Nia was up all night, while she loved the idea of having Ruby out there with her as a new Supergirl, seeing what was happening with Kara scared her. Ruby was so enthusiastic, but she had no experience at all in using her powers the way Kara did. Nia was happy to have someone that looked up to her, she didn't want to break Ruby's heart, not like her older sister had done to her so many times. She pads into the kitchen and runs the coffee maker, makes a cup, grabs a couple of donuts and heads out to the balcony, where she runs into Sam.
"Oh, hey Sam, sorry I didn't mean to interrupt," Nia says, stumbling over her words.
"You're not interrupting Nia, but something must be on your mind if you're up this early, or late?" Sam asked.
"It's Ruby" She answered, then paused "She wants to take Kara's place as Supergirl."
"Yes, I know, why is that on your mind? I thought you would be excited to have a partner." Sam asked, hoping she knew the answer.
"I am, I was, I don't want Ruby mad at me, but she isn't ready, she needs more training, more control," Nia said. "When I was younger, even today, my sister and I can't agree on anything, and with Nia, I don't want to spoil what we have."
"Nia, I am going to tell her no, I'm sure Kara would say the same thing you are, you have been doing this for about a year and a half now if you don't think she is ready, then she isn't. Just be honest with her, it's going to hurt her feelings, but in the long run, it's what is best for her."
"Yes, ma'am." Nia agreed "You mind if I sit out here with you for a bit?"
"Not at all Nia." Sam smiled.
Ruby woke up a few hours later, she saw her mom and Nia out on the balcony, so she made herself a glass of juice and grabbed an apple and headed out. "Hey mom, hey Nia."
"Hey baby, how'd you sleep?" Sam asked.
"Good," Ruby answered, slightly suspicious.
"Ruby, I need to say something and it's going to make you mad," Nia spoke up.
"What is it?" Ruby asked, a little harder than she meant to, but she had a feeling she knew what this was about.
"I know you want to be like Kara, I know you think you are ready, but I don't, and I didn't want to say anything because I have a really bad relationship with my sister and I don't want to mess up our friendship," Nia said rapidly, afraid she wouldn't be able to finish before Ruby got angry.
"But, I am ready, I can do everything that Aunt Kara can do!" Ruby yelled. "Why even bother helping me if you are just going to turn on me?"
"I'm not turning on you Ruby. I'm worried you might get hurt." Nia said, tears forming in her eyes.
"I can't get hurt, I'm invulnerable." Ruby snapped again.
"So is Kara, and look at what happened to her." Nia cried, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Do you really want to do that to your mom?"
Before Sam could stop Ruby from saying something she would regret the words tumbled from Ruby's mouth "Go away Nia, I don't want you here right now."
Nia's tears continued to flow as she stood to leave, Sam reached out to stop her, "Nia?"
"No Sam it's okay, I'm going to head into work today. Thank you for letting us get this out without interrupting. Tell Kara I'll see her later, please." Nia spoke softly, then turned and walked into the condo.
"Satisfied young lady." Sam snapped.
"Mom, I'm ready." Ruby snapped back.
"No, you're not, period." Sam said, "Get dressed and you better behave while you're visiting Kara."
Sam was in the study getting dressed when she got a text from Alex.
Alex: 'Hey Sam.'
Sam: 'What's going on?'
Alex: 'Kelly's getting ready, can you bring her?'
Sam: 'Sure, anything else?'
Alex: 'Bring donuts'
Sam: 'Crullers?'
Alex: 'Anything, she hasn't been eating since the first week trapped in at the fortress.'
Sam: 'What?'
Alex: 'Yeah, so we've got to try something. Ruby and Nia coming?'
Sam: 'Ruby yes, Nia no. we'll explain when we get there.'
Alex: 'Okay?'
Sam: 'Be there in about 30.'
Alex: 'K, Thank you.'
Sam got off the phone with Alex and went into the kitchen, Kelly was waiting for her, already dressed, with a worried look on her face. "Sam, about how many calories a day do you eat?"
"Uhm, probably more than I should, but I seem to burn it off pretty quickly," Sam answered, she hadn't thought about it, but she almost always had a snack in her hands, ever since her powers started to flare her appetite had increased. Ruby was up to a whole pizza when they ate out, and it seemed like she shopped for groceries a lot more often. "I haven't really kept track. Is this about Kara?"
"Yeah, I'm sure Alex told you about the eating thing," Kelly answered, concerned about Kara. "We need to get her eating again."
"Kara told me once that she consumes about 15,000 to 20,000 calories per day." Sam volunteered. Then it hit her, how much food she and Ruby could consume between them to maintain their levels.
"Damn." Was all Kelly could say.
Thirty minutes later they were entering Kara's room, having met Lena in the elevator. Kara was still asleep, but Alex was up checking the readouts on the computers, everything was progressing as Lena said it would. The kryptonite was clearing from her system, and in about 3-4 more days and she would be clean, but now there was the problem of Kara not eating. She turned as she heard the door open. She looked and there was Kelly, Sam, and Lena. She took a deep breath, no matter how much Lena was doing for Kara, she still couldn't control the anger when she saw the CEO.
Lena swallowed, she could feel the anger rolling off of Alex in waves. Kelly moves towards Alex, putting her hand on her girlfriends. Alex starts to relax, takes a breath, and leaned in for a kiss, which caused Kelly to smile and deliver with a wink. "Hey, honey." Alex smiles.
"Hey, love." Kelly smiles back. "How's Kara?"
"She slept good, physically she's exhausted, emotionally she's a little better, between the fear of Lena, the guilt she feels and the loss of her powers, even temporarily, I hope that talking to you will help," Alex answered.
"I hope I can help." Kelly frowns, she still feels like she is in over her head.
"You got this honey." Alex smiles.
Sam and Ruby approached Kara, who smiled and stretched. "Good morning Kara, you sleep okay?" Sam asked, wondering how this woman can look this amazing as she wakes up. "We brought donuts."
Kara scrunches her nose, and her crinkle appears. She looks over at Alex, frowning. "You told them didn't you?" She asked, hanging her head in shame.
"Kara, I didn't do it to shame you, you aren't going to get better if you don't eat." Alex pleaded.
"What do you mean, if she doesn't eat?" Lena asked.
Alex and Sam saw Kara take a breath, release it and then thankfully, Ruby stepped in and gripped Kara's good hand. "I haven't been eating. I stopped eating while I was at the fortress." Kara spoke, almost whispering at the admission. "I haven't really been eating a lot since I got back."
Lena turned to face the computer, and hide the tears that started to form. Kelly stepped up to Kara and spoke "Kara, we are not judging you, we are here to help. We have to work together to get your appetite back to where it was. So we are going to ask your specialist here her opinion on calorie intake and how to help get your appetite back." She cut a look at Alex, Lena was recovering as well, and guilt over Kara's appetite wasn't going to help, and neither would Alex's attitude.
Lena took a breath, thankful for Kelly at this particular moment, she wiped her eyes and turned, noticing that Kara didn't cringe this time. "If she hasn't eaten correctly, it will affect her recovery, but we can't increase her appetite back to what it was before this started." Then she continued. "I am going to recommend 10 to 15 minutes of physical activity 3 times a day, for at least the next 4 days and perhaps some time in actual sunshine instead of artificial, you can use my office to maintain privacy. Let's see if that increases her appetite."
"How are we going to do physical activity?" Kelly asked.
"A bike, I have one in my office, if Sam doesn't mind bringing it down," Lena asked Sam.
"Ruby, stay down here, Lena and I will be back shortly," Sam ordered.
"Yes ma'am," Ruby answered.
As Sam and Lena leave, both Alex and Kara turn to her. "What's going on?" Alex asks.
"Where's Nia?" Kara wants to know.
"She went into work today," Ruby answered as if it wasn't weighing on her mind.
"And why is your mom mad at you?" Kara followed up, everyone always underestimated her ability to read people, they wrote it off as her powers, but she was an award-winning reporter and she didn't get there using her superpowers.
"Because Nia doesn't believe I am ready to be Supergirl while you are recovering," Ruby answered.
"You aren't." Alex and Kara answered at the same time.
"You haven't had any training with your powers Ruby," Kara stated as if that explained everything.
"And you don't know how to fight," Alex said.
Ruby looked at them both, her eyes boring into them. "So neither one of you believes in me either?"
"It isn't belief Ruby," Alex stated, probably a little harsher than she meant. "Kara practiced in secret for years, she knew what she could do and she still got her butt handed to her several times. She learned to fight, she learned how to defend herself with and without her powers. Your powers are still developing, you don't have full control, and none of us want to see you in a situation that would cause you to get hurt." Kelly came up next to Alex, holding her hand to help her relax, but nodding her agreement.
Ruby looked to Kara, who looked to Alex and nodded, agreeing with her sister as well.
"But, I know I can do this. I'll show all of you that I'm ready." Ruby said, then blurred to the door. She was out and into the hallway as the elevator opened and her mom and Lena stepped out. She pressed the button and the doors closed before Sam could get to her.
Lena ran into the office, as Alex exited Kara's room, and switched to the security feed, the elevator stopped at the helipad and they saw Ruby shoot into the air. She looked at Sam. "She flew off towards the north.
Alex reached for her cellphone, dialing the DEO. "I need to speak to Director Lane, right now."
Fortunately, Vasquez was on duty and knew the voice on the other end. "Hold on Director Danvers, I'll get her."
Lucy picked up the phone a minute later. "Alex, what's wrong, is it Kara?"
"No, its Ruby, she is upset and trying to prove she can be the next Supergirl." Alex was holding back tears. "She headed north from L Corp, can you locate her?"
"We are powering up two drones now Alex. Isn't Nia there, have her try to Astral," Lucy said, maintaining a calm she wasn't feeling.
"Nia isn't here, I'll call her next. We are headed out to search, can you call J'onn and Brainy?" Alex begged.
"Vasquez has them on the other line, they are going to start searching and Astra and Alura are helping." Lucy is in full command mode.
"We are headed out, I'll call Nia, thanks, Lucy." Alex was trying to calm down, she wouldn't be able to search if she wasn't in control.
"What are we going to do Alex," Sam asked through her tears.
"We are going to find her, Sam," Alex reassured her friend.
They entered the hallway, and Kelly was waiting for them. "Are we going to look for her?"
The three women ran to the elevator, it wouldn't occur to them until much later that they had left Kara alone.
It dawned on one very worried Lena Kieran Luthor as soon as she watched the elevator doors close. Her heart was racing as she turned and faced Kara's door. This was not a situation she was ready for. Neither of them were.
Kara was in her room, she knew they had left to find Ruby, she wanted to help, she sat herself up and slid to the floor, using the bed for balance, then she turned and looked at the 15 or so feet between her and the door. She moved from one piece of furniture to another, by the third piece, she was exhausted but Ruby was in danger, she had to help. By the fourth piece she was sweating, but the door was within her next trip. On trembling legs she moved forward, one pitiful inch at a time, her breath coming in sharp gulps. Just another twelve inches and she would be at the door. She reached for the handle and watched it turn by itself as it opened away from her and she came face to face with Lena.
Kara recoiled, she was alone, with Lena. Lena stopped, her eyes wide, her breathing shallow, her heart beating in her chest. Kara couldn't stop, Ruby was in trouble, she had to help, she gripped the frame of the door, to pull herself through. Lena stepped in front of her. "Kara, you can't leave. You have to get back to bed." She whispered.
Kara stood as tall as her battered frame would allow her, and Lena noticed how much her collarbones stood out, how thin her face was. Tears formed in Lena's eyes, as the physical proof of what she had done, stood directly in front of her. "I'm leaving, they need my help." Kara cried, pushing herself to stand upright in the doorway. "Move Lena."
"No," Lena said, a bit firmer this time.
Kara stood again, her blue eyes meeting the green of Lena's. Two of the most powerful women in the world were locked in a standoff, and neither was sure how it would end. For just a few moments, Lena looked into the eyes of Supergirl, not Kara, but the woman who had saved her and the world so many times, people had lost count. She wasn't sure if she possessed the willpower that this woman in front of her did. But she wasn't about to let Kara hurt herself while she was pushing her weakened body so hard. It wasn't her mind or her spirit that betrayed Kara, it was her body, ravaged by Kryptonite, and the process of recovery. Her trembling legs finally gave up and she fell to her knees, tears streaming from her eyes. Lena leaned to help her up but looked to Kara for permission before touching her. "Please, help me?" Kara cried.
Lena's heart broke again as she heard the weakness in Kara's voice. She helped her to her feet and gave her a moment to balance herself. With Kara's arm wrapped over her shoulder, Lena helped her back to her bed. Once she got her to the edge, she noticed, Kara didn't have the strength to get on the bed by herself. "Sorry." was all Kara could squeak out. Lena smiled weakly and lifted Kara so she was sitting on the edge of the bed. They worked together to get Kara settled into a comfortable position and then she handed Lena her tablet.
"Click TV, then DEO icon." Kara wheezed out. "Code is Alex's birthday."
Lena entered the commands and suddenly they were getting the feed from the DEO on their screen. "Kara, I shouldn't be watching this."
"Is okay with me Lena." Kara slurred, she was exhausted.
"Kara, would you eat grilled cheese?" Lena asked.
"Love grill cheez, Lena," Kara answered.
"I'm going to order some okay, you can eat when you wake up." Lena was worried, Kara had pushed way too hard. She went to pull away when Kara did the unexpected and pulled, not very hard, her into a hug.
Sharp tears stung Lena's eyes as Kara spoke: "Tired, sleep, don't leave us alone Lee." Kara's eyes started to drift closed. "Sorry Lee, thank you." Her eyes closed and she drifted off to sleep. Lena laid Kara back on her pillows and was about to leave when Kara's hand landed over her own. She smiled, realizing that they had both taken another step towards healing. She slowly pulled her hand free and took a quick look at Kara's code, added a few lines and reset it. The screen split as she started getting the local news feeds.
Two hours later and still no sign of Ruby. Kara snorted and rolled on to her side, looking at the screen. She looked at Lena, and for a split second she forgot herself and then blinked and the fear was gone. "Still no Ruby?" she asked.
"No, they've searched all over the city," Lena answered, panicked.
"Tell them to try the old apartment," Kara said.
Lena picked up her phone and dialed Alex. "Oh god, is Kara okay?"
"She's fine Alex, she said to try Sam's old apartment," Lena repeated Kara's idea.
Kara snatched her tablet off the table and keyed another code, taking control of Drone 2, she remembered the general area of Sam's apartment. Watching the screen she piloted the drone towards the area. "Ask Alex if these things have infrared please."
"Alex, do the DEO drones have infrared?" Lena asked, sure that she was about to get yelled out.
"She hacked my fucking drones?" Alex snapped. "Dammit, Kara. Yes, they have infrared, but tell her she better be careful."
"Alex is not pleased, but yes they have infrared," Lena answered Kara's question, a slight smile showing since she and Kara were working together.
Kara adjusted the screen so that she was seeing just the drone's view. She found the control for the infrared and flipped it on. On the screen, they could see several heat signatures moving around, but there was one sitting on the floor, completely still. Kara focused in on that one. "Lena, tell Alex, third floor, right back corner, Kryptonian heat signature."
"How do you know it's Kryptonian?" Lena asked absentmindedly.
"See how the bloom starts at a higher heat and then doesn't degrade until just below the surface, and how the hands, and head, which are uncovered blur, we generate heat because of the sun, so our signatures look different under infrared," Kara explained without ever taking her eyes off the screen.
Lena stared for a moment, Kara had just spoken to her without shaking or stuttering. It seemed that science was an excellent way for Kara to overcome her fear of Lena. Lena heard her phone ring. "Lena it's Alex, put me on speaker." Lena clicked the phone to turn on the speaker.
"Kara, can you hear me?" Alex asked.
"Uh-huh, oh Alex, yes I can hear you, I didn't break anything," Kara answered.
"I know sis, we are on the other side of town, but Astra and Brainy are on their way, can you guide them in?" Alex asked.
"No communication gear Alex.", Kara started to get nervous.
"Kara, you hacked the drone, piggyback off the channel and send it to your phone?" Alex spoke calmly. "Take a deep breath Kara, I know you are nervous, I can hear it in your voice. Do your thing and let me know when you need my code."
Kara took Alex's advice and moved through the code, finding the comm channels for the drone, she keyed in on the channel she needed and her screen beeped, requesting the code. "Alex I need your code, but Lena is here."
"I don't care Kara. Oh shit, you are there alone?" Alex panicked.
"I'm fine Alex, don't make me think about it too hard," Kara said in her Supergirl voice, sounding much more sure of herself than she was. "What's the code?"
"2270," Alex answered.
Kara entered the code then sent a command to her new phone connecting them. She heard the telltale sound of the security encryption software loading in, then the connection. "Supergirl, do you copy? Supergirl. This is Brainiac, do you copy?"
"Supergirl here Brainy, I have sent the coordinates to your tracker, the airspace is currently clear, except for my drone, and I am 50 feet above and to the right of the signature. Ruby is currently in the room by herself, in the back right corner, she isn't moving but she is breathing normally from what I can tell." Kara was being clinical, but Lena could hear the tenseness in her voice.
"We will be there in three minutes Supergirl," Brainy said over the comms. "It's good to hear your voice."
"Thanks, Brainy." She smiles, then whispers, "Please be okay Ruby." She feels Lena patting her hand.
"She will be Kara." Lena tries to smile.
Both women close their eyes and pray that Ruby is okay.
"Supergirl, A is entering the building right now, you should see her on your scanners," Brainy reported.
"Got her Brainy, she's about 30 meters away," Kara announced.
In the apartment, Astra was slowly approaching Ruby's location. "Little warrior, are you here?"
"General, I'm back here, is there anyone else here," Ruby answered in a trembling voice.
Astra scanned the apartment with her eyes and ears, taking Ruby's fear to heart, she couldn't see anything in any spectrum and her ears didn't pick up any sounds except Ruby's quick heartbeat. "No one is here little warrior."
Ruby came out of the room she had been sitting in. She was not using her speed, or any of her powers as she approached Astra. She was crying, silent tears, tears of fear and shame. Astra knelt, right this moment was not the moment to be a general, her Little Warrior needed a friend and an ally. Ruby reached Astra and was enveloped in a hug. She put her head into the crook of Astra's shoulder and neck and cried. She had failed, and she knew it. She really wasn't ready, and she was afraid that she had let everyone down. She stood and cried into Astra's shoulder for what seemed like forever, but it was just a few minutes. "Little Warrior, we need to go, many people are worried about you."
"Yes General," Ruby answered, holding her head down in shame.
Astra took Ruby by the hand, and they headed out the window, flying up to Brainy. Kara had followed the movement on the drone. She clicked the communications key. "This is Supergirl to all search units, Little Warrior has been found, return to my location, A is bringing her in."
Everyone took a deep breath and headed for L Corp. They returned in groups of two or three, to find Kara and Lena talking with Eliza and Allura about whatever. Lucy drifted over to the group, hugging Kara and demanding to know how she got into the DEO system so fast. Nia and J'onn came in and drifted towards Kara, checking on her. Nia was on the verge of tears, and everyone drifted off as she and Kara started to talk. "Nia, this wasn't your fault," Kara whispered.
"She was so mad at me Kara, I was trying to be honest with her, and she told me to go away. She isn't ready for this, she could have been hurt, or worse." Nia was stumbling over her words, so Kara reached up and pulled the young heroine into her arms. Nia leaned in and cried on Kara's shoulder, letting go of her tension.
Sam, Alex, and Kelly entered next. Alex approaches Kara. "Great job sis, we couldn't have done this without your help." Then she gave Kara a huge hug and a kiss on the top of the head.
"I think I'm in trouble with Lucy for hacking the system," Kara whispered, a small smile on her face.
"I'll clear it up sis, she's just jealous cause she can't keep up." Alex smiled back. As she stood up she felt a tap on her shoulder and turned into Lucy.
"I heard that Alex." Lucy grinned. "Whose idea to hack the comm lines?"
Alex gulped, even though she knew Lucy was joking, she hoped.
Kelly leaned in and kissed Kara on the cheek "You okay?"
"A little trembling, but I don't think I did too bad, we hugged, is that okay?" Kara asked, a bit nervously.
"Kara, that's wonderful, did you instigate the hug or Lena." Kelly beamed.
"I did, she helped me back to bed, and she watched over me while I slept." Kara smiled, she was glad to be doing something right, instead of letting fear control her.
"I'm so proud of you Kara. At this rate, you won't need my help." Kelly smiled again. She went to stand up, but Kara stopped her, getting a hug.
"Thank you, Kelly," Kara said as she pulled the lovely psychiatrist in.
Sam was nervously pacing at the door, waiting for Ruby. She heard her heartbeat as the elevator came down, and stepped into the hall. Astra and Brainy came out first. She hugged Brainy first. "Thank you." Then she approached Astra pulling the older woman into a hug, a simple thank you didn't seem like enough.
"Don't berate her too badly Samantha, she had a difficult time tonight, she concluded that she has failed us," Astra stated.
"Thank you, Astra, for everything," Sam said as she released the older woman, and stepped towards the elevator where her very ashamed looking daughter was standing.
"Ruby Patricia Arias," Sam said through gritted teeth as her daughter exited the elevator.
"I'm so grounded. And I completely deserve it." Ruby said, her voice hollow and her eyes full of fear and shame.
"Ruby?" Sam stopped, she was angry, but something was wrong. "Ruby, what happened?"
"I tried momma, I tried to stop three guys from attacking an alien in our old neighborhood, and my powers wouldn't come, and they laughed and I had to run, I thought they were going to catch me, and I finally took off."
"Did they hurt you?" Sam asked, her anger momentarily forgotten, the wellbeing of her daughter coming to the forefront.
"No momma, I'm so sorry, I thought I was ready. I just wanted to help." Ruby started to cry.
"You are so grounded Ruby, but that's it, and you will not use your powers without an adult present. I think you learned a very grown-up lesson today, a lesson almost as hard as what you are seeing Kara go through, she found you, honey, if it hadn't been for Kara, we'd still be looking. Now for the hardest part, you owe everyone in that room an apology." Sam said pointing towards the door.
Ruby took a deep breath and then did something she hadn't done in quite a while, she gripped Sam's hand as they stepped towards the door.
As they entered the room, Sam asked everyone to stop and listen, then backed up, handing the floor off to Ruby. Ruby took a deep breath, there were tears in her eyes as she spoke, but she still spoke up so that everyone could hear her. She looked at each person in the room, stopping on each face as she looked around, finally she looked at Kara as she spoke. "I'm very sorry everyone, I should have listened to the people in this room that told me I wasn't ready, and I should not have run away. I know I don't deserve it, but I hope everyone can forgive me for all the pain I caused."
As she finished her speech, everyone came forward, except Nia, Astra, and Kara. Each person hugged her and admonished her a bit. Mostly they were relieved, but a few were upset with her but kept their thoughts to themselves, Ruby had grown up a bit tonight, and they weren't going to make her feel worse than she already did. Even though she was in trouble, Ruby still relished this family that had come together around Kara, it had been her and her mom for so long against the world, it felt good to see her mom relax when she wasn't stressing her out, and it was nice to have people in her life that could understand what it was like to have powers, especially Nia. She had treated Nia horribly this morning and hoped that she would even want to speak to her. Finally, everyone dispersed, some heading out, back to work, others back to the condo, J'onn kissed Kara on the forehead and congratulated her for a job well done. Brainy wanted to see her code, which she promised to send as he hugged her. Eliza and Alura spoke as well, Alura had to head back to Argo and would miss Kara's press conference, but some duties had to be taken care of and Kara would understand. Alura promised that she would visit again in about a month after she caught everything up. "I'm so sorry dearest, I can only put these things off for so long." She cried.
"Mother, I understand, as long as you promise to return, I miss you and when I am healthy enough I promise to visit more often." She smiled through her tears, as they hugged and Alura kissed her daughter on the cheek.
Lucy hugged Kara quickly "I have to get back, but I want to see that code, send it to me only, and make sure you lock it with our normal code okay?"
"I will, Little Sisters and all that." Kara smiled.
Lena was trying to sneak out, but was caught by Alex. "What happened while we were gone?"
"Exactly what Kara said Alex, she slept and I watched the scanners, nothing else, I promise," Lena answered. "Now I'm going to order us all some lunch, I will be back in about 30 minutes okay."
"Thank you, Lena, thank you for taking care of her," Alex spoke, the stress of the morning wearing on her heavily.
"You're welcome Alex, and again, I'm sorry it came to this." Lena held her head down as she left the room.
While everyone was occupied with Kara, Ruby approached Astra and Nia. "General, I apologize for my actions today, and hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me," Ruby said in Kryptonite.
"Little Warrior, did you learn anything today?" Astra asked, waiting for Ruby to nod. "You have shown honor by taking responsibility for your actions today. There is no need for forgiveness Ruby." Then she hugged the young woman for the second time and approached her niece.
Ruby turned to Nia, noticing the stress in the lines of her forehead, and the tension in her shoulders. She began to speak. "Nia." She only got the woman's name out as Nia pulled her into a tight hug. Ruby wept into Nia's chest. "I'm so sorry for what I said this morning, I was mad, and shouldn't have said that I don't want you to go away, please don't."
"Are you okay? Did anyone hurt you? Do I need to kick anyone's ass?" Nia was still angry, but right now she was just happy to have Ruby standing in front of her unharmed. Ruby explained what had happened and Nia listened, a little of her anger dispersing as Ruby told her story. She had Ruby describe the three men, and committed those descriptions to memory so she could contact the police about them later.
Finally Ruby approached Kara's bed. "Thank you, Aunt Kara, thank you for figuring out where I was hiding. I'm sorry for running off. I did think I was ready. I promise I will never do anything like this again."
"Ruby, honey, I'm sorry I haven't been working with you, it seems as if something is always getting in the way, as soon as I get back to Midvale, I will work with you and your mom, from the ground, so we can get you used to your powers, but only if your mom says it's okay," Kara promised. "Maybe I can convince Superman to help. And, if you ask Auntie A she might teach you some of what she taught me when I first started."
"Thank you, Aunt Kara, I really am sorry," Ruby repeated.
Kara patted the bed beside her, and Ruby hopped up and leaned into Kara's shoulder. "I think Aunt Lena is bringing grilled cheese, she said something about it earlier this morning." Kara smiled.
Sam came over after everyone made their rounds and leaned over to hug Kara. "Thank you, Kara, I'm so glad you thought of the old apartment." Sam smiled.
"Sit down Sam, before you fall over," Kara ordered. "You are pushing yourself too hard Samantha. You are going to eat lunch, and then while Ruby and I work on homework, you are taking a nap."
Sam was speechless, although she was exhausted. "Yes, ma'am." She did as she was ordered and sat down.
The next fifteen minutes were spent making small talk and discussing what Ruby's punishment would be, other than maintaining the condo and washing dishes each night. Of course Ruby was oblivious to this part of the conversation as she dozed, leaning into Kara's shoulder. The stress of the morning finally catching up with her. Then she suddenly perked up. "Aunt Lena's back." She stated.
Lena rolled a huge cart of sandwiches into the room, along with soup and drinks. She parked the cart next to the bed and looked at Kara, waiting. Kara grabbed a cup of tomato soup and a sandwich and started to eat. That seemed to be the signal for everyone to dig in. Lena started to pull back when Kara gave her the famous Supergirl stare. "You too Lena."
Lena smiled slightly and took two sandwiches and a cup of chicken soup and sat near the monitors to eat. She was joined by Astra and Kelly, both of whom were asking questions about the treatment process.
Kara looked around as she finished her first bit of food, she looked again and reached for another cup of soup and two more sandwiches. She didn't think anyone else would notice, but everyone did, they just pretended they didn't. Kelly smiled at Alex, and Sam and Astra shared a look. Kara was on sandwich number four when she finally stopped. Lena made a note in the computer and sent a text to Alex.
Lena: '2500 Calories'
Alex: 'Thank you.'
Kara spent the rest of the day helping Ruby with homework and was not looking forward to the end of the day. Everyone else had left and once they finish homework, she and Ruby had started watching movies. She enjoyed the feeling of just spending time with Ruby, she found that she had missed it a great deal when she was trying to fix things with Lena. The thing she didn't like, the two fifteen-minute physical therapy assignments she had to complete on the bike that Lena brought down with Sam. The walk over was horrible, but after the second ride, Sam had to carry her to bed. She had been too tired to eat after the second therapy but Sam promised pizza for supper and that she and Ruby would stay the night tonight. While Kara dozed, waiting for supper, Ruby cleaned up the recovery room, without using her powers, just like her mom told her. At 6:30 Sam was finally done working and texted Ruby that she would be down with four pizzas in 30 minutes along with pajamas and a change of clothing.
Sam came in with the pizzas and noticed that Kara's eyes lit up as the smell hit her. 'Thank god,' she thought. She put the pizzas down and got dressed in a pair of sweats with a Supergirl T-shirt and waited to see how seating was going to work. Ruby threw on her pajamas and decided she would take the chair, leaving Sam no choice but to sit beside Kara on the bed. She glared at Ruby, who just shrugged her shoulders and made eyes at Sam when Kara wasn't looking. The TV came on and they decided on a few comedies to watch. Kara ate a little more than half a pizza while Sam and Ruby devoured the rest. Sam got an exhausted Kara to the restroom and text, Alex, that he had eaten again, and updated the amount. Alex asked if she was still awake. Sam texted back that yes, she was still awake.
'Have her call when she gets back in bed.'
Sam got Kara back in bed and settle in beside her again at Ruby's insistence. "Alex would like you to call her Kara."
Kara stretched as Sam handed her the phone. She tapped the screen for a video chat and smiled as her sister's face came on the screen. "Hey Alex, what's wrong?"
"Nothing Kar." Alex answered, "I wanted you to know how proud I am of you today."
"Why?" Kara asked, a little confused.
"Because you are my little sister and you were awesome today Kar, and you are facing your problems head-on, just like always. I love you, sis." Alex answered.
"Love you too Alex," Kara said, smiling while tears rolled down her cheeks.
"And you ate Kara, I'm so proud of you." Alex smiled, her eyes watering as well.
"Thank you, Alex, I think someone helped me remember why it is so important that I get better today," Kara said as she smiled at Ruby, who was falling asleep in the chair.
"Get some rest Kara, love you," Alex said
"Love you too Alex. Night" Kara responded.
Kara wiggled a little closer to Sam, sleep was still coming hard unless she was exhausted and having someone near her at night was helping. The stress of the day and two rounds of physical therapy had worn her out and she was asleep in minutes. Ruby got comfortable in the chair "Night momma, I'm really sorry about today."
"What's done is done baby, you learned a lesson and you received your punishment. Love you baby." Sam said to her daughter.
"Love you too momma," Ruby responded as she curled into a ball to sleep.
Sam laid in bed for a good while watching her daughter and Kara sleep, wondering if this could be a glimpse of her future. She decided to trust fate and see where it led her. She kissed the top of Kara's head and whispered: "I love you." Then finally surrendered to sleep herself.