Summary:

Brainiac-5 helped Kara out of her mind prison after her battle with Reign. It was only fair she return the favour…

Notes:

This story is based on my own personal speculation that Vril Dox/Brainiac-1 will end up in the present at some point to wreak havoc in National City. Takes place after "A Visit from the Future" and "Sleeping Beauties".

Kara and Brainiac-5 headed inside the closest building… only to find themselves in a bedroom.

A battered adolescent Brainiac-5 sat on what appeared to be his bed, wearing a pair of torn pants with a bandage wrapped around his ribs. An older Coluan – the doctor who had assisted in his birth – was tending to him.

"They fear me!" Querl snarled as Dr. Nix ran a dermal regenerator over the boy's bloodied hands - a shattered mirror on the wall indicating what had caused the boy's injuries.

"Nonsense!" Dr. Nix snapped as he finished his work and sat in the chair by Querl's desk, "They are just jealous immature children. I will talk to the schoolmaster about your classmates' treatment of you tomorrow."

"It won't help, Kazj. They know what Brainiacs are capable of, and they despise me for it!" Querl shot back. "What if I end up just like the others? Like my Mother? Like… HIM?"

"You won't!" Nix insisted. "You are nothing like them! I promise you, son!"

"You cannot promise such a thing. And I am not your son!" The boy snapped.

"Have I not cared for you since birth?" the doctor responded sternly. "Do I not make sure you are healthy, fed and educated? Do I not comfort you when it is needed, and encourage you if it is required? Have I not stood by your side during all you have been through?" He demanded. "Blood does not determine relations, Querl. You are my son in all the ways that matter!"

Querl was about to argue until he caught sight of Kajz's pained expression.

"I apologize," the boy replied humbly, bowing his head. "My dismissive words were inconsiderate and graceless."

"It is fine, Querl. You have had a rough day. I will forgive it this time."

"Thank you, Kajz." Querl looked forlornly at his hands, the skin slowly knitting back together. "This is not something a 12th level Intellect does. I behaved irrationally."

"You behaved like an angry, frustrated teenager," Nix pointed out kindly as he sat beside the boy and slid an arm around his shoulder. "And while that is not the most desirable behaviour, it is far better than being cold and detached – like the others."

Querl nodded, "Thank you again, Kajz. And I promise to fix the mirror tomorrow…"

Dr. Nix slowly faded away, along with his teenaged companion, leaving the room in nothing but silence.

"Wait wait," Kara moved in front of the adult Brainiac-5 before he could take another step. "The doctor raised you?"

"Oh, did I bury the lead?" Brainiac-5 asked. "Yes yes, Dr. Kajz Nix took me home the day I was born. He said he didn't want me raised in an orphanage, as he knew I would have enough challenges to deal with growing up."

"So, this was your childhood bedroom?" Kara asked excitedly.

"It was," he nodded.

"We should look around!"

"Why would you want to?"

"Remember when I was trapped in a coma? There were things in my apartment that I needed to see. There might be something here that YOU need to see." She pointed out

Brainy sighed and sat on the bed. "Go on then. It will do no good. As I said, this mind trap is not of my making."

"Brainiac-1 isn't infallible. There's got to be something in this room to help you out. Or at least something to cheer you up," she added upon seeing his dour face.

Brainy's eyes focused only on the blonde Kryptonian as she scurried around the bedroom, sifting through the magazines and books that had been ordered with meticulous care on the shelves.

There is only one thing in this room that could ever cheer me up… he thought.

She spun around to face him, smiling eagerly. "Oh! What is it? We have to find it!"

"What?" Brainy replied, startled. "I didn't say anything."

"Yeah you did. You said 'there's only one thing in this room that could ever cheer me up', didn't you?" she furrowed her brow.

"It appears you are starting to hear my thoughts now, which means you've been in here far too long," he realized.

"I'm guessing that's not a good thing?" Kara asked. He shook his head. "Can you hear my thoughts?" she asked worriedly.

"No, but since this is MY mind prison, it only makes sense you can hear me," Brainy sighed.

"This just got more interesting," Kara winked, then continued to look around the room.

She went to Brainy's childhood desk and grabbed an aged wooden box. She opened it only to find holo-pictures of Brainiac-5 at various stages in life.

"Aww, little Brainy! So cute!" she smiled, then continued to flip through the photos. "Why are you alone in all these pictures?"

"I did not have any friends when I was a child, as you have seen. My relative obviously wants to remind me of that."

Kara put the holos back in the box and went to join him on the bed. "Vril is an ass."

"Yes, he is." Brainy agreed, then bowed his head and studied his hands - hands that had long ago healed from the sharp edges of a shattered mirror. "I spent many nights in this room feeling like I didn't belong anywhere. If it had not been for Kajz, I do not know what would have become of me. He accepted me as I was, even when no one else did."

"He was your father," Kara offered gently.

Brainy nodded, "He made me feel… normal, I suppose. As normal as I could be, at least."

"Family isn't always blood," Kara smiled. "I was just like you when I first came to Earth - Hiding who I was, pretending like my scientific knowledge wasn't years beyond anything Earth had developed. I felt so alone. Especially when the yellow sun caused my powers to start manifesting. That was an experience, let me tell you!"

"Perhaps you will one day," he replied. "I would be more than willing to hear it."

Kara smiled, then grew serious once more. "I don't know what I would have done without Alex. Our relationship started off a bit rough, but once we started growing closer, I started to feel like part of a real family. And then I met Winn, James, and J'onn. They became an extended and welcome addition to that family."

Brainy nodded. "Just as the Legion is for me - though I am without them at the moment," he shrugged. "Well, at least until there is another intergalactic threat to the 21st Century."

"So, in a couple of weeks then?" she joked.

This brought forth a small smile from the Coluan beside her.

His expression and voice then grew softer. "I do not know if I can make it out of here, Kara. I am starting to feel the pressure of Vril's mind encroaching on mine."

She entwined her fingers with his, her tone quiet. "You need to fight whatever it is he's trying to do. I'll help you get out of here, Querl. I promise."

He nodded. "When you say that, I truly believe it."

"As you should!" she replied with a grin.

"I have not yet told you this," he began, "But I admired you when we first met. Reading the stories about Supergirl in the archives back home, hearing Mon-el's first-hand accounts. It all painted a beautiful picture of the perfect hero."

She glanced away, "I'm not perfect."

"No, you are not. You have a bad habit of making poor judgement calls when your emotions get the better of you, you're quick to anger, you make mistakes, and your stubbornness has become the stuff of legends around the DEO."

Kara frowned. "Okay, no need to be THAT truthful."

"Sorry… what I mean is – while I admired the perfection that was Supergirl, I have found I rather prefer the imperfection of Kara. Kara is kind, compassionate, and brilliant despite her flaws. Those traits are far more admirable than the number of bad guys Supergirl may have taken down in her lifetime. Your presence here means far more to me than you know."

"As did yours, when I was stuck," she replied as she met his eyes.

Had he moved closer to her? Or had she moved closer to him? Kara wasn't sure, but she had a feeling this was heading someplace she was not yet ready for.

"We… we should try this and see where it leads," she said as she quickly jumped to her feet and headed towards the door.

"Right. Of course." Brainy was momentarily bewildered by Kara's sudden behavioural shift, but he stood up and joined her.

He turned the handle, and the door opened as the room disappeared behind them.

"What the—" Kara gasped.

The only thing she could see was Brainiac-5 and herself - and a vast expanse of darkness, with no end in sight…