Here's an AU idea! AU where Castaspella defected instead of Shadow Weaver; and Catra grew up in Brightmoon and Glimmer grew up a Horde Soldier with Adora
send me an AU and i’ll tell you my headcanons for it (2/15)
The problem is not that Castaspella has always been in her brother’s shadow.
Micah the promised wizard
Micah who would end the war
Micah who married Princess Angella - immortal daughter of Brightmoon
(whose immortality didn’t even impress Cas that much honestly- she was only a year older than Micah. Apparently, you get called immortal from the get-go. Cas really thought they should at least wait so see if she would live past a normal human.)
((Then again maybe the immortal daughter of Brightmoon was just a fancy title - she looked the type. A special princess and a special wizard. What a perfect couple. It made her want to puke.))
The problem wasn’t even that she was said to be to young to partake in the actual fighting - with all her 15 years of age she was more than ready to show some Horde scum what she was made off
The real problem was that there was no actual way for her to ever beat Micah or for her to learn fighting
All of Mystacor was involved in the fighting by now - all but the students.
Students with no teacher - sounded like bullshit.
She was a glorified babysitter to a bunch of snotty kids who could barely levitate a feather in a windy day.
Even Light Spinner, the best wizard in history, her brother’s teacher and Cas personal idol hadn’t been to Mystacor in months. So much so Cas had managed to break into her room and grab her books with no one even noticing.
It was like being invisible.
And since she was going to live with that whether she wanted to or not she was gonna make the most of it.
So she studied alone
Practiced the spells in the books Light Spinner kept
Read and reread her notes until they made sense
Until she could repeat them in her sleep
Until she was better than Micah.
At some point - after a particularly bad attack on Brightmoon Micah left his newborn daughter with her in Mystacor.
“The safest place on Etheria - and the best apprentice on Mystacor”
Cas thought he was full of shit. But Glimmer, her niece, was perhaps the sweetest baby that ever existed. So she agreed.
From then on everything she did she did with Glimmer - on her lap, hanging from her back or when she got the hang of it, levitating by her side giggling.
She was the greatest company Cas could ask for.
Soon she realized just how powerful Glimmer was. The teleportations started with Glimmer being distraught and crying. Cas had probably taken to long to wake up and go check on her because just as she was getting up from bed an armful of baby was in her lap clinging to her.
It was - an experience to get around
Soon Cas started trying to predict Glimmer’s teleportations. Then trying to make her power stronger.
That is until Micah and Angella found out.
It was a whole thing - from she’s to young to Cas didn’t know what she was doing.
they took all the books.
And worst of all they took Glimmer with them.
And she was alone again
She had to get busy so she started studying the war and horde. If she learned enough maybe Micah would let her at least attend meetings in a year.
So she could get away from these walls.
But it seemed no matter what she did Micah and Angella were still to mad. Just saw a stupid little girl who they didn’t have time for.
The anger and solitude grew inside her, rotting and festering.
By no she no longer remember what was the breaking point - only that one night after a particularly nasty fight with her brother she read about the Horde’s possession of the Black Garnet again. And her mind was made
She quickly packed her things - she would slip out before anyone noticed and make her way there. There was no one on this side she would miss.
Or at least that’s what she told herself - but as she found herself in the woods she knew that wasn’t true.
Glimmer’s face kept haunting her dreams. She had to take her with her.
Breaking into Brightmoon was hard but she was a good enough sorcerer by then
In the room slept two girl - her niece with the fluffy pink her like cotton candy and who would grow up to be her biggest ally. Catra. The youngest heir to the Magicats.
Once she was far away from the castle Cas let her self rest for a second. She could make it to the Frightzone by morning. And then it was a fresh start for her and Glimmer.
19 years later - Fright Zone
Glimmer and Adora did everything together as far back as they could both remember.
Adora’s first steps are recorded in a photograph with glimmer’s teleportation shimmers just starting to show up behind her - the next photo has both girls flat on the floor giggling.
In whatever class they would train until they were both equally good at it - spending sometimes twice as long as their teammates perfecting every move.
With Castaspella - glimmer’s aunt - as the keeper of the black garnet they were all the only two students allowed to have a try at magic.
Glimmer was a natural
Adora once burned half of her hair off and has been trying to grow out her bangs since.
Cas still always has a smile for both girls - her girls.
She would never want either of them to feel as she did in childhood - second best. So Adora isn’t great at spells - but her emotional magic is amazing and it’s hard for people not to fall immediately in love with the blonde.
And Glimmer is perhaps as powerful as her father was.
She’s sure Angella still blames her for his death- she tried to stop him but Micah never seemed to listen to his little sister. Much less after the change of side.
But Glimmer grew a happy child despite this - knowing full well her place in Etheria. And wishing to one day take Brightmoon and it’s throne for herself.
19 years later - Brightmoon
Catra grew up with a missing piece in her life.
From the moment she could understand anything she knew what had been stolen from her and from her adoptive Brightmoon - and she was determined to have it back.
A princess in blood in her own right she was supposed to form a bond with the Princess Heir of Brightmoon, protect her and advise her. Be her second shadow.
But Princess Glimmer had been stolen from her crib as an infant by the wicked Horde.
And so Catra grew up alone. Wandering the cold walls of the castle. Studying and learning how to fight so she could someday defend Brightmoon and - were she lucky - Glimmer.
The only moments she had contact with other people were at dinner - Queen Angella, her godmother, and Light Spinner, her teacher.
They ate in silence for the most part - a few questions here and there between courses.
Other than that she spoke to Light Spinner in classes and once a month had an afternoon with Queen Angella learning about the war.
Which is a very long way to explain why she was currently climbing down a rope out of her window.
You see the past couple of years Catra had been sneaking out to go the village. Laugh and talk with the kids her age- play a few games in the fair nights or have a drink in the pub.
It’s where she met her best friend - Bow. The best archer in town. The two couldn’t be more different from each other. But they both refused to talk about their past - so they got along. Learned to respect the parts of each other the other kept hidden and cherish the ones they brought to the light.
All was great really - until one-day Catra wanted to explore more of the woods.
She had always look out to them from her room. The room that would have been Glimmers.
Plus Bow had grown up in those woods- knew them better than the back of his hand. What problem could they fun into?
The answer to that? Horde Soldiers.
Two of them too - because her night couldn’t get better.
One of them seemed really focused on this cool sword on the floor and the other was looking around and complaining they should go back. But it was dark and Catra couldn’t quite see either of them.
That is until the sword started to glow - illuminating the blonde girl first and them making Glimmer’s hair shimmer. Pink and purple with glittering like ground up diamonds.
“It’s her” She whispered to Bow who was currently passing through the five stages of grief and mumbling how he should have never have agreed to come here.
“Bow it’s her” she repeated her eyes and smile widening. “Wh-” before he could finish Catra was moving into the clearing
“Princess Glimmer I’ve found you - I’m here to bring you home”
“Who the fuck-”
“Glimmer move”
Before Catra could respond the other- about her hight but instead of skinny she was lean but all muscle - was swinging the sword at her. She jumped back just in time and Bow seemed to get the memo and jumped from the trees.
And at that Catra was focused “Horde Soldier - that’s first one’s tec. Release it. And let the princess go.”
“Who are you calling a princess freak?” Glimmer started to pull out a green electric thing but just as she made to move she was tied up with one of Bow’s rope arrows
Catra gasped “Bow!”
“She was going to kill us!”
“STILL CAN!”
“She’s your princess!”
“Hey, Kitty Kat” The other one was back - seemingly angrier with he developments swinging the sword wildly at Catra.
“Bow protect the princess!”
“Who’s protecting me from her?!” Bow asked his voice cracking slightly as he tried to take Glimmer’s taser from her.
Catra’s not sure how it happens. But after a while Glimmer and the Horde Soldier (who they learned is called Adora) are tied up.
Catra and Bow are just both kinda lying on the floor catching up on their breath for now.
But then Catra sits up exited “Bow can you believe - Queen Angella is going to be so happy. I can’t believe I’m going to be the one to bring Princess Glimmer back”
“How do you even know it’s her?” He asked not moving from her possession.
“Oh- uhm” Right Catra never told him. “I-”
“She’s the Magicat Dimwit” Glimmer replied from her place leaning again a tree - Catra had made sure she was comfortable.
“Wait- really?” Bow asked now his own eyes wide “No way!”
“She has cat ears what do you mean you didn’t know?!” She seemed annoyed. This was not how Catra had hoped to meet her oldest friend.
Bla Bla gigantic bug
Bla Bla Glimmer teleports them to safety from the First One’s ruins.
Bla Bla Adora and Glimmer trust Catra and Bow then - (plus they need to find out what’s up with this She ra business anyways.)
So they find themselves in Brightmoon - just for a little while, they tell themselves. Just until Adora can control her powers, and in the meantime, Glimmer can learn everything about it so she can take it over when they return.
But days become weeks, and weeks become months. And her aunt is great but having a mom is quite nice too.
And Catra grows on her - with her blushing cheeks and honest smile whenever Glimmer pays her attention.
HEY I saw your Semblance stuff years ago, never forgot about it but was never sure how to find it again... then I randomly stumbled upon it today and I was so happy! I wanted to know, how did it turn out?
Hey, good to know someone remembers it! :’D Well I was doing this project as something to put into my portfolio that has the same theme. I didn’t really draw anything new since I posted those drawings. BUT I do wanna print this stuff into a small zine/artbook thing someday, maybe draw a few more of those tree people too :) I started sketching out a cover too. (For those who don’t know about this, you can check it out HERE)
For gender neutral term for succubus/incubus, I've been using foocubus, not only to refer to NBs, but to binary foocubi too, because of the whole sexist connotations of the root. The reason I've used foocubi is not just as a reference to Nethack (where foo was used as a stand-in, a usual thing in programming), but also because it sounds a little like fuk u bus.
Haha, yeah, people have mentioned the “fuk” sound being appealing to them before. Thanks for the input!
