fun shippy fluff don't hate us 'cause you ain't us

[morethanadistraction]

It's been a few months since the failsafe reached the Heart, and they're finally doing something they'd always thought they'd do together: they're exploring Etheria.

They started off in the vicinity of Bright Moon and wandered from there, following maps to find towns and stopping at unmarked settlements along the way. Teaching each-other tidbits they'd picked up, learning others together. Filling in gaps in their knowledge of the world.

They're at the edge of some small village now, replenishing supplies for their trip. Or, well. Adora is replenishing supplies. Catra had been left to set up their campsite, which she did, and one playful swipe led to another and then to some tackling and rolling around, and then to a small chase, and then Melog had proudly created an illusory duplicate of themselves to get her off their tail.

So now there are two Melogs, and Catra's on all fours, her tail trailing an eager 'S' in the air as her eyes dart between them. The Melogs are in much the same position, and they mewl at her in synchronization as both their and Catra's shoulders shimmy down, ready to pounce. The campfire she was supposed to light is well and truly forgotten some distance away, the branches and tree litter strewn messily about. She's got bits of it stuck in her hair and in her fur, and even Melog's picked up a leaf or three from their playing.

That doesn't matter. What matters is choosing the right one.

Her claws twitch against the soft ground, the vibrant green grass that Adora's magic had restored a pleasant cushion against them. She breathes deep, steadies herself; and with a cry, launches at the Melog on the left.

Either she's correct or both of them were corporeal, because she connects and rolls with them in a tumble, a laugh bubbling up from her chest as Melog's tongue licks messily up her cheek. Her objection - "Ugh!" - is lost under the smoosh of their muzzle against her face as they increase their size to pin her, and their exaggerated purr rumbles right through her bones.

"Okay, okay." Catra pushes at them, grinning and with laughter in her words despite her struggling efforts. "You won, I get it! Now let me up! We have to finish before Adora gets back."

Comments

[destinybound]

"Yes, you did! You're very intimidating, Catra." Adora reassuringly pats the most easily accessible of Catra, which in their current position happens to be her knee. She really wishes she hadn't pulled back, aches for Catra's warmth against her stomach and chest already. But it's going to take a deliberate effort to stop teasing her when she's so adorably grouchy.

"... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ruin it," Adora offers after a beat, this time sincere. Her purple-tinted lip sticks out in a pout as she lays both arms down on the grass, wrists crossed above her head. Her back arches subtly, pushing her chest out just so; offering herself up, malleable and willing.

"Have your way with me, please?"

[morethanadistraction]

Somehow that reassuring pat is anything but, and Catra's ears drop further. Even the usually enticing curve of Adora's back reads as an insult, the submissive cross of her wrists too confident to actually be so. And then her words cement it; Adora is teasing her, obviously.

Catra is not gentle at all about the placement of her weight on her knees or feet as she stands on Adora's legs, hopping off from her with a disgruntled noise. She does not offer Adora a hand up, nor does she keep within reach; instead padding over the small distance to her abandoned bread, picking it up and tossing it at Adora with a grumpy backwards glance. Take your stupid win, she didn't want it anyway.

[destinybound]

Adora's face falls as Catra lifts clean off her, and even the offering of bread isn't enough to pick her spirits up. She sets it aside for now, crawling after her sullen girlfriend on her hands and knees. "Catraaaa."

"I really meant it! Why are you mad? Am I that bad at being seductive?" She wraps her arms around Catra's leg to anchor her in place, pleading up at her with big, rueful eyes. "Don't be mad at me."

[morethanadistraction]

Catra's tail bushes right next to Adora when she feels the unexpected touch of her leg, and she looks down sharply only to see Adora there, wide-eyed and simpering. Catra wishes she was still a bad enough friend to kick her.

Instead she sighs, annoyed and ragged, and flicks her tail right into Adora's face.

"Ugh. Get up, you idiot." Her palm is gentle but firm when she presses it onto Adora's forehead, pushing her pointedly back from her leg. It's harder than it's worth to be angry with her for long. "Let's just go for that stupid walk you were talking about."

[destinybound]

The tickle of fur over her nose makes Adora's face twist up, stuck halfway to a sneeze. She sniffs, rubs at her face-- and immediately brightens at the sound of Catra's words.

"Yes! You're gonna love it, I swear." She jumps to her feet, mood fully restored, and scrambles for her backpack. She rummages through it, producing the map and unfurling it in front of her. "It's just a bit of a walk, we'll be there in no time. Oh, but before I forget--"

And she goes back for Catra's offered bread, splitting it down the middle and extending one arm with a smile. "Halfsies?"

[morethanadistraction]

She's rolling her eyes at Adora's enthusiasm, and at the map (--how far is it that basic directions won't do?), but Adora's cheer does wonders for settling the bruised edges of Catra's ego. She'll probably find herself struggling to hold on to her sulk by the time they make it even halfway to Adora's intended destination.

...Or, alternatively. She can find it dissipating in surprise when Adora turns around and offers her a torn half of bread, that beautiful and awkward smile directed at her in full. Catra could swear her heart stutters, as she glances from Adora's face to her hand, and belatedly she realizes there's a warmth already on her cheeks to accompany the fuzzy feeling in her body.

She's gotten better about this, which is why she doesn't snatch the bread. Instead she takes it normally, turning her face away to bite into it silently. Adora's always so damn -- nice. And making Catra feel so special, again, simply by just... looking at her, and sharing.

Is it any wonder she'd gotten so jealous at the thought that Adora would treat every friend of hers this way?

Catra doesn't like to walk while she eats, and she knows Adora will wait for her, so she's content to chew in silence. Gives her time to settle into the abrupt adjustment of her mood, anyway, as she holds her hand flat-palmed for Melog to shimmer back into visibility under. They've still got the stolen bit of bread in their mouth, their eyes curved happily as they rumble. Catra's not doing anything about her feelings, so Melog takes it upon themselves to; padding over to Adora to rub against her legs affectionately, shrinking in size to twine around her, praising her in echoing mews that have Catra's ears flicking in embarrassment. She really just. Can't take Melog anywhere.

"Shut up." Both of them. Both of them can shut up, but Melog especially.

[destinybound]

Adora giggles, light and airy, as Melog winds between her legs. She reaches down to stroke along their back, endeared enough to even forgive their role in the bread-thievery. The embarrassment that colors Catra's cheeks at the display of affection only serves to make it cuter.

"I mean, I wasn't saying anything," she answers with a snort, offering Melog a loving little stroke behind one ear.

"Think you can watch the camp for us, Melog? Thank you! We'll be back before you know it."

And, downing the last mouthful of bread, she joins Catra's side and takes her hand in her own. "Ready to go?"

[morethanadistraction]

Melog butts into Adora's hand without shame, making noises of confidence and assurance. They are a great watcher and defender, and they'll keep everyone else away from the camp with their illusions and magic just the same as they do every night.

"Don't go overboard," Catra warns them. Both because of Melog's enthusiastic press into Adora's hand, which is at this point just insulting, and because Melog's illusions don't discriminate between friend and foe. They really do not need the stress of navigating a seemingly hostile environment right before they try to sleep.

Melog trills in acknowledgement as they follow with Adora to Catra's side, and she lets her fingers link with Adora's as she chews the remainder of her bread, raising her free hand again to press against Melog's head in farewell. She doesn't pet them the same way Adora does, but Melog nudges into her palm anyway, rumbling warmly. They understand each-other, they don't need anything more than that.

She does make Adora wait, because Adora is a jerk, while Catra takes her time chewing. She eventually swallows, licking her lips to wipe away the remainder of crumbs and nodding, nudging her shoulder into Adora's. Catra's tired, and sore after all of that squirming, but Adora's been so excited about this that she teases instead of complaining. "We don't seriously need a map for this, do we? I thought you said it wasn't that far."

[destinybound]

"It's not! It's just a bit off the beaten path. Better safe than sorry, right?"

--Is what she says, all cheery reassurance. But as she leads Catra down the map's indicated path, it quickly turns out there was some mild sugarcoating involved. Yes, Adora may have neglected to mention they'd have to push their way through some really spiky bushes. Or just how much of this path would be uphill. Or ohmygod that's a big bug--

"-- I'll get it, I'll get it!" Adora exclaims, grabbing for her sword and stabbing the screeching six-eyed beetle clean through. Its body twitches one final time, impaled against the tree. "Got it."

Retrieving the sword, she shakes it clean of bug juice before re-equipping it as a brace. "Okay!" she exhales, spirits undampened. "Just a little more."

[morethanadistraction]

"Riiight." Catra's drawl of agreement is skeptical. She has some regrets about this, and lets Adora battle through each set of spiked foliage before slicing through it all unapologetically with her claws to follow, stepping carefully to avoid hurting her feet. She really should have put on some shoes for this, but in her defense? She hadn't known that the forest was this wild.

Adora clearly wasn't expecting it either, given how quick she is to attack the bug whose dying screeches have Catra flinching back and bristling.

"'Let's go for a walk, Catra'," she mocks as she grabs her tail roughly, forcibly smoothing the fur back down. It's obvious that Adora's getting stressed about how Not To Plan this is, but that doesn't stop Catra from grousing now. "'You'll totally love it! There'll be tonnes of gross bugs and plants to annoy you!'"

She feels something squelch under her foot, and Catra freezes as her expression twists in disgust. Definitely should have gone with the shoes.

"Why'd you have to bring back all the weird stuff?" She complains, voice pitching up into a petulant whine. She's just gonna. Grab her ankle and pull her foot up to inspect it, and then drop it again to scrape the gross pink-purple goop off on the ground with a groan of frustration. Maybe it wasn't even Adora's magic that restored these things, maybe they were here all along. Catra's going to blame her anyway.

[destinybound]

Adora's shoulders hunch with a defensive grunt. "Okay, I restored the planet's magic, Etheria's flora and fauna is not my department. What in the world did you just step on?" She leans sideways to peer down at Catra's foot, then pointedly angles her head away with a bleh. "-- Actually, might be happier not knowing."

Look, this isn't her idea of a romantic walk either, okay? She just has to believe it'll be worth it. It's like that one saying Perfuma likes-- 'it's about the journey, not the destination'-- except the exact opposite of that. It's one hundred percent the destination. The journey can suck as much as it wants, so long as they get there. Adora just has to focus on that.

"Come on, Catra, can't you hold the grouch for just a little bit longer? It should be just about--"

Her eyes scan the horizon before skidding to a halt in front of a particular group of trees -- one of which, remarkably, is curved into a half-arch with a faint lavender glow peering through the bark.

"--There! Come on, come on, come on!"

And because Catra can't possible come on fast enough, Adora grabs her wrist and breaks into a sprint, any soreness to her legs instantaneously forgotten. In a couple minutes' time, they're standing in front of the natural-made entrance to an enclosure within the woods, surrounded by trees, thick brush and vines. Adora's heart is in her throat, not so much from the short run as it is from nerves.

She hopes this is as nice as the townspeople made it out to be. And that Catra likes it, because she's gonna be real mad over getting dragged all the way out here otherwise. And Adora will look like an idiot, and Catra will never trust any of her romantic outing ideas ever again.

Oh, man. She really hopes Catra likes it.

With a brief glance back at Catra, Adora sucks in a breath, and parts the greenery to allow them inside. And as soon as she takes the sight of it in, the awe and relief swirl together in a giddy current in her chest, releasing in the form of an unbidden squeal.

Everything inside is glowing. Everything. The little flowers that sprout amid the grass; the berries in the bushes; the under-side of tree bark, revealed through the cracks in the wood. And, within the pond in the center of the enclosure, dozens of bioluminescent fish trace winding paths across the water in every color of the rainbow. In the inky black of night, it's nothing short of hypnotic; like a living painting, constantly in motion all around them. Their own pocket galaxy.

Adora rubs at the back of her nape as she turns to Catra again, breathing out a chuckle. "It's-- it's pretty cool, right?"

[morethanadistraction]

Whatever Adora claims, she'd certainly made the planet a lot greener than it used to be, and presumably a lot more hospitable to life. So: still her fault.

And no, she will not hold off on grouching - and she's just opened her mouth, about to complain about that too, when Adora's sudden burst of excitement cuts her off.

"Hey -- Adora!" She protests as she's pulled into a run, stumbling the initial steps before recovering. "What's the big deal, it's just a forest!"

But Catra smells it before they see it. Can actually almost taste the fragrant air as they run, the woodiness and bite of trees and crushed leaves adopting the sweeter undertones of florals, different to Perfuma's favourite varieties but unmistakable all the same. Curiosity keeps her pace matched to Adora's, and though Catra could go faster and overtake her, she lets Adora keep the lead. She'd been disappointed to find that Catra had already, in some form or another, been exposed to most of the things she'd apparently been dying to show her. So she can have this one.

She's hardly out of breath when they stop, but Catra breathes deeply anyway. Her nose is sensitive enough that she knows what to expect on the other side of these vines; and yet, she's still surprised when Adora pulls them back. Nothing at all could have prepared her for the glow of colours, warm and entrancing and like absolutely nothing she's ever seen before. Her only answer to Adora's question is to laugh in surprised delight, taking the lead as she wraps her fingers around Adora's wrist this time and steps eagerly into the hidden area, eyes bright and ears perked and tail active with excitement.

Each step on the flowers sweetens the air, and Catra's nose twitches but she doesn't care about how cloying that's going to become. She does a once-over of the area, searching habitually for enemies or traps, before making a quick beeline straight for the pond. Her eyes are almost sparkling as she tracks the quick movement of the bright fish, ears twitching as her hand tightens on Adora's wrist and tugs to make sure she's looking at those things. There's even some sort of glowing algae in the pond, lighting it through in ribbons, and Catra hates water but this pond? Is totally okay by her.

"Adora!" Her name comes out with that same short laugh of delight, higher pitched than Catra's usual, and she feels so -- young again, looking back up to Adora, practically vibrating with newfound energy. "Are you seeing this?! Look at them!" She juts a clawed finger at the fish, another press of her foot on the soft ground perfuming the air further, and okay yes there are other things to be looking at, but glowing trees they can find in the Whispering Woods and glowing berries aren't too far off from that, and there are glowing. fish.

She absolutely should not give in to impulse. Catra has learned better than that. And yet her attention still darts back to them almost immediately, tail lashing eagerly. Melog would encourage her impulses if they were here. Melog doesn't like it when she restrains herself. Before the war she would have just done it, would have announced "I'm catching them" with confidence and pounced before anyone could protest, probably would have done it as messily and disruptively as possible. But now she stays herself, heart pounding hard as she laughs breathlessly again. "--You sure you don't want to take credit for this?"

[destinybound]

Oh-- Catra does like it.

When she looks at her, tail swishing about as she drinks in her surroundings, face alight with unguarded joy-- Adora could almost forget about everything else. When she calls for her with that laugh, Adora could forget two years of war, a lifetime of growing up in the shadows. All she can think is-- this is it. When they'd talk about taking the world for themselves once they're older, Adora never cared about helming armies, toppling cities, making her enemies bow. She wanted this: Catra happy and free, her hand in her own.

And maybe she's stupid for getting overwhelmed by those same realizations over and over again, when she's always already known, but Adora can't help it. She's smiling so hard her cheeks ache, and for a second she has to turn away, wiping stealthily at the corner of her eye.

"I mean, apparently this is some kind of magical hotspot?" Her voice wavers a bit for the first few words, dangerously close to giving her away, but Catra's thankfully too overtaken with excitement to notice. "And I brought the magic back? So maybe, y'know, some credit is due." It's hard to sound humble when her chest is swelling with pride. How could she not feel good about herself, with Catra smiling this big?

"Don't catch the fish," she chides playfully, pulling down on Catra's hand. "Let's just sit and watch them for a while."

[morethanadistraction]

"I wasn't going to," Catra denies immediately, which is of course a dead giveaway. She doesn't want to sit, but she's so transfixed by the bright darting colours that she lets Adora tug her down, only one ear tilting to listen to the area around them. It's peacefully quiet, only the sound of small animals nearby, and Catra tunes them out again as she sits; lacking the strict refinement she'd trained herself into, instead sprawling one leg out and bending the other at the knee as she leans over it to follow the fish some more.

"If you really did bring this place back, then I guess I can admit that you are still kind of awesome." Catra looks away from the fish long enough to grin at Adora, fangs slipping carelessly through, and it widens into a smile before long as she teases: "Guess the Princess thing didn't suck it all out of you after all."

[destinybound]

"Is that all you have to say? That I'm kind of awesome?" She sticks out her chin, eyes squinting in a challenge. Look-- she's allowed to ask for praise. This place is beautiful, shimmering with magic through and through, and she got them here. "Don't be so stingy, Catra."

[morethanadistraction]

Oh, Catra likes that expression on Adora. That's the sort of look she'd had on her face the first time Catra had ever noticed her heart speeding up and the world slowing down around them. It's easy to remember that moment, how the green glow of the training equipment had gleamed in her narrowed eyes, the same way the ambient magic is doing now.

"Fine," she drawls easily, pressing her palm into the ground to lean closer to Adora. She'd quite like to kiss her soon, but she wants to tease a little more first. The spark in her eyes and twitch of her tail demand it. "You're pretty okay, too."

[destinybound]

Adora huffs, though the smirk on her lips persists. All she really wants right now is to close the distance between their mouths and taste Catra on her tongue again, but she can abstain for a moment, if it means paying Catra back.

"Alright, suit yourself," she coolly retorts, and leans back-- only to send a spray of pond water up into Catra's face with a broad flick of one arm.

[morethanadistraction]

Adora's smirk really needs to stop doing things to Catra. Especially since she knows it's a warning sign, because Adora being cooly smug is never a good thing, and she should really focus more on that and less on how great it would be for Adora to touch her.

It's only a bit of water but Catra yelps loudly and flinches back violently anyway, adrenaline surging and burying the protesting ache of her muscles. Her hand shoots out to grab Adora's wrist roughly and yank as Catra falls back, pulling Adora over herself like a defensive shell. If this were a battle and that were enemy fire, Adora would be being used as a meat shield right now.

"Don't do that," she snaps. The water hasn't yet sunk through the fine fur of her face, but she can feel it there and it's irritating, the weird uneven pressure almost tickling. Catra's eyes narrow at Adora, bushed tail flicking in warning against the sweet-smelling flowers. Don't ruin this, Adora.

[destinybound]

"Okay," Adora answers, because she's on her elbows on the ground on top of Catra right now, chest pressed to chest and their faces are so close, and really, she can't think to do anything but agree. No matter what Catra had said.

(There's no need to keep teasing, besides. She has her.)

Her thumb reaches to brush drops of water off Catra's cute button nose, trailing into a caress across her cheek. "Can I kiss it better?"

[morethanadistraction]

Catra's nose wrinkles at the touch, but despite her sullen glare she still tilts her face into Adora's hand. She isn't as demanding or pathetic about it as Melog is, but Adora just splashed water into her face. Catra deserves compensation.

"You'd better," she grumbles, hand slipping up from Adora's arm to press against the back of her neck. Catra's not waiting; lifting herself the few inches it takes to seal her lips against Adora's, sulky and petulant with the nip of teeth, adrenaline still burning in the scrape of her nails against the back of Adora's shirt.

[destinybound]

Adora lets out a stunted little hum with the initial prickle of the kiss, but lets herself sink into it, the sound melting into a sigh.

She's all pacifying and eager to please, meeting Catra's pointed bites with soft, full lips. Smothering her petulance with affection and warmth. Both her hands cup Catra's face now, to sweep the wetness away, tracing the subtle rise of her cheekbones with doting fingertips.

And when she draws back and looks down at Catra, on her back in the grass speckled with lights, motes of magic swirling in a golden glow around her-- Adora just-- just--

Her heart feels full to burst.

"You fit so well here," leaves her lips in a mumble, as she strokes idly along the contour of her cheek. "Your eyes, I mean," she adds after a beat, as if it only then occurred to her the thought has made it outside of her head.

Adora's lips curve with embarrassment, faint pink dusting her cheeks.

"It's pretty."

[morethanadistraction]

Adora really does make it better, with her lips and her hands and the press of her body all along Catra's. Before long she's fallen into it again, wholly absorbed in just kissing her; breathing her in, tasting her. Feeling the taut lines of her hair as Catra's hand brushes up to rest on her head, holding her in place. Catra doesn't want it to end. Adora makes her feel so -- content, so loved. She just wants to bask in it forever. At some point her tail twines around Adora's leg, keeping her there. Making sure she stays.

They do need to breathe though, and Catra's eyes remain closed as she leans into Adora's hand again, uncaring how obviously close to a nuzzle it is. Adora's taken her frustration and upset and replaced them with comforting warmth, and Catra's heart just about aches with love for her, rising in expression through a purr that's deep and full-bodied and as always, just for Adora.

It's when Adora tells her that she fits in that she cracks one eye open, and then the other, raising an eyebrow as she does. And then the other. That kiss must have melted Adora's brain as surely as it did Catra's. She could tease her about it, but it's endearing, and the amused smirk curling at one side of her mouth ought to do it well enough anyway.

A smirk that falters in surprise as she blinks, caught off-guard by Adora's choice of descriptor. Her ears tilt in embarrassment, and Catra's chest burns, and though there's a flush on her face to match Adora's she can't look away from her, open and exposed with widened eyes and feeling kind of small in the moment. 'Pretty' isn't a word used to describe things in the Horde, at least not kindly, and it makes her stomach flutter weirdly, unsure how to take it but liking the feeling it gives her all the same.

"I love you." Catra hears the words drag up from her own throat, hoarse with honesty and some sort of emotion, and blinks again in surprise as her teeth close on her lip. It's not so bad though, right? To let herself get caught up in the moment? Adora smiling, beautiful and soft and blue eyes shining in the glow. The only person who's ever really mattered, illuminated by the light of the trees, looking at Catra like she's the one she defended Etheria for. Like all along, Catra was the only thing she'd ever wanted.

It isn't bad at all, and when Catra leans up to kiss her again it's drawing her in only to yield, heart too full and sore, asking silently for the protection Adora's always given. This is the first time she hasn't run from the feeling of vulnerability; the first time she hasn't closed off from it with an embarrassed shove and something to change the mood. She doesn't know what to do with it except lean into Adora more firmly, kiss her more gently, press her fingers against her hair and massage, requesting in every action the thing she knows Adora will always do without thinking: she'll take care of her.

[destinybound]

A wave of warmth unspools in Adora's chest at the words, flooding her heart and kicking its pace into a rabbit's thump. Catra could say it a thousand times, she thinks, and it'll never lose this effect on her. Especially with that look on Catra's face when she says it -- like she hadn't even meant to, like it caught her off-guard. It squeezes at Adora's lungs, sparks something in her belly.

"I love you," Adora breathes back, before falling into the kiss once more, taking Catra in. Her fingers slip into dark hair, softly cradling her head against the grass as she anchors her to her, lips to lips, body to body. "I love you," she repeats against her mouth, a sigh shuddering through her as if to mirror the rumble of Catra's purr. It overwhelms her, suddenly, like a swarm of butterflies beating their wings all at once-- the sense that she couldn't possibly say it enough.

"I love you, Catra."

[morethanadistraction]

There might be something after all, to the crazy talk about the vulnerability of an open heart being worth the risks. It's so contrary to everything Catra believes, goes against every bit of indoctrination she's ever received. Even now, Adora's breath mingling with hers as she repeats professions of love, there are pieces of Catra that rebel and strain against how deeply she feels them. When Adora shivers against her and Catra's hand slides to cut the band that keeps her hair tied, there's a part of her that urges her to grab a fistful and pull instead of carding her fingers through the now-loose strands. When she moves her other arm around Adora's back, curling her hand against the blade of her shoulder, some instinct tells her to stretch her claws and dig them in instead: to protect herself and hide her weakness.

Adora's had that same training, she'd understand if it were too much for Catra to handle. --But Adora has had that same training, and she's still able to do this; able to let herself blanket Catra in her love, able to accept from Catra as much as she can give. And if Adora can do it - then Catra's going to do it too. She can't let Adora beat her at this.

So she lets her shoulders shudder when Adora finishes an I love you with her name, lets herself feel how concrete and real that makes it and how it drives a pang through her chest. She lets the backs of her nails glance up the back of Adora's neck and further up, lifting her hair between her knuckles, before unfurling her fingers to press and knead lightly against the crown of her head. And with no small amount of willpower, Catra makes the conscious and determined choice to slide her hand on Adora's shoulder blade onto her arm; and then down to her hand, cupping it with her own. Catra has to break the kiss, chest rising and falling faster than before, to turn her head enough to press the back of her ear into Adora's palm, eyes opening just enough to glance at her levelly. She hasn't outright requested anything like this since they were kids, but Adora does it for Melog all the time, and she loves any excuse to touch Catra. She'll surely oblige.

[destinybound]

Adora waits, curious but patient, as Catra draws a deliberate path along her arm-- and when she places her hand over her ear at last, it takes every bit of self restraint in her not to squeal. Gotta keep it together. If she's too embarrassing about it, Catra will change her mind.

(Wrestling the massive smile off her face, however, is an altogether futile task.)

"I love you," she blurts one more time, as if her brain's forgotten how to form any other words, and her fingers gently begin to knead at the base of Catra's ear.