#at this point i would accept ''kara kent'' with open arms

[bisupergirl]

me wanting kara to get another solo that firmly places her on earth with a civilian supporting cast VS me not wanting to see her referred to as "kara danvers" ever again FIGHT

[supercorpkid]

Extraneous Variable 2

Error: n2.

Supercorp, Kara Danvers x Daughter!Reader, Lena Luthor x Daughter!Reader, Alex Danvers x Niece!Reader, Brainy x Reader.

Word count: 2520.

“AAAAAAAAAAH!” You yell when you realize, and you look at Kara on the other side rushing to open your lab door to understand why you’re yelling. “DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR!”

You look at the clothes they put next to you on the floor and sigh. They are not going to fit your very big and masculine body. And oh no, you have that between your legs.

“What’s wrong with your voice?” You hear Lena’s voice from the other side and look at Kara lowering her glasses. Oh no. You cover your very strange new body part, without touching it, and it’s Kara’s turn to yell.

“She’s a boy!” Kara screams covering her eyes. “My beautiful, beautiful baby girl is a boy now!”

“AND SHE’S NAKED!” You yell at them.

They all have different expressions. Kara looks terrified, like she just saw someone dying. Alex is laughing so hard next to them. Brainy looks like he’s doing some calculation to see where it all went wrong, and Lena is just shocked.

“Can someone get me some clothes?” You beg, trying not to look down at yourself.

“Go buy her something.” Lena says handing Kara her card. Kara flies away and comes back not long later with some bags.

“I’m going in.” She announces, like she’s going into a war, and you hide yourself behind a chair, like she couldn’t see more if she wanted to. “Oh, Rao. My poor little daughter.”

“Can you just toss me the bags and turn around?” You ask and she does exactly that. You’re into boy’s clothes in no time. “Ok, I’m decent.”

“Ok, ok. No need to freak out. We can reverse this.” Kara says and you look at her. She is clearly freaking out. She must be talking to herself.

“Yeah. Sure hope so.” You go to your lab door and open to everyone on the other side.

“My baby.” Lena touches your face, with tears on her eyes. “Oh no, you have a beard now.”

You touch your face and feel hair on your chin. This is worse than being a baby. Much, much worse.

“No.” You feel tears coming up. You’re the largest, tallest person in the room, and yet you feel so tiny and small and sad! “Mommy.” You turn to Kara. “I have a beard.”

“Oh, my poor sweet girl.” You have to bend yourself to fit into her arms, and it is still weird.

“I should’ve stayed a baby. Why are our lives so weird?” You mumble between your tears and feel Kara’s hand easing up your tense shoulders.

“We’ll figure this out, my love.” She passes her thumb on your forehead, then kisses it. It’s instinct, getting your bangs out of the way, before kissing your forehead. They’ve done it all your life, except now you don’t have bangs. You barely have hair if you’re being honest.

“You know what? You look handsome as a boy.” Aunt Alex jokes and you roll your eyes at her. “What should I call you? What name would you like to have if you were a boy?”

“Well, I would very much like not to be a boy right now!” You wipe your tears but see on her face that she’s trying to ease the mood. So you lean into it, otherwise you might just cry non-stop until you’re back into your old self. “But for now, just call me…” You look around trying to think. “Brainiac 6!”

“That’s funny.” But Brainy doesn’t look amused. “As a matter of fact, there is a Brainiac 6 in the family. I’m not quite sure you would like him.”

“Oooh, family drama!” Alex jokes and you smile.

“Who would think Coluans had such a dramatic background?” You add.

“Everyone?” Brainy misses the sarcasm on your voice, making you and Alex laugh harder.

“Would the three of you stop being funny and transform my babygirl back into a girl?” Lena asks. The three of you lower your heads, feeling embarrassed that Lena had to scold you. You all turn back to the computer and the alien tech in front of you.

“Oh no!” You look at the name on your phone, currently ringing. “It’s my girlfriend! I can’t pick up!” You give your phone to Kara. “Here, you answer!”

“Me?” She holds your phone like it’s a bomb in her hands. “Why me?”

“Because I can’t talk to her with a man’s voice, and if I don’t answer she’ll worry. So just make something up!”

“Then have Lena answer!” She tries to pass the phone to Lena, who ignores it.

“Momma, please!”

“Oh boy.” Kara complains, accepting the call, and slowly putting the phone on her ear, like it’s about to explode. “Oh, hi Maya. It’s, um, it’s Mrs. Danvers! So sorry, she can’t talk right now. No, no, she’s fine. She’s just…” She looks around trying to come up with a lie. “Grounded!” She yells, and you furrow your eyebrows at her. “Yeah, I-I had to ground her, ‘cause she…” Kara is hyperventilating in front of you. “Did something bad. Anyways, I had to take her phone away, so you won’t be able to talk to her for a while? I don’t know how this thing works, but yeah. Ok, have a nice day! Bye!”

“Really? You grounded me?” You take the phone from her hands and put it back in your pocket. “Couldn’t have thought of a more believable lie?”

“It’s believable!” Kara says, getting an eyebrow rise from everyone in the room except Brainy.

“Hardly.” He says, instead. “It’s 10% believable. If you had, however, said that Lena was the one who did the grounding, the lie would’ve been 85% believable.”

“Whatever.” Kara huffs upset, crossing her arms. “I’m so going to ground you someday just to shock everyone.”

“Mhm, honey. Sure you will.” Lena shushes her, and you turn your face to the other side to laugh at her. Kara is such a dork.

You’ve been at it for a while now. Brainy seems to have understood the logic of the alien tech, and then misunderstood it a few times by now. You also don’t have any idea of what was done and how the hell you were turned into a freaking boy.

“I need, um, help.” You whisper to Kara and point to your new private part with your head. She looks down on it with furrowed eyebrows.

“Can’t help with that.” Kara tries to move away from you, and you hold her arm, pulling her back to where you’re standing.

“How do I pee with this thing?” You whisper, terrified someone else might be able to hear you.

“You hold it, aim, and shoot.”

“Are you sure you’re not thinking about a gun?” Kara holds her laugh at that and pulls Lena until she is in front of you.

“Ask your mom, I have to be anywhere, but here.”

“What’s wrong?” Lena asks and you look down on your body. Why does it feel so weird to talk to Lena about that? Maybe you should just google it.

“Besides the fact that I’m a boy now? Nothing. I’m fine. It’s fine.” You walk backwards, cursing Brainy for messing with the alien tech and not being able to bring you back.

It’s late at night when they all decide they are done for the day. You try to protest, spending another day on a boy’s body sounds terrifying, but Alex and Brainy don’t give in and Lena looks scared to touch the tech that wiped her memory. You also think it’s best if Kara doesn’t try anything. So you accept your fate and go home.

“It’s not that bad.” Kara says, lifting your chin up, and you roll your eyes at her. “It could be worse.”

“How? I look like a blonde version of Superboy.”

“Good thing your girlfriend is pansexual!” Kara smiles at you, trying to find the silver line. There is none.

“She’s not going to see me like this! I don’t even want to see myself like this. I have been wanting to go to the bathroom for hours now, and there’s no way I’m going to shower with this whole thing happening down there.”

“Just tuck in and sit.” Lena says coming into the living room and you nearly vomit at the thought.

“Ok, I don’t want to know how you know that.” Kara says and you hold your laughter.

“It makes way more sense than ‘hold, aim and shoot’.”

“What do you think it is? A gun?” Lena asks and you point at her with a victorious smile on your face.

“That’s what I said!”

Lena and her impressive power of reading your mind.

Turns out peeing is not as bad as you thought, at least not now that Lena told you that you don’t have to touch it, and you can sit down while doing so. Still, you don’t shower. That’s next level weird and you’re not ready for it yet.

It’s morning and you’re in the kitchen with your moms and it almost feels like your typical routine. It’s only when you talk and your voice startles them, that you realize none of this is normal. You can’t wait until you’re out of this body.

“Alex said she and Brainy are on their way to L Corp for an early start. Do you mind going there and letting them in your lab?” Kara asks and you stand up right away.

“Are you kidding? Do I mind? I might kiss them when I get there!” You rush to the door, ready to fly away. The good thing about being a boy is that you don’t have to hide your secret identity. This might as well be one.

You open the door and look at Maya on the other side. You see her finger hovering the bell like she was just about to ring it.

Oh no, this can’t be happening! Maya is not supposed to be here! She is not supposed to see you like this! No one is supposed to see you like this.

“Hi.” You try, making your voice sound lower than it already is. Which is damn stupid because she never even heard this voice before.

“Hey! I’m-”

“Maya, yeah, I-I know.” You blink at her while she looks at you very confused. Her eyebrows are pinched together and she’s biting her lower lip. “Oh!” You scratch the back of your head. “I’m-um-I’m, you know it’s a long story. But I’m-”

“She’s my-I mean-he.” Kara looks at you with wide eyes. “He is my nephew! Yeah. Jon Kent.”

“Oh, right. Hi, it’s nice to meet you.” Maya raises her hand, and you grab it, giving the weirdest handshake in history.

“I’m sorry to say that your girlfriend is still pretty much grounded.” Kara says, giving Maya a smug smile. “Because you see, I can ground her too! It’s not just Lena! I’m strong enough to do so and I know it sounds surprising but-”

“You know, I don’t think she is surprised.” You stop her, before she blows this for you. “She grounded her own daughter. How crazy, right!”

“Yeah. Wild.” Maya laughs with you. You see a little tinkle in her eyes and you’re almost sure she can see right through your manly body. “I just stopped by to give her this.” She hands Kara a bag with a smile. “I’ll see her when the grounding is over!”

“Which, by the way, I don’t know when that will be. Because I’m still pretty mad at her.” You look at Kara, looking everything but mad, and you sigh.

“Nice to meet you, Maya!”

“Nice to meet you, Jon.” She narrows her eyes at you. “Jon Kent.”

You feel like the collar on your shirt is suddenly too tight around your neck. You try to breathe, but why is the air of the world suddenly gone?

“See you later, Mrs. Danvers.” Maya shrugs and turns around. You’re almost breathing again when you hear. “Tell my girlfriend I’ll wait for her.”

You and Kara look at each other with wide eyes and mouth agape.

“Will do!” Kara says, waving at Maya. “This can’t get any worse, right?” Kara whispers through her smile while still waving at Maya who is not even looking at both of you anymore.

“Sure it can. Just give yourself a minute.” You pat her back and get inside the house. “Why did you tell her I was Jon? What will happen when the real Jon Kent comes to visit?”

“Well, I don’t know! I’m not good at lying on the spot. Neither are you, by the way! You looked like you were about to combust into flames!”

“Next time, I’ll just ask mom! At least she can lie better.” You point at Lena, who agrees with her head without looking at you.

“Yes, Luthors are great at lying and, the ones who are blessed with, also have great hair.” She smiles looking up and gives you and Kara a few minutes to recover from the burst of laughter. “Can we go now?”

“Only if you tell Alex that joke.” Kara agrees and Lena smiles, much too content with herself.

You get to your lab faster than Kara and Lena, and at the same time Brainy and Alex get there. Brainy thinks he’s got it, so you stay by his side for moral support.

You hear a click on your back, and you look behind you to see aunt Alex with her phone pointed at you.

“Jamie was curious.” She explains and you roll your eyes. “Can you turn to me so I can send one of your face?”

“Are you guys serious right now?” You ask and she shrugs.

“It’s not everyday you get turned into a boy, kiddo!” She jokes and you turn to the camera and give her your best smile. She sends the picture to Jamie and giggles at her phone. “Kelly and Jamie said you’re a catch!”

“Ugh. Go faster Brainy!”

Lucky for you, he indeed knows how to reverse it. Or he looks like he knows. You guess you’ll see. Kara and Lena get there, and you feel confident in trying now.

“Should we leave the room?” Kara asks, and Brainy denies with his head.

“I believe I mastered a way of only affecting the man in the room, so you three can stay and I’ll step outside for a minute. Alex?” He calls and she comes closer. “Just press this when I’m out of the room.”

“Got it.” She gives him two thumbs up, and you watch Brainy making his way out of the room. “Ready, babyboy?”

“Ugh, just go on with it already.” You beg and it doesn’t take her much more to press the button Brainy told her.

The room flashes blue, and you stand in front of a mirror excitedly. You see your image changing from boy to girl and you almost jump in excitement.

“YES! IT WORKED!” You yell, so damn happy you actually jump and squeaky. “Guys! I’m me again!”

You turn around to look at Kara, Lena and Alex.

“AAAAAH!”

“WHAT!”

“What the actual FUCK!”

Notes:

Another funny prompt by @oncemoonie I’m having way too much fun with this series.

[anxiousnerdwritings]

(Part 1) zoydzlhfxfzmbdd BRUH. BRUH. BRUH. your writing is phenomenal! Like, can I get the number of the Demon you sold your soul to for writing talent? Because ugh its so fucking good. I love your concepts and headcanons and they're always so in character and fit so well with each yandere like a terrifying PBJ sandwich 🥪. If you're not busy, can I get some uh platonic yandere Superman? Like, just imagine him adopting a dumbass vigilante reader and getting uber protective when he realises

Yandere Platonic!Superman/Clark Kent x Daughter!Reader

Once Clark meets you as your vigilante persona and sees how reckless and careless you really are, he just knows he has to take you in as his own. He's not like Bruce who will gradually get to the point of taking you under his wing and bringing you into the family, no Clark rushes in head first, much like yourself. Now, he knows you're not of legal adopting age but the doesn't keep him from deciding henceforth you will be his daughter.

When Clark does make his fateful visit, your fate was already decided before he even got to your apartment complex. He either got the address from Bruce or from one of the many nights he followed you home, just to ensure you got back safely and without incident. Speaking of which, he'll have to have talk with you about how you late you come home, barely leaving any time for you to get a restful amount of sleep.

Once you open the door and see Superman in all his superhero glory (he didn't even bother changing) you don't have enough time before he's already inside your apartment, looking around and taking everything in. It's obvious that you're a broke college student just by how bare and empty the place is. You're still babbling on about how he found you and what the hell's going on. Clark already thinks this place isn't good enough for you by any means. Looking through your cupboards only to find cup'o'noodles, peanut butter and RedBull. Yeah this isn't going to fly with him. He's surprised you've made it this far on your own, but now you don't have to survive by yourself cause Clark's here now.

You won't be able to talk your way out of anything with Clark, if he has his mind already set on something then that's what he's gonna go with. You'll be packed up and moved into his house in no time, probably the same night he comes to your apartment. You're pretty sure you're being kidnapped and you are, but Clark's just taking his daughter home. He's too delusional and too far gone to see his actions as anything other than what they are and to him, he's taking care of his precious baby girl and making sure your needs are met.

If you have a job, Clark will be there especially if it's a job like being a cashier, server, or something of the sort. He'll drop by to check in on you and make sure everything's going well. He doesn't necessarily like you working, he and Lois could take care of you, but it is a proud moment to see his Daughter being responsible and doing grown up things. He'll take sneaky photos of you while your working just to send them to Lois or Bruce, bragging about how well you're working and how much of a little worker bee you are. All the while you're having an existential crisis about this strange man who keeps referring to himself as your Dad and how he basically kidnapped you the day before, after not even meeting him for the first time.

Speaking of Lois, she and the rest of the Superfamily have already been well aware of Clark bringing you home, he hadn't stopped talking about leading up to the day he actually brought you home. Lois was hesitant and apprehensive about at first but once he brought you home, she saw exactly what Clark had seen in you. In that moment she accepted that this was the best choice for you. You're still very much in a panic over the whole thing especially when you're all sitting at the dinner table and everyone's acting like this is what you've all been doing for years, being completely normal and not uttering a word about what all has gone down in the last few days.

If you have a boyfriend or girlfriend, you won't anymore after Clark finds out. He won't allow you to date at any age, you're going to stay his precious baby girl. He can't fathom the thought of you getting married or having kids, not that he's opposed to grandkids, he just is opposed to everything leading up to grandkids. He wants to keep in his mind that you're his pure and innocent daughter and that no one has tainted you or anything. If you've already had intimate relationships, it would be best to keep that to yourself.

Clark is always listening to your heart beat, keeping track of even the smallest changes in the rhythmic beating. He'll use his x-ray vision while you're both out on patrol to check for any internal damage or injuries. God forbid if he finds any, you're being rushed to the hospital right away, no ifs, ands, or buts. He'll stay with you the whole time. Now if Clark knows who hurt you or even the slightest inkling they're a goner. He'll track them down and beat them to a pulp, maybe even killing them in the process.

Clark probably has a parenting book about How to Raise a Daughter. He'll take advice from Lois, Kara and Karen but he'll usually go with his gut. He'll treat you a lot like a toddler or middle schooler than an actually college aged person. When you're old enough to drink, he'll probably have a heart attack. Clark just can't take the thought of you going to a bar and getting drunk and then the thought of some grubby drunk person hitting on you or making you feel uncomfortable just gets him all kinds of angry. Lois would be the voice of reason, telling you to date and to go out and have fun but to be safe about it, while Clark is off to the side with his arms crossed and huffing like a child who didn't get his way. If you do go out, Clark will follow whether as Superman or where some ridiculous disguise.

God forbid if you actually do sneak out and go on dates behind his back, Clark will feel both betrayed and upset. He'll pull that "I'm not mad, just disappointed" card on you and you'll probably feel like a piece of shit for making him upset. But then you remember that this man KIDNAPPED YOU and MADE YOU HIS DAUGHTER!!!! But the psychological aspect of being told that you disappointed someone does hit deep and you'll probably come around to apologizing to him and promising him you won't do it again. He'll use that on you a lot to make you more compliant.

If you do have your own REAL family and you're close with them, Clark will probably orchestrate something to get rid of them. Like some sort of weird accident or putting the blame on a specific villain. He was just a little too late to save them and he'll hold you as you collapse into his arms crying. As much as it kills Clark to see you hurting, it had to be done. He'll be right by your side the whole time, even at the funeral he'll be right there for you. You won't feel alone with Clark around, he'll make sure of it. If you want space Clark will hesitantly give it to you, but he's using his super hearing and x-ray vision to make sure you're okay, periodically checking in on you using his powers. You don't know what all you've gotten thrown into and you won't be able to claw your way out of it, it's just best to play along and keep the facade going on. Who knows maybe you'll believe sooner or later, maybe you'll become just as delusional as your "dad", if only.

[thevindicativevordan]

My Superfamily Set-Up

By and large I’m fairly happy with the upcoming Infinite Frontier status quo for the Superfamily. Granted that’s in part because I’m still convinced Kara will get an ongoing or mini in 2021, probably to coincide with her show returning, and PKJ hinted at plans for Steel on Twitter. But Kon has escaped the Titans dumpsterfire for a little while, and I’ve heard good things about Thompson as a writer as well. Kenan is popping back up in a one shot written by Yang that will hopefully herald more appearances in Batman/Superman. Jon is still co-protagonist with Clark in the main books, Tanya is in the Future State Shazam book and also a candidate for the FS Justice League book, so hopefully she’ll be in Titans Academy, and Lois is poised to be a big player in the upcoming Checkmate mini by Bendis. So fingers crossed, all the core members of the Superfamily will be in stuff come end of 2021.

Now that said, were DC to suddenly realize that I alone can save Superman, and asked me what kind of status quo I would like (whether for a mainline or Elseworld book makes no difference to me), this is the basic set up that I would go with:

Superman - I’d do a traditional status quo. Superman is disguised as Clark Kent, mild mannered reporter, married to Lois Lane, etc. I’d have Ma and Pa go back to being dead since I still am not a fan of them being alive. Note that this isn’t a reaction against Bendis, I loved Bendis’ run, but I do want to play with the traditional status quo a little bit before diving into something different. Especially since so many Superman writers have traditionally completely wasted the potential of Superman’s status quo.

Lois Lane - Similar to Superman I’d go with a more traditional status quo at the start. She works at the Daily Planet, she and Clark are married, she’s the best reporter in town, etc. I would eventually have her take over as editor-in-chief of the Daily Planet from Perry, I thought that was a great idea the New 52 wasted, and I love the idea of her and Cat Grant being rivals with the Daily Planet and Catco competing. 

Jon Kent - I’d restore kid Jon and toss him back to the Super Sons, not because I think what’s been done with him has been bad, but mostly because I don’t want to write him as Superman, I want to write Clark. Jon seems to be being set up to be co-Superman, and I just don’t have any interest in writing that. To restore kid Jon without destroying Bendis’ run which I enjoyed, I’d explain that teen Jon is actually the “evil” Jon we saw from the Super Sons of Tomorrow future. He went back in time and rescued his kid self from Earth 3, and explained to him that he wanted to prevent that future from coming to pass, but that he needed to take his younger self’s place to do so. Kid Jon agreed, after all he was terrified of becoming evil in both Tomasi’s Super Sons of Tomorrow and Bendis The Man of Steel, and has basically been in hiding watching the events and also studying Hypertime so he can learn how to avoid ending up evil. 

Clark and Lois would blow up at the Jons for the lie when Teen Jon judges he’s changed things enough for his kid self to return, but both Jons could point out that both Clark and Lois have kept secrets when they deemed it necessary from each other and Jon. That would be a neat conversation to have, and a way to continue the untraditional family dynamic that Bendis set up. You could keep teen Jon as a time anomaly until Hypertime catches up with him and restores him to his timeline, with him continuing to be Superman as penance, while kid Jon goes and pals around with Damian in Williamson’s Robin or whatever.

Superwoman/Kara Zor-El - I like the idea of Kara “graduating” to the Superwoman name. It’s open right now given Lana’s retirement, and I think it would suit Kara. I would keep Kara in National, it’s her own little corner to play in, but I would keep that development from (I believe it was) Andrea Shea, where Kara gets fired from Catco because she’s a terrible intern due to always running off to be a heroine. She and Kal talk, Kara admits she doesn’t really want to be a journalist, and so she goes and interns at STAR Labs. I hate how DC keeps turning all the members of the Superfamily into Clark clones. It’s goddamn stupid and I want them to please STOP. Why the hell would Kara want to go into journalism anyway? We’ve never even seen a damn journalist on Krypton! It’s a stupid thing they did on the TV show because they wanted to swipe Clark’s stuff. Let Kara be the scientist of the Els, the one who carries on the family tradition. What form that takes is something I’m open too, I liked Venditti making her interested in history in his annual, maybe make Kara an anthropologist? That would be hilarious. 

Also give Lena to Supergirl, they can be best friends, enemies, lovers, I don’t care. But Lena is wasting away in a vault under Lexcorp last we saw, and that’s a damn shame considering how popular CW Lena is. I’d also add Natasha Irons (who I’d rename Mastersmith) and Tanya Spears (Powerhouse) to Supergirl’s supporting cast, they could play off each other as three supergenuis women).

Kon-El/Conner Kent/Scion - I’m really excited to see what Thompson is going to do with Kon on the Suicide Squad, but here’s what I would do with him. Kon would finally be able to shake off the Superboy moniker and leave that to Jon. Instead he’d take the name “Scion” as a reflection of his origins, and a tie-in to his new status quo. In the wake of Death Metal, Lex Luthor would abruptly step down as head of Lexcorp, stating that he needs time to redefine himself in the wake of his latest attempt to justify himself as the true hero by serving Perpetua, ending up with him needing Superman to save the day again. While he is away, he’s turned over complete control of Lexcorp to his sole heir: Conner. Conner is now head of one of the evilest megacorps in existence, and is one of the wealthiest men alive. Conner knows this is just another maneuver by Lex in his neverending crusade against Superman, but he’s determined to not just be another pawn. He accepts control, renames Lexcorp Superman, Inc. His mission will be to transform the megacorp into the force for good it pretends to be. Conner will have to take on not only Lex loyalists and traitorous underlings who would love to be CEO themselves within Lexcorp, but new megacorps who have flocked to Metropolis in hope of establishing themselves, now that the former Master of Metropolis has abdicated his throne. Threats within and threats without, but armed with the powers/morals of Superman and the charm/brains of Lex Luthor, Kon is just cocky enough to think he can handle it.

John Henry Irons/Steel - It will be a big year for John Henry Irons. His private company Steelworks is about to go public and make him a billionaire. Lana Lang has accepted his marriage proposal and they’re due to be wed. His niece Natasha has left the nest and is off working at STAR Labs. Irons is posed to finally resurrect the decrepit Suicide Slum and allow it to catch up to the rest of the City of Tomorrow. However there are problems: new megacorps are moving into the city in the wake of Lex Luthor leaving, people are disappearing from Suicide Slum with dark rumors are spreading about the reasons why, and the people of Suicide Slum are accusing Irons of planning to gentrify the borough. Making matters worse, weapons that Irons designed as a young man are appearing on the streets of Metropolis, attracting negative attention from the media and putting Steelworks at risk. Irons is going to have to suit up and take up the fight all over Metropolis, from the darkest levels of the Undercity, to the bright deceptive board rooms at the top of skyscrapers in the city’s heart. Irons will have to reckon with his past to secure his future, and confront the evil Metropolis would rather pretend doesn’t exist.

Kenan Kong/New Super-Man - Look just give Yang a damn Kenan book and let him go wild. Right now is either the best or worst time to give Kenan a book given the situation with Hong Kong, but if anyone is equipped to deal with it, it’s Yang. I’ll just add that I would love to see Kenan on a Global Guardians team, but I’d also love to see Justice League of China as a spinoff book of the main Justice League. Kenan is as close as DC has come to their own Spider-Man/Invincible take on Superman, Jon sadly hasn’t really differentiated himself from his dad while Kenan is VERY different. I would love to see Kenan pushed more and would buy a new book in a heartbeat. Also put out a damn New Super-Man omnibus Jim Lee, for God’s sake can’t you abuse your power to push the character you wanted created and is actually good unlike most of Wildstorm? You’re shoving Grifter back into everything but not Kenan? Christ.

So yeah that’s the Superfamily status quo I’d establish. Keeping my Clark and Lois ideas close to my chest for now, but I might go into more detail later.

[cyclone-rachel]

After the incident with Jonathan (and incident was the kindest word that could be used to describe what happened) Jordan didn’t want to see anyone.

No- it was more than that. He couldn’t be around anyone. There was too much of a risk- his head hurt all the time now, his eyes burned, his hands shook. Who could say, if the next punch he happened to throw would end up causing someone to break even more than what happened to Jonathan’s arm, or if when he looked at someone the wrong way, they wouldn’t burst into flames? Whenever he got up to walk anywhere, he had no idea if it would turn into him running at super-speed, as far away from everyone he knew as he wished he could go sometimes, or if he would just take off and his feet would never find ground again.

And yet, people still wanted to talk to him.

After he and his dad left the Fortress of Solitude, Jordan went back to his room, wearing a pair of noise-cancelling headphones. They were supposed to help- along with the lead-lined glasses that Dad promised to make for him, that would cancel out his X-ray vision and heat vision.

(He didn’t want to wear the glasses, and knew he couldn’t for football, but at the same time, he couldn’t imagine not wearing them, and maybe hurting more people.)

Still, though, he heard the knock on his door.

“Go away.” He shouted, as he started up some video game or another.

“Jordan.” The person outside his door said. “May I please come in?”

It wasn’t a voice he’d ever heard before, and whoever it was didn’t sound like they were going to kill him. So he slowly took his headphones off, still carrying them in one hand as he got up and opened the door to find a still-unfamiliar man on the other side.

“I apologize, for the interruption.” He said.

“You weren’t interrupting anything.” Jordan answered, sitting down on his bed. “What’s going on? Are you gonna lecture me? Because my parents already did that, and I’ve had enough of it for one day.”

“No.”

“What?”

“No, I will not lecture you. In fact… I hope that I can help you, Jordan Kent. But for now, I just wish to talk.”

“Would be helpful if you told me what your name is.”

“Ah, yes. That was insensitive of me.”

He pressed some kind of invisible button on his forehead, and in place of his human appearance was a blond man with the same hairstyle, but green skin and a purple and gray super-suit, with three white circles on his chest that made a very familiar symbol.

“Brainiac?” Jordan asked, scooting backwards on the bed, away from him. “What the hell?”

The Brainiac sighed.

“Not the one you are thinking of.” He said. “I am Brainiac 5. Half-computer, half organic lifeform, all Coluan- and not to brag, but a recently uninhibited twelfth-level intellect. My name is Querl Dox, but my friends- past and present- just call me Brainy.”

“Brainy.” Jordan repeated. “Sure.”

“I work with Kara Zor-El- you may know her as your Aunt Kara, although she is technically your second cousin. Or, you may call her…”

“Supergirl?”

Querl nodded.

“Indeed.”

“What… why are you here?”

“You will have to be more specific. Does “here” mean Smallville, or this planet, or this century? There are different answers for each.”

“This century?”

“Yes, I am from the thirty-first- though it is unsafe for me to return, so I am here. Though in the case that that wasn’t the question you were asking and you just wanted elaboration on that one point… there is a long story as to how I came to Earth. And as for Smallville… well, there are versions of myself who once recruited your father, long ago. They trained him, helped him to accept and use his powers to best serve and protect humanity, uphold truth, justice, and the American way- as the phrase goes. I am not here for that exact purpose today, for you, but… I thought you could use another perspective.”

“So you came here out of the goodness of your heart or something, and not because Mom or Dad told you to?”

“If you want to think so, yes.” Querl said. “But I was informed of what has happened recently. Will that be more believable to you?”

Jordan shrugged, and Querl looked at the space beside him on the bed.

“May I sit down with you?”

After Jordan rolled his eyes, he nodded, and once Querl was sitting, he gave him the whole story.

“I… when I was younger than you are, I too hurt a family member I cared for deeply.” Querl said, turning to look at him once he’d finished. “My father- my one hope that I could become someone other than my ancestors. And yet… I still lost control of my emotions. I saw him as the enemy, depriving me of what was my right to have. My first bottled planet, given to me by my mother- I understand now that it is barbaric, but I thought the practice was beautiful. Inside of the bottle, the snow would never melt, time itself would stop- it cannot truly do so, but the point is that it would be preserved. That perfect moment, a reminder that once, just for a little while, I forgot who I was and where I came from. We were just a normal family, and I was playing in the snow, and it was good. I could not let my father take that away from me. So when he tried, I…”

He ran a hand over his forehead.

“It took a long time for me to accept that I did not deserve what he did to me in retaliation.” He said. “I hope, Jordan, that your path will be smoother than mine.”

“What he did…” Jordan murmured. “You said you were recently uninhibited. Did he… inhibit you, or something?”

Querl gave him a sad smile.

“I wish I could tell you otherwise. But yes, he did- and I let myself remain inhibited for over twenty years, because I was so afraid of what I could be without them. Because my own father ingrained such a fear of my potential, my ancestors, into me, that he did not trust me to overcome them, and as a result, caused me to not trust myself.”

“But you trust yourself now.”

“Yes. But as I said, it was not an easy thing to accomplish. However, you are still young, and your parents have no interest in inhibiting you.”

“What if I don’t want powers at all?” Jordan asked. “My brother’s the one who should have them. Especially after I- what I did.”

“I have heard that before.” Querl said. “In another circumstance.”

“And what happened with that?”

“It is a work in progress. But she is still learning, as are you- as all of us are.”

“Even you?”

Querl nodded.

“And Supergirl, and your father, and your mother, and Jonathan. Learning is, in some ways, the point of continuing to live- and just as I learned that I was more than my family, that I could use their power for good, you have so much to discover about your powers, and your own family and history.”

“And then I won’t hate myself?”

“I am not sure about that. It’s up for you to decide.”

Jordan scowled.

“Apologies. But… if you have other questions…”

Querl reached for a pocket in his suit, and withdrew a gold and black ring.

“This was in the Fortress of Solitude- it was your father’s. However, though it is now from a different timeline, it is still connected to every other Legion ring in this century. Namely, the one belonging to Supergirl, and my own. So if you wish to talk to either of us-“

“You’re always around, I get it.” Jordan said. “My dad has something like this.”

“Yes, the Signal Watch. I am aware of such technology.” Querl answered. “It is the same principle.”

“Right. I guess you have to get going now.”

“I do.” He said, and gently placed a hand on Jordan’s shoulder. “Farewell, Jordan Kent. And good luck.”

“Bye, um… Brainiac 5. Thanks.”

“You are very welcome.”

And, as it turned out as he started up a game, he found that he was- thankful, that is. And he already missed Brainiac 5’s presence, hoping that he’d see him again soon.

[fishfingersandjellybabies]

The Easiest Difficulty - fic

Characters: Damian Wayne, Jon Kent Pairing: jondami Summary: It was a simple choice, for both of them. The simplest choice. Or really, it should have been. A/N: In the same AU as Long Time, No See (where Damian left vigilantism completely). This takes place over a few years, though is not every instance they share on the topic/life stresses (ie Jon’s doubts on being a hero etc) and by the end, Damian is 27/28 and Jon is 24/25. Sorry if this is weird/has plotholes. I just wanted some jondami fluff and shit. They both date other people but obviously not seriously. This is one of those 5x1 fics, but I’m bad at that format so not really haha.

~~

There were signs. Signs he chose to ignore but, in hindsight, probably should have used to escape instead. The girls at the front desk squealing with delight and chattering loudly. The office animals barking and meowing in greeting. Even Zooki, the cat he brought to the office with him every day, sat up, sniffed the air, and started purring.

Yeah, he shouldn’t have ignored those signs.

“Uh, D?” He glanced up towards the receptionist sticking her head in the door. Her smile was too bright, too excited. “You have a visitor.”

“Adopter?”

“Personal.”

“Let them in, I suppose.” He sighed, dropping his pen and leaning back in his chair. His family knows better than to bother him at work. And if they absolutely feel the need to, to call first. No surprise visits.

The receptionist nodded and disappeared, only to be replaced a moment later by a dark-haired man in dirty jeans and an ugly flannel shirt.

Damian’s frown deepened. And he couldn’t help but feel betrayed when his beloved Zooki rose from her perch to go greet their guest.

“…Jonathan.” He grumbled as he fixed his glasses, standing anyway.

“Hi.” Jon grinned, and suddenly produced a bouquet from behind his back. Roses of all different colors. “Happy Valentines Day.”

Ah. Now he understood why the front office was so giddy.

Still, Damian couldn’t help but smirk as he approached, and accepted the flowers. Zooki purred from between their feet.

“Cheater.” Damian mumbled, his nose dipped in the petals. “You can’t box me in with a romantic holiday.”

“I’m not trying to box you in.” Jon denied. “I’m just trying to ask you on a date.”

“And I gave you my stipulations.” Damian glanced up, keeping his face in the flowers. “Have you met them?”

Jon glanced down.

“…Jon?”

“Can’t you just like, put those off for now? For one date?” Jon mumbled, shuffling his foot. “Just so I can treat you for a few hours, for once?”

Damian sighed, and opened his mouth to respond, but Jon kept rambling.

“I mean, what if it goes horribly? What if it turns out our clearly mutual crushing was all for naught because we’re both terrible people and so we’ll never go out again? Then your stipulations won’t even be necessary!”

“Or, we could fall head over heels in love and be unable to live without each other. Then my stipulations would be very important.” Damian countered. “Trust me – I don’t like saying no to you like this. But it’s important to me, so I’d hope it’d mean something to you too.”

A pause.

“…So?”

“No.” Jon exhaled. “I haven’t met your stipulations.”

Damian clicked his tongue, and finally removed his face from the flowers. “Thank you for the gift, Jon. I truly do appreciate it.”

“…Can we at least get lunch while I’m here?”

Damian shook his head, turning away and returning to his chair. “I’m swamped with paperwork. Not to mention I need to start preparations for this weekend’s adoption event.”

“…Okay, no problem.” Jon gave him a smile, but Damian didn’t look at it, knowing it would be sad. “Call me when you’re free?”

“Only if you promise to call me if you are.” Damian returned. Jon gave a bitter laugh and turned away.

~~

Damian pulled at his bowtie. He hated these things. Hated the monkey suits, hated the guests. Hated how fake it made his family, and even himself.

He also hated the inevitable kerfuffle when a bad guy tried to crash the party.

And this night was no different. The only thing that was maybe a little strange was that he’d had enough champagne not to care all that much when a gun was shoved in his face, or when he was shoved into a chair next to Tim and threatened.

Hell, he and Tim even toasted, clinking their glasses together and gulping their drinks down as the criminals screamed for Bruce to pay for their lives.

It’d been a crummy week at Wayne Enterprises. A crummy week at the animal shelter. They were allowed to have this.

The plus side of getting out of the hero life – he could sit back and relax, not waste much energy attempting to save himself. And his brother was probably too tired at this point to even try. Finishing the booze in his hand was much more important than his life at this point.

Besides – they knew they didn’t have to try tonight anyway. Their Super counterparts were watching for this exact moment, and it wasn’t long before the ballroom was being invaded by red capes, and various poorly designed uniforms.

Honestly, a leather jacket? A hoodie? A skirt? And Clark’s was just ugly, no matter how many times he tweaked it.

Regardless of their aesthetics, they were good at their jobs, and quick. There was still champagne in Damian’s own glass when he felt Jon’s arms wrap protectively around him, and whisk him away to safety on a nearby roof.

“You’re safe now, Mr. Wayne.” Jon drawled, watching as his family landed around the city with the rest of Damian’s family.

“Oh, gee.” Damian returned, just as sarcastically, downing the rest of his drink. He saw one of his would-be captors try to escape through a balcony door, and threw the empty glass at him with a well-aimed shot, shattering it along his temple. “How could I ever repay you?”

Jon laughed. “Well, you know, a kiss would be nice. That’s what a lot of the middle-aged women we rescue offer. Even to Kara.” He smirked, stepping closer. “And that’s a payment I’ll gladly accept from you.”

Damian stared incredulously up at him. “Sorry, I’m not a middle-aged woman.” He drawled, then gave a smirk of his own. “And I’m more into farmers’ sons anyway.”

“Oh, come on-”

“And only farmers’ sons.” He backed up a step, holding his arms wide while looking around. “And unfortunately, all I see around here are superheroes, so. Guess I’ll keep my kisses to myself.”

“You’re the worst.” Jon whined with an annoyed chuckle.

“From where I’m standing?” Damian said softly. He glanced over the building, watched the cop cars start to arrive. He turned back just to watch Jon take to the sky. “That title is yours.”

~~

“I can’t believe it.” The old man said. One Mr. Sanchez, a twenty-four-year veteran of the Wayne Enterprises board of trustees. Damian was here with him because of the almost-kidnapping event at the gala a few months prior – his father was having a press conference today to talk about security, his family’s safety and how they’re coping, blah blah blah. The usual. Anyway, in Damian’s completely objective opinion - Sanchez’s mind was starting to go. “I can’t believe I know someone who has a superhero interested in him.”

Tim snorted into his water down the table.

“Trust me.” Damian sighed, keeping his voice even. He glanced fiercely at his brother. “It’s not all that uncommon.”

“I suppose.” Sanchez said. “But still! It must be exciting! Especially because it was a Super, no less!”

“There is nothing between the youngest Super-whatever and myself.” Damian droned boredly. “Regardless of what you and the idiot public think you see in that picture.”

“I don’t know, Mr. Wayne. This kind of chemistry is impossible to fake.” Sanchez said, holding up the newspaper in question. Above the fold, splashed across the page – Jon and Damian talking on the roof after Jon had rescued him from that party. Because, of course there weren’t any better or more relevant photographs of the event, right? “And in any case, it’s quite clear that Superboy is very smitten with you, regardless of what you claim. There are rumours about him, and even his heroics. The biggest one being he is only ever seen in Gotham on the rare occasion you are in town.”

“For one, he doesn’t go by Boy anymore, the whole world knows that. For two, I will tell you the same thing I told the reporter who emailed me about this drivel of an article.” Damian sighed, watching Dick come over to Tim, who was having a silent laughing fit behind his hand. He clearly asked Tim what was so funny, and Tim openly told him. Dick’s eyes shone in amusement as he looked up at Damian himself. Damian hated him. “I have no interest in my rescuer whatsoever, nor any superhero otherwise. Whom I’m romantically interested in is none of the public’s business, and I’d appreciate the courtesy of privacy.”

“Fair enough. You are a private citizen and wish to remain so. That’s why you left the limelight of Wayne Enterprises, I know, I know.” Sanchez waved off. “But, may I ask?”

Damian glanced at him.

“Why no superheroes?” Sanchez asked. “What turns you off to them? Even my mother said she’d leave her husband of fifty-seven years for the likes of Batman or Black Canary.”

“Because that’s not a world I want to be a part of. I had enough of all that Batman and Robin stuff growing up here. That’s part of why I left Gotham. Superheroes are nothing but trouble.” Damian explained. Then quieter, mumbled, “And what if they go out and don’t come home? What if they die in the field? Just because they’re heroes doesn’t mean they’re immortal. Doesn’t mean they can’t come back hurt and broken. And would you like to see that happen to someone you claim to love on a potentially daily basis?”

Sanchez didn’t answer that. He quickly dropped his gaze to the floor.

“And I, for one, have had enough loss and trauma in my life. So I’ll take a hard pass on a traumatic love life too, thank you.” Damian concluded. He let there be a pause of silence, then hummed, shaking his head as turned to the door to leave. “No, I’ll take the likes of…I don’t know, a poor farmer from Kansas over a superhero any day.”

~~

The only warning he got was all of his animals twitching their ears and turning towards the front door at the same time.

He glanced up from his papers as he came out of his office. “Wha-”

And that was all he could say before the door flew open, practically knocked off its hinges, and he was thrown back against the stairs by the weight of a body stumbling forward and falling on top of him.

“What…” Damian blinked, watching the papers he’d been holding float around them like giant snowflakes. His focus was slow in his surprise, but eventually his vision evened out, and he recognized the body on top of him as none other than: “Jon?!”

Jon grinned, sloppy and giddy. His eyes were blurry and his cheeks were red. He was in his farm work clothes – an old t-shirt, holey jeans and muddy boots.

“…Hi.” Jon hummed, making no move to get off of him. In fact, he did the complete opposite. Seemed to settle his weight against Damian as he reached up and gently ran his fingers over Damian’s face, along the arm of his blue glasses, glossy eyes darting across his features. “…You know, you look way better in glasses than I ever did.”

“…Jon?” Damian whispered, feeling his own face heat up, just a little. “Are you okay?”

“Peachy.” Jon nodded awkwardly. “You know, Pop won’t let me grow peaches. I think it’s ‘cause we don’t live in Georgia.”

“What? What are you talking about?” And no sooner was the question out of his mouth, the stench hit his nose. The smell of smoke, of greasy food, of too much beer. “Jon, are you-”

Jon’s eyelids fluttered, and he sighed happily as he pulled Damian’s glasses away from his face, in what he probably thought was a seductive move.

…Oh god, he was drunk.

“Jonathan.” Damian scolded.

“You’re pretty.” Jon countered, closing his eyes as he swayed back and forth a little bit. “Did you know that?”

“Jon, how much did you have to drink tonight?” Damian demanded. He put his hands on Jon’s chest, not so much to push him off, just to steady them both against the sharp corners of the steps. He glanced out the destroyed front door, and frowned. “Oh my god, Jon, did you fly here?!”

“I’ll fly to the moon.” Jon slurred, leaning in to brush his nose against Damian’s skin. And as much as he didn’t want it to, Damian felt his heart hammer in his chest, as Jon fell into a ridiculous rendition of Frank Sinatra. “Come fly with me, come fly, oh, let’s fly away…”

“Jon.” Damian tried. “Come on, you need to sleep this off.”

Jon didn’t break his song, just pressed his lips to Damian’s jaw, fingers curling into his hair.

“Who were you out drinking with? Do they know you’re here?” Damian pushed, but even he knew in his soul it was half-hearted. “I’ll need to call your parents…”

Jon stopped singing then, and just turned the tune into a hum as he brought his other hand up to hold Damian’s cheek. He opened his eyes now, and stared at him in a hazy bliss.

Damian gulped, and hated himself when he felt his fingers twitch tighter into Jon’s shirt.

“Jon…”

And Jon kissed him.

And Damian should have pushed him off. Jon was drunk, his stairs were digging into his back, the animals were making a racket and probably escaping, and his stipulations –

But god, Jon tasted so good.

So he indulged. Felt guilt and shame running all through his system, but goddamn, he indulged. Just for a second. For a few seconds.

Because of course, this was all he wanted. All he’d ever wanted. All Jon ever wanted too. And it’d be so easy…

But no. Because he was out. He was out and he refused to be dragged back in, or involved in any way past what his family forced him to be.

Even for his potential – total, absolute – soul mate.

So, sadly, when Jon pulled back for air, Damian turned his face away before Jon could dive back in. Put his hand against Jon’s mouth, and pushed him back as gently as he could.

“You’re drunk.” He sighed. Jon gave a little whine behind his fingers, but moved back as Damian sat up. “Come on, Jon. Let’s get you into the guest room.”

Jon outright groaned as Damian stood and pulled him to his feet by his hands, grabbed his glasses from where Jon had tossed them, and dragged him carefully up the stairs, into – what he believed was – the wrong bedroom.

~~

“Just like old times.” Jon smirked, throwing blankets towards the bed. Damian snatched them out of the air, rolling his eyes. “All those old sleepovers we had, like when our dads were working cases and stuff.”

He grabbed a few pillows from the shelf, then stepped over to Damian, very obviously standing purposefully in his personal space. Damian kept his scowl.

“I won’t make you sleep on the floor this time, though.”

“I’m not taking your bed, Jon. We’re adults, I can survive a few nights on the floor.” Damian mumbled. “Though frankly, the sooner this case of Grayson’s is over, the happier I’ll be.”

“Well, of course I agree. The sooner Dick and Dad find whoever’s threatening you and your dad, the happier I’ll be too.” Jon snorted. “And no, you’re not taking my bed. We’re sharing.”

Damian felt heat in his face. “Jon…”

“The bed’s big enough.” Jon grinned. “And like you just said – we’re adults, Damian. It’ll be fine.”

“I don’t know what you’re implying, but I won’t have a problem.” Damian spun away from him, unfolding the blankets and laying them out. “If there’s anything to worry about, it’s you and your…your crush.”

It was mean, borderline cruel. But it was the only way he could protect himself too.

Jon just laughed, though, and as soon as Damian had the blankets settled, flopped onto the bed.

“You wish it was just a crush.” He giggled. Damian let his frown deepen.

“No, I wish you would move on.” Damian scolded. He began to set up the pillows, began debating putting one between them as a barrier – just in case. “I wish you’d let yourself be happy instead of chasing lost causes.”

“I am happy. And I’m not chasing a lost cause.” Jon countered. “Even if we’re not together-together like we – I – may want to be, you’re still my best friend. You still make me happy.”

Damian pursed his lips, and kept his gaze on his task.

“Hey.” Jon suddenly took hold of his wrist, squeezing gently. “Don’t feel guilty about it, okay? I get it. I totally get it. You’re not being selfish, or greedy or anything. You got out, Damian. You got out of the mask, you have a life, you’re happy and safe and stable. You’re taking care of yourself. And you deserve that.”

“…I’m sorry I can’t be like your mother.” Damian murmured, still refusing to look. “I’m sorry I can’t…toe that line like she does. Or be able to have two completely separate lives like Grayson or Drake do.”

“Don’t apologize.” Jon repeated. “I’m glad you don’t. That means I don’t have to worry about you being out there getting hurt. Times like right now excluded, anyway.”

Damian closed his eyes. Jon gave his wrist another squeeze.

“And you’re not hurting me with your choice either.” He whispered. “I understand the ultimatum, I do. And I respect that.” He paused, and Damian felt him look out the window. “You don’t owe me anything, Damian. You don’t owe anyone anything. Not me, not your family, not the world. You always tell me to take care of myself; maybe you should listen to your own advice.”

“Love is about compromise.” Damian countered softly. “And I haven’t made any.”

“Neither have I.” Jon agreed. “In fact, if anything I should be apologizing to you. You gave me a simple choice, and I keep making the wrong one every day.”

“No you don’t.” Damian shook his head, opened his eyes, glanced at the other. “The world needs a Superman.”

“Yeah, and it has like four or five, even without me.” Jon laughed. “Honestly, I’m totally expendable. Which probably makes what I’m doing to you even worse.”

“You are not…!” Damian almost shouted. He stopped himself, though, and instead just pulled his hand from Jon’s. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore. I’m tired.”

“Same.” Jon allowed. He patted the bed next to him. Damian silently crawled in next to him, lying as close to the wall as he could. He waited a moment, knew Jon was watching him, then decided to put that pillow between them.

Jon snorted when he did so, and immediately tossed it to the floor. He scooted closer, hooking his chin over Damian’s head as he flopped his arm loosely around his waist.

“You’re here so I can protect you, remember.” He mumbled, like it was actually a valid explanation. Damian sighed, but didn’t shove him off. Didn’t make any move to return any affections, either. They laid in the silence for a moment, listening to the bugs chirp into the Kansas night. “…You’re always going to wait for me, aren’t you.”

“Always.” Damian promised quietly. “Unfortunately.” He added bitterly after. Another second, then: “And I guess I don’t have to ask you the same.”

Jon didn’t answer. Damian fell asleep.

~~

He was just finishing watering the plants on his back porch when the sun began to rise over the tree line. He’d found he enjoyed gardening in his new life, specifically early morning or late night gardening. When the neighborhood children were asleep or inside, and cars weren’t coming and going. When there was utter silence and peacefulness. Just him and his thoughts, and sometimes, if they were awake themselves, his animals.

The water in the can ran out, and he placed it on the porch railing next to his pot of blooming zinnias. He gave a contented sigh as he reached for his mug of steaming coffee, holding it in both hands as he took a long sip, and paused to watch the sky light up in deep oranges and pinks.

Then – his house gave a slight shake, and he could hear things inside falling off shelves.

He turned back towards the house, setting his coffee back on the table as the animals inside began to stir and bark in alarm. When he got in, he watched his pets all rush to the front window, staring anxiously at something in the front yard. Damian frowned and followed the mob, but instead of looking out the window, he moved to the front door and opened it, facing whatever threat it might have been head on, like he always had.

But it was no threat.

Standing in the center of a small crater localized to his front yard, stood a man in a red and blue hooded sweatshirt, torn, dirty and open, exposing a bloody and disgusting white shirt underneath. His ripped jeans had even more holes in it, and he was missing his shoes.

Next to him was a duffle bag.

“…Jon?” Damian called carefully, stepping outside and closing the door before any of the dogs could follow. Jon glanced up at him with tired, sad, hollow eyes. “Jon, are you alright?”

“You were right.” Jon croaked as Damian approached him. “You were always right.”

“About what?” Damian reached up, and gently ran his thumb over the giant bruise on Jon’s face. “God, Jon – what happened?!”

“I should have listened to you years ago. I should have agreed to your stipulations. Then we could have been happy and safe and a family and…”

“Jonathan.” Damian tried again, dropping his hand to Jon’s chest. He could feel the blood still seeping, feeling injuries that Jon absolutely should not have. “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t want it.” Tears welled up in Jon’s eyes. Overflowed immediately. “Damian, I don’t want to be Superman.”

Damian’s eyes widened, and he felt his heart maybe stop.

“I lost. Again. People died today, and it was my fault, Damian. I wasn’t good enough. My powers shorted out. I was…I was only a fucking human.” Jon wailed. “I don’t want it to happen again. I…I can’t let it happen again. But it was…I…” His shoulders slumped. “I’m so tired, Damian. I don’t know how Dad does it. I…”

He swayed on his feet a little bit, and Damian immediately reached out for his arms. His tears twinkled in the rising sun.

“I can’t be Superman. I don’t want to be. You were right. You were always right. I should have gotten out when you did. I should have given up this stupid symbol and helped people on the ground, like you do.” Jon repeated. His lip trembled. “I don’t want to be Superman, Damian.”

“Then don’t be.” Damian whispered.

“I just…I want…” He let out a tiny sob. “I don’t even want to be the Son of Superman anymore. I just…” Another louder cry. “I just want to be Jon.”

And Damian couldn’t help but smile, as he gently began to push that sweatshirt from Jon’s shoulders. “You are.”

“I just…” Jon repeated. He suddenly glanced down at his bag. Damian did too, saw the zipper wasn’t completely closed. Inside, he could see clothes and books and pictures. Jon’s whole life, more or less. He looked back up at Jon, and Jon was staring desperately at him. He was serious about this. “I just want to be yours.”

Damian couldn’t help but grin even wider. There was no more Superboy. There was no more budding Superman. There were no more nights laying up in worry that he would die, that they’d be separated forever. No more days feeling guilty or selfish, because he was making him choose. No more ultimatum between him and the cape.

There was just his love. There was just his soul mate, Jonathan Samuel Kent.

“Beloved, you always have been.” Damian breathed, bringing his hands up to carefully hold Jon’s face, and kiss him as sweetly as he could. As sweetly as he’d always wanted to.

Jon all but collapsed into his arms, clinging as tightly as he could, and Damian relished in the feeling. Even when their lips broke apart, Damian didn’t let him go. Kept a protective arm around his waist as he leaned down and picked up his bag for him.

He kicked the ruined hoodie into the dirt of his front garden, making a mental note to gleefully burn the thing later. (With Jon’s permission, of course.)

“I’ll need to find a job.” Jon murmured. “And I…I don’t know how to cook. Or understand banking accounts. And I’ll pay rent, and I’ll…”

“Shhh.” Damian breathed. “Later, Jonathan. One thing at a time.”

When they attempted to step forward, Jon immediately stumbled, and half collapsed further into Damian’s side. Jon couldn’t walk, his leg was clearly too injured. And that was fine. Damian merely flipped Jon’s bag over his shoulder, and slip his arm under Jon’s knees. Jon immediately curled into his chest, arms around his neck.

“May I show you to our bedroom?” Damian asked gently, as Jon desperately dug his nails in Damian’s back. “You look like you could use a nice long nap.”

And finally, he caught a smile on Jon’s lips, and relief in his voice. “Yes, please.”

Damian carried him to the door, balancing on one leg to kick open the knob, then walked across the threshold with him. The animals all began sniffing at the new arrival, but Damian paid them no mind, immediately moving towards the stairs, towards the bedroom.

Their bedroom.

“Welcome home, Jon.” Damian whispered into his hair.

Jon, still crying, let out a tiny laugh. “I’m so happy to finally be here, Damian.”

[boyfromdaxamgirlfromkrypton]

Karamel Fanfic: When Clark met Mon el

When Superman met "The other Superman" Karamel, featuring Clark Kent/Superman. Rating: T, fluff

"Kara," Mon el half whispers and half groans, still in the grasp of sleep. "You should answer that."

Kara answers with a groan of her own. "No, you do it."

Mon el squints one eye open to see the time on Kara's bedside alarm clock. It's quarter to four a.m. in the morning, way too early for either of them to wake up and answer the door if it's not a world ending emergency- which it clearly isn't, otherwise they would have got a call from the DEO and had John yelling at them by now. "It's your apartment," he argues, elbowing her sides lightly.

She punches him back in the ribs. "Yours too, you stay over every night," her words come out half muffled with sleep.

"Use your X-ray eyes," he suggests.

"That's the first good idea you've had," she mumbles, sitting up ever so slightly so that she can see who is on the other side of the door.

At first she blinks, wondering if it's a dream, and then her eyes slowly turn wide. "Oh Rao! Superman!"

Mon el sits up abruptly, now wide awake as well. "What? Where?"

"At my door," Kara answers, breaking out of her trance and getting out from under the covers. "Coming!" She yells at the door, while pulling on her shirt and pajamas, and throws Mon el's shirt at him. "Get in my closet."

"What?" He asks, slack jawed.

"I said get inside my closet," she repeats, now holding the door open for him.

"You're hiding me from Superman," he points out, amused. "You do realize he has X-rays eyes too, right?"

"It's called X-ray vision," she answers, exasperated, and leaves without another word.

Tidying up her hair and clothes in a hurry, she answers the door with a smile on her face. "Hey Clark! What a surprise!"

Clark gives her a warm smile. "I hope I'm not interrupting your sleep. I chased a criminal to National City, and needed a place to crash, and Jimmy wasn't home, so I thought maybe-"

"Yes, of course, of course," Kara interrupts, opening the door wider for him. "Please, come in. You're always welcome here, Clark."

"Absolutely," adds Mon el's voice, and Kara and Clark both turn around in surprise, Kara with a glare in her eyes, Clark with a curious glance. "I'm a huge fan," Mon el continues, ignoring that, "It's such an honor to meet you, Sir." He extends his hand for shaking.

Clark accepts it, and smiles. "Nice to meet you too, umm?"

"Mon el," Mon el supplies, and then wonders if he was supposed to say his earth-name. "I mean Mike." Kara shakes her head no, and he quickly corrects. "I mean Mon el. I'm Mon el. Yep. Just Mon el," he babbles as Kara face palms herself.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize you had company," Clark whispers to Kara, then turns to Mon el. "I was just patrolling the neighborhood and wanted to see if the young lady here needed some help from, from the alien with the, the-."

"-It's okay, Clark. He knows," Kara cuts him off before he digs himself a larger hole trying to make up that excuse. "That's Mon-el. You know, the Daxamite I told you about?"

"Oh," Clark says, now studying Mon el with curiosity. Kara did tell him that their mystery Kryptonian is actually a Daxamite and that she's training him. "Oh," he says again when he notices Mon el is in his underwear. "I didn't know you guys were, umm-"

"Yeah," Kara laughs nervously. "I mean, I," she turns to Mon el with a sigh. "Could you give us a minute?"

"Sure," Mon el says, and before he leaves, he grabs Clark by his hands, once again, shaking them, and adds, "I have so much to ask you, Sir, so much to learn from you. I can't wait. I'm so excited."

Clark smiles back, patting his arm. "I'm excited to get to know you better too, Mon el. And please, call me Clark."

Mon el's eyes light up like its Christmas. "Clark," he tests out the word, and on seeing Kara's impatient glare, finally leaves.

Kara begins with a nervous laugh, while Clark smiles. "I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you sooner."

"It's fine," Clark assures.

Kara continues. "It's just, he's a Daxamite, and they're a race of bullies and misogynists and slavery and monarchy and everything that Krypton is not- thank Rao- and, I guess I was scared you might disapprove?"

"You can't judge a person by his race, Kara," Clark reasons. "By that logic, all humans are murderous savages and Martians are xenophobic mind controllers."

Kara smiles. "You are so Superman." They both chuckle at that comment. Then Kara adds, hesitantly. "I just wanted you to like him."

"I do," Clark assures.

"Really?" Kara asks, a wave of relief already washing over her now that everyone in her life finally knows about her and Mon el and approves.

"Yeah," Clark says with a nod. "He must be a good guy, or you wouldn't be with him."

Kara scoffs. "He can be a real pain when he wants to be."

"You know I have super hearing too, right?" Mon el yells from the other room.

"You know you shouldn't be eavesdropping, right?" Kara yells back. "Such a pain," she mumbles to herself, before turning to Clark. "So, do you wanna, maybe rest? I can have the guest bedroom ready in like a minute."

"Already done," Mon el says, now joining them once again. "Your bed is made and you can now lay in it."

Kara wrinkles her nose. "That's not what that proverb means."

"Thank you, Mon el," Clark says, this time initiating the handshake before Mon el can. "I'll see you guys in the morning then."

"Goodnight, Clark," Kara says, and hugs him.

"Sweet dreams!" Mon el adds.

When Clark is out of sight, he turns to Kara with the biggest grin on his face. "I can't believe it! I just met Superman."

Kara rolls her eyes. "Wow, you've got Winn beat at being a fanboy."

"Well, it's Superman."

"And I'm Supergirl," she points out.

"I know. I'm a fan of you too, babe. Specially that thing you do with your tongue where-"

Kara's eyes widen in panic. "-Lalalala, he can still hear us," she cuts him off before he can finish that thought.

He closes his mouth with a pout. "Right. Hey, should I tell him to sign my action figurine?"

Kara laughs. "You have an action figure of Superman?"

Mon el looks genuinely confused. "Yeah. Don't you?"

Kara shakes her head. She's way too tired for this conversation. She grabs Mon el by his elbow and starts dragging him to their room. "Come on, we should get some rest too."

[stranger-who-writes-fiction]

So, you mentioned a Wayne Tech science fair. So, of course, this means Bruce would have to meet smol Alex. Can you tell us about the scenario were Bruce's is like "this kid's good" and Kara is all "YOU CAN'T HAVE HER, BATS"? (Meanwhile, Diana has wandered over and is now instructing a tiny, gleeful Danvers on the finer points of swordplay)

Ofall the things Kara expects to see at the WayneTech Young InnovatorsExpo…

BruceWayne is not one of them.

She’sbeen invited to enough galas and fundraisers hosted by the elusiveMr. Wayne to know that he hardly ever bothers to attend. (She wasinitially confused at his seemingly dogged attempts to include her inthese things, given their somewhat…disparaging worldviews.

Andthen she learned that Alfred was in charge of the guest lists.)

Sowhen she spies Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Brooding across the way on the expofloor, she politely excuses herself from a conversation with one ofthe corporate sponsors and makes a beeline for the League’s grumpiestmember.

“Crawledout of your cave this morning, I see,” Kara says by way ofgreeting, her smirk betraying the fact that she’s entirely too pleased with her own joke.

WhenBruce responds, it’s under his breath, and in the unpolished grumblehe reserves for his…extracurricular activities. Not the smooth,cultivated baritone he saves for the public.

“Thatwas funny the first fifty times,” he tells her. “You need newmaterial.”

“Andyou need coffee,” Kara counters, surprised at the dark circlesunder Bruce’s eyes. He doesn’t usually display his perpetualexhaustion so…openly.

Brucedoesn’t deny the claim, which essentially amounts to ‘yes, give mecaffeine.’ Kara knows better than to expect a formal 'please.’

Soshe rolls her eyes and heads over to the nearest Sundollars kiosk,and orders two of whatever seasonal, sugary latte is available. (Shemay not expect a formal please, but that doesn’t mean she’s going toreward his bad behavior. So, no. She will not be getting him hispreferred dark roast.)

Whenshe returns, Bruce is, of course, nowhere to be found.

“Typical,”she sighs, and begins her search, tempted to down both coffees rightthen and there.

It’safter the eighth—or possibly ninth—foamcore board detailing thelife cycle of the American bullfrog that Bruce begins to regret hisdecision to make a public appearance at the Expo.

Fortunately,only a handful of the children seem to recognize him. (Thesechildren, Bruce notes, tend to have very…eager parents hoveringnearby.) Once he’s clear of the center of the floor, and meanderingalong the fringes, he can move with a little more freedom, and ignorevarious booths without feeling guilty.

Hemaintains a leisurely pace, hands in his pockets, observing the otherprojects from afar. Some are impressive. Others are…less so.

Hecomes a halt near the end of the aisle, and finds himself staring inopen confusion at one of the presentation boards.

He’s…notentirely sure what he’s looking at.

Hemoves closer, taking in the crude drawings, scribbled equations, andclunky low poly 3D models taped to the display board.

“…Isthis Kevlar?” he finally asks the kid behind the card table.

“…Kindof.” she shrugs.

“Kindof Kevlar.” Bruce repeats.

“It’san alternative.” And as Bruce looks back at the write ups, he cansee the slight difference in the makeup of the materials, as well asthe unique plating design of a proposed vest.

Ittakes a minute for Bruce to figure out where he’s seen it before—theoverlapping segments of armor.

“That’sa Trombusan design,” he says, and this time, when he looks over atthe kid, he really looks ather.

Young.Nondescript. Some sort of band t-shirt sticking out from beneath asweatshirt.

“It’s…yes.Kind of.”

There’sthat phrase again.

“Kindof.”

“Well,we don’t have the right kind of science to make something likeTrombusan armor. Not yet, anyway. At least that I could find,” shefrowns. “Maybe…the military does?” She looks up at him, “butnot regular civilians.”

Hestares at her.

“…Howold are you?”

“Twelve.And a half.”

Heshakes his head. “You—how do you know about Trombusans?”  

Thegirl shifts uneasily from foot to foot.

“Iwas, uh, there. In National City. During the attack,” she explains.“I saw the foot soldiers, and that gave me the idea for the platingpattern.”

“…Youbased your design,” Bruce says slowly, “off of an alien speciesyou observed during a hostile attack on a major metropolitan area.That occurred…eight months ago.”

Thegirl takes a moment before answering.

“…Yeah.Guess so.”

AndBruce.

Brucehums quietly and rubs his chin.

“Interesting.”

ThatKara eventually finds Bruce is entirely a fluke. She gave up tryingto locate the AWOL billionaire and decided to see how Alex was doing,only to stumble upon Wayne, wearing that Look.

“No.”Kara says without preamble, or context, for that matter.

Butshe doesn’t need it, because she knows Bruce, and knows what’s goingon in that…labyrinthine mind of his.

“Oh,Kara, hey,” Alex starts to smile, but catching Kara’s stonyexpression, falters. “Um.”

“MissKent,” Bruce smirks, and plucks one of the paper cups from herhand. “Got a little lost on the way to the concession stand, didwe?”

“Don’tchange the subject,” Kara scowls. “And I did not. Also,you’re welcome.”

“Thisis not dark roast.”

“Youcan’t have her, Bats.”

Karadoesn’t bother to explain herself—she’s certain that Bruce has adossier on every single person in the building. Memorized. Andcolor-coded. Down in that damp, depressing cave of his. He’ll knowwho Alex Danvers is, who her parents are, knows they vacation inKansas occasionally, to visit…'relatives.’

“She’sgood,” Bruce says, and takes a sip of the latte. He cringes at thesyrupy sweetness. “We’re talking…Tim good.”

Karaopens her mouth to protest, but after a brief pause, “…Really.Tim good.” comes out instead.

“Mmm.”Bruce considers. “She could be. Given the right. …Opportunities—”

“No.No. No, Bruce,” Kara pinches the bridge of her nose. “No,you are not—you are not drafting another child intoyour…weird, vigilante club.”

“Wouldyou prefer I switch to dogs and cats? Livestock, maybe,” is thepointed response.

“…That’sdifferent, and you know it,” Kara huffs. “I’m notendangering kids—”

“Getoff your moral high horse, Kent,” Bruce interrupts.

Karais caught off guard.

“—What?”

“Shetold me she got the design from alien soldiers,” Bruce levels apiercing stare at Kara. His unwavering gaze makes Kara involuntarilyflinch. “Care to explain how she got close enough to make out theplate pattern?”

Karaswallows, shame burning a faint blush across her face.

“That—thatwasn't—”

Brucesays nothing, but his smile is unbearably smug. Kara desperatelywishes she could throw him into space. (Knowing Bruce, however, thejerk would have some portable bat-themed breathing apparatus.)

“You’llrecall,” Bruce says, smirking over his cup of coffee, publicpersona now firmly in place, “that the aim of WayneTech’s YoungInnovators Foundation is to foster and encourage young innovators.”Kara clenches her fists. “Alex is a young innovator. I’d merelylike to encourage her. And I’m sure her parents wouldn’t mind ascholarship. Or two.”

Karacan’t really argue one way or the other—that’s a decision for Alex,Eliza, and Jeremiah.

Shesays as much to Bruce, who turns to get Alex’s opinion on thematter…

Andis met with an empty metal folding chair.

“…Wellthat's—” Bruce starts to say, only to have Kara cut him off.

“Doyou hear…clanging?” He does not, but then, Bruce doesn’t have thebenefit of alien ears. “Sort of sounds like…swords.”

Bothare silent for a moment, mutual confusion crinkling their brows.

Andthen, in unison:

“Ah.Swords.”

AlexDanvers looks entirely too thrilled to be learning swordplay from theresident Themysciran ambassador, and Kara wonders if maybe she shouldbe worried.

But,Alex is happy, shifting her weight and angling her arm, matchingDiana’s example and following her instructions as closely as she can;Eliza and Jeremiah don’t object (Kara absolutelycalled them, to see what sort of…sword privileges they were dealingwith here) and Brucelooks incredibly jealous.

“Idon’t know what has inspired this frown,” Diana joins the two ofthem as Alex inspects the practice blade Diana just…happenedto have. Because of course she did. “But I approve.”

“Youstole his newest sidekick,” Kara nods towards Alex. Diana’s smilegrows wider.

“Ohyes, I definitelyapprove.”

“Thisisn’t over, Kent,” Bruce vows, accepting, not defeat, but achallenge. “Tell the Danvers to expect some pamphlets in the mail.”

“Iwill.” She won’t. (Alright, she eventuallywill. Let him sweat a bit. He deserves it.) Bruce excuses himself,unable to handle more than one social interaction at a time.

“Heis a strange one, that Mr. Wayne,” Diana says. Kara lets out abreathy laugh.

“Youhave no idea.”

Alexwalks over, and hands the blade back to Diana, clearlyreluctant to do so, but she says she should get back to her project,she doesn’t like leaving it alone for too long.

“Thatkid with the tadpoles was eyeing my research,” she says with afrown. “I need to make sure he hasn’t like, touched anything.”

“Ishould be going as well,” Diana says. “Donna’s presentationstarts soon.”

Theysay their goodbyes and go their separate ways, Kara deciding to tagalong with Alex before diving back into press mode.

“Areyou better friends with Wonder Woman than Batman?” Alex asks asthey walk back to the booth. Kara casts a cursory glance in severaldirections before answering.

“Iwould never choosefavorites. Yes.”

Alexchuckles.

“Yeah,she’s way cooler than Bruce.”

“Thisis very true,” Kara says, throwing an arm around Alex’s shoulders.Alex gets a mischievous gleam in her eye as she looks up at theKryptonian.

“Shemight be even coolerthan you.”

“Whoanow.”

(Clark,of course, learns of the situation from Dick. Who heard it fromJason. Who heard it from Babs. Who heard it from Tim. Who heard itfrom Alfred.

“Goodchoice,” he tells her. “Wonder Woman’s my favorite too. But don’ttell Kara I—”

AndKara is there, mock-glowering at them both.

“Alienears,” she says.)

Notes:- When I originally mentioned the WayneTech science fair, admittedly I imagined Alex as older, maybe mid-teens. And that’s how I started to write her. But this clashed with the ‘tiny, gleeful Danvers’ in the prompt, so the compromise was pre-teen Alex, who probably comes off as a bit too precocious as a result.- Bruce and Diana are almost certainly OOC, I do apologize. 

[aeon-wolf]

Ascension - Chapter 7

Demos Educational Organization was like no other college Lena could have imagined. Instead of reading, math, and science, they were taught Ancient Greek, War Strategy, and Swordsmanship. Lena, shocked to find out her true parentage strikes friendships left and right at her new school. Her most treasured friendship of all, her friendship with one Daughter of Zeus, Kara Danvers. Follow Lena on a journey of self-discovery in an attempt to foil the plot of the Titans, and maybe learn a few things about herself along the way.

Or

A PJO inspired Supercorp series. Part One: Ascension.

Read it here on AO3

I.

Lena approached the group the next morning, gathering up her nerve to tell them all about the quest. Kara, as usual, spotted Lena first, waving brightly. Lena suspected that Kara actually waited and searched for her to arrive. It did warm Lena’s heart to know that Kara cared that much about her. Lena smiled at everyone, sitting down in her usual place. “Morning Lena,” Kara said brightly. Lena smiled at Kara.

“Morning.” She said. “I’m sorry about last night.” She started. “I didn’t mean to snap at you. I’ve just had a lot on my mind.” Just like Mon-El the night before, Kara waved her off.

“Don’t worry about it, Lena. It’s alright.” Kara said. She wasn’t going to say it didn’t hurt at the time, but today was a new day. But Lena shook her head.

“It’s not. And I can’t say anything else except sorry. And that I have something to tell everybody.” She said softly, though apparently everyone heard her because they all quieted down and turned to Lena. The raven haired girl felt a little self-conscious, but Mon-El gave her an encouraging nod of his head and Kara wrapped an arm around her shoulder, a jolt of heat coursing through her body at the contact.

“So I saw J’onn yesterday and he said I had been selected to lead a quest.” Kara was slightly taken aback while Alex and Maggie looked visibly surprised. Winn, Mon-El, and James didn’t react one way or the other, rather waited for her to continue. But Alex jumped in.

“You? No offense Lena, but you’re really…. New.” Alex said. Maggie elbowed her girlfriend in the ribs. But Lena nodded.

“I had the same concerns, but J’onn said it wasn’t a mistake. My father said the same.” This time everyone looked surprised.

“You got a visit from Apollo?” Winn asked excitedly. Lena nodded.

“Why? Is that weird?” She asked, unsure how many times everyone else had met with their godly parent.

“It’s not unheard of, but it’s certainly not too common either.” James supplied. “I’ve never met Athena and Alex has only met her once.” He said, pointing to Alex who nodded.

“Meeting your godly parent is kind of a big deal.” Alex agreed. “It’s a pretty big deal for you to get a visit from Apollo.” Lena awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck.

“Oh, I didn’t realize…” She trailed off. Kara jumped in, saving her friend from the situation.

“What is the quest about?” Kara asked. Lena shot her a grateful look.

“I’m supposed to go to Mount Othrys to spy on the Titans?” She said, almost questioningly. The entire table was a mix of different reactions. Winn’s jaw dropped, as did Kara’s. Alex, James, and Maggie all frowned at the admission and Mon-El looked somewhat excited.

“That sounds like fun!” He said happily before Kara shot him a critical look and he backed off, transitioning into a more sympathetic look. “I mean… Man, that sounds tough.”

“How many people are you allowed to bring with you?” Maggie asked her friend, smiling at her encouragingly.

“Five others,” Lena replied simply. Everyone at the table looked at each other.

“Well… there’s seven of us; you, Kara, Alex, Maggie, James, Winn, and Mon-El. And there are six people allowed to go. Unless you were planning on bringing some of your other friends.” Kara said a little sadly. Lena shook her head, though neglected to say that she didn’t really have any other friends than the people sitting at the table. Lena had given a bit of thought to the exact problem that Kara had just brought up. She knew that one of the group would have to be left behind. And while she was loathed to do so, she knew it was necessary.

“I know.” Lena turned to James, giving him an apologetic look. He nodded in understanding. “I’m sorry. I really wish I could bring you.” Lena said, making a mental note to talk to him privately later.

“It’s okay Lena, don’t worry. I understand. Someone had to be left out.” He smiled at her reassuringly. Lena sighed.

“Can we talk later?” She asked him. He nodded.

“Sure, just come find me later.”

II.

The rest of the day went fairly smoothly. Lena was relieved to get that off her chest and out of the way. And during her free period, she went to go find James. She found him on the quad, throwing a football around with Clark Kent, a friend of his that was a Son of Poseidon. She approached him. “James, can we talk?” She asked. James nodded, throwing the football to Clark.

“I’ll be back man.” He said, his friend nodding. The two went over to an empty spot on the quad.

“I really am sorry.” Lena apologized again. James placed a hand on her shoulder.

“It’s okay Lena. Don’t beat yourself up. You and I aren’t as close as the rest. I’ll be fine. I’ve got other friends here. Yeah, I wish I could go to help you, but I know the rest of the group will do that for me. But you’ve got my phone number if you need it. And of course, you can just throw a coin in a rainbow.” He laughed. “But really, don’t feel bad.” Lena threw him a grateful look.

“You know, it was a really hard choice between Alex and you. But…” Lena started but James cut her off.

“You didn’t want to separate her and Maggie.” Lena nodded.

“I’m not that cruel. I also thought that if I wanted to bring Kara, Alex was part of the package.” Lena said with a small laugh. James also chuckled.

“You’re right. Alex loves her sister, but she can be a little overprotective at times. I don’t think Alex would have accepted you bringing both Maggie and Kara without including her.” James said, patting Lena’s arm. “Seriously, though, make sure you come back safe. It’s dangerous where you’re going. You’re kind of like the little sister of the group now, we’d all be sad if something were to happen to you.” Lena’s heart warmed. She was getting more used to having friends that really cared for her, but being validated like that still made her heart skip a beat.

“I’ll make sure we all come back safe. I promise.” Lena said with confidence that she wasn’t really feeling. James pulled the shorter girl in for a hug.

“I’ll miss you guys.” He said. Lena hesitantly wrapped her own arms around James. She still wasn’t used to physical contact, unless it was Kara, but she was getting better.

“We’ll all miss you too.”

III.

While Lena was talking to James, Kara and Mon-El were taking a break from sparring, instead, hanging out in the lobby of the Zeus dorm. Since Zeus didn’t have that many kids, it was almost always empty. “So, this quest…” Mon-El said to his friend. Kara nodded.

“I kind of can’t believe the gods decided that Lena was supposed to lead the quest. Not that I doubt her abilities, because she’s super powerful, maybe even more than me, but she’s also so young.” Kara said, concerned. Even though Kara herself was only 20, she had a long time to come to terms with her powers and grow into them. As had the rest of the group. But Lena was new to this life. She knew nothing of it before she started at Demos a few months ago.

“Yeah, she is but that’s why she has us,” Mon-El said confidently. “We’re all going to help her!” Kara nodded absentmindedly. “Not to mention it gives you time to get closer to her,” Mon-El said in a suggestive tone. Kara frowned.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She tried to deflect, but he just shook his head.

“Don’t think that you can hide your feelings about her from me, Kara. Or anyone in the group for that matter. We all know you have a thing for her. Except for Lena herself apparently.” Kara sighed.

“Am I that obvious?” She relented and he nodded sympathetically.

“Kind of. You’re affectionate with all of us Kara, but there’s something else in the way your face lights up when Lena walks into the cafeteria or when she gives you a hug. Which by the way, you know she doesn’t really hug anyone besides you.” Kara blinked, she hadn’t noticed that she was too busy just being wrapped up in paying attention to Lena.

Over the past few months, Lena had opened up to Kara a little bit about her life before Demos. She knew that Lena came from an extremely wealthy and influential family though she said she never felt like she fit in there. She had even brushed over her unstable relationship with her adoptive mother, but never lingered long on it, rather talking about her brother, Lex.

Kara knew that Lena looked up to Lex, adored him. He was her hero when they were younger, but when Lex went off to college and got involved in his own life, he kind of left Lena behind. She was bitter about it for a while but eventually learned to harden her heart and get over the pain. Kara always felt her own heart tug at Lena’s stories. All she wanted to do was grab Lena’s hand, hug her and never let her go. And in a different part of her mind, she wanted to be the one to show Lena that love didn’t have to end in heartbreak.

“Earth to Kara!” The blonde was jolted out of her thoughts.

“I’m sorry, what?” Kara said, a little startled. Mon-El just laughed.

“You were thinking about Lena, weren’t you?” He asked and she just smiled sheepishly.

“You’re already in deep and you don’t even know it.”

IV.

At dinner that evening, the group were just enjoying the evening together, knowing that they would probably be leaving campus that weekend. Winn and James were caught up in a conversation about a new gadget that Winn was trying to develop. Maggie and Alex were also listening in, inputting their own contribution where they could. And Kara, Mon-El, and Lena were wrapped up in their own conversation.

“I’m telling you, Lena could totally spank you in a powers battle, Kara!” Mon-El insisted. “You powers of air manipulation wouldn’t even penetrate her light shields.” Lena was just watching Kara and Mon-El trade strategies. She could even really control her photokinesis yet. The manifestation of her powers seemed to be linked to her emotional state so far. And since no one else had these powers, she was kind of on her own in that regard. She assumed that she’d be able to control them as she got older and more experienced, but she didn’t know.

“No way! Besides, Lena doesn’t even have control over her powers yet.” Kara insisted. Mon-El shrugged.

“She will eventually. And then you two have to duke it out.” Lena was about to jump in, but Kara didn’t give her the chance.

“Hey! I’m not going to fight my best friend just because you think she could kick my ass.” Kara said without a second thought. But Lena’s heart skipped another beat. Kara thought of her, Lena Luthor, as her best friend. Even though she hadn’t known her nearly as long as everyone else. Kara and Mon-El seemed to be oblivious to Lena’s inner turmoil, though, so she didn’t say anything. “Right Lena?” Kara said.

“I’m sorry, what?” She asked, a little flustered.

“I said if anything, you’d team up with me and kick Mon-El’s butt.” Lena blinked, having completely missed that part, but nodded.

“Sorry, Mon-El.” She said with a shrug. “What the lady wants, the lady gets you know,” Lena said absentmindedly. Kara’s eyes lit up and Mon-El gave Lena a knowing look that she missed as she went back to her food. Mon-El wanted to roll his eyes. Lena was even more oblivious than Kara was sometimes.

V.

That night after everyone had gone to bed, Lena laid in her bed, staring up at the ceiling. She was going to go talk to J’onn during her free period the next day and they would probably be sent off on their quest that weekend. Lena couldn’t help her stomach tying in knots at the thought. She knew she had her friends, that she was strong enough to do this, but she couldn’t shake the strange feeling that something was going to go wrong.

With her thoughts buzzing in her head, she started to drift off to sleep.

In her dreams, she was brought back to the stone wasteland that she had dreamt of before. This time, she had use of her limbs and wandered the area, examining the stone ruins. And again, like that first night, the same man appeared before her again, in a brilliant flash of light. Lena shielded her eyes before looking at him. His eyes were still as captivating as they were the first time she saw them, this time his cape red in color, sword still at his hip. “I know you’re coming.” He said, his smooth voice causing the hairs on Lena’s arms to stand up.

“Be careful how you proceed. One wrong move will doom you and all your friends.” He said, staring at her. Lena took a step back, but this time, unlike the first, found use of her voice.

“Who are you? What did you do to me?” Lena questioned, thinking back to the mark he branded on her wrist. He chuckled, taking a step towards her.

“Think of it as a gift.” He said cryptically. “A mark.” Lena frowned, rubbing her wrist where the mark had once been. “Before the end, you’ll be thanking me for it, Lena Luthor.”

“How do you know my name?” She asked again. The man shook his head.

“Answers you are not yet ready for. You’ll know in due time. But not today. I have left you a gift in the real world, though. Use it well.” He said, giving her an intense stare before disappearing again in a flash of light. Lena jolted away, the sun just barely starting to peek over the horizon. Lena sat up in her bed, looking out the window when a glow caught her attention elsewhere.

On one of the weapon hooks on her wall, hung a golden sword, glowing a pale yellow color. Lena cautiously got out of her bed, padding over to the hook on the wall. She picked up the sword and examined it. It was about the same length as the sword she used to spar against Kara, except the metal was made of what looked like a golden material, though she knew it couldn’t have been. Gold was an extremely soft metal and an effective sword wouldn’t be made of the metal without some other mineral to strengthen it.

She looked at the hilt of the sword. There were carved symbols on the hilt, with the crossguard bearing the same mark that she had burned onto her wrist. Lena frowned as she gave the sword a small swing. It was perfectly balanced and it seemed like it was made for her. The sword began to glow a brighter yellow color. Lena hissed as she felt a pain in her wrist, the symbol on her wrist manifesting itself again, glowing the same yellow color. Just as quickly as it came, it faded the sword also fading from existence, like it had never been there.

Lena frowned, examining her hand, turning it over so she could inspect it. Nothing out of the ordinary. There was no evidence that the weapon had ever been there, nor the mark. Lena felt herself growing concerned at what this all meant. But she just shook her head. She had bigger things to deal with than her strange dreams.

Yup, so James is the odd one out. I really had a hard time trying to pick who I had to leave honestly. I think I could have either left out Winn or James honestly, but basically, with Alex going, there's already going to be a child of Athena. And I think Winn's abilities of a Son of Hephestus are going to be important on the journey. But I did want to establish that Lena really hated to leave James behind. Because while they don't interact as much as the others, he's still her friend. And they still do have a relationship that isn't written about as much here since I always knew that once this beginning part was over, he wasn't going to have a prominent role until later in the series.

So yeah, Kara, Alex, Winn, Mon-El, and Maggie are the ones going with Lena. And Lena is still having dreams... Significant or not? Who knows. I do, but that's besides the point. I'm enjoying this story a lot. It's fun to write.

[stranger-who-writes-fiction]

Wrote a thing. A short(ish), fluffy thing, featuring Clark, Kara, and Alex, inspired by this. (As always, hoping that I’m not stepping on anybody’s toes or anything.)

...

“She blew out her powers,” Clark explains. His voice cracks, and Jeremiah isn't sure if it's from worry or simply due to the boy's age. “I didn't even know we could do that.”

“Tell him—tell him what you named it,” Kara wheezes, forcing a smile to her face. It's strained.

Clark doesn't say anything right away, looking at his cousin with wide, concerned eyes. He's never seen her look weak. Or tired. Or hurt.

“I don't think you'll ever be able to top 'freeze breath,'” Jeremiah declares, following Kara's lead. No sense in getting the kid worked up any further—especially when they don't really know what they're dealing with. Not yet.

He pulls the front door open wider, and automatically reaches out to help, only to remember that Clark can undoubtedly handle Kara's dead weight better than any human can.

“Solar flare,” Clark finally says. Jeremiah whistles.

“Well. I stand corrected.”

It's dark in the house. Jeremiah has to turn on the light in the kitchen as they attempt to make their way quietly down the hall. Clark tries to remain focused on Kara, but he's never been to the Danvers' house before; they always visit the couple at the lab.

It's...less cluttered than he expected.

He finds his attention drawn to the fridge—not that it's anything special. It looks just like the fridge at home: white, scuffed, void of frills—but it's covered in magnets and...what looks like math worksheets. School assignments, he realizes. Addition. Subtraction. Handwriting. Most, if not all, feature some sort of smiley face in the upper corner, along with a 'Good job!' and 'Super student!'

Jeremiah tells Clark to get Kara situated in one of the chairs at the table, pulling his focus away from the collection of papers tacked on the fridge door. Kara's...mostly cooperative. Well. She tries to be. Her legs don't want to seem to get with the program. Her feet catch on the table legs, and it's not like Clark is the picture of poise, or anything.

By some sort of miracle, they don't break anything.

“I'll be back,” Jeremiah promises. “...make sure she doesn't fall out of the chair.”

Clark nods, and Kara slumps across the table.

(Still...technically...in the chair.)

And then Clark doesn't know what to do with himself. He's not sure if he should sit or continue to stand.

“Sit, Clark,” Kara tells him, sensing his silent struggle. (Only because she's totally been there, totally done that.)

He sits next to her and hovers anxiously. (Not literally, though he’s so worked up that he just might, if he’s not careful.) She's looking really pale and just generally...not right. He hopes Jeremiah will have something here. Clark worries that he won't. It's not like they've got some sort of...secret underground workshop or anything.

Right?

He's startled when the hall light suddenly clicks on, and a sleepy Eliza Danvers pads in, clad in flannel pajamas and a robe.

And padding dutifully alongside her is a child Clark's never seen before.

“Kara!” the kid cries, and Eliza tries to shush her, but the girl is already hurrying over to his cousin, who has somehow found the strength to sit up and smile in greeting.

“Alex!” It takes every ounce of reserve power to get that exclamation point on the end. “Oh my gosh, you're getting so big!”

Once more, Eliza tries to corral her daughter and shush her, but Alex won't be deterred. She looks like she could be...five? At most? And she doesn't even balk at the scrapes and bruises on Kara's exposed arms, just pulls out one of the other chairs, climbs up on it, and examines his cousin closely.

“You missed my birthday,” Alex says in a manner far too mature for any five year old. In Clark's opinion, anyway. Maybe she's older? And she's just really small for her age? “My birthday and the science fair.”

“Sorry,” Kara tells her, letting Alex poke and prod, turn her face this way and that. She winces a little, but otherwise doesn't complain.

Eliza just shakes her head, mouthing an apology that Kara waves off. Tries to wave off. Her arms feel like lead weights.

“Kara's been busy in Metropolis, remember?” Eliza asks, coming closer to keep any eye both on the precocious kindergartner and the injured alien currently sitting at her kitchen table. Clark moves himself to one side, not wanting to get in the way. His foot snags on one of the chairs. “She said so in the card she sent.”

“What's wrong?” Alex ignores the reminder, clearly not too upset about it. She wants to know what's going on now.

Kara looks to Eliza for help in explaining.

“Remember how daddy and I told you Kara and Clark work like batteries?”

“Mmm. Kinda.”

“Well, Kara's all out of juice,” Eliza says, practically pulling Alex away from the Kryptonian. Alex giggles at the comparison, and seems content to settle down with her mother, now that she's conducted her Kara Exam. No longer focused on Kara, she finally notices the tall, gangly stranger in the room. “...Hi.”

“Hi,” Clark waves. “...I'm Clark.”

“I'm Alex,” Alex tells him. And that seems to be the extent of their conversation, because Alex turns back to Kara and starts talking about a science project involving worms (larvae, Eliza gently corrects) and beetles.

Clark watches them with just the slightest hint of jealousy. He doesn't know the Danvers as well as Kara does—she met them a long time ago, after she moved away from Smallville and out to Metropolis. Clark was still at the Kents, and would only accompany Kara on rare occasions to visit the scientists. Not a yearly check up—neither of them really required that sort of thing.

But clearly Kara had visited them more often than those scant, sporadic check-ins. It's like...Kara has a whole family that Clark doesn't get to be a part of.

At that point, Jeremiah comes back in, clanking loudly thanks to some equipment he has slung over his shoulder. He seems surprised to see his wife at the table, and raises an eyebrow when he spots Alex.

“It's way past your bedtime, kiddo,” he says, shooting a questioning glace at Eliza.

“She heard everyone get up,” Eliza says, simultaneously shrugging and yawning. “You can try getting her back to bed if you'd like.”

“Mmmm.” When Jeremiah doesn't immediately rise to the occasion, Eliza rolls her eyes knowingly.

Clark smiles.

“Okay, Kara, let's see if this'll help at all,” Jeremiah clambers over, dragging the collection of equipment with him. “Hmm. You know—maybe this...hmm. Couch might be better?”

“Couch sounds great,” Kara says emphatically.

So Clark finds himself relocating his cousin, moving her from the kitchen to the living room, where Jeremiah sets up...a bunch of lamps.

“Your basic sun lamps,” he explains, grunting slightly as he tears off a piece of duct tape. “With a few...modifications, here and there.”

“Cool,” Clark says, watching him work. “Need any help?”

“I think I've got it, but thanks,” Jeremiah says. Clark nods. “You can help yourself to whatever's leftover in the fridge, if you want. I know you guys walk around perpetually hungry.”

This is true, but Clark is still a little too...riled up from the whole affair. He declines the offer of food, but he does accept the stack of blankets and pillows Eliza brings in. He holds some out to Kara, but Jeremiah reminds him that it's best not to obstruct the lamps with something like a blanket.

She does take a pillow, though.

And soon enough she's taking deep, even breaths. She's not quite asleep, but she's looking relaxed and comfortable, at least. Clark finally feels his anxiety dissipate. (He reminds himself to be careful with the relieved sigh...wouldn't want exhale too hard and knock over an end table. Or the armchair.)

“You sure you don't want to stay in the spare bedroom?” Eliza asks him.

“I'm okay here, thank you,” he says, pointing to the armchair.

At that point, Alex wanders in, dragging a sleeping bag, pillow, flashlight, and some sort of stuffed...moose?

“Oh no you don't,” Jeremiah intercepts the small, determined Danvers. She fusses and fidgets. “You leave Kara be. She needs rest.”

Kara cracks an eye open. “She's not bothering me, Jeremiah. Really.”

“Promise I won't!” Alex tells her dad. “Pinky swear, even.”

Eliza doesn't look convinced. She faces the prone Kryptonian. “You really won't mind?”

“She's fine.”

So Alex ends up perched on the other armchair, small face scrunched in concentration as she keeps an eye on Kara.

Clark has never seen such a serious five year old.

He maybe mentions it, following Jeremiah and Eliza out of the living room, intent on getting a glass of water from the kitchen. He regrets it immediately, realizing it must sound like some sort of insult, or judgment.

But instead of taking offense, Jeremiah and Eliza just look...amused and resigned.

“She's always been like that,” Jeremiah says. “I've never had to put her in ‘time out.’ The kid does it herself.”

“When she met your cousin,” Eliza interjects, “she just up and decided she needed looking after.”

Clark fills the glass provided by Jeremiah, and takes a thoughtful sip. “...Well, she's not wrong.”

“Don't be surprised if she decides to adopt you too,” Eliza warns him. Then, much to his surprise, she gives him a tight hug. “Goodnight, Clark. Let us know if you need anything else.”

“...Thanks,” he says, returning the hug carefully. Jeremiah claps him on the back.

“Your cousin's gonna be just fine. Thanks to your help.”

“Aw, I didn't do much.”

“Not true.”

The Danvers retire for the evening, and Clark wanders back into the living room, having finished his glass of water. He's both surprised, and yet not, to see that Alex has abandoned the armchair and is now pressed against Kara's side on the couch, listening as Kara softly tells her a story about Krypton.

“Have I told you about the Fire Falls before?”

“Nu-uh.”

“Well, there was this one time...I was with my friend, Thara...” Kara tilts her head and smiles at Clark. “...Clark knows this one. Right Clark?”

“Yeah,” he says, moving the arm chair a bit closer to the couch. “I've heard it like, a thousand times.”

“Then you'll have no problem telling Alex,” Kara challenges with a smirk.

“Yeah,” Alex grins, siding with Kara.

“With! Sound effects,” Kara throws in.

And Clark groans, but of course he acquiesces. How could he not, with two pleading faces peering at him in the soft yellow glow of the sun lamps?

“Alright, fine...” he says. “So, Kara was out late breaking the rules—”

“Hey, hey, let's stick to the facts.”

“...Like I was saying, Kara was breaking the rules...”

(Clark and Kara visit more often, after that. Together. Because Alex Danvers will have it no other way.)