WHAT: Catra goes She-Ra to rescue Adora during patrol WHERE: Vallo Foret WHEN: Today WARNINGS: Some will o' wisp violence but nothing graphic STATUS: Complete ART CREDIT:Here
Not in, like, the dramatic sense. The literal sense. Adora was missing She had that whole patrol job thing today, and Catra wanted to go as a chance to explore more of Vallo (plus she was restless, because she was still here). Marlena didn’t hesitate to swoop in and offer babysitting services so it worked out. She joined the shift unofficially, and there was a peace of mind knowing that she was around if something dangerous were to happen.
They were a team. Not the same exact team they were used to - Adora said the other her used to work this too full-time, before Finn - but it was close enough. It was a comfortable familiarity.
Then, there were lights. Warm, floaty spheres that came around. These were the wisps she heard people talk about that weren’t new occurrences, but they were popping up with frequency. Catra didn’t like them. They made her bristle. One came too close to them, and she blinked once. That was all it took for her to realize she was several yards away from where they’d been standing, she was alone, a wisp was coming back her way as if it knew she’d escaped its trance, and she was going to fight it.
“For the honor of fucking Grayskull,” she grumbled under her breath, a burst of light coming from her and all around her - shining gold, crimson smoke, a beacon of warmer colors. Her version of She-Ra had a more unkempt, wild energy and more exotic, tribal look. The hilt in her hand belonged to a whip, not a sword (she felt clumsy with it in that form) and it took one lash to rid herself of the wisp. One problem dealt with.
The other was finding Adora, and she swallowed the swell of panic to stay leveled. When shouting her name across the forest didn’t yield a response, she looked to the earth instead - and eventually found what she was looking for. Footprints of shoes. Her own looked different in regular form (because fuck shoes, she wasn’t wearing any, it wasn’t that cold today) and were a little smaller. These had to be Adora’s.
She followed the trail into a darker part of the forest, one where the tree branches high above wove a veil together, blocking sunlight from coming through. That was fine; her vision at night was flawless anyway and she could make it through without hindrance.
Catra spotted the white-blue glow of the wisp in the distance. She also spotted Adora, tangled up in threads of energy that weren’t hers. Threads that were siphoning from her, feeding into the wisp.
“Nope,” she growled, walking right up to it, and chalking it up to She-Ra magic that she was able to snatch the wisp in the air like it was a solid, tangible thing - and crushed it in her fist like a mosquito. Its magic dissolved into a vapor.
Adora was happy to let Catra accompany her on patrol. She’d meant what she’d said her first day here – as long as she was here, she was free to do as she pleased. She was glad most of what she’d pleased appeared to be spending time with her and Finn, but she also didn’t expect this version of Catra who wasn’t their baby’s mother to sit with Finn all day when she went to work. Thankfully, Marlena was always happy to fill the void.
Reports of will-o’-wisps had been coming in more frequently over the last month. Different dangerous creatures seem to surge every once in a while, and Adora knew to remain vigilant. She knew to stay back. She knew that if she got too close to the floating little balls of light that her mind wouldn’t be her own, at least not until she managed to break free.
And yet.
Something moved in the forest, she was sure of it. There was a crunching sound, like leaves underfoot, and she stepped away just for a minute to check it out – then that was the last thing she remembered for a while. All she could see was the light, and all she could feel was warmth and safety and certainty that wherever she was going, it was going to be okay.
It wasn’t until she snapped out of it that she realized what had been happening. She felt weak, and her legs gave out on her all of a sudden. She couldn’t understand what had happened; it was all just fuzzy in her brain and not in the pleasant, effects-of-an-edible kind of way. She felt out of breath and exhausted, and when she looked up at Catra, what little breathing she was doing stopped for a split second.
“Wow.” She blinked after a moment and tried not to stare so openly. “Purrsian She-Ra looks… amazing.”
“And you’re looking pale,” Catra countered, arms catching Adora before she met the ground. Did she internally preen at the compliment? Sure. Those words would never come from her Adora, but that wasn’t the point. Her eyes were narrowed, worried, as she studied her, a large claw delicately brushing a fly-away hair from her face.
She was two seconds away from carrying her out of this part of the forest and towards Darla if it wasn’t for the sound of buzzing - of crackling. Will o’ wisps emerged from the cover of bushes, and they weren’t interested in luring them into a trance.
This was going to be fun.
Catra swept her up into her arms just to carry her two yards away. “Going to prop you against this tree while I handle these - be good.”
“I can help!” Adora tried to protest, but her attempt to get to her feet failed rather spectacularly and she ended up slumped against the tree Catra had propped her against in the first place. Whatever that thing had been doing felt like it had drained her dry. She could feel She-Ra beneath the surface, but when she reached over to try to pull her sword free from the bracer on her arm, she could feel only a flicker of magic before nothing happened.
But she had to get herself together. She couldn’t leave Catra to these things all on her own; they were multiplying and attacking, and for all her exhaustion, Adora’s anxiety was spiking.
“Be careful!” she called out, from her spot on the ground two yards away where she sat, utterly useless. She clenched her fists as she watched Catra fight and concentrated, trying with all her might to get up the strength to bring She-Ra out again.
Catra was the one thing standing between Adora and the wisps, and like hell was she about to let them cross the threshold and get past her. She took a deep breath through her nose, cracked her neck to loosen up a little bit of tension, and charged.
It was a fight that didn’t last long.
They didn’t have swinging limbs to hit her with. It was magic versus magic and she was able to crush them quickly with relative ease. A few of them zapped her and hit her with a morbid sense of deja vu from back in the day; when Shadow Weaver would harness the Black Garnet’s magic and turn it on her. It wasn’t anything she didn’t know.
In the end, their essence vanished into the cool air. What a shame, though. They were pretty even if they were nefarious little balls of shining asshole.
“See?” Catra turned, still in She-Ra form, and sauntered over. “I was careful. I’m a big girl.” A pause, before adding onto that with a toothy grin, “Literally right now. Don’t get up. How are you feeling?”
In the end, Adora had given in. She’d clearly been energy-sucked to an extent where she needed to take a break. She didn’t like it – she never liked doing nothing in a fight, even one that was relatively easy to resolve – but she couldn’t really say she minded the view either. She always liked seeing Catra fight, especially when she went no holds barred, and there was something even more intriguing in this.
Catra was She-Ra. That was still so weird, but it felt just as right.
“I’m just… tired,” Adora admitted with a grumpy little frown. “But I’m okay, I can walk now. I think.” And to prove that point, both to Catra and to herself, she dug her hands into the ground on either side of her and began attempting to push herself to her feet.
“Idiot,” Catra sighed, hoping the exasperation could mask the fondness (it didn’t). She hesitated to sweep Adora off her feet a second time - not yet - but she did loop an arm around her waist, keeping her pressed into her as she got steady on her feet.
There was no way she was letting go. She didn’t have the confidence that her knees wouldn’t buckle a second time, and Catra wasn’t about to let her hit the ground anytime soon. “You do know I can carry you, right?” she snorted, looking down at Adora with a sharp quirk of an eyebrow.
The height difference was always a little strange. She had always been the shortest one by a few inches (a lot of what ‘helped’ make her look taller was the hair, and the ears) and even in this form, she wasn’t sure if she’d ever get used to being the tall one.
It wasn’t bad, though.
Just different.
“I’m good,” Adora insisted. She felt better once she was on her own two feet. Granted, she was still being supported almost completely by Catra, but she was standing. That was important. She felt a little less awful but not really less drained, and the support from Catra was appreciated while she got her bearings again.
That didn’t mean she wanted to be carried. That was silly. She was perfectly capable of walking, supported as necessary, and not at all tempted to let this Catra version of She-Ra scoop her up in her arms and carry her out of the forest. Just like she’d done to her Catra dozens of times. Most of the time it wasn’t even because Catra had been in any terrible danger either (like getting her soul sucked out or whatever that had had been) – just for fun.
Catra wasn’t rushing her. Right now her ears were perked, alert, working on picking up the most minute sounds in case there was a threat lurking in the dimness. “A few minutes longer with them and I feel like they could have made you comatose,” she mumbled with a frown, not a fan of how pale she still looked. Her hand gripped her face, fingers squishing into her cheeks playfully. “You didn’t conk your head or anything, so - brain damage check probably isn’t necessary.”
“You can do it anyway,” Adora replied with a small smile. “My Catra still does all the time. Or, well, whenever I hit my head which is less than it used to be. Momming and all.”
That was the plus side (if such a thing existed) of being attacked by the wisps. They weren’t these brute force things that could bash her brains in or beat her to a pulp or fry her to a crisp. They were just crazy energy suckers because apparently that was their food source.
Catra snorted a laugh, a puff of air exhaled from her nose. “Good, because you need to keep your brain nice and healthy and in your skull for the kid,” she replied. “I think you’re okay, but I don’t think finishing this shift’s in the cards for you. I’m taking you home.”
And that was when she decided to scoop her up bridal-style with little warning. Adora weighed absolutely nothing while she was in She-Ra form, and her Adora would probably try to headbutt her senseless if she even attempted this.
Adora grumbled a little, but she didn’t argue about going home. Not that she’d have had the chance because to Catra, I’m taking you home clearly meant literally sweeping her off her feet to carry her. Carry her; she should be blushing and embarrassed that this poor visiting Catra had to take care of her. Instead, she was blushing but for very different reasons.
Her arms instinctively flew around Catra’s neck to support herself. “I’m really fine,” she said again, emphasizing the word, but she was making no move to change her situation. She was actually kind of content where she was, along with another mix of funny feelings she didn’t want to think about right now.
“Suuuure you are,” Catra drawled, trucking along towards the direction of sunlight. It wasn’t far off. They weren’t being trailed, and she was glad when her feet stepped out of the shadows and into a less creepy part of Vallo’s shifting forest.
It gave her a better look at Adora’s face, too. Not that she needed the light with how her vision was, but she got the confirmation that there was some color coming back to her cheeks.
She smirked.
“Feeling warm?”
“A little,” Adora replied, feeling the warmth only increase in response to her admittance. “Thank you for saving me, though. I didn’t say that before, but… thank you.” She liked to hope she’d have had the willpower to break free eventually herself, but having Catra there was a stroke of the best luck. If she’d been on that shift herself, she’d likely have been in a load of trouble.
Her face got redder. Aww. There was a wicked little gleam in Catra’s eyes and an undeniable smugness radiating off her. Adora was always cute when she got flustered. She didn’t see it too often anymore so, yeah, this was a treat. Instead of being a brat and rubbing it in her face, Catra squeezed her into her chest more snugly.
“You don’t have to say it,” she retorted, shoulders shifting into a casual shrug. “You don’t have your Catra here so while it’s just me, I’m gonna make sure you make it back to your family. You have too much to lose. And you were right, you know.” Catra gazed down at her. “About trying to enjoy this place. It’s been–”
The sigh she breathed out was quiet, but felt with the deep rise and fall of her chest.
“Nice. It’s been nice.”
“Yeah? Aside from this, I guess, right?” Adora looked up with a small, playful smile and met Catra’s eyes. The sincerity was undeniable, easy to see and to feel. There was no teasing or snarking going on, and she was glad. Genuine Catra in any form was one of her favorite things to witness.
“I was hoping it would feel like a vacation for you,” she said, arm squeezing around Catra’s neck. “I remember how all-consuming the war was, and after the portal… It was even worse for me. I didn’t sleep a lot anymore. If you’ve been able to sleep at all while you’re here, that’s a big accomplishment all on its own.”
Catra looked ahead now, eyes tightening at the mention of that incident. Grasping the fact that she’d done that to this Adora was a struggle. The aftermath was a blow to morale, and losing Angella was – gods, that was hard. It had taken her a while to warm up to the queen, especially when she didn’t give a rat’s ass about authority even on her good days and the high and mighty vibe rubbed her in all the wrong ways.
But Angella was trying, and changing, and meant well – and saved them at the cost of herself. She loathed to think that she was responsible for her being gone in another timeline.
She didn’t doubt Adora thought the same thing, either.
“It’s a scent thing, for me. Three years in and I’m still not used to the way Brightmoon smells,” Catra admitted. The air had the aroma of lavender and sweetness, all candy floss and sprinkles. Better than the burnt wire and motor oil smell of the Frightzone, but that wasn’t what she missed. “And I mean – yeah, with everything going on, sleep deprivation’s part of the package. I didn’t think I’d sleep well here because everything’s new and I don’t really know it. Darla smells like you, though. It smells like us.”
Like baby powder and coffee beans. Like Finn, who was an embodiment of their scents combined and something so uniquely them.
“So that helps. There were a few times that we snuck around just to sleep in the same bed, you know? No funny business. We’d call it a truce for a few hours for the sake of our sanity, but it’s been a while.”
“I still can’t believe you two were kissing, and your Adora didn’t leave.” That disbelief was clear in Adora’s voice, too. She couldn’t imagine a world where kissing Ccatra made her anything less than putty in her wife’s hands. And that wasn’t to say she didn’t know her own stubbornness – it existed, and she was sure it was even stronger with more of Shadow Weaver’s influence and less from the Rebellion, but Catra.
“You’ll figure it out,” she said firmly, trying to reassure and maybe manifest a little for Catra’s sake. “It might take a while, but she’ll come around at the end. She misses you, I know she does. And she’s just let the power go to her head.”
Yep, they were kissing and nope, Adora didn’t leave – which made it sting that much more. Kissing wasn’t enough. She thought it would make her feelings abundantly clear. It didn’t, and maybe that was the part where actual communication would have helped. But they were too stuck in their own resentment to give into anything reasonable, and too deep in their desperation when it came to keeping one another.
This Adora’s tactic had been different as She-Ra. She had let Catra go. Compartmentalizing her as the conniving enemy was easier than to pick apart all the gray areas that existed between the polarizing sides. That’s where she was stuck in right now; the grays. Black and white views were easier to process, but the grays were complicated.
It’s why she thought Adora made a better She-Ra. She could pick a side and go all in. She set aside her personal feelings (to the point of repression, which was a bit questionable but she understood it if it got the job done). But to Catra, that was also just cold. She couldn’t write Adora off as the bad guy despite her shit choices; especially now, knowing she could have made the same exact shit choices if the roles were swapped.
She loved Adora through the worst of it. And if this Adora did the same for her, and got this life, then it had to be worth everything.
“Yeah,” was all she said after a moment, distracted by her thoughts. “I guess I’ll find out soon anyway. Something tells me I won’t be here much longer.”
“Maybe not,” Adora agreed, her tone sombering. She missed her wife and wanted her back more than she could express, but she’d enjoyed spending time with this Catra. It was a little like reliving her first days in Vallo with her wife – watching her try new food, play new games, watch movies – and the awe that had come with everything that existed here back then. She didn’t relish seeing her go, but the inevitability was reassuring, too.
“I think I can walk now,” she said, tugging on Catra’s neck in an effort to stop her. “I feel a little better. Please?”
“A little better doesn’t mean all better,” Catra argued, but her walking crawled to a stop. Adora was her focus again, and she studied her with skepticism before relenting and - gently - setting her back on her feet. The arm around her waist remained for now, in case.
“And here I thought you liked me carrying you,” she smirked again, giving her what her other self would refer to as bedroom eyes - although she was a little oblivious about that part. She lacked Vallo Catra’s experience.
Adora’s face went bright red when she saw those eyes. She knew they didn’t mean on this Catra what they meant on her Catra – well, not as much, anyway – but holy crap, she still couldn’t get words out for about a minute. She clung to Catra’s arm instead and tried to ignore the feeling of heat in her entire face and neck.
“I appreciate you carrying me,” was how she finally responded. “But I like walking on my own two feet, too. Unless they’re actually broken or something.”
Oh my god, her face. Catra could have cackled, but she was a merciful She-Ra and the most she did was refuse to hide her smugness a second time. She was lovingthis. She had a bit of a complex when it came to She-Ra - either people liked She-Ra more than they like her as herself, or Adora looked at her in this form as if she was the biggest traitor on Etheria - but having an Adora turning brighter than a tomato over her like this?
It was fun.
“Are you sure you’re not going to trip over your own two feet? Or should I spare you by turning back to normal?” Catra did a little hair flip over her shoulder, looking down at her coyly.
“I am not going to trip,” Adora insisted and took two steps forward as if to prove herself. She did not, in fact, trip during either of those steps. “And you can… You can stay like that if you want. I’m not used to being the short one, but it’s not that bad. When I get my She-Ra back, though, just you wait!”
“You’re so cute when you’re the short one,” Catra cooed, taking all of that as a hint to stay in this form - Adora wasn’t asking for it, but she for sure was hinting at keeping the view the way it was. That was fine with her. “What’s this make you, hmmm - Tinydora?”
That rolled off the tongue pretty well. Tinydora. She draped an arm across Tinydora’s shoulders, grinning wickedly at her.
What was her name? It became the victim of this kind of nickname far too often – Babydora, Oldora, Adorka, now Tinydora. It was getting just due, but she was smiling despite these thoughts because Catra was enjoying herself, and gods, that was all Adora wanted. She liked the idea that this Catra, who had still been stuck in a war torn world, at the height of a terrible tension between the two of them, had been able to come here and be happy. Even if it was just a little bit and just a little while.
“It makes you… Giantra,” she declared with a smirk of her own. That actually worked, as opposed to her attempts to call Hot Future Catra Oldtra. This one had more of a pleasing ring to it.
Catra made a face. Not an annoyed face, but the kind of face she made when she was thinking about whether or not that actually sounded good. It wasn’t terrible, so she’d let Adora have that win. Again, she was a merciful She-Ra, and she was having fun - gave her a nostalgic vibe of how things were before the sword came into their lives and turned everything tits up.
A necessary thing, as much as she hated to admit it.
“Sure,” she replied breezily, and used her free hand to poke at the center of her forehead as they trudged along. “It sounds a little dorky coming from you, but I’ll allow it.”
“You’re not exactly not a dork yourself,” Adora retorted, swatting at Catra’s (much bigger) hand with her own. “You think Tinydora’s not a dorky thing to come up with? Because I’ve got news for you – it is.”
Was Adora a little loopy from having her life force drained? Maybe. But she felt like she was just in the best mood. Her adrenaline had settled, but it left her in a very happy, extra-grateful-to-be-alive state of mind.
“Maybe, but it’s cooler when I say it,” Catra snorted and looped that arm around her shoulder to her neck, pulling her in for a glorious noogie. Adora’s face would be squished against the armor over her chest but, hey, she might like that. “I’m the smoother one when it comes to us.”
Darla was coming into view. She could see the gleam of metal from the ship.
Adora smiled up at her adoringly, despite the insult of a noogie. She pulled Catra’s arm back around her shoulders as they approached Darla and said, “I’m not going to argue with that.”
They arrived at the fence surrounding the ship first, and with a gallant flair of a bow, Catra opened up the gate to let her in. The ramp was already down, and Melog was curled up on top of it like they were the first level of security when it came to anything approaching their home.
She shut the latch behind her, but before walking up to Darla –
“Hey, so.” Catra leaned back into the wooden boards, hand behind her back. She had awkward shifty eyes – which didn’t seem to fit her She-Ra form. A flash of gold and a pop of red later, she shrunk down to normal. No armor; no jewelry in her hair or tail. “Thanks? No, I mean. Thanks. For everything. For letting me hijack your life a little bit and being so chill about things.” Her tail whipped around. “I know I probably won’t remember any of this when I go back, but I think I’m going to miss it anyway.”
Having Catra back at a normal height made that thank you all the more impactful. The differences between the Catra before her and her wife were few; there had been moments throughout where, if she pretended enough, it almost seemed like her Catra was still here.
“You don’t have to thank me,” she assured her. But, not wanting to dismiss the sentiment when that whippy tail told her how much it meant, she took hold of Catra’s hands and continued. “I appreciate it, but it was no trouble. Having you here was… good. I won’t forget it, I promise.”
That was an easy promise to keep. She knew this visit would stay with her, that she would keep wondering about this world that was just the opposite of her own. She would hope Catra and Adora of that alternate world would find their way together, too. She had faith that they would, and she hoped even a little bit of that faith clung to Catra when she returned.
Catra was hesitant about touch sometimes. It had nothing to do with not wanting it, but the kiss was a moment of weakness and while Adora freely offered the whole cuddling thing, she didn’t always shoot for that either. The restraint was fucking miraculous, if you asked her.
With her hand in hers, though, she took that small step forward to close the space. Catra tilted her head forward, nosing into her hair – and tentatively brushing her cheek into Adora’s. “When you told me that every version of you–you know,” she referenced, too afraid to let the words loose from her mouth, “it’s the same for me. I hope your wife tells you that. I bet she’s better with words than I am, anyway.”
That was all it took for Adora’s hands to drop and her arms to shift, wrapping around Catra’s shoulders and bringing her in for a hug. Her eyes watered, but she buried her nose in Catra’s hair before she could let any tears fall. She had known accepting a new Catra into her life and having to let her go would sting. But how could she resist?
“You’re better with words than you think.” She let out a small, strained laugh and kissed Catra’s temple. “And you’re an amazing She-Ra. You’re going to kick this war’s ass and get Etheria on the right track.”
Catra didn’t waste hugs. The embrace was as tight as the first one they shared, the first day she arrived – but this one had more confidence than desperation, and she was mindful of the way her fingers dug into her shirt (she’d seen what happened to her back, and that was a tough pill to swallow). “That’s the plan,” she gulped, hooking her chin over Adora’s shoulder.
I love you, she would have said, but she couldn’t; those words hadn’t been said to her Adora yet. It didn’t seem fair. She knew this Adora knew, though. “Save the world,” Catra mumbled, screwing her eyes shut. “And get the idiot girl in the end, I hope.”