Set before Supergirl season 4. As in, that season does not exist here. Enjoy!

[Not] According to Plan

Kara taped her hand nervously against her thigh. Waiting in line at the bank hadn't been her plan today, but Lena wouldn't slow down for two seconds, let alone…well, two seconds knowing Lena.

Actually, I know all about why you're mad at Supergirl because I'm Supergirl, and I'm pretty pissed at you too, so can we please talk about it because I want my friend to not be angry at me and me to not be angry at my friend.

Yeah, knowing Lena, that conversation would be dead within seconds, but Kara wanted to be sure. Which was why she finally returned one of Lena's calls. Coffee had been on her mind, in her own apartment, without prying eyes and ears.

But Lena never seems to do what she wants her to nowadays.

"Just once I'd like to get to the bank and have no line," Lena said, slipping her phone back into her coat pocket. She flashed a smile that made Kara's stomach squirm. "Thanks for coming with me."

"Well, uh, sure! Yeah, it's just been such a while since we've hung out…" She cleared her throat. "But, um, hopefully we can go back to my place? There's something I'd like to talk with you about…"

Funnily enough, it had been Alex's idea. Okay, part of it was her idea. The rest had been James'. Alex suggested talking to Lena one-on-one as Kara, specifically journalist Kara, to try and understand more of what had been going through Lena's mind when she'd completely and utterly backstabbed her friend by making more kryptonite. (Okay, that last bit was less of what Alex said and more of what Kara felt.)

James, on the other hand, was adamant that she should just tell Lena the truth. He knew, Winn knew, hell, even Cat Grant knew. Maybe. That's an ongoing debate between the three of them—two of them. Winn's in the future now. Which means he can't help her talk to Lena. Can't be in her ear with his little nerd devices talking her through what exactly to say. Rao, she really wished he could be in her ear now because what the hell was she supposed to—

Is that a breach?

"Everybody down on the ground!"

Loud noises, almost like gunshots, ring through the air, followed by screams and the slapping of shoes on marble floor. Quickly, Kara knelt down, pulling Lena with her. Frantically, she searched for a way to transform into Supergirl, but there was no way she'd leave Lena in the open like this.

Two more figures step out of the breach. One of them stretched out his hands out and something emitted from his palms, but nothing seemed to have happened. Kara pushed that information in the back of her mind for now, and focused on the intruders. By their frame, they were obviously men. Dressed completely identical with dark goggles over their eyes, the only different between them was their height and build. The first one was tall, but broad. The second one, who still had his hands spread out, was tall and thin; couldn't be much of a fighter.

"Money in the bag! Now!" the third one shouted. He was shorter than the first two by a few inches, but had the most muscle.

"Everyone stay calm," number one commanded. Somehow, his voice echoed throughout the room. His mask must have some sort of megaphone device thing. (Winn would have a better word for it.) He threw his hand out and a second breach appeared right before the bank door. The first one disappeared. "No way in, no way out. So, I suggest you all sit tight. It'll be over with soon."

Not everyone listened, but after three people were gunned down, everyone sat down and shut up.

Hopefully, Jon could wipe everyone's memory, because Kara was not about to let those three people die in vain.

"What are you doing?" Lena hissed, pulling her back down to the ground. "They'll kill you!"

"Maybe," she said through gritted teeth. "They killed that security guard, and that mother and—"

"Dammit, Kara, yes, I know. I saw. I'm not about to let you be next."

"Hey!" Number one walked over to them, his almost-gun clutched in his hands. (Maybe something from Earth-1? Kara again filed the information for later.) "I said no talking."

Just then, a loud crash brought a rain of glass.

"Pick on someone your own size."

That horrible, metal suit had never looked so beautiful.

Around her, people whispered, "Oh my God, do you guys see that? That's the Guardian! The Guardian! We're saved!"

It was much better than the whispers of, "Where's Supergirl? Has she abandoned us? Supergirl, save us! Why aren't you here?"

Thank you, James. Kara hoped her eyes conveyed her message.

Beside her, Lena screeched.

"Let go of my hair!"

Number one hid behind her, his almost-gun aimed at James.

"Let her go!" Kara moved to stand up, but James stood in front of her.

"Easer! Meta him! Now!"

Number two—Eraser—stretched out his arms and the same wave went through the room. Again, nothing happened except the whispers around the room increased.

James looked around. "Is that the best you got?" he asked, half amused.

"What the fuck!?" Number one backed up, taking Lena with him. "Eraser, again!"

"He's not a meta human!" Eraser shouted, running toward them. "Richie, hurry up!"

Kara stood. "I won't let you do this alone Ja—Guardian."

"Kara, no," James whispered. "You're not Supergirl right now. You can't."

Sirens filled the air. Outside, red and blue flashing lights danced in the streets.

"We have you surrounded. Come out, or we'll come in."

Alex's voice.

Kara turned, smug. "Looks like you lost, boys."

Number one laughed. "We still got her though." He pressed his gun into Lena's jaw.

"Blue, we're going home," the third man—Richie—says, walking out from the backroom. The attendant didn't come back out with him. He set the four large duffle bags down and crackled his knuckles. "Alright tin can, let's talk human-a-human."

Human, so he's not a meta human. Another detail filed away for later.

"My name is the Guardian." James squared his shoulders, waiting for him to strike first.

Richie walked slowly, a lazy smile on his face. He even dared to look around the room, as if wondering what valuables his terrified hostages had on their person.

"When you're ready, Richie, I'm ready," Blue said.

"Listen, tin can, you've got two options here. You let us go, with her," he nodded toward Lena. "Or we fight, you lose, and I take her and your little girlfriend here back with us."

Kara looked around for whoever else is close too—"Oh, I am not his girlfriend."

Richie shrugged. "Whatever. Same outcome either way. So, tin can. What's it gonna be?"

James lunged.

Watching other people fight never settled well with Kara. She's indestructible, she's superpowered; if anyone should risk their life, it should be her, not James.

It was almost like a dance—a really, really dangerous dance—the way James lunched and Richie ducked. None of James' punches landed, but Richie never attempted to retaliate.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore.

"Ah, ah, ah, I wouldn't do that, princess," someone whispered in her ear. The almost-gun pressed against her jaw, but she didn't feel the cold.

"Let me go, Eraser," she gritted out.

He laughed. "Or what? You'll hurt me? I doubt that sweetheart."

Just for that, she lifted her foot to stop on his toe. She was too slow.

"Now!" Richie shouted.

Kara's vision swarmed with blue, and the sensation of falling filled her stomach, but it was only a matter of seconds begore gray walls appeared and her feet once again touched solid ground.

"What. the fuck. was that?" Lena, ever stoic, glared at Richie.

Blue leaned into her. "That was my powers, sweetheart. Impressed?"

She jutted out her chin. "No. And I wasn't talking to you."

With a sneer, Blue shoved her into a cage, half-hidden in the shadows. Eraser quickly followed suit with Kara.

"What are we gonna do with them?" he asked.

"What we do with all the other ones," Richie said, not looking up from the pile of cash in his hand. "We let them watch us count the money, and then kill them."

Blue looked at Lena, eyes hooded. "Can we have some fun first?"

"After we count the money."

He made a face, but Blue turned his back on the cage and went to the table, joining Richie and Eraser.

"We have to get out of here," Lena whispered. "Any ideas?"

"I have one…" This really wasn't how Kara wanted to tell Lena.

"Ugh, where do you think Supergirl was?" She said it was such distain. "She should've been there to stop this."

I wanted to. I almost did.

Kara stayed silent.

"Did you know that robbing a bank on a different earth is still a crime?"

Kara knew that voice anywhere.

"Flash. I wondered when you'd finally catch onto us." Richie didn't even look up from his pile of cash.

"Where do you think he came from?" Lena asked, staring up at him. He was on the second story of the warehouse, leaning against the railing.

Kara shrugged. She couldn't trust herself to open her mouth. With Flash here, they could go back to National City with ease. No Supergirl necessary.

"Leaving bodies all over Central City? Creating breaches to every different Earth? You're quite sloppy."

Richie hummed.

"Now, boss?" Eraser asked.

"Not yet."

"Now what?" Flash asked. "Now you're going to give yourselves up? I sure—" he faltered, double taking as he finally caught sight of Kara, "—sure hope so."

At Richie's laugh, his head snapped back to the trio. Richie finally set his cash down.

"Listen, fancy pants. This is how it's going to go down. You either leave now, and you'll live." He picked up one of his knives. It wasn't rust that coated the edge of the blade. "Or, you attempt to fight us, you lose, we kill them, and then we kill you."

"We'll have a bit of fun with them first," Blue interjected, smirking at Lena.

She stood up straighter. "I'd love to see you try."

"So, there you have it, fancy pants. What'll it be?"

He didn't answer. Instead, a blur of red cascaded towards the trio.

"Now!" Richie barely managed to say the word before Flash had punched him in the gut.

Eraser held out his hand.

"Flash, watch out!" Kara blurted, pointing at Eraser. All the information she'd filed away bubbled to the surface, and she had a terrible idea of what Eraser's powers were.

It was too late.

The wave emitted out, and this time it had an effect.

Flash gasped, stumbling backwards.

"No!" Kara shouted, gripping the bars. Still, she was careful not to dent the metal, in case she was wrong.

"What the hell was that?" Flash coughed out at the same time Lena asked. He couldn't seem to find his footing.

Eraser flexed his hands. "Oh, nothing major. Just a bit of dampening power. Any meta human within half a mile of me suddenly can't access their powers anymore."

"It's only for twenty-four hours though," Blue said. "Not that you'll live long enough to gain them back."

Flash put his fists up. "You're not going to kill them."

Richie spat out some blood and laughed. "Yes, we are."

With a step forward, he grabbed a hammer and swung it down. Flash blocked it with his arm, but Kara could hear his bones breaking. His cry pierced her ears like knives. Blue swiped his legs and Flash crashed to the ground.

"No, I can't do this. I can't do nothing," she whispered, taking a step forward.

Lena grabbed her arm. "Kara, there's nothing you—"

"I'm sorry," she interrupted, unable to look Lena in the eye. She told herself it was because she had to make sure Flash was still alive. (And with each swing, each, punch, each kick, her fury grew hotter.) "I wanted to talk about this. Over coffee. I didn't want to tell you like this."

Lena looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "What are you talking about?"

In answer, she gripped the iron bars and pulled them apart, the metal echoing throughout the warehouse.

Lena gasped. The trio stopped and stared at her.

"Oh, thank God," Flash muttered, the sound only detectable by her alien ears.

"Leave him alone," she said, taking off her glasses and ponytail.

Blue cocked his head, wiping his bloody knuckles on his shirt. "Well, sweetheart, you just keep unbuttoning your sweater like that and—what the hell!?"

Kara no longer stood between the trio and Lena. It was Supergirl.

"I said. Leave him alone."

"Or what?" Eraser took a step forward, standing on top of Flash's chest.

The next second, Eraser was dangling in the air.

"What do you think, boys? Should I drop him?" she asked, looking down.

"Th-That's impossible!" Eraser looked at her in horror. "You can't… You shouldn't…."

Supergirl laughed. She brought him closer so she could whisper, "I'm not a meta human. I'm not even human."

He screamed and she let him go, dropping him on a conveniently placed mattress. It wouldn't be a soft landing, but he wouldn't die from it. Just a slight concussion and a few hours of unconsciousness. He deserved much worse for what he did to Flash.

"Let's go!" Richie shouted, frantically gesturing at Blue.

"I don't think so!" Supergirl dove, grapping rope and tying Blue hands together, but not without 'accidently' breaking a finger or two first. For good measure, she placed one of the empty duffle bags on his head and secured it before one final kick to his chest. He landed quite nicely beside his friend.

"One more move, and I'll kill him."

Richie had Flash leaning against him, knife pressing into his throat, where his suit didn't cover. He laid limp against Richie; arms broken and bleeding at his sides, his left leg bent at on odd angle. His nose was broken and his right eye was swollen shut.

Her fury grew even hotter.

"Sometimes humans are viler than any other creature in this universe," she gritted out, his hands clenching. She remembered what Blue had said to Lena. Suddenly, she didn't feel like she kicked him hard enough.

"Whatever, rainboots." Richie stuck out his chin, grinning. "I've won."

Supergirl laughed. "And sometimes humans are the most stupid creatures in the world."

She stepped forward, and focused on Richie's hand. Within microseconds, there was a burning hole in his hand and a knife clattered to the ground.

"You—! You little—!"

CLANG!

Lena dropped the crowbar, breathing heavily as she starred at Richie's unconscious form.

"You're Supergirl," she said, not taking her eyes off Richie.

"I…"

"Kara?"

Supergirl rushed down to Flash's side and gently held him in her arms.

"Hey, Barry," she said, taking off his hood. "How are you feeling?"

He tried to laugh and a trickle of blood slid down his cheek. "Like shit."

She looked up. "I have to get him to STARR Labs. We're not on our earth. You have to come with me." A pause. "Please."

Lena clenched her fists. "Is there anyone coming to take these thigs to jail?"

"Yes," Barry gritted out. "C-Caitlyn and…Cis-sco…got it…covered…"

She took a breath, shallow and sharp. "Yes, I'll come with you. Supergirl."

This was not how Kara planned for any of this to go, but there was not way she could take it all back. Especially since her only option to go back in time was no longer allowed to do that. And he was bleeding and broken.

"Hold onto me," she instructed, lifting Barry in her arms as if he were a blushing bride.

"Oh god that hurts," he moaned out. "I'm so glad you're here though. Why are you here?"

She looked down at him fondly. "Stop talking, you're just hurting yourself more."

When Supergirl felt Lena's arms around her neck, she only gave the warning, "Hold on tight," before taking off. It was hard balancing Lena on her back and Barry in her arms, but, thankfully, STARR Labs wasn't too far away. (And thankfully she remembered where it was.)

"Oh my God, Barry!" Iris shouted, running up to meet them with Cisco and Caitlyn right behind.

"Dammit, Barry, I told you to take us with you," Cisco muttered, looking over him in horror.

As soon as Lena had let go of her, Supergirl was already following Caitlyn to their hospital corner.

"He's not healing, why isn't he healing?" she asked.

"Eraser," Supergirl answered. "His meta power is to dampen others' power. He said it lasts twenty-four hours."

She cursed. "I've got a lot of work to do then."

"Caitlyn?" Barry muttered, eyes only have open. "You sound funny…"

"Starting with some morphine," she muttered.

"I can help you," Lena said. "I'd tell you all my credentials, but honestly, there's no time."

Caitlyn paused, glancing over Lena, but she nodded within seconds. "Thanks. Come with me."

Supergirl placed Barry on the bed, and then quickly left the room. Caitlyn was a stickler for proper hygiene and Lena…well, she wasn't sure about her yet.

"He'll be fine," Iris said as soon as she walked out, but it didn't really sound as though she was talking to Supergirl.

"What happened out there?" Cisco asked.

She sighed. "A lot."

With a firm shake of her head, Iris turned. "I have a fresh pot of coffee and three brand new creamers in the fridge. Want to talk about it?"

It wasn't the coffee conversation she wanted to have, but it would have to do. With a smile, Supergirl said, "Sure."

x~xXx~x

"…Damn."

Kara laughed a bit. "Yeah, I guess that sums up my life quite adequately right about now."

Thankfully, Iris had some extra clothes for Kara to change into, curtesy of Felicity from a few weeks back, apparently. Being out of her Supergirl suit, she felt more vulnerable telling Iris everything, but being in her suit just made her angry.

Iris took a sip of her coffee. "So now, on top of all that, she now knows that Kara is Supergirl and Supergirl is Kara… Damn."

Kara leaned back in her chair, feeling the weight of the words settle in her chest. "Yep. She knows. And now, she's going to hate me too. I mean, Kara-me. She's going to hate all of me. She probably already does."

"Hate is a strong word…" Iris started.

"Do you have a better one?" Kara asked, defeated. "Despise, maybe?"

Iris frowned. "Despise? I don't think she despises you."

"She made kryptonite, Iris." Kara sat up straight. "The thing that can kill me. The thing her brother made to kill my cousin. The thing—"

"I get it," Iris interrupted, not unkindly. "She really hurt you by doing that, didn't she?"

Kara wanted to roll her eyes. "Yes, Iris, that's the point, kryptonite can hurt me—"

"No." She laughed softly. "I mean that you feel like she betrayed you. You can't trust her anymore. And you want to trust her again, but you don't know how. You miss her."

Kara frowned. "Miss her…?"

She remembered when she first met Lena. And how that tense meeting had been at first. How she felt a prickle of unease when Clark had said her name.

"You wouldn't be asking me if my last name was Smith."

"Oh, but it's not. It's Luther."

She remembered all the lunches, the coffees, the movie nights they shared. How she'd saved her as Supergirl. How she'd been saved by Lena. She remembered the way it felt being around her. Safe. Warm. Fun. How Lena's laugh could light up a room and how her gentle touch could brighten Kara's day. She did miss her. Missed the closeness of their friendship. The familiarity. The trust. The joy. The Lo—

"Oh fuck."

Iris sat up. "What? What is it?"

"Uh. Nothing." But she couldn't stop the blush from rising in her cheeks. "I just. Uh. Realized how right you were. That I. Miss. Her."

Iris narrowed her eyes. "Uh-huh…"

"Hey, Barry's awake." Cisco's head appeared by the doorframe.

"Barry." Within moments, Iris was running out the door, her and Kara's conversation already in the back of her mind.

Behind her, Cisco and Kara walked at a slower pace.

"Thanks for saving him," Cisco said.

She smiled. "Of course."

"What are you and Leah doing on Earth-1 anyway?"

"Lena. And we just got caught in a bank robbery. They took us as collateral."

Cisco scoffed. "Oh, it was just a bank robbery. It's totally not a big deal at all. Just a bank robbery." He nudged her shoulder and laughed. "Good thing they took you though. Things would've turned out much differently."

Kara's face darkened, recalling how quickly they were able to take Barry down without his powers. Recalling the words Blue had tossed about so carelessly in regards to Lena.

"Yeah, I know." She cleared her throat. "But no use dwelling on that now. It didn't happen, so we should just focus on the now."

They entered Barry's room.

"Right. Focus on the—damn, Barry, are you okay?"

"I am now." He smiled, leaning his head against Iris' shoulder. "Thanks, Kara. Don't know why you're here, but you sure saved my ass."

Kara stole a quick glance at Lena, who quickly looked away. "No problem, Barry, that's what friends are for. You'd do the same for me."

"How did you two even get to Earth-1?" Caitlyn asked.

"Earth-1?" Lena repeated, her eyebrows raised. She laughed airily as if she'd heard a joke—and Kara's knees went a bit weak. "What do you mean one?"

Cisco motioned around. "This is Earth-1. You're both from Earth-38."

She blinked once. Twice. "Well, that did absolutely nothing to explain things further. Anyone else care to have a go?"

"Um…" He turned to Kara. "Help?"

She scrunched up her face. "Me? You're the one with the teleportation powers."

"It's not teleportation, it's just…opening breaches. And vibing."

Lena crossed her arms. "Again, that is not an adequate explanation."

Cisco looked back at Kara. She groaned.

"Fine! Fine. Okay, I'll try. So. Uh, okay. When Barry first came to our world, he explained it like this," she picked up a marker and went over to the glass wall, drawing a few circles. "Imagine there are multiple versions of Earth and all the other planets, where certain events didn't happen. Like where the Nazis won World War II—"

"Yeah, that wasn't fun," Cisco muttered.

"Understatement." Barry let out a snort, then a groan. Iris kissed his forehead.

Lena's arms dropped. "What?"

Quickly, Cisco put his hands up in a placating gesture. "It's okay! We saved the world and Kara didn't get her heart removed so—"

"What?" She looked at Kara for almost the first time, unabashedly staring. "Your heart removed? You. You almost died?"

"Almost being the key—yep, not helping I get it." Cisco motioned zipping his lips as Caitlyn rolled her eyes, removing her hand from his shoulder.

Licking her lips and unable to meet Lena's eye, Kara turned back to the board. "Um… Yeah. But I didn't. Die. I'm all good! Still alive!" Oh my Rao, I need to stop talking now. "Um, so where were we again?"

"Multiple earths," Caitlyn reminded.

"Right. Right, multiple earths. Different events shaping them. Okay," she took a deep breath and made some squiggly lines so her circles looked more like suns. "Each of the earths vibrate at different frequencies, which is why—"

"Why we can't see them," Lena finished, walking up to the circles. "But if one were to find the right vibration to match the frequency levels, then you could, essentially, make a portal to each world."

"Breach," Cisco corrected, putting his finger up. Caitlyn lowered it back down.

"And that's what Blue did. He made a breach from the bank in our world to their warehouse in this one."

Rao, she's so smart, Kara thought. Then, Shit. "Uh, yep. That's exactly it."

"I like your squiggles," Barry said. "It's cute."

"Alright, let's get you to sleep." Caitlyn walked over to the machines, fiddling with the buttons and wires.

"Why? I don't need sleep, I'm perfect. Isn't that right, honey?" he looked sleepily at Iris.

She laughed. "You're perfect alright. Perfectly in need of some rest."

And of course, that was when the alarm went off.

"Shit, I gotta…" But Barry had fallen asleep before he could even finish.

"No worries, my man," Cisco grinned. "We got this, right Killer Frost?"

Caitlyn frowned. "Can't Supergirl go?"

"This is our Earth! We got this!"

x~xXx~x

"We don't got this!"

Cisco's voice echoed throughout the room, the evidence of his and Killer Frosts' losing battle being broadcasted by the News on the screen in front of the trio of women.

"Shit! Kara can you—?" Iris started.

"Already on it!" Kara shouted, already running off into the hallway, the civilian clothes hanging in midair for a millisecond before collapsing on the ground.

She didn't see Lena watch her leaving. She didn't see the look in her eyes.

x~xXx~x

"Thanks for, uh, saving our asses out there," Cisco said, sheepishly rubbing his neck.

"Thanks for breaching me out of hitting a semitruck," Supergirl responded.

Caitlyn walked up the them, her icy hair receding. "Cisco, next time, we let the alien with more experience handle our villains, agreed?"

"Agreed." He didn't seem too happy about saying it though.

"Hey, Kara?"

She looked up. Lena was standing in the doorway, holding her borrowed clothes.

"When we get back to our earth. We're going to have a chat."

"Um. Okay."

"A long chat," she said, handing over the clothes.

"Right."

It physically pained Kara to keep her eyes off Lena's receding ass.

"Am I missing something here?" Cisco asked, talking over the sound of Lena's heels echoing off the hallway walls.

Caitlyn groaned. "Oh my god, Cisco."

"What?"

She just rolled her eyes. Kara attempted not to blush.

x~xXx~x

"Thanks for everything," Barry said, hugging Kara tightly.

"Of course. Like, I said, you're my friend."

Cisco gave her a fist bump. "I'm just glad no one else tried anything today."

After saying more goodbyes and giving out more hugs, she turned to Lena.

"Are you ready?"

She raised her eye bow. "Are you?"

Iris winked and gave Kara a thumbs up in the background as Cisco blasted a portal behind them.

"Yeah, let's go."

x~xXx~x

"This…uh, wasn't what I had in mind when I you told me we were going to chat…"

Lena laughed. "Would you rather we actually talk?"

"N-Not right now," Kara gasped.

"Good." Lena leaned down to kiss her again.