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Chapter Text

"Well, that wasn't suppose to happen." Entrapta commented, scratching her head.

She lifted up her goggles, using her hair. Hordak and Wrong Hordak look at the princess and then back at where Catra had just been standing a moment ago. Powering down the contraption, they went to investigate. In the spot that Catra had been standing, was only her clothes.

Hordak couldn't help but see his life flashing before his eyes. Perhaps, having Catra as their test subject was a mistake. Had they just killed Catra? How did someone just disappear into thin air? If she died, Adora was sure to kill them all in retaliation once she found out. Catra, for some reason, meant the world to Adora and would destroy any threat to Catra's safety, friend or not. So, this experiment gone wrong was a one-way ticket to Adora gutting them all with her sword and the other princesses hating him.

Hordak looked at Entrapta, who didn't seem that concerned by the sudden absence of the magicat woman. Was she not aware of their imminent doom?

"Entrapta. Did we just accidentally commit murder? If so, you do realize that Adora will obliterate us all once this incident is made known to her, right?"

Entrapta looked away from the contraption, as if she had just remembered that anyone else had been in the room.

"Oh, right."

"Um, friends." Wrong Hordak spoke up. "I see movement in the pile of garments."

The other two looked at where Wrong Hordak was pointing. There was in fact, a little bundle moving underneath the clothing. They suddenly heard what sounded like squeaky, muffled cry coming from the bundle of clothing. Entrapta curiously walked over to the pile of clothes. Lifting up the maroon shirt, Entrapta peeked. She suddenly gasped, her face lighting up. Entrapta looked over her shoulder at the sentient clones.

"We need to go get the others." She ordered excitedly, getting to her feet. "Wrong Hordak. Stay here and watch her."

Entrapta pulled Hordak out of the lab before either of them knew what was happening.
—————————

Adora shot out of her seat.

"What?!"

Entrapta looked at everyone in the room. Glimmer, Bow and the rest of the princess alliance all had fear on their faces, matching Adora. Apparently, telling someone that you experimented on their girlfriend/friend and it went wrong, causes panic.

Adora was terrified by the news.

"Is she hurt? Where is she? Why didn't you let one of us know you'd be doing something?" She rambled.

"Entrapta." Scorpia sighed, exasperated. "Please tell me you didn't kill her."

Entrapta tilted her head in confusion.

"Of course I didn't. She's alive. Come with me, you guys. I want to show you what did happen, because I did not expect these results."

The cryptic language did not help the fear everyone else felt. The group eagerly followed Entrapta and Hordak back to the lab. Adora knew that Entrapta said Catra was alive. That took off one fear. There were still many different, terrible scenarios running through her head. Entrapta was not one to hold back on her experiments, occasionally ignorant to the blatant safety concerns most people would have. So, hearing that something happened to Catra during one of these trials, made Adora's mind race with worst-case scenarios.

The group entered the lab. Adora's eyes widened when she saw the giant laser gun.

Bow asked the questioned she had thought of.
The archer nervously pointed at the invention.

"Um... Entrapta? What's that thing? What exactly was the experiment?"

Entrapta smiled, always happy to answer science-related questions.

"It was supposed to be able to shrink someone down to a foot tall."

"You shrunk Catra?!" Scorpia gasped, looking around the floor.

"Not exactly." Wrong Hordak replied, glancing at Catra's clothes that were still in a pile on the floor.

"Is it just me, or is that shirt moving?" Glimmer suddenly asked, an eyebrow raised.

Everyone's attention turned to the pile of clothes. There was slight movement underneath. Adora hesitantly approached the pile of clothing. Kneeling down, she picked up the shirt. Everyone gasped. There, crawling weakly around in the pile of clothing, was a newborn magicat kitten. It was fluffy and scrawny, its eyes still closed.

Was this... Catra?

Adora looked over at Glimmer and Bow, who both looked like they'd explode in cuteness overload. The two of them, along with everyone else rushed over to see the tiny kitten. Everyone crowded around, peering down in awe and shock.

"Is that Catra?" Scorpia asked, her jaw dropped.

Adora could hardly compute what was going on herself. The kitten had the same colored fur as Catra. It was underneath Catra's clothes, and was lying where Adora assumed Catra was placed for the experiment. It had to be her.
A weak mewl broke the silence. Adora felt her heart squeeze in her chest.

"Yeah. She's a kitten."

Adora gently picked up the squirming little furry bundle. Catra was small enough to fit both of Adora's hands. Had Catra always been so tiny? Adora gently stroked Catra's head with a finger. The fur was even softer than before, but still felt familiar to her.

Catra quieted down. She was still squirming, seeming to be searching for something.

"Aww!"

Bow had stars in his eyes. He had that look that Catra hated on his face. Everyone, minus a neutral Mermista, weren't too different in their reactions to Catra. Glimmer knelt down in front of Adora. She fawned at the kitten.

"She's so tiny. I always wondered what she looked like as a baby."

Bow squealed.

"So adorable! She's so tiny. Her little face and little ears and little tail."

Adora couldn't help but smile. Looking down at Catra, her heart swelled with emotion. The kitten in her arms wasn't strong enough to hold her head up, so her tiny body trembled while she slowly squirmed around.

Spinnerella and Netossa approached Adora,  worried looks on their faces. Adora was curious as to how the rest of the group would react to Catra as a kitten. Spinnerella and Netossa definitely took on mother and/or at least, big sister figure roles to Catra, and so this should be interesting.

"Is she okay?" Spinnerella fretted. "She's too young to tell us, so I'm worried if she's healthy. Who knows what that machine did to her body."

Entrapta perked up. Using a pigtail, she took Catra from Adora, and swung over to another area of the lab. Everyone else felt like their hearts dropped to their stomachs.

"Be careful with her!" Adora warned, her protective nature over Catra coming out.

"She's fragile! Be gentle, please." Scorpia pleaded.

Entrapta set Catra down on a metal platform. Catra immediately started crying to be held, blindly crawling around. Entrapta went over to a control board, pressing buttons and typing into it. Pressing a button, a glass barrier came up around the platform, muffling any noise inside. A red flash of light scanned over Catra. Catra didn't seem to be having any fun, crawling around the giant space.

"This better be safe." Adora warned, practically sweating bullets. "Does she look upset to anyone? It must be cold in there. What if she's scared?"

After a scan over, the glass barrier lowered. Catra's soft cries could be heard as she wiggled around. It set off everyone's need to protect the kitten. Adora was quick to pick Catra up. She cradled her against her chest to soothe the upset baby.

"I'm right here, Catra." Adora cooed. "It's ok. Shh. I know. You didn't like it. It's over."

Catra was snuggling Adora, her tiny claws were gripping her shirt to try and hold on to her heat source. Bow and Glimmer fawned over her. Bow was more audible than Glimmer, stars in his eyes.

"She calmed down as soon as you picked her up. I wonder if she can tell it's you."

"That can't be." Entrapta refuted.

The group looked to Entrapta. Entrapta was observing a couple of screens.

"It says here that, Catra, who is perfectly healthy, is about five days old right now. Fascinating..."

Entrapta looked towards Adora. Approaching her, Entrapta reached out and basically took Catra out of Adora's hands. Catra, being moved around, starting mewling again.

"Entrapta!" Glimmer exclaimed. "Her crying is breaking my heart. Be gentle with her, please!"

Entrapta examined Catra's face, gently running her gloved fingers along Catra's ears and face.

"Since she is only five days old, her eyes and ears are not yet open. That makes her unable to hear or see, so I doubt she knows who any of us are."

"But, like, how did this even happen?" Mermista questioned. "Is she gonna have to grow up all over again? Is this, like, permanent?"

That was a good thought. Was this reversible? Was Catra stuck like this? That nervousness Adora had been feeling before had come back. Was her girlfriend a baby now? She couldn't date someone half her age! If she had to wait for Catra to reach a legal age again, Adora would be almost old enough to be a grandma by that time. Would Catra have to fall in love with her all over again? Did she no memory of herself?

Adora felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning her head, she saw Glimmer smiling comfortingly at her.

"Since Catra isn't here to keep you sane, we'll have to do it." She joked, making Adora smile.
"I'm sure this can be reversed. Entrapta's a genius. If she can make this mess, she can reverse it. Right Entrapta?"

Glimmer looked at Entrapta. Entrapta looked up from baby Catra in her arms.

"Of course. It's really interesting."

Entrapta handed Catra back to Adora, who instantly became a mother-hen, soothing Catra. Entrapta went over to the laser that started it all. She opened a panel, revealing wires and stuff.

"This was supposed to just physically shrink the size of the subject. However, something must've gone wrong with the coding or the wiring, because instead, it de-aged Catra. It might take some time to look through everything. I'll let you know when I find a solution."

That seemed like an invitation to leave. Glimmer made sure to fold up Catra's clothes and take them when they left the lab. Adora walked, gazing down at the baby in her arms. It almost didn't feel real. Catra was a baby now. What kind of a universe allowed this miracle to happen?

"We should let my dad know about this." Glimmer recommended. "Maybe he can help us find a way to either get Catra back to normal or just help us out with her until Entrapta does. None of us know anything about taking care of a baby, let alone a magicat baby."

Bow awkwardly rubbed the back of his head.

"Um, Glimmer. King Micah spent a lifetime on Beast Island with only memories of you as a baby. I don't think he would remember how to actually take care of a baby after all these years and since he only had one kid."

Glimmer deflated a bit.

"Right. Technically, my mom raised me while he was gone and I was also raised by nannies and staff as an infant when my parents were on duty."

Bow lit up again, an idea coming to him.

"But my dads would definitely know a lot about babies. They raised my brothers and I."

Glimmer smiled, getting on the same track as him.

"Yeah. Plus, they must have some information on Magicat babies that we can look through. Bow, you're a genius. Can you call them?"

Bow held up his trusty trackerpad. Typing a quick text to his dads, he was surprised to receive a quick reply. Bow read the reply, before looking up at everyone.

"They want us to come over A.S.A.P."

"I'll teleport us!" Glimmer squealed, grabbing Bow, and reaching for Adora.

"Wait!" Adora called, quickly stepping out of reach. "Catra's sensitive to teleporting. We don't know how it'll affect her as a baby. Especially since she's so small."

Glimmer and Bow looked at each other, contemplative.

"Then, we'll bring them here." Bow decided. "Glimmer and I will explain what's going on and we'll bring as much stuff from the library that can help us. You guys wait in your guys' room. Definitely get a cloth to wrap around her until we can get hybrid diapers."

Adora hadn't thought of that. She immediately checked her hands in case Catra had went to the bathroom on her while she didn't notice. All cleared.

"You guys go do that. We'll go show Micah and see if he has any advice. Maybe he knows where to get diapers in Brightmoon."

Glimmer nodded in approval of the plan. With that they all split up and set off for their own tasks. In a matter of half an hour, they all met back up. Glimmer and Bow came back with George and Lance in tow, each holding a few books, which Adora assumed contained knowledge of how to take care of Catra.

George and Lance eagerly set down their books.

"Where is she?" George asked, clearly excited.

Adora smiled. She walked up to the two men. George and Lance gasped and fawned at the sight of baby Catra.

"Oh, she's precious." Lance breathed. "Can I hold her?"

Adora giggled. She handed Catra over to him. Lance cradled Catra, stroking her fur. Catra made a bit of noise, not liking leaving the safety and warmth of Adora, but settled down once the petting began.

"She's so tiny for a Magicat kitten." George commented, observing from beside his husband. "Must've been a birth defect or an premature birth. How long has she been a kitten?"

Everyone turned to the people that started it all. Entrapta rubbed her chin, thinking.

"About an hour." She concluded.

Catra then took that moment to start fussing, and squirming. Her mewls were soft and heart wrenching to everyone. It was clear she was asking for something, but without being able to talk, they had no idea what.

"Has Catra eaten today?" Lance then asked.

"She ate breakfast this morning. We were supposed to eat lunch right about now." Glimmer replied.

Both of the men gawked.

"She must be so hungry! You didn't think to feed her?" Lance asked. "We need to go buy some magicat milk formula. Magicat newborn kittens that aren't being breastfed by a mother need to eat every two to four hours, strictly around the clock for at least the first two weeks of life. It's very important, especially for orphaned kittens since they can't just go find their mom to feed whenever they need it."

"I know a place where we can find Magicat formula." Micah spoke up. "It's in the town right outside the palace. Shouldn't take too long a walk."
———————————

Getting the formula had been not as easy as they'd thought. There were different kinds for Magicats. Who knew there were different genetic breeds of them? Luckily, there had been a very informed employee who helped them out. They said it helped them to see Catra. The group kept the identity a secret, not wanting people to know that one the most powerful and influential people of the war was in such a vulnerable state.

After purchasing diapers, the formula, along with a couple other stuff for Catra, they returned to the palace. Since none of the younger adults knew how to prepare a bottle, Lance took over that duty.

George was holding Catra, gently petting the wiggly, crying baby.

"It's ok, sweetie. We'll get you fed and then you'll take a little nap. I know. You're hungry, and you want Lance to hurry up. I'm sorry for starving you for a few minutes, but patience is a virtue."

The small mewls and cries continued, Catra blindly instinctually looking for a food source. George looked up at the microwave, where the bottle was being warmed up.

"Hurry up, you hunk of metal! We have a kitten that's hungry!" He commanded.

Lance grinned, rolling his eyes.

"Literally, neither the microwave nor Catra can hear you, honey."

The microwave beeped. Lance took the bottle and checked the temperature of the milk. Deeming it safe for Catra, her handed his husband the bottle. When Catra realized what she was eating, she started greedily suckling.

George and Lance smiled, watching baby Catra drinking the milk.

"Takes you back to when the boys where babies, huh?" Lance sighed, a fond look on his face.

George nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. Never thought we'd be doing this again until one of them had a kid of their own. This time, it's a girl. After thirteen boys, it's refreshing to be taking care of a baby girl."

"Remember, dear, we're not her parents. Plus, I'm sure the others don't need us taking Catra away out of nowhere."

"Actually..." Glimmer spoke up. "If this issue is going to take more than a few days to resolve, I would definitely want you two around. You guys know what you're doing."

The others nodded in agreement.

"Also, she looks so comfortable with you, Dad." Bow added, once more fawning over how cute Catra looked. "I already took a few pictures to show her when she's back to normal."

Adora, who had been crouching in front of George, watching Catra have her bottle with interest, perked up.

"She's gonna probably kill you." She grinned. "Send it to me. That way, if she deletes it on one out trackerpads, we still have another copy."

Bow gave a thumbs up, already tapping away at the screen.

"You got it."

Scorpia joined Adora, watching Catra devour the milk like her life depended on it. Catra's little paws pawed at Lance's hand.

"It's insane, seeing her like this." Scorpia commented, in disbelief. "I mean, she always was smaller than most the cadets in our year in the Horde, but I didn't think she was so tiny as a baby. I mean, look at her. She's so small and cute. Well, she's always small and cute, but you know what I mean. This takes the cake."

No one could argue with that.

"Well, in any case, we're just gonna have to make the most of this situation." George spoke up, a content smile on his face. "Lance and I are more than happy to watch Catra while you guys go about your day. I'm sure you kids have work and duties to fulfill."

Crap. That's right. The world didn't stop turning just because Catra was out of commission.

"I technically don't have any serious duties to tend to." Adora spoke up. "I'll help take care of her and if anything comes up that I'm needed for, I'll just go and you guys will be fine."

"Sounds pretty good to me." Lance shrugged.

Catra finished the bottle. Lance took the bottle to refill it, to store it for the next scheduled feeding. Catra was already falling asleep in George's arms. Before she could, George changed her diaper. Magicat kitten metabolism was quick. After setting up a makeshift bed in Adora and Catra's bedroom for her, with the help of a suddenly appearing Melog, who became very protective over Catra, Catra was down for a nap.

If none of them knew any better, they'd assume Melog was Catra's parent, because the two were curled up in the bed, Melog purring contently, yet wide awake, alert for any threat to their newly adopted baby.

Adora snorted, arms crossed.

"Looks like we'll have to fight Melog for Catra's attention." She joked, mostly to George and Lance.

George looked almost actually disappointed by this new development. Bow's dads got attached to Catra pretty quick, it seemed. Adora couldn't blame them. Who could resist a face like Catra's? As soon as Catra was old enough to talk, it was over for Adora. She wouldn't be able to deny her anything. She just wouldn't. That how nature worked. Glimmer sparkled, Bow uses arrows, and Adora gives Catra whatever she wants when Catra gives her the eyes. Looking at Catra, so tiny and even cuter than ever, Adora didn't think she'd ever understand  how much she loved Catra. However, looks like Adora, Bow, and Scorpia weren't the only ones falling for Catra's natural cuteness anymore.

Adora sat down on the floor, gazing at Catra, who was sound asleep. Something told her that this was gonna be a very interesting experience for them all. Adora hoped she survived it, because Catra's cuteness might just kill her. Hopefully, it didn't last long. She missed adult Catra.

Until then, she was gonna enjoy baby Catra.

Chapter Text

George sighed, resting his chin on his palm.

"Of all the things I miss about taking care of a baby, it definitely isn't losing sleep."

George, Lance, Adora and Bow had spent the night taking turns looking after Catra. Feeding her, changing her. Melog helped whenever Catra woke up, crying. They would either soothe Catra back to sleep or take her to one of the humanoid caretakers if it was needed. None of them had ever thought they'd see a baby Catra being carried by the scruff in Melog's mouth.

Adora was taking the schedule much better than Bow. She explained that during her life in he Horde, there would be regular random drills in the middle of the night. Shadow Weaver said it was to prepare them for a surprise raid or whatever. They just added it to the long, long, long list of things that were fucked up about the Horde.

Bow was nearly drowning in his cereal by late morning, nearly dead asleep as soon he sat down. Adora was yawning a bit and didn't talk as much at the breakfast table, but was pretty much awake after a while. Lance and George had their coffee and were good to go.

The others looked at one another, unsure what to say. Glimmer lifted Bow's head out of the bowl, wiping the milk with a napkin.

"So... how was last night?" She asked.

"It went well." Lance spoke up. "It definitely helped to have Melog around. They could tell whether or not Catra needed us when we weren't taking care of her. It also helped that they don't need to sleep so they could come get us if we fell asleep when it was feeding time again."

Glimmer bit her toast, humming in interest.

"That's good. I'm guessing Bow wasn't much help."

She snorted, glancing at her boyfriend. Bow was dead to the world. She'd have to get him to bed. Lance chuckled.

"He was fine the first couple of hours, but once the after midnight hours came about, he couldn't stay awake. Knocked out by two am. Adora, on the other hand, was a trooper. I shouldn't have been surprised. She was set on helping."

Adora shrugged.

"She's my girlfriend. I'd feel weird not helping. If I don't think about it too much, it's not weird."

"We all know Adora would do anything to help Catra." Mermista spoke up. "Plus, it's not like Catra can talk, so she can't say no. Where is that furball, anyways?"

George pointed a thumb over his shoulder. Everyone that was curious looked where he was pointing. Off by one of the edges of the room, was Melog and Catra, curled up together. Melog noticed the attention and looked back at them for a second. Then they turned their attention to Catra, who was waking up from another sleeping interval.

"When Melog imprinted on Catra, I didn't think that meant they knew how to raise kittens." Adora stated. "They act like Catra is their baby or something. Even when she was an adult."

Everyone but George, Lance and Bow gave Adora a 'bruh' look.

"Catra does the same to you." Netossa noted. "She's always trying to make you happy and take care of you when you don't notice."

Adora blinked.

"Huh. I really am oblivious." She mumbled.

Shaking her head, she decided to focus on Melog, who was coming over to the table, Catra in their mouth.

"What's up, buddy?" Adora asked. "Does Catra need something?"

Melog carried Catra over to Adora. Setting the wiggling kitten down on her lap, Melog sat down, grooming themselves. Adora held Catra up to her face.

"Good morning, kitty. We got through the first night. You're still so cute, baby. I love you."

Adora suddenly noticed something. She softly gasped in realization.

"Her eyes are open!" She told everyone.

"Really?!"

Bow was suddenly awake. Adora turned Catra so she was facing the rest of the table. Lance and George leaned over to see closer. Everyone was just as eager to see Catra. Catra's eyes were open, about halfway. She still wiggled like a worm, her little squeaks and mewls louder than before.

"Awww!"

George was handed Catra. He smiled, looking at Catra's ever-exhausted looking face that kittens seemed to wear.

"Look at you, little one. Soon you'll be able to see us and hear us." He cooed.

"Can she not hear or see us still?" Scorpia asked.

"Magicat kit eyes and ear don't fully open and adjust until a few more days later. She's still very much dependent on us."

"Let's hope Entrapta finds a solution to this soon." Glimmer sighed.

Catra took the opportunity to let out a tiny, quiet sneeze. If it weren't so quiet in the room, they wouldn't have heard it. It surprised everyone, making them all look at Catra. Catra sneezed again, shaking her head.

"Awww! Baby sneezes!" Bow squealed. "Even cuter than her normal sneezes. Wish I could've gotten it in video."

George smiled at him.

"I'm sure there'll be plenty of time to video her. In fact, let's take some pictures right now. Her eyes being open is a great milestone and I want to document this."

Adora looked at him, confused. Why would opening your eyes need a celebration of any kind. It's just eyes. There were many things she still didn't understand about normal society and it showed. Did parents normally care about the small stuff?

"Why?" She asked. "It's only opening her eyes. That doesn't seem very important to need to have recorded."

George looked like she was crazy. Lance seemed more understanding of her logic.

"Some parents record or document milestones like this because it makes for good memories. A baby's first steps, first words, first everything is just for us parents to look back on for nostalgia, really. Can't really explain it much better."

Lance reached over and pet Catra.

"I'm assuming that the Horde never took baby pictures of you growing up." He said.

Adora thought about it. She couldn't remember anytime they took a picture of the cadets other than for their files, which were updated every year. Nothing for "nostalgia". That was impractical, but Adora guessed she could see the appeal for that. She's definitely want to have pictures of baby Catra to look at when this was all over. Not that she'd ever forget what Catra looked like when they were kids. That would stick with her forever. However, this was a special situation. Having George and Lance taking care of Catra and being very affectionate with her is certainly interesting to see.

Growing up as orphans, they'd often wondered what it would've been like to have parents. Catra talked about it more, always claiming to not care who they were. Now, Adora knew that Catra had been lying. Growing up being treated the way Catra was, it was understandable why she'd long for a loving family that wanted her. Maybe this was Catra's chance for a redo. She of all people deserved one.

Adora glanced at Catra, in George's hands, the man looking overjoyed and like all was good in the world. It warmed Adora's heart.

"Yeah. I can see your point. Alright. Smile for the camera!"

Chapter Text

Baby Catra was very observant. Once her eyes and ears were open, she was constantly trying to look around. She definitely enjoyed being carried around, which gave her more room to explore and people to stare at. It was amusing to see someone realize Catra was watching them and then the person would coo or wave at her. Catra's lips would curl up in a half smile, as if unsure what to do. Glimmer and Bow tried so hard to make her laugh, yet failed. Catra just wasn't ready to laugh yet.

However, she was more than ready to grab on tightly to anything within reach and refuse to let go.

Lance tried to unwrap the chubby hands from around her dreads. Catra seemed to enjoy his hair and pulling on it. George, who's lap Catra was sitting on, chuckled.

"I think she likes your hair, honey."

Lance looked down at Catra fondly. It wasn't a surprise that the two men had grown to like Catra as one of their own. The past few days since Catra was turned into an infant, the married couple really stepped up to help. In return, Catra's current favorite people were said men. They'd even see one of Bow's dads rocking Catra to sleep a few times. George and Lance were simply wrapped around her little claws.

"What's Catra doing now?"

Both men looked up at the voice. The princesses and Bow entered the make-shift nursery that Glimmer had ordered be set up. They had no idea how long Catra would be like this, so better to plan for the long run. Entrapta had went from solely looking to fix her contraption, to recording Catra's progress and development. So, it would take a lot longer to get Catra back to normal. No one was complaining. Everyone, surprisingly, liked baby Catra. Almost looked forward to seeing the bundle of fur every day.

"Hey, kids." George greeted. "Catra likes long hair, so watch out cuz she's a grabber."

The group gathered around. Catra, noticing the new additions to the room, looked around curiously. Catra had gained weight and was now more or less the size of a human baby. Her human side came through in that she liked to grab stuff and anything given to her, went right into her mouth. Thank goodness she had a chaperone with her all the time.

"Just wait until she can crawl." Adora giggled, crouching at Catra's level. "Hey, Kitty. What's that? Why you pulling on his hair, huh? That's not food, silly kitty."

Catra cooed in response, a smile on her face. Catra always seemed to respond to Adora positively. Whenever she wasn't with the two men or Melog, she was being held by or watched over by Adora. No one could figure out whether it was because Catra recognized who she was, or because she just was drawn to Adora. Catra let go of the dreadlocks in her tiny fist and flapped her arms around, not quite in control of her limbs as of yet.

Glimmer giggled.

"She's always so happy to see you." She noted.

Adora lifted Catra off George's lap and kissed her cheek.

"You ready for floor time?" Adora asked the baby.

Floor time was an excellent time for babies to learn how to crawl and sit up. Practicing sitting up and crawling took work and lots of patience from everyone involved. It was also a chance for everyone to bond with Catra. Lance retrieved the blanket they used and laid it down on the floor. Melog brought over some of Catra's favorite toys, including a red stuffed tiger, a rattle and a teething toy. These were sometimes used as motivation to get Catra to move.

The group settled down on the blanket. Adora set Catra down, laying on her stomach. Catra lifted her head, looking curiously at the soft blanket. Her hands gripped and pulled at the blanket, as if trying to knead it. After a failed attempt, her attention went to Adora, who was lying on her side, watching Catra. Catra smiled at her. It made Adora chuckle.

"What, baby? You wanna play?" Adora asked.

Sitting up, Adora kneeled behind Catra. Looping an arm under the baby's belly, she lifted Catra up enough so they she was in a crawling position, on all fours. Catra not understanding what she was meant to do, tried to look at the arm holding her up.

"Catra." Lance called.

This got Catra's attention. She looked ahead at Lance and George, who was kneeling not even two feet away. Lance had his hands out, making the 'come here' motion.

"C'mon, Catra. Come here, sweetie." He encouraged.

Catra screeched with joy. With Adora guiding her arm and leg placements, Catra made her way across the blanket. At times, Catra just stayed in place, wanting to look at something else or was just content to rock back and forth. It was the closest she could get to crawling on her own. Adora smiled, watching Catra slowly figure it out. Letting Catra lay on her tummy, Adora decided that maybe some demonstration was in order.

Moving to where Catra could see her, Adora crawled around, as best she could, on her hands and feet.

"Come on, Catra. You can do it."

George, who probably had no shame around Catra, copied Adora. He tapped on Catra's hands, showing her how to move. Catra didn't stop smiling, happy with what she thought of as playing. Those two must've looked so silly, but Catra liked it. Adora looked over at her friends.

"Come on, guys. Show Catra how to crawl. She likes this."

Glimmer rolled her eyes.

"I'm not crawling on the floor." She said.

Bow excitedly got out of his chair and joined in.

"I will! She's so cute, all happy."

They looked absolutely ridiculous, grown adults crawling on the floor, trying to explaining to an infant how to do it. Catra watched with interest. After a few minutes, Adora was right beside Catra, getting her into position.

"Ok. Like this, and here."

While George moved Catra's arms, Catra had enough sense to move her legs. She did her best to move in the right way. She would manage to get a few inches forward but would get excited and lose balance. After a while, Catra grew tired of the activity and started to wiggle in protest.

"Alright. That's our cue to stop." Adora announced.

She propped Catra up so she was sitting, caging her in with her legs to keep Catra upright. Adora grabbed the rattle and shook it in front of Catra's face to get her attention. Catra saw the toy and grabbed it with both hands. The plastic rattle went right into her mouth, as if it were an instinct.

Adora giggled, looking down at the kitten in her lap.

"You know that's not food, right?" She asked.

Catra looked up at her. She cooed and raised the rattle to show Adora. Adora nodded in acknowledgement, pretending to be interested in the rattle. Catra then turned to George and Lance and held out the rattle.

"Awww. You like your rattle?" Lance cooed to Catra.

Catra threw the rattle in her excitement. She frowned, looking at the toy. It landed on the other end of the blanket.

Adora looked down at Catra.

"Go get it, baby." She said, pointing at the rattle.

Catra sat there for a moment. Then she leaned forward, catching herself on her hands. With Adora ready to steady her, baby Catra seemed to be processing. She got herself up on all fours, before her legs promptly gave out. No one moved or spoke, letting Catra work it out. She pushed herself up, on all fours, getting her bearings. Looking at her rattle, Catra, determined to get it back, forced herself to move. It was shaky and unsteady, a bit of stumbling, but she was moving.

Everyone was shocked, watching every second of it. Catra finally grabbed the rattle, lifting it up. She sat there, shaking it, a toothy smile on her face.

"AWW!" Bow broke the silence. "She did it."

Everyone else broke out of their shocked silence. Adora beamed, gasping in a exaggerating manner.

"You did it, kitten!" She cheered, proudly.

Moving over to Catra, Adora scooped her up, squishing her close. She should've seen it coming. Next thing she knew, Adora's forehead was throbbing. She pulled Catra away from her, wincing in pain.

"Ow!"

Adora rubbed her forehead. That rattle was hard. It felt more like a weapon than a toy.

"Catra." Lance scolded, taking Catra away from Adora.

Catra looked at the man, not understanding what was going on. She looked at Adora. She then began to laugh. It was squeaky and quiet and infectious. Everyone paused at the sound.

"She's laughing." Scorpia needlessly pointed out.

Adora huffed, smiling.

"Hey." She breathed, leaning towards Catra. "Are you laughing at me, kitty? You think that's funny?"

Catra continued to laugh, shaking the rattle to show her happiness. Her laugh was so just, magical.

Mermista snorted.

"Of course she'd find joy in someone getting hurt."

Adora chuckled. She nuzzled Catra with her nose.

"Look at you, baby. You're laughing. You thought was funny? Huh?"

Catra dropped the rattle. Her little hands touched Adora's face. She mewled and cooed, trying her best to say something. Having no control over her claws yet, Adora thanked the stars that they'd trimmed them, because her face would've been bleeding by then. Catra studied her face, fascinated by it all. Adora couldn't love Catra more than she did right then and there. Her heart was melting in her chest.

"I caught that all on camera!"

Everyone jumped. Turning towards the doorway, they saw Entrapta standing there, overly excitedly as usual. Entrapta had a tracker pad in her hands, waving it around.

"You did?" Bow squealed. "Thank goodness. That was so cute! She did it all by herself. I'm so proud."

Entrapta approached Catra. Crouching down, she observed her for a moment.

"Mhm. Yeah. So you guys ready?"

Adora raised a confused brow at her.

"Ready for what?"

Entrapta stood up.

"I fixed the machine. It's time to test it out." She replied.

Oh.

Chapter Text

"It took some cross wiring and changing the coding, but I think I've got it."

Looking up at the giant machine, everyone in the room felt a little less confident and more concerned. It wasn't that they didn't trust Entrapta. Entrapta herself was fine, but it was clear from Catra's state that Entrapta's inventions were less trustworthy.

"Are you sure this will work now?" Bow asked. "This won't turn her into, like, an embryo, or something? She'll still be able to breathe on her own and be a person?"

Entrapta rolled her eyes.

"Yes. I'm like 87.8 percent sure it won't do that."

Well that wasn't very reassuring.

"I don't know if I like those numbers." Glimmer spoke up, just as hesitant as everyone else.

Was this a good idea? Was Catra going to be safe? At the moment, Catra was curled up in George's arms, sounds asleep. Maybe it was the fact that Catra was a baby and much more vulnerable than anyone else in the room. Maybe it was the fact that Catra was extremely cute and their friend, which triggered their need to protect her, but everyone wanted to make sure that the machine was safe for Catra. If trying to get Catra back to normal could end up harming her instead, they weren't willing to just blindly put Catra in that thing.

"Entrapta." Lance spoke up, getting her attention. The man had a serious expression, the mood becoming pressing. "I know you're very intelligent and your inventions have helped us greatly during the war. I know you care for Catra and would never want to hurt her. So, I just want you to understand that this is Catra. She's a person and we need to keep her safety a top priority while trying to get her back to her normal age. I can't speak for everyone, but I don't feel comfortable putting Catra anywhere near that thing unless you're absolutely sure that it won't hurt her. Yes, I want her back to normal, but I refuse to risk her safety."

Adora, Bow, and Glimmer shared a look. Lance was definitely acting like a dad. It was sweet. Probably the first time any male adult showed any genuine protectiveness over Catra. They only hoped Catra would be able to reciprocate it when she gets back to normal. It would be good for her.

Entrapta gave a nod, understanding just how serious Lance was taking this.

"You can count on me. I like Catra. She's a good friend. I'll be sure to be careful when handling her situation. I promise."

Lance gave a relieved soft sigh. Turning towards George, he motioned for the other man to approach them. George walked up to the two. He handed a sleeping Catra, along with Catra's blanket, over to her. The couple joined the others, everyone standing around the machine to observe, fingers crossed.

Feeling the change in temperature, Catra woke up from her sleep, crying in displeasure. Entrapta laid Catra on her back, in the center of the platform. Catra wasn't happy at all. She cried to be picked up. The glass barrier came down. Entrapta, hurried over to the control console of the machine and pressed a button. A beam of light zapped Catra, leaving a faint aura around her body.

The crying continued. Nothing had changed. Entrapta's brows furrowed in confusion. She pressed the button again. Catra stayed a baby.

"Huh. That's strange. Looks like I'll have to recheck the wiring."

The machine was shut down, the glass barrier lifted. Catra's cries of distress filled the quiet. Lance and George rushed to get her. Lifting her up off the metal platform, Lance shushed her.

"I know, honey. It's okay. We're here. Papa's here, little one."

Catra continued to cry, her head resting on his shoulder. Her claws gripped his tunic, attempting to cling to him. With Catra safe in his arms, the men went back to the group. Adora ran a hand over Catra's back, saddened by Catra's distress.

"Catra. It's alright, sweet girl. We're here now, mi amor. Yo estoy aqui. I'm here."

Catra cries turned to whimpers. She turned her face towards Adora. She then reached out her arms to her, wanting Adora to take her. Lance happily handed her over, glad that Catra was calming down. Adora rocked Catra side to side, talking quietly to her. However, she was talking in another language. That made everyone stop and stare. Bow and Glimmer looked at each other, mouths open.

"How do you know Ma-gi?" Lance asked.

"Since when?" Bow further asked.

Adora realized the staring. She blushed in embarrassment.

"Oh. Heh. Catra and I learned it after we found some Magicat cultural records. Magicats speak Ma-gi as their native tongue but of course also Etherian. Catra wanted to feel closer to her culture and learn everything she could about her people. We never met another Magicat in the Horde, so she grew up thinking she was alone. Now that we know that's not the case, she wants to learn as much as possible. Reclaim some of her identity that was stolen from her. Shadow Weaver told us that Catra's species were annihilated and that her own family abandoned her, which was probably a lie to make make Catra feel bad about herself."

That surprised no one. Of course Shadow Weaver would try to squash any form of hope of a better life in a young Catra. Helped lower Catra's self-worth even more.

Micah's face showed just how unsurprised but still disgusted he was by the information. He looked at Catra, a sadness in his eyes. Glimmer shared that look. She crossed her arms.

"I hate that she truly believed she was alone in the world. All because that woman hated her as a child. Imagine how she would've turned out if she'd grown up with her own people and had a family to teach her that kind of stuff. Imagine how different our world would be right now."

It was a bittersweet thought.

"I don't like that alternative world." Adora commented.

Adora looked down at Catra, who had calmed down and was instead playing with her hair, pure wonder in her eyes. Adora smiled.

"I wouldn't have met her or you guys. I wouldn't have become She-ra. The war would have probably be still going on, the Horde winning. Horde Prime would have still come to destroy this planet. Yeah, certain people would still be here with us..."

She glanced over at Micah. The man smiled sadly.

"But it wouldn't have mattered because we'd still be stuck in the war and probably lose." He finished. "I think Angela would prefer this ending to the hypothetical ending. That's just how messy war is. You get some good, some bad and everything in between. There would still be casualties and maybe Catra would have probably died with her family if it's true. We don't know for sure how things might've turned out for us if Catra had been raised outside the Horde, but... I don't think I would change anything."

Micah looked at Glimmer, love in his eyes.

"I would love for your mother to be here, but you are more than enough for me to be happy. Loss is a part of war, no matter how hard it is to accept it. We do things we might not have done otherwise, and I know for a fact that Catra isn't the only person who made terrible choices during the war. We all did, the Rebellion or the Horde. We all have hurt someone, caused damage to homes and people whether we meant to or not. That's how war is and no one side is to fully blame for it. No one person is to blame for it."

Micah approached Adora. He stroked Catra's hair. Catra's main was wild as always, but soft.

"Catra, like all us was just a child born into war and was forced into a position she didn't ask for. She didn't get to choose who raised her or where she grew up. She didn't choose what was taught to her or the morals she was brainwashed into believing. No one was there to teach you kids any different. I've come to realize that you can't blame someone for being a certain way if there's no one there to correct them. I can't blame Catra for taking The Horde's side when she was raised only being taught that the Horde was in the right. She didn't get to leave, like you did."

Adora and Micah made eye contact.

"Leaving, in her mind, wasn't an option. She might have had options, but not a choice. It makes sense if you think about it. Would you rather stay with the evil you know, or risk leaving that false sense of safety for an unknown evil? She knew how to survive the Horde, so instead of risking it outside the Horde where she didn't know anything about it, she stayed where she was at least safe on some level."

Adora knew the guilt would never completely go away. Catra had said the same thing to her one day, during a therapy session. Catra had a hard believing that she was a victim of any form of abuse or indoctrination. Always the badass, unbreakable survivor, she also had trouble accepting that she wasn't fully to blame for the damage that happened during her time in power. Most people outside the Rebellion, saw Catra as a monster that destroyed their lives, but never once considered that Catra only played a small part in the war that had been going on for ages, long before Catra had been born. It wasn't fair to her to shoulder all the blame for what happened. Mermista could hate her all she wanted, but she couldn't deny that Catra wasn't the only one there during the attack on Salineas. There had been dozens, if not hundreds, of soldiers there with her that day. Yes, she was in command. Catra took responsibility for that point, but she didn't do all that damage by herself and it frustrated Adora that people always ignored that part.

Looking back, Catra hadn't actually intentionally harmed anyone except Adora, and maybe Glimmer and Bow. Catra's goal while in the Horde was to take control of towns and kingdoms. Take control, never to attack the people. Catra was smarter than people gave her credit for.

Even the Horde soldiers were treated better. Well, that was before Catra lost her sanity and had a mental breakdown. That was a whole other issue that no one likes to talk about. The guilt Catra carried because of the memories during that time was enough to have her spiraling all over again into an almost suicidal mindset.

Yeah, that had been a scary few days, having Catra on 48 hour watch. Thank the gods Melog had been there, before...

A coo broke the tense atmosphere. Adora looked down at Catra, who was looking back at her, happy about something. Adora couldn't help but smile. She couldn't turn back time and erase their experiences, but she could take this opportunity to make better memories for Catra. Hopefully, her current memories and the memories Catra already had before all this could co-exist. No use worrying about that right now, though she really missed her girlfriend. The nights were sometimes lonely. However, taking care of a baby helped keep her occupied. Until the time came, Catra's happiness and health was Adora's top priority.

"Que tu quiere? Huh? Por que tu mirando a mi? Why are you looking at me, mi bebe?"

Adora kissed Catra's ticklish neck, blowing a raspberry. Catra cackled, squirming to push Adora's face away.

"Hey." Bow said. "Do you think you can teach me some Ma-gi? We can talk to Catra in both languages so she can learn while we learn."

That was actually a great idea. Adora looked at Catra again.

"What do you think, mi bebe? Do you want us to talk Ma-gi?" She cooed, rubbing their noses together. "It's a good thing because you need to learn it. Yes, you do. Can't be Catra unless you speak like her too."

Catra started to babble, her tail wagging around in excitement. Sounded like she agreed. With a purring baby Catra on her hip, Adora turned to the others.

"How about we go buy that crib for Catra?" She suggested.

Scorpia and Bow jumped at the offer.

"Ooh and can we buy her some cute onesies?" Glimmer gushed. "Maybe we can buy the crib that can turn into a bed. You never know if someone will need to get into the bed at night when she's crying."

Micah nodded in agreement.

"Yes, yes, we can get all that and more."

Scorpia took hold of one of Catra's hands.

"Only the best for our little Wildcat." She cooed.

Catra stared at Scorpia, unsure of what to make of the giant of a woman. She didn't look afraid, just unsure. Catra looked at Adora for reassurance. Adora giggled.

"Look, Catra. It's Scorpia. Your best friend. She's nice."

Making sure Catra was watching, Adora reached out a hand and touched Scorpia's pincers.

"See? Nice." She reinforced.

Catra, seeing Adora have no issue with Scorpia, decided to test it out herself. Scorpia held out an arm for Catra to touch. Catra's hand touched the exoskeleton. Catra babbled at Scorpia, her hand flailing around, as if trying to harshly pet Scorpia. Catra squealed, looking again at Adora. Adora nodded.

"Yeah, kitty. Scorpia's nice. Now, you wanna make friends with Glimmer?"

Adora turned Catra towards Glimmer. Glimmer couldn't help the smile that spread across her face. She walked up to Adora.

"She is pretty cute." She commented. "At least she can't call me Sparkles."

Catra looked enamored by Glimmer. Her arms were reaching for Glimmer, which surprised her. She hesitated. Glimmer wasn't very good with kids, being an only child and grown up sort of spoiled as a result.

"Should I...?"

Adora nodded excitedly.

"Take her, Glimmer. She wants you."

"Awww!" Bow fawned.

Glimmer was handed Catra, Adora making sure she was holding Catra correctly. Glimmer stood there awkwardly, unsure of what to do with Catra. Catra, on the other hand, knew exactly what she wanted. Reaching up her hand, she took a fistful of Glimmer's hair and yanked.

"Ow! Get her off!" She demanded.

Adora was quick to untangle the hair from the tiny hands. Catra gurgled and shrieked, not happy with her discovery being taken away. Glimmer hummed, almost glaring at the baby.

"Rascal." She muttered. "Here. I'll give you something else to look at."

Waving a hand in front of Catra's face, Glimmer got Catra's attention on it. Summoning a sigil in midair, Glimmer made a shower of pink magic sprinkle over Catra's head. Catra was in awe at the sight. She reached out to touch it but couldn't. That didn't stop her from trying again. When the magic faded, Glimmer repeated the action. That seemed to have kept Catra occupied and happy.

The group walked out of the room and down to the nursery. While Micah called to make an appointment with the local baby furniture store, the younger adults sat down on the carpeted floor, Catra sitting in Glimmer's lap. Glimmer continued to create magic bursts in the air, Catra laughing and screaming in delight while trying to catch the magic.

Of course, Catra ended up having a sneeze attack due to the magic raining down on her head. Bow recorded it on his trackerpad. Catra hissed unhappily when everyone laughed, thinking they were laughing at her.

"Aww, no baby. Don't be upset. It's funny." Adora said, standing Catra up on her lap. "We're not laughing at you, kitten. You're a good kitty and we love you."

Adora smushed her face against Catra's stomach, repeating incoherent words that only babies enjoyed. Catra smiled again for a moment. Then, she began to get fussy, rubbing her tiny fist against her eyes. She whimpered, wiggling around in Adora's grasp.

"It's okay, baby." Adora quickly pulled Catra against her body, letting her rest her head on her shoulder.

Adora looked towards Lance and George.

"Was that a hungry cry or tired cry? I know she's tired but I heard a hungry cry, too."

George, who was standing by the doorway, arms crossed, nodded his head.

"I did too. She hungry and tired. I'll go warm up a bottle for her so she can eat and then nap. C'mon before she really starts wailing."

Adora, followed by Bow and Glimmer followed George and Lance down to the royal kitchen. A bottle was prepared, everyone hoping and silently praying that Catra wouldn't cry. George had Catra in his arms. Catra was seconds away from crying when the bottle was popped into her mouth. She grabbed onto it, hungrily gulping down the milk.

Everyone literally took a breath of relief. Walking back to Catra's nursery, George hummed a tune of an Etherian lullaby, hoping to get Catra to sleep faster.

He was soon sat in the rocking chair, gazing down at Catra as she devoured the milk. Her eyelids were seeming to be getting heavier as time passed. Catra would drink for a minute and then slowly stop, as if falling asleep, then wake up suddenly and start up again.

George hummed, a soft smile on his face. A hand on his shoulder made him look up. Lance was standing beside the chair, wearing a matching smile.

"I was going to tell to not get too attached to her as a baby, but I'm afraid it's too late for that, huh?"

George chuckled. Catra finished the bottle. George handed the bottle to Lance, and then readjusted Catra so she was laying against his chest, wrapped up in her blanket. Well, it was sort of Adora's blanket. They just thought that Catra would like it because it had Adora's scent on it, which Adora said calmed adult Catra. She begged them not to tell Catra they knew. It worked. Catra never wanted to be apart from it, unless she was being held by Adora herself. It further confirmed that Catra probably knew who Adora was on some unconscious level.

The blanket was a dark red. Scorpia had gotten it for Catra after the incident, claiming she needed her own baby blanket. It was incredibly soft and fuzzy. Perfect for a Magicat kitten. It even had Catra's first initial sewn into it with gold thread.

Soon enough, Catra was fast asleep. George stood up. Walking over to the little temporary bed they had set up, he slowly laid Catra down next to Melog, who purred gently, cuddling Catra. They began grooming her fur, making sure to not stir her. George and Lance stood there, watching Catra sleep, like two proud parents.

"So," Bow whispered, approaching his dads.

The men turned away from the baby, and towards their son. Bow smiled cheekily.

"When do we adopt her?" He joked, nudging Lance.

Lance snorted.

"If only it were that easy." He said. "Would you even be okay with that? Having Catra as a sister?"

Bow lit up in excitement.

"Wait, really? That'd be so cool. The other guys would love her."

He suddenly deflated a bit.

"Though, I'm not sure how she'd feel about having 12 siblings all of a sudden. Having grown up without even parents would make being adopted at 21 a bit weird, don't you think?"

That was true. Catra already must have issues with parental figures, since the only one she had was abusive. She didn't talk about her thoughts on who her birth family was, so they didn't know if Catra even cared about not having parents. Guess, they'd just have to wait and see.

"Let's see what happens, alright." Lance told Bow. "When Catra is an adult again, we'll see what we think. For now, let's just enjoy our time with Catra while it lasts."

George snorted.

"She's going to end up spoiled." He said. "Spoiled, but not entitled."

"Of course." Lance agreed.

Bow couldn't help but smile. It was great to see his dads so taken by Catra. Perhaps she was just what the couple needed. He just hoped his dads are what Catra needs too.

Chapter Text

Catra was becoming more and more vocal. Other than the happy screeching and crying, it was mostly really cute. The others would occasionally catch her babbling to no one or Melog. The group would sit around and speculate what they thought Catra was saying. So, when Catra actually started to make syllables, they went nuts trying to get her to talk.

They'd spend hours repeating the alphabet and vowels and just random words that Catra could end up saying but probably wouldn't. Catra would stare at whoever was closest to her's mouth. It was unclear whether she was taking it in or just interested in the movement of the mouth. Whoever was holding her would occasionally get a smack in the face when Catra found something interesting about their face.

"Gah!"

Adora pulled to pry Catra's finger out of her mouth.

"Catra. Silly girl." She giggled. "No. No touch that."

"Adora." Bow spoke up, looking up from polishing his bow and arrows. "She can't understand that. I don't think 'No' will ever be apart of her vocabulary unless it's directed to someone else."

Catra laughed, finding Adora funny.

"Adaaa!" She cooed.

Adora smiled at her.

"Yeah, kitten. Adora. That's me. Aaadoooraa."

The baby's lips moved, trying to copy the sounds.

"Ada!" Was what came out.

Good enough. Adora stood up, picking Catra up with her. She walked over to Catra's crib, setting Catra in it. Catra whined, pulling herself up to her feet. She hated being left on her own.

"Here, Catra."

Adora quickly popped Catra's binky into her mouth. That seemed to keep the baby occupied. Adora cleaned up the toys on the floor, giving Catra a few of them to play with in the meantime. Settling down in the rocking chair, she tapped on her trackerpad. Who knew being a princess included tons of paperwork. Thank the stars for digital downloads.

"Who's feeding Catra today?" She asked, looking over at Bow.

Bow paused, thinking.

"I think Dad."

"Yup. That's me."

Both ex-warriors looked up, seeing Lance walk into the nursery. He had a duffle-bag over his shoulder. Placing the bag on the floor, he gave Catra a kiss on the head. Catra smiled, happy to see the man. Lance chuckled, picking her up.

"Good morning, baby girl. Sleep good? Papa's working today, so Dada's here."

Catra babbled, her tail going crazy. Lance looked at Bow and Adora.

"How did you kids sleep last night?" He asked.

Bow grinned, looking up at his dad.

"I slept good. Glimmer was up late doing work. We've been having a lot of paperwork lately for galactic affairs from other planets. Adora was officially acknowledged as a royal."

Bow nudged Adora playfully, making Adora smile. Adora rolled her eyes.

"If I knew being a princess included all this work, I'd have declined the offer." She groaned, half serious, half joking.

Lance chuckled.

"I'm sure you'll get used to it."

Lance walked back to the crib, setting Catra back into the crib. He turned and headed for the door.

"I'll be back." He notified Adora and Bow. "I'm going to get Catra's baby food."

Lance walked out. Catra started to whimper, staring at the doorway. She started to cry, fat tears trickling down her cheeks. Adora looked up from her trackerpad.

"Aww, what's the matter, mi amor? Tu quieres tu papa? Estas bien, mi vida. Dada's coming back, baby girl."

Catra kept crying, throwing her binky to show how upset she was. Adora got up and picked up the discarded binky. She rinsed it off before giving it back to Catra. She rubbed the crying infant's head, not wanting to pick her up while she was working, knowing Lance would be back soon and pick her up anyway. Catra continued to whine and cry for attention, trying to reach for the tablet Adora was holding to see what she was doing.

"No, baby girl." Adora lightly scolded, tapping Catra's nose. "This isn't for babies, sweet girl. It's mine. Estoy trabajando, gatita."

After a few more minutes, Lance walked in, a small jar of baby food and a baby spoon in hand.

"I heard crying". He said. "Is someone upset with me for leaving?"

Catra smiled, reaching for Lance. Lance set the food and spoon down. Walking over to the crib, he lifted Catra into his arms. He wiped the tears away, kissing her cheek.

"I'm here, sweetie. No need to cry. I wasn't going to leave you behind. C'mon. Let's eat so you can stop giving Adora a hard time."

Catra cooed, happily.

"Dada."

Lance paused. Adora and Bow looked up instantly. Bow had that look in his eyes whenever Catra did something really cute.

"Did she just say...?"

Lance looked at Catra, shocked.

"Did you just say Dada?" He smiled, poking her nose.

Catra cooed, grabbing onto his hand. She looked to the hand then at his face.

"Dadadadada." She pressed a hand against his cheek, looking towards Adora.

"Dada!"

Adora clapped her hands, stars in her eyes.

"Yeah, baby. That's Dada. Oh my gosh, George is going to flip."

Bow fawned.

"Aww. You really are her dads now." He squealed. "That's so cute!"

Lance seemed to be realizing this. Adora swore she could see his eyes watering up, a soft smile on his face.

"I'll call Dad." Bow said, typing on his tablet. "Hopefully he picks up."

While he called his other dad, Adora stood up, her own trackerpad in hand. She walked up to Lance and Catra.

"The other princesses are gonna want to hear this. Let's see if we can get this on video."

Lance laughed softly.

"We'll see if she wants to. We all know she won't do anything she doesn't want to."

They got it on video and sent it out. George cried with joy when he heard it in person for the first time the next time he saw Catra.
———————

Crying filled the hall. The guards stationed outside the nursery were more than happy to switch when their shift ended. The new guards were confused.

"What's going on? Why's she crying like that?" One guard asked.

Another guard sighed.

"Poor thing is teething."

Inside the nursery, George was pacing around, holding Catra in his arms, trying to get her to fall sleep. The man was exhausted, having spent hours doing this. It was getting late and Catra wouldn't stop.

"I know, Catra. I know. It hurts."

Catra had been crying and fussy all day. She could barely eat anything because of the pain. It, surprisingly, seemed to have dampened the mood for everyone else. Maybe it was the fact that Catra's loud, pained cries woke up the surrounding rooms way too early that morning and kept them awake or hearing her in pain while unable to help her made them pity her.

The princesses and Bow had went to bed, George and Lance staying up with Catra. George was with Catra with Lance had went with Micah to try to get something to help Catra.

"Hopefully this helps."

George looks towards the doorway. Lance and Micah walked in. George walked over to the other men. Lance held up a blue, ring-shaped plastic toy.

"We managed to get a teething toy for her." Micah explained, pleased with the accomplishment. "It's made especially for Magicats. Hopefully it works."

Taking the teething ring, George waved it in front of Catra's face. It was freezing cold, seeming to have been put in the freezer. Even in pain, Catra couldn't resist grabbing the toy. She started to chew on it. Her cries stopped almost instantly, the teething toy soothing the pain. The three men breathed in relief.

"Thank the gods." George smiled at his husband.

Micah held up a bottle.

"We also thought that if we can get her to drink this, it has a little bit of medicine to get her to fall asleep."

They didn't even need to coax Catra to take it. As soon as she saw it, Catra was making grabby hands for the bottle. Micah handed the bottle to George, who gave it to Catra. George readjusted her, so she was turned towards him. It was probably the fact that it was her bedtime or the amount of crying she'd done had worn her out, but Catra's eyes fluttered closed as she had her pre-bedtime bottle.

George looked up at Lance, smiling.

"Takes me back to when the boys were growing up. Raising a baby is definitely challenging."

Micah snorted.

"I wonder how Angie did it alone." He mused. "Though she only had one kid. You had a whole army of kids and now this little troublemaker. I honestly didn't expect you two to willingly take her in so fast. If you hadn't, I probably would've. Poor girl needs a good parent for once."

"Was Shadow Weaver really as awful as she seemed?" George asked, his brows furrowed.

Micah chuckled humorlessly. "Way worse. She takes any amount of innocence in you and twists it to her advantage until you become someone you don't recognize. She makes you want her approval and unless you're naturally gifted, you'll die trying to get it."

The married couple could see the haunted look in Micah's eyes. A shadow of a memory briefly flashed across his face. They'd heard stories of Shadow Weaver, having only seen her in passing during her time in Brightmoon. However, hearing it from someone who had been her apprentice and victim, it brought more insight into just how important it was for them to be in Catra's life.

"Well, anyway..." Micah coughed. "I'm going to bed. Goodnight. Maybe tomorrow we can take her outside or something. Let her explore or something. The kids need a break, anyway."

Sounds like a good idea.

"Thanks for the help, Mic. We appreciate it." George said.

Micah left, leaving the couple with Catra. Catra was long asleep. George put the half finished bottle down. He rested Catra against his shoulder.

"I've been thinking." George spoke up, gazing at Catra. "What happens after Catra is back to normal? Do we tell her about us taking care of her? Do we just pretend like it's no big deal?"

Lance smiled.

"I don't see why we wouldn't tell her about it. I mean, she's literally starting to call us Dada. She's already attached to us to some degree. Though, it could just be by default since we're the ones that have taken on the guardian roles. I can't speak for her and we don't know what she'll think of when she's back to normal age, but I would like to be a regular part of her life, if she'll let us. I don't think I can go back to being without Catra at this point."

George leaned against him.

"I'd like that, too. For now, let's be glad that she's asleep. Poor girl has had a rough day."

The men walked over to the crib. Tucking Catra in, leaving the teething toy with her in case, the men kissed her head before they turned off the lights and left the room, keeping the door opened a bit. That night, everyone slept rather peacefully.

Chapter Text

Adora was awoken by knocking on her door. She sat up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. Looking at the clock, she saw it was barely sunrise. Then it must be important for someone to come to her at this time.

Getting up, Adora briskly walked to her door, opening it. She saw a guard standing there. She then noticed the child sized Catra on the guard's hip.

"It seems Lady Catra has suddenly grown in age." The guard said. "She wandered out of her room and asked for you."

Catra was staring at her, clearly expecting someone smaller. She looked confused.

"Is that Adora?" She asked the guard. "She's a grown up."

The guard hummed in affirmation.

"Yes. Adora is a grown up. Do you want to go with her?"

Catra looked at Adora once more, contemplating.

"Ok!" She decided.

Adora was handed the child. She could hardly comprehend everything that was happening. Catra was no longer a baby. What the heck happened?

"Would you like me to inform the queen?" The guard asked.

Adora didn't see the need. Nothing she couldn't handle on her own.

"Um, no, thank you. I'll tell her when everyone else wakes up. I'll be fine. I think."

The guard bowed before walking away. Adora turned and walked back into her room, closing the door.

She set Catra down on her feet before kneeling to her level.

"Hi, Catra." She greeted with an unsure smile. "You know who I am?"

Catra nodded.

"Adora. I'm Catra."

Adora got a better look at her. Catra looked just like how Adora first remembered her. Her mane was almost as big as her body. Her tail brushed against the floor, flicking slowly. She still had some baby fat, though was thinner than most kids her age from what Adora could remember, making her look like an alley cat.

"How old are you, Catra?" Adora asked.

Catra shrugged. "I don't know." She answered, keeping her voice down. "Where are we?"

Adora smiled.

"We're in a castle."

Catra's eyes widened.

"A princess castle?" Catra had a bit of a lisp, which made her even cuter.

Adora then realized that at this age, Catra would still have been brainwashed by the Horde. Being near princesses would terrify her.

"A nice princess castle." She quickly added. "They're our friends!"

Fear still came over Catra's face.

"What?! Where?"

Catra came closer, clinging onto Adora's shirt with a tiny fist. Adora was quick to try and ease her worries.

"Catra, it's okay. These princesses are nice and they help people. I like them and they like us too. They're not going to hurt you."

Catra was quietly purring to soothe herself. Adora giggled.

"You're so cute when you purr." She commented.

Catra immediately stopped, tensing up in fear.
Adora frowned. Had she said something wrong?

"It's okay, kitty. What's wrong?"

Catra lowered her head, clearly uncomfortable, ears flattened. She suddenly looked up again, gasping, eyes wide. Adora curiously followed her gaze and smiled. Melog was standing a few feet away, looking at Catra. Adora looked again at Catra.

"It's okay. That's Melog. They're your friend. They protect you and you can talk to them but only you understand them. They're an alien."

Melog approached the two, going slow to not spook Catra. Catra let them come close, trusting Adora to keep her safe. Melog licked her face in greeting, meowing. Catra looked taken aback, not expecting that. She then giggled.

"Hi, Melog." She greeted, gently petting them. "We can be friends. If you want to be Adora's friends too, then we can all be friends. Adora is my best friend ever. She's nice and helps me and yells at the meanies when they make fun of me."

Adora sat back and listened to the two having their own conversation. It brought back memories of their childhood, of her and Catra spending every moment together as naive and innocent children. She wondered how old Catra was. She'd have to ask Entrapta to check.

They sat like that for who knows how long, Catra happily chatting with her new friend. The day moon had risen, bringing daylight into the room. The guards changed shifts, faint footsteps could be heard in the hallway. Catra, now able to see more of the brightly colored room, was looking around in awe.

"This is pretty." She breathed, pointing at everything.

Adora nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. Ever seen those colors before?"

Catra shook her head.

"No. Why is there water in here?"

Catra pointed at the fountain. Adora snorted.

"I don't know. Because the princesses like it in the room. Isn't it nice?"

Catra walked up to the fountain. She curiously peeked inside, probably seeing where it drained. Adora watched with her, more than happy to hold Catra up so she could see. The sound of the bedroom door startled them both.

"Adora!"

Glimmer and Bow rushed in.

"We heard that Catra-"

Catra screamed. She ran towards the bed.

"Wait! Catra! It's okay!" Adora called.

Before she could stop her, Catra scampered underneath the bed, disappearing in seconds. Adora looked at Glimmer and Bow, sighing. Glimmer and Bow were staring in shock at where Catra had just squeezed under.

"So it's true." Bow commented. "She's older."

Adora, a bit frustrated, ran her fingers through her still unbrushed hair.

"Yeah. She doesn't trust princesses, so..."

Glimmer huffed, offended.

"Seriously? That young? What kind of propaganda were they teaching you in the Horde?"

Adora ignored her and crawled over to the bed. Peeking under, she could see a dark bundle in the corner, two glowing eyes staring at her with fear. A small hiss was aimed towards her, Catra perceiving her as a threat.

"Catra. It's alright. I'm here. They're not here to hurt us. This is Glimmer. She's a princess."

"I'm a queen." Glimmer corrected.

Adora gave her a look.

"A princess." She insisted. "She doesn't know what a queen is."

Glimmer rolled her eyes. She and Bow joined Adora on the floor.

"Hey, Catra." Bow greeted. "My name is Bow. I don't have any magic or a girl so I'm not a princess. It's nice to meet you again. We're your best friends and we're sorry if we scared you. Glimmer is loud but she's friendly. I promise. If you let us prove it, we'll be friends."

Bow nudged Glimmer with an elbow.

"Right, Glimmer. You won't hurt Catra. You want to be friends, right?"

Glimmer smiled. She peered under the bed at the frightened child. She felt sorry for Catra, having been taught to fear something she didn't even fully understand at such a young age.

"I promise I'm nice. I just want to be friends. Okay? Adora is here if you want to stay with her so you're not scared."

Catra looked at Glimmer, then Adora for reassurance. Adora smiled encouragingly.

"It's safe, Catra. I'm right here in case you feel scared. Nothing bad will happen to you."

"Promise?"

Yup. That got her. Adora had to fight the urge to visibly react. Not the promise. Too soon for that to come up.

"I promise. C'mon."

Catra crept towards her, her eyes occasionally flickering towards the strangers. Glimmer and Bow backed up to give Catra some space. Catra came out of hiding, going right into Adora's arms for protection. Adora rubbed one of Catra's ears to help calm her down.

"Whenever you're ready, we'll go talk to Glimmer and Bow. Okay?"

Catra bit her lip, nervous. She gripped Adora's hand, having to use both hands. They sat like that for a while, Catra getting used to having Bow and Glimmer there. Melog distracted her, their presence helping Catra feel secure, knowing she had two friends there for her. Finally, Catra looked their way, her tail lashing with anxiety.

Adora smiled.

"Ready to meet them?" She asked.

Catra nodded. Adora, staying on her knees so she wasn't towering over Catra, moved them across the short distance to her friends. She started off with Bow.

"Catra. This is Bow." She introduced. "He's Glimmer's super special best friend."

Since the Horde didn't teach them anything about relationship, Adora decided to save that conversation for someone who could explain it to Catra better. Bow waved excitedly.

"Hey."

Adora then motioned to Glimmer.

"And this is Glimmer."

Catra looked at Glimmer. She tilted her head, curious.

"Why are you so sparkly?" She asked.

Glimmer hummed.

"Because, I have magic. See?"

Glimmer drew a glyph in midair and made it snow sparkles. Catra hissed, backing up into Adora.

"It's okay." Adora reassured her, rubbing the back of Catra's hand with her thumb.

Catra watched the magic rain down. Seeing that it was harmless, she relaxed a bit. She suddenly sneezed, sniffling.

"It smells weird." She noted. "Do all princesses smell like that?"

Adora wasn't sure how to answer that. She couldn't exactly smell magic like Catra. She shrugged.

"Maybe. When you see the other princesses, smell them and tell me. Okay?"

Catra still seemed hesitant. Adora didn't blame them. They'd work on it.

"That's okay. I'll show you later." Adora said.

Her stomach growled, rather loudly. Catra looked at the stomach.

"Is it breakfast time?" She asked.

Adora smiled.

"Yeah. Let's get something to eat."

"Um. She needs clothes." Bow noted.

Adora looked at Catra. He was right. Catra was only wearing a diaper. Adora hummed.

"Right. Umm...."

She set Catra down, taking her by the hand. They walked over to the closet. Looking around, Adora decided on one of her sleep shirts. After taking Catra to the bathroom and cleaning her up with a washcloth, she figured out that Catra was old enough to be potty trained, so a diaper wasn't needed. Dressing Catra on the sleep shirt, Adora gave her an extra toothbrush she had handy for emergencies to use. Catra had a full set of baby teeth already.

Adora let her brush her own teeth, while doing so herself. Adora freshened up a bit, tying her hair up in her usual ponytail and washing her face.

Once finished, they walked out of the bathroom. Catra, seeming to forget about Glimmer and Bow, clung to Adora's leg, hiding her face. Adora smiled sympathetically. She scooped Catra up in her arms, carrying her on her hip as the four, along with Melog, left the bedroom.

Catra got a look around as they walked, everything was shiny and bright. Much different than the dark and gloomy halls of the Horde. She was just as shy as Adora remembered her to be. Catra hid her face in Adora's neck whenever someone came too close.

Upon approaching the dining room, the noise of the other castle residents got Catra's attention. Adora stopped walking. Glimmer and Bow turned to her.

"Maybe you guys should go first." Adora suggested. "Tell everyone what happened and to not do anything that'll scare her. I don't want to surprise them and they get in her face and scare her."

"Good idea." Bow agreed. "Just give us a minute. You know how they get."

The couple entered the dining room. Adora smiled at Catra.

"You're going to meet the rest of our friends. They're loud but they're nice. They lots of food here. Different food. No ration bars."

Catra's eyes widened.

"No ration bars? How? What they eat, then?"

Adora shrugged.

"I guess they don't know what that is. Don't worry, the food here is tons more better. It's really good. Would you like to try some? They have meat and eggs and something called cereal and pancakes and waffles. Lots of stuff."

Catra purred quietly.

"I think I want some of everything."

Adora laughed. "Don't worry. You'll get to try it all eventually. First, we're gonna say hi to everyone. They're excited to see you."

"Why?"

"Because they like you a lot. They're your friends."

Catra wasn't used to having friends. She seemed to like that idea.

"Okay. Can we go now?"

Adora nodded.

"Okay. If you get scared, can you hold onto me. I'm right here so no one will hurt you."

Catra gave a nod. Adora walked into the room. The hushed voices of their friends came to a halt. Everyone's eyes were on the two. Adora greeted the group.

"Hey, guys."

Scorpia and Spinnerella squealed in excitement. Adora looked at Catra.

"Catra grew up a bit last night. Not sure how, but she's a big kid now. Right, kitty?"

Catra looked around at everyone, taking the faces. She stopped at Lance and George. She gasped, perking up.

"Daddy! Papa!" She shouted, wiggling out of Adora's grasp. Catra ran right up to the men. She clung to George's leg, smiling brightly at him.

"We're in a princess castle, so be careful." Catra warned urgently.

That took everyone by surprise. She remembered Lance and George. George picked Catra up and sat on his lap.

"Hey, Catra. I know we're in a princess castle, but there's no danger here, sweetie. We're all safe."

"Catra." Lance spoke up. "Do you know how old you are?"

Catra shrugged, just like she did before.

"No. Shadow Weaver doesn't tell us. She said I don't need to know cuz I'm not a real girl."

There is it. That woman. George and Lance looked at each other.

"Well, of course you are, honey. You're a real girl like all the other kids." George insisted.

Catra looked conflicted. "Shadow Weaver said I'm a animal. Not a people."

George shook his head.

"No, sweetheart. You're a person too. You're not an animal. Maybe a little, but you're a person too. You're both. Okay?"

Catra seemed to understand. She suddenly sniffed the air. She looked at the plates of food set up on the table.

"Smells good huh?" George asked. "Are you hungry?"

Catra didn't reply, seeming to shrink back a little.

"I'm sorry." She said.

George looked confused.

"Why? You did nothing wrong."

Catra didn't make eye contact, her body curling up.

"I used my nose to smell. I'm not allowed to do that. I'm sorry. Can I still eat, please? I'm really sorry and I'm hungry. I'll be good. I promise to be a real girl."

Now, that was heart breaking. By the looks on everyone's faces, the gravity of the mindset Catra was in set in.

"Catra. Come here." Adora called, crouching down.

Catra climbed off of George, and scurried over to Adora. Adora smiled at her.

"You're a real girl, okay? You can use your nose and do all that stuff. No one will take food from you. You can eat whenever you want here, okay?"

She lowered her voice.

"And if anyone tries to take food away from you or won't let you eat, you tell me, okay. You come tell me and I'll get you food again."

Catra nodded shyly.

"Even if they say they'll hit me for telling on them?" She asked, anxiety in her eyes.

Adora nodded solemnly.

"Yes. Even then. If anyone says something scary or mean to you, you tell me or Bow or your daddies. Okay?"

Catra agreed, though she didn't look totally convinced that it was actually safe to do so. Adora couldn't blame her. Her child self hadn't been able to do much to help Catra back then, but she could now. The growling of Catra's stomach lifted the seriousness. Adora smiled and stood up.

"Let's sit down and eat. You can try some of the food and we can figure out what you like."

Catra grew excited. She was situated in a chair between Adora and Lance. They gave her small portions of everything, Lance, George, and Entrapta keeping an eye on her for an signs of an allergic reaction. Entrapta had an allergy medication device ready, by request of George. Just to be safe. Luckily, nothing happened. Catra liked the pancakes and waffles, though didn't enjoy the syrup that stuck to her fur when it accidentally dripped onto her bare upper body.

"She'll just take a bath after this." Glimmer dismissed.

Catra whined, suddenly distressed. She climbed off her seat, hiding underneath the table.

"No bath! Please no!" She pleaded.

Adora pushed back her chair, crawling underneath the table. Catra was huddled under the table, covering her face with her hands.

"Hey."

Catra looked up. Seeing Adora, she lowered her hands. Adora crawled over to her and sat next to her.

"Bath time is different here. It's not like the Horde."

"But Shadow Weaver is gonna dump water on my head!" Catra exclaimed. "She's mean, Adora! Please don't make me go with her! She hurts me!"

Catra started to cry. Adora's heart shattered. As kids, Adora didn't believe Catra when she'd told her about the abuse Shadow Weaver put her through. Now that she knew, it pained her to hear Catra so scared and begging for safety and protection. Adora had to blink back tears. Tears of sadness and anger.

If Shadow Weaver were still alive, Adora would tear her limb from limb.

Adora shushed the crying child, wiping the tears from Catra's face.

"It's alright, kitty. Shadow Weaver is gone. She's not coming back. She's gone forever."

Catra sniffled.

"She- She is? How?"

Adora paused, choosing her words carefully.

"Um, magic made her disappear forever. She's dead now."

No use telling a child gory details of what went down. Keeping it simple and vague was best. Catra wiped her slightly swollen face with her fist, sniffling. Adora rubbed her back.

"It's okay now, Catra. She can't hurt you again. I promise. She's never coming back. Okay? So don't be scared of her. I'll help you take a bath and I'll be in there too. Okay. The water is warm here. And they have bubbles."

Adora smiled, hoping that would intrigue Catra. Of course, having never had bubbles at her current age, Catra's curiosity came out.

"Bubbles? What's that?"

Adora tapped Catra's nose.

"After we finish eating, I'll show you. Melog likes to play with them."

Catra smiled and nodded.

"C'mon." Adora said. "Let's finish eating. I think the other princesses want to meet you too."

Catra didn't seem as anxious about that. She and Adora came out from under the table, back into their seats. Catra quietly, but contently, continued on with her meal, more secure with Adora there by her side.

Chapter Text

Catra wasn't sure what to make of the princesses. They were very colorful and bright. Adora said they were nice, but Catra was still too scared to trust them. So she stuck with Adora, hiding behind her legs. Melog stood by Catra to offer encouragement and reassure her.

"She's so tiny and pudgy." Scorpia squealed, keeping her voice down. "She must be so cuddly and soft."

Catra watched Scorpia from her hiding spot. She noticed the pincers and stinger which caught her attention. None of the other princesses had one. They all looked normal. So seeing Scorpia made Catra want to talk to her. Catra tugged on Adora's pants to get her attention. Adora looked at her and knelt down to her level.

Catra leaned in closer to whisper.

"She has a tail too." Catra whispered, pointing at Scorpia. "She's like me."

Adora smiled.

"Yeah. She does. Do you want to say hi? She's really nice and gives great big hugs."

Catra hesitantly nodded. Adora looked over at Scorpia.

"Scorpia. Catra wants to meet you." She called.

Scorpia excitedly came over to the two. She crouched down to make herself smaller. She smiled at Catra.

"Hey, Wildcat. My name's Scorpia."

Catra's eyes wandered curiously to Scorpia's exoskeleton. Scorpia noticed.

"Oh! Yeah, I'm a scorpion hybrid. Just like my moms."

Catra smiled a little.

"You have a tail too. I have one!"

Catra took hold of her own tail and showed it to Scorpia. Scorpia giggled.

"I see! Wow. That's so cool."

Catra relaxed the more they talked. She subconsciously inched closer to the princess. She wrung her tail with her hands.

"Can I touch your arm?" She asked. "Please."

Scorpia gladly allowed her to feel her exoskeleton. Catra was fascinated, running her hand over Scorpia's pincer.

"Wow. It's like metal." She commented.

Scorpia laughed.

"Yeah. It's very hard. It keeps me protected."

They warned Catra about the stinger, instructing her to not touch it. Catra nodded in understanding.

"You're really cool." She told Scorpia. "You're really tall, too. Can we be friends?"

Scorpia gasped in surprise.

"Yeah. We can be best friends. I love that idea. We can play together and stuff. This is going to be fun. Oh I want you to meet Perfuma."

Scorpia waved Perfuma over. Catra took a step back. Perfuma seemed to float over there, crouching down like Scorpia was doing. She smiled kindly at Catra, waving.

"Hi. I'm Perfuma."

The first thing Catra noticed were the flowers in Perfuma's hair.

"Oooh! Pretty flowers."

Perfuma giggled.

"Yeah. I'm a princess and my magic can make flowers. Wanna see?"

Catra nodded, grabbing Adora's hand again. Perfuma cupped her hands together and with a soft green glow made a red flower bloom. Catra ooh'd, fascinated.

"Cool." She whispered.

She looked at Adora, pointing at the flower.

"Look, Adora! She made a flower just now."

Adora nodded.

"I saw, Catra. Pretty cool."

Perfuma took the flower and held it out to Catra.

"Here. This is for you." She offered.

Catra looked between Perfuma and the flower being offered. As gentle as possible, Catra took the flower.

"Thank you, princess flower." She said with a smile.

Perfuma didn't even correct her.

"You're very welcome, Catra. I'll show you where to put so it can be safe okay?"

Catra ran over to Lance and pulled on him.

"Papa. Can you come with me? I don't want to go by myself."

Lance chuckled, getting out of his seat.

"Sure, thing, baby girl. Let's go."

Catra ran over to Adora to let her know where she was going as if Adora didn't just hear the whole conversation. Adora nodded in agreement, promising to still be there when they'd come back. Perfuma, Catra, Melog and Lance went out to the royal gardens for a few minutes.

Coming back, Catra had dirt on her hands and feet. Adora snickered.

"What happened, Catra? You got all dirty, so fast."

Catra smiled happily.

"Princess Flower told me how to put the flower in the dirt and water it. I saw lots of more flowers outside. Even dandelions!"

"Wow. Do you like dandelions?" Scorpia asked, genuinely interested in Catra's retelling.

Catra nodded. "Mhm. They're my favorite flower."

Mermista snorted, gaining their attention. She had her arms crossed, leaning against her chair with a bored look she always wore.

"Dandelions? Really? They're not-"

Mermista stopped mid-sentence when she saw the look Adora was sending her. A stern look, daring her to finish that sentence. She was mouthing 'shut up'. Mermista rolled her eyes.

"They're not as cool as water lilies." She corrected.

Catra blinked.

"I like dandelions, cuz they grow all the time at home in between the ground." She continued on. "Are you a princess, too?"

Mermista sighed, having to be bothered.

"Yeah. I'm the princess of the ocean."

Catra made a face.

"I don't like water. Do you like it in the water?"

"Yeah. I swim like, really good."

Catra seemed to be getting uncomfortable. Maybe it was the apathetic tone Mermista was speaking, or the way Mermista wouldn't really look at when she was talking.

"Oh. How do you go under the water?" She asked.

Mermista groaned. She rested her chin on her palm.

"I can breathe under water. I'm part mermaid."

That confused Catra.

"What's a mermaid?" She asked.

Mermista seemed to be getting annoyed with all the questions being thrown at her.

"Ask Adora. Now, I'm leaving now that she can talk. I barely can stand looking at her face."

Well, that was sudden. Catra's face saddened, her ears flattening.

"Mermista!" Bow scolded. "That's kind of rude to say in front of her."

Mermista shrugged.

"Not my fault she destroyed my kingdom. You all know I don't like being around her. I don't care if she's a mini version now. I won't pretend to like her just because she's cute. She's annoying."

It was true that Mermista never got along with adult Catra. She had every reason to not like her then and she wasn't obligated to be around Catra if she didn't want to. No one could tell her otherwise. However...

"Are you being serious right now?" Adora scoffed.

"I'm just being honest." Mermista replied. "I don't have to like her. I don't like her. She's still a pain in my side that I don't want to see. Now, she's a tiny pain in my side that you all go all soft over. You've all seen kids before. She's not special."

Perfuma decided to speak up.

"We hear you and your feelings are valid. However, taking it out on Catra when she's a child, isn't fair to her. She doesn't know what you're talking about."

Adora stood up. She was annoyed. Marching over to Mermista, Adora grabbed her arm and led her into the hallway. Closing the door behind them, Adora let go of Mermista's arm, facing the older princess.

"What's your problem?" Adora hissed.

"Her." Mermista deadpanned, pointing at the door. "She's my problem."

Adora huffed.

"Never do that again." Adora threatened. "She is a child right now and she doesn't know what she did wrong. I know her teenage self invaded your kingdom, but you can't act like a bitch to a child. I'm not demanding you forgive and forget, but we all know you hate her, so you don't have to bring it up every time you get annoyed with her. Catra knows what she did was unforgivable and she's doing her best to change and make up for her past. It might not ever be enough, but treating her like shit when hadn't done anything currently to deserve that treatment makes you look like the asshole. You don't have to like her, but don't antagonize her when she isn't antagonizing you. She's been through so much and she's grown so much since the war and I won't let your hatred towards her past mistakes keep Catra from living her life in peace. Everyone deserves that chance and Catra has yet to experience any form of a peaceful and safe life. Also, if you hate Catra, I want to see that same treatment towards Scorpia and Entrapta and the other Horde kids. We were all in the Horde, like she was. So either all of us, or none of us. Pick a side because I'm sick of everyone only going after Catra just because you saw her face more."

Mermista looked shocked by Adora's rant. Adora had to catch her breath, finding herself getting very angry and defensive. Where did that all come from? She must've been waiting to let that all off her chest. Guilt set in.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to target you."

"Don't apologize." Mermista said. "That was on your mind for a while, I see. You're just standing up for her. I get it. Yeah, going after a kid wasn't very cool of me."

Mermista leaned against the wall.

"I don't think I'll ever really like Catra anytime soon and I won't apologize for that."

Adora nodded in understanding.

"She ruined my home, but I see your point. She wasn't the only person there that day and se did help rebuild. I guess it's easier to hate only her because of how obnoxious she can be. Plus, I can agree she's better than before. Loads more tolerable, I guess."

She rolled her eyes.

"I might have some stuff I need to think about." She offered.

She narrowed her eyes at Adora.

"Don't think we'll be buddy-buddy, alright? Her face is still very punchable to me. She still caused a lot of hurt to my people. I can't forget that. She's also still banned from my kingdom, though I'm sure she doesn't mind. She wouldn't like it anyways."

Adora shrugged.

"Whatever you need to do. Just don't ever say that shit to her while she's a kid. She doesn't deserve that right now. I just want to give her the best second chance possible at growing up."

Mermista hummed.

"The Horde fucked you guys up. Never thought I'd see Catra cry. First time for everything, I guess."

Adora grinned a little. Mermista walked away, leaving Adora alone. Adora took a moment to calm down before going back in. Upon entering, she saw Catra in Lance's arms, curled up tight, hiding her face. Lance was rubbing her back, trying to soothe her. Everyone looked at Adora. The tension in the air was thick.

Adora walked up to Lance, kneeling down in front of Catra.

"Kitty. It's me. You wanna hug?"

Catra lifted her head. She had a remorseful and guilty look on her face.

"I'm sorry, Adora. I did something bad and your friend is mad at me and now doesn't like you anymore. Are you mad at me? I didn't mean to do it."

Adora's heart sank. Reaching out, she took Catra, sitting them on the floor.

"No, I'm not mad at you, Catra. I'm not. Mermista was mad at you because you did something bad when you were a big kid but a laser made you small. She doesn't like big Catra so she was mean to you. I told her to calm down and to not be mean to you anymore. You didn't do anything wrong today. You're very good and sweet and helpful. So don't be sorry. It's not your fault. If she is mad, let her be mad, but don't let her hurt you or make you cry. Cuz that's not nice. Okay? You're okay."

Catra nodded. She was still upset. Adora kissed her head.

"Why don't we go exploring?" She suggested suddenly. "We can go outside and walk around. Look at the flowers."

Catra perked up at the sound of flowers. She nodded, smiling toothily. Glad to do something else, everyone agreed immediately. Adora was just glad to see Catra smile again, free of guilt and sadness, as she should be.

Chapter Text

"Here we are." Bow announced.

The group stopped walking and looked around. The Brightmoon grounds were neatly kept, plenty of fruit trees provided shade in the outer perimeter. There were colorful wild flowers growing in a meadow down the hill.

Adora smiled at Catra, who was on her hip. She hadn't said much since the situation with Mermista almost an hour ago. She opted to sit quietly with Lance and George, her eyes down, not wanting to draw more attention to herself. So, to try and lift the mood, they'd decided to spend the day outside. The air was refreshing after being inside for nearly weeks.

Perfuma and Netossa set up the blankets for them to sit on them.

"This was a great idea." Perfuma said, sitting crossed-legged on the blanket. "Nothing like taking in the fresh air and enjoying the day moon's rays while meditating."

"Oh yeah. Mhm totally." Scorpia agreed, nodding from beside her girlfriend.

Micah set the picnic baskets off to the side. They were intending to spend a few hours outside. They'd brought lunch with them and a few snacks just in case. While the adults were settling down, Adora carried Catra a few paces away. Catra was looking around, taking it in.

"There's a lot of green stuff, Adora." She noted.

"Wait a minute." Glimmer said, getting the attention of everyone.

They all turned towards her. Glimmer was looking at Adora in disbelief.

"She's never heard of grass?! How?"

Adora snapped her fingers, like a lightbulb had just gone off.

"Grass! That's what it's called! Thanks, Glim."

She turned to Catra again, pointing at the field.

"This is called grass. Don't eat it, okay?" She informed the child.

Catra nodded. Adora finally put her down on the grass. Catra stood there awkwardly for a moment, switching from foot to foot. She stared down at the grass. Adora let her process the sensation, waiting patiently. Catra started to wiggle her toes. She looked up at Adora.

"This feels weird."

Adora hummed, amused.

"Good weird or bad weird?"

Catra shrugged. "I don't know."

Adora held out a hand.

"How about we go look at the flowers?" She suggested.

Catra smiled, excited at the idea. She nodded. Adora and her walked down the hill and to the edge of the meadow. Catra looked at the blanket of flowers, all different colors. Adora sat down, happy to watch Catra. Catra sniffed around, causing her to have a sneeze attack. She wandered around the flower patch, running around and looking at the insects. The butterflies were fun to chase. She never caught any of them, which was probably for the best.

Adora noticed that Catra started to pick some flowers. She gathered a handful, before running over to Adora.

"Here." She said, holding out a red flower. "This for you."

Adora fawned at the gesture.

"Thank you, Catra. That's so sweet of you." She said, taking the flower.

Catra let her kiss her cheek before she ran over to the others.

"This for you, and this one for you." Catra handed each person a flower or two.

Catra walked up to Lance and George.

"Here, Daddy. Here, Papa."

Catra held out two blue flowers to the couple. Everyone could feel their hearts melting. The two men thanked Catra with a hug and forehead kiss. Catra was purring loudly, glad to be appreciated. She noticed she was out of flowers.

"I'm gonna get more flowers!" She announced before running back towards the field.

Adora came up the hill, walking over to the group.

"I'm hungry." She stated. "Is it lunchtime yet?"

Glimmer snorted.

"Of course you are. Take a sandwich."

Adora dug around one of the packed picnic baskets, fishing out a wrapped sandwich. Adora munched on it, joining in on the conversation. Finishing the sandwich, Adora looked around. She frowned and standing up.

"Guys?" She said, getting everyone's attention.
"Where's Catra?"

Adora scanned the flower field Catra had just gone to. No sign of her. Her anxiety spiked immediately. Bow stood up.

"I'm sure she couldn't have gone too far." He reasoned as he too looked around for the young girl. "Plus, she's with Melog. She probably-"

A high-pitched scream grabbed their attention. Catra. Everyone was on their feet and running towards the scream. They found where it was coming from. Catra was huddled against the wall that surrounded the palace grounds, crying. Melog stood in between Catra and a man. The man definitely didn't belong inside the palace. He looked to be from the Crimson Waste, from the way he was dressed. The man was a Buffalo type hybrid. He was large and burly. The fear in his eyes showed that he hadn't expected Melog.

"Catra!" Adora shouted.

Adora transformed into She-ra. She-ra was very good at intimidating people. The stranger seemed to be shitting his pants. Adora, along with the others surrounded the man, ready to attack.

"Who are you, and why are you here?" Glimmer asked.

The man rolled his eyes.

"Dammit."

He tossed a bag he was holding onto the ground and put his hands up in surrender.

"I was gonna sneak into the castle and steal some shit, but that little brat saw me." He confessed, looking pointedly at Catra.

Adora pointed her sword at him, glaring at him. Looking at George and Lance, Adora motioned her head towards Catra. The two men caught the message and rushed over to Catra.

"Catra. We're here, sweetie."

Catra saw them and started to cry again, holding her arms out to them. Lance scooped her up and hugged her.

"It's okay, Catra. We're here now." He shushed.

The men took Catra back to the rest of the group. Catra clung to Lance, sobbing while he rubbed her back, whispering reassurances. The thief was detained, the guards called to take him back to the castle to be imprisoned. Once all that was settled, Adora turned her attention to Catra.

"Catra. Did you get hurt?" She asked, worried because of the crying.

Catra shook her head. That was a relief. Adora transformed back into her regular self. Catra had seen her do so. Her crying lessened in favor of confusion. Lifting her head off of Lance's shoulder, she reached for Adora. Lance passed her to Adora.

"Who was that tall, shiny lady with the sword?" Catra asked. "She looked just like you, and then she disappeared and then you came back."

Adora snorted, smiling.

"I'm a princess too and I can turn really big and strong. The tall lady is called She-ra."

Adora waited for the information to sink in. Catra rubbed her eyes, the salt of the tears irritating them.

"You're a princess? How? I thought princesses were scary and killed people. Shadow Weaver said that."

By the looks of the others, except Scorpia and Entrapta, they didn't like such an assumption.

"She told you guys that?!" Glimmer shouted. "What kind of fucked up stories were you being taught?! The Horde were the ones-"

"The Horde were orphans of war and didn't know any better." Micah cut her off, giving her a parental look. "Also, language, Glimmer. There's a child here."

"What does 'fucked up' mean?" Catra whispered, looking at Adora.

Everyone's eyes widened. Glimmer had done just that. She fucked up. Adora looked at Micah before looking at Catra.

"Um, it means you made a mistake or did something wrong."

Lance sighed, rubbing his face.

"Sweetheart, listen." He started. Adora put Catra down.

Lance and George looked at one another, silently communicating. George then beckoned for Catra to come closer. Catra walked up to the two.

"That word... fuck... is only a sometimes word, ok? You can only use it in some places and only when certain stuff happens. Okay? You can't some words all the time, because others grown ups don't like those words. If hear a word that grown ups use, ask us before copying it. So then we can teach you when or where is okay to say it. You understand?"

Catra nodded.

"Yeah. I can't say grown up words all the time. Only at home or when you and Daddy say it's ok. Why do some grown ups not like those words?"

George paused for a second, to think.

"Because they think those words are bad and they think kids shouldn't ever talk like that. They think of you say those words, you're bad, but that's not true."

"Oh."

Catra seemed to be having trouble comprehending the logic.

"You and Daddy aren't bad persons. You said the word and you're nice. I don't know why they said that."

George smiled.

"You're right, baby girl. Those people are just bossy and think they can tell people what to do, I think." He shrugged and sighed before changing the subject. "But anyway, Catra, what happened with the man? Why were you all the way over here?"

Catra shrunk back a little, scared that she was in trouble. The men noticed and reacted accordingly.

"You're not in trouble. We just want to know if you got hurt. Are you okay?"

Catra pointed towards the palace walls.

"Me and Melog saw a squirrel go that way and then I saw a bug. So I followed it."

"Is that when you saw the man?" Adora spoke up.

Catra nodded.

"Yeah! He was climbing the wall and he jumped down like this."

Catra proceeded to demonstrate jumping down. It brought a smile to everyone's face.

"He saw me and I ran away because he was a stranger, but he grabbed me."

Catra wrapped her tiny arms around Lance's bigger arm.

"And I yelled really loud 'cuz he scared me." She continued. "Then Melog got really big and scared him. He let go and Melog protected me. I was scared."

Melog, who was getting pets from Adora and Bow nudged Catra affectionately. George smiled warmly at them, grateful for their constant presence and loyalty to Catra. He picked Catra up and rested her on his hip, getting to his feet, everyone followed suit. They started to head back.

"Well, good thing Melog was with you to help you. Next time, stay near us and don't go off by yourself. Okay?"

Catra agreed. She yawned suddenly.

"You wanna go night-night?" George asked, already knowing the answer.

Catra nodded, clearly exhausted.

"Okay, baby. Go to sleep."

George moved Catra so she could lay her head on his shoulder. The group walked back to the picnic spot. The tense atmosphere was gone, the adrenaline giving everyone an appetite. They decided to have lunch, glad they'd brought the food with them. Catra saw the juice boxes they'd packed for her and managed to stay awake long enough to have some lunch herself.

At some point, Catra looked up worriedly at her dads.

"Daddy. Papa. What if the scary man comes back? Or the bloody princess? Shadow Weaver said the bloody princess takes soldiers when they're outside by themself if they're bad. Am I bad? I went far away by myself without you. Is that bad?"

Catra seemed to be almost paranoid at this point of any ghost stories the Horde taught her. It would be cute if it didn't imply some pretty dark things.

Adora rolled her eyes.

"Catra was right. Shadow Weaver really did live to traumatize and terrorize kids. Geez. I remember those stories. Catra and Kyle had nightmares about that a lot, back then."

Micah, just like everyone else listening, looked horrified at the casual tone.

"You're both getting therapy. No arguments or debates about it."

Netossa huffed, incredulously.

"How are they not already in therapy? Especially that kid."

She jutted her chin out towards Catra.

"Anyone that meets her will know she needs it most of all. How did we not stick her into therapy as soon as the war ended. We're finding out more and more shit she went through and had no one to talk to about it and this isn't even the worst of it."

She was right. Catra clearly had a lot going on in her head that she hasn't spoken about to anyone and it was causing her distress and anxiety over the smallest things.

"We'll talk more about this later." George decided. "We don't know how long she'll be growing and we don't want to confuse her if every time she jumps ahead a few years, she forgets her therapist all over again. Once she's grown up again, we'll talk to her about it. For now, though, just keep an eye on her and if it gets to the point we need professional help, then we'll start searching."

"Casta might know someone." Micah suggested. "There are schools for counselors in Mystacor, so she must know someone we could ask for advice if need be."

Couldn't hurt to ask. They worried about Catra. For now, though, they'd keep an eye on her.

Chapter Text

Catra was unsure about Adora being a princess. What did that mean? Did that mean Adora was different? Was she still Catra's best friend? Did she have magic like Shadow Weaver?

All the questions ran around inside her head. So, she decided to investigate. Looking up from where she was sitting on the floor with her toys. Bow was sitting at a table nearby, building an arrow. Papa and Daddy told Bow to watch her because they had to go to their house to work. Bow was fun to play with, but he was busy right now. So, Catra thought it was the perfect opportunity to go.

Catra turned to Melog, so was laying beside her, watching. Catra really liked Melog. Only she could understand them and so the two could share secrets. Melog also helped Catra when she felt scared or sad. They helped her feel better when Adora or her daddies weren't there.

"Are you searching for your mate?"

Melog had a weird way of talking, but Catra like it. She nodded.

"Yeah. I wanna go find her and spy on the princess." She whispered.

Melog shrunk down to a indoor cat. They stood up and started to walk. Catra, grabbing her blankie, followed. They walked out of the room and down the hall. Everything looked so big and it felt like forever to get there. Melog led her to a room. The guards standing on both sides of the big door looked at them.

"Are you lost?" One of the soldiers asked.

Catra found their armor weird. She never saw their faces and the clothes were long. It looked silly.

"Where's Adora?" She asked shyly.

"Right in here." The guard replied, gesturing to the door. "Would you like to go in? Princess Adora is training."

Catra looked at Melog.

"Yes. Let's go inside." Melog agreed.

Catra looked at the guard and nodded.

"Yes, please. We're gonna spy on the tall princess and make sure Adora is okay. So, shhh."

The guard smiled. They opened the door for Catra and Melog.

"If you want us to open it again, knock on it." They instructed.

Catra nodded and went in, Melog right beside her. The two slipped in. They immediately heard shouts and the clanging of metal on metal. Walking further into the room, Catra stopped. The tall princess was there. She was fighting robots. She had a sparkly sword that she fought with.

Catra and Melog hid behind a thing leaning against the wall. Catra looked at her companion and put a finger to her lips, signaling to stay quiet. Both of them peeked out to watch Adora train. It looked different than Horde training. There was no yelling or grown up getting mad or telling Adora what to do.

Also, Adora was fighting bots. Not people. In the Horde, Catra remembers practicing fighting people. Maybe Shiny tall princess doesn't hurt people? Or maybe she only hurts people if they hurt her first. That sounds fair.

Adora stopped, the bots all destroyed. She suddenly turned towards where Catra and Melog were hiding. Catra gasped and hid, Melog copying. Catra wondered if Adora had seen them. Melog and her sat there in silence, staring at each other.

"Catra? Is that you? You can come out now."

Catra had to stop herself from laughing. If Adora didn't find them, that means they tricked her. Melog was really good at hiding.

Catra went to peek again. She came nose to nose with the tall princess. Catra screamed, backing up.

"Catra! It's okay!" Adora assured her. "Don't be scared. It's just me."

Catra bursted out laughing. She hadn't been scared, but Adora had come out of nowhere. Catra and Melog stood up. The tall princess was kneeling there, smiling at Catra. She looked much bigger up close.

"Did you escape from Bow?" Tall princess asked.

Catra nodded. "Yeah. Melog and I wanted to spy on you to see if you were a good princess. If you're a princess, is Adora still my friend?"

Tall princess looked a little sad.

"Of course I'm still your friend. I'm still Adora. I just have magic and really tall. That's it. Nothing changed. Do you recognize me?"

Catra stepped up to Adora, to get a close look. Taking the glowing woman's face in her hands, Catra moved her head side to side. She felt like Adora. Looking at her hair, Catra saw the same ponytail like Adora. Her hair was really long and it floated by itself. The princess was really strong. Catra picked up a hand. The hand was huge. Pressing their palms together, Catra was shocked at how much bigger the princess' hand was than hers.

"Wow. You have giant hands!" She exclaimed.

The princess laughed. She sounded like Adora.

Catra then looked at her face. The smile on her face was exactly how Adora smiled at her. Her eyes. Adora had blue eyes. Catra liked her eyes. They always made Catra feel safe and sound and wanted. They never looked mean or something. Always happy to see her. This princess had those same eyes.

This really was Adora. Her Adora.

"There you are!" Catra realized. "I found you."

Adora laughed. She shook her head.

"I was always here, Catra. Being a princess isn't bad. I'm still the same person. Don't worry."

Catra nodded. Now that she knew Adora was okay and that the princess didn't replace her, she felt better. Catra sniffed her. Adora smelled like Adora, but had that princess smell. Catra felt a tickle in her nose. She let out a soft sneeze.

Adora was smiling at her still.

"Do I smell weird or something?" She giggled.

Catra rubbed her nose.

"No. You smell normal, but you smell like a princess, too." She informed.

Catra turned her attention to the room. The simulation seemed to have stopped. Catra wondered if there was something for her to do.

Catra turned back to Adora.

"Can I do it too?" She asked, pointing to the training room.

Adora looked surprised by the question. Catra really hoped she would say yes. She wanted to be like Adora and train.

"Please?" Catra begged, giving Adora her best pout.

Adora smiled again.

"Sure. I have the perfect thing for you to do." She said.

Yes! She said yes!

Catra beamed. In a few minutes, Catra was chasing a training bot dummy. The bot was set up to move around, so Catra had to chase it. It was fun and Adora said she was doing a good job when she was able to pounce on and scratch the bot. The bot had soft stuff on it so it didn't hurt Catra when she hit it.

Catra had fun and wanted to do it again another day. Shiny Princess... or Adora, wasn't bad after all. It was just Adora, and Catra could train with her so she liked Adora being a princess.

Adora and Catra were surprised when Bow came in, screaming that he lost Catra. Which is funny, because she was right there. Her and Melog were great spies after all. Bow looked happy to see her, breathing funny when he saw she was there. He told her to not sneak out like that, so Catra explained what her and Melog had been doing. Bow wasn't mad.

He asked to watch her train. Catra liked Bow a lot, so she wanted to show him what she can do. She realized that no one else had claws or teeth like her in the castle, so they couldn't fight like her. So, she decided to just have him watch her. Bow cheered her and Adora on. Catra eventually needed a nap, so Adora turned small again, saying that they were done training. Bow carried Catra and they all went to the kitchen for a snack.

Princess Sparkle, Spider princess and Windy princess were there too. Catra told them all about her and Melog's mission. They all said they did a great job. After snack time, Catra was really sleepy. She climbed up on Adora's lap, telling her just that.

Adora let her sleep on her, covering her with Catra's blankie. The blankie stopped the bright light and made the loud noise more quiet. Catra fell asleep, listening to Adora's heart. It sounded the same as always.

——————————————

Catra liked Bow. He was funny and liked to play with her. Daddy and Papa said that Catra had to share them with Bow and his big brothers. They said that Bow was like her brother too. Catra never had a brother or sister, so that was cool. Though, she didn’t like having to share her daddies, but she guessed she could because Bow was nice and Papa said it’s nice to share.

That’s why Adora has lots of friends. Catra shares Adora with them and Adora shares Catra with Scorpia and Flower Princess and Melog.

Bow was super smart. He was always helping Trapta. Trapta was a princess too, but way smarter than the other princesses. She knew lots of big words and had magic hair. Her mommy and daddy were robots. Catra wasn’t allowed to be by herself with Trapta, because Daddy said Trapta isn’t careful at all and she might hurt her by accident with her robots.

Bow was smart too, but he was super careful. Well, except when he stopped watching her and Catra snuck out without telling him. Catra gets put in time-out when she does that. It feels like forever in time-out. Bow never puts her in time-out when their daddies leave the room.

He also liked to play the guitar. Bow said it’s not a guitar, but it looks like one, so Catra calls it a guitar. Catra liked to listen to him play, even when he did it wrong. The music was pretty and sometimes the princesses and him would sing when he played a song. Catra liked the songs.

So, one day when Bow was playing his guitar, Catra sat next to him. She paid attention and listened to him hum and play. It was nice, though he messed up a little.

“Are you going to keep playing it over and over again?” Princess Sparkle, Bow’s girlfriend or something, asked. “If you keep messing up, just play something else.”

Catra frowned. Sparkles, or Glimmer as everyone called her, but Catra thought she was sparkly so, Sparkles, sounded like she was making fun of Bow. Catra didn’t like that one bit. It made Catra sad when people laughed at her, so she didn’t want Bow to be sad either. Catra, puffed up with anger, stood up and marched over to Sparkles. How dare she!

“Shut up, dumb face!” She yelled.

Everyone looked at Catra, their eyes big. Catra glared at Sparkles, trying to look tough.

“You say sorry to Bow for bullying him. He’s good at the guitar and if he mess up, then that’s okay! It’s not nice to make fun of him! Don’t be a bully or I’ll scratch your face off!”

Catra was scared of Sparkles using her magic on her, but she had to protect her big brother.
Sparkles’ mouth was open, staring at Catra.

“Catra.” Bow said, giggling, “it’s okay. Glimmer isn’t laughing at me. She’s being nice.”

“Nuh uh.” Catra argued. “She was being mean and teasing you. It’s not nice and she has to say sorry.”

Bow snorted, looking at Sparkles. He shrugged.

“I can’t help you.”

“This can’t be happening.” Spider web Princess laughed, shaking her head. “She really stood up to Glimmer and yelled at her. This is so great. Damn, Glimmer. You have a little cub to watch out for because she’s protecting her big brother now. Someone take a picture because this is gold. Glimmer put in time-out by a four year old.”

Sparkles made a face at her, before she sighed and looked at Catra.

“Okay, Catra. I won’t do it again. I wasn’t trying to be mean. I was kidding with Bow. You know, playing.”

That didn’t sound like playing to Catra. What she said was mean, still.

Catra pointed at Bow.

“Say sorry.” She demanded.

Sparkles looked at Bow.

“I’m sorry for hurting your feelings. I’ll be nice. I promise.”

That was a good sorry. Catra took Sparkles by the hand and dragged her over to the corner. She looked at her and pointed at the chair.

“Time-out for five minutes.”

Glimmer looked shocked. Everyone else started to laugh. Catra looked at them, telling them to be quiet or they’ll be in time-out too. They stopped laughing.

“What?! Why?!” Glimmer complained. “I’m a grown up. You can’t put me in time-out.”

It was the rules and princesses needed to follow rules.

“Daddy and Papa put me in time-out for not following rules. So, you have to be in time-out too. Princesses have to be nice. Right, Adora?”

Catra looked at Adora, who was covering her mouth and watching them. Adora nodded.

“You’re right. Pfft- Follow the rules, Glimmer.”
She said.

Catra was right. Looking at Sparkles, Catra told her to sit down. Glimmer did, pouting. Catra had Adora set the timer. Catra walked over to Bow and sat down next to him.

“Can you keep playing? I like it when you do.” She asked.

Bow smiled.

“Sure. If I mess up?”

Catra shrugged.

“That’s okay. Try again. That’s what Adora told me.”

Bow laughed. He ruffled Catra’s hair. Catra scooted closer so she was touching him. She wanted to watch him play music. Bow started playing. Any others teasing stopped and Catra enjoyed her big brother’s music.
—————————————

Daddy and Papa’s house had lots of stuff. A lot of books, everywhere. They said they worked with books and writing stuff. Catra couldn’t read, but she could look at the pictures. Sometimes, she would make up stories for the pictures and tell them to her friends. Scorpia was her favorite to tell stories to.

Being at her daddies’ house was so exciting. The princesses and Bow had to go somewhere, so Catra went with her daddies until she got back. Catra never went with them before. The house wasn’t bigger than the castle, but Catra liked it. They had fun all day. Papa and her made cookies, which tasted so good. Melog got to eat some, too.

Then they played outside, then took a nap. Catra tried to climb a tree, but Daddy said to only do that when Adora was with her, because Daddy and Papa couldn’t climb trees so if she got stuck, they can’t help her. So, they played hunter instead. Catra wasn’t good at hunting yet, but she was practicing. Catra could sometimes keep her claws from scratching people, but sometimes she would do it by accident.

After lunch time, Daddy and Papa said they had to work. Catra played in the room with her toys, keeping her voice down. After a bit, she got bored. She looked over at Daddy and Papa, who were sitting at their desk. Catra wanted to know what they were doing. Walking to them, Catra tapped Daddy’s knee.

“What are you doing?”

Daddy looked at her and smiled.

“I’m reading a book about stuff that happened a long time ago. I’m also writing notes about it.”

That was weird. Why read it and then write it again?

Catra tilted her head.

“Why? You already wrote it on the paper there. Why write it again? You need to copy it?”

Daddy nodded. “Yeah. You wanna see?”

Catra nodded, happy to be involved. She was sat on the desk. Looking at the book, Catra saw weird pictures and words she couldn’t read. The book was brown and messy. She looked at where Daddy was writing. She liked his writing better even if she couldn’t read it.

“Pretty cool, right?”

Catra didn’t think so, but she wanted to make Daddy happy, so she nodded. Catra wanted to try it too.

“Can I write too?” She asked.

Daddy smiled bigger.

“Sure, honey. Stay here. Let me get you a book to copy.”

A few minutes later, Catra had her own book to write in. Catra was lying on her tummy, writing in her own notebook. She had a better book to look and copy from. It had lots more pictures. It was an adventure book. Catra felt like she was working too. Just like her daddies. Later, she would ask them to read to her and teach her to read. She wanted to so badly.

Catra liked books now. Being with Daddy and Papa was fun.

Chapter Text

"Psst! Adora."

Adora's eyes snapped open, coming out of a deep sleep. She sprang up in her bed, wide awake.

"Huh? I'm up."

Adora couldn't see anything. It was the middle of the night, so there was barely any light. Only the tiny magical flowers that were on the bedroom walls illuminated in the dark.

"Adora?" The familiar voice of Catra was heard.

The smaller weight on Adora's lap was familiar. Adora put together the pieces.

"Catra? Is something wrong?" She asked.

Adora leaned over, reaching for her bedside lap. Flicking on the light, she winced at the bright light. Rubbing her tired eyes, she turned to look at Catra again.... Catra, who was no longer a toddler. Adora knew she shouldn't be this surprised that Catra had another sudden growth spurt, but she was. Gone was her baby fat and chubby limbs and wonder-filled eyes. She was now too thin and seemed uneasy. She was also naked, using only her blanket to cover herself.

"Let me get you something to wear." Adora said.

Catra got off of Adora, letting her get out of bed. Adora mindlessly rummaged around her closet for a moment. When she finally shook off the shock and the sleepiness, she decided on a t-shirt.

"C'mere." Adora instructed, turning back to Catra.

Catra climbed off the bed and walked up to her.

"I can do it." She mumbled.

Adora gave her the shirt. While Catra slipped it on, Adora found some underwear for her to wear. She had to cut a hole for Catra's tail and use a hair clip to keep it fitted.

"It's still really early. No one else is awake. Wanna go back to bed?" Adora suggested.

Catra played with her tail, fidgeting.

"Can I stay with you? I don't wanna sleep in a crib."

Adora made a mental note to ask the others to change out the bed. She smiled and nodded.

"Sure. C'mon."

The two got into bed. Melog appeared out of nowhere, hopping onto the bed. Catra curled up with Melog. She suddenly looked surprised. Sitting up, she pressed down on the mattress.

"I like this bed." She commented.

Adora hummed, a grin on her face. She turned out the light.

"Me too."

Giving Melog a scratch behind the ears, she laid her head down on the pillow and waited. In the silence, she suddenly heard movement. Adora felt a smaller body pressed up against her. Catra was curled up in a ball. Adora smiled. It wasn't her lover Catra beside her, but it was good enough.
—————————————

Waking up later that morning, Adora was reminded of the new situation. It was hard to ignore something poking at your face. Opening her eyes, she saw Catra sitting on her, an impatient look on her face.

"C'mon, Adora. Bow and and Sparkles are here. It's breakfast time." She informed.

Adora sat up, yawning. Just like Catra said, the rest of the Best Friend Squad was there, smiling and ready for the day. Well, Bow was ready, Glimmer was still in her pajamas, a cup of coffee in hand. Adora smiled at Catra.

"How old are you?" She questioned.

Catra thought for a moment.

"Shadow Weaver said I'm younger than you. I think this is our seventh or eighth year."

Adora got up. She greeted her friends. Glimmer was frowning, glaring at Catra.

"She hissed at me." She complained.

Adora didn't expect anything less from Catra at this stage. She remembered her being very prone to giving warnings to those she deemed a bother. Princesses were no exception.

"Yeah. She does that. What did you do to upset her? Did you scare her?"

Glimmer looked almost offended by the assumption of being in the wrong.

"Nothing! We just showed up. Probably just spooked her."

Catra huffed, getting the adults' attention. She had her arms crossed, looking off to the side.

"Or maybe it's your dumb pink face that scared me." She sassed.

The tone seemed to have taken them by surprise. Adora sighed. It was too early for this.

"I'm gonna go get ready. Wanna get ready with me, Catra. Bow, Glimmer, you can meet us at the dining hall."

Catra stuck her tongue out at Glimmer.

"Whatever."

Bow steered Glimmer towards the door, smiling.

"Sure. No problem. See later, Catra."

Catra gave a half-assed wave. Once the couple left, Adora smiled.

"So, wanna take a bath? You haven't bathed in a while, so..."

"No way!" Catra snapped.

Adora held up her hands in a placating gesture.

"Okay, okay. No problem. How about just a wash cloth? Something easy and quick."

Catra looked at her, taking her offer into consideration.

"Fine, but that's it." She conceded.

Adora smiled at her victory. She and Catra got ready. Adora wasn't too surprised that Catra was quieter and closed-off. She'd managed to make Catra smile and even laugh by being silly. Catra kept the clothes she'd had the night before. She didn't seem to mind.

"Are your friends always so annoying?" She suddenly asked.

Adora looked at her through the reflection in the mirror.

"They're your friends, too. You remember who they are, right?"

Catra shrugged. Adora frowned.

"Well, you must remember your dads, right?"

Catra gave her a look.

"Duh. How could I forget them? They're not annoying or dumb."

Adora giggled.

"I'm sure they'll be glad you think so. I think they'd be upset if you forgot them."

The rest of their time getting ready was in silence. Finally, they left the room. Catra stayed close to Adora, though didn't touch her. Her eyes were wandering around, lowering to the floor whenever they passed by another person. Adora decidedly didn’t comment on it.

Stopping outside of the dining hall, Adora turned to Catra.

“I’m sure Glimmer and Bow has told them about you, so everyone might be eager to talk to you. Ready?”

Catra glanced at the doorway, nervously rubbing her arm. She nodded anyway. The two walked in. All eyes were immediately on them. Catra froze at the sudden attention.

Lance cleared his throat, a silent command. Everyone at the table stopped staring and went back to their meals.

“Good morning, girls.” Micah greeted warmly.

Adora looked at Catra. Catra still looked unsure. Adora’s brows pinched, worried this was too much for Catra.

“Catra? It’s alright. What’s wrong?”

Catra looked down at the floor. She motioned for Adora to come closer. Adora crouched down to her level.

“Um… you’re princesses, right?” Catra asked.

Adora nodded, unsure of where this was going.

“Yeah.”

Catra’s ears pressed against her head, her body shrinking in. She shook her head.

“Nothing. Nevermind. Let’s just eat.”

Adora was concerned, but didn’t want to push. They found their seats.

“Hey, Wildcat.” Scorpia cheerfully greeted.

Catra looked at her. She smiled and shyly waved.

“Hi, Scorpia.” She replied.

“Sleep good last night, honey?” George asked.

Catra glared at him.

“Don’t call me that. I’m not a baby.” She hissed.

That took everyone by surprise. Bow coughed awkwardly.

Adora spoke up.

“You hungry?” She asked Catra. “There’s a ton of food laid out. Just take whatever you want and put it on your plate.”

Catra silently filled her plate with sausage. Conversation picked up again. Adora watched Catra out of the corner of her eye. The young magicat was silent, eating her food.

At some point they heard a hiss come from Catra. They all looked at her. Catra was holding her plate close to her, almost defensively, hissing at Netossa.

“I’m just reaching for more food, kiddo. I wasn’t gonna take your food.” Netossa explained.

Catra eyed her suspiciously. She went back to eating. The rest of breakfast went by without incident. Everyone else shared an occasional confused glance. After breakfast, Adora decided to speak.

“Catra needs clothes again. Think we can go buy some?”

“Sure.” Micah said nonchalantly. “Whatever she needs, I’ll pay for it. We can head out right now.”

Catra tapped Adora’s leg, getting her attention.

“Where are we going?” She whispered.

Adora smiled.

“To the store. We’re gonna buy you some new clothes.”

Catra didn’t seem to understand the concept.

“You’ll see when we get there.” Adora said.

“Ooh! Yay! Shopping!” Glimmer squealed, suddenly energized. “It’s been a few weeks since we’ve gone. I’ll go get ready!”

With that, Glimmer vanished. Micah smiled, shaking his head.

“How about we wait out front?” Micah recommended.

Everyone agreed, getting up. Heading out of the dining hall, they all walked together.

“So, Catra.” Perfuma spoke up. “Have you ever been shopping before?”

Catra awkwardly looked at Perfuma.

“I don’t know.”

“Well.” Perfuma went on. “This store is very big and has a ton of different clothes to buy. Do you have an idea of what you want to buy?”

Catra shook her head. She hadn’t been paying attention to where she was going, because she bumped into a table. Next thing they knew, there was a crash as the flower vase that was on top of the table, fell to the floor. Water and broken glass went all over the floor.

Anyone, who hadn’t been paying attention, stopped and quickly turned towards her.

“Catra!” George gasped, eyes scanning the mess. “What happened?”

Catra whole demeanor changed. She backed away from the mess, shaking her head.

“I’m sorry. It was an accident. I swear, I didn’t do it on purpose.”

Catra had terror in her eyes, looking at everyone, as if waiting for them to attack. She turned and fled. She was much faster than they were. The group lost her after turning the corner. Adora looked at Micah.

“We’ve gotta find her. She’s gotta be scared of her mind. I hope she’s not hurt.”

Adora sighed.

“I knew something was wrong. This was bound to happen.”

Bow placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t worry, Adora. We’ll find her and talk to her.” He assured her. “Let’s split up and look around. We’ll meet back up here in an hour. One of us will have found her.”

They all separated, in search of the cat.

Chapter Text

The search was on. The group split up, each having a walkie-talkie to communicate with each other. Netossa and Spinny covered the west wing of the palace. It was mostly just storage rooms and closets full of crates and junk. They combed through each room, looking for any sign of the kitten.

None of them knew just how enormous the castle was until they actually had to search through it. After the thirty-fourth room without success, the couple were beginning to think Catra wasn't in that part of the castle.

"She's probably not in this wing." Netossa said, clearly growing impatient. "Let's head back."

Spinnerella sighed.

"Sweetie, no. If she is somewhere here, and if we leave, we'll be leaving her alone with no one around if something happens to her. We have to be thorough."

Netossa knew her wife was right. She sighed and pushed open the next door. The couple walked into the room. Just like last time, there were wooden crates and sheet-covered items. Perfect places for a small child to hide. Spinny and Netossa searched through the room, checking anywhere Catra might be able to hide in.

Shuffling suddenly caught their attention. Netossa paused.

"Hey, Spinny. Did you hear that?" She stage whispered.

Spinnerella stopped. The two women stood there in silence. The shuffling had stopped almost as soon as Netossa mentioned it. They looked at each other.

"Catra?" Spinnerella called out. "Is that you?"

Silence filled the room. Spinny and Netossa looked around the room, hoping to catch a glimpse of Catra.

"It's alright, honey. We're just worried about you. You can come on out. It's Spinnerella and Netossa. We're not here to hurt you, sweetheart. We just want to talk and make sure you're safe."

The shuffling started again. The women listened in order to figure out which direction it was coming from. Scanning the area, they waited for any reply.

"I promise you're not in trouble, Catra. You're not. Please talk to us." Netossa said.

Suddenly, from one of the turned over crates, peeked out Catra. The girl popped her head out. When she and Netossa made eye contact, Catra immediately hid again.

Netossa walked over to the crate. Kneeling a good distance away, Netossa looked inside. There was Catra, huddled against the corner of the box, a hand over her mouth. Her eyes glowed in the dim light. When Catra realized Netossa was looking at her, she panicked and scrambled out of the crate. She rushed over to the door, but because of how small and scrawny she was, couldn't get the door open.

"Wait, Catra." Netossa called. "Please, don't be scared. We won't hurt you."

Catra turned around, her back pressed against the door. The poor girl was terrified, looking like a deer caught in headlights.

"I-I didn't mean to break it! I'm sorry!" She cried.

Spinnerella joined her wife on the floor. She smiled gently at Catra.

"We know, Catra. We're not mad at you. We just want to check on you and make sure you're okay. We just want to talk."

Catra didn't seem reassured by that. She pressed herself into the corner, tears in her eyes. It was truly a pitiful sight. The two women looked at each other, wondering what to do.

Netossa got out the walkie-talkie.

"We found her." She spoke into the microphone part. "She's terrified and we just need to talk to her. Give me and Spinny some time and we'll meet you at the meeting spot soon."

After a moment, a response came.

"Okay. Thanks the stars. We'll wait for you." Micah responded. "Let's meet up, everyone else."

Clipping the little device to her belt, Netossa turned her attention back to the frightened girl. She decided to get the ball rolling.

"Why did you run away like that?" She asked.

Catra looked down at the floor. She hugged herself, as if to soothe herself.

"Because I broke something and made a big mess." She meekly replied.

"So, why are you scared?" Netossa then asked. "It's not a big deal. It was an accident."

Catra hesitantly looked up at them.

"Because you'll beat me for being bad."

That was what the women were afraid she'd say. They looked at each other. They'd never had this type of situation before. Since they'd never wanted kids, they didn't have much experience with them. Much less, a traumatized magicat child. Looking at Catra again, Spinnerella shook her head.

"You didn't do anything bad, honey. We would never hit you."

"Yah huh!" Catra argued. "Shadow Weaver hits me when I do something bad. She said if I do it again, I run so she can't find me. I hide from her really good. She always finds me and breaks my bones or zaps me no matter what. Even if it was an accident, she still mad at me."

Catra's ears fell, eyes lowering to the floor.

"I didn't mean to be bad. I try really hard to be good, but Shadow Weaver said I'm gonna always be evil. I don't wanna be evil. I wanna be like Adora."

If heartbreak could be audible...

Spinnerella and Netossa were shocked by the confession.

"Oh, honey." Spinny said. "You are good. You're not evil at all."

Catra sniffled. Sitting down, she hugged her knees.

"Then why does Shadow Weaver like Adora but not me? Why does she only hate me and not the other kids?"

Spinny shrugged, devastation on her face.

"We don't know, but it's not your fault. You did nothing wrong."

Catra sat there and cried.

"No one at home likes me. They call me weird and pull on my tail. Everybody likes Adora more than me. It makes me so mad because Adora never helps me when Shadow Weaver hit me. She said she would but never does. She said it's my fault."

Netossa's brows pinched.

"She did?"

Catra nodded.

"She said I need to be nice, but Shadow Weaver is so mean and scary and hurts me all the time, so I don't want to be nice to her. Do I have to?"

"No." Netossa replied instantly. "If someone is mean to you, you don't have to be nice. It's alright if you don't like them. It's ok to be mad at them."

Catra sat there, processing the words.

"Why does she hit me then?" She asked. "I try really hard to be like Adora, but Shadow Weaver ignores me and calls me names when I do."

"What kind of names?" Spinny asked, curiously.

Catra thought for a moment, lifting her head up a bit.

"When we train, I'm faster than her. Shadow Weaver said I cheated and am too stupid to win. She said Adora has to be better than me. She also said I'm a freak because of my fur and my claws. I try not to scratch or walk on four legs around Shadow Weaver, but she sometimes catches me and shocks me. It really hurts."

Catra sniffled, tears in her eyes.

"I try really hard to be good and listen. I do, but Shadow Weaver still hits me. Why? What did I do wrong? I don't understand. Is there something wrong with me?"

Spinny had tears in her own eyes. She shook her head.

"Oh no, sweetheart." She said. "Can I hug you?"

Spinny held her arms out. Catra stared at her for a moment. Slowly, she crawled towards the couple, hesitant still. She inched closer to the princesses, until she was in Spinny's lap. She was tense and ready to flee at the drop of a hat.
Spinny loosely wrapped her arms around the thin child. She rubbed Catra's back, hugging her.

"You did nothing wrong, Catra. I promise you didn't do anything bad. There's absolutely nothing wrong with you. It's Shadow Weaver's fault. She's mean and a bad person and I'm happy she's gone forever and never coming back. You are so good and everyone here knows that."

Pulling away, Spinny wiped Catra's tears away.

"You don't deserve to be hit. It's not fair and I'm sorry that happened to you. But it's over, now. Okay? No one here is going to hurt you. Ever. You broke it by accident, so you're not in trouble. If you do get in trouble, no one will hit you. Okay. I know it's scary, but you don't have to be scared of us. We're your friends."

Catra seemed confused.

"Then why did Adora lie?" She asked. "She promised she would protect me from being hit, but she didn't."

"She didn't mean to lie." Netossa spoke up, getting Catra's attention.

Netossa thought about her words, before continuing.

"Adora was too little to protect you, but she wanted to. She loves you a lot, and didn't want Shadow Weaver to hurt anyone, but Shadow Weaver scared her too. Shadow Weaver made her scared all the time and so Adora thought she was protecting you by obeying Shadow Weaver. Shadow Weaver was mean to both of you but kept it secret. Adora didn't know how bad you got hurt, and Adora didn't tell you that Shadow Weaver was being saying terrible things to control her. You understand what I mean?"

Catra nodded.

"So, Adora got bullied by Shadow Weaver, but only with words?"

Netossa nodded, slightly proud.

"Exactly. You both are good kids and don't deserve to be hit or be bullied. If you give us a chance, we'll show you that it's okay. You're safe. You don't need to be scared of us, kiddo. If we ever do or say something that scares you, tell us how you feel. Okay? So then we know not to do it. Some of us can be mean and loud a lot, right?"

Catra nodded.

"Yeah. That water princess is an asshole." She whispered, as if Mermista would hear her if she didn't.

Netossa and Spinny were shocked at the language. They decided not to comment. Netossa grinned.

"Yeah. She can be a huge meanie." She agreed.

Spinny paused for a second, contemplating, before speaking again.

"You know, I used to get bullied as a kid, too." She told Catra.

Catra looked surprised by that.

"Really? Why?" She asked.

Spinny gave a tight-lipped half grin.

"Because I'm not skinny. I never was."

Catra looked the princess up and down, almost as if she didn't realize what Spinny looked like.

"How come?" She then asked, completely serious. "Why are you fat? Are your parents fat?"

Spinny giggled. Of course. She'd expected some type of question from the kid. Catra was at the age of asking whatever came to mind, not thinking of how to word her thoughts in a more... socially acceptable manner.

Nonetheless, Spinny found it funny instead of rude. She knew Catra wasn't saying it to be rude. Spinny nodded.

"Yeah. My mom was a little on the heavy side. Not a lot, but still. Some princesses I grew up with talked about me behind my back and sometimes said it to my face. I remember crying a lot because I didn't have friends for a long time."

Catra tilted her head to the side.

"Did it stop?"

Spinny nodded.

"Oh it did. I met Netossa one day as kids."

The two women smiled lovingly at each other, holding hands.

"She stood up for me and didn't care if I looked different than other kids. She wanted to be my best friend, so I let her. She accepted me for me and loved every single part of me, no matter what anyone else said."

The two turned their attention back to Catra.

"She is my best friend, and wife, and the most important person in my life. I love her and she loves me, so that's all I care about."

Spinny shrugged.

"Sure, sometimes people say rude comments, but I don't pay attention to them anymore. They don't hurt me as much, because I know that what others think of me isn't important. As long as Netty and you all love me, I'm happy with who I am."

Catra's tail swished side to side, a far off look in the kitten's eyes.

"So... if Adora and Bow and my dads and you love me, then Shadow Weaver doesn't matter?"

Spinnerella nodded in agreement.

"Exactly. We love you just the way you are and nothing can change that."

"Nothing?"

Catra seemed so hopeful, but cautious. This one moment, wouldn't be enough to convince her, but it was a start. Spinny took Catra's smaller hand in hers.

"Nothing." She confirmed. "Even if we get mad at each other and argue, I still love Netty and she still loves me. So it's the same with you."

A small smile spread across Catra's face. She nodded.

"Okay."

"So, do you feel better?" Netossa asked.

Catra nodded.

"Wanna go find everyone?" Spinny asked. "Your dads and Adora are really worried about you. Do you want to go tell them you're alright so they stop freaking out?"

Catra hesitated.

"Hey." Netossa said. "They're not mad at you. Just worried. We were looking everywhere for you because we thought you disappeared. We got worried when you broke the vase because we thought you'd gotten hurt. That's all. We just want you to be safe. If it makes you feel better, we'll be right next to you. Okay?"

Catra nodded. The couple smiled and stood up. Netossa picked Catra up. She was surprised how light Catra was.

"Wow. Do you eat?" She asked, astonishment on her face.

Catra shook her head.

"Shadow Weaver takes my food away if I'm bad." She answered. "Adora shares her rations with me at night time as a secret. Shadow Weaver said I have to earn my food by listening and staying quiet and out the way."

If they didn't hate Shadow Weaver already, they sure did now. The way Catra was so nonchalant about, proved how normal this was for her. She had to be, like, what? Thirty pounds?

"Remind me to have a doctors appointment set up for her." Netossa told her wife, dead serious. "I'll even take her myself if I have to."

"What's a doctor?" Catra asked, the three leaving the room.

The women explained while they walked. Netossa noticed that Catra had bruises and scars underneath her short fur. She frowned deeply. Had they always been there?

"Where did you get those bruises, kit?" She asked.

Catra looked down at herself. She then looked back up at the woman.

"Shadow Weaver." She replied. "I woke up with them this morning. I was in The Horde yesterday, but I woke up here today."

She woke up with them? Catra had just had a growth spurt last night.

"We should ask Entrapta about that." Netossa recommended, concerned.

When they reached the meeting spot, they saw everyone waiting around for them. Adora, was of course, pacing. When the group noticed the three coming, all the attention was on Catra.

"We were so worried, Catra." Adora said, relief in her voice.

Catra hid her face in the crook of Netossa's neck. She clung to Netossa, purring anxiously.
Netossa smiled sadly. She gently rubbed Catra's head.

"Hey. It's okay, kit. C'mon. We're here."

Netossa put Catra down, kneeling so she was at Catra's level. Everyone else lowered to the floor as well. Spinnerella held Catra's hand.

"Are you alright, honey?" Lance asked. "Why'd you run away?"

Catra's eyes barely met his, her tail flicking with anxious energy.

"I was scared because I broke the flower thingy. I didn't want to get hit. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to break it."

George and Lance looked at one another, just like Spinnerella and Netossa had done when Catra said the same to them.

"Oh, sweet girl." George sighed. "We would never hit you. Why do you think that? Are we scary?"

Catra shrugged.

"No, but you're all grown ups. Shadow Weaver said grown ups can do whatever you want when I'm bad and I have to obey and shut up."

Looking at one another, it was clear to everyone that it would be one of those moments.

"Well, you're not in trouble, okay? We're not mad at you and it was an accident." George reinforced, looking Catra in the eyes to make sure she was listening.

Netossa spoke up, a sneer on her face.

"She told us that Shadow Weaver beat her a lot and even electrocuted her as punishment, when she thought Catra was misbehaving." She added. "Catra thought that we would be angry at her, even if it was an accident, simply because the vase was broken. She thought we would blame her no matter what, just like Shadow Weaver, so she ran before that could happen."

George nodded in acknowledgement, keeping his eyes on Catra.

"Well... um, honey? I want you to listen me."

Catra gave a meek nod. She stepped closer to him, bringing Netossa with her for bravery, her eyes still avoiding looking directly at anyone for too long. George didn't comment on it. He focused solely on Catra.

"I want you to know that, no matter what you do or say, we will never hurt you. Okay? We never want to hurt you or make you afraid of us. You mean so much to us and could never hurt you for an accident. I just want you to understand that."

Catra nodded. "Okay."

"Now." Netossa continued. "Do you want to talk to them about what Shadow Weaver said to you?"

This got Adora's full attention. Her worried gaze went to Catra.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

Catra took a breath.

"Shadow Weaver told me that if I'm not good, she'll hit me because she's allowed to. She said I'm not a real girl and need to be like Adora."

Adora didn't seem to surprised by this. She did look guilty.

"Hey."  Netossa said, raising a brow at Adora. "If Catra was her regular self right now, she'd tell you to knock off that guilty look on your face right now."

Bow gently nudged Adora.

"She's right." He agreed. "There's nothing you could've done to help at the time. You both were kids who didn't fully understand what was going on and did the best you could."

"I think you should hear what Catra has to say about it." Netossa spoke up.

She looked at Catra, her face and tone gentle with the emotionally fragile child.

"And how does what Shadow Weaver said and did make you feel? Tell them what you told us."

Catra bit her lip, thinking back to what she'd said to the couple only less than an hour ago.

"I don't understand why she hates me. I try to be like Adora, but Shadow Weaver still gets angry and hurts me. I want to make her happy and so she likes me too, but I can't."

Catra looked at Lance and George, glossy eyed and on the verge of crying again.

"What did I do wrong? What's wrong with me?" She asked. "Am I broken or evil like she said I am?"

Catra shed a tear. She shook her head.

"I don't want to be evil or make people mad at me. I don't want you to hate me too. But I don't know what I did wrong? I can fix it! I can!"

George had his mouth hanging open. None of them could believe what they were witnessing. George reached out and gently pulled Catra towards him. He rubbed her arm, trying to comfort her. Catra sobbed, almost pleading with the adults around her.

"Please, don't hate me. I don't want you to leave. I don't. I can be good. I promise. Just tell me what to do. What did I do?"

Catra stood there, crying her heart out. Everyone else was silent.

Adora was staring at Catra with horror in her eyes, and shock. She stared at Catra, crying her little eyes out, in great distress. It was heartbreaking, to say the least. Were they really this messed up in the head as kids? Had Catra been dealing with this burden this long?

Adora wiped her wet eyes, knowing what she had to do. She stood up and walked over to where Catra was. Crouching down beside her, Adora looked at Catra.

"Catra. Look at me, please."

Catra sniffled and raised her head. She looked at Adora. Adora reached out her hands and cupped Catra's face. Wiping away the tears, Adora looked her in the eyes.

"I love you so much. Okay? I do. You did nothing wrong to deserve that. Shadow Weaver was wrong and cruel for no reason. You are good enough. You don't have to compare yourself to me or anyone. You're so much better than that. You are funny and beautiful and kind and my best friend. I think you're the greatest person ever. You will always be my best friend and I never want to make you feel not good enough. I'm sorry if I ever hurt your feelings or did something that hurt you. You are so good and deserve so much more than this. I know I'm not good at promising things, but I promise that I will always love you. Okay? Best friends forever?"

Adora smiled hopefully. Catra nodded back.

"Best friends forever." She confirmed.

Catra hugged Adora. Adora wrapped her up in her arms. She gave Catra a kiss on the head, holding her.

"Te amo, gatita." Adora whispered.

Catra kissed Adora's cheek.

"Y Yo tambien." She said. "Y Papa y Daddy y Bow?"

Adora smiled. She nodded.

"Yeah. They love you too, kitten. We all do."

Adora looked at the men. George nodded.

"Of course, honey." He agreed, getting Catra's attention. Catra turned to them and let the men gather her in their arms.

"We love you so much, sweetie. You are smart and really pretty and fast and so nice. You care about everyone so much and we are so happy to have you here. Papa and I love you just the way you are and could never want you to be different. If you ever feel like this again, talk to one of us. Alright?"

Catra nodded. The conversation was done. Glad that the situation was resolved, Lance looked around at everyone.

"So, clothes shopping?" He reminded them.

They'd forgotten all about their original plans. Getting off the floor, they all wiped the tears off their faces. Before they’d left, Catra had to go get her blankie, which surprised but not too much. They travelled to the store, Catra once again, holding Adora's hand, her blankie in the other hand. Getting to the store, they walked in. Catra was blown away by the amount of stuff.

She'd never seen anything like it.

"Wow! There's so many things here."

Micah grinned.

"Yeah. Let's go find some clothes for you. I'm thinking at least ten different shirts, pants or shorts. Ladies, would you mind taking her to get her underwear?"

"I get new stuff?" Catra suddenly asked.

They all looked at the gobsmacked kid. Catra was bouncing on her feet, looking at Adora. Adora smiled and nodded.

"Of course you do." Bow answered. "Why not?"

Catra looked at Bow, beaming.

"Shadow Weaver only gives me clothes from the trash or the older cadets' old clothes that don't fit anymore or if they messy their clothes too bad."

Catra held up her arms, looking at the shirt she was currently dressed in.

"It's sometimes too big like this one, but dirty or all ripped up.” She explained.

“Well, we’re gonna get you new clothes.” Netossa said. “Auntie Spinny and I will make sure you do. So, go on ahead with your friends and Bow. The bigger grown ups need to talk a bit. You too, Adora. Just for a second.”

Catra nodded. As she said that, Netossa made eye contact with Micah, Lance and George. The rest of the group went off towards the kids section, Bow and Perfuma acting like chaperones for the group. Catra stuck to Bow.

The ones that stayed behind turned towards the female couple.

“Is something wrong?” Micah asked.

“It’s about Catra, of course.” Netossa began.

Netossa turned to Adora.

“When Catra woke up this morning, did you see any bruises on her?” She asked Adora.

Adora was taken aback by the question.

“Oh, uh…”

She thought for a moment.

“I don’t think so. Maybe it’s because I’m used to seeing bruises on her when we were that age. Her fur covers the skin well on her arms unless the bruise is really dark or it’s shedding season, so her coat is thinner. I also haven’t really been able to get a good look. She’s been skittish all day.”

Adora’s brows pinched together.

“Why? Does she have any bruises?”

Netossa nodded.

“A lot of them, and also scars. She said Shadow Weaver punished her yesterday. She remembers it like it actually happened yesterday. She said she woke up here, but fell asleep in the Horde.”

“I’m starting to get concerned for her memory capacity.” Micah said, crossing his arms. “This whole thing has to be so confusing to her, her memories mixing together. On top of her trauma and difficulty with regulating her emotions, it’s too much for a young kid to handle.”

“She’s so strong.” George commented. “Going through all she did and still turning out relatively sane in the end.”

“She needs to go to therapy.” Spinnerella said.

“And a doctor.” Netossa added. “That’s another thing I wanted to talk to you about. Adora. Was she always so small? Like, do you remember her just like this, bony and half-starved to death?”

Adora nodded.

“Yeah. Shadow Weaver’s punishments for her usually would be going without food.”

Adora’s eyes showed her going back to that memory.

“I remember her crying sometimes because of the hunger pain. I always tried to give her some of mine, but I would sometimes get caught and then we’d both go hungry that evening. Shadow Weaver almost never did that to me, but… always to Catra.”

Adora blinked, looking at Netossa, worried.

“Are we going to help her?” She asked.

Spinny placed a hand on Adora’s shoulder, in a comforting manner.

“Of course, honey. We’ll do all we can to make sure she’s healthy. It’s clear you guys have never seen a doctor before, so we’ll get on that tomorrow.”

Adora nodded. She still seemed preoccupied, fiddling with her hands. Spinnerella frowned.

“What is it?” She asked.

Adora looked down at the floor.

“I feel like it’s my fault for her being treated like this.” She admitted.

“Nope. Don’t even think about that.” Netossa refuted. “You did the best you could, but you were also a kid. You didn’t have much of a choice. You were a kid, Adora. You were almost as small and just as helpless as Catra. Don’t put that responsibility on yourself. You did the best you could at the time. That’s all you could do. It wasn’t your fault. Never was. It was neither of yours faults.”

Adora nodded.

“Alright, then. Don’t be afraid to talk to us either, kiddo.” Netossa smiled. “You have your own set of issues that deserve to be heard and talked about. Keep going to therapy and stuff and let’s see if we can get Catra into therapy for however long this growing up will take.”

Netossa snorted.

“If we keep skipping every so years, we’ll be at menace to society age in no time.”

That got them smiling.

“Teenage Catra wasn’t that bad.” Adora said. “Angry and rebellious, but I still loved her even then. She was fun, though petty and emotionally stunted. Hardly ever cried in front of anyone. Even me. Shadow Weaver hated when we showed any strong emotions, so Catra was more angry and apathetic than anything else.”

“Don’t worry.” Micah said. “We’ll deal with that when it happens. For now, I’ll work on getting her a pediatric doctor and a therapist. Casta will know some people.”

With the issue settled for now, the small group went to go find where the others had run off to, hoping to the gods they hadn’t destroyed the kids section or decided to buy everything Catra saw. They’d have a hard time telling her no.

Chapter Text

"Tomorrow? How did we forget?"

George shrugged. He and his husband both shared a distraught look. They had been so caught up in the situation with Catra, the couple didn't realize what day was approaching. George was lucky to have looked at his calendar and saw what he'd written as a note on the upcoming date.

Their sons were coming to visit in a few days. It was a tradition that, at least once a year, George, Lance and all their sons would get together at their home and spend a week as a family. It was a way to catch up and stay in contact with one another. With how busy their lives had gotten at adulthood, the boys weren't ever around. Bow was the only that stayed. So, this annual get together meant a lot to George and Lance.

However, this was probably complicate things.
Catra was still a kid and very attached to the two of them. They had no idea how she'd react to having all these strangers suddenly around her, claiming that her dads were their dads too. After the issue of the broken vase, Catra had been more reserved, probably trying to stay out of the way. She was quieter when speaking and seemed to be making herself invisible during playtime or mealtime. She was only really her loud and fun loving self when alone with Adora or Melog.

Adora had informed them of Catra wetting the bed one night. Castaspella verbalized her concern, saying how that was a clear sign that Catra wasn't alright. After that night, Lance had suggested putting a large underpad beneath the sheets where Catra slept, just in case it happened again. It did. George was checking up on her that night, to see her and Melog taking off the sheets of her bed. Catra's pants were soaked. When she noticed George, she'd hid her face in shame, crying in embarrassment.

George had simply smiled softly at her, walking over to the distressed girl. Catra, however, had backed away, Melog stepping between the two. Realizing that it was the child's rampant emotions causing Melog to act this way, George had paused, assuring her that he wasn't mad and that it wasn't her fault. It was an accident.

He'd stripped the soiled sheets off the bed, sprayed the mattress to get rid of any smell, and then replaced the sheets with fresh ones. Once that was taken care of, George woke up Adora, requested by Catra, who calmed both Catra and Melog down before she helping Catra bathe and clean herself. Catra was quiet, avoiding eye contact the whole time. By the time Catra was being tucked in again, it was after midnight.

After that night, the older adults were set on getting Catra into therapy. So, this upcoming event definitely threw a wrench in their plans.

Lance crossed his arms, chewing on his bottom lip.

"It's too late to cancel. Plus, I'm sure after everything with the war ending last year, the boys want to come and catch up."

George sighed, rubbing his eyes.

"What do we do about Catra? We can't just all of a sudden disappear on her for a week. Not after everything going on lately."

George and Lance knew Catra needed them around. She'd wonder why they weren't around. She didn't need the extra stress. Plus, neither men really wanted to be apart from her for a whole week. So, there was a simple solution.

"Then, she'll just meet the boys. Spend time with them too."

George mulled it over in his head.

"Would she be ok with all these strangers suddenly in our house? Would the boys like her?" He pondered aloud.

Lance snorted, a small grin on his face.

"Only one way to find out." He replied.
——————————

Catra was nervous. Today, she was meeting her other brothers. Daddy and Papa had told her that their others kids were coming to visit for a whole week. Catra wasn't sure about it. Bow had promised her that his older brothers were nice and fun to play with.

So, there Catra was, her daddies, Bow, Sparkles, Adora, and Melog all with her. They all were inside the library, waiting for the guests to arrive. Catra was sitting on one of the sofas, between Bow and Lance, a stuffed animal in her hands. She was clearly nervous, so everyone was doing their best to distract her.

"When are they coming?" Catra asked, looking up at Bow.

"They should be arriving soon." George replied, smiling softly at her.

A familiar sound got Catra's attention. Turning to the noise, she saw Melog sitting in front of her, looking at her. Melog comforted her, reassuring her that everything would be okay.

A sudden knock at the front door got the attention of everyone. Melog and Catra visibly perked up by the ears. George and Lance got up and walked over to the door. George opened it and the men lit up with joy.

There stood three young men. The three smiled back.

"Hey!" One of them greeted cheerily.

The three strangers were pulled into a hug by their dads.

"It's so good to see you." Lance said. "Are your brothers on their way?"

"Yeah. Ash told us that he and Axel were right behind us." One of the men answered, pointing a thumb over his shoulder to the outside.

"Hey!"

The men looked out at the clearing between their home and the tree line. Two more men were walking towards the library, one waving.

The two approaching men caught up and entered the building, greeting everyone.

"Hey!"

Greetings and hugs were shared. As time went on, more men showed up, the house growing louder as the number of occupants increased. By noon, the last of the brothers were arriving, luggage in tow.

"It's a full house in here!" One of them, a man with bleached blonde hair, exclaimed.

George clapped him on the shoulder, laughing.

"Yup! Come on in, Mikey."

Micheal rolled his eyes.

"I'm 30, Dad. You can't keep calling me that forever."

George smirked.

"Try me." He challenged. "It's so nice to see you boys all together again. I'm glad our annual family reunion is still going strong."

George turned to look at the room.

"Now, before anything else, introductions are in order, lads. There are special people we'd love for you boys to meet."

The brothers' attention were directed towards the group sitting on the couch. Bow went to stand with the rest of the BFS.

"Guys, you all know Queen Glimmer of Brightmoon."

The men bowed their heads in a respectful greeting.

"Your Majesty." They chorused, spooking Glimmer a bit.

Glimmer blushed, embarrassed.

"Please. Call me Glimmer."

Glimmer smiled at Bow, taking him by the arm. Bow smiled back at her.

"Glimmer and I are dating." He announced, wincing.

"WHAT?!"

All of his brothers were wide-eyed, slack jaws.

"Our baby brother is dating a royal?!" One of the brothers exclaimed, excitedly.

After teasing and congrats were exchanged, George motioned to Adora.

"We'd also be happy to introduce, Adora, also known as She-ra or Princess Adora."

"WHAT?!"

Adora laughed nervously at the attention. She waved awkwardly.

"Yeah, that's me. She-ra. You can just call me Adora."

"You're She-ra?" One brother asked, pushing up his glasses. "Like, the legendary warrior of the universe? The one that saved this planet like a couple of months ago?"

Adora smirked. She decided to be cocky. Extending her arm, she summoned her sword. Raising it up, she transformed, shouting her signature catchphrase. The men were shocked, staring at her, seeing the glowing goddess standing before them. Adora grinned at them.

"Believe me now?" She asked.

"Woah."

Glimmer snickered.

"If Catra were her regular self, she'd be calling you a show off for that." She commented.

Adora turned backed to her normal self, having proven her point. George smiled at her before looking around at his sons. He suddenly felt nudging on his leg. Looking down, he saw Melog standing there, looking up at him, meowing and pawing at him.

"Did you get a cat?" Axel asked, raising a brow. "Didn't think you'd ever get a pet."

Lance chuckled, shaking his head.

"No. This is Melog. They're an alien. They don't belong to anyone. Which reminds me."

Lance, George, and Bow shared a look.

"There's someone extra special we want you lads to meet." George announced, excitement and nervousness in his voice.

The two fathers turned towards the couch. They frowned, however, when they couldn't find a certain Magicat.

"Where'd she go?" George asked.

Bow, Adora, and Glimmer looked around, not having noticed that they were missing a small person. Melog mewled to get their attention. Looking at them, everyone watched them walk over to back of the couch, sitting down and look at them.

George and Lance walked over to Melog. They peeked behind the sofa. There, between the sofa and the wall, curled up in a ball, looking up at them, was Catra.

George smiled sympathetically, kneeled down.

"Hey, sweetheart. Nervous?" He whispered.

Catra nodded, glancing down at the floor.

"It's so loud and there's a lot of people. Hurts my ears. What if they don't like me or make fun of my ears and tail?"

"They won't make fun of you, honey. I promise. Just give them a chance. If anything happens, they'll get in trouble, okay? Can you try?"

The men gave Catra gentle smiles. Catra looked to Melog, who encouraged her, rubbing their head against her leg.

"If you don't like them, you don't have to stay here. You can go to the castle with Adora and Melog or you can go into another room so it's not so loud and crowded."

George reached out a hand.

"Just try, okay? You're safe here."

Catra hesitated for a moment, before she crawled out from her hiding spot, letting George pick her up. George and Lance smiled at their sons, Catra in full view of them.

"Boys, meet Catra. She's your unofficial new little sister."

"WHAT?!"

Catra flinched, hiding her face in the crook of George's neck. George and Lance shared a look. This was going to be a crazy week. They only hoped they wouldn't regret this.