1858/Revelations of Ridculousness

Revelations of Ridculousness
Date of Scene:	13 August 2024
Location:	Dorms #2
Synopsis:	Adora goes to Rashmi for a chat! It's a fairly in depth one, with a bit of lightheartedness in the end!
Cast of Characters:	Adora Rainbowfist, Rashmi Terios

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Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Knowing who Rashmi is had meant that Adora could finally do that talk with her that had been suggested by Hinoiri a week ago. A question that Adora was, admittedly, hesitant to ask, because it might confirm that she did, in fact, abandon Catra. Something she would never have done willingly or intentionally except that she kind of did when Catra refused to go with her.

...But that's because Catra was being a dummy, right?

Ugh. Childhood friendship is complicated. And so Adora was now waiting! ... After a brief chat with Rashmi asking to talk to her, they'd agreed to meet up in one of their dorm rooms, which Adora opted for Rashmi's because honestly her own dorm room...while kind of better now that she'd talked with Makoto, was still a little bit weird and uncomfortable to her.

And so Adora is kind of waiting outside of Adora's dorm room, after knocking, pacing while she tried to think of the best way to even ask the question because so much of it was so complicated and so much had happened so quickly back then she wasn't even sure if she was remembering everything correctly.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Be right there~!" comes the call from the other side of the door... Which then opens up into one of the few *triple* dorms in the building, with a big shared closet and three bunkbed-over-desk setups.

And... What's that *smell?* is there *cooking* happening in a bedroom that has exactly zero room for kitchen appliances?!

Rashmi herself is bright-eyed and cheerful, in a light charcoal-gray skirt and summerweight green blouse. "C'mon in, c'mon in!" The middle bed's mine, it's under the window. Bed or chair, you pick!"

A glance shows that there is a piece of paper duct-taped to the *outside* of the window, and...

If Adora's magically-enhanced Japanese reading lessons are taking, it seems to have 'KNOCK FIRST, PLEASE' written on it, facing the outside?

...Is that an *issue?*

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
If there's one thing that easily makes Adora happy, it's food, so once invited in, Adora steps in with closed eyes, sniffing at the air. She's definitely drooling the tiniest bit there. "Mmm. That smells delicious!" Adora says, some of the nerves that had been there before coming into the room melting away at that.

The 'Knock First, Please' note is ... certainly something, which Adora takes note of. Flying people maybe? Or maybe Rashmi has her own Catra who could just randomly show up at any time from any direction!

Bed or chair, hm. Adora looks up at the bunk bed, buuuut opts for the safe option by going to the chair. "It's got to get pretty busy in here with three roommates." Adora comments idly as she sits down on the chair. "...And flying visitors."

She kind of shifts in the chair, still a bit anxious about the talk. It had been so much talking recently and so little of it was tactical or fighting related or anything and frankly it was a little weird. "So uhm. ... H...how well did you know the past Adora? And uhm. Like. What all happened on our world and stuff?" Adora asks curiously as she tries to peek towards wherever the food smell was coming from.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
As Adora takes the chair, Rashmi opens up her third of the closet, and pushes her clothes aside to reveal a rice cooker that *just* manages to beep right as she's reaching for disposable bowls. When she pops the lid, the smell of curried chicken rice and vegetables fills up the room in a heavenly cloud of steam, as she scoops a heaping mound into one bowl, and just as much in the other, clearly assuming Adora's appetite is close to her own.

She hands Adora a bowl and a soup spoon, then takes her share up to the bed, leaning back and cracking the window open to let the smell escape before it outstays its welcome. "So... Sort of well? I liked her, and I really, really wanted for her to feel better, but..."

She trails off, tapping on the edge of her bowl as she considers her words. "I can understand why she was so sad, and why it was hard to be anything else. I didn't know about the portal thing, but... I know a lot of stuff I don't know if you really want to know, because it's stuff you haven't even *done* yet. Which is weirder, honestly... Because there's the chance that you-you, who can't understand *why* Future You might do some of the stuff they did, decide *not* to."

Shaking her head, she applies herself to her meal. "But I'd call you a friend. You-you, because everybody deserves friends and I have a pretty decent idea what you're like when you're not thrown off your game. And that's generally good enough for me, y'know?"

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"Ooooh." Adora comments as Rashmi opens the closet. "That's clever..." She might have to do similar once she sorts through the clothing. Because she still basically only wears two outfits. Her usual Horde uniform, and the school uniform, so she has plenty of space! ... That and the other Adora was like an inch taller than her so some of the fits were a bit awkward. "And you can cook things in that little machine? Interesting!" Adora comments, hopping out of the chair and moving over to examine the rice cooker, even as she's handed the bowl. Which she carefully balances in one hand while looking at the rice cooker.

Luckily she has just enough common sense not to mess with it and burn whatever leftovers there might be.
Once the conversation gets a bit more on track though, she does return to her chair and takes a couple bites of her curried chicken rice. "Mmmm. Delicious..." And so many flavors. Gosh. "...I think I can kind of understand why she didn't feel well though. I read... a couple of entries in her journal, found a letter I'd been kind of thinking on writing. Which is really weird to find but anyway." She shakes her head. "I kind of decided to stop reading after that, though. It felt wrong even if it was technically my journal? ...The entire situation is weird."

She gives a soft exhale, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Well... basically... uh. It was suggested by someone else who apparently knew me -- Hinoiri -- that uh. Talking to you about something might be helpful to... well, help me understand some things better. It's been like a year since that happened so I'm not even sure if I'm remembering right or not or if it's kind of been messed up because of all the fighting and stuff between me and Catra since, but uhm." She takes another bite.

"...Basically. Hinoiri told me that uhm. Ugh let me start with the story of what happened first so maybe there's a little more context. Catra and I grew up together, we were always friends and spent most of our time together. Catra even slept at the base of my bunk most nights... it was really nice. We even named each other... we were so close growing up, though ... Shadow Weaver always treated Catra awfully. ...Anyway, Catra and I had basically just finished our Horde training and I was promoted to Force Captain and the two of us had ended up going out into the forest on a skimmer -- kind of a little flying machine -- and I ended up falling off the skimmer and we got separated for a while. It's when I met Bow and Glimmer and also saw some of the awful stuff that the Horde was doing as well as finding the sword that lets me turn into She-Ra. And then I kind of was swept up into a bunch of stuff and ended up meeting the rebellion leadership and some other stuff so I guess I was probably MIA for a while." ...Catra was probably worried, huh?

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"And ended up meeting Catra at a battle I ended up at, we talked a bit... I basically told her about what I learned and how I figured out that the Horde was actually called the /Evil Horde/ by everyone else and that actually they were doing pretty awful things and most of the things that we'd been taught growing up was kind of a lie and that Catra should come with me and then we could make things right and she..."

Adora pauses, both hands wrapping around the bowl in a somewhat self-soothing gesture. "Basically told me she already knew all that. That she thought I already knew and that basically I was crazy for going off with some people I'd only known for like 5 or 6 hours. And... we ended up fighting a little about it, eventually both of us going their separate ways..."

"Back to the present, about a week ago I ran into Catra again and... she basically told me that I abandoned her and when I tried to tell her that I didn't and that I tried to get her to come with me, Hinoiri told me that... if I thought all I was asking her was to leave the Horde and come with me... then I still had a lot to learn. ...And that talking with you might help with ...well, understanding that. Because ... I mean... if Catra already knew... why wouldn't she come with me??? I know she's not just an awful person, she was my best friend growing up. We spent all the time together, and I ... honestly thought that she'd be there with me. We even made a promise that so long as we were together everything would be alright." It's kind of a bittersweet thought, reminiscing about the good times with Catra while simultaneously talking about the time /she/ felt abandoned...even if she technically was probably the one doing the abandoning. But she's trying to frame it in a way that ... doesn't make Catra sound bad. She thinks, at least.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Ah, so we're getting into the really heavy stuff first.

Rashmi's spoon bounces in her mouth as she sorts out the feelings and ideas and people involved. Then, sets the bowl aside, and taps on her charm. With a brief flash of golden light, in her hand is a twist-open bottle of strawberry soda, still cold enough that condensation is forming on the outside, which she hands down to the girl. After retrieving a bottle of melon soda for herself, she twists the cap off, still thinking deeply. "So," she says carefully, "that's a *really* tangled mess of stuff I can try to explain, but... It's not all gonna be easy. And it might not all feel really great. So before anything else, I want you to trust one thing, Adora-chan... that whatever I say, I'm not telling you my opinion of you as a *person.* Because, yeah... I think I get what Hinoiri-chan was saying. And I kind of agree. But people, *especially* kids and *especially* teenagers, are gonna make a lot of mistakes dealing with people. So... Start with this: From everything I've heard from you, and everything I've heard from Catra-san, Shadow Weaver wasn't just horrible, she was what we'd call 'toxic' and 'abusive' and a lot of other words that Papi thinks I don't know."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
It was, unfortunately, kind of the purpose of the meeting, and Adora kind of knew that if she didn't get into it she might just avoid it and opt to talk about light happy stuff instead, because honestly, though she didn't necessarily look it, all of the changes and adjustments were taking their toll and she was kind of tired.

Adora takes a quiet bite of the food as Rashmi talks, then reaches to take the offered strawberry soda, setting it carefully somewhere safe after taking a little sip. "I uh... kind of know. On it being a tangled mess, that is. It's... it's been a lot... and all of it complicated with a giant war and the She-Ra stuff and ... lots of things but like." She pauses.

"...I didn't think I abandoned Catra. It's not something I would /do/. ...At least not intentionally..." And hurting her friend sucks. The talk of Shadow Weaver gets a somewhat uncomfortable shifting from Adora. "...Yeah, I know. She was kind of like a mom to ... well, I want to say the both of us but ... she always seemed to yell at Catra whenever the two of us were roughhousing or made a mistake and then she'd just. Not even yell at me, still... chastise me but... it was weird... Catra was always trying so hard, too. ...Honestly harder than I did. ...An awful, horrible mom. Whenever I'm around her it's hard not to listen to her, too... it's almost like magic."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Because that kind of person knows how to press every button in your brain to make you feel bad, and small, and that she knows you better than you," Rashmi says. "And I'm getting to the abandoned part, but... So Catra always got it worst out of the two of you. Which... I've learned a thing about Catra; she tells herself stories to make sense of the world. They don't have to be true, they just have to fit in with what she thinks is true about herself."

Lifting her charm from its cord around her neck, she balances it on her leg. "Because she was the terrible one, the one who could never do anything right. She learns that your Horde were doing awful things, but she told herself 'Well that's where a horrible person like me belongs. At least I have a friend who likes me' and it was okay, as long as you were there."

The redhead lifts her shoulders. "Then you fall off the -- skimmer? and disappear. She was probably going nuts trying to find you, and maybe she was starting to think the Princesses had got you. Because, Adora; *she really believed everything she was taught growing up.* Even if it felt wrong to you... you were the one who Shadow Weaver favored, right? You *could* question stuff and not assume you'd get punished really terribly. ...Catra-san doesn't act like someone with that kind of freedom. She knew the truth... But she probably also believed the Rebellion really *was* the worse of the two."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Because she knows how to press every button in her brain. Something Adora /kind of/ knew. Always egging her on, supporting her, telling her she believes she can do something when it's something that will help her. Adora shudders a bit as she thinks about that. She stays relatively quiet though, as Rashmi continues. Honestly her appetite was starting to disappear, as Rashmi talked.

Replaced with a heavy pit in her stomach instead at the explanations. The revelations. "...And me... not realizing, thinking The Horde were good guys at the time, played along with that story in a way..." Adora comments quietly. And then she disappears in the most dangerous area for the Horde. "...It's worse. I didn't question... it didn't even feel wrong to me until I met Bow and Glimmer. I was taught Princesses were evil, awful people who would kill you without a second thought." She says quietly. "And then I went off... I *was* gotten by Princesses...and joined them."

...The betrayal Catra must have felt. Adora quietly sets aside the bowl of food. "And I became the hero of the rebellion, too... a legend spoken of in old artifacts and ancient past, She-Ra."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Hey," Rashmi says gently. "Don't get too upset at yourself. You didn't know. It was a *mistake,* but... You can *fix* mistakes. You can make up for them. And, honestly, by the sounds of it? If you *didn't* join the Princesses, the Horde would have *won.* And that *matters.*"

Rashmi sighs. "Well... Now she's told herself another story, Adora-chan. That when she pulled the level and opened the Portal, that she destroyed the whole world. Because that's what a *monster* does, and clearly she's a monster."

Closing her eyes a moment, Rashmi sighs. "...Catra-san's kind of a long-term project for me, honestly... *I* know she's not a monster, but she *can't* understand it because her world won't make *sense* otherwise. It's... slow going. But it's why I'm not upset at having to fight her, because... that's just where she is, now. When she needs stopping, I stop her, but I don't take it personally."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Adora shifts a bit in place again, that slight uncomfortable movement. "...She... almost did. If not for Madame Razz and Queen Angella... and even if she hadn't, the..." She shakes her head. "The portal couldn't have been closed without... someone staying behind. ...It was going to be me, but Queen Angella, well. ...You were there. You saw what happened. I... was too shocked to do anything." Adora says quietly.

"But... even if she hadn't pulled the lever, I ... I think the portal would have been opened anyway, because if she hadn't, Hordak would have, because that's what the horde does. It tries to win, it tries to do whatever it can no matter the cost." And Catra is at the center of it now.

"...But the Horde isn't here." She bites her lip softly. "...I probably would still make the same decisions all over again, even knowing this, but ... they would hurt so much more. I was so swept up in learning about the princesses, and Bright Moon, and how they're actually nice and that the Horde was actually the one doing awful things which I didn't believe until I saw the village claimed by The Horde and how it was just... empty rubble... and just." She rubs at her face.

"...She... kind of proved that... Hinoiri and Catra mentioned when the Board was going to have Hinoiri killed, but Catra apparently sent warning to them. That... that in and of itself made me so ... conflicted. Kind of happy, but still angry, and still hurting because of the choices she's made." She gives a soft exhale.

"...I'll try to be the same. ...Stopping her, but not taking it personally. ...I can't... really say I fully understand but... it seems like a good option." She reaches for that food again, appetite back, though kind of more in a self-soothing kind of way. "...Thank you, Rashmi. I... don't... really know if I'd have realized this on my own. Especially back on Etheria. ...This world seems... kind of more peaceful? ...Which feels weird." Considering she was raised in an organization hellbent on conquering the world, probably not /that/ weird though.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Yeah," Rashmi sighs. "Specifically, Catra-san told *me* to get people together." Shaking her head, she applies herself to her meal for a time. "And this world... well I mean it's not *peaceful,* but like... There's more magical people in the world now, than there have been over the last probably thousands of years. And most of them are *here.* And *everyone who isn't at least a little bit magic* has *absolutely no idea there's monsters to fight.*"

She goes quiet for a moment, letting this sink in. "So like I told Catra-san... There's two worlds, basically. And in one of them, there's nothing to fight over. You don't *have* to be a soldier all the time, you can just... be. And to someone like me, who *came* from that world? That's a pretty big help in keeping my head straight."

And then, the redhead gives a slightly crooked smile. "Just... Remember one thing, okay? You're not alone. You *are not alone.* You don't have to solve problems by yourself, and you *better* not fight by yourself. Because in this world, the only way to make sure anything happens is if we all work together."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Adora gives a quiet little nod. "...Right. I mean... I guess t here's still a battle going on in the background most of the time too, but it's just... I don't know, a little quiet background battle by comparison of the way it kind of just... loomed in Etheria. The alliance was /winning/ which is why the Horde was starting to do desperate things like opening a portal, but..." She hesitates.

"...I don't know, it felt like they kind of, fell apart at one point. And then Shadow Weaver came to us in Bright Moon." And it made things so much worse with Catra. Things had almost gotten better, Catra had almost seemed willing to give up the fight and then.

...And then she found out about Shadow Weaver.
Because she told her.

Ugh. "But ... yeah. The magical world I guess is fighting most of the time, but the other world, where other people don't know about all of the magic is... very weird, coming from a world where basically everyone at least knew about magic, if not had at least a little of their own." Not that she'd had any until she found the Sword of Power, but that's beside the point.

The talk of her not being alone, to not fight alone gets a slight shift from Adora. "I haven't... really ever fought alone, it's usually been alongside people. So I'm sure there'll be people around enough that I won't be fighting alone." It's not really an agreement. But the thought that she can't just take care of things, just. It made her insides twist a little in ways she couldn't explain. Even as she continued to eat that tasty curried chicken rice.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Adora-chan," Rashmi says, setting aside her empty bowl, "I mean it. And I mean I *understand,* you have the power to help people and it sounds *wrong* to not jump in and help. But... Sometimes you can do more harm than help, just jumping in. You wouldn't be as good a fighter as you *are* without knowing strategy, so... Does a good strategy have a single point where it can all fall apart?"

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"I mean... of course not, a good strategy doesn't have a single point, you have to try to consider every single angle, every possibility to make sure that everyone comes home." Adora says quietly, idly pushing around some of the food in the bottom of her bowl, there was still a bit left. She was eating slower than she usually would. "I just." She pauses. "I guess I hadn't ever had to even consider it, since Bow and Glimmer have basically always been there beside me." And they still are, they were still going to support each other. She gives a slow exhale, closing her eyes.

"I'm not good at this stuff. Adjusting to things here has been so ... weird. All I really know is how to fight, how to strategise... I didn't even know what an /aunt/ was until Bow told me."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"I bet," Rashmi says, "especially if all you ever knew was being a soldier before being a rebel. It... happens sometimes in this world, too. There's a lot to learn, and a lot to unlearn, but it's okay. You'll pick it up."

At this, Rashmi gives Adora a true, bright, sincere smile. "And you'll have even more friends to help you do it, which makes *everything* easier."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"...All the people here have been so nice. I mean, except Catra of course, but I mean... it's Catra, so... y'know. ...You don't... fight in a war against each other and then just be all happy and jokey with each other." ...Except, sometimes, when alone. Truly alone, and really trying to connect. ...But that was in the last world.

"...But I've also not exactly gotten too involved in the magical cold war kind of thing so I guess maybe I just haven't met enough people." Or pissed off the right/wrong people. "Anyway, uhm. Yeah! ... Friends are great." She gives a soft exhale, standing up suddenly and stretching, probably working out some of that nervous energy from earlier. "I should... definitely come and see you again, but to like. Just hang out. Instead of with uh. Questions like that. Definitely makes the mood less light and fluffy and 'hey I cooked dinner for you'." She says. "I promise I'm not usually like this! This ... like.... week and a half has just. It's been a lot."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Lemme tell you a little secret," Rashmi chuckles. "I cooked *because* I figured you had heavy questions for me. Give you something else to think about, something else to concentrate on... And I mean, my parents own a restaurant. I *grew up* being taught that food helps make everything better."

Hopping down from the bed, Rashmi loops an arm around Adora's shoulder. "It's okay, Adora-chan. Nobody expects you to find your feet immediately. Take your time. Get used to the place. When you see people falling over and you start feeling dizzy, it's probably something you can fight, and backup's on the way. Also, both of my roommates ar-- know about magic, and sometimes I use Nicomachea to have the *best* movie-watching nights for all of us. And best of all? Now you have enough room to learn how to *have fun,* just for yourself if you want."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"Yeah. Makoto brought cookies when we talked about if we were going to still be roommates or not because I mean having a past version of your roommate suddenly show up is kind of weird which is fair and we talked it out and honestly it was pretty nice. The pink and white and black ... I think she called them 'neopolitan' cookies? Delicious!" Adora says, kind of slightly awkwardly sitting there with the arm around her shoulder at first.

But eventually leaning in a little. Listening to Adora's reassurances and explanation of how she'll know ... well, probably ONE of the times it'll be time to fight. "Right. I'll keep an eye out for that. And when I spot it then I'll be all phseewww shing, by the honor of greyskull and be all schwing and ... uh. Fight... alongside people. Yeah." She won't win the fight on her own. THat's not how it works. Right.

"Also that sounds really cool, you must really get along with your roommates then! ... Which is good! ...It's nice not sleeping alone in the room, it's weird having a room all to yourself. ...And I think I was kind of learning that a bit too! I had a lot of fun with Glimmer and Bow even before I came here."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"See you're already a good part of the way there," Rashmi chuckles... Because Adora's antics are rarely *not* funny, let's be honest. "When school starts up again though... it's probably gonna feel crowded. There's, like, thousands of kids that go to this school, that's why it's so big. So I'll tell you now, if you ever feel like you need time to yourself? Lunch on the roof. That's kind of a staple of Japanese school-kid 'I want to be by myself for a bit' behavior, so no one would blink twice. Plus the view is *fantastic.*"

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"I'm used to pretty crowded places, so it should be pretty fine, and I mean, I can always juuuuuuust wait we're not supposed to transform in front of people and fly off on magical alicorns, right." Adora gives a bit of an awkward chuckle. Right. People here, not used to magic, can't just transform randomly. "...On the /other/ hand, a good view is always nice. And time with friends." Adora nods simply, leaning slightly towards Rashmi. "And a good place to keep an eye out for signs of enemies!" Adora turns the Sword of Power from a wrist bracelet into a spyglass, looking through it briefly at Rashmi with a slightly goofy look. Made more goofy as she kind of has to lean away and stuff so she doesn't just like. Bump Rashmi with it.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
And the laughter from Rashmi is genuine, and she pats the blond's shoulder before letting her go. "That's another trick you'll pick up; breaking eye contact before transforming. Because if you disappear from sight before transforming, *no one will put it together.* Once I had to dive under a bench, but that was enough."

Back on her bed, Nicomachea *pings!* once, and the redhead collects the charm, refastening it to her cord. "You're gonna be okay, Adora-chan. I know it's weird, but... we'll figure out how to help your friends. *Our* friends. And one day we'll get you all back where you belong. The only thing I can't promise is how long it's gonna take, but it *will* happen."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
Adora puts the Sword of Power back where it belongs, as a hard-to-steal wrist brace. Because seriously every time it's been stolen has been an awful time for everyone involved. "Oooh... so I just have to like, run around behind a tree and do the whole 'For the honor of greyskull' thing and then it's fine, okay! Good to know!" She is probably going to still forget to do this half the time. Because it's Adora.

She's not exactly good at subtle.

After all she's STILL wearing that horde uniform made in a style completely foreign to most places. "...Yeah. ...I think so, too. Though I can already tell it's gonna be a rough ride. Even if the reasons aren't ... bad... Glimmer is still with Obsidian and Bow... well, something was wrong that he wasn't talking about so I'm a little worried about him and Catra ... seemed... like Catra which means she's probably not doing that great either but also she might be it's honestly hard to tell anymore."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"No, she's not doing great," Rashmi sighs. "Hinoiri-chan, well... They were friends, when Hinoiri-chan worked for Obsidian. Then she lost control of all that Dark Energy, tried to turn off the sun, got beaten, and *then* got fired. But all Catra saw was 'my friend left.'"

She lifts a shoulder, and gives Adora a sad, understanding look. "But there is one upside; with Glimmer-chan there, maybe *she* can help with that some. And sometimes she comes by the Korma where she knows she's not gonna get hassled, and I can talk to her some."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"...Ah, by the way she uh." Adora pauses, looking away. "...Catra mentioned another thing that I ... don't... think I can see myself ever actually doing. Something about, uh. Cutting her up with the sword and like... leaving nasty bruises on her neck and... uh. ...I... I'm not sure if I want to know that much about it but I mean..." She shifts awkwardly. "...Was the past me a bad person or something? I... don't think there's any situation where I could do that. Like, even if I had to... you know... I don't think I'd do it /that/ way." Adora says, chewing on her lip a bit.

She shakes her head again. "It just. I don't know. Doesn't sound like me. And uh." She pauses. "I'm ... glad that she has you to talk to. You seem really good at it. ...Even if she doesn't show it, I'm sure she appreciates it too."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"I try really, really hard," Rashmi says, smiling. "But that, um... So... We've mentioned Dark Energy before, remember? Well, that's kind of a magic that... it comes from all the really negative feelings you can have. Envy, hate, despair, all of that kind of stuff. And it feeds back on itself, so the more of it you use, the more it magnifies those feelings, and the more power it gives you, it's a really vicious cycle. Well... Somehow Future You got... infected with it. And for most people it messes them up until they can get rid of it, but..."

Rashmi shakes her head. "Bow-kun knows better than I do, but... apparently it reacts really, really badly with whatever magic lets you become She-Ra. She wasn't a *bad person,* but she was under a really heavy fog of the kind of things people are feeling at their very, very lowest. Again... hate, despair... All of that. And nobody does things they can be proud of when they're living like that."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
As Rashmi explains the dark energy, Adora sits relatively quietly, listening as best as she can. She's probably absorbing a lot of it, but all of the catching up is definitely a lot of information overload for Adora. "Right... so basically... avoid that if I possibly can, then." She gives a soft exhale. "Okay." She gives a firm nod.

"That's... good to know at least. That I wasn't ... just. Doing that out of being angry or something. ...I wish I could say that even under that influence I wouldn't seriously hurt Catra like that, but... well, I guess there's proof otherwise." Unless for some reason they reacted differently. It's possible. But definitely not worth testing either way.

"I guess... it was kind of like when I was infected by the corrupted First One's tech, but all I was like back then was kind of ... goofy and loopy supposedly? But when I was in She-Ra form I went berserk. So if it's kind of like that... I guess it makes sense." She glances at the sword on her wrist. Glimmer claimed she didn't actually need it, maybe it would make it so she couldn't as easily be infected?

"So anyway! ... Book...magic...stuff. What's that about? It seemed really neat. Kind of like Glimmer's aunt, Castaspella."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Rashmi laughs. It's kind of startled out of her, at the name 'Castaspella,' but then claps her hands over her mouth. "Sorry... Okay I *gotta* ask, how do names *work* on your world? Because it kinda sounds like when you give someone a name, you set down their whole destiny. Anyway... my magic."

Rashmi fiddles with the starburst-shaped charm for a moment, considering how to start. "So somewhere out in space, there's a civilization that spans worlds, and dimensions. For them, magic is technology, a lot like your First Ones things but different. Some people have magical Devices, and the best analogy I can draw is like Light Hope, but without the control. Most of the Devices on this world landed here when a spaceship exploded in orbit, and I just happened to find mine -- Nicomachea is his name, by the way -- in a used bookstore. On my way home I was attacked by a monster, and Nicomachea woke up. The civilization he comes from... turning magic into spells involves a whole lot of really weird alien math, and Devices like Nicomachea help by doing all the math for me, so all I have to do is supply the energy and develop the spells."

    << *BONG!* >> << A GENERALLY CORRECT SUMMATION, MASTER, >> Nicomachea says in a somewhat... distorted, bit-crunched version of a kindly, jovial language professor. << GREETINGS, SUBJECT 'Adora.' IT IS A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU AGAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME. I AM CLASSIFIED AS A SUPPORT DEVICE, OPTIMIZED FOR AID AND BOOST FUNCTIONS IN COMBAT. OTHERWISE, MY FUNCTION IS TO ANALYZE, COLLATE, AND DISSEMINATE HELPFUL INFORMATION. >>

"Also he can be really, really chatty when he wants to be," Rashmi helpfully stage-whispers.

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"Uhhhh... I was an orphan so I'll be honest, I don't know? Maybe they're named a little later in life though... like Nettossa and Spinnerella. Nettossa throws nets. Spinnerella does like... tornado magic? And Glimmer uses Glimmer magic... and Catra is a Cat....rah. And I'm ... Adored-rah? I don't know where my name came from to be honest because presumably Shadow Weaver named me and I can't see her naming /anyone/ like that. My other two names came from Catra though. And I named Catra. Catra Applesauce Meowmeow and my full name is Adora Happysmile Rainbowfist. ... ... ... We, uh. We were five when we gave each other the other names."

Somewhere out in space there's a civilization that spans worlds, and dimensions. "This is sounding a lot like First One's tech and society to be honest." Adora says with a tilt of her head. "Though Ni...niko...mach...ea ... looks very different from FIrst One's tech so that's probably just the end of the similarities." Adora says with a helpless shrug. The futher explanation is listened to quietly though. Less semi-joking/associating with things in her own world. Aaaand Nicomachea starts talking.

"Oh wow. Hello! You're like Light Hope, I guess! Do you have a little hologram self too?" She asks, leaning in towards the charm, examining it carefully. "That sounds... really useful. I can do a TINY of that myself but someone who's focused on it... absolutely great." The closest she can think of is Bow, but honestly his arrows are probably more than dedicated support. At least of /that/ kind.

"I have the sword and can turn into an 8 foot tall lady with great hair. Also she's pretty strong. And I can turn the sword into different forms. Also can take a hit pretty well. But uh. You pobably knew all that...since you knew another Adora...who was probably stronger than me considering she was from the future." Or at least better at using her skills. "Eh-heh."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
    << *BONG!* >> << OF MYSELF, I HAVE NO NEED OF SUCH AN AVATAR, >> the book answers. << THOUGH I DO CARRY SPECIALIZED HOLOGRAPHIC DISPLAY AND TELEPATHIC SIMULATION PROGRAMMING. >>

Rashmi leans in. "He can build entire training simulations just in my head. It's like having someone imagine a whole fight *for* you," she whispers.

    << CORRECT, >> says the professor. << THE ABILITY TO PROVIDE AN EMULATION OF REAL-WORLD TACTICS AND SPELL TESTING IS INVALUABLE TO AN AGENT STRANDED IN THE FIELD, AS IT WERE, AND MY MASTER IS WISE TO MAKE USE OF THIS CAPACITY. >>

"Show her the Indoor Theater!" Rashmi urges, and dutifully a clear, yellow-bordered rectangle appears in front of the closets, of the size that any TV afficionado would *salivate* over. And without a movie within his growing file catalog, the default setting is... an ultra-clear, almost impossibly sharp video of kittens bumbling and playing.

"I know it's hard not to do," she says, as the serotonin video plays behind her, "but I would never, *ever* compare yourself to your future self. You're different, and that's *good.* She was what we needed then, but... I think missing home so much made her unable to be that. So, *you* are what we need, Adora-chan. And I have every faith that you'll do a lot of real good, here. For us, and for you."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
"...Okay that's actually way better than Light Hope, I had to go to this old abandoned temple thing and she just made the holograms in the room and I fought the things there. You can do it /wherever/? That's amazing." Maybe Adora will have to see about somehow getting access to something like that. Hm!

...Somewhere, Light Hope is probably twitching.

And then the Indoor Theater is shown! And the yellow-bordered rectangle appears in front of the closest! Aaaand there's kittens playing around on the screen. "...Awwwww. They're so adorable and cute." Her eyes are definitely doing the big sparkly eyed thing. They almost look real enough to touch! ...Which she actually kind of tries to do. Look, Light Hope's holograms were able to make her very really hurt when she was fighting them, there's no reason these ones couldn't be pettable, right?

The talk of not comparing herself to her future self snaps her out of her silliness though. "R...right. Yeah. I mean... I can't say I don't miss home, but... at the same time I think things have been busy enough that it's... not really... hit." She pauses. The talk of having faith in her doing good gets a bit of an awkward shift, her cheeks flushing a light pink. "Uhm... thanks! I, uh, I'll try my best! I mean, if nothing else, I'm sure She-Ra will be helpful in a fight." Eh-heh.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
It is, sadly, merely a screen made of hardened light, and Adora's fingers press against it as if it were glass. Sadly, not pettable.

An absolute tragedy.

"That too," Rashmi says, nodding. "But I... kind of like to think I'm good at reading people, Adora-chan. And I think you'll be just as valuable for the kind of friend Adora-chan can be, as She-ra's ability to fight. Sometimes? We need more laughter than swords."

Adora Rainbowfist has posed:
     Adora shifts, the bracer turning /into/ a sword. "Okay but what about laughter /and/ swords?" She asks, giving a bit of a goofy grin as she waves the sword around a bit... before turning it back into a bracer before she broke something. ...Dorm rooms aren't exactly huge. "...Which would be like. Some sort of play or something maybe?" She shrugs. "...Though I'm sure there's funnier things that I could turn the Sword of Power into." Somewhere, the creator of the Sword of Power has probably been rolling in their grave basically since Adora got the thing.