Marlena sat in the chair, flexing and unflexing her arm as instructed, watching as the red liquid that kept her alive leaked into a large bag by her feet. "How much do I need to give?" She asked the nurse: Jonsie. She hummed. "Around two bags, though we'll administer the first bag and wait before we get you to do another. That'll probably have to be done in a day or two. You can't give that much blood in one sitting," Jonsie instructed. She remained vigilant throughout the blood withdrawal and the thirty minutes of waiting afterwards. Marlena found herself watching after Adora's little girl, Violet, as she slept starfished on the bed opposite. Catra, her other mother (though Marlena was still a little unsure of how that worked, but obviously wasn't against it), claimed she needed to freshen up and go for a run to clear her mind. The other two people, the Etherian King and Queen, left a while before Catra did.

Marlena offered to watch over Violet while she donated her blood. Gods, words couldn't describe how proud of her daughter she was. Adora had grown up without a father's leadership or mother's love to guide her through the trials and tribulations of life, yet, she persevered and came out the other side, stronger than most of Marlena's royal guard without She-Ra. She had yet to ask exactly what trials and tribulations Adora had been through, but a part of her didn't want to know. She knew Adora, and her wife for that matter, had been reared by a woman called Shadow Weaver in the Horde. Even if they hadn't stated so, Marlena could tell that they hadn't been given a childhood filled with love and care. She knew of the Horde and their abusive ways. She'd rescued many an unfortunate child from their clutches. Even aside from that, she'd had the displeasure of waking up to terrified screams ripping through the halls from Adora and/or Catra. Or how they'd turn to each other for comfort, always touching each other somehow.

The most obvious? The scars and subtle cues. If Marlena spoke too loudly by mistake, the girls would move closer together, with Adora standing slightly in front for protection. If a guard caught them off guard, Catra's claws would be unsheathed before Adora's body in a warning.

Marlena shook her head and picked up the book by her side. She still had another twenty-two minutes to wait before she could leave, and all her royal documents were back in the office room, probably where Randor hunched over them in his old and decrepit chair, older than he himself. Around ten minutes later, the little bundle of firecracker energy that belonged to Adora, cried out in her sleep, thrashing within the covers. Marlena put her book down on the bed and walked over quietly, making sure to not disturb the young child. "Violet?" She asked softly, shaking the bundle. Violet's head shot out from underneath a woollen red blanket, tears racing down her cheeks. "Are you ok?" She asked. Violet's chin wobbled. "I had a bad dream," She cried loudly. Marlena mewled in her throat and picked her up. "Oh, dear," She soothed. "What was it about?" She asked, swaying softly. Violet sniffled, grabbing the red blanket tighter by her chin. "Don' wanna talk 'bout it," She mumbled. Marlena hummed in her chest, moving back to the chair. "Well, luckily for you, I was reading a fairytale, if you want to listen?" She asked. "I sometimes have bad dreams too, and reading helps me forget," She sat in the chair, lowering the five-year-old onto her lap, resting against her stomach.

"My, you've got strange hair," She commented softly with a smile. Violet looked up from the book and to Adora. "Is my mommy's hair," Her eyes were wide as she stared at Adora's unconscious form. "Yeah? But your mommy has blonde hair, like my mommy," Marlena said. Violet looked back, moving some hair out of her eyes. "Yeeeesss, but I has two mommies," She paused. "Free mommies," Marlena frowned. "How do you have three mommies?" She couldn't help but ask. Violet shrugged. "I has my two mommies dat made me," She pointed at Adora. "She is my mommy," Violet then pointed to her red hair. "My udder momma died 'fore I was born mommy says," She smiled. "She has red hair," Marlena nodded. "And who is Catra?" She asked. "Mom," She nodded, curling back up against Marlena's stomach. She was quiet for a moment. "Wha does your mommy look like?" She asked. Marlena shifted. "I can't remember much, Violet. I left my home planet, where she still lives," She said somewhat sadly. "But I have some pictures somewhere, I'll show you one day," She promised. Violet still waited. Marlena cast a look at her own daughter. "Honestly? Your mommy looks exactly like my mommy, but she's got her daddy's eyes,"

Violet nodded once, seemingly happy. She cuddled in further. "Can you wead pwease?" She asked quietly, pointing to the book. Marlena smiled softly. "Of course," She turned the page of the book and began reading aloud softly.

...

The following day, Marlena found herself by Adora's bedside again. This time, however, she was awake and being stubborn. "Adora, please hear me out," Marlena begged. Adora winced as she inched further up the bed, huffing in ignorance. "No thank you," She hissed. "Talk to Catra, she was fine for a week," She spat. Marlena hummed lowly. "Adora, you owe me the chance to explain at the very least. That's all I'm asking, just five minutes," She tried to keep her temper. Adora twisted her head and raised her hand off the bed. If it weren't shaking comically, it would've been a well-received threat. Alas, it was shaking. "You get five minutes," She conceded. Marlena sat down on the chair with a soft sigh. "I ask one thing only," She began. Adora shrugged, every bit the same as Adam was when he was in a mood. "You don't interrupt until I'm finished. I cannot explain if you keep interrupting," She said. Adora's eyes scanned her face with narrowed slits. "Fine," She snapped, turning her gaze to the ceiling. Catra had yet to see that Adora was awake, and selfish as it might be, Marlena wanted to explain her side whilst Adora was calm.

Well.. calm ish.

"Did you know I'm not Eternian?" Marlena began. Adora's brow furrowed, but her eyes remained boring holes into the ceiling. "No. I was from a planet called Earth, several light-years away. I was part of an exploration mission through a dimensional rift when I was nineteen years old," She sighed softly. "I crashed here with my crew, but only I survived. I was horribly injured and thought I was to meet my fate, yet, your father, Randor, found my ship on one of his exploits as a young man," Adora, whilst she remained facing the ceiling, turned slightly towards Marlena's voice. "I became his girlfriend, then his wife within five years of living here and learning the ways of the First Ones... some even your father didn't fully understand," She continued. "I ruled by his side for another year before I fell pregnant with you and your twin brother," Marlena paused briefly. "You were both born in January, but only fifteen minutes apart. You were born on January 19th at eleven fifty-one at night, but Adam was born on January 20th at six minutes past midnight,"

She smiled softly. "It bothered your brother deeply as he grew up, being the younger twin," She chuckled. Adora didn't, though she did turn her face to watch as Marlena spoke. "I remember the night you were taken so vividly," Marlena's throat suddenly felt thick as she spoke.


"Randie, can you change Adam for me? I'm having trouble getting Adora to latch," Marlena bounced the twelve-week-old twins softly. "Sure, has he been fed?" Marlena nodded. "Yeah, about fifteen or so minutes ago," She held her arm up so Randor could grab their son. "Hello mighty warrior," He cooed, walking over to the changing table. Marlena glanced down at the blonde baby in her arms, currently sucking on her toes as though they were tastier than her milk. "Adora, what're we gonna do with you?" Marlena asked softly. Adora's chubby face whipped up to hers as she grinned gummily, babbling nonsense. "Aren't you hungry?" Marlena tried. Adora simply blinked up at her with her soft blue/grey eyes, exactly like Randor's. Marlena hummed softly, pulling her in to feed. Without the kicking from Adam, Adora seemed to latch on quicker and easier, immediately taking to the breast without a fuss. Marlena rocked back and forth in the chair, humming a lullaby beneath her breath.

"He's falling asleep on the table, do you want me to put Adam down in the crib?" Randor asked. Marlena glanced down at her feeding blonde baby girl with a soft smile as she tucked some hair away. "Yes, please. I think she's gonna be a while," She said over her shoulder. Randor walked off into the baby room with Adam against his shoulders. "Bye, baby!" Marlena waved as he disappeared behind the wooden door. She wasn't sure how long it was before Adora pulled away with a soft baby sigh, her eyes already slipping closed. Marlena pulled her blouse up with a soft sigh over her own. "Come on, missus. You need changing, then you can go to sleep," Fully aware that her children had no idea what their parents were saying yet, it made the insanity of the twelve-week-duty rest a little bit less isolating.

Marlena quickly changed Adora's nappy and slipped her into her nightdress. "Come here, beautiful," She cooed as she brought her baby girl up against her shoulder. Marlena swayed softly as she soothed her three-month-old to sleep, which wasn't hard in the slightest. Adora had fallen asleep before Marlena had even entered the baby room. She lowered her into the soft pink cot and switched on the lullaby maker in between the two cribs, watching as her children fell into the deep clutches of sleep with little grunts or kicks as they slumbered.

Marlena could watch them forever.

...

It was around three am when it happened. Adam began screaming loudly, as he often did when it was time for the three am feed, but as Marlena woke up a little more, she noticed the scream sounded different. She didn't bother with her slippers and walked quickly into the baby room. Adam was screaming his little red face-off, but Adora was completely silent. Try as she might, Adora often cried in tandem with Adam. Marlena peered into the baby cot. Her heart fell into her feet. "RANDOR!" She screamed. She began looking all over the room. "RANDOR!" She cried. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no," She sobbed, crawling around on the ground, looking underneath every item in the room. "Marlie, what's wrong?" Randor was by the door. "Adora! She's- she's gone!" She sobbed, continuing to look under the furniture. "What do you mean, gone?" Randor asked, striding to the cot. He bolted out of the room, bellowing for the guards.

A pointless endeavour, for there were no windows in the baby room. Marlena had seen too many movies back when she was on Earth of kidnappers breaking in via windows to steal the babies. Her bedroom did have a balcony, but it faced the courtyard where guards patrolled at all hours. She folded in the middle, punching the ground in rage as the tears poured thick and fast from her eyes, wailing to the heavens.


"We never stopped looking, not until Prime found us," Marlena finished softly. "The Royal Guard stopped after five years, but Randor and I, we made our own guard specifically to find you. They stopped after a decade though..." Marlena swallowed. "At that point, Prime was right under our noses... we... we had no choice but to suspend the galaxy search for you," Marlena chuckled bitterly. "A pointless endeavour, as it so turns out for another two years, thanks to Mara,"

"Don't talk about her," Adora spat. "She saved everyone doing what she did," Marlena noted the quiver within her daughter's voice. "Whatever her reasoning. You were in Despondos, and I'm so sorry we didn't think to search there... we... we had no idea that Etheria even existed. It was written out of our history books. The First Ones removed all traces of the planet," Marlena glanced up at Adora. "Tragic story, but that doesn't explain why you let me stay here for a week without saying anything," She said bitterly. Marlena worried her lower lip, thinking of a way to say this that didn't further irritate Adora and her wife's spat. "We... we wanted to. I wanted to tell you the moment you exited the spacecraft," She admitted. "However, we were asked not to for that first night," Marlena began. "And it made sense. At first, I was against it. But then you came out, and you looked so sickly and- and pale," Marlena admitted. "I agreed that you needed a day or two to process and unwind from the journey," She paused to chuckle softly. "At the time, until you told me behind the stables, I just thought you had motion sickness,"

Adora didn't laugh. "But I stayed for a week before anybody told me," She began to fiddle with the threadbare blanket. "I-I leave in less than two months," She said quietly, all the fire from her voice gone. "Honestly, Adora?" Marlena hesitated slightly. "I wasn't ready to tell you. Randor and I, we were only asked to wait a day. The rest of the time? That was us. We'd spent so long looking for you, I-I don't think we truly believed it was real... that you were real," She hesitated in putting her hand onto Adora's, squeezing it softly. "Catra had nothing to do with it," She whispered. "But she didn't ask you to hurry up," Adora whispered back. Marlena hummed. She dared to stroke the back of Adora's hand, being mindful of the IV line dug into the top. "Would you have asked her parents to hurry up?" She asked.

Adora shook her head.

"No... I-I wouldn't," She admitted. Marlena let the room fall into silence, having said her part. Marlena kept holding Adora's hand. Her eyes fell onto the red blanket dumped by her feet. Folded, but not very neatly. Obviously a gift from Violet. "Your daughter is very sweet," Marlena spoke softly. Adora's eyes whipped to meet hers. "You've met her?" She asked quietly. "Violet? Yes. She was sleeping in here last night," Marlena paused. "She had a bad dream, though wouldn't tell me. She eventually sat on my lap and interrogated me on my life before settling down with a book," Adora chuckled wetly. "Yeah, that sounds like Vi," She sniffled. She twisted in the bed slightly, being mindful of her sore stomach. "You did so well," Marlena's voice ran before her mind did.

Adora's eyes began to leak tears, despite her tearing her hand out of Marlena's grip to wipe them away. "God, I'm sorry, it's hormones," She cried quietly, still trying to wipe her eyes (to no avail) dry. Marlena shook her head. "Don't apologise," She soothed. "Your body is making a whole child. You're allowed to be emotional," She whispered. Adora continued to cry softly. Marlena felt like she was intruding, having not even witnessed a birthday of hers yet. "Would you like me to get Catra for you?" She asked quietly, standing up.

"No!" Adora's hand grabbed her wrist in a vice-like grip. Marlena stopped and turned. "Can..." Adora shook her head, turning away. She let go of Marlena's wrist. "Can I what?" Marlena asked. "Nothing," Adora mumbled, curling in as tightly as she could with the various stitches across her body. "Would you like me to stay?" Marlena asked quietly. Adora looked back briefly. Her eyes still shone with tears, even as more continued to pour out at a quick rate. "I-I just really need to be held," She admitted. "But don't worry about it... Catra can later," She turned her head away.

Marlena shook her head. "I'm here now," She kicked her shoes off, sitting on the bed. "Can I not make up for Catra's absence in the meantime?" Adora's eyes were wide as she watched in silence. "I-I mean-" She stuttered. Marlena sat on the bed but wondered if she'd overstepped for a moment. But no. As soon as her back was against the pillows, Adora had curled into her side, putting her face into her arm and crying softly. "I'm so sorry," She gasped. Marlena wound an arm around her body, holding her tightly. "Never apologise for cuddling me and crying. It's what moms do," She whispered into her daughter's blonde hair.

Adora cried louder, completely soaking Marlena's arm, but the latter didn't care. "I'm so proud of you," She whispered, rubbing Adora's arm. She shook violently, crying silently into her arm. "My sweet daughter," She tested, fully expecting Adora to shove away or stay silent.

"Mom," She sobbed against her arm. Marlena held her tighter, smothering her own tears in Adora's blonde hair, holding her little girl for the first time in twenty-one years.