Author's Note: these are two separate scenes from littles Alex & Kara. They do not take place right after each other, but rather are just both about Kara and Alex being each other's hero at that young age in Midvale.

"A true hero isn't measured by the size of his strength, but by the strength of his heart."
~ Zeus from "Hercules"

Being the new kid in school wasn't easy, it was harder when you were from another planet with superpowers that you weren't completely sure how to control all of the time. Kara was from Krypton and that's where she'd grown up for the first thirteen years of her life, she'd left all of that behind...everything she knew...everyone she loved...and now without the purpose she'd been sent to Earth with...she had to find her place in the world.

A new world.

A new family.

A new purpose: to be normal.

Well, that was all a lot easier said than done. Kara had found the culture to be interesting and was always pleasantly surprised by the natural wonders of the world around. It was normally the animals that were more unique to Earth, things like birds. When it came to school, though, Kara couldn't seem to fit in. Dressing the part was easy, Eliza would set out clothes and then Alex would make adjustments to what was set out. Kara had heard Jeremiah and Eliza tell Alex quite often to look after her, all she kept thinking was how it reminded her of her mother asking her to look after Kal El before the destruction of Krypton no matter how much she tried not to think of it in that way. Alex had a mission, to help Kara to fit in...but Kara didn't have a mission any longer (not with Kal El grown up), she didn't realize that simply just having to live for herself would be so difficult but it was...more so everyday.

Earth's social hierarchies were even more complicated.

"Look at her hair!"

What was wrong with it?

"Look at how she dresses!"

Kara was so confused. Her attire was similar to what others were wearing, why was she being singled out? She looked around, taking in everyone else wearing jeans...just like she was. Her shoes were the same kind that Alex wore, just a different color. Her shirt was something that Eliza had bought her and had really loved and Alex had even told her that it was okay to wear. So, what was wrong with what she had on?

"Four eyed freak!"

Before she could say anything, she was suddenly pushed and then pushed again. The girls had surrounded her and Kara had somehow gotten into the middle of it all. The sounds around her only grew and her powers seemed to amplify them, Kara tried to keep it under control but it was overwhelming. She pressed her hands over her ears just as her glasses were knocked off of her face. She let out a scream as she fell to the ground, broken glasses beside her.

"Hey!" came a shout.

Squeezing her eyes shut, Kara just waited. The shout had been familiar and Kara was certain that it was Alex. The world was suddenly quiet around her, but then there was suddenly a reassuring 'it's okay' that reminded her so much of Eliza. Slowly, she opened her eyes, blinking through the x-ray vision until Alex's face came into focus. After a moment, she released her ears and just breathed.

"Those girls are jerks," Alex spat as she helped Kara up.

"I'm sorry," tumbled out of Kara's mouth. She'd watched as Alex had been told by her parents to look after Kara, seen Alex give up so much in the way of friends and socializing, and on top of it all...she'd been made to share her room and help Kara. It would be a lot for anyone. She had no idea how she'd handled the situation if their roles had been reversed.

"It's not your fault," Alex told her and then helped her to her feet.

Kara stared down at the ground, the lenses broken in her glasses. "Do you think Jeremiah will be upset with me?"

Alex collected the glasses off of the ground the best she could. "Trust me, he's not going to be mad about this." Alex seemed to light up suddenly. "Though, this could give us the perfect opportunity."

"What kind of opportunity?"

"It involves ice cream."

Kara lit up instantly. "Ice cream?" That was one thing that she'd found on Earth that she really enjoyed. No matter how she was feeling, it would always cheer her up.

"But you have to follow my lead."

"Why? What are we going to do?"

"Get out of school early."

Kara blinked for a moment, trying to process what Alex was saying. "Why would we-"

"Your glasses are broken...those girls were bullying you...you're obviously traumatized...and need to be picked up...and you really need me to go with you too."

"I do?"

"Oh, you do."

Staring at Alex for a long moment, she thought over what she was saying. "That sounds like we're manipulating the situation."

"We are."

"That's exactly it."

"But that's wrong…"

"Why?"

"Because I should be in class-"

"You'd rather be in class than having ice cream?"

Ice cream.

Kara really did want an ice cream now that Alex had mentioned it. "Isn't it wrong?"

"It was wrong for them to treat you like that and break your glasses," Alex explained logically as she waved the broken glasses back and forth for emphasis. "You know that you won't be able to concentrate the rest of the day without them."

She was right.

Without her glasses, it was far harder for her to concentrate simply because of the overabundance of stimuli. The glasses had helped make her life more normal and a bit easier on Earth. She had Jeremiah to thank for that aspect.

"I really would like ice cream," Kara said slowly. "And you're right. I need my glasses for school."

"We'd be home early, we could probably go down to the beach after ice cream," Alex put out there.

Jeremiah and Eliza Danvers had been pushing them to do more things together as 'sisters' and that all just sounded like the best afternoon to her, especially after what had happened that day. "Okay," Kara said finally. "Let's get ice cream." Kara held out her hand, watching it as she waited there for a breath before Alex took her hand. Smiling up at Alex, in that moment...Alex felt like a sister to her. It was a nice moment and she knew it would be followed by more...and ice cream would be involved.

"Does it get any better?"

As she and Alex lay in Alex's bed back to back, Kara just breathed and thought about everything they had both lost. Alex's question was an honest inquiry and one that Kara didn't think she had a good answer to. "I don't know," she finally responded. Neither one of them moving, both just laying there, but together. "All I can tell you is that having you...and Eliza...that made it better."

"I have you," Alex said.

It wasn't the same.

Kara knew it wasn't the same.

Jeremiah Danvers was Alex's father and they'd been close. Losing him was like it had been for Kara to lose Zor El. Kara knew that at least Alex still had her mother, well...they both had Eliza. It didn't make up for the hole in your heart, though. It was a hole that couldn't ever be filled except with love and good memories. Kara wasn't sure that Alex wasn't anywhere near that yet.

"On Krypton, are funerals like ours?"

"We don't bury people in the ground," Kara whispered. She wasn't sure if she was saying the right thing, but she hoped that what she was saying was helping Alex in some way. "We send them into space...to the sun...to Rao…the sun god…"

"What if you don't believe in god?"

Kara paused and thought about that for a moment. "Do you believe in something after this life?"

The room was silent for a long time.

"I don't know," Alex admitted.

"There's a prayer we say," Kara continued a moment later. "Do you want to hear it?" She didn't know if Alex really wanted to hear anything that she was saying, but she was certain that them just being there together was helping. It helped not being alone even when that's what you thought you wanted, Kara knew that from experience.

"Tell me."

"You have been the sun of our lives. Our prayers will be the sun that lights your journey home. We will remember you every dawn and await the night to join you in the sky. Rao's will be done."

"Do you believe that your parents...everyone you knew is there? With Rao?" Alex asked.

"Yes," Kara answered. She'd grown up believing that and she couldn't stop believing that. Not now. Not ever. It would dishonor the memory of all of those she loved on Krypton. "I like to think that Jeremiah is with them-"

"Even if he wasn't Kryptonian?"

Turning over to face Alex's back, Kara was silent for a moment before answering Alex's question. "Yes."

Alex turned over to face her now, both of them staring at each other. "I just don't know how to do things without my dad. I mean, he was the person I talked to-"

"You have me."

Alex wrapped her arms around Kara suddenly and unexpectedly. She squeezed Kara, but Kara was mindful of how tightly she hugged back. "When you first came to live with us, I always thought you were the one who needed me, but I never realized I needed you." Alex was quiet for a moment. "I'm glad we're sisters."

"Me too."

The End.