Shadow of the Bird
by
Acer Pacer Lacer
Chapter One
Kara Zor-El would have moments of complete rapture. She'd be sitting by the window in their family home and smiling. It would make Alex smile too; her sister, her baby sister, looking like she had never seen the world before. Alex knew that she had a particular fascination with birds, and here there was a bird, sitting in the tree outside, to Kara's gaze, like gold in the eyes of a prospector. Alex still hadn't gotten used to the entity that was her sister, though it had been one year, and she still found herself surprised at something new that Kara said or did. But this was familiar scene and she would do this often. If you didn't know where Kara was you could - 1 - check the windows you could sit and look out of - 2 - check the attic and the branch you could climb out and onto from the window - 3 - look under the yard tree outside and find her in one of these places.
Alex crept closer and surged with elation. Kara was so absorbed that she hadn't noticed her.
Present day, Alex could still do this sometimes.
And so could Ms. Grant...
"Kira?" she said simply, an inch away and her assistant jumped sky high. Kira had been staring at the trapped bird streaking around her boss's office.
"Ms. Grant!" she choked out. Cat took two steps back, a smile trying to tug onto her face. Dear Kira, she could be so easy to spook. Amusing, Cat thought, considering who she *actually* was behind those glasses. "Kira," Cat said smoothly, "my office is not an aviary. It needs to be gone."
"What's it doing in here?" Kara said, wide-eyed, and even as Ms. Grant watched, the younger girl's face seemed to melt and scrunch in pleasure, "Aww," she said. "Poor thing."
Ms. Grant's expression went flat. "No. None of that in here," she said in a monotone voice. "Observe!" She swung around to one of the couches. "Look what it has deposited on this two thousand dollar couch. It is NOT poor, Kira, it's evil," she punctuated these last words, jabbing her glasses at her.
Kira cocked her head, eyeing the bird dropping, looking all the more like a bird herself. "That's...unfortunate." She rather thought the bird was more important than a couch.
Ms. Grant snorted. Again, with the bird like movements, just *why* had she never noticed such curios in her assistant's manner before?
"Fetch an exterminator," she barked, throwing the remark out there, and watchful for any stir she created by the comment. It was worth it to see Kira's eyes nearly pop out of her skull.
"M-Ms. Grant," she stammered, "surely, there's someone else we can call?"
Ms. Grant stared hard at her.
"I'll just go and – erm – just go see who to call," she babbled and scurried to her desk.
Kara peered at the tablet screen. Animal rescues, etc. She sat back. Perhaps she should go through her boss's balcony door and rescue it herself. She jutted out her jaw. That seemed too out of the blue. 'Hey, Miss. Danvers told me that you have a bird problem.' No. She'd be questioned. Ms. Grant might even call Kira and find her gone. It was too risky. But, I'll capture it and be gone in a blink, she argued with herself. No. It never worked out like that.
"Psst," Kara jerked her head up. It was Winn. He indicated his watch.
"Lunch time," he whispered.
"Oh!" Kara stood up. She grabbed her bag. "Thanks, Winn," she whispered. "I owe you a packet of red vines. Don't let me forget!" she called back as she ran.
At Noonan's, she was stood by the counter, eyes glued to her phone. She sighed and let her wrist hang loose. "Who on earth do you call when you've got a bird problem?" Me, she thought dryly, "It just seems too much to call animal services just for this." She shrugged at the man, sitting down, looking at her talk to herself. "What would you do?" she asked him. The man, who had a big nose and heavy eyelids, opened his mouth and said slowly, "Eat it."
Kara scowled at him. "Are you serious?" He turned away and Kara puffed out her breath. She then became aware of a very peculiar smell.
"A bird problem?" said a whiny voice next to her.
"Ah!" Kara cried and twisted around. A man, tanned and wrinkled, stood there, looking at her beadily. Kara's posture froze, leaned over backwards, phone held up as if to ward away the stranger in front of her. She sniffed the air curiously and the man blinked at her, the smile on his face never fading. He had thin, stained teeth, she noticed. The name of the smell eluded her.
"Did I hear you mention a bird problem?" he said, eyes eager.
"Um," Kara swallowed, "ah, m-maybe," but at his relentless look of expectation she said, "well, yes. W-who are you?" She surreptitiously slid a step away, but the man followed her.
"Alan Kinkley," he said. "A bird enthusiast, you could say."
Kara nodded, and then fidgeted.
"May I offer my services?" said the man. "I sell birds, heal birds, and rescue birds."
At that moment, the lunch order was produced over the counter and Kara grabbed the bags. "Thank you," she called.
The man followed her outside. "Erm..." Kara stammered, "here," she produced a business card, "if you can come, that'd be great. That is, if you don't harm the birds in anyway?" she added. In the back of her mind, she found it unsettling that there had been somebody right there in Noonan's able to help her, perhaps too coincidental. or perhaps just luck?
"Oh, no, no," said Mr. Kinkley. "I capture birds then release them. Here." He, in turn, gave Kara a card. "Bird's are my business."
Kara set off back to Catco hurriedly. If she had looked back at the strange man, she would have seen something quite different shining in his eyes other than happiness.
~S~
Ms. Grant cocked her head to the sound of warbling. She put down her glass and approached the doorway of the balcony, to peer into her office. To her confusion, it was Kara. A medley of whistling was issuing from her pursed lips.
"Kira?" she said, "what *are* you doing?"
Kira's head whipped towards her. She started stammering nonsensically, to which Cat just shook her head at, and tut in disapproval.
"I-I was whistling."
"You. Were. Whistling?" Ms. Grant repeated back slowly. It had sounded much more than *just* whistling. "Tell me, Doctor Dolittle, are you a bird?"
"No?" she said. Although, you could say that, I guess, Kara thought, the flying and all.
"Well, stop that racket then. This isn't a zoo." Ms. Grant glanced sideways at her from her personal drinks cabinet. It had sounded startling like birdsong; she had to admit to herself that it had sounded impressive. However, Kira had been standing there, not doing her work and that merited no admiration, so Cat wouldn't be giving the girl any praise. Though, she wondered what the story was behind it. Of course, she couldn't ask. The ability obviously was aided by her 'different' physiology. How exasperating.
Kara pressed her lips together. "Sorry."
Ms. Grant sat daintily on the couch.
Kara looked up and longed to start whistling again.
"Don't you have work to do?" murmured Ms. Grant dryly from the couch. Kara was on her way when a darkly dressed figure came into view in the bullpen. Kara jolted to a stop. Mr. Kinkley! Oh no. She hadn't warned Ms. Grant about him yet. Kara held in a breath and turned around.
"Ms. Grant, erm," she brought her hands together, "I arranged for somebody to come about the bird." Kara found herself trying to block the sight of the man behind her back as he approached Cat's office. "This is Mr. Alan Kinkley," she said when there was no choice but to.
Ms. Grant's eyes immediately addressed the man, intense and slightly lidded. Eventually she looked down and Kara sidled up to her.
"Did he leave his cardboard box outside?" murmured Ms. Grant, barely audibly.
"Ms. Grant," Kara hissed, feeling that was extremely rude, though Mr. Kinkley hadn't heard, it seemed like. And besides, he didn't look *that* bad. Scruffy, yes...homeless? Hm.
"Mr. Kinkley, thank you for coming so quickly," said Kara with a plastered smile on her face. She tried not to breathe too deeply. The man was looking about the bullpen and office excitably. Kara clasped her hands in front of her. "Um, Mr. Kinkley, my boss, Ms. Grant." Kara dared to look at her boss. Ms. Grant's murderous stare irked her. "Erm...it's up there," said Kara to Mr. Kinkley, and pointed.
The bird was sat near the ceiling on one of the TV screens. Simultaneously, Kara and Ms. Grant jumped as Mr. Kinkley bristled with apparent excessive delight, body shaking. Both of them moved closer to each other, not boss and underling for a moment, at the sight, both sensing something creepy about the man. Remind me why I invited this guy here? Kara thought. They tracked the man about the room. It was like observing an exotic animal, a strutting one; Kara felt poised to dive over and save any piece of furniture or decoration he might knock over.
"Ooh!" he said. "A migratory species. How beautiful."
"W-we tried to let it out through the balcony," said Kara, "but it—"
"The class of Aves turns no ear to man," he interrupted. "Alas."
Kara twisted her fingers together. Suddenly he produced a tangle of mesh from his person, and unfolded it turned out to be a large net.
Ms. Grant stood up. "Just think twice about swinging that thing in here," she proceeded to tell him, but had to duck when the net came soaring through the air. Ms. Grant stumbled in her heels and Kara quickly compressed her lips together against a sudden bark of laughter at the absurdity of what was transpiring and choked when her boss leveled a black glare at her.
An eyebrow-raising show started to play out in front of them, Mr. Kinkley cooing sweet words and swinging the net around. Kara stood back and watched it all happen, eyes wide. Ms. Grant sucked in a breath when a vase was knocked off the sideboard and Kara whisked to it. Ms. Grant blinked, and wondered if Kira realized she had just used her super speed. Yes, it hadn't been overly much, but she had still spotted it.
When she did something like that, it often made Ms. Grant feel grumpy as it was harder to keep pretending not to know. She wouldn't let the young woman forget it today. She would enjoy seeing Kira's face not understanding why she was in trouble.
The circus in her office was attracting attention. Ms. Grant forced a sigh out of her mouth and felt a vein tick in her temple. She would soon loose her temper if this - there was no plainer word – idiot, didn't finish up quickly.
She resisted the urge to roll her eyes when she opened them, she saw Kira waving her arms aloft at the perimeter of the room. Mr. Kinkley spotted the dratted bird, lunged and then swooped his net down to let it fly right into the white mesh.
"Finally," Ms. Grant muttered.
"Thank you, Mr. Kinkley," gushed Kara, showering him with that sickeningly sweet manner of hers. She followed him out onto the balcony. Ms. Grant went after them but lingered inside. As Mr. Kinkley reached in the net, Kira moved closer, hands pinched in front of her, Ms. Grant observed. It reminded her, duly, of a child waiting to pick out a piece of candy, eager, a little impatient. He drew out the brown and yellow bundle. This time, Cat did roll her eyes: both of them were starring starry-eyed at the bird. Mr. Kinkley gently stroked the birds head with one finger, then lifted it into the wind. It burst free from his hand, fluttered without direction in the air for a breathless moment, then, out of the blue, coming down, it rested with a clap of wings on her assistant's shoulder. Cat Grant stared agog. So did Mr. Kinkley (in a comical way).
The smile that lit on Kira's face changed the weather. It was as if the sunshine had gotten brighter and was shining from her face. Startlingly, a beautiful whistle warbled out of her pursed lips. Mr. Kinkley looked stunned. A smile, unbridled, zipped across Ms. Grant's lips. She felt a silent laugh trip up her throat. The sharp chirrups and pips danced in the air for a delightful moment and then Kira fell silent. Well, Ms. Grant thought.
She took a few quick steps backwards into her office and then advanced again a few moments later. "Is it free?" she asked nonchalantly, as if she hadn't seen or heard anything. The bird had gone from Kira's shoulder.
Kira's happy face turned to her and she nodded. Mr. Kinkley, Ms. Grant noticed, was still looking odd, gobsmacked, a little disturbed about the eyes, the eye whites showing. Ms. Grant's insides shrank with disgust. How Kira had managed to pick such a - quite frankly, loony man - Cat didn't know, but she was seriously doubting her assistants ability to differentiate between normal and mad.
"Yes," he said faintly.
"Thank you, Mr. Kinkley, for your expertise," announced Ms. Grant, "please allow my assistant to show you out."
"Goodbye," said Kara as they neared the elevators. Her cheeks felt warm. She bit away the apology on her lips; the poor man seemed dazed from her display. It was just that she couldn't help it, the whistling burst from her. Singing to birds was something profound to Kara. It had calmed her down ever since she used to live in the Danver's family home in Midvale and she still found it wonderful. If only she could control her impulses, she thought, feeling sheepish. She waved at Mr. Kinkley as he retreated. People don't whistle like that, Kara, she berated herself.
~S~
Inside Alan Kinkley's mind echoed the haunting melody that had come from a woman's throat like a birds. A call he had never heard before. He scurried away from the building and almost ran around it. His mad dash took him further away, to a deserted alley.
"Hey!" someone shouted as he shoved by them.
He ran down the narrow passage and scuttled behind a pile of trash, panting noisily. The bird call sang sweetly in his ears and sweat dampened his skin.
He couldn't hold it anymore.
Crackling and grating noises came from behind the dumpster, a strange eerie sound. Suddenly something rose above the top, quivering, oily black.
A smell invaded the air.
Kara shut the balcony door at the top of Catco, and would have noticed the terrible sound if the door hadn't closed with a thump just at the same time as it snaked up to her ear.
.
.
.
To be continued...
A/N Hi everyone, how was it? Worth continuing? First of all, this story I think will have elements that are a bit comical. Mad birdman - do I need to say anything more? Later on, I want it to, hopefully, have an pinch of horror in it too, so watch this space ;) Any thoughts I'd love to read if you leave a review :) Looking forward to season 2 premier except, darn it, I won't be able to see it air as I'll be on vacation. I hope it'll be just as good as the first season. They have a lower budget, so, should we be worried, guys? I know I am, a little.
catch you later
~Acer Pacer Lacer~
Special thanks to Midnigh510 for a lovely first review on Choices :)