You're Such An Idiot

Chapter Eight-Catra

I swear I'm going to kill Sparkles and Arrow Boy, sooner or later. The only reason they're still breathing is Adora's dumb smile when she sees I'm letting them tease me. Ugh, the things we do for love.

"So" starts Sparkles, "since the two of you left earlier yesterday, there's something I think we should discuss, together"

"Wow, that's very democratic of you" I sneer.

Adora gives me a please-stop-I'm-begging-you look, so I snort and let Sparkles go on.

"Bright Moon has always been very democratic, Horde Scum" she replies. "Anyway, the thing is... I locked Hordak up in the prison room"

I widen my eyes, giving Sparkles a low-key approving look. "I can't believe you actually did something smart! That was totally unexpected"

"Catra..." snorts Adora, face-palming.

"I mean it!" I reply. "It makes perfect sense. You can't seriously expect people to be okay with Hordak being on the loose"

"I'm not saying he should be on the loose, Catra" she says, shaking her head. "I think Glimmer made the right choice. I'm just worried about how Entrapta might take this"

"Well, she'll have to deal with it, for now" says Glimmer, looking away. "I can't risk anyone's safety. I'm responsible for the people of Bright Moon. And for Etheria, too"

I must say authority fits Sparkles quite well. She's really getting the hang of being a queen. I guess we have something in common, after all. I enjoyed power too. Sure, I would have enjoyed it more if Adora had been by my side all along and if I hadn't driven away all the people around me in the process. But I loved being in charge. And I think Sparkles loves it too, although she would never admit it.

"It's okay, Glimmer" says Bow, placing his hands on her shoulders. These two are a couple, aren't they? "We're here to support you"

Sparkles's cheeks turn red, confirming my hypothesis. Adora and I exchange a knowing look.

"So, if you have already made a decision, what is there to discuss?" asks Adora.

"I just wanted to make sure you guys agreed with it" replies Sparkles. "Actually... I also want to hear Catra's opinion on Hordak"

Now they're all looking at me, which makes me kind of nervous. "What? My opinion? Why?"

"Because you spent a lot of time with him" explains Sparkles. "You're the one that knows him best around here"

"Well, actually Entrapta⸺"

"Yeah, I know, but she's not exactly a reliable source since she has a crush on him"

"She does??" exclaims Adora, looking shocked.

"You're such an idiot" I chuckle. "You're not the best at noticing when someone is in love, are you?"

She stares at me and one second later she's blushing with a dumb smile that somehow warms me up.

"Anyway, Catra" resumes Sparkles "I want you to talk to him"

"Why? Do you think he would tell me anything? Hordak never trusted me" I can't believe I'm still so bitter over Hordak. I wish I could erase the time I wasted trying to win his favor. I did my best to impress him, to earn his trust, to prove myself worthy. I wish I had realized earlier that I had nothing to prove, not to him, anyway. Nor to Shadow... Weaver. The memory of her sacrifice flashes through my mind, making me shiver. She said she was proud of me... but was she, really?

"Hey, are you okay?" Adora's voice brings me back to reality. She must have noticed I was mind-wandering. She's pretty good at it, I'll give her that.