Disclaimer: I do not own Supergirl, Superman, or Valor

Story Title: The Traveler

Chapter 6

It was after seven in the evening when Kara received the text from Winn; they were ready for her help with moving in. She texted back asking for the address of their apartment. The response was not what she expected; the address was in her building, actually, it was the unit above hers. She looked up at the ceiling, listening and hearing people walking on the floor above. Why didn't Alex tell her? She sighed, leaving her apartment and heading upstairs. She reached the door of the apartment, but before she could knock the door opened, revealing a smiling Mon-El, dressed in a tight white t-shirt and shorts, showing off his muscled arms and legs. She felt her face grow a little hot before she looked behind him and into the apartment; furniture was stacked in one corner of the living room and boxes were all over the place. How much stuff did they have?

"Kara, so good to see you, come in please," Mon-El said.

Kara smiled. Forcing away her apprehension. She needed to be there for Winn and for her friends and family. She couldn't let this alien get under her skin, worm his way into her heart as he did with Clark and Alex. "Thank you," she said, walking into the apartment.

"Kara, thank god you're here," Winn said. Kara felt uneasy, was Mon-El threatening her friend. Winn glared at Mon-El. "This guy has never heard of video games, can you believe it?"

Kara was taken aback by the question. "Well, he's not from here."

Winn huffed. "That's no excuse, video games are universal."

Kara didn't want to disappoint her friend, but video games were most definitely an Earthly invention. "So, how can I help?"

Winn was about to say something, but Mon-El cut him off. "Kara can help me, Winn. I know that aliens can't appreciate your video games or your doll collection." Kara stifled a laugh at that last part.

"I will have you know they are not dolls. They're action figures," Winn defended. It was clear that Mon-El and Winn didn't have the same tastes.

"Right! Well, Kara can help me get the kitchen unpacked and get this kitchen table put together," Mon-El said as he gestured to a large stack of boxes that surrounded him.

"Suit yourself. I'll be over here," Winn said, waving his hand at the two aliens in the room.

Kara joined Mon-El, not knowing what to expect. "I want to thank you for coming over. He's driving me crazy. Between his griping about the packing job the moving company did to his toys, to the setup of the communications connections, and then to me not knowing the difference between a "First Person Shooter" and an RPG. I don't know; Alex went over weapons, isn't an RPG a weapon?"

Kara laughed. "An RPG to Alex is a weapon to Winn it is a "Role Playing Game".

Mon-El sighed. "This language is difficult at best. I still can't get over the double meaning of words and phrases. Was it this hard for you?"

Kara smiled, for the first time, she could talk to someone about her experiences acclimating to Earth. "Yeah, for the longest time I couldn't get over how people said something was "bad" when they meant it was good when the dictionary said it meant that it was wrong."

Mon-El nodded. "I know, same with something being "cool" as its good versus something being "hot" and it's still good. I don't really understand that one."

Kara chuckled, placing her hand on his shoulder for a moment. Mon-El froze at her touch. Kara removed her hand quickly, avoiding looking into Mon-El's blue-gray eyes. "Sorry!"

"No problem," Mon-El replied, rubbing the back of his neck, which reminded Kara of Clark when he was nervous or embarrassed. He went back to unpacking a box of dishes as she set them in the cabinet.

"You seem to have control of your strength, that was always hard for me to do," Kara admitted.

Mon-El smiled. "Clark said that I exceeded his expectations when it came to controlling my powers. I still haven't flown yet, but maybe that's something you can teach me."

Kara nodded as she began to unpack a box of silverware. "Yes, we really need to work on flying. I will talk to J'onn about that tomorrow after we train."

Mon-El put away the last plate before moving on to glasses and cups, making sure they were neatly arranged within a cabinet with a glass enclosed door. "So, Clark told me that you are a reporter, like him. That must be exciting, getting to research people and places."

"Yes, I enjoy it. It lets me help people outside of being Supergirl. It makes me feel grounded, just like a normal person."

"Normal, is that something that people like us can be?"

Kara frowned. "I hope so, that's always been what I strove for, trying to fit in. I didn't use my powers for a long time until I finally had to use them, and then I couldn't stop helping people. You'll understand when you use them to help people."

"What if I don't want to be a hero?" Mon-El said, putting a cup away and turning to look at Kara.

"You have these powers. Why wouldn't you want to use them to help people?"

Mon-El rubbed the back of his neck again. "I want to help, but I don't like to hurt people, even if some would say they deserve it," he began. He stared at Kara his blue-gray eyes growing lighter. "I want to explore. I don't know what it is but I want to see new places, learn about new people and cultures. I asked J'onn about it and he said that I have an explorer's spirit, whatever that is?"

"I don't know what to say Mon-El. Did you talk to Clark about this?"

Mon-El blushed. "I couldn't do it. He was so excited to teach me and I needed the help. I was so happy to learn about my powers and about Earth, but when he told me about some of his stories as Superman… I just started doubting. Would I be good at being a hero? I don't really know."

Kara couldn't believe the words that were coming out of Mon-El's mouth. He didn't know if he wanted to be a hero, but he did know that he wanted to learn and to explore. He didn't sound like a Daxamite to her. He sounded like some of the teenagers that she spoke to when she was younger. He was trying to figure out his place in the world. Just like she had to do when she became Supergirl and when she discovered that she wanted to be a reporter. "Well, you're out of the DEO, do you know what you're going to do?"

Mon-El smiled, his eyes lighting up, making Kara smile in return. "The DEO got me into university. It seems that I learn fast. I passed high school courses in just a few days. I start National City University on Tuesday. I have a meeting with a counselor."

Kara nodded. Mon-El must really be smart to have passed high school equivalency in just a few days. "Have you thought about courses?"

"Yes, they teach astronomy, astrophysics, and astrobiology. I'm interested in all three." Mon-El was leaning against the stove as he talked. It seemed like he didn't have a care in the world, just talking to Kara like an old friend about what excited him. "I'm thinking about a triple major."

Kara's blue eyes widened. "Wow, that seems like a lot of work." Kara couldn't get over the way Mon-El talked about school. She never really liked college. She got a liberal arts degree and then moved on to real life. It sounded like Mon-El loved to learn. "What are you going to do with those degrees?"

Mon-El reached into his back pocket and pulled out an article that he clearly pulled from a magazine. He handed it over to Kara. "Take a look."

Kara took the paper looking through it. It was an article about the United National Space Agency, it was the merger of all the space agencies from around the world. The agencies goal was to survey and colonize the solar system. She read through some of the degrees that the agency talked about needing people to have in order to be hired. The three degrees that Mon-El talked about were on the list. "You want to be an astronaut."

Mon-El smiled. "UNSA calls them explorers, no need for politics in the name of their employees. Everyone is an explorer."

Kara nodded. "Would UNSA hire an alien?"

"They already have. Some of their best engineers are aliens. I would just be the first explorer to be an alien; hopefully, not the last."

Kara forced a smile; her mind racing with the information that he just gave her. "Excuse me for a moment. I need to use the bathroom."

Mon-El smiled. "Just down the hall first door on the right."

Kara smiled walking out of the kitchen, ignoring Winn who was on the phone with the DEO Information Technology Department, arguing that his hard line connection was not up to snuff. She sighed, walking into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. The bathroom was white with a white tile floor and walls. A mirror was located over the sink. She turned on the faucet, letting the water run through her hands before leaning forward and splashing some water on her face. She reached for the small hand towel that was hung on a metal ring beside the mirror. She wiped her face, taking the towel away and looking at herself in the mirror. Her blue eyes were bright, but her brow held the crinkle that always showed that she was either not telling the truth or overly concerned about something. In this case, it was the latter; Mon-El had surprised her. He was nothing like she imagined. Her mission to watch him and keep him from hurting her family and friends was out the window. He was so friendly and so easy to talk to, now she knew why Alex and Clark thought she was paranoid.

Kara's eyes narrowed at herself in the mirror. She had been paranoid. She had let those stories that her parents told her cloud her judgment. She never gave Mon-El the benefit of the doubt. She never let him prove to her that he wasn't a threat. Just now, in that kitchen, as they unpacked boxes and talked about each other she realized that Mon-El was a lot like she used to be and in some ways still was. He felt alone and in desperate need to find his place, his role in this new world. Kara nodded to herself in the mirror. She promised herself that she would be there for him, not as an overseer, but as a friend and mentor. She would help him where he needed her and be there when he needed someone to confide in. She smiled at the thought, at her new mission.

Kara opened the door to the bathroom, walking out to the kitchen. Winn was still arguing on the phone, but she ignored him. She walked into the kitchen, stopping in the doorway to watch Mon-El. He was reading the article that he had shown her. A broad smile on his face. His eyes shining with happiness, with purpose. She walked into the room, grabbing a box and letting him know she was there. Mon-El put the paper back in his box.

"You okay?" he asked.

Kara grinned. "I'm good, better than I have been for a while."

Mon-El nodded. "Do you mind helping me put this table together?"

Kara looked at the box with the name IKEA on the side. "When did you shop online at IKEA?"

Mon-el chuckled. "This is Winn's table. He pronounced it for me, but I'm not really that good with languages other than English."

Kara chuckled in return. "Yeah, that sounds like Winn. He loves IKEA." Mon-El nodded. Kara grabbed the box and screwdriver sitting next to it. "I hope the instruction are in English."

Mon-El's eyes widened, making Kara laugh. Mon-El laughed in return; he was almost mesmerized by the sound of the Kryptonian girl's laugh. Her eyes were shining, like comets; he didn't know where that thought came from. He shook his head and went to help her unpack the box, thankful that she was his new mentor.

AN: Stay locked on target more to come.