WHAT: Talking about Catra's genetics and light baby shopping end in smooches WHERE: Darla WHEN: Tonight WARNINGS: Some light mentions of abuse STATUS: Complete
Research your race if you can, her obstetrician had said, the words repeating in her head in her own voice - but, like, mockingly. Itâll give us more insight on what to expect for this process, they said. Catra knew it made sense, and she knew that she would, eventually, be digging into Darlaâs archives to suss out what she could about magicat biology and early development stages for infants (if the ship had such things) but she had held off on it before. Before, this whole thing was going to be Future Catraâs problem and while she had tortured herself with videos of childbirth (god why), she didnât dare venture beyond that.
Piling up shit for her future self, hah. She had to stop that. Seriously.
Itâs not like Finn was full magicat anyway, and there shouldnât be much of a difference between magicat pregnancies and human (or First Ones, if she felt like getting fancy about it) pregnancies but the more they knew, the better. It was barely sundown though she was already in bed, dressed in sweats and feeling so bloated. Her stomach already looked a little rounded except it wasnât from the expansion of her womb (grooossss), the cold she thought she was getting was actually this thing called âpregnancy rhinitisâ, and she wasnât sure if she was nauseous or hungry.
Probably both.
Catra had found every file with the word magicat, and downloaded it all right into the datapad so she had the luxury of browsing through the intel in the comforts of their bed. She was tired. She was not getting up. âApparently itâs as common for magicats to have a pregnancy with multiples as it is with single births,â she read outloud, grimacing. âThank fuck our first go at this just gave us one.â
Adora had always secretly hoped they would find a reason to research Catraâs lineage. She had skimmed some of Darlaâs magicat data before, purely out of curiosity, but sheâd never dived in too deeply. She respected Catraâs choice when she said she wasnât interested, and it felt bad to sneak and read about it all behind her back. Sheâd assumed the day would eventually come, even if it was ten years from now â and it had, although not in a way sheâd ever considered.
It made sense, though, when the OB suggested theyâd need that information to help figure out if magicat pregnancy differed much from other species. There were other cat hybrid people here, but Catra was the only one from their world, and looks-wise alone, she differed from the others theyâd seen. It wouldnât be too surprising if there were some biological quirks mixed in there, even if it was mostly the same as a typical human pregnancy.
She was currently laid out on her side in bed with Ivy tucked up against her side and purring while Catra perused the datapad. She was letting her take the lead and determine what information they passed on, but she was right here, ready and willing to lend moral support and definitely curious.
âWell, I guess that means if the twins still come along, they might not just be because twins run in the family,â Adora remarked. That was assuming their girls would eventually come along, someday. Now with Finn on the way, she had a little more hope that was still a possibility.
âI think weâre lucky that the future twins didnât end up being future triplets,â Catra snarked, sinking into the pile of pillows she had wedged between her and the headboard for support. One of her legs went to tangle up into Adoraâs as her claws scrolled through the screen. The sections involving history were neglected. She wasnât here for those details. âBut honestly - thatâs the only real difference Iâm reading here? High chance of multiples. Everything else looks the same.â
Nine or so months of gestation. The listed symptoms werenât any different from what she had looked up for a regular human. There was a detailed passage about instincts coming into play - the way magicats felt the need to guard themselves to avoid expressing vulnerabilities during their pregnancy - but they had already figured that part out. Catraâs behavior from kittenhood through recent events was a living testament to that.
She sniffled. Stupid fucking nose. Stupid hormonal congestion. âNow I gotta fish for baby development,â she frowned. âNot seeing too much about magicat mixes.â
Adora hummed in acknowledgement, petting Ivyâs neck and down her back. She was purring like a little machine right now, and Adora was enjoying it. She rarely sought out attention like this, preferring to do her own thing, so it was a pleasant surprise for the evening. But she was listening, too; hopefully, if there wasnât much of a difference to be found between magicat and human pregnancies, everything should proceed easily enough for the rest of the pregnancy.
âI wonder if there werenât a lot,â she suggested. âWe know magicats came from their own planet, and they must have been on Etheria at some point, and I know Adam said there was a population on Eternia. But they might not have done a lot ofâŠuh, cross-breeding?â
That sounded a little gross, and she followed it with a grimace, but she couldnât think of a better term to describe it. Basically, she wouldnât be surprised if this little family she and Catra were making was the first of its kind. And since theyâd seen how Finn turned out, it looked like the magicat genes had won out over her weaker human genes, by far.
Catra succumbed to a fit of raspy giggles. Weird word, wife, but she couldnât think of anything more fitting than that either. âThatâs a question youâd probably find in the cultural section,â she mused, and her finger automatically hovered over that tab because now she was curious - but she paused, thinking better of it. This information was technically outdated anyway.
Besides, she didnât care.
Not really.
âSays here purring begins typically a month after birth,â she read out loud. âDunno if thatâs going to vary with your genes tossed into the mix. Nails are probably going to be born sharp - most learn to retract them between the ages of four and six. Huh. Would have been nice information to have growing up.â Considering she often got in trouble for what her claws could do even when it was just an accident - she didnât really know any better? Neither did anyone else in the Horde, though.
Adora brushed her foot against Catraâs, her attempt at comfort even with her hands otherwise occupied. It would have been nice if the Horde had even attempted to gather information on magicats, but they didnât care. Their sole purpose was to raise soldiers to win a war that never should have been waged and wasnât theirs to fight. It had been Hordakâs attempt at proving himself to Horde Prime, and it had been unnecessary and, ultimately, fruitless.
But that was a rabbithole theyâd gone down a million times before. No need to go there tonight.
âI think your genes have beaten mine out of Finn,â she offered, her tone playful â but for real, they had. âThey look like a little mini-magicat with She-Ra blonde hair. Thatâs what I contributed, just the hair. And itâs better hair than my hair.â
Grumble grumble â her She-Ra hair envy still lingered somedays, okay.
âOh my god, your hairâs fine,â Catra protested with a fond roll of her eyes. As much as she liked sinking into the cloud of pillows she forced herself to sit upright, letting the tablet rest on her lap while she rubbed a hand over her face. Her existence lately was just exhaustion, and she was trying to perk herself up and not feel so lethargic. âAnd letâs face it - youâre glad my genes beat yours for this. What would you do with a kid that had your weird fleshy human ears?â
Her hand shot out to tweak one of Adoraâs for emphasis, grinning impishly. But she liked the weird fleshy human ears since they were attached to her wife, so.
Adora wrinkled her nose at the tweaking, but she was grinning, lifting one hand to snatch Catraâs by the wrist and bring it to her mouth for a kiss. She gazed up lovingly into her wifeâs mismatched eyes while her heart fluttered in her chest. Ear-tweaking and all, she always felt like the luckiest girl in the universe to have her, even at her lowest lows. Catra was the reason she stayed stable and sane ninety-nine percent of the time.
âIâm so glad your genes won out. Iâd do the same thing I do with tiny, fluffy magikitten ears, anyway, but it probably wouldnât be as appreciated,â she chuckled. âOur fleshy human ears arenât meant to be petted.â
Go figure that Adora still looked at her in the dopiest way while Catra was feeling awfully unattractive. Yesterday was actually pretty okay? But she was bumming it today, lazily dressed with disheveled hair and a face thatâs seen the inside of a toilet at least three times today from sickness. It wasnât fair to even call it morning sickness when it hit her whenever it wanted, wherever it wanted.
And yet - heart eyes. It made Catra feel a little better.
âThis is kinda weird though,â she sighed, gesturing to the tablet on her lap. âYou really havenât looked at any of this yourself? I wouldnât have been upset, you know. Itâs not like this information is meant to be⊠a secret or anything.â
âI skimmed,â Adora admitted easily, shrugging one shoulder. She wasnât going to hide that, and she knew there was nothing to be sorry for. âI was curious if theyâd settled anywhere else, but thatâs really about it. Itâs your peopleâs history, and⊠I donât know, I guess it felt too nosy to prod into it if you didnât want to know.â
And then there was the very obvious fact that if she had gone reading into magicat history, sheâd have been bothering Catra about it much more and that could have caused some gnarly arguments. She knew herself well enough to know she could be like a dog with a bone, so sheâd made the decision to stay out of it and figured that, eventually, Catraâs curiosity would surface on its own.
Her people. Catra didnât like that phrasing. It felt wrong. She didnât feel any connection to them. Hell, she hardly knew a damn thing about them aside from the information she was digging up on their biology and some of their young development - which, admittedly, was kind of neat to finally know but aside from that? It was all very foreign to her. Very alien.
âI donât know,â she sighed, scratching the back of her neck. âDoes any of it even matter, really? There wasnât much of a population on Etheria, and I doubt Iâm ever going to meet some here. And the more I read - itâs just going to make me wish I had answers to certain questions, and I know Iâm not ever getting those answers anyway.â
She largely learned to accept that she was simply an orphan. Someone had left her in a box and thatâs just⊠it. Catra was never claimed by people claiming to be her family; no one had ever come looking for her, she wasn't a stolen princess, she had no importance. It meant that she was either unwanted (though someone had to like her enough to keep to care for her until toddlerhood, maybe?) or they were dead.
Both options sucked.
Ivy rose up and streeeetched before trotting off, more than likely to go squeeze herself into the dog bed with Spirit. That was Adoraâs cue to sit up and scooch closer to her wife, linking their arms together and leaning in to kiss her cheek. She wasnât going to pretend sheâd have all the answers, but that was okay. She was trying her best to curb the fix it impulse and just let herself be a sounding board. This was one of those times.
âYou might not get answers about your family,â she agreed, reaching up to cup Catraâs cheek with her hand, âbut learning about their people might still be kind of cool?â
She knew sheâd eaten up every bit of information on Eternia and the First Ones she could find, both on Darla, in the information crystals from the Crystal Castle, and now from Adam. But while she and Catra could be alike in a lot of ways, they had different approaches to things, too.
âIf it matters to you, then yeah, it matters, but itâs all your decision. You have it all there now if you want it, but if you donât, Iâd say thatâs totally allowed, too.â
Did it matter to her, though? Catra wasnât sure. This whole thing was always just some abstract concept to her - floaty thoughts without any real follow-through, too afraid of what she would unearth if she kept digging.
Her head turned the slightest bit to nuzzle into her palm, purring quietly. âI like feeling a little vindicated about some of the biological stuff,â she admitted. Catra had always been regarded as a difficult child but how much of that was really due to the fact that she was a magicat child? Then she learned to suppress a lot of things too, with Shadow Weaver always claiming that these pieces of her were mere weaknesses. Goodbye kitten tufts, goodbye kneading, goodbye purring. âAlthough youâre also the only person Iâve never needed to explain myself to.â
Like - her quirks, and how it tied in with her genetics. Adora had simply accepted them as part of her without judgment even as kids (while she brought her dead vermin on a constant basis, sorry wife). âI didnât think having it all be justified mattered to me before but, yeah. It kinda does now, I guess, especially if Finnâs expressing more magicat genetics in their behavior. I donât want someone to think of them less or dismiss them for it.â
It was true that Shadow Weaver and the Horde had been quick to deem some of the quirks in Catraâs genetics signs of bad behavior. Sheâd spent a long time being punished for things she couldnât control until she put a stop to them around everyone but Adora. It was sad and awful, and it was one of those things Adora wished sheâd been brave enough to speak up about back then. She wished sheâd done a lot of things differently in hindsight â almost all of them â but now all she could do was move forward and make sure it didnât happen again.
Because Catra raised a good point. Despite how open and awesome Vallo was for the most part, there always existed the possibility that someone was going to be an asshole to someone else for being different. She didnât want to see that happen to Finn, but all they could do was prepare them for how to handle it.
âWell, we can read up on the genetic parts, at least, so we can explain that,â she suggested, pressing her forehead to Catraâs. âAnd weâll teach Finn how to stand up for themself and how to ignore stupid people saying stupid things.â
Finn standing up for themself was very important but she also already wanted to protect them from literally everything, too. Catra wanted everything to be different for them - and it would be, she and Adora would make sure of that. They werenât even born yet and she was already worrying herself to the bone over their upbringing.
Fucking hormones. Theyâve seen them older now; they knew that their childhood had been stable (as stable as it could be in Vallo), and that they were loved and wanted. They wouldnât mess this up. Catra couldnât mess it up.
âCould always teach them how to take an eye out,â she smirked, angling her head to nuzzle into Adoraâs cheek. Still purring but now also scenting. âWorked out for me. Kind of.â
Melog joined in by laying on Adoraâs feet, rubbing their face all up her shins. Catra was feeling very particularly lovey and Melog was a mirror of that.
Adora chuckled, enjoying the nuzzles to her face and the rubs down on her shins that echoed it. She loved when Catra got into these sweet, affectionate moods almost as much as when she got into the amorous moods. Her hand moved from her cheek to tangle in dark hair, the other sliding down to rest against Catraâs stomach.
âLetâs save the eye gouging lessons for worst-case scenarios.â That was behavior that could kind of be gotten away with in the Horde â it hadnât gone over well when Catra had done it to Octavia, but she had gotten some respect from the cadets for it as a show of strength. She was pretty sure it would just end in a lawsuit here in Vallo.
Fiiiine, she supposed that was reasonable. Hopefully worst-case scenarios wouldnât exist for them, and if they did, well - Finn should have their moms to take care of any problems for them. Thatâs what they were there for.
âCongratulations by the way,â she smirked, placing a hand over the one Adora had on her stomach. âItâs gas. Mostly. I think I gotta eat something, though.â Catra pressed her forehead against her shoulder with a groan. âAnd I think itâs going to be hot wings again because the thought of something else grosses me out.â
âCanât believe hot wings are the only food that appeals to you after weeks of living off crackers,â Adora teased, dropping down to press a kiss to the crown of Catraâs head. âNot complaining, though. We can order some.â As long as Catra was eating, she didnât really care what it was. Sheâd been insistent on getting her to eat something during those off weeks where they hadnât known what was going on, and she was even more insistent now.
After all, now she had a whole tiny life in there dependent on her eating those hot wings.
âMaybe we should look and see if there are some store-brand wings youâd like that we can put in the oven?â she suggested. âFor later. It might save us some money.â
Thankfully, they didnât have a lot of expenses, but money was still a big part of living comfortably here. Occasionally, Vallo gifted them with a random influx of cash, but it wasnât often, and Adora was starting to monitor their spending a bit more carefully.
âIâm hoping I can eat more than just hot wings in the next few weeks,â Catra laughed, the sound stifled with the way she had turned to press her face into her neck. It was such a dumb craving but her body was just so weird with food right now; if she didnât eat exactly what she wanted then her insides would revolt. The second trimester was supposed to be the better one of the three so hopefully things wouldnât feel so literally blargh.
Though, if they were ordering that meant that they werenât budging from their bed, and it meant Catra could push Adora to lay down which is exactly what she did. She wanted to cuddle goddamnit. âBut, yeah, if the hot wings thing persists Iâm down - I know you have a list of things youâre ready to buy. Did you cave and order a crib yet or were you able to practice some self-restraint?â
Adora didnât resist at all, letting Catra push her to lay down the way she wanted her. She happily settled down and wrapped her arms around her wife. This was perfect; sheâd given Catra her space to dissect the magicat information, but if she was ready to cuddle, Adora was all for it. They were always very cuddly in bed, and it helped her body start to really settle down for the evening.
âI didnât buy a crib,â she reported dutifully. âI feel like I donât want to go crazy buying too much too soon.â She had gotten all the stuff Catra would need for her pregnancy â vitamins to last a lifetime, teas that were supposed to help with nausea, the works. But actual baby stuff, she was holding off on for now. They hadnât announced anything yet, not even to Adam, and she didnât want to give it away too soon.
Definitely ready to cuddle. The datapad with all the downloaded information will be there later. Catra was half on her, leg hiked up over her thighs as she kept purring into her neck. Her tail was engaged in a content, carefree kind of swish, and she inhaled Adoraâs scent deeply - before she realized something.
That realization made her pinch her nipple.
âI havenât even seen the crib you want to buy,â she realized with a wide blink of her eyes. Adora had gone mad with power and Catra had been too anxious about the whole thing to ever even glimpse at all the stuff she had saved. âDude, show me. Iâm sure itâs fine but now Iâm just curious! Since this is, uh, super real and happening and all. And when are you ordering me my wings, princess?â
Adora huffed out a laugh despite the nipple pinch and reached past Catra, trying her best not to dislodge her in the process, to grab that datapad. She readjusted herself to do some swiping and pulled up their Amazon account to show her the Baby Finn wishlist sheâd been working on the past couple of days. It was nothing much, mostly just furniture for the nursery.
âHere,â she offered it to Catra to take a look. âAnd when youâre done, you can order your hot wings. And order me some onion rings, too.â
Catra? Ordering her own wings? The audacity of this whole ass backwards situation. Adora got the most dramatic look of offense for that, very similar to the one they both had gotten when she had suggested Finn get a rubber sword for Halloween. âWow,â she huffed. âHere I am, incubating your perfect kitten and youâre making me put in my own order? Iâll never forget this. Iâm going to subject you to the barbed penis entry of magicat biology for your transgression. Thereâs pictures, you know.â
There was a little re-adjusting on her end too, fixing herself to lie on her back but using Adoraâs shoulder as a pillow. She was very much a content puddle of purrs still, tail snaking around her wifeâs leg to keep them connected. Browsing the short list of baby furniture was a good pause from her research, and sheâd get to the rest of the magicat stuff - soon. Eventually.
âUgh, please no,â Adora said, wrinkling her nose. âIâll order food when youâre done, princess.â There was nothing sexy-sounding about a barbed penis. She preferred to think of magicats as slightly more human than cat, especially when people (Revy) said things about cat tongues thatâŠwell, it made her stomach turn just to think about it, so she preferred not to if she could help it.
Instead, she snuggled into Catra further, kissing the top of her head again as she watched her look over the list. âIâm not set on any of them yet, I just wanted to have ideas,â she murmured. âBut what do you think?â
âThat youâre adorable for looking for a super durable crib that can withstand kitten claws and kitten teeth,â Catra said, having immediately noticed Adoraâs attention to detail. It was a good precaution to take; there was a chance that Finnâs claws wouldnât be completely like her own but who knew. She rubbed the top of her head into the underside of Adoraâs chin, ears unintentionally tickling at her jaw. âBut I like this one.â
She tapped the screen to show her the one she meant and handed it over for her to look at. âWe can turn it into a toddler bed apparently when theyâre a little older? Doesnât kill the bank, either. Iâll be finding some other kind of job too, you know.â
âIâm not worried about it,â Adora assured her quickly. She didnât want Catra thinking she was worried about money, and she had to immediately go out and find another job. âWeâre not hurting for money or anything. I just want to make sure we can give Finn everything, you know? All the stuff we didnât get to have.â
There was no changing how theyâd grown up, and even if she could, she wasnât sure she would. It had screwed them both up, but it was part of their story. But she wanted the exact opposite of that story for their kids, whether that was here or back home. And that probably meant she was going to go a little bit crazy spoiling them.
She turned her attention to the crib Catra had pulled up, though, and nodded as she read over the specs. She did think it was smart to have some extra durability built in â Catraâs claws were literal lethal weapons, and while Adora could see that being one of the things her human genes dulled for Finn, she kind of hoped they didnât? Hopefully, Finn would never have a need for claws that could slice through steel, but it was hard to say.
âYeah, I like that one,â she agreed. âIt would last longer, too.â She clicked through to add it to the list before flipping over to a delivery app to put in their late-night food order of onion rings and hot wings. âAnything else you feel like eating I should add on here?â
Catra was tempted to point out that Adora always worried, but she let it slide since the reassurance was nice - and cute. Defense wasnât feasible for her anymore and she did plan to look elsewhere for employment anyway. She liked keeping busy, and now they were having some, uh, future expenses to save up for.
Like the crib that they just happened to conveniently pick out.
But as for whatâs on the menu, hmmm. âYou,â she answered cheekily, switching from her back to her side so she could burrow into Adora. âThatâs an option, right?â
âNot on this menu,â Adora replied, tapping the button to place their order. It was that new portal service that had popped up recently, so she was sure it would show up shortly. In the meantime, she tossed the datapad down toward the end of the bed, smiled, and leaned into her wife, dipping down to press a long kiss to her lips. âBut Iâm made-to-order anytime you want me.â
Catra blinked. Several times. All wide-eyes and kind of in awe.
Two seconds later, her lips crashed into Adoraâs with fervor, hands reached up to hold her face and then three seconds after that, she pushed her onto her back. Catra climbed on top of her, still kissing, and when she was forced to break for air, she glared down at her wife.
âThat was so dumb,â she scowled, clawed hands pushing her shirt up. âBut somehow it's so hot.â Tail lashing, blown pupils, uh-oh. Someone was in trouble. âWeâre doing this.â