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Chapter Text

The night was dark without the luminous cover of the moons, and Angella found herself wishing she possessed the power to raise them now. Each step took her deeper into a meadow filled with beautiful flowers of every kind, but she couldn’t truly see their colorful petals without any light. By instinct, she gathered her magic in her hands and sent a beam up into the night sky— but nothing happened. Fear spread from her heart, turning her cold and causing her to shiver, gooseflesh raising on her arms and the back of her neck.

“Angella…” a voice called, filling her with an ache so strong that she fell to her knees at the center of the meadow. “You have forgotten me…”

A figure of smoke and shadow stepped out from the ring of trees. A man. Angella could not see his face but she knew, down to the center of her being, who this man was.

“Micah,” she choked out, struggling to pull air into her lungs. “Never… I have never forgotten you.” How could he think such of her? Nearly every day she spent alive without him was a day she wished he were back in her life, in their daughter’s life. 

The figure of Micah did not respond, but bowed low, pulling something, obscured by all the flowers, up from the meadow. Another person, only slightly smaller and nearly as broad, with blonde hair falling to her shoulders— Adora. Micah straightened, holding her out, stretched across both arms, in a wordless gesture. She was limp, a trail of blood leaking from her mouth, eyes wide but unseeing, and in her hands she clutched a broken sword that fell as soon as Angella stood again, finally catching full sight— she staggered, a blood-chilling shriek of grief ripping from her chest.

“You lose the ones you love and then you forget them.” Micah’s voice was icy and bitter, nothing like the warmth and sincerity of his true voice. 

“No… no…” she moaned, curling into herself, shutting her eyes, shaking with dry, painful sobs that crashed into her like storming ocean waves. “No!”

“Angella… please…” this voice was softer, closer, the sound of it like sunlight and warmth. But it… it couldn’t be. “Please…”

“Please wake up, my angel, it’s just a dream,” the voice cooed again, and suddenly, she was awake, curled into the fetal position on her bed, satin sheets twisted around her sweaty body, clutched tightly in aching fingers. But the fear and grief had not left her, and as she felt her lover’s warm, calloused hands on her face, coaxing her into awareness, she refused to open her eyes. Despite the absurdity of the fear, which should have dispersed as soon as she awoke to Adora’s soothing and very much alive voice, Angella could not look upon her, could not take the chance that this might be some deeper level of her dream, made more real to torture her further, and that Adora would look as she had in the meadow— dead.

So instead of opening her eyes, Angella untwisted her hands from the sheets and flung them around Adora’s neck, letting loose her tears of both relief and sorrow. She was here, safe, alive, with her woodsy, clean scent, her soft hair, her firm and familiar body. Her voice, whispering words of comfort into Angella’s ear. 

After not long at all, her tears slowed and then stopped as she focused on the steady beat of Adora’s heart. It was only a dream. A horrible, morbid dream that she knew would linger if she let it, but only a dream. Ones like it had often plagued her at different points of her life, though recently she had been experiencing a reprieve.

“You’re not supposed to be here, my love, but I’m glad you are,” she murmured into Adora’s neck, punctuating her words with a kiss at her pulse. Adora chuckled, hugging her closer.

“I know. I felt…” she sounded unsure as she began to run her fingers through Angella’s hair, coaxing her even further into serenity. “Drawn to you. It’s happened before, but not like this.”

“What do you mean?” Had she unwittingly spread her fears to Adora through her dream? 

“I was dreaming, I can’t even remember about what, and then I heard you crying. You didn’t call my name or anything, but I felt like…” she exhaled roughly, sounding frustrated. “I ran around and searched until I found you in a meadow… It all felt really wrong. So I woke myself, rushed over, and you were— just—”

Angella finally pulled away from Adora’s neck, and steeled herself as she looked into the face of her love. Adora’s ocean eyes were wet, and her lovely pink lips were pulled down into a trembling frown, which Angella could not stand to see after such a nightmare. With the tips of her fingers, she smoothed out the lines of worry between Adora’s brows, brushed them over her flushed cheeks, and finally traced the curve of her lips until they were in a more neutral shape.

“I’m sorry I made you worry like that, Adora. It was just a nightmare.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” she asked, holding Angella’s palm to her cheek. She did not, especially not with Adora, who was the central focus of the dream which she’d already decided to lock away behind the same door in her mind that Micah now lived behind. 

“I’d rather not.” Adora’s eyes narrowed slightly, but she said nothing. Angella decided to distract her from worrying further. “How did you get in here?”

“You ask that like it’s hard,” she snorted, shaking her head. “Your guards may not have liked it, but they know we’re together.” 

“I will be setting them more specific instructions in the morning,” Angella murmured, unable to keep a smile from curling her lips as she caressed Adora’s smug face. 

“What, keep me out at all costs? I’m hurt,” she said with mock offense and an exaggerated pout, a nearly irresistible assault on Angella’s already lowered defenses. 

“It really should not be so hard for you to honor our arrangement, Adora,” she said, allowing a bit of annoyance to color her words. 

“It’s a stupid arrangement,” Adora muttered, pulling Angella even closer so that she could place a kiss at the corner of her lips. 

Privately, in the less rational part of her mind, Angella agreed. Intentionally parting herself from Adora for any length of time was still not an enjoyable experience, especially after spending so long denying her feelings towards her. 

“You agreed when I laid it out, didn’t you? It’s not prudent at the very start of a relationship to spend all of one's time with the other. No matter how much they wish it.”

And wish it she did. As it was, they still spent so much of their time together, whether it be dining and relaxing with the others, training, painting, on dates, and even in battle.

“We live in the same castle, it doesn’t seem that—”

“Exactly. Don’t you see? Even the little distance we do get is made nearly inconsequential. I just want…” she paused, piecing together her reluctant thoughts. Adora watched, her smile still warm, her eyes inviting like the open dusk sky. “I want us to remain our own people, not so consumed, not so…” She struggled to find the words, but her thoughts and feelings could do little at the moment to bolster the logic, lest she dredge up feelings she’d rather keep locked away.

“I get it, Angella. I’m good most of the time, aren’t I?” She grinned, her hand sliding down Angella’s body, a provocative contradiction, one she was in no state of mind to protest. 

“You are…” she breathed, her mind beginning to explore the enticing possibilities of Adora’s unexpected presence in her bedchambers. 

“Tonight just…” she trailed off with a sigh, “I’m sorry.” Her eyes burned with sincerity, and Angella could not resist closing the small distance between them to convey her affection with a kiss. 

She surprised them both when a hungry moan rumbled from her chest and her free hand pushed between Adora and the bed to wrap around her waist, pulling her tight. Adora seized upon her moment of vulnerability and deepened the kiss, parting their joined lips and running her tongue along Angella’s lower lip which set her on fire . It was no use trying to suppress her own desires at this point, and so she abandoned all restraint. Adora must have felt this because the next thing she knew, the shameless woman was on top of her, pressing into Angella in all the ways she knew would undo her. 

As they rocked against each other, wrapped in divine coils of aching, burning pleasure, the nightmare became a memory. 

Life in Bright Moon had hardly been so wonderful, despite the constant threat of the Horde. Fighting along their borders was consistent, but with more and more kingdoms lending their support, the Rebellion was able to keep its people safe. Though as much as their struggle against the Horde occupation of Etheria kept Angella’s mind engaged, her heart was thoroughly absorbed in her romance with Adora. 

It had been nearly half a year since they’d begun this wondrous, absurd, tender courtship which frequently stole her breath in equal measure by dazzling peaks and valleys of emotion, as well as with frivolous laughter. She doubted whether the halls of her castle or the occupants within it had ever heard her laugh as much as Adora seemed to be capable of coaxing from her. Their love, however, she kept just between them for the most part— something so sacred, so intimate, was not for the curious eyes of Bright Moon. Though she did not hide her affection nor their relationship when they were with the princesses or among her people, Angella tried to keep the intensity of her feelings inside, except for when it was just the two of them. Adora did not share her same private nature, but she adapted without a word and with much grace, and sometimes granted a bit of her more carefree and open attitude to Angella when situations called for it. 

And on mornings such as this, despite the sour taste the nightmare had left in her mouth, Angella couldn’t help but wonder at her fortune. Even the sting of her past couldn’t reach her. 

“Adora, I have watched you face off with beasts the size of our castle, how are you possibly backing down from this ,” said Angella in disbelief, pointing at the spider that Adora, wearing only her underwear and brandishing her discarded shirt like a weapon, was currently shrinking into a corner of Angella’s bedchamber to get away from. 

“It’s the legs!” she squealed, standing on one foot. “And the way it walks- ick!” Angella smiled exasperatedly at her, shaking her head. At times, the similarities between Adora and Micah struck her hard, taking her breath away, and sometimes they brushed through her heart like a warm caress. He hadn’t been so fond of insects either, and tended to blast them with spells, destroying whatever room he was in and setting furniture on fire in the process, usually only managing to scare the bug away and into a different room. Angella was certain that if Adora’s sword hadn’t been sitting on her nightstand in the form of a teacup, she would have already raised it against the inch long creature in her eight-foot, muscled, perfect form. 

Quickly, before the spider ran at her love, she scooped up the teacup of protection and slammed it down over the poor thing, shuddering lightly herself— they were rather creepy. Adora gasped.

“But my sword, ” she groaned, still leaning against the wall. Angella met her eyes with a raised eyebrow and crossed arms. “I mean— thank you, my beautiful angel.” She edged around the teacup, giving it a generous six-foot berth, and pecked Angella lightly on the lips, the picture of loving gratitude. It melted her instantly, and she wrapped her arms around Adora’s neck to give her a real kiss. 

Kissing Adora was something she knew she could do until the end of time, angelic being or not. Her lips were bliss, a home, a mutual promise that strengthened with every day they were committed to one another. In the months since they had finally given in to this paradise, so many things had changed, except the way the woman she held in her arms could make her feel, heat searing down to her bones with just a light drag of her tongue over Angella’s parted lips. But even though she would be happy to spend all her time like this, they had duties. 

“Adora, we have been late to three of the last Princess Alliance meetings in a row,” she breathed against her lips. “We cannot be late today.” Adora laughed, pulling away. 

“You started this, babe. These lips are my token of gratitude for your valiant slaying of that beast.” Her eyes were warm pools of aquamarine, begging to be jumped into. Against her better judgment, Angella pulled her back in, and Adora sighed. Her strong hands had been wrapped around Angella’s bare waist, but now they were trailing down to her rear, teasing beneath the hem of her underwear, squeezing. Desire coursed through her hot and strong, paying no mind to their diminishing time to continue getting dressed and make it to the meeting in a punctual manner. She pondered— only for a moment— summoning a guard to send their apologies to the Alliance, saying that Adora had fallen ill or had been bitten by a mildly poisonous spider… 

But imagining the look on Glimmer’s face when she barged into her bedchamber right after the meeting was over shut that option down immediately. She groaned, not in pleasure, but frustration, and separated herself from Adora.

“Hey, I wasn’t done,” complained Adora, pouting. She could be the sexiest woman on Etheria while they were making love or on a date, but often there was something so exceedingly adorable about her, especially in the mornings, with her blonde hair falling messily around her face, cheeks bright, voice a little hoarse, and now this pout. Angella’s heart melted again, but she closed her eyes and shook her head as she walked to her closet. 

“Get dressed, darling,” she said, throwing one of Adora’s bras to her from a drawer she was now rummaging through for fresh underwear, her own ruined in the mere minutes since she had put them on. 

They left a very short time later, after Adora had pouted and pleaded again and Angella had somehow resisted, a more valiant effort than trapping a spider, to be sure. Everyone was already gathered in the War Room as they entered, and though they were actually on time, eyes followed them to the table. One of Glimmer’s pink eyebrows was raised, but whether she was impressed, surprised, or judgemental, Angella couldn’t tell. But Glimmer was almost always exacting some level of judgment, whether about Angella’s relationship with Adora or her attempts at motherhood. 

As they took their usual seats, Adora next to Bow, and Angella on the other side next to Glimmer, the holotable came to life, showing a map of the Horde’s movements. It looked like they were pushing in on Bright Moon through the Whispering Woods, their numbers rising. Angella shared a glance with Adora, who began to frown as she picked up her datapad to look at more detailed intel.

“Alright everyone, let’s start, Catra and Scorpia will have to catch up. As you can all see, the Horde is planning some kind of attack. They’re grouping here and here,” said Glimmer, pointing to two different spots.

“They’re going to try and flank Bright Moon,” said Adora, scowling. Her fingers were tight around the datapad. Next to her, Bow was thumbing through his various arrows, Frosta was forming her signature ice gauntlets, and Perfuma was growing stress blossoms. 

“Not if we hit them first,” said Glimmer, grinning and punching her hand into her palm. 

“Nice!” said Adora, grinning now as well. 

Angella bit her tongue against the deluge of doubts suddenly begging to be spilled. She was still re-learning, from both Adora and her daughter, how to be brave and proactive in the face of danger. Every time she’d gone out with Adora and the other Princesses, it had scared the hell out of her until… she was actually doing it— fighting the Horde, protecting her people, doing her part in the Rebellion once again. She’d never liked violence in any of its forms, but she and Adora made a fine team, and fighting alongside her, as Adora and as She-Ra, was a joy she didn’t expect to have again, as she once had with Micah.

But that nightmare… Try as she might, it was proving difficult to suppress. It cast some of Adora’s more rash actions in fresh, unflattering light that the glow of their new relationship had disguised. There were times when Adora was needlessly reckless, throwing herself into dangerous situations in an almost careless manner, especially when the danger was Angella’s to face. The fear for Adora had always been there, she’d have to have been blind and unfeeling not to fear for the beautiful woman sitting across the table from her, however much love made them feel invincible to each other. But She-Ra wasn’t invincible, and right then, imagining her facing down swaths of horde soldiers, bots, and whatever else they were waiting to unleash made the still seared edges of the wound Micah’s loss had left behind burn again. How cruel the Heavens would be to gift Adora to her, and then strike her down… It was almost more than she felt she could stand. 

Once, after a particularly rough battle defending Salineas when Adora had suffered a great many wounds, Angella felt the beginnings of the fear engulfing her now. It was undefined but heavy, and nearly overtook her, and after they’d gotten to safety, Angella broached the subject with Adora— without really divulging her deep fears, fears about a more permanent loss that she was intimately familiar with, fears she couldn’t even face. Despite what Angella knew had likely been a pathetic bit of weakness and pleading, Adora had claimed her destiny, her need to protect Bright Moon and Etheria, their people… how could Angella fault her for that, when that was one of the things she loved most about her? 

“We should split into three teams, one for each of the two Horde rallying points, and one to stay near Bright Moon in case it’s a ruse.” Glimmer was throwing herself into planning while Angella tried to quiet her fears. Adora involved herself eagerly. 

“I’ll lead a team to one of the rallying points, and Swift Wind can get me out of there and back to Bright Moon if it is a ruse.” Angella caught her eye, and Adora gave a slight nod, as if to say, of course, get us out of there. 

“With Catra and Scorpia still in the Wastes, and apparently too busy to check in today, I’ll have to lead the other team,” said Glimmer, looking entirely too excited. Angella grimaced further, one more person on her list of people she needed to worry about. 

They all commenced to plan, and barring no other immediate concerns, the attack would take place that night. Glimmer, Bow, and Perfuma would be on the other offensive team, while her, Netossa, and Spinnerella would join Adora. Frosta objected strongly to staying behind, but Glimmer put her foot down. In a surprising show of Queenly compromise and tact, Glimmer was able to convince Frosta that she would be the best princess for the job of keeping the castle safe, should an attack actually come, with the help of Mermista and Sea Hawk. Pride momentarily warmed the cold ball of dread at the center of Angella’s stomach as she watched her daughter lead. She had never wanted this, but her daughter… she was suited for it, as long as she kept her hot head in check. 

Once the meeting had ended, nearly everyone left, chatting excitedly about the rare direct attack. But Angella was slow to leave, her mind in a thousand different places. At the front of the group, Adora mimed a fight which garnered laughs and whoops from the princesses around her, but made Angella’s stomach sink. For something that she’d locked away in the back of her mind, her nightmare sure was making itself known, loudly.
“You okay, your majesty?” Angella started and looked to the side. Netossa and Spinnerella were still lingering in the War Room as well. Netossa had spoken, and was looking at Angella like she didn’t really want to be asking her such a personal question, and was regretting doing so. Despite the fact that she and Spinnerella were part of the original Princess Alliance and the only ones who remained of it for a long time, Angella had kept her distance from them both after Micah had died. As she had done with everyone in her life. 

“Yes, thank you,” she said automatically, intending on leaving it at that until, suddenly, that’s not what she wanted. Netossa nodded, and Spinnerella gave her a warm smile as they passed on their way out. “Wait,” she called, though not really knowing what she was going to say. They turned, looks of mild surprise on both faces, and there was an awkward moment while she paused, gathering her thoughts and feelings. Adora had Bow, Glimmer, and the rest of the princesses to speak to, and Angella had… nobody. Not really. It was her own fault. Many people, even Castaspella (after quite a bit of time had passed), had reached out when she’d lost Micah, but Angella had done what she’d always done best, and closed herself off from the rest of the world. Maybe it was time for a change.

“You’re worried about Adora, right?” Netossa asked, her words coated in a thin, barely noticeable layer of self-satisfaction. Spinnerella gave a soft sigh, probably meant to be inaudible, but Angella had good hearing. 

“Yes,” she admitted, nodding slowly, looking down at her hands clasped in front of her. 

“I gotta say, you guys make a strange couple—” 

“Dear!” gasped Spinnerella, clutching her arm. Netossa patted her hand and smiled a little mischievously. 

“But,” she emphasized, “It’s obvious how much you care about each other.”

“How do you two do it? Go into battle together and not be so afraid?” The question left her before she’d even had time to worry about how it would make her look, and her voice was barely above a whisper. The two women shared a look, and then Spinnerella stepped forward.

“Would you like to have tea with us?” she asked. Angella hesitated, so unused to accepting any offers of niceties or friendship. But she knew she needed this, and she suddenly and desperately wanted it, so she nodded. 

“So…” Glimmer started as they walked up to her throne just before the start of the Queen duties she enjoyed the least. “How are things with my mom?” To her credit, she made a great effort to keep her voice light and to keep some of the lingering awkwardness from her face. Mostly. Adora smiled, after all this time still as bemused as ever about the situation.

“They’re…” Adora searched for a word that properly expressed her joy but wouldn’t make Glimmer gag. “Really good,” she finished, a silly grin taking over her face. What an understatement that was. 

“It was nice to see you guys on time for once. Barely,” she flashed a grin at Adora as she took her throne, Adora standing at its side. Sometimes she remained with Glimmer while she took the concerns of Bright Moon’s people, who were finally beginning to trust her as much as Adora as they did with She-Ra. 

“Hey, I know the only reason you and Bow make it to the meetings on time is because he sets your alarm an hour before you have to actually get ready,” she said, poking Glimmer in the arm. She groaned and leaned her head back against the throne, closing her eyes.

“I’ll kill him. I swear I will.” Adora laughed. Bow was very chatty when he was drunk, so Adora knew all sorts of things she maybe shouldn’t. 

“I can share some details about our date the other night if that will make you—”

“No! Hell no, Adora,” she said, starting to laugh. “That time I accidentally walked in on you guys in the library was enough to fuel a few nightmares for the rest of my life.” Heat filled Adora’s cheeks at the memory— she’d finally managed to pull Angella’s attention away from trade agreements and had straddled her lap for all of two minutes before Glimmer had walked in, looking for the very same agreements. Angella didn’t kiss her outside her own bedchambers for a week after that happened.

“We were only kissing,” she said, somewhat indignant. They’d also been in Angella’s personal study in the library, away from any prying eyes. They should have locked the door, but Adora had acted impulsively.

“Yeah, okay, sure, but if I’d walked in ten minutes later...” Glimmer shuddered, but was still smiling. “I can’t wait until you guys are bored of each other, I mean, she’s so annoying and boring already.”

“ I don’t think so,” murmured Adora, sighing and filled with contentment. “I’ve been planning a surprise for her actually, it’s kinda big.” She hadn’t meant to mention it, but she still really wanted to gush about her love life to her best friend, like friends should be able to. Glimmer looked puzzled. 

“You know she doesn’t like surprises,” she said, giving Adora a sideways look that seemed to question her sanity. 

“I know, but… I think she’ll like this one. I’ve been working on it for weeks.”

“Is this what you’ve been going out to the Whispering Woods to do while she’s in meetings?” Glimmer asked with a smirk growing in size as Adora squirmed beside her throne. She’d tried so hard to be sneaky about it, but nothing ever got past Glimmer— it was a miracle she’d been able to hide her true feelings for Angella the year she’d been trapped. 

“Yeah,” Adora admitted, rubbing the back of her neck. Guards were beginning to trickle into the massive marble room, signaling that the audiences were about to start. 

“It’s annoying how much you weirdos love each other. She actually doodled your eyes on some paperwork the other day, like come on,” Glimmer huffed and rolled her eyes, but Adora could tell she wasn’t really annoyed— maybe just slightly baffled. 

Adora only shrugged, struggling to contain the wide grin that threatened to overtake her face. 

Life was good. 

Well… it was where Angella was concerned. Her destiny was still there, waiting, and Light Hope continued to be as unhelpful as ever. As much as she chastised Adora for being unfocused and too concerned with her friends and ‘romantic partner,’ she didn’t seem to want to tell Adora what the point of it all was, even after she’d brought up what they all heard on Mara’s ship. The previous She-Ra’s words were ingrained in her mind, the desperation, the fear— it cut at Adora. 

What had she been so afraid of? What had Adora unknowingly been brought into? Why had Mara cast them all into Despondos? Light Hope shut her down each and every single time she’d asked in the last year and a half , resolute in her robotic request that Adora follow her instruction. To what end? 

But this wasn’t the moment to dwell any longer on the mystery of her destiny, as people were beginning to trickle in. Glimmer sighed, and pulled out the stoic but empathetic face she’d been perfecting, so much like her mother’s, and called the first person forward.

“Queen Angella! How nice of you to join us!” Perfuma was delighted as Netossa and Spinnerella led her into the tea room she hardly ever set foot in anymore. Its pastel walls were decked with flowers and herbs and carried memories she’d rather not think about just then, already so wrapped up in worry about Adora, but Perfuma’s bubbly presence and the calming certainty of Netossa and Spinnerella’s love for one another put her at ease, if only a little. 

“I don’t mean to intrude,” she said, dipping her head in acknowledgment. 

“Come on, Angella, we’ve known you for a while, this is long overdue if you ask me,” Netossa drawled, sitting down on one of the plush cushions surrounding the tea table. 

“I apologize for how this must sound, all these years later, but we regret not being a little more forceful with our support and compassion, when…” Spinnerella looked uncharacteristically awkward as she cast around for the right phrase. It made no difference, Angella knew what she was trying to say, and waved away her need to go on. 

“Please, your continued support for the Rebellion spoke volumes.” The door in her mind behind which Angella had shut Micah was rattling. 

“Even so… I hope we can make up for that now.” Spinnerella smiled as she picked up the teacup Perfuma had placed in front of everyone, which smelt of chamomile. 

“I figured we could all use a little calm before we take the fight to the Horde,” offered Perfuma, with a slight hint of anxiety that hid behind her bold words. Everyone took a sip, letting the hot tea soothe away any topical worries. However, Angella’s remained. 

“So… do you still want to know how we do it?” asked Netossa, looking over her cup at Angella. She nodded. “I’m still afraid. Whenever I watch Spinny getting attacked, my first instinct is to throw myself in front of her.” She looked towards Spinnerella as she spoke, who was smiling into her tea, cheeks bright pink. “But I trust that she’s got it, and if she needed my help she would say so— or at least try to.” 

“I’ve got her back, and she has mine, we’re a team. Equals,” said Spinnerella. Perfuma was trying to hide her grin behind a growing bouquet around her. 

“You make it sound so easy,” Angella sighed, taking another sip. 

“Oh it isn’t! Spinny’s scared me half to death more times than I can count,” said Netossa, laughing. “She’s more competitive than anyone would guess by looking at her.” Spinnerella nudged her lightly. 

“I’m just worried that Adora is going to put herself in real harm's way for me, or for anyone else, and there won’t be anything I can do to stop her.” She paused, swirling the tea around. Perfuma unraveled her flowers and put a hand on Angella’s shoulder. The warmth of the gesture gave her the strength to go on. “When we fight battles together, much of the time it’s wonderful, we do make a good team, but some of the time... it’s like she thinks I’m not capable, that I need protecting, and eventually she’s going to get hurt trying to step in front of a blow for me.”

Perfuma squeezed her shoulder, and Angella placed her hand atop it, smiling at her. As much as it pained her to open up, to make herself so vulnerable, the weight of her worry had begun to lift ever so slightly— it seemed it helped to just say the words out loud, to be heard. 

“Have you talked to Adora about how it’s making you feel?” Spinnerella asked, setting her teacup down. 

“Yes, and… no,” Angella admitted. She felt a lump growing at the back of her throat, but she swallowed more tea to get rid of it. 

“You should tell her. Communication is the most important thing in a relationship, even we had trouble with it at the beginning.” 

“How long has it been now?” Angella asked, a little desperate to steer the conversation away from fear and hard truths. 

“Almost fifteen years,” Netossa said, grinning and wrapping her arm around Spinnerella. 

“Eighteen, if you count the years we were dating,” she added, leaning in to kiss Netossa’s cheek. Angella smiled, memories of their shy beginnings starting to come to the front of her mind. 

“I remember introducing you two, just after I married Micah and the Horde had begun to gain real strength.”

“Best thing that ever happened to me,” boasted Netossa.

“I vaguely remember that, too. My father would come home complaining to my mother and I about how frustrating it was that you guys were so oblivious to each other,” said Perfuma, who had shifted closer to Angella and was now leaning into her with happiness and comradery. It felt so nice to be included, to be touched in casual friendship, that Angella was taken out of the conversation for a moment. She mourned not Micah this time, but what his loss had turned her into. Or rather, what she’d allowed it to. 

“Oh I’m so sorry I was a dumb teenager barely able to draw netting lines together, much less admit I had feelings for such a pretty girl.” Netossa rolled her eyes, but maintained a smile. 

“It was my fault as well, she eventually tried to flirt a couple of times and it went right over my head. And even when I did get the message I could hardly speak,” Spinnerella was blushing, leaning into Netossa’s embrace. 

Angella enjoyed this time with— friends?— how great to be able to think it!— but she missed Adora as she watched the couple stare at each other with what Glimmer would have called “big heart eyes.” 

Instead of dwelling though, she smiled into her tea as she called more memories up. It may have been quite a while ago, but she could perfectly recall how Micah would scheme before every Princess Alliance meeting to get the two to confront what was obviously between them. Reminiscing in this way about him wasn’t nearly as painful, and she giggled at the memory of him finally putting his foot down after they’d all dealt with it for years . 

“Micah had finally had enough one day after a battle that he paired you up for—”

“Oh! I know this story,” blurted Perfuma, giggling as well. “You two were fighting because—”

“We weren’t fighting!” interrupted Netossa.

“Yes we were, dear, I took your last opponent. Go on,” she waved at Perfuma, grinning. 

“And he blew up, saying that he couldn’t take it anymore, and then he did some sort of spell that put up a wall of silence between everyone and the three of you and all my dad could see was him gesturing back and forth between you two—”

“And then I kissed you!” said Spinnerella. 

“Hold up, I definitely kissed you first.”

“No, I did.” Her face was serene with certainty, and it melted Netossa before their eyes. 

Angella was laughing with Perfuma as the two shared a brief kiss. If she was remembering correctly, Spinnerella had kissed Netossa first, and her reaction had been shock and then… well, Micah used a teleportation spell to get them to the castle, and came back to the still ragged battlefield just seconds later to the rest of the Alliance’s equally shocked but happy faces. And then he’d kissed her and they spent the rest of the day with tiny toddler Glimmer, a happy little family. 

“Alright, fine, you win,” murmured Netossa. Perfuma let out a long sigh as she grew flowers around them. 

“Your auras are so strong and bright. And… Queen Angella?”

“Please… just Angella will do.” Perfuma beamed at her. 

“Yours and Adora’s aura is like nothing I’ve ever seen before, the way it’s been combined from your separate auras whenever you’re together.” Angella blushed, and couldn’t meet anyone’s eyes, though they were all on her. “I think you two can make it through anything.”

“Communication,” Spinnerella repeated. Angella met her eyes, and felt hope drown out the worry that had managed to consume her ever since the announcement of such a dangerous head-on attack. 

“Thank you,” she finally said, looking around at them all. 

Though she was now somewhat eager to find Adora and talk, she remained with them for a while longer, happy to have people besides Adora to open up to. 

After taking lunch in her room, Adora tried to get some rest before the attack; there was no telling how long it would take and she wanted to be as ready as possible, not to mention she hadn’t gotten very much sleep the previous night (though it had definitely been worth it). Unfortunately, she was having a hard time falling asleep. Adora knew the reason why— finding sleep had always been hard, but now that she knew what good, restful sleep was when she was beside Angella, it was almost impossible to do it alone. But with the way she was feeling, having wandered into her worries about She-Ra’s purpose, she didn’t want to drag Angella into it. This was her problem, hers to worry about, hers to fix. There was no reason to worry her angel about it, and she knew that if Angella were with her, she would ask her what was wrong until Adora gave in. 

Eventually she drifted into a fitful sleep, waking often with hands balled into fists until she shut her eyes again. She didn’t have any dreams, none that she could remember anyway, until a particularly strange one where she felt a hand grip her wrist just as her body started to whoosh in that weird way dreams sometimes replicate. The grip wasn’t tight, but panic shot through Adora and she tried to yank her hand away, flailing her arms—

“Adora!” called an angel’s voice, high with concern. “It’s me, darling.” 

With a great pull, Adora emerged from sleep, eyes wide and searching. Angella. Her lavender face was warm and open, leaning down over Adora’s bed. 

“I’m sorry Adora, I didn’t mean to wake you, but you were about to roll off your bed.” Smiling, she released Adora’s wrist and straightened up. 

“It’s okay,” she muttered, her body still adjusting to the awakening. She glanced out beyond her terrace— the sky was beginning to bleed with the colors of sunset. “I should have gotten up a while ago, anyways.”

“What’s wrong?” Angella asked, sitting on the side of her bed and taking Adora’s hand. How can she always tell?

“It’s nothing. We should be getting ready, it’s almost time to head out,” she said, making to get up until Angella put a hand firmly on her shoulder, holding her down. “Angella…” she murmured. 

“You fight your best when your mind is clear and untroubled, and I need you to stay safe tonight.” There was something about her velvety voice that piqued Adora’s interest, and she stopped resisting. 

“You came here for a reason,” she guessed, pulling herself up into a sitting position. Angella smiled again and shook her head, but not in disagreement. 

“You first,” she said, caressing the skin of Adora’s cheek. Adora caved beneath her delicate touch.

“I…” she began, unsure what to say. “I’m… worried.” Why was it so hard to say?

“About what, darling?” Angella whispered, moving closer, cupping her face in both hands. 

“About She-Ra and my destiny and what it all means. What if it isn't good? What if Mara was so afraid because She-Ra isn’t… good?” 

Angella’s hands tightened, as did her eyes. There was a fire behind them, one that she’d only seen once, back in the Fright Zone after Adora had decided to take on the Void. 

“Adora,” started Angella, her voice hard and yet still so warm around her name. “You are not just She-Ra. She-Ra may have a destiny that you are a part of, but that does not mean you can’t make your own choices. You are good. Brave. Compassionate.”

Adora didn’t know how to respond. The fire behind Angella’s pink eyes was practically spitting sparks. All of that was easy for her to say, when she didn’t have an unknown destiny hanging over her head. And yet, the knowledge that Angella was here with her, physically but also within her heart, kept Adora from spiraling into that unknown abyss again. She pressed a kiss into Angella’s palm. 

“What would I do without you?” she breathed, though already fully aware of what she would do, even before she had fallen more deeply in love with this beautiful angelic being. Her question had been rhetorical, but something changed behind Angella’s eyes. “Your turn.”

Just then, her bedchamber door opened and Bow marched in, already decked out in armor. 

“It’s go time!” 

Chapter Text

If only she’d not watched Adora sleep for so long… now there was no time to have the conversation she desperately needed to have, and they were headed off into battle. With the help of Adora and a number of maids, she got into her sleek battle armor, designed with flight and agility in mind, and then hurried to the stables. Adora became She-Ra, and for just a moment, Angella forgot her fears as the glowing warrior rose, taller than her, muscles firm and wonderful, eyes like burning sapphire. Before they mounted Swift Wind, Adora took her aside. The others were being teleported to their staging areas, but she and Adora were to survey the area from above, as subtle as possible, so they were flying there. 

“What were you going to tell me?” she asked, her intense gaze electrifying. Angella was still lost in the light of Adora’s eyes, but the sounds of the castle guards marching to their posts in front of the bridge leading to Bright Moon snapped her out of the spell. 

“It’s something I wanted to talk to you about, but I don’t think we have time.”

“We’ll make time,” she insisted, placing her hand beneath Angella’s chin, lifting her gaze. She quite liked having to look up at Adora, it made her feel… protected. And her determination to let Angella have her opportunity… if their situation had not been so urgent, she would have liked to bask in the staggering rush of love. But the last princess had just been teleported away, and the remaining Bright Moon soldiers were emptying from the stables.

“I just need you to remember how much I care for you, Adora. Please,” she pleaded, wrapping her arms tight around Adora’s waist. “Don’t do anything rash or dangerous.”

“We’re about to attack the Horde, Angella,” she said. “That’s rash and dangerous by itself.”

“I know, but… nothing even more rash. I can handle myself, so no unnecessary heroics for me this time, alright? Just… do what you do best.” Adora smiled and Angella’s heart became light, trying to rise through her chest. 

“Of course, my angel,” she whispered, leaning down. Kissing She-Ra was different; she was hot, nearly vibrating with power, and so incredibly strong. When her lips found Angella’s, it was with exhilarating force, though still quite as tender as most of their kisses were. Angella had to work to remember that there were still people around, and as she separated herself from Adora, breathless, she vowed that if they both made it out of this fight unscathed, she was going to request something a little different the next time they made love, something tall and positively hunky. 

“Alright, love, let’s go kick some Horde arse,” Angella said, trying to inject confidence into her words. Adora giggled, a strange noise to come out of this warrior goddess, but she always did whenever Angella cursed. 

“Took the words right out of my mouth.”

Swift Wind flew low and fast over the trees, and according to one of Bow’s tracker pads that Angella was watching closely, they were nearing the Horde’s rallying point. The night was darker than usual; most of the moons were new and thus not shining onto their soon-to-be battlefield. She wondered if it would make any difference to either side, but she hoped it would give them just one more advantage in addition to surprise. Adora was tensed in front of her, scanning the forest below. 

“There,” she said, pointing ahead into a small clearing. Lights were shining dimly in it, and Angella could just make out some activity through the trees. She squeezed Adora’s arm to let her know she saw, and marked the exact location on the tracker pad. “Doesn’t look like they have any surprises. Okay, Swiftie, take us to the others—”

“Adora!” Angella shouted, pointing directly beneath them where a Horde tank had been positioned, its cannon pointing straight at them through the trees. With a grunt, Adora lept from Swift Wind’s back and fell, hard and fast towards the massive weapon. It fired, narrowly missing her, and Angella’s stomach filled with ice and shattered glass. Horde soldiers charged, shooting red bolts of energy at Adora, at Swift Wind, at her. A few caught the steed in his flank, and he whinnied in pain, spiraling the rest of the way to the ground. Angella beat her own wings hard to slow their descent. 

Adora had landed on the top of the tank, and began hacking away at its shaft. Angella made sure Swift was okay after they landed hard, shot up a force field around him, and ran to join Adora as she clicked on her communicator.

“Grayskull team, they must have known we were coming, we’re—ah!” A horde soldier fired at her, missing by mere inches. Fear turned to anger as she threw out a pulse of pink energy at them, throwing them to the ground where they lay still. A large tree blocked her sight on Adora, and the sound of cannon fire and grunts of pain fueled her. “We’re close to the staging area, a bit north.”

“We’re on our way!” said Netossa, already sounding as though she was running. “Spinny, get—” she cut off, and the communicator crackled, then went silent.

“Netossa? Spinnerella?” Angella panicked, but needed to see that Adora was okay before worrying about the others. She made it around the cluster of trees, and the sight beyond nearly brought her to her knees. 

Adora was caught in ropes that sparked with electricity, strung between a large group of Horde soldiers while another held a gun just inches from her head. The cannon’s shaft had been sliced clean off, though it too was still pointing at her, and charging with a green glow. Though the soldiers hadn’t seen Angella yet, Adora did, her piercing, pained eyes meeting Angella’s like a burst of blazing energy. 

With a guttural snarl that scared even her, Angella flew into the small clearing, her energy focused into precise dart-like beams that she shot out rapidly— first the soldier with the gun, the beams catching them in the neck, hands, and face, dropping them in an instant. Then the other soldiers— she pummeled each in turn with blasts of energy until they dropped the ropes, screaming. Adora leapt away from them, her clothes singed through, She-Ra’s skin red and angry— the sight and smell of it turned Angella’s stomach. 

Together, they finished off the soldiers, and just as the last one fell, the cannon was ready. It was like time stopped as it turned to point at her , only a few feet between them. Angella was frozen in place, Adora’s shouts hardly reaching her ears over the sound of the blast beginning somewhere inside the tank—

Something hard and warm crashed into her, sending her careening backwards. A scream was wrenched out of her mouth as she watched Adora slide in front of the blazing green energy. With one last burst of clarity, Angella threw up a forcefield between it and Adora, but the force of it still launched her large form twenty feet away, and blew back onto the tank, destroying it in an explosion of green energy and white-hot fire. 

“Adora!” Angella shouted as she scrambled to her feet. Adora was moving, trying to get up. “Darling please stay still,” she begged as she finally reached her side. The electricity burns were still very red, and the entire left side of She-Ra’s body was bruising, but she was whole. 

“Angella, I’m fine, really—” she said, trying to sit up again. 

“Like hell you are. Why did you do that? I could’ve—”

“I couldn’t watch you get hit with that, no way! I’m She-Ra, I can take a hit.”

“Heavens, Adora,” Angella whimpered, her voice breaking as she knelt down and cradled Adora’s face. For a brief moment, she let herself sink into the relief that Adora was still breathing, until she remembered the others. “Can you walk?” she asked in a voice barely above a whisper. 

“‘Course,” she muttered, and staggered to her feet. Angella watched with pursed lips as she got up as well, shaking slightly. After trying the communicator a couple times, reaching nobody, she took Adora’s hand and led them back to Swift Wind. 

“Adora! I’m so sorry, they must have seen me—” he whinnied, getting to his feet, but his back legs could barely hold him up, and he shook violently. 

“Woah there, Swiftie. Hang on, I’m going to heal you.” She held out her hand, and began to glow bright, blinding. Swift Wind gasped as his wound seemed to stitch itself back together until you could no longer tell he’d been hit with a blast at all, but for a slight red outline beneath his coarse white hair. Adora fell to her knees as her glow subsided, breathing heavily. 

“Darling?” Angella murmured, kneeling beside her. 

“I’m fine, just took a bit out of me. The others, are they okay?”

“I tried to let them know what happened, but something cut off the comms. We should hurry.”

Adora got to her feet, a look of cool determination set on her face. They mounted Swift Wind, and took off back into the night. 

“Netossa, Spinnerella, are you there?” Adora’s voice was strained. Nothing. “Shit! How did the Horde know?”

“Maybe they didn’t. They could have just prepared for anything. It’s not like they were being very subtle about gathering their forces so near to Bright Moon.”

Adora let out a growl. Fortunately, they didn’t have to travel far before hearing sounds of fighting, and the telltale signs that Spinnerella was involved in it. Though the night had been without wind, trees were whipping back and forth all around the small clearing that they’d seen signs of Horde activity in earlier. Swift Wind went straight for it, and the two women slid off his back as soon as he was near enough the ground. 

The scene before them was chaos. Netossa had a large group of Horde soldiers pushed back against the trees, all shouting, taking shots at her which she was deflecting with a flick of a net, though it wouldn’t be long before she was overwhelmed. Spinnerella was at the center of a vortex, catching soldiers in it before spinning them off their feet and into the trees. 

 Angella and Adora joined in after sharing one last look. Working in synchrony, they blasted, cut, punched, and kicked through every Horde soldier in their path. Angella rose into the air so she could flank the soldiers beginning to flee into the forest to get away from Spinnerella’s vortex, and took them out with waves of energy. Her eyes kept darting to Adora, aglow with magic— adrenaline and She-Ra’s power were keeping her agile and powerful as she sliced through the thick crowd of soldiers pushing in on Netossa, but Angella couldn’t help worrying. On any other day, in any other battle before that wretched dream, she might have admired Adora’s beauty in this element, but it was drowned out. She landed back on the ground and watched as Adora was nearly hit with multiple bolts of energy. 

“Angella!” Adora suddenly shouted, abandoning her fight and sprinting straight for her. Angella spun around, coming face to hulking, metal face with a bot the size of two stacked tanks. Before she could even think to act, it slashed out at her with a glint of metal and she fell, a blinding, searing pain taking over all her senses. She fought the sudden and overwhelming urge to give in to darkness— Adora , she would try to fight the wretched bot, Angella needed to stay, to make sure she was okay...

Through tears and utterly helpless, she watched Adora jump and land on its swirling, pivoting head, digging her sword into the crevice where it connected to the body, and slicing straight through the whole thing. Swift Wind flew over and kicked hard, splitting it into two pieces that fell to the ground, sparking and smoking.

Adora fell to her knees at Angella’s side, reaching out with shaking hands. Angella felt cold and pain, nothing else could reach her, except for the expression of pure panic on Adora’s face. 

“Hang on, angel,” she said, voice breaking. She started to glow bright again, eyes burning like a star. Behind her, Angella watched the bot stir again, start to move, to grow, its two halves each becoming their own, full bot, with dangerous whirling blades. She tried to speak, to point, but her body betrayed her and all she could get out was a weak, strangled grunt. 

Angella watched in paralyzed horror as the closer bot moved in and struck Adora, sending her flying into a tree. Chaos reigned as Swift Wind flew around both bots, kicking and shouting while Adora got back to her feet. Her eyes darted from Angella to the bots and back, which is when, despite her desperation in her fight to remain conscious, Angella’s vision began to blur and darken, the pain finally, blissfully subsiding…

***

As She-Ra, pain, panic, and fear all became Adora’s strengths in a fight, clearing her head and focusing her energy— but the sight of Angella cut open and bleeding out onto the forest floor stripped her of all of it. She couldn’t heal her until the bots were dealt with, and how could she if they could just split into new bots? Fuck the Horde! 

Netossa and Spinnerella were almost done with the remaining soldiers, and Swift Wind was mounting futile attacks on the bots. 

“Spinnerella!” she shouted. The purple haired princess spun around, and spotted Angella laying at the feet of one of the bots, which was now turning for Adora again. “Get her away from here!” She nodded and on a strong gale, she flew to Angella, lifting her with another, more gentle gust. Deal with the bots, then save Angella. It’s the only way. 

With a shout of fury, Adora charged the closer one and lunged, but it parried her every swing. With a flash of light, she turned her sword into a rope which she wrapped around its legs and pulled to trip it, sending its massive metal body crashing to the ground, and exposing its more vulnerable underside. Adora lunged again, her sword back to its shape and piercing straight through to where its electronic brain surely was, and released a surge of chaotic energy into it. As the bot twitched its long, pincer-like feet one last time, and stilled for good, she let herself feel grim satisfaction. Swift Wind had finally landed a few good blows on the other bot, and with Netossa’s help, they trapped it so Adora could perform the same killing blow. 

Finally, it was quiet, and Adora scanned the clearing for where Spinnerella had taken Angella, but she couldn’t see them. Forgetting that they had stopped working, she frantically tapped her comm and shouted for Spinnerella. Netossa put a hand on her arm, and squeezed. 

“Follow me, I know how to track her.” Netossa’s eyes were confident and relatively calm, lending some of each to Adora as they started to run. Swift Wind shouted that he was going to scan the area for more soldiers and bots and to use their bond if anything happened. 

Adora followed Netossa through the disrupted trees until they reached another, smaller clearing, where Spinnerella had laid Angella on a patch of soft moss, and seemed to be tending to her wound, hopelessly failing with what little she had to work with. Angella’s eyes were closed, but Adora could see the faintest movement of her chest, rising and falling. She was so pale, and her blood, nearly black in the night, was still pooling beneath her despite Spinnerella’s best efforts. The smell of it...

“Angella,” Adora whimpered, hurrying over and nearly losing She-Ra as she scanned her bloody armor— that fucking bot had sliced right through the strong Etherian metal like it was butter. Knowing she would need it to fuel She-Ra’s power, Adora let anger build and break inside her as she knelt at Angella’s side once again, and this time, gathered her into her arms. 

Netossa joined Spinnerella, wrapping an arm around her as they both watched. Heat and love poured out of Adora and formed into light, wrapping around them both and momentarily blinding her. Focusing her entire being on this, on healing her love, her partner, the world faded away. Adora could feel Angella’s pain and fear as if it were her own, like chilled spikes. Everything went cold and a vast darkness stretched out in front of her. She shouted into it, calling Angella’s name over and over again until finally, something called back. Angella’s love and magic was reaching back out to her, wrapping around her, dispelling the darkness and filling the void with warmth. 

Usually, healing felt like her energy was being leached from her, making her weak and fragile, but this— it felt like Angella was giving back whatever she received with her own energy, bright and warm. 

While it may have felt like an unknowable amount of time, it was likely just seconds that passed as the light faded and Adora could see again. Netossa and Spinnerella were both staring with open-mouthed awe, but Adora only had eyes for Angella. Her wound was gone. Her face, so twisted in pain even in unconsciousness before, was smooth now, and her eyelids were fluttering open. 

“Thank Etheria,” Adora breathed as Angella’s dusty pink eyes finally opened. She pressed her forehead to Angella’s and let relief take her over. 

“You’re alright…” she murmured, beginning to try to move around, then wincing. 

“Don’t move yet, you were hurt pretty badly,” Adora’s voice broke, but it was with a small smile. 

“We’re going to go to the other teams, see if they got the same thing,” said Netossa as she stood. Spinnerella reached out and placed a hand on Adora’s and Angella’s shoulders, giving them both a smile, but also giving Angella a knowing look. Then they were flying away in one of Spinnerella’s vortexes. 

“You scared the shit out of me,” Adora said, laughing softly as the color finally began to come back into Angella’s face.

“Then I suppose we’re even,” she replied, and Adora knew from the wry tone that Angella was feeling better. They stared into each other’s eyes, communicating relief and love without words until the sound of Swift Wind landing nearby stirred them. 

“Do you feel up to standing?” Adora knew they also needed to get back, and though she didn’t want Angella anywhere near more fighting, She-Ra had a duty. If it came to it, she’d have Swift Wind take Angella back to the castle. Adora would strap her to the flying horse if she had to.

“I think so,” she muttered, and Adora stood, holding her hands but letting her support her own weight. Despite the terrifying severity of her injury, of which the only evidence was a faint purple line across her lavender abdomen beneath the shredded armor, she looked solid. “Let’s go.” 

Swift Wind flew them slower than he might have before, eyes constantly scanning the trees below as they made their way to Team Glow’s position. 

“You okay, Swiftie?” She asked, patting the side of his neck. 

“Hell yeah, sacred bond buddy! Just ready to open another can of kick-ass on the Horde scum!” Adora smiled, her spirits returning as she punched the air and echoed his sentiments. Angella’s arms wrapped tighter around her waist, maybe in agreement, Adora couldn’t turn to see her face while they were so close to the enemy. 

A small plume of smoke was rising into the darkness from the clearing where Glimmer, Bow, and Perfuma must have fought in, and Adora tensed again, her veins refilling with adrenaline and a strong surge of power. 

 But as they cleared the trees, she saw it wouldn’t be necessary. Lit by torches and the ever present nighttime light particles that filled the Whispering Woods, she could see that Glimmer was crouched next to a Horde soldier who looked to be tied up with vines while Bow and Perfuma watched her back, both looking worse for wear as Swift Wind touched down beside them. Horde soldiers and pieces of smoking metal littered the clearing.

“We can do this the easy way or the hard way, Horde scum. The hard way involves me teleporting you to the edge of a cliff, and if you don’t tell me where the Horde got their information—” she lit up her hands with energy. “I’ll blast you off the side of it.” 

“You guys okay?” Adora asked, sliding off Swift Wind’s back. She helped Angella down, who was looking at Glimmer with worry and surprise in her eyes. 

“Oh we’re fine, only got ambushed by a bunch of Horde soldiers before we even got to the attack point.” Glimmer’s face was lit with righteous anger.

“So did we,” Adora replied, her own anger surging. “Where are Netossa and Spinnerella?”

“We sent them back to the castle, our comms cut out so we have no idea if they were hit, too. I wanted to go back right away, but—”

“I told you I would teleport you there, Bow, you didn’t need to stay here!” Glimmer snapped, looking at him with annoyance. 

“Yeah, like I was going to leave you out here alone after what happened.” He rolled his eyes, and Glimmer scoffed, returning to the Horde soldier, who was unmasked— an older soldier that Adora didn’t recognize. He showed no fear, and hadn’t said a word or reacted to the conversation. 

“We don’t take prisoners, Glimmer, and we certainly don’t threaten them,” said Angella, stepping forward. 

“I’m tired of them always having the upper hand!” Glimmer shouted, standing up. “I thought we’d had enough of spies and bullshit— I just want to know how they’re doing it!”

“We will find out, but—”

“Can’t you let me have one thing to myself? I’m Queen now, not you.” Adora cringed as she felt the energy around Angella heat. She surreptitiously shifted closer so her arm was brushing against Angella’s, hoping the contact would keep her calm. 

“I was Queen and leader of the Rebellion for many years, Glimmer, I can help—”

“Yeah, well look at all that happened while you were leading it!” 

Even the Horde soldier flinched as the two stared each other down, both lighting up the night with matching auras of pink energy. Bow looked like he was debating whether or not to lay a calming hand on Glimmer’s glowing shoulder, and Perfuma was looking between Angella and Glimmer with her hands over her mouth. As gently as she could, Adora rested her hand on the small of Angella’s back, reaching out to her through the touch with her magic. 

Angella broke first. 

“Fine, Glimmer, do what you will.” Her voice was a mask of calm, one Adora could only see beneath through their bond. But Angella broke that too as she turned to Adora. “We should get back to the castle, help the others if we must.”

Adora nodded, and they got onto Swift Wind. 

As they flew, Adora looked over her shoulder at Angella; she was staring off into the new moons, brow furrowed. 

“You okay?” Adora asked, removing one of her hands from Swift’s mane and placing it on top of Angella’s hands. 

“I’m fine.” Her voice was clipped, definitely not fine, but Adora didn’t push it. They would have time to talk after they made sure Bright Moon was safe. 

And it seemed to be as they neared it. No smoke, no marching Horde soldiers, no bots. Maybe they’d overestimated the Horde. Swift Wind landed near the entrance to the castle, where the rest of the princesses were standing. 

“Hey guys, any trouble?” Adora asked, jumping from Swift Wind’s back. Again, she held out her hand to Angella, but she slid down after her without help, landing somewhat unsteady, but looking calm. Adora wondered when the mask would shatter. 

“No, it’s been quiet all night, a total drag,” Mermista said. “Netossa told us what happened, though, glad you guys are okay.”

“If I’d been there I could’ve—” Frosta mimed punching and kicking with her ice gauntlets. 

“And I never got a chance to defend my one, true love with my expert swordsmanship!” Sea Hawk said, brandishing his sword while Mermista rolled her eyes. 

“Hey Swiftie, mind going around the perimeter of the castle, making sure we’re all good?” Adora suggested. He agreed and took off. 

The night was still young, so they remained with the group, standing watch at the gates along with a group of Bright Moon’s soldiers. Adora kept casting glances over to where Angella was standing, shaping her magic in her hands. Her wings were unfurled and casting shadows across her face from the light of the castle. 

The relationship between Angella and Glimmer had been less strained than before the portal catastrophe, but it seemed like there might be more tension left behind than Adora thought. She worried about how much of it was because of her… but then again, the heat of battle and the frustration of a close call could be to blame, too, or at least she hoped. Adora wished there was something she could do or say, but trying to get between her best friend and her mother, who also happened to be Adora’s lover, was bound to make things worse. 

Just then, Glimmer appeared with Bow, Perfuma, and the Horde soldier who was now struggling to get free from the vines. Adora again glanced over at Angella, whose lips were pursed so tight they were nearly white. Bow didn’t look happy either, but Glimmer seemed pleased with herself as they marched through the doors. She handed the soldier off to a couple of Bright Moon guards and told them to take him to the prison room, which still did not, in any way, resemble a prison. 

“Debrief in the War Room,” she called over her shoulder, and blinked out of existence. Adora approached Bow, who was still frowning. 

“Bow, how could you let her—”

“You think I let her? After you guys left, we argued about it. But she’s our Queen, and you know what? Maybe we can learn something from him.” 

“Bow!” Adora gasped. Angella walked over slowly, her lips still pursed.

“You think it’s better that we kill him? Unarmed?” he asked softly, looking up at her. 

“No.” They stared each other down for a second. But Adora sighed, seeing no other alternative. He may already know too much, and… maybe he could be reasoned with. Tired and unwilling to fight with her friend, Adora let go of her powerful form, shrinking back down so that she was the same height as Bow again. “Whatever.” 

He nodded, but Angella glanced at her, a question in her eyes. Bow and the others started down the long entryway and Adora began to follow, but Angella stopped her. 

“Adora, I don’t like this. It isn’t our way.”

“I know that, but it’s either kill him or let him walk away with knowledge that the Horde could use against us. Besides,” she added, looking down at her clenched hands. “We kept Shadow Weaver prisoner, didn’t we?”

“That was… different. She came to us. She wanted to manipulate you,” Angella said. Adora looked back up at her. A softness that she hadn’t seen since their conversation at sunset spilled onto Angella’s face and into her pink eyes. 

“I…” Adora hesitated, taking Angella’s hand. “I don’t like it either but… Glimmer… I can’t just...” She was having a hard time articulating the kind of pressure she felt when it came to navigating the narrow space between keeping both Angella and Glimmer happy— it hadn’t been tested like this yet. And if Adora was being honest with herself, losing Angella scared her just a bit more than losing Glimmer, which made shame boil in the pit of her stomach. What kind of friend was she? 

“I hate that I’ve put you in this position!” Angella burst, turning away and walking further from the castle entrance. “Maybe I should never have allowed our relationship to develop this way,” she murmured, her voice breaking a few times.

“Angella,” Adora said, striding to her and somewhat roughly turning her back around. “I put myself in this position and I will do it again and again because I love you. And I love Glimmer. Families fight sometimes, but they always come out okay, right?” Angella’s face had moved from shock to guilt as Adora spoke, and was now settled on something like bashfulness. 

“You think of me as your family?” she asked in a quiet voice. Adora was suddenly embarrassed beyond comprehension, and she could feel her cheeks burning hotter than they ever had. She cast her eyes to the ground. Before coming to Bright Moon, Adora hadn’t known much about family, it had been nothing more than an abstract concept, one that she could see, with hindsight, had been at work within her old squadron. But love, commitment, having each other’s backs when things got hard… Apart from Catra, those were things she’d learned here. 

“S-sure, I mean— Bow, Glimmer, the other princesses, and um— yeah, you, too.” Adora admitted, still staring at the ground, wishing she had never said anything. Angella wasn’t responding, only heightening the sense that she’d overstepped or overestimated their relationship. But, she felt Angella’s warm hands on her face, pulling it up to look at her. She was beaming— a shout wouldn’t have been louder than the joy shining from her face. 

“Oh Adora,” she purred, her voice heavy with emotion. “I feel the same of you.” 

Adora knew her own smile must have rivaled Angella’s. Their lips met, and Adora, despite all of the events of the night, felt she could sprout wings herself and fly to the moons. But as much as she wanted to continue…

“Debrief…” she muttered against Angella’s lips, and they each gave a light groan. With great reluctance, they separated but continued to hold hands as they hurried to catch up to the others.

Chapter Text

It was a short debrief, almost everyone was already on the same page about what happened. Even Glimmer showed some genuine concern when Adora relayed what went down with her team, catching her mom’s eyes and holding them. Though the attack had not gone as planned, it could have been worse. Something about the whole thing didn’t sit quite right with Adora though, but she couldn’t put her finger on why, too tired to work her strategic brain any more.

Glimmer dismissed them, and they all dispersed to their bedchambers, forgoing the usual after-battle fun— it was late and everyone was exhausted. Adora walked hand in hand with Angella through the castle halls until she reached her own bedchamber, and turned to the door.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Angella said, pulling Adora back to her with a smile. 

“It’s— we spent last night together. You know, your ‘rules’?” said Adora, doing air quotes with her free hand. Angella looked at her like she’d said something ridiculous. 

“Come on, silly,” she said, laughing lightly as she started walking again, pulling Adora with her. “Allow me to soothe you.” Angella gave her the most incredible pout she’d ever seen, and a wave of desire and happiness washed over her. “We had a difficult battle, you most of all.”

“I don’t know about that…” Adora muttered, the sight of Angella cut open and bleeding flashing in front of her eyes. She reached out and brushed her fingers over the massive gash in Angella’s armor. It terrified her to think how much worse it could’ve been without at least some barrier. 

They’d reached Angella’s bedchamber by the time Adora had finally gotten the image to go away. Angella let go of her hand as they entered, and the last vestiges of the mask she kept on outside those big, heavy doors fell away. Sometimes Adora wished they could just go far, far from Bright Moon, where neither of them had the burdens they carried anymore and they could just… exist together. 

Angella beckoned over her shoulder for Adora to follow her to her massive bathroom, if she could really call it that. Adora felt it was more like a personal spa, with its waterfall-esque shower that could have fit Adora’s entire old squadron, and a “bath” that was more like a small pool. Everything shined with that Bright Moon sheen that nothing else on Etheria had, like it had been polished with magic and silver. 

“Help me out of this ruined thing,” Angella said from beside the bath, steaming water already pouring into it from the waterfall, multicolored soaps and oils being pumped in from the sides. She was beginning to pull her armor off piece by piece. Adora grinned, something low in her belly tugging her on. 

She walked up behind her, and started with the clasps linking the shoulder pieces to the chest piece, placing a light kiss when it pulled away to reveal lavender skin. Angella giggled, and stopped removing pieces herself. After each piece Adora pulled off— and there were many pieces to this set of armor for whatever reason, but Adora couldn’t complain just then— she placed another kiss on the skin beneath. Soon, Angella was down to a bra and underwear set that was much more practical than her usual lacy garments. Adora paused, wrapping her arms around Angella’s waist from behind, pressing her face into the space between her wings, and breathing in the scent of her skin: the slight salt of sweat mixed with what Adora only knew as Angella’s scent— lavender, moonlight, warmth. 

“Did I say you could stop?” Angella chastised with a mock tone of authority, looking over her shoulder at Adora, who smiled. “How am I to bathe with clothes still on?” 

Adora laughed, even now, somewhat nervously. She wondered if she’d ever be used to the intimate privilege of seeing Angella’s beautiful, heavenly naked body. She kinda hoped not. 

She pulled off Angella’s bra slowly, following the fabric with her lips, causing Angella to shiver. With her battleworn hands, she traced the lines of Angella’s body back down, catching on the hem of her underwear, and pulled those off, too. 

Angella turned, letting her wing brush against Adora’s face, tickling her nose. By Etheria . Nope, there was just no getting used to how breathtakingly, heartstoppingly gorgeous she was. 

“Well, this won’t do either, will it?” said Angella, tugging at Adora’s shirt. “Why don’t I help…” she murmured, but instead of pulling the shirt up, Angella tugged her forward, leaned down, and pressed her warm lips to Adora’s, whose breath caught, arms wrapping almost automatically around Angella’s soft waist. “Hmm, I can’t get this off if you don’t keep still, darling.” Angella had pulled away, chuckling lightly. Adora rolled her eyes but removed her arms and stayed still while Angella pulled her shirt off, and let her hands roam over Adora’s skin, so sensitive to her touch, like gentle flames. She was a little surprised after the events of the night that Angella was in this mood, her eyes taking in Adora’s muscled abdomen with a hunger that sent a pulse through her core. 

Finally, she took the rest of Adora’s clothes off and her high ponytail out as well, leaving her feeling vulnerable and slightly chilled. Goosebumps rose on her arms as Angella caressed around one of her nipples with just the tip of her finger, teasing her.

“As tempting as ever… But we should really bathe first.” She turned and stepped down into the steaming water of the large basin set into the floor. First. It wasn’t like she ever doubted they would make love, but the explicit promise sent Adora’s heart racing even though she knew Angella would probably tease her and make her wait as long as possible. Adora sucked in a long breath as her eyes took in the sultry sway of Angella’s hips. “Come,” she beckoned again, flashing Adora a seductive smile over her shoulder. Adora was helpless, unable to resist, and there was no reason to. 

The water was hot, almost a little too hot, but it felt good on her sore muscles. She-Ra could take a beating— she often did— and come out just fine, but that didn’t mean Adora didn’t feel a bit of the pain afterwards, especially when she used her healing power. She allowed herself to sink beneath the surface of the water, only coming up for air when she thought her lungs might burst. Angella looked to have done the same, as her pink hair was slicked back and drenched. 

“I think you’d look very nice with short hair,” she said, running her fingers through Adora’s wet hair as she waded over to Angella, backing her up against the side of the bath. 

“I’ve actually considered it,” she admitted as she reached for the shampoo she and Angella shared whenever they bathed together. “Not sure how She-Ra would look though, when I transform.”

“Whatever you look like, it’s sure to be astonishing as always,” murmured Angella as Adora lathered the shampoo into her purple roots, massaging. Angella sighed and sunk even lower, dragging her lips almost absentmindedly across Adora’s chest. They switched off after Adora finished, and she figured now would probably be the best time to bring up what happened in the clearing with Glimmer, hoping the mutual massaging and soothing water would keep them both calm.

“Do you want to talk about what Glimmer said earlier?” Angella closed her eyes and the serene look she’d been wearing twisted slightly. She didn’t answer right away, and Adora worried that she shouldn’t have brought it up.

“She’s right. I shut down. I allowed the Horde to get a better foothold on Etheria. Maybe, right now at least, we need a tactic that’s a bit different, more… aggressive.” Angella sighed as she rinsed Adora’s hair. 

“I’m still sorry she said that.” The implied blame of Micah’s death… it shook even Adora. But Angella smiled.

“Thank you, love,” she said, kissing Adora’s forehead. “But I’m learning to accept criticisms,” she continued in a bright voice. “Even elderly dogs can learn fresh tricks— isn’t that how the saying goes?” Adora dipped beneath the water to hide her snort, but Angella pulled her back up and splashed water at her. 

“You know, you keep making jokes about your age but won’t tell me what it actually is. I’m beginning to think you’re, like, some wrinkly old lady who keeps casting spells to make herself look younger.”

“You’ve caught me!” she said, playing along in a voice that was colored with exaggerated remorse. “That’s the true reason we can’t spend every night together— when else would I have time to perform the ancient ritual?” 

“Hmmm...” She pretended to consider Angella’s faux-guilty face for a moment. “Still don’t care!” she sang, pulling Angella down into the water with her and catching her lips in a very wet, underwater kiss. But Angella fought her, and when they both breached the surface again, she splashed even more water at Adora while laughing. 

They bickered and bantered while they continued their bath, and Adora was really enjoying this intimacy, so foreign to anything she’d ever experienced in the Horde where showers were five minutes tops and freezing, and everyone kept to themselves unless they felt like being cruel. Now, she had Angella, former Queen of Bright Moon, massaging her. She spent a lot of time working out the knots in the muscles of Adora’s back, and though Adora tried her best with Angella’s, she was no masseuse. Still, she seemed to enjoy it. The difference between this Angella— happy, open (mostly), physically affectionate— and the Queen Angella Adora had met upon her arrival at Bright Moon, or even just six months ago, still shocked her whenever she looked back for even a second. 

As they finally climbed out of the bath, Adora caught sight of the still visible scar on Angella’s stomach. She reached out and traced its raised path, an unnaturally straight line that could have been surgical if it hadn’t been so brutal. Angella shivered and looked down at it, too, sighing. 

“I’m sorry I let that happen,” Adora whispered. Angella made an angry noise in the back of her throat and walked away from her to dry off. Through the remaining steam, Adora stared in mild surprise and shame as Angella wrapped a towel around herself and didn’t look at her. 

“You cannot keep taking responsibility for things that are not your fault nor under your control,” she said, her voice strained and somewhat angry. Adora’s stomach twisted in on itself hearing Angella’s words and wishing they made any difference to how responsible she felt whenever anyone got hurt, but especially Angella. “I fear that someday, that tendency will get you hurt… very hurt,” she whispered, bowing her head and clutching the towel tighter around herself. She looked almost as she had when Glimmer and Bow had been taken prisoner by the Horde— lost and anguished. 

Adora crossed the bathroom, forgetting she was still naked and dripping water, and wrapped her arms around Angella. She tensed, obviously still upset with her, but let out a huff of breath and wrapped her arms around Adora’s neck, twisting a hand into her wet hair, holding her so tight it almost hurt.

“I was so—” Adora choked out, her throat closing around the words as she felt again the terror that almost made her, made She-Ra, useless. “I thought I was going to be too late, that even She-Ra’s magic couldn’t—” Angella rested her lips on Adora’s forehead as she struggled to get her throat to work. “I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you again.”

Angella didn’t say anything, just held Adora even tighter. She wasn’t sure how long they stayed like that, but eventually she began to shiver from the draft getting in through the terrace. Angella grabbed a second towel and began to dry the parts of Adora that were still wet, but Adora was struck by a sudden and almost painful need to express her love, as if it were ready to burst out of her and set fire to the room. 

Her skin began to burn as she threw her arms around Angella’s neck and crushed their lips together, not entirely sure how Angella would react. But there was no mistaking the passion being echoed back to her as Angella dropped the towel and nearly lifted Adora into the air. Her own towel had fallen at some point, and everywhere their skin touched was lit with magic and heat as they twisted together. 

They weren’t going to make it to Angella’s bed, not from the bathroom, but luckily Angella was a woman with extravagant and sometimes unnecessary taste, so there was a relatively large couch in the room that Adora could push Angella down onto. She gasped as she fell back, breaking the contact, but it was only momentary as she pulled Adora down on top of her, continuing their searing kiss with her hand still buried in Adora’s hair, pulling at the roots. 

Though she was close to knowing Angella’s body by heart, her hands roamed the soft lavender flesh like she was feeling it for the first time— slow but urgent, desperately wanting to know it, to find every place Angella could be touched and touch her there. Angella tangled her legs with Adora’s, pinning her in place almost as much as the fingers that were dug into Adora’s back and into her scalp, the pain so sweet. 

Adora felt their magic reaching out, and though she was quite aroused and could feel that Angella was, too, it almost never made itself known this soon. But Adora had rarely felt so fiercely in need of this , Angella’s heat, her love, her touch— like she needed air to breathe. They fell into the dazzling light together, just as Adora’s searching, desperate hand found the hot, silky bliss between Angella’s legs. 

Love you… need you…

Love you more… feel you everywhere… 

Thoughts, emotions, sensations merged between them, and Adora could no longer tell what she was doing or what Angella was doing to her, just that it was euphoric. The universe stretched out before them like this, Angella’s love for her written in the stars, stars she could see and touch and hold in her arms…

***

Absolutely nothing mattered more than the fullness Angella felt inside her— physically of course, but the way her chest no longer felt like there was a hole there, cut into her by loss and grief— she was whole . The light and the magic always brought this bliss to her, but it was the feeling of Adora surrounding her that sealed it all. It was as if Adora had created a place inside herself where Angella could exist, too, sharing in her love, her magic, laying all of their fears and hopes and dreams bare together.

The irresistible rhythm of their joined bodies was beginning to come to a crescendo, and even here in this sublime realm, the carnal pleasures of reality still unraveled her completely. She knew they were one, every atom being shared, but also knew that it was Adora inside her, and that realization flew her to new heights—

The burning tendrils of pleasure sent her gasping out of the light and she called out Adora’s name, the only word her mind knew outside their bond. Adora was calling out Angella’s name as well, shaking and gasping on top of her, and for a moment, she didn’t need their magic to feel one with her darling love, the woman she would do anything for. The fear that had gripped her so fiercely before was gone— only for now, she knew, but this reprieve was very welcome. 

Eventually, they were both spent and Adora pulled her lovely fingers out, leaving Angella feeling empty but wholly satisfied. She collapsed into her, and Angella tightened her arms, leaving no space between them, as if they both missed the oneness and were trying to replicate it on this physical plane. 

Eventually though, even in the afterglow of such brilliant sex, the discomfort of the washroom couch began to make itself known. Gentle as a breeze, Angella gathered Adora in her arms and flew them to her bed without bothering with any of the lights. Adora giggled as Angella set her down, and she was confused as to why until she saw that Adora was trying to untangle a large knot in her wet hair. 

“Sorry about that, love,” she murmured, cheeks warming as she reached over to help, but Adora took the opportunity of their renewed closeness to steal her lips in another kiss. Though this one was not nearly as passionate, it was still lovely and warm and sent fresh waves of desire through her.

“This will take forever to get out,” Adora whined, pulling away, her smile contradicting the grumbled words. 

“Here, let me help.” Angella grinned as she turned Adora over onto her stomach and straddled her thighs. She may have stifled a small gasp, but Adora couldn’t hide the way she shuddered as she must have felt the lingering wetness of Angella’s pussy. Pretending to ignore it, Angella leaned down, purposefully pressing her breasts into Adora’s back as she began to unravel the knot, as well as grinding into Adora’s lovely rear so slowly that it might not even be happening at all. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Adora’s fingers seek purchase on her silk sheets, and Angella couldn’t help but lean down and press a lingering kiss on the side of Adora’s neck. 

“You, uh, having a little trouble back there?” Adora asked, and Angella was very pleased to hear she was nearly breathless. Angella created a real rhythm just as her fingers pulled apart the last bit of the knotted, wet hair, but she kept one hand gripped in it, digging and pulling as she trailed the other hand down Adora’s back. 

“No trouble at all,” Angella whispered in her ear as she squeezed one of Adora’s cheeks, earning her a delightful little gasp. Though she preferred to be the one at Adora’s mercy most of the time, it was uniquely arousing to be so in control, to have Adora pinned beneath her. She could take her time or go as fast as she wanted…

While she teased the inside of Adora’s thighs with slow, inching fingers, Angella traced the scars on Adora’s back with her lips. There was no shortage of the marks— short and long, thin and thick, faint and bold. A story behind every one, some Angella knew now, some she didn’t, some maybe she didn’t want to know— but they all added up to the woman Adora was, what she was willing to do to protect their planet, their people, her… family. Warmth spread in her chest, dousing the cool flame of fear once again.

Beneath her, Adora was shaking, fingers nearly white around Angella’s purple sheets. Her own fingers had finally reached the heavenly satin of Adora’s inner lips, already so wet with arousal that it made her reconsider this slow pace, but Angella knew that if she kept it up, she could have Adora falling apart, begging her within minutes. Maybe she could have both.

She tugged on Adora’s hair, hard enough to pull her head back slightly but not hard enough to hurt.

“What do you want, darling?” She purred into Adora’s ear. She groaned, and buried her face into the pillow. Angella pulled her fingers away, smearing trails of wetness on her trapped thighs, and Adora whined, trying futilely to move her hips back against Angella’s hand, but her weight held Adora down. “You only have to ask,” she said in a sweet voice. 

“Fuck , Angella,” she moaned, pulling her face back out. She swiped her fingers between Adora’s slippering lips, teased for a second, then pulled away again. Adora was whimpering, shaking in desperate anticipation, and Angella nearly gave in. “I need you inside me, please ,” she finally said, her voice wavering the weight of her professed need. And that’s all Angella wanted to hear. 

She thrust two fingers inside, and let out a little moan herself— so warm, so slick, so delicious. She transferred the rhythm of her hips to her hand, and basked in the sounds Adora made, each gasp and moan a treasure. Angella hardly felt more possessive than when she had Adora like this, and part of her— the part not tethered by slight embarrassment— wanted to make that known. 

She pressed her body back down onto Adora’s as she picked up her pace, and latched her lips around Adora’s lovely throat, sucking until she knew she’d left a mark, one that was a symbol of love instead of the myriad of marks that were signs of battle and danger. Angella only wished hers could be a little more permanent.

“You are mine , Adora,” she purred in Adora’s ear, letting the passion ring through. People should not belong to other people but theirs was a bond of mutual giving and taking, a belonging of hearts and souls. 

“Yours…” Adora whimpered, surprising Angella with speech so close to her peak, and absolutely filling her with love and certainty. 

The light embraced her once again and what was Adora’s pleasure was her pleasure, her belonging was Adora’s belonging. They shattered together in almost violent ecstasy, breaking open into the eternity within their light and expanding to fill it. 

It was a while before they gathered themselves back together and allowed the light to fade away. Angella settled next to Adora, who was still breathing heavily on her stomach, and wrapped her arm tight around Adora’s firm torso. Curious, she glanced up at the clock on her wall and nearly gasped. They’d never gotten lost together for so long— it was nearing dawn. She sighed, thinking of the judgment in Glimmer’s eyes if she slept in like she so badly wanted to.

“We should go away for a while,” Adora murmured, shifting her face out from the pillow so Angella could see her still flushed cheeks. 

“You’ve read my mind, darling,” she said, reaching to pull the sheets up around them as they had both sprouted gooseflesh with the touch of the chilled breeze. She would need to break out the curtains soon. “Unfortunately, there’s still a war on.”

“War, schmwar,” she mumbled, rolling onto her side to face Angella. 

“Wow, this from the mighty She-Ra?” she said, smiling. 

“Maybe I’m tired of it,” Adora breathed, nuzzling into Angella’s neck. Her heart faltered at the vulnerable truth of Adora’s words. For so much to be laid on her shoulders… it simply wasn’t fair. 

“We will get through it together, Adora, that I promise.” Angella pressed her lips to Adora’s forehead, sealing her oath. “I love you.”

“Love you more,” she murmured, and Angella could hear that already sleep was taking her into its gentle embrace. Soon, Adora was breathing deeply, her breath warm and a little ticklish against Angella’s neck. She wished sleep would take her, too, but in the silence of the night, the turbulent sounds of her thoughts were amplified without Adora’s words or conscious touch. 

Spinnerella would be disappointed with her— she hadn’t managed to express herself clearly enough. Damn that bot for putting her in the same situation she feared Adora would get herself into! Angella knew she was not innocent either— had she not been so distracted with Adora, the bot wouldn’t have gotten so close to begin with. It felt very much like hypocrisy to deny Adora her own expression of fear and reaction to it that she herself so acutely felt at all times, and not to mention selfish. Adora didn’t speak much about the time Angella had been trapped between realities, and she didn’t blame her, for she rarely spoke of losing Micah. How could she blame this beautiful, brave, and equally love-struck woman for feeling exactly the same way— wanting to keep Angella out of harm's reach? 

And yet… She still felt Adora didn’t quite understand the depth of the pain it would cause Angella to lose her. Even considering the mere idea of it now, as safe and entwined with Adora as she was, she felt tremors of fear and pain shoot down her spine, settling in her stomach like ice. Maybe it was, for a very different reason, foolish to have allowed her feelings to become so wrapped up in someone so determined to see her dangerous destiny through to whatever unknown end awaited her. Micah had not been bound the same way, but he had been little different, always wanting to be in the fight, to protect his people and family. Why did she feel such attraction to these brilliant souls if losing them would cause her so much pain? Was that really the cost of love? 

Angella could not bear to think of it anymore, and so she focused on the warmth of Adora in her arms, the scent of her freshly washed hair, the feel of her scarred, but ever so soft skin…

“Mom!” Glimmer sat up straighter in what was once Angella’s throne, now hers. “What are you doing here?”

“Can’t I visit my daughter every now and then?” She asked as she lifted into the air and flew to Glimmer’s side— using the floating steps was mostly for show, it got tiring after many, many years. 

“Sure, but you rarely have since…” her daughter’s face pinched, and she longed to do what she used to do when Glimmer was upset as a child— grip her little face and sprinkle kisses all around it until Glimmer was laughing and swatting her away. Time flies, as they say, but for Angella, it was like a blink of the eyes. She had allowed her grief to steal time from her daughter, and Angella would never forgive herself for that. 

“Since I returned,” she finished for her. “I’m sorry, Glimmer. I haven’t been the mother I should be, the one you deserve.” 

“Aw, mom, you’re a great mom. It’s just sometimes… you don’t let me make choices for myself, or for Bright Moon. I’m good at this,” she said, laying her hand on the arm of the throne. 

“I know you are, sweetheart. I just worry for you. I know how heavy the weight of a crown can be.”

“There could be a middle ground between you not being involved at all and you trying to make every decision for me,” said Glimmer, spinning Micah’s staff in her hands, seeming frustrated. Angella tilted her head, waiting. “You could be an advisor, if… if you wanted to.”

Angella couldn’t believe what she’d heard, but tried not to let the shock show on her face. This was a real step in the right direction, and Glimmer had suggested it herself— Angella’s heart expanded. 

“I would be honored,” she replied, and Glimmer grinned at her the way she used to. 

“Mom!” Angella hadn’t been able to stop herself from throwing her arms around Glimmer, but her daughter didn’t teleport away. “Okay, okay!” She was laughing and tugging out of Angella’s grip, and things felt a bit like they used to, not perfect, but better. 

“Your majesties!” Juliet, Bright Moon’s General, had entered the throne room, looking excited. “The Horde prisoner is ready to talk.”

“Thank you, general,” said Glimmer, pulling the rest of the way out of Angella’s now slackened grip, and straightening out her cape. Juliet nodded and then left. Glimmer turned back to her. “Are you coming or do you still disapprove?” Angella sighed. 

“I can do both. I may not like it but… I trust you, sweetheart.”

“Thanks mom,” she said, smiling and taking Angella’s hand. “But no mom-talk in front of the prisoner! This could finally be our chance to learn what the Horde is up to.” Glimmer’s voice was brimming with excitement, and for her sake, Angella tried very hard to quash the unease she felt. 

Glimmer teleported them to the prison, currently surrounded by guards, which Angella didn’t think was necessary given the obvious unremarkableness of this soldier. When they entered, he glared at them from his forcefield cell, no longer bound by vines. He was a bit older than the Horde soldiers usually were— lines and hardness of age already beginning to show— but not by much. He still wore his armor, and looked like he hadn’t slept last night. The food that had been provided to him lay untouched at his feet. 

“I’ve been informed that you’re ready to talk to us,” said Glimmer, stepping forward. The soldier nodded, a gleam in his eyes that set Angella on edge. “Okay, then talk.”

“Hordak will be happy to hear how effective his new bots are,” he said, the scowl transforming into a bitter smile. “Your princess friend has been so helpful.”

“Entrapta was sent to Beast Island,” said Glimmer, clenching her fists. “Catra—”

“Maybe Catra lied. Maybe they’re both still working for us. Maybe Catra just likes having a place to sleep and food to eat, and doesn’t care where that is.”

Glimmer grit her teeth, and Angella could feel the angry waves of energy rolling off her. 

“I wasn’t going to use a truth spell, but you can’t be trusted to tell the truth yourself.” She formed a spell in the air, the same Angella remembered Micah using on Adora in the portal reality. The one that had worked to convince her of the truth.

“Go ahead,” he replied, crossing his arms and looking entirely comfortable. His eyes flicked from Glimmer to Angella for just an instant, panic shot through her, sending her heart racing. Angella took an involuntary step back, but the feeling was already gone. Her heart slowed back down, and she shook off the memory, knowing it was likely a reaction to the very mean and callous look about this soldier. She hadn’t seen many Horde soldiers without their masks, but the ones she had seen had not seemed so calculating. 

Glimmer finished forming the spell, and cast it. The soldier closed his eyes, and seemed to struggle for a moment, shaking as the spell took root. But then he laughed. 

“You think Hordak hasn’t prepared us for this? Even your magic has limits against our tech.” Glimmer dispelled the circle of magic and narrowed her eyes. 

“I thought you were ready to talk ,” she spat, taking another step towards the prisoner. 

“I’ve said all I’m going to say.” The scowl was back, and he settled himself on the small cot. 

“Fine. Enjoy imprisonment.” And with that, Glimmer swept from the room. Angella met the soldier’s eyes again, but nothing happened. With an unease she couldn’t explain, she turned and followed Glimmer out. 

“That was useless!” she complained as they walked together through the halls, going in the vague direction of the War Room. “All we know is that Hordak is bitter about losing his best Force Captain. But… she was our enemy.”

“Adora trusts Catra, and she’s done much good for us. What if maybe… she was only mistaken about Entrapta’s fate?”

“She said she was the one to order it, so she could set off the, uh… the portal.” Glimmer threw her a glance as they walked. Angella ignored it, she’d already made peace with Catra’s foolish decision. The woman was intelligent and capable, and from what Adora had told her, abused by Shadow Weaver even more than she had been— some terrible actions were, in her mind, forgivable. “And that Hordak was pissed when he thought Entrapta betrayed him. There’s no way he would try to get Entrapta back…” she trailed off, sounding doubtful. 

“Maybe he found out the truth after Catra left. Or, maybe she was able to find her own way off the island— she always was very resourceful.”

“And went back to the Horde?” Glimmer asked, stopping just before they’d reached the main hallway. Angella paused, too, searching Glimmer’s face, twisted with betrayal and guilt, and wished she could take it all away. Entrapta’s betrayal had been a hard blow to the Rebellion, and Angella knew that her daughter, Bow, and especially Adora all blamed themselves for leaving her behind, even though it had been because they thought her dead. As lightly as she could so as not to seem imposing, Angella laid a hand on Glimmer’s shoulder.

“We don’t know what happened, Glimmer. It's possible Hordak developed this new bot on his own. But I know you’ll always keep trying, and keep fighting.” Glimmer finally smiled, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes.

“Yeah, thanks mom.” She sighed and started walking again. “I have to go write this up.”

She watched as her daughter walked the rest of the way to the War Room, her head held stubbornly high. Micah would be so proud of the woman she’d become, and for just a moment, Angella wished for him to be there, standing beside her as he used to—

Stop that, she chastised herself. Her chest was already tight, tears threatening to build and fall down her face, but she would not allow it. He was gone, and she could not allow the ghost of their love to mar her relationship with Adora as it had already weakened her strength of mind when it came to Adora’s safety. 

But no matter how much she wanted to, Angella could no longer effectively shut him out. His memory and the pain of losing him were now all too present, no doubt due to her growing attachment to the idea of Adora’s permanence in her life. Nothing was guaranteed in a war, and she knew that better than anyone.