A/N: Just a quick shout-out to the good people who have been so encouraging of my other She-Ra multi-fic, and an apology for it taking so long to update, and reply to reviews. My focus has been suffering the past few months (and this monster decided it needed to be written, and wouldn't let me go), but Sick of You is still in my mind and in my agenda, and hopefully once things return a little bit to normal I'll be able to focus on it better.

For now, enjoy this fic instead. :)

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The guards have long since stopped looking at Adora funny for pacing the hallway outside of Catra's room, even though Adora knows she shouldn't need to be here, because she had already checked three times that Catra is there – again, since the war meeting – but Glimmer hadn't put the containment circle back up, had put wards on the door and window instead and Adora can't help but feel that it's this type of gradual loosening of security that –

And then Adora turns on her heels at the end of the hall to start back up towards Catra's room, and sees Scorpia being let into it.

Adora's chest tightens, and she rushes to the door just in time to stop it from closing all the way, pushing her ear up against the crack. The guards on either side of her sigh, but don't stop her.

"How are you holding up?" Scorpia's asking Catra.

After a beat, Catra answers. "You don't have to check up on me, Scorpia." Her voice is so, so small, and something claws up Adora's stomach to curl around her throat and squeeze.

"This room is nice, huh?" Scorpia continues. "It's so weird how their prison is nicer than our bunks were back in the Horde, right?"

Catra says nothing.

"Look, Catra, I just..." Scorpia pauses, and Adora pushes the door open just enough to peek through with one eye. Scorpia's sitting down across from Catra, who's sitting with her knees curled up to her chest on the floor beside the chaise, within the remnants of the containment spell's circle. Scorpia gives Catra a small smile. "I'm just glad you're here."

Shock ripples over Catra's face. Looking the floor, she replies, "You shouldn't be."

"Well, I am."

Catra works her jaw like she's chewing her tongue. "I'm glad you're here, too. I – was worried about you."

"I was worried about you, too."

"You shouldn't have been!" Catra spits, snarling at her. "When was I ever good to you? I took out all my frustration on you, threw everything you ever gave me back in your face and didn't even have the decency to apologize!"

Scorpia just sits there. "You could apologize now."

And Catra's face cracks open. Adora hasn't seen Catra cry since they were nine, but tears well and slip down her face, and she's not making a single move to stop them. "How?" she cries. "What could it ever be enough?"

Scorpia shrugs. "Just tell me the truth."

Catra heaves in air, tears dripping off her chin. "I'm sorry. You were nice to me and I couldn't handle it. You took me as I was and I couldn't handle it. I don't know how to do what you do, but I knew how to take advantage of it. You deserve better."

Scorpia is quiet a while. "Did I ever...step over any boundaries? With you?"

Catra snorts, wet and sticky. "All the time. It was awful. It was the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"That's kind of messed up."

"Yeah."

"Do you wanna hug it out?" Scorpia asks, extending her arms.

Catra stares at her. Adora stares at her. How can she do that? How can she just – forgive her, move past it, let it go? The knot around Adora's throat gets bigger, and she clutches at it.

"C'mon," Scorpia coaxes. "It's not all water under the bridge, but it's a start, right?"

Every line in Catra's body is tense as a bow string. She shoulders shake.

"C'mon," Scorpia repeats.

Catra throws herself into Scorpia's arms, colliding with a soft thump and burrying her face into Scorpia's shoulder, trembling all over.

"There, there," Scorpia says, holding her loosely and patting her back. "It's alright, Wildcat, you'll get through this."

Lightning quick, Catra twists, growling, and yanks Scorpia's arm into a lock pose, pushing her to the ground. Adora bursts through the door, reaching for her sword that's – that's not there, as Catra pins Scorpia down. "Double Trouble!" Catra snarls, every one of her teeth on display, "I will eviscerate you alive."

Adora freezes.

Scorpia's body turns to inky shadow, shifts and twists and shrinks and grows until it's Double Trouble, loose-limbed and smirking up at Catra with a glint in their eye. "Come now, darling," they say. "We both know you won't."

Catra shoves Double Trouble away and jumps to her feet. "I have had enough of your mind games, Double Trouble. There's no reason for you to be doing this."

"Alright, I admit it," says Double Trouble. They roll over and sit up, putting their hands up in a mockery of surrender. "I've taken a shine to you, kitten, isn't that reason enough?"

"And why is it that when people claim they've taken a shine to me, they fuck with my head, bounce me around like a training ball, and then throw me away like trash," Catra spits.

Double Trouble chuckles. "Now you're getting it, darling," they glide to their feet. "There's a difference between keeping someone around and actually caring about them, though. Why look, even now your knight in shining armour is watching over you."

Catra turns and sees Adora standing there. Her eyes go wide. Adora's whole body heats up until she feels like it's radiating off of her. "I – you're here on the condition that you don't attack anyone," she barks at Catra. "And – and no visiting the prisoner!" she tells Double Trouble. "Who even let you in?"

"Oh, sweetheart, no one lets me in anywhere," Double Trouble smirks.

"That's because no one likes you," Catra snaps.

Double Trouble brings a hand to their heart. "Is that any way to treat the only friend you may have left?" they ask shrewdly.

Catra hisses, ears flicking back. "A friend wouldn't pretend to be Scorpia. If you actually cared about me, you wouldn't go there."

Double Trouble blinks, reptilian eyelids sliding in, then out again. Then their smile is back. "I suppose I won't if you will. If you actually care about her, you might want to let her down easy, Wildcat."

Catra flinches, and whatever this is, Adora has had enough of it. She marches over to Double Trouble and grabs their arm. "I think we're done here," she tells them, pulling them away.

"Oh my," Double Trouble coos, "Am I in trouble?"

Adora grits her teeth and marches them towards the door.

"How did you know?" they ask, pulling against Adora to look back at Catra. "It's not often that I get made, and if you're going to mess up any future performances –"

"You give terrible hugs," Catra sneers. "Maybe you're not so great at keeping people around either."

All at once, Double Trouble's limbs go more liquid, easier to guide. They don't put up any more resistance as Adora pulls them out of the door and around the corner, and she and they are almost to Glimmer's room before they start walking with their usual, vaguely flirtatious sway. "Taking me to the Queen, or dealing with me yourself?" they ask.

Adora ignores the question. She's not going to fall for Double Trouble's tricks again. "I know you turned on the Horde and helped us in the last battle, but you don't have permission to be in Brightmoon. And you need to stay away from Catra. She's still dangerous. Or you could be plotting something with her, or –" she shakes her head. "I don't know. The point is, you're not allowed to see Catra, because destruction is sure to follow."

Double Trouble hums. "Is that really what you're afraid of, darling?"

"What do you mean? Of course –"

"Of course she's hurt you, of course you've always had to be on your guard for whatever she was planning next," Double Trouble allows. "I should know – I saw up close how her mind works and it is a beauty! So many machinations, so many manoeuvres! But is that really the only reason you keep an eye on her?"

"What are you talking about?" Adora snaps.

"I'm talking about how I've never been around you for more than a few hours without you bringing up Catra," Double Trouble – accuses.

"She was the Horde's top general!" Adora sputters. "Of course we had to keep her in mind –"

"Did you? Was anyone else?"

"O-of course. We had scouts report in all the time –"

"About troop and bot movements," Double Trouble finishes. "I know, sweetheart, I was there. So I know the Rebels were mostly focused on Hordak. But what about Catra, hmm? Where was she? How many times did you ask yourself that question and not have an answer? How many times did that drive you to distraction without Catra even lifting a finger?"

Adora freezes.

"The past few weeks must have been torture for you," Double Trouble continues. "No news of her whatsoever, was there? I wonder how many times you looked."

"That's none of your business!" Adora snaps. Her face is on fire.

"Everything to do with character motivation is my business, darling," Double Trouble laughs. "It's how I play my parts so well."

Adora starts hauling them down the corridor again. "Well, we haven't accepted your business, so I'm taking you to the Queen so that she can decide what to do with you."

"If she's smart, she'll want my services again. It sounds like you could use every advantage you can get, and it worked so well last time."

Adora grits her teeth. "We already have a plan. If we decide we'd like you in it, then we'll let you know."

"Oh, I see someone's grown since last time we met," Double Trouble trills. "Just promise me you won't stop there, alright? Glimmer's not the only one who needs your attention, and pining is bad for team moral."

"Stop talking nonsense," Adora spits. It takes the rest of the way to Glimmer's room for her face to cool down.

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"Adora," Glimmer sighs. "I don't think this is necessary."

"So you trust Catra and Double Trouble in the same room?" Adora asks harshly.

"Well, no."

"Exactly."

She and Glimmer are standing at the entrance to Catra's room. The door is open, and Catra is sitting by the window in the sunlight, pretending to ignore them, but Adora can see her ears pricked in their direction. Which means she was already looking at Catra. Which is something she's told herself she'd stop doing.

Dowager King Micah, hand on his chin, regards the arch the of the doorway. "Shapeshifting is a very innate kind of magic," he warns. "Any spell that would keep out shapeshifters would block entry to anyone with any kind of magic, myself included."

"Sure, fine," Adora says. She tugs on her ponytail.

"But Adora, that would keep us from getting in, too! And the other Princesses!" Glimmer exclaims.

"So Princesses can question her from out here, and the guards can go in as needed," Adora reasons.

"And what about when Catra comes out of her room for council meetings? We can't ward the whole Castle against Double Trouble!"

"All the more reason to make this room somewhere they can't get in!"

Glimmer pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs. "Will this really make you feel better about Catra being here?"

Adora grits her teeth. "Yes."

"Okay, then," Glimmer agrees. She squeezes Adora's hand, then turns her father. "Thanks, Dad."

"Of course," King Micah says, beaming at his daughter. "I can teach you how to do it, if you can stay."

"I would love that," Glimmer groans, "But I can't. I need to deal with the Double Trouble situation."

"This is dealing with the Double Trouble situation," Adora points out.

"Not it's not." Glimmer smiles gently at her. "There are plenty of other ways they can cause trouble, and like I said, we can't keep them out. That would be impossible, and they seem to want to be here for whatever reason. I'll ask the others what they want to do about it, then check back in with you. Okay?"

Adora nods, and Glimmer walks off for the council chamber.

King Micah crouches on the ground next to the threshold of Catra's room and begins drawing a circle of magic. "So. This Catra's a Person of Interest, is she?"

"She's a dangerous prisoner," Adora corrects.

"Right..." King Micah says. "And you're expecting someone to try to rescue her?"

Adora jolts. "Uh, no. I don't think so. I don't think there's anyone who would rescue her at this point."

Catra groans. "Then why are you even bothering? Don't you have something better to do?"

Adora ignores her.

King Micah coughs. "So...this spell is to keep her from consorting with enemies?"

"Right."

"Enemies who are not coming to get her."

"They – I – it's just a precaution," Adora says, massaging her temples. "Don't let dangerous enemies near the dangerous prisoner. It makes sense."

"And...how many of our enemies have magic?" he asks. "Other than this Double Trouble, who might not be an enemy at all?"

Adora bites her lip.

"None," Catra supplies, getting up from the window ledge and padding towards the door. She stays just inside the room. "With Shadow Weaver, Scorpia, and Entrapta all officially on the Rebellion's side, that would be none."

"We weren't asking you," Adora snaps.

King Micah frowns. "But she is here to provide information, isn't she?"

"She's, just, do you have a problem with increasing our security?" Adora rounds on him, then pulls up short. "Uh – Your Majesty," she adds quickly.

Catra snorts. Adora waits for her to add a biting remark. She doesn't.

There's something happening on King Micah's face that could be a smile or a grimace – it's hard to tell with the beard. "Not at all," he answers her, going back to drawing symbols along the floor, then standing up to pull them up along the doorframe. "I was just wondering what's actually wrong."

Adora's hands go numb. "Um," she says, "What?"

"Putting this barrier spell outside of Catra's room doesn't make much sense if Catra's already been past it to go to the war meeting and Double Trouble can get anywhere else in the Castle anyway," King Micah explains.

"But –" Adora tries.

"And you're clearly upset that no one seems to agree with you."

"I am not!"

King Micah puts his hands out placatingly and laughs. "I remember being a young thing at the Academy of Sorcery," he begins, putting on a wistful air. At least, Adora thinks he's putting it on – his eyes are far away as he traces diamond patterns along the doorframe. "I was acing every test, perfecting every exercise...frustrated to the point of distraction that no one would take me seriously."

"Uh, is there a reason you're doing this?" Catra drawls, crossing her arms and leaning against the opposite side of the doorway.

"I just wanted to offer a little wisdom. That is, as I understand from stories, the role of the estranged, ex-hermit magician."

Catra flicks her gaze almost to Adora, catching somewhere on her jacket. "Is he always like this?"

"He's the King," Adora hisses. "And you're in his kingdom. Show him some respect."

"Well," King Micah considers, "I'm not her King. And we are holding her prisoner. Some amount of insolence is fair."

Catra blinks and looks him up and down in surprise.

"But as I was saying," he continues, putting his hand up in some sort of pose and – sparkling, somehow. "I ran through the halls of Mystacor; a young prodigy tired of patience and eager for greatness. I asked after all of the Masters to teach me more advanced magic than was allowed for my level, but was turned down by almost everyone. I thought they didn't understand, that they were too stuck up to see that I was ready, that I could handle it."

"But you proved them wrong with hard work and dedication?" Adora guesses.

King Micah laughs. "I proved them right, by being lured into casting dangerous spells by someone as eager for greatness as I was."

Adora frowns. Surely not –

"Shadow Weaver," Catra guesses, and Adora's throat tightens.

"Indeed," King Micah sighs. "Though she was known as Light Spinner, then. Under her guidance, I stole from the Sacred Library, modified spells to do things outside of safety regulations, and," his face darkens, "helped her conjure the very entity that now grants her her horrible shadow powers."

Adora shivers.

"I never thought what I was doing was wrong. Not until I saw Light Spinner turn into Shadow Weaver before my very eyes. After that, I locked myself in my room for a week, and only came out to try to leave Mystacor as penance for my actions."

"But there's a statue of you there," Adora says. "I thought you studied there until –"

"They refused to expel me," King Micah says. "I'll never forget what Master Pinedew said. He told me that my only wrongdoing was in not coming to the Guild for help when Shadow Weaver asked me to break the rules. That as she was my teacher, she had not only endangered everyone by using forbidden magic, but had betrayed her duty to protect me. And that what happened wasn't my fault."

Catra scoffs. "But you said you modified those spells yourself."

"I did," King Micah admits. "And because of it the Guild decreed that I was to complete an extra year of ethics study before I could graduate, and that my first year after that would be monitored closely. I did, and it was. It was the same treatment that was given to any other student who broke Guild rules. Shadow Weaver was banished from the Guild, permanently."

"How –" Adora's voice cracks. "Is that why you came to Brightmoon?"

"Ah," King Micah's expression clears, goes wistful again. "I came to Brightmoon for Angella. We met at the Princess Prom held in Plumeria and, when she told me that without a firmer grasp of elemental magic the spell I was developing would never work, my heart became hers."

"Barf," Catra says.

Adora sees red. "He could be doing that now," she yells past the vice in her throat, so loud that Catra startles, "he could be talking to his wife, and figuring out how to protect Brightmoon from Horde Prime with her right now if you hadn't opened the portal, if you hadn't –"

"Angella's sacrifice," King Micha interrupts in a low voice, putting a gentle hand on Adora's shoulder, "was of her own choosing. She saved all of us, all of Etheria, Princesses and Horde soldiers and civilians alike, and that is how we should honour her. She gave all of us a second chance –" he looks over at Catra. "Well, me a third chance, I suppose."

Catra looks down at her feet, ears drooped. "And what did you do with your second one?" she whispers.

King Micah smiles at her, but she doesn't see it. Adora does. "I tried to help her build a safe, prosperous kingdom, where everyone had a place and got what they needed. I tried so hard because it was Angella listening to me, to my ideas and aspirations – even the terrible ones that would never work. I didn't realize until I had it that it's what I'd really been asking for, in Mystacor, when I acted so recklessly: I wanted to be listened to. That's what had actually been wrong."

The grip around Adora's throat loosens, just a bit, and she wonders...Running amuck in Mystacor stealing Sacred Writings is hardly on the level of kidnappings and sieges and world-destroying portals, but Adora looks at Catra and wonders because it's never made sense to her, never quite fit, always been so frustrating –

Soon we'll be the ones calling the shots.

I'm after something bigger. And no one is going to stop me.

I won't let you win. I'd rather see the whole world end than let that happen.

So what was it then? The more Catra stares at her feet the more Adora wonders. Her throat squeezes shut again and her hands start to shake. What's really been wrong?

King Micah clears his throat, and Adora snaps her gaze back to him. He's looking between them, face serious. "If I'm honest with you...I've been worried that Shadow Weaver put you kids through something similar to what I experienced, growing up."

Catra's claws scratch along the wood of the doorframe. Adora can't say anything.

"You don't have to talk about it," he assures them. "But if you want to, I'm here to listen, anytime. And I've instructed the guards to keep Shadow Weaver off this floor, where your rooms are. I can put up more protective spells, if you want."

"This isn't my room," Catra growls. "And I don't need your protection."

King Micah nods, slightly. "As you wish." He turns to Adora.

Adora opens her mouth, but she can't – how is she supposed to –

Quick footfalls echo off the walls, and Adora turns to see Glimmer jogging up to them. "I hate walking," Glimmer groans, running her hands down her face and looking at Catra, who lifts her head at last, "And Double Trouble is a nightmare. How did you handle them?"

After a second, Catra shrugs. "Badly?"

Glimmer opens her mouth to reply, but Adora interrupts her. "What do they want?"

"To help," Glimmer says.

"Double Trouble's help always comes with a price, whether or not they tell you what it is up front," Catra warns.

Glimmer nods. "How did the spell go?" she asks her father.

"All done," King Micah smiles. "Do you need anything else?"

"Your Majesty, thank you, really, for doing this –" Adora grabs Glimmer's arm – "But do you mind if Glimmer and I go to discuss strategy, um," she looks at Catra pointedly, "elsewhere?"

King Micah shakes his head. "Of course. The spell's done. I'll check up on it once a day, to make sure it hasn't been tampered with." He looks at between Catra and Adora kindly. "Remember what I said."

"Fine, sure, whatever," Catra says, in a voice with no bite. "Can you leave me alone now?"

King Micah nods, expression stiff soft, and walks away.

Adora drags Glimmer down the hall a ways. Once they're out of earshot, she turns and says, "Could you not talk about whatever Double Trouble's offered you in front of Catra? We can't trust them together."

"You've made your position on that clear, Adora. But we're only going to be able to keep them apart for so long. I think Double Trouble..." Glimmer's face twists, eyes squinting, "misses Catra? They're really hard to read."

Adora huffs. "That doesn't matter. We shouldn't tell Double Trouble anything about our plans yet."

"We haven't," Glimmer assures her. "But we did make some progress on our plans to disconnect the Runestones." She takes Adora's hands. "I even have an intel-gathering mission for you!"

Adora breathes out, her shoulders relaxing, and almost laughs. "Great! That's – what do you need me to do?"

"Go to Bow's Dads' place," Glimmer beams. "Since they have the biggest collection of ancient knowledge in all of Etheria, they might have some First Ones writings, or pottery shards, or whatever, that can help us figure out how the Runestones are connected to each other!"

"I should bring Entrapta, too," Adora says. "She knows the most about this stuff."

Glimmer winces. "She's busy building a trans-atmospheric laser canon that we will definitely need later. But Catra also knows –"

"No," Adora panics.

"Please?" Glimmer asks. "She's the one who figured out how to take advantage of the Runestones in the first place –"

"Against us!"

"And now we need to know how Horde Prime could use them against us! And she knows the most about Horde Prime. It's an intel-gathering mission. She's good at those."

Adora swallows and looks away.

Glimmer puts a hand on her arm. "Spinnerella and Netossa will be there to guard her the whole time. And Bow will be with you, too. It's just a day to Lance and George's and back. Are you okay to do that?"

"You're sending a Horde solider to George's house after what happened to his village?" Adora asks.

"George can handle Catra."

"No one can handle Catra," Adora mumbles, but knows she's lost. The way Glimmer's smiling at her now reminds her so much of the way Angella used to smile at her, gentle and warm. And it is a good plan. And if Catra really does cause some trouble, well then they'll know they can't trust her, won't they? "Okay," Adora agrees.

Glimmer holds out a fist. "Best friend squad?"

Adora bumps her fist with her own. "Best friend squad."

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A/N: This is baby's first time writing a character that uses they/them pronouns, so if I messed up on any for Double Trouble, please let me know so I can fix it!