#TFW a ship is canon and writing them in a relationship doesn't count as an AU

[cheetahsprints]

What You Needed to Hear

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Summary: A late night visitor gives Catra a new perspective.

Rating: T (for mild suggestive themes)

Word Count: ~1.9k

Pairings: Catra/Adora, Minor Implied Glimmer/Bow

Additional Info: Catra’s POV, In-universe, Canon Compliant (ish), post-season 5, timey wimey magic wagic, camping, vague circumstances, fluff, mild angst, established relationship<3

If you like this, check out: Soulswap

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It still feels like a dream that she expects to wake up from any moment. Adora leans on her as she laughs at some inside joke between her, Glimmer, and Bow. She pauses and shoots an anxious look at Catra. She merely smirks and glides her hand along Adora’s back to stroke her neck. The campfire crackles between them all, brushing Adora’s face with a flattering light. She’s long past her silly jealousy over Adora’s friends, because she has something with Adora they will never be privileged to have.

“Let’s hope the blanket monster isn’t stalking tonight,” Catra murmurs. Adora snorts and turns pink.

Glimmer gives Bow a questioning look, and he shrugs. They don’t ask. Catra rolls the memory in her mind - they’d been very young. She doesn’t quite remember what age. Adora was thrashing in her sleep, and she had kicked Catra, waking her up. In retaliation, Catra draped a blanket over her shoulders. She had called to Adora in a ghostly voice. As soon as she opened her eyes, Catra had stalked toward her, swaying from side to side.

Adora had released a blood-curdling scream that woke everyone up and made Shadow Weaver appear as though from thin air. They’d been harshly reprimanded, but it became a little joke Catra would occasionally use to cheer her up. It still amazed her how despite all the bad that truly happened during their days in the Horde, they could share somewhat fond memories. 

Catra floats on the gentleness of the evening as idle conversation continues. She occasionally joins in with insight, but it’s mostly smart remarks - which serve another purpose of making Adora chuckle. It’s the kind of continuous moment that makes her take a mental step back to appreciate it all. 

“Catra,” Adora says. Across from them, Glimmer has curled against Bow, and they’ve nodded off a bit. Bow is still semi-alert, Catra can tell by the way his muscles are tensed. 

“Hmm?” Catra turns and realizes Adora is staring at her. Catra swallows thickly, captivated by steel blue eyes. “What are looking at, dummy?”

“Just you. I like looking at you.”

Catra feels herself flush. She starts to look down, but Adora softly grasps her chin. “Don’t do that.”

“What do you want from me? To thank you for - for -” Catra trails off, wincing at the harshness of her tone. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay. You’re not used to it. But you don’t need to hide, got it?”

“Got it.”

Adora asks, “By the way why do you call me that? I know it isn’t to be mean. Dummy, I mean.”

“You’re my dummy,” Catra answers with a slight purr. “It’s an ironic endearment, I do think you tend to be a doofus, but in a good way.”

“Do - do you want me to call you anything aside from just your name?” Adora bites her lip. “I feel weird, not having something cute to call you, but I can’t think of anything clever. What am I supposed to call you? Smarty?”

Catra rolls her eyes. “It doesn’t matter. I like the sound of my name when you say it. But you can call me whatever... sweetie, darling, dearest, butt-head, sneezy, fuzzy pants - er - just not kitten. Coming from you anything else’s fine.”

“Sweetie...” The word is mumbled by Adora, who combs her fingers through Catra’s hair - it’s grown out a bit but still short - and settles her hands to cup behind Catra’s twitching ears. An anticipatory shiver travels up her spine.

Adora kisses her. Catra is jolted for a second before she relaxes and melts into the gesture. Despite being the one to initiate - well - everything - she continues to be taken aback by reciprocation. Catra deepens the kiss, and soon the fire isn’t the only thing that’s heated. Adora’s hand is trailing down her stomach, the other tightly gripping her thigh, when there’s a crashing noise and a pained grunt. Adora jerks away from her, glancing around wildly. Catra growls at the interruption. Her hearing keener, she adjusts an ear to pick up on a rustling noise. She whirls toward the sound.

“What’s the idea? Whoever you are, come out and face us coward,” Catra calls into the woods. A form materializes in the shadows. Catra can’t hold in a whimper. “Sh - Shadow -”

Adora - She Ra - steps in front of her, sword at the ready. Then, a familiar face appears - or rather mostly appears. Catra rubs her eyes - is she actually asleep? It’s her, but it’s not her. This façade has long hair, Horde garb, and half of her face and body are wrong - like some kind of glitch, like she’s being consumed by a void of space.

Hazy, contorted memories tickle the back of her mind. Glitch-Catra gazes at them with wide eyes. She whispers, “Where am I? What’s going on?”

Even her voice is distorted. Bow and Glimmer have woken up, and they’ve taken stances beside Adora. However, Adora relaxes. The She Ra persona disappears as Adora holds up placating hands. Glitch-Catra narrows her eyes and bares her teeth.

Glimmer questions, “What - what is this?!”

“My best guess would be a left over effect of the portal - it’s possible that during that time the Catra of the past briefly traveled forward in time before being yanked back. It was warping time and space, after all,” Bow states.

 “You!” Glitch-Catra points at Adora. “What have you done to me?!”

Glitch-Catra makes to leap at her. Even though Adora is perfectly capable of defending herself, Catra jumps in front of her. She rests her right hand on Adora’s right shoulder and pushes her slightly back. Her other hand is unfurled menacingly, claws glinting in the moonlight.

“Don’t even think about it,” Catra hisses.

Glitch-Catra blinks at her. “Wh - you’re protecting her?”

Glimmer steps forward, hand aglow. Bow notches an arrow. Glitch-Catra’s ears and tail stand on end as she looks back and forth between them. Catra shakes her head. “Stand down, I’ll deal with this.”

To her shock, they listen. They vanish from her peripheral vision, presumably behind Adora now. Somehow, she has gained their trust and respect. Glitch-Catra looks around, and then she stares at her right arm and flexes the darkened fingers. 

She rasps, “I - the portal. I really messed up didn’t I? Entrapta was right. I don’t know what’s wrong with me - what was I thinking?”

Having this reminder of her mistakes in front of her makes her insides painfully clench. She can’t help glancing back at Adora. Adora gently pushes her arm down and stands beside her. Catra takes a deep breath and slowly walks forward. Her hand is briefly caught by Adora’s and squeezed. Glitch-Catra raises her arms, claws out, as though to defend herself as Catra approaches.

“I won’t hurt you.”

“What... what about her?” Glitch-Catra peers over Catra’s shoulder, then their eyes meet again. Catra doesn’t answer. A memory, as sharp as a diamond and as frail as glass, pierces her mind. It’s disorienting, but she knows what she has to do. 

She wraps her arms around Glitch-Catra’s shoulders and pulls her close. The memory overlaps with the present. Catra murmurs, “It’s okay, Catra. It’s all going to be okay. You’ll be okay. You’re not alone.”

She holds her past self tight and rocks her side to side a little. She poured all the love that the Horde, that Shadow Weaver, and most importantly herself never gave or truly showed her into those words. She can remember how it sounded to hear them herself. She can picture it, the way her eyes had widened, then closed - the tears that seeped into the shoulder of her - her then future self. She can picture her past self looking up to see Adora’s face, and the reassuring smile that graces her countenance.

Catra pulls away. She resumes her place at Adora’s side. Adora slips her hand into Catra’s and intertwines their fingers. Catra quietly sighs and wraps her tail around Adora’s leg. Glitch-Catra’s eyes slowly travel to a stop at their interlocked hands. Her mouth falls open slightly - at the time Catra had thought it was some kind of portal-induced fever dream. She’d written it off and gone after Adora in a state of uncontrollable rage and confusion. Seeing her past self, how angry and lost she looked, it gives her a swell of emotion.

Yet, even thinking it was a dream, it was part of what gave her the courage - to try to make everything right, to confess her feelings. The trees behind Glitch-Catra and the ground beneath her seems to warp. Then, she’s gone. Catra collapses into Adora and nuzzles her collarbone. She distantly hears the other two exchanging whispers, probably about what just occurred.

“I’m proud of you,” Adora says, kissing her forehead as she brings her free hand up to cup Catra’s jaw.

“Uh, for what?”

“Being kind to yourself.”

Catra scoffs. “It was destined. I was in her place once. This is kind of paradoxical if you think about it too hard... And - and you know I’m sorry right? I can’t believe I almost destroyed the whole world being a petty bi-”

Adora strokes her jaw. “Like you said, it’s okay. Or it will be - because you’re changing, you’re improving, and you’re not isolating yourself by pushing everyone - including your own conscience - away.” 

Catra releases a shaky breath. She realizes she had begun to tear up. 

“Maybe it was a dream the first time. Maybe you made it real,” Adora continues, “I think you told yourself what you needed to hear, what you wanted so desperately to hear... not from anyone else, but you needed to validate yourself.”

“Don’t be such a sap,” Catra remarks, but she’s grinning. “It was definitely just the way you smiled at me.”

“Catra.”

“Okay, okay, you’re kind of right! Just don’t let it go to your head.”

“Hmm... that’s not really the head I’m thinking of,” Adora whispers, lips brushing her ear. Catra’s tail unravels and twitches behind her. She cackles at that.

After a while, the fire is put out. Bow takes first watch, climbing up a nearby boulder because he knows better than to be in earshot. Catra wastes no time crawling into Adora’s sleeping bag beneath their tent, warm bodies pressing together and mouths fervently re-discovering each other. Hopefully, she can exhaust Adora enough that she won’t get kicked tonight.

When the sun rises, it brings the end of Catra’s shift. She sways on the spot for a moment before going to rouse everyone else. Her and Adora’s activities went on longer than expected, then Catra made the mistake of staying awake to look at Adora sleeping and think about the future. Once Adora is next to her, Catra goes limp. Adora catches her before she hits the ground.

Chuckling, Adora says, “Was your shift really that tiring? You look like you fought a battalion by yourself.”

“Haven’t slept, brain wouldn’t shut up,” Catra grumbles. “Carry me.”

“What, no -”

“Carryyy meee.”

“But Glimmer is going to teleport us to -”

“Please.” Catra opens her eyes to give Adora the most pleading look she can muster. She flicks Adora’s leg with her tail. “I won’t ask for anything else the rest of the day.”

“Oh, fine, but only because I love you.”

“Mmm... love you too.” Catra catches Adora’s smile before she closes her eyes again, and she smiles back. She doubts she’ll ever get tired of hearing that. There’s a flash of light past Catra’s closed eyelids, and she feels herself adjusted into a bridal carry. Gonna marry her, is the last thought Catra has before she loses consciousness in the security of Adora’s hold.