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The one thing Kara regretted most was that she wasn't there to hold Alex's hand while J'onn wiped every trace of her superhero sister from her conscience. She should have been there, comforting her, holding her close as she took a blind step into the unknown. But she couldn't face it. Kara couldn't stand by and watch her sister, the most important person in her life, forget not only a part of her, but a whole half of her. Instead, she stood outside, watching from a safe distance as the martian placed two fingers on Alex's left temple and took her precious memories. At that moment, Kara truly believed things couldn't get any worse than they already were.
Oh, how wrong she was; A few days later, Kara realized, much to her utter horror, that new Alex hated Supergirl.
It's been five days. Five days since Alex had been deprived of her memories and Kara had an ongoing feeling that she was losing herself. It was almost as if a part of her soul latched onto Alex's thoughts and memories and drifted away with them, leaving Kara's mind numb and her heart broken.
So, on the fifth night, Kara found herself flying freely over the skyscrapers of National City. She looked down at all of the windows. Every single one of them told a different story. Some windows were completely dark, but others still shone with light, illuminating the dark sky that regularly served as Kara's safe space. Behind the windows there were people. Every single one of them had unique experiences and was fighting their own personal battles. They were all very different, yet there was one thing they had in common, one thing that bonded them all, a sort of invisible force that guided them when things got hard. That one thing was Supergirl. They all depended on this beacon of hope, this fearless hero with extraordinary strength and the power to break down walls and build bridges.
Suddenly, Kara's eyes filled with tears. Her heart grew heavy with the weight of responsibility that pushing down on her with such power not even her super-strength could compete with. She turned away from the city, not being able to look at the windows any longer.
Kara didn't really know where she was going. She flew with the same power and determination she did when she was on her way to save somebody, cold wind hitting her face with force and drying her tears in the process. She let her subconscious decide her destination and when she finally came face to face with the familiar house, it all made perfect sense. Kara slowed down, taking a minute to see if anything had changed. It hadn't. Everything was just as she remembered it.
The woman inside seemed to recognize the familiar noise because she looked up at the window with a gasp of expectation. Looking into the alien's eyes, it was obvious her initial thought was correct. She jumped to her feet and got to the window in a hurry, opening it to let the girl she always saw as her daughter inside. As she got closer, she noticed the tear tracks on her face and instantly knew something wasn't right.
"Kara?" was all she had time to say before she was engulfed in a tight embrace. Shocked by the events unfolding in front of her eyes, all she could do in that very moment was return the hug. After a while, she felt the girl loosen her grip as exhaustion began to take over. She slowly pulled away, locking eyes with the older woman. What she saw when she looked into them almost knocked the wind right out of her. She expected anger, inconvenience, even resentment, but all she got was worry, empathy, love and more love, more love than Kara could handle at that moment. So she did the only thing she had energy for, and that was cry. Kara broke down with the assurance that there was finally someone there to pick up the pieces.
"Eliza," she sobbed, as she latched onto her adoptive mom once again.
"It's okay. You're safe here, honey," Eliza replied quietly, knowing Kara didn't like too much noise when she was upset. She slowly guided her younger daughter to the her bed and sat her down on the edge of it. She stroked her tear-stricken face with her thumb and for the first time in ages, Kara's heart filled up to the very brink with the love and warmth she craved. The kind of love she was feeling was powerful enough to stop the Earth from spinning around its axis and Kara wanted nothing more than to bottle that feeling up and treasure it for all eternity.
Kara sat on the bed, staring at Eliza, not really knowing what to do with herself. She had calmed down slightly, but silent tears were still falling from her eyes, onto her cheeks and neck, and rolling down the top of her waterproof costume. She looked down and her eyes focused on the symbol she proudly wore on her chest. It suddenly seemed so ironic that it made her laugh out loud. Next thing she knows, she's howling, her lungs almost bursting with uncontrollable bouts of laughter, tears still streaming down her face.
"Alex doesn't know I'm Supergirl," Kara laughed hysterically.
"What?" Eliza asked, confused by the whole situation. She reached out to tuck a strand of loose blonde hair behind her daughter's ear.
"It wasn't safe for anyone at the DEO to know my secret identity. J'onn had to wipe their minds. Alex's too." Kara only trusted her voice enough to speak in short sentences. She had stopped laughing by then, the shock slowly wearing down. Eliza finally understood. She didn't say anything, hoping the alien would give her a little more information to work with. Moments later, she did.
"And you know what the worst part is?" Kara sniffled, trying her best to suppress the sobs fighting to escape her tightening throat. "New Alex hates Supergirl." Saying it out loud made it seem even more real. Kara covered her face with her hands and started crying again, violent sobs wracking her body.
For a while, Eliza was too stunned to speak, move or do anything else that could potentially bring some comfort to the distraught Kryptonian. This state of mind only lasted a few seconds though, because moments later, Eliza's motherly instincts kicked in and she wrapped her arms around her daughter.
"I know it hurts, baby," she said, stroking the girl's hair. Although Kara was still in her superhero attire, Eliza couldn't help thinking she looked just like she did when she first arrived on Earth all those years ago. A little girl who had lots everything over night but also gained a lot in the process. A little girl who watched her world go up in flames but had the power to change a different one.
"I help people all the time," Kara sobbed, holding onto Eliza as if she were her lifeline, "I need somebody to help me. Why won't anybody help me?"
"Kara, it's okay, I'm here now," Eliza said calmly, her heart breaking all over again. "Let's get you out of your suit, okay?" She got up, searching for a warm sweatshirt she could lend Kara.
Kara didn't feel like using her powers that night, so Eliza helped her change out of her suit. The Kryptonian was exhausted and her whole body was trembling but she tried her very best to cooperate. The next thing she knew was Eliza telling her to get into bed as she pulled the comfoter over her body.
"Sweetie?" Eliza said once they were snuggled up in bed. Kara looked up at her, an indescribable sadness present in her ice-blue eyes. "Your sister loves you so very much. Don't you ever forget that. I know your heart gets heavy sometimes, because you carry the souls of all the people you've lost in there," Eliza said, pressing her hand to the hero's heart. "But baby, it's okay. Everything is okay," she repeated a few times, hoping her words would get through. Kara closed her eyes as more tears fell from them. Eliza reached to wipe them away, stroking her face and kissing her forehead. She started humming what she remembered of a Kryptonian melody, hoping it would have a calming effect on the alien.
"Mommy," Kara whispered, half asleep. Eliza knew she never called her that and that it was probably the exhaustion talking, but her heart skipped a beat nonetheless. Biting back tears, she leaned over and kissed her daughter on the cheek.
"I'm here baby. You can sleep now," she whispered into her ear.
Kara woke up to her favorite smell in the whole universe. She didn't think anything could make her smile right now, but the freshly baked chocolate pecan pie proved her wrong. She got out of bed and hurried downstairs. Eliza was sitting on the couch, watching the news, a cup of coffee in her hands. Kara stood there for a while as memories of her childhood in Midvale rose to the front of her mind. Only this time it was different. For the first time ever, Kara thought about her teenage years and felt pure happiness and fulfilment. Pictures of her and Alex staying up all night and talking, and of family dinners and vacations washed over her like a calming wave of happiness as she walked over to sit next to Eliza.
"Are you feeling better, honey?" the woman asked, kissing Kara's cheek.
"A little," Kara replied, truthfully.
"Everything is going to be okay, my beautiful girl," Eliza said, hugging her close. Kara smiled and for the first time in what seemed like eternity, truly believed those words. Kara turned to look at the television screen just in time to see live coverage of an explosion in downtown National City. She turned around, looking into the eyes of the person who shaped her into the woman she had become. Eliza smiled at her knowingly, the never-ending love still present in her eyes.
"Go do what you do best, my brave little hero," she said, holding her close for the last time, hoping the girl realized how important she was to her. Kara leaned into the embrace, savoring every single moment of her mother's love. She finally realized she was truly loved. She smiled and kissed the older woman's cheek before changing into her suit in a record-breaking time. She was about to fly out of the open window when Eliza called after her.
"Wait!" said. Kara stopped and turned around. "Time for pie?" Kara's eyes lit up as she walked over to the kitchen table, eagerly taking a piece of the best pie in the galaxy into her hand.
"This truly is the best pie in the galaxy," she told Eliza, just as she did every time she made it for her. Kara was sure Eliza knew this, but she still felt the need to remind her every single time, just in case.
"So I've heard," Eliza replied with a laugh.
After Kara said her goodbyes and promised to call as soon as National City was explosion-free, she lept out of the window, off to be the hero everyone expected her to be. Although this time it was different. She was excited to show up and save the day.
She sped up, and with a heart full of love and a mouth full of chocolate goodness, she soared through the skies, ready to save the day, just like she always did. The people of National City needed their hero.