(A/N): Here we are with our Friday update! This time, we have the lovely and talented Ophelia Claire... writing the lovely and talented Kara Danvers!
Thank you as ever to the writers who reviewed. That support is so important for everyone involved, and we appreciate it. Thanks also to Slim Summers2002 for your review; we can't wait to see how your favorites progress with the story! :)
Chapter Twenty-Five - More in Common
Training Day Three
Kara Danvers of District Five
Written by Ophelia Claire
"The best way to find out if you trust somebody is to trust them."
-Ernest Hemingway
"My mother was a genius; my father commanded respect. When they died, they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect."
-Aaron Burr, Hamilton
Kara woke when sunlight began flooding her room. She always had — something about it just energized her for the coming day. It shone across the sprawling Capitol, turning windows to gold and casting a warm puddle on her bed. She stretched and sprawled out like a basking cat, trying to feel the warmth on as much of her body as possible. She winced slightly as her bruised hip sank into the mattress, a product of yesterday's training session.
Kara climbed higher and higher into the fake tree. If she glanced down at Greer for approval on hand placement, she was met with a shake of orange hair and "I won't be there to hold your hand in the arena, Five."
Kara liked being right — and being told she was right — so the striped woman's words stung just a little bit.
And as much as Kara hated to admit it, she was struggling a little with tree-climbing. Mar-Vell hadn't focused as much on it, and she'd never had the need before.
One of the green-haired boys — not the creepy one, the friendly one — was scrambling up and down a few trees over. The boy was practically a monkey. As Kara watched him, she reached the topmost branches of the tree and began her descent. Things went well until she was about ten feet from the ground. She glanced to her right, and the girl she'd sparred with, the unsettling girl from Six, was heading up.
Something about the girl was extraordinarily off-putting. Maybe she had felt Kara watching her, because she glanced over and gave Kara a nasty look. Kara shivered, misplaced her foot and slipped out of the tree, falling the remaining few feet and landing awkwardly on the spot halfway between her behind and her hip.
Fortunately, not much else was bruised, except her pride. Someone in the line snickered — Kara didn't see who — and she climbed to her feet with as much dignity as she could muster before heading off to find a new station.
Kara glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. It was quarter to nine, and the smells of breakfast were starting to drift through her door, making her stomach growl. She dressed quickly in a set of the athletic clothes she'd been provided and hurried out to take her seat at the long table in the central living area of their floor.
She was the first one out. The only other people up were the Inhumans setting out the plates of food at the table. Kara was trying not to get used to the larger portions and rich food, knowing that her meals in the arena would be far less filling or frequent. At the same time, though, it would be good to bulk up a little bit — it could give her an extra day if food got scarce. There was a delicate balance.
Kara loaded a plate with scrambled eggs, flaky biscuits, and fruit slices. She poured a glass of orange juice, and as she sat down, Peter Quill emerged from his room.
"Morning, Kara," he said. "Training going well?"
"As well as it can, I guess," Kara said. "I'm not having too much trouble with most of the stations."
Quill was heaping a plate with eggs, bacon, and toast. "Make any friends yet? If you want to form an alliance, I have to talk with the other tributes' mentors, so I need to know."
Kara shrugged. "No one has really stood out to me. Maybe the Fours, even though they're probably going to be with the Careers. They seem talented. And…sane. Maybe I can get in with them."
Quill nodded approvingly. "See if you can find a few options today. I get that you kind of like doing things on your own, but anyone can benefit from an alliance."
Kara nodded as her cousin and their escort Michael emerged almost simultaneously from their respective quarters. Barnett was dressed in a stylishly cut dusty blue suit, and his perfectly coiffed hair was the same shade. Clark wore training clothes, like Kara.
"Morning, Clark," Kara said quietly as he sat down near her. The two of them had had been spending their evenings trying to mend their shattered family relationship, and the air between them was awkward, but this morning more amiable than it had been for ten years.
The first few conversations had been Kara putting it all on the table — everything her parents had told her and the way that her views had been altered over the years. Clark had listened and shared his side of things — alienated and not knowing why. Both cousins realized very quickly that things were not as they seemed, and though they were smart, they shared a stubborn streak a mile wide.
Last night's conversation had been a bit different.
Kara finished her shower, toweled off her hair, and dressed in soft, comfortable clothes before wandering out into the common area. Clark was lounging in the wide window seat, gazing out through the floor-to-ceiling glass onto the streets of the Capitol. Being on the fifth floor, they could see down to the street pretty well, and though she knew that they were celebrating the upcoming death battle, Kara actually somewhat enjoyed watching the multicolored Capitolites and their street revels.
Clark was dangling his El crest pendant from his fingers, watching the setting sun set the gold aflame. Kara came over and sat across from him.
"Did you know my name isn't officially Clark?" Clark said after a minute or so.
Kara looked at him. "Really?"
Clark nodded. "I mean, it's what Ma and Pa called me for as long as I can remember, but Ma showed me my birth certificate last year when I turned 16. My birth name was Kal. Kal El." He twirled the leather cord of his necklace between his fingers, and the gold diamond spun, sending little sparkles flying across the walls. "I guess there's a whole box of papers and stuff that Ma's got tucked away somewhere about my family. Our family, I mean — the Els. What were they like?"
Kara was taken aback by such a direct question. "Um…" Kara realized that she actually didn't know much besides what her parents had told her. "Proud," she decided. "Proud to a fault. Myself included," she added.
Clark laughed, and some of the tension dissolved. "Well, I gathered that."
"My parents loved me, but they also cared a lot about their work and their legacy. We've always been in public service — lawyers and scientists and researchers and positions like that. My dad's parents — your grandparents too — were the same way." Kara studied Clark for a moment. "I met them once, when I was little. You look like him — Grandpa Jor, Jor Sr. Same hair," she said, reaching over and flicking the cowlick that hung over Clark's forehead. "I got my hair from Mom's side. Never met them, though."
Clark swung his pendant. "And this? Ma and Pa told me it was a family crest or something."
Kara nodded. "It's the crest of the House of El. Obviously, we don't have a noble house anymore, but it's still a big part of our family. It means a few things…'stronger together' is one of the biggest ones. And 'hope.'"
"Well, I think both of those are important to remember in the next few days," Clark said quietly. He clasped the golden charm and looked her in the eyes. "Stronger together?"
"Stronger together," Kara agreed. They were silent for a few minutes until Clark scoffed slightly.
"How long do you think it'll be until Capitolites start putting it on their clothes?" he asked, a bit of distaste in his voice. "I mean, Quill won four years ago, and that little leafy thing from his costume is still all over their clothes, and they certainly didn't try to hide it on our costumes."
Kara remembered the way the stylists had clamored excitedly when she and Clark had arrived in the prep centers sporting matching pendants. "Did they try and do anything dumb with your costume? My stylist tried to have me in a tiny crop top and skirt that did NOT cover enough. Wore him down, though."
"I almost had these ridiculous red briefs on the outside of my costume," Clark said.
Kara snorted at the mental image. "I think you're a little old to be wearing underpants on the outside."
"Clark, anyone in mind for allies in the arena?" Quill was asking as Clark filled his plate. "Kara's looking at the Four tributes as a possibility."
"Uh… yeah, Diana and I were talking a bit yesterday, actually. She seems like a trustworthy ally."
Quill nodded. "Good to see that the two of you think alike. Try and cement some ideas during training today and tomorrow — you won't have much time to talk with other tributes after that." Kara and Clark nodded together.
The four of them were mostly silent through breakfast, with Barnett throwing out the odd comment about sponsors or costumes and the rest of them responding briefly. Kara greatly appreciated that he seemed much more down-to-earth than many of the other escorts and didn't try and force an overly bright and cheery atmosphere on them.
Kara ad Clark milled around their quarters until around quarter to ten or so before calling the elevator to their floor. One other young man was already in the glass capsule when it arrived — Kara was fairly certain it was the boy from Twelve. His redhead partner was absent, but there was still time. She might have already been down in the training center too. The Twelve boy (Jake? No, John) nodded at the cousins as the doors hissed shut, and they continued downward, passing below street level into the vast underground training complex.
Some of the tributes were already there, milling about while they waited for the okay to begin training. Most of the trainers were just finishing setting up their stations — loading sword racks and mounting targets — and Kara used the time to gaze around, deciding which stations to visit. She and Clark had initially just avoided each other in general, but after talking, they realized it would be beneficial to stay split up and work on their own strengths, rather than stick together and waste time at stations one might not need as much as the other.
Kara eyed the plants station. Mar-Vell had done a very brief overview of some common plants one day, but Kara knew that there would definitely be new ones in the arena.
And…hmmm…today might be a crafty day, she thought. Camouflage, fishing, shelters…
The large digital clock on the wall switched to 10:00, and the tributes dispersed. Kara made for the plants station, but a voice called her name from behind her.
"Kara." It was the Four girl, Diana. Kara turned. "Spar with me? There are matters I would discuss with you."
"Sure." Kara followed Diana over to the sparring mats. Rand was giving the mats a quick wipedown but stood when the girls approached.
"Don't see many people ready to spar so early," he joked. He studied them for a beat. "You two are both fairly advanced. If you promise to pull your punches a little, I'll let you move past the tap hits. I'm breaking you up if things get too rough, though. Understand?" The girls nodded in sync. "All right then. Whenever you two are ready." Danny stepped back off the mats, leaving the girls to drop into defensive stances.
Diana stepped back and began to circle slightly. Kara followed and sized her opponent up. She hadn't had much of a chance to study the way Diana fought — it seemed that Diana had hardly, if ever, been to the hand-to-hand sparring station over the last few days.
It didn't show, though. Diana made the first move, a fluid strike that would have knocked the wind out of Kara's lungs had Diana been a couple inches closer and Kara not been able to dodge. While Diana was still finishing the punch, Kara darted close and hooked her leg around Diana's, sending her stumbling, but the raven-haired girl recovered well and whipped around to face her again. There was a small smile on Diana's face as she took up her stance again.
"Where did you learn to fight this way?" Diana asked as the girls began circling again.
Kara sent a roundhouse kick toward Diana's side. "Picked it up here and there."
Diana knocked Kara's foot away. "You have clearly been trained. Your cousin hits hard, but he was not so skilled." She threw a hook punch that Kara danced away from.
"We all have our secrets." Kara smiled as their fight continued back and forth. Diana had a fighting style that was different than anything Kara had seen in the Games before: an amalgamation of elite training and street fighting with a gracefulness that made it seem like the girl was almost dancing.
Their fight continued for a few minutes, neither one gaining much of an advantage over one another until, somehow, they wound up at opposite corners of the mat. The girls charged at one another, but at the last second, Diana dropped to her knees, skidded, curled around, and swept Kara's legs from under her.
Before Kara could figure out which way was up, Diana was crouched over her, one arm across her throat, but a bright grin on her face. She sprang up and offered Kara a hand.
Kara took it, and Diana hauled her to her feet. "Join my alliance," she said as Kara dusted herself off.
"Your…like the Careers?" Kara asked.
Diana scoffed. "I have abandoned those fools. Harvey wants power, and the madman from Eight has invaded. I wish to have a group that will not be torn apart by infighting. You are a skilled fighter, with a sense of loyalty I admire and a drive to succeed. You'd be a valuable addition to our alliance." She smirked. "I believe Cisco called it a 'Justice League' when I approached him with the offer."
"You asked him?" Kara asked, the only thing she could think of with her mind still spinning from the proposition.
"He is intelligent. He may not be a fighter, but his traps are ingenious, and he has a kind heart that does not belong in these Games. I wished to give him more of a chance." Diana shook her head. "It does not matter anyhow — he wanted to remain with his partner in the arena, and I did not ask her." She held out her hand. "What do you say?"
Kara hesitated, but only for a moment. She clasped Diana's hand, and the two girls shook. "I'm in."
Diana grinned again before the girls went their separate ways.
Soon, Kara found herself at the edible plants station. The muscular trainer was someone she expected to see at the wrestling station, not here, but Ka-Zar's voice was soft, and his hands were gentle as he touched the leaves of the plants around him.
"What do you know of edible plants thus far in your life?" he asked.
"Not much," said Kara. "We don't have much growing in Five — not even a lot of crops. Everything is utilized more for power generation. Most stuff is imported into the district."
Clark wandered over just as Ka-Zar was beginning. "Can I join you?"
"Be my guest," Kara said, scooting her stool over so that Clark wasn't forced to the side of the table.
"Would it be safe to assume that your knowledge of plants is similar to that of your cousin's?" Ka-Zar asked Clark as Clark pulled up his stool.
"Uh…if Kara knows very little, then yes." Kara nodded at him.
Ka-Zar clapped his hand together. "From the beginning, then!" He shifted around the trays of plants until the one he wanted was in the middle. "These are most common plants seen in arenas past. Most can be eaten raw, but you can also use some to make teas or as herbs for other food you collect." He began lifting the little pots off the tray, naming the plants and pointing out distinctive features and uses. Kara repeated each name quietly, committing some of the most useful to memory.
Things were going well, until Ka-Zar lifted a small white flower with heavy green streaks running through its square-ish petals. Kara's instincts took over, and she was moving before she even fully realized what she was looking at, bolting sideways off her stool and sending the stool clattering to the ground. Clark, Ka-Zar, and a few of the nearby tributes gave her odd looks.
"Lost my balance," she offered to the surrounding tributes with an awkward smile, setting her stool upright again. "Don't touch that," she hissed to Clark, who had reached toward the little flower Ka-Zar still held.
Clark gave her a confused look. "Why not? It's safe to touch, or Ka-Zar wouldn't have it."
"That's a krypton flower. Edible, yes, but I'm incredibly allergic to it. My dad was, and his dad, and if I had to hazard a guess, I'd wager that you are too," she said quietly, not wanting to draw more attention to herself. "I almost died from messing with one when I was little. They don't usually grow much in Five, but I found one in a field one day. I picked it and brought it to show Mother, and didn't even make it home. Ended up in the hospital for a couple days. I don't remember it much, but I remember getting a pretty strict lecture when I was better."
Clark looked bemused. "Even though you didn't know any better?"
"That's the El household for you," Kara said. She turned to Ka-Zar. "Um…sorry about that. I don't usually panic like that."
Ka-Zar smiled kindly. "It is no problem. Better for you to know now than find out in the arena." He set the plant down on the floor at his feet. "We shall leave it alone."
Kara kept her feet tucked under the stool for the rest of the session — just in case.
After lunch, Kara returned to her original plan of survival stations. She and Clark drifted to different stations once more — it would be best to have as many skill sets as possible, Clark reasoned, and Kara agreed. She found herself at the fire-starting station, where a woman with appropriately fiery red hair taught her several ways to build reliable fires in the Games.
"Steel wool is good," said Angelica, "But the odds of finding it in the arena are slim, unless you get it in a pack. Your best bet is to familiarize yourself with materials you'll be more likely to find in nature. Flints, friction, and tinder are your friends." She placed a stick onto a small log with tiny pieces of tinder and twirled it deftly between her hands. Smoke began to rise from the contact point, and before long, the tiny twigs and leaves had begun to smolder. Kara picked up her own set of supplies and began working on her own tiny flame. It took a few tries, but Kara managed to coax a respectable flame to life.
After the stick-twirling method, Angelica left her alone to work with another tribute. Kara fussed about with some of the other tools for a moment before her gaze settled on a small reflective square. It was hard and light, like plastic, yet it reflected sort of like a mirror. She picked it up, and a small shaft of light glanced off of it to land on the table. Kara spent a moment shining the light around the table, momentarily entertained by the little bright square like a cat would be. When it passed over her hand, she was surprised by how warm it was. Not enough to burn her with that pass, but very noticeable. Intrigued, she let the beam focus on a tinder pile lying nearby. Almost immediately, it began to smoke and smolder.
"Ah, the reflector!" Angelica said, having made her way back to Kara. "Good, but like the steel wool, you're not going to just find one in the arena." Kara nodded, extinguished the pile of smoldering brush, and moved on to the next station.
Finding that most of the survival stations were occupied with tributes she didn't want to deal with at the moment, Kara opted for the electronics station. She doubted she'd get too much use out of it, but it never hurt to pick up new skills. The only tribute there at the moment was the Two girl with the bright blue hair. She'd been pretty quiet for the most part during training — Kara couldn't remember seeing her actually fighting much at combat stations over the last couple days, though she had noticed her just watching different pairs of tributes fight. Oddly enough, it didn't seem to be in a malicious way, like she was trying to gather information for the Careers (if she was still in the group after the apparent schism); she just seemed to try to be picking things up for herself.
As Kara approached, Harper appeared to finished what she was working on and rose from her seat. Her foot snagged on the stool leg, and she clutched at the table for balance, knocking several tools to the ground. Flustered, Harper began piling the tools back on the table — but as Kara watched, she saw a thin screwdriver disappear under Harper's waistband. The girl hid the thievery well, and Kara didn't think even Schultz, the trainer, had noticed. Kara was bewildered. What could Harper need the tool for? It wasn't as if she'd be able to bring it into the arena with her. Nothing but a tribute's token even made it onto the transport with them; the Sentinels made sure of that. Harper finished cleaning up her small mess and left the station as Kara arrived and sat down. Schultz' attention was immediately focused on his new student, and neither he nor Kara paid much attention to Harper as she walked away.
Kara discovered what Harper was up to later that day. After taking on camouflage and turning her arm into a passable log, and building a shelter out of nothing but sticks and brush, she'd headed for the pool. There were lakes and streams in Five, but Kara hadn't been swimming in years. She was pleased to find that she could manage several laps of a respectable backstroke and was listening to Bench discuss small ways that would increase her speed and power when she noticed Harper tucked away in a corner near a wall panel. Harper had chosen her spot well — she was behind the wheeled tub for used towels and couldn't be seen by most of the training center. You could really only see her from this end of the pool, and Kara had only spotted her by a flash of blue hair as she'd glanced away from Bench for a moment.
Bench finished his spiel and walked away. Harper ducked, but only for a moment. As soon as the coast was clear, Harper successfully removed the panel and poked through the wires running inside. She pulled yet another stolen tool out of nowhere — a pair of wire cutters — and, peering up over the top of the towel cart, snipped a wire. Kara followed Harper's gaze over to the explosives station, where one of the thin touchscreens was now flickering. The trainer tapped the screen irritably as Kara looked back at Harper. The girl touched the severed ends of the wires together, and the screen stabilized. A small smile grew on Harper's lips as she removed and replaced the end of the wire, the screen flickering in time.
How had she known that this wire would control the screen all the way over there? She had as much electrical skill as Winn — maybe more.
For the briefest of moments, Kara considered heading over there and confronting Harper. She almost did it, but Harper wasn't really doing anything to harass another tribute or anything. She was definitely breaking the rules, and normally Kara would have positively been bristling at the thought, but…
What had changed? All of a sudden, Kara was content to let Harper continue her secret tinkering. Kara was almost interested in what Harper knew. If it got out of hand, she could tell someone. Maybe someone would find out anyway. For now, though…
Kara hopped out of the pool, toweled off, and went on her way.