CHAPTER XXXV: FAMILY
Catra stared at the figure sitting on the throne with her mouth agape. It was tall figure, completely encased in a silver armor, with a golden crown embedded in its helmet. For a single moment, the feline thought that whoever was sitting on the throne… had to be dead. But as she took a single step forward… the figure which once sat completely still, with its head bent over its crossed fingers… suddenly raised its face.
Mismatched eyes stared into two minuscule holes in the figure helmet's face plate… and whatever was behind that face made of silver… stared back.
A few, silent moments went by… then… the figure's shoulders began to shake, and soon, the sound of a deranged laughter filled the throne room. The sound sent chills down Catra's spine, but it was nothing compared to the dread she felt when the knight in silver armor began to speak.
"Are you seeing this, my dear Katrina?" The figure spoke as they extended a hand towards the other throne and lightly caressed the edge Katrina's golden mask.
Catra's breath hitched.
"First she comes into our village… she slaughters our people, burns their homes… then, she takes you from me…" The figure suddenly hesitated, their voice slightly cracking, "And then… she takes our daughter away…"
No…
It… it couldn't be…
"Our little Catra…"
The feline let out a strangled noise. The dreams she had… they… they weren't just dreams, they were memories. The village that burned… it wasn't a simple village, it was her home. The infant that cried in that crib… the baby that witch took away, it wasn't just any child… she was that child. And… Katrina and Mathias… they weren't just two people caught in a war. Katrina and Mathias were…
Katrina and Mathias were her parents.
The figure that stood at the end of the throne room… was her father.
Suddenly, Catra's train of thoughts was interrupted by the tall, armored man standing up.
"And now… she decides that that's not enough. She decides to come here… and mock me with her image." Mathias growled as he lifted his hand from the golden mask and brought it to the hilt of his sword.
Catra wanted to speak, she wanted to with all of her heart… but words didn't come to her.
All of what was happening…
It was too much.
"What did you do to our Catra, Shadow Weaver?"
The feline's eyes grew wide at the man's words. Shadow Weaver… the witch that struck down her mother… that took her away from her village… it was Shadow Weaver. Catra clenched her eyes shut, balled her fists and gritted her teeth as anger, hatred and sadness pervaded her all at once.
Matthias began to walk towards her, sword in hand.
"Did you torture her? Kill her?" The man's voice came out shaky, "My Katrina was everything you could never be, strong, determined, respected, revered… beautiful… and our Catra would have grown up to be the same. And that is why you hated them so much, didn't you? But now… now I'll avenge both of them."
The armored man raised his sword in the air and turned his head upwards.
"Are you watching us now, my loves?! Tonight these halls shall run crimson with the blood of the one that destroyed our family!"
"W-wait!"
Finally, finally something clicked inside Catra, and words came back to her. She extended a hand towards the tall man… towards Mathias… towards her father… but it was too late. He broke into a sprint towards her, sword held tight between his hands. Mathias jumped in the air and came down with such force, that when Catra dodged his sword, making it come in contact with the ground, the floor shattered.
"Stop!" Catra cried, but to no vail.
Another swipe of Mathias' sword almost cut her neck, and blow after blow Catra realized that she would have never been able to make him stop… but… that would have meant that she'd need to fight back…
"Stop this! I'm not Shadow Weaver!" The feline shouted as she ducked under another swipe of the man's sword.
"Silence!" Mathias replied, kicking her in the stomach as she avoided his blow, sending her to the ground. "You're not going to ruin any more lives!"
Catra rolled to the side as her father's sword came down once again, edging itself in the throne room's floor.
"Now or never."
The feline jumped upwards and landed on Mathias' shoulders. She propelled herself in the air and came down, sending a powerful kick to the man's back. He cried out in pain and stumbled forward, managing to pull the sword's blade out of the stone floor.
"We don't need to fight, I'm-" Catra made the mistake of trying to speak once more, stepping closer to the man.
Mathias cried out as he turned around, throwing a blind hit. The edge of his blade cut through Catra's side. The feline stumbled backwards and fell to the ground, clutching the wound tightly as a few droplets of blood fell on the floor. It wasn't deep, but it would have definitely slowed her down.
"Look at me…" Mathias breathed heavily, towering above her. "This is for everything you've done to my family… to the magicats…"
"What you're doing now is killing the last bit of that family!" Catra shouted back.
Mathias was raising his sword above the feline's head, but as he heard those words, he hesitated… and Catra took the opportunity. She kicked the man's leg, who fell to his knees with a grunt. Mathias cried out in rage, trying to raise his sword once again, but the feline was quicker, and kicked him again in the stomach, making him fall to the ground. His sword slipped from his fingers, flying in the air above them. Catra jumped off the ground, grabbed its hilt, and landed on her feet. Mathias merely managed to push himself onto his knees when his own blade touched his neck. He raised his gaze and met Catra's.
"Go on… do it… at least I'll be able to see my family again."
Catra simply stared at him.
"Do it!" Mathias cried, gripping his helmet, lifting it and throwing it to ground.
The feline could finally see the man underneath the silver armor. He had short, white air, a well-kept, mid length beard and… and blue eyes… just like her right one. Catra let the sword fall to the ground. It clattered loudly as it hit the floor, as the feline took a step backwards. Her expression shifted, from anger to sadness.
"You're looking at it right now…"
Silence…
Mathias opened his mouth to speak… but no sound came out.
"You… if you were Shadow Weaver… you'd have no reason to spare me…" He muttered, his eyes focused on the ground before he once again raised his gaze to met hers.
Blue eyes met mismatched ones.
"Catra…" Mathias whispered, his voice on the edge of breaking, as tears started to pool in his eyes.
He stepped forward, extending a hand towards her cheek, but the feline stepped back, avoiding his gaze.
"You left me…" The feline whispered.
Mathias let his hand fall to his side. He lowered his gaze in shame for a moment, before he raised it once again.
"I wanted to follow you… but I had no choice."
Catra would have once believed what he had just told her… but now… now she knew.
"We always have a choice… you had a choice when you decided to run away." The feline met his gaze, eyes glossy, resentment clear in her voice.
He had run away.
There was no denying it.
But he had already lost his daughter once, he wasn't going to lose her again.
Mathias hesitated for a moment before he spoke again.
"Your mother was dying."
Catra's lips twitched.
"You were nowhere to be seen…" Mathias spoke as his gaze seemed lost into nothingness. "I was afraid…"
Remembering that night… it hurt more than anything else in the world... but he owed his daughter an explanation.
"Your mother had sent me to escort a large group of magicats to Half Moon, this underground city. She knew that the Horde was going to attack our village, so she sent me and her best warriors to bring our people to safety. I thought I would have had more time… but when I came back…"
A tear slipped from Mathias' left eye.
"I reached our home… but the Horde had already burned it. I reached Katrina's tent… and that's when I saw you. Shadow Weaver had taken you… Hordak was at her side… there were so many soldiers… but I would have faced each and every one of them… for you." Mathias took another step forward, feeling his heart clench at the sight of his own daughter stepping back. "But then… I heard her calling my name."
Catra gasped lightly.
"Katrina… she had crawled outside her tent. I knelt down and held her as she slipped away. But… before she died, she took my hand in hers and told me: 'If you go now… she'll lose both of us. Go back, protect our people… protect Halfmoon and… one day… when she'll come back… then you'll know you'll have the power to fight back…'."
The old man took another step towards her, and this time, Catra remained still.
"I wanted to save you, I wanted to destroy them all… for everything that they had done to us. But… I knew your mother was right. If I had tried to save you then… you would have lost your entire family. Still… there hasn't been a day I haven't felt regret for leaving you in their hands." The old man muttered in a shaking voice as he closed the distance between him and the feline.
"I did something terrible to you… I haven't been there for you. It's the worse thing a father could do. The magicats decided to follow Katrina's orders, to wait for your return… and I was too afraid to lead them to their demise to encourage them to fight back immediately." Mathias sighed heavily, "I'm not asking for your forgiveness… I just want you to know to understand…"
Catra watched Mathias straight into his eyes. He wasn't lying… and even though what he did hurt her… how could she deprive this man of the only family he had left? He could have come for her… but the fear to lose his people, to let down the one he had loved… to lose his daughter forever… it made him stay in the dark.
Something she was very familiar with.
"I've… I've done terrible things too…" Catra muttered.
Mathias raised a hand towards her, and this time, she didn't back away. She let him cradle her cheek as he spoke once again, his expression turning so loving and desperate at the same time, Catra felt a pang to her heart.
"I want you to know that in all these years I never stopped waiting for you… I never stopped loving you…"
Catra let out a stuttering sigh. She covered her father's hand with her own and hesitated for a few moments before doing something Mathias wasn't expecting… she smiled at him and said something he had been waiting for a long time to hear.
"I forgive you."
"Catra…" Mathias whispered, his eyes wide, before he stepped forwards and enveloped the feline in a tight hug.
The doors of the throne room suddenly burst open.
"My king!"
Catra lightly pushed Mathias away and watched as a creature very much like her rushed towards them. The soldier wore a leather armor and had a long, light grey mane. The short fur that covered her skin was white and her eyes shone of a bright emerald green as the torches of the throne room illuminated them. However, the warrior came to a halt as Mathias raised his hand.
"It's all right, Anthea… it's… it's her…" The old king stood aside, letting the magicat see Catra.
Anthea gasped, her mouth agape and her green eyes as wide as dinner plates.
"Could… could it be?" The warrior fell to her knees, her head low. "My Queen…"
"W-what is she talking about?" Catra turned to her father and asked.
"Katrina was the magicats queen, Catra. From the moment she left us… you've been the new Queen of the magicats… and they have been waiting for you ever since our village was destroyed by the Horde." Mathias explained as he gestured with his hand towards the throne room's gates.
As Catra turned towards the entrance, she finally noticed them. Her eyes went wide at the sight of such a large group of people that looked like her. Countless 'magicats', as her father called them, had grouped outside the throne room. Their eyes shone with astonishment and wonder, and slowly, quiet whispers began to erupt from the large crowd.
"It's her!"
"It can't be!"
"Look at her left eye!"
"Golden like her mother's…"
"No other magicats but our queens are born with that eye color! It must be her!"
Catra felt overwhelmed. It took only a moment for Mathias to notice. He turned towards Anthea and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Please Anthea, could you lead our people back to their homes? And… call the council, tell them to wait for us in the war room. We'll go there too, just… give us a moment."
"My king." Anthea nodded and reached for the large crowd.
Reluctantly, the group began to follow the warrior, and soon enough, they all disappeared. When Catra turned around towards her father, she saw he had reached the empty throne at the end of the room. She joined him at his side and noticed he was staring at Katrina's… at her mother's mask.
"This… has belonged to you for a very long time Catra… it is time for you to finally have it." Mathias took the golden mask into his hands and gave it to her.
With hesitant, slightly trembling fingers, the feline took it from her father's hands, and put it on.
And for a moment…
Everything went dark…
͠
Catra gasped as the darkness surrounding her vanished. She wasn't in her father's castle anymore. As she looked around, all she could see was a vast Greenland. The sky above her was dark, strewn with stars. Where was she? How could it be already nighttime? Had she fallen asleep? Had she fainted?
But the feline's thoughts were suddenly silenced by a low growl coming from behind her. As she turned around, she noticed a single, large tree a few feet away from her. Laying on its branches, she could see ten creatures that looked exactly like the one on the center of the platform that brought her to Half Moon. They were all staring at her, golden eyes shining in the night.
One in particular, its mane and pelt completely black, suddenly jumped down from the tree, keeping its eyes on Catra. The feline took a few steps backwards as the beast approached her, but grew still as the creature began to change. It stood on its hind legs and grew smaller, until… someone very much like Catra appeared in front of her.
Catra had already seen her… in her dreams…
"Katrina…" The feline whispered.
The woman smiled, and her smile, so warm and kind… for Catra it was like feeling the sun on her skin for the first time.
"Oh… my sweet Catra… you've grown so much." Katrina said, her eyes full of nothing but love.
That is when Catra felt a pull she couldn't ignore. She quickly closed the distance between her and her mother and enveloped her in a tight hug. Katrina let out a small yelp of surprise, but quickly wrapped her arms around the younger feline, kissing her between her ears as she nestled her head in the crook of the taller woman's neck.
"M-mom…" Catra muttered.
The word should have sounded so weird to her, not having used it once in her whole life, never having called Shadow Weaver like that… but right now, in the arms of Katrina… it felt so, so right.
"Catra… I always knew that one day, you would have come back home…" Katrina whispered, running her fingers through the cat girl's mane.
"H-how do you know?" Catra asked.
"Walk with me dear…" The tall magicat gestured to follow her.
Catra did, and mother and daughter turned away from the tall tree, leaving it behind them as they started to walk.
"This is the place where every magicat queen comes to rest after they die…" Katrina explained.
The younger feline's eyes widened, and turned her head slightly, glancing at the other nine creatures laying on tree's branches… the other magicat queens…
"But I sense life in you… that must mean you found Half Moon and… my mask."
"There's… there's so much I want to ask you…" Catra said, turning towards her and grasping the magicat's hand.
"And there is so much I want to ask you too… so many questions come to my mind but… there's only one that matters, I guess. How are you?" Katrina asked, cradling Catra's cheek.
"I'm fine mom… I… after a long time… I'm finally happy…" Catra leaned into her mother's touch, a tear streaming down her cheek.
"That is all that matters to me, my dear child."
To know that Catra was alright… that she was happy… it must have truly been the only thing that mattered to Katrina. But the younger feline couldn't refrain herself from asking what truly, she had been wondering for all of her life.
"Mom I… who am I? I spent so much time pretending that I didn't care about who I was… but I do." The younger feline spoke as she grasped her mother's hands, a pleading look in her eyes.
Katrina simply smiled back.
"You are the daughter of the latest queen of the magicats, an ancient race that has been living on Etheria for a long, long time. We were the first to discover what the Horde truly was… who Hordak truly was… many didn't want to believe us, to help us… we paid the price of our courage in the end."
"It's not your fault… they should have all listened to you. If they did… maybe… maybe now…" Catra had to bite her lip to stop her tears from falling.
"Do not blame them for not wanting a war Catra. People desire peace and are not ready to face the truth sometimes. In the end, they suffered just as much as we did, if not more."
"I'm going to stop the Horde… they won't hurt anyone anymore. No one else will have to go through what happened to us." Catra spoke with such fierce determination.
"I know you will, and I know that you won't be alone when you'll stand against them." Katrina said, giving the feline's hands an encouraging squeeze.
They remained silent for a few minutes after that, holding hands and walking through the seemingly endless Greenland. Catra was the one who broke the silence, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I… I think that Mat… I think that dad really misses you…"
Katrina's eyes widened, and her expression turned distant for one moment before softening once more.
"How is your father?" She asked.
"I just met him but… he seemed fine… he didn't think it was really me we saw each other." Catra explained.
"I can't really blame him… I left him alone to grieve… in one day he lost both his wife and daughter." Katrina's expression turned remorseful for a moment.
"It wasn't your fault… it was Shadow Weaver… and Hordak's… but they're going to pay for this." The younger magicat growled.
"I don't want revenge Catra." Katrina spoke without a hint of anger in her voice.
"W-what?! B-but they killed you! They kidnapped me, they ruined our family! You'd… you'd still be alive if it wasn't for them…" Catra exclaimed, clearly shocked by her mother's words.
"And killing them would bring that back?"
Catra looked away, but Katrina cupped her cheeks, gently raising her face to meet her gaze.
"I lived a long, happy life. I fell in love with your father and the year we spent together with you had been the most wonderful of my whole life. Do not ever pity the dead Catra, pity the living… especially those who live without love."
"I… I would have loved to grow up with you and dad…" Catra sniffed slightly.
"And yet, something tells me that you still managed to find happiness in your life… to find someone who loves you with all of their heart… and you love them too."
"I… I did… I did find someone… but mom, they're in danger."
Katrina's expression turned serious.
"The leader of the Horde, it was never Hordak. He was just a pawn. Their true leader… Horde Prime, he found us. He found Etheria and… he kidnapped Adora. How… mom, how can I save her? Madame Razz told me that I would have found the power to save her if I got back home… w-what did she mean?"
Katrina smiled at the mention of the old witch's name.
"Always talking in riddles… she hasn't changed." Katrina chuckled, "The magicats have remained hidden for a long time, waiting for their queen. Now, Catra, it's time for you to be their guide. Bring them into the sunlight, take one last stand at their side, at your father's side… lower the mask on your eyes and… save the one you love."
Wind started to blow, breaking the silence that surrounded them.
"W-what is happening?" Catra asked.
"You need to go… our time is almost up…" Katrina looked around herself.
"I don't want to leave you! W-we just met!"
Katrina tried her best to hide the pain on her face as she brought Catra into a tight hug.
"When you'll need my help… I'll always be here… I'll always be with you."
"M-mom… I don't… I don't know what to do…" Catra whispered.
"Yes, you do. You're so strong, Catra. Be their guide, wear my mask, unite the princesses and the magicats once more… and you'll have the power to save Adora."
"Mom…"
"I would have loved to see you grow up… to see her… to see the both of you together. But this… this already is a gift. I love you, Catra." Katrina whispered, kissing her daughter's forehead.
"I love you too." Catra replied.
Darkness began to surround her once more. Katrina let go of her and turned around, her form shifting once again. She returned to the tall tree, tail dangling from the thick branch as she kept her eyes locked on Catra. The feline did the same, smiling at her mother as darkness enveloped her.
Everything went quiet for a moment…
Then…
Her father's voice brought her back…
Now she knew what she had to do.
