Shedding
Chapter 14
Perfuma let out a sigh of relief when Scorpia downed the spoonful of ice cream – and the pill inside – without a fuss. This was the one drug that Entrapta and Hordak found that didn't kill Scorpia in the trials. The fact that so many drugs did have such a severe effect on her was unsettling as it was. At least this one was safe.
"Wonderful, you should feel better, soon," Perfuma said softly as she urged the larger woman to lay back down. Scorpia watched her through half-lidded eyes, though after a beat Perfuma could see her gaze shift so that she was looking through her. She stroked her forehead, and after another moment Scorpia's eyes drifted shut.
Plumeria's princess waited a little longer, listening, and straightened when she could hear a faint snoring from her companion. Good, she had dozed. Now all they needed to do was wait for the medicine to kick in.
Perfuma looked back past Frosta, to Bow, Catra and Adora. Bow met her gaze with a concerned expression – the same look that rested on his face ever since he claimed that there was something they needed to talk about. Whatever it was, it was about Scorpia and they couldn't have it here, where she might pick up the conversation. Scorpia wasn't in a mental state to listen to whatever news Bow had, not right now. If it was bad, they'd find a way to reveal it together, when she was in a better state to deal with it.
Cautiously, Perfuma eased up off of the bed, holding her breath and listening as the snores continued unimpeded. She then stepped out of the room – noting the change in humidity as soon as they were in the hallway. Entrapta's dehumidifying device was working.
Mermista stood with Sea Hawk in the hallway, arms crossed. She couldn't stand to be in such a dry room, anymore. She didn't know how anyone could stand such dryness. The mermaid felt like a dusty fish skeleton every time she neared it, now.
Bow passed them, down the hall and into another, larger room – a small conference room, or at least had the appearance of one. He waited until the others were inside before shutting the door. There was no chance of Scorpia hearing them from here, with multiple walls and doors between them.
He bit his bottom lip as he watched Frosta move to sit down. "Hey, Frosta?" He smiled to her. "We need someone to watch Scorpia, just in case she wakes up, she shouldn't be alone."
Frosta scowled, swinging her legs back and forth on her too-tall chair. "Whatever it is that you found, I want to know, too!"
Bow shared a glance with Perfuma, and Frosta squinted at them both.
Perfuma furrowed her brow with concern and loosely crossed her arms, standing at the table. She was too anxious to sit down. Frosta was a young girl, younger than the rest, but she was the leader of her country and forced to grow up more quickly than the others had. She could understand Frosta feeling that she had a right to be there… and she didn't want to leave Scorpia any longer than they had to. She shrugged, smiled and gave a quick nod. "We…we can have Emily watch her until we get back?"
Catra grabbed a chair and dragged it towards the wall before perching in it. She just…didn't want to sit so close to everyone else. Her fur felt prickly, like the others carried a static that tugged at her hair. Adora sat down at the table, but in the chair closest to Catra.
Glimmer went to the head of the table. "What about Entrapta? Does she need to be here."
"She already knows," Bow answered with a sigh. "We've been messaging about this."
"Then spill it," Catra waved her hand, her bristled tail swishing.
"Okay, so, I'm going to preface this by saying we don't have a lot to go by," Bow stated as he tapped into his communicator and placed it down. Frosta stood on her chair and flattened her small hands against the table to get a better look. Glimmer and Adora just watched, nodding quietly.
"Yeah, that's why this has been such a problem," Catra grumbled, hugging one knee.
"Well, the few sources we have found all, well," Bow drummed his fingers against the table. "Regular molts only happen during adolescence, up until they're done growing."
"Like a lizard shedding their skin!" Sea Hawk offered. "She sheds her exoskeleton as she outgrows it!"
"Ew," Mermista grimaced, recalling the chitin they had extracted and quite grateful that fish don't shed scales. "Those must have been awkward teen years."
Perfuma rose a brow. "I'm not…sure I understand. Are you saying Scorpia's younger than she looks? She's not done growing?"
"No," Bow rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't think so?"
"Maybe Scorpions just…grow for a longer time?" Adora offered.
Glimmer looked to Catra. "You've known her the longest. Is she any taller now than she was when you met?"
"What? No!" Catra snapped.
"Maybe this is her last molt, then?" Frosta offered.
"No, that's not what I'm getting at," Bow waved his hands. "I'm saying that she's too old to be molting."
Catra could feel the fur on the back of her neck stand on end.
Perfuma tightened her grip on her arms as she watched Bow, beads of sweat forming on her brow. "So she shouldn't be molting at all?"
"She's not…molting naturally. It's not just because she's growing, so it's from something else," Bow said quietly.
"Like what?" Adora asked.
"Well…it has some reasons listed here, and Entrapta and I have narrowed it down to a few possibilities." Bow answered, tilting the communicator to face them. "Has she been sick? I know she's sick, now, but was she sick before this?"
"I don't think so, at least not when I last saw her," Perfuma sat down in the chair next to Frosta. "I didn't see her the last few days before, though, so maybe?"
"Entrapta didn't think so, either," Bow answered. "Injured? It says severe injuries to her exoskeleton could cause it."
"Absolutely not," Perfuma rested her hands on her knees. "I would have seen it."
Mermista raised a brow as Perfuma answered so readily. Sure, Scorpia's exoskeleton outside of her shoulders was seldom covered by her clothing – she typically fitted her clothes around her armor – but the ease of which Perfuma was certain, along with everything else she'd seen just far. Yeah…those two have been /together/ together, hadn't they?
Catra furrowed her brow and shook her head, though none of the others looked at her. Scorpia always seemed in such good health and in peak physical shape. Her rock-hard exoskeleton could take such punishment with barely a scratch – enough to throw tanks and drop beams on people. If Horde Prime couldn't injure her enough to break her exoskeleton…
Catra's ears perked. Did the chip hijacking her nervous system count as an injury or illness? But that was a while ago, right? Would she have recovered from the damage by now? Had she been damaged more than she had let on?
Lost in her thoughts, Catra missed the next words from Bow's mouth but what she did pick up sparked through her like one of Scorpia's electric bolts.
"..profound stress, mental or emotional trauma, p-"
"That's it," Catra snapped, cutting Bow off. She stared at them as they looked back at her. The cat threw out her hands. "/Obviously/, that's it!"
"What?" Glimmer asked.
"Are you stupid?!" Catra snapped at her, then sighed, swishing her tail side to side. "Stress! Trauma-that!"
Perfuma bit her bottom lip.
"But…things have been going good, lately?" Frosta asked, her brows furrowed with concern. "Nothing bad's happened-"
"Nothing bad?!" Catra hissed, kneading her fingers against her scalp. "Getting chipped happened! Horde Prime happened! Leaving the Horde happened! Leaving me!" She squeezed her eyes shut. "*I* happened! I did this to her."
Damn it, she should have known this was her fault! She shouldn't have come! Had she made things worse by coming here? Would Scorpia's molt have progressed as normal had Catra stayed away? Had she made Scorpia as sick as she was, now? In her mind's eye, she could recall how Scorpia recoiled when the two saw each other. Catra yelled and Scorpia cowered and damn it she shouldn't /be here/!
Catra felt a firm but gentle grasp on her forearm and she looked to see Adora standing next to her.
"A lot happened, Catra," Adora said quietly. "Whatever part you played in it, and that's even /if/ this was the cause, was one of many, many things."
"But all *that* happened months ago, or even longer! Things have been better now!" Frosta hopped up and down in her chair. "If she was going to get sick from that, it would have happened then, not now!"
Perfuma watched the others, her eyes wavering as she thought on it. "No, I think Catra's right."
Frosta looked back to Perfuma. "You do?!"
Perfuma averted her gaze, looking towards the door from which they entered. Had…had Scorpia ever told the others about the Scorpioni? Did they know? Was it meant to be a secret? She had never asked Perfuma not to tell them, or made any allusions that this was a secret. The last thing she wanted to do was breach her companion's privacy, but…if it was profound mental and emotional stress that triggered this, then she needed their help. And Perfuma knew all too well at this point that Scorpia might not be equipped to ask for it.
"Rebuilding this place has been hard on her, and she's been hoping to hear from her family."
"The Scorpioni?" Adora asked. Catra's ears flattened.
"It didn't go well?" Bow asked.
"It didn't go, at all," Perfuma answered quietly. "Not a single person. And I don't think she's really…dealt with anything else that's happened. Not the chips, not Prime or the Horde, not anything."
Buried it all and pushed forward, didn't she? Maybe the radio silence with the Scorpioni were the straw to break the scorpion's exoskeleton.
"She's…never let me apologize," Catra mouthed the words. "We've never talked about what happened."
"Just…knowing how she is…Scorpia sees the best in her friends, her loved ones. She's a pillar of optimism," Perfuma said quietly. "But sometimes…hope and optimism can be just as harmful, if not more, than accepting things for what they are."
It was what kept Scorpia in Catra's claws after all, long after their relationship had turned toxic. And she never would have left Catra if not for Entrapta's sake.
Frosta folded her arms on the table and dropped her chin on them.
"Wait, wait," Mermista waved her hand. "Wait, so, Scorpia's like, never seen anyone about this? About the chipping and all that?"
"Seen anyone?" Frosta asked. Adora and Catra watched the mermaid, equally perplexed.
Mermista stared at them. "A therapist?"
"A what?" Adora asked.
"A Therapist? They're like a doctor, just…" Mermista's eyes widened as she recalled Scorpia's utter /aversion/ to doctors. "Eugh…that's right…". She rubbed her eyes. "She seemed to have handled it so much better than Spinerella and I did, I just figured she was or, just, didn't need one."
Frosta squatted on the seat. "I figured she just wasn't…that bothered by it, because she's so happy all the time."
Glimmer frowned, averting her gaze. "I don't think anyone can just…handle having Prime see into your mind and control your body."
Her father sure didn't.
Catra crossed her arms, her nails digging into her skin. Adora's grip remained firm on her forearm. Eventually Catra flexed her wrist and Adora's grip slackened. Before she could withdraw her hand, Catra caught Adora's hand in hers. The blonde paused, then gave her hand a gentle squeeze.
Perfuma leaned back in her chair. "I don't think Therapy's really a thing, with the Horde."
Mermista dropped her hand from her face. "True."
"It is a thing in Plumeria," Perfuma murmured. "I had a feeling she wasn't well. I should have pushed her to go."
Mermista shook her head, then let out a puff of air. She glanced at Sea Hawk, who just grinned back through his mustache at her. "Well, what about mine and Spinerella's? He knows all about the chips at this point, and uh… we'd been talking about trying group therapy at some point. Just…haven't brought it up to the others, yet."
Perfuma smiled to Mermista. "That would be great." Her smile faded. "Now it's just…convincing Scorpia to go for it, after all this is done."
"We'll start by /not/ calling them a doctor," Mermista offered.
Perfuma chuckled softly. "Yes, let's start there."
Bow smiled sadly. It hurt his heart to think that their friend had been suffering enough mental duress that it'd cause her to molt like this, but at least now they were on the same page. They had no way of knowing for sure if that was the cause of her molting, but either way she wasn't doing well. He hadn't known her as long or as closely as some of the others, but he did know her well enough to be certain that if it was any of them in her position, she would do whatever it took to help them. They would do the same for her.
Bow's thoughts came to a halt as he felt a small vibration. Was it under his feet? It felt like it was coming from everywhere. Soon as it came, it was gone and for a moment he wondered if he had imagined the whole thing. "Hey, did you feel that?"
"Feel what?" Frosta asked.
"No, I felt that, too," Catra hissed, pushing off her chair.
Adora pushed the door open and looked down the hall. Scorpia's door was open – more than open, skewed as if it had been thrown open hard.
"Do you see anything?" Glimmer asked, but Adora rushed out without an answer. Catra followed.
Adrenaline rushed through Perfuma's limbs and she scrambled out after them. Her stomach dropped as she saw the door open. This area was a quieter part of the Fright Zone, more secluded from the rest. It made taking care of Scorpia, away from the eyes of her people, much easier. It also meant that there were few reasons her door would be open. Maybe Entrapta was in there with her?
"Scorpia's gone!" Adora called out as soon as she reached her room.
"Where would she go?!" Frosta rushed to Adora's side and began to look through the room – under the bed, under the covers.
"Can Scorpia even walk?!" Glimmer teleported next to Adora.
Catra ran past the group and continued down the hall, checking the rooms as she went.
"Where's Emily?!" Perfuma cried. "Shouldn't she be with her?" Why would Scorpia run? How far could she even go, this soon? Did the vibration happen when she first left the room or had she been gone for a while and it was something else? It was hard to tell. All she knew was that she /wasn't here/, and Perfuma could hear or see no sign of her. Scorpia was sick! She had needed assistance even getting there. If she was on her feet, she wouldn't be for long. Knowing Scorpia, she'd probably try to hide. The plant princess couldn't bear the thought of her companion sick and alone, again.
"We never called for Emily," Mermista facepalmed with an audible groan. They had talked about it, but never did it.
Perfuma's eyes stung. No, no no no how could they have. She paused when Bow gripped her shoulder.
"We'll find her, Perfuma. I promise. We're in this together," Bow tapped on his communicator, and grimaced. "Emily and Entrapta are on their way to help look for her."
"Alright," Glimmer took a breath. "She couldn't have gone far. We'll split up and look for her."
"I'll check Horror Hall," Perfuma offered, wiping the tears from her eyes with her palm. "I think…if there's anywhere she'd want to go, it'd be there." As she began to head there, she called back to the others. "Check carefully! She might be hiding!"
"I'll check her bedroom!" Frosta announced, then took off.
"I'll talk to Lonnie, and see if anyone from the Horde has spotted her," Bow added.
Mermista jerked her thumb towards the conference room, past it down the hall. "Sea Hawk and I will check further down that way, in case Scorpia snuck past us."
Their door had been closed after all and the princess had managed to sneak *right into the middle of an active meeting in Bright Moon's war room and took a sea right at the table without being noticed*, after all. She was surprisingly stealthy for a big, heavy, armored bug.
Adora nodded. "Catra and I will-" She looked to meet Catra's gaze but then realized she too was gone. Maybe trying to catch Scorpia's scent before it got too cold. "…I'll just check around."
And with that, the group dispersed, most on foot and one in a puff of glitter.
Notes: So I've had this concept in mind the whole time I've been writing Shedding – that the molting was caused by the tremendous stress/trauma she's been dealing with this whole time. A challenge was figuring how to make that known in a way that could make sense to the characters and to the audience, especially since doctors couldn't be involved (with the pseudo exception of Entrapta but she's not the type to think about psychosomatic issues). That's going to be a difficult conversation to bring up, if Scorpia makes it that far.
