Work Text:
“ Cor-ra ! I said don’t!!” Nikala’s voice, already pretty loud for a six-year-old, pitches sharply across the lawns and up into the trees. A couple of birds take flight in surprise, but Cora doesn’t even flinch.
They’ve got their tongue sticking out, tiny claws digging scuffs out of the side of the tree as they slowly move higher and higher up in the branches. Above them, just in sight, a red rubber ball is sitting in the crevice where one of the highest branches meets the trunk, neatly wedged. Cora’s got their mismatched gaze fixed on it, unblinking.
“I’m almost there, ‘Kala, stop whining.”
“I’m gonna go tell mom!” Nikala warns and, for someone who’s two years younger than Cora, she can sure be bossy. Cora rolls their eyes, but they pause in their climbing for a brief second to consider the threat.
“Which mom?” They call down.
“Uh…” Nikala wrings her tiny hands. When Cora glances down, she’s looking back up at them with big, nervous eyes, dancing from foot to foot at the bottom of the tree with her tail swishing anxiously behind her.
She was the one who yelled at Cora for throwing the ball up there in the first place - she should be happy Cora is being such a good big sibling and getting it back! But instead she just looks like she might cry.
“I’ll get uhm, Adora?”
Cora considers it.
Hm. Worth the risk.
“I’m almost there!” They say instead of replying and Nikala squeaks with fear as Cora starts climbing further up the tree again. They really are almost there, though, and before Nikala can actually think through leaving to carry out her threat, Cora’s pulling up almost level with the ball.
They push leaves aside and rip off a few tiny twigs so that they can slowly situate themselves on the branch right below it. Now all they have to do is stand up. Slowly, cautiously, they rise to their full, tiny, height and reach and- It’s just not enough. The ball is still inches from their fingertips, even when they reach really hard.
Okay. New plan.
Below, Nikala is actually starting to sniffle.
“Cora, please don’t fall.” She pleads, dropping down onto all fours to pace around the bottom of the tree, trying to see what Cora’s doing. Her ears are flat against her head with fear.
“I’m not going to.” Cora says, trying to sound confident, but they don’t even know if Nikala can still hear them from all the way up here.
Instead of shouting again to definitely be heard, they focus instead on getting the ball and getting down, because - and they’d never admit this - it is actually kind of scary being up this high. They carefully look around for more options and- there!
There’s another branch, a little bit around the tree. If they could just get to that... It’s small and twiggy-looking, but it’s way closer to the ball. And they’re already so close ...
Cora reaches out a hand toward the branch, keeping the other hooked tight in the tree’s rough bark. It isn’t enough. Almost immediately, their foot slips out from beneath them as they shift their weight on the uneven bark. Their grip comes loose, claws scrabbling at the trunk and leaving long scratches behind, and, if they’d been human, they would have fallen then.
Instead, their tail swipes out behind them as a counter-weight and they keel back, then spring forward instinctively. There’s another scitter of kitten claws and then, all of a sudden, Cora finds themself on the branch they’d been reaching for. They’re panting and wide-eyed, with one leg on either side of the branch and all four limbs digging frightened into the wood, but they’re also totally safe.
HA , how was that ?
Cora grins and glances down to see if Nikala saw, but their sister is no longer in sight from here. Leaves from lower branches are blocking the place where they’d last saw her.
Whatever. Cora would tell her all about it once they were back down to the ground with the ball.
Speaking of the ball, Cora looks back around and- yes! There it is, perfectly in reach. They lean over and grab at it, careful to keep their claws from puncturing the outside like their mama had taught them to. Annnd, got it!
Cora pulls the toy close to their chest and then, high off their success, they can’t resist holding it up triumphantly - even though they know Nikala can’t see them. The branch shakes with the movement, cracking dryly beneath them, but they don’t notice.
This is the highest they’ve ever climbed, ever ! Wait ‘till they get to tell their moms about it! And Nikala! They’re all gonna be so impressed!
Cora keeps grinning as they tuck the ball away safely, with one hand around it under their arm, then they swing a leg over the side of the branch, readying themself to climb back down. The movement sends another tremor down the tree limb that shakes all the leaves dangerously. Cora looks at them and they have one small moment to note how very, very wobbly this branch actually is before-
CRACK!
On the ground, Nikala lets out a terrified little shriek as she rounds the tree just in time to see the branch give way beneath Cora. Time stands still for a moment - both children’s fur standing on end in horror, one on the ground, yelling, and one in the tree, falling, and then-
Poof!
The familiar sound comes from far away behind Nikala, but she doesn’t even have time to turn and look before Glimmer’s appearing high up in the air in front of her, within the tree. The Queen of Bright Moon’s arms fold tight around Cora from behind, pulling them close to her chest and then-
Poof!
They both land softly back on the ground in a shower of sparkles, safe.
Immediately, Nikala lets out a wail and sprints to her mother, throwing herself on the both of them as Glimmer drops to her knees and sets Cora down, letting out a shaky breath. She opens one arm to let Nikala bury herself against her side, but in the same moment she’s already turning Cora around in place with her other hand, her face going quickly from relieved to stormy.
“ What did you think you were do -!” Glimmer pushes Cora back, to look at their face while she yells at them, but then she stops.
She stops, because Cora looks terrified .
Their eyes are wide, pupils dilated to near-invisible pricks of dark, and their little hands are clutching the ball, claws digging in. Glimmer notices they’ve popped it. In the same moment, she realizes that they’re trembling under her hand, fur still sticking up all over the place.
Slowly, their eyes move to look up at her and even their voice is shaking as they say, “S-sorry mom.”
And then their face crumples and they start to cry too.
Instantly, Glimmer pulls Cora and Nikala both up into her arms, crushing them to her. Cora lets the flattened ball fall to the ground and wraps their arms tight around her, pushing their face into her neck as they wail. Nikala digs into the space underneath and between them, whimpering, and Glimmer sits down, lifting them both so they’re in her lap.
“No, no. It’s ok - you’re ok. I got you. It’s okay.” She shushes and rocks them, letting them let it out for a few long minutes. Nikala’s the first to start to quiet, but Cora’s sobs and hiccups die down a little soon after. Even then, Glimmer keeps hugging them close, humming and rubbing their backs. Another couple of minutes pass, and eventually all the crying turns into just sniffles, then pouting.
Only when it’s almost quiet does she finally ask: “What happened?”
“My ball.” Nikala says, blinking up at her with huge, wet eyes. Glimmer’s gaze moves to where the red rubber that used to be a ball is still laying on the ground and she nods her head toward it without letting either of the kids go or moving them.
“It got stuck in the tree?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s quite a throw.”
“Cora did it! Then they wanted to get it back.”
“That so?” Glimmer hums and turns her face down to look at what she can see of Cora - mostly their back. Their tail is curled up tight around their legs. Guilty. “Is that what happened?”
Cora’s response is muffled and slow in coming. “...Yes.”
“And you know I could have easily gotten it for you if you’d come and asked?”
“...idn’tannabotherou.” The second answer is even more muffled and Glimmer lets go of Nikala so she can gently extract Cora from around her neck.
She sets them back on their feet and tries to look at them, but their eyes are fixed resolutely down at the ground, still red-ringed and wet. Glimmer takes the end of her cape and wipes their face, carefully making sure her voice isn’t even a little bit angry.
“Can you repeat that, please? If you want?”
“...I didn’t want to bother you.” Cora mutters after a second, but it’s understandable this time. They still keep their eyes down as Glimmer drops her hand, blinking.
“What? Why would that bother me?”
“I know you’re busy.” Cora says, their ears pressing even flatter to their head somehow.
Immediately, Glimmer’s heart drops.
She has been busy. Glimmer knows that better than anyone.
Taking over the throne from her mother has been an intense and year-long process, even with Catra and Adora helping. There’s laws to memorize better, treaties to look over, trade to monitor, Princesses to meet with, and countless other things… With Glimmer being Queen now, she’s had a hard job finding time to spend with both of her wives and both of her children. Nikala still sleeps in their bed with the three of them, but Cora had gotten their own room this year...
If they were feeling neglected… had Glimmer really not noticed?
Her heart aches as Cora just stays standing unmoving in front of her, head drooped and arms hanging limp at their sides. They finally look up when Glimmer puts both hands on the sides of their face and lifts their chin, but they’re still reluctant about it.
“Cora,” Glimmer starts and one pointed, black ear flicks uncertainly at her soft tone. “You know you can always come to me right? Always. I will never get mad at you. And I’ll always come if you need me, for anything you think is important, okay?”
Cora’s mismatched eyes, so much like Catra’s, search Glimmer’s face for a moment, uncertain. Finally, they nod.
“Okay.”
“You believe me?” Glimmer asks. This time Cora’s response is faster, less uncertain.
“Yes.” They nod again, more energetically. Then, suddenly, their little face splits into a grin that reveals pointy little fangs and they hop in place, their tail flicking the air behind them. “But did you see how high I was?”
Glimmer resists the urge to roll her eyes and grins back instead.
“I did! I teleported up there, remember? Is that the highest you’ve ever climbed?”
“Yeah!”
“I was scared! Cora was too - they popped my ball!” Nikala cuts in, as if she’s just now realized it. But she’s beaming too, like that is just another thrilling part of the story.
“I was not scared!” Cora scowls, swiftly jumping back into Glimmer’s lap to round on Nikala.
“Was too!”
“Was not!”
“Okay, okay,” Glimmer says quickly, pulling her children apart with one arm each before they can really go at it. “Let’s compromise - how about we were all scared? Because I know I was really scared, weren’t you Nikala?”
“Yes!” Nikala bounces, all traces of that fear gone now
“And weren’t you Cora?” Glimmer turns down to her oldest child. They stick out their bottom lip.
“...Yes,” They admit after a moment. Their claws prick into the fabric of Glimmer’s glove where they’re still holding on tight and Glimmer smiles reassuringly.
“Well then, I think we were all very brave! But - also - let’s never do that again.”
“Okay!” Both the children crow in unison. In one motion, Glimmer gets to her feet, still hauling one kid under each arm and making them break into giggles as she starts off in wide strides toward the castle.
“Also, I am going to tell both your other moms about this too - no buts!”
She cuts in before Cora can even start and Cora groans, going limp under her arm.
They’re soon giggling again, though, because Glimmer teleports them closer to the castle, then away again. She makes a game out of it, pretending she can’t find the entrance as the kids give her increasingly worse and worse directions. Within a few minutes, they’re all breathless with laughter and near-collapse on the forested lawn.
Physically, Glimmer spends some much-needed time with her kids.
Mentally, she re-schedules her work around so that she can spend that time - the rest of the day - with them. And several other days after that too. Hell, she might even move Cora back into her, Adora, and Catra’s bedroom. She’ll ask Cora about it - the room’s more than big enough for them to still have their own bed if they want.
Her kids had to come first.
Glimmer would keep that in mind from now on.
Oh, and the two of them also needed a new ball, one less popable maybe. She would have to remember that too.