Chapter Text
“So what are we going to do now?”
“We can bring magic back to the universe. What do you guys say to one more Best Friends Squad road trip?”
“I’m in!”
“Obviously!”
“Of course I’m going with you, dummy.”
“Then let’s do this. Together.” Adora squeezed her best friends tightly, filled with overwhelming relief, and a sense that everything was going to be alright.
“Go where? Do what?”
The sudden interruption of Swift Wind startled everyone, and Adora smiled, laughing and hugging her friend. She could tell he was relieved to see her.
“It’s nothing, Swifty. At least not right now.” Adora reassured her friend with a soft pat on the nose.
Bow’s smile grew slightly strained. “Yeah, we probably have some things to take care of first here on Etheria. Definitely some questions to answer.”
Bow turned to observe the group of princesses behind them, still laughing and marveling at their new surroundings. As Adora did the same, some of the relief from melted away as reality started setting in.
“Right now, we need to regroup. We have work to do to start rebuilding.” Adora realized, still in awe. She couldn’t believe this was actually happening.
“Ughhh…” Glimmer groaned, “Can we go back to a few seconds ago, before you reminded me of that?” Her playfulness grew strained as worry crept into her expression, “There is so much to do, I don’t even know where to start.”
She sounded just as exhausted as Adora herself was starting to feel as the enormity of the task ahead started to sink in.
But Adora recognized that it was a wonderful problem to have; a privilege to get to worry about the future that was no longer in jeopardy.
So she used that gratitude and optimism to fortify her resolve, smiling at her friends jokingly, “After everything we’ve been through? This will be the easy part.”
They followed Swift Wind back to where the others stood, and the tearful, happy reunion began all over again. Adora was tackled by hugs from Frosta, Scorpia, and Perfuma, and everyone else rushed to her with a combination of excitement, questions, and unintelligible yelling. Adora just laughed as she was swept up in a group hug, overjoyed to be reunited with her friends.
“You did it! I knew you could!” Perfuma was crying as she squeezed Adora. She squeezed her back and tried to ignore the ghost of that guilty tug in her chest.
It had been such a close call towards the end. Could all of it really just be over?
Amid more hugs and lots of laughter, Adora started scanning her comrades for signs of injury. She saw the aftermath of the long battle, or what was left of it, beneath the overgrowth of plants caused by the magic she had freed.
“Is anyone hurt?” She decided to ask them all forthright.
“Yeah- I think that magic healed my cuts! Look!” Frosta exclaimed, showing Adora her arms and face excitedly. Nothing was there, which Adora supposed was Frosta’s point.
Perfuma spun around, and magic vines trailed her footsteps, “And this new magic is wonderful. I feel so much more energized!”
Adora noticed that the only one who looked worse for wear was King Micah, who was leaning heavily against Castaspella, a tired pallor on his face despite his grin.
She caught his gaze, “Your Majesty, it’s good to see you again! What about you? Are you alright?”
Micah half shrugged, “It’s okay, Adora. I’ll be just fine. Horde Prime just overdid it with the dark magic.” He chuckled humorlessly, a guilty look on his face. Glimmer was at his side in an instant, a worried expression flashing across her features.
Castaspella spoke up with a hopeful tilt to her head, “Frosta and Perfuma are right, that wave of energy you released just now allowed him to regain consciousness so…” Adora saw Micah’s expression grow tense, but Castaspella didn’t notice, “I think he’ll be just fine.”
The others shared their own updates, Adora especially noted that Scorpia and Mermista indicated that they were feeling okay. She knew her formerly chipped friends would likely be in rough shape like Catra had been, but at least they were uninjured.
Looking around at everyone smiling and laughing and celebrating, she still couldn’t really believe they were all just… okay. Adora’s failure hadn’t ended up costing them anything. Catra saved her, She-ra came back…
“I still can’t believe it worked! The magic at the heart of Etheria is free. There’s more magic in the air, I can feel it!” Glimmer let an excited pop of sparks fly from her fingers to emphasize her statement. “This all feels so surreal. It’s really over.” Glimmer had tears in her eyes, and Bow pulled her in for a hug.
Her heart suddenly felt too heavy in her chest, and tears lodged themselves in her throat as she tried to remind herself that she had really done it; they were all safe at last.
“Adora!” Entrapta popped up, startling her, “That wave you created affected the entire planet! Look!” She shoved some sort of diagram with lots of numbers into Adora’s face using her hair. “And that beam you shot into space? That was amazing.” Entrapta observed her in that unsettling way that gave Adora the feeling that Entrapta wanted to study her like an interesting piece of tech.
“Yeah, that was pretty cool.” Catra elbowed her playfully, her smile shyly fond. Loving.
That was yet another thing Adora couldn’t fully wrap her mind around: Catra had come back for her. She was here. And she had promised to stay…
Adora refocused, shrugging off everyone’s compliments with a smile of thanks, hating that uncomfortable sensation from being the center of attention.
“Thanks. But it’s all because of Catra. She saved me. I couldn’t have done it without her.” Adora pulled Catra close to her, and Catra rolled her eyes, but Adora could tell she was secretly pleased with the recognition.
Glimmer leaned forward curiously, “I want to hear everything! Start from the beginning.” She stared at them both intently, and everyone else chimed in with- “Yeah, what happened!?” And “I want to hear!”
Adora hoped she wasn’t blushing, “It’s a really long story-” she risked a glance at Catra, who actually was blushing slightly.
She was rescued from finishing that sentence by the distressed crying of the clones which suddenly reached the clearing. By the sounds of it, they seemed to be having an existential crisis similar to Wrong Hordak’s earlier meltdown.
“They all seem pretty upset. Must be because they can’t connect to the hive mind.” Entrapta theorized with an inappropriate amount of fascination, as per usual.
“Great. How do we make them stop?” Mermista’s flat tone barely disguised her aggravation.
Wrong Hordak attempted to shout words of comfort to his “brothers” that had come into view, who had started running aimlessly around, many of them clutching their heads and crying, but it became clear that none of them wanted to listen.
“They need direction. They need guidance.”
Hordak spoke up from behind Entrapta.
The unwelcome surprise of his voice made her stomach twist. She did not like where his head was at.
Catra had practically bristled in rage, clearly having the same uneasy feeling about Hordak’s statement. “Not from you, they don’t.”
Adora suddenly had an idea.
“Entrapta, could we use the spire to send a message? Maybe we could offer the clones some answers so that they stop uhh…” They both watched as a clone banged his head on the metal of the spire repeatedly, wailing in despair, “Doing that?” Adora trailed off, seeing some of them throwing punches at each other over on the edge of the clearing.
“I’ll go break up that fight.” Scorpia volunteered, heading towards the clones.
Entrapta considered this for a moment or two, “I don’t see why not. I would just need my equipment. Bow! You still have it right?”
Bow nodded, “It’s in the spire. Hopefully it wasn’t damaged.”
Glimmer teleported away with a pop of magic and almost instantly returned with Entrapta’s computer equipment used to hack the spire. “Done!” She announced.
Entrapta wasted no time, tapping away on the connected device with her gloved hands. “I’ll have it up in just a second! Better think of something to say, Adora!”
“Wait, but I don’t-” Adora felt the color drain from her face; she didn’t think she would be the one to send the message.
She looked over to Glimmer and King Micah, who offered her an encouraging smile and a thumbs-up, respectively. Great. Adora looked around the group of princesses and allies, and everyone shrugged or frowned and looked away.
She resigned herself to being the one who had to do it and tried to gather her thoughts, “Will they be able to see me? Or just hear me?”
“Both!” Entrapta announced with stars in her eyes, still gleeful about the advanced state of the galactic horde’s technology.
She decided to transform into She-Ra for the message (Adora herself likely still looked disheveled from the fighting and crying).
She felt the energy course through her, but she also felt that bone-weary ache she felt wherever she healed her wounds intensify and sharpen all over her body in the moment the transformation set in. It was reminiscent of how she felt before the virus had made her collapse just minutes earlier, and yet that moment seemed distant and unreal in her mind, and she pushed past it, settling into She-ra’s form.
Adora knew she probably needed to take a break from using her magic after this; she had a feeling that the intensity of what her body had just experienced hadn’t fully set in. Adrenaline was always helpful for things like that.
“Do you know what you’re going to say?” Bow stage whispered to Adora, and she shrugged.
“I’ll just improvise?” She didn’t like improvising, but what she wanted to say and how she wanted to say it was already taking shape in her mind. She had this.
Entrapta didn’t even count down, and Adora wasn’t sure why she was surprised. “Okay, Adora! Go ahead and talk to the screen! They can all hear you.”
The fear of the moment and of the spotlight spiked, but Catra stood closer to her, a silent signal that she would stand with her through this. Melog was by Catra's side and Glimmer and Bow took their place beside her as well, offering smiles of support and confidence. Adora let their presence steady her.
“Hello. I know you’re all not too happy to see me. But please, hear me out.” She took a steadying breath and urged herself to portray the stability and calm that was needed.
“I know you are all scared. There is no more Horde Prime. You thought he was all-powerful and all-knowing. But clearly he wasn’t. And I can tell you with absolute certainty that no one in the universe is all-powerful or all-knowing. Not me, not prime, no one.” Catra squeezed Adora’s hand.
“You are all now searching for a purpose. For a reason to exist. For directions. As the one who defeated Horde Prime, hear me now:” Adora steadied herself with a breath, the surrealness of the moment fogging her mind, “I deem you all the leaders of yourselves. You will no longer rely on him to guide you. You must all make your own decisions.”
Adora looked to Wrong Hordak, who considered her with wide-eyed nervousness, “It’s a frightening concept, but you must all learn to overcome that fear.
Adora looked back to the computer screen, “If you need a purpose, make it to help those around you recover from the destruction. If you need a reason to exist, let that reason be to bring order to the universe. Only now you must also coexist with the inhabitants of this universe, not destroy them.” Adora directed this statement to Hordak, who averted his gaze.
She continued, “For those of you wondering if you will be harmed, I give you my word that you will not be punished for things he made you do while you were under his influence. But starting this moment, you are now responsible for your own actions, and you will be held personally accountable as such. If any of you hurt the people of this planet, you will be brought to justice.”
She racked her mind for what she could be missing, impressed she was able to speak eloquently so far, but she knew she needed to say something else. She couldn’t end on that note. She looked to Glimmer, who gave her a supportive nod. Adora knew what to say.
“For those of you who wish to, you are welcome to join the rebellion at Bright Moon and serve the people of Etheria during the rebuilding efforts. But if you wish, you may also leave this place, leave Etheria, and find somewhere to live in peace.”
Adora exhaled, trying to stare directly at the lenses, “This will be the last message sent through this channel. Go on, and lead yourselves.”
Adora nodded to Entrapta to end the broadcast. Everyone stared at her in silence, and she transformed back into herself, feeling her face flush with discomfort. “Glad that’s over.”
Adora hated public speaking. Adrenaline coursed through her, making her legs feel wobbly. Without the comfort of She-ra, she felt awkward and self-conscious.
Her body seemed to be thawing from its adrenaline-induced numbness, and her joints dully ached as she stepped away from the computer. She could tell from past experiences that she was going to feel off for at least a few more days.
The group cheered in approval of her speech, and she heard Sea Hawk shout: “SELF-DETERMINATION!”
“Adora, you seriously just came up with that?” Bow raised an eyebrow at her playfully.
Adora felt the warmth on her face deepen in embarrassment, “I got the idea from Razz, actually. She said something similar to me when I first left the horde. It was what I needed to hear, so…” Adora shrugged but was secretly a little impressed with herself that she managed to pull her ideas together at the last minute.
“That was incredible. Way to go, Adora!” Glimmer shook Adora’s arm violently as she jumped up and down in excitement. “Especially that last part about accountability and helping rebuild. I’m glad you thought of it.”
“I’m glad you approve.” Adora smiled, feeling a little better.
She was trying to be more careful about undermining Glimmer's authority as queen, and she realized that last part was probably something she should have run by her first. Luckily, she didn’t seem to mind.
“And trust me, I meant every word.” Adora’s gaze rested on Hordak, who grimaced. “If you ever show signs of becoming like him, or reverting back to your old ways, Hordak, I will put a stop to it. Never forget that.” Impulsively, she let some of the power flash through her eyes for emphasis.
This successfully seemed to unsettle him, as he just gave a curt nod in response. Entrapta elbowed him, and he reluctantly cleared his throat to reply.
“I expect nothing less. Emulating Horde Prime was indeed a mistake. I now see what an utter fool he was.” Entrapta nodded supportively as he continued, raising a fist in determination , “I will not fail as he did. I will instead find a new path. A new goal to pursue.” The statement still managed to sound ominous and… evil… but Adora nodded anyway, trying to take the words in the spirit intended.
“Yeah, like SCIENCE!” Entrapta added enthusiastically. “Hordak is going to be my lab partner!”
Adora didn’t know how to feel about that. But it definitely felt like a problem for later.
The wailing and crying of the clones in the distance had lessened, but had not entirely gone away. Adora knew that a pretty speech would only do so much. There were likely clones out there who would want to become the ‘New Horde Prime’ and take up the old mission. Adora wondered if cleansing Horde Prime’s consciousness from the universe was enough, because no amount of magic could kill his ideas. Another problem for later. It was a fast-growing list.
“What do we do now?” Adora asked the group, desperately needing someone else to be in charge for a second as she felt her momentum from earlier starting to crash.
Micah’s gaze quickly fell to Glimmer, and his smile was so tender it was heartbreaking. “Why not ask the Queen?”
Glimmer’s eyes shone with mixed emotions, one of them being pride, another still being disbelief. Adora knew the shock of being around her Dad again wouldn’t be wearing off soon.
She shrugged, “I’m not sure either… I guess we should all go back to Bright Moon. Take back the palace. People will need us to start setting an example and organizing things. The sooner we resume normal operations, the better.”
Micah beamed and nodded his head, coming over to rest a hand on Glimmer’s shoulder. “You heard her. We should start heading back now. Princesses, you should do the same. Return to your Kingdoms. We will communicate over the radio to start coordinating relief efforts. We need to set up a team to take care of any injured, and Entrapta, you should get started on organizing the clones with Wrong Hordak. I have a feeling our new friend will be a valuable ambassador.”
“What about the Horde’s technology? Don’t we need to disable it?” Castaspella asked with concern.
“Looks like Adora already took care of that.” Catra laughed under her breath, pointing to the large tree in orbit that used to be the main ship in Prime's fleet. “I think we’ll find the same everywhere.”
As Adora let herself really observe the tree in the sky, a sudden gnawing feeling of derealization began to grow.
The feeling of being in a dream wasn’t helped by the fact that the world around her still looked so different- magic swirling in the air everywhere as it only ever had in the innermost part of the whispering woods. With the previously empty desert now rejuvenated and overgrown, it felt like she was on an alien planet.
It started to dawn on her anew that what she was witnessing around her was really the magic trapped in the heart of Etheria. Adora had managed to set it free… And she was alive to see it. She was still there, blinking in the morning light, a part of the new world and future she had been ready to sacrifice herself to bring about.
She again tried to make this idea sink in and truly accept it as fact, but it still didn’t feel possible to her.
Wasn’t there something else she needed to do? The feeling of forgetting something important nagged at her persistently, and she couldn’t quite grasp the shape of it in the back of her mind-
“Adora, you good?” Catra’s voice pulled Adora out of her thoughts. She met Catra’s eyes, which were narrowed with curiosity and concern.
Adora looked behind her and saw that the others were already moving on, Glimmer taking turns teleporting the princesses back to their Kingdoms.
Catra’s hand was still holding her’s, so she ran her thumb over the back of her hand, looking at where their palms met, letting the warmth ground her once again.
“Yeah, of course,” Adora replied as she shook off the weird feeling. “Are you?” She asked cautiously, knowing that it all must be bittersweet for Catra.
Afterall, they were all going home, and Catra had confessed onboard Darla that she felt she didn’t have a home anymore.
Catra looked away, studying a spot on the ground, “I think so. This is all happening so fast. It doesn’t even feel real.”
A ghost of a smile flickered on her lips, but she had a hand on the back of her neck, a nervous habit she had developed since being chipped. Melog brushed against her leg, chirping affectionately.
Adora laughed, but unfortunately some of her unease stained it, “Tell me about it. I can’t wait to go home and just sleep.”
“Right… Bright Moon.” Catra nodded, and Adora knew her well enough to hear the unspoken questions underneath.
She wanted to just assume that Catra would come back with her, but Catra had a way of defying expectations. Still, Adora couldn’t find the bravery to directly ask her if she would stay with her there.
“It’s your home too now. If you want, that is. I don’t want to force you. I know we didn't really confirm it when we talked about it earlier.” Adora offered instead.
The hope in her chest was painful, and a small part of her was still scared that Catra would run away again despite their promise they had just made.
Please, just this once. Stay.
Catra went quiet for a terrifying second before glaring at the ground and pouting slightly, “You’re my home, Adora. I’m going with you.” She had muttered the words so quietly that Adora almost didn’t catch them over the chaos of their surroundings.
Instantly, tears pricked at her eyes as she just stared at Catra; who had said she loved her. Who she had just kissed earlier. Who was apparently now going to go home with her… she was at a loss for words, her heart felt like it was going to implode.
Catra laughed self-consciously and shoved Adora's arm,“Ugh, don’t look at me like that.”
But Adora didn’t miss how her face had become a hilariously deep red, like it was going to overheat, and Catra was actually smiling. She felt so happy she could cry.
She didn’t hesitate; she wrapped both arms around Catra and squeezed her into a hug, tucking her face in to hide the way she knew she was tearing up. Catra didn’t even protest like she normally would.
“I’m so happy to hear you say that, you have no idea.” Adora mumbled into Catra’s shoulder. Finally letting go to look at her properly. “I can’t wait to show it to you.”
Catra’s expression tensed up slightly, and Adora was reminded an exchange that they had aboard Darla:
I know you all hate me!
I never hated you!
Then you’re more of an idiot than I thought.
A reminder that she would have willingly had Catra back all of this time was likely still painful. Adora knew she needed to tread lightly, to try to make Catra more comfortable.
“It’s probably all messed up from the invasion, so keep your expectations low.” Adora smiled, leaving open the opportunity for Catra to engage in some insults and jokes to set her at ease.
Catra immediately relaxed and smiled smugly, much to Adora’s delight, “Hah. Trust me, they weren’t that high to begin with. I seem to remember an unnecessary number of fountains. And flowers. And Crystals.” She wrinkled her nose in exaggerated disgust.
Adora knew Catra would like Bright Moon once she spent some time there. It was like a paradise compared to the Fright Zone. “Well, it sure smells better than the fright zone. At least there’s that. And remember hot showers? You can have one anytime you want for as long as you want there.”
Catra raised her eyebrows in disbelief, “You’re joking, right?”
Bow walked over and threw his arm around Adora, and she used the opportunity to evaluate him for injury one more time. Luckily, he seemed fine.
Bow shook Adora slightly, a teasing grin on his face as he looked to Catra conspiratorially, “Adora still takes forever in the shower even though she should be used to it by now. When she first found out about the hot water, I think she showered like twice a day for 3 weeks.” He dragged out the words dramatically, laughing as Adora rolled her eyes at him.
Catra’s smile faded a little at the mention of Adora’s first few weeks in Bright Moon, but she still spoke up, “She must have smelled a whole lot better for those three weeks.”
“Hey!” Adora took the joke with feigned offense, but she couldn’t really be mad when Bow and Catra were both trying so hard not to laugh, and Catra looked so proud of herself.
Bow caught her staring at Catra and she tried to play it off with an exasperated sigh.
“Hey, you guys!” Glimmer appeared next to them, making Catra, who still wasn’t quite used to this yet, flinch. “The others have all agreed that we should have a big party to celebrate. We were thinking of Bright Moon since it’s the closest to everyone.” Glimmer’s smile was brighter than Adora had seen in a long time.
“That sounds great! I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to everyone yet.” Bow agreed.
“Agreed! Is that tonight?” Adora asked, feeling a little bit of guilt for hoping the answer was no.
“Yep! We figured we’d use the day to make sure we start getting organized and spreading the word to all of Etheria that the war is over. But it sounds like Etherians everywhere have already started flooding the streets, singing, dancing, and celebrating.”
Adora pictured that for a moment, and felt another wave of relief, but also fear. It almost didn’t work. They all almost died. If only one thing had gone differently…
And she wasn’t even sure how she had saved everyone. Why had the failsafe suddenly worked when she kissed Catra? Why had She-Ra just suddenly come back? If she hadn’t, all of those people would have been…
But Adora reminded herself again, with a note of frustration, that it didn't matter how it happened or why. All that was important were the facts: The future she had just dreamt of was hers again. Everyone could live in peace and safety together. Her friends and home were safe at last. Things had finally gone right.
Not to mention she kissed Catra. They said they loved each other. Now, Catra was going to come live at Bright Moon.
Adora’s aching head was struggling to process all of these new developments. And that strange nagging in the back of her mind had her feeling like she shouldn’t let her guard down just yet. She wracked her brain- Maybe there was something she still needed to worry about… Maybe it was something that she needed to check on or fix? It was just out of reach.
Glimmer sighed in exaggerated relief, “I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to go home. Let’s go meet the others!” Glimmer grabbed Bow by the arm, and walked towards the others hand in hand.
Catra seemed to note this, and offered Adora her hand with a raised brow, eyes glinting with laughter and something softer that had Adora’s heart skipping a beat.
As she went to take her hand, she realized she’d never get over seeing Catra offer her hand to her- just as she did in the dream of the future from Horde Prime’s virus. And as she did a in that abyss in her mind when she’d thought she had failed... Adora hesitated briefly, irrationally scared for a moment that her hand would pass right through Catra’s, but their hands met, solid and real, and her relief was instant.
Adora noticed that Catra’s gaze lingered on her face for a second or two, as if she were searching for something. So she let her relief and love show on her face as she smiled back, and Catra’s gaze softened.
They followed Glimmer and Bow to where Swift Wind, Netossa, Spinerella, Entrapta, and a few others stood, and Micah, Glimmer, and Castaspella formed a circle in the center of the group, ready to perform the teleportation spell for the crowd of people.
“I forgot to ask,” Glimmer directed the question to Adora and Catra, “Where’s Shadow Weaver?”
Adora felt the question like a splash of ice water. At the sound of Shadow Weaver’s name, Micah and Catra simultaneously tensed up, Catra squeezing Adora’s hand painfully, brining her back from the shock.
Adora’s mind lagged as she tried to swallow the sudden emotion, the ugly knot of mixed feelings, and fresh grief. “She.. uh.. She died. She sacrificed herself to save us.” Her voice sounded hollow to her own ears.
The shock was palpable. Glimmer’s hand flew to her mouth, and Castaspella gasped in horror. Micah looked blank as he shook his head in disbelief. The others whispered uneasily. Bow tried to make eye contact with Adora, but the sympathy in his gaze was too overwhelming, so she stared at the ground and focused on pushing back her tears.
Glimmer was fist to speak, “She… she’s actually dead?” Adora looked up and saw that Glimmer had clenched her hand into a shaking fist as she looked over to the spire, like maybe she would see Shadow Weaver emerge from it as Adora had earlier.
Adora felt for her, even if she never liked that Glimmer had formed a connection to Shadow Weaver in the first place. She knew how much Glimmer had leaned on her after Angella’s absence.
“I guess she must have really cared about you.” Micah sounded astounded, and his gaze was far away.
Adora remembered that Shadow Weaver had been his teacher, too. He might’ve even struggled as Adora had, wondering if the care Shadow Weaver displayed was a manipulation tactic or if some deeply buried part of her was actually capable of something like love.
“Yeah. I guess she did.” Adora trailed off, trying to get her thoughts to stop racing, wishing someone would change the subject.
Adora checked on Catra, who was staring angrily at the ground, lost in thought, Melog curled up on her feet like he usually did whenever she was sad.
“Huh. Anyway, you can do the spell without her, right?” Swift Wind asked, clearly unmoved. The callousness of the remark made Adora laugh inwardly, for once she was grateful for his inability to read a room.
“Yeah. Yeah, we can. Let’s get to it.” Glimmer pulled herself together, shaking the shock off.
It was another beautiful moment, an addition to the growing collection of memories Adora wished she could capture and keep forever about this day, to watch Castaspella, Glimmer, and Micah move in tandem and merge their magic together to complete the spell back to Bright Moon. Their little family was reunited at last, going home.
In a whoosh of purple light, suddenly they were all standing in the palace courtyard. Catra looked a little green and swayed on her feet. Adora patted her back, feeling bad for her.
“Home sweet home! Woohoo!” Swift Wind yelled and took flight to do some loopty loops.
Immediately, some of the palace guards rushed over to them.
“Your Majesties! You’re both here!” The head of the guard, General Juliet, looked relieved to see Glimmer, but was frozen in a proper salute.
Glimmer laughed and launched herself at the familiar woman, who quickly broke decorum and hugged back, tears shining on her cheeks. Adora remembered how worried she had been about Glimmer in the early days of the invasion.
“My Queen, the other guards and I were suddenly free from Horde Prime’s control, and since then, we have been organizing a response. There was an earthquake, fires broke out, but then a sudden wave of magic brought a surge in the local flora and fauna, and the people took it as a sign that the rebellion had won. We did not want to spread misinformation, but… Is it true?”
Glimmer put her hands on her hips and smiled triumphantly, “Yes, General. You can make the official announcement. The war is over. Horde Prime has been defeated.”
General Juliet joyfully relayed the order to the guards around her, who took off to spread the word.
Adora, Catra, and Bow followed the General as she led Glimmer, Castaspella, and Micah to the war room, explaining the protocols they had already implemented and those that still needed to be decided on and carried out.
Adora tried her best to pay attention, but, looking around the palace and seeing the damage, she had a hard time focusing. Not to mention that her body (especially her head) was starting to ache more and more intensely. She felt like she had just completed a half-day high-intensity training session, and all they had done so far was walk. She tried not to let her discomfort show, though. She knew she could rest later.
“How many sick and wounded are there?” Glimmer asked, snagging Adora’s attention.
“Fortunately for us, not many. As mentioned earlier, there was an earthquake, and we are still evaluating the damage. A few buildings in the village collapsed, and the only injuries we have are those who we have found in the rubble so far.” The General explained.
Castaspella beamed at Adora, making her face heat under the attention, “That wave of magic was She-ra. She used it to defeat Horde Prime, but the magic also healed many of our own wounded on the battlefield. Was that not the case here?” Castaspella turned to the General with concern and Adora’s heart stuttered, the guilt in her chest growing heavier.
The General grimaced, “It did heal many people’s wounds, but some were hurt so severely…” The General cleared her throat, and Adora had to focus on keeping her expression controlled. “So far, we have reports of around 15 casualties total in Bright Moon over the course of the invasion, keeping in mind that any additional casualties from the building collapses have not yet been reported. The number of missing people is somewhere in the thousands, though. We need to set up a way to have families get in contact with one another.”
Bow quickened his pace to walk next to the general, “I can do that. Entrapta and the clones can help.” He offered enthusiastically. “I can use my tracker pads and Entrapta’s computers to make a check-in system. We can help the other towns and Kingdoms do the same.”
“Wonderful idea, Bow. Let us know if you need anything.” Micah gave his approval, and Adora noticed that Bow and Glimmer exchanged a longing glance with more intensity than usual before he left. Interesting.
“Speaking of contact- have all of the towns checked in?” Glimmer asked.
“Yes. Almost all of the towns have checked in. Luckily, it seems Horde Prime did not cause irreversible damage to the communications system. We are also lucky that he chipped the majority of the survivors and left the rest to stay in their villages under guard. The reports have been that the local mayors and their guards were able to establish order and keep people calm right away once they were freed.”
A guard then came running into the war room. “General! Your Majesties! We have recovered more wounded from the collapsed buildings. Some are in critical condition. I have a request from the head healer and medic for more support.” The guard announced.
Adora’s chest felt tight with guilt. She was technically a healer. A really good one. She felt even guiltier as she realized that the wave of healing magic from earlier hadn’t been enough to help these poor people.
“I can help.” She found herself saying the words before she landed on the decision.
Castaspella, Micah and Glimmer exchanged worried glances, and Catra narrowed her eyes in disapproval.
Glimmer cleared her throat and smiled politely, sneaking a glance to the General who evaluated Adora critically, “Adora- are you sure you shouldn’t take it easy? Are you feeling okay?”
Adora crossed her arms defensively against the scrutiny. Did she not seem okay? Was she giving everyone a reason to worry?
“I can heal those who need it the most. Just so they don’t die from their injuries.” She amended.
Glimmer nodded reluctantly, “Be careful, Adora. Don’t go overboard. We’ll ask some of the sorcerers from Mystacor to go support as well. Catra- go with her?”
“Duh,” Catra responded, causing General Juliet to cough in disapproval.
Adora followed the guard out of the room, Catra and Melog right beside her.
“You’re doing it again,” Catra whispered to Adora as they walked.
“Doing what?” Adora had a feeling she knew, but was hoping Catra would drop it.
Catra’s unimpressed glare shattered that hope, “Sacrificing yourself. Don’t think I haven’t noticed how completely exhausted you are.”
Adora cringed at the implication, “Okay. Fine. I’m exhausted. But this is something I know I can do. I want to help, I’m not sacrificing myself, okay?”
“You saved the world, you already helped,” Catra grumbled and Adora threw her an annoyed look, causing her to frown defensively. “I’m just saying, Adora, when do you get to take a break?”
“Right after this, Okay? Then I’m done helping.” Adora assured her.
“You better be. I need to teach you a thing or two about being more selfish.”
They entered the Palace Throne room, which was being used as a field hospital. Wounded were lined up on bedrolls, and the soft crying of loved ones and pained moans of the injured filled the cavernous space.
Adora immediately felt sick to her stomach, and she heard Catra’s breath catch as they both took in the scene.
There were more than she expected. Head wounds, broken limbs, people covered in ash….
A village girl Adora had seen before ran up to her, holding a clipboard.
“She- Ra! I’m so glad you’re here. The head healer asked me to find you.” She whispered, " She looked terrified.
“What can I do?” Adora asked her, already preparing herself to transform.
“There’s a child- We’ve done everything we can-” The girl’s eyes filled with tears.
“Show me.”
They wasted no time. They cut through the Throne room out into the anterior chamber, where tents had been set up for privacy. Adora followed the girl to one in particular, which had a small crowd around it.
“Move!” The girl shouted, and the people made a path for Adora and Catra.
Inside the tent was a little boy. He seemed no older than 7 or 8 by Adora’s estimation, although she was terrible at estimating children’s ages. He was covered in dust and several cuts, but most concerningly there was a large red gash seeping through a bandage around his head, growing larger and larger. His breathing was laboured, and his face was a sickly gray color, eyes shut.
Next to him, Adora recognized Bright Moon’s head healer. On the other side appeared to be his parents, also covered in cuts and dust but overall okay, their expressions so grief-stricken and terrified that Adora had to remind herself to keep breathing.
“She-ra. Please, help this boy.” The head healer (Adora couldn’t remember her name) pleaded with her.
Adora focused on transforming as she knelt beside the bedroll. That same ache from earlier now felt like stabbing pain, but Adora spent most of her life learning to disguise injuries and illness, and she hoped it wasn’t written all over her face.
The pain abated as she settled into She-Ra’s form, and she thought of how it felt to feel the daylight on her face when they got back to Etheria after months in space. She remembered that hug she shared with her friends earlier, and before that, the kiss she shared with Catra.
Her magic responded to her feelings, and the soft yellow glow of healing magic poured from her hands and enveloped the little boy’s form. In a strange way she had never grown accustomed to, she could sense his body healing; the dust evaporating from his lungs, the gash knitting together, his blood running stronger through his veins.
In this trance-like state, suddenly Adora recalled Catra’s look of concern from the hallway, the way it echoed her expression when she abandoned Adora in that clearing the other day, and she willed the energy to stop.
The kid wasn’t fully healed, but he would be okay, Adora was sure of it. As soon as the last of the magic dissipated, She-Ra fell away.
When Adora opened her eyes, she was already falling backwards as her legs went dead under her. Catra was immediately on her.
“Are you okay?” She mouthed the words urgently, clearly freaked out.
“I’m fine,” Adora mouthed the words back, but as she checked in on herself, she noticed that her body felt way too heavy, and her thoughts felt clouded.
“My baby!” The parents were hugging the little boy, sobbing, and the kid was awake, asking what had happened. One of the parents looked up and met Adora’s eyes with an overwhelming amount of gratitude, “Thank you. She-ra. Thank you. He’s okay. I can’t believe it.”
Her guilt over her insistence to help lessened as she returned the smile, “I’m glad,” Adora couldn’t think of anything else to say.
The head healer and Catra both lifted Adora off the ground, and much to Adora’s embarrassment, she had to lean on both of them for balance as they left the tent. The crowd of people was showering her with “Thank yous,” and she offered them all a smile and a nod.
“Thank you again, Princess. He truly would not have survived.” The head healer, a wizened older woman sorcerer, patted Adora’s arm in encouragement.
“Are there others?” Adora asked, receiving a glare from Catra in return.
“Yes. But none quite as grave as his. They will be fine. You, however, seem to need help yourself. Please allow me to inspect you.” The healer brought Adora and Catra to a fallen pillar and gently guided Adora to sit on it. Adora felt her cheeks flush as she allowed herself to be laid down, feeling silly. Surely the head healer was needed elsewhere.
“What do you mean? Is she hurt?” Catra’s anxiety was uncharacteristically raw in her voice, and Adora’s guilt flared back to life.
The healer regarded Catra sympathetically, “Let’s hope not,” The woman hovered her hands above Adora’s body, and her hands glowed a light blue. “I was an instructor in Mystacor before I became head healer. I’ve seen my fair share of magical burnout. It can be quite nasty if left ignored for too long.” Neither Catra nor Adora spoke, allowing her to work.
Adora’s chest felt tight as the head healer's brows drew together in concern, “My dear, you were hurt before, weren’t you? I sense serious damage that has been freshly healed.”
Adora tried to suppress the alarm that statement caused: Freshly healed meant she was fine.
Catra wasn’t reassured, “Yeah, she was. She collapsed, and her heart nearly stopped beating. She was poisoned with something.” Catra supplied, her words clipped with nervousness.
Adora hadn’t realized that her heart had almost stopped beating. The revelation worsened the guilt she felt. “Catra I…” She tried to apologize, tried to sit up, but Catra’s clawed hands shoved her unceremoniously back down to the stone.
“Stay down.” Catra insisted stubbornly, and Adora reluctantly relented, not wanting to worry her further.
The healer observed the interaction politely, “Your magic is unfamiliar to me. I cannot sense it. I am unsure whether or not you have burned out.”
Adora evaded Catra’s pointed look.
The healer continued on a sigh, lowering her hands, “But my observations from earlier leave no room for debate: you must rest.”
Adora pouted, she had already been planning on taking a nap. She didn’t need to be told to.
The healer reached into her robes. “Catra, was it?” The healer placed a small pouch in Catra’s hand, “Take these. They are salts from the steam grottos in Mystacor. They will help your friend recover her strength.”
The healer turned back to Adora, and the concern in her kind eyes made Adora want to cringe, “I must go back to my duties. Princess, please take care of yourself.”
With that, the head healer walked away, returning to her patients.
“Catra…” Adora sat up successfully this time, getting a better look at her angry posture, her ears flat against her head and her eyes narrowed in frustration. “I’m sorry.”
“You’re sorry?” Catra asked in bitter disbelief.
Damn, she apparently managed to piss Catra off this time.
“You and Glimmer both warned me. I should have-“
“Shut up. You’re an idiot.” Catra surprised Adora with a hug.
Huh.
Catra was fighting tears; Adora could feel her stunted inhales, the subtle tremor as she held her breath. Adora held her, rubbing soothing circles in between Catra’s shoulder blades and she slowly came to terms with just how shell shocked she felt- the gravity of what had all just happened threatening to weaken her hold on her resolve. She quieted her mind, refocusing on Catra.
“I can’t believe you’re this stupid,” Catra finally murmured, her voice shaky. “You didn’t fully heal that kid, right? He still had cuts and bruises. But you saved him. And you didn’t use as much magic as you normally would.” Catra pulled back slightly, her angry frown poorly disguising the way her lips trembled, “You didn’t do anything wrong, so stop being sorry, it’s lame. You’re going to get an oversized ego.”
Adora couldn’t help but laugh at the surprise. “Okay, okay. For the record, that’s not what I’m sorry about. I’m sorry for making you worry about me like that. Here and back at the heart. And before that...” Adora was reminded of Catra’s tears after she took the failsafe and tried not to wince.
Catra groaned, and pulled her into an even tighter embrace, “This is why you’re stupid. You don’t even know why you should really be sorry.” Catra broke the hug abruptly and looked Adora in the eyes. “You should be sorry for lying. You’re not fine. Stop pretending, give me some fucking credit. You should know that I know you well enough by now.” She pointed this out with a quirked brow, and an unimpressed once over of Adora’s body.
Adora just nodded, surprised that Catra was being so open about her concern. “You’re right. I’m sorry.” Adora exhaled as she reevaluated herself. If she had been lying, she had been lying to herself. Not Catra.
“I guess I’m not ready to…” Adora couldn’t find the words. “I’m just afraid of the moment I slow down enough to think about everything...” Adora stopped overexplaining herself, a bad habit, and sighed again. “I wanted to stay in the moment. Stay busy.”
She desperately needed to be distracted from that nagging sense of dread she had since looking up at that tree in orbit. She didn’t want to face it. Not yet.
Catra looked away again, kicking the pillar with her heel absently as she mulled something over, “For the record, I can admit that after thinking about it…” Catra sighed in frustration, still averting her gaze, “I regret that I left earlier. That was dumb of me, I’m... sorry.”
Adora was proud of herself for keeping her expression neutral. Hearing Catra apologize was still so new, but she didn’t want to scare her off with the relief or pride she felt.
Catra crossed her arms and continued, almost angrily, “And just now I gave you a hard time about sacrificing yourself or whatever…” Catra’s voice softened to a whisper, “But I’m glad that kid is okay, so I’m sorry for that, too.” Catra pouted self-consciously and returned her gaze to Adora’s, “But don’t get used to it.”
Even after all of the growing Catra had done, her new vulnerability still amazed Adora.
But she couldn’t help a little bit of amusement over how hard it was for her, smiling in a way she hoped was only slightly teasing, “I won’t. But this is what- the third time I’ve now heard you apologize? Are you forming a habit?”
Catra shoved her softly, “I take it back, you’re the worst.” But her small smile told her enough.
“Should we go take a nap now?” Adora suggested hopefully. She felt like she could sleep for a million years.
“Best idea you’ve ever had.” Catra’s relief was obvious, and Adora felt proud of herself. “But where?”
“Hopefully, my room is still here,” Adora laughed despite the very real possibility that the aerial strikes destroyed that wing of the castle. “We should go check.”
Catra helped Adora to her feet, and Adora winced as her muscles strained to keep her upright, and the room tilted violently. But after a second, Adora regained her sense of balance, and the pair started towards the living quarters, Melog wandering off to the courtyard to enjoy the newly magical world, according to Catra.
——-
“This is your room? Wow, Adora. No wonder you’ve gone so soft.” Catra laughed at Adora's indignant expression as she glanced around the spacious room.
She kicked off her shoes and took off her jacket, “You’ll have one just like it once Glimmer has a second to set one up.”
Catra stopped admiring the waterfall to snap her attention to Adora, her expression somewhat apprehensive.
“Or we can share my room? I just thought you might be used to having your own space by now, seeing as you get private quarters when they promote you to force captain.”
She sat on her bed and raised an eyebrow up at Catra teasingly, trying to ease the inexplicable rush of nerves she felt from Catra’s presence in her bedroom.
Catra’s expression was oddly sad as she turned back to the waterfall, “I’ll think about it. But I definitely don’t want to sleep alone for a while.”
Again, the vulnerability was a pleasant surprise. “I know the feeling.” Adora admitted with a shrug, picturing sleeping in the dark, empty room all alone.
Catra turned around, her expression pensive and nearly shy, and as she sat on the bed next to her, Adora felt her heartbeat quicken.
Catra still averted her gaze, and after a second, she spoke, “Sparkles mentioned you had a hard time sleeping without a roommate when you first came here. When I moved into the private quarters, I also couldn’t sleep.”
Adora held her breath, she had tried to ask about Catra’s time in the horde after she had left a few times, but she had never replied with anything other than sarcastic deflection before.
Catra kicked her legs, a hint of a smile on her lips, “Camping out on with everyone lately kind of reminded me how much I missed hearing people breathing and snoring at night.” Catra covered her face with her hands as Adora tried not smile too hard, “Ugh, that sounds even stupider out loud.”
Adora didn’t want to break the spell, hoping Catra would continue, so she just nodded. Letting the silence be.
Adora’s patience was rewarded. Catra let down her hands, revealing redness on her cheeks, and she averted her gaze as she spoke once more, “I actually slept the best I had in three years that first night on the ship.” Catra’s tail flicked angrily, “Y’know. When you stayed with me.”
Adora had to bite her lip to stop from laughing in both elation and anxiety. Was she being serious?
Catra noticed this and rolled her eyes, “I was thinking… if you are okay with it… Maybe we could do that from now on?” Catra’s tone was so uncertain, and her body language reminded Adora of that time when Catra had just been rescued from Prime's ship.
Adora scooted over so that her thigh pressed up against Catra’s, and leaned so her face was inches from hers. “So does this mean you like me?”
Adora’s heart was in her throat, but her nerves lessened as Catra sulked, the flush on her cheeks spreading, “Forget it.” She gritted the words out through her teeth, turning further away from her.
Adora smiled cheekily, knowing what would make Catra even more flustered, “Actually, if I remember correctly… I think you said that you lo-.”
Catra shoved her backwards onto the bed mid-sentence, “I hate you!”
Adora didn’t resist, falling back onto the bed and laughing, feeling lighter than she had in a while.
“You need to sleep. You’re getting delirious.” Catra’s voice was exasperated, but Adora heard the smile underneath.
“Hmmm.” Now that Adora was horizontal, it seemed her brain was already taking Catra’s advice. She felt the tug of sleep on the edges of her vision.
“If you sleep with your hair tied back like that, you’re going to get a headache.” Catra admonished softly, her voice just above a murmur, and it sent tingles down her arms.
Adora opened her eyes and watched nervously as Catra gently undid her ponytail. But when she ran a hand through her hair, with her long, claw-like nails ever so slightly scraping across her scalp, tousling the strands so they fanned around her face. Adora couldn’t help the little sigh as she felt the tension on her head lessen, her eyes drifting shut.
Catra responded with another pass through Adora’s hair, this time slightly waving her hand as she went, making chills-inducing little zig zags with her nails across her scalp, and she had to bite her lip to prevent a nervous laugh. Catra then shifted a little, and she was disappointed to feel her weight lift off the bed.
She opened her eyes and noticed that Catra was still nearby, standing near her legs, which still hung off the side of the bed. Catra grinned at her devilishly, the only warning before she ducked down and grabbed her ankles.
Adora barely had time to wonder why before she found herself yelping in surprise as Catra swung her legs to the right in one swift motion, so that she was lying on the bed fully. She was the one who was flustered now, and Catra laughed with satisfaction over her revenge, giving her goosebumps.
As Catra found the blanket where it was folded near the pillows at the head of the bed and shook it out flat so she could gently drape it over her, a resurgence of nervousness led to Adora giggling embarrassingly, unused to Catra being so doting.
With no warning whatsoever, Catra flopped onto the bed with a little jump for extra impact, provoking another surprised yelp by bouncing her up into the air for a moment.
When her she blinked her eyes open, Catra was laying only inches away, staring at her with an unguarded softness that Adora had only ever seen a handful of times. But as she continued to stare into Catra’s eyes, Adora couldn’t help it; a laugh bubbled up again, and miraculously, Catra immediately broke into laughter herself.
They both laughed hysterically until they had tears on their cheeks, gasping for air, and Adora felt like she was on a pink fluffy cloud in the sky. Maybe she really was delirious, but laughing with Catra reminded her of staying up past curfew as cadets, and it made her so unbelievably happy. She never thought she’d have this again…
That realization sobered her mood, and the uneasy feeling that it was all too good to be true returned.
But with Catra breathing deep and slow after coming down from laughter, looking more content and relaxed than Adora had seen her in three years, she almost didn’t care that it could all be a dream. She wanted to live in the moment for as long as she could.
Catra broke the silence on a sigh, “You should sleep now.” Her voice still wavered with leftover laughter.
“Will you sleep too?” Adora asked, her eyelids feeling heavy again at the mention of sleeping.
“Hmm. Maybe.”
“Will you stay? Please?” Adora was truly drifting off now; she heard the words slur as they left her mouth, and her eyes slid closed.
“Yeah, Adora. I’ll stay.”
She smiled as she drifted off to sleep, paying no mind to the little voice in her head that told her she was forgetting something.