#she ra failsafe

[agalaxycloserthanyouthink]

You Are Worth More Than What You Can Give to Other People: a She-Ra Analysis - Part 3/3

What comes next doesn’t matter to Adora. She has never imagined a future beyond her purpose, has never allowed herself to want one. Because she believes she is expendable. Valuable only because she is useful. Like Mara before her, she is willing to die for Etheria.

This is what makes the holographic visions as she approaches the Heart of Etheria so heartbreaking. Adora has never allowed herself to want anything, which is why she only realises in what she believes are her last moments that she loves Catra. Because to love Catra means to want a future with her, and Adora does not believe she deserves a future. Beyond this moment, this sacrifice she is prepared to make, she will no longer be useful.

This is also why Mara’s words are so important. She-Ra’s purpose is not to die for Etheria again and again. Adora sacrificing herself is not inevitable, nor even necessary. “You are worth more than what you can give to other people,” Mara tells her. “You deserve love too.” Mara is the only person who can say what Adora needs to hear in this moment. She knows exactly what it is like to carry the mantle of She-Ra, and she made the choice to sacrifice herself only because it truly was the sole solution. But Mara was a whole person, and she believes that Adora is too.

Adora then sees a vision of her future, what she has never dared to want. And Catra is there, loving her. Glimmer and Bow are there, loving her. It is a future full of joy. The Catra of the vision holds out her hand to Adora, an invitation to seize this joyous future for herself. Adora hesitates to take it, still wrestling with her destiny, with her expendability.

Then present-day Catra is there, begging Adora to live, reaching out to pull her back into herself, back into She-Ra, back into surviving this moment. Catra utters words Adora has longed to hear for years but never let herself want. Adora has never believed that she is deserving of love, and it has blinded her to the love that Catra has wanted to give her for so long. Catra says, “I love you,” and Adora can no longer deny that Mara is right. She is loved. She deserves that love, deserves a future. She is worth more than what she can give to other people; she does not need to give her life.

The kiss is the moment she returns to her She-Ra form. Not because She-Ra is useful, but because to be She-Ra is to live. To become She-Ra in this moment is to accept that she loves Catra and that Catra loves her. To grasp her future with both hands. Adora saves Etheria and, in that same moment, knows that she has always been valuable, whether or not she could fulfil this purpose.

Read Part 1 here

#she ra #she ra and the princesses of power #she ra analysis #catradora #catra x adora #she ra mara #she ra season 5 #she ra failsafe #self sacrifice #you are worth more than what you can give to other people #you deserve love too #she ra meta #galaxy she-ra

[novelist-becca]

Just realized what the symbol on Titan Luz’s chest reminds me of

#the only difference is that Luz’s new form was beneficial to her in the end #Adora getting the failsafe nearly killed her #the owl house #toh #toh spoilers #owl house #the owl house spoilers #luz noceda #she ra and the princesses of power #she ra #Adora #Titan Luz

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

catra: why do you have to sacrifice yourself? it doesn't have to be you!

also catra, like 5 minutes earlier:

(don't forget who fostered this hero complex)

#like what does she want lmao #it's crazy you would think if she loved adora so much she would be willing to take adora's place #and carry the failsafe #but nah #she just wants adora to die with her lol #spop critical #spop salt #spop #spop criticism #spop discourse #she ra #anti catradora #anti catra #anti spop #anti c//a #antic//a #anticatra #anticatradora

[apollo-cackling]

Catra + a passage from The Electric Heir:

[ID 1-4: four screenshots from She-Ra overlaid with text from The Electric Heir by Victoria Lee.

1st: a screenshot from near the end of Failsafe (s5ep11), of Catra crouching on a high ledge looking down. The overlaid text reads,

Early this morning, before Noam was awake, Dara had sat at the corner of the sofa downstairs with his brow tipped against the cold windowpane and stared at the ice as it cracked and melted off the tree outside. He’d tried to imagine death: a quiet dark embrace welcoming him home.

2nd: a screenshot from near the end of Remember (s3e5), of Catra being pulled into a void of light, barely holding onto a rock with an apathetic, expression on her face. The text reads,

Such dreams had come easily, once. When Dara was sixteen, he’d chased after death with both arms outstretched—and death had felt like warm bathwater and drugs in his veins, had smelled like spilled blood.

3rd: a screenshot from Shot in the Dark (s5ep8), from when Catra fighting off her helmet made Adora laugh, and Catra is staring at Adora lovingly. The text reads,

He couldn’t reclaim that feeling now. He couldn’t imagine stepping out of this life and leaving Noam behind—or Ames, or Leo, or even Priya. That story Noam wove last night about their future had sunk deep into his bones, and he couldn’t excise it. Dara wanted that.

4th: a screenshot from Failsafe (s5ep11), where Catra looks at Adora with tears in her eyes. The text reads, simply,

For the first time in years, Dara wanted to live.

/end ID]

#quickly remade that post because the the #'in retrospect I should've used a screenshot of catra leaving at the end of Failsafe for "For the first time in years dara wanted to live'' #was bothering me lol #never have I been more thankful for past!me sorting all my she-ra screenshots chronologically holy sh #my rambles #like thanks it's useful #but also mate we need to get you diagnosed for adhd right this moment #spop #catradora #spop.txt #feverwake #10n #she ra

[tippenfunkaport]

Bow: Whoa. Glimmer: That is the Failsafe? Bow: It's bigger than I thought it'd be. How are we gonna get that to the Heart?

Bow 🤝 Glimmer under the impression this entire huge structure is the failsafe

#tbf no one explained it to them #but this was just very funny to me #tho probably everyone else was thinking the same thing #AU where they just try to take that whole thing with them #huge 'the files are in the computer' energy #spop #glimmer #bow #shera #she ra #the failsafe

[rainbowangel110]

Surface pressure is an adora song. You're welcome.

I- I guess

#I heard little bits of Surface Pressure before and oh okay so we're just gonna have some psychic damage this fine morning #thanks Candy /lh #she ra and the princesses of power #ask #It does fit her really well with everything about how she sets herself aside just to help others #a sacrificial lamb (taking the Failsafe) when everyone else (Catra) is trying their best to yank her away from the alter (the tech for it)

[im-totally-not-an-alien-2]

Ras creates an evil clone of Tim Drake for whatever reason and after he trains it it runs off and none of his assasins can find him.

Ras isn't too concerned because he specifically made this clone in a way that it would start to fall apart after three years and he fully expected the clone to come crawling back when that happened.

Except, the clone never came back. If fact no one heard anything from or about him since he ran into this forest three years ago and never left. His men searched that forest countless times and deployed his greatest trackers. They all said the same thing, his trail stops dead in a small grotto. There was no where he could have gone.

Its like he just vanished.

The evil clone turned out to have stumbled apon a natural portal and decided he was screwed if he stayed so why not take a chance. He could probably fight his way out of hell. Probably. The angry swarm of Assasins after him was probably going to be its own form of hell anyway, so why not. He jumped through.

The other side of the portal was not hell, thankfully. It was a small city in Illinois...for some reason. He began to patrol the city in his altered Red Robin Costume, looking for the basic necessities when he stumbles across Phantom who was in the middle of finally being captured by the Fenton parents.

Danny could do nothing as his parents were quickly killed in front of him. When he was freed from his restraints he didn't attack the other teen, he didn't get angry or yell. He cried and thanked him then cried harder.

The clone really didn't know what to do in this situation and just awkwardly comforted the ghost. Danny dragged this guy home when he found out he didn't have a place to stay. Clone Tim was planning on using the hero for a while before bouncing but all this plans changed when he saw what Phantom could do. That kind of power would be owned and controlled by someone eventually, whether it be the League of Assasins or the Justice League it was all the same. So why not him?

Danny was easy to manipulate, his sister not so much. Once he started pointing out that he was protecting Danny from people who would hurt him she became swayed.

He disliked Sam. She reminded him too much of Jason and Damian, or more accurately, a fusion of the two. The horror.

He genuinely liked Tucker, he was carefree and true to himself. Plus who was he to turn down an assistant for creating tech. He had discovered he was no longer in his own universe and the JL and LOA didn't exist here.

Tim Drake didn't exist here.

He was free.

The clone almost cried. He was Tim here. The real Tim. The only Tim. No one to prove he's better than. No one to the "the evil clone" of. Just Tim.

He was going to make the universe regret that. Starting by dating the ridiculously cute and over-powered boy that he most definitely is not in love with. No siree its just him using someone. His heart definitely isn't pounding in his chest right now as he asks him out. Nope. He definitely isn't super giddy when he says yes and kisses him. Haha that only something someone in love would do.

.

.

.

Crap.

-meanwhile in Batmans universe-

Ras casually explains he created an evil clone of Tim and its out there somewhere and its failsafe has somehow been destroyed. (Thank you Danny)

Tim freaks out and the batfam investigate. They do eventually open a portal into Amity Park where Evil Tim immediately tells them to frick off. So much chaos ensues

#fanfiction prompts #prompts #braindead #deadtired #on a side note vlad gets murdered the first time he interrupts one of thier dates #his body is never found #danny phantom #danny fenton #dp x dc #tim drake #evil clone tim drake #lol imagine if tim finds out about his evil clone dating a teenager whos a justice leage level threat #yall im sleepy #yall can tell where i ran out of energy cant you #ugghhh #batman

[mara-defense-squad]

I think the thing that really appeals me to catradora is the fact that they weren't supposed to make it.

Think about it for a second. Their whole lives they were pitted against each other, because Shadow Weaver wanted Adora and Catra only ever interfered with that. But they still built up their friendship. They made The Promise. They had each other, throughout their time in the Horde, despite Shadow Weaver desperately trying to drive a wedge in between them. They were never supposed to last, but they did.

And then when Adora finds the sword, becomes She-Ra and joins the rebellion - well they definitely weren't supposed to make it then. They were enemies, on opposite sides of the war. Yet, in early season 1 (pre-Promise) Catra still defends Adora in her absence. She lies to Shadow Weaver, lies to everyone about Adora being She-Ra and when SW finds out, she says "She's just confused". Still protecting Adora, despite her leaving. And Adora doesn't stop trying to convince Catra to join the rebellion, even though the rebellion would likely prefer it if she did. They weren't supposed to be fighting for each other - but they did.

And then Promise happens. Like Shadow Weaver, Light Hope sees Adora's friendship to Catra as a threat. So, she takes that wedge SW jammed inbetween them and drives it all the way home. She convinces Catra to cut Adora off, and convinces Adora to let go of her. And Light Hope succeeds where Shadow Weaver failed - they are now enemies. And they stay that way. This is how it was always supposed to be.

Then Catra opens the Portal. They get each other back for a second, but it only serves to prove they were never meant to last. Catra completely turns on Adora, and when it's over, Adora completely gives up on Catra. Any hope of reconciliation is shredded.

Catra continues on her downward spiral. Adora moves on. The war rages on, and they keep walking their separate paths. This was how it was supposed to end.

But then - then, in the rubble after the Heart of Etheria, at the moment Adora expects it the least, Catra saves Glimmer, and she apologises. She does this with no hope of seeing Adora again, and Adora doesn't know how to deal with it at first. If she was following the path laid out for her her entire life, she would have left Catra to die on Horde Prime's ship, grateful for her sacrifice, and grieving what could have been. That was how it was supposed to go, and it was exactly what Catra expected from her. But she defies it. She puts aside the greater good, and she storms Horde Prime's ship, for no other reason than that she wanted to. This is not what's supposed to happen.

In Save the Cat, Catra was supposed to serve Horde Prime. She's completely stripped of her autonomy, forced to fight Adora. She's supposed to break her. When she manages to break through - just a little bit - she is supposed to die. She falls off that platform, into the abyss, no hope left for her. Adora is supposed to let her. Instead, she summons She-Ra, and brings Catra back to life. They were never supposed to make it this far.

And it doesn't get easier. For a while, in Taking Control, they still don't really know how to act around each other. They have to learn it again. But they keep trying, against all odds. Catra starts to heal. Adora watches. They get to rekindle what they lost.

But then Shadow Weaver comes back, and the Failsafe happens. All their old wounds are raw again. SW is pressing all of Adora's old buttons, desperately reinforcing that wedge between them, so that Adora will take the Failsafe. At first, Catra resists this - she eavesdrops on Adora and SW conversation, and she seas her manipulation for what it is - and she tries to convince Adora to do the same. Ultimately she fails when Adora accepts the Failsafe. Catra knows that Adora is going to die being the hero, and she can't face that so she leaves. They are separated once again, and it doesn't look like there's any way back. It could have ended here too.

But in Heart, Catra sets down her hurt and her fear and she goes back to warn Adora of the new danger as Horde Prime hacks the planet. She finds Adora fighting for her life, and losing. Catra saves her, and allows SW to take Adora on to the Heart. She tries to sacrifice herself again. They both should have died there.

Only Adora comes back for her, once again. She rejects her destiny to save Catra. SW dies instead.

They've reached the final hurdle, the Heart itself. Adora can't transform into She-Ra, so she's doomed to die saving the world. Catra is supposed to let her.

But against all odds, they confess their love and it works. They both get to live.

This wasn't how it was supposed to go. At every turn the cards were stacked against them but they still won. They still made it. And I love that for them.

(sidenote but this is also why i love catra as a character and her whole arc. She was supposed to live a miserable life and die a miserable death but she got to live and change and grow as a person. Ugh I love this show)

#long post #catradora #spop #catra #adora #catradora meta #spop meta #spop meta in the year 2023? its more likely than you think

[the-rat-eatery]

Something that I think is so great about She-Ra is that it portrays selfishness as a good thing. So many stories about “chosen ones” and “saving the world” are presented as acts of selflessness; it’s the sacrifices that bring the world to peace. She-Ra isn’t like that. It isn’t without its sacrifices, we think of Angella and Mara and Shadow Weaver- but they aren’t the focus. Catra becomes more selfless over the course of the fifth season, but that’s just character development- not the thing that saves the world. 

Adora is a martyr. Obviously. The classic way for the story to handle this is to have her die in the finale- a death tragic but necessary. If she were to die there would no doubt be statues built in her honor, if she had died in the initial seasons then that death would surely be something that was presented as honorable- something to be avenged and be in awe of. But her inherent heroism, her selflessness, is repeatedly shown to be a bad thing for Adora- the person. Sure, the longevity of Adora’s She-Ra might have been expanded if she had given her life for the cause, the stories told in her wake more grand, a punchier ending to the tale, but Adora herself would have felt no benefit- she would have been a corpse. It is Catra, and Catra’s selfishness, that saves her. 

Catra is interesting in that way. We see her arc climax with an act of selflessness- her saving Glimmer in exchange for what she thought would be her life. But it ends with her being selfish, choosing to confess to Adora in the end, desperately asking her to stay- the only thing she ever wanted from her. It is want that saves them both in the end, want is an entirely selfish act. 

Adora’s selflessness is questioned throughout the fifth season by Catra, something that is taken as a given by everyone else in the rebellion. They were all expected to lay down their lives for the rebellion, but Adora was on the front lines. This isn’t even questioned by Bow and Glimmer, who stood back when Adora (without any discussion) was unanimously decided to be the one to take the failsafe. Yes, they didn’t know the repercussions then, but Adora was still the leader, and she was the one expected to take the responsibility. Catra’s selfishness, her not wanting to let Adora go is what brought Shadow Weaver’s deception to light. She wants, and that saves the person she is wanting. Want is lifesaving, want is a good thing. 

I like this because selfishness is good, actually. Selfishness is the thing love thrives on, it’s why living isn’t surviving. 

Selflessness is giving up what we want for someone else’s good. This is good in measure, I’m not saying that everyone should take everything that they want all the time- the world would be chaos. But selflessness can go too far, and we see this in She-Ra. Selflessness can wrap back over into selfishness when you’ve got too much of it- barreling over with giving and giving yourself to other people in a feeble attempt to avoid dealing with your own problems. But the selfishness of She-Ra is the selfishness that is required of love. It is confession. It is, instead of accepting death for the sake of all, fighting for the life you want. Wanting is such a human thing. Not even a human thing, it’s just a life thing. And that same wanting is chastised by the media. We aren’t supposed to want, especially if we’re gay; and if we do then the honorable, right thing to do is to give it up for the good of other people. She-Ra shows us the opposite. Selfishness saves the world and wanting is good. 

#she ra 2018 #she ra and the princesses of power #she ra #she ra adora #catra #catradora

[agalaxycloserthanyouthink]

You Are Worth More Than What You Can Give to Other People: a She-Ra Analysis - Part 2/3

The first time Adora is faced with a seemingly impossible choice and is prepared to sacrifice herself is after Catra opens the Portal at the end of Season 3. The Portal can be closed if She-Ra’s sword, its key, is removed, though the person who removes it will be trapped in another dimension. Adora decides that because She-Ra’s sword is wrapped up in it, this sacrifice is her destiny. To fulfil her chosen purpose, she would surrender to the inevitability of self-sacrifice so that her world and her friends will survive.

Instead, it is Queen Angella who sacrifices herself. A mother gives her life for her daughter and a Queen gives her life for her world – an immortal woman whose destiny is to reign over Bright Moon for eternity, safe in her castle. Angella chooses to rewrite the script of her privileged, grief-ridden, fear-driven life by dying for others.

Adora lives, but she adds now to her purpose Angella’s last words: to take care of Glimmer and Bow. To Adora’s mind, Angella has sacrificed herself in Adora’s place, an exception to the rules that govern Adora’s destiny, a debt she must carry. Her continued life is conditional, tied to serving her friends in Angella’s absence. The inevitability of a future sacrifice still lingers at the back of her mind, averted only for now.

So when, in Season 5, Shadow Weaver orchestrates the quest for the Fail Safe, Adora is ready and willing to take the risk upon herself. Shadow Weaver has been preparing her for this her whole life. Adora does not consider any other options, does not challenge Shadow Weaver’s belief that this is the only solution. Because deep down she feels that this, this is her destiny, and her destiny alone. Whether she lives or dies, she will have achieved her purpose and saved Etheria.

Read Part 3 here

#she ra #she ra and the princesses of power #she ra analysis #self sacrifice #queen angella #adora #etheria #she ra portal #she ra failsafe #you are worth more than what you can give to other people #galaxy she-ra

[sealnoodlesoup]

My stupid opinion that will get me killed by the entire She-Ra fandom

Shadow Weaver had a better redemption arc than C4tra

Yes, I know that Shadow wasn't fully redeemed, was terrible, and never apologized for her actions. But at least she was useful and helped the rebellion, unlike C4tra who was just getting in everyone's way. Shadow had many chances to betray the rebellion but she didn't meanwhile C4tra (who committed more and worse crimes than Shadow) would probably betray them all if someone offered her greater power because she only joined the rebellion when it was her only chance of survival despite being offered to join them many times before. And while C4tra did say she was sorry she never properly apologized for everything she did (like killing Angela and almost destroying the universe) and her apology always felt like she was just trying to earn sympathy from others. And she continued treating everyone horribly even after that. Shadow Weaver stayed loyal to the rebellion until the very end and even died for them, I know many people say that she only killed herself to traumatize C4tra, but the only proof of that they have is the "You're welcome" and it still can be argued what she meant by that (In my opinion it was "You're Welcome, now that I'm dead I won't bother you anymore" I'm not gonna explain why I think that here because this post is not about that). Shadow was the one who found a way to stop Horde Prime and did everything to make sure it worked, meanwhile, C4tra was being a nuisance and a distraction just so she could be with Adora and didn't care that the world might get destroyed because of it. She tried to stop Adora from taking the failsafe even though Adora was the only person who could survive it and got angry when Adora chose to save the world first instead of making out with her. Just to be clear I'm not talking about who was a morally better person, but who made up for their actions more.

In conclusion: Actions speak louder than words, Shadow Weaver was useful to the rebellion while C4tra was not.

#anti spop #anti catradora #anti catra #anti catra stans #spop discourse #spop critical #spop criticism #spop salt #my opinion #anti c//a #ftlosw

[theonlypterydactyl]

Catra, the realistic abused child

Shadow Weaver gives Catra her view of the world and Catra becomes an outlet for her shame and self-hate. Love is weakness and weakness isn't allowed. Love is finite.

When Adora leaves Catra's sense of safety is shattered. Adora was the person who protected her and gave her value. If Adora is gone what value does Catra have? So, Catra has to prove herself. If she never needed Adora her betrayal can't hurt.

Catra's story is about protecting the little girl who didn't know the cruelness of the world, who was innocent. She does everything to protect her, even if that means pushing everyone away. So, she's cold and cruel to Scorpio who wants to give her the closeness she needs. But, Catra is a walking paradox, she craves connection, but closeness is a precursor to pain.

Adora is begging her to come with her, and Catra doesn't. It would've saved a lot of time and pain, but going with Adora means that she would have to accept the word of two complete strangers. Adora chose the two strangers over her. When Catra sees that She-Ra is Adora this proves to her how meaningless Catra is and how great Adora is.

To Catra familiarity and power mean safety. If she's at the top no one can hurt her. So, she takes on Shadow Weaver's role to feel safe. But, it stops working. She is tortured by Horak and sent to the Crimson Waste to die.

In the Crimson Waste Catra changes. Just a short amount of time away from the place where she's been abused and traumatized she's nicer towards Scorpia and more playful. When she captures Adora and finds out that Shadow Weaver went to Brightmoon, to Adora. Adora is greater than Catra even if she defected. She's still the golden child.

She has tunnel vision. There is only one thing that will match the amount of pain that she is feeling. She pulls the lever, knowing full well that everything will change.

Everything is how is should be. Adora is Force Captain and Catra isn't in charge. Shadow Weaver is kind. But, no matter how much Catra tried to make her stay, Adora was bound to leave anyway. With nothing left to lose she lets herself and the world burn.

Catra comes back to her addictive patterns full force. It's easier to hide from the pain that to confront it. Her treatment of Scorpia is reflected in if love comes to easily it isn't worth something.

In Corridors we see Catra and Adora as children. Adora is friends with Lonnie. Catra thinks that Adora is going to leave her and be with Lonnie all the time, because to her love is finite. Catra loses value to Adora because there is this other person she has to compete with and Catra isn’t deserving of love. She goes and talks with Glimmer and they start talking about Adora. Catra realizes that maybe Adora didn’t leave for power and glory, maybe she loves Glimmer, and maybe, just maybe, she loved Catra as well. Maybe it’s too late, but Catra gains this new clarity and wants to do one good thing in her life. She saves Glimmer and expects to die at the hands of Horde Prime and she’s okay with it. There is nothing left for her. The only person who cared about her was Adora and she left for bigger and better things and better connections.

Adora comes back for her. Catra has two options, accept Adora’s forgiveness or be dumped on a planet and die. But, her forgiveness is what cuts through. Adora is the only person who has seen both her pain and the person beneath it, so if Adora can forgive her maybe Catra is forgivable?

The addictive cycles are far from broken. She’s actively trying to be a better person. But, she falls back on old patterns when she is scared. It is easier to accept hate than it is to accept love that can be taken away. To Catra love is finite.

But, she stands up to Shadow Weaver for her and Adora. But, Adora is manipulated by Shadow Weaver takes the Failsafe and sacrifices herself. Catra is trying to protect Adora from her own self destructive behaviors, but it doesn’t work. Adora still is determined to sacrifice herself for the sake of Etheria.

She's scared and and runs away. She can't watch Adora sacrifice herself. Catra asks Adora what she wants, maybe just maybe she wants her, but that would be too far fetched, right?

At the Heart of Etheria, Catra goes back for Adora. She stays by her side as she is willing to give up her life for everyone on Etheria. Without expecting any reciprocation, Catra tells Adora that she is loved.

Catra’s story is realistic childhood abuse and trauma. It isn’t romanticized with these vulnerable, meek victims. Her story is messy and violent and ugly, as it should be. But, the solution is just as simple as it sounds. Change. Trauma brain relies on patterns and predictability. In Corridors, Catra is looking down two hallways. A light one and a dark one. The light could be symbolized by Horde Prime’s “light”. He enlightens these worlds and makes them better. This “light” is what strips them of their identity. The light is what strips Catra of her identity. The dark corridor could represent the choice of the unknown, the change that the unknown will bring, or the dark where Catra would hide in order to get away from everything, the dark where Adora willingly sat with her. This change is what led her to breaking the cycle of a trauma mindset and allowed her to accept Adora’s forgiveness. Catra’s character arc isn’t one of linear growth, it rises and it falls because she’s human. Unlearning the familiar cycles is hard and you’re going to fall back on them because familiarity is safety, but acknowledging and pushing past those lows is what leads towards a better tomorrow.

(my own interpretations backed up five by five takes)

#she ra #catradora #gay #lgbtq #trauma #breaking the cycle #betrayal #love #sapphic #catra #forgiveness #change #finite #safety #familiarity

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

Last Night

A Glimmadora Fanfiction

It was midnight. Glimmer was not sure how she knew that it was, considering how most of Etheria's lights had been snuffed out for a while now. But she knew it was midnight. And she couldn't sleep.

From where she lay, Glimmer could see the faint glow of the Failsafe on Adora's chest. A mark of approaching end. Based on how still Adora was, Glimmer reckoned she was probably awake too. She whispered to Adora, careful not to wake the others.

“Adora?”

There was a pause. Then Adora's voice reached her. “Yes?”

In that one syllable, Glimmer could pick apart at least three emotions. Uncertainty, fear, sorrow. Adora was already mourning herself. Her inevitable death.

Glimmer quietly got up from her sleeping bag and walked across to Adora's, sitting next to her.

“Why are you still awake?”

Glimmer could now see Adora's face in the Failsafe's glow. Adora always looked somewhat tired, Glimmer had noticed it a long time ago. She acted peppy and energetic, she always tried to cheer up and inspire her friends. But there was always that look of fatigue and some faraway sorrow that you could catch when she wasn't completely aware of herself.

And now, what with dealing with Catra and the threat of world destruction looming over them, Adora looked more exhausted than ever. She shrugged in reply to Glimmer's question.

“I don't know. I just couldn't sleep.” Adora glanced at Glimmer and sat up quickly. “Are you okay?”

Oh, Adora. Even when it was her life that was on the line, she still always cared so much about everyone else. Too much, maybe.

“I'm fine, don't worry,” Glimmer reassured her quickly. “What about you? How are you feeling?”

Adora sighed. “Does it matter?”

Glimmer took Adora's hand in hers. “It does. It matters to me. And Bow. And everyone out there who loves you and wants you to return safely.”

“I just—” Adora gave a slight ironic chuckle that was somehow even more chilling than her previous depressed tone. “I don't want to get your hopes up. Whatever happens happens for a good reason. Etheria will be safe again.”

Everything was silent for a while, except for the soft chirp of the cicadas. Glimmer tried not to think about the implications of that sentence. She squeezed Adora's hand as she willed herself not to break down into tears.

It took her some restraint and a deep breath to get her next words out, even though her voice was giving up on her.

“Does it always have to be you, Adora?”

She saw a shift in Adora's expression in the Failsafe's glow. “Doesn't it? Isn't that what She-ra is for?”

“Maybe.. but what is Adora for?” Glimmer met Adora's steady gaze. “What do you want, Adora?”

“I—” Adora's voice faltered as she failed to come up with an answer. She looked away. “It doesn't matter. I have to do this.”

A sudden thought struck Glimmer as she grabbed Adora's other hand and looked at the girl earnestly.

“I'm a lot more powerful than I used to be. I- I'm in total control of my powers now. Maybe I can handle the Failsafe, I could take it to the Heart of Etheria instead!”

“No!”

Adora covered her mouth, surprised at her own ferocity. Lowering her voice, she continued. “No. You're not the one who needs to do it. You have a kingdom to rule. You have people who care about you.”

“So do you, Adora,” Glimmer's voice caught in her throat, tears pricking the corners of her eyes.

Adora smiled sadly and touched Glimmer's forehead with her own, tears trickling down her cheeks. “Don't worry about me, okay?”

Glimmer didn't reply. She pulled Adora into a tight embrace instead.

Glimmer doesn't know how long they stayed that way or when they finally dropped off to sleep in each other's arms, comforted by the thought of spending their last few hours together.

#it's been a while since i've written something so i'm a bit rusty forgive me #but this was something i've been meaning to write #spop #she ra #spop fanfic #spop fanfiction #she ra fanfic #she ra fanfiction #glimmer x adora #glimmadora #spop glimmadora #glimmadora fanfic #adora #spop adora #glimmer #spop glimmer #fanfiction

[radsity]

just been thinking a lot about the heart. and especially thinking about a Catra She-Ra that changes into it in her love and grief.

[image description: two black and white sketch style illustrations. The first is of Adora on her back, her arms wrapped around her, and her hair torn loose. She's obviously in pain, looking up at the ceiling with a haunted expression. She has the small Prime corruption scars on her cheek from the final Heart episode, and the Failsafe is on her chest.

The second image is of Catra, as She-Ra, cradling Adora as the failsafe activates. Adora is limp in her arms, her eyes closed. She looks incredibly small and fragile, and Catra is crying while holding her as gently as possible. She's held gently in her lap, with her head cradled in Catra's hand. End ID.]

#catradora #shera #spop #art #fanart

[spopsalt]

Honestly, spop acts like Shadow Weaver is some horrible person for convincing Adora to take the Failsafe but like...I get it? Adora is the only one who had a chance at surviving, anyone else would have died, at least Adora had a chance. And also acts like she's some horrible person for telling Adora that Catra distracts her and confuses her. But again...I get it? Adora needed to be clear-headed to turn into She-ra, Shadow Weaver had everyone else's best interest in mind, and other seasons did a much better job portraying her as evil istg

#anti spop #spop criticism #spop discourse #anti catra #spop salt #spop crit #spop critical

[sometipsygnostalgic]

Reddit post on musical motifs in She-ra

There was a post asking what our favourite songs in the series were. It only listed the actual songs, but people replying talked about their favourite motifs as well. Here is me giving my reply: 

i love the musical motifs in the show

i love the many, many, MANY different variations of Entrapta's theme that crop up, which i've never seen anyone talk about, especially when it plays in hordak scenes, either in contrast to his music, or replacing it.

My favourite uses of Entrapta's theme are the following:

1. At the end of her introduction episode, where it plays rather sinisterly, and then cascades into the full version during the credits (the only time the full version is heard). It's so full of energy. Entrapta's not evil but she's not really good either, she just does what she wants to do and everyone else can only watch.

2. In Signals when her light spacey theme is sort of playing alongside Hordak's dark synth, in duet. They contrast so well.

3. In Failsafe when she reunites with Hordak and it's so light and tender and has a different ending, Hordak's theme by this point is eradicated completely, you just have this somber version of Entrapta's theme instead, because Hordak's effectively a broken, new man and Entrapta is trying to show him a different path.

i love Promise, how broken that theme is, and how in season 5 it plays during such crucial moments, as it goes from catra reflecting on the broken promise, to trying to live up to it and protecting adora

then at the very end Promise reaches an incredible, triumphant conclusion

i like that bow has a theme, it's a very nice theme, but i'll be damned if i can remember any of its uses outside of Reunion and Heart

horde prime's theme is also fan dooby dastic. so sinister, like an evil church.

and then there's she ra's theme

so you have She-ra's theme in multiple forms, there's what I think of as Mara's theme where it's all "ooo OOOO" magic, 

then there's the TRANSFORMATION themes, the original one with the straight up boring heroic guitar, 

then the epic season 5 version with much slower orchestra, fitting with she-ra's new water-like form

then there's CATRA's villain theme, which is the SAME THEME except in a lower key with intense guitar!!!! it's great!!! the main instance of it which I remember is the end of s1 where she’s so happy to have finally had success in the Horde. 

and an honourable mention to the theme that plays at the end of "Promise" (the credits theme not the Promise theme), when I heard that theme for the first time in the Credits Amalgam, I HAD to find out what episode it played for!

#she ra #spop #catra #entrapta #hordak #adora #catradora