owl-with-a-pen

[owl-with-a-pen]

CHAPTER 3 UP NOW

After years alone aboard an empty ship, Kara is desperate for a friend. When Father finally agrees to her request, the result isn't quite what she expected. Who is this strange green boy? And why does he go by the name 'Brainiac 5?'

[owl-with-a-pen]

Hi, hope you don't mind I doodled a mini fanart for your "wish your heart makes" fic because I enjoyed it , here's mini MAWS kara bein sad she has no friends (based on the 'I'm lonely' meme)

Aaaaaah!!! Oh my god she's SO cute thank you so much!! I promise she'll have a friend soon ! 😭😭

[owl-with-a-pen]

After years alone aboard an empty ship, Kara is desperate for a friend. When Father finally agrees to her request, the result isn't quite what she expected. Who is this strange green boy? And why does he go by the name 'Brainiac 5?'

[owl-with-a-pen]

thoughts on the Superman movie? I loved it, and I feel like Brainy and this version of Mr. Terrific would get along very well

Superman 2025 spoiler warning below the cut:

I loved it, too! I'm so glad we have a movie Superman with heart and hope again. I really like how well the characters were portrayed, especially Lois, Lex and Mr Terrific.

Did not expect Mr Terrific to be the stand-out in this movie for me but hell. yes. I loved him so much! Adding him to my list of faves immediately, thank you very much. Love a good ol' James Gunn fight sequence paired with upbeat music and I'm so glad Mr Terrific got to be the centre of attention for it. He really stood out in every scene he was in.

And I totally agree, this Mr Terrific and Brainy would get on so well. I loved the balance of stone-faced 'don't-talk-to-me-about-your-emotions' vs his very emotive comedy one-liners. He and Brainy's personalities aren't too far from each other in that regard, lol, so they'd have a lot in common. (Brainy would 100% be jealous of that flying chair, though.)

[owl-with-a-pen]

The Tower had never been this crowded.

Nia had been in crisis mode all morning, swerving patients, running lab equipment from one room to another, never staying still for long enough to catch her breath.

It felt like the whole world had been turned on its head.

Just a few days ago, Brainy had intercepted multiple emergency calls coming in from across the city. Children under the age of fourteen were coming down with some sort of alien virus. Misdiagnosed as a measles outbreak at first, it hadn’t taken medical officials long to realise their mistake. This was something else, something worse, affecting all kids regardless of species or vaccination record.

Hospitals had started hitting capacity by day one, emergency rooms totally overrun. The DEO had opened their med labs to the public, and when that wasn’t enough, J’onn had used his Martian shape-shifting tech to turn the whole Tower into a make-shift paediatric ward.

Nia had been on the streets for the last three days. Running stories on the outbreak could wait until they’d found a cure. For now, the city needed Dreamer way more than a reporter. She’d been hopping between portals, searching out any lost or scared families that might not have had the resources to seek medical attention themselves. Low income or homeless communities were the worst hit, human and alien alike, and with the highest mortality rate for any demographic, they were Nia’s main priority. Brainy hadn’t needed to run a probability check on that one, it was simply point of fact.

Despite the togetherness National City had shared for the weeks after Lex and Nyxly’s defeat, real change took far longer than that, and that was time none of these kids could afford.

She hadn’t seen Kelly or J’onn in days. They’d been split up across the city, listening out for updates from Kara over comms. With her super hearing, she was the first of them who could detect a cry for help, or a heartbeat slowly losing rhythm. Time was of the essence, but stabilising a patient’s vitals was a far cry from a cure.

Only Esme remained unaffected, her proximity to Kara every few hours offering her some sort of Kryptonian-grade protection. She was the only child to be so lucky.

When Nia hopped through her next portal with a family of four, ushering them into the relative safety of the Tower’s med bay, Alex was there to greet them, taking their two sickly daughters and immediately pointing them towards an empty bed.

Running off adrenaline and about four downed complimentary espresso shots in a row, Nia was halfway back into the portal when Alex caught her arm.

“Call came in for you.”

Nia blinked. “I haven’t dreamt anything.” The answer was practically muscle memory at this point. She knew Brainy and Lena were working on a cure, but figuring out the origins of the virus meant finding any traces of a patient zero, which was proving a lot harder than they initially thought. A dream would’ve saved them all a whole lot of time, but so far, the future had been coming up blank.

Alex smiled sympathetically. “Not that kind of call,” she said. “D’you remember the hospital Kelly worked with last month? Their paediatric ward reached out about ten minutes ago. They asked for Dreamer specifically.”

“They did?” Nia asked flatly, shaking her head. “Wait, why me?”

Alex’s lips thinned into a grim line. “Only one way to find out, right?”

Nia nodded, uncertain, exhausted, but no way was she going to let that beat her down. “Right,” she said, squeezing her Legion ring tight to her fist. “Guess I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

--

Nia landed in the hospital parking lot in record time, practically flying through the doors. The reception was in chaos, phones ringing off the hook, crowds of parents packed tight into the only coffee bar in the building, even more flooding out of the waiting rooms down the hall. Nurses were far and few between, but one tired look of recognition from the receptionist told her she was in the right place.

“Paediatric unit,” the receptionist informed, jerking her head to the right. “Follow the signs.”

And so, Nia did, feeling kind of ridiculous given the circumstances. She’d done hospital visits as Dreamer before, but that was normally for community days or story-times. Running down the halls in full superhero garb, surrounded by so much fear and uncertainty, hardly felt right. What could she do here that would make more of a difference than being out on the streets with J’onn and Kelly? What would this change?

She dismissed the thought. The hospital clearly needed her for something - just because she hadn’t figured it out yet didn’t mean it wasn’t important.

She knew she was headed the right way when a nurse stopped dead in her tracks, eyes creasing with relief. “You’re here,” she said, waving her over in an urgent gesture that Nia took as follow me right now.

Nia was given a face mask to wear as she followed the nurse’s lead. Disinfecting her hands, she was quickly buzzed into the paediatric unit with the efficiency of a military operation.

Nothing could have prepared her for such large-scale suffering. The children lying in the cots were so young, their little faces discoloured and sallow, eyes bruised and swollen. Most of them were hooked up to oxygen, others were attached to bigger, scarier apparatus that were helping to stabilise their vitals. Some of them were crying, others screaming, in fear or in pain, Nia had no idea, but it killed her all the same.

“Oh my god,” she murmured, relieved her mask swallowed up most of the sound.

“Dreamer!” a woman with a tight bun and no-nonsense gait called out. She walked with an authority that suggested she was in charge, quickly dismissing the nurse to let her go about her duties. “My name’s Trisha, I’m the one who called your Tower. Thank you so much for coming, I understand things out there aren’t much better than in here.”

“Of course, anything to help,” Nia said, smiling with her eyes. She paused a moment, laughing nervously. “Um- what is it that you want me to do, exactly?”

Nia caught a couple of nurses on the ward exchanging nervous looks. Clearly, they’d been in earshot.

Trisha sighed, ringing out her hands. “I’ll be honest, Dreamer, I wasn’t sure what else to do. This is—unprecedented. This ward has been packed out with more aliens than most hospitals in the city, and half the children here don’t respond to traditional medicines. We have a lot of species on file here and yet half of these patients have never been recorded in our database. Some of them can’t speak any Earth languages, and we can’t treat them with anything that could pose life-threatening to their biology. Specialists are being flown in, but so far we’ve only been able to get them on the phone, and the children here are in so much pain.” Trisha drew in a shaky breath, and Nia realised that her eyes were starting to glisten. Instinctively, she reached out, taking her arm. Trisha’s mask creased with a watery smile. “It’s alright, sweetheart, it’s just--- it’s been a long day. For all of us. Look, the reason I called is because we’re in crisis, and I remembered reading an article CatCo ran on your powers last year that I thought—and I know it’s a long-shot -- but would you be able to help these children sleep?”

Her voice cracked by the end of her question, and Nia’s heart clenched tightly in her chest. At least her being here made more sense than it had five minutes ago. In fact, she knew exactly what she needed to do.

“Yes, I can,” she said immediately, nodding her head. “Lead the way.”

--

The first bay she was taken to had at least twelve children inside. Some with parents or guardians present, others unaccompanied, but all eyes turned to her when she entered.

A few whispered Dreamers caught on the air, even from the lips of some of the children, though most were too weak to do anything other than stare. Nia tried to hold a calming presence, to generate a positive energy just like Kara. She was trying very hard not to think about how this was her first solo-mission with so many young lives depending on her.

Instead, she tried to focus on her element. The cosy fire of a burning hearth, the guiding beacon of flame. She imagined a warmth building inside her own chest, emanating outward, inviting everyone to relax.

She wasn’t sure if it worked, but the buzz in the room seemed to ease.

“Don’t worry,” she said, speaking to both the children and their guardians. “I’m here to help.”

Maybe not everyone in the room spoke English, but her intentions seemed to translate well enough. She turned to the nurses at her back, crowded at the door, eager to watch.

“You might want to get the adults to wait in the hall,” she advised, bracing her arms out ahead of her. “This stuff can get pretty potent.”

While some of the nurses nodded dutifully, heading into the room to guide the adults away, a few hung back to mutter between themselves.

“You think this’ll work?” one whispered. “It’s a lot of kids.”

“Trust me,” Nia said, as though she’d been in on the conversation. “I once put a Kryptonian to sleep, anything else is a piece of cake.”

The nurses were left speechless after that and quickly set about helping the last of the adults file out of the room. Once it was clear, Nia let herself relax into her power, focusing on the kids.

She hadn’t been looking before, but now she was in the room with them, she could see just how varied the species of these children really were. Some blinked with a second set of eyelids, others had horns growing from underside their chin. Some had scales, others fur; some species she recognised, but most Nia was certain she had never seen before.  

She hesitated, breath catching in her chest. Just how many species here had slipped through the system? The fact hospitals held no records for them, no drugs on hand to treat them, truly unnerved her. Were these the species that had been living here in secret, who had never been registered officially by the US out of fear of persecution?

So many aliens had been living in Parthas long before the country had been offering out citizenship that Nia often forgot what it must have been like for those outside of her town. She remembered helping her mom during springtime, growing a selection of alien wildlife in their back yard to brew herbal remedies. That would have never been substantial if a true outbreak had ever hit, but Parthas had always been fortunate to avoid any serious medical crisis. But if it had… who was to say what could have happened?

But that had been then, and this was now. A time when aliens were meant to be treated as equal citizens, but how could that ever be true if they couldn’t receive the same medical care as their human compatriots?

The DEO wouldn’t have all the answers, but Nia wondered, maybe there was something more they could do to help than just this.

For right now though, she was needed here, and with the fire in her chest steadily rising within her, fit to burst, she knew she was ready.

The familiar warmth of her dream energy drummed through her blood, swarming down her arms all the way to the tips of her fingers. She splayed them wide, coils of blue light cascading down each digit before launching outward like unravelling springs. The room seemed to dim with the power of her energy as it began to disperse, drifting to the far corners of the ward, bouncing and swirling over the head of each child.

Many were in too much pain to realise what was going on, but the ones that still clung to lucidity stared up in wide-eyed awe, momentarily distracted by the alien lightshow.

Nia closed her hands together, drawing her arms in towards her chest. With that motion, each coil of dream energy exploded into a puff of blue mist. It rained down over the children, dazzling them in their last moments of conscious thought. Nia wasn’t kidding: her power was extremely potent in this form. She didn’t make a habit out of using it, but when she did, it was one hundred per cent effective.

She hadn’t yet met an alien immune to its effect, and fortunately this ward was no different. In seconds, the crying and screams had lulled into congested but calm breaths interspersed with a few chesty coughs. Nia wasn’t sure how long the effect would last, maybe a couple of hours if she was lucky, but at least for now these kids could rest.

But her work was far from over.

For the next hour, she stayed on the ward, jumping from room to room as deftly as she had Lena’s portals, helping relieve the children from their pain. The nurses thanked her time and time again, and while she was glad she could help, she couldn’t stop thinking about what Trisha had said.

When the last child had nodded off on the ward, Nia stole a few moments in private, retrieving her phone. Even with twelve thought tracks at his disposal, she didn’t want to call him away from his work and so she typed out a quick text instead. She was just about to slip her phone away when it buzzed in her hand. Nia scanned the response, a smile tugging at her lips.

The ward was still on high alert, and so it took Nia a few minutes to track Trisha down again.

“Dreamer?” Trisha asked, seeming to mistake her excitement for something else. “I’m sorry we’ve kept you for so long, I know you’re needed elsewhere, but I really wanted to thank you for everything you’ve—”

“It’s not necessary,” Nia said swiftly. “Like I said, I’m happy to help. In fact, I think there’s something more we might be able to do for you guys.”

Trisha’s eyebrow quirked uncertainly.

Nia breathed out a laugh. “I’ve just got off the phone with the DEO; with the hospital’s permission, they can analyse the readings of the unknown species you have here and use that data to link with their own records. They should be able to confirm what medicines can be used for pain relief and hopefully synthesise a few specialised drugs for those that won’t respond to what you have on hand.”

Trisha’s eyes widened in disbelief. “You can really do that? H-how long would something like that take?”

Nia’s smile widened. “Give us four hours.”

--

Fortunately, Trisha didn’t ask too many questions. Although what she’d said hadn’t been far from the truth, Nia couldn’t exactly go into detail about where a lot of the DEO’s records came from. While they had a pretty wide range of alien species on file, there was no denying that the Legion archive had more.

Using future technology to solve present problems. It wasn’t the worst thing they’d done where the spacetime continuum was concerned. Besides, if Brainy’s destiny was in the past, then his indispensable knowledge could absolutely guarantee these kids’ futures.

They were all being pulled in different directions today, and the second Brainy had seen her text explaining the situation – just like Nia – he hadn’t hesitated to do something about it. He had a hologram on cure duty with Lena, an algorithm set to link with the hospital’s records with the Legion’s archive, and a twelfth level intelligence ready to sink into synthetising a few new drugs along the way.

In just three and a half hours, Nia was flying back with the first supply, accompanied by Kara and J’onn to handle the bulk. This time, the hospital was abuzz with a different sort of energy. While there were still plenty of patients left in the unknown, word had started to get around. Hospital staff greeted her with smiles of relief, and nervous parents and guardians had begun talking amongst each other. Some had even realised they had a shared language in common and were translating the news from the nurses to others in the room. With a little more Legion help, Nia was sure they could get some translator technology sent over to bridge the last few gaps in communication.

The air felt lighter, the weight of the crisis a little easier to carry now it was being shared amongst so many helping hands. As the drugs were shared out and the DEO data analysis started reaching the hospital, more nurses filed out to retrieve the on-hand meds that would correspond with the correct alien biology.

The first successful dose was all it took, and hope began to spread quicker than any virus could ever dream. Maybe it wasn’t a cure, but it was proof that things could get better; with just a little more time, they could find a permanent solution, Nia was certain.

Change didn’t happen overnight, and there were still holes in the system that were in dire need of fixing, but for today, Nia took the win. With the adrenaline starting to wane and several day’s-worth of non-stop movement finally dragging her down, she realised that wasn’t all she needed to take.

Besides, if her visions were evading her in the waking world, maybe she could find the answers she needed with a more direct approach.

It was time she took a nap.

[owl-with-a-pen]

I’ve practically separated the CW Supergirl universe from any of the comics or other shows, but tend to find myself accepting most of your fics as cannon lol. Anyways, I was wondering if you had any thoughts about Brainy having siblings back in the 31st century? Or maybe some kind of family that might be close in age to him (cousins etc.).

I think Brainy’s family dynamic is so interesting. We know he struggles with his mom and his ancestors and then his dad literally feared him enough to give him inhibitors— what of his other family?

I’ve always imagined that Caluans aren’t very emotional and everything is factual and straight forward, but Brainy was always “softer” and more prone to emotional outbursts which distanced him even more. Perhaps this is why he accepted Lena’s “little boxes” method so easily because naturally simply choosing not to feel is the best option— and an inherently Caluan one.

Thanks! Supergirl is very far removed from any other LoSH canon for sure, but I do try to incorporate aspects of the comics in my fics where I can (now that I've read them, lol) to create some sort of bridge. Glad you've enjoyed it!

I do think that Brainy is inherently a very lonely character, and for that reason I don't personally imagine him having siblings. When I think about Brainy's family - especially his relationship to his mother - I mostly subscribe to the canon we were given in the 'post Zero Hour' continuity which is kind of where the show leans to, I think, but also not really 😅

Basically, I like the canon from that continuity because it gives us probably the most in-depth look at Brainy's relationship to his mother and also gives a very valid reason for why Brainy being an only child is so essential to his character. We learn that Brainy's mother was born with a defect which disallows her the ability to feel emotions and that the only reason she had Brainy at all was to test a hypothesis that having a child would trigger some sort of emotional response. When this doesn't work, she abandons Brainy on the day of his birth.

In the show, things are a little different. Obviously, Brainy's mother and father were present in his life, at least up until the age of 8, but I imagine his mother to be very similar to the way she was presented in the comics. Cold, calculating, only really interested in Brainy if he can serve a purpose that helps her achieve her goals. Brainy is very insistent in the show that every single member of his family are evil, and so this also lends to the idea that he's even an outcast among outcasts, (12th level intellects). He's deeply alone, and that really explains a lot about his character, the way he pushes emotions down and doesn't really understand how to form close bonds with people until he's actually surrounded by ones who aren't afraid to get close to him.

What also lends to Brainy's inherent loneliness is his disconnect from his people. I'm not sure how I imagine other Coluans acting in the show - I have a tendency to think of them like Vulcans, but I don't necessarily think Coluans are beyond feeling emotion, it's just that their higher level of intellect allows them to separate their feelings from their logic easier than other species. Brainy mentions in the show that his twelfth level intelligence allows him to separate his fears, which stops him from being fully compromised by the Phantoms in season 6, which suggests that being just Coluan doesn't necessarily mean emotions come any easier. If we consider that, then Brainy being a twelfth level intellect and also quite emotionally vulnerable adds even more to his isolation among his peers.

Another thing that separates Brainy from his fellow Coluans is the Big Brain itself. When his father put those personality inhibitors on him as a child, he essentially cut Brainy off from the rest of his people. The Big Brain is purported to be a digital or psychic wavelength that connects all Coluans together, it's even considered a part of their afterlife. In fact, having that severed link makes him immediately different from the other versions of himself he meets in The Bottle Episode - which takes the term outsider to a whole new level when you think about it. He doesn't regain that connection until he removes them, and even then he's forced to isolate himself while working for Lex.

In short, I think Brainy's loneliness is such an essential part of his character that I personally can't imagine him having any close family. Biological family, at least, I must stress this! Brainy's development as a character comes from the connections he's able to make with his found family in spite of the people who raised him. I think it's what makes that part of his arc so satisfying.

Thanks so much for the question!

[owl-with-a-pen]

Been off of Tumblr and in general the fandom side of the internet for quite some time. Hate to see that there isn’t much activity with Supergirl, much less Brainy and Nia. Thank god you’re still here tho praise Rao 🙏🙏🙏

Aw thank you, and welcome back!

They'd have to pull this show and ship from my cold dead hands at this point 😂

[owl-with-a-pen]

thinking about My Adventures with Superman and their take on Brainiac and Kara again! so I love the concept of artificially created beings treating their creators as parents, and referring to them as such, I think that's a really interesting dynamic to put in a story and you can do a lot of things with it. And this show basically did it the other way around, with Brainiac, this machine with a mind of his own, taking Kara in after the destruction of Krypton, and they call one another father and daughter.

So now I'm wondering, how did Kara come to consider him her father in the first place? How did she learn that word, growing up on the space station? Was it a situation where she came across it somehow and asked him what it meant, and started calling him her father while he went along with it? Or was it a further part of Brainiac's manipulation, telling her that she was supposed to call him that and her never once questioning who else could have had that role in her life before he found her?

(also now I just want some kind of situation where she somehow meets Zor-El and Alura, or at least gets to see them and finds out they're her real parents)

Omg yes I am all about their twisted father-daughter dynamic.

I think I lean towards the theory that Brainiac was the one who pushed for Kara to call him Father. Kara and Brainiac's relationship is endlessly interesting, but what always comes to mind for me is the dialogue Brainiac has with Clark in the season 2 finale.

Brainiac admits to Clark that he was the one that destroyed Krypton in an act of self preservation after discovering that Jor-El had been planning to call a ceasefire. He blames Kara and Clark as a result and even says that he 'still won' because he 'found Kara'.

For Brainiac, the word Father is less about family and more about control. If Kara calls him Father, then to him, that means he has ownership of her. It means he won because he got to take a surviving member of the very family that betrayed him and turn her into a weapon for an Empire they wanted to see fall.

There's also another side to it that I kind of want to explore, and that's the possibility that Brainiac really did love Kara in his own misguided way. He admits that the Kryptonian's weakness infected him, and that that was the reason he took Kara; not out of revenge, but because he couldn't let her go out into the darkness alone. (He also admits that love must be purged for the Empire to rise, so it's not like the guy was ever overflowing with fatherly love or anything.)

I think there was a part of him deep down that saw Kara as more than just something to hold over the corpses of the House of El, otherwise I don't expect he would have seen much use for her after the first time he was forced to wipe her memory. Her powers were definitely more substantial than his, but he gave her the suit that enhanced her heat vision plus he had an endless army of drones at his disposal so, really, he didn't need her, especially if she couldn't commit to his evil plan. There was some affection there, buried deep, enough that made him hesitate before throwing an offensive blow. But, he still threw it.

Brainiac was built as a tool for war, and so of course the only way he knew how to raise a child was to make her into a weapon.

I think when he tells her he loves her, he believes that to be true, he just doesn't value love, nor does he really understand what it means. Love to him means less and so, yes, for him he does love her. The word 'Father' is an act of possession, but when he calls her 'Daughter' I don't think it's as much about power. I think there is some affection in it, but certainly a strong element of control there too.

(Also, yes I would love to see Kara meet or at least learn about her actual parents. The way she reacted when Clark assumed by father she'd been referring to Zor-El still haunts me.)

[owl-with-a-pen]

inspired by a headcanon shared by @jammatown919

It had become something of a rarity for Brainy to spend the morning with his wife. With much work left to be done at the new DEO, he was often expected there well before daybreak. Even on the occasions he was not, he was normally showered and dressed long before Nia had even taken her first sip of coffee.

Brainy cherished the slower mornings. Days when he could grant himself the small luxury of watching Nia as she slept – the first rays of sunlight that crept in through the curtains, igniting the edges of her dark hair with a fiery touch of auburn, deepening the serious furrow to her brow that often formed while she was locked so deeply in her dreams.

With a natural sleep cycle as regrettably limited compared to a Naltorian’s, Brainy often found himself watching her for hours after waking, holding her close when she inevitably rolled towards him, searching for his warmth when his unconscious mind escaped her.

Nia had once admitted that she never slept better than when he was right there at her side, and so that was exactly where he stayed, warding off her nightmares with mere proximity alone, ensuring her sleep went unburdened for as long as was required.

This morning, however, was slightly different. For he had been tasked with the exact opposite.

That night, Nia had made him promise to make sure she woke up on time. She had to be at CatCo a few hours earlier to get her article finished and on Kara’s desk before start of day. No special loopholes for being a close friend - or Super Friend for that matter - she was committed to getting the job done in the time that had been allotted, not a second later.

Brainy could respect her devotion to her job, though he’d begun to worry when Nia had stayed up halfway through the night to try and finish the assignment. By the time she’d fallen asleep, upright and against the headboard, he’d had to slip her laptop carefully out from under her lest she scramble what she’d written before tucking her properly into bed.

Brainy wasn’t surprised that her alarm elicited exactly zero response from her. In fact, Nia slept soundly throughout the obnoxious fire drill she’d set herself that night, blasting with the force of a DEO Kryptonite alarm from the tiny speakers. Brainy waved a hand towards her phone with a wince, turning off the offending sound with a single gesture.

He'd calculated Plan A at having a 0.02 likelihood for success anyway, which was why he was more than happy to serve as her contingency. Loud noises could rarely reach Nia in the dreamscape, though he had long-since learned what she was receptive to.

Brainy grinned as he rolled onto her side of the bed, careful not to jostle her. Nia’s brow quivered with a hint of lucidity, though it quickly smoothed over as her dream state reasserted itself. Brainy’s eyes tracked each minute expression fondly, simulating his next move.

With his previous success rate, it didn’t take long to devise.

Smiling, he pressed his lips against Nia’s forehead, breathing gentle kisses along her temple. Receiving no response, he continued, brushing his nose behind her ear, knocking a few stray locks of hair across her cheek.

Nia grimaced at first, curling tighter into her side, smothering a groan of protest into her pillow. Not to be deterred, Brainy continued his calculated pathway, running kisses along her jaw until he could feel her breath on his lips.

Nia whipped her head to the side, a little more forcefully than either of them anticipated, her lashes fluttering hard as she fought against the natural instinct to remain in the dreamscape. While she’d made some truly astounding strides in mastering her ability the last year, giving in totally to her powers did come with certain disadvantages – such as meeting a deadline for her day job.  

Fortunately, Brainy had found the perfect remedy. It wasn’t a concoction to be devised in a lab, nor a tool like her bracelets or wedding band. Instead, it was a gentle persuasion of the physical variety. The dragging motion of his lips and teeth tracking patterns on her skin, his breath interspersed in short hot puffs against her throat, activating her senses, teasing her nerves. Stimulus that, over time, was sure to rouse her from even her most stubborn dreams.

Eventually, Nia’s eyes held open and, when she smiled, Brainy’s heart soared.

He had learned early into their relationship that Nia favoured physical acts of affection. She relied on touch from those closest to her, something that Brainy was very happy to oblige. Truthfully, he hadn’t realised just how much he valued such acts himself until he’d made Nia’s acquaintance. The flutter of anticipation he’d experience every time her hand brushed his shoulder, or when she’d wrap him in a hug for something entirely mundane.

He hadn’t had much practice with those kinds of gestures back then, but over time he’d become inundated with them, learning not just to reciprocate, but to enjoy them as well. Since removing his inhibitors, he had discovered new and broader depths within himself, and with a greater capacity to connect with those emotions, he sought out affection more comfortably and confidently than ever before.

And so, when Nia reached for him, Brainy didn’t hesitate. He leant into her touch, pressing his cheek into the heel of her hand with a soft rumble in his chest. She grinned, cupping his face, her dark eyes shimmering, daze-like, as though she was still half-caught in a dream.

Brainy let her slowly trace the shape of his jaw, confirming her reality with every new stimulus, until her nails stopped at the corners of his lips. Brainy thrilled at that pinprick sensation, closing his eyes when her knuckles tucked beneath his chin, drawing him in towards her.

When they kissed, Nia’s hands continued to explore him, long fingers tracing electric pathways across the nape of his neck, down his spine, before hooking her thumbs into the elastic waist of his pyjama pants.

When they broke for breath, Nia laughed, nuzzling into Brainy’s throat. “Hey,” she croaked.

Brainy stroked the hair from her face, pressing another kiss against her scalp. “Good morning.”

Nia groaned at that. “Right. Morning.” She wrapped her arms firmer around him, arching upwards into the heat of his projectors. “What time is it?”

Her voice was barely a muffled vibration against his jaw. Brainy swallowed down a smile. “Five-thirty,” he announced. “Exactly as planned. I… took the liberty of disconnecting your alarm.”

A short laugh. Another puff of breath. She curled her hands back towards his chest, fitting into the shape of him. “Thanks.”

Brainy ducked his head, kissing her knuckles. “Coffee?”

“Please.”

Once they’d untangled themselves, Brainy headed out to the kitchen. He didn’t expect Nia to leave her blanket burrito behind until she’d been adequately caffeinated, and when he returned to the bedroom with a warm mug in tow, he found his estimation to be correct as always.

Nia lay in the exact position she’d been left in, one arm draped over her face, eyes half closed.

Brainy couldn’t help but smile. “Nia,” he said gently.

“Hm?”

The smell of coffee caught her attention at least. When Brainy sat, Nia lifted her head, pushing up from the mattress with considerable effort. Once she was upright and in no danger of toppling over, Brainy entrusted her with the mug. She held it close to her nose, breathing in the steam with a heavy-lidded stare.

Brainy stroked the hair from her face as she took her first sip, keeping any strays from falling into her mouth. It was only when he'd tucked them behind her ear that he noticed the sweaty tangles that held stiff to the back of her head.

He tried to hide the concern from his expression, though he couldn’t help but feel responsible. As much as he tried to serve as a barrier against her nightmares, a Naltorian’s visions could still prove quite intense, eliciting strong physical responses. While Brainy’s restorative cycle kept him locked in a singular position, Nia’s dream state left her body subject to all the stressors of the physical world.

Brainy inspected the knotting with a tactful side-eye, careful not to pull too hard. She must have tossed and turned one too many times in her sleep, leaving them to accumulate overnight.

He considered her current condition, still half asleep and leant reliantly into his side, before bunching some of her hair in his hand, kissing her shoulder where it had been left bare. “May I?” he murmured.

Nia’s eyes opened groggily, observing him through the vanity mirror on the closest wall. She took another sip of coffee, cringing when she felt the tangles for the first time, nodding her head.

Taking that as his cue, Brainy reached swiftly for the hairbrush on Nia’s bedside table. Kneeling behind her on the bed, he got to work, running his fingers first through her hair to separate the knotting, brushing from the base to avoid unnecessary tugging at the scalp. It was a methodical practice, one he had perfected long ago, and it wasn’t long before Nia relaxed totally into that rhythm, settling against his chest.

The buzz of his projectors kept her warm as he worked, restoring the silky texture to her hair as Nia sipped her coffee in silent contentment.

Married life, Brainy had come to learn, was something he excelled at. He enjoyed every moment, but especially the finer details captured in the mundane, manifesting even through the general chaos of their extra-normal lives. Running a brush through his wife’s hair, for example, and feeling her total trust in his ability to do so. Trust that had been earned with every shared experience, that they continued to build with each other every day.

Their promise to one another still held firm, bolstered by the union represented by each of their Legion rings. His love for her felt richer with every morning he woke up at her side, and knowing that there would be an infinite number of moments to follow filled him with utmost joy.

When he was finished, Nia looked up at him from her empty mug with a smile, the first spark of lucidity brightening her expression tenfold, and Brainy thought he might have fallen in love with her all over again.

Soon, they would have to part ways for the day ahead, but mornings like this would always be sacred to him.

He couldn’t wait for the next.

[owl-with-a-pen]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Supergirl (TV 2015) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Querl Dox/Nia Nal, Nia Nal & Nura Nal, Querl Dox & Nura Nal Characters: Nia Nal, Querl Dox, Nura Nal Additional Tags: Heart-to-Heart, Family Bonding, Introspection, Strained Relationships 

When a dream leads Nura to the twenty-first century, Nia finally gets the opportunity to meet her descendant for the first time.

As Nia learns more about her descendant, she realises they might have more in common than either of them had ever anticipated.

[owl-with-a-pen]

to anyone who requested a fic for Nia and Nura meeting for the first time... I'm like 5 years late but can confirm: I may have something cooking.

[owl-with-a-pen]

They could’ve been anywhere for New Year. Literally anywhere – no one was going to blink an eye if you turned up in The Bahamas thirty seconds before midnight with Supergirl as a best friend. In fact, Nia had lost count of the party invites she’d received from acquaintances at best just for being in Kara’s general social circle.

The first proper year since Kara’s identity reveal had gone global and, suffice to say, the dust hadn’t settled just yet.

But no invite came without expectation. In this case, that Supergirl would be a part of the package. Everyone wanted a spectacle. They wanted the suit, the show, the fanfare. Even CatCo’s office party felt a little too intense for Nia’s liking. While most of their co-workers had relaxed into the notion of having Supergirl as their boss, that didn’t stop journalists at rival news stations from practically clawing the doors down, all hungry for the latest scoop into the life of Kara Zor-El.

So, they didn’t spend New Year’s Eve on a beach or a yacht, the roof of a skyscraper or even at CatCo. There was only one place that would’ve felt right – the only place that mattered. Being with the people that mattered.

Which was why Nia found herself snuggled up with Brainy on the Tower’s couch by 5pm. Super suit officially retired for the evening, she lounged about with the rest of her friends in comfortable civilian clothes, wine glass in hand and like a zillion different party games strewn across the coffee table.

Lena and Brainy had both spent the better part of the afternoon poring over the game instructions with the same sort of life-or-death intensity usually reserved for their day jobs, but Nia wasn’t about to complain. Brainy was on her team, after all, which meant that whatever they got around to playing, they were totally going to kill it. She and Brainy were already sat at the champion spot on the game night board – really, the others didn’t stand a chance. Brainy didn’t get all the credit for that, either. Nia’s powers came with some added benefits – like dreaming up specific strategies or figuring out the rules to games they hadn’t even thought of playing yet. She’d gotten pretty good at it, in fact, and no matter what Alex said, it was not cheating.

So long as she didn’t get caught.

“So,” Alex said as she grabbed a beer from the cooler, clinking her bottle against Kara’s glass as she passed. “Your first year without a secret identity. Better or worse than you thought it’d be?”

Kara pulled a face, hiding behind her glass. “Can I answer that after midnight?”

“Staller,” Alex teased, settling down next to Kelly who had already claimed a spot around the coffee table.

“Hey—not fair,” Kara said, speeding over to join them. “I shouldn’t be the only one answering that question, anyway. A lot has happened this year. I mean, the DEO officially started up again, you and Kelly got that new house.” She pointed to Nia and Brainy emphatically. “And you two – you got engaged!”

Nia grinned, leaning forward. “Oh, you mean this?” she asked, brandishing her new Legion ring with pride.

Alex laughed. “We get it, already, your fiancé bestowed you with the power of flight.”

Brainy scoffed. “This ring offers more than just flight.” He scooped Nia’s hand into his as though to demonstrate, linking their fingers together. Nia’s grin widened. “It’s also a psychic blocker and comms device, as well as offering protection against extreme climates found at higher altitudes, otherwise compromising—”

“Show off,” Alex cut in, poking out her tongue.

“Well, I think our engagements rings were pretty perfect,” Kelly said, pecking her wife on the cheek.

“Yeah,” Alex pouted, “but flight.”

Kelly waved her off. “I get nauseous flying anyway.” She prodded the backpack stowed beneath the coffee table with her foot, giving some shape to the folded shield tucked inside. “Guardian stays grounded for a reason.”

“Yes.” Brainy eyed Kelly warmly, sitting upright. “Let me know if that ever changes.”

“I appreciate the suit upgrades, Brainy, really,” Kelly assured him. “But you couldn’t pay me to strap on a pair of wings, or a flight ring for that matter.”

“Understood,” Brainy said, although Nia could tell he hadn’t quite put his flight plans to bed just yet.

When he relaxed back against the sofa, she took the opportunity to claim his lap as her new headrest, making herself comfortable. Their hands remained entwined across her stomach, Brainy’s thumb working gentle circles over her knuckles.

Just before anyone could get too comfy, the elevator doors dinged from across the room and Lena stepped into the loft, her face obscured by an intimidatingly tall stack of pizza boxes. “Pizza’s here,” she announced, struggling to see around the veritable tower in her hands. “There’s more downstairs if anyone has an arm to spare.”

“Well timed, Lena,” J’onn said with a smile. He was already jogging forward, half-phased through the Tower’s floorboards. “I’ll get the rest.”

“Oh,” Lena called out before he could disappear, “I also had to leave the wine in your office.”

J’onn winked before melting through to the level below.

“Prioritising food over alcohol; who are you and what have you done with Lena Luthor?” Alex teased, rising to greet her at the same time as Kara.

“Oh relax, it wasn’t the good stuff,” Lena said as she assigned pizza boxes to the two sisters. “There should still be some of that left over in the pantry downstairs.”

Nia smiled, watching the interaction with absolutely zero intention of moving herself. Instead, she spread out even further across Brainy’s lap, stretching out her arms. “D’you think they ever fight over who gets to deliver here?”

“Why?” Alex asked. “Because we’re superheroes, or because of Lena’s tips?”

“Both.”

Brainy narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. “It is highly likely.”

“Oh, come on you two,” Lena called out in exasperation. “Pizza’s getting cold.”

Nia groaned, pushing herself up with a little help from her fiancé. “Fine, fine, we’re coming.”

----

The next few hours passed with ease. They ate and chatted and played way too many high-stakes card games. Brainy was officially banned from poker by 8 o’clock and Nia wasn’t allowed any more pre-game ‘warm up’ naps. She let it slide – she’d been meaning to practice her conscious dream-state, anyway. Besides, by the time the strong stuff came out of the pantry, everyone was playing with every super advantage they had at their disposal.

Nia wasn’t sure what time it was when she felt Brainy begin to grow restless at her side. Without saying anything, she lifted her head from his shoulder, giving him a little more room to work with. Not long after that, he broke away from the circle, heading out to the balcony for some fresh air.

She gave him some time at first, easing back into the conversation, but as the clock ticked closer towards midnight, she knew she needed to check in. After excusing herself, she creaked her way unsubtly up the stairs, finding Brainy exactly where she'd expected him to be – with his arms folded over the balcony’s edge, his chin tipped up towards the stars.

He always looked so peaceful when he was alone like that. His eyes may have been closed, but his mind was wide open. Right now, Nia imagined a million and one thoughts coursing seamlessly through Brainy’s head. To anyone else, the very notion of thinking to that extreme was a one-way ticket to migraine territory. But Brainy revelled in it. His twelve thought tracks were flourishing, broadened to new and exhilarating horizons ever since he’d first removed his inhibitors.

Sure, it had been rocky at first, but with the time to become reacquainted with his own potential, Brainy had only become more certain of himself for it. He’d once tried to explain it to Nia - how it felt for him without the restrictions that had once clouded his mind - and although there was no way she could ever put herself fully in his shoes, the way he had described it had sounded so profound, so freeing, that she’d found herself tearing up long before he’d even finished talking.

To be alone with one’s thoughts took on a whole new meaning for a Coluan, and it was the surest way to calm him whenever he became overwhelmed. Sometimes, especially after being around so many people for so long, Brainy needed to take a step back from it all and recharge his social metre. To find that connection between himself and the Big Brain and to truly nourish it.

It did mean that he often lost track of time. And so, as quietly as she could, Nia padded out to the balcony edge alongside her fiancé, brushing her arm up against his.

He stirred slowly, his lashes catching the starlight as he turned his head, acknowledging her without having to say a word.

Nia stood with him a while in that comfortable silence. The night air felt sobering against her cheeks, and the city below was so alive. Every brightly lit window was a doorway into another world, another person celebrating that step closer to a new year on planet Earth. Down on the ground, the bars were abuzz with people, whole groups spilling out onto the streets with drink in hand, enjoying the mild weather and fragrant breeze.

Nia took in a deep breath, letting it go slowly. “How long do we have?” she murmured.

“Eleven minutes, twenty-nine seconds.”

She grinned. Brainy’s response was as immediate as ever. She tipped her head against his shoulder, relaxing into his warmth. “Kara was right, y’know. This year has been pretty intense. In a good way.”

Brainy’s lips twitched into a faint smile. He lowered his head, pressing a kiss into her hair. “Indeed, it has.”

“Think we’ll top it next year?”

Brainy’s smiled widened. He turned his attention back towards the skyline, scanning it with new vigour. “You wanted a summer wedding, correct?”

“Spring or summer,” Nia said with a shrug, burying her nose firmer into his throat. “So long as the flowers are out. Mom would’ve wanted to see them in bloom.”

Brainy was still mapping the stars ahead, his dark eyes moving rapidly from left to right. There was a secretive edge to his smile, and a far-away look in his expression - one that told her he was already planning something special. He bit his lip, rising proudly where he stood. “Then the year to come will certainly exceed the last.”

Nia buzzed with anticipation; his excitement was infectious, igniting her own. Honestly, she would’ve married him right that second if it hadn’t been for all the hard work they’d put into the wedding plan already. Although, with an officiator in the other room and a bottle of wine already going to her head, she couldn’t deny it was a tempting thought.

She was thrown from that thought when a flash lit up the sky above their heads, followed by an explosive pop and bang a second later. Instinctively, Brainy clutched at her hand, holding her close. Nia tensed expectantly, but there was no fire to follow, no superhero emergency at all - just a stray firework set off by some kids down below.

“Little early,” Nia murmured, nudging Brainy’s arm. It was still beautiful, though, and she found that she couldn’t tear her eyes away.

The firework streamed across the sky in fine shimmers of red and gold, reminding her a little of the translucence of her own dream energy, before spilling downward, raining a mist of glowing embers just a few blocks away.

The sky was dark again by the time she realised that Brainy hadn’t been watching the firework with her. Instead, he was looking at her, his eyes bright with reverence, twinkling with a different kind of spark.

“Perhaps we should take advantage of the moment,” he suggested in a low voice, leaning forward.

Nia smiled when his lips brushed across her cheek, trailing towards her ear. She closed her eyes appreciatively, tipping her chin closer to his mouth, his lashes tickling her nose. “Aren’t we supposed to wait for midnight?” she murmured.

“Hm.” Brainy’s lips curved in contemplation. His thumb traced the line of her jaw slowly, catching a curl of her hair before stroking it back behind her ear. His fingers lingered there at the nape of her neck, digging fine crescents into her skin. “I think we’ve traversed time enough to allow for certain… deviations in that respect.”

Nia shivered. She didn’t need much convincing; in fact, she was already leaning in for the kiss, one hand still gripping the balcony wall, the other locked tightly around Brainy’s arm, pulling him closer until their lips finally met.

She was still a little heady from the wine, but the kiss felt like a firework of its own inside her chest, warming her from the inside out. Brainy’s hands were electric everywhere they touched - her face, her hair, her neck, each sensation enhanced by the alcohol roaring through her blood.

She could have believed they were flying.

Crap. Because they were flying.

Or at least, she was. Without even thinking, Nia had let her Legion ring tap into the psychic suggestion she’d been broadcasting a little too boldly, so much that it had begun to lift her off her feet.

When she gasped in surprise, Brainy grinned against her mouth. He held her steady, anchoring her to him until she found her footing again - on solid ground, this time.

“Thanks,” Nia mumbled against his chin, ducking her head into his shoulder, trying to assuage her own embarrassment. She could feel the rumble of laughter in Brainy’s chest and couldn’t help but smile along. “That’s definitely gonna take some getting used to.”

They held each other for a while longer, so comfortable in each other’s arms that Nia nearly lost track of time.

That was until voices started picking up back inside.

A moment later, Nia heard Kara calling: “Countdown’s starting!”

Already? Nia could hardly believe it. She grinned mischievously. “C’mon,” she said, tugging Brainy’s arm.

In the light of the Tower, he looked about as flushed as she felt, his blond hair frazzled against his jaw. He moved eagerly with her momentum, letting her drag him towards the balcony door.

By the time they were back inside, the countdown was nearly halfway through. They got as far as the top of the stairs before the final three seconds started ringing out.

Thinking fast, Nia made her decision. Spinning impulsively at the final second, she wrapped her arms around Brainy’s shoulders, pulling him in for another – official – kiss.

His lips were the warmest welcome she could hope for to usher in the new year.

They parted just as a bottle popped across the room. Brainy’s hands slipped around Nia’s waist, bumping his nose against hers before they both blinked back into reality, noticing for the first time the chaos that had erupted in just seconds below them.

“Ah,” Brainy said under his breath.

“Uh-huh,” Nia answered.

Over at the coffee table, Lena was pouring champagne flutes like her life depended on it from a bottle that’s neck was furiously frothing over courtesy of a certain over-eager Kryptonian. Kara was already making up for her mistake by super-speeding glasses under the bottle faster than they could spill over, placing them on every available surface she could find.

“Okay, you guys really need to start taking some of these,” Kara insisted.

“Way ahead of you,” Alex said, snatching two flutes from the table and handing one to Kelly. They clinked glasses, sharing another kiss.

J’onn laughed. “Here, let me help,” he said, angling the bottle in Lena’s hands so that it was a little less explosive on the next pour.

Lena let go of the bottle entirely, more than happy to let J’onn take over in exchange for a glass of her own.

“Us too,” Nia said, catching Brainy’s eye. “I could use another glass.”

Lena raised a brow expectantly. “Oh, I bet you do.”

Nia tried not to blush.

Once everyone had settled back around the table, flutes in hand, champagne mostly mopped up, Alex raised her glass, tapping it insistently with a fingernail. Instead of instigating a speech, she pointed her glass towards Kara. “So?” she asked. “Better or worse?”

Kara groaned aloud, muffling her voice with the rim of her glass. “I was hoping you’d forget.”

Alex winked. “Never.”

Kara rolled her eyes, lifting her free hand in surrender. “You know what? Fine. I’ll say it. Because, as a matter of fact, despite how freeing this year has been for me, I can’t deny that it’s also been hard. Really hard at times. In fact, for a while, I really did begin to wonder whether any of this was worth it.” She pursed her lips, knocking Alex’s arm. “But,” she countered, drawing out the word, “every time the media tried to beat me down, or the military pushed into my affairs, you were all there for me. You stood by me, supported this decision and supported me whenever I needed it. You reminded me why I wanted this in the first place.” Kara’s lips were already starting to tremble. She swiped quickly at her eyes, sniffing. “What I’m saying is, I really couldn’t have got through this year without you guys.”

“Kara,” Alex said softly.

“Stop, or I won’t finish,” Kara laughed. With a steadying breath, she hooked one arm around her sister’s shoulders, looping her other with Lena’s. “So, yes, this year could have been the worst, but it was the best because of all of you.” She raised her glass above Alex’s head, beaming proudly. “To family!”

“To family,” everyone echoed back.

Nia clinked her drink with everyone else, trying desperately to hold it together. She locked eyes with Brainy from across the table, seeing the happy tears that already stained his cheeks, the easy smile he wore now for no one’s benefit but his own, and realised just how lucky she was to be surrounded by so much love. Despite the hardships she’d faced in both her personal and hero life, she had a family here, one that may have come under its fair share of strain, sure, but had only grown stronger from what it had endured.

The Legion ring suddenly felt warmer around her finger, like a hug from a new friend. Maybe it was all in her head, or maybe it really was responding to her good mood.

Brainy had told her once that a Legion ring meant different things to different people, but at its heart, it represented the joined forces of the Legionnaires themselves. Their connection to one another, despite what made them so different.

For her, though, at its core, the ring was a promise. As certain as the one she and Brainy had made to each other on the training room floor. A promise shared by the echo of her friends right that second.

To family.

With the person she loved the most right there at her side, their devotion to each other worn as plainly as the rings on their fingers, she realised that promise was only just getting started.

Nia grinned, taking Brainy’s hand.

She couldn’t wait for the year ahead.

[owl-with-a-pen]

Sorry for so many messages in a short time I’m just currently overwhelmed with how much I love these two. More headcanons, expanding on some of the other ones.

When Nia has her slow, sleepy mornings and Brainy brushes her hair for her, there’s a good 40% chance they’re not going anywhere for the rest of the morning because Nia will start nuzzling against him and purring as a happy Naltorian does, and well... who can think about getting up with that going on?

Additionally, I think their child would inherit a lot of Nia’s Naltorian mannerisms, meaning double trouble for Brainy when the kid incidentally learns from Nia that acting sleepy and purring in the morning gets them extra cuddle time when they should be getting up for school.

I also like to imagine that in the “terrible twos” phase the kid would hiss a lot when they’re mad, and it is NOT pleasant on the ears. Genuinely, screaming would be better. Auntie Kara has to sit out on babysitting duty until that passes. And when they’re a little older and pick up Nia’s trilling habit, they do it nonstop for a good while, but it’s pretty cute and such an upgrade from the hissing that no one has it in them to be annoyed.

And yeah, they’re a Dolly household now and forever. 5 to 9 was this kid’s main lullaby (thank Brainy for that one). Every time they get their heart broken as a teen their parents know immediately because Jolene is blasting from their room.

Omg yes 😭😭 Cuddly Brainia is so important.

Also love the idea of their kid just causing the most problems during their terrible twos. Maybe Brainy designs special noise cancelling ear pieces to combat it, but when they're that young, the frequency fluctuates so much it's hard to pinpoint so he's constantly trying to make upgrades.

Nia adds a new edge to 'time out' called 'bubble time' where she breaks out a sound proof dream bubble to counteract the hiss if she gets a sense that a meltdown is imminent. (Visions are a very useful tool in childcare).😉

[owl-with-a-pen]

Now I can’t stop thinking about Brainy and Nia’s “feel better songs”. Nia wouldn’t think all that much about her picks, but they mean so much to Brainy, and I definitely think that down the line she’d catch him singing those same songs to their child. You Are My Sunshine specifically comes to mind.

Also, their kid learning to sing whenever they get upset. Teary four-year-old singing Nine to Five while pouting in the corner. This is how big feelings are soothed in their household.

Oh my god, I love the idea of 9 to 5 becoming a generational thing. Especially with Nia and Brainy's kid post or mid-meltdown singing the song passive-aggressively while planted firmly in a time out. That's adorable. 😂

Moon River and Dream a Little Dream of Me always come to mind as Brainia songs and I could totally imagine them humming either or both to their kid to.

Also. The idea that Brainy and Nia are an unabashed Dolly Household first and foremost brings me immense joy.

They catch their kid in the act of doing something incredibly dangerous and make them promise never to do it again.

Nia: Do you promise?

Brainy:

[owl-with-a-pen]

Just got to season six in a rewatch, so more headcanons, but not mannerisms this time. I just like to imagine the little ways Brainy and Nia take care of each other.

He’s a much earlier riser than she is, so he tends to have breakfast ready when she wakes up if he doesn’t immediately have to go into the DEO or the Tower. He also tends to work very late so she has a habit of bringing him dinner. A few times she’s packed him a lunch box with an alarm inside of it so he remembers to tear himself away from his work for a few minutes and eat.

Nia has mornings where she’s just slow and sleepy and can’t seem to get into her routine and he’ll sit and brush her hair for her so she can take a few more minutes to wake herself up. At certain times with her powers, she can also be found passed out anywhere and everywhere, and Brainy always takes a few minutes to put her in the most comfortable position possible for when she wakes up.

When Brainy gets overwhelmed emotionally, Nia’s taken to holding his hand and humming to him. If they’re by themselves and he doesn’t necessarily want to talk about it, the have a short list of “feel better songs” that they’ll sing together that can sometimes help get him out of any funk he’s in.

They can both be restless sleepers but also both tend to immediately relax when cuddled. That is to say, they are never not touching each other when they go to bed. The snuggling is very important, you see.

Just, every little imagined habit has me so soft. I would have watched eighty million episodes of them.

Oh my god yes to every single one of these, your headcanons are always the best 😭😭

Thanks for sharing as always! x

[owl-with-a-pen]

your most recent fic made me wonder, in-universe how do you think Brainy decided on his image induced appearance?

When I was writing that last fic, I re-watched some parts from season 3 including the scene where Brainy first appears wearing his image inducer, and it struck me that he really emphasises it as a way to enable him to ‘fit in’. So, I think his main focus was just finding a look that would best match his features, that wouldn’t stand out, and would be easiest for a human mind to accept. So, as few changes made as possible.

He probably ran some simulations to give him a selection of the best matches for hair and skin tones, but I think in his head he wanted to get the process over and done with. I like to imagine he ended up getting more invested in it once he got started, lingering on smaller details for hours until a Legion alert finally snaps him out of it and he awkwardly re-joins the group.

[owl-with-a-pen]

The 21st century was abundant with challenges; indeed, Brainy was starting to believe it had yet to crawl its way out from the dark ages.

The technology was a joke, buckling under his own vastly superior interface every time he tried to connect with something mentally. Until he’d made the necessary adjustments to his own internal network – a task he was not looking forward to - the old-fashioned way was the only method these so-called computers seemed to respond to.

Being here was… uncomfortable to say the least. Though the hardware in these backwards machines was easy enough to decipher, the information they held within was wholly alien to him. Social media, dating profiles, in-app purchases; the state of the internet had been reduced to a shallow caricature of its true potential. The only data this generation seemed to care about were the gigs on their mobile telephone devices – crude little rectangles that weren’t even capable of hosting a low-level hologram.

It was all necessary, of course. His discomfort paled in comparison to the enormity of their mission here. Mon-El had been predictably frosty since learning the truth about he and Imra’s… omittance of certain crucial details surrounding their arrival in this century, though Brainy knew it wouldn’t last. He’d calculated the odds - another few days, and Mon-El would have well and truly thawed.

Despite how important their being here was, it didn’t mean he had to like this century by any means. He’d been accessing all he could on the history of this time since Supergirl’s mission to Fort Rozz had gone sour, adding any and all significant events to his thought tracks on the slim chance he might be caught off guard again. He did not want to suffer the same humiliation as before. Being usurped by this Winn Schott on a technicality was nothing short of mortifying. Besides, how was he meant to have known about some ancient probe, anyway? How was he meant to know anything about how this backwards, primitive, exhausting time period operated?

But that was in the past. Winn had proven himself marginally more useful than Brainy had initially calculated, and though his teammates may have suspected he was avoiding the DEO for that reason, the truth was far less convoluted.

In all honesty, the DEO was a loud and chaotic hive of a building, flocked with soldiers who paraded themselves about this self-proclaimed masterpiece of modernity as though the technology there wasn’t outright laughable. Nothing responded to him as it should, in fact, nothing responded to him at all. It made his skin crawl being so isolated within his own network, to be so far removed from everything he had once relied on as indisputable fact. Imra and Mon-El had certainly noticed his discomfort, because they made no objection to his many transparent excuses to remain inside the ship.

Another recent and far more concerning discovery of the 21st century… were the people. Brainy had at first considered them a positive. After all, the likelihood of anyone recognising him for the stain that was his family name in this century was incredibly low. As far as the history books recorded, Brainiac had not visited Earth to date.

What they had failed to state was that the humans of the 21st century were not yet accustomed to sharing their planet with the outer universe.

Human/alien relations were not sturdy by any means, leading to an alarming trend in the acquisition of image inducer technology. Brainy was no stranger to such gadgets, they were sold as cheap toys where he was from, although there was little need for them in the 31st century. Perhaps on an occasion where the Legion were needed for a covert mission, although even those were usually operated by the espionage squad.

But to use an image inducer out of personal safety on an every-day basis? It sounded downright archaic.

Brainy had learned the hard way how humans took to his less-than normal appearance the first time he had ventured out on his own. Though Supergirl and her friends took no alarm to his natural visage, outside of the DEO, people were far less understanding.

A quick review of recent marketing trends had led to his own acquisition. Though there were changes to this century he was willing to make for the greater good - for Imra - he did not wish to do anything that might destabilise the already rocky relationship mankind had with their alien compatriots. Progress was around the corner, and Brainy very much wanted to keep it that way.

And so, not only was he to make nice with the technology here, but he was also made to adhere it to his own flesh.

The first chance he got, Brainy found himself alone in his quarters, fiddling impatiently with his newly acquired children’s toy.

He stared nervously at his reflection in the holographic mirror, making miniscule hand gestures across his face as he adjusted the inducer’s settings for human features. Even in this century, image inducers were a small but clever gadget, working on a psychic wavelength that affected the viewer’s perception of the user’s chosen presented image. Fortunately, that also made it the perfect tool for Brainy to connect with his own interface.

The device had, ironically, been designed first by L-Corp, a technology giant once owned by the notorious Lex Luthor - a name that had made it all the way to the 31st century in more than one sense of the word. Since Luthor’s incarceration, the company had been acquired by his sister. Lena. Brainy had heard Kara mention her name in passing already, enough that he understood her as an ally in this time. Though, a quick but thorough check of recent news articles circulating her endeavours showed that not everyone was on her side.

He could certainly relate to that.

From his research, he was confident that Lena’s mind was every bit as brilliant as her brother’s, perhaps more-so considering her pursuits towards good over ill. Though image inducers were still in a local testing phase, the plan was to release them worldwide within six months. No matter how Brainy felt about that, he couldn’t deny the results. The image inducer had done exactly as is had described.

Stood before him was a Querl Dox he no longer recognised.

It was still inarguably him, for his physical features had only been hidden behind a thin veil of human toned hair and skin. It was easier that way for human minds to adjust to the telepathic suggestion, and certainly made it simpler for Brainy to digest.

It was odd to say the least, and the longer he stared dumbfounded at his new reflection, the more he began to notice not what had been changed - but what was missing.

Silently, Brainy drew a hand across his forehead, watching the resultant frown lines that appeared across his freshly unblemished skin.

His inhibitors. Of course. How strange; he'd nearly forgotten what he looked like without them. It had been so long since…

No.

A shudder passed down Brainy’s spine. That was not something he was allowed to indulge. His appearance was his strength, his inhibitors his courage. To think of it as anything else was illogical. Wrong.

Besides, he’d dismissed the notion of dreaming a long time ago.

And yet, in that moment of vulnerability, he felt his mind relax, allowing a single thought to surface. One that he’d kept buried for far too long.

As Brainy continued to stare into the soft glow of his reflection, he watched as his image inducer latched onto that one renegade thought, spinning it into reality.

His human toned flesh was human no longer. Instead, it blossomed with green pigment, surfacing in blotches through his pores. The black hair he had decided upon was already lightening again, abstaining from its leeched colouring by halting a few shades short of pure white. Instead, after a few moments, it fell about his shoulders in a soft, free flowing blond, curling inward at odd ends, no longer coarse in appearance, but rather smooth and velvety.

His forehead remained bare, reinstated with the deep and healthy green of his people.

Brainy didn’t dare breathe, holding himself so still that his eyes began to burn.  

He couldn’t see his inhibitors, he couldn’t see them, and with that realisation, his chest swelled with an emotion that was hard to describe. It felt light and airy, rising to his head with a giddy thrill.

But the image inducer could only do so much. Invisible or not, he could still feel them beneath the illusion, a hum of energy in his ears he’d long ago taught himself to drown out.

They were heavy. It wasn’t something he thought about often, but they were. They pinched and irritated his skin, causing undue strain at his neck - yet more discomforts he’d learned to live with over the years. Because so long as they were there, he knew he posed no danger to anyone.

They would all be safe.

Don’t you want that, Querl?

Brainy flinched hard, revulsion twisting his stomach. With that, the image dispelled, and the next time he blinked his eyes open, he was blue again.

His inhibitors glowed hot on his face, as though spiting him for what he’d just done.

What had he just done…?

Brainy shook himself, jerking a hand to the side of his jaw, eager to continue his original preset. He ignored the tremor in his wrist, the telltale churn of nausea in his gut, and focused solely on finishing what he’d set out to achieve.

It was a silly toy, he reminded himself. Nothing more. It would help him present as human when necessary. That was all.  

He could not allow himself the comfort of such an absurd illusion again.

Besides, the feeling would pass, just like every intense emotion that had come before it – it would be curbed and then controlled.

And then, this uncomfortable sensation would go away.

Brainy made another hasty gesture, pre-emptively deleting the Coluan preset from the inducer’s memory file. It would not be needed.

Once he was satisfied with his human visage, he saved the settings for future use, waving away his holo-mirror with a certain level of relief.

Now that the trivial had been dealt with, he could sink his twelfth level mind into matters that were sure to take some of those nerves away.

After all, he still had a mission he needed to complete.