Linda Danvers: Girl of Steel
4
"Linda's Guide to Writing"
Written by Mark Moore
Author's note: This miniseries is the sequel to my 12-issue "Linda Danvers" maxiseries. Reading "Linda Danvers" is not necessary to understanding this miniseries but is recommended.
Linda and Lara's discussion of time-travel comes from the Terminator FAQ maintained by Karsten A. Loepelmann with Karsten's permission. Thank you, Karsten!
I wrote this story from Monday, October 20, 2003, 7:30 PM to Sunday, November 16, 2003, 8:09 PM. Of course, Internet Explorer had to crap out on me, so that I couldn't access FanFiction.Net until Monday, November 17, 2003, 8:35 AM. I'm so sorry that this is late. Feel free to send/leave me reviews, whether you love, like, dislike, or hate the story. Enjoy!
Wednesday, October 1, 2003, 6:32 PM
Linda walked into the living room.
She closed and locked the screen door and front door behind her.
Linda walked into the kitchen.
Lara was standing at the stove. She turned to face Linda. "Hey, Linda. How was work?"
"Good." Linda replied.
"I've got dinner almost ready." Lara said.
"Cool." Linda said.
Linda went to her bedroom, sat on the bed, took off her shoes, unbuttoned her dress shirt, took it off, unbuttoned and unzipped her dress pants, took them off, stood up, picked up her clothes, took them into her closet, set her shoes on the floor, hang her pants and shirt on hangars, turned, walked out of the closet, walked out of her bedroom, and walked back into the kitchen.
Lara came by with two plates, two forks, and two tissues. She set them down on the table. Then she went back to the stove and picked up a pot. She walked back over to the table, picked up her fork, and put half of the macaroni and ground beef onto each of their plates. She then walked over to the counter, put the pot on it, walked back over to the table, and sat down to Linda's right.
The two of them started eating their dinner.
"So, what did you do today?" Lara asked.
"Just typed up an article about Supergirl's latest heroics from this morning." Linda replied. "Then I had to go and cover a conference. It was pretty dull."
"Hey, I heard that T3 is coming out on DVD on November 11th." Lara said.
"Cool." Linda said. "I dunno if we should get it, though."
"Why's that?" Lara asked her.
"They'll probably come out with another edition with more extras later." Linda replied.
"Oh, yeah, that's true." Lara said.
"The movies are good in a way, but I can't stand how they handle the time-travel." Linda said.
"What do you mean?" Lara asked her.
"Naturally, any theory of time-travel is just that: a theory." Linda began. "For the purposes of this discussion, the best that we can do is to try to apply one or more of these theories while still maintaining internal consistency with the information presented in the films. There are many theories of time-travel in science-fiction and comics. However, most discussions of time-travel focus on two theories of 'real-world' physics: classic Newtonian and quantum mechanical physics. The classical theory states that there is one existence and a single timeline. According to this view, changing an event in the past could theoretically retroactively change history from the time-traveler's point-of-view. This theory is plagued by problems of 'temporal paradoxes'. For example, what happens if you go back in time and prevent your parents from meeting? According to 'Back to the Future', you will fade from existence! The quantum view is that time-travel is possible along distortions in space-time called closed timeline curves; also, reality exists as a multiverse of infinite possibilities. So, if you travel back in time and prevent your parents from meeting, there's no paradox. Your parents still meet and conceive you in the timeline that you came from. After all, you must have come from somewhere! However, a 'version' of you will not be born in the timeline that you traveled to. The 'many-universes' interpretation of quantum mechanics solves a lot of time-travel paradoxes. Time-travelers can make any change in the past that they want to without endangering their existence, because they came from a different universe, whose timeline is untouched by their meddling. Therefore, there really is no paradox in the Terminator movies. The Terminators and Kyle Reese came from a universe, where the war actually occurred, but, by the end of T2, a universe had been created, where John and Sarah Connor lived with no global thermonuclear war. The original timeline still exists, however, in a parallel universe. T2 implies that its world is of one existence and a single timeline. Certainly, it would seem to be futile to send someone back to change the past in a multi-universe existence - unless one is very altruistic! Consider this: T2 implied that Judgment Day never occurred due to manipulation of the past. But it all depends which timeline one looks at. Assuming the existence of multiple parallel timelines, if a time-traveler could change an event in 1995, such as destroying the CPU chip, all that would result is another existence (B) branching off from 1995. Note that the nuclear war still happens in existence A, even if an event in the past is changed! What can we conclude? Quantum physics can explain the events of T1/T2 well. However, it does not make for a good story. Although saving humanity in a single timeline out of an infinity is better than none at all, this situation would likely not have been accepted by the movie-going public. Assuming Judgment Day does not occur, as per the 'lost ending' of T2, James Cameron wanted to show that there is 'no fate' but what we make of it. This philosophy is reinforced by the 'single-timeline' approach. So, there you have it: good physics and a watered-down story or a ream of paradoxes and a strong story."
"How can Skynet exist, if the chip and arm were destroyed?" Lara asked.
"According to the classical, single timeline/universe view, it's impossible - unless Cyberdyne Systems develops Skynet technology independently of any help from the future. Assuming the existence of a multiverse of timelines, this situation can also be explained. In the universe in which we see the Terminator technology destroyed, Skynet will never exist. However, there must exist at least one timeline/universe in which Skynet technology is developed. This may occur due to Cyberdyne independently creating the technology or Terminator remains originating from yet another timeline are left behind. Therefore, the movies must chronicle two different universes: one with the hellish future dominated by Skynet and the other saved by Sarah and John." Linda replied.
"If John gave a speech to Reese in 2029, who gave it to Sarah, who conceived John in 1984, and then Sarah told it to John, then who wrote the damn speech?" Lara asked.
"According to classical physics, we have a classic paradox. No one wrote it; everyone just memorized it. Assuming a multiverse, on the other hand, we can posit that a future John Connor, whose mother encountered a Reese who didn't have the speech, did write the speech and gave it to Reese. Reese traveled back to 1984 in another universe and gave it to Sarah, which we saw in T1." Linda replied.
"Why doesn't the Terminator 'disappear', when John throws the CPU into the molten steel?" Lara asked.
"The time-travel of the Terminator movies is not the same as that of the Back to the Future series. Although no one is sure what would happen, if you created a paradox, it is highly unlikely - and goes against the laws of physics for our universe - that matter would just disappear into thin air. Time-travel paradoxes are a lot more complex than that." Linda replied.
"I noticed that you didn't include T3 in your analysis." Lara said.
"I have four reasons for that." Linda told her. "1) James Cameron had nothing to do with it. 2) The movie contradicts the 'no fate' premise of T2. 3) T3 further fucks up the chronology. 4) A different actor plays John Connor. All of these things suggest that the movie isn't canon. Besides, my personal theory is that there are an infinite number of universes, but they all originated separately, and they each have their own single timeline."
"I've got a headache." Lara said.
Linda laughed.
They stood up, picked up their dishes, and walked over to the dishwasher.
Lara opened the dishwasher, and they put their dishes inside it.
Saturday, October 11, 2003, 3:29 PM
Linda unlocked and opened the front door to the house.
She and Lara walked into the living room.
Lara closed the door and locked it.
They went into the kitchen.
"'Kill Bill: Vol. 1' was awesome!" Linda exclaimed.
"Yeah!" Lara agreed. "Violent, bloody, and with a very strong anime feel to it! And Go Go is hot!"
Linda opened the refrigerator and took out two bottles of Pepsi Vanilla. "Yeah. Too bad she died."
"Maybe she'll be in the second one." Lara suggested.
Linda closed the refrigerator and handed one of the bottles to Lara.
"Maybe." Linda said. "The story is shown out of sequence."
Lara opened her bottle and took a swig of the Pepsi Vanilla.
Linda opened her own bottle and took a swig of the Pepsi Vanilla.
Monday, October 13, 2003, 7:00 PM
Linda and Lara were sitting on the couch in the living room, Linda to Lara's right.
Lara picked up the remote control, clicked off the power to the television, and put the remote control back on the coffee table.
"Hey, I was thinkin'." Lara said. "Maybe it would be a good idea for us to try to get a larger comic book company to publish our book."
"Why?" Linda asked her.
"Larger circulation and lower costs for us." Lara explained.
"I dunno." Linda said.
"Well, lemme get 'Previews'." Lara said. "We'll go through each company, one at a time, and see which ones we like."
Lara stood up and walked over to their bedroom. She went into it and came out, holding a copy of the latest "Previews" in her right hand. She walked back over to the couch and sat to Linda's left. She opened the book.
"Okay," Lara said, "Archie."
"I doubt that they'd want to be associated with an action book that has guns in it." Linda told her. "Besides, I don't like how they treated Dan DeCarlo. He sued them for money from the 'Josie and the Pussycats' movie, because he had created the characters, and they fired him."
"CrossGen?" Lara suggested.
"I like them, but their thing is fantasy set on other worlds." Linda told her.
"Dark Horse?" Lara suggested.
"Eh, I don't read anything by them, so I dunno how good they are." Linda told her.
"Dreamwave?" Lara suggested.
"You mean the guys that almost-completely rewrote Transformers G1 cartoon continuity, where the miniseries kinda sorta take place before the movie but not really, led by a fanboy that draws posters of characters mugging for camera shots instead of engaging in logical action?" Linda asked her. "The guys that changed Mega Man's name from Rock to Rocky, thereby completely ruining the 'Rock and Roll' pun? No way."
"Image?" Lara suggested.
"Well, they're as close as we'd get to self-publishing without already doing it, but they don't pay all of the costs. It would be more expensive for us." Linda told her. "I don't think so."
"Marvel?" Lara suggested.
"I dunno." Linda said. "They weren't present at this year's San Diego ComicCon. I have a feeling that they don't care too much about comics. They're focusing more on the movies, because that's where the money's at. Actually, a 'Supergirl' movie would be nice - as long as I star in it. Next."
"WB?" Lara suggested.
"What do they publish?" Linda asked her. "Looney Tunes."
"Well, they could publish our book under their Vertigo or WildStorm imprints." Lara suggested.
Linda shrugged. "Okay. I'll call WB up and ask for a meeting with them."
Tuesday, October 14, 2003, 5:09 PM
The phone rang.
Linda picked up the receiver in the kitchen. "Good afternoon. Supergirl Enterprises. This is Linda speaking. How may I help you?"
"Hello." a male voice replied. "Miss Danvers?"
"Yes." Linda replied.
"Miss Danvers, my name is Mike Cotton. I'm with 'Wizard' magazine." the man introduced. "How are you doing today?"
"Good." Linda replied. "Please call me Linda."
"Okay, thank you." Mike said. "Linda, I've seen your website and ordered the CDs of the first three issues of 'Supergirl'. I like them."
"Thank you." Linda said.
"I was wondering if both you and Lara Love would be interested in being interviewed for our magazine." Mike proposed.
"Hmm, let me see." Linda looked at Lara. "Lara?"
"Yeah?" Lara asked.
"Wanna be interviewed by 'Wizard'?" Linda asked.
"You're kidding!" Lara exclaimed.
"No, really." Linda said.
Lara grinned. "Sure!"
Linda smiled. "Yes."
"Great." Mike said.
Linda and Lara walked into fye.
They went over to a display. Each of them picked up a copy of the "The Transformers" Season 3, Part 1, DVD boxed sets.
"I like Seasons 1 and 2 more than Season 3." Lara said. "They're more realistic."
"Well, there's a larger female presence in Season 3." Linda said. "Arcee, Marissa Fairbourne, Jessica Morgan. I don't like how Carly went from a strong-willing, independent girl to a worried wife and mother, though. I hope I never become like that."
They went over to the counter and paid for the DVDs. They received their change and bags. They placed their change into their bags.
Linda and Lara walked out of fye.
Wednesday, October 15, 2003, 5:02 PM
Linda and Lara walked into 7th Inning Stretch. They were each carrying 300 copies of Supergirl #3 in large plastic bags.
They walked over to the counter and placed the bags on it.
"Hey, Jimmy." Linda greeted.
"Hey, Jimmy." Lara greeted.
"Hey, Linda. Hey, Lara." Jimmy replied.
Linda placed a sheet of paper on the counter. Jimmy picked up the list and read it.
He went, got the comic books and other items, and returned to the counter. He placed the items on the counter, got a calculator, and calculated the total price.
$12.48 each." he told them.
Linda and Lara got out their cash and paid him.
He opened the cash register, put the money in, and put their items into brown paper bags.
"Okay, now for 'Supergirl'." Jimmy took out money and closed the register. He counted as he placed the money on the counter, separating it into two piles. "$100, $200, $300, $400, $500, $600, $700, $800, $850, $900."
Linda picked up her $450. Lara picked up her $450. They each put their own money into their front right jeans pockets.
"Thanks." Linda and Lara said.
"No problem." Jimmy started taking the copies of Supergirl #3 out of the bags.
"Guess what." Linda said.
"What?" Jimmy asked.
"Lara and I are gonna be interviewed by 'Wizard'." Linda said.
"Really?" Jimmy asked. "Wow."
Linda picked up her bags. "Have a good day."
"You, too." Jimmy said.
Lara picked up her bags, and she and Linda turned and walked back over to the door.
Linda opened the door, and she and Lara left the shop.
Tuesday, October 21, 2003, 6:12 PM
Linda and Lara walked into fye.
They went over to a display. Each of them picked up a copy of the widescreen, unrated version of "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" on DVD and a copy of "The Matrix Reloaded" on DVD.
"I wonder what kinds of deleted Matrix scenes there are on here." Lara said.
"I dunno." Linda said.
"Well, I hope there isn't an extended sex scene." Lara said. "I swear Trinity looks like a man. I couldn't tell where Neo ended and she began. Those silver things near her breasts didn't help either."
They went over to the counter and paid for the DVDs. They received their change and bags. They placed their change into their bags.
Linda and Lara walked out of fye.
Thursday, October 23, 2003, 7:04 PM
Linda and Lara were sitting at their computers.
"Hey, check it out." Linda said.
Lara rolled her chair over to Linda and looked at her screen. "What?"
"Mike sent me a copy of the interview." Linda told her. "He wants our approval."
"Okay, let's read it." Lara said.
Linda and Lara silently read the transcript of the interview:
upclose
LINDA DANVERS and LARA LOVE
From a quiet beginning with little fanfare, these two teenaged girls have created one of the best-selling titles of the year
BY MIKE COTTON
WIZARD: I've got to say that I'm impressed. Issue #1 went through 5 printings. Issue #2 went through 2 printings of larger runs. Issue #3 has gone through 1 printing of an even larger run. In total, Issue #1 sold 5,324 copies, issue #2 sold 7,143 copies, and issue #3 has so far sold 8,788 copies - and that's just in the Chicago area. The CDs containing these stories have been ordered by people in every nation in the world. Did you ever think that your book would be so successful?
DANVERS: Not at all. I was really shocked. I still am.
LOVE: Me, too.
WIZARD: Let's go back a bit, because a lot of people have no idea who you are. Could you tell us a little bit about yourselves?
DANVERS: I'm from Leesburg, Virginia. I just recently graduated high school and moved to Chicago. I'm 18 years old.
LOVE: What she said.
WIZARD: How did you two get started in the industry?
DANVERS: My mom was going to send me to Chicago, so I got with Lara, whom I had met shortly after our junior year started, and she agreed to move to Chicago with me. Our eventual goal was to create a comic book.
LOVE: I decided to take an art course at the University of Illinois to improve my drawing.
DANVERS: One day in July, I was driving around, and I saw a girl flying in the sky. I got out my digital camera, followed her, and took pictures. I then went to the Chicago Tribune, and I was hired as a reporter. I started covering the career of this new super-hero, Supergirl. Soon, Supergirl came by our house to talk with me. The three of us formed Supergirl Enterprises. We created Supergirl.org on August 1st. Soon after, Lara suggested that we do a "Supergirl" comic book. We got Supergirl's permission, and here we are.
WIZARD: What were your goals when going into this comic book?
DANVERS: From a writing standpoint, I wanted to keep things basic and real. I wanted to avoid the weird sci-fi and fantasy crap that shows up in typical super-hero stories. There's nothing wrong with sci-fi or fantasy, but they don't belong in "Supergirl". Also, I wanted to avoid excessive slang. Stuff like that really dates the stories. I find that too many comic books and cartoon series try to be KEWL!!! and end up falling flat on their faces. I try to keep the dialogue real. I also don't write in any thoughts, since people rarely think in complete sentences or even in words. I wanted no main villain and no main plot, just everyday stuff.
LOVE: From an artistic standpoint, I wanted to make Supergirl just look good. I wasn't trying to exploit her good looks. She's hot, and I wanted to capture her hotness but without overdoing it. I also follow Linda's scripts very carefully. We correct each other's work. One of her rules is to have no more than six panels per page. Another one of her rules is to not have artwork spread from one panel to another. She also wants no written sound effects, and she wants the cover to be taken directly from a full-page panel in the comic book itself. I think those are very good rules.
WIZARD: What influences you as a writer and as an artist?
DANVERS: Well, I've watched many months' worth of live-action series, movies, and anime, and I've read a lot of comic books, but I don't really draw upon it that much, except for maybe a cute homage sometimes. Supergirl is a huge "Sailor Moon" fan, so I reference that quite a bit, but I mostly write just...stuff. Yeah, I'm a Writer of Stuff. How profound is that?
LOVE: I try to draw things realistically, but I do throw in some flashy artwork sometimes.
WIZARD: So, with no sci-fi or fantasy and with basic dialogue and repetitive acts of super-heroics, how does the book appeal to readers?
DANVERS: Simply by telling the true adventures of Supergirl, whether it's catching a criminal or dealing with an obsessed fan. This series is the news in comic form. That should be interesting enough for the readers. There's no need to have Supergirl save the world.
WIZARD: What do you include on the CDs?
DANVERS: The final cover and 22 pages, the script in plain text format, all of the artwork in every stage of completion, and fan letters with our answers.
WIZARD: Yet you charge the same price as the printed comic book?
DANVERS: Yes - plus shipping, handling, and tax. I figured we're making more profit off of the CDs anyway, so we might as well include extras, since they existed anyway.
WIZARD: Any other extras?
DANVERS: No.
WIZARD: Why charge only $2.00 per issue and disc?
DANVERS: We're not greedy.
WIZARD: Any chance you two would do an exclusive Supergirl comic story for our magazine?
DANVERS: No. I don't like it when comic book companies offer exclusive material. It requires the readers to buy more stuff, and there's the risk that they'll end up with an incomplete collection, perhaps not even knowing it. I'm not going to do that to the fans. One major example of exclusive material that gets on my nerves is multiple covers. I hate multiple covers. The comic companies offer them to make more money by hoping that people will buy more than one copy of a comic book for just the cover. This gets really ridiculous with the incentive covers. "Exclusive holofoil incentive cover by hot new artist, Bob Buttwipe! Limited to 4,000 copies, individually numbered, polybagged with exclusive card! $44.99! Autographed for $64.99!" Screw that. We're doing this for the average fan, not for collectors and speculators. That said, we're not going to do any annuals. We're going to consistently produce one new issue every month, and that's it.
LOVE: The original computer files of my final pages - with their far superior image quality - should be enough of an incentive to buy the CDs.
WIZARD: Original computer files? Please explain that.
LOVE: I do all of my drawing, coloring, and lettering on my computer. No paper involved at all. That's why the artwork looks much better on CDs than on paper.
WIZARD: Thank you both for coming.
DANVERS: No problem.
LOVE: Yeah.
"I think that's pretty good." Linda said.
"Yeah." Lara agreed.
"I'll e-mail him back and approve it." Linda said.
Tuesday, October 28, 2003, 6:15 PM
Linda and Lara walked into fye.
They went over to a display. Each of them picked up a copy of "Hulk" on DVD.
"I hope there's a lot of cool extra Hulk footage on here." Lara said.
"Yeah." Linda agreed. "We didn't see nearly enough of the Hulk in the theaters, and it took so long for him to appear."
They went over to the counter and paid for the DVDs. They received their change and bags. They placed their change into their bags.
Linda and Lara walked out of fye.
Wednesday, October 29, 2003, 9:03 AM
Linda walked over to her desk in the Chicago Tribune building and sat down in her chair.
She turned on the computer and monitor and hooked her digital camera up to the computer.
"Danvers." Don Wycliff called.
Linda looked over to him. "Yes?"
"What have you got for tomorrow's paper?" he asked her.
"Supergirl foiling a bank robbery today." Linda replied.
"That's good, but I've been thinking." he said. "The Daily Planet got an interview with Supergirl. Why can't we?"
"Uh,...I dunno." Linda answered.
"She lives in our city, Danvers. I want you to interview her." he told her. "Do you know how to get in touch with her?"
"Well, she is scheduled to drop by my house tonight to look over the latest comic." Linda replied. "I guess I can interview her then."
"Great!" Wycliff exclaimed. "And I'd appreciate it if you dress like the rest of us. No offense, but that bright, fluorescent pink shirt and those purple corduroy pants make you stand out like a cowboy at a death metal concert. This is a newspaper, not a disco. On the way home, stop by a store and buy a white, long-sleeved dress shirt; a black jacket for field reporting; and a necktie - nothing wild."
"All right." Linda agreed.
Mr. Wycliff turned and walked away.
Linda was typing up her article.
A man, who appeared to be in his twenties, with short brown hair, a mustache, and a beard walked over to her desk.
"Linda?" he asked.
Linda looked up at him. "Yeah?"
"I heard you're into comic books." he said.
"Yeah." Linda said.
"I'm Neil. I work in printing." he introduced. "I have some comics, if you want to look through them."
"Sure." Linda said.
He placed the comic books on her desk. They were against backing boards in plastic bags.
Linda looked through them. They were mostly from Marvel. A few of them were from some small companies. She selected three "X-Men" comic books.
"How much?" Linda asked.
"Let me check." Neil walked over to Linda's computer.
Linda rolled her chair out of the way, slightly irritated.
Neil opened Internet Explorer and went to . He looked up the first comic book.
"The first one's worth $7.50 in mint condition." Neil told her. "Is it in mint?"
Linda took the comic book out of the bag and examined it. "No way. The bottom corner of each page has folds. The back cover is torn."
"The back cover's torn?" Neil asked.
"Yeah." Linda handed the comic book to him.
Neil looked at it. "Okay, I'm willing to go down to $3.50 on that one."
He set it on the desk and looked up the second comic book.
Linda took the second comic book out of the bag and examined it.
"This one's $7.50, too." Neil told her.
Linda set it on her desk. She took the third comic book out of the bag and examined it.
Neil looked up the third comic book.
"$6.00 mint." Neil told her. "$17.00 total."
"They're not mint." Linda told him.
"Okay, make me an offer." Neil said.
Linda picked up the second comic book and held it with the third comic book. "If I bought these from a comic shop, they'd be a buck each." Linda set them on her desk and picked up the first comic book. "This one would be in the 35-cent bin. If you sold them to a comic shop, you'd get paid less than that, so the owner can make a profit."
"$7.00." Neil offered.
"They're not worth that much." Linda told him. "Comics are dying. Why do you think so many comic shops are closing? Do you think Jimmy at 7th Inning Stretch would be in business, if he didn't sell anime, video games, or trading cards? No. Comic book companies are trimming the number of titles that they put out, because almost no one's collecting. I'll give you $2.35."
"I won't go any lower than $5.00." Neil told her.
Linda dropped the first comic book on her desk. "Forget it."
"Okay." Neil picked up his comic books and bags, turned, and walked away.
Linda walked into Sears.
She went to the Men's department.
Linda picked out a white, long-sleeved dress shirt; a black jacket; and a black necktie.
She took the items over to a counter and charged them on her MasterCard. She signed the receipt. She received her bag.
Linda walked out of Sears.
Suddenly, a man walked over to her.
"Excuse me, Ms. Danvers?" he asked.
Linda looked at him. He had a picture camera hanging from his neck, and he was holding a notebook and a pencil.
"Yeah." Linda replied, suspicious.
"Chris Blair, National Enquirer." he introduced. "I was wondering if I could have a quick interview with you."
"No." Linda replied, walking away.
Chris followed her. "I just want to ask you about Supergirl. Don't you want to help a fellow journalist?"
"You wouldn't know real journalism, if it bit your ass." Linda told him.
"I know that you're Supergirl." he told her.
"You're mistaken." Linda told him, not surprised.
"You look too similar." he told her.
"A lot of people look similar." Linda replied.
"I lifted Supergirl's fingerprints from a crime scene and then compared them to your fingerprints on record." he told her. "They're exactly the same. No two people on this planet are born with the exact same fingerprints. Explain that."
"Supergirl's not from this planet, jackass." Linda replied.
"Yeah, but you gotta admit that all these coincidences seem suspicious." he told her. "And then there are the pictures. Only you get pictures of Supergirl for the Tribune. Why is that?"
"Just lucky, I guess." Linda replied.
"Are you sure it's not because you are Supergirl?" he asked her.
"My camera doesn't have a timer." Linda told him. "There's no way that I could take pictures of myself."
"Someone else could take them for you." he said.
"I'm not Supergirl, so take your shit rag and wipe your ass with it." Linda told him. "That's all that it's good for."
"I'm going to write an article, exposing your secret." he told her.
"You do that, and I'll sue you." Linda told him.
"You're a public figure. You can't sue me." he told her.
"I'm not a public figure, so, unless you can prove that I'm Supergirl, I can sue you and your rag for defamation and libel." Linda told him.
"I'll be writing what my sources tell me. You can't sue me for writing what my sources tell me, since I'll mention that I got the information from my sources." he told her.
Linda stopped walking and faced him. He stopped walking and faced her.
"You have no sense of journalistic integrity!" Linda yelled at him. "Who are your 'sources'?!"
"I'm not at liberty to disclose their identities." he replied.
"I hate tabloids." Linda told him. "You defame people. You have no conscience. It was your kind that murdered Princess Diana."
"I won't take that from you." he told her. "Besides, why don't you prove me wrong? Prove that you're not Supergirl."
"Fine!" Linda replied. "Tomorrow, at the Chicago Tribune, I'll interview Supergirl in front of everybody!"
Chris grinned. "I'll be there. Good afternoon, Ms. Danvers."
He turned and walked away.
"Shit." Linda muttered.
Linda walked into the living room.
She closed and locked the screen door and front door behind her.
Linda walked into the kitchen.
Lara was standing at the stove. She turned to face Linda. "Hey, Linda. How was work?"
"Okay, but I've got a problem." Linda replied.
"What is it?" Lara asked.
"I'll tell you over dinner." Linda replied.
Linda went to her bedroom, sat on the bed, took off her shoes, unbuttoned her dress shirt, took it off, unbuttoned and unzipped her dress pants, took them off, stood up, picked up her clothes, took them into her closet, set her shoes on the floor, hang her pants and shirt on hangars, turned, walked out of the closet, walked out of her bedroom, and walked back into the kitchen.
Lara came by with two plates, two forks, and two tissues. She set them down on the table. Then she went back to the stove and picked up a pot. She walked back over to the table, picked up her fork, and put half of the macaroni and one piece of pork onto each of their plates. She then walked over to the counter, put the pot on it, walked back over to the table, and sat down to Linda's right.
The two of them started eating their dinner.
"So, what happened?" Lara asked.
"After work, when I came out of Sears, a reporter for the National Enquirer started pestering me. He claimed that he knows that I'm Supergirl, and he said that he was gonna write an article, exposing my secret, so I...told him that I'll be interviewing Supergirl tomorrow at the Tribune." Linda explained.
"Shit." Lara said.
"What am I gonna do?" Linda asked her.
"I dunno." Lara replied. "Maybe Superman can help."
"Can I get you anything?" Linda offered.
"No, thanks." Clark said.
"I'm sorry for calling you over here." Linda said.
"It's no bother." Clark told her. "I'm always willing to help out family."
Linda smiled. "Family. I'm still not used to that."
Clark smiled. "What's your problem?"
Linda lost her smile. "After work, when I came out of Sears, a reporter for the National Enquirer started pestering me. He claimed that he knows that I'm Supergirl, and he said that he was gonna write an article, exposing my secret, so I told him that I'll be interviewing Supergirl tomorrow at the Tribune. Can you help me?"
Clark thought for a moment. "I think so. Get dressed and come with me."
Linda turned and walked into her bedroom. She changed into her Supergirl costume and walked out of her bedroom.
She followed Clark to the front door. Clark opened the screen door and walked outside.
Linda walked out after him.
Clark flew into the air. Linda flew into the air and followed him.
"Where are we going?" Linda asked him.
"A secret place, where I go to be alone." Clark replied. "I call it the Fortress of Solitude."
