I do not own Supergirl or any Marvel characters. All right go to the CW and Marvel.
Supergirl lost
Chapter Twenty-Five: New Fighters Emerge
Kara felt the quinjet jostle as it landed. She could hear that they were in farm country; remote, isolated. It sounded peaceful. Once everyone disembarked the plane, Kara got up from her position on the floor. She was exhausted and she needed the energy. Rather than go inside with whoever was in Clint's safehouse, she went to sunbathe and regain her strength.
She was a little surprised when she heard the Clint had a wife with two kids and a third on the way, but not that surprised. He seemed to be a family man at heart, sensitive to the needs of others. He didn't normally show it, but it was there.
Slipping off her jacket, she laid on the top of the quinjet and soaked in the rays of the morning sun. It was a bit overcast, but that didn't matter.
She was startled out of her relaxed state when an image of Alex flashed through her mind, bloody and injured. Jerking to a sitting position, she regained control of her rapid breathing.
That wasn't right, Kara had a good memory and she didn't remember seeing Alex like that at any point in her life. The hair was different, the DEO uniform was different.
What the hell was that?
Shaking her head free of the image, she laid back down and watched the clouds.
As the sun rose higher, she felt her powers come back stronger, recharging her body cells as she did nothing until noon. Her stomach growled and she realized she hadn't eaten anything since this morning, and her body was making its demands known. Sighing, she floated off the top of the quinjet and walked to the porch. She hadn't exactly made herself known, so she knocked.
Clint answered the door.
"Kara, this is my home. Doors always open if you need it," He said gently. Kara stared at him with tired eyes before nodding.
"Foods in the kitchen. Coupla sandwiches, enough for you because Thor didn't stick around." Clint chuckled, but all Kara could manage was a weak smile.
"Thanks Clint." She murmured as she walked into the kitchen.
"That's Supergirl?" Laura asked Clint. Clint sighed.
"Her name's Kara…and the Maximoff girl tore into her relentlessly. That kid, she just twitched her fingers, and everyone went down, but with Kara…With Kara she held on, kept her held to the ground and invaded her mind. She kept whispering that she was sorry but…" Clint trailed off as Kara's pain filled screams echoed in his mind. Laura planted a gentle kiss to the back of his neck as the tendon there flexed in anger at what had been done to Kara.
Kara, a gentle soul who didn't want to hurt anybody, but knew when the job needed to be done. Kara, who had a bright smile on her face even though Clint knew what she had been through, Kara was kind even to those who didn't deserve it and restrained even if her anger was justified.
Kara, a girl who lived in a world made of glass and could break anything she touched if she wasn't careful.
It hurt him to see Kara like this.
Clint was aware he was getting to upset when his wife's soft touches became more forceful.
"Clint, you need to breath. I know you're angry, but that's not gonna help that girl in any way," Laura said gently. Clint nodded.
"You're right. You're always right. Problem is, I don't know how to help her." Laura nodded at Clint's admission.
"You take care of Nat." She whispered before letting go of Clint and walking towards the kitchen. Clint gave a small smile and Laura slipped around the corner.
Kara was sitting at the table, five sandwiches in front of her, but not even one had been touched. She was just sitting there staring blankly at her food. The blonde didn't even react when Laura sat down beside her. Only when Kara feel her hand being touched did she move.
She started, looking quickly at whoever had touched her. She looked away again when she saw it was Clint's wife.
"My name's Laura." She said kindly.
"I know. I heard it earlier." Kara muttered. Laura chuckled.
"Right, Clint talked about your powers a while ago." Laura chuckled again. Kara sighed.
"Look, Miss Barton, I don't mean to be rude, but I don't feel like talking right now," Kara muttered. Laura looked at the young blonde sadly.
"First, it's just Laura. Second, I'm not gonna sit here and come up with something to let you know I understand how you feel. I just want you to know that I'm here to listen if you want." Laura was kind, very kind, and it reminded Kara too much of Alex. At that thought, tears began to slide down her cheeks until she was full on sobbing.
She cried for a few minutes, unable to get anything out. Laura held her gently, rocking her back and forth until she was calm enough.
"She just ripped through my memories, tearing them free from places I kept them locked up tight. She kept muttering that she was sorry, I heard it over the blood rushing though my ears, but why would she do that then. She only messed with everyone else but for me…she just kept pulling. She said she needed to know before she started but…I don't understand." Kara whispered the entire time, Laura had to strain to hear some parts.
"I don't know why she did that. Maybe she wanted to know who you are or where you came from. Either way, her apologizing makes it sound like she didn't want to hurt you."
Kara nodded sadly before she began eating one of the sandwiches. Laura smiled slightly as she stroked her hand through Kara's hair. They sat in silence while Kara ate the rest, which only took about fifteen minutes, until Laura had an idea.
"I know sometimes when Clint is upset, physical work helps calm his mind. Working with his bow mostly but fixing things, building things. That might help," Laura suggested. Kara looked at her curiously for a second before giving a small smile. She nodded.
"Alright," Laura said. Her phone buzzed, and Laura looked at Kara with a grin. "Perfect timing. I'm gonna ask Tony if he can fix the tractor, but would you mind helping chop wood?"
"I would love to." Kara stood up, burping lightly as she found Steve through the walls and walked out the door, Laura behind her.
"-That would affect the team." Kara heard Steve say.
"That would end the team! Isn't that the mission, the why we fight?" Tony countered. "So we can end the fight, so we get to go home!"
Steve's response was to rip a log in half.
"Boys, that's enough. Please, we've all had a rough go of it the last few days." Kara's voice carried from the porch to the log piles. Both Tony and Steve looked at her blankly.
"Besides, Clint said you wouldn't mind fixing our tractor Mister Stark." Tony let out a growling sigh before turning around and heading for the barn.
"Thank you," Steve said in his low voice. Kara nodded and set a log upright before smashing her hand into it, splitting it down the middle. Steve didn't say anything, just grabbed a few logs from his pile and threw them onto hers. She smiled gratefully and went back to chopping.
She chopped slowly, replaying everything in her head. Not the memories she had seen, but the memory of Wanda apologizing over and over again.
She wanted to know why Wanda was apologizing. Was it for doing what she had done or for the pain she knowingly caused? Kara sighed as the last thought hit her and her last log was split.
"I wish I knew why Maximoff did what she did to Kara," The blonde heard from in the house. It was Clint.
"I don't know what you saw from your perch, but the kid looked sad and desperate. She was looking for something in Kara's head," Nat said.
Turning away, Kara walked to the quinjet and laid down on the floor inside. Closing her eyes, she tried to sleep for a bit.
Seoul, Korea
Wanda didn't know what to make of the things she had seen in Supergirl's head. She felt awful, she knew that much. Hurting the avengers was easy, but what she had done to Supergirl, tore through her mind the way she did? That had been hard. Wanda felt guilty.
The look on Supergirl's face, twisted and contorted in pain as her worst memories were brought up. But Wanda needed to understand.
Understand how a woman like that, so powerful, could be so gentle and kind. So powerful, yet wise beyond her years, knowing that she had a responsibility to control her powers and use them for good.
How she had endured the things she did and not broken.
Not like Wanda.
Wanda greatly respected Supergirl, her actions thus far hadn't reflected that, but she did. HYDRA had tried to lie to her about what Supergirl had done in Sokovia until she managed to find someone who had seen everything.
When the Avengers came for Strucker and Supergirl was with them, Wanda knew she had an opportunity and capitalized on it, but unfortunately Supergirl was powerful in body and mind.
Now she knew what she needed to. Supergirl made herself a family, the aching wound on her heart from losing her first dulled by the friends she surrounded herself with. Pietro was family, but he was all Wanda had left. She had no friends or other family.
She would fix that once she had Pietro out from under Ultron's thumb.
Waiting until the perfect opportunity arose, she acted quickly.
It was easy to figure out what Ultron's true intentions were, extinction of the human race. Using a bit more dramatics then necessary, Wanda reacted to the image of earths destruction, Pietro behind her to hold her tight. When Ultron was distracted, she undid the mind control on the doctor. When Ultron sensed incoming aircraft, she mentally communicated with Pietro and they escaped together.
She told her brother to stay in the area because somehow, somehow she knew Supergirl was nearby.
Flying over Korea
Kara had a weird feeling in her stomach as she flew over the university, providing overwatch against Ultron's drones better than Clint could in the quinjet. There didn't seem to be any drones in there, but she still kept watch when Steve went in. She heard Doctor Cho warning Steve about the real threat, the gem. Quickly looking for a transport big enough for Ultron and his cargo, she found a stolen University truck.
"I got eyes on a stolen university truck. Ultron bots and the cradle inside," she informed everyone.
"Private jet preparing for takeoff across town, no manifest," Nat said.
"Copy, I'll keep an eye out from up here. Steve, trucks gonna be under you in a minute," Kara said, maintaining a level flight over the truck. She watched as Steve jumped on from the overpass and Ultron get angry about it. He blasted Steve with his energy beams and sent the door off its hinges, barely hanging on and dragging Steve with it. Ultron stood at the edge of the loading area and blasted Steve with one of his energy pulses sending Steve flying into another car.
"Hold on Steve!" Kara shouted as she dove. "Leave him alone!" She said loudly, flying to keep up with the truck.
"I offered you a place in the new world, and you spat in my face. I can't hurt you, but I can hurt your friends!" Ultron sneered as he blasted at Steve again. Kara caught his hand, taking an energy been to the chest. Not moving, she crushed the joint with her bare hands. Ultron roared in anger.
"We could've helped this the world, all you had to do was say yes!" He screamed in his garbled metallic voice.
"No. I have a responsibility to help people, teach them how to be better than they were, not kill them!" Kara shouted over the wind. Ultron grabbed at her throat, but she threw him off her.
Frustrated, Ultron used his remaining hand to lift up the asphalt and send cars flying. Kara's eyes widened, and she turned around and caught three cars before they could crash and injure people. The truck was traveling at top speed and had gotten far away by the time Kara was done making sure everyone was okay.
Flying up and to the right of the bridge above them, Kara nodded at Clint as he flew alongside her. She sped up just in time to see Ultron tackle Steve into a train that was beside them. Cursing softly, she landed on top of the train. Swinging down, she planted a boot to Ultron's face, and he careened to the end of the car. Growling, he shot at her with his energy beams.
She blocked it with her palm but realized her mistake when the beam slipped around her fingers and splayed out around the cabin behind her, separating the main train from the operator room. Looking quickly, she breathed a little easier when the operator turned out to be alive.
Ultron flew back at her, only to be hit with something enveloped in a red glow. Kara's eyes widened as the speedster made an appearance along with his twin sister. Not wanting to deal with that right now, Kara breathed out an arctic blast of air that froze the wheels under the train before going after Ultron.
She tackled him out of the sky just in time as he was about to grab Nat by the ankle. She had managed to get into the flying truck, which Kara thought was insane, and steal the cradle with Ultron's new body in it.
Slamming Ultron into the ground, she barely felt a metal fist impact her face as she whipped her own fist around, destroying Ultron's power core.
Turning back to the train, she dropped Ultron's limp form and rocketed to where Steve and the train had stopped.
"Cradle's secure Steve. Ultron's main body was also destroyed," Kara informed him. He nodded.
"Alright Clint, you and Nat get that thing back to the tower. We'll meet you there," Steve ordered.
"Copy that Cap." Clint responded. Kara watched the quinjet leave with the cradle, sighing when she heard someone behind her. The nervous heartbeat told her all she needed to know. Steve's was slow and calm, Kara knew from her experiences with Barry Allen in her universe that Pietro's was high, so that left only one person.
Wanda felt Kara's mood darken. She had to make what she had done to Supergirl right.
"I'm sorry." Wanda started off. Kara's head shot up, but she didn't turn around.
"What exactly…are you sorry for?" Wanda heard Kara speak tightly. The brunette hesitated, her mouth opening and closing as she thought of an answer.
"What I did to you…was wrong. It was cruel, painful, and I'm so sorry. I know I don't deserve forgiveness but-" Wanda's words were cut off as the guilt she felt flowed down her cheeks in slow tears.
"I forgive you." Kara said quietly, almost reluctantly but not quite, her jaw clenching and relaxing repeatedly. Kara heard Wanda's heartbeat spike at her words, obviously surprised.
"W-What?"
"I. Forgive. You." Kara said slowly. She turned around, not really meeting Wanda's eyes. The brunette noticed it, but obviously didn't say anything.
"Why?" Wanda asked breathlessly. "I do not deserve your forgiveness."
"It's not about what we deserve, it's about what you believe. And I believe in forgiveness, hope, help, and compassion for all. So I forgive you because I want to. Don't get me wrong…I'm still angry…still hurt. But I forgive you."
Unbeknownst to Kara, she had changed Wanda's entire perspective. All her life since the age of ten, she had dreamed of revenge against Tony Stark for taking her parents from her and her brother. She had never forgiven him for what he did to her family, and she had allowed the anger and vengeance to twist her, to let it hurt other people.
No more.
In an unusual display of emotion for Wanda that not even her brother really ever saw, she surged forward and wrapped Supergirl in a hug.
"O-Okay, we're hugging now." Kara muttered, forcing herself to relax as the small body of the woman who had ripped into her mind cried out her bitterness, anger, revenge, and pain of so many years. Kara slowly and awkwardly wrapped her in a hug, patting her on the back.
"Alright. You're alright." Kara muttered. If she was surprised at the sudden development, she didn't show it.
Steve looked on the odd display with curiosity.
He didn't think he could have the strength to forgive Wanda if she had done what she did to him. In fact, he knew it. Steve knew he was a good man, or at least he tried to be, but even he had his limits.
"Did you get the cradle?" Pietro asked from behind him.
"Yeah, we'll get it to Stark and he'll destroy it and whatever's inside." Steve hoped that was the case anyway. A sniffle behind him, and he turned to see the bloodshot eyes of Wanda looking at him in fear.
"He won't, I've seen it." She sounded desperate, but then again, she had gotten done balling her eyes out a minute ago.
"Stark will destroy it, he's not crazy." Kara heard that Steve was doubting the words he said the moment they left his mouth. He looked at her quickly, a serious look on his face.
"Do you think you can get there in time, stop him and destroy the cradle?" Kara shook her head at his question.
"I don't know. I've used up quite a bit of power today. If I fly at my usual speed, I'll burn up my powers before I even get there in time." Doing the math in her head, Kara realized that the speed she would have to fly to recharge and make it in time would be the same speed as the quinjet.
"We could take the quinjet. Assuming Tony's already begun downloading whatever he needs to do to try and fix what he's done, we should get there just in time to stop him," Steve said, already walking away when he stopped.
"Wait…Clint took the quinjet didn't he? How do we get back?"
Turns out, by stealing the jet Ultron was going to use.
Steve started it up and Kara pushed it off the runway and slipped in through the open side door before anyone could stop them.
"Gotta say, that's the first time I've ever stolen a jet," Kara said with a smile on her face.
"Same," Three voices echoed together.
"Well sort of." Steve added on. Kara looked at him for an explanation. He sighed.
"Back during the war, when the one hundred and seventh was captured, I was forbidden to go. So Howard, Tony's father, used his own plane to drop me in enemy territory before anyone could stop us. It wasn't really stealing the plane, but I did go against orders. In a plane." Steve looked sheepish as Kara laughed loudly.
"Choir boy Steve, a thief and a potty mouth, who would've thought." Kara continued to laugh. Steve gave a half-hearted glare and chuckled deeply.
"Gee hanks Kara, and here I thought you and I were alike." He joked.
"Things change all the time Steve, it was bound to happen sooner." Kara shrugged. Steve sighed as he steered the plane in the right direction.
"You should get some rest Kara. Sleep by a window to get as much sun as possible." Steve's suggestion was from a good place, but while she had forgiven Wanda, she was still hesitant to be around her. Kara nodded but paused before opening the door.
Speaking of Wanda, Kara's curiosity and general unease got the best of her. Standing and focusing her hearing on the passenger section, she listened to Wanda and Pietro talk.
"What happened back there?" Pietro asked. Wanda drew in a breath.
"I tore into her mind. The Avengers were easy and quick but with her…I took my time with her. I had to know, especially after what I felt back in the castle. I felt her anger, her grief, her pain. I had to know how she lived with that. All those things eat me up every day, and don't lie I know you feel like that too. I had to know what made her different," Wanda murmured. "I hurt her, begged for her forgiveness and she just gave it to me. I do not understand her."
"What is there to understand. She has taken her pain, anger, guilt, and grief, turned them into a sharp weapon. She made them a driving force to fuel her desire to do good," Pietro said. "You admire her," He added a second later.
"Yes. Her strength, passion, and will are admirable qualities." Kara detected…something in Wanda's voice, she just couldn't place it.
"Why didn't you tell me?" He whispered. Wanda sighed.
"You were so focused on getting revenge before I had my vision. I was afraid you would be angry with me," She muttered. Pietro scoffed.
"No, I have always trusted your judgement, even if it wasn't always the best," He jokingly answered. Wanda swatted at his arm.
Kara decided she had eavesdropped enough, Steve staring at her most of the time. She opened the cockpit door, and whatever Wanda was going to say to Pietro died in her throat as she clammed up awkwardly. Kara sighed as she took a seat.
Forty-five minutes later, Kara heard footsteps approaching her from behind. She had been sunbathing in what little sun was coming through the window, her powers slowly recharging.
"I was hoping to talk to you." Pietro's accent was thick as he stood by the seat. Kara waved an arm, and he took the offered seat. She raised an eyebrow that said, 'go ahead, I'm listening.'
"I want to thank you for forgiving my sister. I know what she did to you was…painful. She hasn't been right since she did that to you. I saw it in her eyes, even before she learned of Ultron's true plan. She hated herself for doing that. I'm not trying to justify her actions, but she did it because she needed to know how to-" Kara held up a hand.
"Stop. I know why she did it, I heard everything. I understand. Not happy about it, but I understand. Grief, anger, pain…they eat you alive if you let them. I learned a long time ago that I needed to stop living for the dead and started to fight for the living. So yes, I really do understand her need to know about how I moved on from my past. The truth is, I didn't, I just learned to live with it and cope every day. My family helps, they pull me out of darker spaces that threaten to swallow me up. They're my rocks, without them, everything I am would fall apart." Kara was quiet for a moment. Pietro nodded as he stood up.
"I knew someone like you once. Met him a few years ago. Speedster, just like you," Kara idly said.
"HYDRA said there was never anyone like me," Pietro said quietly. Kara smirked.
"And they said nobody was as strong as the hulk, but here I am."
Pietro chuckled lightly before turning around and moving in the direction of his sleeping sister.
"I feel like we could be good friends."
Kara nodded with a short laugh before closing her eyes and relaxing, letting her powers build.
So I know some people might have a problem with how I handle Wanda in this chapter and the one's to come. To that I say…well this is fanfiction. I can do what I want. That being said, I hope you will stick with this story because I am having a lot of fun writing it.
Anyways, I'll see you in the next chapter.