When Adora woke up, she woke up sore and thirsty. Her chest also ached a little. If she was being honest, it hurt a lot. Not her heart, no. Her chest… like… where the failsafe resided. She blinked a few times and tried to clear her throat. It felt gammy and thick with something. Like she'd woken up from a really long nap. She grimaced to herself, trying to sit up. "Adora, lie down," Somebody's voice was to her left. It sounded deep. Adora cleared her throat again, swallowing around the thick gammy-ness in it. She finally turned her head, blurry eyes settling on the owner of the voice. "Here, Casta thought you might be thirsty," Adora licked her lips. Yeah… she was thirsty. Bow put the straw into her mouth, holding the glass so she could drink from it.
"Don't drink it all, you'll be sick," The King warned. Adora's brain acknowledged the message, yet, her throat didn't. "Ok, that's enough," The straw was pulled away. Adora whined. "Don't be a baby. Being sick won't help you," Ah yes. Ever since Angelle had come into the world, and Violet was old enough to wreak havoc, Bow had developed a harder shell against his daughter's bright purple eyes, and his goddaughter's bright violet eyes. Adora whined again softly, puffing a breath out. After the water, admittedly, she felt a bit better. She cleared her throat successfully this time, getting rid of the gammy feel. "Vi?" She asked. Her tongue still felt heavy. "Is fine. Last I knew, she was helping Glim bath Angie," Bow snorted. "Helping," He added in quotation marks. Adora smiled, starting to push herself up to a sitting position. Her arms shook and gave way before Bow's hand even reached her shoulder. "I told you to-"
"Please," Adora interrupted, her brain fog clearing up. "Let me sit up. I feel so helpless laying here."
The King's brow furrowed, but he relented. Perhaps his shell didn't extend to a volatile She-Ra... It took longer and hurt more than Adora had anticipated, but eventually Bow managed to help her into a semi-upright position leaning heavily against several large pillows. She was displeased of how weak her body was... how the activity had left her disoriented, with a thin layer of sweat on her forehead.
"Stop it," Adora turned with a frown, wiping her brow. "Immediately," Her frown only deepened. "You're not weak," Bow added. Adora squinted at him. "Yes, because failing to even sit up properly is a display of true strength," She rolled her eyes, shifting further up the bed, ignoring the way her heart seemed to beat in her head. "Adora, seriously. Lay the fuck still," Adora briefly paused at his language. "Since when do you swear?" She asked. Bow shrugged. "Since I realised my best friends are self-sacrificing and medical ignoring dumbasses,"
Adora rolled her eyes so far into the back of her skull, she's pretty sure she could see her spinal cord.
A few days later, she was released from the infirmary, but confined to a week of her bedroom. Meaning, she couldn't take Violet to school, and she couldn't go out and train. Apparently her body needed to heal and restore some of the magic that had bled out. To busy herself, she deep cleaned the room, bleached and cleaned the bathroom, changed her bedsheets, did fifteen jumping jacks, went onto the balcony and did some yoga poses Catra suggested, called Catra, did fifteen pushups, ate dinner, had a wash, bathed Violet and fed her, did her school work with her, put her to bed and did some more pushups.
In short, Adora was bored.
Very bored.
So the week passed very… very… very slowly.
At least until the twelfth day after she woke up. "Hey, Adora?" She was having lunch with Glimmer for the first time in months, just the two of them. Probably since Glim had had Angie, who was with Bow visiting his dad's. Adora hummed over her sandwich. "I need to ask you something… and you're probably not gonna like it, it's quite personal," Adora paused briefly. "Um… how personal?" She asked. Glimmer hesitated. "Casta said that you… um… that you were… expecting," Adora felt her heart drop. "When we did the ceremony… and that you may have… lost the baby," Adora forced her face into neutrality. "Um… she… she wanted to know if you had, yet," Adora paused for a moment, just trying to gather her thoughts. "No," She finally spoke. Glimmer shifted on the chair. "Um… she… she did some testing, after you left. I have no idea what with, but I think it was to see if the baby would've survived or not,"
Adora's toast fell from her hand. "Isn't that like… a huge violation!?" She exclaimed. Glimmer winced. "Yeah, yeah it is… and I did tell her this… but she'd already done it," Adora's stomach roiled with nausea. "Um… Casta said to give it a month… and… and if you don't get anything… happen… to go to a doctor and they'll test you," Adora's blood boiled with a sudden rush of anger. "So, if I don't miscarry within a month, go to a doctor to have them suck it out?" She spat. Glimmer winced. "Not quite as crude…" She trailed off. Adora couldn't help the bitter chuckle that flew out of her mouth. "I did my research, Glim. I know I've lost it, d'ya wanna know why too? Because APPARENTLY privacy isn't a thing anymore!" Glimmer glanced around nervously. Adora leaned in close. "It's pretty gruesome," She leaned in closer. "That amount of magic leaving all at once, coupled with the sudden rush of my magic coming back, it would've vaporised it," She spat.
Glimmer's eyes grew wide. "So, I know I've lost it. That fucking Heart is STILL wrecking my life!" In a fit of rage, Adora swiped her hand across the table, sending her plate crashing to the ground. The area grew silent. Even the animals silenced their noises. "Adora… I'm sorry this happened," Glimmer reached across the table to rub her friend's hand. "It's just-" Adora sighed angrily, despite it cracking with emotion. "Catra… she's waited so long," Glimmer's hand didn't leave Adora's. "I know she loves Vi, and I know she's practically raised her with me… but she didn't get to hold her as a newborn… or watch as she grew from a seed to a full child in my stomach,"
Glimmer tutted. "You've still got the rune, yeah?" Adora's hand flew to her hip, where the soft heat of the rune, barely noticeable, pulsed softly. "Yeah," She replied quietly. "Then you can try again. I'm sure that's not boring," Glimmer wiggled her eyebrows. Adora rolled her eyes, wiping away the tears. "I know it's upsetting. But at least this way, the Heart has no reason to interfere with your life, or your kids lives anymore,"
Adora nodded, agreeing with her friend's statement. Whether to reassure herself or not, she'd never be able to tell in the precise moment.
But it was enough.
