Work Text
Catra had to flick her cheek to stay awake. Her stop was soon. She yawned, her ear flicking slightly. She cracked her neck as the bus got to its current destination. ‘C’mon, Catra. Just two more stops. Then a few hours of work, and if Shadow Weaver’s not watching, a free coffee.’ The door closed, and the bus started before someone outside shouted“WAIT! PLEASE!” The door opened, and a woman walked in, sweaty and panting. She paid her bus fare with a muttered “thanks” and sat beside Catra. Catra leaned further into the window and away from her. The woman was blonde, wearing a shirt and some jeans, even though it was basically 25°F outside. Catra looked outside, seeing the frost on the window. As a kid, she would beg her mother to let her go outside and play in the cold, especially the spider webs, when they froze over and-"Crazy, huh?” The blonde said. Catra started and turned around to her. She had to forcefully stop her claws from extending.“Uh-what?” The blonde smirked, like Catra was dumb, which pissed Catra the hell off.“I meant the weather. It’s cold, huh?”“Uh-huh,” Catra said, silently cursing herself for forgetting her headphones. She opened her phone, hoping she would get the message.“So, where are you headed?” Didn’t get the message. Of course.“Work.”“Oh? Me too! I work at the Brightmoon Café, I’m a barista, so I’m headed that way.” Catra looked up now.“Uh-me too. I work at Horde Coffee though.”“Oh? That’s so cool!” The blonde’s grin widened, which made Catra’s lip twitch. There was no universe where Catra would consider her job ‘cool’, but it was almost amusing how enthused the lady was.“Uh, I guess.” The bus stopped again. “My stop. Bye.”The blonde waved, grinning. “Bye!”Catra sat behind the counter, her tail flicking out of boredom. “Hey, Wildcat! How’re you doin’ today!” Scorpia said, walking through the store and trying to not knock everything over with her tail.“You’re late, Scorpia. Shadow Weaver’s gonna kill you.”“Pff, she’s not gonna-” Scorpia’s eyes widened as if she genuinely thought Shadow Weaver would kill her. “Wait, did she say she wanted to kill me? Because I always thought she hated me, but I didn’t think she’d actually-”“Sarcasm, Scorps.” Before Scorpia could say anything, Shadow Weaver walked through the backdoor, her manager’s pin polished and on her shirt.Weaver’s jacket was long, almost like a robe, and the bottom looked shredded. There was no way it was too uniform, which was seriously hypocritical. Still, it wasn’t like anyone could call her out on
it. She was, of course, the boss.“Catra. Why is Scorpia ten minutes late?”“I don’t know, ask her-” Weaver’s face distorted with displeasure. Catra’s tail flicked again, but more aggressively this time.“I will not entertain this insolence, Catra, so do not behave as if I will. You and Scorpia are conspirators, no?” Catra’s eye twitched. What did that even mean?“Yes, Ma’am,” Catra said through gritted teeth. “I’ll get Scorpia to come early next time.” Scorpia looked at Catra with those damn puppy dog eyes, as if she was trying to apologise through them.“Now get back to work.” Shadow Weaver spat, before disappearing to the back in a flourish.“Sorry, Wildcat. I was just messaging this girl I met at the bar a few weeks back. She’s really awesome, she works at a flower shop, and it’s adorable.” Catra sighed. She and Scorpia had been friends since the both of them were kids, and Catra had a sore spot for her. Plus, it wasn’t Scorpia’s fault that Shadow Weaver had it out for Catra. Ever since Catra had started working there, Shadow Weaver had made it her life’s mission to get Catra fired, even if it meant risking sales. Catra leaned on the counter before the first customer of the day walked in. Her purple hair was damp from the morning rain, but she looked cheerful as ever, holding what looked like a clock to her face, not even looking at Catra as she got to the counter.“Hey, Entrapta. You want the usual caffeine overdose?” Entrapta was an ex-employee of the store, having left to start her (very successful) tech company. Catra wasn’t entirely sure what they sold, because she had never actually listened to Entrapta when she had described her product, but Catra and Scorpia were proud of her, and she was part of the family.“According to my-”“I swear to gods, Entrapta, if you say according to my calculations, I will punch you.” Entrapta looked up, annoyed.“Fine. My research shows that the optimized amount of caffeine is exactly what I need for a good day.” Scorpia stumbled over and grinned.“Trap! How’ve you been!? You’ve been sleeping, right?” Entrapta nodded, looking back down at what she was fiddling with. Catra realised that Entrapta was done socialising. Entrapta walked to the table she deemed as ‘hers’. Catra gently pushed Scorpia.“C’mon Scorps, let’s get to work.”At the end of the day, Catra felt like she’d been hit by a bus, Regina Goerge style. As she was making an iced latte for some lady named ‘Octavia.’ She’d been rude when ordering, so Catra purposely named the drink ‘Ectazia’ to piss her off. Catra cackled maniacally as she held up the drink to Scorpia.“This’ll show her! God, I can’t wait to see her face-Scorps, are you listening?” Scorpia looks up from her phone.“What? Um-yes, Wildcat. See her face, right?” Catra smirked and leaned on the counter, her tail flicking.“Who’re ya texting, Scorps? Is it that girl?” Scorpia blushed and tried to stuff the phone into her apron pocket."Maybe. Anyways, the girl I’m talking to, Perfuma, is having a party on Friday, and she said I should bring a friend, so do you wanna come, Wildcat?” Catra raised an eyebrow. She didn’t have any plans and didn’t exactly have anything to look forward to.“Who’s gonna be there? Anyone we know?”“Well, I’ve invited Kyle, Rogelio and Lonnie, and you can invite Double Trouble?” At the mention of her roommate, Catra’s ear perked up slightly. If DB was there, maybe things might not be so bad. “What do you mean you’re not coming?” Catra hissed into her phone. “You said you’d be here by now! Now I have to be at this miserable-”“KItten, please. You’re acting like it’s a bad thing, to be meeting new people.” DB’s voice distorted into mock disgust. Catra continued walking but tried to make her footsteps heard over the phone so they could hear her annoyance. “Catra, are you aggressively walking?”“No! I’m just frustrated with you. Really frustrated.” Catra walked to the entrance of the apartment, still furiously arguing with them. “Okay, hanging up now. But that doesn’t mean I’m not gonna hold this against you later, you are gonna get it sooo hard.”“Oh wow, I’m absolutely quaking in my boots. Bye, Kitten!”Catra looked around the dilapidated area. The place was a mess, with cracked bricks and moss growing on the sides. And Catra thought her place was bad. The apartments she could see had cracked windows, and she was pretty sure there were two pigeons on one of the balconies fighting over a slice of pizza. She pressed one of the buttons on the door buzzer, and it fell off. “Shit, fuck-” Catra bent down to pick up the button and furiously pressed it onto the buzzer again.“Hey, are you-” Catra turned around, her claws extending, her back pressed to the buzzer. To her surprise, she recognised the person in front of her. She was wearing jeans and a red flannel jacket-style over a shirt, but she was sure it was the same person. Her hair was done up in the exact same way, her blond ponytails forming a little poof. “Hey, you’re the girl from the bus!”“Oh yeah. You’re Brightmoon Café, right?” The lady grinned proudly at that. Catra’s claws were unextended, and she put out her hand for the lady to shake. “I’m Catra.” Brightmoon shook her hand, her grip strong.“Adora. I like your hair, by the way.” Catra’s hand immediately went to touch her mane. She’d managed to properly brush it and had taken the liberty to tie it up. Lonnie had given (read: forced her to wear) a jacket over her casual red tank top and black jeans. “Thanks. Do you live here, or-”“Oh, I live here.” Adora held up a bag of snacks. “But my friend’s having a party, so I got put on snack duty!” Catra wondered, again, why Adora was this excited. Catra hated doing other people’s dirty work, she would either mess it up on purpose or be completely passive-aggressive throughout the task. And here Adora was, grinning like an idiot.“Is your friend, um..” C’mon Catra, you can remember a damn name. “Prerona? Wait, that’s not it-”“Perfuma? Yeah! You’re going to her party? I’ll let you in.” Before Catra could say anything, Adora grabbed the handle and pulled. The door made a violent sound before opening. “The door’s broken, so we just manhandle it.” Adora held the door open, and Catra walked in.“Thanks.” The entire elevator ride, Adora was talking about how awesome her friends were. “Wait, how do you know Perfuma?”“Oh, my friend Scorpia and her have been talking.”“Oooh, yeah, I think Perfuma mentioned her. Never met her, even though I am looking forward to meeting her. What’s she like?”Catra thought for a bit. When they were kids, Catra used to think Scorpia was the most annoying person she’d ever met, but now, Catra saw that Scorpia was trying. And they’d fixed that issue Scorpia had with personal space, so that was nice. “Well, she’s really sweet. She wants the best for everyone she cares about, and she cares about pretty much everyone. And she’s loyal as hell. If your friend fucks up, I think you’ll have pretty much half of Etheria on her ass. What about you, what’s Perfuma like?”“Oh, she's a badass.”“Doesn’t she own a flower shop?”“Yeah, but like, in a badass way. She once sued a businessman for using her shop’s name, and she donated all the money she made to a children’s hospital. She’s super kind like that.” Adora went up the stairs, completely ignoring the elevator. Catra followed.“Wait, how much?”“Around $7,500.” Catra almost tripped.“And she still lives here? And she donated it all? I could-honestly never.”“Yeah, that’s what makes Perfuma special. She loves helping people. Even if she doesn’t get anything back.” They both got to the floor. The inside was widely improved than the exterior.“I think Scorpia and Perfuma are made for each other.” Catra joked, opening the door for Adora.The inside of Perfuma’s flat was filled with plants. There was a makeshift bar in the kitchen, and there was some music playing from a portable speaker. The apartment itself was decent enough but had been made significantly better through Perfuma’s personal touch. She had put up plants everywhere and had a vine somehow circling the entire place, like a rainforest café but with real plants. Catra looked around, trying to take in the place in its entirety. She spotted Scorpia sitting on the couch awkwardly and figured she better go help her. “I’ll see you around, Adora.” Adora smiled, her hand that wasn’t holding the plastic bag coming up to wave.“Okay! Um, I’ll see you later, I guess!” As Catra made her way to Scorpia, Scorpia sat up straight, and waved, her claw blurring with velocity.“Catra! Oh gee, isn’t this place is great, isn’t it? I mean, the first time I came over here I knocked a bunch of plants over, but I got better at controlling my tail when I’m excited. Perfuma says it’s called emotional control and stuff? I mean, you should really meet her, you’d love her!” Catra smiled. She was glad her friend had someone now. She was so full of love, and now Catra wasn’t the sole target of it.“So, where is she?” Scorpia’s eyes lit up like a Christmas tree before she waved to a lady across the room. Perfuma turned around. She was wearing a sundress, even though it was 8pm. ‘Seriously, these people need to learn about proper clothing choices.’ Catra thought, then realised that she sounded like Shadow Weaver. Perfuma had flowers in her hair, probably attached to clips, but she was too far to tell. As Perfuma walked closer, Catra could see the vine-patterned headband she had probably fashioned herself. Perfuma smiled, showing off her white teeth.“Hey! You’re Catra, right?”“Yep. You’re Perfuma, right? Scorpia’s told me so much about you.” That was too true for comfort. Scorpia had gotten them both in trouble with Weaver so many times today, talking for ages about how beautiful Perfuma was. And as Perfuma and Catra talked, Catra could see why. She was sweet, pretty and extremely eco-friendly. Catra sighed while Perfuma talked about the dangers of car engine exhausts. This was gonna be a long night. Adora was so out of it, that it took Glimmer three taps on her shoulder to finally get her attention.“Adora, please tell me why you’re buttering the Cheetos?”“Uh, what?” Adora looked down at her hands, realising that she was, in fact, buttering the orange snack. “Look, I’m just-thinking of-like, uh-stuff.” Stuff being that girl. Catra. She’d never seen a Magicat in person before, but she’d heard about them in her social studies class. She’d seen her on the bus on Wednesday and had made a complete fool of herself trying to get her attention.And she was here. And she was her friend’s girlfriend’s best friend. But of course, She probably thought Adora was crazy. And overly friendly.“Godsdamn it, you’re doing it again! Adora!”“Oh yeah, sorry, I just zoned out, okay?” Adora said, putting the butterknife away. Glimmer leaned on the counter, smirking.“Zoned out, huh? Does it have anything to do with that girl you were just talking to?”“Glimmer, no.” In the years Adora had known Glimmer, she had made it her mission to be involved in every aspect of her life, correctly assuming that Adora couldn’t handle it for herself. However, and most unfortunately for Adora, Glimmer was even worse at handling it for Adora. “Ooh, does someone have a cruuush?” Adora rolled her eyes, sitting on the counter.“I look at a girl for more than five seconds and the first thing that you think of is ‘oh they’re gonna be so good together.’ It’s exhausting.”“C’mon Adora! It’s been three years since you dated Huntara. If you’d even call it dating.”“It was so dating.” Glimmer rolls her eyes, popping a Cheeto into her mouth.“Suure. Anyways, are you gonna stay through the party, or are you gonna sleep early?” Adora yawned. It’d been a long day, and she hadn’t slept a wink. She was too busy thinking and researching the best way to prepare a perfect cappuccino.“Maybe. I am exhausted, and this place seems pretty lame. Where’s Bow?” Then, they heard his voice. Music playing. The karaoke machine blasting. Bow, on his knees in the living room, drunk off his ass, singing, ‘Picture Me’ By Chappell Roan.“Oh god,” Glimmer said, turning to him. As he was belting (quite well, in fact,) Adora noticed Catra again. She was smirking, which made Adora’s heart do backflips. Glimmer walked over to Bow, prepared for violence."Am I doing research, in a miniskirt, at the library in your hometown-”“No, you aren’t Bow, give me the mic.”“YOU CAN’T SILENCE ME, GLIMMER!”“Bow, you’re drunk-”“DO YOU PICTURE ME, LIKE I PICTURE YOU-” Adora wanted to go help them, but Catra had caught Adora’s eye. She walked over to her.“Are those your friends?” Adora chuckled nervously.“Unfortunately, yes. Bow’s not usually like that though, I think he’s drunk.”“Yeah, no kidding.” One of Perfuma’s girlfriend’s friends, ‘Kyle’ Adora thought. He tried to harmonise with Bow, but his voice was definitely lacking. “Oh god, Kyle’s always like that, though,” Catra muttered, rubbing her temple. “He’s my coworker. Fucking Kyle.” Adora couldn’t help but laugh as Bow and Kyle passionately sang to each other, Glimmer grumbling angrily in the background, having managed to convince Bow to leave after the one song.“So, what do you do for fun?” Adora said, internally cringing. What do you do for fun? Seriously? Catra looked equally unimpressed.“Oh, well I play chess at a local club, but I also do kickboxing.” Okay, at least she gave Adora something to work with.“Oh, that’s cool. I do um-I do softball. I really like fencing.” Catra looked at Adora fully. Adora stared into her yellow and blue eyes. It was almost as if Catra was trying to read Adora’s thoughts.“Fencing? Isn’t that for rich people?”“I mean-I guess, but I’m pretty good at it, and I can still fence and not be rich. Anyways, uh-how did you get to doing your whole-coffee barista thing?” Catra’s eyes darkened, and she looked down at her drink. “I started working straight out of high school.” Her voice was definite, signalling the end of that conversation. Adora fiddled with the end of her flannel. “Well, you should-you should visit Brightmoon Café. It’s good coffee, and it’s all free trade.” Catra looked around, and her eyes rested on Perfuma, who was laughing and talking to a big scorpion woman, who was probably Scorpia. Adora glanced at Bow, who was, to Glimmer's anguish, starting up Red Wine Supernova, chanting ‘CHAPPELL NEVER DIES’ along with at least thirty drunk gays.“Pretty funny, huh? Queers are pretty fun to hang around.” It then hit Adora that maybe this queer-looking Magicat wasn’t truly queer. “I mean, I don’t exclusively make friends with queer people, I have straight people too, I think?” This actually made Catra laugh. Her laugh was high-pitched and genuine, and it made Adora feel like she was the luckiest person on earth by just being able to make Catra happy.“You think?” Catra said, pulling Adora out of her admiration.“Well, I just-you know, it’s statistics, right? I mean, our generation is one of the gayest, and there’s a bigger umbrella now, and-”“Hey, hey hey-be chill, okay? I was just joking. Pretty much all my friends, and me, are queer.”“Oh. Yeah, I knew that.” Adora did not, in fact, know that. “Do you um-want another drink?” Catra looked at her empty cup.“Uh-sure.” Adora was glad for the excuse so she could collect her thoughts. She walked to the makeshift bar and poured Catra a drink.Surprisingly, she and Catra bonded well. It was 11:00pm before Adora actually felt tired. Catra had opened up more, letting herself laugh, and Adora had managed to make it thirty minutes before unleashing her bad puns. Adora figured she should leave soon, but she wanted to get Catra’s number first. “So, uh, Catra, um-” Catra looked up, smiling.“Yeah, Brightmoon?” Adora winced at the nickname.“Sticking to that, huh? Um, well-I guess I’ll just call you Horde, maybe?” Catra’s eyes darkened like they had when Adora had asked her what had gotten her into the coffee business. Adora made a mental note not to say anything else about Catra’s work. “Nah, it doesn’t have the same ring to it,” Adora said quickly, attempting to make up for her misstep, “ooh, maybe I’ll call you like, chess? ‘Cuz you play chess?” Catra’s eyes glistened with amusement now.“Uh, no, Adora. You will not go around calling me chess.”“Oh, chess~” Adora called in a sing-song voice.“Adora, no!” Catra said, laughing that sweet laugh. Adora couldn’t help but admire her. Who wouldn’t?“So, how far do you live from here? I live across the hall.” Catra raised an eyebrow.“Why, you trying to stalk me?” Adora’s face heated up.“No! I was just making conversation, I’m sorry-” Glimmer, thankfully, saved Adora from embarrassing herself further. Glimmer came to the counter, Bow slung around her shoulders. “Oh, I should probably help her. I’ll just write down my number here.” Adora pulled a pen from her pocket, along with a pad, and jotted down her number. “254-632-6638.” Adora muttered, jotting it down.“Do you always have a legal pad and a pen in your pocket when you’re at a party?” Catra said with a smirk. Glimmer sighed, overhearing her.“Don’t get her started. She takes everything everywhere. She once took a screwdriver to the beach.” Bow let out a hum of agreement, before throwing up into the trash can Glimmer held up for him.“But what if there was a tsunami, we got stranded on a desert island, and we had to build a boat! You would’ve been glad for my screwdriver then!” Adora argued, before noticing Catra’s smile. Their eyes met, and Adora offered an awkward smile. “I like to be prepared, okay? Overthinking is better than not thinking at all.”“Wrong on so many levels, but okay,” Catra said, before turning to Glimmer, “I’m Catra, by the way.”“Glimmer. I’d shake your hand, but…” Bow threw up again.“Yeah, that’s probably for the best. You guys better head out. Bye, Brightmoon.” Adora waved ecstatically, before taking the other side of Bow and carrying him out the door.They managed to get him into Bow and Glimmer’s bed before-"so, what was that about?”“What was what about, Glimmer?” The purple-haired girl rolled her eyes.“You know exactly what I mean. You and Catra, idiot.” Adora scratched the back of her neck.“There’s nothing going on there. I just-made a new friend.”“Uh-huh.”“I’m gonna go to bed now. Bye, Glim.”“I KNOW YOU’RE LYING ADORA!” Glimmer shouted, making Bow stir. “Shit! Sorry, B.”Before Adora went to bed, she checked her phone. She had a notification. When she opened it, she saw a text from her.Catra: “Hey dummy, it’s me, Catra. See your blonde self on the bus Monday.”Adora put the phone down, trying to hide her smile. It wasn’t five seconds before she opened her phone again.Adora: “Hey! And I’ll see you first!”She wasn’t getting attached. Right?Right?
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Adora felt like the day was going well, which meant something was bound to go wrong. Unfortunately, she hadn’t bumped into Catra yet, and she hadn’t had the guts to text her, excluding last night. Adora stood at the entrance to Brightmoon Café, taking in cups. The place was quite literally a hole in the wall, built into a building that Adora was sure used to be a warehouse. Mara, the owner, had said someone had died there once, but Adora was pretty sure she was joking. Or not. The cafe's outside was covered, and another warehouse was directly above it. Perfume had helped have vines cover the walls, and, in the afternoon, the light hit the glass entrance perfectly, and lit up the area. There was an electric lamp hanging from the ceiling, so after the sun had set, the place was properly lit. Adora could faintly hear Nora Jones playing through the speakers inside, and she walked in. Everything was set perfectly. The little book nook Mara’s wife, Light Hope, had insisted on had all its books perfectly tucked away. Patrons sat, some doing homework, some writing, some just drinking coffee and talking. One kid looked like they were about to cry as they furiously wrote, their friend next to them, whispering frantic ideas of what to write.“What about the importance of whale oil in World War One?”“Stop it with the fucking whales!”Adora heard as she passed them. Bow was at the counter, as Glimmer was lecturing him on the importance of drinking responsibility, and sneaking in comments about his vocal range. Bow was wearing the same uniform as Adora, a fantasy-styled castle, with a moon in the background, and two moons on the top left and the right. Well, they would be, if Bow hadn’t cut the bottom off to make it a crop top. Glimmer, however, was wearing mid-length tights, and a purple shirt that said “annoying cunts for feminism”, as if everything about her purple, permanently glittered hair didn’t scream “conservatives, back off.” But of course, Glimmer never cared for dress codes. Her parents owned the company that owned the small chain, and Glimmer’s job was to ‘supervise’ the way Mara ran things. Glimmer, Bow and Adora usually just goofed off.“Adora, tell him how embarrassing his little karaoke stunt was.” Adora looked up, for her eyes to meet a glaring Glimmer and an embarrassed Bow. Adora didn’t want to hurt Bow’s feelings, but she knew she wouldn’t get away with lying.“Yeah, dude. I don’t know what got into you, you cannot hit Chapelle’s notes.” Adora said, putting away the cups. “I mean, you could barely hear anything over you screaming about a homoerotic relationship.” Adora smiled and took someone’s order. Bow pouted, and Glimmer immediately backpedalled.“Look, Bow, it’s not the singing, it’s just funny, okay? But seriously, never do that again.”“Okay.”“So, Adora, who was that girl you were talking to?” Bow said, not casually at all. It was quite obvious that he was only asking. Glimmer asked him too, because, of course, Glimmer cared more about Adora’s gossip than she did her actual job, so she got her boyfriend to interrogate Adora about a girl she had talked to for less than an hour.“It’s not like it was anything. She’s Perfuma’s girlfriend’s friend. I just talked to her. I mean, she liked hearing about my history facts, and I learnt that she played chess. Texted her goodnight. Nothing much.” Adora cleaned one of the mugs, looking into the sink. She then turned around and started making the next order. Bow grinned, his eyes lighting up, but Glimmer slid in in front of him.“Oh? She actually gave you her number? Even after your info-dumps? She could be the one!” Adora rolled her eyes, checking her watch. Two hours before she got to leave for class and could escape the pestering.“They aren’t info-dumps, okay? I’m a history major. Wait, did I tell her I’m a history major?” Glimmer laughed along with Bow. Adora rolled her eyes and set the cup on the counter for the customer.“Adora, you-you are the worst at conversations, okay? I bet she knows about the time you saved a hawk from getting run over, but not the fact that you’re a lesbian.” Glimmer said, smirking. Adora froze, almost dropping her glass. “Adora. You told her you’re gay, right?” Adora winced, but couldn’t find a decent enough excuse. “Adora!”“I mean, I told her that queers were fun to hang around, that’s-that’s a hint, right? I mean, maybe I can hint-”“NO!” Both Glimmer and Bow exclaimed, harmonising in their disapproval of the idea. “Adora, I don’t mean to be rude, and you know we love you, but you’re not the best at being…subtle.” Bow started, trying to be as gentle as possible. “I guess, you’re just as subtle as…A firetruck. With lasers shooting out of it. And it’s on fire.”“I am not! I can be so subtle!”“Tell me one time you’ve been subtle, Adora.” Glimmer said, leaning on the counter. Only Adora and Bow were actually working, cleaning glasses. Thankfully, a customer ordered before Adora had to think of an answer.When those two hours finally passed, Adora was exhausted. It was raining, so she had to borrow Glimmer’s umbrella. Unfortunately, the umbrella was pink and glittery. The umbrella once had a feather boa wrapped around it, but the boa had gotten soaked through completely to the point that the boa had grown mould. According to Glimmer, she hadn’t known that boas could grow mould, and it wasn’t her fault that the dumb feathers weren’t waterproof.Adora managed to get to class in time, but the bottom of her trousers were soaked through. There was mud and gunk stuck to her shoe, and she’d managed to step in a dead rat, so probably some blood. She sat down and opened her class materials. Today’s lesson was on medieval warfare. Adora grinned, writing everything the teacher said, not wanting to miss anything. The person next to her was giving her a side-eye, judging her hard. Adora didn’t care. Adora had always been a stressful person to be near during class.Her friends had insisted that she needed to take a gap year after high school after her blood pressure was abnormally high. She had ended up taking three years off, focusing on work, and had started fencing. She was glad her friends had helped her take a step back. Yes, it was harder to get back into college after the time off, but she was hardworking and determined to work her hardest and achieve her dreams.A few hours later, Adora was scrolling through TikTok on her bed after she’d finished her work. She hadn’t had any food, but she wasn’t hungry yet. The front door slammed, something the door just did, no matter how many times Adora and Bow tried to fix the hinges, and cried because they couldn’t fix the hinges. Adora walked out, slightly cold in her tank top and boxer shorts. Glimmer and Bow walked in, both damp from the rain, carrying groceries. Adora took the bags and started packing them away. “Hey guys, did y’all have a nice day?”“Yeah. Glimmer saw me practice my archery skills.” Bow smiled, wrapping his arm around her, and pulling her into him.“Bow, you’re soggy!”“So’re you!”Adora chuckled, earning her a glare from Glimmer. “What?”“Don’t laugh at my suffering, Adora! You know not the unimaginable pain I endure…” Glimmer said dramatically, raising her fist to the sky.“Oh, poor you,” Adora mocked playfully, “a loving boyfriend and a network of friends? I could never imagine such a fate.” Glimmer punched her arm lightly. “Anyways, I’m gonna go to Perfuma’s, I need to give her some Tupperware I borrowed.”“In that?” Bow said judgementally, eyeing Adora’s horse boxer shorts.“What? It’s just across the hall, no big deal. Perfuma’s seen me in less.” Bow and Glimmer exchanged a look, then looked back at Adora, as if looking at a misbehaving child who is refusing to eat their vegetables.“Fine, I’ll put on some jeans.”“And?”“And what? A tank top is fine, it’s across the hall!” Bow and Glimmer just gave Adora the same parental look, so she gave in.“Fine. I’ll put on a shirt.” Adora got properly dressed, some baggy black jeans and a red flannel. She thought it was a bit much, but when both Glimmer and Bow were arguing against her, she knew she couldn’t win. She rapped her knuckles twice against the door, then once more for luck, then once more because she hated odd numbers. She heard whispers inside, and the door opened. “Hey, Perfuma, I got the Tup-” but it wasn’t Perfuma. It was Catra.They stayed in silence for a few seconds, before Catra looked down at the box. “What’s that?”“Tupperware.” Catra looked up at that, her eyes narrowing. Adora couldn’t help looking into them, even though Catra looked like she was ready to murder.“I know what Tupperware is, dummy,” Catra growled through gritted teeth, obviously trying to get her temper under control. Adora felt bad now. “What’s it for?”“Oh! Yeah, sorry, I didn’t understand the question, I don’t think you’re dumb or anything-” Catra rubbed her temples, signalling Adora to get to the point. “Well, I took some leftovers from Perfuma a few weeks ago, and I never got round to giving the box back, so, um-yeah.”“That is the most old woman thing to do, ever.”“Well, I don’t think Perfuma’s a really good cook, you’d want her leftovers too. Look, can I just come in?” Catra made way for her, and Adora walked in. She didn’t know what Catra thought of her, but she really wanted to.Adora was a dumbass. Catra knew she was smart, she had been telling her all about medieval history the night before, but Adora lacked common sense, majorly, Maybe her ponytail was cutting off circulation to her brain. Catra would’ve loved to see her in an escape room. Maybe she could convince Perfuma to take her to one. As Adora passed Scorpia awkwardly and made her way to the kitchen, where Perfuma was. Scorpia padded over to Catra.“That’s Adora, right?” Scorpia whispered. The poor woman had been too nervous to meet Perfuma by herself, even though she had done it a hundred times over. Last night, Scorpia had gotten hammered and started reciting poetry to Perfuma, something Catra found absolutely hilarious, but she couldn’t let Scorpia know that.“Yeah, why?”“Perfuma says she’s a history major.”“She’s still in school?”“Yeah, something about a gap year.” Catra’s stomach turned in jealousy. Of course. Adora was some rich princess. She didn’t have common sense because she never needed to think for herself. Catra betted that Adora didn’t even need to work, she was just doing it for the fun of it. Adora walked out of the kitchen and smiled at Catra. Her eyes were blue, and her hair was blond, caught in the sunlight pouring through a gap in the curtains. Catra smiled back.Scorpia walked to Adora and shook her hand. “Heyo! I haven’t had the honour of meeting you yet, Adora!” Adora grinned, and shook her hand as aggressively as Scorpia, meeting her energy immediately.“Me too! You’re Scorpia, right? Perfuma’s said so much about you already! I love your grip, by the way, and those claws would be epic in a fight, do you do sports?”“Oh, no, I usually just do cardio, I’m a runner! Catra’s the fighter here.” Scorpia wrapped an arm around Catra, pulling her into the conversation, before remembering, “Oh, sorry Wildcat, I know how you are with touching, I’m sorry-”“Scorps, it’s fine. Thanks for the apology.”“Yeah, um-Catra did say she did kickboxing and chess and stuff,” Adora said, smiling at them. Perfuma walked out, holding horse-shaped cookies, and Adora looked at them, almost drooling. “Horses? Perfuma, you’re absolutely the best, I need to tell you that more.” Adora grabbed one and went to stuff it in her mouth. Perfuma gave her a stare as if they’d had this talk before. Adora broke it in two, at the neck, and ate it one at a time. Catra extended a hand and took one. She nibbled on it, and her pupils dilated.“This is the best thing I’ve ever tasted,” Catra said, grabbing another one. “What did you put in this? I mean, it’s not too sweet, not too bland…” Perfuma just laughed, and Scorpia gave her a lovestruck stare.“Maybe hang around, and I’ll teach you how to make some sometime. And you Adora, I’m pretty sure it’s the only reason you still live in this building.” Adora looked up upon her name being said, cookie crumbs all over her mouth, like a toddler. Catra snickered.“Huh? What?” Perfuma chuckled. Catra didn’t know what to think of Adora, but she couldn’t deny that the blonde was extremely entertaining.“I was just saying that I should teach you and Catra how to bake these.” She held up the cookie tray, which was missing half of the horse cookies, courtesy of Adora and Scorpia, the latter of which was currently putting dead flies in the Venus flytrap, and exclaimed quietly as the plant snapped. “Scorpia, darling, would you like one? And don’t overfeed them.” Scorpia looked up, and blushed hard at Perfuma’s nickname.“I’m fine, um-uh, b-babe.” Both Scorpia and Perfuma blushed at that. Catra turned to Adora, figuring that was their cue to leave. Unfortunately, Adora didn’t realise this and was still eating horse-cookies. Catra grabbed her arm, hoping her claws weren’t digging too hard into Adora.“C’mon, Brightmoon, why don’t you show me your apartment,” Catra muttered, grabbing her arm. Scorpia better appreciate her ultimate wingmaning.“Oh! Okay, I’ll just-” Adora grabbed the cookies, and they both made their way down the hall. “I’ll open the door for you, then.” Adora opened the door and ushered Catra in. “Hey, Bow?Glimmer? We have someone here!” At that, two people walked out into the living room. One of them, presumably Bow, was wearing a crop top, and the one which was probably Glimmer, was wearing a glittery shirt with the words “annoying cunts for feminism” on it.“So, do you people dress yourselves or do you just google ‘styles to secure my virginity’’?” Catra smirked, sparking nervous laughter from Adora, a glare from Glimmer, and a confused look from Bow.“At least I don’t wear contacts to pretend to have heterochromia.” Glimmer shot back, crossing her arms. Catra’s eyes narrowed. As a kid, she was called a freak for having different coloured eyes, and for being a magicat. Catra scratched their face so hard she left a scar on their cheek.“I don’t wear contacts, Sparkles.” Glimmer’s eyes narrowed.“Prove it.”“I don’t need to prove anything to you.” They stood in silence for a while. Bow spoke up.“Hey, um-Adora, why don’t you prepare some food or something? Take Catra.” Adora blinked as if coming out from zoning out.“But we just had cookies-”“Adora.” Bow’s tone was harsh, a starch contrast from the light, joyful tone he had used to greet Catra. Adora beckoned Catra into the kitchen, and Catra followed.“I’m sorry about Glimmer, she can be…a lot,” Adora said sheepishly, grabbing two pieces of toast.“That’s an understatement,” Catra muttered. “Where do you keep the butter?” Adora pointed to the fridge, and Catra opened it. The entire thing was overly organised, with everything labelled. Catra checked the B section, and grabbed the container labeled ‘butter.’ Catra looked around the kitchen. It was its own room, and it looked like a kindergarten teacher had gone on a mega rampage. Everything had horse stickers, and labels, and was neatly organised. “So, I’m guessing you guys are neat freaks?” Catra turned to Adora, who was laughing nervously.“Well, I just like being organised, you know? Just in case, and every time I can’t sleep, I organize something in the house, so that I don’t overthink, you know. It calms me down, and it makes every problem seem manageable. Though, sometimes Glimmer has to lock the cupboards so that she and Bow can actually find things. I overthink a lot.”Catra laughed. Maybe Adora wasn’t too bad. Adora raised an eyebrow, grinned, and said, in mock annoyance, “You know, usually people say shit like ‘Oh, poor you’, or ‘What are you thinking about?’”“I was wrong about you.” Catra grinned and buttered the toast. Adora’s eyebrow raised again and leaned on the counter.“What’s that supposed to mean?”“Never mind.” Adora’s confused smile widened, but she didn’t pursue the subject. Catra scarfed down her toast.“Glimmer’s always been like that, though. She doesn’t take criticism well, and insults are a whole ‘nother level. You’re lucky Bow mediated the situation.”“What would she have done, throw glitter at me?” Catra muttered, biting on her bread again. She noticed Adora staring at her canine teeth, and felt like a little kid again, getting made fun of for her tail and ears. She could only imagine the terrible things Adora was thinking about Catra. Maybe her temper. Maybe her insulting Glimmer. Maybe Adora was plotting ways to break up Scorpia and Perfuma.Catra was hot. Adora couldn’t deny that. Her heterophobia was beautiful, and her canine teeth were sharp enough to draw blood. She made Adora triple-guess everything she said, which was normal enough, but this time, Adora wanted to make the best impression possible. She wanted to invite Catra to the Brightmoon café, but as they both stood there in silence, Catra nibbling her bread, and Adora putting some more in the toaster, Adora had zero clue as to how she would even begin to ask her to come to the cafe. “So, you know how I said you should come to the Brightmoon café sometime?” Catra looked up.“Uh, yeah?” Adora took a deep breath, scratching her neck.“Well, I was thinking, since you work at Horde Coffee, which tastes like shit, by the way, you could come and see what coffee’s supposed to taste like.” Catra’s ear flicked, and she crossed her arms, smiling, as if amused by Adora’s challenge.“Oh? Just because your coffee is overpriced doesn’t mean that it’s good. Our coffee is well, not cheap, but at least ours is affordable.” Adora scoffed.“Hah! How dare you even suggest that our free trade coffee experience-”“You did not just say ‘coffee experience’, Adora. It is a coffee shop.” Adora and Catra laughed, and Adora felt like she was doing something right, even though she was terrible at making any sort of impression in conversations. Adora buttered the toast and set the toast on the plate. She took a piece for herself and left the other piece for Catra, who stared at it, finishing off the last piece of the toast. “So,” Catra said, taking the other piece, and taking a bite of it, “you’re a history major, so Scorps says. What’s that like?”“Well, I guess I’d been wanting it for ages, and it just feels like I’ve finally gotten somewhere,” Adora said, noting the use of Catra’s nickname for Scorpia. Adora never gave people nicknames, she never felt creative enough to make one for someone. Maybe she should start giving people nicknames. She was wondering what nickname she should give to some of her friends when she realised that Catra and she had been standing in silence. It seemed that Catra had said something, and Adora, being the idiot she was, had been too busy thinking if Bow would like being called Croptop. Adora started laughing nervously. Catra raised an eyebrow. “Can you, um-repeat that, please?”Catra sighed, then repeated herself. “How far into your education are you?”“Oh, yeah, I’m getting my bachelor's, and I’ve only got two years to go, so that’s-yeah, that’s good. Bow’s becoming a doctor, so he’s still in med school.”“And Sparkles?” Adora took a couple seconds to respond because she could sense the distaste in Catra’s words, like a venom she was spitting out of her mouth. Basically, Catra had already made her mind up about Glimmer.“Well, Glimmer-her parents own the chain, so-”“Sparkles is a nepo baby. Makes sense.” Adora winced. Yes, she thought Catra was hot, but Glimmer had been Adora’s best friend since they were kids.“Well, no, she just-she does work, okay? She worked for-” Adora stopped, seeing the hardened gaze in Catra’s eyes. She felt the urge to apologise, but she knew that as a good friend, she should defend Glimmer. Having amazing timing, both Glimmer and Bow walked through the door, Glimmer wearing a sweater over her shirt. That made Adora feel bad, but Catra didn’t seem to feel any remorse.“Bye, Sparkles. Arrow. Adora.” And then, Catra left, leaving Adora feeling slightly giddy that she was the only one whose name Catra remembered.“Jesus Christ, what’s her problem?” Glimmer muttered after the door slammed.“She’s not too bad, you just-you shouldn’t have insulted her like that,” Adora argued, drawing a sceptical look from Glimmer.“She insulted me first, Adora.”“Hey, Perfuma did say that Catra wasn’t fast to opening up to people. I mean, maybe we need to be a bit more sensitive with her?” Bow chimed in, and Glimmer turned to him.“Traitor.” Bow looked up, unable to take sarcasm or any semblance of a joke.“No! Glim, I didn’t mean it like that, I was just-I’m sorry.” Glimmer sighed, hugging him.“Dolt. Love you though.” Bow shot Adora a confused look, and Adora mouthed ‘She’s joking’, and realisation seemed to hit Bow.Catra knew she shouldn’t have left like that. She didn’t know why she was acting this way. She didn’t usually act this way, there was just-something about Glimmer that pissed her off. She’d have to learn to deal with it if she wanted Scorpia to be happy. She knocked on Perfuma’s door. No answer. She sighed, then walked in. She wished she hadn’t. Perfuma was on top of Scorpia, both kissing passionately. Catra closed her eyes, even though she was pretty sure that both of them were properly clothed. “Sorry! I’m just going to leave, Scorps.” And then, before either of them could answer, she slammed the door and walked into the elevator. She was having such an off day.She drew herself a bath, then opened her phone. As her body sank into the hot water, she opened the screen to Adora’s number. She figured she should text her.Catra: Hey, I’m so sorry about how I left today. I didn’t sleep well today, and I had a shit day at work. I have anger issues, and I want to get over them, but I don’t go to therapy due to financial shit. I know it’s not an excuse, but I hope this explains my behaviour. Tell Sparkles I’m sorry.Catra closed her eyes. At least she could be in the bath, on her own, enjoying the silence. She heard Double Trouble’s voice, calling, “Kitten? I’m home! The date was boring, it’s going nowhere.” Catra sighed.“I’m in the bathroom! We’ll talk later, I just-need some time, okay?” Catra closed her eyes at a response she didn’t quite catch and sank back into the water.Her phone buzzed again, and she grabbed it. It was Adora, which was kinda strange, because it had been two minutes since she sent the apology text.Adora: No, it’s totally fine. Glim understands, but you better give your all when you come back to the café tomo, lol.Catra: Yeah, I think after the shit I pulled today I should probably show up tomorrow.Adora: Hey, we all have bad days. What’re you doing now?Catra: Currently in a bath.Catra waited for a response, but a few minutes later, she still had none. She wondered why. She tried to put the phone away, but she couldn’t get it off her mind. Scorpia really liked Perfuma, and if Catra fucked up with one of Perfuma’s friends-no, no, that wasn’t gonna happen, right? Her phone buzzed again, and she grabbed it as fast as she could.Adora: Sorry! I had something I had to take care of. A bath, cool! I love using bath bombs, lol. Do you know the TMNT ones that they started selling? Those were so damn cool…I wish I still had some, I’d send you a pic.Catra sighed. “Thank god.”Catra: I’ve never used bath bombs, I usually just get soap to make some bubbles and be done with it.Adora: WHAT??? That is not okay! Tomorrow, you’re gonna come to the café, and I’m going to take you to the lush store near there, and I’m gonna get you a bath bomb.Catra: You really don’t need to, it can’t be that great.Adora: BLASPHEMY.Catra: Adora, chill.Adora: BLASPHEMY, I SAY. THE WITCH SPEAKS NOTHING BUT BLASPHEMY.Catra: I’m gonna enjoy my bath now. Bye.Adora: You do that, girulll!Catra put her phone away and went back into the water, her eyes closed.The next day, after work, she decided to change and freshen up in the apartment before leaving.Double Trouble was on the couch, their laptop out, and working. “Hey Kitten, what’re you doing?”“I’m going to a café,” Catra said. She decided to go with a red crop top, a black flannel over it, and some black jeans.“A café? You work at a café, why do you need to go visit one?” DT judged, looking up from their laptop.“It’s for Scorp’s new relationship. I’m hanging out with her girlfriend's friends, you know? Being a good person.” Double Trouble’s eyebrow raised.“Really, now?” They said, causing Catra to roll her eyes.“I also, maybe, kinda sorta was rude to them yesterday, and I want to make it up,” DT smirked, and Catra glared back, not backing down. “Or, is there, possibly, another reason you’ve been socialising with actual people?”“It’s for Scorpia. I-I know I’ve been a dick to her in the past, it’s just-it’s so nice to see her with someone who loves her for her, okay? She’s found someone who can love her as much as she deserves.” DT leaned back, signalling him leaving the subject, but hinting at slight disbelief.“Okay. Have fun.” Catra walked and placed her hand on the doorknob. “And Kitten?” Catra turned around.“Yeah?” DT gave her a smile, showing off their sharp teeth.“Go have fun.” Catra smiled, then left.Catra’s first impression of Brightmoon was: ‘way, way too much.’ Adora was behind the counter, with Sparkles and Arrow. Catra walked in, and Adora’s eyes brightened, along with Arrow’s, and Sparkles crossed her arms. Catra walked up to the counter.“Hey. Glimmer, I got you something you might like, so…” Catra set a pin-down. On the pin, it said ‘sexism is a disease, and feminism is the cure’ in sparkly letters. Glimmer grabbed it, and inspected it. She smiled.“Thanks, Catra. I knew Adora was wrong about you.” Adora shot up.“Hey! Catra, I promise, I didn’t say anything about you, I don’t think anything bad about you.” Adora hurried, her hands holding the counter.“Yeah, I don’t believe you,” Catra said, smiling. She felt amused, she realized, every time she was around Adora. She felt like, in a few months, they could be good friends, and they could entertain her. “Anyways, Adora, you talked a big game about making good coffee. Got anything to back it up?” Adora grinned and started preparing something. As she did, both Glimmer and Bow started talking to Catra about themselves.Apparently, they’d been dating since Bow had started working here with Adora, but they had all been friends since high school. Bow was on his college’s archery team, while Glimmer did wrestling for fun. Glimmer had also been on the debate team, but had been cut after threatening to fight someone on the opposing team in the school parking lot.“Aaand, done!” Adora called, setting an iced drink on the counter.“How do I know this isn’t poison?” Catra joked. Adora stared at her deadpan. Catra glanced at Glimmer. “Are both of them unable to handle sarcasm or is it just Adora?”Glimmer sighed. “Bow uses tonal changes as a way to tell if someone’s being sarcastic-” Bow stood up straight and grinned.“That’s darn right! I’ve perfected it to an art!” He boasted, his chest puffed out like a penguin’s.“And Adora thinks she can handle sarcasm-”“I so can.” Adora cut in, pushing the coffee towards Catra again. “C’mon Cat, just try some. I talked a big game, remember? Let me prove myself.”Catra rolled her eyes but grabbed the cup anyways. “Don’t call me that.” She sipped the coffee, and her eyes widened. She knew she had to play it off, but, unlike the coffee she made, it wasn’t just a recipe that Catra had learnt to make in her sleep, without even focusing on the ingredients. Adora had put thought into each and every decision. Nerd.“So? Ready to eat your words?” Adora said, a dumb little smirk on her dumb face.“Yeah, whatever. Your coffee’s good.” Adora laughed loudly and pointed at her.“Hah! I told you you’d like it! Glimmer, didn’t I tell her she’d like it? I told her she’d like it, right Bow?” Adora pulled on Bow’s arm, pulling him back and forth. Glimmer looked at Catra.“They’re always like this, don’t worry.” Glimmer said, with both love and exasperation in her voice. Catra turned to face Glimmer, resting backwards on the counter as Bow and Adora actually worked.“Oh really? Even since high school?”“Oh, yeah. You should’ve seen their awkwardness in high school. I mean, Adora couldn’t shut up about horses, and Bow almost blew up the engineering lab once building his bows.” Glimmer replied, sipping her own drink.“Oh hey, my friend Entrapta blew up a lab once.” Bow looked up, wide-eyed. Catra turned around slightly, so she could face both Bow, Adora and Glimmer.“No. No way. You’re-you know Entrapta Es'tra Vesselak personally?” He said, dropping the cup he was holding. It would’ve been bad, if Adora hadn’t caught it, and set it down, calling the name on the cup. Bow didn’t seem to care, as he rushed to the counter, as close as he could get, leaning in.“Yeah. Why?”“She’s the co-founder of Dryl Tech! I mean, she’s the coolest person ever! She’s a self-made woman who made her way to the top through pure talent! Did you know her before or after she became a legend?”Catra took her time answering, sipping her coffee. She knew she shouldn’t lie, these were, of course, going to be her new friends if Scorpia’s relationship was as far along as she deduced it was. Plus, they were bound to figure it out sooner or later, and Bow was probably going to ask millions of questions about it. On the other hand, it would be super annoying. “We met at Horde Coffee when we both worked th-” Bow squealed, high enough that Catra wasn’t completely sure that she wasn’t the only one who heard it. But, both Glimmer and Adora covered their ears, so she was pretty sure that her magicat hearing wasn’t becoming a factor.“That’s so cool!” Bow squealed, bouncing on his heels. “What was she like? Is she still humble? Oh, who am I kidding, of course she is, she’s so cool, does she tell you about her projects? When do you see her? Do you have her number? Can I have her number? No, that’s creepy, isn’t it-”Adora shot Catra a pitying look, before checking her watch. “Hey, that’s the end of my shift. C’mon, Catra, let’s go.” Adora pulled her apron off and grabbed her bag from under the counter.“Bye Glimmer, bye Bow!”“NO! I want to talk about Entrapta!” Adora pulled Catra out of the Caf锓Sorry about that, I know that he’d talk for hours about Entrapta. He’s had a huge obsession with her work ever since she introduced a line of arrows a while back.” Catra laughed at Adora’s rushed apology.“It’s okay. I mean, he’s gonna meet her sooner or later. So, you said you’re gonna take me to see some bath bombs, right?” Catra said, smiling widely.“Yep! There’s a lush store right around the corner.” Adora replied, and started walking, leaving Catra to catch up with her. They both walked, side by side, as Adora talked about all the benefits of getting a bath bomb. “You will not regret this. It’s the coolest thing ever. I mean, I can’t wait to see you react to how the bath bombs work.”“What, are you gonna be with me in the bath?” Catra shot back, grinning. Adora didn’t respond, until they got to the lush store when she finally said:“Minecraft bath bombs!? Epic!” And then made a beeline towards said Minecraft bath bombs. Catra stood there, with a confused smile.“Adora, you’ve abandoned me! You’re ruining bath bombs for me!” Catra called, walking after her. She looked around, the smile dropping from her face. “Adora?” She was in the Minecraft section, and she couldn’t see Adora anywhere. She turned around twice. “Adora?” And before she knew it, the 23-year-old woman was in front of her, holding a Minecraft pickaxe in one hand, and a creeper head in the other. Adora was kneeling down, in a fighter’s stance, holding up the pickaxe.“Beware, mob! I’m fully armed!”“Adora, what the fuck-” Adora pretended to swipe at Catra, as one would do in the game to a block. Catra stood there, deadpanned. As Adora looked at her with downright puppy eyes, Catra rolled her eyes. “Fine. Ah!” Catra then grabbed another pickaxe, and they fake-fought each other in the aisle. Adora showed off her fencing skills, keeping Catra on her feet, but she was going easy on her.“C’mon, Cat, your form needs serious work.”“I don’t fence, Brightmoon!” Catra said, grinning, swiping at Adora again. Adora dodged, then used the opportunity to poke Catra in the stomach as she wasn’t unguarded. They both continued until the employee watching the store came towards them. She looked like the teachers who used to put her in detention for fighting the kids in class who called her names.“I’m sorry, but you guys can’t fight in here, you need to buy something or leave.” Adora smiled and immediately replied:“Yes, of course. We’re just goofing off, don’t worry.” Adora took the pickaxe out of Catra’s hands, still holding the creeper's head. “You want anything else, Cat?” Catra looked around the section.“I quite like the Enderdragon egg. Can I-”“Of course!” Adora said, grinning, and grabbed it. “I’ll pay.” Catra opened her mouth to protest, but Adora shook her head, placing a hand on her shoulder. “No. I told you I’d get you a bath bomb, and I’m getting you a bath bomb. Or three.”“Hey, you really don’t need to! You can just pay for one if you’re going to be that stubborn.” Catra hurried, standing in front of her.Adora just grinned, like a damn idiot. “Hey, if you want to make it up to me, there is something you can do if you’d like. Your form is shit, so if you’d like to come and fence with us sometime, I’d welcome you to our team anytime.” Catra just glared.“No. I came to your area today. Next week, you’re coming to the chess club. I’ll send you the location. Adora smiled again.“Okay, okay! Jesus, you like being in control, huh?” Catra rolled her eyes. “I don’t know why Perfuma puts up with you people.” As Adora bought the items, Catra took them from her, all except the second pickaxe.“See? Now we’re matching.” Adora mimed mining. “We could be Minecraft buddies!” Catra laughed.“You’re such a dummy. I’m gonna one-up you, okay? I’ll get you something better.” Adora raised an eyebrow at that, as they walked out of the lush store.“Oh really? That’s gonna be a challenge. Nothing is better than a good old bath bomb.”“Well I’m going to find something that is. I have a way with things like that. I’m very nice to people who aren’t totally obnoxious.” Adora gasped.“Wow! Catra, you’re going to make me think you actually like me. ‘Not totally obnoxious?’ What a compliment!” Catra rolled her eyes.“You better be grateful, dummy,” Catra said, smiling. “But seriously, you guys are unnaturally nice. It’s sickening. And I’m best friends with friendliness central, aka Scorpia.”“Sickening? Seriously?” Adora said, playing with the pickaxe, like a little kid.“Yes! You’ve known me for four days, and you made me coffee, and bought me bath bombs? That’s the nicest anyone’s ever been to me, other than Scorpia.”“Well, me and my friends have a sort of principle. Any person we don’t know is just a future friend we’re gonna make!” Catra’s smile of bemusement came back. It was like talking to a grown-up kid. And, she had to admit, it was refreshing. She couldn’t make fun of what Adora said. Adora was happy, and it gave Catra a sort of second-hand happiness.“So, are you great at chess?” Catra was shaken out of her internalised monologue.“Well, I’m okay. I’ve won competitions, but I’m not Hikaru Nakamura.” Catra replied, her hands in her pockets.“Well, you know how to play, and that’s more than me, so you’re impressive to me,” Adora said, in a matter-of-fact tone. They both got to the bus stop. “Well, this is where we depart.”“You sound like an old man.”“I can’t wait to see you too.”As Catra sat in her seat, she opened her phone and decided to text Adora again.Catra: Link to my chess location: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Chess+%26+Bridge/@39.6288461,-28.6825851,3z/data=!3m1!5s0x48761acbb97c8847:0x7e78a96446a9708d!4m10!1m2!2m1!1schess+uk!3m6!1s0x48761acdb30b21fd:0x382bc874fa99e41!8m2!3d51.518427!4d-0.15565!15sCghjaGVzcyB1a1oKIghjaGVzcyB1a5IBCmdhbWVfc3RvcmXgAQA!16s%2Fg%2F1tncscvb?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI0MTAwOS4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3DAdora: I’ll be there, Cat. See ya!