"Right By My Side."

Chapter 17

Adora opened her room door after talking to Bow and Glimmer for a bit at the library and was surprised by the amount of papers that were scattered on the floor, which was a lot more than usual. Catra was hurriedly going back and forth through various papers and continuously ripping out pages from the book that Glimmer had given her. 

"Catra?"

The feline was too engrossed in what she was looking at that she didn't even properly respond to Adora, she gave a grunt in response and started to scribble something down. 

Fed up with the lack of communication she was getting, Adora stomped over to see what Catra has been so invested in for the last hour an a half now. 

On the old map there was a fairly large island with a red circle around it while the new one had and empty circle with question marks surrounding it along with some questions Catra had that surrounded it. 

Looking at the pages that Catra had ripped out and left scattered on the floor, she noticed that the ripped pages of the book that Glimmer had given her just hours prior were on a specific topic, or to be even more specific, an island. 

Analyzing Catra's work more closely, Adora's heart dropped a bit, "Catra are you... are you planning to leave? If something is bothering you then I can help make some adjustments to make it better-"

"Adora no, it's nothing like that. This is something... personal." 

Catra finally looked up from the papers she was reading and looked Adora in the eye.

"So personal that you're practically ignoring me and can't even tell me what's going on?"

"Adora-"

"Answer the question, Catra."

The feline looked back at the papers, then to Adora, and let out a defeated sigh, "I'm not ignoring you Adora, not intentionally, but I still have to get some more answers. This is something that could be life changing for me in many ways. I know you have questions, I have too many to count, but I don't have answers yet. Not firm ones at least."

Adora walked over to Catra, who was sitting on the ground surrounded my pages that were ripped out from the book, and sat beside her. 

"Then tell me what you've found so far, you've been going at this for an hour an a half Catra, I'm sure you've found something."

Catra paused before speaking, "It's a long story."

Adora shrugged her shoulders, "I have time."

Catra shook her head softly and started, "When I woke up after Hordak captured me, the bastard, he said that this stone in my side is my runestone. And as you know, only princesses with powers or whatever have a runestone, so if I'm a princess, then that must mean I have a kingdom, right? And if I have a kingdom, then that might possibly mean I have parents that are alive and living in that kingdom. So come here."

"Whoa whoa whoa, wait- you Catra? A princess? You hate princesses." 

"That's exactly what I thought when Hordak told me this was my runestone."

Catra led Adora over to her bulletin board where her she had both the maps pinned up side by side, "This is the old map of Etheria from before- I think- we were even born, this island," she pointed to Alunu Island, the one that was circled, "I've never heard of this island before, but it's miles away from the Crimson Waste. Then in the new map it's gone, and Hordak told me he attacked my homeland when I was younger but didn't say where in Etheria he attacked."