#or catra reaching for adora as she declares her love

[lefemmerougewriter]

Miko, High Five, and the Etherian "Glitch"

This is set after season 2 of Glitch Techs and after season 5 of She-Ra. After the first mention, High Five is referred to as “Five.” I never thought I could write over 7,000 words in this story, but somehow, I was able to! I hope you enjoy it, and yes, comments (and suggestions for improvement) are welcome. I rated this Teen and Up because the story is basically a YA story, due to some accidental nudity, cursing, and some other stuff, ha.

Romantic pairings: Miko/Zahra, Entrapta/Hordak, Adora/Catra, Castaspella/Juliet, Ridley/Wrong Hordak, Bow/Glimmer,

Friendships: Ridley & Entrapta, Miko & High Five, Adora & Bow & Catra & Glimmer

Words: 7.4k

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27825937

Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/1254522917-miko-high-five-and-the-etherian-glitch

Characters: Ridley, Miko Kubota, High Five, Phil Altiere, Haneesh, Adora, Catra, Bow, Hordak, Wrong Hordak, Castaspella, Juliet, Entrapta

Summary: Miko and Five have wild adventures on Earth fighting glitches and are alone, this time, on a mission. Getting an alert that something is wrong, a glowing blue inter-dimensional portal sucks them across the plains of spacetime to another world which is thousands, if not millions of light-years across the cosmos. Their high-tech gloves don’t work, and they find a surprising guest who almost destroyed the headquarters of Hinobi not that long ago. How will they survive in this new world full of magic, futuristic technology, and princesses who are in love with each other? Only time will tell how much they can adapt to this world and make new friendships, making the best of a unique situation.

It was like any other day as a glitch tech for Hinobi. For the first time in a while, Miko Kubota and High Five, who went by Hector Nieves in more formal settings, were on a solo mission. Neither Zahra, Haneesh, or their rival-of-sorts, Mitch, would be joining them. The glove-like gauntlets of Miko and High Five beeped simultaneously, belting it out the warning:

“Unknown anomaly detected. Please…”

The message cut off and began scrambling the words that came next, which recommended that they “take appropriate measures.” Miko and Five cautiously exited their van, scanning the area for any glitches. They were both puzzled. Miko vented her frustration as she stamped her foot on the ground repeatedly.

“What in the world?...There’re no glitches here. Probably these dumbass gloves aren’t working correctly, AGAIN.”

Five concurred. Both were walking toward their van when some unknown force pulled them in. In desperation, Miko and Five fired energy blasts from their high-tech gloves. Miko thought that they could handle this problem on their own, while the situation scared Five. He put out a call to headquarters. Unfortunately, only the words “we need” reached the Hinobi headquarters. Their boss Phil Altiere, on duty, eating a messy pizza for lunch. Phil saw Five’s message as routine and ignored it.

The bluish glow enveloped Miko and Five, who lowered their gloves and accepted their fate. They wrapped their arms around each other for support. Both were transported thousands, if not millions, of light-years away across the rocky plains of spacetime to a magical world littered with futuristic technology and inhabited by genderfluid elemental princesses.

The interdimensional portal threw Five and Miko into the air. Instead of hitting the metal platform below, the prehensile lilac-colored hair of a middle-aged woman snarled them from either certain death or extreme injury. She proceeded to place them both on a soft, and plush, couch, almost like she had been expecting them to arrive through the portal. With a big grin on her face, she presented herself to these confused visitors.

“Hey, fellow travelers! I’m Entrapta! You can call me Apta, E, or just Entrapta.”

As Miko and Five continued to be perplexed at what had been through, Entrapta kept talking. She then loudly declared, “welcome to…Etheria!” While they appreciated that she was friendly, bubbly, and had greeted them affectionately, neither trusted her. They stepped off the couch and raised their gloves toward her, demanding that she release them.

“Thanks for welcoming us, but we’d like to go back NOW!” Miko shouted.

Five followed this up, saying, “yeah, ditto what Miko said. Give it up, lady!”

Cowering in fear, Entrapta accepted her death until a cackle pierced the room, which had become still. Miko knew she recognized it from somewhere but couldn’t place it. A geeky teen with huge round glasses and auburn hair stepped out of the shadows. She stood in front of Entrapta, protecting her from any harm. She spoke to them both.

“You two think those fancy gadgets of yours will work? Ha! Jokes on you. That stuff doesn’t work on this world.”

Miko expressed her astonishment at seeing her former friend, a skilled hacker, again, after they had been apart for so long. Still processing it, her words came out somewhat jumbled:

“Ridley…here…now?”

She nodded in response.

While Five was skeptical of Ridley’s claims about their high-tech gloves, Miko thought that she might be right. Turning her glove away from Entrapta, she aimed it at the wall. She pressed a button and covered her eyes. Her gadget belted out words which confirmed what Ridley had told her and Five only a few minutes earlier:

“Error. Device Inoperable. Error.”

Five sighed. He remained wary of this woman who called herself Entrapta and even more so of Ridley after what she had done at Hinobi headquarters. He tried out his glove in the same way. It gave him the same message, which completely baffled him. His face flushed a little. He feared that Miko would interpret his actions as meaning that he didn’t believe her, so he spurted out something to throw off any possible “suspicion”:

“We are totally fine, partner! Everything will be ok!”

His words, followed by finger bangs, confused Miko to no end. Not only did she have no idea what he meant, but the word “partner” made her nervous. She remembered that Zahra, about 17-years-old, had wanted her to explain what type of partner Five was to her, with the implication of possible romantic affection between them. She found such a thought absurd. Her and Five as lovers? They were friends, and nothing more, plain, and simple. She wondered if Five thought the same way about her and if Zahra had a crush on him.

She reached out for Five and patted him on the back. She tried to reassure him that everything would be fine, despite the circumstances both found themselves in.

“Yeah, it will…bud.”

She breathed deeply and then explained the next part in a soft voice.

“We are going to be here for a while, so let’s take it all in…then, we can go home.”

Entrapta saw it all differently. She carefully placed Miko and Five on the couch. When both had pointed their high-tech gloves at her, she thought it was all over. She remained forever thankful of Ridley for protecting her. While Miko and Five were unsure what to think of her, but she also remained wary of them. Just as she began to open her mouth, Ridley piped in. She rolled her eyes, declaring that she had been right all along.

“Ha! I told you both. I’ll take you…”

Entrapta abruptly interrupted her and produced an excuse to pull Miko and Five away.

“Rid-ley, it's ok. I’ll take them around with my…uh…partner. You can join us later if you want.”

Ridley nodded. While she wanted to go around with Five and Miko, she thought that Entrapta would be better suited to take them across the planet, and she had some technology tinkering to do. Entrapta had become her good friend. At first, Entrapta saw her with intense interest when she accidentally arrived in Etheria because of one of an experiment gone wrong. At the time, she desperately tried to go back, but Entrapta had calmed her down. Over time they became good friends, and Ridley appreciated Entrapta's partner. In her former world, Hordak would have been described as Entrapta’s boyfriend. People on Etheria used terms like “partner,” “lover,” or any word which would accurately describe a relationship between two or beings of any gender. She had an attraction toward technology, and she loved tinkering with it, as did Entrapta.

Ridley winked at Entrapta and waved to Miko and Five as they left the laboratory in Dryl. Entrapta had moved back there after the Fright Zone had become overgrown with plants following the defeat of Horde Prime and the Horde as a whole by Catra and Adora, and the rest of the Rebellion. Entrapta brought Miko and Five close and spoke to them with a whisper.

“Would you two like to be surprised?”

Miko and Five, seeing the drab conditions of Dryl, hoped that the surprise would be better than where they currently were, underground in a laboratory.

Although Entrapta had Swift Wind on speed dial, she did not like him much. She saw him as extremely annoying as a being usually couldn't speak its mind in the same language as a person like her. She preferred her now-lifelong partner, Hordak. Some, like Adora, Glimmer, and Bow, accepted her newfound relationship, while others, such as Mica, Mermista, and Frosta, were skeptical because Hordak committed countless crimes as the commander of the Horde. No matter what they thought, he had committed himself to her. Every day, he tried to make up for his past actions which had maimed, killed or destroyed the lives of countless others. She-Ra had removed his evilness, but the memories of what he did continued to haunt him every day. He experienced trauma, just as Catra and Adora did, along with most, if not all, of those involved in the fight against the Horde.

To get to the surface, all three traveled through a huge pneumatic tube like a bullet screaming out of a rifle, which scared the willies out of Miko and Five, but Entrapta enjoyed it intensely. Still recovering from that experience, Entrapta covered their eyes. She ripped off a camouflage cloth which had concealed a huge spaceship from any onlookers. When she saw Hordak sleeping inside, it made her uneasy. He was supposed to be in the Fright Zone with other Hordaks from the Velvet Glove, dismantling it so that the area could be put to better use, part of the rehabilitation of the planet. This would include constructing homes for Scorpia and her people, who had been forced from their land by the Horde years ago. She quickly removed her hair from the eyes of Miko and Five, then reformed her hair into a hand that pointed to the ship’s cockpit. She went ahead and the words, “…and that’s my partner, Hordak,” followed.

Five grinned while Miko looked at the ship with glee.

“This is mega cool. It’s like something I’d see in a video game.”

Entrapta responded with complete bewilderment, saying, “video…game?” Miko then patted her on the back and softly spoke in her air. She told her that she would explain it later.

In what seemed like seconds, they entered the gigantic grayish ship, which Entrapta affectionately named “Darla.” She happily showed them around the controls. The ship had once belonged to the earlier She-Ra, Mara. Every time she was inside, the craft’s technological capabilities fascinated her. Pulling a lever, the craft tilted upward and sped ahead at a supersonic rate. Miko and Five gazed out the window, completely terrified, while Entrapta enjoyed herself, happily chuckling, while she cuddled Hordak. The heads of Miko and Five spinning, the ship touched down outside Bright Moon, which sparkled in the sunlight. Stepping outside, Miko stared in awe at the castle and its surroundings, forgetting about the time in the spacecraft which had brought them there. As all four of them walked up to the castle, her eyes wide with excitement, she jabbed Five in the side and chattered to him about a game she had played years ago.

“Hey, doesn’t this remind you of Magical Princess Castle Adventure: Moon Capture? It’s almost like someone came here and copied this castle exactly!”

Five bowed his head in agreement and had a slight smile. He never played the game but did not want to admit it. Instead, he lied, declaring “yeah, I remember that one…it was hella cool…you know, it had…that castle.” She wanted to talk to him more about the video game, but that would not happen. Two Bright Moon guards at the base of the Moonstone spire, stopped them in their tracks. They demanded to know their business in the kingdom, serving as the de facto center of the planet which helped the populace of Bright Moon and the other six kingdoms on Etheria. Rumors had circulated that the Princesses had delegated more of their power to the population and only served in truly ceremonial roles, other than fighting off possible threats and helping to rebuild the world after the destruction wrought in the fight with the Horde. But the reality of the situation was different.

“Who are you and why are you here?”

Entrapta let out a cackle, picking up the guards with her hair, and threw them into the water nearby. The guards gazed up at her and recognized her at once. They bowed, even as their clothes were completely soaked, and said softly, “you may proceed, Princess Entrapta. Sorry for the inconvenience. You and your guests are welcome here.” Entrapta glowered at them for impeding her travel to Castle Bright Moon and for calling her a “princess.” She hated that word and all the royal trappings associated with it. As they continued across the causeway, a familiar face greeted them. He mentioned toward them and told them to come inside. His curly brown hair in an afro buzz captivated Miko, while his medium brown skin sparkled from the light bouncing off the Moonstone and surrounding water. Walking them through the castle’s hallways, he gleefully introduced himself to Miko and Five.

“Hi, I’m Bow. What’s your names? I’ve never seen either of you…ever before…And what’s up with those clothes?” he said, pointing to their Hinobi uniforms.

Five wanted to explain everything, but Miko beat him to the punch. She cleared her throat and began telling him what had occurred. “So, we work for a company that gets rid of video game glitches which manifest in real life and we were pulled into this blue portal thing, which brought us to this planet…and so yeah, that’s basically it, man.” Bow acted like he knew what they meant, even though what they told him did not make a lick of sense even to someone as smart as him. Even so, he recognized that their current outfits would lead to a lot of unnecessary questions. He pointed them to a spare room and recommended they change into something more comfortable.

One at a time, they entered the room, changing into their normal clothing. For Miko, this was a black tank top covered with a yellow t-shirt with a cat in the middle, a blue hoodie about her waist, black tights, red-and-white socks, an orange wristband, and blue sneakers, all of which were somehow stored in her high-tech glove. Five, in contrast, wore a green t-shirt, with a game controller in the middle, atop a black undershirt, grey pants, and sneakers with light and dark grey parts. After both had changed, Bow chuckled and shook his head, remarking, “well, this should be fun.” He banged his hand on the door in the hallway which had “Catradora room” in beautifully written script taped on a piece of paper. A message below it, written in the same handwriting, stated “Knock before entering…if you dare.” He heard a voice shout back “come in!” Bow gingerly opened the door. Entrapta, Hordak, Miko, and Five all came in at the same time. Catra, Adora, and Glimmer were playing a game. If Miko and Five had played it in the human world, it would have been called “Spoons.” On Etheria, people called it “Sparkle” because all the items you had to grab during the game “sparkled” in the light. All three were caught off guard not by Entrapta or Hordak, who they had seen from time to time after the defeat of Horde Prime a few months prior, but by Miko and Five. Glimmer looked at Miko’s hair with amazement. She had never seen someone who had such long purple hair with pink tips. It somewhat resembled her hair, pastel pink on top and sparkling purple underneath, but was different. Similarly, Adora loved the color of Five’s puffy hair which had a galaxy purple hue. Catra adored the cute black winking cat on Miko’s shirt, which had one eye open and the other closed.

To break the ice, Adora giggled, and turned to Miko and Five, proclaiming, “you wanna see something cool?” Catra shook her head, muttering under her breath. She knew exactly what Adora had planned when she summoned a giant sword that had a golden hilt, a turquoise-colored opal, and a light blue blade. She shouted, “for the honor of gayskull!” and transformed into an eight-foot-tall warrior who radiated across the room. While this impressed Five, Miko became entranced, with the feeling that she was staring at a goddess from a video game.

Catra inched closer to Adora, now in the form of She-Ra, whispered that she had said “gayskull,” not “greyskull.” Her cheeks turned a rosy red, as she nervously tried to defend herself. In the process, she tripped and fell backward. Catra rushed in to catch her, but Miko happened to be there, causing Adora to fall into her arms. She chuckled uneasily and set Adora, who came back to her normal self, onto the ground while admiring her. Still somewhat flustered, Adora explained everything, preempting any questions from Miko or Five.

“Hold your questions…let me explain what happened. This sword changed me into a magical warrior named She-Ra who is set to fight evil, I guess…it all started when I found the sword in the Whispering Woods…and the rest is history…The last time I transformed…”

Catra cut her off and continued the thought. “…was when we kissed each other. We had to, in order to save everyone...and everything, ya know.”

Affectionately, Miko looked at them both with big eyes, adding, “Aw. So, love that saved the world…or universe…or whatever?”

Apprehensive, Catra started to say “well, I wouldn’t call it that…,” Adora jumped in and said, “yes! That’s exactly what it!” Catra moaned, not liking to be as open about her feelings. Even so, she accepted Adora’s explanation, since she knew that she had told the story correctly, although she did not like making their relationship that public. Since the fall of the Horde and the beginning of de-Hordeification on Etheria, they had enjoyed each other’s company, going on occasional frolics through the Whispering Woods and other parts of the planet. Sometimes when they passed nearby a town, Adora would shout the loudest she could “I LOVE MY CAT GIRLFRIEND! SHE’S CATRIFIC!,” humiliating Catra every time.

While Catra and Adora chattered away, Entrapta sat in the corner furiously taking notes with Hordak beside her. It would serve as the beginning to her new story, which she titled “Catra, Adora, and fangs of love.” Although she continued to work on her social skills, she did not mind watching social interactions from afar and poured herself into these silly stories she came up with, often on the spot. She then planned to distribute them in book format to all those across the planet, even as she continued to determine how she would complete this goal.

Adora saw that Catra was uncomfortable, so she quickly thought up something to “solve” the situation. She also wanted to know their new guests better. Catra, on the other hand, remained wary of Miko and Five, something that she and Entrapta could agree on, despite their outgoing nature. She suggested traveling to Mystacor, an idea that made Catra roll her eyes. Adora inched closer to Catra and spoke softly in her ear, “it’s ok, CAT-RA. It will be fine. You can trust me.” Adora’s words calmed her down and she agreed to follow along, surprising Bow and Glimmer at the quickness of her concurrence with Adora’s judgment.

In what seemed like an instant later, Adora, Catra, Glimmer, and Bow crammed into Darla, grumbling as they did so. Unlike the previous time, Miko and Five found seats, as did Hordak. Once everyone had come inside, she shouted, “Is everyone ready?...LET’S GO!” They nodded in agreement and she pressed a button, throttling the craft forward at a breakneck pace. As Catra shrieked, Adora comforted her, while an exasperated Five bellowed: “Oh Nerds!” No one understood his catchphrase and looked at him, perplexed. But Miko knew. She patted him on the back, murmuring to him, “it’s ok, Cap. I get you.”

The ship lurched to a sudden stop, with everyone, apart from Entrapta and Hordak, thrown forward. Sheepishly, Entrapta apologized, while pressing a button which opened the landing ramp. Annoyed and complaining about their journey, these thoughts soon faded away. They saw General Juliet and Castaspella, called Casta or Aunt Casta for short, who greeted them with open arms. Glimmer embraced these two lovers as did Adora, while Bow, Catra, Miko, and Five stood at the side. After their hugging ended, Casta walked with a pep in her step toward Miko and Five, excited to see new people. Even though she had become accustomed to Glimmer’s purple and pink hair, originally detesting the colors, Miko’s purple hair with pink tips left her spellbound like nothing else, with her eyes open wide with wonder.

All of them walked together across Mystacor, visiting the sites, whether the steam grottos, the cloud beaches, or any other areas of relaxation. Hordak and Entrapta stayed by the ship, tinkering with technology. This is because Casta had not warmed up to Hordak yet. Even seeing him haunted her with the awful deeds the Horde had committed across Etheria and remembering the time she saw Hordak as a little girl attacking sorcerers. She could not forgive him for his war crimes. He had atoned in some ways. But no trial had occurred, not for him nor for anyone formerly part of the Horde. With the defeat of the Horde, the Princess Alliance had become defunct, as had the Rebellion. It had become part of a new amalgamation that had named itself the Royal Authority Group or RAG. Afterward, a “truth and reconciliation” approach had been adopted, meaning that a commission to discover and reveal wrongdoing by the Horde in hope of resolving any remaining conflict had been created. This proposal had caused much division. While Entrapta, Adora, Catra, Glimmer, Scorpia, Swift Wind, Huntara, Micah, and Perfuma favored this approach, Mermista, Frosta, Casta, Netossa, and Spinnerella did not. Neither did General Juliet and Sea Hawk. This meant that the proposal for truth and reconciliation passed 9-7, with Melog, Emily, and Wrong Hordak as non-voting members.

Although Entrapta could have easily walked around Mystacor, bringing Hordak into the mix could have engendered further tensions, so she stayed by her ship with her partner, while some of the citizenry snarled. They were not ready to accept members of an organization that had destroyed so much of the planet and almost destroyed Mystacor itself, although the latter had been Shadow Weaver's doing, not the Horde. Catra and Entrapta were treated differently because Entrapta continued to develop technical systems that interconnected each of the kingdoms, working to undo the damage she had done. As for Catra, she remained Adora’s girlfriend and tried to do some of the same, working to make the planet a better place. Some held resentments against both, but more against Hordak and the Horde as a general entity.

Miko and Five relaxed in the steam grotto alongside Glimmer and Bow, while Catra and Adora were nearby, in their own grotto together. Casta and Juliet had gone off to the main chambers of the former citadel and current center of Mystacor. Even in all the time Miko and Five had spent on Earth, nothing could compare to this experience. Miko began posing a series of questions to Glimmer as she remained enthralled by this entire world.

“So, like can you use magic? I mean, Adora showed us her transformation into She-Ra earlier.”

Glimmer chuckled. “Yeah, I can and I’m AWESOME at it! Wanna see?” Bow shook his head and hoped she wouldn’t show off her magic to a stranger. He tried to warn her not to and that something bad would ensue. She didn’t listen to his advice. Stepping out of the steam grotto and overconfident, her towel snagged on a rock and pulled off her body. She teleported nearby and stood in front of them, shouting “ta-da!” Miko acknowledged her, then looked at her in horror. Not even 16, the same age as Five, she had never seen a nude female body other than her own. Catra guffawed while Bow shook his head once more, while Adora hollered loudly. “Glimmer, YOU’RE NAKED! Get some damn clothes on!” Scrambling, Glimmer rushed to cover herself, nervous to expose herself in front of strangers. She then began muttering a response as she slunk back into the grotto with Bow.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean for that to happen…I apologize for anything…”

Miko interrupted her. “…I just had never seen someone without clothes on…it was kinda a bit of a shock to be honest.” Glimmer began crying and continued. “Again, I’m sorry…” About to say something more, Catra interjected with her thoughts. “Sparkles, you don’t need to worry about it…I’ve seen Adora naked a bunch of times and it doesn’t bother me. You should be comfortable with your body.” Glimmer agreed and wiped the tears off her face. For Bow, however, Catra’s comment got him thinking. He then had a realization: had Catra and Adora done the “dirty deed”?

“Uh, Catra, you’ve seen Adora naked? Like when? And what did you do?...did you do the…”

Adora, whose cheeks became as red as a stoplight, struggled to find words to respond to Bow. She did not expect such a question. She was, secretly, a little angry at Catra for mentioning it, although she couldn’t blame her. Waving her arms wildly she tried to set the record straight about their relations, even though it wouldn't clarify anything.

“It…was nothing! We sleep together from time to time…and cuddle…none of that dirty stuff…we aren’t about that thing…all people who love each other do these things, right?”

Bow, just as uncomfortable, did not know what to say, so he accepted her response, although it seemed like a form of evasion. Catra, for her part, did not want to undermine Adora, even as it annoyed her that Adora had downplayed their relationship. As they chattered away, Casta came running toward them, telling them that lunch was about to be served in the former citadel. With everyone acknowledging her, she returned to prepare the table for the meal. Complaining profusely, each person put their clothes back on after drying themselves off with the complimentary towels. They did so in such a way that no one would be uncomfortable at seeing someone else naked in front of them.

A short time later, Adora, Bow, Catra, Glimmer, Miko, and Five all gathered around a medium-sized dining room table, with Casta and Juliet sitting at opposite ends like they were at the “heads” of the table. Each of them ate happily, devouring the food in front of them. Everyone was so caught up in eating, that no conversation ensued. Just as soon as Casta wanted to begin talking about something, she looked up and everyone had left, going their separate ways. Juliet sighed and moved closer to Casta, as magic assistants took away the dishes so they could be cleaned using various spells. She tried to be as frank as she could.

“Those kids. I really wanted to ask them some more questions, especially that girl and guy…I have never seen them around here.”

Casta silently agreed. Awkwardly cracking a smile, she gave her observations.

“Glimmer has grown up so much from the last time I saw her…and that boy, Bow, is nice too. I’m still coming around to Catra…but I am glad that Adora has someone who loves her…she needs that after everything she is been through…and…I’m glad we have each other.”

Juliet’s caramel tan cheeks turned a lighter brown, jesting Casta, shouting, as she tickled her, “Oh, stop that, you!” Giggling a little, she leaned in closer, and told Casta in a soft voice, “I’m glad we are both here, together…we can enjoy our lives now that the war has ended.”

Glimmer, Bow, Catra, Adora, Miko, and Five all hid behind the double-doors leading into the room, watching this all unfold. Bow only went along with this plan because he felt obligated to so, like Five. Even so, neither left, even though this sort of spying wasn’t their style. Catra, Glimmer, Adora, and Miko were like giddy schoolgirls, watching this unfold, liking the intrigue. Then, something changed. The faces of Juliet and Casta came closer together and their lips met. Glimmer’s face went from its usual tan appearance to a darker skin tone. The doors flew open, and she tumbled onto the ground, as did Adora, Catra, and Miko, as the human pyramid which all of them constructed came crumbling down. Casta and Juliet looked at all five of them with interest, then burst out laughing. Both came over to Glimmer, who stared into space and mortified that her aunt would be kissing someone in front of her friends. Casta spoke to her.

“Oh, so you were watching us through that doorway, were you now? You could have just asked if we were together…instead of hiding, Glimmer.”

Stuttering a little, Glimmer inched forward while the rest of her compatriots remained on the ground. “I-I-I just didn’t think you…were…like that, Aunt Casta.”

She let out a hearty chuckle. “Oh, Glimmer, I’m so much more than you could ever imagine…I can love people too, you know…”

Glimmer’s face flushed with blood and warmer than usual. She continued to attempt a cogent argument but stumbled over her own words repeatedly, even stuttering a little. “I-it-s just embarrassing with all these guests here…”

Seeing that the emotional state of her niece in shambles, she began to open her mouth to say something. Suddenly, Adora interceded. “So, Castaspella, how you’d both get together…Mystacor isn’t near Bright Moon…so how’d this beautiful romance begin?”

After getting permission from Casta, Juliet answered the question instead. Clearing her throat, she began the story. “Well, in the aftermath of the Horde Prime’s defeat, there was a big feast in Bright Moon. She came there on business and I heard about a dance party...”

The sounds of their voices faded away as Casta, Juliet, and Adora chattered away. Catra tried to slip away, but Adora held her arm tightly. She rolled her eyes. She agreed to stay only because she loved Adora and didn't want to disappoint her. Somehow, Miko, Five, Glimmer, and Bow left, with Glimmer relieved. Soon thereafter, her mind became filled with images of Juliet and Casta smooching each other over and over in the most sexual way possible, while wearing skimpy outfits. She began yelling, running away the fastest speed she could muster. Bow cried out, shouting “wait, Glimmer, wait!” but she ignored his pleas. Having been to Mystacor in the past, he guessed where she would be. Prior to searching for her, he checked to ensure that Miko and Five were ok with coming along.

“So do you both want to join me in this search…or chase I guess…for my girlfriend…I mean partner…or go to Entrapta and her partner?…either one works for me.”

Miko answered in the affirmative. “Yeah, sure, that’s fine with me, how about you, Five?”

He whispered back, “whatever…anything to get away from that PDA in the dining room…I’m just not there with my love life.”

As they walked slowly to Glimmer’s secret hiding place, somewhere that only Bow knew about, he raised his eyebrows. He had no idea what this “PDA” thing meant…

“PDA…what’s that?”

Miko giggled a little, saying in a soft voice, “personal display of affection.”

Bow understood. He didn’t see it as a negative thing. He told them casually, “oh yeah, Glimmer and I express our personal affections, as you call it, for each other all the time, although we aren’t as direct as her Auntie and Juliet were in that room…all the time.”

Despite the fact she had expressed interest in how Adora and Catra had gotten together, his response horrified Miko. She moved her head from side to side, only speaking one word “…right” with a heavy dose of sarcasm in an attempt to push it off. There were many possible reasons for this response. For years upon years, she had channeled many of her emotions into video games, and perhaps the prospect of someone loving her like that scared her, as she saw everyone as friends, not potential romantic partners, or people to have crushes on.

Bow, Miko, and Five had finally reached their destination: Aunt Casta’s private library and study. Glimmer had come here many times in the past, bored by the antics between her late mom and Casta. She had come there as a solace, to calm herself down after seeing Casta and Juliet smooching, giving her visions which, she never wanted to see. Standing by the door, Bow saw Glimmer meditating near the stacks, sitting near the wide and he approached carefully, then announced himself so his presence wouldn’t surprise her.

“Glimmer, are you ok? I came here to make sure you are fine and all…we can leave now if you’d like…there’s no reason to see Juliet or Casta again.”

Breathing deeply, she rushed over to Bow and hugged him. Tears began streaming down her face. He put his arms around her as well and gave her a peck on the head, with her cheeks becoming warm, turning a little darker in its complexion. Together, and holding hands, Glimmer and Bow left this secret hiding place and headed back to the ship, with Miko and Five in tow. Their visit in Mystacor had come to an end, none too soon for Glimmer.

Sometime later, they came to a nearby area which served as a makeshift landing pad for ships like the one that Hordak and Entrapta flew in across Etheria. Other ships were currently being constructed from old Horde technology in order to create free air travel from place to place, with Mystacor serving as one of the future hubs of such travelers. Some people who had formerly been Horde soldiers were part of the construction, while a truth and reconciliation commission, for all the crimes committed by the Horde, continued. The records of each proceeding were recorded by hand by a robotic scribe, along with video and audio files through various devices put in place by Bow. Each of these records would be deposited in an archives under construction in Bright Moon, thought to be the center of Etheria itself. While the specifics of who would work in the archives had not been fully determined, it appeared that George and Lance would offer their services in a support role as historians and collectors of information, along with Bow, assisting archivists working at the facility. The records from the family library curated by George and Lance would likely form part of the collection, as would accounts of battles against the Horde, oral history interviews, and transcripts from the commission. Unlike a library, however, the records would not be organized by subject matter or by topic. Rather, they would be kept in the original order set by the person or organization who had created the record in the first place, with these records assembled in a hierarchical fashion. Each collection of records became a record group, then subdivided into series and files, with the records arranged so they could be useful and accessible, with original order occasionally disregarded if the archivists deemed it necessary. This all happened after archival appraisal of the records themselves had occurred. The records could be of any form, whether paper, digital or moving pictures. Most were paper because Etheria did not have an internet. Currently, a pilot intranet program named Aptanet, a system created by Entrapta, only remained available within some of the kingdoms. As the archives was only in its first stages, no records schedules had been established. Perhaps, in the future that would be added as a way to ensure that records were processed efficiently and effectively, allowing for access to all the records by Etherian citizens, no matter the kingdom they resided, accompanied by the appropriate description and necessary other archival tasks.

On the landing pad, or what appeared to be one, Entrapta and Hordak sat outside the ship, with Catra and Adora nearby. They happily greeted an approaching Miko, Five, Glimmer, and Bow, with grins on their faces. No one discussed Casta and Juliet smooching, even though they all saw it, apart from Entrapta and Hordak, as they just played a game of Rummy, named Ethumy on this planet for some unknown reason. Both enjoyed each other’s company. Everyone quickly filed inside. Soon thereafter Entrapta, while holding Hordak’s hand tightly, bellowed, “get, ready, set….GO!...” Darla flew forward at an incredible velocity, even quicker than previously, causing Miko to shriek like she had the last time, with Five comforting her. At the same time, Bow, Glimmer, Adora, and Catra were a little terrified but were able to get through it as they all hugged each other so that no one would be alone.

Without warning, the ship came to a stop near Bright Moon, hovering in the air. Since Entrapta didn’t see a safe place to land Darla, this seemed like the only safe option. Glimmer griped but knew what she had to do. She grabbed the arms of Adora, Catra, and Bow, readying themselves to wish the unexpected guests on Etheria goodbye. Miko stopped Glimmer in her tracks with a “wonderful idea”: taking a selfie with her newfound friends, so she could have something to remember them by. Bow, Glimmer, Catra, and Adora agreed, even though they had never taken a selfie. Five decided to join in too. All five of them squeezed together, cheery, and having a jolly time. After they were finished, Bow took out his tracker pad. It resembled what Miko and Five would call a tablet in their world. He set a timer, and all five of them moved to the other side of the craft, beamed, and the tracker pad snapped a picture. Before leaving, Bow checked the picture and satisfied with it, whispered to Glimmer, “ok, let’s go.” Glimmer, Bow, Adora, and Catra all said their goodbyes. Then, they disappeared into thin air, teleporting into the halls of the Bright Moon Castle.

Miko and Five were sad to see their new friends leave but knew they had to get back to Earth, since their families and lives were there. Darla expeditiously reached Dryl, touching down in the courtyard, on top of a pad that Entrapta had designed. She quickly motioned them to leave the ship, which she covered with a net that made it invisible so Darla wouldn’t be stolen. She snickered and turned to them, saying “pretty neat, huh?” Miko and Five nodded their heads. Hordak decided to come down to the laboratory with them this time. He firmly clasped Entrapta’s right hand. All four of them descended underground in an elevator, which Entrapta, of course, had installed. Ridley, still distracted by some former Horde technology, which she loved tinkering with, waved nonchalantly in their direction. She remarked, “oh, you all are back. That’s nice.” Miko approached her and asked, “Ridley, are you sure you don’t want to come with us?...back to Earth?” Ridley let out a loud belly-laugh. “Go back? Ha! I’d never go back to that wretched planet. I can start anew here without all that baggage. I can work with cool technology that no one on Earth would ever dream about.” She followed this, adding, “yeah and there's no cops who want to bust me here.” She then blushed a little, her cheeks becoming as red as ripe strawberries, followed by the words, “and…I have a boyfriend.” These words took Miko aback. She never expected Ridley, of all people, to be the romantic type. Puzzled, she decided to probe a little more with her questioning. “WHO!?” Ridley pointed to Wrong Hordak, standing nearby, and working on the same project as her. Sheepishly, she replied, “I call him WH for Wrong Hordak, a name some people gave him in the past, and he likes that.” She bellowed across the room, “Hey, WH, say hello to our guests, Miko and Five!” WH spun about, smiled, and gave them a thumbs-up. Neither Miko nor Five knew what to make of this gesture, so they nervously grinned back.

Somehow, during their brief time on Etheria, the portal remained open. Since it hadn’t acted as wildly as the one Catra had opened all that time ago, items from Etheria were not pulled inside. Entrapta shook their hands, as did Hordak, both wishing them well. WH and Ridley did the same. Prior to stepping through the portal and returning to Earth, Entrapta handed Miko a pen with her name engraved in the side. She bowed her head and said in a soft voice that it would be her present to them. Miko and Five, about to step inside the portal, gave their farewells. Miko spoke first. “Bye Entrapta, Hordak, WH, and Ridley…it was a pleasure meeting all of you, some for the first time and others…again.” Five followed this up by saying, “I hope to see you all sometime soon.” Both bowed and turned their backs, saying one line in unison: “Just in case I don’t see you, good morning, good evening, and good night!” As they entered the portal, Miko and Five were sent through the plains of spacetime at an alarming rate that it would have boggled their minds to stop and think about it. Before they knew it, the portal spit them out onto the asphalt pavement, right next to their van. Seconds later, Haneesh and Zahra came running toward them. Zahra sat down on the road's surface and came to Miko’s side, then spoke to both of them. “Hey, Miko…and Five, are you ok?”

Both nodded their heads, giving her the sign that they were fine. Zahra moved in and gave Miko a peck on the cheek as a friendly greeting. Remembering what she had seen that day, between the head kiss by Bow on Glimmer’s forehead, the intense kiss between Juliet and Casta, and description of Catra and Adora’s kiss, Entrapta and Hordak holding hands, she immediately thought that this kiss meant that Zahra loved her romantically. In fact, it was a custom for those in the Arab world, especially among Muslims like Zahra, to kiss friends and family on the cheek as a greeting. Whether Zahra had feelings for Miko remained to be seen, although she likely did. Miko scrambled up from the ground, still in a bit of pain, and somehow sprinted into the distance, her face becoming warmer and warmer, the more she thought about the interaction. Five shook his head, while Zahra had no idea what had riled up Miko so much, and neither did Haneesh. She explained to Five that a cheek kiss was a tradition to greet people. Five told her, “yeah I think she knows that, but that’s not what this is about.” He paused. “I’ll tell you about it later when we make a report to Hinobi about our…unusual experience today.” That satisfied Zahra and Haneesh, who got back in the van to chase down Miko, so they could all go back to headquarters together.

All four of them reached headquarters, with Five and Miko explaining their story to their boss, Phil, who thought that they had lost it, as anyone who heard their wild story would think. He told them to turn in their high-tech gloves and to go home for the rest of the day to clear their heads. Off in a huff, Miko and Five returned to their respective homes. Haneesh and Zahra hadn’t heard the story about their day yet, but they would soon enough. Miko, exhausted from the day’s ordeal, laid down on her bed, putting the pen Entrapta gave her on a bedside table. She instantly fell asleep. As she rested, the pen transformed into a small robot that looked like a grasshopper. It cut a hole in the window screen and began scaling the side of the house, and soon reached the slate roof. Once there, the robot changed form once more and began emitting a high-frequency radio wave beam. This energy wave was so powerful that not even the most advanced satellites orbiting the Earth could pick it up. The beam barely reached a dormant beacon, which sent the message speedily onward from beacon to beacon through space, until it reached the one orbiting Etheria, which transmitted the message to the planet’s surface. Working late at night, as usual, the middle-aged woman heard a loud beeping noise from one of her monitors. Yawning, and drinking some home-brewed tea, the screens illuminated her face, revealing her to be none other than Entrapta. She walked toward the screen and snickered. “Good…everything is going according to plan.”

*****

Notes: I used pages for “Mara’s Ship,” “Glimmer,” “Juliet,” “Castaspella,” and “Bow” on the She-Ra fandom site, the “Miko,” “Zahra,” “Haneesh,” and “High Five” pages on the Glitch Techs fandom site. As I wanted to incorporate archives into this story, I summarized Samantha Thompson’s post, “How do archivists organize collections” (https://peelarchivesblog.com/2015/08/26/how-do-archivists-organize-collections/) and incorporated it into this story. As Stephanie Greenhut wrote in NARA’s Education Updates blog (https://education.blogs.archives.gov/2013/04/08/intro-to-national-archives/), for NARA, “archival records are filed in whatever system each contributing agency thought was best for their day to day business.” For this post, I used information from NARA’s Federal Records Management page (https://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/scheduling/id, https://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/scheduling/inventory-elements), the starting guide for Access to Archival Databases (AAD) (https://aad.archives.gov/aad/help/getting-started-guide.html). For the final part of the story about the cheek kiss by Zahra on Miko’s cheek, I used Lindsey Shapka’s article “To Kiss Or Not To Kiss? Your Guide To Cheek Kissing Etiquette” in The Anthrotorian, the Cheek kissing Wikipedia page, Julia Jahanpour’s “8 Ways the Arab Cheek Kiss Can Get Awkward,” “Greet Like a Local: Deciphering the Complicated Culture of Greetings” on EasyExpat.com, and Roger Friedland and Janet Afary’s “The Politics of a Kiss: Islam and Intimate Life in Turkey” in HuffPost. The line “Just in case I don’t see you, good morning, good evening, and good night!” is very close to the one in one of my favorite films. Anyone want to guess which one?

#spop fics #spop #glitch techs #glitch techs fics #libraries #magic #ptsd #trauma #yuri #romance #fanfics #fanfiction #read on ao3 #ao3 #wattpad #Castaliet #catradora #ashly burch #lgbtq #entrapta #ridley glitch techs

[vickysaurus]

Catradora + heights.

#spop #she-ra and the princesses of power #catradora #catra #adora #cw: depths #cw: falling #and i didn't even include their look-out over the horde #adora falling from the skiff #or catra reaching for adora as she declares her love

[kittyprincessofcats]

I finished playing Ace Attorney: Justice for All today and holy shit... that last case had me at the edge of my seat, I’ll tell you that.

Spoilers under the cut!

The entire final part was amazing. Franziska finally bursting through the door was the triumphant moment I’d been waiting for (because I really felt like I was about to lose it with how much I had to drag that trial out until then; and I kept saying that either Franzi, or Gumshoe, or Maya will have to have a dramatic entrance and save us).

Speaking of Franziska von Karma, I can’t wait to see what character development might be in store for her in the future. I said from the beginning that there must be more to her than it first seems (like there was with Edgeworth) and it seems like that’s the case.

I also really loved the character of Adrian Andrews. When she finally smiled in court in the end, I literally started to cry, no joke. (Also she’s gay AF, I don’t make the rules. What happened to Celeste hurt her so much because she was in love with her. And when she had that speech about “finally accepting herself”... Yeah, that woman’s gay.) I also definitely ship Adrian with Franziska, because Adrian really seemed to believe Franziska and she said in the end that Franzi reached out to her and... yeah.

Speaking of ships... I’m really into Wrightworth, holy shit. I mean, I already was after the first game, but this game gave them even more shippy moments! And then Phoenix brought up the stuff from their childhood again and... Look, I have a weakness for childhood friends to enemies to lovers (and just regular enemies to lovers), okay? It’s THE superior ship dynamic and it’s why I’ve had Catradora brainrot for two years now.

That part in the end where Phoenix was like “words aren’t enough, I have to show him my feelings differently” - obviously the game wants you to present evidence, but I was just like “Yes, kiss him.”

(I really want to write a Catradora Ace Attorney AU with Adora as Phoenix and Catra as Edgeworth someday. Glimmer and Bow would share Maya’s role (with maybe Frosta as Pearl?), Horde Prime would be Manfred von Karma, Scorpia would be Gumshoe, Angella would fit Mia and... maybe Shadow Weaver as Morgan Fey?)

I also think Maya really deserves a break after everything she’s been through. Losing her sister, getting accused of murder (twice), finding out her aunt was conspiring against her, then getting kidnapped and starved... give that girl a break, please.

It was nice to see Edgeworth so concerned about Maya as well. I really need them to be friends. (The reason I hated Edgeworth in the beginning of the first game was because he was trying to get Maya declared guilty, so having him now help save her was good closure on that.)

I’m really caught up in the last case right now, but I’ve got to say I also really loved the second one. The whole mystery air of Kurain village was just my vibe, I love that I figured out the plot-twist on this one, and Mimi Miney was an amazing character and the only one of the real killers so far that I felt genuinely bad for.

The whole circus case was weird, though.

[EDIT: Oh yeah also, one thing I forgot: The funniest moment in the entire game was when Phoenix asked De Killer what his fee is and the judge thought Phoenix was planning to kill him. I was laughing so hard 😂.]

#Ace Attorney #Ace Attorney: Justice for All #Farewell my Turnabout #Wrightworth #Franziska von Karma #Adrian Andrews #Phoenix Wright #Miles Edgeworth #Maya Fey #again: DO NOT leave spoilers for any of the future games on this I will block you

[shera-dnd]

A Dream Come True

It’s finally here! The fic and comic you’ve all been waiting for! And it’s all catradora fluff as far as the eye can see.

I wanna thank my good friend @midnightechoes for her amazing work on the comic and to all the people who donated and helped us reach our 200 dollar goal.

And without any further delay, here’s the AO3 link (comic included) for those who’d rather read over there, and let’s get this nonsense going

Today was a big day for Etheria. It was the first Princess Prom since the fall of Prime, the first Princess Prom in many years to be celebrated in a time of peace and prosperity. So of course, Etheria’s great savior and protector was expected to make an appearance, and she was expected to look good.

Though if Adora asked just about anyone, they would claim that she always looked good. But she did want to put in the extra effort today. It took her some convincing from all of her friends to keep her from over planning and over preparing like last time.

There was no threat of war, no great enemy, no lies or intrigue, it would just be a ball with all the people she loved. She could just rest and relax tonight. So she put on a beautiful white dress, let her hair loose from its near permanent ponytail, donned a pretty little tiara, and just let herself not be combat ready for once.

Looking now at her own reflection in the room’s waterfall - the closest to a practical use she found to those wasteful things - she had to admit that she did look pretty, though for some reason she was struck by a strange sense of familiarity.

“Just let me brush it!” She heard Glimmer call from outside the room.

“No!” Catra yelled back as she ran into the room with the queen chasing after her, brush in hand.

Though Catra acted like she was running for life, they both still giggled. Catra tried to use her wife as cover from the queen’s attack, but Glimmer followed her anyway, and both just started running circles around Adora.

“Don’t let her touch me!” Catra yelled, hiding behind Adora, “she’s gonna torture me!”

“Do you always have to be this dramatic?” Glimmer asked, knowing full well that the answer was yes.

“Come on, guys,” Bow called, calmly walking in, “if we’re late to Scorpia’s first ball she’s gonna kill us.”

He pulled Glimmer closer and she leaned against him, hooking an arm around his back. For a moment there the queen seemed to forget about her plans to torture Catra, and just enjoyed that little display of affection from her husband.

“Fine, you’re off the hook,” she surrendered, but added just a little threat at the end, “this time.”

Catra stuck her tongue out at them, still using Adora for cover, as they left the room, leaving the two of them alone together. Once she was sure she was safe from Glimmer’s hairbrush, she stepped out from behind her wife and laughed a little to herself.

“You coming?” She asked, reaching a hand towards Adora.

The whole time Adora had been stunned. In equal parts by this constant feeling of dejavu, and by just how beautiful Catra looked right now. Her wife had always been a master of the casually gorgeous look, but this time she had completely out done herself.

“Etheria to Adora,” Catra called, playfully, “you still there, Adora?”

“Sorry, I just have this weird feeling that I’ve seen this before,” she explained, the feeling completely disappearing a moment later.

“What? Did you sneak a peek while me and Glimmer were putting the look together?” She teased.

“No!” Adora defended herself, “it’s just dejavu or something. I--you’re messing with me, aren’t you?”

Catra feigned offense, “such accusations from my own wife? I would never do such a thing.”

“Oh you little--!”

“Guys,” Bow interrupted again, calling from the hallway beyond, “Scorpia’s ball, remember?”

“Sorry, your majesty,” Adora shouted back, they both knew he didn’t like the title, but it was fun to mess with him sometimes.

That earned her a little laugh from Catra and a soft nudge to her side, “you ready to go?”

“Yeah, I think I am,” she answered, hooking her arm around Catra’s as they made their way out of the room.

They had barely stepped into the hallways of Bright Moon castle when they were stopped by a voice calling for them.

“Oh my goodness!” Exclaimed a very excited King Micah, “you both look stunning!”

The king had always been such a sweetheart, the man had nearly adopted the two of them after the war was over. After everything that had happened, it was nice seeing him this happy.

“Hey there, your majesty,” Catra greeted, “everything ready for the dance?”

“Indeed it is!” He replied, his bright smile growing wider, “before you go, though, I have a big surprise for you!”

“Oh?” 

With a dramatic flare worthy of Double Trouble, King Micah stepped aside to reveal…

The most adorable thing they’ve ever seen.

Behind the king stood their child. Little Finn looked as adorable as they looked annoyed at their new outfit, a lovely uniform in several shades of purple and beautiful gold accents. The kid was just short of ten years old, but they already looked like a fancy little dignitary of the kingdom. The only thing standing out from the illusion was their messy blonde hair.

“You look precious!” Adora squealed at the sight.

Catra gasped, holding on tighter to her wife’s arm. It was the only thing she could do not to run over and hug them right this instant.

“Moms!” Finn groaned, “please!”

Unfortunately their pleas for help were lost on their moms, who were still busy blabbering about how adorable they looked.

“Uncle Micah, do I really have to wear this? It’s itchy,” they complained, hoping their uncle would listen, “and lame.”

The king turned to address his little nibling, but was horrified by what he saw.

“How did you manage to mess up your hair in the five minutes since I finished it?!” He demanded, utterly shocked.

“It’s a skill, uncle,” Finn replied, giving him a smug look that clearly ran in the family.

Looking none too pleased with all that lost work, Micah drew a quick glyph in the air, using just a bit of magic to comb his nibling’s hair in an instant.

“There, fixed.” The king proudly declared, earning a hiss from the angry child.

And also earning him a hug from Adora.

“They look amazing,” she beamed, “thank you!”

“My pleasure, Adora,” he replied, his voice and expression growing softer, “I missed out on too many of these moments with Glimmer. I’m not going to miss any more of them.”

Meanwhile Catra no longer had Adora to hold on to to help contain herself, so she had dashed over to their child, too busy showering them with love and affection to notice the tender moment happening behind her.

“You are the cutest kid in all of Etheria,” she happily praised.

“Mom!” Finn groaned once more.

Adora let out a content sigh as she watched those two. She loved them with all her heart and they had made the past decade of her life better than she could have ever dreamed it would be.

“Thanks again,” she repeated to Micah, finally letting go of the hug.

Walking over to her family - wow, it really warmed her heart every time she thought of them like that - she picked up the little light of her life and carried them on her shoulders. They mumbled a few words in annoyance, but Adora could feel their tail happily swaying against her back.

“You’re going to win Best Kid at the dance for sure!” Catra commented.

“I don’t think that’s a real award, mom.”

“We’ll make it real, kid.” She declared, “don’t worry, I have some pull with Princess Scorpia.”

Adora couldn’t help but smile at that.

“What’s got you all smiley like that?” Catra asked, leaning closer to her wife as they walked together.

“It’s just…this is our first Princess Prom as a family,” she said, a little teary eyed, “I still can’t believe we got this far. It’s more than I could have ever dreamed of.”

“Well, you better start believing it,” Catra replied, giving her a little kiss on the cheek.

“Ew!” Finn complained, hiding their face so they wouldn’t be forced to see any more disgusting affection from their moms.

The two of them laughed together and Adora was certain that no dream could ever compare to the life she now lived.

#shera #spop #catradora #catra #adora #micah #finn #glimmer #bow #comic #fic #fluff #so much fluff

[catrasredemption-moved]

Can you do a fic where catra gives birth without adora by her side and panics please

I feel like I can't do justice compared to the others that exist, but sure!

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

Adora hadn't wanted to go.

Catra hadn't really wanted to let her go, either. She was coming up on her eighth month of pregnancy, and every single nerve screamed in imagined agony when she wasn't in Adora's arms. She hated it - she had gotten over clinging to Adora years ago. But everyone assured it was okay. She was pregnant. She was allowed to want Adora right by her side all the time.

But this was important. Two ally planets were threatening to go to war, and there was a risk of Etheria ending up in the middle of it. Which, unfortunately, made it very much their problem. Normally, Glimmer would have brought Catra (who was surprisingly good at being diplomatic and talking people down), but Adora had flat out said no to the idea of her very pregnant wife going anywhere near a warzone. Catra would have argued, but that was fair, really. She felt the same way.

So Glimmer had taken Adora and Bow, with the hopes that the three of them would manage to calm everyone down. Catra had resisted the urge to point out that they hadn't even know what a coherent plan was before she joined them.

It sucked, watching the three people she trusted most clear Etheria's atmosphere and disappear into the stars. But after ten years, Catra no longer felt completely alone in the castle. Netossa and Spinnerella had agreed to stay in Bright Moon while Glimmer was gone; they had declared themselves the baby's aunts the minute Catra announced she was pregnant. Entrapta, after nearly two year of work, had managed to replicate Prime's teleportation technology to create teleporting points in each kingdom, so Scorpia could visit her bestie whenever she wanted. Micah had decided the new baby was going to be his grandchild (with a pointed look at Glimmer, who had rolled her eyes and informed him they were adopting), and was happy to look in on Catra every single hour, if she'd let him. She did not let him.

And they were great. They were all great. Catra loved all of them. But Adora's absence was an aching hole in her chest. She wanted her wife. She wanted her when she woke up at three in the morning, back screaming in pain, and there was no one she could ask to give her a massage, or even just hold her until she managed to fall back to sleep. She wanted to see the adoration in Adora's expression every time the baby kicked. She wanted to hear Adora's excited babbling as she told literally anyone who would listen about how they had just finished decorating the nursery, and it was so cute. She wanted Adora.

She really wanted Adora now, as she whimpered into her pillow, tightly clutching her swollen belly. Melog nuzzled her cheek, meowing nervously.

"No, it's fine," she mumbled. "It's nothing. Fake contractions, remember?"

That got her a very unimpressed meow in return. The fake contractions were sporadic and mildly painful, but this? This was a steady pain, pressing down on her uterus, coming approximately every ten minutes, as Melog kept reminding her. She reached out, pushing their snout away.

"I'm still three and a half weeks from my due date. It's fine."

Lying down wasn't a viable option; there was no comfortable position. She pushed herself out of bed, shuffling unsteadily around the room to try and relieve the constant ache on her back. Melog helped support her when she had to stop and lean on the wall, breathing heavily.

It wasn't fine.

"Fuck," she breathed, sliding down the wall, tears burning in her eyes. This couldn't be happening now. No. No no no no. Adora wasn't here. She didn't even know where Adora was. Not within communication range - Catra had already tried to call her. Who knew when she would be back. Catra was alone.

Not alone, Melog reminded her, nudging her shoulder. There were people here who could help her. A healer from Mystacor had even transferred to Bright Moon to be on hand for any emergencies, and the eventual delivery.

"Okay," she whispered. Melog nodded and disappeared. And she was alone.

She was alone.

Adora wasn't there. Adora wouldn't make it back in time. Her entire support system had relied on her wife, because why wouldn't it? Adora would be there. Adora didn't break her promises. Adora would be there.

Another contraction seized her, closing up her already struggling lungs. Tears pricked at her eyes as she wheezed uselessly. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't breathe.

A hand rested on her shoulder. "Easy," Micah said, squeezing. "It's okay. You're okay. Can you breathe with me?"

He exaggerated his own breaths, giving Catra a guide to follow along. It took a few minutes, but finally she managed to take a shaky breath, curling in on herself. "Okay. Good. What's wrong?"

"I - I think I'm in labor," she admitted unwillingly. "And Adora isn't here, and she supposed to be here, she was so excited, I can't take this away from her, I can't - I'm the worst wife-"

Micah squeezed her shoulder again, cutting her off. "You can't control when this happens," he reminded her gently. "That doesn't make you a bad wife. Or mother for that matter." Was he a mind reader? "If Adora doesn't make it back in time, it's okay. I know she'll be disappointed, but she'll be here for everything else. And I know this is hard, but you have to relax a little. The stress isn't good for you or the baby. Take another breath for me. Please?"

Catra nodded, sucking in a breath and letting it out slowly. The bedroom door burst open, Netossa and Melog hurrying in. "Spinny is getting Ivy. Is it really time?"

"Think so," Micah said, taking Catra's hands and helping her stand. "Keep trying to call Darla. Hopefully we can get in touch as soon as they're back in communication range."

Melog brushed against Catra's leg, purring loudly. She scratched the back of their ears, smile turning to a grimace when the dull pain of contraction started to grip her again.

It was going to be okay.

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

"Adora?"

"Yeah?"

"Catra is never allowed to be pregnant again. That was the worst."

It turned out talking and being diplomatic was a lot harder than just punching things. It had taken nearly four days to negotiate a deal that made both planets happy and stopped a war. Adora was fairly certain defeating Horde Prime had been easier.

She and Glimmer were sprawled out on the floor, staring at the ceiling. Bow was slumped in the captain's seat, sleeping. Entrapta was working energetically at the console. She had gotten to spend the last week on Darla, since they all knew letting her try to talk to people was a nightmare. Adora wanted her energy.

"I'm so tired," Adora groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. Glimmer reached out to shove her shoulder.

"Aren't you the one about to have a newborn? You better rest up now, you'll never sleep again."

Adora laughed, ignoring the uncomfortable swoop in her stomach. She missed Catra. She hated that she'd had to leave. She just wanted to be back.

"Entering Etheria's atmosphere!" Entrapta called, as if reading Adora's mind. "ETA - oh."

The console was beeping. There was a call coming in. Entrapta tapped a few buttons, bringing up a large screen. It flickered to life, showing Netossa, who was looking at something off screen.

"Yes I'm sure I'm calling the right - oh!" She jumped when she saw the call had connected. "Hey, finally!"

"Is something wrong?" Glimmer asked, immediately sitting up. Adora shot up as well, suddenly shaking. Netossa chuckled nervously.

"Okay, don't freak out. But um... Catra had the baby."

"What?!" Adora's voice cracked. She practically sprinted across the flight deck, grabbing the screen. "Is she okay? Is the baby okay? How?!"

"Are you asking how the baby was born?"

Normally, Adora liked Netossa's humor. This was not normally. "Netossa!"

"Okay, sorry. She's okay, the baby is okay, they're both sleeping now. It got a little rough, and Catra might need a little more time to recover, but she's okay."

Adora felt lightheaded. She took a step back, sitting hard on the ground. Catra had the baby. The baby was born while she was gone.

"Um... ETA five minutes," Entrapta said, quickly hitting a few buttons on the console and speeding Darla up. Glimmer and Bow moved to sit on either side of Adora, hugging her tight.

"I missed it," she whispered, tears filling her eyes. She had one job, to be there when Catra gave birth, and she missed it. "She probably hates me."

"There is no way Catra hates you," Bow said confidently. "Trust me."

"She never stops talking about how much she loves you and how you're going to be a great mother," Glimmer added. "I share an office with her, I hear about it every single day. 'Adora stayed up all night painting the nursery, Adora's been practicing how to swaddle with some stuffed animals, she's trying to set a record swaddling time, Adora woke me up at three a.m. because she had her head on my stomach and was letting the baby kick her ear' - seriously, it never stopped. I tried to send her on maternity leave two months ago so she'd stop."

"But I-"

"I know, you missed it," Glimmer said, hugging Adora. "But Catra isn't going to be mad. She probably just wants you there now. It's going to be okay."

Adora scrubbed her eyes, sniffling. "Yeah. It'll be okay."

They landed, and Adora darted off the ship. Bow and Glimmer smartly decided they could visit later, and let her go.

Netossa and Spinerella were sitting outside of Adora's and Catra's room, playing a game on their tracker pad. They both gave Adora a grin when they saw her approaching.

"Hey Mom. How's it going?"

Adora slowed to a walk, hands shoved in her pockets to keep from fidgeting. "Is... Is Catra mad?"

"Is Catra ever not mad?"

Spinnerella elbowed Netossa. "She's a little upset, but mostly at herself. I think she'll be happier you're here, though."

"How long has it been?"

"About twelve hours."

Adora had barely missed it. She did her best to put on a brave smile. "Thanks for being here."

"Honestly, thank Micah. He's the only one besides Ivy who knew what was going on."

"And he didn't almost pass out," Spinnerella added, smiling wickedly at her wife. Netossa gave her an offended look.

"I did not almost pass out."

"You absolutely would have if I didn't drag you out."

Adora left the wives to their argument, carefully peeking into the room. Catra was sleeping, bundled up in a nest of pillows and blankets. Adora just barely got a look at her before she was being tackled. Melog nuzzled up to her, purring and licking her cheek. She laughed.

"Hi, Melog."

This was good, right? Melog always did this when Catra was feeling particularly needy but didn't want to say anything. Adora couldn't have been in too much trouble.

She stood, feeling a bit more emboldened, and toed off her boots before making her way across the room.

And she finally got her first look at her baby.

They were so small. A small mop of blonde hair barely hid twitching ears, little claws kneading mindlessly against Catra's chest. Their fur was a mix of Adora's skin and Catra's fur - a beautiful dark blonde that was absolutely the most amazing thing Adora had ever seen. She wanted to pick them up, to hold them, to feel their weight in her arms. But she also didn't want to disrupt this moment of pure tranquility.

Catra made a small noise, nose twitching, and one eye fluttered open. "Hey 'Dora," she mumbled sleepily. "Really left me t'do all the hard, huh?"

Adora pressed a hand to her lips to keep from laughing. "Mind if I join you?"

"Left enough room for you, didn't I?"

She had, Adora realized. A perfectly sized space right next to her for Adora to slide into. She tossed her jacket off and carefully slid in next to Catra. Her wife shifted slightly to snuggled into her chest.

"How're you feeling?"

"Tired. Your child is so difficult."

"Oh, my child?"

"Yup. Stubborn, just like you."

Adora finally reached out to brush a finger against one of their tiny paws. "Cute, though."

"Got that from me."

George and Lance, it turned out, had a surprisingly extensive knowledge about Magicats, and had been more than happy to educate Catra after they'd met her. One of the big things they'd learned was that Magicats didn't name their children before they were a year old (some superstition) and all babies used neutral pronouns until they were old enough to understand what gender was and could choose their own. Two more things Shadow Weaver had taken away from Catra. Two things she was determined to give their baby.

"Do you think I can..."

Catra rolled her eyes, yawning. "No, Adora, you can't hold your own child. Come on, seriously?"

"I just don't want to bother them!"

Adora was reaching out even as she said that, carefully scooping up the little bundle. They wiggled a bit, making a few distressed noises, but stopped when they were close enough to burrow into Adora's shirt. And if the baby hadn't owned Adora's heart before that moment, they certainly did now.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, to their baby and to Catra. "I'm sorry I wasn't here."

"M'sorry they were so impatient," Catra murmured, snuggling a bit closer to Adora now that she was free. S'okay, though. You're here now."

Yes, she was. And she'd be damned if she ever left this planet again. Why would she? Everything she needed was already here.

#Sam Writes #askbox fic #pregnancy cw #vague descriptions of labor #Catradora

[anghraine]

Things I really enjoy about Adora’s fantasy of the future in “Heart”:

while Glimmer’s and Bow’s hairstyles have changed, Catra’s hair has grown back the way it was (though she now wears it in a ponytail). I like the short-haired look, but it was something forced on her in terrible circumstances, and even subconsciously, Adora seems to get that.

she imagines future!Bow with a desperate attempt at a beard. lol

she imagines Glimmer combining a fancy princess dress, her sparkly cloak, and an ... undercut, I think?

she imagines herself with longer, mostly-flowy hair (not on the She-Ra level, but she does have She-Ra hair envy...), a delicate tiara, and a simple She-Ra-themed dress, while Catra is wearing everyday clothes and dodging Glimmer’s attempts to spruce her up.

Adora is on to Glimbow, or really wants it to happen; Bow is wearing a royal cloak and Glimmer’s other earring (apparently wearing an item from the other person is a very big deal in Etherian romantic relationships) and Glimmer leans into him

meanwhile, Catra is wearing Adora’s Rebel pin (I can’t remember if real Catra is doing that)

Catra is carting around a white and gold jacket that matches Adora’s dress, either to put on Adora or to match Adora.

this time, it’s Catra reaching out to her—and indeed, when Catra declares her love, Adora does envision it as Catra physically reaching out for her.

<3 <3 <3

#i hope adora does get her she-ra dress someday! #but the sequence is both charming and a little sad #like... the episode raises the question of what /adora/ wants #and she honestly wants so little? #a) catra b) her friends c) a princess outfit of her own #i do love the little snippet though #anghraine babbles #she ra and the princesses of power #adora #glimmer #bow #catra #otp: catradora #masters of the universe

[pennamesmith]

Return of the Skeletor

A family reunion. Find more Skeletor stories here! 

*

Micah remembered the other world. 

Most people could, in fact. The whole planet was affected. They’d all lived a life they thought was perfect. They’d all imagined something intangible. The memories were faded and fragmentary, like the recollection of a dream, but everyone was certain it had really happened. 

Even if nothing that had happened was real. 

At first Micah didn’t realize anyone else had shared in the dream. He’d lost track of time on Beast Island long ago, and when the collapsing portal closed around him he only assumed it was one of the despairing wasteland’s many tricks. He never had long to dwell on the matter, either. Soon after finding himself returned to reality (he could remember shouting to Angella, reaching for her, trying to tell her “I’m not dead!”) Micah had met the loud and unusual Princess Entrapta. And after her there came…

“She-Ra! It’s She-Ra!” a nasally voice shrieked. 

Micah was startled out of his reverie by a sudden clattering of hooves. The door to his Bright Moon office burst inwards and he was presented with the sight of a breathless Swift Wind. Sitting astride the rainbow-winged unicorn was one of Entrapta’s bots, a lanky drone she’d named ‘Skeletor.’

“The time has come!” Skeletor said. 

“It’s true!” Swift Wind confirmed. “I felt the sacred bond return just a minute ago. Adora and the others are back from Eternia! Darla is over the Whispering Woods right now!”

“What?” Micah jumped to his feet, abandoning his desk without a second thought. It was covered in a mountain of paperwork: royal records, his regent’s duties, and the calendar pages where he’d marked off every day since Glimmer and the rest of the Princess Alliance left for their dangerous mission to another universe. He rushed to the door where Swift Wind was standing. 

Skeletor reached out and helped Micah onto the horse’s back. “Join hands as we bring together our mystic powers!” the robot cried. Once Micah was settled, Swift Wind turned and leapt out the nearest window. They sailed through the skies. 

“What’s going on? Are they all right?” Micah asked, with undisguised worry. 

Swift Wind banked, soaring over the tree line. “I’m not sure! The ship is under control but — look, there it is!” 

Darla, the rebuilt First Ones ship, was descending rapidly from the sky over the treetops. Her flight was steady, but parts of the hull were damaged, and smoke trailed from one wing. Suddenly the ship lurched and plummeted into the trees, vanishing from sight. A plume of vegetation went flying as it plowed to a smouldering stop. 

Micah felt his stomach twist. “We need to get closer!” he called out in a panic. 

“I can take you there!” Skeletor declared, urging Swift Wind toward the ground. They touched down by the edge of a long path of smoking destruction that stretched deep into the woods. 

“They must have landed near here,” Skeletor deduced, observing the massive trench in the ground. He hopped off the horse’s back and ran ahead, making anxious utterances as he went. 

Micah dismounted and walked beside Swift Wind. “I hate this,” Micah confessed. “The staying behind, I mean. At least on Beast Island I was the only one I had to worry about, and I was in control of my own survival. But having to stand by while Glimmer goes into danger? I’m so proud of her, yet I’m also so scared.” 

“I know what you mean,” Swift Wind answered. “I trust Adora, but I also worry about her, like, all the time. Whenever we’re apart I get so restless. I just feel powerless!”  

“Sometimes letting them find their own way is all we can do,” Micah mused. 

They came into a clearing in the woods. Darla was there, sparking and steaming but generally intact. Skeletor hammered on the door. 

“Here, let me try to get you out!” he called. 

Something inside the ship made a noise. There was a hiss and a jet of steam, and Skeletor tumbled backwards, landing with a squawk at Micah and Swift Wind’s feet. They all stared at Darla, holding their breath expectantly.

The front hatch of the spaceship popped open. Entrapta erupted out of it, tumbling down the landing ramp in a ball of frizzled hair. She pulled her goggles up. 

“Aha! We made it!” she crowed, taking in her surroundings. “All in the right dimension and everything!” 

She reached into the recesses of her hair and emerged with a haggard Hordak. “Your piloting saved us! I knew you could do it!” she told him proudly. 

Hordak squinted through half-lidded eyes. “Is it over?” he muttered. “Are we still alive?”

“Yep!” Entrapta wobbled to her feet and gathered her partner up in her ponytails. “Now, let’s get you a checkup and some rest. You’ve had a stressful voyage!” 

She suddenly seemed to notice the gathered onlookers. “Oh! Hi Skeletor. Hi Bird Horse. Hi Micah. Guess what? You’re gonna love this!” Entrapta turned back to the ship. “Safe to disembark, crew!” she yelled, before trotting off with Hordak.

“Now we’ll see how clever you are!” Skeletor said. 

Mermista peeked around the door. “Ground!” she cried, throwing herself across the dirt in relief. “I never thought I’d miss you so much!” 

“Oh, it wasn’t that bad a flight,” Sea Hawk cajoled, helping her to her feet. “Why, I can think of a dozen — no, two dozen more harrowing trips I’ve taken in the Dragon’s Daughter XXVIII.” 

“You fishmonger,” Skeletor scoffed. 

Frosta was the next one out, followed closely by Perfuma and Scorpia. “Eternia was amazing!” the teenaged ice princess announced, brandishing a pair of frozen fists. “I got to punch so much stuff!” 

“Come on, it wasn’t all violence,” Perfuma pleaded. 

“Yeah, we learned a bunch about friendship and responsibility too,” Scorpia agreed. 

“Punch! Punch!” Frosta said. 

“You’re becoming evil, I can sense it!” Skeletor hummed approvingly. “Excellent!” 

Catra and Adora came next, and they were accompanied by a young man Micah had never seen before. He had a pink shirt, bobbed blond hair, and bore an uncanny resemblance to Adora herself. A sword hung on his back. He blinked as he emerged into the light. 

Swift Wind’s jaw dropped. “Adora! Is that…?” 

“Hey guys!” Adora grinned sheepishly. “So, funny story. You remember how when I was a baby I was taken from a hidden First Ones faction that nobody has ever been able to find since?” 

She held her hands out, presenting the newcomer. “Well, uh, we found ‘em! This is my twin brother, Adam!” 

Adam smiled and waved. “Hello everybody,” he chirped. 

“Brother?” Swift Wind sputtered. 

“He-Man!” Skeletor bellowed. 

The group fell into a chattering commotion, but Micah was hardly paying attention. Glimmer and Bow had appeared at the top of the ramp, holding each other as they looked out. Emotions that went beyond words swam in the young queen’s eyes. 

Adora saw where Micah was looking and quickly pulled her brother away. “We’ll tell you the whole story later, sir! Trust me, it’s hilarious. Now come on, I gotta show you around Etheria, bro.”

“Sure thing, sis,” Adam replied, grinning hugely. They pounded their fists together, adding their own sound effects as they did so, and marched off laughing. 

“They have been doing that the entire. Trip. Back,” Catra groaned, following close behind the pair. “Somebody save me.” 

“You furry coward,” muttered Skeletor. 

At the entrance to the ship, Glimmer and Micah hugged each other fiercely. When they finally broke, the old king could see that his daughter was smiling through her tears. 

“I’m so glad you’re here,” Glimmer sniffled. “So much happened. You wouldn’t believe how scary things got! Oh, but I totally had everything under control.” 

“I know you did,” Micah smiled back. But he could tell there was more. 

Glimmer’s face turned serious. “Dad,” she said shakily, tripping over her own words. “Listen. Entrapta’s theories about the other dimension were right. When we — I mean, didn’t know if…” 

Bow stepped in. “Your highness, I think there’s someone you should see.” He beckoned gently. Still at a loss for words, Glimmer nodded and took her father’s hand, leading him inside the ship. 

Micah’s heart was racing even before she rose from the chair and turned to face him. His breath caught when he saw the spreading wings, the shining light, the smiling face that he remembered so clearly. 

Their eyes met. It was a miracle. 

Just like on the island, a part of him couldn’t believe this was really happening. But it was. 

They both reached out. They’d mourned each other once. Their hands met. 

“Micah?” she asked, hardly believing it herself. 

“Angie?” 

*

Outside, both the princesses and their well-wishers had gathered around Adam, excitedly showing off the wonders of their planet. He gazed with delight at everything, marveling in the magical light of Etheria. His laugh brimmed with kindness. 

Skeletor elbowed his way through the crowd. “I can’t let any of you delay me! Out of my way, now!” he jabbered. “This is no time for jokes!” 

He made it to where Adora stood with her brother and glared. Adam turned in surprise, not sure what to expect. They stared at each other. 

Skeletor held his arms wide. “I’ve been waiting a long time for this moment!” he cried. “Take this, He-Man!” 

Then he lunged forward, and wrapped Adam in an enormous hug. 

“He-Man, I am your friend!” 

#spop #she ra fanfiction #skeletor #King Micah #Queen Angella #micangella #glimmer #prince adam #adora #swift wind #princess alliance #smith stuff

[soranis-sunshadow]

Why it’s not ok to compare Wrong Hordak to his defective brother.

It doesn’t sit right to me when someone pits two abuse victims against each other based on their coping mechanisms because their circumstances are never the same.

Wrong Hordak was immediately adopted by people who slowly de-indoctrinated him and offered him a supportive environment for all of that growth and healing to happen. When the BF squad kidnapped him, he was ardent about his service to Prime and he only followed them because they deceived him in believing they were servants of Prime.

By providing clear irrefutable evidence of Prime’s fallibility, deceit and the squad’s moral support throughout this moral crisis, they were able to wean him off of his programmed behavior and offer him a new onlook and an informed choice.

Hordak was a defective clone that was sent to die on the battlefield, in essence he was abandoned by his maker for being worthless and deflective. This is why his own disability is such a source of crippling shame and self-loathing, it made him unlovable in Prime’s eye, the person he was literally programmed to worship, love and blindly obey.

For all intents and purposes, Prime is the horde clones’ God. He appears to be all-powerful, omniscient, omnipresent and he is their literal creator. Through doctrine, clones are taught that all creatures are beneath Prime, only His light and His love is relevant. (Prime is that much of a narcissistic monster)

 Even while stranded on an alien planet, cut off from his Maker, it makes sense for him to prove his worth through the only means that he was ever taught (worship and conquest), perhaps, that way, he may repent for his failure of being created defective.

It makes sense for him, a brainwashed cultist, alone and stranded on a strange and hostile world to try and bring it into Prime’s light. He didn’t know that he could have been free of Prime if he chose to integrate with the natives. Every time he detected Light Hopes’s portals on the surface of the planet, he went to investigate, hoping Prime had come for him. That is how he found Adora after all.

Of course Hordak was brutal, brutality was all he had ever been shown. Of course he conquered in Prime’s name, that is why he was created. Of course he condoned the training of children to become soldiers once they reach maturity, that is how he was made after all, he didn’t know any better.

It's important to note that before Entrapta, Hordak is essentially a recluse. He hides away in his laboratory and he doesn’t directly interact with most of his underlings who avoid him. In many of his appearances he clings to the shadows or is only shown on a monitor. 

Instead of proving his worth to Prime, he seemingly fails at all of the (impossible) tasks he had set himself to accomplish in gaining his God’s favor: He doesn’t conquer the planet (it’s a whole damn planet), he can’t treat his defect (it’s gotten to the point that he’s an emaciated sickly wreck dealing with crippling chronic pain and is immobile without his prosthetic armor), his attempts at making a new body for himself have failed (he is defective, any clone made from his genetic code would also be defective) and he can’t even open a portal to go home (the planet’s magic does not allow an exit from the different dimension it is in). After decades of failure after failure, that he blames himself for, he has grown bitter and hopeless.

That is why Entrapta and her message is so important to him. She teaches Hordak that he has inherent worth as an individual. His imperfections do not mark him as something lesser, to be discarded, to her, he can be beautiful just the way he is. This is when he starts considering  to stall the portal project, a project that has been his purpose for years, and considers staying on Etheria with her. "There was even a time you wished I would not come for you." - Prime

When he is told by Catra that Entrapta "betrayed” him, he doesn’t want to believe it at first but his own self-loathing plays a huge part in why he buys the lie. He is after all a defective and worthless failure. Catra’s lie is so much more plausible than anyone ever finding worth in him. As such he comes to reason that another person he has dared to get attached to has abandoned him.

Whereas Catra believes that everyone leaves her, when really she pushes them away, Hordak genuinely has had everyone important in his life "leave" him, as far as he knows. This is why we see Hordak in his most evil during season 4 when he has the arm cannon and he is sacking Salineas. He's completely fueled by insecurity and loss, he has something to prove again, to Entrapta and to Prime. He was eager to face her and show her, on the battlefield, that he can be worth something (affection).

When Double Trouble reveals that Entrapta was sent to Beast Island, Hordak believed she is likely dead after so long. He thinks his gullibility has cost Entrapta her life, another failure to add to the long list of sins.

When he is teleported on Prime’s ship, he is terrified of him. He tries to appease Prime in whatever way possible. His body language, his meek, scared tone of voice, and the terrified expression on his face coupled with the fact that he is literally shaking in fear convey the fact that Hordak himself knows he will not be shown mercy. In order to adapt to Etheria and further his goals, he had committed unforgivable blasphemy, he had taken a name and shown initiative. Prime violates his mind and erases him.

It comes as no surprise that once his memories of Etheria resurface because of Catra’s presence, memories of abject failure, of loneliness, of grief and of betrayal, he submits himself to erasure once again. (in season 4 he had actually let Catra in, he trusted her, they had started a tenuous friendship that weirdly enough went both ways. She too was glad to see a “friendly face”)

Once he finds the crystal Entrapta gave him, he starts remembering her. Her memory is so dear to him that he actively tries to hold on to whatever fragments of her he can hold on. He even hides this from Prime (his only lie in the whole show).

In the final confrontation, while still linked to the hive mind and in the presence of his god, he chooses Entrapta, not because Prime was proven to be wrong or evil or fallible but because Entrapta found worth in Hordak despite his imperfections. He goes against his creator still believing that Prime is all-powerful, omniscient, omnipresent because he cared for Entrapta that much.

This is why Hordak's defiance against Horde Prime has so much impact, at least for me personally. Hordak is a character who never really got a choice up to this point. Arguably, it was less a decision and more of a last resort to protect Entrapta in whatever way he could. And even this choice was a zero sum equation. He either killed the one person that has ever shown him unconditional kindness or he turned against his God. It was a loss either way. The inescapability of Prime and the magnitude of his control over his clones is underlined by his possession of Hordak after he had declared his individuality and tried to kill him. In the deleted extended scene, Hordak himself is horrified at the fact that he had shot his Brother. His conditioning and indoctrination is still there. He never learned that Prime is a narcissistic monster and that he used his little brothers as chattel and had been consistently lied to.  He just wanted not to hurt Entrapta, this one choice is his first step towards individuality and freedom. This is the first time he actually exerts his own will and not Prime’s. He’s even making this obvious by saying "I am Hordak." I am someone, I exist.

I think Hordak is actually one of the best written characters in the show, and not because he's a sympathetic villain, but because he is very realistic to how a lot of children that experience neglect or other forms of parental abuse behave as they grow up. They only know anger and rage, never being shown love because they hide themselves in the shadows. Only when someone breaks down those walls can that person begin to heal.

Hordak and Wrong Hordak may be identical clones but their circumstances are anything but and it is wrong to pit them against each other. They are both victims of severe abuse. The comparison is not a fair one since one of them had all the means necessary to break conditioning while the other had all the circumstances necessary to enforce it. Despite what Hordak has done, he deserves to live and he deserves a chance to rebuild what he has destroyed in Prime’s name. Some of his victims may never forgive him, that is their choice. Nobody should have to forgive him. That is not how forgiveness works.  Etheria’s justice system is focused on rehabilitation, not on punitive vengeance.  Hordak too deserves a chance to heal after all that has been inflicted on him from the moment he was created. He deserves a chance at redemption.

I am open to more discussions on the subject if anyone is willing.

#hordak #wrong hordak #entrapta #horde prime #spop discourse #spop #she ra princess of power #we can only grow as much as our circumstances allow us #being away from church on a sunday doesn't make you an atheist #please contradict me if you can #but do so with logical arguments and not headcanons on theoretical genocide

[cruelfeline]

I'm both a Hordak and Catra stan but Can you really blame the "pro" Catra-stans ? Their favorite gets suffocated twice on screen,right when she was showing signs of change by opening up to Scorpia, she has lived with severe anxiety thinking Hordak would demote her, dispose of her any second if she failed And lo and behold it did really come true too. She got stripped of her rank, became suicidal, indifferent to danger., She leaves the wastes because despite being punished by Hordak she still wants to prove herself to him and get that bit of validation to realize her own self-worth(she gets also triggered by Shadow weaver but that comes only after interrogating Adora) .In season 4 after she feels cornered again she "dethrones" him but temporarily she then soon reverts to her old habits by wanting validation from Hordak like he desperately wanted prime's, she was content with being equals, partners in crime with Hordak rather than overthrowing him for real and such as when she asks him permission to "give the command", she goes from becoming a SW to a Hordak closing herself off from everyone, yelling "Get out" While Hordak too is undeniably abused. The narrative follows Catra more we see more of her suffering. So I really get why they're so biased but it's sad too because Hordak and Catra have many similarities with eachother.

Sorry English isn't my native tongue I hope I was a little intelligible.

Ah, no worries; your English is far better than however I would fare in your native tongue c:

On your points regarding Catra stans... well... I mean, certainly people have the right to feel the way they feel. It’s not like we can really control our feelings towards these characters; they just happen (case in point: me and this embarrassing Hordak stint I’ve been on for over a year). However... I can’t say that much of what you say regarding Catra holds true for me personally. And for that reason, I just don’t find much in common with the really hardcore Catra stans.

To me, a lot of it has to do with choices. Catra is at her most sympathetic to me in the very earliest seasons, where things are truly out of her control. Adora leaves. Shadow Weaver is still in power and treats her abominably. At this time, I really do feel for her. As the show goes on, however, I find that my ability to really connect with her just sort of dwindles. Especially when Hordak is right there and not presenting any of the problems Catra does.

Like... so, you mention that she lives with severe anxiety thinking that Hordak will demote her for failing, and that this comes true. Well... that’s not really the case, is it? Hordak doesn’t demote her for failing. He’s demanding, yes, but he’s not unreasonable. Rather, Hordak demotes her because she lies to him. And that is a choice she makes. She chooses to prioritize Shadow Weaver over what is essentially her job, and she does so in a way that presents a significant danger to both Hordak and the Horde itself - a danger that truly does become realized when Shadow Weaver helps the Princesses infiltrate the Fright Zone. This situation doesn’t make me feel sympathy for Catra. Rather, it makes me feel exasperated because she was given a legitimate chance by Hordak, and she squandered it. 

When she leaves the Waste, it’s not because she wants to prove herself to Hordak. Rather, she makes it very clear that she is disdainful of him and doesn’t much care for his opinion at all (calls him a shut-in, remarks that he doesn’t know anything about the outside world). The reason she leaves is because she learns that Shadow Weaver is with Adora, a bit of knowledge that, to her, means that Adora is “winning.” She leaves because her self-worth is essentially based on Adora herself. Catra feels the need to beat her, no matter what the cost. A concept that is really driven home at the end of season three where she just about says as much, declaring that she’d rather see the world end then let Adora win. Which... I mean, I get that she’s coming from a sad place, but there’s a line crossed there, and it’s a significant downer for me.

Moving on to season four, I wouldn’t say that she feels “cornered.” At the start of season four, Hordak is absolutely not a danger to her. He doesn’t want anything to do with her. He doesn’t want anything to do with anything. He’s... well, to my eyes, he’s depressed. He’s deeply hurt over Entrapta’s supposed betrayal, and he just wants to be alone. He wants to build up his defenses and protect himself from being hurt again. Because of these desires, he essentially stalls the war, and this is why Catra dethrones him. Not because she wants validation, or because he’s dangerous to her. Certainly not because he “corners” her. I mean... she enters his sanctum uninvited. She makes that move. Not him.

She legitimately dethrones him because he’s not warmongering fast enough for her. She wants to continue the war so she can stick it to Adora, and Hordak is too melancholy for her tastes. So she attacks him and removes his life support and basically bullies a disabled man so she can get back to heckling Adora.

I just... don’t really enjoy that? There’s nothing in it that I find sympathetic. Honestly, I just find it uncomfortable to watch.

I find it uncomfortable because in all of these instances, Catra has agency. She has power. She has the ability to make a good decision and just... kind of doesn’t. Over and over again. In numerous different, varied circumstances. Despite receiving support and love from Scorpia. And the ultimate reason she makes these bad decisions is because she wants to hurt Adora (whom she supposedly loves more than anything, so...? Yikes?). In the end, she really does abandon seeking any authority’s approval and makes it her mission to ensure that she wins while Adora loses. Her focus narrows to that point, and I’m just not super into it.

Hordak, on the other hand, never gets this sort of... vindictive cruelty streak to him. He remains focused inward. To his detriment, the poor dear.

The narrative may try to paint Catra as sympathetic, and it works to an extent, but for me, it ends up becoming less compelling to watch as she gains power and continues to do the worst things imaginable. Whereas Hordak, upon getting like... his first offer for friendship, immediately begins to change and reevaluate his priorities. Only to be stopped by... well, by Catra making a stupid, awful decision and ruining it for him.

I also am of the sort that finds the abuse that Hordak goes through to be far more horrific than what Catra goes through. That’s not to say that what happens to her isn’t terrible; it is. But... to me, it’s like comparing the Etherian Horde to the Galactic Horde. Yes, both are bad. But the Galactic Horde has... I don’t know... there’s something absolutely sick about it that just makes it worse for me. Some sort of existential wrongness. The same thing carries over to Hordak’s story. While Catra’s, like the Etherian Horde, is terrible, it just doesn’t reach the same level of visceral horror for me.

So, anon, while I respect Catra stans enjoying their fave, I can’t really say I can relate all that much anymore. Honestly, at this point, I just find her sort of frustrating. Especially given how her redemption arc pushes all of the other characters to the sidelines of the narrative and still fails to address major events (like Angella’s death, for example). 

Hordak’s character doesn’t suffer from these frustrations. So, in the end, I’m afraid I’m going to have to continue to prefer him. But that’s fine, I think; to each their own! 

I’m glad you can enjoy both to their fullest c:

#discourse #Anonymous

[gin-and-total-annihilation]

more spop not!fic that actually turns into fic bc i am trash

I will preface this entirely-too-long post by saying I’ve read very, very little spop fanfic, and the few I’ve read since s5 dropped are all Catradora oneshots that are, um, a little hyperfocused. (Read: Y’all really have some Ideas about how a sword lesbian and a cat lesbian have The Sex, don’tcha.) So it’s entirely probably that the scenario I’m imagining here has been done before, possibly a lot, and likely better than how I’ve imagined it. This is me, 15 minutes late with Starbucks.

But can you imagine how hard it would be for Catra to integrate into the Princess Alliance? I mean, the show depicts the BFS adopting her pretty much immediately with, like, zero hesitations over their past history with her (a few sarcastic one-liners tossed here and there don’t count as processing, imho). But the kingdom at large? Not to mention the other kingdoms? Catra was the face of the invasion for such a long time. She had a specific angle to take out She-Ra, the ubiquitously-loved and lauded hero of Etheria. Yes, she helped save the planet/universe from Horde Prime, but once the banners and balloons come down, there’s still a reckoning to be had.

Mermista alternately pokes fun at Catra for being afraid of water, and takes any opportunity to “accidentally” splash her

Netossa brings a squirt bottle to any meeting where Catra is invited, and offers at some point to make Adora a magic leash for her

Frosta doesn’t particularly say or do anything, but she makes extra sure to exude icy menace in Catra’s direction. Okay, one time she maybe accidentally zings Catra during iceball, but everyone else thought it was funny!

Out of respect for Scorpia’s friendship with Catra, Perfuma doesn’t stoop to playing pranks, but she does pointedly remark on how muddled Catra’s chi is, a lot. Sometimes in the middle of a meeting, if Catra is arguing with someone, Perfuma will airily announce to the whole room that negative energy is starting to interfere with their goals again, and it looks like she’ll have to sage the meeting room again. After which Catra usually just gives up and sulks in silence

Micah is fairly neutral on the subject of Catra, considering she’s part of his daughter’s “best friend squad” and is also dating She-Ra, Princess of Power, demigod of the wind and sea, vanquisher of Horde Prime, hero of Etheria. But he does get moody sometimes looking at the mural of Angella, and a couple of times he’ll go Dad Mode and tell Glimmer she reminds him of her mother, but then he’ll glance at Catra and change the subject.

And like, Catra gets it, okay? She fucked up. She was the bad guy. And these people are princesses. If there’s anything Catra knows is true, it’s that princesses are champions at Not Letting It Go. So she mostly just lets it roll off her shoulders. (Okay, yes, sometimes she goads them, and yes, she should keep her mouth shut more instead of trading barbs, but what do you want from her? Being catty is her thing.) After all, she got her happily ever after. She got Adora. And that’s really all that she cares about. So a couple of whiny, poofy, pastel-wearing bimbos wanna take cheap shots at her? Ha. Catra wrote the book on petty. She grew up in the Horde. Let ‘em do their worst. 

Except Adora gets Big Mad about it.

I imagine Adora not only notices how the other princesses act around Catra, she sees Catra doing her best to ignore it. Melog is a pretty good indicator of Catra’s temper, and so it’s clear that the hazing irritates the shit out of Catra, but true to her word, she’s been working on her anger, so aside from sarcasm the worst anyone gets out of a her is a scowl, a flicking tail and ears, and Melog’s brief display of red-tinged spines and growling. 

So Adora is proud, seriously! Catra has come a long way from where she was in the Horde. But Adora, the OG “Punch Your Feelings Out Guy”, wants to remind the other princesses that Catra’s not the only one who changed sides.

Naturally, she does this by losing her temper and shouting them down during another all-princess meeting where everyone is subtly picking on Catra.

“What is your problem? Catra’s on our side now! Why are you all still acting like this?”

Mermista, never one to back down from a verbal slap-fest, gamely engages. “Um, not everyone thinks that just because Catra made, like, one good choice, she gets a free pass on all her other ones.”

“Forgiveness is a process, Adora,” says Perfuma primly, ignoring the glare Adora sends her way. “You can’t expect everyone to accept Catra immediately. We need time to work through our negative associations with Catra so that we can begin the healing process.”

Catra rolls her eyes, but Adora throws her hands in the air. “Immediately? It’s been months! And you’re not working through anything! You’re bullying her!”

At this point, Catra is almost offended at all this implies. “Uh, excuse me, no one bullies me, okay. I can take anything they throw at me.”

“Ha, that’s funny,” says Netossa sweetly. “Because that’s not what you say anytime I have this in my hand!” She brandishes the squirt bottle, and Catra’s ears flatten but she keeps herself from flinching.

Adora slaps the table. “See! Bullying!”

“Adora, calm down,” says Glimmer, sighing with a hand over her eyes. At her side, Bow splays both hands in a gesture that simultaneously tries to placate everyone.

“Okay, look, everyone,” he says. “A couple of jokes are one thing, but Adora’s got a point. It’s going a little too far.”

“Oh? Was it also going a little too far when Catra wrecked my castle and destroyed Princess Prom?” says Frosta, crossing her arms.

“Or when she decimated the Whispering Woods?” adds Perfuma.

“Or when she attacked my kingdom?” Mermista, chin on fist, rolls her eyes. “And, you know, stole it for a while.”

“Or when she sent Entrapta to Beast Island?” Perfuma turns to put a hand on Entrapta’s shoulder, but Entrapta’s eyes have gone starry.

“Oooh, I liked Beast Island! The tech there was superb! Maybe I can go back with all the resources at my disposal, now that I’m not an exiled prisoner anymore, and see if I can finally succeed in reversing the polarity of the--”

“See,” says Perfuma hastily, “she was exiled and a prisoner! With no, um, resources!”

“Look, Adora, it’s great that you and Catra are happy together,” says Frosta, with the deadpan expression of a fourteen-year-old who does not mean a single thing she says. “But I still don’t like her.”

“My heart breaks,” mutters Catra, but Adora leans over the table, eyes closing in a bid for patience.

“I’m not asking anyone to like her. I’m just saying, stop bullying her.”

“Uh, again, I’m not--”

Adora spears Catra with a single look, and Catra subsides, a little stunned at the turbulence in her girlfriend’s eyes.

“It’s mean,” Adora goes on, “and it’s pointless, since Catra is on our side now. I know there’s history there, but we are in the process of rebuilding Etheria and creating an example to show the other worlds we’re trying to reach. So just--chill, okay?”

A moment of silence greets this declaration. Then Frosta looks away with a snort.

“I’ll show her some chill,” she mutters.

Catra desperately wants to roll her eyes. “Give it a rest, kid.”

Frosta shoots to her feet, a layer of ice sheeting the table under her hands. “Don’t talk down to me, Horde scum!”

Melog leaps onto the table, its mane blazing so deep a red it’s nearly black. Chaos erupts as various shouts of “Melog, no!” and “Watch out!” tangle in the air. Catra rises from her seat, alarmed that Frosta is about to ice-punch her alien cat, when thunder cracks and a deep, throaty voice shouts, “Enough!”

She-Ra stands in battle stance, glowering at the room’s occupants, light pouring off her. The sword is held in a neutral rest position in her hand, though every inch of her (and there’s a lot of them) seems to be vibrating with energy.

Catra clears her throat as Melog instantly goes liquid-blue and pounces to She-Ra’s side, curling around and around her legs with undisguised adoration.

Melog, it seems, has no concept of chill.

The princesses all resume their seats, staring at the beast they’d been seconds from attacking as it practically rolls on the ground at She-Ra’s feet. Their eyes go from She-Ra to Melog to Catra, who expertly pretends to be unaffected and unblushing.

“Catra is not a threat,” says She-Ra in that voice, and Melog agrees blissfully, rubbing its head against her hip. Catra opens her mouth to protest, but sighs and shuts up. No point in protesting that you’re a badass when your psychic mood-ring therapy cat goes belly-up anytime your hot warrior girlfriend looks at you.

“Catra deserves another chance. She’s already proven herself by helping us defeat Prime.” She-Ra lays a single hand on Melog’s head. Catra wants to bury her face in her hands at the sound the alien cat makes.

“But how can we trust her when she used to fight for the Horde!” protests Frosta.

“So did I,” says She-Ra quietly, and it’s like all the air gets sucked out the room.

“So did Entrapta and Scorpia--” Perfuma’s eyes drop to the table at this. “--and you, Mermista--” Mermista sighs, but doesn’t argue. “and Spinnerella--” Even though She-Ra’s voice is gentle, Spinnerella’s eyes still well with tears, and Netossa tries to glare while she comforts her wife, but even she looks guilty. “--and King Micah, and Shadow Weaver--” Even though Glimmer wasn’t one of the princesses giving Catra shit, she still winces and leans closer to Bow. “And we gave every single one of them a second chance before the war was even ended. What makes Catra different from them?”

“She wasn’t mind-controlled!” argues Frosta.

“Yes, she was!” shoots back She-Ra, and Catra can’t help the flinch, the instinct to reach back and rub her neck. Her hair is just starting to be long enough to cover the faint scar of the implant.

“Okay, for like, a second, but even before Horde Prime, Catra was--”

“Catra and I were both abused and manipulated by Shadow Weaver.” There’s a thread of pain in She-Ra’s voice now. “From the time we were infants. We never stood a chance against her.”

“But you escaped,” says Perfuma, almost as a question. “You changed your mind about the Horde, and you left.”

Catra stares at the table. She can feel She-Ra’s eyes glance toward her. Melog gives a solemn mrow of comfort, pulsing aqua-blue. Without warning, light flares again and Adora is standing at Catra’s side, hands empty.

“If I hadn’t found the sword in the Whispering Woods, it would have been me marching on your kingdoms,” says Adora, and everyone shuffles uncomfortably. “I was chosen to be Force Captain just a couple hours before. It was dumb luck that I fell off that skiff and landed where I did.”

“It was destiny,” argues Perfuma. “You were chosen to be She-Ra! You would have found the sword at some point!”

“By that point, would it have mattered?” Adora’s hand strokes Melog’s ears. Catra swears she can feel the ghost of those fingers on her own head. “I wouldn’t have had Bow and Glimmer to show me what the Horde was really doing. I would have had Shadow Weaver and Hordak reinforcing my training.”

“You would have found a way to become She-Ra,” says Perfuma earnestly. “The universe would have aligned somehow--”

“And whose kingdom would have already fallen to the Horde by the time that happened?” Adora lifts her hands helplessly. “Don’t you get it? If I hadn’t discovered I was She-Ra, I would have become Catra.”

They stare at her, apparently never having put the dots together before. Catra, who has always been smarter than these princesses, leans back in her chair.

“Maybe,” she says, smirking up at her girlfriend. “But I wore it better.”

aslfja;lskdjfl;a this is already too long and it half-morphed into fic, so I’ll just summarize by saying everyone is a little sorry that they’ve been bullying Catra, and Catra refuses to admit she’s been bullied because of course she does, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t hugely touched and grateful that for once Adora fought to protect her from her princess friends. The Alliance goes forward with the intent of trying to behave better towards Catra. It helps that they saw Melog turn into a jello-mold as soon as She-Ra appeared, so they have proof positive that Catra is indeed not a threat and is in fact secretly a jello mold herself. The bullying turns into heckling whenever Catra and Adora goo-goo-eye each other. Which is a lot. Frosta makes an ice sculpture of Catra swooning into Adora’s arms (her art skills mysteriously improve enough to clearly depict Catra with heart eyes and Adora with bulging biceps). Perfuma decorates it with flowers. Netossa puts a forcefield net around it so Catra can’t destroy it. Catra sulks and Adora flexes her muscles to make her feel better. the end???

bonus line I couldn’t figure out how to incorporate: “Uh, Entrapta has two Hordaks and I don’t see anyone giving her crap about them!”

#what have i wrought #with these sinful hands #headcanon #fanfic #she ra #she ra netflix #she ra and the princesses of power #spop #catra #adora #glimmer #bow #frosta #perfuma #mermista #princess alliance #catradora

[cuddlygaycarmilla]

“You’re worth more than what you can give to other people. You deserve love too.”

"What do you want when this is all over?” 

- Mara to Adora. S5:12

All her life, Adora was told she was useful because of what she would be. Because of what she could do. She never asked herself what she wanted, because it didn’t matter. All that mattered was doing what she needed to do, to take care of the people she cared about. 

When had she ever considered her own happiness, her own worthiness? 

Even in this moment, it is as if she is afraid to acknowledge what she wants. To reach out for it. Because she knows she cannot have it. Because it is so much more painful to see what you want and to turn away from it, then to just not look at all. 

So the “beautiful wish” that she sees  when she lies close to dying at the Heart.  That was what she wanted all along. That was the dream she had never dared let herself explore.

Catra. She wanted to love and be loved by Catra, and have her be part of the warm circle of friendship that she shared with Bow and Glimmer.

How beautiful was that simple wish? 

How wonderful to see Catra declare her love for her moments later, and for Adora to say, for the very first time, “I love you, too.”  

#she-ra #spop #catra #adora #catradora #she-ra spoilers

[nonspecificfandomblog]

A She-Ra Film (According to Me)

I am very excited by the prospect of a She-Ra and the Princesses of Power film, and seeing so many theory posts has inspired me with my own plot idea for a She-Ra film, blessed we be that it happens.

Etheria is abuzz as Bright Moon prepares to host Queen Glimmer and Bow’s wedding, which shall surely be the event of the century after so many years spent fighting the Horde.

Aunt Castaspella and King Micah prepare a wonderful magical display, featuring Queen Glimmer of course, Perfuma and her people tend to the gardens and floral arrangements, Frosta crafts ice sculptures filling the entire castle, Mermista and Scorpia travel the seas, spreading the good news, and all feels good in the world. A strong turn-around from the last major event at Bright Moon (the coronation).

Adora is not happy however. She loves Glimmer and Bow and cannot wait for them to be married. Overseeing the entire operation with Glimmer, Bow, and Catra, the castle seems to haunt Adora. Visions and memories come in flashes as one person keeps coming to mind: Queen Angella. Her only daughter, coronated without either of her parents to support her, and marrying without her mother. Glimmer does not seem too bothered, instead smiling at Frosta’s ice sculpture and Perfuma’s hedge of her mom. Still, Adora sees only the reminder that she failed to save Glimmer’s mother, and she must now celebrate this important day without her.

Her friends notice how distracted she’s been, and finally after days of visions and nightmares, Adora comes up with a plan: to free Queen Angella from where she is trapped between dimensions, and finally rid the world of the Horde’s last gaping scar. Although it is not a clear plan, it’s Adora’s plan, and when does she ever think things through?

Adora enlists Entrapta’s help, hoping her experience creating the inter-dimensional portal will enable her to save Queen Angella. Entrapta excitedly agrees to help, bringing Hordak along with her, having created the portal together. Hordak explains the limitations, that as a portal to travel from one dimension to another, he is not sure how they can retrieve someone from between dimensions. However, seeing as the original portal was made with First Ones tech, it would make sense they might have a greater understanding.

The discussion triggers a vision, and Adora sees herself once again as a child--but not on Etheria. She does not know where she is, but as she looks at the two adults cradling her in their arms, she understands that they must be her parents. Overcome with emotions, she breaks down crying, declaring she cannot let Glimmer get married without Angella present. They are going to find the remaining First Ones.

During her outburst, Glimmer, Bow, and Catra had come in and after her declaration, voice their support. Adora cries again, voicing her guilt and shame over what happened to Angella as Glimmer tells her she has already forgiven her. But, if Adora is set on doing this, Glimmer will be with her the entire way. Bow and Catra agree, and the mission is set.

A few days pass, and all the Princesses have gathered to join Adora on her mission, leaving Castaspella and Micah alone to finish the preparations, never fully explaining their true intentions--to rescue Queen Angella--fearing Micah will stop them from risking their lives to save a wife he has already mourned.

Their mission begins and the Princesses start their search by returning to Krytis. Exploring the world with Melog at their side, they try to learn the history of the First Ones in hopes of finding where any who remain might have gone to. Finally, after a long search through the planet’s ruins, they find a clue to the last First Ones’ whereabouts. They set a course.

During the journey, tensions rise between Adora and her friends as her visions and nightmares worsen, now hearing Angella’s voice calling out to her, along with two voices she does not recognize. Refusing their support and comfort, Adora isolates herself, once again hoping to save the day at her own expense.

The team arrives at a planet and, detecting vast catacombs moving throughout the entire planet’s core, go down to search. Choosing to search with Entrapta, Hordak, and Mermista, Adora vents her feelings before trying to run off. Strangely, Hordak stops her and says something profound, having gained a genuine appreciation for friendship and love. Adora’s guilt and shame do not change how her friends feel about her, they only corrupt her perception of herself. Comforted, Adora and the group continue searching before finding a sealed pocket deep in the planet.

Unable to get a message to the two other teams, the group chooses to forge on breaking through the technology sealing off the pocket, finding the lost First Ones.

The First Ones attack, easily overpowering the team, taking them to prison. There, they are reunited with the other two groups who had found the First Ones in different catacombs and were captured. The group finds comfort in each other’s company, before they are interrupted by the Queen and King of the First Ones there to interrogate them.

As they begin questioning, the Queen can’t help but be distracted by Adora. She draws the attention to her, stating she recognizes her. Denying the possibility, Adora has another vision and she sees her mom and dad standing before her, and passes out.

Blinking awake, the Queen and King hold her in their arms, saying, “You’ve come back to us.”

Freed from prison, Adora and the Princesses celebrate with the First Ones as their Princess has returned to them after so many years.

After days of celebration, the Princesses tell the King and Queen their original intentions in finding them: to learn how to save Queen Angella. The First Ones agree to help them, deciding, having learned of the Horde’s dissolution, to come with the Princesses to Etheria.

On their journey, Adora’s friends become increasingly wary of the King and Queen and their motivations. They do not doubt they are Adora’s parents, though they do believe they have not been completely honest with them. They confront Adora who lashes out at them, upset they would doubt her family who she has spent so long not knowing, who she lucked into finding because she was trying to restore Glimmer’s family. The other Princesses become upset, Catra and Glimmer particularly hurt by the implication that they are not Adora’s family.

Entrapta and Hordak have begun working with the First Ones on the technology to bring Queen Angella back, but as they spend more time among them, they too become wary of the First Ones’ intentions. As they learn more and more about their history, their motivations become clear.

Just as they arrive at Etheria, Entrapta and Hordak warn Adora of the First Ones’ plans to harvest Etheria’s magic once more. Upset, Adora confronts the King and Queen hoping to easily resolve the issue only to find everyone’s suspicions were true. Betrayed and hurt, Adora lashes out before being subdued and captured by the King and Queen.

Waking up in the Bright Moon holding cell, Adora finds herself joined by Entrapta and Hordak, who the First Ones intentionally let tell her of their plans to see where her loyalties lied--with the Princesses, or with her “family.” Heartbroken the family she has spent so long wondering about has betrayed her, Adora wallows in self-pity as the Princesses quietly mount a Rebellion against the First Ones who have taken over Bright Moon and plan to conquer the rest of Etheria.

Barely escaping the First Ones, the Princesses landing in the Crimson Waste where they enlist their old friend Huntara to help them rescue Adora, Entrapta, and Hordak, and take back Etheria.

The rescue commences and, after freeing Adora, Entrapta, and Hordak, as the Princesses make their way to the throne room, Adora apologizes for her behavior. Family is about who loves and cares about you, and they do, not the First Ones.

Reaching the throne room, Adora confronts the King and Queen. Although their primary plans involve harnessing Etherian magic, they do want her to be with them, and offer to help rescue Queen Angella if she surrenders and declares her allegiance to them. She promptly rejects their proposal and attacks. A horrible battle ensues which results in the destruction of much of the First Ones technology and their forces.

The First Ones flee Etheria in ruins, saying one day they will return for Adora and Etheria.

The wedding having been pushed off by the First Ones invasion, it is finally time for Bow and Glimmer to be married. Having apologized to her family for how she treated them and forgiven herself for what happened to Queen Angella, Adora is finally at peace and ready to begin the rest of her life with her friends.

Lo and behold, Entrapta managed to steal many of the schematics from the first ones for their technology, and fashion a device to bring back Queen Angella. Telling no one, Entrapta waits until the ceremony is about to begin and uses the machine. Vast Etherian magic swarms around the wedding guests as the sky lights up, and floating down to them is Queen Angella.

Tearful reunion, wedding, happily ever after.

Obviously, this is just an idea, and there are plenty of things which might need to be fixed of changed if this were to be the She Ra movie, however, I think the main ideas are quite strong throughout. More than anything, I want the She-Ra movie to explore the First Ones, Adora’s parents--and subsequently the meaning of family, and reunite Queen Angella with her family. Thanks for reading my long, imperfect idea. More than anything, I’m just so hopeful that there will be more She-Ra in the world and I would love whatever Noelle writes.

#she-ra and the princesses of power #she-ra #shera #she ra spop #she ra film #she-ra and the princesses of power film #adora #catra #catradora #glimmer #bow #scorpia #perfuma #hordak #horde #first ones #entrapta #mermista #frosta #queen angella #king micah #queen glimmer #bright moon #etheria #Krytis #Adora's parents #adora is she-ra #movie for she ra

[thoughtfulfangirling]

There’s one more thing I have to talk about re: She Ra season 5 but this time I got on desktop for it so can put it under a read more. Still, stop reading now if you haven’t seen it.

I have always incredibly appreciated the platonic relationship between Glimmer and Bow. They have the longest history of a platonic friendship, and it is so integral to who they are. They built their lives alongside each other and became who they are in a way similar to Catra and Adora in ways will leave them twined together in certain ways for the rest of their lives. 

Platonic male/female relationships are so rare, that I’ve personally been pretty against ever shipping Glimmer and Bow. I love their friendship too much. It’s not a matter of ‘tainting’ the relationship or anything. Just that I value the idea that friendship love gets to be as powerful as theirs without having to be romantic; I  find that moving and compelling. 

So one can imagine that I got a little anxious at the scene in the show where Glimmer declared her love for Bow. But even then, I don’t think that needs to be romantic. I am inclined perhaps to believe that in that moment of everything being desperate, Glimmer’s world threatening to fall apart, and the very real possibility that at the end of it, Bow might be all she has left, she does feel romantic about it, see: the way she repeats it and blushes.

Bow’s response feels platonic though to me. It makes what he says no less true. Love does not have to be romantic. He loves her.

And that’s okay.

At the end of this, Bow is still going to be there for her and that is the important part. 

But as I watched the ending, my heart sank a little, because I saw the sequence of Adora’s dream and how blatantly Glimmer and Bow are being romantically coded. I knew there that for some it was going to be taken as canon. And I think it would be ignorant to think that it’s impossible to believe this may be a nod by the creators at Glimmer and Bow’s future. But I don’t think that’s set in stone. 

Adora’s dream is just that: It’s Adora’s dream—her desires. Glimmer and Bow being romantic in Adora’s ideal life serves two purposes. The one I like best is what it tells us about Adora. Bow and Glimmer get to be shown as incredibly important to her, it reveals her hopes that they could be as happy as she is, and it simplifies their friend dynamics. It removes the stress and anxiety of what happened when Bow invited Perfuma to the Princess Ball and Glimmer was unhappy. It protects her vision of them remaining so close. There are many ways that Glimmer and Bow being romantic clearly serves Adora’s happiness. 

Especially when we take into account the second purpose it serves, which works both in-universe and out-universe. It mirrors Adora’s romantic love for Catra. It cues us as the audience in that this is happening; it also let’s us know that Adora is realizing that this is happening. Possibly for the first time, maybe not, Adora is recognizing her feelings for Catra as romantic. (And it brings us back to Adora wanting the same sort of happiness she desires. Projection much? =P)

The important thing to remember is that this is presented as a dream, a wish. When Adora reaches out to touch Catra’s hand, it’s not really there. Could someone imagine and choose to believe this is a vision of the future? Sure. And I don’t begrudge them that, but personally for me, I like what something the like this tells us about Adora and her desires and personally feel like reading this purely as Adora’s dream of the future serves the story better. 

It did leave me concerned for what time remained of the show about how Bow and Glimmer would be depicted. Was that the route they were going? And maybe it was, but that’s still not how I read them. To me, I can give or take that Glimmer’s feelings are romantic, but it doesn’t feel to me that Bow shares them. 

And by the time we do see them again at the end of the series, I think they are both happy to be close and important platonic friends. The body language just isn’t there in contrast to the more heavily hinted at or blatant romantic pairings of the show such as Spinarella and Netossa, Scorpia and Perfuma, Seahawk and Mermista, and of course, Catra and Adora. 

Comparing these to the body language of Bow and Glimmer, particularly against Catra and Adora especially during the last moments of the show I think especially highlights their different forms of love. Bow and Glimmer are still physically comfortable with each other and touching, but it still has more distance, doesn’t have the same intimacy of Catra and Adora. 

I am not here to tell people not to ship Bow and Glimmer or that there’s no evidence for it. Honestly Glimmer is probably my favorite character and she deserves to be loved, and I do want that for her. I can’t begrudge anyone for wanting these two to be happy together. Is this a firm ground in which to launch toward a romantic path for these two? Easily. But my reading is that it’s not there yet, and I personally will never take them there. That does not undercut how much they love each other though, and I firmly believe they will live their lives side by side and for better or worse, their respective future partners will have to deal with it. 

#she ra spoilers #she-ra spoilers #spop spoilers #shera spoilers #she ra #shera #spop #she-ra #spoilers for Rose #Spoilers for Doc #Spoilers for Jet #thinky thoughts #tf rambles #tfgoc

[harrowharkboygf]

double trouble and the one (1) time they were good with kids

Double Trouble has never thought of themself as a “kid person”. All of the creatures they could choose to interact with on Etheria, children were certainly not at the top of the list. But for Finn, they would make an exception. read on ao3 | blm donation commissions

As they flipped through the pages of their notebook, Double Trouble became increasingly irritated. All they had wanted to do was research for their latest play—a harrowing tale of love between two First Ones—and word on the street was that Madame Razz was the only person left on Etheria who remembered what the long-gone civilization had actually been like.

But talking to her was absolutely incomprehensible. She spouted more nonsense than anyone Double Trouble had ever met, and they’d met Entrapta. How in the world were they supposed to properly act when they were incapable of understanding who their character was? They were a method actor, for fuck’s sake!

They sighed. At least the pie Razz had made had tasted good. They reclined back in their perch amongst the treetops, marking up their script with what little information they had. Worst come to worst, Double Trouble could always pay a visit to Brightmoon. Surely Adora knew something about the First Ones, being She-Ra and all that.

“I think we’re lost,” a little voice said from below them.

“We’re not lost, Luna!” a different voice declared. “I know where we’re going!”

“Suuuuuure,” said a third voice skeptically.

“We aren’t!” the second voice protested.

Double Trouble sat up and peered curiously down to the forest floor, searching for the source of this argument. To their surprise, they saw four little kids slowly making their way through the Whispering Woods.

“We’re going on an adventure,” whined the owner of the second voice, who, they realized, was Catra and Adora’s little kitten, Finn. Double Trouble wondered if the play-sword Finn was holding was one of the ones from the toy weapons set they had given them as a gift when they were born. They were particularly proud of that set—they loved being the one to bring the biggest, most expensive present to a party, and here they had certainly succeeded.

Finn hopped over a tree root with ease. “An adventure means you have to be brave, guys. ”

“I’m brave!” said one of the other kids, who they were also able to recognize by the short, poofy purple hair that popped against her dark skin; this was one of the Princesses of Brightmoon. Archie crossed her arms, looking exactly like Glimmer. “I think you don’t know where the castle is.”

Finn huffed. “Finding it is part of the adventure!”

Archie’s twin, who was nearly identical save for her hair, which was just as poofy but bright pink and pulled into two pigtails, clutched her sister’s hand nervously. “The forest is kind of scary,” she whispered.

The fourth kid—Double Trouble didn’t recognize him, but judging by the pale blonde hair, the scorpion tail and claws, and the flower tucked behind his ear, he was clearly one of Scorpia and Perfuma’s brood—took her tiny hand in his. “The forest isn’t scary, Luna,” he said earnestly. “My moms said that things are only scary if you make them that way.”

Finn grinned, triumphant. “And Archie and Luna’s dad says that all you need is your friends! We have each other, so we can do this! Let’s go!”

Archie still looked unconvinced. “Our parents are really busy today. What if we miss something fun?” she asked.

Luna’s eyes widened. “Do you think so?”

Finn poked at the ground with their toy sword. “No! Today is when all the adults do all the boring stuff, and tomorrow is when everyone else gets here and we do the fun stuff. We can spend a whole day in the castle and they won’ even miss us.”

Luna’s lip had begun to tremble. “I wanna go home,” she whimpered. She tugged at the scorpion boy’s hand. “Ol’ander, let’s go home.”

Oleander gave her a hug. “Don’t cry, Luna!” he said. “I’ll tell you a joke Uncle Sea Hawk told me! What does a seagull say to a—No, wait, I forgot it…”

Finn yanked their sword out of the ground and held it up, looking a little like a mini-Adora. “Come on! We’re on an adventure to the magic castle! We’ll be super brave and do super fun things! Then we go home and have dinner! It’ll be fun.”

The other kids exchanged looks. But then Finn tapped Archie on the nose. “Tag!” they shouted. “Race you to the castle!” They turned and ran through the bushes.

Instantly, the group dissolved into laughter. They squealed and shrieked as they chased after Finn, all worries vanishing immediately.

Double Trouble turned back to their script. A little unsupervised excursion was good for kids. Healthy, even. After all, they’d mostly been left to their own devices as a child, and they’d turned out wonderfully! These little children would be fine. And Double Trouble was not exactly tripping over themself to go spend time with a bunch of kiddies anyway.

But then they had an idea. They assumed that the “magic castle” the kids were referring to was the Crystal Castle—also known as a First Ones artifact. It could be the missing piece in the puzzle that was their script! Just one tour around the place and they could learn so much about their character. It was perfect!

Double Trouble transformed into a bird and flew towards the castle. It wasn’t hard to find, being a huge crystal structure in the middle of the wilderness. They landed in front of it and shifted back into their usual form.

The castle itself was shut tight against the outside world, with no obvious signs of entry. They could see a few tiny footprints in the grass near the front of the building, but it was unclear how—or if—the kids had gotten inside. Double Trouble sighed. The life of an actor was one of suffering.

They shifted back into a bird, flying themself to the top of the castle. Maybe they could find an entry point that way. It took some poking and prodding, but they finally managed to find a square of crystal that seemed loose enough to pry off—

The piece they were standing on shattered, sending them crashing through the roof.

Double Trouble stood up, trying to adjust to the dim light. The room was lit with tiny glowing panels along the walls; it was completely empty. They pulled out their notebook, reaching out carefully to touch the wall.

A scream split the air.

Double Trouble whirled around, searching for the source of distress. Then they remembered—the kids.

They quickly sprinted out of the room, not even bothering to transform. Double Trouble may have been a vicious mercenary, but they weren’t nearly heartless enough to let a bunch of five-year-olds die.

They turned a corner, following the sounds of shrieks. The hallways seemed to stretch on endlessly, a twisting, winding maze. After what seemed like an eternity, they came upon the source of the commotion:

A huge, angry spider was advancing on the kids, who were backed into a corner. Separating them and Double Trouble was a gaping, cavernous hole. The only way across was by a narrow, partially eroded pillar that had fallen and landed over the hole.

As the spider clicked it’s pincers, Archie shouted, “Use your magic!”

Luna, who was being clung to by Oleander and her sister, clapped her hands together frantically. “Can’t!” she wailed, tears gushing down her cheeks. “I don’t know how!”

Double Trouble began to make their way across the pillar, moving gingerly to avoid it breaking down even more. They clearly weren’t moving enough; the spider lunged at the kids, and they howled in fear, pressing closer together. All of them shrunk back, until their backs touched the wall.

All of them except Finn, who jumped forward, shielding the other children.

“For the honor of Grayskull!” they screamed, holding out their toy sword with such confidence that for a second, Double Trouble actually expected them to transform into a glowing warrior.

The spider hesitated for the briefest second, and Finn used that opportunity to thrust their sword towards its face. The blade grazed the creature’s skin harmlessly. (Next time, Double Trouble decided, they would get the kid something actually sharp).

Undeterred, Finn hurled the sword at its face as hard as they could. It bounced off its nose, knocking the toy several feet away. The spider made a horrid, grating noise of anger. Fear crossed Finn’s face for the first time.

Luckily, Double Trouble had just reached the end of the plank. They leapt off of it, tackling the spider. It hissed and thrashed under their grip. They used all their might to hurl it against the wall, before jumping off quickly and landing in front of the kids.

“Hi, Mx. Double Trouble!” said Finn cheerfully. Meanwhile, the spider managed to free itself from the wall, shaking its head. It gargled in anger. It was clearly disoriented, but for how much longer?

“Hello, little darlings!” they chirped. “Time to go!” They threw their entire weight against a nearby pillar, causing it to tip and careen into the pillar next to it. The pillars crashed into each other slowly, falling like dominoes.

Double Trouble grabbed Finn and one of the twins by the backs of their shirts and hauled them out of the way. They swept the other two children along with their tail. As the pillars fell, building a wall of stone and rubble between them and the spider, Double Trouble herded the small children out of the room. “Which way to the exit, little explorers?” they asked.

Archie pointed down a hallway. “I think…”

They immediately sprinted in that direction, their little gaggle stumbling after them, all holding each other’s hands.

The group reached a room that looked identical to the others. But Finn said, “This is where the ramp is!” And sure enough, a ramp descended from the ceiling, letting a beam of sunlight from the outside.

They all ran up the ramp and out of the castle. Once they reached the surface, the ramp closed behind them, sealing up the castle once more. The kids all collapsed onto the grass, obviously exhausted and shaking.

Oleander pulled a flower out of the ground and tucked it behind his ear, to replace the one that had fallen out during their mad dash. “We did go on an adventure,” he said, with the optimism that his family was apparently incapable of losing.

Archie poked Finn in the stomach. “How come you didn’ turn into She-Ra like your mommy does?”

Finn frowned, looking annoyed. “I dunno!”

Double Trouble laughed. They patted the kid on the head. “A bunch of scared little children are no match for one of those spiders, even if you’d had She-Ra’s sword. You’re lucky I found you in time, little one.”

Finn’s pout grew bigger. “I wasn’t scared!”

“Sure you weren’t.” They got to their feet, dusting off the grass sticking to their clothes. “Come along, children. Back to Brightmoon we go.”

“This’s one of Mommy and Daddy’s friends,” Luna explained to Oleander in a whisper as they walked. “They visit sometimes and tell Mommy things.”

“What sort of things?” asked Oleander.

“Secrets,” said Double Trouble, and winked. Being the queen’s spy was not their full time job—that would always be the theater, of course—but it was a good way to keep themself entertained in between shows. And they loved sharing the gossip around Etheria, so it worked out very well.

Finn bounced over to Double Trouble’s side. “I wasn’t scared!” they announced. “I was just pretending.”

They snorted. “Well then you’re quite the actor.”

The kid stomped their foot. “I can act! I’m the best at the pretend games we play.”

Double Trouble shook their head sagely. “True acting isn’t just pretending…” they said. They tipped their head back as they transformed, shrinking down and sprouting fur and blond hair that was thicker and lighter than their own. Finn gasped as they came face-to-face with their mirror image.

“…You gotta become your character,” Double Trouble told them, delighting in the look of awe that spread across their face, and the shock that permeated the air around the rest of the group. They lingered in that form for a minute before shifting back.

“That’s not fair,” Finn protested as they continued walking. “Not everyone can do that. You’re cheating.”

“Not cheating, darling—simply utilizing my full potential.” They winked, enjoying the way the kid got increasingly irritated with every word. Meanwhile, the other children chattered on behind them, engaged in their own conversation. Double Trouble made sure to glance back every few seconds, to make sure no other creatures had attempted to sweep them away.

Finn crossed their arms determinedly. “I can’t do that, but I can act!”

“Oh? Prove it then, why don’t you?”

Finn cocked their head, standing up straighter. Their eyes widened just slightly, their tail curling in a motion that was decidedly uncat-like. They put their right hand on their hip, which jutted out slightly, and they used their left hand to examine their nails, an air of aloofness eminenting from the young child. “Hello, little darling,” they hissed at Double Trouble.

Double Trouble gasped. That was an almost perfect imitation of their voice and mannerisms! The kid was a natural. “Well played, little one. I’m sure your mothers will love to see you reenact this dramatic tale—”

The kids all gasped in unison. “Don’t tell our parents!” Archie begged.

Double Trouble raised an eyebrow. “Are we, perhaps, going to be yelled at when we return, children?”

“Not yelled at,” said Finn. “My moms don’t yell! They say we have to use our nice words when we’re upset.”

“But…” Luna trailed off, biting her lip.

“But?” Double Trouble prompted.

“But…our parents don’t know we’re not at Brightmoon,” Oleander confessed, looking down at the ground.

“We snuck out,” Archie chimed in. “It was Finn’s idea!”

“Was not!” Finn snapped, scuffing the dirt with their feet. “You all wanted to go on an adventure! Besides, everyone’s super busy with that whole ann-verse-ree thing tomorrow.”

Ah, the yearly anniversary of the defeat of Horde Prime. It was quite a big celebration that was hosted at Brightmoon, and Double Trouble could easily see how the kids could feel ignored during the hustle and bustle of the preparations. They knew how it felt to not be the center of attention, after all.

“And,” Oleander added, a pout on his face, “my sisters won’t let us play iceball with them.”

“They said we’re too young!” Archie said indignantly. “Melody and Hope are only three years older than us!”

“Please don’t tell our parents!” Finn pleaded, putting on their sweetest face. “My moms will be so worried . They don’t let me do anything fun already. Uncle Sea Hawk was gonna show us how’t ride a flaming boat and my moms said no!”

“Gee, little one, I wonder why.”

Archie stared at them, a surprisingly calculated look on her baby face. “Aren’t you going to get in trouble, too?” she asked.

Double Trouble blinked. “Pardon?”

“No one’s s’posed to go in the castle,” Archie said, slowly. “Adora says it’s dangerous and no one’s allowed in it. Doesn’t that mean you too?”

Finn picked up on where she was going with this. “If you don’t tell on us, we won’t tell on you!” they said. “Then Glimmer won’t be mad at you.”

Double Trouble stared at the two of them incredulously. “Are you… manipulating me into deceiving your parents for your own gain?”

“I don’t know what that means,” said Finn, “but yes!”

They gave a dramatic sigh. “Alright, children, you win.”

——

Glimmer crossed her arms, glaring down at them. “Where in the world have you four been all afternoon?”

Archie blinked up at her innocently. “Playing hide ‘n’ seek right here in the gardens.”

“I won!” chirped Luna.

“I almost won,” added Oleander.

“And why didn’t you come out when we were calling for you?” Bow asked.

“Uh, ‘cause we were hiding?” Finn pointed out, with a lot of cockiness for a five-year-old.

“Riiiiiight,” said Catra, staring down at her child with a hefty amount of skepticism. “And none of Oleander’s sisters saw you guys playing, despite them also being in the gardens? What’s the reason for that, kiddo?”

Finn blanched. Perfuma knelt down in front of the kids. “You can tell us where you’ve really been, sweet ones,” she promised. “We just want your honesty.”

“We were!” insisted Finn. “We have proof! Swift Wind!”

That was their cue. Double Trouble huffed, feeling utterly humiliated at having to play the talking horse. But it wasn’t the worse role they’d had to play—being a Horde clone had been completely abhorrent.

“Did someone say… Swift Wind!” they shouted as they trotted out of the bush. At least the horse shared their passion for theatrics.

Adora perked up. “Hey, Swiftie,” she said. “Have you been playing hide-and-seek with the kids this afternoon?” It was obvious that she was not the disciplinarian.

“Indeed I have,” Double Trouble proclaimed, lifting one hoof for emphasis. “And they’re quite the good hiders, too! Isn’t that right!” They nudged Finn lightly. The kid nudged them back.

“I had the best hiding spot, Mommy!” they told Adora.

Scorpia relaxed. “Alright, we believe you!” If anyone was less thrilled than Adora about having to be the bad guy, it was her. She scooped the children up in her arms, squeezing them tightly as they giggled, squirming around in her hug. “Next time, add a rule that makes it okay to come out of your hiding spots when we call you for ice cream.”

They all perked up. “Is there still ice cream left?” Luna asked.

“You betcha!”

Adora smiled. “Come on, let’s go inside and get some,” she said. The group turned and started heading towards the castle door. The events of the day clearly hadn’t left any lasting trauma on the children—they were as bouncy and bubbly as ever, asking the adults a million questions about the anniversary celebration and the desserts they’d be serving. It was kind of cute, Double Trouble admitted. They watched Catra fondly adjust the red scarf tied around Finn’s neck, as they babbled on without taking a breath.

Adora was the last to leave. She paused, looked over her shoulder. “And for future reference, Double Trouble,” she said, a gleam in her eye, “next time, choose someone to impersonate that I don’t have a sacred magical connection with.” Then she followed after the rest of her family, leaving them gaping.

But Double Trouble wasn’t even miffed at being found out. Because they’d discovered something extraordinary—an actor with talent that could one day rival theirs. They had finally found a protégé!

#she ra #double trouble #finn #catradora #scorfuma #glimbow #spop #she ra fankids #she ra ocs #catra #adora #scorpia #perfuma #glimmer #bow #she ra fanfic #soph.txt

[catrasredemption-moved]

I love your fics!!! how about younger teen catra and adora making the "you and me together at the end of the world" vow (at least one of the times)?

It wasn’t the first time Shadow Weaver had punished Catra, but something had felt particularly worse about it. Adora had a bad feeling the minute Shadow Weaver told her to leave the room, leaving Catra on her knees in front of the sorceress. 

It was the first time Catra climbed higher onto the roof than Adora could easily reach. She hadn’t come back to the bunks, and it was almost curfew, and Adora was scared. Was she really still with Shadow Weaver?

But the Black Garnet room was open and empty, there was no angry cat beating up a punching bag in the gym, or sulking in a closet. Finally Adora had gone out to check the roof, and found Catra all the way at the top in a place that wasn’t possible for humans to reach without help.

Good thing they had learned about grappling hooks last week.

It took awhile, and thankfully Catra didn’t run while Adora was climbing. “Hey,” she gasped, hauling herself over the railing and flopping onto the roof. Catra didn’t react, other than her tail lashing angrily. “Are you okay?”

“Go away.”

Adora winced. Catra didn’t usually talk to her like that. “Did Shadow Weaver-”

“I don’t wanna talk about it, okay?”

Great. Adora sighed, dragging herself up and walking over to join Catra. “Why can’t you just leave me alone?” Catra grumbled, curling in tight on herself.

“Because you’re my best friend and if I left you alone I’d be like, the worst friend ever.” Adora leaned against the railing next to Catra. She had been crying. Adora didn’t comment on it. “It’s gonna be okay, you know.”

“Sure,” Catra muttered. “It’ll be okay when Shadow Weaver drops dead.”

A little aggressive, but Adora didn’t really blame her. “We still have each other,” she said instead. “Shadow Weaver can’t do anything about that.” Catra didn’t answer. Adora nudged her with her shoulder. “We’re gonna rule this place together someday, right?”

“Yeah.” Catra finally unraveled a little. “You and me together.”

“At the end of the world!”

It was such a stupid declaration, but it was also such an Adora declaration, that Catra had to laugh. “You and me together at the end of the world. I like it.”

Adora beamed. “Me too.”

#catradora fic #catradora #she ra fic #Mystery Person #Sam Answers

[mustloveshera]

Hey i don't get what u mean with the Parallels between promise episode and remember episode could u explain (i kind slow😩😩😩😩😩😩)

(referring to this post)

it’s not necessarily a parallel. more like…revisiting a memory and finally understanding its truth, but just a moment too late for it to matter. 

in both episodes, catra declared that she wasn’t going to follow adora anymore. 

however, in “the promise”, catra assumed the absolute worst of adora’s every action. any time adora tried to protect her, she was just trying to make catra feel weak, right? if adora didn’t openly defy shadow weaver, then she loved being her favorite, right? every time that adora told her to come back with her, it was just another attempt to assert control over catra, right? right? 

in “remember”, catra reaches a breakthrough. she doesn’t assume the worst of her memories; adora truly wanted to protect her because she cared about catra, adora truly wanted to be with catra because she liked being with catra, and adora was asking for her help because she felt that the two of them could do anything if they were together.

the most important moment was this flashback right here–of adora’s first plea for catra to come with her. if catra had understood what she truly wanted–which isn’t this, at all–then would she have gone back with her? if they’d been together this whole time, could they have been happy? if they’d worked together, could they have fixed things, together? 

right before these flashbacks, catra asks adora to stay, to live this lie, because being with adora like this forever was what she wanted. she resisted any acknowledgment of how fake their new world was because she wanted it to be real. 

adora offered her a chance for them to be together again, in reality, and catra realized what that chance meant, but she’d already chosen to reject it, so it didn’t matter. 

#avatarsavage9819 #catra #adora #catradora #spop spoilers #lukapost #lukathinks