If there was a pun to make about this whole thing it would be that, and while she thought it she also kept herself from saying it out loud - Catra had clearly been hanging out with Adam way too much for that to have been conjured up in her brain so easily. But, yeah, there it is. Some glossy pictures of darkness and white-noise and this gummy bear-shaped mass of cells, an image of her literal womb. It was confirmed. After a lengthy appointment of pokes and prodding, bloodwork and peeing in a cup, having someone look at her nether regions and smear a glob of jelly on her abdomen - congrats, you’re knocked up.
Like, she knew that from already using at-home tests but this was concrete, indisputable proof. There was an estimated due date and everything, and it also turns out that Catra was, uh… farther than previously assumed? Already at the end of her first trimester and on the precipice of the second.
Blame the cat genetics. It was instinct for her to hide when she was feeling ill.
“So,” she started, swallowing that sip of smoothie - they were out getting a bite to eat after that long appointment, and Catra’s stomach wasn’t entirely revolting against her but she wanted to play it safe. Smoothie it was. Adora had picked it out for her (something nutrient-packed, she guessed) and it seemed to agree with her. She slid the ultrasound photos across the table to her wife to be gazed upon for the millionth time (they were both doing that). “What do we do now??”
Seriously. What? What was happening??? Catra might still be in slight shock.
“I…don’t know,” Adora admitted. Her eyes were fixed on the ultrasound photos as she spoke. She’d barely been able to take her eyes off them every time Catra passed them back over for her to see since the tech had printed them out. It wasn’t much — just this tiny splotch that couldn’t even be constituted as a real baby yet, but it was a real baby. Their kitten, tiny but there.
It was pretty crazy in the best way she could possibly imagine.
She really didn’t know what to do either. She’d already done lots of shopping for prenatal things — vitamins, stuff to help when Catra felt sick, a selection of teas that were supposed to be helpful in some way that Wanda had recommended (with this knowing look in her eyes, but Adora hadn’t confirmed anything). She’d even made a bunch of doctor’s appointments the day after they found out, the one they’d just been to included.
“What do you think we should do?”
It didn’t feel right to start going out and buying baby things yet. Catra may be further along than they’d guessed, but it was still early on. It may be a silly superstition, but Adora would rather be extra safe than screw something up without even realizing.
“I wouldn’t have asked if I knew,” Catra sat into the back of the booth more, arms crossed and head tipped back. Her wardrobe today was casual - athletic leggings, one of her wife’s t-shirts, an unzipped hoodie over it. It had been a rollercoaster of emotions since her birthday; lots of excitement, lots of anxiety, lots of feeling ick and tired. So, so tired. At least they knew why, and Adora was literally amazing at making sure that she took naps when her body craved them and Adora being so amazing could literally, like, make her cry.
Hormones were dumb.
After a moment, she sucked in a short breath and looked back at Adora. “Welllll…” she winced. “Let’s start with - waiting on telling people? I don’t even know how to tell people. Can’t we tell people after the kid’s born?”
Probably not. Worth a try.
Adora lifted her gaze to watch Catra across the booth, finally tucking the ultrasound photos carefully into her jacket’s inside pocket. She took a sip of her smoothie — the same kind as Cara’s and outrageously healthy because they were in this together (and she liked smoothies, anyway) — and nodded her agreement.
“Yeah, I think waiting’s a good idea. Not so much the after Finn’s born part, but waiting until you’re showing is probably okay.” She knew lots of people did that, and if they waited it out, Catra would probably be less grumpy. She didn’t particularly like being the center of attention, and the baby would make that harder to avoid, at least around their friends.
Right. Showing. Catra would eventually get… round? The realization made her blink, and she dropped her arms to stare down at her stomach. It was flat. Nothing interesting was happening to it but soon, soon. Give it a few weeks and it would begin to swell and stretch out her clothes little by little.
She slid a hand over it, curious and kind of in awe of it all.
“Just tell people I’ve been eating too much sushi,” Catra smirked, the tiniest bit of a top fang coming to view. If they wanted to tell people sooner (hard to keep this from Adam, for example) then they could play it by ear but she was cautious, even kind of paranoid and was satisfied to keep this between them. This was theirs. She didn’t hate keeping it that way for a while longer. “When do you want me off the defense team, though?”
That was the pressing issue. Her job, which had a habit of being unpredictable, dangerous and physically taxing. Catra’s newfound delicate situation wasn’t suited for that and they knew it.
This whole situation was still sort of a trip when Adora thought about it. She’d been wanting this so badly; now that it was here, it was surreal. She’d been convinced they had a few more years to wait, but it seemed like Finn was ready to make their debut sooner rather than later. Realizing that she would be watching Catra’s pregnancy progress — watching her wife grow with their baby — was the best kind of mind-blowing.
She reached across the table to snag Catra’s free hand and squeeze. “I don’t think that sushi excuse is gonna work for very long,” she smirked. She wasn’t even sure you could put on much weight eating sushi, but she couldn’t say that for a fact.
It didn’t matter, anyway. It was Catra’s next question that made her pause, brows furrowing. She had thought about this briefly, but she’d been determined not to dwell on it much. She wanted to do this right, make sure it was a discussion she and Catra had together, not an ultimatum she issued because she was scared.
“I think…it should be when you’re comfortable,” she replied. She met those mismatched eyes and lifted their joined hands to her lips to kiss. “I know you can handle pretty much anything, so I think it should be up to you.”
“Aw, you do have faith in me,” Catra joked lightly, an echo to the times where she claimed Adora didn’t - and back then the response that her wife (then enemy) volleyed back to her was can you blame me. Oh, how they’ve grown.
But as much as she enjoyed the hands, the kiss given to them by her wife - she decided it simply wasn’t enough. She tore hers away. The lack of physical contact lasted barely five seconds anyway; Catra got up to squeeze herself into Adora’s booth, fitting herself under her arm comfortably. This was better. She doubted there would be any protest.
Arms crossed over her midsection, her head nestled into Adora’s shoulder. “I don’t wanna be stupid about this either,” she murmured, letting out a slow and deep sigh. “Let’s face it - on good days my ass distracts you. You’re already hovering. Which is fine, I don’t mind in this case, but I’m not going to be any good out there. Give me two or three more shifts and I’ll step down.”
Adora approved of that move, wrapping her arms around Catra instantly and leaning down to kiss the top of her head instead. She always felt better with her wife in her arms, no matter the circumstances, and this was no different. The hovering claims were true and coupled with a little extra clinginess since they’d gotten the big news. She couldn’t help herself, so she was glad Catra didn’t seem to mind all that much.
“Are you sure?” she asked softly. “That’s…soon.” They would make do if that was what Catra wanted. The boys and Vex and Iris would step up, she was sure of it. She trusted in her team, and they’d been a solid unit for a long while now. And she couldn’t say there wasn’t some relief on her end, too — Catra stepping back would leave her a little less worried and high-strung.
“I am,” Catra answered, shoulders lifting into a light shrug. It was the best choice. The right one. It wasn’t a difficult one to make even if she didn’t particularly like the idea. They knew this would bring change and this was one of them; she didn’t have it in her to dig her heels into the dirt about it. “Don’t get me wrong, like - I hate it. We’ve been a team since we showed up here. It’s our routine, you know?”
Patrols together. Dealing with people doing stupid shit. Fighting monsters. Silly competitions of who could do what faster, who could lift that higher. Sometimes the shifts could be monotonous but - she was really going to miss them?
Adjusting her arms a bit, she motioned a hand towards her belly. “This is more important. I don’t wanna mess it up by being stubborn. It’s just… it’s never going to be worth the risk. Being a distraction to you when things get dicey isn’t worth the risk, either. So, yeah. Stepping down soon-ish, I guess.”
That was the tough part for Adora, too. Even before their relationship had come along, Defense was a big part of how they fit into each other’s lives again. It made them work as a team again, reinforced the old notion that they knew each other, that they could rely on each other. And then it had become their routine, as natural as breathing, and it was fun.
Catra taking a break was necessary right now, though. Adora hated to think it — she knew their teammates would step in, but she’d miss her partner — but she knew it was true. It was better to minimize the risks for her wife’s and their future (very near future) family’s sake.
“Okay,” she agreed, her lips landing on Catra’s temple this time. “Next week? I’ll get the team together after training, send you off with cake or something. We can tell them you’re…‘pursuing other opportunities’? That’s what people say when this stuff happens, right?”
“Ugh, no send off,” Catra protested, waving her hand like she was wafting away a bad odor. “I’m just going to quietly submit a temporary resignation and slink off undetected.”
If anyone asked, she supposed going with ‘pursuing other opportunities’ was a good way to explain it. Better than her knee-jerk reaction of ‘mind ya business’ but she also liked her team members, so a rude retort was a lot less likely. She did have to eventually figure out what else to do in order to glean some income in, though.
Her head tilted up, and this time she made sure that Adora’s lips landed on hers for the next kiss. “I am going to have Melog go with you on shifts. Non-negotiable. They’ll keep you out of trouble and cloak you if you ever need to escape anything, and they’ll be honest with me if I ask them how stupid you were doing something dangerous.”
Catra didn’t want a send-off? That was a real shock. Except not. This was the same woman who adamantly refused birthday parties and had convinced Adora that she wouldn’t be getting one herself either. This was just another symptom of her need not to be the center of attention, but Adora thought it was worth a try. She’d probably grab cake, anyway. Catra deserved cake.
“You’ll have to take that up with Melog,” she chuckled, stealing another kiss. She didn’t mind Melog coming with her, but they were protective of Catra. Even before they’d figured out she was pregnant, they’d been clinging to her and super cuddly. Adora would be fine with Melog coming with her if Catra wanted, but it wasn’t up to her. “I bet you’re in for a negotiation with them.”
“I bet you’re right,” Catra replied, her whole face scrunching up in dread about that conversation - which would probably happen sometime tonight now that they had a timeline of all this. She sat up a little to extend her arms over her head a bit, stretching out some stiff muscles while also getting a whiff of… something? Fries?
There was a waitress that passed by with a plate of cheese fries for another table and fuck did she kind of really want that. Arms dropping, her stomach made this noise (a growl, it was a growl) and she looked back to Adora with a funny little eyebrow waggle. “The smoothie’s fine but I think I want something greasy - order the mother of your brat some cheese fries? Celebratory cheese fries. Since we’re going to be parents, and that’s…”
A finger went up to curl some of Adora’s blonde hair around it, smiling wryly at her. “Pretty cool. You’re one step closer to MILF status.”
“You’re the MILF,” Adora chuckled, one hand raising to cup Catra’s cheek, thumb skimming over the sprinkling of freckles. Gods, she loved this girl and her ridiculous eyebrow waggling (probably inspired by her, really), and even the way she called their kid brat already. Finn definitely had that bratty edge, she couldn’t deny it; they came by it honestly, passed right down from their mommy.
She flagged down the waitress when she passed by them again and put in for the requested order of cheese fries. She wasn’t sure how well it would go with an overly healthy smoothie, but she never turned down cheese fries. And what her wife wanted, her wife got, baby or no baby.
“You’re still feeling good about everything, right? I know this is a lot sooner than we were expecting,” she pointed out. Not that it would change anything, but she wanted to give Catra every chance she needed to vent out any scary stuff she was feeling.
“Oh, it’s way too soon,” Catra laughed nervously, settling back under Adora’s arm to press into her side. That little graze against her cheek has caused the stirring of quiet purrs - those hadn’t stopped. “But I’m fine. In the sense that I don’t regret it or anything. It’s just… you know. A lot.”
The doctor visit. The pamphlets they got, tucked away in her bag. They hadn’t been cautious at all when using Adora’s magic in the bedroom, and neither of them wanted to intervene with whatever was in store for their future so it was a mutual agreement of whatever happens, happens.
And then, it happened.
“What about you?” she volleyed at her, raising an eyebrow. “Baby Fever still going on strong? Are you worried about anything?”
“I’m worried about everything all the time,” Adora admitted with a sheepish chuckle, “but that’s not a new thing.” It was just how she functioned. She liked to think she’d come a long way, that she could stay calm and centered for a good amount of time now without losing her grip, even without edibles. But she was still a little worried all the time. That was never going to stop.
“But, yeah.” A smile spread across her face, bright and genuine with that same touch of softness reserved just for Catra in her eyes. “I’m still good. Baby fever hasn’t gone anywhere,” she chuckled. “I’m excited! I know it’s a lot, but we’ve got this. I’ve got you and you’ve got me, and I know we can handle this. We already have before, kinda.”
Catra didn’t expect Adora to have second thoughts. Her wife had been starry-eyed from the very beginning about this - before those lines indicated positive tests. But she knew she worried, a lot, and she was going to do her best to make sure to lessen that burden in whatever way she could. No Defense. No being a butt about doctor visits. No more pushing through.
“Kinda,” she agreed with a soft snort, though it was hard not to smile too; when it came from Adora it was always contagious. How could she not tilt her head up and kiss her softly, and the sound of the plate getting set on the table didn’t stop her. She had no shame.
The smell, though, did. In a good way. She pulled away to pluck one from the pile with her claws. “Can’t wait for you to see baby magikitten ears,” Catra smirked. “The little feet. You’re going to cry so hard.”
Adora adamantly counted future Finn’s presence in their life as their first journey into this parenthood thing. It was their little one that had convinced Catra she was okay being a parent, that she wanted it at some point when she’d been questioning not long beforehand. It may have only been two weeks (a bit less for her, thanks to her future self’s surprise appearance), but it was immediately a full-time gig. Finn was rambunctious as a five-year-old, but they’d handled it then and she knew they’d do the same in real time, too.
“I don’t know why you like seeing me cry so much,” she replied, reaching out to pluck out a cheese fry for herself. She couldn’t deny it was true — just remembering little Finn and picturing them in even tinier form was enough to make tears well up in that very moment. She cleared her throat and chose to ignore it, stuffing another fry in her mouth instead.
“Dude, don’t word it like that.” Catra huffed a laugh and went to playfully punch her shoulder, all while trying this multi-tasking thing of eating these damn fries because she was hungry. It was like the aroma of fried potatoes had awakened some ravenous beast in her suddenly - but that ravenous beast was probably their spawn. “I don’t like seeing you cry! But, I mean - if you have to cry it’s nice that you’re crying over the good stuff and not because everything’s going to shit. You get all blubbery and smiley at the same time.”
With her free hand, she went to poke a claw right in the center of Adora’s not-gigantic forehead. “It’s like everything is so overwhelming that you can’t believe it’s happening? It’s cute,” she explained. “And it also somehow means you’re happy. So that makes me happy, too.”
Adora huffed but only because she was doing exactly what — her eyes were all watery, and she was smiling, but it was tremulous and overly happy. She’d had the same look on her face barely an hour before in the doctor’s office, eyes rapt on the screen while the doctors snapped pictures of the tiny little being that was their baby. There wasn’t much more overwhelming than that.
“Okay, yeah, I guess it’s better that it’s happy crying,” she conceded. She wiped at her eyes with the back of her wrist, the one unoccupied by her wife curling up against her. She reached for another fry. “I just never thought we’d have anything like this, and it’s really…cool.”
Okay, that was a lame finish. But the sentiment stood.
Yep, that’s the look. Maybe a more tame version of what Catra had just described but it was that nonetheless. Might be her turn to look upon her spouse with a dopey kind of softness - which she did, okay, Adora was allowed to judge her for it if she wanted.
“So cool,” she agreed, smirking like the little shit she was because it was a slightly lame finish but she loved it, honestly. So much that she captured her face with both hands and dove in for some comically fast, hard pecks. Violently loving smooches if you will. “You’re,” kiss, “an idiot,” kiss, “love you, dummy.”
Catra didn’t think they would have anything like this, either. It was one of those thing she didn’t know she could want, let alone even allow herself to want. But it was here. She’d take it.
Adora’s hand kind of flailed for a second when she was suddenly attacked with kisses, but she was quick to drop the fry in her clutches and settle it on Catra’s neck, smiling into her mouth. It was a little violent but sweet — her wife in a nutshell. She made a point of softening the kiss, initiating another one that lingered and felt nicer on the lips.
“I love you too,” she murmured, lips shifting to that adorable little nose. “What do you want to spend the rest of the day doing?”
“Mmm,” she purred (smitten thundercloud mode), eyes falling shut briefly once her nose became the receiving end of a kiss. “Cheese fries. Maybe some window shopping to see what’s out there?” Like, baby-wise. Catra was at a loss what was all required but it wouldn’t hurt to browse and get an idea. They didn’t have to commit to any purchases yet. “Then a nap. I’m already tired.”
A chill day was what she wanted. They were on a countdown of not having much of those anymore - might as well take advantage of it now. They had until late spring or early summer until chaos struck and by chaos, she meant Finn.
Adora nodded. She didn’t mind looking around a little bit, and they’d come back around when things were further along and purchases were more necessary. But maybe she’d grab a couple things, too. Baby clothes and books and just stuff was the cutest, and she was already notoriously weak in that department.
She reached out to grab another cheese-slathered fry and bit it in half, offering the other half to Catra. “You got it, sweetheart.”