The Brightmoon Institution (Catradora Boarding School AU)

The Bad And Ugly

"Adora?"

The girl involuntarily shivered at the voice over the phone, hiding in a decrepit alleyway, still wearing the elaborate outfit. She'd spent the last hour or so crying, letting the tears flow until she was fairly sure there were none more to come. Calling Catra should've honestly been the first thing she'd done, but she didn't feel like crying in front of someone about this.

"Hi," she rasped. The cold had frosted her voice. Catra's sleepy tone magically vanished, tone becoming more urgent.

"Are you okay? It's past twelve," she was alarmed.

"No...I'll tell you everything later, could you just...pick me up?"

Her words were choked at the increasing concern in Catra's tone.

"I'm coming. Where are you?"

"I'll send my location," was all Adora offered because if she was being completely honest, she had no fucking idea where she was. She'd just ran, before walking, her feet cut and bleeding from being barefoot on the dingy streets.

The wind howled at her, pushing her hair back and attacking her skin. The fresh air had been a relief when she'd first felt it, but now it was drowning her. Her shivering intensified, and she hastily ripped the bottom half of her dress to wrap around herself in a makeshift dodgy shawl. A large part of herself felt guilty for ruining such a beautiful piece, but she couldn't help it, her skin was raw and battered from the weather. Several people had passed by her, some inching away like she was a stray animal, others leering closer like she was prey. She gripped the sharpened wooden slate in her hand, a measly weapon. But it acted as a deterrent, and she guessed that was good enough.

A car pulled up, and Adora nearly cried out in relief when Catra stepped out, wearing a long, oversized puffer and tracks made of faux fur. The hood was pulled on, but it flew off the minute she spotted Adora, for Catra had sprinted to meet her.

"Fuck, what happened?"

Adora couldn't stop the shivering, her teeth chattering against each other as Catra wrapped her arms around her. She held on tight, soaking the warmth and mint and musk the coat had to offer.

"Sh-Shad-ow W-w," she gave up, just clinging to Catra. The girl didn't push further, helping Adora reach the car. They piled into the backseat, the warmth flooding and soothing her skin. Despite it, the shivering persisted, even growing in strength.

"Lorenz, the hotel, please," Adora faintly heard Catra address the front seat, before the girl slid over next to Adora.

"You're colder than ice," she whispered, more to herself than Adora. She took her coat off, along with the woollen jumper she wore, wrapping both coats around Adora. Her arms followed, providing as much body heat as she could. The shivering slowly lessened, and was nearly gone by the time they arrived at the hotel. Lorenz gave Adora a concerned smile as they left the car, and Adora tried to return it.

She got a number of stares from both the hotel staff and the fancy guests lounging in the lobby, but Adora didn't have a single care to think too hard about it. Catra glared back at any person looking at them, tightly holding Adora's hand as they stepped into an elevator. The shivering came to a halt, but Adora felt like crying again at the look Catra was giving her. They walked into the room, Catra soundlessly switching the lights on in the bathroom and turning on the shower.

The silence stretched, but it was anything but awkward. It was comforting, Adora found. Catra slowly, but carefully, helped Adora undress, before letting the girl step into the steaming shower and wash herself clean. Adora couldn't bring herself to speak, letting the water run over her face, scalding her icy skin, letting her forget about everything that had happened. Except she couldn't. Shadow Weaver's words broke through the peace of the bathroom, and she quickly turned the shower off, hair dripping. Catra had placed a spare set of clothes on the ledge for her, and Adora smiled at the considerate gesture. She dressed, body still aching and sore, before stepping out of the bathroom.