A/N: Final Word Count: 8.1k Pre-A/N's. Huh, i almost don't recognize this work without a freaking 15K+ words attached to it XP lol.
Ah, and now, we're at the beginning of the halfway point folks ^^ it seems just like yesterday i was posting chapter one, and now we're back with a brand spanking new episode! You know, it's not just the season finale of season 3 for us- it's also the last time we'll ever be using THIS intro :O! A moment of silence for our good friend Intro-Buddy X*(... Ok silence over ^^
I can not express my excitement for the climax and madhouse i have intended for the end of this season. I hope to make it big, i hope to make it jam packed with emotions and feels and whatnot, and I hope to leave a very satisfying and long-sized fight for the rest of you given the 2-3 minute finale we got between Adora and catra in the original.
All i can say is, we've reached the middle of the show, and now its time to reach the tip of the mountain!
Enjoy!
...
...
...
"Woohoo!" It was another joyous day in Bright Moon as Glimmer teleported out of thin air, dropping into her mother's arms as her mother played around with her.
From the side to the next, distancing herself several yards from hey giggling mother, the Princess of Bright Moon gave her mother no pause for rest, no time to pace herself. Higher and higher, the princess disappeared and reappeared from one side of the field to her next, awaiting her mother's eager embrace as the Queen chased her around. It was by the fourth teleport that the two paused a little, laughing at one another as they enjoyed each other's embrace.
Like was always peaceful like this for the royals of Bright Moon. Letting them play away their days without end, allowing them to enjoy all that life had to offer. And why wouldn't they be allowed to? This world was perfect, it was wonderful!
Swinging her daughter by her hands, Angella laughed and cheered at the playful antics of her daughter. She was never too old to enjoy her life, and with a world as peaceful as Etheria, she had no need to concern herself with her daughter's upbringing. They had all the time in the world, and all the freedom to do as they played.
Finally coming to a small end of their endeavors, the two laughed to one another as her mother descended from the sky, landing atop the entrance's balcony as Glimmer teleported out of her hands, popping up right next to her mother as she pressed her hands against her knees in excitement.
"Hahahaha! That was awesome!" Glimmer squealed, squeezing her hands together in excitement. "Can we do it one more time?"
"Hahaha." Angella chuckled, folding her wings up as she smiled proudly to her daughter, patting her head. "Oh, that's quite enough for today." She deemed. "Besides-"
"Did you two go flying without me?" A firm voice spoke as it approached the to girls. There, standing in all his regalness, all his splendor, was Glimmer's father, Micah. One of the best sorcerers across Etheria, one of the bright pupils to hail from Mystacor, and King to one of the greatest kingdoms of Etheria. He was also as jolly as the rest of them as his expression softened. "Hahaha!"
"Dad, you're back!" Glimmer gasped with excitement, running up to him.
Grinning, her father casually made a simple arcane symbol with the wave of his finger, the runes glowing with a bright blue, as he tossed it to his daughter. "Think fast!"
Seeing the speeding disk of magic flying above her, Glimmer quickly reached for the magical circle, grabbing onto it before unleashing it above her very head. Incredibly, it was another one of her father's great displays of magic as it burst into a pile of glitter all around her, earning more than enough excitement for the girl who loved her father so dearly.
With another laugh, Glimmer teleported from her spot as she reappeared in her father's arms, hugging around his waist and never wishing to let go.
"Heh heh, you're getting good at that." Micah complimented, embracing his daughter in turn.
"I've been practicing~"
"Yes." Angella said as she approached the duo. "She only blew up my flower garden twice. Smiling to one another, the Queen gave her husband a dutiful kiss on the cheek, enjoying the sight of his return as much as Glimmer was. "Welcome home, love."
"You looked like you were having so much fun without me, you can't have missed me much." He commented, crossing an arm over the other. With their defenses down, Micah gave a sneaky kiss to his daughter's forehead as he drew both his girls in. Angella chuckled at the display, seeing their husband's quirkiness had yet to leave him.
A loving family. Great weather. And a kingdom to call their own. Never have the three felt so thankful to be blessed with such a lifestyle.
Everything was Perfect.
"Your Majesties." A guard captain shouted as she ran to the royals playing around. "Your Majesties. We caught a girl sneaking into Bright Moon from the Whispering Woods. She demanded entry into the castle, and when we denied her, she tried to assault the guards to get past us."
"An intruder?" Angella looked her King in the eyes with concern, feeling the same sense of worry that spread across his face.
"Did she have an explanation? A reason for this upstart?" Micah asked as he stepped forth with Angella. Strangely, a look of question came over the guard captain as she glanced away for a sec.
"Well... that's the weird part, Your Majesties." The guard admitted, sewing concern between the two parents. "She claims to be... well... your daughter." Neither the Queen nor the King knew how to respond to this as they and their daughter gasped silently.
They didn't know what to say about this predicament or know where she was getting at. They trusted one another equally, there was no way they would have a family outside of their own that they didn't know about. From the mere sounds of it, it sounded like a lunatic raving nonsense of some sort. In a way, the two royals felt sorry about whoever claimed to be theirs, whatever insanity might've brought her to this day.
Whoever the mysterious girl was didn't remain a mystery for long. Beyond the Captain of the Guard, all eyes turned back as they heard some obsessive shouting, growling. Whoever was behind this farce sounded desperate enough to make their voice heard to the denizens of Bright Moon.
"Get off of me you idiots!" The prisoner shouted as she was marched up the stairs. Wrists tied behind her back and a length of rope around both her arms, Catra refused to surrender as she was pulled away. With one guard at her front pulling the rope and the other two pushing at her shoulders, she found no current means of escape. "Don't you remember who I am? I'm Princess Catra you morons-!" Catra gazed at the two adults away from her as they all stared at her.
It didn't make any sense to her currently. They didn't seem concerned for her safety, they didn't tell the guards to release her on the spot. They acted as if they couldn't even see her at this point. "Mom! Dad! Tell them to let me go!" She yelled, pushing back with all her strength as she tried to get past the restraining guards. It took all three of them just to drag the girl away again, which would've been easier if she wasn't willing to bite them to get away. "What are waiting for? Tell them! Get them off of me!"
She's never been more confused right now. This morning the two were embracing her and loving her as much as their own daughter, they were all a family not too long ago. Why were they suddenly acting like they never saw her before. "Come on, do something!" She shouted again, pushing her head away as she finally noticed the third member of their party. "Glimmer! Hey, Pinky! Tell them who I am already!" Before Catra's ramblings could go any further, the magicat was tragically pulled away, the head of the small trio finally having the courage to pull the feline by her ears.
"Captain, please escort my daughter safely into her room." Angella requested, earning an immediate nod from the guard with a salute. "I want her to remain there until we can determine the..." Angella was unsure of what to say as she gazed into Micah's eyes. Fake Daughter? Trespasser? Lunatic? None of those sounded pleasant to say and yet they were the closest descriptions they had of the girl. "... Prisoner's... intentions."
Following her orders, the head of the guard rushed to the princess's side as she gently placed her hands upon her shoulder, escorting her away from the scene. As she did, Glimmer couldn't help but look back to the entrance as her parents discussed their situation, heading for the door.
She couldn't say for certainty, she didn't know why she gave her this uneasy feeling, but she just felt it. Something about this mysterious girl, this half-human half-cat hybrid that apparently knew their name, just seemed familiar to Glimmer somehow. From her brutish nature and to her seeming lack of mannerisms, she acted as if she had known Glimmer, known all of them, all her life.
But just who was she?
...
...
The intro starts with Shadow Weaver in the Black Garnet chamber spying and glaring at a image of Catra. Than the image dives into the water of her scrying spell.
~ We're on the edge of greatness ~
Where we have Catra at Bright Moon looking both determined and forlorn out into the distance.
~ turning darkness into light ~
A scene of kid Catra and kid Adora training together in the fright zone under Shadow Weaver. Before being replaced with a image of Adora glaring at a heart broken looking Catra who's on her knees across a battlefield.
~ We're right beside you ~
But than Glimmer and Bow teleport to Catra side raising her spirit back up, as shown with her surprise blinking when Gimmer offers her a hand, than she smirks accepting the help as she takes the lead ahead of them.
~ Ready to Fight! ~
Catra raises her sword, transforming into She-Ra in a glorious flash of light
~ (fight, fight, fight fight) ~
Then She-Ra rushes off into battle with Glimmer and Bow following right behind her.
~ We're gonna win in the end! ~
Mermista rises out of a tide, blasting Horde soldiers with water.
~ We must be strong, And we must be brave ~
Perfuma burst from the ground, capturing and tying up Horde soldiers with vines.
~(we must be brave) ~
Frosta rides an entire wave of frozen water, freezing Horde tanks in their tracks.
~ We're gonna find every bit of strength that we have ~
The scene shifts to Hordaks throne room where the evil shadowy figure sits upon his throne, his red glowing eyes being the only noticeable part of him, surrounded by notable members of the Horde, consisting of Adora and Catra's squadron, Shadow Weaver, Adora, Scropia, and even Entrapta.
~ and never let go ~
The scene shifts to an epic clash between Catra and Adora, the She-Ra gritting her teeth as she presses her sword against Adora's electrical baton, as the Force Captain herself grins with chaotic excitement as the red jewel from her headband shines.
~ (Oh ah Oh) ~
Adora and Catra push each other off as they back up into their friends- Entrapta and Scorpia for Adora, and for Catra Bow and Glimmer.
~ We must be STRONG! ~
The scene ends with a final shot of both sides looking across the field, a transparent image of Catra and Adora's faces filling the sky as the colors are split between them;
A majestic darkness shining into light upon Catra's side, and a horrid light seeping into darkness on Adora's half.
...
...
Careful... Carefully...
*Thud*
"Awwwhhhh!" Bow groaned as the scrolls he was carrying were scattered amongst the ground.
He was sure he had a good grip on the dozen-and-a-half scrolls he was carrying at his side, yet closing the door with one foot and losing a mere second of balance proved to him otherwise. Adjusting the classes, the infamous scholar went about collecting his work again, hoping this time he could continue getting to where he was going without dropping the pile again for the 18th time this trip.
*swish*
"Ahh!" And it was with the fourth scroll he collected that he finally realized the futility of his collection as he fell back in fright. Like the many times since he's known her, once again, Glimmer dropped in at the most inopportune and unexpected moment as she teleported to his side again with a strange look in her eyes as she crossed her arms. "Glimmer, what is going on?" He asked as she squatted down to him. "Everyone is really freaked out today."
"There's a trespasser in Bright Moon." She explained. "We need to figure out who she is." Without giving him a chance to agree, the princess casually touched his knee before teleporting again.
With the two side by side, the Princess of Bright Moon reappeared around the corner to the entrance of the Throne Room. As expected, there were several guards at the ready standing watch, making sure nobody unnecessary intruders could sneak in.
"Why do we need to figure out who she is?" Bow whispered as Glimmer continued to examine the coast.
"Because she says she's my sister and-"
"YOU HAVE A SISTER!?"
"SHHHHH!" Either from the audible shushing or the brief stammering that came before it managed to catch the left guard's attention as she turned her head. Thinking quickly at the sounds of the footsteps, the princess quickly teleported the two again to the opposite side of the entrance, just before the guard could catch a peek at the unusual noise.
Checking the coast one more time, Glimmer gave a quieter sigh before addressing the shouter again, uncovering his mouth. "Look, I don't know who she is, but I doubt she's my sister. If you've seen her, you'd understand too."
"Then why do you want to figure out who she is?" Bow asked as he wiped his mouth from her hand. "If you know she's lying then I don't see why you need to meet her."
"Because, I..." The princess furrowed her brow in thought. As prepared as she was to meet the girl herself, another part of her was curious about the strange feeling this cat girl gave her. "I just... feel like i know her somehow, so, we're gonna sneak in and spy while my parents interrogate her."
"What-! Mmh."
Learning from the first time around, the princes slapped a hand over his mouth in silence before he could screech again. "I know it sounds crazy. But she came here for a reason, and I need to know why. And if you wanna stay behind, just tell me." She offered, looking back around the corner.
"I whmm mh mhay mehind." He mumbled speaking through her hand.
"Hmm, didn't hear anything. Let's go." And with another flash, and another muffled yelp, the two teleported again.
This time the two reappeared a bit of the way outside of the Throne Room's massive gaping archway behind the very thrones of her mother and father, placing themselves carefully along a slanted arch's platform.
From here, they had the perfect view of everything: the two Majesties who sat proudly and respectfully upon their thrones, the half-dozen guards that stood at the base of the stairs to the throne, and the half dozen guards who circled the mysterious prisoner, the very one who wasn't doing herself any favors as she continued to growl at the "stupidly annoying guards", as she put it within the last ten seconds alone three times, who dragged her towards the room.
Though it couldn't be seen from where they were watching from, there were evidently several scratches and bite marks along the limbs of the guards escorting her. Many of them had learned their lesson to keep themselves behind or under the girl's neck to avoid further harm.
"Bring in the Prisoner." Angella requested. With a small gruff coming from the prisoner still in bindings, Catra made her way forward, lowering her ears as she stared at the two parents in irritation.
"Okay, I get the fact I left an hour ago without any explanation, but you guys are taking this whole *grounding* thing a bit too seriously, you know that?" Catra commented. This earned nothing more than an annoying shove from the guard captain as she pushed her down to her knees, returning the guard's gesture with a smaller grumble. "Lady, you are seriously getting fired when this is over."
Taking a brief moment to look back at one another, the King rose from his throne as he descended his stairs, approaching the prisoner without an ounce of fear. Standing a short walk away from the girl, he rose his hand before him as an arcane rune circle manifested in front of him, one that nearly tripled in size as he shot it forth. Catra let out a small yelp at the sight of the approaching spell as she ducked, unaware that the rune passed through her entirety harmlessly before the King spoke again.
"This is a truth spell." He explained as she lifted herself to her knees. "You will be compelled to answer honestly. Now tell us, who are you, and why did you break into Bright Moon?"
Catra really didn't know where to begin with everything as she rolled her eyes. Should she start off with everything annoying her right now about their strange behavior? Point out the fact that her father used this spell several times before just for tricks and not for interrogation as she previously knew? Or should she remind Angella that he was the one who's been sneaking a year's worth of jelly tarts all for himself and giving a small bribe of it to Catra and her sister to keep silent about it?
Figuring that there was supposed to be some dumb lesson behind all of this, Catra sighed. If they wanted her to learn some lesson about being an "honorary princess" or something and her duties to the kingdom, then so be it.
"Fine, I'll play along." She huffed. With a deep breath, she prepared for the long-winded explanation ahead of her.
"Okay, so the reason I left in the first place is because everyone was starting to disappear around here and being erased from peoples memories so I took it upon myself to fix this before anyone else got erased, and I'm sorry for that. Anyway, after I took the skiff I set out to the Fright Zone in order to save Adora and find some way to stop the portal or to turn everything back to normal, but by the time I got there Adora had already abandoned the Fright Zone and escaped from a giant white wall of death that is currently spreading around Etheria and threatening to consume and destroy everything it touches. We tried to find the sword of the First Ones that let me turn into She-Ra to begin with, by the way mom and dad, I'm She-Ra apparently, and tried searching for it in the Whispering Woods but it wasn't there. Then me and Adora got into a fight and she got sucked into the void that's still coming after us and I lost hope thinking that there was nothing left to do. Then I found Madame Razz again or she found me, doesn't matter, and she said I needed to go back to the beginning to find Bow and Glimmer so that they can help me find a way to stop the portal save Etheria and turn everything back to normal before everything gets swallowed and erased from existence-! HUUUUUUUFF!" Catra gasped for breath by the end of it all before trying to give an innocent smile.
All throughout the proceedings there was nothing but awkward glances, strange and confused looks, and disbelief being thrown all around the room as everybody tried to comprehend everything the cat girl had just said.
Her two unknown friends were looking at her like the lunatic she was making herself out to be. It was no wonder to them that Glimmer's parents were against her seeing the princess or vice versa. The girl had a chance to talk and in the span of thirty seconds, she managed to drivel on about one of the craziest stories any of them had ever heard of!
For Micah, there was nothing short of awkwardness as he listened closely to every detail presented by the magicat. Partway through it, as the girl continued to drivel on, he shot Angella a strange look as the Queen was trying to process the mile-a-minute fast talking cat herself. She didn't know what confused her more throughout the proceedings, the strange way in which Catra went on about everything, or the way she kept calling them "Mom" and "Dad".
And for the guards, they didn't know what to make of the girl anymore. First she was insane for possibly proposing she was the King and Queen's daughter, then she was considered violent given the way she attacked the guards after denying her entry, and then they thought she was insane for trying to convince anyone that she was at all, in any way, a princess.
Now, they, and everyone else in the room, didn't know what to say. There were blank stares, rubbed foreheads, and mild headaches all around them, and they didn't even know where to begin with the next set of questions.
"... I... Uh..." Micah mumbled as he tried to formulate a response.
"Who are you?" Angella demanded to know as she rose from her throne. There was something about her tone and demeanor that bothered Catra as her ears lowered further. The anger in her eyes, the frustration in her voice. It was like she really didn't remember the girl she ate breakfast with this morning. "How do you know about my daughter and the royal apprentice historian."
"... The historian? You mean he turned into a dork in the short time I've been gone?" Catra questioned. She did have to admit, for a mixed bag of a family, they sure got things done fast. Shaking her head, she focused on the priorities. "Look, doesn't matter. They've been my friends since I joined the Rebellion. I doubt you'd remember that part since it's a different reality, but you've at least got to remember the day we've had, right?" Catra said, offering a small smile to Micah. "Like the small food fight we had this morning? Come on, Micah, you have to remember."
"I've never seen you before." He simply stated, much to Catra's shock.
"What? How could you forget me? We have family portraits all over the castle for crying out loud!"
"The only people present in those portraits is my daughter, my husband, and I." Angella corrected. There was a bit of ire in the air as she stared at this girl, a sense of distrust she felt at the sight of her.
"What? Okay, okay, I get it, lesson learned, whatever. You guys can cut the act now." Catra waited for some form of response from the two parents as they looked at one another. When she saw nothing to assure her that the parents would recognize her any time soon, she grew concerned. "You... You guys really don't know who I am?"
"Whoever you're confusing us for, I'm afraid you're quite mistaken." The Queen apologized, still pondering this girl's strange behavior. "We've only ever had a single daughter, and it's not you."
"But... But we have a whole lifetime of memories, remember? The games we used to play, all the stuff we did? How you guys found me on Beast Island because of the Hor-!" At the realization, Catra blinked. Staring off into space, she slowly lowered her gaze to her own two bound hands as she understood. "The... The Horde doesn't exist anymore, so... So you guys never..."
They never went to Beast Island. They never had a reason to. With the destruction of the Fright Zone... With the Fright Zone being erased from existence, so did everything else they ever touched or effected get erased along with it. All that they had done, all they were going to do, stripped from the annals of history, never to touch the fabric of reality with it.
Which included Catra's own existence.
Without them ever existing, there was never a reason to go to Beast Island to begin with. There, they would never find Catra as an infant in the remains of what could've been Catra's own home, found her among the denizens that may or may not have existed without the Horde's involvement, and she never would've been adopted by King Micah and Queen Angella. To them, she was no less of a stranger to them than the average person walking on the street.
And that meant she was no longer a daughter, no longer a part of a family she got to experience for over a day. And she was the only one who had any sense of memories of the entire life she never got to experience out of anyone within the castle.
As much as she wished to discuss otherwise, she knew time was running short. Shaking her head, she gazed back at the King and Queen with determination. "Look, I don't know what you do and don't remember about me, but it doesn't matter. None of this is real. This whole perfect life thing is just an illusion. You're supposed to be more of a stuck-up Queen, Glimmer's supposed to be a commander of your army, and Micah's supposed to be dead in reali-"
*swiff*
"Ngh-!" Catra clicked her teeth as she felt the guard's blade rise up to her neck. And only now did Catra realize she should've stopped before mentioning the stuck-up portion of her sentence...
"Are you threatening the King?!" The captain was appalled by the mysterious girl's brash statement, her uncouth manner since meeting her half an hour ago.
"How dare you say such a thing?" The Queen yelled furiously, placing a hand over Micah's chest in protection.
"Oooookay, I admit that was a bit of a rush." Catra apologized, poking away the sword until it was away from her neck. "But it's the truth. Everything is being erased around us and nobody notices what is and isn't real anymore because they've been sucked into this new reality. It's all a hoax."
The Queen pinched the bridge between her nose in frustration as she continued to hear the girl prattle on about her make-believe life. As much as she sympathized with anyone confused enough to mistake themselves for someone else's family, this child was pushing the limit to what was and wasn't acceptable within her presence.
"I have heard quite enough!" She decreed as she walked back. She couldn't take the anxiety this girl was trying to induce within her, or the strange... feeling... reaping in her mind.
"Angella," Micah stopped as he grabbed her wrist, smiling warmly into her eyes, "it's all right."
It always brought a smile to her face when her loving husband proved his optimism to her in manners such as this. Whenever she was confused, intimidated, or angered over a situation such as this, it was always he who brought her down again. Back to her senses, back to her comfort and warmth, knowing that everything would be all right again.
"Look," gazing back at the magicat, the couple saw the guards pushing her down by her shoulders as Catra tried to rise from the ground, "I know it's all crazy, but I need to see Glimmer and Bow. They're two of the best people I know. I need their help to stop reality from falling apart before we're all erased from existence!"
"Guards, escort the young woman to our holding cell." Micah ordered as the Queen sighed again. For a moment, the several guards looked amongst each other in confusion, baffled by the King's demand as they turned to him again. "The spare room." The guards didn't need to be told a third time as they gave a nod to each other, grabbing the tailed girl who continued to struggle against them in disbelief.
"Wait! You have to believe me." Catra begged, grumbling as her feet slid against the smooth ground. "It's all fake! You have to remember-!"
"Don't listen to her." Micah said back to his wife, patting her shoulder in comfort. "She's lying."
"But your truth spell..." It did catch the King off guard a little as he tried to figure out their dilemma.
"I must have done it wrong." Even the greatest of sorcerers could make a mistake once in awhile, he assumed. "There's no way anything she said could be true. It's... It's not possible." The two were determined to discuss matters quietly to one another as the meeting was adjourned.
As for the two onlookers who saw everything from afar, Bow and Glimmer looked back to one another with concern, teleporting in a puff of pink magic as they made their way to their next destination. They had a variety of questions that needed answering.
And there was only one person they could turn to for them.
...
"Mmmh..." Catra grumbled crossing her arms, looking out the window.
How could she be so stupid to think that everything would still be the same upon her return? Sure, she knew that the Fright Zone was gone, but when the Horde was destroyed with it, she didn't think it would actually erase them from existence entirely. She thought everybody would've remained the same way as they did when she left, chalking it all down to something like an explosion that wiped out the Fright Zone.
Just because something blew up didn't mean people didn't know something was there, right? But here it was an entirely different story. No Fright Zone meant no Horde. And no Horde meant... Catra no longer had a family to return to.
While she knew it wasn't going to last once reality returned to normal, it still hurt a little to see the way they all gazed at her. The Queen with her anger, looking at Catra as if she was a possible spy from another Kingdom, one which may or may no longer exist now. The King using magic to force somebody he called "sweetheart" this morning as if she was an enemy. And she didn't even know how Glimmer was throughout all of this.
They had no memories of Catra, the same memories Catra was forced to bear, possibly for the rest of her life, that she had an entire lifetime of. They wouldn't recall anything they ever spoke of, never recollect everything they did together as... as a family. Catra would be the only one who knew she had a family once, and the only one to continue not having a family when this was all over again.
And as much as she hated to say it, none of that mattered to her right now. Staring out into the distance, in a few brief flashes, she saw the universe unraveling. Nearly a dozen pillars of light burst through the forest for a split second, the wall of light encompassing everything in the horizon, before it all returned to normal. People didn't see the brief flash, or they couldn't as they were too consumed in this perfect world that granted wishes, wishes that Catra still couldn't figure out she had.
Gritting her teeth, squeezing her fist, she turned away from the glass window wall as she ran back to the door. Obviously, it was locked, and it didn't phase her one bit. While it wasn't something she needed to attempt as often, stretching out a single claw with her right finger, she attempted to undo the lock herself as she jiggled her claw within the keyhole.
"Come on... come on..." She whispered to herself. There would be no telling if she could do it or not, and she didn't care. She needed every second she had to fix everything before everything was erased along with the rest of the world.
Just like Adora.
*swish*
"Catra-?"
"NOIWASN'T-!" Catra jumped, so focused in her thoughts that she nearly had a heart attack at the unannounced arrival of her two friends. Instantly, all that pooled up anxiety and stress quickly drained away from the girl as a small smile crossed over her face. "Bowey, Pinky!" She chuckled rushing up to them. Never had she been any happier to see her friends in awhile, even if it was just a few hours ago. "I knew you guys would-"
*swoosh*
Catra backed up as she stopped. Before the girl could confess her actual and legit joy of seeing her friends for a change, the Princess of Bright Moon raised her hands defensively as she gathered a small pool of magic around it, maintaining the same strict expression that appeared to be on Bow's face. The stern look in their eyes, the way they didn't seem to trust her. It was all reminiscent to what she had gone through several minutes ago.
" You guys... don't remember me either, do you?" Catra asked as her tail flopped to the side.
"Listen Cat-Lady." Glimmer puffed, ready to take this girl on if she tried to jump her. "My dad has never messed up a spell." While she didn't appear to show the amount of trust that Catra expected, she did appear ready to give her a chance as she powered down her magic. "You were telling the truth in there. How can that be?"
"Tch, of course you guys were listening." Catra chuckled, glancing to each of them. "Even you know more spots to hide in here than I..." She stopped as she stared at the boy in the glasses and the white collar shirt. "... Who are you?"
"Uh, Bow? The guy you greeted just a second ago?" Bow answered, feeling unusually awkward for some reason.
"Bow?!" She gasped, taking in the whole appearance with shock. "Oh my gosh, you turned into a bigger nerd than I thought you were!"
"Hey!"
"If you're just gonna use this time to insult us, then we'll just be on our way..." Glimmer warned, unwilling to put up with anyone picking on her friend.
"Ah, no, no! You're right, you're right, sorry." Catra apologized, forgetting these weren't the same dweebs she was used to insulting. "It's just... Wow, you look a lot different than I expected." Did the Horde existing really affect Bow's person as a whole? The tech guy on their team? The guy who knew how to many so many traps and gadgets. She almost wanted to put him out of her own misery, he was so hard to look at.
"Coming from the girl raving about being Glimmer's sister, the feeling's mutual."
"Yeah, yeah, I know, I get it. I just," her lips curved in depression as she turned her eyes away, "just wasn't aware you guys would forget me like this."
"And would you stop acting like you know us?" He prompted. "We've never met you."
"Yes you have!" Catra quickly countered. "You did, you had, in the other world, and this one for awhile. Bow, you're not a nerd, all right? You're a tech genius in the real world who's good with gadgets and taking down droids. You were always the brains of the group who was always figuring out countless ways to get us out of trouble." She chuckled a bit. "And you have two dads who care about you, so don't worry about telling them the truth about who you really are, or who you really wanna be."
Bow didn't know if he should be more amazed or frightened by this girl's description of him. It's like she's known him her whole life, or at least a good chunks worth of it. He didn't even know how she knew about him or his two dads.
"And Glimmer-"
"Ah-!" Glimmer squeaked a little as she was caught off guard. She was still amazed by how much about Bow she knew that she hardly knew herself.
"You're a great spell caster like your dad. You're always the one lifting people up when they need it and... when I need it. No matter how dangerous something is, you're always looking for a way to help everybody you care about. I know I pick on you a lot and Bow a lot, but that's just because you guys are the ones I feel comfortable around in Bright Moon."
"And if it wasn't for you, I... I don't think I'd ever consider you two being my... best... friends." She blushed. She REALLY hoped none of them would remember this mushy stuff when reality returned to normal.
She hated to admit it, but she meant every word she said about the two. When it came down to it, they were her friends, the only friends she could count on whenever times were tough. Between Bow's ingenuity and Glimmer's magic, the three of them were an incredible team who took on many a Horde soldiers and droids and always had each others backs.
And they were the only people she actually felt comfortable around. She didn't mind the other members of the Princess Alliance. In fact, she was starting to like them all a little more as friends. She would gladly consider any of them to be except for the fact she's never hung out with them as much unless it came down to missions.
Given what little she has done to hang out with them regardless, she also didn't see herself getting along with them any time soon.
"...Agh, none of that is true!" Glimmer groaned, pressing her palms into her eyes before staring back at her. "I'm just a princess. And Bow isn't a fighter. He's... Bow." At this, the historian let out a small gasp to himself as he looked down at his tucked in shirt, tugging at it between his fingers.
The way it felt, the way he was dressed up all orderly, all of it felt... different. Almost... wrong.
"This... This isn't right?" Bow questioned looking back to the prisoner. "I mean, everything is perfect." And from his mentioned, Glimmer caught a glimpse of it as she stared of.
A memory, a scene, flashed in her mind. She could recall the little girl clutching a stuffed white bunny as she strolled through the hallways. She could recall the curious look on her face as she gazed at the mural along the wall depicting a great man. She could recall the great man that her father was, the one the mural was designed after.
And she could recall as her father was no longer by her side.
"My dad..." Anguish came over the princess's eyes, a look that Catra's seen too many times in the mirror as she frowned a little. She needed her to remember, the both of them, for the sake of the world. She just didn't think about how sad it would be to recollect those painful memories. "He's gone, isn't he?"
"... Yeah..." Catra muttered, unable to look Glimmer in the eyes as she lowered her head. She couldn't even bring herself to place a gentle hand on her shoulder like Bow was doing. "Sorry... "
"... Then..." The look of anguish over Glimmer's face didn't last long as she looked back. "Then you're supposed to be my sister?"
"Well... sort of. I was in this world." Catra replied as she walked over to the window, leaning against the wall. "When the Horde existed, I was found by your parents in this world, and they took me in and raised me, and we sort of grew up together. I still remember a great deal of what we did together, to be honest."
"But then... Why didn't I notice anything sooner? Why didn't any of us notice something was off with this world?"
"Beats me." Catra shrugged as she walked back. "By my guess, the world made it that way to make everything appear as normal to us. I mean, I thought something was a little different when I saw you this morning, but after finding out I was your sister, or your fake one, I guess I didn't think too much of it as being out of the ordinary." Glimmer supposed it made some sense.
With this world being designed to fulfill everyone's dreams and wishes, the statistics of which she wasn't yet sure of, it made sense that some things would be an oversight in this world. Things such as seeing somebody you never did before would be one thing. When you added that person to your life on a daily basis, however, and lived with them for a certain length of time, odds were that everybody would assume things were fine, as confusing as it was to say.
"And before all of this, we were off fighting this "Horde" you mentioned?" Bow wondered.
"Yeah. Well, I mean, it wasn't like we used to. In fact, we only had one mission before everything disappeared and-"
*ZZZZZZZZZZZT*
"... What?" Glimmer blinked as she looked around the room. "Catra?" The girl who was going on and on about the real world, the one who seemed to know everything that was happening around them. She had disappeared, in the blink of an eye.
"What the..." Bow ran to the window, trying to see if there was any possible trace of her outside the room, before looking back to his friend. "Maybe she really was your sister?" He guessed.
It didn't make any sense. One moment, Catra was just there telling them about the reality currently around them and how it was all falling apart, and the very next thing, she disappeared in a brief flash of white. If she wasn't Glimmer's sister, she was definitely something else, because there wasn't a single trace of her anywhere in this-
*ZZZZZZZZZZT*
"-came back." And in the next flash of white, the magicat appeared, seeming none the wiser as she gazed back at the duo, or where she knew them to be. "Hey, where's-?" It only took a brief turn of the head for her to find her missing party member, yet it did leave her questionable about Bow's sudden position. "How'd you teleport behind me?"
"Catra..." The used-to-be-archer gaped with his mouth hanging open. "We... We didn't teleport just now. You... You just..."
"You disappeared!" Glimmer stated, staring at the girl in shock.
Catra was taken back by the statement as she raised a brow at the two. She actually looked like she was getting ready to smirk at the pair in an accusing manner. "Uh, right, sure I did."
"No, Catra, seriously, you disappeared and-... What are you wearing?"
"What? This?" Catra grinned as she pulled the collar of her shirt. "It's the same shirt I wore from this-" And as she looked back down, she had truly seen what she was getting at. The pinkish long-sleeved shirt, the tailored line of clothing that Catra had worn earlier, had disappeared. And in it's place, returned the proud and majestic red vest she had always worn till now. "Hey, my shirt's back." She checked out the rest of her outfit to notice nothing else out of the ordinary, or in this case, back into the ordinary, as she examined. "When did I-"
"Catra," Glimmer spoke up again to get her attention, "you seriously just disappeared. Right in front of us."
"I thought you just teleported to be honest," Bow admitted, "but you're standing exactly where you were earlier."
"What? That's impossible, I'm standing where I was a second ago, not even that." The magicat couldn't figure out what sort of game the two were trying to pull on her. She didn't even blink before the two started to look at her as if she was a ghost. Sure, she was surprised Bow suddenly vanished from her view, but that could've been some trick he had in this universe, or Glimmer...
... No... No, that couldn't be right. Nothing about a reality-bending world like this could've given Bow the ability to do something like that. Even everything else that happened to affect their lives happened within reason. But this? Him disappearing in the blink of her own eyes and teleporting behind him? It was impossible... which meant...
"I... Did I really disappear?" Catra finally asked, getting a small nervous nod from the both of them. "But that's... That can't be right. Why did I disappear?" She looked down at her shirt again with a bit of annoyance. "I guess i'm glad to have some of my clothes back, but it doesn't explain anything."
"Maybe it's reality catching up to you?" Glimmer suggested, taking in Catra's new look. Now that she had a better look over the girl, she also noticed her hair was a little more unkempt than it was earlier. "Maybe it's just giving you your old stuff back?"
"Huh... I guess it makes sense." She said unenthusiastically. When you were dealing with a world of constant magic, and in this case, a world that granted wishes that could change the lives of everyone around her, there was little you could do to make sense out of all of it. You were better off picking fights with the Horde than you were at explaining reality-warping effects. "I just don't get why I didn't notice myself disappearing."
"Disa... Oh no..." It was with Bow's gasp that the two pair of eyes turned back to him. "Catra, I... I don't think you just disappeared."
"Uh, yeah? I can see my shirt for myself, obviously."
"No, I mean I don't think the effects are over. I think... I think you might be disappearing from this world itself." There was a silence between the three friends as Catra stared at this.
She? Disappear-ing? She wasn't against the idea that it could happen to her randomly like it did to Kim and Lonnie earlier, she just couldn't figure out why she suddenly came back if she did supposedly disappear. "Why would I be disappearing slowly instead of all at once? When anyone else ever did, they disappeared entirely. Nobody came back."
"Yeah, but I don't think they were affected by the timeline like you were, Catra." Bow replied as he walked up to the girl.
"The timeline? What are you-" Through denial, through the inability to accept reality, or because she refused to give it so much as a chance, it wasn't until now that Catra finally grasped at what Bow was getting at.
The fact that she was no longer found on Beast Island didn't just mean she was no longer King Micah's or Queen Angella's daughter. It meant that without her, Catra wouldn't be anywhere near where she was right now.
Given the circumstances, it was equally possible that she wouldn't have survived at all if she was raised within Beast Island to her present age.
"Y-You mean... I'm going to..." Terror struck the magicat's heart as she gazed at her own claws.
It didn't matter if Catra could fix this world or not. It didn't matter if she was in a broken timeline that she could no longer exist in. If she failed to correct everything before reality was fixed, regardless of whether or not her friends could fix it themselves, there was a good chance that Catra would be erased from her own existence and disappear.
Forever...
...
...
...
A/N: Ah, I'll miss you intro buddy. You were a good dog... or a cat... squirrel? Ok i don't know you as well as I should have but still-!
You know, we kid a lot in this show, but I think we should all take this opportunity to say what we love most about the wonderful Aroda ^^ She's smart, she's beautiful, she's the head of this show... Really the entire show should've been about her, seeing how awesome and wonderful she is. In fact, I feel like we should really make the show in her favor, but that's just monoku- I mean ME talking about it ^^ Hahaha... haaa...
So with that said, hope you all enjoyed! I know time-travel rules are a little bit confusing but it actually DOES make me wonder how Adora was still in the world if the Horde never existed. I honestly never considered that until now and I'd been thinking of going with the whole "catra disappearing route" since the beginning of this season XP. Seriously weird...
Anyway! Hope you all enjoyed! Leave a like, fave, follow, and review, and hope to see you soon!