at each other. Catra couldn’t help but be excited at seeing her below her. Her claws slowly pulled out while she dug them into the bed, tearing some of the blanket and bedding. Catra’s breathing was rapid as if she ran for her life.

Adora looked up in surprise, Catra was liking this a little too much? Adora’s blush returned to her face. Catra looked beautiful, even as she tore into her bed. “Hey.” Her voice soft and gentle. “Come closer, I want to tell you something.” Adora whispered. Catra pulled her face closer, wanting to hear what the loser had to say.

What surprised her, was what Adora did next.

Instead of admitting she was just some crazy person who needed sleep, Adora kissed her. Catra’s fur stood on end, her tail froze in surprise. Everything froze in surprise, the only sound heard in their room was Catra’s loud purring and the tear of her claws through the bedding. Adora closed her eyes while the two shared that kiss. The tears began to fall between them, both of their eyes watering. Catra retracted her claws, holding that kiss for a few moments before pulling away.

“I love you.” Adora told her.

“I love you too, ya dork. Now…let me just hold you for awhile.”

Adora nodded, the two moved enough that they were both lying in the same bed. Side by side, looking at each other. Catra smiled and held Adora, pulling her close and nuzzling into her neck. Catra purred loudly while she kissed her shoulder blade up to her neck, then her cheek and finally to her lips. The two shared a soft and tender, while brief, kiss.

Catra and Adora fell asleep after that kiss. They were going to have a long recovery to help with, and they would need all of the rest they would be able to get.

#eevee drabble #catradora #play fighting #catra being a cat

[pumpkinsandsuckers]

I think we should get together now

Catradora, BG Scorfuma.

Summary: Karaoke AU. The only thing is that Catra and Adora never met, and there was no war.  Scorpia and Perfuma host a (couples) karaoke night. Catra gets jealous. Between singing a song or be subject to a penalty? Fine, she’ll sing a stupid song.

AN: This has been heavily inspired by @ CambieArt 's tweet about which songs Adora and Catra would sing to each other during a Karaoke session. She makes good art too, so feel free to check her out! 

I also died from embarrassment writing this.

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The blinking of the traffic lights, the smoky, dusty street lights were something Catra was used to. The thudding of bass from bars blasting music, the edgier, grittier music she had grown up with.

But not now. She had been dragged into the heart of the city of Etheria. The fluorescent glare of neon pink and yellow dazzled her, and she scowled. Everything was so… poppy here. Even the bars! It was, as Lonnie would have called it, a “bastardized fusion of jazz and pop”. Catra was beginning to regret joining Scorpia.

But that was what friends were for. If Scorpia needed a wingwoman for her date, Catra would gladly accompany her. A bright blue hologram flashed up, an advertisement for some fizzy beverage from Dryl. Catra weaved past the diverse crowd, grumbling under her breath as she followed her communications pad. Scorpia had dropped her the venue address, but this district - well, everything nearing Bright Moon City was just so confusing.

The roads in the Fright Zone, and even Dryl, were crooked and winding, but so much easier to distinguish from each other. The layout in Bright Moon though, was repetitive, grids and grids of identical buildings and crossings.

Catra growled as she passed by a familiar statue of what looked like a tall, muscular athlete in a tight costume. She had a ponytail flowing behind her, frozen in this marvellous pose.  ‘Mara, Our Hero’ it read.

“Not again.” Catra sighed. It was the city probably. Navigational systems functioned poorly in areas of congestion. It was a bloody miracle how she made her way here.

‘I’m at the Mara statue. How! Do! I! Reach! The! Enchanted! Grotto?!!!?!’ She typed out a message to Scorpia, hissing when a beep alerted her of Scorpia’s rapid response. How did she even type with her claws?

‘ Whih? ’

Frustrated, Catra swept her hair back and sighed, looking around.

‘ w, there arr 10 Mara statuesd ’

‘You have got to be kidding me!!!’

‘ Whoopd, 20 Maras tautes ’

Catra clenched her fists and took a deep breath, finding a safe space to calm down. 20 statues around Bright Moon City?! If they were supposed to be landmarks, they had failed. If she had been winding around a single Mara statue, it would have been fine. But 20!? She could have been walking around the entire city and not realise it.

She switched to the navigational app. Curses. Her icon flickered and jumped from location to location, eventually settling in a blue blob marked as a lake. Her eyebrow twitched. She was this close to flinging her pad at the floor.

“Scorpia can handle it.” She grunted, as she looked around cluelessly, trying to find a sign, anything that could guide her to the Enchanted Grotto. She had never been to Bright Moon much. Seen it on her screens, yes. Seen more of it on Entrapta’s screens, yes. But Bright Moon was unfamiliar territory. She definitely wasn’t scared. Nope, just uncomfortable with how bright and loud everything was. Okay, she had to do this. It was simple.

Catra took a deep breath, patted her shirt and pants, and approached the first stranger she saw. A young girl with a bright pink shirt with ‘Kawaii AF’ smacked across, in even horribly brighter pink. She wore a skirt and black leggings, and had her hair tied in two buns.

“Hey! Where’s the Enchanted Grotto?” She asked, realising how small this creature was.

The creature blinked at her once, twice, then grinned. Catra thought she saw a creepily long tongue slither out. Probably not.

“I know where it is! I can lead you there!” She beamed, and Catra raised an eyebrow. Suspiciously bubbly. Eh, any help was appreciated.

“Heh. Great. Where to?” She followed the stranger from a distance, looking around for any other paths. She wasn’t going to be blindly led into an alleyway for a mugging. And even if she did, she would hold her ground. It would be a great tale to tell when she finally arrived at her destination.

“Uh, hell no.” A stern voice cut through them, and a hand extended, separating Catra from the small pink creature. “Double Trouble, cut this out.” It was a girl, and her body followed her arm, becoming a barricade between Catra and … Double Trouble?

“Aww, but I was having so much fun!” Double Trouble winked at Catra. “Maybe I’ll see you again, Kitten.” They slinked off, pink visage blending with the crowd.

“Whew, that was a close one.”

“What?!” Catra frowned, as the female in front of her turned around. She had blonde hair tied up in a ponytail. A white long sleeved shirt was partially covered by a half-sleeve red jacket. Grey pants accentuating muscular legs followed down, and Catra realised she was checking out a complete stranger. She brought her eyes back up, hoping she had not been caught.

“Yeah, Double Trouble doesn’t mean harm, they just like dragging people around Bright Moon like a tour guide. You’re looking for the Enchanted Grotto? I can take you there.”

“I could have handled that myself!” Catra spat out, furious. The adorable snort mixed with laughter from the girl killed her anger instantly.

“Of course you could. I’m Adora. I can bring you there.”

‘Oh. OH.’ Catra smacked herself. Adora. Relative of Mara. The Adora. The same Adora she had been stalking online. Seeing her in real life… was really different. A good different. Without filters and angled shots, Adora looked… real.

“Catra.” Catra stuttered out, and froze when Adora grabbed her wrist.

“I’m headed there too, what a coincidence.” Adora grinned, a real, sincere grin, not what Double Trouble had presented. “So, Catra, what brings you to the Enchanted Grotto? It’s a very niche place.”

Catra tried to focus on walking. ‘Left foot. Right foot. Adora is holding my wrist, fuck, fuck fuCK! Left foot? Or was it right?’

“Catra?” Adora turned around to check on her companion once they reached a crosswalk.

“Hnh, yeah.” Catra’s brain struggled to think of something, grasping at anything she could use to hide the fact that she totally did not hear what Adora was saying. Her eyes landed on yet another familiar sight.

“Hey Adora,” Catra squirmed internally as she almost purred out Adora’s name. That was not supposed to happen! “Why are there so many statues of Mara, they got me lost.”

Adora laughed, and used her free hand to point to where Catra had laid her eyes on. “That’s the Mara statue of Hope. I met you near the statue of heroism. There’s an inscription reading ‘Mara, Our Hero’. Each Mara statue has a similar inscription, except the statue of friendship. It reads ‘Friend Of Mara’. Mara actually looks towards different directions. It’s supposed to guide us around.”

“Well, it clearly didn’t work.” Catra muttered, and wished her fur wasn’t so sweaty. She swore Adora’s hand slid down for a moment.

“Oh, green light, we gotta go.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Catra’s communication pad had been silenced, but was vibrating furiously near her rear pocket. It had caught Adora’s attention as they walked from the bustling streets to a quieter pathway.

“Hey, your… butt is vibrating?” Adora cocked an eyebrow at Catra.

“It’s called a communication pad, genius.” Catra rebutted, and whipped the small device (modified courtesy of Entrapta) out, detaching her wrist from Adora’s grip. A regrettable decision.

“What?!” She answered, crankier than usual. Adora kept an eye on her, switching between several awkward poses to rest her now very empty hands.

“ Catra, where are you? Perfuma is going to show up anytime soon! ” Catra noticed Adora’s hands shifting from her hips to being folded, her biceps and triceps flexing with that change.

“Then let her! I’m on my way!” Catra hissed as Adora’s hands drifted back down, her fingers tucking into the belt around her pants.

“ But the surprise will be ruined! ”

“Surprise?” Catra frowned. “Scorpia, what do you me-”

“ Oops, I didn’t say anything! See you, Wildcat! ”

As much as that nickname brought a smile to Catra’s face, she rolled her eyes at Scorpia’s panic. A surprise, huh? She forgot all about it when Adora’s fingers wrapped around her wrist again.

“We’re almost there.” Adora stated as Catra slipped the block back into her pocket. “I’m really curious though.” Catra felt Adora’s eyes on her entire body. “I had no idea… Well, here’s the Enchanted Grotto.”

Adora waved at a group of people outside what seemed like a rundown, dead shop. The windows were pitch dark, but as they neared the building, she could make out some sort of weird singing and music blasting from speakers. Heh, the perks of having heightened senses.

“Hey guys!”

“Adora!” the group, consisting of three individuals waved back.

“I see you made a new friend.” The tallest of the trio, a boy with dark hair, a clean undercut, and a tight muscle shirt waggled his eyebrows. “I’m Bow, nice to meet you!”

Behind him was a shorter female, her hair dyed(?) a shade between pink and purple, seemingly glittering as the sole lamppost hovered above her. Clad in a loose, sleeveless outfit, she was engaged in a whispered conversation with another female.

“Perfuma!” Adora waved, trying to get her attention. “Meet Catra!”

“Catra?” Bow’s head could have snapped with that speed, switching between Catra and Adora abruptly. “Catra?”

“Yep, that’s my name.” Catra crossed her arms. “Got a problem with it?”

“No! Not at all!” Bow shook his head, hands in front of him in a defensive stance. Catra immediately pegged him down as a softie. Just like Scorpia.

“Bow!” Adora nudged her friend, and he shrugged. “Catra, these are my friends. Glimmer.”

The one with sparkling hair gave a curt wave..

Catra smirked. What an appropriate name. “Nice to meet you, Sparkles.”

“It’s Glimmer.” she corrected, and Adora released Catra’s wrist. Again. “This is-”

“Perfuma.” Catra and Perfuma said in unison, and relaxed their tense postures.

“Yes, you’re acquainted.” Adora mumbled, and Glimmer wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her into the establishment.

“It is nice to see you again, Catra. I hope you will enjoy this evening.” Perfuma smiled, and Catra gave a generic response absent mindedly, eyes fixed on Adora and Glimmer.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Inside the Enchanted Grotto, things were very different. They had stepped past a screen of magic properties, which had blocked out most of the noise coming from within.

The whole group seemed familiar with the place, waving to the staff and strolling in with a sense of confidence. Except Catra. She didn’t hate it, surprisingly. The decor was pleasant. The whole floor was dimly lit, save a few brighter bulbs along a separate corridor. There was a main stage, and a few tables scattered before it.

Instrumental music was blasting, and a man was belting out a cheesy love song on stage. He was practically wailing the high notes into the microphone, and Catra winced as she shuffled along to the brighter bulbs.

Bow was behind all of them, herding them towards a private room. The bulbs in the corridor led to a quieter, secluded lobby, different coloured lights hanging before different doors.

“The Red Garnet.” Perfuma squealed, and pranced towards the red light.

“You know, not everyone approves of this place. Some even disapprove of it.” Bow whispered to Catra, and she shot him a questioning look.

“The folk here are what some consider to be… different.” Bow explained.

Catra thought about Scorpia and Perfuma. Or Adora and Glimmer. Could it be? They were about to enter the room, and she wanted to get an answer from Bow.

“Is it because Bright Moon doesn’t support G-”

“Group Karaoke! You’re absolutely right!” Bow clapped Catra on the back, and she nearly fell over.

“Group Karaoke?” There was no time to process her thoughts and Bow’s statement, as she tripped straight into the private room.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Of course, she regained her balance, turning an unsightly fall into a proper entrance. As proper as a very wide stride could get. Her eyes, luckily, adjusted to the lighting quickly, and she spotted Scorpia in the corner, Perfuma already by her side.

“Oh hey, Wildcat.” Scorpia had that look. THAT LOOK! Catra was familiar with it. Everytime Scorpia had something up her sleeve (an ironic phrase, as Scorpia wore sleeveless clothing exclusively), she had that look of guilt. She couldn’t hide it, and it was a telling sign.

“Scorpia!” Catra lunged forward, squeezing Scorpia towards Perfuma, and lodging herself in the corner. The couch rounded into a three-quarter, with Adora and Glimmer sitting on the other end. Bow found his spot between Perfuma and Glimmer, looking at everyone excitedly.

“You knew about this, didn’t you. I really overshare sometimes!” Catra hissed into Scorpia’s ear, and Scorpia laughed nervously.

“They’re friends of Perfuma!” Scorpia protested, as Catra narrowed her eyes.

“ She ’s a friend of Perfuma. And you didn’t tell me!” Catra gritted her teeth. “And they didn’t post pictures online?”

“They did! You just don’t follow Perfuma.” Scorpia pouted, and Catra gave up.

“Fine, my bad. Say, you never told me what’s going on.”

“Oh.” Scorpia looked genuinely surprised. “Oh.”

“GROUP KARAOKE!” Bow yelled, opening the wooden box in front of them, revealing 2 wireless microphones.”

“I thought he was joking!” Catra groaned, and buried her face into her hands.

“There, there.” Scorpia patted her with her heavy claws, and Catra choked.

“Alright, you know the drill, guys. Everyone has to sing a song.”

Perfuma cheered, and Bow continued, “No singing, and you get a penalty issued by all members present.”

“This is horrible.” Catra moaned.

“As we all know, we have two new participants joining us today! Perfuma’s girlfriend, the lovely powerhouse Scorpia!”

Scorpia waved as Perfuma leaned into her.

“And Scorpia’s friend, and also, Adora’s new friend, Catra! She appears in Scorpia’s feed so much!”

Bow was dragged down by both Glimmer and Adora, unintelligible muffles unable to be deciphered. Catra looked at Scorpia, who evaded her gaze, crossing over to sit between Perfuma and Bow instead.

“Wow, look at that, I’m going to sing first!” She reached for the microphone, aided by Perfuma. The rest cheered her on.

Catra sank back into the couch, training her gaze on Adora and Glimmer. Were they…?

Adora was leaning against Glimmer, who was patting her hand. The same hand that held Catra’s wrist.

“Ew! Adora, your hand’s all sweaty.” Glimmer complained, and Adora blushed.

“Sickening.” Catra muttered, her eyes refusing to leave them. Her ears however, had shifted to appreciate Scorpia’s amazing singing. Damn, she knew her friend could sing, but ever since she moved to Plumeria, she had not had a chance to hear her strong vocals. Scorpia was a completely different person in her element, full of raw confidence, charm, and even some cockiness as she winked in the middle of her song. Perfuma swooned and even Catra could see why Scorpia had won her over.

Bow was next, belting out a song about friendship, with Glimmer joining in. Catra however, was still focused on Adora.

The same Adora who held her hand and made her heart skip a bit, made her feel giddy. The same Adora who snorted in such a cute manner. The same Adora whom she had stalked online, with so much determination Scorpia had suggested Catra make a move. Catra had refused, of course, instead scrolling her feed of Adora’s pictures. The professional athlete, relative of Mara (effectively making her a princess of Etheria), was actually in the same room as her.

AND FLIRTING WITH GLIMMER, APPARENTLY! Catra growled at the last thought, causing Perfuma to look at her with alarm.

Bow ended his song with a deep bow, passing the microphone to Adora.

“Uh, not now.” Adora looked at Perfuma desperately.

“We all know I like to end Karaoke sessions with heavy metal.” Perfuma took the other microphone. “I think we should let Catra sing.” she smiled at the astonished girl.

“Absolutely not!” Catra pushed the microphone away.

“Penalty! Penalty!” Bow chanted, and Scorpia joined in.

“Catra’s penalty should be to go out on a date with someone we choose.” Perfuma clapped her hands together, and Catra balked at the suggestion.

“Penalty! Penalty!” Bow resumed, and Catra felt betrayed by Adora’s addition to the cheer.

“Fine, fine!” She snatched the microphone, and the controls. “I’ll sing a stupid song!”

Scorpia actually lifted Catra with her claw, shifting her to the middle of the couch.

“Urgh! Why are all the songs so old?!” Catra grimaced.

“That’s what’s so great about the Enchanted Grotto!” Bow gave her a thumbs up.

From the corner of her eye, Catra caught Glimmer whispering into Adora’s ear, and they both giggled, Adora snorting again. Alright, that was the last straw. A familiar song was an easy choice, although Catra barely remembered the lyrics. She only remembered her preteen self being fuelled with a sense of rebellious courage and the melody of the song.

“Oooh, bold choice.” Scorpia pushed Catra up, and she responded with an angry yowl. “Go get her, Wildcat! I mean, er, go get ‘em, Wildcat!”

The mini stage had a mic stand, which Catra ignored. A display in front of her lit up, the lyrics appearing with a countdown. Ah yes, those familiar words. Just like how she remembered.

As the background music started, Catra smirked, her usual confidence returning in a snap.

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I don't like your girlfriend

No way! No way!

I think you need a new one

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I could be your girlfriend

She saw Glimmer’s eyes widen, and Bow’s jaw drop. Heh. The lyrics were… more embarrassing than she remembered, but what the hell, she was already going with it. Perfuma and Scorpia actually joined in the background

Hey! Hey! You! You!

Catra smirked, looking directly at Adora

I know that you like me

Oh shit, she was mouthing the lyrics and staring at Catra

No way! No way!

You know it's not a secret

Catra turned back to the mini screen, glancing at the lyrics.

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I want to be your girlfriend

Oh god, what was her preteen self doing? Not looking at the lyrics, for sure.

You're so fine, I want you mine, You're so delicious

Not a lie.

I think about you all the time, You're so addictive

Don't you know what I can do to make you feel all right?

Her mind worked quickly as she changed the lyrics

Don't pretend, I think you know I'm damn precious

And hell yeah, you’re my mother fucking princess

Catra enjoyed how Adora’s blank stare evolved to a blush. Hell yeah!

I can tell you like me too, and you know I'm right

Glimmer let out a “whoo!”, fist pumping along to the beat. Heh, maybe it was her preteen anthem as well.

She's like, so whatever

You can do so much better

As the hook rounded to the chorus, everyone was cheering now. Except Adora. And of course, the adrenaline and defiance egged her on, as she took a step off the stage and towards Adora, practically stalking around her with the aura of a predator.

I think we should get together now

She looked at Adora with sultry eyes (Glimmer would describe it as bedroom eyes later), and Adora let out a strained gurgle. Catra pushed off, leaping back onto the elevated platform.

And that's what everyone's talking about

She repeated the chorus again, her preteen self roaring with pride. She licked her lips, deciding to strike again.

I can see the way, I see the way you look at me

And even when you look away, I know you think of me

I know you talk about me all the time again and again

She pointed at Adora, curling her finger towards her.

So come over here and tell me what I wanna hear

Adora actually nodded dumbly, almost rising from her seat.

Or better, yet, make your girlfriend disappear

I don't wanna hear you say her name ever again

Her steely glare at Glimmer was met with a bewildered look and a high pitched “I’m not?!”

Catra rolled her eyes, grinning triumphantly at that realisation. The next verse meant nothing, but she was way too pumped up.

Because

She's like so whatever

You can do so much better

I think we should get together now

And that's what everyone's talking about

She entered the chorus again, Bow joining Scorpia and Perfuma in yelling the alternate chorus verses.

Uh!

Adora wiped at her mouth at that sound as Catra started the bridge.

In a second you'll be wrapped around my finger

'Cause I can, 'cause I can do it better

Catra was now brimming with an absurd assertiveness, bending over the stage to meet Adora’s eyes.

There's no other, so when's it gonna sink in

She's so stupid, what the hell were you thinking?

Adora looked away quickly, her head turned but her eyes still darting back to the stage.

In a second you'll be wrapped around my finger

Adora yelped as her chin was grabbed suddenly, pulled back to look at Catra who was right in front of her.

'Cause I can, 'cause I can do it better

There's no other, so when's it gonna sink in

She's so stupid, what the hell were you thinking?

Glimmer joined in the chorus now, sliding beside Bow. Their fingers intertwined, raised as they sang the background vocals.

The chorus seemed to repeat itself forever, and Catra could do nothing but lean in real close to Adora while singing. As she approached the last verse of the chorus, she switched off the mic, leaving the ensemble chanting.

I want to be your girlfriend

She softly finished the song, her breath tickling Adora’s now bright red ear.

Hey Hey!

The rest finished, and the music died, slamming them back into reality.

Catra was now panting from her performance, and strangely, Adora was as well.

“Pee break?” Bow jumped up and nearly ran into the door trying to get out.

“Uh, right. Pee breaks. Be back in five.” Glimmer hugged Perfuma and Scorpia, and teleported out in a shimmer.

“Uh. Huh. Mmm.” Adora babbled, looking at Catra’s face.

“Oh my god, I’m an idiot.” Catra pushed off the couch, releasing Adora from that pin. “I’m sorry.”

“Oh no!” Adora stood up, grabbing onto Catra’s wrist again. “Don’t be?”

Catra realised it wasn’t her wrist and fur being sweaty all along.

“So, er, yeah.” Adora covered the bottom half of her face, doing little to hide her blush. Not that it was obvious with the lighting.

“Huh?”

“You want to be my girlfriend?”

“Oh hell yeah.”

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Epilogue:

“I’ve actually been following you on some pages with my personal account.” Catra admitted.

“What? I’ve been trying to find it since forever!” Adora pouted, ruffling Catra’s short hair. “Catra! What’s your account name?”

Catra paused, giving into Adora’s pets and scratches near her jawline.

“Tell me~”

“Only if you kiss me.” Catra grumbled and Adora gave her a short, swift peck.

“That totally didn’t count.” Catra huffed, and Adora placed both hands on Catra’s cheeks. “Tongue and we’ll talk.”

“Is it AdoraFan01? Or WatermelonCrusher? Or TinyBaby4Adora?”

“Hey!” Catra yelled before Adora pressed their lips together, tongue sliding in with Catra’s gasp. Catra gave in completely, Adora licking her lips in victory when they parted.

“Fine.” Catra passed her her pad.

“You can’t be serious.”

Catra rolled her eyes and groaned.

“Yes, I’m ApplesauceMeowMeow”

#souhiwrites #catradora #fic #spop #catra #adora

[darkmasterofcupcakes]

Title: Boredom Leads to Scratches and Snuggles

Pairing: Catradora 

Genre: Friendship/Fluff

Summary: Adora hears her new friend crying and decides to do something about it. Takes place shortly after Shadow Weaver takes Catra in as her “ward”.

@spop-pride-exchange gift for @smol-strange

Adora lifted one leg straight up into the air above her body, the tips of her toes not even brushing the bottom of the bunk hovering above her, no matter how much she stretched. After a moment, she allowed her leg to fall back onto her mattress with a light thud.

 She repeated the exercise with her other leg, and then again with both. There wasn’t really any reason for her to do this; she was just bored.

 Shadow Weaver was gone again, talking to or doing something for Lord Hordak. 

 Adora didn’t know what exactly they did when Shadow Weaver was gone, and while she had asked a few times, it hadn’t taken her too long to understand that whatever Shadow Weaver did when she went to see Lord Hordak, it wasn’t anything for Adora to worry about. And so she hadn’t – not in a long while anyway. She simply got used to the fact that Shadow Weaver would often be gone for long periods of time, leaving Adora more or less to her own devices, with some of the other soldiers – both the cadets and the officers and Force Captains – being given the implicit orders to make sure she didn’t get too badly hurt as she ran about in an attempt to entertain herself while her caregiver was busy.

 Still, that didn’t mean it didn’t get lonely when Shadow Weaver left, especially when she was gone so long, and barely even spoke to Adora when they did manage to cross paths, usually right before Adora was forced into the barracks by an officer who would tuck the blankets in so tight the young girl could barely even wriggle free in time to race to the latrine when she needed to go in the middle of the night.  

 Thinking about all of that made Adora lose her concentration, and her legs flopped down a little too hard this time, causing a tiny tremor to course through her mattress, and a sound almost like a drum to echo through the empty barracks.

 She winced at the sound, despite knowing there wasn’t really anybody there to complain about the noise she was making. Her expression softened as she heard a small sound coming from above her head. It was tiny, and if it weren’t for the fact that it seemed like all noise was intensified in the aftermath of what had just happened, she might not have even noticed it; but she did.

 “Catra?” she called up, her voice a whisper just barely louder than the little whimper or mew that she’d heard mere seconds before.

 There was no response, which made the young girl frown. She knew she had heard something; she was absolutely sure of it, even if the other girl was going to try and pretend otherwise.

 Getting to her feet, she stood on the mattress – it was easy, the bed was about as solid as the floor, and almost as smooth – and stretched up her arm to see if she could reach the bottom of the bunk above her head. To her great joy, she found that she could easily touch the hard metal surface, not only being able to put the tips of each of her fingers to it, but even being able to place her entire palm flat against the cool metal. Only the heel of her hand avoided contact, unless Adora got onto the tips of her toes – which was just a little more difficult to do on the bed than it was to do on the ground, and she didn’t think touching Catra’s bunk with her whole hand was worth the trouble.

 Shadow Weaver would probably say it was a waste of effort (whatever that meant – Adora had only overheard her saying something like that once, when she was supposed to be asleep, and didn’t want to get in trouble by asking questions and revealing she hadn’t been doing what she was supposed to); and the last thing Adora wanted was to do anything that her guardian would consider to be a waste.

 Still…she knew she had heard crying from up above her, if only for a moment, and even if it seemed to have gone away. And even if she knew that she wasn’t really supposed to bother someone when they seemed to be upset – because letting someone know you saw that they were upset would make them feel ashamed and be even more upset than they already were, figured Adora – she thought maybe it would be okay to make an exception this time, and make sure Catra was alright.

 Catra was young, after all, just like she was; and even if it didn’t happen all the time, Adora did sometimes have people asking her if she was okay when she was allowed to wander about the base while Shadow Weaver did her work with Lord Hordak.

 Maybe the rule about pretending you didn’t notice when someone was upset didn’t count until you were an adult. Which meant that it would be okay for her to check up on her new friend, and try to figure out what had made her start crying. 

 “Catra!” Adora called out again, this time jumping up slightly to smack the bottom of the other girl’s bunk as hard as she could. She actually hit it hard enough that not only did the sound of her hand slapping against the metal echo through the barracks (which made Adora all the more thankful that the room was empty, save for herself and Catra – she did not want to deal with any soldiers and cadets who got cranky because she accidentally woke them up), but her arm actually tingled a bit from the shock of how hard she’d hit the bunk. Still, there wasn’t any response from Catra.

 Now Adora was starting to get less worried about her new friend, and just starting to get mad. Even if Catra didn’t want to talk about what was bothering her – even if she didn’t want to talk at all right now – she at least should show that she’d noticed Adora was trying to talk to her; not just pretend she wasn’t even there!

 “Catra!” she called up once again, puffing out her cheeks in irritation when, yet again, she didn’t get any answer. “Catra, I know you’re not sleeping. Just say something already.”

 When even that didn’t get a response, a frustrated groan escaped from her mouth.

 Well, if Catra was going to try and keep ignoring her, then Adora was just going to have to make it so she couldn’t be ignored.

 Getting onto her hands and knees so she could move faster, the girl scrambled to the edge of her bed, hopping to her feet just as the tips of her toes hit the end of the mattress. As soon as she was on her feet, she whipped herself around and leapt up, unable to keep herself from letting out a squeak of surprise (it wasn’t because she was scared – she never got scared, not because of a silly thing like this) as her arms briefly flailed about until she was able to grab onto the edge of Catra’s bunk.

 “Can you help me up?” she asked the curled up ball laying on the mattress as she barely managed to pull herself up enough to that her chin rested on the mat. She had no idea how Catra was able to get up here every night; she was struggling not to fall off, and Shadow Weaver always talked about how strong she was, in a way that made Adora feel really good inside.

 A twitch of an ear showed that Catra had heard her, even if she still refused to look her way. However, despite not looking at Adora, the other girl did seem willing to help her up, nudging over a blanket that she was laying on top of.

 Adora grasped the corner of the blanket and used it to help herself scramble over the edge and onto the mat – which was just as hard as her own mattress was, to her slight surprise.

 “…You okay?” she questioned, crawling over to where Catra was laying, still curled up into a little ball near her pillow. Adora didn’t want to bring up the crying; she wanted to try and make Catra feel better, not make her feel bad because someone had noticed she’d been crying.

 Catra just shrugged and let out a little noise that vaguely sounded like an extremely smushed together “I don’t know”. Which was more than Adora was expecting, considering her earlier attempts, so she considered that response good enough for now.

 Still, she wanted to make her new friend feel better; she just had to figure out the best way to do that. As she raked her brain, trying to think of a solution, she noticed something out of the corner of her eye: one of Catra’s ears twitching.

 ‘Maybe she’s itchy?’ Adora wondered to herself.

 Without really thinking, she reached out and began to gently scratch the young cat-girl’s ears. At first, Catra stiffened a little at the touch, but it didn’t take long until she wasn’t only accepting the scratches, but actually tilting her head so she could almost lean into Adora’s touch. She even began to make a funny noise, like something between a rattle and a buzz; and it didn’t take long before Adora started giggling, which seemed to be infectious, because Catra also began to laugh a little between the noises she was making.

 Soon enough, both girls were laughing, and they only managed to stop when they heard steps outside the barracks (neither wanted to get in trouble for making noise while the cadets and all the older soldiers were training) by clapping a hand over each other’s mouth.

 They waited until they could no longer hear the sounds of footsteps outside the door before finally putting down their hands. Adora had to keep herself from giggling again; Catra’s hand was fuzzy, and it tickled a little as she moved.

 “Thanks,” Catra said, actually speaking in more than just a mumble for the first time since…

 Actually, now that she thought about it, Adora realized that this was the first time she’d really heard Catra speak since Shadow Weaver had taken her in as well. It was a little strange, since she’d talked a lot when she and Adora had played hide and seek and tag with the other kids at the orphanage, but it seemed like once they left, Catra just stopped talking unless one of the adults spoke directly to her.

 “Thanks?” Adora asked, tilting her head to the side in confusion. “For what?”

 “The scratches,” Catra explained, her ear twitching slightly when she spoke, as though trying to serve as a reminder. She looked away from Adora’s face, instead focusing on her blanket, which she briefly clutched in her hand before deciding to just throw it over her head.

 For some reason, she held the cloth up to her face and gave it a little sniff. Even more confusing to Adora was the fact that she could have sworn the other girl looked…sad afterwards, like she was disappointed by the scent.

 “I kinda miss them,” Catra said, but she seemed to be thinking out loud, rather than saying it directly to Adora.

 Adora made a confused sound and narrowed her eyes.

 “You miss the scratches? Do you want some more?”

 “No!”

 Adora paused, blinking in surprise with her hand hovering in the air mere inches away from the blanket that now covered Catra’s ears. She was going to give her more scratches so she’d be happy, but apparently that wasn’t a good idea, if the cat-girl’s outcry was anything to go by.

 “I…I mean, yeah, I do miss the scratches, too, kinda,” Catra quickly said, eyes darting about nervously while her cheeks flamed with color; apparently she’d even surprised herself with the earlier outburst. “I meant…I miss all the other kids, back at the orphanage. It feels weird sleeping by myself – I always used to share my bed with someone.”

 As she spoke, she grabbed the blanket and pulled it even more tightly around herself, her tail flicking out from behind her to wrap around her legs.

 Adora thought it was a little weird that Catra was apparently so upset that she didn’t have to share a bed anymore. Then again, Adora never had to share a bed – she’d always shared a room with lots of people, ever since she could remember, but she’d always had her own bed – so maybe it wasn’t really that weird. And even if it was, that didn’t change the fact that it obviously made Catra sad, and Adora wanted her new friend to be happy.

 “Maybe you can sleep in my bed sometimes,” she offered, crawling over so she was practically pressed up against the other girl’s side. Now it was Catra’s turn to look surprised, her eyes going wide as she turned to look at Adora with a curious expression.

 “Really?” she asked, her the corners of her mouth turning up in small, but hopeful, smile. Adora smiled back and nodded enthusiastically.

 “Yeah, there’s tons of room.” she said, crawling back over to the edge of the bunk. “C’mon – let’s try it out.”

 She looked down at the ground and frowned; she’d never realized just how high up these top bunks were. As Adora began to carefully lower herself down to the bed beneath her, Catra simply hopped off the bed, landing on her hands and feet with an almost inaudible thump.

 “Wow…” Adora gasped, unable to keep herself from marveling at what her new friend had just done. She was so focused on Catra that she allowed her grip to loosen, and found her fingers slipping from the metal before she had the time to remember to grab on tight.

 Closing her eyes, she braced herself to fall on the hard ground below…only to find herself landing on a cushion instead. The impact still hurt, but definitely not as much as she was expecting it to.

 “You okay?” She heard Catra’s voice coming from beside her, and she turned to face her with a smile as she nodded.

 “Yeah,” she said, pushing herself off the pillow in order to stand. “Thanks for saving my butt.”

 Catra just made a noncommittal noise and shrugged as she said, “No big deal”, before leaping onto Adora’s bunk. She turned around in place for a second, before looking at the other girl with an expectant expression; as though asking what she was waiting for.

 Adora didn’t say anything in return; just grabbed the pillow and hopped in beside her friend. They started off trying to just snuggle up next to each other…but that didn’t work out as well as they’d hoped.

 “Your hair keeps tickling me,” Adora said – or, more accurately, tried to say – through her giggles.

 Despite her laughter, she wasn’t lying; no matter how Catra tried to lie down (and she kept flopping around from her stomach to either side to her back and right onto her stomach again), Adora found her face being brushed by the thick mane of hair on the cat-girl’s head…and the sensation made it hard for her to keep from laughing. Which wasn’t a good thing, if they were supposed to try and sleep like this – she couldn’t sleep if she kept getting tickled and laughing!

 “I think we gotta try something else,” Adora said, mostly to herself, though she was going to ask Catra if she had any ideas…when the other girl suddenly sat up and scooted down slightly, stopping when she was right next to Adora’s stomach.

 Adora was about to ask her what she was doing, but before she could even open her mouth, Catra turned around in a circle before curling up against Adora’s side, and laying her head down on her stomach, using it like a pillow.

 “…That feels really nice.” And it really did – maybe it was because of how fuzzy she was, but Catra felt really soft and warm as she snuggled up against Adora. Catra apparently felt the same way, as Adora realized that the sounds she was making weren’t her snoring, but the same noises she’d made back on her bunk, when Adora had given her the scratches.

 Before, Adora had laughed at the sound; now, she just smiled as she reached down as far as she could while still lying on her back, trying to grab one of Catra’s hands. She couldn’t quite reach, until Catra took Adora’s hand in hers.

 “Do you…do you think we could do this again?” Catra questioned, lifting her head up to look at her friend with eyes that showed both apprehension and hope, her ears pressed against her head as she waited for an answer.

 “Uh-huh,” Adora confirmed, giving Catra’s hand a gentle squeeze. “We can do it every night, if you want.”

 Catra didn’t say anything, but Adora was pretty sure she liked the idea, if the smile on her face as she closed her eyes again was any indication.

 Adora smiled as well as she closed her eyes, her hand still holding onto Catra’s as she fell asleep with her friend snuggled up against her.

#She Ra #Adora #Catra #Catradora #She Ra Fanfic #SPOP Pride Exchange #Gift Fic #Boredom Leads to Scratches and Snuggles

[a-forgotten-spirit]

Home is where the heart is.

This story was requested by @hippie-witch87. It is a Catradora fic about a secret relationship and meeting in the woods. This poor spirit has been waiting like three months as I started TAFE and was sick beyond belief I am so sorry, I think I wrote this about nine times and this is the one I least hated so thank you for being patient.

This is not apart of the show and it was just a random part.

Catra P.O.V

My feet hit the cold ground along with the horde training building, it was time to sneak out and being a Force Captain it wouldn’t be hard. No one questioned me. My eyes were forward, my head held high as I walked down the hallway. I had just finished my training and watching the others, they were weaker without Adora but then again so was I. I missed her. Once outside the building I climbed along the falling apart material that they built the building with, my nails scratching with a light screeching sound as I did. Crawling up onto the roof I saw my vehicle and smiled lightly walking over to it.

Within seconds I had started the engine and begun my journey to the forest, the wind sent my mane I call hair back as though it became the wind itself, my ears twitched in the cold but I let them be concentrating as I steered. Once I was decently into the forest I landed, leaves, dirt and other debris clouded around. I remember the first time I was here, with Adora. We crashed. An almost silent chuckle left my lips as I remembered the day. The day we flew together and left and the day she left more than the Horde, she left me.

I had memorized this route, I knew it more then I knew myself. I could feel the dirt clinging to my exposed feet as I walked along the forest floor. An exhale of a sigh left my lips then I brought in all the oxygen I could, holding it then letting it go once more. I was trying to be calm, I had only now noticed my fastly beating heart. Looking down I swore I could see my shirt moving with each drum of the beat. I breathed again and saw the tree that stayed in my mind no matter how many times I left and came to this area.

This tree was the last thing before an open field in the forest, walking past my nails scraped along the bark as I always did. I was carried into the open field and felt now only soft ground on the bottom of my feet but it was slight, from years of not wearing anything I had lost a lot of feeling. I breathed again and flicked my hair back behind my shoulder and wait.

I saw her walking in and smiled then with a seductive voice I called “Hey Adora” her head turned, blonde crossing over her face for a split second then falling back behind her shoulder. A smile stretched it’s the way to her face and I couldn’t help but do the same.

“Hey Catra” she responded and walked over, again I couldn’t help but bring her into my arms quickly. I held her body to mine, she was warm and my claws gripped her back harshly but not enough to tear her clothing. I could feel her heartbeat against my own as her arms moved around my waist. “I missed you too” she whispered and held me tighter. I had her again, she was mine once more.

I lean back but my hands stay on her hips and I took her up and down not seeing anything new or any injuries which I was thankful for so with a smile I nodded. I did this each time we came to our little area. Nodding my head I whispered “I have missed you” was my simple reply, I had missed her more then the flowers missed the rain in a drought. I stepped back and asked “How have you been” my voice was quiet as I looked to her my eyes switching from one to the other I always did love the colour of a sunny midday sky.

“I’ve been well training to be She-ra and use the sword, it’s not as well as I thought but slowly” she nodded, as she spoke her hands moved as though she was holding the sword that ruined my life. I hated that pile of shaped pointed metal. “How about you” she smiled, she was always so happy.

“I’ve just been busy with being Force Captain, training recruits and other things” she was so intent on listening as her eyes scanned my mouth as I spoke and then her head began to nod. “It’s good your training” I lied, I loathed her training and not being in the Horde.

“Yeah it’s been fun,” she said swaying her arms around than standing still once more as she began to speak again “It’s good you became a Force Captain. I’m sure you are doing amazing” she kicked her foot as her hands moved behind her back and a blush adored her pale cheeks.

“Thank you” I pause and smile to her as I gesture to the ground “Wanna sit down,” I ask tilting my head in the direction of the ground. Nodding her answer she sat down legs crossed in front of her as I laid on the ground smiling up to the sky.

We continued to talk for hours anything and everything. I loved things moments the ones in which the Horde or her little Princess friendship bull didn’t exist. I loved the idea of it just being us and no one else. Nothing existed but us, there was no war, no evil or princesses just us. If only I could be so lucky.

“I have to go soon Catra” her voice was quiet and saddened, her eyes down to the ground and her shoulder slumped. I noticed how her how demeanour changed she looked like someone had broken her damned sword.

Once her words registered through my ears to my brain my own feelings then dropped as well as my heart. “Oh” was all I managed to get out, sitting up I face her and sigh out my feelings in an almost silent exhale. My legs folded knees to my chest as I hugged my legs to me, laying my chin on my knees.

“Sorry I want to stay, trust me I do” her voice was quiet her hands slowly moved towards me as her fingers grasped around my own hands. My arms were removed from my legs as she held my hands in hers. “You could back with me” she smiled tightening her grip on my hands.

She was always so loving but I wouldn’t make it where her home was now, I wished she called my heart her home. Shaking my head I reply “I wouldn’t make it but it’s ok, I’ll come back here just as I always do” she had no idea the only reason I stayed was to make sure I knew where we were attacking so I could protect her.

Moving forward her gentle hands cupped my face “You look out for me and I look out for you” she whispered, just like when we were young. How often those words would walk through my mind a picture of us together following after. “Nothing really bad can happen as long as we have each other” she was so close and her voice nothing above a whisper.

“You promise” I whispered back switching from eye to eye, god how I loved the sky. Her hands were soft against my face and warm. Skin clear and hair perfect, just like always. My eyes shook with emotions as I waited to hear those two words.

“I promise” then her lips were on mine, a passion of love and affection crossed between us, how I longed for this, longer for her. Her lips warm and soft, I wrapped my arms around her waist and opened my legs to bring her into my lap, my ears folded down to my head as a quiet pur left my throat. The kiss lasted lifetimes and she made sure I got the message her heart desired to tell me.

And with a few final kisses and a prolonged hug we turned and left, I longed to have her in my arms once more, I felt empty and cold. I wanted to run to her and never let her leave my side. I continued to walk and then made my way to the place I lived as my home would always be in her heart.

#catradora #catdora #adora x catra #catra x adora #catradora fluff #she-ra #she-ra princess of power #SPOP #SPOP FLUFF #catra #adora #fanfic #fan fic #fanfiction #april 26 #you promise #home is where the heart is #writing #short story #love #romance #write

[jinxedcatra]

You know how fic writers have specific scenes that they write the fic around? Which ones are the ones for your fics? Mainly Love,Adora

whew damn okay big question i'll just do the recent ones of like more than 10k words (so my catradora and bubbline) under the cut

love adora: there were actually two

basically the entirely of chapter 9 from the 'adora is she-ra' realisation but mostly the part where mara and razz are the biggest catradora shippers in that whole fic meanwhile catra's having an internal crisis because the girl she likes is also the other girl she likes and she doesn't think she'll have a chance

and also one in chapter 12 so you haven't read it yet but i'll come back to this ask with it after that chapter is posted to specify if my no thoughts head empty brain remembers

home is wherever i'm with you: it's the scene in chapter 6 where adora and catra build a blanket fort and catra opens up to adora and then adora imagines what it'd be like to kiss her

detective glimmer: it's the scene on halloween when glimmer and bow go to adora's to check up on her and she digs herself into a big hole of unbelievable lies like 'pffffft i don't have a girlfriend i'm not even gay lol' and 'razz totes got laser eye surgery'

all these years: it's the scene post-save the cat but pre finale where catra is like 'yeah i want to try and be a good person' and adora is all <3 about it

you'd be paranoid too (if everyone was out to get you): it also hasn't been posted yet because i've literally only posted chapter 1 but it's in chapter 6 and i'll also maybe come back to this post if i remember

anonymous (my long bubbline fic): i do not remember specifically because i started that motherfucker when i was 16 and i am now 23 but when i started writing it again after leaving it unfinished at 24ish chapters the Scene i wanted to write in the most was in i believe chapter 32 (the prom chapter where bonnie goes with marshall and she's finally like yup i'm gay) and marceline sings slow dance with you to her

#ask #anonymous #that went on a bit #but i love questions like this so damn thank u