YEAR 1942

LOCATION: NORTH CAROLINA

Kara trailed her hand across the smooth surface, occasionally crossing the hairs on his bare flesh. She sighed and snuggled into the crook of his neck. Gravitating closer to his warmth, she felt so light and content. If the world was to end right now, Kara would die a happy woman. His arm was wrapped around her waist, and the hand that once had a firm grip on her hip was now loose once he fell into a deep slumber. She skimmed her hand further down his chest, and away from his heart. The steady rise and fall of his chest fluttered her heart. Rao, she couldn't even think straight, it was like she climbed a cloud of euphoria and refused to come down.

Sleep wouldn't grace Kara tonight, she knew that and she didn't want it to. The will to stay awake was strong because he was leaving in the morning, and she needed to take all of him in tonight, drink him in until she was fully intoxicated. She had long before memorized his face, but now she had more of him to remember. Her hands trailed across the canvas of his bare chest, committing it to memory. Every nook, every scar, and every imperfection was going to be ingrained in her mind by dawn. A long jagged scar was etched under the right pectoral, and Kara rightfully assumed that it was an old scar, one that he most likely got on Daxam because Earth's yellow sun made their skin impenetrable. But then she came across two small holes near his right hip.

Tears brimmed in her eyes involuntarily as the night that caused these wounds came flashing back. The fear she felt when she saw him near death came flooding back. Along with the buried down emotions that she long thought she drowned: fear, helplessness, dread, and panic. Watching his life slowly ebb away from her had ignited sentiments that she never wanted to feel again. Like someone had locked her in a room and threw away the key and she was forced to watch the one person she cared about die before her eyes and be utterly useless to help.

She hugged him tighter, and snuggled into him deeper hoping all the pain of the night would go away by reminding herself that he was alive, and he was here with her. Those damn bullets had caused her to have the worst night of her life, but today? They might have caused her to have her best.

It was completely dark from her vantage point from the main stage, her eyes were taking time to adjust to the new ambiance as she walked across the stage. The audience slowly began to illuminate in her vision the longer she stared into the expansive room. Light was coming from every table, due to a single lantern being lit at the center of each table. The longer she looked the more light became visible and her nerves began to calm down.

She tried to breathe out all the nervousness that she was pulsing through her, although she had performed a hundred times before, each night felt like the first. Initially, the spotlight on the microphone had intimidated her, but now she welcomed the sight, as her confidence slowly increased. She approached the center of the stage and stood before the microphone, and basked in the spotlight. Music slowly began to fill up the room, and Kara felt herself get lost in the melody and the music resonated within her….

"We'll meet again
Don't know where
Don't know when
But I know we'll meet again some sunny day
Keep smiling through
Just like you always do
'Till the blue skies drive the dark clouds faraway"

The words came out like second nature to her, and when Kara sang she became part of the harmony, escaped into a world of bliss, and intertwined herself with lyrics. The audience was enchanted by her melodious lyrics, and were lost in glazed merriment as if her voice was casting a spell upon all of them. Her eyes moved across the room, as she sang the song in her sweet but sultry voice, when they bulged at what – or who – her vision had caught, and she felt her voice about to give away…

"Drive the dark clouds far away
So will you please say hello
To the folks that I know
Tell them it won't be long
They'll be happy to know
That as you saw me go
I was singin' this song"

She continued to sing through her bafflement. Off in the distance was Mon-El, lounging at a one of the tables, with his glass raised half-up. When he saw her eyes settle upon his, he nodded his head and raised his glass higher to give her a 'cheers'. The moment lasted for a second, and then she continued to sing and move her eyes across the rest of audience. She couldn't keep her gaze at him while performing, he was took much of a cool drink in the hot desert for her to concentrate on anything else. Avoiding him would be the best option…

"We'll meet again
Don't know where
Don't know when
But I know we'll meet again some sunny day"

When Kara finished her set, she quickly scrambled off the stage after bowing and scurried into her dressing room to change out of her golden dress. She ran down to the audience and saw him leaning against the bar ordering some drinks, and she quickly ran across the room and literally jumped into his arms, not caring at who saw her do that. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off her feet and snuggled into her neck, and she cuddled into his. She breathed in his musky scent. A mix of his cologne, peppermint, alcohol and…paper? Whatever the smell, she was happy to have it in her life again.

"Kara," he breathed into her.

"Mon-El," she whispered so only he could hear her. He chuckled, and she could feel his laughter vibrate against her chest – that's how close they were right now.

Hoots and howls were directed towards to them, as the drunk men around them saw how tightly wrapped they were around each other. Kara blushed and felt her cheeks burning, and slowly began to detangle herself from his embrace. A moment ago, all she could see was him, nothing else existed besides them, but once the trance was broken, shame and embarrassment crept up on her.

"Sorry," she giggled, "Got a little too excited Michael."

"I'm not complaining," he smirked. Although they weren't hugging anymore their bodies were close enough that their chest could brush against each other.

"You have an amazing voice Kara," he handed her a drink, "I'm surprised I haven't heard you sing before." He spoke to her like they hadn't been apart from each other for the last forty years, so casual, no introductions, he just picked up their friendship were they had left it.

Kara giggled even more, unable to accept the compliments. Compliments from strangers were easier to take than compliments from people she cared about. Praise could easily be tossed around, but if someone she cared about held her high on their pedestal, it meant much more, "I didn't know myself. Until I was thrown up on stage one evening because the lead singer didn't show up. The crowd was small and they just needed a performer and that started my career. Kara Danvers, headlining for a small club in North Carolina. Wasn't exactly a dream of mine, but I think I am loving it."

"Well it's a good thing they found you. Otherwise your beautiful voice would have been never been discovered, and never would have graced my ears. I think I can listen to you sing forever," he just wouldn't stop praising her, and she couldn't stop giggling like a madwoman. The conversation needed to steer away from her before she became a bumbling mess before him.

"What are doing here? Shouldn't you be in some War Council meeting," she teased him. He was an ambassador before, and although him still being an ambassador was highly improbable due to the fact that he doesn't age and people would more than likely recognize him, she still questioned him because she could never really predict what Mon-El would do next. Every career, every profession he picked was different.

The last time she had seen him was in Greece, and he was an ambassador from Sweden. They both had gotten caught up in a Romeo and Juliet like love story, where they both played a part in helping the lovebirds find a happy ending. Her affair in Greece had even resulted in her getting married. Married! Even though the marriage barely lasted a few months, and she never consummated it – she was now a divorced alien who was basically an immortal. That was one hefty title to possess.

Mon-El and her had helped the lovers rendezvous in secret, and kept each other company when the love birds were together, baring if he had no diplomatic meeting to attend. Soon after she 'left' Barry, she had to leave Mon-El as well. Kara couldn't be caught in that city ever again, and she didn't want to risk it and remain in the country either.

She continued on and quelled her inquisitive side and visited many places on Earth. Climbed Mt. Everest, walked the entire length of The Great Wall, tried to dig up some mummies, and even swan with the sea lions in the North Pole. However, Mon-El had a job to do, and he couldn't just abandon his positon so he remained in Greece while Kara left. They tried to keep up correspondence, but with Kara constantly on the move and Mon-El getting busy with the tension brewing in Europe, the letters were hard to come by. And once the Great War broke out, the letters ceased altogether.

Sweden and Greece had remained neutral throughout the war, but Mon-El was still in a governing position and all hands were on deck. They haven't talked since the Great War, and now another war broke out. The Great War was supposed to be The War to End All War, but human nature proved that wrong. War and carnage was ingrained in the human genome as was the desire to eat and procreate was. But didn't all life on planets have war at some point? It wasn't just human nature – but just nature.

"War Council?" he scoffed, "Haven't been in a government position in years. No war planning on my behalf. I have no rank."

"Good!" She didn't want Mon-El to fight in the war. After the last time, where she had to clean the blood off his body, sow his wounds shut, and watch him slowly die before her eyes, she didn't want him anywhere near that bloodbath. Especially since bullets could hurt him, and she wouldn't be there to help him, "I was hoping to apply as an Army Nurse, but I couldn't put down my past experience as a nurse being in 1860s when I don't look a day over 26."

Despite not wanting Mon-El to go to war, she had a desire to fight for the cause. Everything that was happening in Europe was despicable and if she couldn't help by fighting, she was going to do something dammit. But that something still didn't work in her favor. The rules of this century, and the centuries before, prohibited woman from fighting claiming their fragility as the reason. The idea was completely ludicrous, and she remembered the famous female warriors on Krypton, most notably Faora-UI, the only warrior who was able to defeat General Zod. And Kara was granted more strength than the combined effort of a thousand men, she would fare well in battle, but alas she was bound the misogynistic thinking of the Earthlings.

"But you definitely don't need to fight in the war!" she jutted her finger at him. Trying to emphasize her point, just because he didn't have any rank and wasn't part of the military right now doesn't mean he isn't going to sign up for deployment in the future.

"Of course. I'm not going to fight in the war," the way he said fight made Kara uneasy. Why did he emphasize that word? And why was he looking at her like cocky idiot?

She narrowed her eyes, "Michael," she said threateningly, "I am seeing you for the first time in forty years. Do not make angry. And do not make me want to kick your ass. We both know who is stronger. Now, are you fighting in the war or not."

He raised his hands up in a surrender, "No Kara. I am not fighting in the war. Happy?"

"Very."

"Now if you interrogation is over could we please sit down and have some drinks and catch up?"

Kara nodded, and gripped his hands into hers and dragged him towards a table. They both settled down and talked about everything in they had done in the last forty years. Kara had kept exploring different wonders of the world, learned the rich ancient history of this planet hidden in cave markings, and forgotten languages, and saw the beauty that was Earth with clear eyes for the first time. She only had settled down a couple years ago after she had her fill of adventures, and finally decided that she didn't mind setting down roots.

On the other hand, Mon-El finished his term as ambassador and joined the workforce. Or rather, joined the brilliant minds that had been creating new technology and machines for the world. He used his background in engineering to help guide the fruition of the industrial revolution into the future. It was teetering the border of breaking the Intergalactic Law, but Mon-El swore that he never gave them any ideas, but simply bounced suggestions based off the human's idea and gently – very gently – steered them in the right direction. They failed more times than not, but he was there to guide them, and never gave them more information than they could handle or understand. But he abandoned that line of work a few years back since it didn't give him any satisfaction and humans were progressing well without his help anyway.

"Journalism," he said proudly, "My new profession. It's been three years and I still love the thrill of the job. New stories to uncover every day. Articles that help people, articles that inform people. I've written my fair share of exposé stories as well. And since I am invincible the threats don't frighten me."

Invincible. There is damning evidence to prove the contrary. But she was too happy right now to ruin the moment with those dreary thoughts. Rao clearly had a plan and Kara had been told from birth that she must accept it. So logically, whatever the reason was for his injury, and there had to be a reason, Rao was all-knowing so he must know why, and who was she to question Rao's doing, right? She was just supposed to be a devote follower. But Mon-El made her feel uneasy about her ardent devotion, she was supposed to leave everything in the hands of Rao, but why would Rao do this to her? Why would Rao do this to him? Mon-El was a breath of fresh air for her, surely Rao understood that, so why did he almost make her lose him?

Certainly Rao must know how he made her feel: insanely giddy, cheerful, content, and happy. Every second she spent with him, was a second will spent. And after this forty year drought, she could finally breathe again.

"So what else did you see Kara?" He had asked this question about a thousand times, and it resulted into another spiraling conversation about what other wonders she had seen.

"Michael," she moaned, "it's almost one in the morning, and the club is closing. We can pick up this conversation later. After a good night's rest. And you can see me perform again tomorrow evening."

"Uhh… about that Kara," he fiddled his thumbs, and looked everywhere besides her, "I was going… Kara please –"

"Just spit it out," she laughed. Whatever it was, it can't be that bad? She played with her glass while she waited for him to find the right words.

"I'm shipping out tomorrow. I'm not fighting in the war, but I am going as a reporter to document the events through writing and photos," Kara's hold on the glass increased as she became more furious. How dare he? The glass shattered as Kara's wrath began to flow out of her. It felt like someone had pulled the rug from under her, but she had only herself to blame, she was foolish enough to stand on top of the rug in the first place. She stood up in fury, and she felt her skin turn red and vision muddled by white hot rage. She was trying to contain her betrayal and rage that she desperately wanted to get out. It was consuming her, and she knew she would combust if she didn't yell, break something, or punch someone. She needed an outlet before the inferno in her blazed on.

"Ma'am," the security guard called out to her, "Everything alright. Is this man bothering you?"

The temptation to say yes was strong. To see him get kicked out sounded so pleasant to her, but she needed to tell him how stupid he was, and if anyone was going to roughhouse him, it was going to be her, "No everything is just fine," she seethed, and tried to cool down the fire that burned in her.

"Well, whatever is going on between y'all, could you please take it outside?"

She curtly nodded, and forcefully dragged Mon-El outside of the club ignoring his every protest and stopped only when they were in the alleyway behind the lounge.

"You… You… Stupid, stupid Daxamite!" she roared, "You lied to me! You are still going to the war, and it doesn't matter that you aren't 'fighting' you are going to be right there next to them. Do you think bullets won't come to you if because you are just 'just a reporter'? Huh? A stray bullet could hit you and no one there might be able to save your stupid Daxamite ass!"

"Oh stop being so melodramatic Kryptonian!" they both reverted to calling themselves by their race. It made the insults more personal, "You were going to try and be an army nurse! You were putting yourself in danger as much as I was! What makes what you were going to do better than I? Typical flawed Kryptonian thinking!"

"A bullet isn't going to hurt me you idiot!"

"And why is that?"

"Because I am Kryptonian and you are a Daxamite!"

"Yes, because that makes sense –"

"No that came out wrong."

"And what makes it right? Huh? "

With every sentence, they had walked towards each other and now they were a step away. Kara tried to level her breathing to calm herself, she needed to be relaxed to explain to this stubborn Daxamite why she wouldn't have been affected.

"Mon-El," she whispered, trying to get a hold of her anger, "After you left, I tested the bullets that affected you against me. If it was able to harm you, I needed to know if it had the same effect on me. We are from sister worlds, and share a similar genome. And when I tested it against my skin, nothing happened. It didn't weaken me, it didn't hurt, it couldn't even penetrate my skin. I think you are allergic or can be poisoned by lead. Although I am not certain. The bullet was primarily made of lead, but it wasn't pure lead. Any number of things could have been the cause…," she took the finally step closer to him, "One stray bullet Mon-El. Just one, and you would be ten times more likely to die. Ten times weaker than a human. Just one stray bullet…and dead…gone. Do you realize that?" she murmured. Her eyes remaining downcast, "Gone…and I'm alone. Gone…and there is a hole in my hear—," her breathe hitched.

He cupped her cheeks, and brushed his thumb across them, "Then I better not get shot," he gently mused.

"I can't lose you Mon-El," she desperately clutched his lime green striped shirt, "I need you. I need you to be alive. Even if you aren't with me, I just need you to be alive somewhere."

"You aren't going to lose me because I refuse to leave you," he whispered, trying to soothe Kara from her frenzied state. He dropped his arm to her waist and his other hand moved to lay hers flat against his chest, "You feel this? Can you hear this? It's beating for you. And it's never going to stop beating for you, because I won't let it," he dropped his forehead to rest against her, "I promise Kara. I promise."

Kara couldn't wrap her head around his declaration. It's beating for you. It's beating for her. Words she didn't know she longed to hear, but once he said them – it just felt so right. She wasn't a round peg in a square hole. No, she had found her place.

She nodded her head, "Don't let it stop Mon-El. Swear on Rao that you will not let it stop beating for me," she pressed herself flush against him and pleaded in anguish. Their noses brushed against each other and Mon-El tangled his hand into her hair.

"I promise on Rao. I promise on you," they were breathing so heavily, and the air between them was mixing together. The anger that they were both emitting before had now transformed into something else, something more pleasant.

Desire.

Desire to keep each other safe, desire to keep each other close, and then desire to touch each other, desire to feel each other.

The closeness between them intoxicated her, and saturated all her of senses and she felt herself climbing a ladder of ecstasy. She was already high off his confession and his lips were so close that all she wanted to do was devour them. She raised herself on her toes and pulled his head down. Mon-El knew immediately what she wanted, and captured her lips as she rose up to him. Kara couldn't help but moan after the initial contact. Her hands wrapped around his broad shoulder as his fell to her waist. He ran his hands across her the expanse of her back and the fabric of her shirt begin to ride up, which gave him free reign, and he skim his hands on her bare flesh.

He pulled away and Kara chased his lips, longing to taste them again, "you still taste like honey," he murmured huskily before capturing her lips again in for languid, and dirty kiss.

Still taste like honey. Still taste like honey. He remembered the kiss, it had been real and not her imagination running wild. He had waited almost sixty years to confirm it, and Kara didn't know if she should be happy or upset that he took him this long to acknowledge it – it took him this long to make it valid. She was tempted to pull away from him and confront him, but why dwell on the past when the present was oh-so beautiful. They were trapped in this cocoon on of a moment, and Kara didn't want to escape from it for as long as she could. Choosing instead to let go and give in to the sensations he was evoking within her.

His hands were burning a path on her flesh and setting her skin ablaze. To counter the fire he lighting within her, she bit his lower lip and felt her teeth clash against his. He growled in response, and she gasped at the sound. She wasn't frightened by it, but rather shocked that she was the one who elicited that response.

"Oh Kara," he chuckled at her innocence. He swiftly turned them around so she was against the brick wall, and his body was covering her completely.

Instead of kissing her again, he dropped to kiss neck and slowly began to bite and suck a path to her ear. Kara couldn't help the sounds that came out of her, she wasn't in control anymore and it seemed like a primal urge had taken over. She desperately tried to pull him closer to her as if he was giving her life. She hitched her leg onto his hips, which caused him to jerk forward and made Kara realize the full extent of his desire. He grunted at this new contact, "you little minx," he breathed into her nape.

She hadn't done in unintentionally the first time, but his little comment made her want to repeat her actions. And she did, all while untucking his shirt, and letting her hands roam free over the entirety of his back. She felt his muscles ripple and contract as she continued her ministration, like she was egging him on. He trailed his fingers up her bent knee, his fingertips barely grazing her skin but invoking a deep seeded yearning from within her. He captured her lips again, and this time she parted them allowing him to explore unobstructed. Kara mewled at this new pleasant intrusion.

She ripped open his shirt, and she could distinctly hear the button fall on the ground as they scattered. He released her lips, and stared at her waiting for a confirmation that this was okay, "Kara…," his voice was hoarse and aroused, but he needed to know if she wanted to carry on.

Kara placed her hand over his bare chest, right over his heart, "Mine," she whispered.

"Yours," and Kara pulled him in for another longing kiss. That was all the confirmation Mon-El needed to continue.

Light had begun to creep in through the curtains, and dawn was about to break. Mon-El had to depart to his designated port by noon, meaning she only had a couple more hours left with him. She continued to skim her fingertips against the bullet holes that now held both good and bad memories. The bullets had caused her so much pain and agony, but they had now also soothed those feelings by bringing Mon-El closer to her. Inflicting and then alleviating the pain.

Her room was a complete mess, they had ripped off each other's clothes in a flurry without noticing where they landed. His pants were draped across her ceiling fan, and her blouse was torn in two, and each part was in opposite sides of the room. The blanket was strewn on the floor, along with many of her pillows. Currently, only one pillow was on the bed, and Mon-El was using it. Kara, on the other hand, used him as her pillow instead, snuggling herself into the crook of his neck. Their nakedness was barely covered by a thin white sheet, which was disproportionately on him. To actually cover herself, she needed to hike and entangle her legs onto Mon-El under the sheets. Kara felt her cheeks turning red as she remembered what had led to this messy room.

"That tickles," Mon-El grunted, and Kara immediately pulled her fingers away from his right hip. It wasn't supposed to tickle him, she was a barely touching his skin. Sadden by the loss of her touch Mon-El whined, "I didn't say to stop."

"Well, you said it tickled," Kara looked up at him, readjusting her head on his shoulder, "Most people don't like to be tickled."

"Ah, yes. But I am not like most people. You see, and you must keep this a secret – I am an alien," he spoke solemnly.

Kara cackled, "Stupid Daxamite," the words were said more lovingly rather than them being an insult.

"I do remember not being so 'stupid' last night. I think that Kara would disagree," he trailed his fingers up her spine.

"I don't know what you are talking about."

"Really? I do recall you panting, or was it moaning? 'Right there. Don't stop. Please. More. Harder. Fas—," Kara lifted herself so she cover his mouth completely. Mortified that he was uttering those words back it him.

"I get it. Stop," she hissed. But Kara still didn't remove her hand from his mouth, afraid that Mon-El might resume saying those thing, so Mon-El licked it instead, "Gross…"

"You didn't think so last night," he winked at her.

"Oh Rao, please make him stop!"

"I don't think the Gods will ever be able to stop me."

The temptation to give him a rebuttal was strong, but she didn't want her final hours with his to be fighting, even if it was playful banter.

"Mon-El?"

"Yes?"

"Why do you say Gods, and then sometimes you say Rao?" she had secretly had wondered this for years, Mon-El would constantly interchange Rao for Gods, and Gods for Rao, and she never knew why, and was afraid to ask him. She hoped that she wasn't the reason he changed his belief, she would rather be an ardent believer, than a vapid one.

He chuckled, "What brought on this question?"

Kara shrugged, "Curiosity?"

Truthfully, it was curiosity, but it was also trepidation. She didn't want Mon-El to change for her, if he believed in many Gods, she didn't want him to switch his religion to Rao…she wanted him to be himself.

"Well, I believe in Rao. But I guess Gods just slips out? When I left Daxam, a new religious order was taking over, and they believed in many Gods and wished to obliterate all temples of Rao, and convert all Daxamites. And they were successful to a degree. But some Daxamite still followed the old way, the Kryptonian way. We prayed at night, we had shrines hidden in our homes, and we put up a façade of believing in the New Order Religion. So sometimes I say 'Gods' because I was forced to believe in them, but I say 'Rao' because I believe in his light, and his strength."

Kara was silent as she took in the new information, she hadn't know that Daxam had a new religion on its hands, and was elated to know that Mon-El had kept the 'old ways'. She wanted him to be himself, and would have loved him nonetheless if he believed in many Gods, but she was jubilated at his confession.

"Was that the right answer Kara, your silence is killing me," he teased.

She clasped his free hand, the one that wasn't on her waist, and sincerely said, "Rao will protect you, I will pray to Rao every night."

"Kara, you don't have to –"

"But I will," she said definitely, signaling that it was the end of that conversation and her words were final. They both believed in Rao's light, so if she prayed to him, he would have to listen, right?

She settled back onto his chest, and continued to draw patterns across his skin, and Mon-El didn't say anything either, but rather etched his own intricate designs on her back.

"You are going to leave soon," Kara asked. She felt Mon-El nod his head, "You already made one promise. Can you make me another one?"

It hurt to even think about him leaving her, into the most dangerous situation. A warzone were he could be killed instantly because Rao thought that giving him a weakness, an allergy was a good idea. And more importantly, Mon-El seemed to lack self-preservation. A fool would only go into Death's arms so willingly. And she hoped Mon-El was no fool. That he would be careful, aware, and he would come back alive. Every day she would wonder if they were going to run into each other again, everyday – and Kara couldn't imagine not feeling that ever again.

One simple thought had helped her live on this forsaken planet for Rao knows how many years. Every day she wasn't with him, she hoped that she would see a glimpse of him in the crowd and they would share each other's company once more. And every time they were forced to depart from one another, she held that same wish in her heart. He was out there alive and somewhere in the world, and she just had to wait for fate to intervene again.

But this time, what is fate intervened for the worse. What if he didn't come back? What if she never gets the chance to see his face in the crowd again? What if she couldn't touch him anymore? What if her heart never fluttered? What if she never felt like this again?

So happy, so content, so serene, so….in love?

"What do you want me to do promise," he asked.

Kara felt hot tears trickle down her cheeks, "You promised this heart will continue to beat for me," she placed her hand over his heart, "Can you promise that this heart will come back to me? Please. Come find me again after you return. Promise me you will come back to me, promise me you will find me again. Promise me."

SURPRISE UPDATE! i wanted to get rid of the bitter taste of Chapter 5, so here is Chapter 6 early!

Hope you guys like it! As always - ignore mistakes and an edited one will be posted soon...especially on this one cause i wanted to give it to you guys asap

and now seriously...no update till i come back from vaca lol