Catra finally sees Adora on the ship, five months pregnant. She has feelings.

Set during S3 EP2 & S3 EP3


To say Shadow Weaver's surprise arrival didn't shake Adora to her core would be a fat lie. It'd been a month since she'd arrived, and it had been the worst month of Adora's life by far. For once, her pregnancy didn't have an impact on her life; not really. Aside from it being harder to tie up her boots and pull her trousers up now… the back pain had gotten worse… but aside from that.

The main issue was Shadow Weaver… and Catra. Apparently, in her ditch to escape, Shadow Weaver had stolen some of Catra's plans and handed them over.

That was how Adora found herself trekking through the Crimson Waste, five months pregnant, with Bow and Glimmer. Just before they left, on the condition that Adora maintained drinking the potion Castaspella made, she was to be checked over medically. Casta, bless her soul, had also cast an invisibility spell over her swollen belly to help hide the vulnerability to enemies of the waste… should there be any, of course.

Adora wasn't expecting it to go so wrong… so fast. First, they were chased by snakes taller than the tanks Adora had driven in the Horde. Then, she fell into quicksand. Then, she fell into it again rescuing Glimmer, momentarily forgetting the Princess would teleport.

THEN Bow fell into quicksand. They'd finally found a bar of sorts, full of horrible people. Adora recognised at least twenty of them from her time in the Horde… and if she remembered them, then they would 1000% remember her. When all seemed lost, Adora found her sights drawn to an attractive, strong, female called Huntara.

The woman had promised to be their guide, leading them through the un-navigational desert. They'd walked for miles, and even non-pregnant, non-swollen-footed Adora, would've begun to hurt. But she was pregnant, and she was very much swollen-footed. The potion Castaspella had given her only hid the belly; it didn't make her journey any easier. Her back ached something chronic, her feet were so swollen, they were nearly bursting out of the shoes she wore, and she needed to pee every thirty-god damn seconds.

Yet; she couldn't vocalise her ailments. She didn't want to risk exposing a weakness, especially to a stranger… and judging by her skills, an ex-Horde member.

The Horde training was a specific thing; it wasn't something you could simply move away from. And it wasn't all that unhelpful either, to be fair. The moon rose as Huntara led them into a small amphitheatre kind of area; with a sundial in the middle.

Adora's warning bells began screeching as she moved around. "No… no, this can't be it! The ship is supposed to be- ugh,"

She reached down, plucking a dart out of her knee. "What-" Her vision grew hazy as she tipped to the side. "Adora!" She hit the ground, side on, limp as a rag doll. There was a distant thud to her left, followed by a few feet away. She moved for the sword, mumbling around her thick tongue. "For the honour of…"

And passed out.

Adora woke up feeling the most nauseous in her life. Great. She had a problem with the darts as well. She pushed herself up, wincing softly. Her side was gonna be a mess tomorrow… she reached for her disguised bump, placing her hand on it heavily. She waited… and waited… and waited… until-

kick.

She sighed in relief. Her baby was okay. She was worried initially, but she'd landed okay. That was good… it was good… she was good…
right?

She tracked Huntara's footprints, mainly fuelled by anger. Sure, Horde soldiers were as untrustworthy as the next, but the one thing they'd been taught was to not kick a person when they were down. Well, they weren't taught it per se, but it went without saying. If you'd already bested your enemy, you left it be and left them alone.

You didn't proceed to rob them as well.

But then again, maybe the Horde taught differently in Huntara's time… whenever that was.

She kept zoning out, rather unhelpfully, as they planned their attack.
Rather, Glimmer and Bow planned the attack. Adora just sat there, throwing in the occasional word. Every time she tried to take control of her own destiny, of her own fucking life, the gods of Etheria shrieked in laughter, sticking their middle fingers up. "Fuck you, Adora!" They screamed.

By the time Adora realised what she was doing, Glimmer had already teleported away. "Adora?" Bow asked softly. "You ok?" She nodded, pursing her lips. "I'm fine…" She trailed off. Bow hesitated. "Is… is baby ok?" Adora nodded again. "Yeah, baby's fine. Still making me wanna pee every five seconds," She tried for a joke. Bow smiled small but didn't offer anything else. "Are you gonna be ok fighting Huntara? She doesn't exactly fight fair, does she?" Adora snorted. "Did you forget who I grew up with? I speak fluent "dirty fighter" thanks to Catra,"

Bow hummed. "Ok. If you're sure," He said.

Adora nodded and that was that.

Catching Huntara looking confused, Adora took her chance. She sprinted up and tackled Huntara from behind, grunting as she fell to the ground. She pressed her elbow into Huntara's neck, keeping her knee firmly on her back. "That's mine," She hissed at the sword. Huntara grunted. "Then come and take it!" Adora grunted in pain as something connected with the back of her head, sending her off the beast and into a roll.

Adora flailed for a moment, almost losing her balance, but managed to regain it, and flipped into a sturdy position. Adora smirked as she stared Huntara down, flipping Huntara's staff around in her grasp. Huntara hissed. "That's mine,"

Adora readied her grasp on the staff. Then come and take it!" She flicked her wrist, making the spear eject outwards.
It didn't.
She faltered.

Huntara rushed Adora, growling. Adora twisted the staff quickly, panic running through her veins quickly and coldly when it failed to activate. She looked up, gasping sharply. Adora groaned as she gave the spear a final twist to the spear. The point shot outwards, causing her to shout in surprise. She looked up, raising the staff just as Huntara made a swipe at her head with her sword. Adora knew the fighting well: she'd been taught it since birth.

So counteracting it wasn't hard.

Until Huntara decided to play the ultimate dirty card: head butting.

Stars ignited in Adora's vision as her head began to pound painfully. She groaned, faltering backwards. Huntara kicked her in the chest, forcing all the oxygen out of her lungs (which were already struggling to work properly, thanks to the little demon inside of her womb) and making her fall to her knees.

There was a sharp jab under her chin, as she glanced up: glaring, into Huntara's eyes. Huntara looked away for a moment, scowling briefly into the landscape. Adora shut her eyes honourably as she shouted and brought the sword in an arc.

PSYCH BITCH!

Adora dodged at the last second, taking the moment to overpower the fighter. "oh well… my head's already fucked," She thought, slamming her head against Huntara's. She launched her leg up, smacking the older woman under her chin, forcing her onto her back. She blinked away the stars that had begun to build in her vision.

Glimmer's voice brought her attention to the centre. "Quick! Time for She-Ra!" She threw the sword, which Adora grabbed perfectly. She was very proud of herself there… if only Catra - NOPE

Huntara gasped. "Wait! You know about She-Ra?!"

Adora brought the sword above her head. "Know about She-Ra?" She chuckled. "I am She-Ra. For the Honour of Grayskull.

The power rushed through her body, growing her by three feet. Her muscles burned through her usual attire as long trousers and shirt gave way to skimpy skin-tight shorts and a sleeveless shirt, accessorised with her cape. She inhaled, feeling at peace as the magic rushed through to her toes. She walked to Huntara, lifting her jaw with the sword tip. "Where did you hear about She-Ra? After all, it's not like it's something they teach you...in the Horde," She sniped. Huntara growled. "I was a Horde soldier. They told us we were heroes, freeing Etheria from the evil princesses. But when I saw what we were doing...how Hordak just...threw soldiers away...well. You know what we saw. You were one of us. That's where you learned to fight, isn't it? I'd recognize that training anywhere.

Adora lowered the sword to lean down and look Huntara in the eye. 'You deserted. I did, too. And I joined the Rebellion," Huntara snorted. "Then you're a fool. One girl can't make a difference against the might of the Horde, even a tall, shiny girl like you. It's useless to try," Adora shrugged, stepping back. "Maybe, but I'm not alone. I won't stand by and watch people get hurt. And I won't run away,"

Huntara scowled and looked away, but Adora grabbed her chin and pulled her face to look back at her. 'Huntara, I need your help. I need you to help us find what we came for,"

Huntara looked away briefly as she stood. For a moment, Adora thought she'd run again… or smack her with the staff, either was a fair pick to be fair. "You're right. What I saw in the Horde scared me, and I ran," She picked up her staff. "But I'm not gonna run anymore," She turned to Adora again. "I face my problems head-on. And if you're trying to stop the war, then…" Adora glanced down as Huntara offered her hand. "Then I will do what I can to help you. Now come on, we've got lots of ground to cover before we reach the ship,"

Adora gasped softly. "I can't believe I'm standing in front of Mara's ship," She whispered. Glimmer hummed. "How do you know this is Mara's?" Adora twisted her head briefly in acknowledgement but didn't break her gaze. "Light Hope showed me Mara's ship crashing. Right before the stars disappeared," She said. "I don't know who Mara is, but that's definitely the ship that says your name," Huntara said.

Adora frowned. "Wait. Says my name?"
Immediately after saying this, of course, she realised how stupid a question it was.

Huntara snorted. "Not Adora. It says She-Ra,"

She stayed silent the rest of the way there, seriously regretting doing this goddamn fucking trip. Her feet were beyond painful now, verging on tear-inducing, her back was pulsating horribly, and she felt like overall shit, to be honest. And the last of Castaspella's potion was gone. They hadn't factored in being paralyzed and robbed, as one wouldn't.

So within the next hour, she'd probably have to deal with the onslaught of questioning from Huntara about her pregnancy. Which, to be honest, was the last thing she needed.

"This is incredible!" Bow's voice gasped. Adora shook her head. "A First Ones ship? This thing used to travel through space!" He yelled. "Think of all the amazing things it contains!" Adora smiled fondly. If he didn't obviously pine after Glimmer, and vice versa, he'd be a good fit with Entrapta.

Adora's heart did something strange.
Entrapta.

She shook her head, opening the door of the ship. "Or it could be empty. That's an option, too,"

Adora walked in, frowning. Tears weren't all that far away, period. Anything with great emotion brought forth the waterworks: this being one of them. She spun around, fighting back her tears. "This can't be it. Where's the message coming from then?"

She's so close to finding out everything!

Please, give her a fucking break!

Glimmer began to chat with Huntara and Bow, but none of their words hit Adora's brain. She walked about the small room, swiping at the air. "Well, that... and it's haunted," Huntara whispered. Adora rolled her eyes.

"She-Ra. Etheria. Gone,"

Adora frowned, looking around some more. Glimmer gasped loudly, Bow yelped, and Huntara sighed. "Your friends are brave," She commented snidely.

Adora ignored her, continuing to walk around. "Where is that voice coming from? And where's the door? This ship is massive but this room is tiny," She walked to an indent in the wall. "There has to be a door around here somewhere," She ran her finger along the indent, pursing her lips. "Hold on,"

She transformed the sword into a shield and pressed it close to the indent. The wall lit up blue and began to groan. "Get behind me," She said. Bow and Glimmer whimpered, moving quickly. Huntara scoffed. "How you three lasted so long in the waste beats me," Adora shot her a withering glare. "Well... you I can see surviving the waste," She amended.

Adora flicked some hair out of her face, bracing against the shield as the door opened. A rush of black blurs and screeching overwhelmed her senses, but she stayed still. Glimmer and Bow (and even Huntara, though she'd probably gut Adora if she said that aloud) yelled as they batted away the... well... bats.

"She-Ra. Etheria. Gone,"

Glimmer huffed. "We do this on three. One, two-"

"-wait! ON three or after three?" Bow interrupted. Huntara groaned. Adora rolled her shoulders. "On three. On, two, three!" They rushed into the bigger room, the former two shouting. Adora began to walk about the room, running her finger along the surfaces. She looked down to the ground, sighing softly when her bump had begun to show. Hoping Huntara was too stupid to know what it was, she kept walking around.

Bow's sudden scream brought her attention as she spun, sword extended out. Before him was a purply/pink hologram. It said something, but she didn't quite catch what. Adora tilted her head in consideration as she approached it. The hologram looked familiar... like...

"Mara!" She gasped, moving closer. "I have so many questions for you. I don't even know where to start!"
Maybe you can finally help me understand my past! My... my life.

Mara's hologram flickered. "I am Mara, She-Ra of Etheria, and I am gone," She repeated. Adora blinked. "Um... Hi? I'm Adora," The hologram flickered again. "I am Mara, She-Ra of Etheria, and I am gone," Her voice distorted as Huntara jabbed the spear through. She stepped back, shuddering. "Well, that's unsettling,"

Adora's eyes flickered over the hologram quickly, frantically. "No. No, no. This isn't it. I've done this before. There's usually a password or something!" She exclaimed.

Mara's hologram repeated. "I am Mara, She-Ra of Etheria, and I am gone," Adora narrowed her eyes. "Eternia!" She shouted. "I have the sword. I am She-Ra!" She desperately tried. This was her only lead on her past and... and it was broken. "Administrator detected!" She yelled. "Speak to me!" She screamed.

"I am Mara, She-Ra of Etheria, and I am gone,"

The fury that was rushing in her veins changed. To what... Adora would never be able to tell. The sheer stupidity of the situation made her laugh maniacally. Light Hope wasn't helpful, Shadow Weaver wasn't helpful, this fucking thing - her last resort - wasn't helping either... she laughed loudly, pinching her nose.

Distantly, she knew the feeling in her body was hysteria.
But that was the thing about hysteria: it took over quickly.

Glimmer said nothing, but Adora could only hear static over the blood rushing in her ears.

"Of course, it's on a loop!" She hissed. "Of course it is. Because why would a hologram ever give me a straight answer?" She began to pace. Screw painful feet. It was either pace or break something.

"Solve a puzzle. Train. Let go. I do everything they tell me, waiting for answers, And all I'm left with is... is..." She turned to the repeating hologram. The hysteria gave way to fury again. "Why was I taken from my family?" She yelled. "Whywas I forced to become a soldier?" She flicked her hand through the hologram. "Why did I come here if this was nothing but another dead end?!" She screamed, punching the console.

Her fist pulsed slightly in pain.

Bow was by her shoulder. "Adora, I'm sorry. Maybe we can-"

She raised her hand, silencing him. The console lit up with a hologram of the sword. Numb beyond words, she placed it, hilt deep, into the console.

Another hologram lit up behind. She spun.

Mara's second hologram wept. "I don't have much time. I barely made it out... If you are seeing this, it means you wield the Sword. You are the new She-Ra. It means I failed. I was supposed to be the last. And I am so, so sorry."

Mara's hologram sniffed. "I don't know what they told you, but it wasn't all bad at first. We were the first ones to settle Etheria, to really study this planet's magic. How could it go so wrong? Light Hope use the- Can't- Weapon- The weapon- Weapon-"

Adora groaned as the hologram glitched. "What weapon?" She asked, knowing that the hologram was pre-recorded. Somehow, she felt the closest to Mara out of everyone she'd ever spoken to... Mara was the only one who knew what She-Ra was like... how lonely it was.

She sighed. "Bow, how's it going? Have you fixed it?" The archer shrugged. "I'm trying, but I think the message got damaged when the ship crashed," He said.

Mara's hologram continued. "I opened a portal to a completely empty dimension and pulled Etheria in. I hid us from the rest of the universe to keep everyone safe. This is the one place they'll never find us. I saw what they would do. The deaths that would follow. I couldn't stop them before, but I can now. Hiding is our only option. Maybe it's been a week. Maybe it's been thousands of years. I never wanted to be a hero. I won't be remembered as one,"

An alarm began to blare in the background. Mara glanced back fearfully, returning resigned.

"You have the Sword now. It is the Administrator Key to our planet. With it, you can activate a portal. So I'm begging you. Don't do it. Leave us here. If you open a portal, death and destruction will follow. For the good of the universe, Etheria must stay in Despondos. If not, everyone will-"

The ship crashed and the hologram powered down.

Adora's eyes flickered over where the hologram once stood. She only had more questions... and her past was still a mystery. "Uh... Adora?" She sighed, scraping her hands through her hair. "Yeah?" She turned to face Glimmer. "Um... we can see the uh..." She gestured. Adora glanced down with a scoff. "Just about sums up my day really," She sneered. "I think we're done here anyway... I've got the data on my pad now, so we can head home,"

clap
clap
clap
clap
clap

Adora spun, hand on her sword. "Who's there? Come out and face Huntara!" The latter declared.

Woosh
woosh

Bow and Glimmer dropped with grunts. Adora rushed over to their side, bending over as far as she could. The two people from earlier, the ones that... ya know... robbed them... crept out of the shadows, evil smirks on their faces. Huntara scoffed. "You two joined Tung Lashor?"

"They haven't joined him,"
Adora gasped sharply.

"They joined me," Catra slunk from the shadows, grinning. "Hey Adora," She cooed. Huntara's spear was by her face in an instant, blocking a dart to the eye. She pulled the spear away, grunting quickly afterwards. "No!" Adora screamed. She bolted for the console, ripping the sword out. Mara disappeared. "For the honour of-"

Her sword was abruptly yanked from her grasp with a grunt. "This might be the quickest I've ever won a fight. Always so dramatic with you, isn't it, Adora?" Catra grinned. Huntara groaned from the floor. "Huntara! Get them out!" She screamed. Huntara snarled as she picked up her fallen friends, bolting to the exit. Adora screamed as somebody grabbed her from behind.

Catra's gaze moved to hers.

Her eyes fell to Adora's swollen belly with a sharp inhale.
Adora knew the jig was up.

The magicat sauntered over. "Leave us," She dismissed. "Scorpia, you stay," She addressed the woman holding Adora tightly. The rest of her goons left with grumbles. Catra flicked a claw underneath Adora's chin. "Since when do you get relaxed enough for hookups?" She sneered. Adora yanked her head away with a grunt. "Since when do you run a gang in the waste?" She retorted. Catra hummed, examining her nails. "Whose is it?" Adora huffed. "Can you not call my kid an IT, please?" She snapped. Catra ignored her: "Oh! Is it arrow boys!?"

Adora only felt a tad guilty by the recoil. "No. It's our mutual friend's kid. Noneyabusiness," She snapped. Catra chuckled. She moved about Adora's trapped body, humming. "You look good," She said. Adora hummed. She flicked some hair out of her face. "What're you gonna do to me, Catra? I don't have time for this bullshit banter exchange,"

"Oh, we're calling it banter now?" She retorted. Adora growled. For a split second, and only a split second, she felt something crackle at her fingertips. Scorpia felt it too: judging from the high yelp she let out. Catra growled. "You heard the woman. The sword is the key to the whole planet! This'll get me right back at the top," She jabbed a claw underneath Adora's chin. She gulped softly. "Seeing as the sword only works for you," She purred. "You're coming with us. Conscious or unconscious,"

Adora scoffed, spitting at her feet. "Never," She hissed.

Catra shrugged her left arm. "Fine. Unconscious it is," She grinned. "Hope it doesn't hurt the baby, you'd be a good mommy,"

A sting in Adora's back made her moan.

Her vision blacked out quickly.

The next time Adora had a coherent thought was several hours, possibly days, later. The doors whooshed open into Hordak's sanctum, though Catra still refused to give Adora enough time to get her feet under her properly. She grunted through the gag. "What?" Catra purred. She snorted. "Didn't expect to see me again?" She asked. Adora watched as Entrapta walked over by her hair. "Oh, you have a whip now?"

She nearly snorted. Same old Entrapta.

Catra snapped her fingers. "Focus. I got what you needed. This sword is the key to the whole planet," Adora glanced at Entrapta frantically, hoping to get her attention. "I suppose it makes sense. She-Ra's sword is First One's tech, maybe the most powerful I've ever seen. All this time, this was the key that we needed… I guess I should figure out how it works,"

Catra snapped her fingers again, this time glaring at the Horde leader. "I brought you everything you need to open a portal and finish the Princesses off for good. What are we waiting for?" Adora screamed through the gag. Hordak took a step forward. "Hmmm," He said, continuing to walk forward. "Entrapta?" He called. The inventor scaled over. "What do you know of the genetic passing of powers? Concerning the Queen and Princess of Brightmoon, for example,"

Adora felt her face grow pale. "I would say the powers, depending on the strength and generation marker, would pass on. In the case of Angella and Glimmer, not a lot, as they share a runestone. Why?" She answered. Hordak nodded. "And of She-Ra?" Adora felt her chin quiver. She strained against the bindings, yelling profanities that would never be heard. Entrapta hesitated. "Well... She-Ra is pure magic, but she isn't genetically connected to Adora, as far as I'm aware…" She mused. "So, I'm unsure. Was the baby conceived as She-Ra, Adora?"

The gag was removed.

"If you touch me or my baby, I will slit your throats and burn you in your fucking sleep!" She screamed, fury replacing the fear. Entrapta flinched back. Hordak chuckled. "It would appear that fury you were known for hasn't left with gestation," He smirked. "Imprison her. Her offspring will be powerful. I can feel it,"

Adora glanced at Catra, whose face was a surprising mix of confusion and anger. "Catra, don't-"

Her vision blacked out for the millionth time in two days.