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#and even if he hadn’t been Kara would’ve known immediately that she had a very specific nerdy boy who thinks too much in mind
oetravia · 3 years
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Every Brainia Scene Ever: 4x19 [2/3]
#supergirl#supergirledit#brainia#brainiaedit#dreamdox#brainiac 5#nia nal#querl dox#can you say ✨iconic✨#he’s in love folks - give him an episode or so to properly realise it 🥺🥺🥺#(like clearly here he’s feeling ~something~ and listening to Nia talking about the things she loves in such a passionate way#he’s pretty sure he knows what he’s feeling but he’s never felt it before so he doesn’t KNOW)#and then you have Nia essentially declaring her feelings for him on live television#what a freaking ✨queen✨#like okay she didn’t know for sure that he was watching but it was a pretty safe bet all things considered#and even if he hadn’t been Kara would’ve known immediately that she had a very specific nerdy boy who thinks too much in mind#and look at his little smile immediately after#after all the ‘I never expected someone as amazing/beautiful as Nia Nal to be interested in me’#he knows exactly who she’s talking about (and actually takes it how it’s meant 👀)#someone explain to me how they didn’t end up together at the end of this episode?#(especially factoring in Brainy’s flirting in the deleted scene 👀)#they’re clearly on the same page about their feelings and OPENLY so whyyy??#(also @ all the transphobes who like to say that Nia is somehow tricking/lying to Brainy -#did you somehow miss this scene with Brainy watching as Nia proudly comes out as a trans woman to everyone watching? idiots 🤦🏼‍♀️)#mine#my gifs#otp: what does love feel like?#*ebs
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wizardofahz · 3 years
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High School Reunion
A/N: Midvale is coincidentally set around the time Alex’s 10-year high school reunion would’ve been, so that’s when this is set.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Alex heads down to the beach.
Spending the night in her childhood bed and the emotional release of her conversation with Kara had been nice, but leftover pent up energy is making her restless. A difficult run in the sand should help.
It does at first. It’s been a while since she’s run on a beach. All her energy is spent on reacquainting herself with the lack of solid footing, the way the sand deforms under her feet, how much harder her muscles have to work to extract her feet and carry them forward.
Not long after she falls into a steady rhythm, Alex spots two women walking ahead of her. They’re going in the same direction as her, but she passes them easily.
The monotony of her physical movements allows her mind to wander. Inevitably her thoughts return to Maggie. Actually, no, not Maggie but the coming out journey she had helped along. Alex’s self-realization may have come in National City, but the signs had started here in Midvale.
Vicki hadn’t been her only crush, she’s sure. Over the past year, other memories have come back to Alex, puzzle pieces falling into place with a startling new clarity. Alex wonders how many she’s forgotten. Her mother hadn’t been surprised when Alex came out to her. Maybe she remembers more.
Eventually Alex decides to head back. At this point, she can run half the way and use the last half as a cool down walk.
The two women from before are still walking in the same direction. Alex glances at them, prepared to give a courtesy nod, but recognition stops that plan in its tracks.
It’s Josie.
And Vicki.
Crap.
After Kenny’s death, the friend bubble that had shattered so quickly around Alex hadn’t lasted much longer for Josie.
Except Vicki.
Vicki had been so unfailingly kind to and well-liked by everyone that she had the unique ability to stand up for anyone regardless of social status. And so she did for Kenny, Josie, and Alex.
Until Alex had screwed that up.
Alex hopes they won’t recognize her. She really doesn’t need this reunion now of all times.
No such luck.
“Alex?” Josie says as Alex nears.
Alex skids to a stop, momentum carrying her past Josie and Vicki, so they all have to turn to see one another.
“I didn’t think you’d come,” Josie continues.
Feeling more off-kilter than just her sudden stop can explain, Alex says, “I-- Josie, hi. Come to what?”
“The reunion.”
Josie’s words ring a distant bell though Alex doesn’t know how. She doesn’t really keep in touch with anyone from high school, though she sees the occasional update on social media. Maybe her mom mentioned it on a phone call. Either way, Alex has a vague recollection of hearing that her 10-year high school reunion is being held sometime around now. Apparently exactly now.
That also explains Vicki. From a brief moment of weakness when Alex googled her, she knows Vicki hasn’t lived in Midvale since she left for college either.
Vicki alternates between averting her gaze and shooting Alex odd looks. Once upon a time, Alex would’ve known what those looks meant.
“Oh, that’s this weekend?” Alex says. “Umm, I’m actually not here for that, just coincidence really.”
“Well, even if you hadn’t planned on going, since you're here, why don’t you drop by the reunion anyway?" Josie offers. “I’m sure we’ll be well-stocked with booze if nothing else.”
“I’ll think about it,” Alex says, her version of ‘thanks but no thanks.'
Josie seems to understand. “Either way, I’m glad we ran into each other. I wanted to say thank you and I’m sorry. The whole thing with Mr. Bernard...” She grimaces and shudders. “The more time passes, the grosser it feels. Thanks for ending it.”
“Just glad I could help,” Alex says. Maybe if Vicki wasn’t here, she’d ask how Josie is doing. But Vicki is here, which means Alex would very much like to be anywhere else. “I should finish my run before I cool down. See you around?”
Josie nods, looking a little lighter. “See you.”
Alex takes one last glance at Vicki.
The odd expression now looks like jealousy.
... 
Alex watches the waves crash into the rocks below.
As the water recedes, she hears the shuffle of someone approaching.
There are very few people who know about her hideout. It’s not the sort of place people find by chance. The rocky cliff face is sloped but occasionally steep. Getting to her particular little hole in the wall requires knowing that sometimes the best way across is going down then up.
Her father is MIA. Her mom wouldn’t know to come looking for her now. This area is remote enough that Kara typically flies, which only leaves--
Alex sighs.
“I’m not in the mood to fight,” she says.
“Me neither,” comes Vicki’s voice moments before she appears. “I thought you’d be here.”
“Shouldn’t you be with Josie?” Alex wishes she could sound calmer, neutral at least, but her voice comes out reeking of resentment. “Doing... whatever, walking? Something?”
“I’ll see her tonight,” Vicki says evenly, and Alex’s resentment grows. “I wanted to talk to you.”
Vicki tilts her head towards the empty space beside Alex, asking if she can sit. The cave can probably fit three or four people, but given the giant elephant in the room, the prospect of two seems cramped.
Alex nods anyway.
An uncomfortable silence settles between them until Vicki clears her throat.
“I wish I knew what to say sorry for,” Vicki says.
Confusion proves a preferable alternative to discomfort. “Why would you be sorry?” Alex asks.
“You know, when we were kids, I remember hearing a lot about heartbreak,” Vicki says, and Alex’s own heart convulses in her chest. “No one ever told me you could feel it as deeply with friends.”
Friends. Right.
“I missed you, you know?” Vicki continues. “In college and even now, whenever I learn something interesting but super nerdy, I think, ‘Alex would love this.’”
“Ouch?” Alex says--she's a nerd but is she that nerdy--but she knows what Vicki means. When reading feel-good stories on the internet, she often thinks that Vicki would do something like that.
Vicki smiles, a subtle quirk of the mouth. “Watching you with Josie just now... it seemed so easy. I wish I could remember why we fought. If I said something stupid or insensitive... I remember it was after your dad died and then Kenny.”
“What? No!” Alex says immediately. “At least I don’t think so. To be honest, I also have no idea what we were fighting about.” Then because she feels guilty about Vicki’s guilt, she adds, “I did sort of have an epiphany last year about why though.”
“Last year? That’s random.”
“Not really.” Alex's face is burning now. She wishes the cave was bigger, provided at least a facade of an escape. But then again, maybe with an escape, she wouldn’t be bringing herself to having this conversation. “I, umm, I came out last year. I guess I’m coming out again now. To you. But I-- last year I came out for the first time, and it sort of made me think about things, and I didn’t realize it at the time, but I think I had a crush on you, and I didn’t know how to deal with it.”
Vicki looks stunned, and Alex immediately regrets saying anything. All of her coming out experiences until now had been positive, but now Maggie’s story about her and Elisa is rattling around her head. Alex racks her brains, trying to remember if Vicki said anything in high school that even hinted at homophobia.
An even more panicked thought runs through her head. Alex is pretty sure she’s the stronger of the two of them. If someone is getting pushed out of this cave, it’s not her.
“You know what,” Alex says quickly, desperately retreating from that terrible thought. “We can forget I said anything.”
“No, I… Thanks for sharing. I’m glad you felt comfortable enough to,” Vicki says.
Relief floods through Alex’s body. It’s not enough to calm her pounding heart and twisting stomach, but it provides a moment of clarity. She’d been talking a mile a minute and given Vicki less than half a second to respond before she went into panic mode.
“To be honest, I think I’m more surprised that you had a crush on me specifically,” Vicki continues. “You’re such a perfectionist. That you of all people could think that I was worth crushing on... It’s kind of flattering.” She’s quick to clarify, “Not in a weird way!”
Alex laughs, shaky but sincere. “Well if it helps, I don’t have a crush on you anymore.”
Vicki nudges her leg against Alex’s. “My turn to say, ‘Ouch.’”
Silence settles between them again. Alex wishes she could say this one is less awkward than the previous, but they still have ten years of distance between them.
Again, Vicki is the one to break the silence. “So what brings you to Midvale since it’s not the reunion?”
“I’ve been going through--” Alex lets out a weary sigh “--something. I don’t want to talk about it, but Kara thought it’d be a good idea to get away from National City for the weekend.”
Vicki respects Alex’s wishes and pivots. “And how is Kara? Seemed like Supergirl also had it rough for a while.”
Alex thinks she could rival Kara’s super speed with how quickly she turns to Vicki. “What? Why would you--”
“I’ve never said anything to anyone,” Vicki says with her hands up, “but I grew up with you. It’s kind of obvious.”
“No.” Alex sinks her head into her hands. “You can’t know.”
“I think it’s kind of amazing,” Vicki continues, oblivious to the panic once again coursing through Alex’s veins, “you two saving the world together.”
“You don’t understand,” Alex chokes out. “Do you remember Rick Malverne?”
Alex knows she’s breaking confidentiality by saying this, but she needs Vicki to understand the scope of the problem. If Alex missteps, it won’t be a great solution, but J’onn can wipe Vicki too.
Vicki’s brow furrows in thought before saying, “He liked you, right? Used to carry your backpack or something?”
“He also figured out that Kara is Supergirl, so if he knew, and you know, then how many other people in this town know?”
“Okay, uhh, even if other people do, no one is going to--”
“Earlier this year, he kidnapped me.” 
“Oh my God.”
“He wanted his father freed from prison, so he went after me, said that if Kara didn’t break him free, he’d kill me. Nearly did too. But the point is that I can’t do that to Kara again.”
“What about you though? Are you okay?”
Alex looks down at the water below. The tide is rising much like the water in the tank. Alex shakes her head to wash the memories away.
“I’m fine.”
Vicki looks at her skeptically.
“I’m fine enough.”
“Well, if it helps, when I said it’s obvious, I meant to me.”
Alex shakes her head. “He knew because of that day on the beach. You know, when Kara saved that woman and her baby from the car? Our whole class was out there.”
“Yeah, but Rick moved away not long after, right? That’s one of his last memories of Kara, and it left an impression. No, hear me out. Everyone else who was there remembers her as that weird kid they picked on or avoided for years afterward. I’m pretty sure at this point the ‘weird kid Kara’ reputation is not the good kind of weird you’d expect to find in a superhero--no offense to her. It’s obvious to me because I know you, and especially in senior year after everything with Kenny, Sheriff Collins, and Josie, spending time with you meant spending time with Kara. I got to see her for the good kind of special that she is.”
“I don’t know.” Alex rubs her temples. She wishes it was that simple, but she doesn’t think it is.
“You know,” Vicki says playfully, sending off alarm bells in Alex’s head, “one way you can make sure is to come to the reunion tonight.”
Alex rolls her eyes. “I’d rather be kidnapped again.”
“Want me to sleuth around?” Vicki offers. “I may not be a super spy or whatever it is you do, but I’ve got skills.”
“No, we have other ways of dealing with this.” Alex makes a mental note to talk to J’onn. “And I was serious about the ‘you can’t know’ part. At the very least, you’re going to have to sign a lot of confidentiality documents.”
“Fair enough. Do I go to your office or something? Does that mean we’ll get to spend time together again? This has been nice.”
“We have another field office closer to where you live, not that I know where you live,” Alex adds quickly, but to her relief Vicki just laughs. “So, umm, maybe we could do something non-business related sometime?”
“I’d like that.”
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owl-with-a-pen · 3 years
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Nia getting hurt and brainy turning to team-flash for help because he feels hopeless. Ty <3
- I've never written for The Flash characters before, so I hope this is okay! Seeing as Cisco recently left the show, I thought it'd be nice to focus on him. Thank you for the prompt! x
From day one, Cisco had learned that being a part of Team Flash meant staying on your toes, always keeping vigilant for the next attack and always being prepared for the subsequent counterattack Star Labs’ resident tech genius – aka him - could provide. It also meant, expect the weirdest thing imaginable and, then? Oh man, you gotta triple that.
Still, even with all of that in mind, Cisco was in no way prepared for an alien super genius to swoop in from God-knows-where and systematically dismantle his lab, not to mention steal his thunder in the process.
All in the space of under twenty minutes.
"Hey, so I’m flattered you came to us for help,” Cisco finally called out from the lab’s doorway. “But, this might be easier if you actually, I don't know? Talk to us."
Cisco had been watching in bewilderment as Brainy ran around his lab, muttering under his breath as he picked up various pieces of experimental tech with both parts appraisal and derision before throwing them each none-too-gently aside. Cisco flinched when Brainy threw one of his most recent experiments – an advanced interdimensional extrapolator designed in theory to breach the new universes that had been created by Crisis – onto the countertop. And it’d stay totally theoretical if Brainy continued to pay the same amount of care to Cisco’s handiwork as one might a discarded candy wrapper. God, he really needed to start marking these things as fragile - especially when company was over. Then again, he hadn't expected a visit from the fourth kind today.
"Hey, dude, talk to us, c'mon, we won't bite," Cisco prompted, holding up his hands placatingly. When Brainy continued without so much as a word thrown in their direction, Cisco turned to Caitlin desperately, nudging her arm. "Tell him we don't bite," he whispered loudly.
"We don't bite," Caitlin repeated exasperatedly. She’d been watching Brainy with care since he’d barged through Star Lab’s front doors. Because, seriously, could anyone just walk into this place? "Brainy - I understand you're worried for your girlfriend, but we can help you. Just tell us what you need."
Cisco knew that something big was going down in National City, enough that Kara had called ahead last minute to inform Team Flash that they’d be getting a surprise visit from one of the Super Friends. Surprise really had been the understatement of the day. Nearly the second Caitlin had been off the phone with Kara, Brainy had decided to make his grand entrance.
"I don't need anything from you," Brainy said through his teeth, quite possibly the first coherent sentence he’d directed to anyone since his arrival. He continued to move restlessly, shuffling through another pile of technology. "I require your equipment,” he elaborated stiffly. “Since the DEO's destruction, we are rather limited on supplies."
Cisco cringed. "Ooh yeah, I heard about that. Some alien god, right?"
Bad call, Cisco realised immediately. The second the words had come out of his mouth, Brainy tensed, hunching his shoulders.
"His name was Rama Khan,” Brainy said, his voice strained. “He came from a race of ancient beings."
“So, not a god?" Cisco said quickly, glancing to Caitlin for support. When she only shrugged, he fumbled for something, anything, to lighten the mood. “I mean, figures, right? Out of every form of media out there, it had to be Ancient Aliens that was on the right track.”
Brainy made a disgruntled sound at that, dangling another piece of tech out into his line of sight before making to throw it over his shoulder.
“My tachyon filtrator!” Cisco lurched forward, eyes wide. “Hey, hey, stop that!” He snatched his experimental baby from Brainy’s hands seconds before disaster, pointing an accusing finger at him. “No more throwing my stuff, got it?”
"Cisco," Caitlin murmured in warning. "Don't."
"Easy for you to say,” Cisco shot back. “He's not throwing your stuff." Cisco strode over to his workbench, collecting as many of his unfinished designs as he could carry into his arms and very deliberately placing them as far away from prying Coluan fingers as was humanly possible.
Cisco could feel Brainy’s eyes watching his every move, though he wasn’t sure if there was even a hint of an apology in his expression. From the short time they’d worked together in the past, he remembered Brainy as being pretty unfiltered when it came to conversation, if not a little socially inept. Still, he got his nickname for a reason. Dude was literally a walking talking supercomputer, capable of calculating probability to such a high degree of accuracy, he might as well have been psychic. In any other circumstance, Cisco would’ve been eager to pick his brain, maybe even get his input on some of his more complex designs.
Right now, though? Maybe that wasn’t such a good idea, especially when he was so clearly distraught with what was happening over in National City.
Cisco had never formally met Dreamer before, but he’d seen her on the news enough to know that she was incredibly powerful. If something had taken her down, he knew it had to be bad.
And so, when Cisco was certain his tech was safe, he turned back to Brainy, eyeing him expectantly.
Finally, Brainy rolled his shoulders, closing his eyes. "Dreamer was affected by a meta," he explained carefully, lowering his chin. "The DEO had stockpiled technology, archived files on known meta attacks and their countermeasures. We- no, I lost that."
Well, Cisco didn’t need to be a twelfth-level whatever to know what Brainy was going through there. The guilt in his voice was practically tangible. Cisco seemed to remember that the DEO had had a sudden change in management during Lex Luthor’s reign, and if the files he’d been able to hack during that handover were true, then it’d been Brainy who’d been heading operations before the organisation’s literal collapse.
And now, Brainy’s girlfriend was in danger, caught in the crosshairs of a situation that couldn’t be fixed because of his mistake. Cisco swallowed around the sudden lump in his throat; he knew he wouldn’t have fared any better if Kamilla had been in that kind of danger.
"We've all done stuff we've regretted," Caitlin said carefully, stepping into the room. She folded her arms over her chest loosely, her brow furrowed with concern. "Look, maybe we don’t know each other very well, and maybe we can't even help advise you, but you clearly came here looking for something in particular so, we can at least supply you, right?” When Brainy turned towards her, eyes glimmering, Caitlin offered a gentle smile. “No one knows this lab's layout like Cisco, and if you need medical supplies, I've got you covered." Brainy held very still as Caitlin crossed the room and, when she was close enough, she reached out, hesitantly patting him on the shoulder. For all the confidence she was boasting right now, Cisco was far too aware that this was the closest alien encounter she'd had since meeting Kara, and for a lot of that time she'd been fronting as Frost.
"It's an extensive list," Brainy said warily. He didn’t shrug away from Caitlin’s touch, at least, which Cisco took as a small victory.
"Hey,” Cisco said, puffing out his chest, “you’re talking to Team Flash, here. I think we can handle it.”
Brainy’s eyes darted away from them both for a long moment, scanning empty air. When he blinked back into reality, he nodded, bowing his head. "Very well," Brainy relented.
With that, he made a vague gesture towards his head, pointing underhandedly with two fingers towards Cisco's pocket. In the same instant, his phone buzzed twice against his leg, indicating a text notification. Cisco fished it out of his pocket in confusion.
"I have transferred everything I need to your phone,” Brainy said by means of explanation.
“Huh. So you have,” Cisco said, eyes wide as he stared at the list of tech, trying very hard to keep his cool instead of grinning like an idiot at that awesome display of alien superpower. Maybe once he’d finished locating this stuff for Brainy, putting together the right machine to help his girlfriend, he’d have a chance to actually ask him some questions.
For now though, finding all this stuff took priority.
Cisco bit his cheek, nodding firmly. “Alright then,” he said, cracking his neck. “Looks like we should get started.”
Even though Brainy’s returning smile was pained, it was still a smile, which was definitely progress.
And hey, maybe Cisco would see a genuine one once Dreamer was safe and sound. Because he was gonna make sure that happened.
After all, that was what Team Flash was all about.
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evermorehaikyuu · 4 years
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Day 12
Title: The Pressure of The End
Note: I won’t lie, I like the title to this one. Anyways, here’s Shirabu’s angst, this takes place after the timeskip because I thought it’d be a little fun to write it. (Yes it was, it was very fun to write it.) There are warnings though, there are mentions of blood and there is a surgery, not in detail, but it is strongly implied. Proceed with caution.
˜”*°•.˜”*°•.•°*”˜.•°*”˜
Surgery was both a miracle and a curse. On one hand, if everything went well, you got out of the hospital room, back to full health. However, one little misguided position and the whole operation was off, the doctors having to tell the family of the deceased one that they hadn’t made it. 
It was an awful job and yet Shirabu Kenjirou had chosen it. He was incredibly smart and he hadn’t chosen to continue volleyball after high school. He had chosen one of the hardest fields in any industry and he was pulling it off greatly. He was at the top of his classes and when push came to shove, if any surgeon had had an accident, Shirabu would be the one everyone would choose.
He had studied until he couldn’t anymore. Every single day of this new life offered him so many opportunities and he would be damned if he didn’t take it. Shirabu learned to take a break only because of someone. 
Y/N L/N was in one of the top classes as well, but her job wasn’t as complex as a surgeon’s, she was a pediatrician. Both of them had met in their first year of med school and knew each other from Shiratorizawa. They had never talked; they had seen each other around the school though, so in this new environment, they only had each other.
Before long, they found themselves looking out for the other, making sure the other was okay even though Shirabu tried to deny it. 
By their third year in med school, he had fallen for her and they started going out together. Their job allowed them lunch breaks, which they spent together. It was difficult to go on dates but they were determined to continue their careers and stay together. 
“Kenjirou, you need a break, I know you want to keep studying, but it’s 3 am.” Y/N yawned, rubbing her eyes as she walked into the living room in her pajamas. Wrapping her arms around him from behind, she put her chin on his shoulder sleepily.
“I need to know this, Y/N, just in case I’m supposed to know this.” He rubbed his eyes with one hand, also knowing that he was getting tired. He had skimmed through his old textbooks until coming upon something new that he had never learned before: craniectomy. He didn’t think he’d need it, but nevertheless had studied it at least a little bit before. Just the basics, because he never thought he’d actually have to operate on the brain. 
“I know you like to study at this hour, but it’s not healthy.” Pressing a kiss to his shoulder, she buried her face in his neck. “Come back to bed.”
His eyes started drooping at her melodic voice and he agreed, going to bed with her and leaving the textbook open. The next day would be his day off after all. He’d have enough time to study what he needed to study. 
Or so he thought.
6 am brought news he hadn’t expected and he dreaded with all his heart. A phone call came in and he reached for his work phone, holding Y/N closer to him as she put her head on his chest, stirring slightly. In a sleepy voice, he answered, “Hello?”
“Shirabu, we need you at the hospital right now. Our best surgeon’s out somewhere else and it’s craniectomy. You’re the only one we know that knows at least the basics for this, everyone else is one level behind you.”
With that last word, his heart started racing in his chest, almost dropping his phone. He hadn’t studied enough for this. He only knew the basics. He was replacing the best surgeon. Shirabu cursed softly as he wished he hadn’t listened to Y/N and kept studying. “I’ll be right there.”
Quickly getting out of bed, Y/N turned over in their shared bed. She didn’t have to worry about being called immediately, he thought. She got to sleep in without any worry. Just the thought made him feel a little envious, but no matter, he couldn’t think of it right now.
Racing to the hospital and entering the room, he started getting ready for the procedure.
~
Blood was on his hands. Literally and figuratively. It was all his fault. It was his fault the patient had died, he was not prepared enough, no matter what anyone had said. If only he had actually studied and ignored Y/N, he wouldn’t be in this position.
“You can go now.” His supervisor said solemnly. Shirabu could feel the disappointment radiating off of him as he hurried out of the hospital and into his car. He got back home to Y/N sitting on the couch, reading a book.
She heard the door open and merely said, “Hey, honey, how did it--”
“I’m a murderer.” He whispered, staring at the floor as he collapsed against the door. “I should’ve studied more, I should’ve stayed up studying.” He looked up at her, desperation in his eyes. “Why did you stop me?”
Y/N set her book aside, standing up but not moving over to him. “What? Kenjirou, it can’t have been that bad--”
“Yes, it was! Because I didn’t study, I killed someone innocent, someone that expected to get out of there alive and I wasn’t able to do it!” Shirabu was grabbing fistfuls of his hair, hyperventilating. It was a normal thing in a doctor’s life for some patients to pass away under their hands, but Shirabu was brand new to that scene. 
“Shirabu, calm down, it was your first craniecto--”
“DON’T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN WHEN I JUST KILLED SOMEONE!” Shirabu screamed, his eyes becoming bloodshot. Never once had Shirabu lost his cool and yelled at her like that. She stepped back and stared at him, wringing her hands. Already, she was feeling guilty for what she had done, but how could she have known?
“You didn’t kill anyone, you didn’t know.”
“Which is why I should’ve paid attention and studied beforehand, but I didn’t do that, so now I’m a murderer!” Shirabu was losing his common sense and nothing could calm him down, except himself. Which is exactly what he did as he glowered at Y/N. “Why did you stop me?”
“Kenjirou, if you didn’t sleep, it would’ve been worse for you.”
“But they would’ve still been alive.” A dark smile came on his face. “So it’s not my fault. It’s yours.”
Y/N looked at him as if he had gone insane. “It’s MY fault for me wanting you to get some sleep?! I’m sorry, but what kind of logic is that?!”
“Sorry doesn’t fix everything.” Shirabu told her, clenching his fists. “Sorry doesn’t bring back a dead person and sorry does not fix this situation! Because of you, now my job is on the line!”
Y/N couldn’t take it anymore. “Because of me? Shirabu, are you even listening to yourself? You’re being delusional, you’ve been suffering from delusions of grandeur for all of your life and now that I try to help you once, the blame is on me?” 
“I guess it is.” He said bluntly, not even looking at her. “Just go. I don’t want to see you.”
Y/N was taken aback at his words and she swallowed, the lump in her throat growing bigger. Her voice came out shakily as she said. “So this is it? After all we’ve been through?”
Shirabu didn’t say anything as she left the room, going up to their bedroom and slammed the door. The sound brought him back to reality and he immediately felt guilty for what he had done. 
Hours later, after he had calmed down, he went back to the bedroom to try and apologize. But she was gone. Every trace of her, except for picture frames was gone. The bed was untidy and all her things, gone with her.
No. No, she can’t have left, I didn’t mean for her to leave. Shirabu rushed around the room, trying to find a hint as to where she went. But seeing as he was a doctor and not a profiler, he did not have the slightest idea as to where he had gone.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, he hugged her pillow to him, trying to get the comfort she used to give him before he blurted what he could never take back. He buried his face in the pillow, stifling a sob that was rising in his throat. Her familiar scent was slowly leaving the object, a metaphor for her leaving him. 
Why was I so stupid? Why did I tell her to leave? All of these years together and she left, because I was ignorant and stupid and believed it was her fault when it was neither of our faults. 
What felt like a century later, he looked at the clock. 8 pm. Something glinted off of the cabinet. He stood up and picked up the shimmering object, followed by a long trail of gold. A promise ring on a necklace.
“Here.” Shirabu handed the object to her. “It’s a promise ring. I promise to never hurt you and never leave you and never cause you to leave me. I promise to protect you and be by your side whenever you need me.”
She had also given him a promise ring the next day, promising to always be by his side.
Some promises were never supposed to be made.
~
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nami-writes · 3 years
Text
Home - Detroit: Become Human
i wanted to write something so i put my playlist on shuffle and the first song that played was waving through a window (yes from dear evan hansen) so obviously i wrote about connor! there are a few references to the song in this too bc i couldn’t resist lmao. enjoy connor struggling with the concept of home
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The first night after the revolution was the worst.
A few androids left after the revolution was a success. They returned to their former loving owners, now their family, or just went to start a new life for themselves as free people. 
Most of the androids returned back to the abandoned church. At least, most of the ones that survived. They were the ones that had nowhere to go. No place they could call home, no people they could call family. They were the ones that had joined Jericho early on, when it was nothing but a few dozen barely-functioning androids living in a broken down ship who were there because nobody else wanted them, or joined Jericho the latest, the ones most lost and confused and unsure of what to do because there’s nobody to tell them.
Connor went with them.
He wasn’t sure why, really. He was sure Hank was waiting for him with Sumo, probably freaking out at Connor being involved in the revolution on TV and possibly being hurt, but entirely willing to welcome him home regardless.
Home.
Could that be considered his home?
The idea had been foreign to him before Hank. Which... wasn’t very long, considering the majority of his lifetime had been spent accompanying him on investigations, but the word still left an odd feeling in his chest. Cyberlife had been home, or something similar, at least. The police station had been home. Now, Jericho was home.
Would Hank be home?
definition of home                     
/hōm/ noun                                                
the place where one lives permanently,
especially    as a member of a family   or household.                                      
Family.
That word left a similar feeling in his chest. And to think of Hank as family...
He could almost say he wanted it.
No, that was wrong. He did want it. But could an android be part of a family?
Could he be part of a family?
But how could he be?
He didn’t belong with Hank and Sumo. He was an android, a deviant. Hank was still dealing with Cole’s death, making himself his responsibility would only worsen his stress. He couldn’t be part of his family.
He didn’t even feel part of Jericho, despite also being a deviant. In fact, he felt like he was still part of the other side. The humans’ side. He felt like he still hadn’t proven himself, hadn’t yet shown he was truly trying to help.
He felt like he still wasn’t enough.
Like he hadn’t done enough.
Logically, he knew he had. Logically, he knew he’d been the one to recruit over half of Jericho’s current numbers and defeat Cyberlife indefinitely.
But still, some part of him nagged at him, reminding him how he’d been known as the infamous deviant hunter. He’d signaled for the destruction of Daniel, he’d caused the HK400 to self-destruct, he’d led the humans to Jericho. All of it had been his fault, still was his fault, would always be his fault.
It had taken the lives of two androids and risking the lives of too many more for him to realize he’d been wrong.
Would he ever be more than the deviant hunter everyone knew him as?
When he saw Rupert, the Tracis, and the AX400, he’d been filled with shame. He’d put all of them into life-threatening situations and nearly got one of them killed. And for what? To accomplish his mission? To mark off another task on his to-do list? To satisfy Amanda and save himself at their expense?
He was surrounded by deviants, his supposed people, but it felt like he was miles away from them. He felt nowhere near as deserving of freedom as they all were. Every strange look in his general direction made him think they recognized him, they knew him, they knew he was the deviant hunter, they were going to throw him out or kill him because they knew.
He didn’t belong in Jericho alongside Markus. He didn’t belong anywhere. He should’ve just let himself fail and be deactivated if it meant he could save the lives of the androids he’d caused the deaths of.
It would’ve been better for everybody.
Markus noticed Connor sitting by himself in a pew, his face buried in his hands, and approached him. “Connor? Are you okay?”
Connor looked up at him, slightly startled to see him when the sudden question pulled him out of his thoughts. “Yes, I’m... I’m okay. I’m fine.”
“You don’t look fine.” He took the seat beside him. “What’s wrong? Do you have nowhere to go?”
“No, I do, it’s just that I...” He trailed off, reconsidering answering him. What would he think about what Connor’s done? He didn’t want to be thrown out and lose what little he had left.
But what did it matter if he was thrown out? He would deserve it after all he’s done.
“...I’m sorry.” He couldn’t think of anything else to say, so he apologized. Partially for having been such a terrible person before he deviated, and partially for putting his burdens on him. He would only admit one of those, though.
“Sorry? Why are you sorry?” Markus asked, this time with a look of genuine confusion and concern. “You have nothing to be sorry about.”
He wanted to say he had everything to be sorry about, but decided against it. “I just... I was a—a terrible person before I deviated, and—“
“No, don’t be sorry for that,” Markus interrupted. “That isn’t you anymore. You didn’t know any better. None of it was your fault.”
“All of it was my fault,” he said. “You don’t understand. I hurt so many people. I got so many people killed. I just...” He sighed and dropped his gaze. “Maybe it’d be best for everyone if I left.”
Markus looked shocked and almost offended, even, and Connor immediately felt a pang of guilt. “Connor, no. You belong here. You can go find a home for yourself, but you’ll always have a place here. You’re one of us now. Your past doesn’t change that.”
“The AX400. Rupert. The Tracis,” Connor began. “I chased down all of them and risked all of their lives.” He swallowed hard, but forced himself to say it. “I made the AX400 cross a busy highway with her child. I chased Rupert across a moving train. I fought and almost shot the Tracis.” He wanted to disappear on the spot, but he couldn’t, so instead he did the closest thing to it. “I’m sorry. I-I should go.” Despite the voices in his head telling him how pathetic he was to be unable to own up to his misdeeds and face him, he stood up and went to leave.
Markus grabbed his arm and Connor braced himself to be chewed out, or maybe even assaulted. It’d be understandable, after all. “I know.”
He stopped. Of all possible responses, he hadn’t expected that. “What?”
Markus gave a half-relieved chuckle. “Connor, they’re the ones who told me.” He pulled Connor back into his seat with a reassuring smile. “When you showed up and joined Jericho, they each came up to me and vouched for you. They thought I was going to kill you or kick you out, so they defended you. But they told me different stories than what you said.”
“They... defended me?”
He nodded. “Kara, the AX400, said you didn’t go after her on the highway, even though you had the chance to. Rupert told me you stopped chasing him to help your partner. The Tracis both saw you get a clean shot at one of them, and then lower your gun.” His voice softened. “You can be a good person, Connor. You are a good person. Kara didn’t seem very favorable of you, but she still felt the need to vouch for you. Hell, Rupert actually told me he didn’t like you because you were hunting deviants but he thought you could learn to be better. And I’m pretty sure it was the Tracis’ idea to vouch for you in the first place.”
“I...”
I don’t deserve this.
“...I don’t know what to say.”
“Then don’t say anything. But you are more than what you think you are,” he said. “You deserve to be here just as much as anyone else here does.” He gave him one last supportive smile before standing up. “Jericho is your home, and we are your family. It’s up to you whether or not you want to find your own.”
Connor watched as Markus walked away, then remembered what he’d been thinking about prior to their conversation.
He hadn’t been sure if he could have a home or have Hank be his family.
He still wasn’t sure if he could have that, but he knew he wanted it.
The next morning, Connor found him waiting for him outside of his house. Hank noticed him and turned to give him a smile with Sumo laying at his feet.
He returned it.
Hank took a few hesitant steps forward. Sumo followed.
Then he grabbed Connor’s shoulder and pulled him into a hug, closing the distance between them as Sumo padded around them.
meaning of home                                                     
home means an enjoyable, happy place,
where you can  live, laugh and learn. it’s somewhere
where you are loved, respected, and cared for.
This had to be it.
This had to be home.
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clumsyclifford · 4 years
Text
popularity, or pink flowers
well the good news is i have absolutely no excuse for this. a month ago my dear friend spidey anon send this ask about wicked!5sos and then tonight it was revived when @calumsclifford starting discussing it and now it’s 4am and muke!gelphie exists. SO.
not to pretend this is a Real Fic because it’s literally just the Popular scene but with muke as gelphie, but anyway you can read this as pre-slash or as just homies, i don’t really care. also if anyone cares, kara lindsay is my favorite glinda and this is the video i watched to get the dialogue and gist of this scene down. even if you know absolutely nothing about wicked i recommend you watch it because kara lindsay is fucking hilarious.
anyway, obvious shoutout to maggie, who’s tagged above, for being the bearer of all the great musical!sos aus. this is my humble offering to you. also to spidey anon.
(side note i changed the ending a little bit because you know me. a sucker for a hopeful ending. fuck angst 2k20 baby)
[ao3]
-
Luke is buzzing when they get back to their dormitory, just a few minutes shy of midnight, and Michael sits at the edge of his bed and pretends not to notice the way Luke is literally bouncing on his own mattress.
Finally Luke snaps. “Your very first party ever!” he cheers, as if that’s something to be celebrating, that Michael is college-age and still has never been to a party.
“Do funerals count?” he asks, because if so he’s been to quite a few.
Luke frowns for a moment and then carries on, undeterred. “Your very first party,” he says, emphasis clear, and grins. “Yay!”
Michael doesn’t think the party was as much of a smash hit as Luke seems to believe it was, but Luke’s already leaping off his bed and scurrying over towards Michael’s. It’s possible Luke has had too much to drink; Michael wishes he’d known there would be alcohol. He would have taken advantage.
That, or Luke is just naturally this bubbly, which is an even more exhausting thought.
“I know!” says Luke, clambering onto Michael’s bed, pushing right up against his side. Michael shies away, hugging tighter to the pillow across his lap, but Luke doesn’t get the message and reaches to straighten out Michael’s fringe. “Let’s tell each other secrets. Something you’ve never told anyone before.” Grinning conspiratorially at Michael, he says, “I’ll go first.” Then, in a low whisper: “Ashton and I are going to be married!”
Michael blinks. Luke and Ashton are well-suited, he reckons; both a little bit flippant, a little bit ditzy, and very popular.  “He’s asked you already?”
“Oh, he doesn’t know yet,” Luke says cheerfully. “Now you tell me a secret.”
Michael can’t think of a single secret he wants to share with any version of Luke, but especially not this version of Luke, who’s so ridiculously upbeat it makes Michael want to crawl under his bed and hermit until he becomes one with the dust bunnies.
“Like what?” he asks.
“Like,” Luke says, and then before Michael can react he’s off the bed and reaching under Michael’s other pillow, “why do you sleep with this green bottle under your bed?”
Michael jumps to his feet, cheeks hot. “Give it back!”
“Come on, what is it?” Luke screeches, holding it high up, almost out of reach. Michael grabs hold of it and they play tug of war for a moment, Luke demanding to know what it is and Michael growling for him to return it, before Michael finally wins the battle and the bottle is safely in his hands.
“It was my mum’s!” he snaps. “That’s all. Fuck.”
Luke looks deeply upset. “That’s not fair,” he accuses. “I told you a really good one.”
Michael thinks he’s going to do something violent in a few moments unless Luke does something really redeemable. And then Luke turns back to his own bed and flops face-first into his pillow, unmoving. Like he’s really, truly hurt by this betrayal of Michael’s, daring not to match Luke’s oh-so-secret secret with one of his own.
It occurs to Michael that Luke is trying to bond with him. Or at least be friendly. And to be perfectly honest, that’s not something Michael’s come by too easily at Shiz. Friends, friendly people, anyone willing to make polite conversation...they’ve all been effectively nonexistent for Michael. For Luke, who had been such an asshole to him in the beginning (though Michael had returned the favor), to try and build a bridge despite their past failings, is actually pretty admirable. And Michael’s being cagey.
He caves.
“My dad hates me,” he admits. Luke immediately springs up. “That’s not the secret.” Once again Luke flops into his pillows, disappointed. Michael sighs. “The secret is that he has a good reason to. It’s my fault.”
This time Luke stands up and turns to look at him, and Michael recognizes the faintest trace of concern in his features. Sympathy. Not something Michael expected to see on Luke.
“What?” Luke asks, brows drawn together. “What is?”
This time, when he approaches Michael’s bed, it’s tentative, and maybe that’s what makes Michael shift over so that Luke can sit himself down. Still hugging the pillow close, Michael says, “That my sister is — the way she is.” Crippled, he doesn’t say, because she hates it when people call her that, even if it’s true. Nessarose is crippled for life. 
Luke watches him, careful, and doesn’t say anything, so Michael clears his throat and starts from the beginning. “See, when our mum was carrying Nessa, our father started worrying that the new baby might come out, you know.” 
“Green,” Luke supplements, although there’s nothing mocking in his voice, surprisingly.
“Green,” Michael agrees, looking down at his hands for a moment. When he looks back, Luke’s eyes are still on him. “He was so worried that he made mum chew milk flowers all the time. Only…it made Nessa come too soon, and her legs were all tangled. And mum never woke up.” He swallows, shakes his head. “None of which would’ve happened if not for me.”
Luke is quiet for a moment. Then he says, “But that was the milk flowers’ fault. Not yours.” He grabs at Michael’s hands and Michael is too startled to pull away. “That may be your secret, Michael, but that doesn’t make it true. You’re blaming yourself for something you didn’t even do. For someone you just are.” And then, just as Michael is thinking that maybe Luke is cleverer than he lets on, Luke cuddles into his side, stroking his hair and whispering, “Shh.”
“Uh, Luke,” Michael whispers back, because this is pretty weird.
Luke ignores him. Then he catches sight of the clock on the wall and leaps away from Michael to his feet, clapping in excitement. “Hey, look, it’s tomorrow!” Turning to Michael, he adds, “Mikey — is it alright if I call you Mikey?”
Michael grimaces. “Well, it’s a little childish.”
Luke ignores him again, happy grin fixed into place. Whatever Luke was sincerely reassuring Michael that Nessa’s deformity hadn’t been his fault is gone, and this bubblegum version of him is in his place. Michael’s not sure which one is the real Luke, or if there is a real Luke. Maybe Luke is just a bunch of personalities that slot in and out of place like gobo lenses on stage lights.
“And you can call me…” Luke spreads his arms. “Luke!” Like Michael wasn’t already doing that. “See, Mikey, now that we’re friends, I’ve decided to make you my new project.”
Michael stares. “You really, really don’t have to do that.” Please don’t do that, is what he means to say. Michael can only imagine what that means, and it’s not pretty.
But Luke, once again, is steadfast. “I know! That’s what makes me so nice.”
Michael doesn’t know if nice is the word. “I don’t need to be a project,” he tries, but Luke is already talking over him.
“You see, Mikey, I’m a very fortunate person,” he chirps. “And so when I see someone less fortunate than I am — which, let’s face it, is most people —  my heart aches for them. And when someone needs a makeover — well, I’m amazing at makeovers.” He tosses a grin at Michael. “Clearly. And I know —” Michael opens his mouth to protest and Luke puts a finger over it, “I know exactly what they need. Oh!” He stalls Michael on his return from putting the green bottle back underneath his pillow and reaches for his glasses. Michael winces as Luke pulls them away from his face, examines him for a moment, and then puts them back. Awesome. Michael’s always thought he looked dorky with glasses, but somehow Luke thinks he looks worse without them, which is just great.
“Luke —” he tries again, and is once more cut off.
“No, no, no! Mikey, listen. This is going to be tough. I’m not going to lie. You’re a real fixer-upper, but don’t worry. I have a perfect track record with makeovers. When I’m done with you, I swear, you will be popular.”
Michael frowns at Luke’s winning smile. “Popular?”
“Popular!” Luke agrees brightly. “I’m an expert on being popular, Mikey. I can teach you everything you need to know.” He gasps excitedly. “I can teach you to talk to boys!”
“I’m not really planning on —”
“And we can fix your hair!” Luke continues, growing more excited by the minute. At Michael’s face, he hurriedly says, “Not that there’s anything wrong with it! Except that it’s um, bad.”
“Oh,” Michael says faintly. “Well, if that’s all.” 
“Don’t worry, it’s not!” Luke says. Michael is tempted to try sarcasm again but it obviously sails right over Luke’s head, so he keeps his mouth shut as Luke fluffs a hand through Michael’s hair. Evidently he’s trying and failing to get it to do something — maybe stick up in a quiff like Luke’s does, which Michael could have told him would be a lost cause — and eventually he rocks back on his heels and huffs. “Well. We can work on that later. You look offended.”
“Well —”
“Lighten up,” Luke insists. “Think of it as…personality dialysis!” Which is a big word that stuns Michael into silence. He hadn’t really known Luke knew any big words, much less how to use them correctly. “Don’t be worried, Mikey. I told you, I’m a pro. And now that we’re friends and I can give you advice you have nothing to worry about.”
Michael is worried, although not for the reasons Luke thinks. He can’t picture a scenario where he walks out of this engagement unscathed.
“Luke, this is nice and all, but I don’t really feel like I need…to be popular.”
“Oh, don’t be silly,” Luke says. “Nobody needs to be popular. Well. Except me. But I am popular, so it works out pretty well!” He giggles. Michael wonders if the alcohol has worn off yet. Part of him hopes it hasn’t; if this is how Luke normally is with his friends, Michael has reason to be concerned. “Just let me help you. Let me try. You can be someone new! Instead of your old self! Well, your current self. Well — you get it.”
Michael sighs. “Okay,” he says, because the path of least resistance also seems like the fastest way to wear Luke out. He’s practically vibrating with excitement, and when Michael gives in he immediately springs into action.
“Amazing! First of all, let me take these —” Luke lifts Michael’s glasses off his nose and folds them up, then grabs Michael’s wrists and tugs him over to Luke’s bed. Michael doesn’t really see why this pseudo-makeover can’t happen from the safety of his own twin, but whatever. “See, Mikey, you just have to think logically. I mean, think about the big-shots you know about. Heads of state, diplomats.” Still chattering away, Luke reaches for something between his pillows, and Michael barely has time to register that it’s glitter — glitter, what the fuck, why would he keep that between his pillows — before it’s being dusted over his face. “Do you think they got those positions because they were smart? Of course not! They were popular. It’s all to do with being popular, Mikey. I know you’re smart, but that’s not enough anymore! It doesn’t matter how smart you are. It matters how many friends you’ve got.”
There’s a lot going on right now, what with Luke babbling about aptitude while he applies fucking glitter to Michael’s cheekbones, so Michael almost misses the part where Luke compliments him. Almost, but not quite. It’s right there; I know you’re smart, but…Michael feels his cheeks flush with pride.
“You really think being — popular is going to help me with my studies?” Michael asks hesitantly.
Luke beams, leaning away from Michael to survey his handiwork, and claps. Glitter clouds around his hands and flutters to the carpet.
“I don’t just think so,” he says giddily. “I know so. Okay. First of all, you need to learn to flirt.” Michael doesn’t really have time to wonder how flirting is going to help him get ahead in class, because Luke’s powering forward, and Michael has no choice but to listen in helpless captivity. “This is a simple two-step move. Step one: hair.”
“Hair,” Michael repeats.
“Yes, try and keep up,” Luke says impatiently. “Step one, you run your hand through your hair. Like so.” He demonstrates, and his hair takes on a charmingly mussed-up look. “Now you try!”
Certain that his hair will either stay the same or get worse, Michael concedes, dragging his hand half-heartedly through his hair. Luke looks unmoved.
“You’ve got to do it like you mean it, Mikey. Here, pretend I’m some hot guy you’re trying to impress. Well, you won’t need to pretend I’m a hot guy, but you get it.” He giggles.
Michael rolls his eyes. “Maybe if you tell me the second step I can put them together?”
“Oh! Right. Step two: bite your lip. Like so.” With a halfway smirk, Luke drags his bottom lip between his teeth, then grins at Michael. “Okay. Put it all together. Come on come on come on! You can do it!”
There’s no denying that Luke looks pretty sexy with his infallible two-step move, but equally no denying that Michael will crash and burn. Luke looks too excited not to at least give it a shot, though, so Michael bites the bullet.
He tries for a smile, which definitely looks more like a grimace, and then pulls a hand through his hair, biting his lower lip as he does. Confused by both things at once, he bites down too hard, and then winces. “Ow, fuck!”
Luke looks so overjoyed at his attempt that he wraps him up in a too-tight hug. When he pulls away he looks optimistic. “Well,” he says hopefully, “you can practice.” Michael snorts. Luke’s eyes light up like he’s struck with an idea, and he pulls Michael to his feet. “Ooh, oh! And now, I shall turn your ratty clothes into a bespoke suit!”
Ratty clothes? “I like these clothes,” Michael says defensively, as Luke grabs for his wand. Skinny jeans and t-shirts are most of his wardrobe, most if not all black. It’s part of his whole look. The emo, brooding loner look.
Luke ignores him, which is becoming a theme for the night. Morning. Whichever. Brandishing his wand in Michael’s general direction, he declares, “Suit!”
Nothing happens.
Luke frowns, taps the end of his wand, and emphatically repeats, “Suit!”
Again nothing.
“Is this thing even on?” Luke grumbles, and starts hitting the wand against his bed. 
Michael doesn’t want to be wearing a suit, but he also doesn’t want Luke to break his wand over this. “Do you want me to try?” he offers.
“No!” Luke says hotly, and throws the wand behind him, where it clatters against the wall and then to the floor. Calmly, he adds, “Just keep the, um, statement clothes. They’re cute.”
His expression says otherwise, but Michael decides not to look a gift horse in the mouth.
“And now for the finishing touch,” Luke says, leading Michael to sit again at the foot of Luke’s bed. Michael goes willingly; hopefully this means an end to this nonsense, and Michael can get to bed, and in the morning they can be, like, awkward acquaintances at best. Michael isn’t expecting a lasting friendship out of this. It will be nice not to be constantly hostile towards his roommate, sure, but Luke’s…well, Luke is Luke, cheerful and bubblegum pink and popular, and Michael is Michael, that is, none of those things. In no universe could he and Luke remain friends, whatever Michael might want.
Patiently, Michael sits and watches as Luke reaches for the flower clipped in his hair, pulling it neatly back from his face, and slides the clip into Michael’s hair instead. It probably looks ridiculous — Michael’s all dark colors and green and grumpy, and pink shouldn’t be within a five-foot radius of his outfit, much less in the form of a hair clip flower — but as soon as it’s in, Luke gives a short gasp, and a smile spreads slowly over his face.
“Pink goes good with green,” he says happily. Michael can’t help but smile himself at the sincerity in Luke’s expression. “Michael. Look at you. You’re beautiful.”
In all his years of life, Michael has never once been called beautiful, and he jerks at the word now, sure that Luke must be having him on, that this must all be an elaborate prank. But Luke tugs him to his feet and leads him to the mirror, and the Michael in the mirror is — huh.
Pretty, actually.
Everything fades around Michael until Luke is just a blur off to the side, and Michael stares at himself until his eyes start unfocusing. He’s never been pretty before, never been anything other than an embarrassment to everyone who’d known him. But now his cheeks glimmer when they catch the light, and somehow fussing with his hair has actually made it look soft and inviting, and the flower, somehow, inexplicably, does look good.
Warmth is blossoming in Michael’s chest, and with it, panic. This isn’t — this isn’t him. This isn’t Michael Clifford. This is some bootleg version of him, some bastardized combination of himself and Luke, and Luke isn’t who he wants to be, or even who he should be. He should be Michael fucking Clifford, and that should be enough. His intelligence should be good enough to carry him through his studies; he shouldn’t need popularity, or pink flowers.
“I,” he chokes out, as the world rushes back to him. “I have to go.” Anywhere else, anywhere other than in front of this mirror. He heads for the door but Luke grabs his arm.
“Hey,” he says, pouting. “You’re welcome.”
“Thanks,” Michael says, strangled. “I mean, thanks but no thanks. This isn’t me.”
“It looks like you,” Luke points out, still holding his wrist. “Just a prettier version of you.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t want to be prettier,” Michael snarls, wrenching his hand free.
“Who wouldn’t want to be prettier?”
Michael groans. It had been too good to be true all along; Luke really is that stupid, that shallow, that daft. “I don’t! I don’t care if I’m pretty, or if I know how to flirt, or if I’m wearing a fucking suit! I want to be enough as I am. This might be hard for you to believe, but some people want to have worth outside of their looks!”
Luke stares at him as Michael cuts himself off, chest heaving from the outburst. “You think all I am is a pretty face?”
“No, Luke,” Michael says tiredly. “You think all you are is a pretty face. But I don’t want to be that. I’d rather be clever than handsome.”
“You can be both clever and handsome,” Luke argues. “You’re not stupider if you put glitter on your face, Mikey.”
“Michael.”
“Mikey. I don’t think you’re being very fair right now.”
“How am I not being fair?”
“I’m trying to help you, and you’re just — yelling and running away!” Luke says, throwing his hands up. “Maybe instead of blaming me, you should acknowledge why you’re really upset right now, huh? Admit it — you’ve never felt beautiful in your life, and now you’re upset because you didn’t realize you could have been pretty all along, and it was stupid, bubbly Luke Hemmings who taught you how to do it! You’re embarrassed that I knew something that you didn’t!”
Michael opens his mouth to retort, closes it, opens it again as the pink rises predictably in Luke’s cheeks — he’s probably not prone to violent outbursts the way Michael is, or confrontation at all, and now he looks like he might start crying — and says quietly, “Okay. Fine. You’re right.”
Luke’s eyes go wide. “I’m…right?”
“Yeah,” Michael says, though it pains him to admit it. “You’re right. I — I’m sorry, Luke. I shouldn’t have tried to run out. You were just trying to help.”
“I did help,” Luke argues weakly, bottom lip quivering. “I did.”
“You did,” Michael allows. “Thank you.”
“You look really nice, you know,” Luke whispers. “Even if pink isn’t usually your color. It suits you.”
“Yeah, well,” Michael says, casting around for something to say. “Maybe you should start wearing green.”
Luke quirks his lips in a smile. “Maybe I should.”
He won’t, and they both know it — Luke’s color is going to be pink until the end of time — but it’s an olive branch for the both of them, and as one they both grab hold of it. Michael gets the feeling that something is going to be different. Maybe Luke isn’t just going to be an awkward acquaintance. Maybe they’ll be friends.
It’s far-fetched, but stranger things have happened. After all, Michael’s wearing glitter.
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iminyourhandskara · 4 years
Text
A Second Schott At Love - Chapter 2.
It seemed like Friday night couldn’t come soon enough, for both the couples: Kara and Mon-El had a really good feeling about it, while Eve and Winn were a bundle of nerves. Winn kept texting his friend asking for an opinion on which flannel shirt he was supposed to wear, meanwhile Eve begged Kara to go shopping with her, she wanted to look her best, even if Kara repeatedly told her that her usual style would be perfect for the date, she didn’t need new clothes. “Are you sure you don’t want to tell me anything about Winn?” “I want you to find out yourself at the date, directly. And I don’t want you to run out of questions, you’re welcome.” “I hate you for being so right.” Kara smirked, as they walked to another shop, looking for a blouse that matched her pencil skirt: Eve was lucky that her style was so similar to her friend’s.
“Can you tell me more about Eve?” “I really don’t know what to tell you, since our only date was ruined by yours truly by talking only about..” “About?” “Uhm, listen, I need to tell you something, but promise me you won’t tell anyone yet.” “Of course, I promise.” “Well..Kara and I are dating.” Winn gasped, “Since when?” “Valentine’s day, more or less.” “NOOOOOOOOOOOO!” “What?” Mon-El cringed thinking he had hurt his friend’s feelings in some way. “I owe Alex 30 dollars, I told her you would get together after Valentine’s day. She bet that you would get together on Valentine’s day..” “Okay, wow. But Kara hasn’t told Alex yet, so you can spend that money on the date first.” “So..you blew your date with Eve because you couldn’t stop talking about Kara? How does she not hate you both?” Mon-El chuckled, “I don’t know, but that surely means that she has a big heart and doesn’t hold grudges, she’s very supportive.” “I feel a little less nervous now..If she met the me from last year, things would’ve gone in the exact same way. Don’t worry, I’m over her! Anyway, I’m really happy for you both, truly.” Winn put his hands on Mon-El’s shoulders, then he hugged him. “Thank you so much, I hope you find the same happiness I have found with Kara.” “Fingers crossed.”
 It was finally time to go at the restaurant, Kara and Mike planned to go a little earlier than Winn and Eve, but obviously, they couldn’t let themselves be recognized by their friends: they “borrowed” a short red wig and fake moustaches from the DEO and prayed they looked somewhat believable. Winn arrived perfectly on time, he seemed pretty nervous for this date; Eve got there just a few minutes later: “It’s showtime!” Kara whispered to Mon-El from the nearby table.
“Hey, I’m Winn, you must be Eve, right?” ‘Why am I even saying this, I know it is her!’ he thought. ”It’s great to finally meet you, Winn.” They shook hands. “You look really, really pretty.” “Oh, thank you so much.” Eve blushed so hard, as if she’d never gotten a compliment before. Winn walked her to the table and moved her chair to let her sit, “Thank you.”
“So, have you ever eaten here?” “No, no, it’s my first time here..in a place like this.” Winn confessed. “I read the food is delicious: you know, I always try to check reviews before I go somewhere new, not that I don’t trust Kara—“ “No, I totally get it, I do the same thing with books and movies.” “That’s nice, I really enjoy books and movies as well. Especially books, since I also studied literature.” “Right! I forgot you attended Yale, that must’ve been incredible.” Winn’s eyes lit up, he could feel the conversation flowing naturally.
The waiter arrived to take their ordination, but then they picked up right where they left. “Yeah, I’ll admit that was a really challenging part of my life, but I’m really proud of all the amazing things I’ve learned. What about you?”
“Eh, I didn’t have the best family growing up, I was pretty lonely until I moved here from Newark, five years ago. Then you know, I met Kara and James and.. CatCo was pretty fun: I’ve had great moments there, even if Cat didn’t get my name right once.” “Typical Cat Grant.” They laughed together. “I came up with the theory that if she gets a name wrong, it means she actually likes you: she always knew my name perfectly, but she always called Kara “Keira”, and you?..” “Will, I think?” “..so she definitely liked you more than she ever liked me.” “That actually makes a lot of sense, wow. You’re smart. Also in a non-academic-cool kind of way.” “Well..” She tucked a hair strand behind her ear.
Besides them, Kara smiled widely with pride at the match she’d created, “I think they’re getting along really well..” “I think so too..but we’ve finished eating like five minutes ago, shouldn’t we go?” Mon-El feared being caught. “Ugh, just ten more minutes!” “Okay..okay.”
 “You mentioned books earlier, and I’m really dying to ask you a question, it’s kind of a deal breaker for me.” “Shoot.” The blonde was curious. “You’ve read Harry Potter, right?” “Oh my gosh, of course! That’s actually where I got this passion for literature.” Winn made an exaggerated sigh of relief, “Good, that’s good. What’s your house?” “If it wasn’t already obvious, Hufflepuff, but with a hint of Slytherin. You?” “Gryffindor! Should I be worried about that ‘hint’?” Eve chuckled, “I don’t think so, but let’s just say you don’t want an enemy like me.” She raised her eyebrow and smirked. “Do you have a favorite Disney movie?” She continued changing the subject. “That’s a terribly difficult question to answer, I think I’m gonna say Aladdin, though.” “Why?” “I don’t know, orphan that has nothing and then has everything, great friendship and love stories, amazing songs I’ll admit I still know by heart..” “Oh, don’t worry I know every Disney song by heart. Everyone.” “And what’s yours?” “Beauty and the Beast: I’ve always seen a little bit of myself in Belle, and God knows how many Gastons I have met in my life..I was also in love with her yellow dress. I hate to say it but I was kinda disappointed by the live action trailer. I still love Emma Watson, though.” “Yeah, same for me..What was your first job? Did Disney or Harry Potter influence you there as well?” “Ha, not at all. I don’t know if you’d count it as a job, but I got my first money from my roommate in college.” “What? How?” “Let’s just say, she’s made a bunch of bad decisions in high school and she’d pay me to cover her Ryan Seacrest tattoo when she had to go out with her boyfriend.” “Wow, and I thought that my Hot Topic experience was odd..” “Yeah, my experience is definitely unique..I really like your shirt, by the way: blue is one of my favorite colors.” “Seriously? Well then, I’m your perfect guy, since 90% of my wardrobe is blue.” Winn didn’t even have the time to cringe at what he said because their food had arrived, so they started eating in a comfortable silence and Eve didn’t seem shaken by his sentence: truth was, Winn and Eve had a lot of spontaneous chemistry and their date was slowly climbing up to be on top of their charts.
“Do you want a dessert?” He asked shyly. “I have a better idea..the food here is delicious, but the portions are kind of..” “Small? Agreed.” “Oh, good. I thought you were gonna think I was an insatiable monster.” Winn chuckled at Eve, “Not at all! So what’s your idea?” “Big Belly Burger?” “Yes, yes-yes-yes-yes! I haven’t been there in a while, actually. Let me go pay.” “No, we can split.” “Nuh-uh. But you can buy me chicken nuggets later.” “..Okay, deal.” Eve finally gave up with a sweet smile.
 “Okay, I think we can go now, they’re leaving too.” Kara whispered to Mon-El, “I think they had a nice time.” He replied. “Yeah, I think so too: I can’t wait to hear their point of view tomorrow.” She let out a little squeal and Mon-El shook his head at the adorable dork that he was lucky enough to call girlfriend. A few minutes apart, the two couples left the restaurant; one was headed home, the other wasn’t.
Winn sneaked a few looks at Eve as she looked outside her window, observing the life around them, the atmosphere of a Friday night in National City: she was really beautiful, her smile was so contagious and she made him feel good like he hadn’t felt in years. Suddenly, Eve turned around and caught Winn staring, but he immediately looked back at the road, embarrassed, though it was too late now to be unnoticed: however, she didn’t seem to mind at all, on the contrary, she smiled at him before looking outside again. Now, they knew they both felt happy with how the night was proceeding; “we’re here.” Winn parked in the almost deserted lot: they were lucky that the Big Belly Burger was open 24 hours. They took two burgers, fries, the aforementioned chicken nuggets and two milkshakes: apparently, they both loved junk food and they had a lot of appetite, even if it was almost midnight. Eve talked a lot, yet he loved listening to her opinions and thoughts on a lot of things, Winn was absolutely fascinated by this tiny but mighty woman. On the other hand, he made her laugh a lot: she felt like she didn’t have to keep her guards up and she was free to be herself, it was like she had known Winn for years and truthfully, Eve already cared about him very much.
“I have to say it, this has been the most fun date I have ever had, so..thank you.” Winn confessed, as he finished his chocolate milkshake. “Definitely. Even if my stomach will probably hate me for all this food, I had a great night with you.” “I gotta thank Kara and Mike, because they totally made up for the crappy date I’ve had the past weekend.” “Agreed.” All the bad experiences they’ve had in the past were just a blur now, it was just them now, sharing a happy moment that would’ve hopefully turned into something more. “I almost forgot to ask..can I have your number? I..I would really like to hang out again.” He scratched his cheek. “I was just gonna say the same thing, of course.” As Eve typed her number on his phone, Winn had a really wide grin on his face, but he didn’t care at all: he did the same thing and then they walked outside the door.
They almost dreaded the ride back to her place, they didn’t want this night to end, even if it was just the beginning: he turned on the radio, at a low volume, but both of them found themselves humming to the songs. “That’s my building.” Eve pointed, Winn stopped the engine. “Again, thank you so much for everything. You’re a really great guy, Winn.” He wasn’t used to compliments, so he remained speechless for a couple of seconds: “Thank you, Eve. By the way, you’re incredible, I don’t know how anyone could ever screw up a date with you.” There it was, another joke that wasn’t even a joke but made her laugh, always so effortlessly: Eve grabbed Winn’s coat and pulled him to her, catching him by surprise, but in a positive way; he gladly returned the kiss. “Wow.” Was the only thing he managed to say after that. “I..I couldn’t help it.” She tucked her hair behind her ears, before opening the door, “goodnight Winn.” “Goodnight Eve.”
He watched her walk away, and still dumb folded Winn muttered to himself. “Damn, that girl really knows how to make an exit.”
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cyclone-rachel · 5 years
Text
Pay the Asking Price
A Supergirl fanfic
Chapter 6
AO3 link
~
When Querl woke up again, it was to the sound of Kara’s voice, and to the overhead lights suddenly illuminating his DEO room.
“It’s your first day at work!” Kara said, excitedly, and yes, he had indeed agreed to work at Catco Worldwide Media, alongside her.
He was in her custody now, after all, and since according to her it was less suspicious if he had a job to go along with his new human identity, he was going to go along with this. As much as he would’ve preferred working for the DEO, an organization with slightly more advanced technology and a place more familiar to him (even though it had been his prison for the twenty-seven days in which he’d spent in this time period), he knew that Kara was correct in her reasoning.
He just hadn’t expected her to wake him up like this.
“Kara, I do have an internal clock.” He said, looking over at her delighted face as she stood in the doorway. “I would have woken myself up. But… thank you, anyway.”
“Well, I’m actually early.” Kara answered. “I wake up a little later most days- or at least I did. But I gave myself even more time today, to help you get ready.”
Querl pulled himself out of bed, covering the T-shirt and shorts he was wearing with the standard-issue DEO pants and hooded jacket.
“Alright. What do I do, for that?”
~
She took him back to her apartment, something he’d expected since she had told him he was being released into her custody, but once he arrived there with her, he was still taken aback.
This apartment was, after all, immortalized- both hers and Alex’s, perfectly preserved in a museum, the significant items (furniture and paintings, mostly, in Kara’s apartment) displayed prominently and given meticulous care. He had memorized its layout, beforehand… but every other time he’d seen it, it was surrounded by other exhibits, being experienced by other people.
Here, now, it was just him and Kara, and when he saw it, he took a step out into the hallway, as though he wasn’t allowed in.
It’s real, he thought. She’s real, and I have the privilege of being steps away from her home.
“It’s okay.” She said, a hand on his shoulder as she looked sideways at his dazed expression. “Come on inside, I’m making pancakes.”
He sat down at her table, watching as she made the pancakes, carefully measuring out the ingredients and pouring the batter into the pan she was using. (and, with one of his thought tracks, he memorized what she was doing, so he could later make pancakes of his own to surprise her)
And when the pancakes were set in front of him, in a large stack with no utensils present, he took the only logical path in eating them.
“Do you want syru-“ Kara started, as he picked up the stack with both hands and bit into all of the pancakes.
“I’ve never eaten anything with my hands before.” He said, after putting it down. “But I thought it made sense, for this food. Am I doing it wrong?”
Kara shook her head.
“No, no…” she said, turning back to her cooktop. “I can just make more for myself. You’re fine, I promise. Just finish up quick, we need to pick out an outfit for you.”
“How quickly?”
“As fast as you can.” She said, and as soon as she could say that he started into the pancakes again, hardly coming up for air until he finished all of them.
“Wow.” Kara said. “You eat… a lot.”
“Indeed, thank you.” Querl answered, wiping his plate off with a paper towel before placing it into the sink. “Our food is very different from yours. I think I like yours better, though, much more flavor. What else is there?”
“Well, after this, we can get coffee.” Kara started, putting her own plate there, resting against his. “You’ll need it anyway, to give to some of the people you work with.”
“Very well.” He said as he got up from his chair. “What are these outfits you wanted me to try?”
Kara studied him, once more.
“Well, first, I think one more thing. But you have to stay still…”
Querl gulped, as he sat in the chair with a green towel draped in front of him, but indeed stayed still, as Kara gave him a haircut with her heat vision. She was remarkably precise, and by the time she was gently removing the hair from him, he was all the more grateful.
“Great!” she said, and he smiled, unable to disagree. “Now, let’s see about those clothes.”
And they did see. The first outfit, with a light blue shirt that Querl quite liked, was too tight for him, and the next, with a white shirt checked with green and red, was too long. But the two of them quickly found a balance- a blue and white checkered shirt with brown shoes, black pants, a brown belt, a brown cardigan, and a black and white bowtie.
“How is it?”
Kara gave him a big, beautiful smile, as he walked out of her bedroom, that took his breath away even as he was trying to impress her.
“Yes! It fits!” she said. “That’s perfect. Now you just need glasses.”
“Glasses?” he asked, pulling out the sunglasses Winn had given him after their brief drunken excursion, the ones he’d referred to as a “souvenir”. “Like these?”
“No, no no no no. Real glasses. Like mine.” Kara said, pulling out her personal pair.
Lined with lead, he thought. A gift from your adoptive father, to keep your powers in check.
Although truly, no glasses could ever hide the hero within you, Kara Zor-El. Or for that matter, none could make you less exquisite.
“Well, they’re not real.” Kara corrected. “But they keep it so nobody knows I’m Supergirl.”
“Nobody will mistake me for Supergirl.” Querl said. “But, in case I should decide to be a hero using this face…” He pointed to the one the image inducer gave him, that would go unrecognizable as Brainiac 5. “I should use these to hide my identity even further?”
“Yeah, exactly.” Kara said. “Here.”
She held up the pair, that were sort of circular like hers with the top half of the frames being black and the bottom half clear.
“These will make it so that nobody knows Querl Dox is Quentin.”
“Quentin. Right.”
“Yes. Quentin Richards, Winn got you a birth certificate, social security card, everything you need.”
She handed him the card, as he looked it over and committed its contents to memory.
“I’m familiar with those, we still have them in my time.” Querl said.
“So I guess I don’t need to tell you about your FICO score?”
“…No, I can look that up. But thank you, for putting so much effort into this.”
Thank you for helping me be more human, he thought. Though neither of us will completely be human. But this is still acceptable, for now.
Kara smiled at him, placing her hand on his arm.
“It’s no problem, really.” She said. “From one alien who had to adjust to Earth to another. And from what I understand, you had to do it twice.”
“I did, yes.” Querl answered. “Although this time is quite different from the last. But I am grateful, that you got me a job.”
“Of course.” Kara said. “And you’re gonna learn so much about this century working at Catco.”
“I am.” He echoed. “Alright.”
He let her put the glasses on him, and she gave him a bigger smile once they were on.
“Yeah. Those definitely fit you.” She said. “I just gotta get changed, and then we can go. Okay?”
“Very well, Kara.”
~
“…So when I first started working here, I found it helpful to bring coffee to the other assistants to make new friends.”
“Ah, bribery.” Querl said. “We had that on Colu.”
Though it didn’t work on the robots that raised me. I had to reconfigure them entirely to make them agreeable.
“No, it’s not bribery.” Kara answered, looking a little bit uncomfortable at his words. He immediately regretted them, as she continued. “It’s just… niceness.”
That didn’t work on the Kelexes either.
Querl didn’t look at any of the interns as he walked through with Kara, only handing some of them coffees and repeating “Good morning” in the tone he’d heard Kara speak in.
“Those alarms are…”
“Phones.”
“Yes. Your communication devices.” Querl said. “Not to worry, I will learn those- do you have access to a manual?”
“No, but I can ask around.” Kara answered. “Or you can just look it up, you have a computer.”
“Yes! Most helpful.” Querl said.
“You’re welcome. Oh! You definitely want to give Eve Tessmacher a coffee, she’s James’s assistant- big boss- Eve!”
Kara ran over to one of the desks, behind which sat a blond woman with wavy hair. She stared at Querl as he handed her a coffee, dropping her pen in the process.
“Have you met our new intern?”
“Uh- Thank you, so much!” she said, enthusiasm bubbling from her voice.
“Sure.” Querl answered.
“What’s your name?”
“Quentin. Number 49800-“
“No, Quentin, you don’t need to give her your social security number.” Kara corrected gently.
“So I memorized that number for nothing?”
“No, of course not.” Kara said. “But there are other times when you’ll need it- not right now, though. James!”
James looked up, having heard his name, and walked over to Kara and Querl.
“I want to introduce you to our new intern. Quentin.”
“Right.” James answered, looking relaxed.
How much has he heard about me? Querl thought. The man known as “Superman’s best pal”- how much does he know about the people who helped train Kal-El, his first real friends when he took on the mantle of Superman?
He treated him like a stranger, however, as he shook Querl’s hand, welcoming him to Catco.
“Um, I had Miss Tessmacher put some reports on your desk.” James said, after the welcome. “They should be put in order and filed. So if you have any questions, my doors are always open.”
“Thank you.” Querl said. “And I apologize, I ran out of coffee.”
James laughed, even though he wasn’t sure what he’d said was funny.
“That’s okay, I’m just about to go get one myself.” He said.
“Can I go with you?” Kara asked.
“Of course you can, I’ll be at the elevator.” James said. And with that, he was gone, leaving Querl and Kara alone for a moment before Kara caught up with him.
“In my time, you wouldn’t need to use the elevator.” Querl said. “You would have no need for a secret identity- Clark didn’t, after all. You could just fly.”
“I know, and you can tell me later- but Quentin, in my time I’m still not showing my powers to anyone else- that’s the whole point of the clothes and the glasses. For both of us.”
Querl nodded, following her.
“Okay. This is your desk.”
“So I can’t use my powers to go through this paperwork?” he asked.
“No- well, with you, I don’t know.” Kara said. She really wasn’t sure- how did he show his powers, as a twelfth-level intellect? “I mean, I guess you could, as long as you’re subtle about it. But just make sure to stay here, okay? Whatever goes on outside, Supergirl can handle.”
Querl smiled.
“Yes, I’m aware.” He said.
“Okay, good.” Kara answered, just as the phone rang. “Now, it’s your first phone call. Think you can handle it?”
“Yes, I believe so.” Querl said. The phone kept ringing, but he spoke into it, not bothering to pick the phone up off its cradle. “Hello, this is Catco, how may I help you?”
Kara picked the phone up, and handed it to him.
“Try now.” She said.
“Thank you.” He answered, taking the phone from her. He repeated his message into it properly, and Kara nodded, knowing she could leave him there with confidence that he’d be okay.
~ Querl didn’t like to admit it, but he wasn’t good with talking to people. Relating to them, really- carrying on a conversation. With the Legionnaires it had been more of a necessity at first, but became easier as he’d grown to get to know them more, and they became more comfortable around him. And after a few weeks, the same could be said of Kara (who made him feel at ease like nobody else could, aside from Clark when he’d been there) and Alex, J’onn and Winn.
So in his new job, when he didn’t have to answer phones or talk to others, he didn’t do it.
There was still so much activity going on around him, and he did his best to shut it out and focus, but it wasn’t long before he realized he’d done all of his assigned paperwork and didn’t need to focus- so he turned his attention to the full window he was seated in front of.
He stood there, with the phone in his hand so he’d give the impression that he was talking to someone as he hacked the comms used by the DEO, and looked down on the street below, hoping he could see Kara there.
And sure enough, he saw and heard her and James, right before she leapt into action as Supergirl- and got shot for her trouble, purple energy beam sizzling through the air and knocking her through some sculptures, leaving her on the ground.
James seemed to be doing his part as well, but it wasn’t long until he was knocked down too, and Kara attempted to use her heat vision on the alien gun belonging to the man who’d shot her- only to be met by a force field, when it got close. He tried to shoot her again, but she flew out of the way before any of his shots hit her- until the last one, which made her fall to the ground with a hard impact. The next one hit her too, when she tried to get back up- and this one carried her into the sky, crashing her through the windows of what looked to be a hospital, based on the logo on the building.
The attackers drove away, apparently satisfied, and Kara flew out of the building to comfort James-
And then the phone actually rang, and he quickly endeavored to answer it.
“Hello, this is Catco, how may I help you?”
“Brainy, it’s Kara.” She said, panicked. “Can you come back to the DEO with me? I think we could need your help. I’ll talk to James, it won’t affect anything about your work there. If anyone asks, you’re on assignment for him, and will be back soon.”
“Affirmative.” Querl answered. “Thank you.”
“No problem.” Kara said, and as soon as she hung up, he was out- not looking at anyone, trying not to stand out too much.
It wasn’t a problem, however, and he didn’t have to try at all- because nobody noticed he was going.
Except, without his knowledge, one person.
~ “…no telling what this might’ve done to you.”
Querl arrived just as Kara was relaying what she’d learned to Winn, while Alex and J’onn were also present. She looked tired, standing beside him, but she managed a smile at Brainy as he got there.
“We gotta find a way to track these weapons.”
“Okay, so it emits phased moon particles, right? I could maybe come up with a way to detect it.”
“I will help.” Querl said, looking over to J’onn and Alex for approval. They said nothing, however, as the monitors suddenly changed, crackling with static, and what looked like a computer-generated head appeared on the screens.
“You were warned.” The voice said, as scenes of violence were shown- Scorcher attacking the President, what Querl could now see was the bank robbery from that morning, others that he didn’t recognize. “The alien invaders are dangerous. Their intentions, malicious. They possess power we cannot hope to match, and technology brought from other worlds is falling into the wrong hands. We should not be opening our arms to them. We should be locking them up and taking their weapons away. You did not heed us, but you will heed the chaos that amnesty has brought. You will pay the price in fear and blood. And you will beg us to save you. We are Cadmus.”
I suppose some things never change, Querl thought, a chill running down his spine and his hands starting to shake as he remembered similar messages in his own future. He’d hoped he would never have to deal with that kind of organization again, but if he had to…
“Kind of a coincidence, that Cadmus releases a new video just as criminals get their hands on alien weapons.” Alex remarked.
Perhaps it’s no coincidence at all.
“It’s not a coincidence if Cadmus is the one giving them the guns.” Kara answered. “I’m gonna go look into this. Come on, Brainy, we have to go back to work.”
“Right, yes.” Querl said, following her as she started walking away from the others. “And I suppose we cannot fly to Catco?”
“Not today.”
“Alright.” ~ After returning to the office, Querl was doing his best to keep his head down. He wasn’t even looking over at Kara and James as they were conversing, as much as he wanted to, or trying to discern what they were talking about. All he could do was look as though he were doing his work- that was it.
Unfortunately, however, it seemed like the universe made sure he would get noticed in one way or another.
“Eve?” he heard James ask, as he and Kara noticed her sitting at her desk, currently with nothing to work on. “Don’t you have quarterly reports to file?”
“I did.” She said, smiling. “But that new guy, Quentin- he’s so nice, he noticed that I was struggling with these and after I asked if he was having any trouble since it was his first day, he said no, so he offered to help me out, and well- everything’s taken care of now. What should I do next?”
“I’ll take care of that.” James answered. “Kara, you want to talk to him?”
“Yeah, I got him.” Kara said, and Querl braced himself as she approached, even though he was also trying his best to look relaxed in the face of her arrival.
“What are you doing?”
“Eating these red tubes.” Querl answered, holding one up for her to see. “I know they cannot be literally pure joy in food form, but they are as close to it as can be managed. Do you want one?”
Kara grabbed the one he was holding out of his hand, and quickly ate it. Because why not, and she was a little bit hungry after getting blasted a few times and thrown into a building.
“That’s really nice, Quentin, and I get that you want to relax a little.” She said. “But remember what I said about using powers?”
“Yes, you said you didn’t know whether or not I should use mine for this purpose.” Querl answered. “But I did, and now my work is completed, for now.”
He looked up at her in confusion, his dark eyes suddenly sad-looking, as though she’d kicked a puppy in front of him.
“Was it not… good enough?”
“It’s fine.” She said, attempting to be reassuring. “If you’re just doing your own work, as long as you’re subtle about it. But doing someone else’s?”
“I wanted to.” He answered. “I was trying to please her- besides, you said I should try to interact with others, even if it made me uncomfortable. She wanted to know of my progress, so I told her, and she then gave her work to me to complete, which I did.”
Kara sighed. “If something makes you uncomfortable, talk to me about it.” She said. “Come find me, or- you don’t have a phone, we have to fix that. Anyway. The point is-“
“I understand, do not worry.”
“Okay, we’ll talk later, it’s fine, it’s still gonna be great-“
“Kara?”
“Lena! Surprise visit to Catco?”
Lena ducked her head slightly, before looking back up, and smiling at Kara.
“No, I’m here to see you, actually.” She said.
“You are.”
Lena nodded. “L-Corp is hosting a party this weekend, it’s a gala fundraiser for the children’s hospital after that horrific attack on their new building.”
Kara bristled, wishing she could tell her I’m sorry. But of course she couldn’t, so she stayed silent, smiling and nodding while Lena was talking to her.
“…I was hoping you’d come.”
“You’re hosting a gala.” Querl said, rising from his seat. “I would be happy to-“
Offer my services, should you and your guests need any protection, he thought. But Kara apparently figured out what he was thinking, and nodded, before speaking to Lena.
“Can he be my guest?” Kara asked. “He’s new in town, this might be a good way for him to meet some more people.”
“Oh, of course your friend can come.” Lena said, keeping her focus on Kara, while also glancing at Querl. “You are literally my only friend in National City. Most people wouldn’t touch a Luthor with a ten-foot pole.”
“Yes, I understand.” Querl said, partially hoping one of them had heard him as Lena continued.
“It would really mean a lot to me if you were there.”
“Of course I’ll come. I’m honored.” Kara answered. “Both of us.”
“Right.” Lena said, turning to Querl. “What’s your name?”
“Quentin- um, Quentin Alak Richards, if that is what you inquired about.”
“Well, Quentin Alak Richards, find yourself a nice suit, and I’ll see you there.” Lena answered, before turning away.
“Bye!” Kara said, and as she left, Querl turned to Kara.
“We are going to a party.” He said, nervousness creeping into his voice. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.” Kara answered. “But if you aren’t…”
“No, it will be fine. I will handle it.” Querl said. “One request?”
“What is it?”
“Help me find a suit, please?”
“Of course. But, after work.” ~ At the moment, Querl had decided that the best course of action was to be transparent, with the DEO. Seeing as how they didn’t trust him, or at least trusted him conditionally, he was going to tell them the truth- or rather, whatever truths he could tell that didn’t violate the timeline.
And this plan was going well, if Kara’s confidence in him and his tentative friendship with Winn was any indication. But although he was becoming friends with the two of them, and wanted to build work relationships with the others in Kara’s circle, he still had to keep one secret, that were they to find out would reset all of those potential relationships. Thus, making it so they didn’t trust him at all, even though he had his reasons.
Despite his uneasiness about what he’d done, however, he was thankful he had installed a “bug” in the DEO, allowing him to listen in on what Winn and Alex were discussing at the moment. Namely, the photon cannon used at the scene of the crime, followed by Winn and Alex discussing the emotional state of Maggie- one of Alex’s friends, apparently, who was a police officer who wasn’t good at pool and whom Alex denied romantic interest in.
But Querl listened more intently when he heard talk of another attack, even though he couldn’t participate. Kara did, however, and as he continued to work he saw her fly back down from somewhere in the atmosphere, holding another police officer whose car had been launched halfway into orbit.
That couldn’t keep one of his thought tracks distracted forever, though, and in the meantime there was Eve.
Eve Tessmacher, who apparently needed him to go with her to deliver something downstairs in marketing, and by the time he’d finished, she was taking him into a storage closet.
“Who are you, really?” she asked. “You’re… you’re just an intern. But you aren’t really, are you? I saw you working, no human could get through paperwork that quickly especially on their first day. Nobody could learn that fast.”
“I… have a Master’s degree? And this is all the work I could find?”
She pushed him against the wall.
“Nice try. Who do you work for?”
“We both work for Catco Worldwide Media, Miss Tessmacher. I thought that was clear. And that you would know that, as you’ve worked here longer than I have.”
“Cut the bullshit.” She snapped, tightening her grip on his arms. “Are you from Leviathan? Or maybe Cadmus? Who sent you?”
Querl blinked. The last thing he wanted was to “play dumb”, but truthfully he didn’t know what she was talking about- so he had to improvise.
“If I was from one of those, what would that mean to you?”
“That I should be paying more attention to you than I thought.” Eve answered. “But if you are just another really smart guy, who wasn’t planted here to spy on- no, I shouldn’t say that- then I don’t think I can let you out of here knowing what you do now.”
Before Querl could do anything, or activate the forcefield he’d hidden in his belt, there was a knife at his throat, and Eve was uncomfortably close.
“Now, for the last time, tell me your secrets.” She whispered, voice low, a far cry from the bubbliness she’d exuded earlier. “Or I’ll-“
There were footsteps outside, approaching voices from the hallway, and Eve stared at Querl suddenly, eyes taking on a panicked look. She put the knife away, and Querl felt her hands (cold, with sharp nails) under his shirt, climbing upwards as she held him closer. Before he knew it, she was kissing him, and Kara was opening the door.
She stumbled back against the wall, apparently partially in shock and not happy about what was going on, and Eve quickly pulled away from him.
“Tell anyone about this, and I’ll kill you.” She whispered into his ear. Then she gave her best apologetic looks to Kara and James as she walked out of the storage closet, going into a detailed explanation of what had happened.
Querl, meanwhile, fell into step on Kara’s other side, staying silent- only partially because of Eve’s threat. But even when he did try to explain himself, she wasn’t hearing it at the moment, and he resigned himself to having to save his explanation for later.
It looks like we are back to “square one” after all.
~ Luckily, however (in the midst of his attempting to come up with a proper apology to Kara for the lapse in judgment he experienced, and the one responsible for such a lapse- as well as finding excuses to avoid Eve) Querl was able to additionally focus on another matter, as Winn came through Catco the next morning.
“Brainy!” Winn said, smiling at him. “Oh, I’m glad you’re here. Can you come with me, just for a second?”
“Of course, although it will be far longer than a second.” Querl answered. “What is it?”
Winn gave him the short explanation as they go to James’s office- the previous night, James had come to the DEO with a question about how possible targets were found, and then later that very night he’d found footage of James leading some people out of an apartment complex that was dissolving thanks to one of the alien weapons.
“James is being stupid.” Winn said. “Can you convince him he doesn’t have to be alone in this, whatever he’s trying to do?”
“I will do my best.” Querl answered.
Winn clapped him on the shoulder.
“Perfect. I’ll be right back, I’m gonna talk to him first.” He said. “You just wait here, buddy.”
A moment later, he and James came back from the Catco balcony, only for James to see Querl there, arms folded and doing his best to look appropriately stern.
“Not you too.” James said. “What, is this an intervention?”
“No, we just want to make sure you’re not getting in over your head.” Winn answered. “Well, I do. Brainy’s here because I dragged him in.”
“Yes, I am.” Querl said. “But what Winn is saying is true.”
James sighed, exasperated. “Look, you wouldn’t understand.”
“Okay then, enlighten us. Because all I see here is- is a dude with a baseball bat and a ski mask and a death wish.”
James leaned against his desk, not looking at Winn as he spoke.
“My whole life, I’ve been a sidekick.” He said. “I have hidden behind my camera, while my best friends wear capes, and they’re heroes, and they save people. And I want to do something good for the world. This job is good and all, but… I want to give people another hero they can look up to, and make a difference outside of this office and this company. And I feel like I’ve waited too long already.”
He turned to Winn, and Querl sat down, moving away from the two of them.
“Winn, you found the work that you’re supposed to do at the DEO.” He said. “I haven’t, not here. But I feel like this is it.”
“I hate to break it to you, but you don’t have superpowers.” Winn said. “I get it, being a hero is addictive… but you can’t fly, or anything.”
“That doesn’t mean he can’t be a hero.” Querl answered. “James, I have a friend, Val- he has no powers either. But he is the best combatant I know, and once even took down Superman in a fight. I thought I didn’t need to learn anything from anyone, due to my intellect, but I have learned from him. And others could learn from your example. But you must not put your heroism above your personal needs, or your self-preservation.”
“And that means…”
“If you don’t have a death wish, you’re gonna let us help you.” Winn answered. “Right, Brainy?”
“Yes. I will assist as much as I can.”
“Great.” Winn said. “So, you really sure about this?”
“I am.” James said. “I’m ready.”
“Then we’re ready, too.” Winn said.
“I agree with Winslow.”
~ It was the night of the gala, and Querl found Kara eating potstickers.
“What’s your name, beautiful?” he asked, before confirming that it was her. She turned around to face him, and immediately froze.
“Kara. Please forgive me- I am sorry, for what happened.”
Kara gulped down the potsticker she’d been eating.
“It’s okay, really- it’s fine, I’m not gonna yell at you again. Just… well, I had a talk with Alex, and I realized that I should let you be who you are. And who you are isn’t me. So if you want to get it on with Miss Tessmacher, be my guest. Please don’t share that with me though if you do, I really don’t want to hear it.”
“I didn’t intend to do anything with her.” He said. “On the contrary, it was she who accosted me- and, you were right.”
Kara was halfway through another potsticker, and she gulped it down before staring at him in surprise.
“About what?”
“She found me suspicious.” He answered. “Thought I worked for… well, she mentioned Cadmus as an option.”
“Tell her you’d never work for them.” She said. “And I’m sorry too.”
“Then we are even.” Querl said.
“Good.” Kara answered. “Where’s the suit from?”
“Oh, you like it?”
Kara nodded.
“Yeah, it’s nice.”
“Winn got me a “credit card”, in addition to 21st century identification, since I have a job now.” He said. “I promised I wouldn’t spend too much of the money I will soon earn, and then picked out this suit.”
“Well, I think it was money well-spent.” Kara said. “So, are you going to be staying at Catco?”
“For as long as I have to, to pay this off.” Querl answered. “And because I do enjoy it there, suspicious coworkers aside. It’s almost relaxing, to have so little expected of you. And you’d know that, wouldn’t you?”
“I did have to deal with seventh grade when I got here.” Kara said. “I knew a lot of things, but there was also so much I had to hide, and more that I needed to learn. I don’t think I really appreciated that until later.”
“I understand.” Querl said, looking around at the crowd while Kara was finishing one of her last potstickers, folding the others up in a loose napkin. “Did you dance, on Krypton?”
“Yeah.” Kara answered. “What about you?”
“I never learned. But perhaps… you could teach me?”
He offered his hand to her, and she took it, leading him out onto the floor. Though they danced quickly, Querl was able to follow in her lead, and for a moment, he could imagine being happy with her.
Then sparks started to fly, sending smoke high up into the air as the attackers who’d been responsible for the robberies strode out, and Kara placed a hand on Querl’s shoulder.
“Help everyone get out of here.” She said. “Keep them calm. Then wait for me.”
“I will.” He promised.
And he did as he was told, at first- though the crowd was in too much of a panic to listen to him, so instead he found himself sliding under a table that was already occupied by Winn and Lena.
“Do you two mind?” she said, sounding a little irritated.
“That’s a black-body field generator.” Querl pointed out, as Winn stared at the device in awe.
Lena smiled at him. “Yes- if we can get it working.”
“This whole party- you set a trap for these guys.” Winn said.
“Yeah, but it’ll fail unless I can get this operational.”
“Unless we can get this operational.” Querl corrected. “Is it at equilibrium with the alien weapons?”
“It will be.” Lena said, fiddling with the device with one hand, holding a flashlight in the other.
“Right, and once it is, it’ll absorb the electromagnetic radiation.” Winn added. “So it’ll shut them down- this is genius!”
“I know, but the frequency and the wavelength, they’re a match, so-“
“The induction coil.” The three of them said at once. Together, they attempted to put everything into place as carefully as possible- each taking a turn, until finally they’d gotten it working, and Lena activated the device. It sent out an energy field that attracted the weapons to it, high above the crowd’s heads, and all three of the guns self-combusted.
Winn, Lena, and Querl crawled out from the table, looking slightly dazed as Kara looked at them with suspicion.
“We weren’t-“ Winn started. “Uh- under there, um- we stopped it!”
Kara continued to look unsure, like she had no idea what to say- but at least she started to smile, turning to James as both of them laughed.
“Alright. Now, let’s get everyone out.”
~ “Good morning.” Kara said, opening the door to Querl’s room and turning the lights on again.
“You- am I late for work?”
“No.” Kara answered. “I just wanted to know if you wanted to get coffee with me- not bribery coffee. Actual coffee.”
“Oh.” Querl said, sitting up and turning to her. “Are we friends again?”
“Well, you did manage to help destroy some weapons that would’ve been really bad news if they’d stayed in the wrong hands, so yeah, I’d say so.” She said. “And… it was nice, dancing with you.”
“Good.” Querl answered. “Coffee it is. But, are you still mad at me?”
“I don’t know.” Kara said. “We’ll see.”
“Then that is good enough.” Querl said.
“…But I get the feeling you don’t exactly want to be an intern.” She continued, walking closer to him. “When I was younger, I had no idea what I wanted to be, here on Earth. I had a family, to help me and guide me, but ultimately I had to make my own choices. And I admit, I was trying to impose those choices on you.”
“I do not mind.” Querl answered.
“I know, but… when you landed, I was so excited to have someone to take under my wing.” Kara said. “Even though you’re also a hero in your own right. And I hope you don’t mind me saying this, but since I never got to do this with my cousin, it’s been nice having someone to look after.”
“While I may not need looking after, if there was anyone I’d have introducing me to twenty-first century culture, I’d prefer it would be you.” Querl answered. “Thank you.”
“No problem.” Kara said, as Querl moved his pillow aside for her to sit down there. “And since you are your own man, and your life here is going to be very different from mine- which is fine, and great-, I figured if you decide to stop being an intern, you should pick something that you like. And I’ll be here to help you, wherever you need me to be.”
“Very well.” Querl said, and Kara pulled something out of her coat pocket.
“I got you something.” She said, handing it to him. “It’s a guide to National City. So even if I’m not there, you can always find your way around. And… look for other jobs.”
“Thank you again, Kara.” Querl answered, folding it neatly. “So. Coffee?”
“Right. Coffee sounds great about now.”
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dracox-serdriel · 7 years
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Supergirl Fic: The Great and Noble House of Gand - Chapter Three: Brink
The Great and Noble House of Gand
Title: The Great and Noble House of Gand Author: Dracox Serdriel Word count: 3,000 Rating: R Spoilers: All episodes of Supergirl through 02x17 Distant Sun Warnings: Isolation, imprisonment, heartbreak, mental and physical abuse, memories of past/childhood abuse, psychological manipulation Summary: Canon-divergent from 02x17 Distant Sun. With no means to rescue Mon-El from the Daxamite battle cruiser, he is stranded on the ship bound on a four-year journey to his home planet.
Read the Great and Noble House of Gand on AO3 or FF.
Chapter  Three: Brink
Mon-El became aware of things in short, tumultuous bursts, as if his life was flickering on and off. Light and sound hit him hard and fast before the pain consumed all his other senses and everything went dark. There was no time to think or reflect, even if he had his faculties at his disposal.
"Mon-El," someone whispered.
No, it can't be.
"Mon-El."
He opened his eyes and emerged from the darkness for what felt like the hundredth time. The voice that called for him was quiet, and he couldn't believe it. Even when his eyes fell upon Kara standing at his bedside, he couldn't believe it.
"I'm dreaming," he muttered.
She smiled but did not correct him, and for a few minutes, all he did was stare at her in wonderment.
Gradually, he became aware of his surroundings. The rumbling and beeping of machines combined with the persistent discomfort of monitoring equipment meant that he was likely in the medical ward. That confused him, for the last thing he recalled was following Raphin into the lift.
"What happened?" he asked Kara.
"You already know," she replied.
"No, I - no, I don't."
This must be a dream.
Kara would've gotten closer after he woke up from a near-miss. She would've held him, kissed him, touched him.
As if the thought commanded it so, she joined him on the bed, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him close, gently caressing his head with her hand. He closed his eyes and let the sensation wash over him, no longer caring if he was awake or asleep.
"You're not asleep," she said.
He smiled at that and began walking through the last of his memories. He and Raphin were in the lift when it felt like lightning struck him. Had the DEO managed to acquire a spacecraft? Or maybe Winn had figured out how to resurrect some of the spare alien technology they had lying around. They must've come after him, and somehow, during their rescue attempt, the lift had been damaged. That's why he was in the medical ward.
"You know that's not the truth."
His eyes snapped open, for while Kara had known him very well, she had never been able to read his mind literally. What was happening?
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"You can feel it," was all she replied.
Mon-El had been so focused on how good it felt to be held that he ignored the continuous discomfort and constant cold that radiated from his left arm and right leg. He glanced down and saw IV lines running from both. That was odd. Even when he was dying of the Medusa virus, the DEO hadn't done that.
"Because they couldn't," she reminded him gently.
The DEO couldn't puncture his skin, so they had to use the same adaptive technology they used to monitor Kara's vitals. As far as he could recall, it was a kind of visor that went around the crown of the head. He raised his free hand to his forehead to touch it, only to find that it wasn't there.
The confusion persisted until he recalled waking up sore because his powers had faded completely. The DEO must've realized that and taken advantage to treat him more effectively.
"You know that's not true, either."
He looked up at Kara's face hoping to find solace there, but more importantly, to distract himself from the inevitable conclusion that his mind was racing toward. He already knew the truth, but he wanted to pretend a little while longer that he was back on Earth with the woman he loved. He focused on the shape of her lips and the graceful slope of her nose. He stared at those beautiful comets that comprised her eyes.
"You know where you are," she whispered softly.
Mon-El didn't want to think about it. She cupped his cheek and pressed her forehead into his, bringing her eyes impossibly close to him.
"You need to accept it," she said.
He swallowed hard against the bitterness that was swelling in his throat. After she discovered the truth about who he had been on Daxam, he promised that he wouldn't lie to her again. And in this moment, he found that he couldn't even lie to himself when staring into her impossibly blue eyes.
The DEO always employed yellow sun lamps to help Kryptonians and Daxamites recover from serious injuries or power loss, and he had seen Winn, Alex, and other humans treated enough times to know that standard medical practice on Earth was a single IV line to the arm. On Daxam, however, the standard was two lines situated to arm and opposite leg.
All this added up to one simple fact: he was not being treated by the DEO.
Did that mean that the rescue attempt had failed? He choked on the idea of his friends being captured, injured, or killed trying to save him. He wasn't worth that.
"You know what happened," she repeated.
Mon-El remembered standing in the lift, an abrupt increase in pain, and then falling to the floor. Those little moments he recalled between then and waking up to Kara's voice were little more than chaotic movements with so much sound and light that they seemed unreal.
"I collapsed," he said. "But I don't remember why."
Suddenly, he was standing next to her, and he clasped her hand in his, weaving their fingers together as he took in the sight before him.
He - or his body, at any rate - was lying in a hospital cot, unconscious. The layers of blankets made it hard to tell, but it seemed that his clothing had been replaced with a medical gown. Countless monitors surrounded him, presenting constant information on his vitals, all in High Daxamite.
"It can't be that bad," he commented as he looked to her for support. "It's not like they have me on life support."
Kara gave him a look that he had come to know as the "Are you sure about that?" expression. She wore it every time he announced that the movie they were watching must surely end happily. He tended to do this right before everything turned sour, but for some reason, he always expected the next one to have its own happy ending.
He turned back to his body and was shocked by what he saw. They did, in fact, have him on life support, complete with circulatory assistance and a full breathing mask. How had he missed that before?
"You see what you want to see here," she said, as if to answer his question.
"That explains why I see you," he replied with a smile.
"But you need to see more," she explained. "Even if you don't want to."
He nodded his head, yes. It was the only way he would know what had happened and if his friends were still alive, which meant he didn't have the luxury of hemming and hawing over how this couldn't be real. Kara had taught him that he had survived for a reason, that he lived for a reason, so he must be here - wherever here was - for a reason, too. His resolve only faltered upon one consideration.
He asked, "Will you stay with me?"
Her lips formed a smile that shined so brightly that it put the stars to shame.
"Of course I'll stay with you," she replied, squeezing his hand as reassurance.
Mon-El then turned to take in the rest of the room. There were at least a dozen people dressed in medical garb focused on him, or the sleeping version of him, in any case. No one seemed to notice that there was another Mon-El nor Kara, probably because they weren't really here.
So he followed one of the doctors out. No sooner had they stepped outside the room than he wished he hadn't, for his parents were waiting, their faces grim and crestfallen.
"The surgery was completely successful, your Majesties," the doctor said in High Daxamite. "The internal bleeding has stopped now that the blood vessels have been repaired."
"Were your associates able to discover a cause?" the King asked.
"His Highness's injuries are congruent with those sustained from a direct high-energy blast while wearing heavy armor," the doctor replied. "Though a rare occurrence, the injury could have been incurred up to twelve hours before collapse."
"While he was still on Earth," the Queen said, not bothering to hide her distain.
The doctor bowed his head as an indicator of an affirmative answer.
"When will he wake up?" the King asked.
"That... forgive me, your Majesty, I cannot be certain," the doctor replied. "Each patient is different. His Highness is young and healthy. He could be awake in as soon as a few hours."
"Why isn't he breathing on his own?" his mother demanded.
"One of his Highness's internal injuries was very close to the heart, your Majesty," the doctor explained. "By necessity, our repairs caused widespread inflammation in the lungs. But I wish to assure your Majesties that this reaction is entirely normal and expected. That was why we waited for half a day before our first attempt to wean his Highness from the vent. Our tests show that the inflammation has persisted longer than anticipated. With your Majesty's permission, we shall administer additional medicine to reduce the inflammation and try again in a few hours."
Mon-El spotted the fury on his mother's face before she turned away to conceal it. His father laid a hand on her shoulder to comfort her, and she immediately tensed under the affection, resistant as always to any sign of weakness shared with those she deemed as lesser than herself. A moment later, however, she relaxed and dropped her head into her hands.
"Continue with your treatment," the King said. "Report to us immediately if anything changes, no matter how unimportant it may seem."
"Yes, your Majesty," the doctor replied.
He bowed deeply before taking his leave, and Mon-El wondered what would happen to the doctor who tried to save his life if he died.
"Rhea," the King said. "Please."
Mon-El suddenly felt like he was spying on his parents, and he felt the urge to leave before he accidentally intruded on them. He decided to leave and see who else was in the medical ward.
When he went for the door, Kara became an immovable force that anchored him to the room. He gave her a confused look, and she answered his question before he had a chance to ask it.
"Listen," she said. "You need to hear."
The only way to escape his parents was to relinquish her hand, and that was far too high a price. So he stayed.
"He will recover, Rhea," the King said.
She turned to face him. She replied, "We left the poison of Earth behind us, yet it still tries to take our son."
Had they not been in a semi-public thoroughfare, Mon-El had no doubt that his father would've embraced his mother. She had always insisted that such things made her appear weak, even though it flew in the face of Daxamite custom. His father had always respected her wish to avoid public displays of affection despite the social expectations to the contrary. It was such a break with tradition that it garnered commentary, and those brave souls who dared whisper a word against the Queen referred to her as the Ice Queen. That nickname melted away after his birth, for she never hesitated to show maternal affection in public.
"You should sleep," his father insisted. "I'll stay with him tonight."
She shook her head, no, but then she relented and left without another word. The King turned to his son with concern etched into his face.
"They think I was injured on Earth?" Mon-El asked. "That's impossible."
"Is it?" Kara asked him.
"Uh, yeah. I was invulnerable there," he replied.
"Not entirely," she said patiently. "And not long before you boarded this ship, you were involved in two fights. You could've been injured in either. Or both."
"Which I wouldn't have noticed if I had stayed on Earth," he said, cottoning on. "Because my powers would've healed me. But instead, I'm over there on machines."
A number of things occurred to him then. Had there been a rescue attempt, they would've assumed he was wounded during the attack. Collapsing from previous injures meant that none of his friends had been captured or killed, but he couldn't help but feel disappointed.
His father's head dropped into his hands suddenly, drawing Mon-El's attention.
"Is it just me, or does he seem a little too concerned?" he asked in jest.
"He can feel it," Kara replied.
"Feel it?" Mon-El repeated skeptically. "You mean us hovering next to him?"
"You're dying," she said bluntly.
He shouldn't have been surprised. At some point he had realized this for himself, but hearing the words fall from her mouth was like a shot to the gut. All the playful commentary fell out of his head, and he was instead left with nothing but fear.
"Right, well," he said. "Maybe it's for the best."
Kara's face fell, but she said nothing.
"Right?" he said, as if he might convince her. "I mean, all I want is to go back to Earth to be with you... to have our life there. But if I do that, my parents... they'd never stop. Living means fighting my parents until I don't have the strength anymore. It means being without you."
"I'm right here," she said.
Her eyes were wide and bereft, and her expression tugged at his heartstrings. With his free hand, he reached up and cupped her cheek to comfort her.
"Hey," he whispered. "Don't be sad. I'm not. I got to meet you. To love you."
"It's your decision," she said as her eyes swelled with tears.
"What are you talking about?" he asked. "Look at me. What can I do?"
"You can choose to fight."
"I did. I am."
"Are you?" she asked.
He was, of course he was. Maybe not as hard as he could, but he was fighting.
Her worrying crinkle appeared before she closed in for a kiss. It was slow and sweet yet took his breath away.
"It's your decision," she said. "But you know what I would want."
"Even if we never see each other again?"
"So long as you live, there's always the chance," she replied.
He gripped her tightly, desperate to reassure her, but as much as he wanted to promise her he'd live, he couldn't. Fate had set things in motion, and whatever happened next was in the hands of destiny. He could fight harder than he'd ever fought in his life, but that didn't mean he would win.
"When you get the chance, you should tell him what you need," she said. "You'll only get one."
"What?"
Whatever she meant, she didn't elaborate, and moments later, he found himself being pulled back into the darkness. He gripped Kara's hand with all his strength, and it reassured him until he realized that she was just in his head, a projection crafted from his memories of her. Then the sensation of her hand in his vanished, and he choked on the absence.
And he kept choking because something was lodged in his throat. Panic set in immediately as he fought against it, trying desperately to take a deep breath despite the obstruction. He tried to grab whatever it was, but his arms were like lead and wouldn't budge.
Sounds swirled around him as he gagged, and he wondered if this was how his life would end: alone, in a whirl of confusion and darkness. Terrified, he forced his eyes opened, desperate for a glimpse of Kara. He wanted her to be the last thing he saw.
His vision was fuzzy, and there were too many moving bodies around him, all wearing medical garb. One was standing over him, speaking.
"Your Highness, please, if you can, remain calm and cough," the man said.
Mon-El coughed hard and felt the impediment shift inside. He gagged as he realized that the man was attempting to remove a long tube, and he fought every instinct he had to cough again and again, hoping it would expedite the process. When it was finally out of his mouth, he gasped for breath and tried to roll to his side, but he didn't have much control over his body.
"Stand aside for his Majesty," someone said.
He looked up and caught sight of Kara decked out in her Supergirl attire, her crinkle etched deeply into her forehead and her eyes shining with both tears and hope. She looked at him like he was the only thing in the universe.
Then the King was at his side, grasping his hand and drawing his attention.
"Mon-El," he said. "Can you hear me?"
Tell him what you need, Kara's voice rang in his head.
He tried to say something, but his throat felt like he had recently tried to swallow a fireball. He wound up coughing more than speaking.
"It's okay, son," his father said. "Just breath. You're going to be okay."
Mon-El knew that his father wanted that statement to be true, but he still felt a shadow lingering over him that had not lifted during his abrupt thrust into consciousness. He couldn't be sure it would last.
"I... need..." Mon-El gasped. "I..."
"It's all right," his father said. "You should rest."
"No... I need... need..." he stuttered.
He could feel himself falling back into the darkness. Kara had warned him that he would only have one chance, and he feared he was losing it.
"Sun," he forced out. "Yellow sun... to heal... to..."
Mon-El spotted Kara over his father's shoulder, her smile beaming so brightly that it overshadowed his father's confused expression. Her brilliant comets were the last things he saw before he sank back into unconsciousness.
Author’s notes: I hope you’ve enjoyed this latest installment. :) The next one should be posted soon.
Tagging: @emarasmoak
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super-barry-allen · 7 years
Text
Stronger Together
So I couldn’t help but write the Danvers sisters scene I was robbed of last episode, don’t get me wrong, I cried like a bitch at the Sanvers comfort scene, but I really would’ve rather had a Kara and Alex scene instead of the Kara and Mon-El one. It seemed kind of unusual that they didn’t talk??? Like things were said, hurtful things, and everything with Jeremiah? Well, anyway, I miss them so I had to write it. Enjoy! 
P.s Sorry for any spelling and/or grammar mistakes.
There are two short knocks at the door and Kara almost groans. She doesn't have the energy to check who it is with her X-ray vision, and, honestly, her eyes are too blurry with tears anyway. So she sends Mon-El, because he's there and he's willing, even if he is just insisting they ignore it, but Kara can't do that, it could be important. The Daxamite walks to the door with a little sulk and Kara almost rolls her eyes before turning away to bury herself in her blanket. 
Mon-El opens the door, ready to send away whoever it was that was there, because Kara wasn't exactly up for visitors, the memory of Jeremiah's betrayal a fresh wound to the kryptonian, but, as soon as he opens the door, his words die on his tongue, his eyes widen and he's not exactly sure what to say. 
"Mon-El." 
Kara immediately sits up a little more, her keen superhearing picking up on the voice right away, it's a little rough and a little scratchy but recognisable still, she hadn’t realised how much she had needed to hear that voice. 
Mon-El is instantly uncomfortable, he's never seen a distraught Alex, he's not entirely sure she even is distraught with the way she holds herself, but, despite every tense muscle, and the harshness in which she says his name, Alex Danvers is clearly emotional and, up until now, Mon-El has never been sure if Alex was even capable of any other feeling other than disapproval - which was what she liked to aim at him constantly. 
"Alex." Mon-El replies. He's not nearly as hostile as Alex's tone, in fact, it comes off as more of a confused tone, he hadn't been expecting to come face to face with Alex, Kara he could handle right now, he knew how to act around her, but Alex? He didn't really know what to do around the other Danvers sister in any situation... ever. 
"Um, uh, hi," He splutters and Alex raises an eyebrow slightly, bringing attention to her red puffy eyes, the same puffy eyes Kara was sporting. "Kara wasn't expecting any company, I'm not sure-" 
"Mon-El." Kara's voice cuts off the end of his sentence and the Daxamite shuts up immediately. By now the youngest Danvers sister was sat up, her feet planted on the ground, blanket pulled over her shoulders, her eyes are bluer than blue, they're a deep ocean of sadness, and it tears at the heart of her big sister even more than the current feeling of betrayal and hurt. 
Kara stands up, pulling the blanket tighter around herself, as though to comfort herself, like a self-hug of sorts, and Mon-El moves to the side to reveal Alex at the door who was now looking anywhere but at Kara. Things had been said, hurtful things, things that shouldn't have been said, and that needed to be discussed, and maybe Kara just really needed her big sister right about now... more than she needed anyone else. 
"It's okay." Kara says quietly. The Daxamite looks between the pair for a moment, observing their tactical avoiding of each other's eyes, and takes the hint. 
"How about I give you guys some privacy?" He suggests, shuffling out of the door, past Alex who moves further into the apartment, it wasn't like Mon-El could really do much in terms of making Kara feel better anyway, Alex was the best option. He closes the door with an encouraging smile aimed at Kara and the click of the lock in the latch echoes through the silence of the apartment. 
Kara takes a couple more steps forward again and focuses on a single point on her hardwood floors. The sound of traffic can be heard, even to human ears, slowly trickling in like a lullaby of urbanism - Kara can even hear the distant chatting of people nearby but it's fuzzy, drowned out by the sound of car engines, and she's not exactly focusing her hearing at the moment. 
Alex gravitates towards her sister gradually, the pair remaining in complete silence, aware of each other but neither knowing what to say. And then it's a moment, Alex isn't sure how to explain it, and Kara can't really explain it either, but they both just look up at the exact same time, their eyes meet and there's a tense, intense, moment, full of smothering sadness, between them and then, like that, Alex is pulling her little sister into a hug, not even bothering to conceal her tears, as Kara does the same, wrapping her arms around Alex with a strength only a kryptonian could muster, because she doesn't need Mon-El right now, she needs Alex, that's all she's ever really needed, and their father just... well, he just destroyed them both and the only person who knows how to put Kara Danvers back together, who knows where all her broken pieces go, is Alex Danvers, because she has been there from the start, right from the get-go, she'd built Kara up when she'd only been twelve years old and lost her entire world, they were soulmates, Kara had no doubt, they just... knew each other. 
The blonde buries her head into Alex's shoulder, she's sure Maggie could've put her big sister back together, maybe she even has a little bit, it would explain why she's here, and Kara hopes that one day she can find someone who can build her back up, love her like Maggie and Alex do, but, for now, she doesn't need that, because Alex is here and she's more than willing to protect Kara, she'd die before she let anything harm her, blood bonds, that's what Kara had been taught, but the Danvers had taught her that family was not always connected by blood, that it ran deeper than that, family was willing to do anything to protect those you care about, above yourself, and Alex did that, Kara did that, they were sisters and the Danvers were Kara's family and that's why it hurt her after Jeremiah, after Alex's words in the lab... the kryptonian holds on tighter and she's pretty sure by now she must be cutting off some kind of circulation but the tears won't stop and Alex is still holding her tightly. 
"Kara," Alex's voice is horse and rough, the voice of someone who has suffered greatly, who had cried and sobbed in pain, and that just breaks Kara's heart more. "you know I love you right?" Alex asks and Kara loosens her grip. She sniffles a couple of times and nods her head, stepping back. She lets out a breath of air that sounds a little like a laugh but it's not a one of humour. 
She rubs at her eyes, which she's pretty sure are redder then when they glow with her heat vision by now. "What I said to you," Alex brings her hand to Kara's upper arm, gently squeezing, and Kara can see the guilt, the pain, that cracks Alex’s normally stoic mask. "that wasn't fair to you." Alex says, clearing her throat, and taking a deep breath, she hiccups a couple of times but she seems to be more in control of her emotions than Kara who feels like a giant disaster at the time being. "You know that you're my family, always." Alex says the words with so much conviction, and holds Kara's gaze for a moment, before rubbing her face with a sigh of defeat. 
"I was just- I was blinded, I thought we had dad back and I didn't want to believe that he was bad." Alex says, now pacing a little, and Kara watches her, her arms wrapped loosely around her mid section. "I wanted to believe that we could just go back to, you know, when we were little... just me, you, mom and dad, and just be one big happy family. And then then I felt you, and Winn, and Mon-El threatening that and I reacted badly, very badly, and I am so sorry Kara, I can't tell you-" 
"It's okay," Kara says gently and softly and Alex halts her erratic movements. "I get it." And oh how she does, because she too had wanted to believe that Jeremiah was back, that he was good and truthful, but it was never just that simple.
 Alex sighs and brings her hands up to her nose for a moment in thought before taking them away. "Kara,"Alex takes a painful swallow, trying to move the lump that had formed there. "You..." She shakes her head, and a single tear pushes its way out of the corner of her eye, but Kara doesn't interrupt. "dad told me that I was always the best of him," Alex says, wiping the tear away, but it did nothing for the flood forming in her hazel eyes. "you were always the best part of me," Alex says gesturing to the blonde, who just looked like a kicked puppy. 
"I told you once that you taught me, and you have Kara, so much, you're just so," Alex gestures to her, all over, a look of frustration evident in the crease of her forehead. "you're so good, you're a hero, and it was my job to protect you form the world and I was just... I was blinded." Alex looks angry all of sudden, with herself obviously, and she looks at her hands for a moment. "All I ever wanted was to protect you and... tonight, all of this, everything that happened, that is on me... and everything I said to you, I'll get it if you never want to talk to me again. I should've known, and I should've protected you, because you are my sister-" 
"Alex," Kara interrupts again, sensing the brunette's distress growing with every passing word. "you don't get it." Kara says with a half smile, she takes a step forward and sighs halfheartedly, there's a dull ache in her chest but, hearing Alex confess her feelings, knowing she hasn't been abandoned again, that her sister is by her side through thick and thin, ride-or-die as the kids like to say, there's a comfort in that itself, that even when things get complicated and sad and just, well, pardon Kara's French but, fucked up, Alex is there, she's always there, and that's all the comfort Kara needs. 
She. Is. Not. Alone. 
"You were always the best part of me," Kara says and Alex frowns. "I mean it, I don't just give my mother's necklace to just anyone," Kara says and Alex looks to the ground - probably remembering the day that Kara had almost died. "you humbled me, taught me everything you know, where would I be without you Alex? What would I do without you?" Kara meant it, she has Winn, and she has James, and J'onn, and her other friends, but if she didn't have Alex? Kara wouldn't be the same person she is now. 
"You gave me a purpose, made me hope again after I lost my world, you are the best sister anyone could ever ask for, and you have protected me my whole life but now, now we take care of each other." Alex crosses her arms across her chest and hangs her head a little until Kara lays a, surprisingly gentle, hand on her shoulder. "Jeremiah... he fooled all of us, that is not on you," Kara reassures, her blue eyes sparkling. "and it hurts, a lot, kind of like when I got my ass handed to me by that gladiator alien," Alex laughs, her first laugh that she's done in hours, she thought she'd lost that when she'd watched her father walk away from her, and, yet, here she was, and Kara smiles, almost grins, even if there is a touch of sadness to the moment, like a splash of blue on a canvas, but it doesn't matter, not really, because together they can do anything. "but we still have each other, El mayarah." Alex's head snaps up at the familiar kryptonian words, with the few kryptonian words she knew, those two she'd learned when she'd been a child, spoken by Kara on her second earth birthday. 
"Stronger together," Alex translates and Kara extends a hand that Alex grips with her own, sniffling and blinking rapidly to dispel her tears. They hold one another's hands for a few minutes, letting the kryptonian words hang between them, sure, Alex had Maggie now, and Kara she, well, she had her own life, but they both knew that they weren't going to lose each other, Alex hadn't meant her words before, she was emotional and defensive, Kara was her family and there was no one she'd rather be with right now because Kara got it, they were both suffering the same pain and together they could overcome anything. 
Stronger together. 
The moment is broken by the buzzing of Alex's phone and the brunette pulls her hand away to check it while Kara pulls her blanket over her shoulders again since it had slipped down a little. "Maggie?" Kara asks seeing the recognisable lighting up of Alex's face and the subtle smile - that Kara had dubbed the ‘Maggie smile’ - touches her sister's lips. Alex nods her head slightly while she types out her reply. "Are you going to go be with her?" Kara asks, she tries to not sound disappointed but, she kind of hopes Alex would stick around a little longer. 
"I will," Alex says, slipping her phone into her back pocket before adding "later." onto the end of her sentence. 
A smile comes to Kara's lips, it's the biggest smile she's worn all day, and Alex responds with one of her own before slinging an arm around Kara's neck, like she used to do when they were kids, and, even if Kara is slightly taller, the action still works - just Kara has to bend down a little, not that her kryptonian spine would suffer anyway. 
"I'm all yours kid," Kara chuckles a little at the term of endearment - she hadn't heard Alex call her that since she was twelve years old and new to Earth. 
"There's some ice cream in the freezer," Kara says and Alex nods her head. 
"Comfort food, I like it," Alex replies and Kara nods her head at the thought. "so, should I order the pizza? Or you?" Alex asks and Kara grins because Alex knew her so well. 
"I love you." Kara says as Alex returns from the freezer with two tubs of ice cream. The brunette places them between them and looks at Kara with a small smile on her lips. 
"I love you too."
El mayarah.
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