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Chapter Text

“Catra!” Adora screamed as Catra fell from the skiff onto the forest floor below. Catra recognized this situation as her fault, for driving the skiff so erratically. Hitting the ground would not be fun.

When she woke up, a voice was calling to her. She sat up off the forest floor and looked behind her only to see a shiny sword glimmering in the forest lighting. The hilt of the sword was gold with a blue gem near the middle. She didn’t exactly understand why her body began moving towards the sword, but she reached out to touch it, and suddenly she saw a flash of light, a figure talking to her, stars, a crying kitten.

“Catra!” she hears. She wakes up again, still on the forest floor, but this time with Adora crouching down to check on her. “Catra!” Adora said again, now that Catra’s eyes are open. 

“Adora? What happened?” 

“You crashed the skiff into a tree.” Adora responded. 

Then, everything came back to Catra. She leaped to her feet and began searching. “The sword! Where did it go?”

“What sword? There’s no sword here, Catra. Are you brain damaged? Please don’t be brain damaged!” 

“I’m not brain damaged!” Catra hissed. “There was a sword right there!”

“Well it isn’t here now. Come on, let’s get home before Shadow Weaver notices we’re missing.” 

During the skiff journey back, all Catra could think about was the sword.

/////

Later that night, Catra was fast asleep at the foot of Adora’s bed. She began to hear the voice of the figure she had seen call her name. She tried to ignore it but it got louder and louder until it was too much for her sensitive Magicat ears to handle. She shot up out of bed and landed on the floor next to it. When she was sure Adora was still asleep, she tiptoed as quietly as she could out of the room. She hid behind some boxes when one of the Horde bots passed the hallway, as to avoid being seen. Suddenly, Adora found her way right behind Catra. 

“Where are you going? It’s the middle of the night.” Adora whispered.

“I’m going back to the Whispering Woods. I know I saw something!” Catra hissed, before they both had to duck to avoid another bot.

“Okay, let’s go.”

“No, Adora, I don’t want you getting in trouble because of me…” Catra’s whisper trailed off as she thought of all the times Shadow Weaver blamed Catra for any trouble Adora ever got into. She snapped out of it, and said, “Just cover for me, I’ll be back before anyone knows I’m gone!” Catra whispered as she ran to get a skiff. Adora crossed her arms and went back to bed.

/////

Later, in the forest, Catra found herself in roughly the same spot she had fallen from the skiff. She looked around, and noticed a faint glowing in one direction. She decided she’d follow it. It led her to a clearing that, sure enough, the sword was in the middle of, sticking out of the ground as if it were the sword in the stone, coincidentally one of Catra’s favorites of the stories in the book Adora found when they were kids. She crept towards it, and then as she reached out to grab it, her ears picked up to people walking closer to her. 

“I think it’s over there, Bow.”

“What makes you say that?” the man called Bow asks, and after a pause, he continues, “That’ll do it.” 

Catra grabs the sword with one hand and brings her claws out in the other and gets into a defensive position. The two walk into the clearing, and Catra sizes them up. Bow gave away everything she needed to know, as he was carrying a golden bow and some arrows, not that Catra had any place to judge on names like that. He was also tall, dark skinned, and wore a crop top that matched the color of his bow. His partner was definitely a princess, she was almost entirely pink, from the hair to her outfit to the sparkles she left wherever she walked. They screamed when they saw Catra, and formed some kind of battlecry before launching themselves at Catra. She swiped Bow away with her claws, but the princess teleported behind her and grabbed the sword.

“Give us the sword!” the princess yelled as she gave the sword a tug. 

Catra tugged back and replied, “Finders Keepers!”

Bow chose this moment while Catra’s focus was on the sword to run up from behind her and tackle her to the ground. He pulled some handcuffs out of his bag, and cuffed Catra. He pulled her up onto her feet, and the princess spoke, “Now we’re taking some First Ones tech and a Horde prisoner back to Bright Moon!”

Catra hissed and began walking with the two. They were obviously about Catra’s age, and not at all experienced in taking a prisoner, as they didn’t even restrain her outside of the handcuffs. She just walked behind them. She knew she could escape if she wanted to, but the sword kept inaudibly calling to her, so she stayed. The princess and the archer began a conversation about how the princess’s mom would finally respect her abilities, and Catra snickered. Suddenly, the three found themselves in a clearing, and Bow looked back at Catra. Catra had just used one of her claws to get the handcuffs off. Bow stopped the princess, and he turned to face Catra. “Honestly, you could have escaped whenever you wanted to. Me and Glimmer ( so that was the princess’s name Catra thought) aren’t exactly prisoner-taking material and you’re already out of the cuffs. Why haven’t you?”

“Well, I want the sword. Wherever it goes, I go.” Catra explained, leaving out the part that she wanted to earn respect with it or maybe kill Shadow Weaver with it. Bow shrugged, and Glimmer narrowed her eyes. 

As she was about to speak, they heard a loud noise, and a monster of some sort sprang from the trees. Glimmer dropped the sword in a panic, and Catra grabbed it. Words began repeating in her head so she repeated them. “For the honor of Grayskull!” she called, and in a blinding flash of brilliant golden light, she began to transform. She grew about two feet, making her about 7’3”, and gained white and gold armor. Her hair grew longer and became less of a wild, tangled mess and more of a curly, free-flowing mane. She held the sword, and the monster sat down. Then, Catra realized what had just happened, and looked down at herself. She screamed and dropped the sword, transforming her back into her usual self. Glimmer teleported to grab the sword and teleported back to Bow, both of whom looked shellshocked.

“What did you do to me!?” Catra yelled at Glimmer.

“What do you mean what did I do to you?” Glimmer retorted.

“I didn’t know being a princess was contagious !” Catra screeched. Bow ran between the two girls and held his palms out.

“Calm down, I’m sure there’s an explanation for all this.” he said, before everyone noticed that the giant monster had reawoken. They all ran for their lives. 

“Give me the sword, Sparkles!” Catra yelled.

“No, we’ll find another way to beat this thing, Horde Scum!” Glimmer yelled back. They happened upon an old tower of sorts, and the beast could be heard approaching. 

“It’s a First Ones ruin!” Bow exclaimed excitedly, as if he had forgotten about the beast chasing them.

“Come on, let’s find a way inside!” Glimmer called, running towards it.

“Wait, it says something here.” Catra said as she stared at the door. “Eternia.” As Catra said the word, the door opened. The two rebellion fighters again stared at Catra, Glimmer angrily and Bow in bewilderment. Before either of them could ask, the beast made it to the clearing and they ran inside to avoid being eaten. 

“So, you can read First Ones’ writing?” Bow questioned Catra. 

“What’s a First Ones?” Catra asked.

“The First Ones are beings that went extinct thousands of years ago but left behind a bunch of cool, advanced tech.” Bow explained. “The Horde never taught you about them?”

“The Horde never told as much about anything outside the Fright Zone, apparently.” Catra sighed. Then, her sensitive ears caught Glimmer trying to whisper the words into the sword. “Trying to be the 7 foot tall lady, Sparkles?” Catra teased.

“I wasn’t doing anything!” Glimmer yelled, and Bow and Catra both laughed. Then, they walked into a giant room, and Glimmer used some magic to light up the room. Then, they saw a mural. 

“Hey look, it’s you!” Bow called.

“That looks nothing like me! She’s not even a Magicat.” Catra responded.

“Same armor and sword as you from when you transformed.” Glimmer muttered.

Catra stared at it before finding words beneath the mural. She read the First Ones’ writing again, much to Bow’s excitement. “She-Ra.” As she said this, a hologram of the figure she had seen when she first touched the sword appeared, but was glitching horribly.

“She must be too old.” Bow concluded, after investigating the hologram. Then, all of a sudden, the hologram spoke.

“Administrator not detected. Activate Intruder Defense System.” it said, and the room began to glow red and spiders began to crawl up from beneath the floor and the building began to shake. 

“Sparkles, give me the sword! We need the tall lady, she’s the key to this place!” Catra yelled. 

“No! You’re a Horde soldier, I’m not giving you the sword, I’ll just teleport us out.” Glimmer retorted.

“Glimmer, wait, you’ve never teleported three people before!” Bow called. Then, the ceiling began to crumble and Glimmer grabbed both Catra and Bow and teleported them at the very last second. Then, they were in the sky, Glimmer passed out. Bow shot a net arrow to catch them as they fell. Glimmer, still passed out, had a grip on the sword, and Bow laid her against a tree. 

“So, you can read a language that nobody has known in thousands of years, and you can transform with that sword into a goddess.” Bow stated, “You aren’t just a normal Horde soldier, are you?”

“Honestly, Arrow Boy, I don’t know. This is all so new to me yet, kind of familiar, I guess. The Horde never treated me well, never valued my worth, and I want to get to the bottom of whatever is happening to me.” Catra explained. 

Then, Glimmer woke up. “Did it work?” she asked.

“Barely. No more teleporting until you can recharge.” Bow ordered, but in the softest, most caring voice he could muster. 

“Wait, Sparkles has a limit to her powers and has to recharge?” Catra said as she began to laugh.

“Bow! Can we not talk about our weaknesses in front of the Horde Soldier!?” Glimmer yelled.

“Okay, okay, let’s get you to the nearest town, we'll get a ride back to Bright Moon from there.” Bow stated. He helped Glimmer to her feet and she wrapped her arm around his waist in an effort to keep herself upright. Catra followed behind. As they arrived, Catra took a minute to take in the beauty of the place. There were people dancing in the streets, and vendors lined the edges of the main walkway of the town.

“What is all this?” Catra asked.

“It’s a festival. You know, like a party?” Bow stated. When Catra stared at him with a blank expression, he realized she didn’t understand. “You didn’t have parties in the Horde? Not even a birthday?”

“What’s a birthday?”

“ No birthdays!? How is your life this sad?” Bow asked Catra, and dragged her along to go dance and try some food. Glimmer tried to keep a frown, but couldn’t help it long, as the corners of her lips formed a teeny smile. Catra tried the food, and upon realizing it was way better than the Horde’s ration bars, began to dig in. She wanted to try everything, but she became full-bellied very quickly.

Then, an explosion rocked the town, and screams began to fill the air. Catra jumped, her fur stood up, her ears pinned themselves to her head and her claws came out, as she was not a fan of sudden, loud noises. Villagers began running for their lives, and more explosions rocked the town. Bow and Glimmer ran towards the explosions to help the townsfolk, and Catra followed. What she witnessed was horrifying. Horde tanks swarmed the place, buildings were burning or graffitied with the Horde logo. “Why would the Horde attack this place?” Catra asked herself, not realizing she spoke it out loud.

“The people of Thaymor aren’t a threat!” Bow agreed.

“Wait, this is Thaymor!? This can’t be Thaymor!” Catra yelled.

“Did you know about this?” Glimmer hissed, fury filling her eyes.

“One of my friends in the Horde was supposed to lead the attack on Thaymor, but she said it was a fortified rebel fortress, not a civilian town!” Catra explained. “I think I can get her to stop, I have to talk to her!” Catra called as she began sprinting towards the tanks. She stood in front of one, and waved her arms. “Stop!” she called. The tank hatch popped open, and Adora jumped out.

“Catra! I’ve been looking all over for you!” Adora called and ran over.

“Adora, you have to stop this!” Catra stated.

“What do you mean?”

“This is a civilian town, not a rebel fortress.” Catra explained.

“A civilian town holding a Horde soldier prisoner. Seriously, ‘Cover for me, Adora, no one will even realize I was gone.’ Did you get captured as soon as you got out here?” Adora asked. “Wait, what are you wearing?”

Catra realized she still had the flower Bow had put in her mane. “It’s a flower, kind of pretty, isn’t it? Not many of these in the Fright Zone.” she replied. “Not important. We need to stop this attack!”

“I’m under direct orders from Shadow Weaver. Now come on, come back with me before she hurts you again.” Adora stated.

“No, I’m not going back.” Catra stated firmly. “Look at the destruction the Horde is doing to these innocent people! Shadow Weaver can bite me!”

“You’ve spent, what, an hour with these people and you’re on their side now? Did they do something to you?”

“I’m not going back, Adora. Come with me, we can leave the Horde!” Catra pleaded. Then, next thing she knew, she was shocked by a stun baton Adora had been hiding in her jacket. 

“I’m gonna protect you, Catra. From yourself, I guess. If I force you to come home with me, maybe Shadow Weaver will forgive you.”

“No…” Catra muttered, trying to get to her feet, before being zapped again.

“Sorry, Catra, reflexes.” Adora said, still somehow caring despite what she was doing. Then, all of a sudden, a sparklebomb knocked Adora off her feet. Before Adora could recover, Glimmer teleported to Catra, and grabbed her, before teleporting away. Adora got back to her feet and angrily ran at Bow, who had been shooting arrows at her. 

“Why did you save me?” Catra asked Glimmer, who was now breathing heavily and barely awake, given her lack of energy from using up her magic.

Glimmer handed Catra the sword before groaning and muttering out, “I should’ve given this to you in the tower, but I was stupid and almost got us killed.”

“How do you know you can trust me?” Catra questioned.

“I don’t.” Glimmer wheezed. “But I hope I can. There’s something about you…” she trailed off, as another explosion rocked their feet. Catra knew what to do. 

“For the honor of Grayskull!” she yelled and transformed. She ran back towards where Adora and Bow were fighting. Adora had Bow pinned under her stun staff when She-Ra arrived, sending Adora flying with a blast from her sword. She-Ra ran over to Bow, and helped him to his feet. Tanks all drove towards her, and she charged at them, slicing off barrels and stabbing into them with her sword. As the tanks exploded, the soldiers operating them bailed and ran for their lives. She-Ra was victorious. 

“You did it! You saved Thaymor!” Bow yelled in excitement. Catra let herself transform back to her normal self, and her eyes caught Adora’s. She looked hurt, and turned and fled. Catra was sad, until Bow ran over and gave her a hug. She hissed at him, and clawed his arm.

“I appreciate the gesture, Bow, but please don’t sneak up on me or touch me without permission!” She said, realizing her mistake.

Bow nodded and backed away, before motioning towards the town. “Come on, let’s go help Glimmer to her feet and tell the people of Thaymor that they are safe, for now at least.” 

Catra nodded, and they walked together.

Chapter Text

Bow and Catra walked up to Glimmer, who was snoozing peacefully against the side of the building she had laid against. Bow crouched down and gently put his hand on her shoulder, and gently shook her shoulder to wake her up. When she opened her eyes to Bow and Catra, with the sword on her back, smiling down on Glimmer, Glimmer smiled back. 

“You did it! You saved us!” Glimmer cheered joyfully.

“I did it, I turned against the Horde.” Catra stated. The color drained from her face. “I turned against the Horde! Oh why did I do that, where do I go?”

“Hey, it’s okay, you're with us now…” Bow trailed off, and then face palmed. “I’m genuinely sorry, I never asked you your name.”

“Catra. My name is Catra.” she responded.

“Well, Catra, come back with us to Bright Moon.” Glimmer stated. Catra smiled, and nodded.

/////

A couple hours later, they finally emerged from the trees, and Catra was amazed by what she saw. A castle was built onto a mountain, overlooking a large body of water that connected to the ocean beyond. Beneath the castle there was a bustling city, a port, and more. 

“Catra, welcome to Bright Moon!” Glimmer announced. Then, her eyes shot open as she realized something. “I’m gonna go talk to my mom. Bow, perhaps you should bring her in the back way. ”

“Oh, back way, got it!” he muttered, as Glimmer teleported away.

/////

Back at the Fright Zone, Shadow Weaver came up behind Adora, who had been counting how many soldiers made it back to the Fright Zone after their failure at Thaymor. “Adora, I’m disappointed in you. Your first mission was an absolute disaster. I trained you better than this.”

“With all due respect, Shadow Weaver, I was never trained to fight a giant golden princess with a sword.” Adora retorted. Instead of berating Adora for her attitude, like Adora expected Shadow Weaver to do, Shadow Weaver’s eyes grew wide, and she paused. Adora was sure that without the mask she would have seen Shadow Weaver’s jaw drop.

“It can’t be…” Shadow Weaver muttered, and left the room. Adora made a mental note of that incident, and went to the cafeteria. There, she saw Lonnie, Rogelio, and Kyle. They were talking about the princess.

“Kind of coincidental that Catra goes missing and then a giant golden magicat princess appears to ruin our plans, no?” Lonnie asked, unaware that Adora was standing behind her. Adora grabbed Lonnie by the back of her shirt and tossed her to the ground. 

“Mention that to Shadow Weaver, and I’ll be sure you’re the next one in that Princess’s line of sight. Understood, cadet?” Adora hissed.

Lonnie’s eyes went wide, and she nodded. Adora turned and walked away, leaving a very confused Kyle, Lonnie, and Rogelio behind. Adora had always been protective of Catra, but she had never assaulted someone like that, never used that tone of voice.

Adora marched over to the armory, forgetting to eat entirely. She skipped the weapons and began pounding on a punching bag with her bare fists, her anger giving her enough fuel to break the bag off of the chain, leaving a sad, deflating punching bag on the ground.

/////

“ This is the back way!?” Catra screamed, halfway up a rope that led into a window of one of the rooms in the castle. 

“I know it seems strange, but trust me, Glimmer and I do this all the time!” He called from above, as he reached the windowsill. Catra did her best to keep her claws retracted, afraid they might pop out as part of her nerves and cut the rope, leaving her to fall to her probable death. She hurried the rest of the way up the rope, and found Bow scrounging through a closet. He tossed her a pink winter coat, and said, “Here put this on!”

“You’re trying to hide me, aren’t you?” 

“No… totally not what’s happening here.” he lied unconvincingly.

“You are.” she muttered. “I get it, the Horde is pretty scary, they probably aren’t very welcoming.”

“Think pitchforks and torches…” he sighed.

“Oh, great.”

Then, Glimmer bursts into the room. “So, let’s get you turned into She-Ra, my mom will love you!”

“I don’t know if I can, Sparkles. I’ve only ever done it when people are in danger!” Catra stated.

“Also, you wanna jump straight to She-Ra with your mom?” Bow questioned.

“Yeah, we’ll ease her into the Horde stuff later.” Glimmer said obliviously.

Catra raised the sword, and yelled her motto, “For the honor of Grayskull!” Nothing happened. Her ears pinned back immediately, and her pupils narrowed. 

“How about we just explain the situation to your mom?” Bow asked.

“I guess…” Glimmer mutters as she leads Bow out of the door and into the hallway.

Catra flopped onto the floor. Of course she couldn’t transform. All she could really think about was the look on Adora’s face when she realized Catra was a princess now. She needed to clear her head, so she slid down the rope and into the forest beneath the castle. Once in the forest, she tried again to become She-Ra, to no avail. She collapsed on a log, in a huff. She stood up with determination this time and while thinking as hard as she could about She-Ra and raising the sword into the sky, yelling “For the honor of Grayskull!” She repeated this process almost a hundred times before she gave up. She decided she’d just climb back into Glimmer’s room. When she got there, she heard the door open. “Mom, this is Catra.” 

The Queen recoiled immediately looking at the horde uniform Catra was wearing. “You brought a Horde soldier into my castle!?” she yelled.

“An ex-Horde soldier.” Catra muttered. She grabbed the sword and held it out to the Queen. “I have seen the atrocities the Horde has committed first hand, and I want to help the Rebellion fight them, as She-Ra.” 

The Queen looked at her in disbelief. “She-Ra… you’re the legend that was sent? I never thought that the tale of She-Ra was anything more than a myth. It was said that She-Ra would return to us in our hour of greatest need, and here in front of me is a Magicat, a species thought to have been extinct, wearing the clothing of our enemy.”

“I know she doesn’t look like it, but she does turn into She-Ra. We watched her fight off the Horde in Thaymor as a seven foot tall goddess!” Glimmer announced.

“I did hear of the battle in Thaymor. Word was that a princess with a tail saved them.” the Queen admitted, staring at Catra’s tail, which was now nervously swaying. After a moment of thought, she gave the sword back to Catra. “Catra, you pledge yourself to the Rebellion, to fight those you once fought for on behalf of Etheria?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Then so it shall be. Glimmer vouches for you, do not disappoint her.” the Queen demanded, before turning and walking away.

“That went way better than I expected.” Catra admitted after she was sure the Queen was out of earshot.

“Yes, yes it did.” Bow said, smiling. “Now, let’s find you some new clothes.” 

“Okay, I need something flexible, so I can move around freely and fight even while I’m not She-Ra, but preferably not too revealing. Also, please don’t make me wear pink.” Catra explained.

After shuffling through all of Glimmer’s clothes, they found a somewhat tight white T-shirt, and a pair of black leggings. Catra disappeared into the bathroom. Inside, she tore the sleeves off the t-shirt and put it on. Next, she put on the leggings and ripped holes where her tail, knees and ankles were, allowing her more flexible movement. When she exited the bathroom, Glimmer and Bow clapped. 

“Oh, also, we painted your headpiece gold, like She-Ra’s! Hope you don’t mind!” Bow exclaimed. Catra put it on and went back into the bathroom. After a look into the mirror with it on, she decided she didn’t hate it.

Then, Bow and Glimmer gave her a tour of the rest of Bright Moon.

/////

“Adora!” Shadow Weaver called, finding Adora training with one of the armory’s swords.

“Yes, Shadow Weaver?” Adora said, kneeling before her superior.

“Come with me.” Shadow Weaver commanded. They walked in silence. Then, they arrived at Hordak’s sanctum and a chill shocked Adora’s spine. They walked inside.

“Lord Hordak.” Shadow Weaver called, bowing her head and her body slightly, her arm crossing her chest briefly.

“What do you find so important that you must concern me with it?” Hordak’s deep voice booms from the shadows. Adora can only barely make out his outline in the shadowy room. 

“Adora, tell him what caused your failure at Thaymor.”

“Lord Hordak, our tanks were causing massive damage until the Princesses showed up. One was pink and sparkly, the other was a seven foot tall golden lady with a sword taller than I. She sliced up our tanks with ease. We suffered three casualties, the other 247 soldiers made it back to the Fright Zone.” Adora explained.

“And? Is that all, Shadow Weaver? Is this a blatant waste of my time or was your goal just to piss me off? If you believe Force Captain Adora was at fault, then that falls back on you, Shadow Weaver, for failing to train your wards and cadets properly. Remind me, where is the Magicat?”

“I-” Shadow Weaver started.

“On second thought, I don’t want to hear your pathetic excuses, Shadow Weaver. You are both dismissed.” Hordak roared.

Adora ran as far away from that room as she could get. She thought Shadow Weaver had been scary, yet Hordak possessed an element of fear Shadow Weaver couldn’t hope to reach.

Chapter Text

Catra was given her own room at the end of the Bright Moon tour. She was given a fluffy bed, a bathroom, a closet, a desk, and a waterfall. “Is the waterfall for showering?” Catra asked. She assumed Glimmer’s manic laughing meant no, and that it was just a decoration. She looked into the bathroom and sure enough, there was a personal shower with shampoo and conditioner that was specifically for fur. Catra knew she’d be thanking Bow for that later. She stripped her clothes off and got into the shower. Unlike the Fright Zone, this shower had hot water, and Catra was actually okay with the water for once. After her shower, she shook herself off and used one of the fluffy pink towels under the sink to dry the rest of the way off. She put on her clothes and went to bed. The fluffy bed was really difficult to get used to, though. Not that she had ever slept well on the bunk beds that might very well have been slabs of metal with a blanket over them back in the Horde, either. She did eventually get to sleep, but a nightmare about Adora woke her, with her claws shooting out. Her claws popped the bed and feathers began to fly everywhere. She dashed out of the room to avoid the mess, and began looking for Glimmer or Glimmer’s room. She found the Queen first. She was staring at a mural. 

“Who’s that, Your Majesty?” Catra asked, alerting the Queen to her presence. 

“My husband and Glimmer’s father, Micah. We built the rebellion together, and he was one of the first casualties of the Horde.”

“I’m sorry, I had no idea.” Catra muttered.

“What are you doing up so late?” the Queen asked.

“I was looking for Glimmer.” Catra stated. 

The Queen leaned down to be face to face with Catra. “She vouches for you despite your background, and because I love her, I’m giving you a chance. Do not disappoint her.” she reiterated. When Catra found Glimmer’s room, she noticed that the bed was hanging from the ceiling, at least six feet in the air. Luckily for Catra, her cat-like jumping ability made it easy for her to leap up and then cuddle into a ball at Glimmer’s feet without waking her.

/////

The next morning, Glimmer awoke to the Magicat at her feet. She screamed, and fell off of the bed. 

“Sorry, Sparkles!” Catra, who had been awoken by the scream, called from the bed. Glimmer teleported back up to the bed, 6 feet in the air, which scared Catra off the bed. She landed on her feet though. Glimmer sighed and teleported back down.

“So cats do always land on their feet!” Glimmer joked, before asking “What are you doing in here?”

“I’m not used to sleeping alone, and I kind of – sort of – destroyed the bed by accident.” Catra stated.

“It’s okay.” Glimmer said. She yawned and headed into her bathroom. “Hey, Catra, you’re invited to the Queen’s strategy meeting today!” she called from inside the bathroom. Catra heard Glimmer splash water in her face next, and then when Glimmer came out of the bathroom she was wearing purple eyeliner that matched the undertones in her hair. Catra wished she wasn’t into women for a moment, because Glimmer looked truly stunning in her royal outfit and with her makeup and hair done. Catra chose to stare at the floor instead. Glimmer walked Catra to a giant chamber, where people were already meeting. Catra sat next to Glimmer, and Glimmer introduced the other people at the table. There were two other princesses, Netossa and Spinnerella, and Catra noticed their matching wedding rings immediately. She appreciated the thought that she now knew she wasn’t the only lesbian at the table. Then, the Queen arrived.

One of the Queen’s generals spoke first. “Your Majesty, Perfuma of Plumeria has requested our aid, as the Horde has been spotted in their land.”

Glimmer shot out of her chair. “Mom, if I may?”

“Go on, Commander Glimmer.” the Queen replied, obviously hinting to use more formal names.

“Your Majesty, I would like to lead the aid mission to Plumeria, and maybe we can restart the Princess Alliance now that we have She-Ra!”

“Very well, you may attempt to get Perfuma on board with a new Princess Alliance. However, you are under no circumstances to engage the Horde. You are to bring food and supplies to the citizens of Plumeria and talk to Perfuma only. Understood?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

/////

Catra had turned into She-Ra, and was using her to carry the supply cart by hand. She knew she was entirely doing it to show off, but she was getting better at focusing on She-Ra and forcing her out. When they arrived, the townsfolk recognized her immediately. Catra’s eyes locked onto Perfuma’s. All Catra could think was ‘ holy shit pretty woman.’

“Good afternoon, Perfuma.” Glimmer greeted the princess of Plumeria. 

Perfuma simply walked past Glimmer, and with stars in her eyes, she spoke, “It’s…” Then she turned to the other citizens. “It’s… It’s the legendary She-Ra! The universe has heard our pleas and sent her to help us!” she announced to the crowd, who swarmed around She-Ra, most of them holding out gifts for She-Ra. Noticing the distressed look on Catra’s face, Glimmer teleported her out of the middle of the crowd, and to a nearby building. 

“One at a time!” Glimmer yelled. The villagers gave Catra everything from children to hold, to food to eat, to flowers to smell. A little girl gave Catra a drawing of her destroying the Horde. Another little girl gave Catra something very jingly. 

“Thanks for the…” Catra paused, not really knowing what she was holding.

“Wind Chime.” Glimmer whispered.

Catra smiled, she wasn’t used to being appreciated still, but it felt really nice. Then, an explosion sounded in the distance, and more smoke began rising from what was assumed to be the Horde camp. She growled at the thought of the Horde.  

“Will you be healing our land during or after our drum circle?” Perfuma whispered. Catra then realized she had no idea how to heal anything. 

“I just need to take Bow and Glimmer into the trees over here!” she yelled, before pulling them into the forest nearby. 

“You okay, Catra?” Bow asked.

“I don’t know how to heal things or people! I’m still getting used to being She-Ra, much less effectively using her powers.” Catra complained, kicking the tree and sending it crashing down into the tree next to it. She tried to think ‘healing thoughts’ as Perfuma would put it, and pointed her sword at a tree. Nothing. She hugged the tree. Still nothing.

Bow and Glimmer looked at each other, and then at Catra. Neither of them had any idea what to say. 

“She-Ra! Come quick, something awful has happened!” Perfuma called.

“What’s wrong?” Catra asked.

“The Heart Blossom, the source of my power, it’s dying!” Perfuma wailed.

Catra raised her sword to the runestone in the tree, and thought healing thoughts best as she could. After a minute of trying, she felt so disheartened that she transformed back to normal.

“Woah, what happened to She-Ra?” a villager called from the crowd.

“The stories said that She-Ra would heal the forest… Can you not help us?” Perfuma asked.

“I am She-Ra…” Catra trails off, envisioning the human-looking She-Ra they found in the tower, “But I am not the same She-Ra. I haven’t been doing this long enough. Although, I think I can still help Plumeria.” Catra stated after a minute of thinking. “But we may need to completely disobey a direct order from the Queen.”

This created a wicked smile on Glimmer’s face. Bow tried to stop the girls from getting themselves into trouble, but it was far too late as they dashed towards the smoke rising in the distance. 

They arrived at the fortress, and Catra accurately predicted the exact time for a guard change, and using some Horde uniforms she had stolen from the real team that was supposed to be guarding the castle next, and marched Glimmer and Bow into the fortress. They walked over to the building producing the most smoke, and went inside. A giant machine was leaking green ooze into the ground, more than likely the cause of the problems in Plumeria. Before they could figure out how to disarm it, a soldier walked up behind them.

“What are you doing in here? This area is restricted!” The Horde guard yelled.

Before anyone else could react, Catra slipped behind him and held her arm around his neck until he passed out. 

“Is he going to be okay?” Bow asked.

“Probably, we couldn’t risk him calling for backup though.” Catra stated, as she pulled the body to the side and out of anybody else’s line of sight. Then, she raised her sword and slashed into the machine. The fluids began to bubble and she realized that once the liquid oxygenated, it would explode or be highly flammable. She quickly tackled Bow and Glimmer through the door and braced for cover. The building exploded, and collapsed. “Well, that soldier is definitely not okay now. We gotta go!” Catra yelled. Glimmer grabbed both of them and teleported away as the guards were about to swarm them.

As soon as they were out of the walls of the Horde fortress, they noticed the trees had begun to grow livelier. They walked into town, and Perfuma ran up and hugged Catra, even though she wasn’t in She-Ra form. “Thank you, She-Ra, for saving Plumeria!” she squealed.

“It’s an honor, Perfuma.” Catra stated, for once not using a nickname to refer to somebody. 

“How could I repay you?” she asked.

“You could join the Princess Alliance!” Glimmer interjected.

“I don’t know… didn’t that go horribly last time?” Perfuma asked.

Before the trio could respond, Catra heard trees falling in the distance. Her pupils narrowed to slits, and her claws came out. She gripped the sword tightly. 

“What’s wrong, Catra?” Glimmer asked.

“The Horde is angry, they’re coming this way.” Catra hissed. “For the honor of Grayskull!” she yelled, and in a blinding flash of light, the people of Plumeria were starstruck. Catra was now, again, seven feet tall, and looked like a goddess. She, Glimmer, and Bow charged into the forest in the direction of the Horde.

“Citizens of Plumeria, our friends from Bright Moon are risking their lives to help us, so let’s fight with them for our home!” Perfuma announced, and the citizens cheered.

Catra’s sword sliced through a tank just before it could fire a shot towards the town, and kicked it back towards the fortress before it exploded. Bow shot a net arrow at two soldiers who had been approaching Glimmer with stun batons. Glimmer teleported behind a soldier, who tried to throw a punch behind himself, but she teleported away again, leaving his fist to hit another Horde soldier. Perfuma charged in, and used her plant powers to fling soldiers back to the fortress with vines. The citizens had many makeshift weapons and were also attacking the soldiers. Before long, the Horde knew it was time to retreat. 

The celebratory dinner at Plumeria was delicious that night. During this dinner, Glimmer asked again, “Perfuma, will you join the Princess Alliance? It’s clear we are stronger together.”

“Will I get to hit more people with flowers like I did earlier?” Perfuma questioned.

“Yes.”

“Then let it be known that I will join the Princess Alliance. Citizens of Plumeria, look at us! We’re mighty rebels now!” Perfuma announced, evoking a cheer from the crowd. 

/////

Once again, Shadow Weaver found Adora training in the armory. She was practicing with different types of swords, and today it was a rapier. “Adora.” Shadow Weaver called sternly. Adora turned around.

“Shadow Weaver.” She responded, while bowing briefly.

“How long have you known that Catra is a princess now?” 

“Lonnie told me after the battle at Thaymor.” Adora stated.

Shadow Weaver narrowed her eyes. “Good riddance, that brat. No chance she’ll be very useful to the Rebellion anyway.” she taunted. Much to her surprise, Adora’s sword found itself against her throat.

“I wouldn’t insult her again, if I were you. Not much of a point, given that she isn’t here for you to abuse any longer.”

Shadow Weaver growled. “You have forgotten your place, Adora.” 

“Or maybe I just end this here, with this sword. Hordak would probably blame you for being dead, anyway. You failed to train both your wards properly as cadets, after all.”

“You insolent brat!” Shadow Weaver hissed as she backed away and left the room. Adora caught herself smiling, for Shadow Weaver’s days had just become numbered. Little to Adora’s knowledge, Hordak’s spy was in the rafters of the ceiling above, and it had recorded everything.

/////

Back at Bright Moon, the Queen was angry. Catra and Bow waited in Glimmer’s room while Glimmer and the Queen fought it out in the throne room. She burst through the door, and sighed.

“Sorry I got you grounded, Glimmer.” Catra apologized, using Glimmer’s actual name to show she was sincere.

“It’s okay, Catra. It’s only for a week! That’s three weeks less than usual!” Glimmer replied. 

They all sat on Glimmer’s couch, giggling. “Best Friend Squad sleepover?” Bow asked.

“We’re not calling ourselves that.” Catra hissed.

“I prefer the Glimmer group.” Glimmer stated. Bow laughed.

“No, we’re the Best Friend Squad.” he said.

Chapter Text

“You’re wanted in Hordak’s chamber.” Shadow Weaver told Adora. Adora expected Shadow Weaver to follow her in, but Adora became quite nervous when she didn’t. Hordak was chuckling as Adora kneeled.

“You asked for my presence, Lord Hordak?” 

“You are quite brave, Force Captain. Not many would be able to threaten Shadow Weaver and get away with it.” Hordak stated. Adora said nothing, waiting for him to explain where he was going with this. Was she in trouble? “The Horde needs bravery and strength like yours. That’s why you are to lead an attack on Salineas. No other Horde attack has been successful, but you seem… different. Now go. If you’re successful, you may be next in line for a promotion.” His horrifying voice boomed. Adora couldn’t believe what she was hearing. 

“Yes, Lord Hordak.” she said, turning and walking into the hallway, where Shadow Weaver was waiting. 

“My spies have spotted Catra in Seaworthy. Maybe you could stop by and pick her up during your mission? Make sure she doesn’t interfere in this or any future missions, right?” Shadow Weaver stated sarcastically, as if she still didn’t believe Catra was a threat. 

“I’ll take her prisoner, but not for you Shadow Weaver. I have my own business with her.” Adora snapped. Shadow Weaver was now on the list of people who noticed something about Adora had changed dramatically since Catra’s departure.

“I find it interesting that you still protect her, even though she stole your destiny.” Shadow Weaver called, as Adora had turned to walk away.

“What?”

“You were the one meant to find that sword, and bring balance to Etheria. You were going to finally put an end to the rebellion with it.”

“How long have you known?” Adora questioned.

“Since I first laid eyes on you.” Shadow Weaver murmured. “Oh, by the way, I assigned another force captain to make sure you don’t go too far off mission.” she stated. “Meet Force Captain Scorpia.”

Scorpia stepped out from behind Shadow Weaver. Adora had to clamp her jaw shut to keep it from dropping. Scorpia was huge, at least seven feet tall, and muscles rippled beneath her outfit. She also sported two huge, scary claws. Her platinum hair was cut short. She was terrifying, until she spoke. “Gotta warn ya, I’m a hugger.” Scorpia stated, as she squeezed Adora into a hug. 

/////

“So, this is Seaworthy…” Catra murmured, taking in the sight of the beach town. 

“Come on, there’s gotta be a sea captain to take us to Salineas in that bar!” Bow called as he sprinted down the street. Glimmer followed, and Catra caught up to them by running on all fours. They burst through the door together while laughing. Over the past weeks, Catra, Bow, and Glimmer had become inseparable, and it was apparent by how much Catra had let go of her meaner exterior and smiled more often. They walked towards the bartender.

“Any Sea Captains in here today?” Glimmer asked her. The bartender pointed to a booth, where a man hidden by the curtain, won an arm wrestling contest. Catra smirked and walked over. 

“And Sea Hawk continues to go undefeated!” he announced, as his arm wrestling opponent scowled and walked away.

“Is that your actual name? Sea Hawk? That’s so cool!” Bow squealed.

“Fanboy much?” Catra teased.

“Yes, that is I. The legendary Sea Hawk.” The man announced. Catra studied the man. He had burgundy hair held back by a black headband and a burgundy mustache that was way shinier than any mustache should ever be. He wore some kind of red scarf and typical captain’s clothing. He was somehow extremely flamboyant but still muscular and manly at the same time, Catra noted.

“Great, well we need a Sea Captain to take us to Salineas.” Glimmer stated.

“Well, what makes you think you can afford me?” Sea Hawk boasted. Glimmer scowled.

“How about a deal? You’re undefeated in arm wrestling, right?” Catra asked. “You win, and we leave you alone. If I win, you take us to Salineas free of charge,” she stated, adding “unless you’re scared of a girl.” to taunt him.

“That is a horrible deal.” Sea Hawk stated. “But given that I am undefeated, I accept!”

The locked hands, and Sea Hawk realized immediately that Catra was a tougher opponent than he expected. Catra let her hand drop a little bit to give him the impression he was winning. Bow and Glimmer cheered Catra on, eliciting a story from Sea Hawk. “You think you can defeat me? I once won against a Tyrosaur with biceps the size of my head in an arm-wrestling match that lasted two weeks!” Sea Hawk announced between grunts. Catra smirked. Sea Hawk noticed the smirk and the color began to drain from his face as he watched his hand get slammed down onto the table. Catra had won.

“Truth be told, I–uh– let you win as to boost your confidence! I’ve been meaning to visit Salineas and my darling Mermista again anyways. Come on, kids! Forward to adventure!” He called as he got up and began heading for the boat.

After everyone was onboard, he announced, “Welcome aboard the Dragon’s Daughter Three!”

Catra scoffed. “What happened to Dragon’s Daughters One and Two?”

“Tragically, they went down in flames.” Sea Hawk stated solemnly.

“How did that happen?” Bow asked, still clearly fanboying over Sea Hawk.

“I set them on fire.” he whispered, before running to the front of the boat and screaming, “Adventure!”

“Are we sure about this guy?” Catra muttered to Glimmer.

“He just needs to get us there.” Glimmer whispered back.

“I will teach you everything you need to know about sailing! In shanty form!” Sea Hawk announced. “Oooohhhh,” he started to sing, before being distracted by Bow. He jumped down to where Bow was sitting. “What are you doing?” Sea Hawk asked, forgetting he was about to shanty.

“Oh, I noticed your mainsail wasn’t secure, so I fixed it.”

“Tying proper knots can take years to master. You did this just now?” Sea Hawk questioned.

“Yes!” Bow exclaimed.

“Excellent work, even if it is just beginner’s luck.” Sea Hawk whispered. “We also need a lookout!” He yelled.

“Come on, Sparkle, we’ll sing a shanty duet and I will show you how to climb the ratlines!”

“Sparkles is a nickname Catra gave me, my name is Glimmer!” she yelled. Then, she teleported up to the lookout spot before Sea Hawk could sing.

“How did she–” Sea Hawk began to question before Catra interrupted him.

“I unfurled the jib.” She announced.

“You are a strangely overqualified crew. What do you even need old Sea Hawk for?”

Glimmer teleported down next to him. “Your map.” She answered, holding out her hand. Both Catra and Glimmer stared at him. As soon as he gave it to her, she teleported back up, leaving Sea Hawk frowning on the deck.

“Can we focus on our super important mission? Please? More sailing, less shantying!” Glimmer called from above.

“Of course, Shimmer!” Sea Hawk called back.

“My name is GLIMMER !” Glimmer screamed angrily.

“A top secret mission from the queen, I’ll get you there as soon as possible. After all, I’m as excited to see my dearest Mermista as I know she is to see me.” Sea Hawk continued, ignoring Glimmer’s frustration. He then began to shanty.

“Ohhhhhh! I’m Sea Hawk, I am I am. If you’re looking for adventure then I am your man.” Sea Hawk sang, and Bow pulled a violin out of nowhere. “If you want to ride on the waves of the deepest blue, through perilous winds, then I got you. Some say I’m a hero, some say I am a man!” Sea Hawk paused his shantying to flex his biceps, before continuing once more. “What I know for sure is, I’m Sea Hawk! I am, I am!” Glimmer and Catra watched Sea Hawk and Bow’s performance from the other side of the boat, spending the whole experience either cringing or making fun of the two men. Catra wanted to puke, but she couldn’t tell if it was Sea Hawk’s horrific shanties or the seasickness that was the cause. She decided it was probably both.

/////

Two Horde ships sailed on the open Sea, Force Captain Adora in charge of one, and Force Captain Scorpia the other. Adora walked around a corner and found Lonnie, Rogelio, and Kyle talking instead of working, as usual. Being stuck with those three was enough of a punishment for her incident with Shadow Weaver, as if she wasn’t being sent off to fight a useless battle and would most likely be resting in a watery grave with the rest of them soon anyways. Many ships full of Horde crew were sunk by the Princess of Salineas, thousands of lives wiped out by her hands.

“What do you think will happen when Adora finds her Princess girlfriend?” Lonnie asked. Rogelio and Kyle saw Adora, and tried to shush Lonnie. “She’s right behind me, isn’t she?”

“Get back to work, or I’m tossing you overboard!” Adora yelled. The three scurried off to do “boat things” and Adora stormed back into the captain’s quarters.

/////

Glimmer stared at the sea in front of them, and slowly a formation of rocks and half-sunken ships came into view. “Something’s wrong. According to the map, we’re way of course.” She muttered to herself. She looked down at the main deck, and found Sea Hawk and Catra arm wrestling. Again. Bow cheered, as usual. Also as usual, Catra slammed Sea Hawk’s hand into the box they had set up for a surface. 

“Ha! I thought you were supposed to be a challenging opponent.” Catra teased.

“Best three out of five!” Sea Hawk retorted.

Glimmer teleported directly between them. “No! No more arm wrestling! I spotted a ship graveyard in the distance, and we’re heading straight for it! Is anyone worried about this?” Suddenly, there was a loud crash and the boat shook, causing everyone but Sea Hawk to scream. “What was that?” Glimmer asked.

Sea Hawk stood on the box. “Aha! We’re here.” he announced. Another thud against the ship caused everyone to fall over. After recovering, everyone but Catra ran to the edge of the boat to see what was happening. “The Serpent of the Sea. I knew he’d be lurking in these waters.” Sea Hawk stated.

“Wait, you brought us here on purpose !?” Glimmer roared, fury filling her face as she turned to Sea Hawk.

“See, I don’t just provide transport across the seas, I give you a tale to tell your friends!” Sea Hawk explained.

“For the honor of Grayskull!” Catra screamed. She-Ra ran to the edge of the deck, and turned to her friends. “For the record, Sea Hawk, when this boat reeks of wet fur, it’s your fault.” she grunted, before jumping from the boat and tackling the serpent back into the water. After a couple minutes, she resurfaced. “I think I got it.” Then, she was pulled back under. Another couple of minutes passed by. Then, the sea was stained red, and when She-Ra resurfaced this time, blood was dripping from her claws and sword. “It’s definitely dead now.”

“Catra, are you ok?” Glimmer called. 

“Yeah!” she called back.

“Then get your ass back on this boat!” Glimmer screamed in fury. Then, she turned to Sea Hawk. “Let me get this straight, you steered us into a giant sea serpent so you could, what, show off?”

“That was the plan, until your feline friend there stole my thunder! ” he replied.

“Unbelievable! We’re trying to save the world and all you care about is whether we’re impressed with you!? I need this mission to go right, or my mom will never give me another! You know what, just get us to Salineas. You’ve wasted enough of our time!” She shrieked.

/////

“Hey, Adora, we’re coming up to the Salineas Sea Gate. Let's make a plan!” Scorpia spoke through the radio.

“Plan is pretty simple. As soon as we’re in range, fire all cannons at that gate, if Mermista wants a piece of us, we’ll give it to her.” 

“Uh… Okay!” Scorpia responded.

/////

The crew hopped off of the Dragon’s Daughter Three, to find a very empty Salineas. “Where is everybody?” Bow asked.

“Very odd indeed.” Sea Hawk confirmed. “Usually there’s at least two guards hassling me about not burning another boat by now.”

“Halt! Halt! Halt, I say!” A guard called from a distance, as he ran to intercept the group. After he arrived at the boat, he stopped to pant for a minute and catch his breath before questioning them. “What is your business in Salineas?” he asked.

“We’ve come to speak with Princess Mermista…”

“Tell her Sea Hawk is with them! She’ll be excited to see me.” Sea Hawk declared. The guard led them up to Mermista’s throne room. 

The second she spotted a Sea Hawk, she groaned. “Damn it, Sea Hawk, how many times do I have to tell you? You’re banned from my castle!”

“I thought you said she liked you.” Bow interrogated.

“We have a rich and complicated past.” Sea Hawk informed them.

“If by that you mean getting us kicked out of the Dolphin Social for challenging the doorman to a duel.” Mermista seethed.

Sea Hawk plopped himself into Mermista’s lap, knocking her trident to the floor, and said, “I don’t recall doing that.”

“How about setting our gondola on fire in the Tunnel of Love?”

Sea Hawk blushed furiously. “That, I do recall.”

“Uh-huh.” Mermista grunted, before shoving Sea Hawk off her lap and onto the ground. “And who are you?” She asked, turning her attention to the Best Friend Squad.

Glimmer spoke first. “I am Glimmer of Bright Moon. We haven’t met, but our parents fought together in the Rebellion!”

“Oh yeah, I heard about the old Princess Alliance. My dad said it was a total shit show.” Mermista cursed.

“I didn’t think it was possible, but your beauty grows greater with each passing day!” Sea Hawk interrupted.

“Would you quit it? I’m trying to speak with my new friend, Twinkle.” Mermista said.

“For fuck sake, my name is Glimmer! Why can’t anyone ever get it right!?” Glimmer moaned. Catra just laughed heartily.

“Butler, can you bring us some hors d'oeuvres?” Mermista ordered.

“Oh, hors d'oeuvres!” Sea Hawk exclaimed excitedly.

“For everyone except Sea Hawk!” Mermista added.

“Your guard is also your butler?” Bow asked.

“I’m a little understaffed right now. Everyone fled because the gate is falling apart or whatever.” Mermista groaned.

“What!?” Bow, Glimmer, and Catra all shouted at the same time.

“Yeah, I know, right? Figures I’d inherit a crumbling kingdom. It’s totally fine, I’m handling it, I guess. It’s inconvenient that the Horde won’t stop attacking us, though.”

“Why is the gate falling apart?” Glimmer asked.

“I mean, who knows? But it’s getting weaker every day. If the Horde attacks again, we’re pretty much dead.”

“The Horde is the reason we’re here! We want to rebuild the Princess Alliance and end this war once and for all!” Glimmer explained.

“Sure, because that went so well the first time.” Mermista said sarcastically, chuckling. “Why should I help Bright Moon? It’s not like they’ve ever done anything to help us.”

“Mermista, If I may?” Sea Hawk interrupted again.

“No! No more talking, Sea Hawk! Or shantying, for that matter!”

“This is First Ones’ writing.” Catra mentioned, looking at some mural on the far wall of the chamber.

“Who is she, again? What is she doing?” Mermista inquired.

“That’s Catra. She has a magic sword.” Bow explained.

Glimmer ran over to Catra. “What’s it say?” Glimmer asked.

“I dunno, it’s something about the gate, obviously. It looks like the gate gets its power from the Salinean runestone. Maybe the gate is failing because it is losing its connection to the power source?” Catra thought out loud.

“You think you can fix it?”

“I can try . No promises.” Catra muttered.

Glimmer turned and started walking back toward Mermista. “Look, simply put, you need our help and we need yours. If Catra can repair your gate will you consider joining us? Please?”

Mermista groaned. “I don’t know. I guess. But he has to leave.” She stated, pointing at Sea Hawk.

“But, where am I supposed to go?” Sea Hawk asked, his voice faltering.

“How about you wait with the boat, buddy? We’ll take care of the boat.” Bow spoke kindly, leading Sea Hawk out of the room. 

Everyone but Sea Hawk climbed the rock stairs to the center of the gate. “I really hope you know what you’re doing, Whiskers.” Mermista stated.

“Yep. I have totally got this. For the honor of Grayskull!” Catra shouted, sword held high. In a flash of light, she was She-Ra. 

“Wow. Okay. That’s… different.” Mermista muttered, a major blush forming on her face as she stared at She-Ra’s sweltering beauty. 

Catra held the sword pointed at the symbol on the gate, and focused. The gemstone on her sword began to glow and her eyes glowed the same electric blue.

“Is it working?” Bow asked, much too close for Catra’s comfort, causing her to lose focus.

“Bow, I’m really gonna need you to shut up. This is not as easy as I make it look.” Catra grunted, before moving her sword back into place and focusing once more. The gate began glowing, and the electric blue light began to spread across the gate. 

Glimmer noticed Sea Hawk untying the ship from the dock. “Hang on…” Glimmer groaned, and teleported away.

When she reappeared on the boat, Sea Hawk shrieked. “I’d really appreciate it if you’d stop doing that!” he whined.

“Where are you going?” Glimmer retorted.

“Away, for all I ever do is get in the way. It’s for the best, you see? It wasn’t always like this. Where I’m from, I had friends, a crew. Every day was an adventure more daring than the last. The fact that I kept setting my boats on fire was considered charming. But here, I can’t get anyone to take me seriously.”

“Well, I know a little something about that. No one takes me seriously either.”

“You? But you’re a Princess!”

“My powers are sparkles, ” Glimmer stated, generating some sparkles from her hands to add effect. 

“Glitter…”

“Glimmer.” She corrected him.

“We’ve just met, but I can tell you are a brave and powerful soul. Anyone who’d underestimate you would live to sorely regret it.”

“Thanks, Sea Hawk. You know what? You still have friends and a crew. Reporting for duty, Captain!” Glimmer explained, before saluting.

Back at the gate, Bow was looking around and suddenly froze. “Uh… Catra? It’s the Horde!”

“What?” Glimmer shrieked from below. Both ships opened fire with their blasters, ripping holes in the gate, and causing it to shock Catra.

Adora, who had been looking through a scope, chuckled darkly. “Rogelio! Keep us going full speed, I’ve got an important side mission to attend to.” She yelled before leaping into the water and swimming toward the rock stairs.

As soon as Catra recovered from the shock, she commanded, “I just need a little more time! Keep ‘em busy!” 

Mermista leapt from the rock perch, letting her legs transform into a fish-like tail on her way down before she splashed into the water. Bow jumped next, using a grappling arrow he had built to swing himself onto one of the ships.He dragged his bow down the sail as he landed, cutting it in half. He shot an arrow pinning Kyle’s shirt to the wall, and easily parried a stun baton swing from Lonnie, before swinging his bow again causing Lonnie to duck. Mermista sent a wave crashing into the boat, knocking Lonnie over, giving Bow the opportunity to grab her legs and sling her crashing into Kyle, who had just gotten himself free. As they collided, a stream of water launched onto the ship and swept the two Horde soldiers into the seas below. Bow leaned over the railing to wave a thank you to Mermista, but was picked up and thrown off of the boat by Rogelio. On the other ship, Scorpia kept her soldiers firing at the gate. Bow crashed into the water, and began swimming for land. 

“Nothing’s slowing them down, what do we do?” Sea Hawk asked Glimmer, his boat escaping Salineas into the wider seas through a small opening.

“I have an idea, but no one can tell my mom. Sea Hawk, do what you do best.” Glimmer stated.

“What’s that?” He asked.

“Set your boat on fire!” she commanded.

“Yes!” He squealed. 

Meanwhile, Mermista capsized Rogelio’s boat with an epic wave, leaving him to jump ship and swim to where Lonnie and Kyle were holding onto a lifeboat, leaving Scorpia’s ship.

Back on the rocky perch, another hit to the gate sent a shock through Catra, as she desperately held on to her sword and the focus of healing the gate. Then, she heard Adora’s boastful laughing approach her from behind.

“Wow. You even painted your visor golden.”

“Adora, how did you find me?”

“What, you thought you could desert the Horde and get away with it? I pegged you as smarter than that.”

“So, what, you’re gonna insult me until I decide to join you?”

“I don’t think Shadow Weaver is planning on giving you a choice. But, to answer your question more thoroughly, yeah. Something like that.” Adora whispered, before pulling a knife from her boot and slashing at Catra, who blocked the attack with one of her arm guards. “Hasn’t this little identity crisis of yours gone on long enough? I miss you, Catra.” Adora spoke.

“I told you before, Adora, I’m not going back! Shadow Weaver will kill me!”

“And give the sword to its rightful owner ?” Adora teased. Suddenly, Catra wasn’t in Salineas anymore. She was in the tower she had stumbled into with Bow and Glimmer. The mural was of a blonde, human She-Ra. Catra shook herself back to reality, and Adora was now standing in front of her, instead of behind. Adora chuckled. “There she is…”

Catra glared at Adora. “It’s not too late, Adora, you can still come with me. Forget Shadow Weaver and the Horde. We can be together, and actually help Etheria.”

Adora laughed again. “And you call me brainwashed.” She grunted, before punching Catra in the stomach, causing her to fall to one knee. She kept her sword pointed at the gate, doing her best to heal it between shocks from the piercings of the Horde cannons and attacks from Adora. Adora rested her knife at Catra’s throat. “This is what you left me for? Dress up games and a light show? Where are your new friends? Oh, that’s right. Nowhere to be seen. Face it, Catra, you’ve never been as strong as me.” Adora whispered into her ear. Then, a spout of water rushed onto the platform and knocked Adora hurtling into the seas below. Catra looked to her side to see Mermista waving at her from the water below. She hopped onto the platform.

“Thanks.” Catra said.

“Yeah, whatever, don’t mention it.” Mermista replied, again blushing furiously. 

Scorpia’s ship was almost at the gate, before a smaller boat, the Dragon’s Daughter Three rushed in front of it and sped towards a head-on collision with the remaining Horde vessel. “Adventure!” Glimmer and Sea Hawk screamed before she teleported them to safety. The boat exploded into flames mere seconds after.

“Oh, fiddlesticks.” Scorpia cursed, realizing what was about to happen. She ran for the lifeboats. Seconds later, the boats collided, both of them exploding into one huge wreck. Catra grunted loudly, and finally finished fixing the gate. Scorpia, who had not made it to the lifeboats, paddled over to Adora while holding onto a plank of wood from the Dragon’s Daughter Three, and lifted her out of the water, and onto the plank. Adora stared at Catra and her friends celebrating above them, and seethed. Scorpia swore she saw smoke billowing from her ears.

“What do you know? You actually fixed it.” Mermista told Catra.

“It’s… beautiful.” Catra responded, not taking her eyes off the Gate. 

Mermista turned to Sea Hawk. “I suppose you’re gonna need a new ship, huh. You can have one of mine, if you promise not to set it on fire.”

“You know I can’t do that!” Sea Hawk squealed, running over to the newly prepared ship.

“So… about you joining…” Glimmer interjected.

“Yeah, I’m in.” Mermista answered.

“Really?”

“Yeah, I want to help. Plus Whiskers over there can turn into a seven foot tall goddess with a sword and I want her on my side.”

Chapter Text

A woman with long purple hair that had the capability to move and grab things as if it were an extra set of arms worked in her lab, with a small piece of tech. “Log. Day 103. 104? No, definitely 103.” She spoke into her recorder. “First Ones artifact number 58 has yielded a treasure trove of intact code. If I can successfully translate it, it could hold the secrets of the First Ones!” As she went on with her ramblings, she failed to notice the green three-pointed star turn red. Suddenly, red tendons spread across the room infecting every other piece of tech it touched, causing Entrapta to realize what had happened. A shockwave was emitted from the castle, setting off the distress beacon. “Fascinating! My robots seem to be responding to the code. Could this be my first step towards making ancient and modern technology truly compatible?” Then, she barely dodged a trash can that her butler robot threw at her. “Edit to log, I am now going to run.”

/////

“Princess Entrapta would be a total catch for the Rebellion!” Glimmer exclaimed, the Best Friend Squad walking along the ridge of a cliff, on their way to Dryl.

“How so?” Catra inquired.

“She is a brilliant inventor! She makes robots and rehabs old First Ones tech. She’s a big deal in the Etherian makers community. Of which, I am a part of.” Bow explained. He pulled out one of his arrows. “You know, ‘cause gadget arrows.” He said, as the arrow exploded into a mess of confetti.

“Translation for those of us who aren’t nerds?” Catra asked.

“If she joins the Rebellion we’ll finally have tech that can stand up to the Horde’s! She’ll make all sorts of cool weapons and gadgets for us!” Glimmer re-explained.

“Y’all wanna see my new gadget arrow?” Bow squealed. Before giving them a chance to answer, he pulled it out of his bag and announced, “Sonic Arrow!”

Glimmer cackled. “When will we ever need a sonic arrow? When we have to wake up really early?”

“Or maybe if we get separated in a crowd?” Catra continued the teasing. Catra and Glimmer laughed and continued walking.

“I bet Entrapta will like my arrows.” Bow muttered, before following behind. 

A couple minutes later, their path was blocked. “Must have been a rockslide. Any loud sound could cause another slide. We need to be as quiet as–” Bow explained. 

“For the honor of Grayskull!” Catra yelled, cutting him off. She transformed and ran at the pile of rocks with her sword, slashing through it. “What do you know? I’m actually getting the hang of this!”

“That was incredibly dangerous! She-Ra could have caused an avalanche!”

“But she didn’t, Bow, it’s fine!” Catra retorted.

“You can’t just bust through everything with magic!” Bow argued.

They stopped arguing as lightning struck the top of the castle, scaring Catra. “Whoa, she’s got lightning!” Bow squealed.

“Uh… Bow? Something’s wrong, the distress beacon is lit.” Glimmer mentioned.

“There’s been no reports of the Horde in this area.” Catra stated.

“Let’s go investigate!” Glimmer called as she teleported in. Catra ran after her. 

“Wait, be careful!” Bow called after them as he ran to catch up. Bow accidentally kicked a boulder, opening a trapdoor that led into a spike pit. He tiptoed around the edge of it. Inside Dryl, Glimmer and She-Ra stood in the middle of the courtyard, surprised by the lack of people or machines or anything. Catra felt some sort of ringing headache come on.

“You ok, Cat?” Glimmer asked.

“Yeah, I think so. This place feels… off.” she replied. Suddenly, a door closed causing Catra and Glimmer to gasp. “Who’s there?” Catra called. All of her fur was now standing up, her ears flattened.

“Hello? Princess Entrapta? We’re here to recruit you for the Rebellion!” Glimmer yelled. She felt a tingling on her leg, and looked down in horror. There was only a robot hand that looked to be left as scrap. She picked it up, only for it to start moving and grab her wrist. She screeched and began flinging her arm, and stomping it into the ground once it was off. Bow finally caught up to the girls, heavily panting. 

“We need to… be extra careful. Entrapta… has traps set up… all over the castle.” He managed between breaths. 

Suddenly, a loud thud sounded through. A sewer grate popped open. “They’re coming! Get out of the square!” A voice called from underneath before it closed again. 

“Who’s coming? The Horde?” Catra called into the grate. 

“Hello? Come back!” Glimmer called. More crashing sounded, getting closer. “I think we should move away from whatever is making that sound.” Glimmer stated. Catra led them into an alleyway, only for their path to be blocked by a robot limping towards them, having lost its foot. It roared and charged at them, before being sliced up by She-Ra’s sword. Bow kneeled down to the pieces. 

“It looks like one of Entrapta’s designs. Why would it attack us?” He thought aloud. When he turned around, Catra and Glimmer were already at the main door of the castle. He noticed Glimmer was about to knock. “Wait, no! It could be a trap!” He called, too late as Glimmer’s fist hit the door, a trapdoor opened beneath them. “Catra! Glimmer!” He called, running over, before being grabbed from behind.

/////

Glimmer and Catra fell down a long metal pipe, bumping into the sides of it at every turn, before it eventually deposited them into a holding cell. Glimmer landed first with a belly flop, and then Catra, still in She-Ra form landed on top of her, squeezing any air in Glimmer’s body out.

“Fuck.” Catra muttered, helping Glimmer to her feet.

“Bow! He’s all alone with those things! He needs us!” Glimmer yelled, as soon as she was able to regain her breath.

“We have to get out of here, first.” Catra stated.

“Come on, I’ll teleport us out.” Glimmer commanded. She teleported, and they were in a miniature hallway, so cramped they had to lay down to fit. 

“This isn’t out.” Catra teased. Glimmer groaned and teleported again. This time, they were on the edge of the castle, on the edge of the cliff, overlooking a drop that would definitely kill even She-Ra if they were to fall. They both screamed, and Glimmer teleported again. This time, they were in a normal size hallway. “No more teleporting!” Catra screamed, her fur standing more than it ever had before.

“Sounds good!” Glimmer yelled back, despite being on She-Ra’s shoulders. A ventilation grate in the distance fell to the ground, causing Glimmer and Catra to swivel around. A large figure crawled out of the vents, sporting glowing red eyes. As it grew near, Glimmer and Catra readied their battle stances.

“Princesses! I’m saved!” The figure cheered. She walked into the light, and took off her mask. The large tendrils they had seen had really been this person’s purple hair.

“Princess Entrapta? It’s nice to meet you!” Glimmer said. “I hope you don’t mind, but we kind of let ourselves in.”

“And let ourselves of your door to holding cell trap.” Catra muttered, earning an elbow from Glimmer.

“Welcome to Dryl!” Entrapta announced. “Things are usually really fun around here, right now it’s all kind of deadly.”

/////

“Let me go!” Bow yelled.

“Please keep your voice down, sir. The robots respond to sound.” One of his captors explained. Bow opened his eyes to three faces peering down at him. 

“We’re just trying to help you.” the bigger one with mint green hair stated.

“Oh, thank you. What is going on?” Bow whispered. “Why are the robots attacking people?”

“We don’t know! We’re just the kitchen staff!” The smaller one with blue hair explained. 

The lady with the mint green hair leaned down to Bow. “Miniature cupcake? Entrapta only eats tiny food.” 

The man rested a bottle on Bow’s chest. “And delicious fizzy beverages.” he added.

“Uh… Thank you?” Bow whispered back.

“You’ll be safe in here with us! We have enough food to last for months. It’s tiny, but still!” The lady with mint green hair explained.

“No, I can’t stay. My friends are out there, fighting the bots, and I need to go help them!”

“Do you have powers?” The smaller one asked.

“No, I don’t need powers, all you need to do to be a soldier of the Rebellion is be brave!” Bow exclaimed, in an attempt to inspire these people. Suddenly, a device in Bow’s bag began making noise. 

“Sir! Please quiet your device there!” 

“It’s a tracker pad, it detects magic energy signatures! It’ll help me find my friends.” Bow explained, as he watched some dots get closer to him.

“Are those dot thingies your friends?” The tall one asked. Robots began pounding on the door and screeching mechanically.

“Gonna go with no.” Bow answered, readying his bow.

/////

“You’re lucky I found you! I designed this castle as a labyrinth!” Entrapta stated, leading Glimmer and Catra through the halls. “I’m the only one who can navigate it!”

“So you can help us find our friend?” Glimmer asked.

“Absolutely!” Entrapta responded.

Catra pointed to a painting on the wall. “Is she sure about that?” Catra muttered snarkily.

“Hey, Entrapta, I think we passed this cat picture already!” Glimmer called.

“Oh, isn’t it adorable? Just like your feline friend, there.”

“My name’s Catra.”

“Even cuter!” Entrapta yelled. 

“I am not cute!” Catra yelled back.

“Oh shoot. Well, we may be lost. Usually I have an electronic map to help guide me but like my bots, it's sort of evil right now.”

“About that…”

“Why did you invent killer robots?” Catra inquiried.

“You're abnormally tall. Oh, I like your sword! Is it First Ones tech? Can I touch it?” Entrapta rambled. Catra simply hissed at her to get her to back off.

“Ahem! About the killer robots?” Glimmer interrupted.

“They didn’t start that way. Usually they’re super useful! They do everything for me. Cleaning, bringing food, basic hygiene.” Entrapta explained. Glimmer and Catra cringed and looked at each other when they heard ‘basic hygiene’ on that list. ‘ That explains the smell’ Catra thought. “Oh, and they’re sound-activated! Here, I’ll show you!” Entrapta continued. She began to clap.

“Could we maybe, not do that? You know, because they’re trying to kill us?” Glimmer seethed.

“Oh yeah! Oops, I forgot.” Entrapta stated. Then, one of her cleaning robots found its way into the hallway. It had giant rotating dusters everywhere. It turned and charged at them. Luckily, there was a metal bar overhead that stopped the giant hall cleaner in its tracks. It roared, causing Catra to double over with another ringing headache.

“It’s trying to communicate!” Entrapta squealed.

“Make it stop!” Catra wailed, still on the floor, covering her ears.

“Make what stop?” Glimmer asked, kneeling down and hugging her.

Entrapta, meanwhile, ran over to the stuck bot and spoke into her recorder. “Bot 329 is attempting to communicate.” Then, the bot finally broke through the metal bar, and the force of doing so sent Entrapta tumbling, and her hair got caught and sucked into the giant feathery dusters. “Oh, no! BAd bot!” She screamed, realizing how much danger she had gotten herself into. “Princess!”

Catra got up and charged the bot, jumping and stabbing into its red glowing gem. Red veins spread onto She-Ra’s swords, and then onto her arms. The bot slowed to a halt, and Entrapta fell to the floor, safe. Glimmer made sure she was okay, but then they both realized She-Ra was going berserk on the bot, smashing it more and more with her sword.

“She-Ra! Stop!” Glimmer called. She noticed that both of Catra’s eyes were now red, and so was the gem in the sword. Glimmer ripped the sword from She-Ra’s hands, and Catra transformed back to normal, and passed out.

/////

Bow had, with the help of Entrapta’s staff, set up a trap for the bots. He had Soda Pop standing by the fireplace, and a rope tied to one of his arrows. He had Baker open the door, and as the bots charged at Soda Pop, Bow shot the arrow, and Soda Pop dodged out of the way. The robots hit the rope, tripping them into the fireplace, causing them to explode. Another bot was easily taken down with an arrow through the head, but Bow only had one arrow left, the sonic arrow. The last bot was growing near Baker, and as she backed away, Soda Pop yelled, “Just shoot it!”

“I can’t, it’s a sonic arrow, it’ll draw more bots!”

Then, Busgirl, who had been hiding in a cabinet, flung the door open, smashing the robot’s face. “Is it over?” she asked. Then, she realized she had just saved Baker. “I did that? Hey, I did that!”

“Nice work! Now, let’s find my friends!” Bow commanded, and the four went for the castle.

/////

“Catra! Catra, wake up!” Glimmer yelled, shaking the unconscious Magicat. 

“She seems to be infected, as she is slightly less tall. How does it work?” Entrapta asked.

“It? She is my friend, not a machine! And what do you mean, infected?” Glimmer hissed.

“It’s a fascinating story, actually. I’ve been experimenting with a disc,” Entrapta explained, her hair forming the shape to better Glimmer’s understanding of what she was talking about. “It was recovered from a mine. It was a game changer! It had more complete First Ones code than anything I’d ever seen before! However, it seems to have reacted with the First Ones tech that powers my bots. It infected them with some sort of virus.”

“Why would that make She-Ra sick?” Glimmer asked.

“I’d have to take her apart to be sure.” Entrapta stated, pulling out a knife. Glimmer glared at her and hugged Catra closer. “But, since her sword is First Ones tech, it must have spread through that.” Entrapta continued, pointing at the sword with the red gem and red veins growing from it.

“First, you’re not taking her apart. She is a person!” Glimmer screamed, taking the knife from Entrapta. “Second, if we destroy the disk, will that turn off the bots and stop the virus?”

“Destroy it!? But the experiment isn’t complete!” 

“I think we can safely say the experiment is a failure!” Glimmer countered.

“But what if it’s not? No you’re right, it’s a failure.” Entrapta conceded, bowing her head shamefully. Then, they noticed Catra opening her mismatched eyes.

“Meow.” 

“Did you just meow?” Glimmer asked incredulously.

Catra opted to spring to her feet, all four of them, and take of running. 

“Come back!” Glimmer exclaimed.

She ran after Catra and dragged Entrapta along. After a few minutes, they caught up with Catra, who was snoozing cuddled up into a ball right in front of Entrapta's lab. "Perfect, she led us... I mean we are here and were never lost." Entrapta announced, earning an eye-roll from Glimmer. Entrapta punched in the code to open the door, but then it sent an electric shock through Entrapta. Glimmer reached out to touch Catra, but Catra hissed and batted her away. “Wow, the door is infected too! It won’t let us in!” Entrapta exclaimed, after recovering from the nasty electric shock. Electricity still rippled through her hair as she continued, “That is so smart! And awful. We’re all gonna die.”

“It’s okay, I’ve got this one. I’ll just teleport into the lab.”

“Teleportation? How does that work? Tell me everything!”

“Sure, maybe later, when we’re not facing a robot uprising?”

“It’s a date!” Entrapta squealed. Glimmer just scoffed and gently backed away from Catra.

“I’ll be back.” Glimmer whispered. Glimmer teleported into the lab, and Entrapta managed to catch some of the sparkles Glimmer generates when she uses magic in a small vial. The robots’ roaring and Glimmer’s screams could be heard on the other side of the door, as well as a lot of crashing and thudding. Glimmer teleported back out of the room, her hair and cape thrashed, and she panted for a moment. “Not such a great plan; the lab is very full of robots.” She muttered.

“How did they look?” Entrapta questioned curiously.

“Evil. I couldn’t get anywhere near the disc.” Then, a robot appeared from the hallway, eliciting a scream from Glimmer and Entrapta. Catra was still asleep.

/////

At the same time, Bow and the Kitchen staff screamed as a robot blocked their path. Bubbles began spilling from its mouth. “Aww, it’s kind of cute.” Bow cooed, before being grabbed by the bot. “Uh, guys? A little help?” Bow asked as the bot pinned him to the wall. Busgirl threw a serving platter like it was a frisbee, and it cut the robot’s head off. Then, Bow’s tracker pad beeped, causing the kitchen staff to scream again.

“Don’t say it's more bots.”

“No, it’s Glimmer teleporting! I know where Glimmer and Catra are! Uh-oh, that’s not good.” He mentioned, as he noticed the thousand other dots that were surrounding Glimmer’s dot. “We have to save them.”

“No, sir! No thank you!” Busgirl shouted.

“It’s one thing to fight them off out of necessity, but to seek out danger? It’s madness!” Soda Pop yelled, throwing his hands up and accidentally slapping Baker. “Pardon me.” He muttered to Baker when he realized.

“Look, they’re princesses, they have powers. I make baked goods!” Baker explained.

“Sure, we don’t have powers like the Princesses do, but that never stopped me before. And it doesn’t have to stop you.”

“You’re a master archer, we’re ordinary folk.”

“I’m a master archer who is out of arrows. That never stopped me before either. You each have a skill that only you can do, even if it doesn’t come from some magic jewel! You say you’re ordinary people? I say you’re warriors of the Rebellion!” Bow announced.

“To the rebellion!” The kitchen staff agreed.

/////

Glimmer and Entrapta ran as fast as they could, dragging Catra along as they went. More and more bots showed up everywhere they ran. 

“Incredible development. The bots seem to be working together.” Entrapta spoke into her recorder.

“Right now, that’s a bad thing!” Glimmer yelled. “We need to find another way into the lab.”

“The air duct! We can use that.” Entrapta thought brilliantly, before they realized they were surrounded by bots, nowhere left to go.

Suddenly, the entire hallway became clouded with smoke, and Bow and the kitchen staff ran in, taking down bots. “It’s Bow!” Glimmer cheered.

Catra meowed and continued to struggle to try and get herself out of Glimmer's grasp.

Soda Pop popped open one of his bottles, the liquid instantly short circuiting a bot. He then used the bottle to knock out another bot by smashing it over the bot’s head. Together, the group made quick work of most of the bots. “Bow! You’re okay! I was so worried.” Glimmer squealed, dropping Catra and running up to hug Bow.

“Big fan of your work, Princess Entrapta.” He stated, bowing. “Maybe not this work, but you other work.”

She chuckled and blushed. “Hi.” She reached out and shook his hand with her hair tendril.

Catra meowed indignantly from being dropped on the floor and began licking the fur on her arm. Unbeknownst to Bow and Glimmer, this was also something Catra usually did, but never in front of others. With one exception, that is.

“Is… Is she okay?” Bow asked.

“No. Entrapta was experimenting with First Ones tech and infected all her machines with some sort of virus. She-Ra’s sword got infected and made Catra all… weird.” Glimmer explained, noticing Catra was now chasing a rat that had wandered by. “I teleported into the lab, but it’s full of bots. Maybe with She-Ra or even regular Catra, we would have a chance but without her it's hopeless!”

“We don’t need She-Ra! We can do this together!” Bow announced.

/////

“Hey, on the bright side, everyone from your boat survived!” Scorpia said, trying to cheer Adora up.

“Despite the miracle that those three numbskulls managed to survive, Hordak is going to kill me, if Shadow Weaver doesn’t try to kill me first!” Adora hissed. They were in Scorpia’s room in the Force Captain’s quarters, having just made it back to the Fright Zone. Scorpia put on some dry clothes, but Adora was too scared to go back to her room. She felt like Shadow Weaver was definitely waiting for her there.

“I mean, hey, maybe Hordak was just testing you. Not many have made it home from an attack on Salineas, but you managed to recover your whole squad! Maybe he didn’t expect victory, and he will be satisfied that you accomplished what you did.” Scorpia continued.

Adora sighed, and sat down, leaning against the wall of Scorpia’s room. “Yeah, maybe.”

/////

The squad snuck through the vent system into Entrapta’s lab, hiding behind a pile of boxes. Glimmer held Catra close, one hand over her mouth to stop her from alerting the bots in her current state. “What’s the plan?” She whispered.

“We need to get to the disc. Entrapta, what’s it look like?” Bow whispered back.

“How fascinating! It has grown vein-like organs to defend itself and reach more technology!” She squealed, as quietly as she could.

Glimmer stood to look, without realizing she had just let Catra go. She sprang out onto the main floor and started clawing the bots. The bots that weren't immediately dismantled or torn up rushed towards her. Glimmer teleported and grabbed Catra, before teleporting her onto one of the box piles. She stuck her tongue out at the bots. Bow, however, had an idea. 

“I hope this works…” he muttered, as he retrieved his only remaining arrow. The sonic arrow. He waited for the exact right time. He shot it, the arrow narrowly weaving between the bots, landing on the disc. It exploded with sound, turning all the bots off, and leaving a shattered disc. Entrapta pouted, losing the First Ones tech.

“What… What happened?” Catra asked, coming out of the disc’s trance.

“Everything’s okay now, we stopped the bots.” Bow explained, pulling the disoriented magicat into a hug. Glimmer joined in too. 

“I’d be honored to join your Rebellion, by the way.” Entrapta mentioned, before starting her work on repairing her bots.

“Mission success!” Glimmer squealed.

Later, as the Best Friend Squad headed home, Bow felt the need to tease Glimmer. “So, my sonic arrow saved the day! Who could have ever predicted that?”

Glimmer, through gritted teeth, muttered, “You were right.”

“I’m sorry, what was that?” Bow shouted, holding his hand up to his ear like an old man.

“I said, you were right!” Glimmer groaned, while Catra giggled.

/////

Back at the castle, once everyone had left Entrapta’s lab, she began to piece the disk back together. Her experiment failed once, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t try to make some modifications and try again.

Chapter Text

On their way home from Dryl , the Best Friend Squad ended up camping in the Whispering Woods. Sometime in the middle of the night, a familiar voice called Catra’s name. She shot up from where she had been curled up into a ball by Glimmer’s feet, and looked around. She ended up standing guard for the rest of the night, her fur standing up, and her tail thrashing nervously the whole time.

In the morning, Bow woke first. “Hey Glimmer, wake up.” he whispered.

“It’s too early, Bow. I’m going back to bed.” She muttered, her cape draped over her face to shut out the light.

“It’s a beautiful morning…” he reasoned.

“Morning’s canceled.” She replied. After a minute, she sat up, removing the cape from her face, and showing her messy bedhead. “I can feel you staring at me. Why is it that the one who snores is always the first one to fall asleep?”

“What? I don’t snore! Catra, do I snore?” he asked, before realizing she wasn’t there. He and Glimmer looked across the clearing and saw Catra staring into the woods. Glimmer sighed, and teleported them closer to Catra. She teleported too close though, and bumped into Catra, causing her fur to stand up and she swiveled around to face them, pupils narrowed.

“Sorry, too early to teleport.” Glimmer murmured. Catra just slowly looked back out into the forest, not saying a word.

“What are we looking at?” Bow asked, looking in the direction Catra was looking in.

“I don’t know. I heard something over there in the woods last night, I thought I saw something.” Catra spoke.

“What, like a bunny? Maybe a butterfly?” Glimmer teased groggily, making hand motions to identify the animals in case Catra didn’t know what those were due to her Horde upbringing. Again, Catra just diverted her gaze from Glimmer back into the forest, wordlessly. Glimmer’s face shifted from the tired teasing face to a worried expression. She put her hand on Catra’s shoulder, causing her to gasp and flinch.

“Catra, did you get any sleep last night?”

“Someone has to stand guard!” Catra replied.

“Look, I know you’re on edge after what happened in Dryl, but it’s over now. Everything’s okay. You need to relax, let’s go on vacation! We’re going to Mystacor!” Glimme announced.

“Mystacor!? No way!” Bow exclaimed.

“Wait, what’s Mystacor?” Catra asked.

“It’s a secret floating kingdom that’s home to all of Etheria’s sorcerers. It’s got tranquil gardens, beautiful beaches, and healing springs. My Aunt Castaspella just so happens to be head sorceress there!” Glimmer explained.

“Plus, you won’t have to worry about evil things in the woods! Mystacor is protected by an invisibility spell, so evil can’t find it!” Bow continued.

“It’s the safest and most peaceful place in all of Etheria. We’ll have you relaxing in no time!” Glimmer stated.

“You do know I’ve never relaxed in my life, right?” Catra mentioned.

“We’re about to change that!” Bow exclaimed. Unbeknownst to the group of friends, one of Shadow Weaver’s spies had been watching the whole time.

/////

Adora walked into the Black Garnet Chamber. Shadow Weaver’s hands were on the great stone, red electricity flowing from it into her arms and body. “Shadow Weaver. You wanted to see me?”

“Ah. Force Captain. How kind of you to join me.” Shadow Weaver responded in that sickly fake sweet voice.

“Why am I here?” Adora asked.

“My shadow spies have found Catra. She’s on her way to Mystacor with her new friends. Mystacor. They are making this too easy.”

Adora groaned. “Another Catra mission. Fine, when do I leave?”

“The only place you are going is outside this room. Using my magic, I will be going after Catra myself. You have failed enough times. Your job is only to make sure I am not disturbed. Now go.” Shadow weaver growled. Adora narrowed her glance. “I said go!” Shadow Weaver shouted. Adora dashed out of the room. She peeked back into the room though. Shadow Weaver raised her hands, red electricity flowing between them. “From the farthest regions of Etheria, I command you, be as one!” she yelled, shadows dashing towards her from every direction. They formed into a hideous beast, which screeched. Adora’s jaw dropped. Shadow Weaver turned around, and upon seeing Adora, she shut the door.

/////

“We’re here!” Glimmer announced.

“We’re on a cliff overlooking a fall to our deaths.” Catra responded.

“Not for long.” Glimmer replied, before she and Bow chuckled and jumped off of the cliff, quickly falling beneath the clouds.

“Guys!?” Catra shouted. Then, she saw Bow and Glimmer standing on some grassy rock surface, which was floating back up.

“Come on, Catra, jump!” Bow called. Catra bounded on all fours, picking up speed as quick as she could before launching herself towards the floating rock. She looked down, and noticed a shadow underneath flying towards the rock. She screamed, and for once did not land on her feet. “Ouch.” Bow commented, wincing. “You okay, Catra?”

She stood slowly, and dusted herself off. “I’m fine. I thought I saw… I think I’m just stressed.”

“Hang in there, Catra. Next stop, Mystacor.” Glimmer stated, putting her hand on Catra’s shoulder. A couple minutes later, they arrived in Mystacor.

“We rode a flying mountain through the clouds. It never gets old!” Bow exclaimed.

“Just so you know, my Aunt Casta can be a lot. But don’t worry, I know how to handle her.” Glimmer mentioned.

“Is that my Glimmer?” a woman shouted, running over towards the group, arms spread ready for a hug.

“Hi, Aunt Casta.” Glimmer responded, before Casta pulled her into a hug.

“It’s been so long since you’ve come to visit. And Bow.” she walked over, squeezing him into a hug next, causing him to grunt. “And who’s this?” Casta asked, turning to Catra.

“This is my friend Catra! She can also turn into a seven and a half foot tall warrior named She-Ra.” 

“She-Ra?” Casta repeated, bowing slightly. “It is an honor. Although, I am surprised to see a Magicat. It was foretold that She-Ra was human.” Catra flinched. “Apologies, how rude of me.” She said, recognizing Catra’s reaction. “It is truly nice that Glimmer is making friends. Especially when her new friend is someone foretold by legend! We were all so pleased when she started bringing Bow around, we were sure she’d made him up at first!” Casta laughed. Glimmer cleared her throat. Casta turned to Glimmer. “Have you done something to your hair?”

“What? Oh, yes, I cut it!”

“I see that. I also see you’re not wearing the sweater I knitted for you.”

“It’s way too warm to be wearing sweaters right now.” Glimmer replied.

“But you’d tell me if you didn’t like it?”

“Of course I would, Aunt Casta.”

“ I’m wearing the sock you sent me.” Bow chimed in.

“I’ve always liked this one.” Casta mentioned. “What brings you all the way out here to visit your aunt? Is it once in a blue moon already?” She asks before breaking into a snobby laugh.

“We’re on a diplomatic mission, Auntie. I’m rebuilding the Princess Alliance.”

“My goodness, then you must be starving. I’ll have a feast prepared. I’m sure your mother hasn’t been feeding you.” She mentioned. Glimmer rolled her eyes. Catra happily took in the sight of sorcerers relaxing and doing spells. 

“Know what? How about you prepare a tour, and me, Bow, and Catra will wait at the beach.” Glimmer asked.

“A splendid idea!” Casta exclaimed, running off. 

Glimmer dragged Catra over to the beach and laid out a towel for her to lay on. “So I just lie here?” Catra asked.

“Yep. Let all your cares melt away. Didn’t you have anything like this in the Horde?”

“No, we hit things.” Catra replied.

“Well, this is so much better! Right, Bow?” Glimmer asked, before realizing that Bow was already dead asleep, and definitely snoring. “Just try it, okay?”

Catra laid on the towel, but started fidgeting, and Glimmer could tell by Catra’s thrashing tail that it wasn’t working. “Bow, wake up!” she yelled. He stirred. “We have to show Catra the Steam Grotto!”

“Yay, Steam Grotto!” He yelled. The trio walked over to the steam grotto, and Catra was given some Mystacor swimwear to change into. She ducked into a separate room to change, and walked back in to find Glimmer and Bow already walking in. Steam radiated from the pools, and Bow immediately jumped into one. Glimmer led Catra into the pool.

“These pools have healing minerals in them. The sorcerers use them to relax before ceremonies. Now, just clear your mind.” Glimmer explained, as she and Catra lowered into the water. Catra winced as she felt the warm water soak into her fur, but she had to admit that this still felt pretty nice. “Breathe deeply. Focus on the warmth in your fur. Let your body go perfectly…” Glimmer trailed off, as both of them fell asleep. Some time later, Catra woke up to Glimmer cuddled up next to her. Shadows formed into the form of Shadow Weaver in front of her. 

“Catra.” Shadow Weaver hissed. Catra screamed and got out of the pool. She ran and grabbed her sword and began waving it around. 

“Help!” Catra yelped.

The mist parted, and Glimmer walked up to Catra. “Catra!”

“Shadow Weaver’s here! I saw her!” Catra yelled between breaths.

“Catra, there’s no one else here.” Glimmer stated calmly.

“You brought your sword in here? Are you okay? What happened?” Bow asked.

“Shadow Weaver was here. In the grotto. I saw her.” 

“What are you talking about? Who is Shadow Weaver?” Glimmer asked.

“Shadow Weaver raised me in the Horde. She taught me how to read, tie my boots, and how to subvert the enemy and be victorious in battle. She also hated me, for some reason.”

“Okay, sure, Mom stuff.” Glimmer paraphrased.

“Commanding officer stuff.” Catra corrected, before relenting, much quieter. “And mom stuff.”

“Catra, she isn’t here. She couldn’t be here, it’s not possible.” Glimmer spoke, softly as she could.

“Then you don’t know what she’s capable of.” Catra replied.

“Sounds like this Shadow Weaver really did a number on you growing up.” Bow murmured. “But you’re okay now, you got away from her. Do you wanna try something else? We could get massages, or find you something to hit if that would work better.”

“Can I just get a moment alone? I need to clear my head.”

“Are you sure?” Glimmer asked. When Catra nodded, Bow and Glimmer walked away.

“Catra has finally lost it. Did you see her in there? I think she’s going nuts!” Glimmer’s voice rang through the Steam Grotto.

Catra stormed out of the room. “I’m not crazy!” She yelled, only to realize Glimmer and Bow weren’t there. “I’m not crazy…” She muttered quietly this time.

She wandered over to the beach, where Casta had been looking for them. “Oh, Catra, there you are! I set up a tour for you!” 

“Oh, thank you.” Catra said.

Casta led her through a hall of stone figures. “These are statues of great sorcerers who led our people through the ages. This one is Micah, my brother. Glimmer looks just like him.”

“Wait, Glimmer’s dad is your brother?” Catra asked.

“Why, that is the meaning of aunt, darling.”

“Oh.” Catra muttered, before her eyes drifted to a statue that had been burned and broken. “Who’s that?”

“A stain on Mystacor’s past. Her name was Light Spinner, she was Micah’s teacher. One of the most powerful sorceresses to ever exist, yet she wanted even more power. She was cast out.” Casta explained.

“Shadow Weaver?” Catra murmured.

“What?”

“Light Spinner… is she still alive?” Catra asked.

“It’s possible, but I doubt it. Who’s Shadow Weaver?”

“She is a powerful sorceress, who raised me in the Horde before I defected.”

“If Light Spinner did join the Horde, it makes sense she would change her name…” Casta trailed off.

“There you are!” Glimmer yelled, “We’ve been looking all over for you, Catra.” 

“I was just being given the tour.” Catra said, shrugging.

Casta seemed to be lost in thought. “You okay, Aunt Casta?” Glimmer asked.

“If what Catra says is true… your Rebellion could be in grave danger.”

“What are you talking about?” Glimmer asked.

“Light Spinner is Shadow Weaver.” Catra paraphrased. Glimmer’s eyes went wide with shock. “Castaspella, is it possible she could be here?”

“You saw her?” Casta screeched.

“I think so.”

“This is bad, I must gather all the sorcerers at once!” Casta yelled before dashing out of the room.

“Guess I’m not crazy after all.” Catra muttered, turning back to Glimmer and Bow.

“It doesn’t matter. You still have no hope of defeating me.” Shadow Weaver growled. Shadows spread from the Light Spinner statue, and as it reached the feet of Glimmer and Bow, they passed out, and seemed to be having some kind of nightmares.

“Wake up, Bow, Glimmer!” Catra wailed, but to no avail. Shadow Weaver chuckled evilly. 

“You always were smarter than I gave you credit for, being able to so easily figure out I used to be Light Spinner.” Shadow Weaver stated.

“What do you want?” Catra hissed.

“Why, to ruin your life, of course. But first, I’ll take Mystacor for the Horde.” Shadow Weaver growled smugly.

Catra charged at the statue, turning into She-Ra and slashing it in two. The shadows reformed into Shadow Weaver’s silhouette down the hall in the main room. Casta ran in but was immediately affected by the same spell Glimmer and Bow were under. “You old hag, I won’t let you take Mystacor.” Catra growled back.

Shadow Weaver laughed. “It’s too late Catra. Without any sorcerers to perform the spell during the ceremony, the invisibility shield will fail. You never were good enough, and you won’t be able to stop me.” She launched shadows at Catra, but her sword transformed into a shield as if it were by instinct. Catra ran and jumped onto a pillar, while Shadow Weaver was distracted, and bounced the light of the eclipse into the pool below, as Casta had been explaining earlier in the tour. As Shadow Weaver began to disappear against the stronger magic, Catra announced, “These are my friends, and I’m sick of your twisted mind games. Eat better magic, Bitch!” 

Back in her chambers, Shadow Weaver collapsed.

Those affected by her spells in Mystacor began to wake up. Catra ran to Bow and Glimmer. “You guys okay?”

“Yeah. Sorry we didn’t believe you about Shadow Weaver…” Glimmer groaned.

“It’s okay. We’re safe now.” Catra whispered, hugging Bow and Glimmer.

Chapter Text

“Even Shadow Weaver failed to get Catra back. I can fix everything if I just take Shadow Weaver’s place. Then, maybe Catra will come back and win the war for the Horde! But to do that, I need to get rid of Shadow Weaver and impress Hordak.” Adora ranted.

“You could try something at the all-princess ball! All Princesses will be there, so Catra will probably be there too! Oh, and this year’s theme is Winter Wonderland.” She stated, while looking at her invite.

“How’d you get that?” Adora asked.

“I’m a princess, remember? It’s part of the Force Captain Orientation!”

“I missed Force Captain Orientation!?” Adora asked. She didn’t wait for Scorpia to answer, though. “Doesn’t matter. Let’s go crash a party.”

“I dunno, I’ve never really gone before… The princesses never liked me, I don’t fit in.” Scorpia murmured.

“Well, I’ll go as your plus one, and we’ll show them what they’re missing, eh? Not like you have a choice, anyways.” Adora stated.

/////

“Glimmer! Bow! I found this scroll next to my door this morning, something about an ‘All-Princess Ball’?” Catra yelled, knocking on Glimmer’s door.

“Princess Prom!” Glimmer squealed, opening the door, as she and Bow danced around the room. “We’re going to Princess Prom, We’re going to Princess Prom!” They chanted.

“That doesn’t answer my question.” Catra muttered.

“It’s a huge party and all the Princesses in Etheria are invited!” Glimmer explained excitedly.

“That’s a lot of rules for a party.” Catra replied.

“Yeah, it’s been a thing for like, hundreds of years, so there’s some old school etiquette stuff you have to do before you can party, but it’ll be fun!”

“So long as I don’t have to wear a dress, I’m in.” Catra stated. Glimmer squealed and hugged her. 

“Perfect! The three of us will have so much fun!” Glimmer exclaimed.

“About that…” Bow tried to interject, but to no avail.

“The Best Friend Squad, partying like never before.” Glimmer continued.

“Glimmer.” Bow spoke.

“The party won’t know what hit them when we arrive.”

“I’m going with Perfuma!” Bow shouted.

“ WHAT!? ” Glimmer shrieked.

“Why is it such a big deal?” Bow asked.

“I’m just… surprised. When did you even talk about this?”

“Mid-battle with the Horde. Kinda slick, actually, if you ask me.” Bow responded.

“Oh, ok.” Glimmer muttered.

“Something wrong, Glimmer?” Bow asked.

“No!” Glimmer replied. Catra, knowing better, elbowed her in the side. “Ow!”

“You don’t want to get elbowed? Say what you really mean.” Catra returned.

“Fine. For the longest time, it was just me and you, Bow. Now, everything’s changing and what if you leave me behind?”

“No one is leaving you behind, Glimmer. In fact, you and Catra can hang out with me and Perfuma all night, if you want. You’re still my best friend.” Bow explained, resting his hand on Glimmer’s shoulder. Glimmer began to cry. “I’m gonna head over to Plumeria, get ready and make sure Perfuma gets there on time. I’ll see you there?”

“Yeah, see you there, Bow.” Glimmer murmured through tears. Bow got up and walked away, smiling at her before he shut the door.

“Any chance there’s a suit in this castle with a tail hole?” Catra whispered.

Glimmer looked up at Catra, who was standing next to her, and smiled. “Makeover time!” Glimmer wailed. Catra’s tail started thrashing, slightly nervous at how quickly Glimmer’s expression changed.

“No makeup, no dresses.” Catra reminded Glimmer.

“I can work with that. I am gonna be brushing your hair though.” Glimmer replied.

“Can I add one more veto?” Catra groaned.

/////

Adora put on a form-fitting black dress, with red heels and eyeliner, as well as a red scrunchie replacing her usual black hair tie. She made Scorpia change a few times, but as soon as Scorpia came out of her room in a black dress that showed off all of Scorpia’s muscles and cleavage, Adora turned red. Scorpia also had red gemstone earrings and four larger gemstones to match on the belt tightening the dress to her waist, all the same shade of red as Scorpia’s pincers. Adora hadn’t felt her face get this hot since… 

/////

Catra ended up caving to Glimmer’s insistence on letting her brush Catra’s mane, and it looked softer and fluffier than usual. Glimmer wore a cute purple dress, one that exposed her shoulders and back, and was about knee length. Catra was given a black suit jacket and pants to match, as well as a golden button-up to go underneath it. She wore her usual golden headpiece as well. She also got a blue tie, to match her right eye. She wasn’t a fan of her hair being brushed, but she still had to admit to herself that she looked amazing that night. Of course, she wouldn’t admit it to Glimmer. 

///// 

By the time Glimmer and Catra had arrived, the party was already pretty packed. Catra did not want to give up her sword, but she knew the rules stated no weapons, so she reluctantly handed it over to the royal guard who looked suspiciously like Kyle from the Horde. Given that he didn’t immediately drop it, Catra figured she must be mistaken. Kyle was too dumb to pull that off. They walked inside, and got in line. Catra bowed and held it for 3 seconds, as stated in the rules. When she looked up at Princess Frosta, who was hosting the ball, she was taken aback by how young she looked. Glimmer quickly led her down the stairs to find their friends. The first people Catra recognized were Entrapta and Mermista. Entrapta was studying social behaviors as if she were on some sort of jungle safari. She was also wearing the exact same outfit as usual, but her shirt was clean for once. Mermista was casually hiding from her plus one. She failed, however, and as Sea Hawk spotted her, he began singing loudly about Mermista’s beauty and how lucky he was to be there with her. 

“He’s just my ride.” Mermista growled, but Catra saw right through the act.

“Whatever you say, Fish Whisperer.” Catra teased.

“I’ll have you know most fish are really interesting to talk to.” Mermista retorted. Upon realizing that Mermista actually could speak to fish, Catra burst into laughter.

Bow and Perfuma walked into the ballroom a couple minutes later, and after doing all the fancy etiquette stuff, they quickly came over to join the group. Perfuma looked gorgeous, her hair was poofy, and not straightened as usual. She wore a pink dress which had flowers on the sleeves, and where it met her neck. Bow, as if he was incapable of wearing anything else, was wearing a crop top, with a suit jacket over it. He had pink flowers attached to it to match with Perfuma. All was well, and Catra was actually starting to have fun, until she spotted Adora. She was immediately speechless, especially with how hot Adora looked. She elbowed Glimmer and pointed. Glimmer’s jaw dropped. 

“What do we do?” Glimmer whispered to the group.

“Well, Scorpia is a princess, and Adora is more than likely her plus one. Under the rules of the ball, they are welcome and there isn’t anything we can do.” Perfuma whispered back. Adora smiled at Catra as they passed the group, and Catra couldn’t help but hiss at her.

“We should keep eyes on them until the ball is over.” Catra growled. The group nodded, and split up. Mermista ended up chasing after Sea Hawk, making sure he couldn’t get his hands on anything he could use to set something on fire, but Bow and Perfuma followed Scorpia, and Glimmer and Catra followed Adora. Adora made a big deal about putting something in a trash can, only for Catra to embarrass herself by knocking it over only to find a note that read “Hey, Catra. Miss me?” Glimmer eventually went to find Bow, leaving Catra to follow Adora alone. Adora went up to the upper level of the room, and approached Entrapta, who was surveying the people below from the railing. Catra dashed up the stairs as fast as she could. 

“Stay away from her!” Catra shouted at Adora, as she approached Entrapta. Adora ignored her, catching Entrapta by the hair before she could fall from the railing.

“You’re right, Adora, the view is much better from up here!” Entrapta exclaimed. 

“Entrapta, she’s from the Horde . You know, the enemy of the Rebellion, of which you are a part of.” Catra stated.

“Oh. And…?” 

Catra groaned. Adora chuckled a bit, before getting close to Catra. She pushed Catra against the wall, and put her hand on the wall, leaning over her. “Someone seems obsessed.” Adora teased.

Catra’s fur could no longer hide her blush, causing Adora to laugh. She scratched Catra behind the ear, a place only Adora knew was sensitive and made Catra purr. Catra couldn’t suppress it, making Adora’s already shit-eating smile grow even wider. “Says the person who came all the way out here to put her hands on me.” Catra fired back.

“Oh, you think that’s the only reason I’m here? How cute.” Adora whispered against Catra’s neck. She backed away from Catra, and began to walk back downstairs. Then, the music started, and it was time for the dancing. Catra had studied the rules of the dance, and was confident enough in her ability. Her first dance partner was, of course, Adora. She kept that shit-eating grin going, especially as she held Catra close, and whispered into her ear, “You did a good job keeping your eyes on me, but what if that was the plan?” Before Catra could respond, Adora spun her to her next partner, who happened to be Perfuma. 

“Perfuma, Adora’s definitely up to something, where’s Bow?” Catra asked frantically.

“He went to get his jacket ten minutes ago…” Perfuma responded, before Catra was flung to her next partner, Sea Hawk.

“Why, if it isn’t the only one who can defeat me in arm wrestling.” he announced.

“Have you seen Bow or Glimmer?” Catra asked, and Sea Hawk understood she was being serious because she wasn’t using nicknames for once.

“No, I don’t think I have. Scorpia went outside though, maybe they followed her?” he answered. He sent her spinning back into a dance with Perfuma.

“Shouldn’t Bow be back by now?” Catra asked.

“Yeah, he should. Glimmer just asked me about him though, and went outside to look for him.” she responded, before finishing the circle by sending Catra back into Adora’s arms. Adora dipped Catra to the ground, and then made a motion as if she was about to kiss the frustrated Magicat, but then whispered, “Maybe you’ll beat me next time, Kitten.” Catra hissed and slashed at Adora’s face with her claws, and she deserved it for calling her that. Blood began to drip down Adora’s face, and that would definitely scar, Catra thought. Before anyone could react, Adora bolted for the door.

Once Catra followed her outside, she noticed Glimmer and Bow, knocked out, and being hauled into a flying machine shaped like a helicopter, as well as Adora holding She-Ra’s sword. Adora waved at Catra as the machine took to the skies, taking Catra’s best friends and her powers far away.

///// 5 minutes earlier

Glimmer went to find Bow, just to check on him. She found Perfuma at the bar, chatting with the bartender. “Where’s Bow?” Glimmer asked.

“Oh, he got cold because of the crop top, so he went to get his sweater.” she answered, and by the way she spoke, less cheerfully than usual, and definitely less clearly, Glimmer knew she had been drinking.

“How about Scorpia?” Glimmer questioned, grabbing the drink from Perfuma’s hands and “dropping” it on the floor “accidentally.”

“Jeez, you don’t have to be so rude about it. She offered to help two of the guards bring some boxes of liquor inside, given how muscular she is.” Perfuma responded.

“And when was the last time you saw either of them?” Glimmer growled.

“Five minutes ago.” Perfuma replied. Glimmer groaned, and went into the main hallway to follow after Bow, seeing if he was outside still getting his jacket, but as soon as the door to the ballroom shut, she was jabbed in the back by something sharp, and she was unconscious within seconds.

/////

Catra turned to go back inside and get help, but Frosta met her at the door. “You have broken the rules of ancient hospitality, and I hereby declare that you are no longer allowed inside this castle.” Frosta seethed.

“But Adora and Scorpia…” Catra started.

“I don’t want to hear it. I have stayed out of your petty little war for a reason .” Frosta roared, before closing the door. Not five seconds after the door closed, explosions rocked the castle. Catra kicked the doors open and ran inside. The first thing she did was help Frosta to her feet.

“Do you see what I mean, now?” Catra muttered. “Can you use your powers to hold this place together while I get people out of here?” Catra asked. Frosta nodded, and brought pillars of ice to hold the ceiling up. 

Catra dashed inside, and checked on her friends. Sea Hawk and Mermista were fine, so they ran themselves. Entrapta was already outside somehow . Catra pulled Perfuma to her feet and threw the flower girl’s arm around her shoulders and carried her out. Most people were helping each other out and the castle was evacuated within a couple minutes. Once everyone was safe, Frosta began working on repairing the damage done by the Horde’s heat bombs.

Chapter Text

“Congratulations, Shadow Weaver, on your work. Word has been sent to the Queen of the Rebellion to surrender herself to the Horde in exchange for her daughter. Dismissed.” Hordak growled through the video transmission to the Black Garnet chamber.

Adora scoffed as soon as they were out of range of Hordak’s hearing. “So, what, I do all the work and you get all the credit?”

“So long as I am your superior, yes.” Shadow Weaver stated smugly.

Glimmer stirred awake at this point.

“Princess Glimmer, you’re awake.” Shadow Weaver said to a half-conscious Glimmer. Glimmer looked around the room. It was dark, and lit with red lighting by the large gemstone in the center of the room. Behind Shadow Weaver, Adora was leaning on the wall.

“Catra will come for me.” Glimmer grunted.

“I hope she does, I’ve been meaning to show her what happens to those who turn against the Horde.” Shadow Weaver expressed, letting her magic flow between her hands for added effect.

“Where’s Bow?” Glimmer questioned.

“Somewhere in our prison. I dunno what happened to him after I handed him off to Kyle.” Adora declared.

“I swear to stars, if you hurt him–” Glimmer started, before being so rudely interrupted.

“Or you’ll what? Sparkle? You aren’t exactly in the position to be making demands, pest.” Shadow Weaver asserted. “Go on, try to teleport.” Glimmer did try to teleport, only for the red magic that was holding her to send a very painful shock down her spine. She screamed. Shadow Weaver chuckled, and Adora left the room. “Now then, let’s see what information about the Rebellion I can extract from you.” Shadow Weaver laughed, her hair sprouted shadows that charged at Glimmer.

/////

Bow woke to find himself in a prison cell. There wasn’t much there. There was a toilet in the corner, and there was a green wall of electricity blocking his view of the rest of the prison. No bed, no blankets, nothing else. He sighed, and sat up against the wall. “Where am I…? Come on, Bow, think! What’s the last thing I remember?” He murmured to himself. It eventually came to him. He had left the ball to get his cummerbund, and was then ambushed by Scorpia. So, he was in the Horde prison. Who else had been captured? Glimmer? Adora? He didn’t know, and that only worried him further.

/////

Catra hissed at the guards blocking the door to the council meeting room, showing her fangs and her claws. They stepped aside, and let her in. “Your Majesty, I am so sorry.” Catra stated upon finding the Queen.

“The Horde has given me an impossible decision. I am to trade my life for my daughter’s. As a leader, I cannot abandon Bright Moon or the Rebellion. As a mother, I have to go.” Queen Angella murmured.

“With all due respect, Your Majesty, that isn’t going to happen. I know the Horde. They will not honor their word, and then they will have captured the Queen of the Rebellion and her daughter.” Catra pointed out.

“But we can get her back.” Perfuma spoke, as she, Mermista, Sea Hawk, and Entrapta walked into the room.

“What are you doing here?” Catra asked.

“We are the Princess Alliance, and the Horde took one of our own.” Mermista responded, smirking.

“I– We won’t let you down, Your Majesty.” Catra stated, turning back to the Queen. The Queen smiled at the Princesses.

“I have a plan,” Catra told her group. “Sea Hawk and I will take out the guards. On my signal, Perfuma and Entrapta will cut the lights, and Mermista will swim through the sewer from the nearby grate to open the door from the inside.”

“I’m sorry, Mermista will fucking what !?” Mermista hissed.

“You’re the only one who can breathe underwater. I’m sorry, but I grew up in the Fright Zone, and this is the only way I know to get in and save Glimmer and Bow.” Catra responded.

Mermista groaned loudly. “Fine. You owe me, big time, Fur Ball.” 

“Deal, Fish Girl.”

/////

“You should know, your mother is on her way here to surrender herself to us in exchange for your freedom.” Shadow Weaver taunted.

Glimmer spat in her direction. “The Rebellion will save me.” Glimmer repeated smugly, knowing that it frustrated Shadow Weaver that she wouldn’t give up any information and had held strong through the torture.

“What Rebellion? The Princesses are all dead. Except for Catra, of course. I’m going to take my time with her.” Shadow Weaver replied, knowing that this lie would definitely get something out of the little brat of a princess in front of her.

“That’s not possible.” 

“Oh, but it is! You must have been knocked out before the heat bombs went off, but the Kingdom of Snows is no more. Catra only survived thanks to this sword.” Shadow Weaver mentioned, while using her magic to summon She-Ra’s sword.

“No!”

“You know what would be justice for her crimes against the Horde? Using the weapon that caused her to leave in the first place to end her life.” Shadow Weaver continued.

Glimmer took a deep breath. She thought back to what Catra said back in Mystacor.

“I’m so sorry we didn’t believe you!” Bow cried.

“Guys, it’s okay. We’re safe now. Plus, that’s kind of Shadow Weaver’s whole thing. Mind games and tricks, I mean. She’ll say or do anything to ruin as many lives as possible.” Catra replied.

“Catra’s not here. Even without the sword, when she does get here, you’ll be sorry.” Glimmer muttered, a grin forming on her face.

Shadow Weaver’s hair began flowing with shadows again. Glimmer had just earned herself another bout of torture, but she was satisfied enough with her decision, given that she showed Shadow Weaver that her lies would not work with her. ‘If I get out of here, I bet Catra would finally respect me for not being afraid of this bitch,’ Glimmer thought, whilst preparing herself for the onslaught of the shadows.

/////

Catra and Sea Hawk ducked behind a pile of abandoned boxes across from where the guards stood in front of the door. “On three, Captain Pompous.” Catra whispered. “One, Two–”

Before she got to finish counting, Sea Hawk jumped out in front of the soldiers, alerting them. They activated their stun batons. “It is I– the magnificent Sea Hawk!” He yelled. Catra snuck around behind the soldiers, and quickly grabbed the taller one’s stun baton, and pulled it into his partner, causing that one to fall unconscious. Then, she clawed at the taller one’s ankle with her toe claws. He yelped, and then was knocked unconscious with Catra’s elbow landing on his visor. 

“I said, ‘ On Three! ’” Catra hissed.

Sea Hawk shrugged, further infuriating Catra. “I got excited.” 

Then, Catra gave her signal to Perfuma and Entrapta. She pulled the guards behind the boxes, and peeled off their suits, giving one to Sea Hawk. She clawed a hole in the pants for her tail, and two holes in the helmet for her ears. Stuffing her hair into the helmet was difficult still, and it felt as if there was little room in the helmet for her to breathe. They stood in front of the door, and Catra leaned back and knocked on it. It didn’t open. “Shit, Fishy must have gotten held up.” Catra muttered. Then, she noticed a rather large soldier driving up to them on a skiff. She elbowed Sea Hawk to alert him and then stood as straight as she could. 

“Hey, Soldiers!” the large Force Captain called cheerfully. She hopped off the skiff. “Say, have I seen you before? I feel like I’d remember a tail like that.” Scorpia pondered out loud.

Catra, making her voice deeper and more masculine than usual, replied. “No, Force Captain, we have not met.”

“Well, I’m Scorpia! Nice to meet you, Soldier. Anyways, I know you two are on guard duty, but Force Captain Adora wants me to be on the lookout for the Rebellion, and I could use an extra set of eyes. Could I maybe borrow one of you?”

“I will. Let’s go rough up some Rebellion soldiers!” Sea Hawk announced, hopping onto the skiff. Scorpia jumped on and sped away, leaving Catra very confused and annoyed. 

“I hope that dumbass’s blind bravery doesn’t get him killed.” She muttered.

/////

“Entrapta, there’s Catra’s signal!” Perfuma shouted across the room. 

“Fright Zone log day 1, I’m so excited! The Horde is using an outdated wiring system, it would really function better if I put this here, and that there…” Entrapta rambled into her recorder.

“Entrapta! Now would be a good time for those lights!” Perfuma yelled.

“Oh, right!” Entrapta replied, yanking out a few wires from underneath the control panel. The alarms went off inside the tower.

“We have to go, Entrapta!” Perfuma called, climbing down the ladder. Entrapta, once on the ground, began following around a small bot that was zigzagging through the clutter of the Fright Zone. Perfuma, getting very annoyed with Entrapta not sticking to the plan, used her plant powers to restrain and drag Entrapta to the door to meet up with Catra.

“What’s up with the vines?” Catra asked, taking off her helmet as the other two princesses approached.

“Harmonious teamwork with Entrapta can be… a challenge.” Perfuma replied. Then, the door opened, and Mermista growled at them.

“Don’t say a word about my appearance.” She muttered.

“What about your scent? Because you smell awful.” Entrapta mentioned.

“Focus!” Catra hissed, walking them into the building. A group of soldiers could be heard approaching, and Catra ushered the group into a side door to wait until they passed.

“Wait, where’s Geek Princess?” Mermista asked aloud. When the three princesses realized Entrapta was not in the room, they all scoffed.

“She is really messing with my harmony!” Perfuma complained.

“Okay, we’ll find Sea Hawk and Entrapta and get Bow and Glimmer out of here.”

“I don’t know, that sounds like a lot…” Mermista murmured sarcastically. Catra shot her a glare, and Mermista conceded. “Fine.”

Catra led them out of the room into the hallway and they eventually found themselves at a computer terminal. “Of course, Entrapta would be super useful about now.” Catra griped, beginning to type away at the computer. After a few minutes, she announced, “Bow is being held on level two, cell block B. Glimmer isn’t here anywhere, though, which means they’re holding her somewhere else. Not good.”

/////

“Dinner rations, Prisoner!” Kyle announced, sliding a tray into Bow’s cell. Bow just glared at him. Kyle had kept his hands in the cell too long, and the green electricity shield shocked him as it closed, causing him to drop Bow’s tray on the ground. “Ow.”

Bow, feeling sorry for the guy somehow, began to speak. “Hey, what’s your name?”

“Uh… I’m Kyle.”

“Kyle, can you do me a favor?”

“No, probably not. You are a prisoner.”

“Just, am I the only one here, or did you guys capture any of my friends?”

“We have Princess Glimmer, but I don’t know where she is.” Kyle responded. When he realized what he had just said, he quickly turned to leave. “I could get in so much trouble for talking to you so… Bye!” 

“Wait, Kyle! Can you find out where she is? Kyle!?” Bow shouted. When Kyle was gone, and he knew because Kyle had accidentally left the shield on its see-through mode, he slumped back against the wall in defeat. Well, at least he knew Catra and the other princesses were safe. Although he was very worried about Glimmer, he knew she could handle herself.

/////

“So, Soldier, what made you volunteer to go hunt for the Rebellion? You do know the Princesses are dangerous?” Scorpia asked.

“I seek a thrilling adventure!” Sea Hawk responded. “What could be more daring than facing off against the H- I mean Princesses!”

Scorpia slowed the skiff to a halt at one of the few entrances to the Fright Zone. “I guess Hordak really does keep y’all cooped up in here, huh?”

“Yes, he does.” Sea Hawk responded.

“Say, you sound familiar, are you sure we haven’t met?” Scorpia questioned.

“I am very sure.”

“Then you wouldn’t mind taking off your helmet?” Scorpia continued. Sea Hawk was very worried, until he read the datapad next to him, which lit up with the word “Duck” displayed.

“Duck?” He asked aloud.

“Oh, where!?” Scorpia asked, turning around to look for the creature. Sea Hawk turned around to see a large chunk of metal flying in their direction. 

“Oh, duck!” He repeated with realization. He quickly ducked and the large chunk of metal collided with Scorpia, sending her flying across the base. He looked above to find Entrapta in control of the machinery. “Thanks!” he called.

“To be honest, I wasn’t sure which of you I’d hit.” she mentioned.

/////

“Bow!” Kyle called, running up to the cell.

“Kyle?”

“The Princess is being held in the Black Garnet chamber.” 

“Why are you telling me this?”

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s because you are the first person to ever be nice to me!” Kyle stated. Bow’s heart dropped a little. Bow understood why Catra is the way she is a little more, as well.

/////

“The prison is just up ahead!” Catra proclaimed. Then, as they turned a corner, they were face to face with Entrapta, who was holding Sea Hawk with her hair tendrils. 

“Oh, hi everyone! I found Sea Hawk!” she exclaimed, dropping Sea Hawk into Mermista’s arms. Mermista blushed a little.

“Entrapta, the prison is up there. Think you can hack into the system and get us to Bow’s cell?” Catra requested.

“Yes. I think so. Maybe.”

“Good enough.” Catra grumbled. They ran into the control room of the prison, and Entrapta immediately began pushing buttons to figure out what they did. She giggled as one of the platforms began moving at the touch of the buttons. 

“Okay, Flower Girl, Captain Ego, you come with me. Fishy, make sure she stays focused.” Catra ordered, jumping out onto the nearby platform. As soon as Perfuma and Sea Hawk were on the platform, Entrapta hit a button sending them up onto a higher level. Too high, unfortunately, and as the platform stopped, Catra realized she was face-to-face with Lonnie.

Lonnie growled. “Oh, look who’s back! The freak who turned Princess!” She announced, before tackling Catra. Rogelio, who had been standing next to Lonnie, also jumped onto the platform. Entrapta hit a button again, sending the platform back down very quickly, knocking everyone off balance. 

/////

“And they always make me do their chores! Like, right now, for example, I’m supposed to be on latrine duty because Lonnie made me!” Kyle complained.

“What a bummer!” Bow replied half-heartedly. Then, he noticed his friends fighting on one of the platforms behind Kyle. Catra clawed at Lonnie, and Rogelio dove from the platform into what Bow assumed to be the control room. “Hey, Kyle, if they treat you like that, why not join the Rebellion? You could help people who are treated poorly by the Horde, like you have been.”

“Well, because the Princesses are monsters, according to Lord Hordak.”

“I promise you, they aren’t. And we’ll treat you better than they do.”

“I don’t know…”

Screaming could be heard as Perfuma struggled to hang onto the platform with her plants, grabbing ahold of Sea Hawk, and Catra battling it out with Lonnie, both of them engaging in war cries. Then, suddenly, Rogelio was blasted out of the control center by a cannon of water, most likely Mermista’s doing, sending him barreling into Lonnie, knocking them both clear of the platform. Catra, Perfuma, and Sea Hawk approached Bow and Kyle.

“Kyle, let me out and you can join us. Otherwise my friends there are going to leave you here.” Bow pleaded. Kyle hit the button, letting Bow out of the cell. Bow grabbed his arm, and thanked him.

“Catra?” Kyle asked.

“Kyle? What is going on here?”

“He’s with us now.” Bow replied.

“The more the merrier!” Perfuma cheered. Catra groaned. 

“Okay, whatever, just don’t break anything, Kyle.” Catra muttered. She turned her attention to Bow. “Where’s Glimmer?”

“She’s in the Black Garnet Chamber!” Kyle announced. Catra visibly shuddered. 

“Fuck.”

“Catra, what’s wrong?” Bow asked.

“If she’s in the Black Garnet Chamber, that means Shadow Weaver has her. You remember Mystacor?” Catra snapped.

“Oh.” 

“Let’s go!” Mermista called, and the group ran into the nearest hallway towards an exit. Catra led them to a set of doors that led to the skiff depot. As Entrapta hacked the doors, soldiers could be heard approaching.

“These doors won’t stay open long, and each room will have to be sealed and purged before you can move on. Go!” Catra commanded.

“What about you, Catra?” Bow asked.

“I’m gonna buy you some time, get Sparkles, and we’ll meet you outside. Now GO!” She yelled, smashing the buttons on the door, and shutting them in the hall, forcing them down that path. She turned around to find fifty soldiers aiming their batons at her. She kneeled, and announced, “I surrender. Take me to see Shadow Weaver.” The guards ran over and cuffed Catra, and forcefully brought her back up onto her feet. They practically dragged her to see Shadow Weaver.

When they eventually got to the Black Garnet Chamber, Catra saw Glimmer across the room, barely conscious and blood dripping from her mouth, and the bruise on her left cheek indicated that Shadow Weaver had hit her across the mouth. “It’s gonna be okay, Glimmer, I’m here!” Catra called. The guards laid her on a table, where magic restraints were added.

“Ah, Catra. I’ve been waiting for this.”

“I’m here, but I’ll only stay if you let her go.”

“Look at you, being selfless for once! You are correct, however. You will be staying willingly, but it will be because I am going to wipe your memory. You will have no memory of She-Ra, and once you’re back in the Horde, Adora will stop acting out, and she’ll continue to be useful.” Shadow Weaver explained.

Catra hissed at Shadow Weaver. Shadow Weaver began a spell on Catra, who began shrieking in pain. 

“Catra!” Glimmer yelled. She focused all of her remaining energy on teleporting to get her and her friend out of there. It hurt really, really bad, but with every ounce of energy she could muster, she broke free of Shadow Weaver’s prison, and teleported above her. Shadow Weaver turned towards the sparkles forming in the air, just in time for Glimmer’s fist to land in her face, knocking her out cold. Glimmer limped over to Catra, whose eyes were closed. “Catra, can you hear me? Do you know who I am?” Glimmer pleaded.

Catra slowly opened her eyes, and muttered, “Glimmer…”

“Not ‘Sparkles’? She must have done some damage to your head after all.” Glimmer joked, causing them both to laugh. Catra grabbed Glimmer’s arm and placed it around her shoulders, and helped Glimmer walk out of the room. 

/////

Entrapta continued to rapidly hit buttons as the group made their way through the complicated door system to the Skiff Depot. At the last gate, however, Entrapta’s shoe became untied, and she tripped and fell before she could make it out of the door. 

“Entrapta!” Bow yelled, but there was not much to be done, as the door shut, and green fire engulfed the previous room. The group stood and stared in shock. Sea Hawk and Mermista’s mouths dropped open, and the others were just frozen.

/////

Catra and Glimmer made it to the exit, but Catra couldn’t get the door open. The whole building was on lockdown after the incidents they had just caused. “Can you teleport us out?” Catra asked. Glimmer tried, and then screamed in pain as she glitch with red electricity. “Glimmer, what’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure, but I can’t teleport.” Glimmer replied weakly. 

Suddenly, they heard a horrible scraping noise. Catra hissed and covered her ears, but when she looked down the hallway to see what was making the noise, she noticed Adora of all people dragging the sword down the hallway. She looked angry, so Catra prepared herself for a fight, extending her claws and balancing on the backs of her feet so she could leap into the air to dodge an attack. “For the honor of Grayskull!” Adora shouted. Nothing happened. “But Shadow Weaver said…”

“It was supposed to be you.” Catra admitted. Glimmer stared at her in shock. “Me and Glimmer and Bow stumbled across a First Ones ruin that had a mural of a blonde, human She-Ra. I don’t know why the sword chose me over you, but it did.”

Adora’s expression was blank, so blank that Catra, despite growing up with her, couldn’t tell what she was thinking. Adora stepped into the light in the hallway, and Catra got a good look at the scar she had left on Adora’s left eye at Princess Prom. It was still a deep red, and her eye was no longer blueish, but a dull, cloudy gray. She tossed the sword lightly towards Catra’s feet. “Just take it and go.” Adora mumbled.

“Thank you, Adora.” Catra said. “For the honor of Grayskull!” Catra yelled, and with a brilliant flash, She-Ra stood before Adora. Adora turned and disappeared back into the dark hallway. Catra slashed the door open with her sword, and effortlessly lifted Glimmer over her shoulder and dashed out of the building. As she ran, she saw a skiff with her friends on it and she jumped on. Glimmer weakly crawled over to Bow. 

“Bow…” she sighed, resting comfortably in his lap.

“I’m glad you’re safe now, Glimmer.” He replied sweetly.

Catra looked around. “Where’s Entrapta?” Catra inquired. The skiff fell silent, and expressions changed. Most began to have tears forming in their eyes.

“She didn’t make it, Catra.” Kyle murmured.

“Then we have to go back and get her!” Catra yelled.

“No, she’s really gone. Dead.” Bow muttered. Catra dropped to one knee, her pupils shrank to slits, and She-Ra faded away.

Chapter Text

Shadow Weaver and all the Force Captains were called into Hordak’s chambers. It was very apparent immediately that he was upset. As soon as Shadow Weaver appeared, Hordak began to shout. “Your idiotic plan brought our most dangerous enemies straight to us, and you are such a failure when it comes to leadership that these rebels successfully retrieved both their captured members as well as the sword of ‘She-Ra’” Hordak’s voice became heavily sarcastic as he said the warrior’s new name. “You all failed to capture them while they were within our walls!”

“My Lord–” Shadow Weaver started.

“I do not want to hear it, Shadow Weaver.” He replied. “You are all dismissed. Every single one of you should be ashamed.” He howled. Adora, however, was smiling. After they left Hordak’s chamber, Adora led Scorpia back to her room. 

“Wasn’t that your plan though?”

“Yes. Hordak did not need to know that, though. All he needed to know is what we all know. Shadow Weaver is incompetent without her element of fear.” Adora muttered. She stopped in the middle of the hallway, and turned to face Scorpia. She raised her pointer finger to her lips in an attempt to get Scorpia to stop talking for a second. Out of the corner of her eye, she could’ve sworn she had seen a faint reddish purple glow in the vent nearby, one that had not been there before. She slowly and quietly walked over to the vent, and when she was within range, she ripped the rusty pipe off of the wall, revealing a small woman in a suit with huge purple sentient ponytails, wearing red goggles. 

/////

Kyle and Bow carried Glimmer through the last bit of the forest, about ten minutes of a walk away from Bright Moon. Catra followed them a few steps back, ready to slit Kyle’s throat if he tried to double cross them. It had been a long morning, especially with the Princess Alliance splitting up after Entrapta’s death. Mermista and Sea Hawk had gone home to Salineas, after Mermista stated that she was done losing people and wanted to leave.

They paused at the top of the hill to let Kyle take in the beautiful sight of Bright Moon, as they had with Catra when she first joined the Rebellion. Glimmer stood on her own for this part. She was still weak, but she didn’t need her mother seeing her like this. She limped along, until she suddenly glitched. She glowed red as she vibrated uncontrollably and it looked as if her form was slightly distorted. She hissed in pain. 

“Glimmer, are you ok!?” Bow screeched in response to the sight.

“I’m fine!” Glimmer responded, pushing herself back up onto her feet.

“No, you’re not.” Catra growled, staring Glimmer right in the eye. “Shadow Weaver messed with your magic, right? That’s why you were glowing red and can’t teleport?”

“Probably.” Glimmer sighed. “But my mom doesn’t need to know. She’s been through enough already.”

“What about you, Glimmer? Haven’t you been through enough?” Bow retorted.

“Bow’s right! Your mom might be able to help you, or at least know someone who could.” Catra added.

“Aw, Catra, you used my name for once!” Bow squealed.

“Stay focused or you’ll never hear it again.” Catra snapped. 

Then, before anyone else could speak, Angella flew down from the castle on her massive wings. Her landing caused enough wind that it almost knocked Kyle off his feet, and Glimmer had to hang onto Bow to stay standing as well. “Glimmer! I’m so relieved you’re alright!”

“Sort of.” Catra interjected.

“Catra, shush, I’m fine.” Glimmer replied.

“Your Majesty, she’s anything but fine. She doesn’t have her powers and she’s in pain, please help her in any way you can.” Catra continued, earning a frustrated groan from Glimmer.

“I hate you, Catra.” Glimmer groaned.

“Welcome to the everybody club.” Catra joked.

“Glimmer, what did they do to you?”

“She was tortured by Shadow Weaver and cursed somehow.” Catra stated.

“Catra!” Glimmer shouted.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you be an asshole in an effort to help someone before.” Kyle interrupted, causing Catra to blush slightly, before turning to Kyle and extending her claws to shut him up.

“Let’s get you recharged,” Angella spoke, before flying away with Glimmer in her arms towards the Moonstone.

“Come on, Kyle, let’s go.” Catra directed as she took off down the hill towards the gates. Kyle and Bow rushed after her. 

“Hold it!” A guard shouted, stepping in front of the group and blocking access to Bright Moon. Catra skidded to a halt, and was followed by Kyle and Bow. Looking at Catra, he stated, “I know you get a pass for being a Princess, but he’s still in Horde clothes, and I’ve never seen him before.”

“He defected, like I did. We brought him here so he can help us, or at the very least have protection from the Horde.” Catra responded in the least aggressive tone she could manage.

“Fine. The Queen will be notified immediately, though.” The guard muttered, stepping aside to let them in. Catra readied her sword, and Bow wrapped his arm around Kyle’s shoulders, and then they continued towards the castle.

“They don’t like the Horde here, uh?” Kyle whispered.

“No, they don’t. Most people here have had friends or family killed in the war.” Bow sighed. “In fact, they brought pitchforks and torches when they first saw Catra.” He joked, trying to lighten the mood a little.

The rest of the walk was pretty quiet.

/////

Queen Angella nervously paced back and forth as she waited for Glimmer to recharge. She was so happy that she was safe, but also extremely worried. Not only had she been tortured by Catra’s former mentor and the woman who tried to destroy Mystacor, but she had also lost a friend in the rescue mission. No one would be surprised to find Glimmer in poor mental or physical health after all of that, but she kept insisting she was fine. 

Glimmer awoke from her nap under the Runestone, and sat up. “See, Mom, I’m fine!” Glimmer said. She stood up, and immediately fell to the ground in pain as another glitch passed through her, more violent than the last one.

“Glimmer! What’s happening? Make it stop! Please?” Angella wailed hysterically.

“I don’t know, Shadow Weaver did something to my magic. Every once in a while, that happens. It also happens whenever I try to teleport.” Glimmer conceded. 

“I’ll consult with Casta, she may know how to help you. In the meantime, you are to be confined to your room! I won’t have you going out there and hurting yourself further!”

“Ok.” Glimmer whispered. Angella took a step back in shock. To be grounded without a fight was extremely unlike Glimmer. 

“I… Is… Is there anything I can do?” Angella asked, kneeling next to her daughter.

“No,” Glimmer sighed, limping towards her room.

/////

“Lord Hordak himself has tasked me with your interrogation.” Adora stated, glaring at the captured Princess. Her sentient hair had already undone the restraints as if it were… magic. So that was this Princess’s power. “Let’s get started. Who are you? Why were you spying on us?” Adora interrogated, aiming a stun baton at the Princess.

“I’m learning about Horde culture. People watching can be so fun! Don’t you remember when you helped me find a vantage point at the Ball?” Entrapta responded.

“I actually do recall that.” Adora muttered. Scorpia walked into the room behind her, and sat on a box. “Why are you here, though?”

“Oh, I’m waiting for my friends to find me! They had trouble last time so I thought I’d just stay put!” Entrapta replied.

“Your friends left you. What kind of friends are they?” Adora snarled. 

“They didn’t leave me! It’s only been 27 hours! Wait, that might be too many hours.” 

“Catra abandoned you. Just like she abandoned me! She only cares about her precious Bow and Glimmer. These Princesses only care about those who are just like them. But you aren’t like them, are you?”

“No, I’m not very good at the whole friendship thing.” Entrapta replied solemnly.

“They didn’t like me either!” Scorpia interrupted. “Even before my family joined the Horde.” 

Entrapta, now noticing Scorpia, ran across the room, her goggles falling from her head down onto her face. “Your tail secretes some kind of paralyzing agent, right? Can I have a sample to study?” Entrapta asked, grabbing the tail.

“You can’t just touch a lady’s tail without asking!” Scorpia shouted, pulling her tail out of Entrapta’s reach.

“Oh, right! Catra notified me of this prior, my apologies.” Entrapta stated, curtsying with an apologetic look.

“So… You’re a scientist?” Adora questioned.

“Yes! And I’ve made significant progress with access to Horde technology! Emily is the most advanced bot I’ve ever built!”

“Who’s Emily?” Adora asked.

“Oh how rude of me, let me introduce you!” Entrapta squealed, before whistling. A massive explosion rocked the far wall from where the three girls were standing, and an upgraded Horde bot strolled in, nudging itself against Entrapta, who immediately pulled it into a hug.

Adora’s face grew a smile so wide it looked as evil as she imagined Shadow Weaver’s was beneath that mask. “I think you’ll fit in here just fine!” Adora exclaimed. “Is there anything I can get for you to work with to help enhance our tech?”

“Well, there’s a massive First Ones’ stash somewhere in the Whispering Woods!” Entrapta squealed.

“First Ones?” 

“You don’t know about the First Ones? They are an ancient civilization who disappeared thousands of years ago, but their tech makes our modern tech look like children’s toys!”

“And you said you’ve located some?” 

“Down to two quadrants, with this device as a tracker!”

“I will go check on this, thank you Entrapta.” Adora stated, leaving the room.

/////

Glimmer finally made it to her room, and was exhausted, even after recharging. She bit her tongue through the pain of another glitch, and then pushed the door open to find Catra and Bow waiting for her.

“Glimmer! Are you okay!?” Bow yelled, running over and hugging her.

“What do you think?” She growled.

“And I thought I was supposed to be the bitchy one.” Catra joked.

“Shut it, Furball.”

“Okay, did you two swap bodies back in the Fright Zone or something?” Bow inquired.

“I have a right to be angry! I asked her specifically not to tell Mom, but she went and did it anyway.”

“In the interest of helping you!” Catra retorted.

“If you want to help me, why don’t you heal me, with that stupid sword of yours. The legends tell of She-Ra healing people!”

“I can try.” Catra pointed the sword at glimmer. “Heal!” She commanded the sword. She tried thinking ‘healing thoughts’(Stupid plant princess was rubbing off on her more than she liked) but that didn’t work either. 

“Sword safety, please! Can we not point a dangerous weapon at our friend?” Bow shouted.

“Maybe you need some sort of motion? Like a jab, perhaps?”

“Are you trying to get stabbed!?” Bow questioned.

“You know what? I can’t help you, Sparkles. I don’t know how to handle She-Ra’s powers. I’m gonna go try to find some answers!”

“That sounds fun! I’ll come with!” Glimmer squealed.

“No, you won’t. I don’t know where I’m going! Not to mention, your current… state.” Catra responded.

“Seriously, did you just have a whole conversation with us without a single insult? Are you okay, Catra?”

“I’m fine!” Catra replied.

“That’s also what Glimmer said.” Bow pointed out.

“Can’t hear you, bye!” Catra yelled as she dove from the window into the forest below.

/////

After a long, long walk, she realized she had been walking in circles. A rock she had slashed with her sword appeared yet again. “Seriously? I was walking in a straight line!” Catra whined aloud. The sun was starting to set, so she’d have to find somewhere to set up camp soon. She turned to her right and began walking again whilst grumbling profanities about the stupid forest.

/////

“Of course Princess tech wouldn’t actually work!” Adora complained loudly. The tracker went fuzzy, and was no longer picking up a signal. Then, she heard someone else nearby. She ducked behind a tree, and to her surprise, a frustrated Catra swiping her sword to cut through some of the dense forest came walking past her. As soon as she was out of even Magicat hearing range, Adora whispered, “Hey, Catra.”

/////

After a bit of walking, Catra finally found a large structure, one that looked as if it had been worn down for centuries, and a lot like the place she found with Glimmer and Bow back on that day she became She-Ra. Perfect. A twig crunched in the forest behind her. She whipped around, but didn’t see anything. “Probably just a bunny, or whatever Glimmer called it.” Catra murmured, before turning back to the structure, and finding an entry. “Eternia!” She called, and the door slid open. Adora, who had been hiding behind a tree after accidentally stepping on a fallen branch, snuck in behind her.

Catra went in, and as soon as she walked in, she yelled, “She-Ra!”

“Administrator detected. Hello, She-Ra.” Light Hope’s voice rang out. The lights came on shortly after, and Light Hope appeared in her usual hologram form.

“So, just to clarify, are She-Ra and Catra separate people or one and the same?” A familiar voice rang out, startling Catra.

“Adora!?” Catra screeched, her fur shooting up.

“Hey, Catra.” Adora returned playfully.

Chapter Text

Catra shuddered and her fur stood up. Her focus was on Adora’s face, as Adora sported an eye patch to cover up the scarred eye. She chuckled as she watched Catra’s tail wiggle nervously. “Miss me?”

“What are you doing here?” Catra whispered.

“I’m gonna take that sword back.” Adora declared.

“Didn’t you just give it back to me?”

“New orders and new outlook.” Adora replied. She lunged at Catra and grabbed the sword. 

“Threat to administrator detected. Castle lockdown protocol initiated.” the hologram announced. The lights changed from white-blue to a deep red, and spider bots began crawling down from openings in the walls and ceiling. 

“Now look at what you’ve done.” Catra hissed. She grabbed Adora and dragged her into a nearby hallway and kept her eyes and sword trained on the bots. 

“Why not just feed me to the bots? Your evil princess friends would.”

“No, they wouldn’t.” Catra hissed. “Will you just shut up and follow me until we’re safe?”

“What fun would that be?” 

Catra rolled her eyes. She slashed a bot and then took off running down the hallway, and dragged Adora with her. At the other end of the hallway, the doors closed behind them. The room lit up, and the girls were standing in front of two smaller versions of themselves. Lonnie and her friends pushed Catra against a locker. “There’s no room for a beast like you here.” Lonnie growled.

“Please, don’t hurt her!” Adora yelled. 

Lonnie didn’t turn to look at Adora. “Guess the hero is here, better leave before she goes and cries to Shadow Weaver.”

Then, another memory began to play. Catra was hiding in the corner. Adora came over and sat next to her. Adult Catra noticed smeared blood on past Adora’s arms, something she did not notice when this memory happened. “It’s okay, Catra. You don’t have to hide when I’m around.”

“What if Shadow Weaver sees me?”

“I won’t let her hurt you. Nothing really bad can happen as long as we’re together. I promise.”

“What was that blood from?” Catra asked.

“I took your punishment.” Adora whispered. “Shadow Weaver dug her claws into my arm and shocked me.”

“I thought you were her favorite.” Catra replied.

“I got mouthy.” Adora sighed with a shrug. “Besides, better that she went easy on me than wicked on you.”

“How heroic.” Catra whispered back. Adora glared at her. “What happened to you, Adora? You’ve been acting… strange.”

“Guess I finally gave up the people pleaser act.” Adora growled. 

“It’s more than that. Kyle said you’ve been quite violent.”

“Fucking Kyle. I’m surprised he had the guts to defect.”

Before Catra could respond, the memory shifted. The two children were in the Black Garnet room. They caught a glimpse of Shadow Weaver’s sickly green skin because they had entered while Shadow Weaver wasn’t looking. “You insolent brats!” she hissed. Shadows came down from the walls, and Adora pushed Catra through the doors to the hallway, which closed behind her. “Why do you protect that beast?” Shadow Weaver hissed.

“Because she’s my friend! She deserves to be treated fairly.” 

“I’ve been far too kind to her, in my eyes. Fairly would be to put her down before she had a chance to hope.” Shadow Weaver hissed.

The memory faded. Catra spoke first. “I remember your screams. I was pounding on the door trying to get back in.”

“She’ll get what’s coming to her.” Adora replied in monotone. Adora clenched her fists. “Now that you’ve seen I have always protected you, why don’t you just hand over the sword? You know I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Because I need it to help people. Glimmer is hurt. Etheria is being ravaged by the Horde!”

“We could call each other brainwashed all day. It won’t change anything. If you give me the sword, I can change things.”

“What do you mean?” Catra asked. She stepped closer, which was a mistake. Adora kicked her in the gut, causing her grip on the sword to weaken. It clattered to the ground. Adora quickly picked it up, and Catra watched as Adora’s face took on a wicked smile. The lights began to dim, and the floor began crumbling. 

“It is supposed to be mine, you know.” 

“And you’re supposed to be the hero. What changed?” Catra quipped with a grunt, still recovering from the blow. 

“I’m done being selfless. Everything I worked for, and you still left me.”

“We can still fight together, just not in the Horde.” Catra pleaded. The floor gave way underneath her, and she caught herself on a vine. “Please, Adora?”

Adora stared at the sword. She used it to slice a piece of tech from the ceiling. “You know what, you can have the stupid sword, it chose you.” Adora hissed, before tossing the sword into the abyss. “But I’m done saving someone who doesn’t want to be saved.” and then Adora marched away, leaving Catra dangling there. 

You have to let go. A voice whispered in Catra’s ear. Catra sighed, and let go. The next thing she knew, she was standing in front of Light Hope. The real one, not the hologram. “Welcome Catra. Are you ready to begin your She-Ra training?”

“No.” Catra hissed. “Let me go home.”

“I see that you are upset. Perhaps we can start with…”

“I said I want to go home. Now.” Catra demanded.

“Very well.” 

And next thing Catra knew, she was outside the castle, with the sword laying next to her in the grass. Tears fell from her cheeks.

/////

Adora brought her new piece of tech back to the Fright Zone. She found Entrapta in Hordak’s lair. Two birds with one stone. Adora thought. “Lord Hordak. I see you’ve met Entrapta.” She tossed the tech to Entrapta. “That work for you?” 

“Thanks, Adora!” Entrapta squealed.

“Why are you here, Force Captain?” 

“Have you seen what Entrapta can do with our bots? Imagine what she can do with a Runestone .” Adora stated.

Chapter Text

“Lord Hordak, you can’t seriously be letting a Princess meddle with my Runestone!” Shadow Weaver protested. 

“You forget your place, Shadow Weaver. I gave you your power and I can take it away. This princess increases the firepower and/or productivity of everything she touches. As far as I’m concerned she can meddle with anything she damn pleases.” He ordered, before the screen faded.

“Sucks to be you, Shadow Weaver.” Adora jabbed, chuckling as she turned away from Shadow Weaver to check out what Entrapta was up to.

“You insolent brat! You will not give away my runestone.” Shadow Weaver hissed, her hair beginning to glow.

“It’s not your runestone. It’s Hordak’s. But since you’re disobeying a direct order…” Adora replied, before stabbing Shadow Weaver with a stun baton. Scorpia watched in shock from the other side of the room. Adora leaned down to Shadow Weaver’s ear and continued, “I’m going to personally arrange your transport to Beast Island.” Adora smiled as Shadow Weaver collapsed to the ground and got dragged off by some other soldiers.

/////

Catra slinked back into the castle. She went straight to her room, and threw the sword at the wall. It clattered against the mirror, shattering it. She flopped onto her bed, and stared at the ceiling. I’m a failure. I have no idea how to help Glimmer and I just got my ass handed to me by… her. Catra thought. Then, there was a knock at the door. Catra jumped up to her feet and considered climbing out the window. 

“Catra, I heard a noise in there. Please open the door?” Bow asked. Catra reluctantly walked over to the door and let him in. He opened his mouth to say something, but was immediately distracted by the shattered glass on the floor. “You… wanna talk about it?”

“Not really.” Catra hissed. She went and sat on the bed. Bow watched as she fretted, tail swaying side to side. “What do you want, Bow?”

“To talk to my friend Catra. You’re aware you still have friends, right?” Catra didn’t answer. “You know, Kyle was looking for you earlier too. It would really help him to talk to someone who understands the struggle of defecting from the Horde and adjusting to life here.”

“And someone else who was mercilessly bullied by the Horde. Although, I’m also guilty of that. I should’ve been nicer to him. The only person whose kindness I noticed was…”

“Adora. I take it you ran into her out there?”

“You could say that. She… she looks different, talks different. Something’s totally wrong with her. She just wouldn’t talk to me about it.” Catra noticed Bow staring at her with his arms crossed. 

“I wonder who else we know that refuses to open up about what’s going on in their head when they struggle.”

“I’m opening up right now, aren’t I?”

“Yeah. You are.” he replied with a sigh.

“You weren’t just talking about me.” Catra observed.

“Glimmer won’t talk to me either.” Bow admitted. “I just want to help, but even Casta is struggling to figure out how.”

“I didn’t learn anything about the sword or how to heal Glimmer. I went out and got beat up for nothing.” Catra muttered. 

“Well, if that experience caused you to open up to me a bit and self-reflect, that’s a kind of growth. Maybe it isn’t what you were looking for, but you can use it to help Kyle.”

“Thanks, Arrows.”

“Anytime, Furball.”

/////

Emergency alarms sounded all around the castle. Catra and Kyle had been having lunch and ran together to the war room. Angella, Bow, Glimmer, and the General of the Brightmoon Guards, Juliet, were all in there already. “What’s going on?” Catra asked.

“The Whispering Woods froze over. The weather has just been getting worse and scouts are warning of a massive army of Horde soldiers heading towards us.” Queen Angella spoke. “Juliet, get the castle guards ready.”

“Yes, your majesty.” She replied before running off.

Catra put her hand on the sword. “I’ll do whatever I can. Kyle, I’ve got an idea of how you can help. You break everything you touch, so could you manage to get your hands on some of the Horde weapons?”

“I can try.”

“Bow, would you mind accompanying him?” 

“Of course.”

“What about me?” Glimmer asked.

“You’re in no condition to fight!” The Queen exclaimed.

“This is our home! I don’t care what condition I’m in, I gotta do something!”

Before they could continue arguing, a loud explosion boomed. A Horde tank shot had struck the castle wall.

“Let’s go!” Catra yelled. As soon as she arrived outside, she kicked a few soldiers back into the woods and sliced a tank in half. Bow used a zipline arrow to get Kyle into the fight where he crashed into a horde soldier and threw the stun baton at another. A shot whizzed past Catra’s face. She turned to look where the energy blast had come from, and Adora was standing on a nearby cliff. She was wearing her signature red bomber jacket, but with all black clothing underneath, a new eyepatch with the Horde logo on it, and some boots that gave her an additional couple inches of height. She waved at Catra and lured her away from the tanks. 

Catra and Adora found themselves in a rock formation separating them from the battlefield. “Why won’t you just stop attacking us?” Catra hissed as she slashed at Adora. Adora parried the swing and swung back. 

“I am going to liberate Etheria!”

“No, you’re enslaving Etheria.”

Adora used Catra’s anger against her and kicked at her shin, tripping her. Standing over Catra, Adora shouted, “Don’t you get it Catra? We always said we’d make things better! And I will, now that I’m in charge.”

“What do you mean ‘in charge’?” 

“As in Shadow Weaver was sent off to die on Beast Island, and Hordak has gifted me with second-in-command.”

“You’re the new Shadow Weaver?” Catra hissed. She used her claws and slashed at Adora’s feet. Adora jumped back to avoid it, giving Catra a chance to get up.

“Trying to give me more scars?”

“No, I’m defending my home! My new friends and the people whose families the Horde has killed. I’m the savior here. You’re just the fool who fell for the Horde lies and refuses to admit it.”

“It doesn’t matter anymore. The horde will be mine if I continue succeeding. Then again, there might not be anyone left to oppose me soon enough.” Adora chuckled. She lowered her tone and grinned at Catra. “Ask Entrapta.”

Catra dropped the sword and lunged at Adora with both sets of claws out. Adora used the blunt face of her sword to parry the claws and push Catra to the side before using a swift kick to the side to pin Catra to a rock. “Did you get worse at fighting since you left?” Adora taunted. 

Catra slashed at Adora’s arm causing Adora to let go of her hold to dodge. Catra ran for her sword. She grabbed it and swung it at Adora. Adora dodged back. She swung it again, aiming for Adora’s right arm. Adora dodged left, not realizing Catra had stuck her right leg out. Adora tripped over it and fell to the ground. Catra kicked Adora’s sword away from her. “You really think because you’ve had some sword training that you can just beat me every time? What happened to you, Adora? We were friends, and now I feel like I don’t even recognize you anymore! What, did Shadow Weaver finally manage to get her power driven mindset into you before you had her killed? Or did you become her all on your own?” Catra marched over to the smaller sword and snapped it in half with She-Ra’s strength. Adora stood up and raised her fists. Catra tossed the sword of protection to the side. 

“A good old fashioned fist fight?”

“Shut up and fight, Adora Weaver.” Catra hissed. Adora lunged at her in rage. Catra grabbed Adora’s punch and used the arm’s momentum to throw Adora to the ground. Adora got up and threw another punch. Catra blocked it and kicked Adora in the stomach, sending her to the ground again. A tank blast in the distance hit the castle, causing Catra to look towards the runestone. Adora took the opportunity to dash over to get Catra’s sword and slice across Catra’s back with it. She hissed in pain. Adora grabbed her from behind and kicked at her leg to get her on her knees. 

“I don’t see your friends helping you. But I’ll make sure they watch what happens after you fail to save them.” Adora growled. Catra headbutted backwards into Adora, connecting with her nose. Blood streamed from it. “Did you just break my nose!?”

“I’m gonna make sure you watch as the Horde fails to take Brightmoon.” Catra replied, before climbing up the cliff with her claws and disappearing towards the battlefield. Glimmer was holding a Castle Guard’s shield and blocking Horde fire for Kyle and Bow. Catra jumped down and landed near them, slashing another tank in half, causing it to explode. 

“Woah, Catra, you’re bleeding!” Kyle called out. Catra made a mental note of the blood dripping down her spine. 

“I’ll be fine. Keep going!” Catra ordered. Suddenly, a massive wave crawled in from the seas and washed a bunch of horde soldiers away. Mermista and Sea Hawk rode in on a smaller wave.

“Sorry we’re late!” Sea Hawk shouted.

“You came!” Glimmer exclaimed.

“An attack on any of us is an attack against all of us.” Mermista replied. “Besides, if Brightmoon fell I don’t like Salineas’s odds.

Then, some vines crept up on a tank and wrestled it into the ground. A chunk of ice flew into the tank’s barrel to block it. 

“As much as I don’t like it, it’s time the Kingdom of Snows fights back against the Horde.” Frosta growled. 

“I’m starting to like our odds.” Catra stated with a grin. She raised her sword, and shouted, “For Brightmoon!” She and the other princesses began to glow. Bow, Sea Hawk, and Kyle grabbed hold of nearby princesses and also began to glow, and a rainbow of light came down from the skies, and as Catra slashed her sword in the direction of the Horde Army, it washed them all away into the Woods, which began thawing, and the weather seemed to return to normal.

“We did it!” Bow exclaimed.

Glimmer teleported in front of Bow. “I can teleport!” she exclaimed. The team ran to hug each other. Bow and Glimmer wrapped their arms around Catra. She yelped in pain as they made contact with the scar Adora left. “Sorry Catra!”

/////

“You failed to capture Brightmoon.” Hordak growled.

“Got closer than anyone else ever had.” Adora retorted. “With Shadow Weaver gone and Entrapta hanging around, I have no doubt we will win this war.”

“I agree. Now, leave me be.” Hordak sighed. She nodded and left.

Adora headed straight for the Black Garnet. She looked all across the ceiling to make sure Hordak’s spy wasn't watching, and then put both her hands on the runestone. “Now that your powers are vacant, you will make me even more powerful than Shadow Weaver!” She yelled. It began to glow and the lights flickered.