Kara glanced at Lena. Several minutes of silence had passed since they sat down by the canal. The Luthor gazed at the calm water stretching before them. One knee was tucked by her chest while the other dangled just above the ink-black surface. She seemed caught halfway between contemplation and a trance, so the Kryptonian gave her time to process. Besides, it wasn't as if Kara was completely clear headed either. Mulling over the night's events - and her identity being revealed - helped pass the time until Lena finally spoke.
"I've never told anyone," she began, toying with the laces of her left boot. "I've never even verbalized it, so I'm wondering where to start."
"Even Remy and Astrid?" The blonde asked.
Lena shook her head. Kara placed a hand over hers, earning an appreciative squeeze from the brunette in response.
"Your planet, Nodeisi," Kara hesitated, "doesn't exist anymore?"
"No," Lena confirmed, "It was destroyed in a civil war 19 years ago. When I came here I thought I was the only one left."
"What caused it?"
"Me."
Kara's eyes widened before Lena elaborated.
"On Nodeisi there used to be two species: the Sao and the Thalassa. Sao resembled humans, with the exception of enhanced strength and perception. They lived on land. Thalassa, on the other hand, had some human features, but also fins, gills, and a knack for luring Sao into the waters they inhabited."
"Sort of like the siren myth?" The Kryptonian wondered.
"And just as cunning," the brunette nodded, meeting Kara's gaze. "Throughout the planet's history, the two groups constantly battled for power. It was brutal and not without…overlap. There were affairs, and nonconsensual situations where Thalassa asserted dominance. Which meant a third, more ambiguous species: Halfbreeds. We have the appearance of Sao, but can grow fins, breathe underwater, and manipulate water."
"You and your family? And the attackers?" Realization dawned on Kara. Lena nodded.
"No wonder there were no DNA matches in our database, you didn't fall into one species over another," the blonde noted, then tilted her head thoughtfully as she studied Lena's expression. "Sounds like Nodeisi saw you that way, too."
"How'd you guess?" Lena smirked, before glancing out at the water. "There was also the fact that the Thalassa were killed off 200 years ago, under government order. Halfbreeds were just as much of an enemy to the Sao, because we were viewed as dangerous, deceptive," she searched for the words, "a painful relic of that era."
"They tried to kill off halfbreeds, too?" Kara asked, brow furrowed.
"Not officially," Lena reported grimly, "but guerilla tactics were condoned. So the surviving few established a small, underground community. We blended in with the Sao and tried to keep any traces of Thalassa hidden."
Lena brushed errant strands of hair out of her face, the moon spotlighting her pale features. A worried crease had been occupying her brow since she returned from her pursuit of the other Nodeis.
"My father and brother - Lionel and Lex - were the most vocal about the injustice. They led and protected our halfbreed colony. Lex specifically made sure we looked after our own. But they stoked the flames, too. I still remember their speeches urging halfbreeds to prepare for a rebellion. They'd take it too far, pushing for 'any means necessary.' It was extremely rare, but sometimes one of our own would get into a fight with a Sao, expose their abilities…and get mobbed and killed. I can't help but wonder if Lex's rhetoric pushed them to that point. Shortly after there'd be searches to hunt us down, but we were discreet enough to lower suspicion, knowing that's the consequence for revealing yourself."
"You were basically caught in the crossfire," Kara noted incredulously.
"Yes. And we managed to avoid it until I was 9. I was walking home one day and found a Sao stuck in a trap and drowning. I showed my fins and saved him without thinking. Tons of witnesses. Next thing I know, the witch hunt begins, our colony is discovered, the halfbreeds starting fighting back, and Lex and Lionel are sentenced to death for provocation."
Lena liked her lips, exhaling shakily.
"The last time I saw them they were being dragged away to the prison, still encouraging an uprising. We heard there were concerns that a public execution would result in further rebellion. It was too late at that point, the war was already underway."
"We can take a pause if you need."
"It's alright," Lena insisted, "makes me wish I could've told it years ago."
Kara sat patiently, processing the story as Lena stubbornly wiped her eyes.
"It wasn't long before heavy artillery was brought in. Everything around us was crumbling. My mother found shelter for us in a Sao fortress breached by the halfbreeds. She discovered a pod and loaded me into it. Before I could protest, or find some way for her to join me, she closed the shield and set my coordinates for earth. I saw Nodeisi disintegrate behind me as I left its atmosphere."
"Lena," Kara sighed, wrapping an arm around the Nodei. "I'm so sorry."
The Nodei returned the embrace, succumbing to the tears. Shifting so that the brunette could rest her head on her shoulder, Kara raised her hand to Lena's hair, stroking it soothingly. A stretch of silence followed, punctuated by the occasional sniffle from Lena. She didn't sob, instead letting the tears stream. The Kryptonian felt a pang in her chest for the woman, empathetic and grateful that Lena was sharing this with her. The Luthor needed to. Perhaps with the reopening of unhealed wounds there was also catharsis.
As she held the brunette, the blonde felt her shoulders relax slightly, along with the calmed rhythm of her heartbeat. Taking a few deep breaths to steady herself, the Nodei made no attempt to move out of the Kryptonian's arms. Kara didn't mind in the slightest.
"Lena?" The blonde began, causing the brunette to shift against her chest to peer up at her. "I know there's layers to this story…and your home. But if I know nothing else, it's that you can't blame yourself for the war. It seems like the balance was so fragile to begin with. It's not fair to burden yourself with that, not when there were so many other factors."
Lena's gaze dropped. Kara almost held her breath as she awaited a response, hoping that she didn't overstep. When the Nodei nuzzled back into her neck, she felt a bit relieved, then a new kind of nervousness due to their intimate position.
"Of course Lex and my father escalated things. I can't deny that their tactics were abhorrent at times. They even have blood on their hands." She acknowledged evenly. "But it was my recklessness that sparked it."
"Recklessness or heroism?" The Kryptonian urged.
"Aren't they one in the same?" The Nodei replied, earning a chuckle from Kara.
"Damn, depends on the day."
The blonde was pleased to draw a small smile out of Lena.
"How'd you meet Astrid and Remy?"
"My pod landed in the remote north country, just beyond the Luthors' hunting lodge. I was a bit banged up from the arrival, so Alec and Astrid found me wandering during their pheasant hunt."
"Naturally." Kara giggled, and Lena joined her.
"They took me to the hospital and stayed with me. Remy and Dean started visiting, too. I think Remy appreciated having a worthy opponent once he found out I played chess."
"At age 9?"
"I learned the game at 4."
"Ok, that's exceptional. Even on Nodeisi, isn't it?" Kara looked at Lena in amazement. The brunette's light blush answered for her.
"When the doctors were ready to discharge me, Astrid and Remy didn't want me going to an orphanage. So they adopted me on the spot."
"Then you were a Luthor," the Kryptonian noted.
"Yes, from Laomedeia to Luthor."
"Laomedeia." Kara echoed.
"It's truly bizarre hearing that out loud." Lena noted pensively, her fingertips tracing the sleeve of Kara's Supersuit.
"Do you think they ever suspected anything?"
"If they thought I was an alien, they never pushed it." The Nodei explained, turning around so that she was now facing Kara head on. The Kryptonian let her arms drop, instantly missing the closeness and trying to read the Luthor's eyes.
"I haven't used my powers around humans, ever. It helps that I can usually sense when someone's around. The risk of exposure is too high. But you can relate to that on some level."
The Kryptonian shrugged with a small smile.
"I've been in a slightly similar boat, with a few more life rafts." She noticed Lena's teasing eyeroll at her metaphor. "But I couldn't imagine keeping my identity from absolutely everyone. It's a part of me, even before Supergirl came to be…" The blonde admitted, sensing a curiosity in the emerald orbs across from her. Feeling emboldened, she shared the first thought in her mind when Lena began her story.
"I'm just in awe of you. Your independence. Your sense of self."
Lena bit her lip, a habit Kara was finding increasingly irresistible.
"Without Alex or the Danvers knowing where I come from, without their help through it, I think I'd be totally lost."
Supergirl watched as the Nodei began to sit up on her knees, hands reaching up to trace the straps of her cape.
"Still, holding that in must take its toll."
She felt her stomach flutter as the brunette's fingers were suddenly behind her neck.
"So I'm here for you,"
The Luthor nodded in understanding, her eyes darkened. Kara's breath caught in her throat.
"Whenever you need me." She whispered as Lena closed the gap between them.
What began as a tender kiss quickly turned fiery. Sparks spread to Kara's extremities as Lena's tongue brushed her bottom lip, requesting entrance that the Kryptonian eagerly granted. They took their time exploring each other, alternating between teasing nips and a deep, sensual dance of their tongues. The two moved with a synchronicity betraying the short time they'd known each other. Somehow Kara had ended up laying flat against the ledge with the brunette flush against her. The blonde's hands found their way to Lena's waist, eliciting a small moan from the Nodei when thumbs grazed her hip bones. Gripping the nape of Kara's neck a little tighter, Lena eventually broke the kiss.
"As much as I'd like you to take care of one very specific need," she gave a flustered grin as she rested her forehead against the panting blonde's. "I feel like tonight has been a lot. We both need rest."
"You're right," Kara agreed, mirroring the Nodei's expression. The pair slowly sat up, disentangling from one another. Despite the overwhelming arousal she felt from their lip lock, the Kryptonian was still processing, well, everything. She could only imagine how emotionally and physically exhausted Lena was.
"I think I'll need a little shuteye before telling my story again at the DEO." The Nodei announced, planting a chaste kiss on Kara's cheek. The blonde's face lit up.
"Lena, that would be huge. Are you sure?"
"Of course. Besides, I can finally cash in on that rain-check date afterwards." She nudged Kara playfully, then intertwined their fingers.