Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

Survivors

By BetterInTexas

Chapter 25: High school heart aches

“Clark is getting ready for his first soccer practice and you are in a cemetery?”

Kara didn’t take her eyes off the tombstone where she knew both mother and child lay in rest together. She had made this visit on the same day her freshman, sophomore and junior years. Now in her senior year, she took the day, the moment like she always did, to stand before the grave, leave flowers and ask for forgiveness.

“I will be there soon, Dante. Alex knows where I am. Her, Mom and Dad are capable of keeping track of ten five year olds for a few minutes while I pay my respects.”

“Pay respects or beg forgiveness for something that was not your fault?”

“My thoughts and my reasons are my own Dante. I thought you were leaving? Don’t you have a mission? Something tells me it will take a long time, a few months maybe?” Kara tried to keep the hurt and bitterness out of her tone but knew she was not entirely successful.

“Kara, I am sorry. I was surprised. I have… you have always been…”

“Like a little sister right? I know. I get it okay? It was dumb. Alex told me not to and I should have listened.”

“Kara, it was not dumb to say how you feel. Now that it is open we can move past it, come to an understanding of our…”

“I asked you if you would consider entering a marriage contract with me. I had thought the two of us due to our unique situations and knowledge of the secrets and dangers of this world would be a good match. You did not feel the same. There is nothing more to understand or move on from. So how long will you be gone this time?”

The man sighed. When Kara began speaking in a clinical tone he knew the conversation was over… for the moment. “I am not sure. We believe we may have a lead on Astra’s army possibly having a base in the Pacific 32 miles off the coast of National City. Dan will be…”

“We don’t need Dan. Alex and I can protect our family.” Kara told him quickly. “Or at least Alex could if you would get her at least a Kryptonite knife.”

Dante shook his head, not wanting to have this argument again. “Eliza and Jeremiah forbid it and Alex told me time and time again that she does not want it. I am one of the deadliest warriors on Earth and I would fear for my life if they were to ever discover Kyrptonite around you and Clark. You can never have to much protection for your cousin. Dan will at my house. I will be back. I hope we can…”

“Nothing to talk about Dante. I’m over it and I really don’t want this to be anymore awkward so just… go get em and be safe… okay?”

Dante nodded his head and walked slowly away, wishing he would see her face smile more often, the genuine smile, not the one she showed the world to hide the pain. The worst times were when she didn’t even try to hide the pain like now.

Once out of earshot, Kara spoke as she did every year.

“That was Dante. He is the guy who trains me in… everything I guess. I did something stupid. I’ve had this crush on him since I was 13. Kind of been in love with him I guess. I’m sure you can see why. But he never gave any indication… that he felt the same. I thought he might though. You know I am different but so is he. I talked to Jess about it, but I didn’t tell her it was him of course. She encouraged me to follow my heart and I did. Landed right on my face. I asked him if he would consider a marriage contract when I was 18 and he turned white as a cotton sheet. That’s pretty impressive for a Cherokee. I figured after he stuttered for thirty or so seconds that was not joy in his mangled words and ran. So the whole acceptance, big first kiss and talking to Dad about details didn’t quite happen the way I thought it would. Alex told me not to do it but I thought maybe… just maybe I could catch a break. I caught one with my family and maybe I could have another. I don’t know if Dad knows. God I hope not. Oh yeah, thats new. I started calling Jeremiah and Eliza Mom and Dad. I am also making myself say god instead of Rao to fit in. Its not easy, the Rao thing, but necessary.”

Kara shuffled her feet and walked over to the headstone, brushing leaves off the surface.

“Mom and Dad… it was less confusing for Clark. Alura and Zor El were addressed formally on Krypton, so addressing Eliza and Jeremiah as Mom and Dad isn’t exactly…”

Kara stopped speaking, looked up into the sky and took a deep breath.

“Fine, I call them Mom and Dad because I love them and I hate my birthparents. I don’t want to think bout them. I came so close to throwing my mother’s necklace in the toilet last summer, Alex talked me out of it but I wanted to. I just want to forget them.”

The blonde adjusted her glasses and smiled, knelt down by the headstone and placed the flowers she carried in the vase.

“I’m sorry. I’ll never be able to make it up but I will try to atone one day. I am so sorry.”

Across town at the Midvale Park Alex Danvers was close to losing her cool. Clark was running with one shoe on, one shoe off, kicking a soccer ball almost as tall as he was, and the other nine children on the team were following him.

“Better get a hold of your team, Coach.” Jeremiah told her good naturedly. Alex Danvers, All District soccer player had been excited about coaching Clark’s first pee wee soccer team. The reality was less exciting.

“Where is Kara?” Alex griped. “Stinky always listens to her.”

“You know what day it is.” Eliza told Alex, swopping in and picking up two more excited five year olds and depositing them back on the bench for the tying of shoes.

“Yeah, I know. I hope… one of us should have gone with her.”

“Drop it Alex. Kara has been doing very good.” Jeremiah told her, then oomphed when a bubbly blonde sat down on his lap hard.

“Yes, Kara has been doing very good, Daddy. Thank you. Clark! Get over here and sit in front of Alex. Your shoes need to be tied.”

To everyone’s, even the other parents amazement, Clark stopped running with the ball and immediately sat in front of an irritated Alex.

“So you think only she is your boss, huh?” the older girl asked her little brother.

“Kara scary when mad.” he whispered to Alex. Kara heard of course but ignored it and Alex was glad no one else heard. Kara had never openly yelled at Clark but he had seen her lose her temper after particularly emotional sessions with Jessica, often brandishing her heat vision into the ground or punching the ground repeatedly. They didn’t happen often but they did happen. He loved his Kara dearly but he also knew in the back of his little mind what she was capable of.

“Kara is not scary. Kara loves you.” Eliza corrected him.

“I love Kara too but Kara can be scary when she gets mad and I don’t want her to hurt herself. She burned herself one time…”

“Okay, shoes are tied! Line up team.” Alex ordered her five girls and five boys, then whispered to Clark.

“Remember, we don’t ever, ever talk about Kara hurting herself around other people?”

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay buddy. Now lets play some soccer!”

“Am I going to be as good as you since you are my sister?”

“Probably better. Okay gang, who has never kicked a ball while running before? Lets start with… the basics.” Alex finished, realizing this was going to be a long season when no hands came up. Three kids were already picking flowers.

“Kara, could you take the kids picking flowers and see if they would like to try kicking a ball?”

“On it big sis.”

The blonde walked over to the three wayward children and soon had their attention, bouncing a ball between them. Eliza stood by proudly, watching her daughters work with children. She never thought she would see the day Kara would be actively involved in something like this. The girl had come far. She still had periods of anxiety but had become very good at taking control of them. She never lost consciousness from panic attacks anymore and she kept her journal daily, including the one journal that always seemed at the front and center. Kara no longer hurt herself. Often, Eliza corrected herself. Once was too much but she had only had two episodes in the past year and told Eliza about both of them as soon as they happened. One unfortunately occurred when she had ran into the backyard and burned her arm as soon as she hit the ground. She never knew Clark was out back hanging clothes with Eliza, until the pain died and she realized the crying wasn’t her. Though not close he had seen everything. For a few months, a few months that hurt Kara deeply and filled her with more shame, Clark was scared to be alone with her.

Eliza shook away those thoughts, her eyes sweeping the field, eight kids kicking the ball around Alex on one side and three kids who had talked Kara into picking flowers with them.

“I don’t know how you do it Eliza. You are amazing.” a female voice told her, standing by her side. Eliza recognized she was the assistant principle, Rebecca Creaves.

“My girls are amazing.” the mother told her.

“Yes but… when we were informed by the Junior High about Kara’s panic… her needs her freshman year and the story about her parents, I honestly thought the girl would be a wreck. But she is so bright, always smiling, always cheerful. So polite. I didn’t even think teenagers knew what gosh meant anymore but she certainly does. Beautiful voice and the bond your two girls have is amazing. Alex has come out of her shell as well. She is a genius but so outgoing. I have a feeling Kara probably is a genius as well but at times loses focuses. Her calculus teacher told me she can solve the most advanced equations so easily and then make the silliest mistakes. You have done an amazing job with all three of them. They are both going far. Have they talked about Colleges?”

The mother internally groaned. This was a debate that had been ongoing since last year. Alex wanted to go to National City for University. Kara did not want to go to college and instead work for the DEO. J’onn refused her over the phone and Connolly in person and Alex refused to go to college unless Kara did. Kara agreed so Alex would go and didn’t care where. Jeremiah wanted North Carolina or perhaps Metropolis to at least keep them on the same coast. Eliza knew he also wanted to keep them away from the suspected alien activity that was occurring in Nevada and California.

Alex refused Metropolis, pointing out that if Kara wanted to go after escapees nobody could stop her and it wouldn’t matter what coast they were on, Kara would go. If Alex were on the same coast she could at least contact J’onn or Webb which irritated Kara.

“I am hoping they go to school in Paris myself. Maybe London. I would miss them terribly but I want them to experience the best the world has to offer.”

As far away from National City as possible.

“But I suspect they will be attending NCU. Alex loves their genetics program and Kara loves the sun so I doubt we will be able to stop them.”

“Kara being such a gifted artist, all the media companies in National City should offer many internship possibilities. Has she ever thought of being a graphic artist?”

“She has but right now she is more focused on the here and now. Whatever the girls do I can guarantee they will be together and brilliant at it.”

“No doubt.” the assistant principle agreed.

After another forty minutes in which Alex and Jeremiah had managed to get a bunch of five year olds to run in a straight line with a ball in front of them for at least six feet and Kara had collected a large bouquet of flowers for her three players’ mothers, the session was called.

The family made it home and Kara immediately took Clark upstairs for a bath. He looked adorable in his blue soccer uniform, especially the shin guards that went past his knees. Clark’s legs hadn’t quite caught up with his body but judging by the reaction on the field he was already a ladies man.

“Can I have bubbles?”

“Of course little man. Sit on the potty so I can take your shoes and socks off. How was kindergarten today? Learn anything new?”

“We learned about animals. Birds can fly. I promise I didn’t say anything about you.”

Kara looked at him, confused at his tone. He seemed nervous.

“Clark, are you okay? You aren’t… scared of me, are you?”

“No.” he quickly denied. “I just don’t get it. Why you can do some things nobody else does. Why we have to keep it a secret.”

“Its hard to understand right now but I promise I will tell you one day when you are older. For right now it is very important…”

“I know. Nobody can know or the bad guy comes and gets us, right?” the little boy asked quietly. Kara pulled him into a hug.

“You need to stop eavesdropping. No bad guy is going to get you. I won’t ever let a bad guy get you. Don’t you trust me and Alex?”

Clark shrugged his tiny shoulders. “Yeah but I am afraid. You hurt yourself bad that one time. I… I thought you were on fire… I don’t want you to hurt.”

“Clark I can only apologize so many times. It was an accident and I promise it won’t happen again. I’m going to be here for you. I have been since the day you were born. Now you have ten minutes of play time with the boats and ducks then five to wash. I also have to wash your hair so get to business, okay?”

“I love you, Kara.”

Clark kissed Kara on the cheek and laughed when she gently plopped him into the warm water.

“ I love you too, my prince.” she whispered to herself and smiled genuinely, loving the joy on his face that something as simple as bubbles could cause. If he were on Krypton he would spend most of his day in a classroom by now. He still showed no signs of getting any strange powers and though Eliza and Jeremiah expected it, Kara prayed to whatever deity existed that he would not. She would bear the memory of their world and the burden of these powers for him as well, if she could.

After being tucked in, Clark began dreaming of fishing with Jeremiah in the morning and Kara and Alex made their way to manipulate their father once more. Each girl hopped on an arm of his recliner leading the man to groan.

“Nothing good is going to come out of this, is it?”

“Of course it is!” Alex assured him. “Unless Kara has to pout. But you can avoid that if you give us what we want.”

“And what it is you two want?”

“Bangor High is playing tomorrow night and we want to watch. I am playing them in a couple weeks and they are supposed to be good…” Alex started.

“Whoa! Where is the game?”

“Raleigh.” she answered quickly.

“So you two want to take the car to Raleigh? Thats it? I don’t see the big deal.”

“Not exactly…” Kara told him. Jeremiah knew what was coming next.

“Kara, that thing is a…. if you weren’t indestructible….I don’t even like you on it knowing you are indestructible.”

“I’ll protect her Dad. You know I would never let anything happen to Alex.”

Jeremiah closed his eyes and thought back to last year, wishing he had never made that dumb bet. The man enjoyed Alex using the family car so he could control when and where his girls went. She played soccer too often or spent time with Kara on the beach too often and couldn’t get a job that would pay enough for her to buy a car. The parents genuine concerns over Kara’s anxiety issues kept her from getting a job at their girl had gotten much better and neither wanted to see her backslide due to an irrationally angry customer wanting french fries who might become fried himself.

So one day Kara and Jeremiah had driven past the local junk yard and seen it, or what Kara referred to as her. The remains of a motorcycle that had once been sleek and black and was now twisted and bent metal and plastic. Kara begged to stop and ask the man how much it was.

The owner laughed, told her that it was nothing but garbage and she could have it for free if it meant getting it out of his yard. A dose of puppy dog eyes broke Jeremiah’s will. He told her she had a week to get it running and if she did, he would get a title and insurance.

Using the internet, heat vision and negotiating skills, including selling her art for the first time, Kara had the bike restored and road worthy in three days.

Eliza sat this one out. She hated the idea of either of her girls on that bike but recognized the pride Kara took in it and knew she would never let Alex be harmed.

“Fine but right back home after the game. Keep the GPS apps on your phones on while you are gone and text when you arrive and are on your way back. Also text back whenever I text you. Understand?”

Both girls solemnly nodded. The trick of leaving their cell phones behind was done for, when they returned from a detour of the city with 16 missed messages on each of their phones where they waited in their hiding spots for their owner’s returns.

Both spoiled daddy’s girls hopped off his arm chair and sat on the couch.

“So whats going on with the news Dad?” the blonde asked.

“Nothing good. The freak you have a crush on is still at it.”

Kara froze for a moment, her mind going immediately to Dante then realized who he meant.

“Gotham PD still can’t catch the guy? He brand another one?” she asked. “And I do not have a crush on him. I just think a normal guy fighting criminals without powers is cool. I admitted the bat costume meant he was probably a freak but I am hardly the one to judge someone’s mental health. I’ve been known to be a bit crazy myself Daddio.”

“You are nothing like whatever that person is and never compare yourself… you have and continue to address your issues. His answer to whatever is wrong is to get into a Halloween costume and assault people. 26 people who were given no trial, bound, branded and left outside police stations. He isn’t trying to get criminals put behind bars, he is trying to scare the hell out of them and their friends.”

“Its working too.” Alex agreed. She had kept up with this story as well.

“He is a freak in a bat suit hurting those he decides are guilty. You think that is some kind of hero, Alex, Kara?”

“No!” Alex defended quickly. ” And Kara already pointed out that he is most likely crazy. I am just pointing out that street crime is down in Gotham for the first time ever. Most of the thugs are scared to leave their slum pits.”

“That is not justice, its terrorism.” Jeremiah said, ending the conversation. “Now what else… oh yeah, Robert Queen’s yacht went down today. Him and his son are dead, everyone on board. Sunk in the North China Sea.”

“Who is Robert Queen and why do we care?” Alex asked.

“He is the owner and CEO of Queen Consolidated, Alex. We should care because it is a tragedy whether he is rich or poor. There has been no sign of survivors?” Kara asked, ignoring Alex’s eye roll.

“Nope. The boy, Oliver had a girlfriend or someone on board but her, the kid, the crew, all gone. No wreckage found even. Shame. Tragedy can reach out at any time, rich or poor.”

“Isn’t Oliver Queen the boy who urinated on the police officer?” Eliza asked, walking in after making sure Clark had his nightly kiss.

Alex shook her head. “I thought it was a paparazzi?”

“I think he hit the paparazzi.” Kara said, trying to remember. She had a lot going on and if she did watch TV it was mostly to keep up with the Kardashians. “Who is Harrison Wells? I’ve never heard that name before.”

The family listened to the next story about promised scientific breakthroughs in Central City.

“I’ve heard of him. I understand his wife died in an automobile accident last year. It was tragic. He is supposed to be brilliant and so was she.” the mother told the three, remembering the sad story. “He is going to continue their dream of opening something called S.T.A.R. Labs. I guess if that is what he is still going to call it.”

“Hope he has that grand idea about building a particle accelerator out of his head.” Jeremiah mumbled.

“A particle accelarator?! The dangers even one in a billion… we should force J’onn to return my pod. I can expand it, make it larger for us all and food and we can map out a path Dad. We can recreate stasis and get out in plenty of time, no Phantom Zone trips, I have ideas of some really beautiful planets I bet we could find…”

“Kara sweetie, calm down.” her adopted father told her, recognizing a nervous Kara rant on its way. “Nobody is going to blow up the planet with a particle accelerator. If I thought it was possible I would be the first one helping you build a ship. Enough bad news, who wants to watch MI3?”

“I’m in, who wants popcorn?” Kara asked hopping up and zipping to the kitchen.

“What is wrong with her tonight?” Jeremiah wrote on a pad and handed it to Alex.

“She is good.” Alex wrote back. Kara did seem good. She was not the emotional wreck Alex had feared she would be when she came back from Dante’s house. Alex told her Dante did not feel that way about her for years but Kara had convinced herself more and more that he did. Now… she had been upset, told Alex that she was right, that she had embarrassed herself and needed to go to the cemetery before practice. Alex nearly followed, sure that Kara was going to hurt herself, but decided to trust her instead. The look of guilt that Kara could rarely hide after she hurt herself had not been on her face at practice but Alex still needed alone time with her. Apparently alone time would be delayed by Tom Cruise for a few hours.

“I guess. She seems really good.” Jeremiah wrote. “Too good.”

“Honestly Dad, you want her happy and when she is, you are worried that she is too happy?” Alex wrote back, frustrated that he was picking up on this. Kara would probably literally die of embarrassment if Jeremiah found out about her conversation with Dante.

“Sorry. I’ve just learned to stay cautious. I do the same with you. It happens when you love someone.” he finished writing, showed it to Alex and then tore the page out of the pad, wadding it up and putting it in his pocket.

The movie completed two hours later, both girls turned in for the night, or at least were alone for the first time that night.

“You ready for tomorrow?” Kara asked excitedly, lying on her side in bed and not fooling Alex a bit.

“To hell with that. What happened? Tell me.”

Kara dropped her head and began playing with her sheets, before wrapping them over her waist.

“What do you want to know? Details of my horrific mistake? How embarrassed I felt? How I should have listened to you?”

“I want to know how badly you aren’t okay? Need me over there?”

Kara shook her head. “It was… I knew it was dumb. I just told him before we sparred that I wanted to talk to him, I had an offer… very romantic of course. You know us Kryptonians, we are all about the romance. Anyway I told him since he had a demanding job and was single and I had a unique situation and he was one of the few I could be honest with about my life, that perhaps we could consider a marriage contract. Thats what I said. A marriage contract. His jaw just dropped and hung there so I was like, not until I’m 18. He began stuttering and I told him… I told him I wanted to because I loved him…”

Alex groaned. “Kara…”

“I know. He looked at me and I realized that everything I had read, every single stupid little sign I saw from him wasn’t him having feelings for me. It was me wanting him to. He doesn’t love me. Not like that. I will always be the skinny, broken alien girl to him. Anyway, he found me at the Cemetery and has left for a mission. It had been planned before this but I would guess he will be gone for a longer length of time.”

“Come to my bed. Blondie needs to be hugged tonight.”

Kara did not offer much reluctance, moving towards Alex quickly and sliding under the covers. She had her face buried in Alex’s chest before the tears fell. Alex held her for a few minutes, not saying a word. She knew this would sting her younger sister, had tried and tried to warn her off, but knew it would do no good and prepared for the worst.

“Not a word to Jessica. I’ll tell her it didn’t work out, I was considering asking a guy on a date and will tell her he said no but she can never know who. I don’t think Dante will say anything. He just wouldn’t do that to me.”

“No he wouldn’t.” Alex agreed. “Not a word from me to our shrink. You sure you are up for tomorrow night? We can catch a movie or something instead, maybe go to the mall? Or if you don’t feel like driving me I can take Mom’s car…”

“No. We are riding. We get there and I hang back and watch you get the girl. I need to see this female that has my big sister so worked up. Have you let her know you are going to be there?”

“No, I thought I would surprise her.”

Alex had met Rachel at a week long soccer camp this summer. Rachel’s younger sister played and Rachel had spent most days watching her from the stands, her and Alex. Alex noticed and after a few days of awkward bumbling around each other, the two had managed to have a decent chat and found they had certain interests in common, mainly each other. Since that time, the two had kept up with each other over Facebook weekly, sometimes daily. Despite this, the distance between each other was over an hours drive. Her sister playing in Raleigh was a perfect half way point for the two to meet.

“Cool. I will get us there, blend into the backdrop of the city and you pull up on the bike, pull the helmet off, swoosh the hair side to side and it should be a lock.”

“You could come with me. I wish you would. She would like to meet you, I’m sure.”

“I know I can come and I will be there, in the background, watching. You barely know her besides online. Getting to know someone is easier without the geeky younger sister around.”

“You are not a geek.”

“Then I am not doing very well at playing the part I have given myself. Please Alex, I want to watch the game, scout the enemy so to speak and I want you to have fun. So please, have fun and don’t worry about me.”

“Just promise to stay at the field?” Alex asked.

“Of course. I will be in the stands.”

The next night, both were helmeted, zipped up in their black ridings suits and mounted Kara’s restored 2002 Kawasawki Ninja 600, as the nervous parents looked on. They both knew that if there was the slightest problem, Kara would have Alex airborne with her quickly, but being parents to an indestructible daughter who managed to always find ways to hurt herself had also taught them to take nothing for granted.

Five miles out of town, Kara slowed to a stop and dismounted, letting Alex slide into the driver’s position.

“If I feel you begin to swerve even a bit…” the blonde warned.

“You are going to pick me up and we are in the air, to hell with the bike. Got it little sister. Stop mothering me and let me open this thing up.”

“Fine. Just… be careful.”

“Whatever you say, Dark Angel. How can someone be careful on a bike like this? Of all the art you have ever created, this bike is the greatest.”

The trip was over quickly and Kara had no doubt Jeremiah was watching the locators on their phone and would be having a talk with her about how quickly later. She would never convince them to let Alex drive so like most things Alex and Kara did, they tended to go on assumptions of permissions given. Kara hopped off a block from the school and pulled her helmet off, slipping her glasses on quickly.

“Be careful.” the blonde warned once more when Alex winked and pulled away, only a block over into the parking lot.

Alex for her part idled the bike, moving ahead slowly, not searching for a parking spot but searching for her. Many heads had turned in the lot and beyond when the sound of the high powered engine entered the field of family cars and vans.

The brunette wished for Kara’s vision but then spotted the beauty she had met over the summer and communicated with often. Pulling into the nearest spot and putting the kick stand in place, Alex stood up, still astride the bike and took the helmet off. Rachel recognized her immediately.

The girl who took Rachel’s hand did not recognize her, nor did Alex recognize her.

“Alex? I thought you weren’t going to be able to make it?”

Rachel was as beautiful as last time they had talked in person, dark eyes, chocolate brown mid length wavy hair, long limbs, and sharp features. She looked older than her 17 years in Alex’s mind. The blonde next to her looked ever bit the beach bunny she was sure was stereotyped as often. Perhaps she would cure cancer one day but today Alex was going with idiot beach bunny.

“I uh… I know but I was able to get out of the thing I had and wanted to surprise you. You sounded like you really… hi, I am Alex, who are you?”

“Meghan. Who is this Rachel? I didn’t realize you had asked anyone to meet us here I didn’t know.”

“Oh yeah, Alex and I met at Jule’s soccer camp this summer and we have been friends on Facebook. Keep up and stuff. Alex this is Meghan…”

“Her girlfriend.” the blonde added quickly.

“Wow. I had no idea. I didn’t know you had a girlfriend. I never saw anything about girlfriend on your profile.”

Oh… we keep things kind of quiet. Because of Meghan’s parents…”

“You are holding hands in the middle of a busy parking lot.” the brunette pointed out.

“Meghan doesn’t live in Bangor, her parents live…”

“Alex! I couldn’t find the bathroom. Glad you found a semi safe place to park the bike. Who is this? The friend you said we might see?” Kara asked, seemingly out of nowhere, still in head to toe black but her glasses off and hair loose, long, wavy and very, very blonde.

“What… oh yeah. Yeah this is Rachel and her apparent girlfriend Meghan. Meghan this is…”

“Linda. Linda Kent. Alex’s girlfriend. No apparently or anything. I’ve heard a lot about you Rachel. I’m sure I will hear a lot more but right now I need a restroom so we need to ride Alex.”

“Wait… I didn’t know you had a girlfriend Alex.” Rachel told her, surprised at seeing the slim blonde with incredible hair and blue eyes like comets, matching Alex in head to toe black.

“I guess we don’t know each other as well as we thought we did Rachel. We have some other spots we wanted to hit up, I just wanted to check your sisters team out but since she can’t find a bathroom to her liking we better jet. See you online maybe.”

Kara helmeted up again quickly and sat behind Alex while her big sister led them off. The blonde had been watching and listening from a distance and knew that Alex did not know about this girlfriend and that Rachel was a player who got caught and Alex was going to be the one in the awkward situation. Kara wouldn’t have that,

A mile down the road, the two stopped at a gas station and Alex dismounted, tore her helmet off and began pacing the nearly deserted lot. Kara took her helmet off but waited.

The oleo sister began to speak a few times then stopped, not able to find the words. Finally after a series of very slow, deep breaths she was able to talk.

“She had a girlfriend. She probably has more than one. She told me she was lonely. I have a dozen emails where she talks about being lonely. She lied! I couldn’t make it so she called some other girl from another city and invited her! How many girlfriends do you think she has? Is this what she does? She finds girls who are closeted and can’t say anything and plays them all? We cant exactly communicate with each other.”

“I know.”

“I felt like an idiot! She… she… that girl came up and held her hand the second she met my eyes and staked a claim, made me feel like a fool!”

“I am sorry.”

“Its not your fault. I’d still be standing there, trying to save face if not for you. So you heard and saw right? I… I… a girlfriend? She didn’t even deny it. Five months we have talked almost every day and not once did she say anything about a girlfriend.”

“I know.”

“And where the hell do you come up with these fake names?!”

“I don’t know.”

“She… why did I bother? Why didn’t I wait until I got to college like we planned?”

“We?”

“Exactly. Damn… damn it! That….”

“Sucked?”

“Exactly!”

Alex continued pacing while Kara slid to the front of the bike, no amount of effort would let Alex drive her baby again tonight.

Finally the older sister calmed down. Alex looked at Kara and grinned. “My girlfriend? She is going to see you in the stands when Bangor High plays us next month.”

“No she won’t.” Kara placed her glasses back on her nose and tied her long blonde hair in three tight buns on top. Sliding off the riding jacket, she buttoned her blouse all the way up her neckline and slouched.

“She is going to see your geeky, little adopted sister Kara Danvers. You seriously think she is going to get close enough to us or me to mistake me for the motorcycle riding black clad blonde she just saw?”

Alex shook her head. It seemed ridiculous and if someone were to look closely of course it was obvious they would be the same person. But Kara was beautiful. Drop dead, runway model beautiful. Kara knew this brought attention from others and one thing Kara hated was attention. So she made turning herself from beautiful into ordinary an obsession. Alex had watched Kara stand in front of a mirror an learn to slouch a bit, learn to keep her eyes always a bit down, take quick steps but not too quick to attract notice, just enough to get through an area while causing as little as notice as possible. To Jeremiah’s approval, she still dressed as conservatively as possible, except for the occasional skirt because she loved them. Modesty wasn’t an issue any longer. The girl was very comfortable in bathing suits and never mentioned her flight suit that had to be lengthened a few times now. Still the sweaters and loose jeans ruled. If you didn’t know her well, then there is no way someone would mistake her sister for the force of nature blonde who had just showed up and saved her from embarrassment.

“Good point. Okay, I have pretty much been played and it sucks so since we are not going back to that game and we are not wasting a Saturday night out, I vote for Pizza.”

“Nope.” Kara disagreed. “Pot stickers.”

“Uh… I’m the one that just got played, made to look like a fool.”

“But you weren’t, made to look like a fool anyway, thanks to me. By the way I threw my heart out there to a guy I have been in love with since I knew what love was and had it chewed up and thrown back at my face. We are eating pot stickers.”

“I told you not to ask a 30 year old guy to marry you! You never listen to me about things like that!”

“Just because it had never been done on Earth didn’t mean it was a bad idea. I stand by that notion, even if you were right this time.” Kara countered. “I guess the Mall it is. Pizza’s and Pot stickers together.”

At the Food Court in the Mall, the two girls stuffed themselves in silence for an hour, each lost in their own thoughts. Alex wondering that Rachel would do tonight, if she would email her with some kind of explanation and if she should respond, while Kara wondered where Dante was and if he would text her or Jeremiah, anyone and let them know if the mission was a success or if they were safe.

“Okay enough silence. What are you going to do if she emails you? Ask questions or block her?” Kara finally asked.

“Screw it. I’m blocking her. She lived to far away anyway, especially if she can’t remember to update relationship status’s online. Are you going to text him? Or Vivian?”

“I might text Vivian. She won’t say anything or suspect anything. Probably not though. He is okay. I bet they are diving tonight. I’m sure Hawk will come by to play with Clark tomorrow, maybe I will ask him if he has heard anything. How is the work on the location?”

Alex shrugged her shoulders. “Depends on what you have learned. How far into the construction crystal have you gotten? Do we have the anchor points along with pressures?”

“Yeah I forgot to tell you, I made it all the way through to the end. Not easy to do. It was so boring. The bland robotic voice almost made me miss Jor El’s arrogant nasally voice. I have them written in our black journal under your mattress.

“Will the Arctic work?” Alex asked. Over the past three years though it was never spoken of, Kara and Alex did sneak away occasionally to the cave and Kara would access the crystals. She never spoke to Jor El’s AI but did study the others databanks, including the construction of a temple where the knowledge and technology could be held.

“I don’t like the Arctic. Too many people around.”

“Too many people at the North Pole?” the brunette asked.

“For what we want to hide, yes. The North Pole isn’t that remote. It is very easy to get research expeditions there, the seas are always full of military activity, borders between Russia, Alaska, and Canada are watched closely. Commercial vessels and the Coast Guard regularly visit and patrol the Far North. The ice shelf is constantly shifting as well. We need to be in the middle of a very big continent, far south on somewhat stable ground.”

“Please tell me you mean Australia.” Alex begged.

“You know what I mean. Antarctica is larger, colder, harder to survive in, harder to access and has much stabler ice. What about somewhere between 20 and a hundred miles true east of Hercules Dome?” Kara suggested.

“Right on the Prime Meridian?”

“So we go 15 degrees towards Valkyrie Dome. Doesn’t matter. Thousands of miles of white powder, ice shelves, frozen ground and s structures we could build inside or underneath. I could use my heat vision and freeze breath to do all the manual labor. If we do it anywhere else it would cause a scene, considering the amount of construction I am going to have to do. There it can be silenced or passed off as underwater quakes.”

Alex took a bite of pizza and admitted defeat. “There is absolutely no way we are going to be able to build this thing in a hidden tropical paradise, is there?”

“No, but once it is ready, we will be able to stabilize the temperature inside while still remaining cloaked from the outside. I think. You are going to have to look over some of the schematics, because I am not sure. I can get us a work area cut out first and if we can stabilize that temperature we can explained from there. Most of what needs to be done is going to be moving, molding, carving and refreezing anyway.I can handle that in between semester breaks and you can handle getting the tech set up the way you want it. I bet we can get a lot done during Spring Break next year!”

“Yes we can, in Cancun, which is where we are going to be. Or Daytona, or the Bahamas or I would even take the beach in Midvale but there is no way in hell we spend Spring Breaks in college working on this Fortress. I’m not even sure why we need it. Whats wrong with where the crystals are now?”

Kara shook her head and stole the last slice of pizza before Alex’s annoyed eyes.

“Because if there is any tech that assembles itself I need to destroy it as soon as it comes together.”

“What are you talking about? Like a crystal is going to pop open and then there is a Kelex inside?”

Kara nodded her head. “Thats exactly what I am talking about. I thought this was understood?”

“I knew there were plans to build tech! I didn’t know… how is that even possible? Krypton Crystals can do that?”

“Yes. I am almost certain a Kelex is in one of them. The Codex harvesters are the ones I am very keen to get rid of. Besides that, this place could be indestructible. In an extinction level even, our family could survive in it for decades. Plenty of time to build a ship and leave this wasteland.”

“Earth is not a wasteland!”

“It would be if there was an extinction level event!”

Alex opened her mouth once more then closed it. “Point to you, Kara. Fine, I will start looking at the geological formations of the tropical paradise known as Antarctica. Since you just devoured the last slice of pizza and the last two pot stickers, shall we go home and actually beat Daddy’s curfew by a couple hours?”

“Sure. I probably need to put Clark to bed anyway. I think he is… I think he knows Alex.”

“Yeah he has been freaked about seeing you that one time…”

“No, he knows something is very wrong with me, not just what he saw. He knows I am broken. I thought…”

“You are not broken! Enough with this crap! Broken people don’t give a damn if they are broken or even worry about other people thinking they might be. You are hurt and you are getting better. Yeah, he is probably a bit nervous around you because he has seen you have some massive tantrums or I guess we could say outbursts during and after therapy. He is respectful but he loves you.”

“He does what I say because he is afraid of my reaction if he doesn’t. I have never yelled at him, never raised a hand at him and he knows to be scared of me.”

“He is five. He barely knows if he has shoes on. He doesn’t know anything. Am I driving or you?”

Five minutes later Kara was driving through downtown Raleigh, Alex behind her when she pulled over.

“Whats wrong?” Alex asked.

“You got your expandable tactical baton with you?”

“Yep. Never leave town without it. Unless I’m wearing shorts. It looks awkward then.”

“We keep our helmets on. Next block over in an alley. Sounds like five guys, harassing a couple. ‘ll check for weapons and take those out. When I give the okay, dive in.”

Behind her black visor, Alex Danvers smiled. Perhaps tonight would not be a waste after all.