A single shape glided aimlessly throughout the streets of National City, red cape fluttering in the wind as a young women took a sharp turn, heading straight up for the sky. Her dirty blonde hair whipped behind her as she stopped abruptly, heart suddenly tight. She froze momentarily, eyes glued on the moonlight balcony in front of her. A single lamp was lit in the office, barely outlining a pacing figure.
It stopped. She could see the shape turning to face the balcony, fleeing in hopes she was not spotted. How did I end up here? But she knew why, deep down.
The streets of National City were oddly quiet, the crisp early morning air cooled the heat that rose to her cheeks. She tried desperately to sleep, but after an impatient 20 minutes of tossing and turning, she gave up and decided to get a breath of air.
Now, three hours later, the sun begun to rise as a yellow shimmer reflected off the buildings off in the distance. I guess I can see if J'onn needs any help… Kara pondered as she aimed her path to the DEO's building.
In the months following Reign's attack, so many things were changing. Alex and Sam were growing suspiciously close as Alex helped with the guilt and flashbacks that Sam suffered through. With Winn in the future with Mon El, Brainy was having a delightful time improving the DEO however he saw fit.
James and Kara's relationship was strained, but it was Karas fault. After losing Lena as an ally as Supergirl, Winn and Mon El to the future, Kara felt ultimately alone.
Nothing hurt Kara more than losing her friendship with Lena, who now distrusted Supergirl because of the synthetic Kryptonite that she made. Sure, they were fine and dandy as Kara, but it still hurt, a lot more than she could have ever imagined.
Lena became determined to aid the DEO in however she could, as long as she had no direct contact with Supergirl. She watched from afar as Lena and Alex worked together, flinching as they laughed about something.
She shook her head, afraid of the tears as her eyes began to sting. Her throat tightened as she approached the DEO, landing on the steps. She put her left hand on a fancy screen that Lena recently installed, opening the door with a quiet ding to alert the staff that someone arrived.
"You are late," an emotionless voice attempted to joke. A pale blue back was turned to her, focused on some screens.
"Very funny, Brainy." Kara grumbled,"Anyone else here?" She was alarmed to see how empty the DEO was, there were usually dozens of agents on duty, instead of Brainy and a handful of interns.
"The city was quiet, so I sent most everyone home. Alex is here though, I think testing some new equipment." Brainy explained dismissively, eyes still fixated on the screen as he wrote some equations down.
Wordlessly, Kara ventured off to find Alex. Her mind drifted back to that day that seemed so long ago, the day Alex came out. She had not even known females could date other females, let alone that people were so against it. It was not common on Krypton, not that she could remember at least.
Having a gay relationship was natural, as far as she was concerned it was just love between two people that happened to be of the same sex. Her mind briefly flashed back to when she met Lena with Clark, how she felt a rush of emotion she'd never expected. As they got to know each other and Kara was repeatedly impressed by Lena. Not only was the an adapt business women, but she was always there for her no matter what. Their relationship, although one sided, hitting a rocky patch when Lena made the synthetic kryptonite. Lena refused to even look at Supergirl whenever they interacted for a mission.
Kara swung open the hefty door that labeled "WARNING: WEAPONS IN USE" in big red letters. A women slightly older than Kara was throwing knives at a human shaped targets, completely out of tune with the real world. She paid no mind to Kara, not until the Kryptonian stepped in front of the target, the knife striking her in the shoulder. It hit the ground with a soft tink!
"Oh, hey. Shouldn't you be home, you know, sleeping?" Kara teased half-heartedly, snatching the knife from the ground. She tossed the knife to her sister, who caught in easily and put in in a sheath hung around her hip.
"I was up late with Sam, the DEO is closer than home so I figured I would practice and take a nap until my shift," Alex explained, glancing at Kara. There was more meaning behind her pale hazel eyes, but she did not explain further. Her eyes were dull and tired, hands fidgeting restlessly.
"Kara, listen, I know things have been rough with Mon El leaving, but you know we're here for you," Her sister slung her left arm around Kara's shoulders,"J'onn, Brainy, Lena."
Kara tore herself away from Alex, overwhelmed with emotion as she mentioned the Luthor heiress. She was exhausted of hiding from her best friend. From everyone, in fact.
"How did you know you were a lesbian?" Kara blurted, her back facing Alex. She could easily imagine the confused look skewed across her sisters narrow face.
"For some people, they knew since they were a kid, sometimes it just takes the realization that there are always options, or it takes someone special to realize that maybe these platonic feelings are not, well, platonic," Alex explained carefully,"It is different for everyone. I hadn't really considered dating women until Maggie…" She trailed off, her tone soft with memories.
"When I lost Mon El, I never felt more alone more vulnerable. Lost, hopeless, ready to give up on my own humanity, I was blindly in love," Kara murmured softly, her chest tightened so much she could hardly control her rampant emotions. She pushed everyone away as she grieved for the man she sent away up to save the world. The only person to have gotten her through it was Lena, the only one that knew her just as Kara.
"I remember," Alex replied dryly,"Look, we gave you time to deal with Mon El leaving again, but J'onn really needs you here. I need you here. I know with Lena here it has been harder for you as Supergirl, but she isn't as hostile towards you as much."
Kara greatly appreciated Alex's brute honesty, but it was time for Kara to be honest as well,"Losing Lena partly made me realize that I could easily lose her altogether if she discovered my secret. Lillian was right." Tears streamed down her cheeks, Kara collapsed to the ground, surrendering to her flaming emotions,"She is going to leave me forever when she finds out."
Alex's eyes were wide, her body frozen with a tight grip around the knife. She had only seen Kara like this once before,"She'll get over it, realize that you were just trying to protect her."
"No," Kara straightened up,"No more secrets. This just isn't about my secrets, its how I betrayed her. I can trust her with my life, and I have just made this so much worse by lying for the past few years."
"Kara, that is not a good idea," Alex warned, unsure of where Kara was going with this conversation,"Why are you so emotional over your misplaced alliship with Lena? You two are still friends, you are endangering her."
"You can handle yourself adequately, as can Lena," the blonde beauty pointed out, turning back to her sister. Emerald blazes glared back accusingly at Alex, who shifted uncomfortably.
"You didn't answer my question," Alex pushed back some reddish oak brown hair behind her ear, narrowing her eyes.
"Well…" Why is this so hard?
"Kara, please. Don't shut me out again," Her voice was now pleading, wrapping her arms around her sister. The Kryptonian wiggled in a weak effort to push away from Alex, but she gave in to the comfort.
Tears flooded her eyes as she took a deep breath and whispered ever-so-softly,"I love her."
"Oh," the agent murmured softly into her ear. She felt miserable for Kara, having to deal with her confusing feelings for Lena by herself,"You could have told me sooner…"
She buried her face into Alex's shoulder, as if her grief sprouted wings and flown away, still chained to the ground, struggling fruitlessly.
The sisters stood in silence for just a few moments before Kara gently freed herself from the peaceful embrace of Alex's embrace. She managed to calm herself enough to think rationally, her flushed face stained with tears.
"What are you going to do now?" Alex asked, adjusting her now soaked leather jacket.
"Something I should have done a long time ago," Kara replied simply, running a hand through her knotted hair. There was a new sense of confidence and finality that echoed throughout her body.
Kara D: Coffee at 6?
Lena L: Of course! See you then!
Ten minutes. She tossed her phone on to her messy bed that was covered in a concerning amount of clothing. A slight smile touched her lips at the thought of seeing Lena, the longest three weeks of her life.
Kara quickly threw on a button up red shirt and simple gray sweatpants. Hesitantly, she left on her Supergirl costume and headed out to the local coffee shop, Dixie's Cafe.
Lena is like a moth to a flame when it comes to getting in trouble. This was entirely correct, Kara lost count of how many times she saved Lena, And the times she has saved me.
The invincible Kryptonians' hands shook, her heart frozen as she considered what to say. Exhaustion started to grasp her limbs, but the thought of just seeing Lena again gave her a new spurt of energy.
Her eyes remained fixated on the slow moving pavement below as she mindlessly walked. This was a path she walked down countless times to meet Lena at their favorite coffee joint.
Three weeks. No matter how hard she fought, her gaze always slid to Lena whenever she was at the DEO. Rarely did Lena ever look in her general direction, let alone directly in the eye.
Lena sent at least a dozen messages a day, constantly trying to get Kara to meet up. Kara started to work from home, unable to face Lena at Catco. She'd get frequent visits, getting so desperate as to fly out the window before Lena broke through the door in a frantic state.
She learned through Alex that Lena broke up with James shortly after the Reign attack but she still did not know why. She assumed James decided that being with a Luthor didn't sit well and left without a word to anyone.
"Kara!" An excited voice summoned the alien back to attentiveness. Her gaze jerked back up, landing on a gorgeous raven haired women in an elegant business suit. She took a deep, agonizing breath before she got to Lena, heart fluttering fearfully.
"It's so good to see you!" Lena greeted genuinely,"It's been far too long." Her smile was wide and joyful.
"Hey Lena," Kara tried to sound like her usual happy self, but the bird in her belly was exceedingly restless, causing her voice to falter,"We have so much to talk about."
Her stunning green gaze narrowed, now clouded with worry,"Is something wrong? Is Alex okay?"
"Please hear me out first-" perhaps twenty feet away, a man wearing a simple green alien mask with exaggerated black eyes fastly approached, his right arm reaching into his coat pocket to retrieve something.
Kara grabbed Lena's wrist, perhaps too tight, putting herself behind Lena and guided her down the nearby alley and whispered softly,"I am sorry." Bewilderment glittered in the depths of her emerald gaze, making Kara's insides flare in worry, as she turned away, ripping off her civilian clothing.
Not a moment too soon either, the man cautiously peered around the alleyway, only to be met with the hard fist of Supergirl. Her fist connected to his chest, restraining herself as to not crush his ribcage. The bulky man hit the ground, skidding a couple feet away. He staggered to his feet, ripping off the alien mask to reveal a sickening grin.
"Who sent you?!" She demanded, reaching down to grab an arm. She could feel herself losing control, someone had, once again, tried to harm Lena.
"Who else?" The man spat, thrusting a glowing green shard into her side. He moved with speed she hadn't seen but a few times in Lillian Luthor's henchmen.
"Gah!" Kara fell to the ground, undescribable pain searing where the shard pierced her left side. She could feel her strength waning slowly as the toxins started seeping through her veins. There was something different about this Kryptonite, it was rather weaker than what she was been previously exposed to.
"You are coming with me, Ms. Luthor," he kicked aside the weakened Kryptonite. She tried to stand, but the pain strengthened as something clamped against her wrist.
Kara failed to notice that a large vehicle that pulled up at the entrance of the alley, multiple mens in similar clothing grasped ahold of the Kryptonian, tightened bright green handcuffs. The men roughly grabbed her biceps, carelessly tossing the young women into the back of the van.
"Kara!" Lena screamed, whipping out a small pistol. She aimed it at his chest, right at the henchmen's heart.
"You don't have your pet alien to protect you anymore," he brushed aside the pistol as if it was a toy, "You wouldn't want her to die, do you? Please Ms. Luthor, let us be civil."
"No! Stop!" She could faintly hear Lena protest as she was herded towards the military grade car.
Her senses begun to shut down, everything around Kara was now faded and fuzzy, tainted with a nauseating green. She felt her limp body being tossed carelessly, hitting the hard floor with a deep moan of pain.
"Predictable."
"-lying to you for years! Since day one, this Krypton has been tricking you, making you do all of her dirty work. Do you not care about what happened to Lex?"
"Do you not remember all of the times she helped me!" She could hardly hear the defensive voice that she recognized as Lena.
"She isn't going to just let anyone die. You have plenty of purposes, like your ill advised synthetic kryptonite," sheer dread wrapped tendrils tightly around her chest as she finally understood where she was, "She hid herself well as that clumsy little reporter that cared so much for you to the point of self destruction."
"Lillian!" Kara screamed, surprised that she was muffled. She was restrained completely, her arms folded across each other wrapped in tight cloth with two thick kryptonite chains intertwined from her chest down to her feet. A mask fit tightly over her mouth to prevent her from using her ice breath. She was being held vertically against a wall, surrounded by guards holding what she assumed were Kryptonite fueled weapons.
"Oh, you're up, great," Lillian replied sourly,"Good to see you too, Kara."
Her gaze shifted to a disgruntled Lena, who looked away, refusing to meet her desperate eyes. Kara felt a brief flash of anger that was overcome with sadness and hopelessness. How am I going to get out of here?
"This is a good old fashion ransom, Miss Danvers, you for your futuristic friend," Lillian said simply,"In the meantime, I take immense pleasure in your pain. Especially since your pain is inadvertently caused by your dear Lena."
A guard frantically approached Lillian, pulling aside the CADMUS leader out of earshot of the estranged Luthor Lena.
"Lena please…" The weakened heroine cried out desperately, jerking against the chains,"Ugh!" Pain spiked up again as she recalled the wound caused by the kryptonite shard.
The brilliant women stood still for a moment, lost deep in thought. She snapped out of it in a heartbeat before marching over to where Kara was being chained.
"You lied to me, you could have trusted me. But you didn't," Lena's voice was soft, soaked in disappointment,"Who knew? James? Winn? Cat?"
Kara remained silent, unsure of how to answer without harming her even further,"Please, let me explain…" She gasped, her limbs starting growing numb from the sizzling green chains.
"Explain what? How you hid this from me?" There was no mistaking the pain and betrayal. Lena finally met Kara's eyes, darkened with emotions that she could not interpret. There did seem a gleam of mischief hidden in the light specks, but she could not be positive.
"Protect… you," Kara gasped, feeling the kryptonite intensify. Her gaze focused behind Lena, where Lillian held a device that was likely connected to the chains.
Lena reached into her pant pocket, pulling out a simple black pen with bold white writing that simply spelled "DEO" and clicked bottom of the pen twice.
She slid the pen back in her pocket, murmuring softly,"You don't need to." Lena shook her head once, causing thin strands of her hair to fall over her shoulders as she turned away from Kara,"I can take care of myself."
"..." Kara groaned, her head falling forward. Her vision started to blur as she tried to cry out again, but no sound come from her mouth.
"Lena! What did you do?!"
The ground around her start to tremble, followed by a massive explosion. Kara managed to open her eyes to see chunks of the ceiling start to collapse. More explosions echoed from throughout the chamber, causing members of CADMUS to flee. Her gaze blurred for another moment, managing to fixate on something running at her.
"Go mother! You have lost this round!" A voice yelled over the commotion,"You can't risk getting caught again, can you?"
"She will only cause you more pain than she is worth!" Lillian yelled as she jumped into a massive black SUV. The car kicked into gear and sped off as the entrance of the building collapsed completely, trapping Kara and Lena inside.
"Leave," she could not be the reason Lena died.
Lena said nothing as she unlocked the chains. She slashed through the fabric, causing Kara to fall to the floor now that nothing held her up. Lena threw Kara's right arm around her shoulder, sliding her left arm underneath her own, lifting the Krypton up.
"Over here!" A familiar voice called from the eastern wall, nearly 40 meters away.
"I need help!" Lena yelled back,"Hurry!" There was a sense of urgency and desperation that genuinely surprised Kara.
Her vision began fade out again, the welcoming site of a short haired agent dressed in sheer black running towards them gave her an ounce more of strength. Alex took Kara's left arm and with the help of both the women, the three managed to make it out of the building.
Outside was a DEO task force plane, where there was already a pilot ready and waiting to jet off. Alex climbed in first to help Lena lift the wounded Supergirl into the plane, gently carrying Kara to the bench.
"Move out immediately! Straight to the DEO," Alex commanded, shifting her gaze back to Lena and Kara. "Lena, hold her for me, I need to set up the Red Radar to connect with the ship lights."
Lena set down next to Kara who was slumped lifelessly against the plane, breath shallow. She put her right arm around the Krypton's' shoulder, carefully adjusting Kara so she could rest her head comfortably on Lena's shoulder.
"Kara was right," Alex muttered,"You can handle yourself well."
"I think deep down, I always knew," Lena admitted, keeping her voice low. She glanced down and the weakened warrior, a small smile touched her lips,"A Super and a Luthor…"
"She wanted to keep you safe," Alex tried to defend her sister, knowing that she could potentially lose one of the most important people in her life, the one where she could always be simply herself,"Kara cares about you."
"I get why James knows because of his connection with Superman, but Winn?" Lena questioned, genuinely curious about how the defenseless nerd knew before she did.
"It's different with you," Alex responded quickly, regretting her words as soon as she spoke.
The Luthor gently pushed the strands of dirty blond out of Kara's face, resting her own head against the alien,"You know, my mother said something similar. Supergirl seemed to always be there at the right time, everytime."
A faint memory pushed to the front of the wounded women's thoughts. Flashing images of a destroyed plane, where she felt a flash of fear at the thought of having to drop Lena or save thousands. There was almost a moment of weakness that awakened something in Kara that day, the thought that perhaps she cared for Lena as more than a friend.
She felt a shift from Kara, realizing that she had awaken. Lena and Alex locked eyes for a moment as a the small device in her hand burst with a vivid red, supplying a new warmth to the chilled plane. The lights flashed momentarily before taking on the color of the Red Sun.
"There, this should at least start the healing process," Alex replied, voice heavy with concern,"This is all I can do now until we get back to the DEO. If we remove the shard, we risk Kara bleeding out."
"This is my fault…" The Luthor murmured to herself, sorrowfully looking over Karas weak body. Her gaze locked onto the kryptonite shard that still penetrated Supergirl's side. "You were right. I'm so sorry Kara." Lena's voice had dropped low enough just for Kara to hear. There was a tremendous amount of grief and guilt, mottled in with more emotions she could not decipher.
Alex sat down on the other side of her sister, resting her hand over Kara's,"You'll be fine, you've dealt with worse."
"I am fine," The Kryptonian had finally regained a cohesive consciousness despite the pulsating pain she pushed past, abruptly standing up. She stumbled as she stood upright, regaining a sense of balance moments with in microseconds.
The battered girl glared at Lena accusingly, overwhelmed with feelings of betrayal and confusion,"I told you this would happen!" Everything she felt come into fruition, she was too exhausted to care anymore.
She gave in to the anger, but also to the love she felt for Lena.
"I could have died. This is exactly why I didn't want any more Kryptonite in existence! Lillian will use this to destroy me and Superman," Kara yelled, turning away from Lena. "If someone else gets this formula, I can't protect you, I can't protect anyone." Her voice sharpened as she fought back tears.
"You do not get to play that card, I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself," Lena protested adamantly.
"I could be myself around you… No more worrying about attacks on the city, troubles from other worlds, I was just… Kara," she gasped as an influx of agony tore at her heart.
"Lena, please, this can wait," Alex warned,"She needs to rest."
"I can't live like this anymore," the response came from Supergirl as she turned to face her greatest fear, accepting herself for the first time.
"You were there for me when I couldn't be there for myself," her eyes slid to meet a distraught verdant pool, seeing her own grief reflected in golden spores glittering throughout Lena's eyes. "When I lost Mon El during the Daxem invasion, I thought I couldn't have a human life, let alone deserve love. You kept me grounded, you kept me going." Tears started to stream down her flushed cheeks,"I never expected to care this much about anyone this much again."
"Kara…" Lena gently grasped both of the alien's hands that curled into tight fists. She took a step forwards as Kara attempted to pull away, but there was nowhere else to go. It was too dangerous for her to fly away since she could hardly stand with the Kryptonite shard still piercing her side,"All this time, I just thought my feelings towards you were relief. Someone trusted me unconditionally, regardless of my name, I thought what I felt was platonic."
Lena Luthor took a slow, staggered breath before saying quietly,"Kara Danvers, I love you."
The chained bird stirring at her core ripped free as the alien leaned forward, pressing her lips against Lena's. This was everything she had wanted, years of fighting emotions she was too scared to admit she felt.
They pulled a part for a heartbeat until Lena enveloped the Super in a tight hug, surrendering herself to the surge of happiness.
"A Super and a Luther…" Kara said to herself, basking in their mutual love.