First Times For Everything (ch1)

Early release for my $10+ patrons!!

Here we are with another Catradora fic!! Yes, I'm basically rewinding, since my first fic Just Us dealt with present-time season1 Catradora, and then The Edge Of Greatness rewound to pre-series Catradora, and now this is... well it's literally their first meeting as little kids (or at least, what I imagine their first meeting to have been).

This story is going to consist of multiple, but shorter chapters. The first few will deal with Catra and Adora when they are very young, about 5 or 6, then there will be time skips in future chapters where they'll get older.

The idea behind the events of this story is "first times" so for example, "first meeting" in this chapter. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra and the Princesses of Power.

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													First Times For Everything

												Chapter 1. The Girl In The Shadows

Adora's been here at the Fright Zone for as long as she can remember. And considering she's only 5 and a quarter years old, it hasn't been too long.

Only recently has Shadow-Weaver allowed her to start meeting some of the other children who live here. And even though some of the other kids are a bit older than Adora, Shadow-Weaver had assured her time and again that Adora would be one to succeed in her eventual training for Force Cadet.

But for now, she is simply here to meet her fellow future cadets in order to start forming bonds.

In spite of the Fright Zone's many off-limits areas, it is a very large place, and the base camp where the Horde soldiers are trained is large enough to accommodate even the most adventurous of children.

Shadow-Weaver and several other higher-up adults had arranged to have all of the children come together in a spacious area where they could converse, play, and begin socializing with their future trainees.

Adora stares wide-eyed at the dozens of other kids. She's never seen this many before in one place. There are all different kinds of children here. Some with scales, some with fur, and some with skin like her.

Adora already sees a couple of children she recognizes. With a toothy grin, she waves and calls out to them.

"Hey, Kyle! Rogelio!" Adora dashes over to them, waving excitably.

Rogelio taps Kyle with his stubby green tail to get his attention. Kyle stumbles and turns around.

"What? You mean me?"

"Yes, silly!" Adora giggles. "What other Kyle is there?"

"I dunno. I'm just surprised someone remembered my name."

"Well, I remembered," Adora says proudly. It's then she realizes there's another child with them there, a girl she's never seen before. "Hi! My name's Adora. What's yours?"

The other girl has dark thick hair and a matching toothy grin.

"Name's Lohnie!" she says. "First time I've seen you around here!"

"Yeah. Shadow-Weaver didn't always let me out a lot cuz she was worried I could get hurt. But I wanted to show her I'd be fine!" Adora puffs up her chest proudly, and the other three smile.

All around the area, plenty of other children are already laughing and playing together too. Adora looks around, excited to see so many kids all in one place. She wants to be friends with all of them.

But that's when her eyes catch sight of one kid huddled up in the shadows at the corner of the room.

They're wearing somewhat darker clothes, so they blend in pretty easily. They're huddled up with their knees to their chest and their face buried in their arms. Anyone who runs by doesn't seem to notice that kid, or if they do, they never stop to talk with them.

Adora can't stop looking though. She begins wandering away from the other three kids toward the child in the shadows. Kyle's timid voice stops her.

"H-Hey, where're you going?"

Adora doesn't look back. She just keeps staring at the other kid, as if looking away might make them vanish into the darkness.

"That kid... They're all alone..."

The others look up to follow her line of sight. Lohnie is the one who speaks up.

"Oh, forget it. That girl is just sad and mean to everyone. All she does when you go near her is like... hiss at you or something weird! She wants to be alone, so let her."

"What?" Adora frowns. "There's no way she wants to be alone. Not when everyone else is out here having so much fun. I'm gonna go talk to her."

"Don't!" Lohnie warns. "She bites people, and claws 'em too!"

"I'll be okay. I just wanna talk." Adora waves to the three of them before scampering off across the room.

If she hadn't spotted that girl before, she might never have noticed her at all. She'd found a really good spot and a dark shadow to hide in, and she isn't moving at all.

Adora leaves the rowdier play area behind and approaches the girl in the shadows. She walks with slow, quiet shoes, and notices right away that the other girl is barefoot. She has longer toe nails that look more like claws, and the same is true for the nails on her fingers.

Adora can also see a soft furry tail wrapped around the other girl's knees. Her hair is thick and messy and wild, and when Adora gets a few feet away from her, she sees two big fuzzy ears twitch and shoot up.

"Hi," Adora says. "What-"

"Kkhhhhh!" Immediately, the other girl lifts her freckled face and lets out a big loud hiss. Her ears go flat and her tail puffs up and starts to swish.

Adora notices her eyes right away. She's never seen someone with two different colored eyes before. She thinks they're really cool and really pretty.

"Sorry," she says even more softly. "Does it hurt your ears if people talk too loud?"

The other girl's eyes widen, and her ears perk up again for a second before drooping once again.

Adora guesses she was right.

"Sorry. I'll talk quieter. Is it okay if I sit with you?" She moves a step closer.

But the other girl rounds on her and spits again, showing her fangs, and this time she even lashes out one hand, swiping a warning at the air with her claws.

Adora freezes in her spot. She doesn't go any closer, but she doesn't run away either. She knows this girl is trying to frighten her off, but not because she's angry. She looks more scared than anything.

So Adora just sits down where she is, keeping a good three feet or so between them. The other girl makes a low grumbling sound like the growling of a war machine.

But Adora isn't frightened. She's just curious.

"What's that noise you're making? It's funny!"

The other girl glares at her and hisses again. Adora laughs again.

"That one too! I've never heard anything like it before!"

But the girl with the tail just snorts and curls in more tightly on herself, then slides an inch farther away from her. Adora's smile fades as she realizes something.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to sound like I was making fun of you... and I bet you don't like having to make those sounds either, right? Cuz they mean you're scared."

The girl growls again, lifting her head up sharply.

"I'm not scared!"

Her voice is half-squeak and half-shout. Her fur and hair fluff up a bit, and her cheeks puff up into a pout.

Adora knows she's still trying to scare her off.

But Adora can't be scared of her. Not when this girl looks so cute. Adora just grins another big toothy smile, bigger and toothier than before.

"Hey, you talked!"

The other girl snarls and presses back against the wall, sinking more deeply into the shadows. But Adora scooches in a little closer.

"Hi, Not Scared. My name's Adora." She offers out her hand and waits patiently. She can see the other girl's hand twitch, and the claws seem to get a little longer. She grumbles again.

Adora chuckles. "I'm just joking! I know that's not your real name. What is it then?"

Slowly, the claws shrink back again, but she still doesn't reach for Adora's hand. The girl makes more grumbling and whining sounds to herself for a moment. Her different-colored eyes keep flashing back to Adora's hand, then away, and then back again.

Adora makes it clear she isn't leaving. She just smiles and waits.

Finally, the other girl cracks, and mumbles an answer.

"Catra..."

Adora's big smile only gets bigger.

"That's a really nice name! I like it!"

Catra's mumbling and grumbling pauses for a second then. Adora guesses no one's ever said they like her name before. She moves a tiny bit closer, and this time Catra doesn't move away.

"So," she says gently. "Where did you come from? Did you have parents? Oh, b-but you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to! I was an orphan and Shadow-Weaver saved me."

Adora can't be sure, but she thinks she sees Catra flinch at the mention of the sorceress. But Catra avoids that topic. She raises her face slightly, and one ear flicks.

"Or... phan...?"

"Yeah. It means you have no parents. Is that how it is with you?"

Catra doesn't say anything for a minute. Adora waits nervously, but she's at least glad the other girl hasn't chased her off or yelled at her to go away. Finally, Catra gives a small, tired answer.

"I guess so..."

Adora's smile remains, even if it's a little sad now. She moves even closer to the other girl.

"Sorry to hear that. But it's okay now. Cuz Shadow-Weaver and everyone else here at the Horde is gonna take care of us! And we'll take care of each other, too. I'll look out for you, and you could look out for me!"

Adora offers her hand again.

Catra tenses up and hugs her knees closer to her chest. Adora can see the fur on her tail fluffing up again as it starts to sway back and forth.

But there's no growling sound this time, and no hissing either. Catra's multi-colored eyes flash up to Adora and meet her gaze fully for the first time.

Adora thinks they're pretty, like blue and yellow crystals. Her smile gets bigger.

Catra's eyes move down to the upturned hand waiting in between them. She looks wary, cautious, distrusting.

Adora's seen all of those things in the adults before, but never in another kid. It makes her feel bad for Catra. It makes her want to help and protect her.

She waits for an answer. Even after another minute, she doesn't give up. She doesn't get any closer, because she doesn't want to make Catra feel trapped. But she doesn't leave either. She will if Catra asks her to, but she hasn't yet.

It takes a while longer, to the point where Adora's arm is starting to tingle from holding it out for so long.

But Catra's fingers eventually twitch. Her eyes scan Adora again as she gradually lets go of her knees, unraveling her defensive posture just a little. She reaches out slowly, as if expecting Adora might lash out at her, or hurt her, or withdraw her offered hand.

But Adora would never dream of doing anything like that. She wants to help. She wants to be her friend. More than anything.

Catra keeps looking up at Adora's face, then back down to her hand. Her ears are drooping and nervous, as if she isn't sure if she should actually be touching her. Her fingers with the sharp little claws tremble in midair as she reaches for her.

Adora holds herself back from reaching out to touch her first. She wants Catra to make the first contact.

So she waits and waits, until Catra has finally decided there's no deceit in her offer. Her sharp fingertips brush against Adora's palm. Catra makes a fist and curls her claws in right away, scared she might hurt her.

Adora doesn't want her to pull away.

"It's okay," she says kindly. "You can hold my hand."

Catra looks up at her like a frightened animal. But Adora's eyes are patient and calm beyond her years.

Catra, who's been trembling all this time, finally feels the shaking stop. This girl is different from the others who've taunted and hurt her.

Other kids had been mean to Catra and had forced her to lash out in defense. Sometimes she'd end up hurting them and she'd be the one to get in trouble for it. The adults called her "hostile," and "disobedient." The sorceress called Shadow-Weaver had said some very frightening things to her, too.

It made Catra angrier and more terrified each time.

And when she'd been brought here today, to this new area of the Fright Zone without being told why, she thought for sure they were going to hurt her more, or put her in a cage, or throw her outside to die.

She'd almost wished they would've.

But now...

Now she's glad they didn't.

There's just something about this blonde girl that makes Catra feel... safe. She's never trusted anyone before, but maybe this girl could be the first.

So she gathers up those last few shreds of trust she can feel drifting aimlessly in the bottom of her heart and opens her hand to rest it in hers.

And Adora just smiles and smiles. She's never smiled so much in her entire life. Her face hurts.

"Heehee! Your claws tickle!" She closes her hand around Catra's and gives a gentle little squeeze. It almost feels like Catra is going to pull away for a second though. So Adora loosens her grip to let her if she wants to.

It's the first time anyone's ever done that for Catra either. Usually people, mainly Shadow-Weaver, would grab her hand and pull her around to places she didn't want to go. And if Catra tried to pull away, she'd only squeeze her more tightly, sometimes until it hurt.

But this girl...

This girl is different.

Catra sniffles once, and Adora doesn't miss it. She gets worried right away.

"H-Hey, are you okay? Is something wrong?"

Catra shakes her head, her mane of hair ruffled by the movement. This time she's the one who moves closer, if only a little.

Adora's worry turns back into excitement. She waits eagerly until Catra has come a little closer.

And finally Adora can't hold herself back any longer. She pulls Catra into a hug, wrapping both arms around her back with a gleeful laugh.

"Catra! Let's be friends! I wanna be friends!"

Catra is stiff at the sudden new form of contact. She's never done this before either. No one has ever held her like this, and she's certainly never done it to someone else. She freezes up, almost expecting it to hurt somehow.

But... it doesn't. It doesn't hurt.

In fact, it feels... nice. Warm. Soft. Safe. Things she's never felt all at once before, or as much.

A small sound comes out of her mouth, something like a whimper, but not the scared kind. Slowly, she wraps her arms around Adora too, and her tail slides up to curl around her waist.

Adora giggles again.

Catra likes it. She likes it a lot. The sound of her laugh, and her voice.

"So?" Adora moves back to look at her eyes again, but doesn't let go of her. "Is that okay? Can we be friends, Catra?"

Catra blinks because her eyes are starting to feel stingy. She nods, then quickly hugs herself close to Adora again. She really likes this feeling. And she likes Adora's scent too.

Adora giggles more.

"I'm so happy, Catra! I'm so glad I found you! You can always come to me if you need anything, okay?" Adora feels the other girl's grip tighten. She seems to really like the hug. Adora gleefully obliges and holds her tighter too. "Hey, Catra? Do you remember my name?"

And for a split second Catra is nervous again. Nervous she might have forgotten, or might answer incorrectly and get scolded, or offend her and make her mad...

But those feelings fade quickly. Something softer and warmer settles in instead. The answer comes to her as if she'd known it all her life.

"Adora..."

And Adora squeals.

"Yes! Thank you, Catra!"

Catra burrows more deeply into Adora's shoulder. Her tail starts to tap gently against Adora's side, and her ears slowly begin to lift up comfortably. She feels something bubbling in her stomach, something she's never felt before.

Normally she would've been scared. But she isn't now. Not with Adora here.

The feeling rises up in her chest. It's fuzzy and strange, and as she breathes, a humming sort of sound starts to form in her throat.

Adora hears it too.

"Hey," she grins. "Catra, are you purring?"

Catra isn't sure if that's the word. But unlike the growls that sounded like war machine engines, this sensation is like the rumbling of an idle skiff cruising through the air.

She likes it. She likes her.

Catra responds by purring a little harder, getting the hang of this new ability, this new feeling.

Adora giggles again.

"I love it! This is my favorite noise you make, Catra. I hope you can make this one more than the others from now on."

"Mm..." Catra nuzzles closer and closes her eyes for a moment. She takes in Adora's scent and leaves her own on her. She wants everyone to know that Adora is hers now.

After a moment, Adora eases back, but doesn't let go of her hands.

"C'mon. Let's go play, Catra!"

And normally, Catra would never play. She'd just sit and watch and only act if someone else jumped on her and forced her to move.

But this time it's different. She stands up with Adora, keeping her hand on hers. Adora smiles brightly, and Catra feels her own lips curling up as well. When Adora shows her toothy smile, Catra reveals hers too, fangs and all.

Adora hugs her again.

"I love your smile, Catra! I wanna keep seeing it forever!"

So Catra does her best. She follows Adora around for the rest of the day, mostly just listening to her talk. Adora even asks the guards to move Catra's bedroom so she could share with Adora and the other kids now.

Adora doesn't let go of her new friend all day.

All the while their hands stay together.

And all the while, Catra never stops purring and never stops smiling.

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A/N: Okay this chapter wasn't just "first meeting" but also "first time Catra purrs/Adora hears her purr." That was mainly what I was after, and I just figured it would've been at their first meeting anyway.

I imagine baby Catra didn't talk a lot at first, so you'll see her being rather taciturn in these first couple chapters.