It was raining hard on Sunday morning. The kind of rain that made people decide to stay indoors rather than risk getting soaked.

Adora had always loved rainy days. She remembered how loud the rain had been on the roof of her group home and how often she had fallen asleep to the monotonous lullaby of rain striking shingles.

Adora thought of her old living space that Sunday morning as she woke up to the rain, looking around and realizing with a shock that she was no longer at the home. She quickly remembered where she was and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

She propped herself up in bed, bringing her knees up under her chin. Then she watched the rain hit her window for a while, allowing herself to think back to how everything had been before moving to Etheria.

It hadn't been terrible. There were nice people and she had a few friends. But it wasn't anything like how she lived now.

The home had always been too large and organized to feel like a family. Not to mention that there were some rougher parts to life there. A lot of the girls had experienced a lot of things. And it always showed, just in different ways.

Some of them had been mean and lashed out. Some caused trouble for seemingly no reason. And most of them would cry to themselves at night or when they could find some time alone. And then there were the kids who were like Adora.

She suffered just like all the others, but she had always kept it inside. Turning her anger and her doubt and her passions inward. Bottling it all up and never letting it out.

Adora could still feel it sometimes when her mind drifted, against her will, back to the home and even to the homes before that. She felt like she was still holding onto something and she couldn't ever see herself letting it go.

She had never told anyone about this. It wasn't that there had never been anyone to tell, it was just that Adora didn't want to talk about it. Angella had tried to talk with her about the home and her growing up before and Glimmer had asked a few questions. Catra had also been curious and asked how her old home was. She had never given much of a response. She would just say that it had been fine and change the subject. This was usually enough to tip people off to the fact that she didn't want to talk about it.

Of course, the people who were curious were always better than the alternative. Better than the look of pity that so many people gave her when they figured out she had been orphaned. Better than the people who saw her as a charity case.

Not that Adora judged these people either. She figured that, objectively, young orphan girls were a sad thing. But that still didn't make it easier.

And none of it had ever been easy, but it hadn't destroyed her either. And she trusted these new people in her life more than almost anybody ever, but there were still some things that she had held in for too long to just suddenly open up about.

So she continued to keep it inside. As she had always done.

Adora had always been reserved and would stick to her own devices when given the option. This made her the quiet orphan girl and she knew that just made people worry about her more, but she couldn't change who she was.

Despite this, however, she had still managed to make her share of friends back at the home. She wondered how the girls were doing now. And if it had even mattered to them that she had left.

She grabbed her phone from her nightstand and typed a few of their names into Google, pulling her blankets around her tightly. She hadn't expected many results and didn't really find any.

She sighed to herself and pondered everything as she watched the rain. This was the safest she had ever felt. In this house. With Angella and Glimmer. And with good friends. And Catra.

In such a relatively short time she had made such strong connections. Connections she hadn't known she could make. And a lot of that had been because of Glimmer.

Glimmer had insisted on spending near constant time with her from the moment she had arrived. It had pushed at Adora's comfort zone and there had been many times Adora had wanted to be left alone, but had been unable to tell Glimmer. And now Adora was thankful for those times.

Glimmer had also introduced her to Bow. She had shown her around school. She had made her feel generally welcome in the town and her home.

Prior to moving in, Adora had been worried that her new foster sister would be troubled that a stranger was going to be living in her house, but Glimmer had been nothing but thankful for Adora's presence. Until now.

Adora scooted over and pressed her ear against the wall that connected her and Glimmer's room. She couldn't hear anything and wasn't sure what that meant.

She missed Glimmer already and it had only been two days since everything had gone so bad. And now she couldn't help but feel that she had really messed up their trust in one another.

As she thought about all this, Adora decided she needed to get her mind off it. She slipped on her comfy robe and made her way out of her room and down the stairs. She wanted to hang out with Catra. Nowadays, she always wanted to hang out with Catra. She sent a quick text to Catra asking if she was free anytime today and then made her way into the living room.

Angella was lounging on the couch reading a book and she looked up at Adora as she entered the room.

"Good morning," Angella said warmly. "Well, I guess it's almost afternoon now."

"Yeah I stayed up late," Adora explained.

"You must have!" Angella adjusted herself on the couch and made a space for Adora, who came and sat next to her. "And how are you feeling?"

"About the same," Adora answered. "Guilty."

Angella nodded regretfully. "I wish there was something I could do. I talked to Glimmer some more. She's definitely doing better."

"She is?"

"Well," Angella pursed her lips. "She's leaving her room at least."

"Oh," Adora said disappointedly.

"She'll come around, Adora. If you just keep reminding her that you're there for her, she can't stay mad forever."


Catra had been pacing around her room waiting for Scorpia to show up, and the moment the doorbell rang she rushed up the basement stairs and over to the front door.

She opened it quickly and was met with a thoroughly soaked Scorpia who smiled sheepishly at Catra.

"Get in here," Catra ushered her friend inside.

Scorpia waddled in, leaving a small trail of water behind her.

"Here take off your coat, you're soaked," Catra instructed the girl.

Scorpia took off her coat and looked around for somewhere to hang it. Catra took it from her and threw it onto the kitchen table ungraciously.

"Come on," she said impatiently, walking back towards her room, Scorpia in tow.

Catra shut the door behind them and they made their way down into Catra's room where they both took a seat on the bed.

"Oh gosh," Scorpia said as she stood up again. "I'm getting your bed all wet."

"I don't care," Catra said dismissively. "Sit with me."

Scorpia slowly lowered herself back down and grasped at her hands nervously. "So...I didn't mean to blow up on you on Friday."

"Don't apologize," Catra said quickly and Scorpia looked at her, surprised. "Really. I had it coming. I'm the one who's sorry. I've been thinking about it and... you're my best friend. And you've always been there for me and I really need to, like, reflect that. You know what I'm saying?"

"Um. Yeah I think so," Scorpia said, taken aback by Catra's words. "But I w…"

"Well let me finish real quick," Catra interrupted. "Basically, it's my fault. And I get that. I don't talk about my, y'know, feelings and stuff a lot. But recently I talked to some people real openly and it felt really good. I mean, most of it was awful. But at the end it felt...good. And I just wanna try to be, like, a better friend, I guess. So I just wanna come totally clean. Anything you wanna know. Any questions. Just ask me and I'll tell you." Catra pulled her legs up under her on the bed and sat cross-legged, staring at Scorpia expectantly.

"Wow," Scorpia said. "I...well thanks for all that. But...Cat, I haven't been honest with you either."

Catra frowned slightly. "How so?"

"Well I just...there's been something I've needed to tell you for a long time. But I've never actually done it because I've been too scared. But not telling you has only made it worse."

Catra studied Scorpia and found that she was becoming increasingly nervous. "Well...you could tell me if that makes it easier," Catra said slowly. "Is this why you've been acting kinda...weird lately?"

"Yeah," Scorpia admitted, staring at the floor.

"Oh. Well. We could talk about that too. If you want? We could just tell each other everything and be best friends and then we can play a game or eat popcorn or anything you want."

Scorpia smiled a little at this. "Catra. Gosh. I feel so dumb."

"Don't," Catra said quickly. "I get it. I won't ever judge you or anything."

"You might though."

"I won't."

"It's kind of a big deal."

"Then we can handle it together."

"I'm scared things between us will change."

"I promise they won't."

"You promise?"

"Of course. Nothing you could do would ma…"

"Catra, I like you," Scorpia said quickly, cutting off Catra. Scorpia felt the heat rise in her face and her heart was beating rapidly.

Catra made a strange face. "Well...yeah I like you too."

"No," Scorpia said, still unable to make eye contact with Catra. "Cat, I...I...I really like you." Her voice wavered a bit and she turned her face even further away from Catra so that she couldn't see her reaction.

Catra laughed nervously. "Well you...I mean...do you mean like…?"

Scorpia said nothing and Catra's confused smile quickly fell from her face. "Oh."

There was a prolonged period of the most awkward silence that either of them had ever experienced.

This was probably the last possible thing that Catra could have suspected. Her friend of so many years was now apparently seeking more than a friendship. At least that's what it seemed like. Catra wasn't sure what to say or what to think. Catra had been so sure that Scorpia and her were just meant to be friends. Catra hadn't even considered the possibility of anything else between them since middle school.

"Uh…" Catra said, meaning to respond, but not knowing what to say. "...I...how long?"

Scorpia was quiet for a while before she quietly spoke. "A while."

"Oh," Catra repeated, too thrown off to formulate any kind of an appropriate response. It felt like her brain wasn't working quite right.

There was another period of silence where Catra started to piece together some of Scorpia's behavior.

"This isn't…" Scorpia said suddenly, her shoulders sagging as she kept her head down and facing away from Catra. "I always meant to tell you, but not like this. And...and I know that…you are probably into Adora." As she finished this sentence her voice cracked a little bit and Catra instantly felt guilty for some reason. "But I figured...you should know. That I should tell you at least once. Just to finally get it out there. So I can stop…regretting it all so much."

Catra heard the telltale tremble in Scorpia's voice that usually preluded tears. Catra knew she had to actually respond. She thought about leaving somehow. Escaping. Her brain ran through a few excuses before she snapped herself back to reality. There was literally no way out of this that didn't include letting Scorpia down easy. Something she had never thought she'd be doing.

"Scorpia…" Catra said slowly. Scorpia moved her head a little, but she was still avoiding looking at Catra. "I...wow. This was definitely...unexpected," Catra chuckled nervously. Scorpia didn't respond and Catra frowned. "I mean, look, I just...uh, shoot…I just really like us as, y'know, friends. And I...really do like Adora. I meant to tell you that. And I should've."

Catra paused and looked over at Scorpia, not seeing any change. Catra sighed. "But you're, like, my best friend. And I really care about you. A lot."

There was another stretch of silence. Catra felt uncomfortable and began to gnaw at her fingernails again, biting down the nails that had just started to grow out. She sat watching Scorpia, waiting for a response.

She didn't say anything, but Catra saw her body shake a little bit. Catra leaned forward, concerned, and heard her friend sniffling quietly.

"Hey," Catra said, frowning deeply. She scooted closer to Scorpia and put her arms around her in a side-hug.

Scorpia leaned into the hug and Catra could now feel her friend's body heaving as she held her. They stayed like that for a long time.

Catra felt herself tear up a little bit too as she heard Scorpia cry. She knew it wasn't her that had caused this, at least not directly, but she still felt bad. Catra knew what it felt like to like somebody and not know if they felt the same. She assumed most people did. But being turned down was different. If Adora had turned Catra down, she probably would have felt the same. Catra grappled with this and the general shock of this whole revelation as she held Scorpia.

After what seemed like forever, Scorpia sat up and rubbed her face, sniffing loudly. Her face was red and puffy. "I feel dumb," she said simply.

"Please don't," Catra pleaded. "This happens. And I'm...I'm sorry."

"No," Scorpia said, wiping at her nose. "You didn't do anything. And I thought this would happen. Maybe...I've known for a while. Maybe forever."

Catra wasn't sure what to say to that.

Scorpia continued. "And it looks like Adora makes you happy."

Catra waited a bit and then nodded.

Scorpia sighed and looked over at the door. "I think I need to be alone for a while."

"You sure?" Catra asked. "We can still hang out or…" She trailed off.

Scorpia shook her head. "No. I just need some time. But thanks, Cat."

"Yeah," Catra said awkwardly. Their dynamic suddenly felt different and Catra wasn't sure how to interact.

Scorpia could also tell that something felt different and she got up to go. "I'll see you at school."

"Yeah, see you then," Catra said, watching as her friend walked up the steps and out of the room. She heard Scorpia's footsteps above her and then the sound of the front door opening and closing.

Catra took a deep breath and then collapsed onto her bed, burying her face in her pillow. She was asleep in minutes.


Adora perked up as she heard Glimmer's bedroom door open. She eagerly sat up in her bed and saw Glimmer walk out into the hallway.

"Hey, Glimmer!" Adora called out and she saw Glimmer freeze. "I was wondering if you wante…"

Adora hadn't even finished speaking when Glimmer turned back around and Adora heard the door open and close again.

Adora sighed and went back to doing her homework. She had been working for about half an hour when her phone began to buzz rhythmically.

Adora saw that Catra was calling her and was instantly relieved. Talking to Catra always made her feel better.

Adora answered with, "Hey, Catra," and felt self conscious about the sound of her voice.

"Hey," came Catra's voice from the phone speakers. "Sorry I didn't reply to your text earlier. I was kinda busy."

"That's fine," Adora assured the girl. "I just wanted to get out of the house. It's a little...tense here."

"Well that works out great because you are maybe the only person I want to see right now," Catra replied eagerly.

This made Adora smile. "Well that sounds good to me. Are you gonna pick me up?"

"I mean, I'm not sure how else you'd get here," Catra reasoned.

"Good point," Adora answered. "Hey are you doing alright? You sound kind of tired."

There was a pause on the other end and then Catra replied. "Yeah. I'll tell you about it when I see you. It's...pretty outta left field."

"Oh. Well I definitely wanna talk about it then if you're okay with it. Here, gimme a while to get ready and then come get me. And don't give me two minutes like last time!"

Catra chuckled. "I think I gave you a fair amount of warning. You just try not to spill perfume on yourself this time."

Adora scowled and could tell that Catra was grinning on the other side of the phone. "You're the worst. Come get me."


Catra waited until Adora was down in her room and the door was locked to tell her what had happened with Scorpia.

Adora listened attentively as Catra explained everything. From Scorpia's outburst at school the day before up to this morning. Adora was a little surprised by the situation, but it honestly made a lot of sense. Also, she was secretly relieved to hear that Catra wasn't interested in Scorpia.

Catra didn't tell Adora the exact phrasing and didn't mention that she had told Scorpia about liking Adora.

When Catra had finished, Adora nodded to herself. "Well I can definitely see why you wanted some company."

"Yeah my brain feels like I stuck it in a toaster and left it overnight," Catra paused. "That was a weird analogy, but you get what I'm saying."

"Yeah I do. And you really had no idea?"

"Not a clue," Catra said in exasperation. "Well maybe, like, some little clues, but nothing glaringly obvious at least. She didn't exactly go around telling me she thought of me as, like...y'know."

"Well she did ask you to the Fall Formal," Adora recalled.

"Well yeah but she meant, like,..." Catra paused and thought about it. Her mouth slowly opened as she pieced it all together. "Oh man. Yep. That explains that." She slapped a hand to her forehead. "Am I...dumb for not realizing this earlier?"

"No," Adora answered quickly. "Scorpia never really told you and it sounds like you always saw it as exclusively a friendship so there was no way you could have known."

"Yeah true. Man it's all so crazy. Scorpia of all people. And I still feel bad about it. Like, I think I let her down easy, but she also cried a lot. And she's...soft."

Adora frowned and scooted closer to Catra. They were sitting in her bed and it bowed slightly as their weight collected in the middle of the mattress.

"She's probably gonna be sad for a while. But it sounds like she maybe thought this would happen so at least it wasn't out of nowhere."

"Yeah," Catra said, toying absentmindedly with a Rubik's cube she had found in her room. "I'm just worried it's gonna be all weird now."

"Why so?" Adora asked.

"Well it's just weird, I dunno. I mean, knowing that your friend had a...crush on you is weird. And what if it's just awkward now?"

"I get you. I feel like you two are too good of friends to let this get between you. But yeah. I can see that being a little awkward at points."

"A little awkward? It's gonna be so extremely awkward. Oh man. What a mess. I mean, look at us. Friend problems galore."

"Yeah we're hitting a rough patch alright," Adora agreed with a defeated chuckle.

"But we have each other," Catra suggested.

"Yeah we do."

Both girls sat there quietly for a while.

Adora broke the silence by gasping. "Catra!"

"What!?" Catra exclaimed, startled by the sudden outburst.

Adora snatched up Catra's hand and examined the tips of her fingers. "You chewed the tips all up again!"

Catra couldn't help but smile at the unexpected confrontation. "I can't help it. My brain just decides to do it sometimes."

Adora was not satisfied with this excuse. "Well you're gonna get an infection, I swear. And at the very least your fingertips will be all gnarled up."

"Well I'll try harder," Catra said with a toothy smile. "If only to get you off my back about it."

"You better. How are you gonna play guitar if you bite your fingertips off?"

Catra snorted. "Dramatic much? And I'd just get prosthetic fingertips."

"I don't think prosthetic fingertips are a thing," Adora responded with a smile, shaking her head slowly.

"Sure they are. You can get, like, prosthetic anything nowadays."

"Yeah sure," Adora said, unconvinced.

Catra chuckled and pulled out her phone as she began to tap rapidly.

"What are you doing?" Adora asked.

"Googling prosthetic fingertips...Oh and look at this. That's funny. It almost looks like a prosthetic fingertip." Catra said this facetiously as she handed the phone to Adora.

Adora quickly grabbed the phone and read the search results, her frown deepening the further she scrolled. "Well...you win this round...I guess."

"So that means I'm free to bite at my heart's content," Catra said and jokingly brought her finger up to her open mouth.

"Get that outta here," Adora said and playfully slapped Catra's hand away.

Catra gasped. "How dare you," she joked.

"I do it because I care," Adora said with a smile.

"Well thanks for that, mom. But what about you? You probably have some bad habits of your own."

"Nope."

"I don't believe you," Catra said matter of factly. "You're just hiding it."

"No, really, I don't think I have any!" Adora proclaimed.

"Mhmm," Catra said slowly, looking Adora over. "Yep. Yep. You definitely pick your nose, I bet."

"I do not!" Adora whined, smiling in spite of the accusation.

"Oh you're being awful defensive," Catra said smugly.

"Shut up," Adora said with a giggle. "I don't pick my nose and I don't bite my fingernails. I guess I'm just perfect." Adora flipped her hair back over her shoulder dramatically.

Catra rolled her eyes. "You definitely have something. You don't have to tell me either cuz I'll find it."

"Well let me know when you do," Adora said as she got more comfortable on Catra's bed.

"Oh I will," Catra told her. "Now. Do you wanna do anything?"

"Sure. Unless you wanna talk more."

"Well I'd rather just get my mind off it all to be honest. So what do you feel like?"

Adora looked around the room. "What is there to do?"

"I'm glad you asked!" Catra exclaimed. She bounced up from the bed and walked around the room. She gestured to a few boxes resting under some clothes on her drawer. "We have three whole board games! State of the art. Probably with most of the pieces missing."

Adora watched on in amusement as Catra continued her walk around the room. "Here we have a fully functioning entertainment system!" She pointed out the TV and Xbox. "We could watch a movie if you really want, but I don't have the patience for that. And we have some games. I could destroy you in Halo if you want."

Adora chuckled. "That sounds fun."

"You bet it does," Catra agreed. She looked around the room a bit more. "Uh...that's really about it honestly. We can't really do anything outside cuz it's raining. And my dad is taking the car so we couldn't really drive anywhere. You fine staying here?"

"Definitely," Adora replied. "And I wanna listen to you play guitar again later."

"Again?" Catra said, raising an eyebrow. "I've never had a fan before."

"Well consider me your number one fan. I like listening and you're really good."

"I'm literally average. But thank you," Catra said graciously. "You wanna play that game then?"

"Heck yeah," Adora replied as Catra grinned and tossed her a controller.

They ended up playing Halo together for hours. They cleared the campaign and by the end, Adora was a huge fan. Adora was confident in her ability at that point so they played some 1v1 matches. Adora quickly realized that Catra was a million times better than her and soon grew tired of getting destroyed.

"Hey you screen-peeked!" Adora accused Catra loudly as Catra scored the final kill, winning the game.

Catra laughed loudly. "I did not screen-peek. I never should have taught you that term."

"Then how did you know I was behind you?" Adora countered.

"The minimap," Catra explained, laughing again at the resulting annoyance on Adora's face.

The sound of Catra's laughter made Adora feel better after her crippling defeat and she gave in. "Alright fine. I guess you're a Halo champion or whatever."

"Born and raised," Catra responded arrogantly.

"You little punk," Adora said, shaking her head with a small smile. She pulled out her phone and looked at the time. "Wow! We played for a long time."

"Hey, man," Catra said, shrugging. "When you gotta save the galaxy, you gotta save the galaxy."

Adora snorted. "You nerd," she said and then looked back at her phone. "But I probably should start getting ready to leave…"

Catra sat up, a disappointed look on her face. "Already? You could eat dinner here and then leave after."

Adora frowned as she looked at the hopeful look on Catra's face. She did want to stay longer. "I don't know. I told Angella I wouldn't be out too late."

"Stay here tonight," Catra said suddenly. Adora looked over at her and saw that she was staring intently.

"Wh...like, sleep here?" Adora asked, confused.

"Yeah. Like a sleepover or something," Catra insisted.

"But...it's a school night," Adora said hesitantly. Despite her own words, she desperately wanted Catra to convince her to stay.

"My dad will take us to school tomorrow."

"What about my backpack and stuff?"

"Glimmer can take it to school tomorrow and give it to you," Catra said quickly. She was not missing a beat.

Adora thought about it for a bit. She fiddled with the discarded Rubik's cube that was still laying on the bed. She ultimately decided that she should just give in and do what she wanted for a change.

"Okay."

"Yes!" Catra celebrated as she pumped her fists. "Sleepover time!"

"Well let me call Angella first," Adora said with a grin. She was more excited about the whole idea than she let on and hoped Angella would be okay with it.

Catra continued to celebrate as Adora called up her foster mom. Angella answered after one ring.

"Hey, Adora. Are you doing alright?" She asked.

"Yeah I'm having a good time," Adora answered.

"That's right," Catra said proudly and Adora shushed her.

"Well I'm glad. When were you thinking of getting back home?"

"Well...that's the thing," Adora said slowly. "I know this is super out of nowhere and all but can I stay the night?"

Angella paused for a bit. "You're at Catra's house?"

"Yeah."

"Did her father say it was alright?"

"Um. Not yet."

"Hmm. Could I talk to him?"

"Yeah definitely. Just a minute." Adora muted the call and turned to Catra. "Will your dad be fine with this?"

"Oh yeah," Catra said quickly. "And if he isn't I'll just threaten to drop out of school or something."

The pair went upstairs quickly and found Catra's dad in his room reading a book. They told him about the impromptu plans and gave him the phone.

"Angella! Hey! It's Gerald," he said into the phone. He waited a moment and then frowned, removing the phone from his ear and turning back to Adora. "She's not saying anything."

Catra snatched the phone away and looked at it. "Dad, it's still muted." She unmuted it and handed the phone back.

"Angella! Hey! It's Gerald," he repeated and this time he seemed to carry on a conversation. The girls listened hopefully as they spoke.

"Only if you're alright with it." He listened for a moment. "It would be no problem at all." He paused again and then turned to Adora. "She asked if you had any homework."

"Nope," Adora lied reactively and Gerald nodded and relayed the information to Angella.

There was another pause as he listened to her speak. "Oh good idea," he said before reciting his own phone number.

"Yeah I'll let you know. But she'll be fine, don't worry about it." He laughed into the phone before listening for a while.

Catra and Adora strained to hear what Angella was saying.

"Oh, yeah I'm usually free on weekends," he said and Catra narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Well I'm sure we will. It's a small town." Gerald laughed again and then said goodbye and handed the phone back to Adora.

"Hello?"

"You can stay the night," Angella told her. "Just make sure you get good sleep and don't stay up all night! And find a way to brush your teeth somehow!"

"I will," Adora said, smiling to herself.

"Okay. Enjoy yourself, dear."

"I will. Thank you! Bye," Adora hung up and grinned widely at Catra.

"That looks like a smile of success," Catra said quickly.

"I'm cleared," Adora said excitedly. She turned to Gerald. "And you're sure it's alright?"

"Of course it is. You like meatloaf?"

Adora nodded in response and Gerald clapped his hands together cheerfully. "Then you're in luck! I'll grab a spare mattress for you and some blankets and stuff."

"Thanks," Adora replied.

"Yeah thanks, dad," Catra seconded and then grabbed Adora by the wrist and tugged her away.

They headed back to Catra's room and Catra shut the door and hopped down every step down into her room. "Ha!" She shouted. "Success! Am I a genius or what?"

"It was a pretty good idea," Adora admitted, appreciating Catra's enthusiasm.

"What was that?" Catra asked dramatically, raising a hand to her ear. "Did you say, 'Oh, Catra you genius. Thank you for saving me from a boring night at home' ?"

Adora scoffed and descended the basement steps slowly. "Okay fine you're a genius. And I am pretty excited." Adora hopped down from the last step and walked up to Catra. "I even lied about having homework," she said proudly.

"Woah!" Catra exclaimed. "What a little rebel! You better watch out or you're gonna lose your good girl creds."

"I don't have 'good girl creds'," Adora said dismissively.

"Oh okay," Catra said, the disbelief audible in her voice. "What's your GPA again?"

"Well...it's a 3.9 still."

Catra raised an eyebrow, considering her point made.

"But I do 'bad girl' things!" Adora protested. "I got a detention!"

"Okay that was entirely my fault," Catra said with a laugh.

"I got in a fight! A genuine fight! I bled!"

"I mean, that's true," Catra admitted. "But you didn't really fight back. I mean, if you had then Lonnie would've been in some real trouble."

"Well...I shoved her. And...there was a point where she kicked you and I... y'know. If Mr. Hordak hadn't stepped in…"

"Woah," Catra said, suddenly curious. "What were you gonna do?"

"I don't know, but I was definitely gonna do it. It was a scary feeling in hindsight."

"Well I'm flattered that you were so ready to throw down for me," Catra said.

"Of course! Would a good girl do that?"

"Hmmm," Catra thought to herself. "Maybe. I have an idea." Catra walked over to her closet and began to look through her clothes.

Adora sidled up behind her. "What are you doing?"

"Well," Catra said as she smiled and pulled out a worn leather jacket from her closet, "I figured we could catch a glimpse of this 'bad girl' Adora." She held the jacket up to Adora's torso.

Adora chuckled. "It's not really my style, but I'll try it out."

"Yes!" Catra said excitedly as she continued to rifle through her clothes.

"Gosh, Catra," Adora said as she watched. "Do you own any clothes that aren't black?"

"Heh. Some," Catra replied proudly.

"And you have so much leather!"

"Hey man. Leather's cool. Maybe I'll get a motorcycle one day and it'll complete my aesthetic."

"You're hopeless," Adora said admirably.

Catra pulled out a few more things and handed them to Adora. "I think we're ready."

Adora looked at the clothes and then around the room awkwardly. "Uh…"

"Oh! Yeah, geez," Catra said quickly, looking away nervously. "Yeah I'll, uh, step out." She bounded up the stairs. "Just let me know when you're, like, decent and everything."

Catra shut the door behind her and Adora smiled to herself. "How is she so cute?" Adora wondered.

Adora changed, struggling a little to fit into Catra's smaller clothes. The clothes smelled like Catra and Adora felt her heart race as she slipped into them.

When she had put everything on she observed herself in a body mirror attached to the closet.

"Woah," she said out loud to herself, surprised by the look. She definitely looked edgier. She had a simple grey tee on with one of Catra's tight-fitting black leather jackets. The ripped black jeans she wore were a little short on her and were way too tight. The outfit wasn't comfortable at all, but it looked pretty good. Not like anything Adora would ever wear, but still pretty good.

"I'm ready!" She called up to Catra and instantly heard the door open. Catra peered down at Adora and a grin slowly stretched across her face.

"Oh. My. God. You look incredible," Catra said as she hurried down the steps and admired Adora.

"I don't know about that," Adora said bashfully.

"Nah this one's not up for debate. You look great."

Adora felt her heart swell as she nervously teetered from foot to foot. Catra walked around Adora and took in the look. "Yeah I can see the bad girl vibe now for sure. Oh man. If we ripped the sleeves off that. And you had like a badass sleeveless leather jacket. That'd be next level."

"Well I like it, but I don't think I'll be adding this stuff to my wardrobe anytime soon."

"Too bad for you?" Catra asked from behind Adora's shoulder. Catra's mouth was painfully close to the back of Adora's neck and it took all of Adora's willpower not to shiver.

"Uh...yeah," she said, recovering. "Plus I feel like I'm being squeezed to death by your clothes."

"I...yep," Catra said, trying to play it cool. She had definitely noticed how tight the clothes fit.

Adora looked herself over in the mirror again. "Yeah I don't think the bad girl thing is me either. I'll just...stay neutral girl for now."

"Neutral girl," Catra said, trying the term out. "Yeah that sounds very you."

"Agreed. Now get out so I can change back."

"Well you're gonna need some pajamas if you're staying the night," Catra said. She scanned the room before heading over to her bed and pulling a half-filled laundry hamper out from under it. She pulled out a worn and oversized t-shirt and a pair of checkered pajama pants. She held them up and smiled at Adora.

"Okay," Adora replied. "But after this we're done playing dress up with Adora."

Catra clicked her tongue disappointedly. "But that's my new favorite game though," she said in a whiny voice.

"Well just wait till we play dress up with you," Adora said. "I'd love to get you in a dress. All poofy and frilly and not a bit of leather in sight." Adora said this just to get a reaction and she was rewarded as Catra slowly grimaced more and more with each word.

"I haven't worn a dress since, like, fifth grade," Catra said as if recalling a dark memory. "Never again."

Adora laughed and walked up to Catra, bumping into her playfully. "It's okay, I won't ever make you wear a dress," Adora assured her as she took the pajamas from her. "Besides, I like how you look already."

Catra smiled somewhat awkwardly and brushed her hair out of her face. "Thanks. I like how you look too. Just for the record. Like...in any clothes, not just mine. So..." Catra tugged at her shirt collar and pointed towards the basement door. "I'm gonna go check on dinner. You let me know when you're changed."

"Will do," Adora said as she began to shrug off the jacket. Catra closed the door and Adora sat down on the bed as she got undressed.

She was taking off the skinny jeans when she banged her knee on Catra's nightstand and grimaced in pain.

Adora examined her knee and then looked at the drawer of the nightstand that was slightly ajar and that she had collided with. She went to close it when she saw something sticking out of it slightly. The corner of something rectangular.

Now, Adora didn't want to go snooping around Catra's things. Well, she did. But she would feel guilty about it and she didn't want to betray Catra like that.

She did, however, decide that she couldn't close the drawer with that item sticking out how it was. So she grabbed it gingerly and began to push it back down into the drawer.

She realized as she did this that it felt like a photo, with one side glossy and smooth. Adora paused as her curiosity began to get the best of her. She looked up at the basement door and faintly heard Catra talking to her dad.

Adora gave in and quickly pulled the item she was holding out of the drawer and examined it.

It was, in fact, a photo. Adora quickly realized she was looking at a picture of a young Catra and a woman that she recognized as Catra's mother. They were laughing, or at least smiling, and they seemed to be sitting on a checkered blanket outside on a sunny day. They both looked so happy and Adora smiled to herself as she looked at Catra, displaying a grin that was missing a front tooth and that showed off her prominent dimples.

Catra's mother looked happy too. She looked so much like Catra. Adora then realized with a shock that in the background of the photo was a sight that she recognized. It was the field of sunflowers that Catra had taken her to.

Adora wondered again what had happened with Catra's mother. She began to place the photo back when she saw some writing on the back of the photo in black marker. It read, 'For my baby, Catra. Love you!' and had a heart drawn next to it.

Adora frowned and put the photo back how it had been, closing the drawer again.


"So, Adora," Gerald said as he cut himself off another slice of the meatloaf he had made. "How did you and Catra meet?"

"Oh," Adora said as she thought back to it. "Well it's a funny story, actually."

Catra frowned guiltily as she knew where this was going.

"It was my first day and Catra tried talking to me in Mrs. Weaver's class. And uh...we got a detention."

"A detention for getting to know your classmates during class? That hardly seems fair," Gerald reasoned.

"Thank you!" Catra exclaimed. "Mrs. Weaver just hates me."

"Well…" Gerald said slowly. "There was that time when you put p…"

"Oh!" Catra said excitedly, interrupting her dad. "Don't steal my punchline." She turned to Adora and pointed a fork at her. "I'm proud of this one. One time in, like, my freshman year English class, Scorpia and I put black paint on the eraser part of the whiteboard eraser before class. And then when Mrs. Weaver tried to erase…" Catra left her description open ended as she smiled proudly, getting a kick out of the memory.

Adora laughed at the story and Gerald just shook his head, smiling wryly despite himself. "That was super bad though. You were in detention for weeks."

"Well she wouldn't have even known it was me if I hadn't laughed so hard. And I managed to convince her it was only me so Scorpia got off the hook."

"So you've been getting in trouble in that class for way longer than I've been here," Adora realized.

"Oh yeah. You're just the latest casualty in my battle against Mrs. Weaver," Catra said as she poured even more salt on her mashed potatoes.

"A battle that we hope is done for good," Gerald said with a look at his daughter, who shrugged. He sighed and turned back to Adora. "So do you have any plans for what you wanna do after high school? Careers? College?"

Adora chewed her food as she thought about it. "Not really," she replied after a while. "I mean, I never really saw college as an option. But now, I guess…I don't know."

"Well I'm glad you have options now," Gerald said joyfully. "I'm a firm believer that everybody should do whatever makes them happy. You just gotta find out what that is. Me and Catra have been talking about that lately. Looking at possible colleges in the area."

Adora raised her eyebrows and looked over at Catra. "Really?"

"Yeah," Catra replied. "I don't know. I'm not a huge fan of school, but there's a lot of cool things to learn, I guess. Anything beats working at the skating rink for the rest of my life."

"Yeah I guess so," Adora said distantly. She hadn't thought about college much or even her future, and it all took her a little aback. She decided not to fret about it and enjoyed the rest of the meal with Catra and her dad.

After dinner, Adora insisted on helping clean up, but Gerald declined, admiring her responsibility.

Catra and Adora went back downstairs and played through the campaign of another Halo game until it was way past the time when they should have been asleep for school the next day.

Catra helped set up the blanket and pillows on Adora's mattress on the ground. As she did, she tested the comfortability of the mattress by laying on it.

"This isn't the most comfortable sleeping arrangement," Catra said, dissatisfied. "If you want you can sleep in my bed."

Adora's eyes widened a little bit and her face started to redden. "Uh...I…"

"Oh!" Catra said suddenly, waving her arms in front of her. "No, I meant, like, you sleep in my bed, and I sleep on this bed. Like a switch! Not like...I mean, not that I wouldn't…" Catra trailed off. "Anyway! You're welcome to my bed if you want."

Adora recovered from her initial surprise and shook her head. "Thanks, but I'm fine with floor-bed." But now, all that Adora could think about was sleeping in the same bed as Catra. An excited chill ran down Adora's spine.

"Your loss," Catra said, desperate to change the subject. "Anyway, it's all ready for you." Catra patted the mattress and leapt up onto her own bed, which was just parallel to where the mattress was.

Adora smiled and settled down into her floor-bed, getting under the heavy blanket she had been given. "Did you leave a mint on the pillow too?" Adora asked, craning her neck to look over at Catra, who was rubbing her eyes and getting situated in her own bed.

"We're actually fresh out of mints," Catra said. "But tell you what. If you sleep over here again I'll make sure you receive better service."

Adora laughed as she laid back flat on her pillow, looking up at the ceiling covered with a huge pride flag and hundreds of little glow-in-the-dark stars. "I'll definitely have to then."

"Definitely," Catra agreed. "You ready for me to turn off the light?"

"Yeah go for it."

Catra reached over and flicked the switch on the lamp, bathing the room in darkness. Adora listened to the sound of Catra shuffling around to get comfortable and then there was a moment of quiet.

"Hey, Adora?" Came Catra's raspy voice from the darkness.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for coming over. Everything with Scorpia...I just needed someone to talk to. And you're...you're, like, the only person I could talk to about this."

Adora wished now more than ever that she was up there laying next to Catra. "Of course," Adora whispered in response. "And hey, I'll always be here. If you ever wanna talk. Any time at all."

There was another moment of quiet as the girls laid in the dark, only a few feet from each other.

"Thanks," Catra whispered. "Adora?"

"Yeah I'm still here," Adora said, chuckling quietly. Adora heard Catra laughing quietly from the bed before she continued.

"Well...I was gonna make a big deal out of this. Like go overboard. But that's not really your thing and I got lazy. And to be honest, I just wanna ask you already." Catra paused and Adora heard her take a breath. Adora wasn't sure what she was going to say, but she found herself getting excited about it. "Do you...would you wanna go to the Fall Formal with me?"

Adora was glad that it was dark so that Catra didn't see the absurdly large smile on Adora's face. "Yes," she responded instantly. "That sounds really fun."

"Oh good," Catra said, releasing a sigh. "When I rehearsed that in my head you always said no."

"Well then the Adora in your head is nothing like the real Adora. I can't wait," Adora said excitedly.

"You know, I can't either," Catra agreed. "I...I'm just glad you're here. And also glad that I got us in that detention way back when."

"Oh I know you are," Adora said into the dark as she cuddled up further into the blanket. "I am too."

Adora could practically hear Catra snickering in the bed next to her.

"Well we should probably get some sleep."

"Yeah you're right."

"Goodnight, Adora. I hope you have good dreams on your semi-comfortable floor-bed."

"I'm sure I will," Adora said, and Catra could tell in the way she said it that she was smiling. "Goodnight, Catra."

After that, the girls were able to settle in and be at ease. They thought warmly of the Fall Formal and of each other as they drifted off to sleep.

Before Catra was fully asleep, however, she heard a soft rhythmic noise coming from the floor. She listened curiously and realized that it was the sound of Adora snoring.

Catra could barely handle how cute it was and she smiled up at the glow-in-the-dark pinpricks on the ceiling.

"I don't know if snoring counts as a bad habit or not," Catra whispered aloud, certain that Adora was asleep. "But regardless, it's adorable."

Catra closed her eyes slowly and whispered again into the darkness. "I think I love you, Adora."

Big chapter. I've been waiting for a lot of these moments. Writing the Scorpia part broke my little heart. As did talking about Adora's past. Which by the way I would like to point out that I understand that everybody in the childcare system has different experiences and I don't mean to narrow that down or anything. My mother was in a group home for a long time and I'm using what she has told me about it to write a lot of this. So at least it is related to somebody's experience. And the part at the end. Wow. I'm just so happy to see the story progressing. I'm working on some big ideas for the future of it and I'll let you know when I flesh it out more. But it's gonna be fun! Thanks for reading and I hope everybody stays safe and has a great week!