I own nothing.
----
"So... you're my son," Superman said, looking at the young teenager sitting in front of him.
The dark-haired boy lounged on the couch with that curious mix of cockiness and unease most often seen on boys meeting their girlfriends' fathers. With this boy, though, there was an added undertone of aggression and a tendency to automatically scan the room for defensible positions that went beyond what your typical truant might exhibit. "I guess," said the boy. "That's what the blood-tests say, anyhow."
They both waited uneasily in the awkward silence for a moment. "I... um... do you... do you have a name?"
"Yeah. Kon-El." He scratched the back of his neck. "They, um, they wanted to give me an 'idea of my Kryptonian Heritage', or whatever."
"That's, um..."
"Yeah, cheesy, right?"
"Oh, no," said Superman, trying to sound sincere. "Not at all."
"Sure," said Kon-El with a chuckle. The silence was more comfortable this time but they could practically feel the awkwardness around the edges. "So, uh, what are you going to say to that Lois chick about me?"
"I'm sorry?"
"Oh, come on. Everybody knows you two have a thing - it's probably why she gets kidnapped so often, right?"
"I didn't know it was so obvious."
"Oh, yeah. I mean, Jerry..." Kon-El trailed off. Superman got the sense that Jerry was one of the other Cadmus creations, one that had been deemed a failure.
"Well, I don't think Lois needs to know that you're my son right away," he said.
"You're right, yeah. She'd probably think you were cheating on her or something."
"Or something. How about we set up another identity for you, and I introduce you as my cousin?"
"Sounds cool, I guess."
There was another comfortable pause. "Do you know who the other donor is?"
"No, they only ever told me about you. Why?"
"No real reason. It's just that your file only listed an 'anonymous human donor.' I - Flash was curious."
"Yeah? Now that you tell me you don't even know, I'm inclined to agree."
----
"So, all along, Rex was a test-tube baby," said Shayera, looking closely at the solemn infant in her arms. "A genetically engineered clone of you and me, rather than our actual kid."
"He is our child, Shayera. He's made from you and me."
"Well, I didn't mean that like it sounded, John. I just meant... well, the pressure's off, now. You can go back to Mari and I can see where things are going to go with Carter and, well... we don't have to worry about fate anymore, do we?"
Rex started to fuss, and John took him back from Shayera. "I guess I see what you mean. It's..."
"Strange?"
"Strange is a good word for it. I think... I think I might be in love with Mari, or falling in love with her. At the same time, I want to be his father and... if you want to be, I'd like you to be his mother." He rubbed Rex's back, and the baby calmed down. "Being purely practical, he's half-Thanagarian, and needs to know what that means. In the future, I saw him with wings."
Rex had no wings now, anybody could see that. He could use them, though, if he had them. He had the same lightweight bone structure as any other Thanagarian of his age, and his siblings and half-siblings that Cadmus had deemed failures and killed had developed the right muscle groups. "Of course I'll teach him, John. But Wally would do the same for any speedster who needed his help, and J'onn would do the same for any telepath or shape shifter."
"I know," said John. "I also don't want him to know what it's like growing up without parents. Wally turned out fine, but Bruce didn't."
It didn't sit right with her, the thought of sweet little Rex turning out so very... Bruce. Still... "It could very well have been Gotham that did that to Bruce, and not just the loss of his parents. Rex will probably be fine. And he'll have you."
"I know," John said again. "I guess I understand. You never asked for this, you never expected this. It's just... are you sure you don't want to be part of his life?"
Rex yawned and then looked at Shayera in surprise. His wide green eyes - oh, there was no fighting it now. Her son's eyes were so much like hers. And even at just a few months old, he was so curious, so intelligent. She wordlessly held her arms out to John, who gave Rex - their son - to her. She was so scared of what this meant, this tiny little being, now sleeping on her shoulder. There was so much risk involved in being a mother, and that was even in a traditional relationship. She and John had too much pain in their shared past to go back to the way they were. And being a superhero just added to the risk. But for the opportunity to see her son grow up into the man John had told her he would be... She took a deep breath, and took a chance.
----
"Wow," said Helena.
Vic's apartment had undergone a transformation during the day, while she'd been at work. The papers were filed away; the Conspiracy Board was nowhere to be seen. Vic had either bought a new table or just covered up the old one in a new tablecloth - she supposed she'd know, if it wobbled. There were two places set, and it looked like a bottle of good red wine on the table.
"This is beautiful, Vic," she said. "How... how did you manage..."
"I won't lie - it's a hard-light hologram. The same technology we use in the training room. I had it installed in my house months ago, so I could have backup in case... in case there were repercussions." He turned away, partly so she couldn't see his sudden panic at the thought, and partly to take the covers off the two plates on the table. "The food, however, I made myself."
She sat down, but then looked at him suspiciously. "You made the wine?"
"I bought the wine."
They started to eat. Helena had had no idea Vic could cook so well, and said so. Vic admitted that it was his second try, and that the stock boy at the grocery store had laughed at him when he'd panicked in the pasta aisle.
"I feel underdressed," Helena said. "If you'd told me, I would've freshened up before I got here."
"You look beautiful. You always look beautiful," said Vic. "Besides, I wanted to surprise you. People in our line of work get few enough pleasant surprises. Everyone deserves a pleasant surprise every now and then."
"What I'm going to do to you isn't much of a surprise," said Helena. "But I'm pretty sure it'll be more than pleasant."
"I hope what I'm about to say doesn't change your mind," said Vic.
"What, Vic?"
"Helena... You've seen me at my best, and at my worst, and everything in between. It's getting to the point where I can't hide anything from you, and... I find I don't want to. I love you, a lot. And I want to make sure I..." He laughed a little, nervously. "This is a lot more difficult than I had expected. What I'm trying to say is..." He got down on one knee. "Helena Bertinelli, will you marry me?"