Linda stared at Jimmy, stunned, trying to process what he had just said. Her brain raced with panic as she tried to come up with something—anything—to say in response. After a few seconds, she took a deep breath and smoothed some hair from her face. "What are you talking about?" she asked nonchalantly.
Jimmy raised an eyebrow and almost smiled. He had seen the flash of panic wash over her eyes, the way she brushed the hair from her face (something he noticed she'd always do when she was nervous), and he knew that she knew she'd been caught and was trying to cover it up; he would have laughed out loud, but he knew better.
"It's okay Linda," he said gently. "You don't have to pretend anymore."
Linda opened her mouth, but as she looked at Jimmy she realized it would have been pointless; she sighed and closed her eyes as she hung her head. "I am in so much trouble," she said.
"What are you talking about?" Jimmy asked.
"Oh, nothing," Linda said calmly as she got to her feet, leaving the flowers on her bed; she started pacing the floor. "I've just spent the past four months trying to keep who I am a secret," her voice started shifting into a slightly higher pitch, "and I just find out that I'm not good at doing that, because apparently I did something that caused you to figure out who I really am—and Mom and Dad and Clark are going to be mad at me."
Jimmy could tell she was in the middle of the beginning of a freak out, and he figured it wouldn't do anyone any good if she started acting irrationally—Kryptonian or not. He stood up and walked over to her as she turned around and put his hands on her shoulders.
"Linda, calm down," he said gently.
"So, how long have you known?" Linda asked suddenly, her eyes full of panic, racking her brain; every question she wanted to ask just spilled out. "What did I say? What did I do? How did you find out? Why aren't you freaking out?"
"Linda," Jimmy said more insistently, "look at me." Linda met his eyes, and Jimmy could tell she looked on the verge of tears. "You did nothing."
"I didn't?" Linda asked, confused. Jimmy shook his head, smiling a little. "Then…how did you figure out who I am?"
"That would actually be Clark's fault," Jimmy replied. Linda furrowed his eyebrows, and the photographer sighed. "Why don't we sit down?" He gently steered her back to the bed and sat down, carefully pulling her down beside him. "Okay, here's what happened. It was actually in April: I'd already been working at the Planet for about five years, Clark had been there about a year and a half." He pursed his lips, sighing. "One day, he was treating me to lunch, and there was this really bad accident right outside the café. Clark said he'd call for help as I went outside to take pictures; Superman showed up a few moments later and helped everyone out. It took a while for the police and ambulance to show up, but after they did, Superman left—and Clark came back. He told me after he called for help, the chicken salad he'd eaten wasn't agreeing with him, so he had to make a pit stop."
"And you didn't buy it," Linda said.
"I thought maybe he'd fallen and hit his head or something," Jimmy said honestly, "and then I noticed that his tie wasn't tied properly; I saw the blue, red, and yellow peeking out a little from under his shirt," he shrugged, "and then it just clicked—and all those times he'd leave suddenly with some lame excuse when there's an emergency."
"Okay," Linda replied, a little relieved, "but what about me?"
"The photography shop," Jimmy answered. "A blonde girl wearing red and blue, who threw a guy twice her size through a window and into a parked car. I wanted to ask Clark about it, but I figured he was probably protecting her, and I didn't want to freak him out by saying anything. I didn't think anything more of it until my birthday, when we first met: blonde hair, glasses, unusual back story…and Clark's cousin." He smiled a little, shrugging. "I've known about you since the moment I saw you."
Linda was a little touched by his words. "This entire time?" she asked softly.
Jimmy nodded. "Yeah," he replied. He watched as she stood up and walked over to her window, hugging herself as she looked out. "You're mad, aren't you?"
Linda shook her head slightly. "Not really," she said softly as she turned to him. "To be honest, I don't know what I'm feeling right now. I mean, there's a part of me that's relieved you know, because I've wanted to tell you the truth pretty much as long as I've known you."
"But," Jimmy said cautiously, sensing her tone.
"But you've had four months to tell me," Linda replied, "and you didn't say anything until now."
"I didn't want to freak you out," Jimmy protested. "I saw how you acted when Lois had joked about you being an alien. I thought if I told you I knew, you'd panic…and then you'd never want to see me again."
"How could you say that?" Linda asked as she walked back over and sat next to him. "You're my best friend."
"I am?" Jimmy asked, surprised.
Linda nodded. "You're the first person my age I met after coming here," she said. "You taught me how to dance, got me interested in Doctor Who, which is totally awesome," she smiled a little, "and we committed grand theft auto together. 'If that doesn't scream friendship, then I don't know what does.'" Jimmy smiled a little, remembering when he had said those exact same words to her a few months ago. "Now that you know, I finally have someone I can really talk to." She reached over and gently took one of his hands. "You have no idea how much that means to me."
Jimmy smiled a little, squeezing her hand. "Well, I'll always be around if you need me," he said softly. He was glad Linda smiled back, and he stared at her for a few moments. "Hey, uh, can I do something that might seem weird but really isn't?"
"Like what?" Linda asked.
Jimmy gently moved his hands up the sides of her face. Linda stiffened briefly as he gently gripped her glasses and carefully removed them. "There," he said before he set them on her nightstand; he smiled. "So, that's what you really look like." Linda's cheeks turned a little pink, and Jimmy noticed her eyes appeared a more vivid blue—almost like the glasses muted them; he cleared his throat nervously. "So, uh, what's your real name? I, uh, I mean…what was your name before coming here?"
"Kara," Linda replied softly. "Kara Zor-El."
Jimmy smiled. "That's a nice name."
"Thanks," Linda replied, smiling briefly before she cleared her throat. "Uh…Jimmy, I hope you realize this doesn't change anything about…us. I mean, I still haven't decided."
"I know," Jimmy replied sincerely. "That's why I didn't say anything last month…I didn't want it to affect your decision." Linda looked surprised and a little relieved. "So, uh, does Dick know?"
"Grayson, yes," Linda replied, "Malverne…not anymore." Jimmy looked confused, and Linda sighed, smiling. "Okay, if you're going to be in the inner circle now—there's a lot to catch you up on."
Hours later, after dinner, Linda stood in the barn, dressed in a form-fitting pair of black leggings and matching sports bra; her hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail. She narrowed her eyes as she crouched low, balancing on the balls of her feet as she assumed a defensive stance; she raised her arms in front of her and smirked. "Ready when you are," she said.
Dick stood a few feet away from her, dressed in his workout clothes from the previous evening; he assumed a Kenpo fighting stance; he raised his hands and motioned her, smiling. "Ladies first," he replied.
Jimmy stood off to the side, leaning against the stairs, arms folded, and watched the two, his eyebrows raised a little in curious amusement.
Linda grinned and gave a loud shout before she lunged at Dick, swinging her right fist at his head; he expertly blocked and delivered a blow of his own. Linda expertly bent backwards, feeling his fist brush against her nose, then threw all her weight with her and did a backflip, landing gracefully a few feet back. Before he could say anything, she did a quick leg sweep, knocking Dick on his back; she quickly pinned him to the ground.
"That all you got?" she asked playfully, panting a little, beads of sweat forming on her forehead.
Dick chuckled before bringing his knees to his chest and pushed his legs out, causing Linda to stumble back, but she quickly righted herself and assumed a fighting stance as Dick jumped to his feet. The teenagers lunged at each other, delivering punches and blocks, kicks and flips to each other while Jimmy watched, not sure who he was more impressed with—even if he was secretly rooting for Linda.
After about fifteen minutes, it seemed as if the sparring matching was going to be in a stalemate, when Dick jumped high into the air, flipping twice over Linda's head, and landed in a crouch behind her. Before Linda could react, he did a leg sweep, knocking the young girl off her feet; she landed on her back with a loud 'oof,' her shoulders quickly pinned down by Dick.
"Give?" he asked with a grin, panting and sweating.
Linda panted loudly, sweating profusely, and she almost looked like she was going to continue the fight, but she slowly smiled. "Give," she said. Dick grinned wider as he got to his feet. He held out his hand, and Linda accepted it; Dick pulled her to her feet as Jimmy walked over, holding out two small gym towels. The two fighters took them and began patting their faces.
"You okay?" Jimmy asked, trying not to notice how flushed Linda's cheeks appeared.
"Yeah, that was awesome," Linda replied, grinning. She knew she was far from being back to her normal strength, but sparring with Dick had been very energizing; she saw Jimmy appeared unconvinced, and she put a hand on his shoulder. "Really, I'm fine." Jimmy looked a little more relaxed.
"So, what kind of fighting was that?" Dick asked Linda, looking impressed. "Karate, krav maga?"
"Horo-Kanu," Linda replied as she patted her cheek, her breath slowly returning to normal.
"Gesundheit?" Jimmy asked, smiling a little.
"It's a form of Kryptonian martial arts," Linda answered, smiling. "Rok-Var taught it to me when I was younger."
"Well, I don't know about you," Dick said, "but I could use a glass of water." Linda nodded in agreement, and the trio headed out of the barn and toward the house.
"So, you think Bruce and Clark are going to be out all night again?" Linda asked as they walked down the gravel drive. With Jimmy being a member of the inner circle about Clark and Linda, it naturally extended to Bruce's secret; Jimmy—while a little impressed—had not been completely surprised by the revelation.
"Yeah," Dick replied. "He's pretty pissed off he hasn't been able to locate the kryptonite used against you…or any signs of the croc."
"Or the people who attacked her in the first place, right?" Jimmy asked, a little annoyed.
"Yeah, of course," Dick answered. "That goes without saying."
"I wish I could have seen their faces," Linda said, frustrated. "This whole thing would probably be over by now."
"It's not your fault," Jimmy replied, putting an arm around her shoulders. "You weren't exactly in the best condition to see anything." Something in the shadows ahead of them moved, causing all of them to stop short. Before they could say anything, a large coyote emerged from the darkness, stopping about ten feet away; it stared at them with yellow eyes.
"No one move," Dick said, tensing.
"Not another one," Linda whispered softly in disbelief. She heard the sound of Krypto barking loudly, and she knew he must have sensed the coyote from inside the house. She slowly turned her head as the kitchen door opened and Krypto bolted out, jumping off the porch and tearing down the walk. He skittered to a stop about ten feet from the coyote, tensing his body, his fur bristled, his lips curled back into a snarl. The coyote turned to face the young dog, but instead of growling defensively, the teens watched in shock as the animal slowly backed away, keeping his eyes on Krypto.
"No one move," Jonathan shouted as he quickly approached, holding his shotgun; Martha, and Alfred followed behind. The adults stopped just outside the fence, and Jonathan raised his gun, aiming it right at the coyote. "I got it."
"Dad, wait," Linda said, holding up her hand. She carefully took a step toward the coyote and her dog. "Krypto, back off." The dog continued growling at the coyote, never taking his eyes off it as Linda moved to within a few feet of the coyote. "Krypto, down, boy." The coyote suddenly curled his lips back, growling loudly, barking viciously; Krypto suddenly whimpered and abruptly turned and ran back into the house.
"Linda, watch out!" Jonathan shouted right before he fired his weapon.
Linda's eyes widened as her entire world shifted into a slightly slower mode; the young girl saw the bullet moving through the air at a slower speed, but not as slow as it'd be if she had been at full power. Without hesitating, she jumped between the coyote and her father. Her shoulder exploded with pain as she fell to the ground; she clutched her shoulder, groaning loudly.
Before anyone could even shout or move towards her, the coyote's features suddenly and fluidly shifted and changed. In an instant, Gar stood where the coyote had once been, clothed in a simple pair of jeans, t-shirt, and sneakers. He stared down at Linda with a horrified expression as he scrambled over to her, kneeling beside her.
"Have you lost it?!" he asked, his voice full of panic. "What were you doing?!"
Breathing hard, Linda clutched her shoulder, groaning a little. "Saving your life," she replied, wincing as Gar slowly helped her into a sitting position. She slowly pulled her hand back, revealing a large welt and deep bruise forming on her shoulder, but nothing else; the bullet hadn't even broken the skin. Linda glanced down at the gravel, scanning the ground until she spotted the bullet near Gar's feet; it had been significantly compressed, almost like an accordion. She glanced over at her friend as he just stared at her, and she sighed. "Gar, there's something you should know about me."
"That's going to have to wait."
Linda stiffened as she recognized the gruff voice, and she and Gar slowly glanced over. Superman and Batman standing with the others, and Linda figured they must have arrived during the commotion. While almost everyone stared at Gar in stunned silence, Batman just leered, his eyes narrowed.
Gar swallowed nervously. "Uh, hi," he said meekly to everyone. "Look, I know you're wondering what the heck is going on, but I swear I can explain everything."
(End of Chapter 6)