Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

Seeing Red

By BetterInTexas

Chapter 06: Date Night

Jeremiah was alert as he walked his daughter into Jessica’s home. Kara was happy.

Kara was very happy.

He had seen Kara pretend to be happy.

He had seen her happy for others.

He had seen her happy at times, when she was painting, or those rare moments where she would watch a sun rise or set and feel complete peace. Perhaps when she was flying with Clark or just playing or watching a comedy or romance or her all-time favorite, a romantic comedy, with Alex.

He knew when Kara was happy because she had made a great save or stopped some monster.

She was happy when the two had discovered some new object in the night sky. She still took nature walks with Eliza on weekends and stared at wildlife that she had somehow never learned to take for granted. He knew all her shades of happiness and every other emotion.

He also recognized when she saw happy because she was up to no good and knew she couldn’t be stopped. That was the happiness he was seeing on her face right now. He knew she must have suspected tonight had more to do than her house arrest on one of the worst days of all their lives. She had not been happy about coming over or spending the night the evening before.

So what had changed?

“Wow… J’onn, hello. And Jack… hey there, Ty. Didn’t realize you guys would be here as well.” Kara told them, taken aback for a second, then realizing her suspicions were correct. They were planning on having some sort of intervention tonight. They really were. Unbelievable.

Jeremiah noted her happiness just dipped.

“Good to see you, kid.” Jack Webb told her, wrapping her in a hug. Kara tensed a bit. This could be bad. She wondered if there was any chance J’onn could read Barry’s mind.

Of course he could. That was fine. J’onn would never admit it and that meant he had to keep whatever he learned to himself or risk exposing that he had been reading minds. She loved the Martian, but he was a bit too nosy for his own good or hers.

Of course he had saved her from death a few times. Sadly, Kara admitted, she was a bit resentful last year, not wanting to seem weak. She was certain if any alien had taken a shot at her, she would have woken and dealt with it.

Maybe.

If not, she figured she would have gotten what she deserved for blacking out in public. That was a weakness and if there was one thing Kara hated to show other aliens, it was weakness. She had beaten a trail of enemies on this Earth, a trail that told what would happen to any others who wanted to walk down it. As a result, Kara was hardly ever targeted. Only the insane and possibly suicidal came after her. Now they thought she had a weakness.

“Kara, come to the kitchen.” Eliza ordered, grabbing her hand. “Let’s see what you think of the sauce. I think it is perfect.”

“I can’t.” Kara told her, holding her ground and earning a sharp glare from Eliza.

“Sweetie, I told you that you are staying with us tonight.” the woman whispered in her ear, a not so gentle reminder. “This isn’t up for discussion.”

“I know, but since it was a dinner party I invited a date. I hope you don’t mind. I was talking to Barry this morning and I kind of wanted to see him. I asked him over. He was really excited to meet you and Dad.”

Eliza looked over Kara’s shoulder at Jeremiah who was rubbing his forehead. The man just figured out why his daughter was so happy. He had no doubt she would like to see Barry, but she also knew that the man would run all the way from Central City and couldn’t very well be turned away.

“We were having a meeting tonight. I told you that.” Jeremiah told her from behind, knowing it would do no good. Kara turned towards him and shrugged her shoulders with a grin.

“It’s a family meeting. It’s not like we are planning a raid and it’s time sensitive. We can do it any night. We do live near one another. I even get rides to and from work now, even though I can fly in space. What’s the big deal? There are too many people here to have a meeting with Jessica anyway. You know Jack and Ty will be here all-night drinking with Connolly. Where is Clark?”

“On the beach with Dan. Can’t you hear them?” Eliza asked shortly and walked towards the kitchen.

Jeremiah watched her go and looked down at his daughter who was no longer smugly grinning.

“That was not right, Kara.” he told her, not elaborating. “And don’t say if he is a problem the two of you can go somewhere. She has been worried sick all day, we all have.”

“And I am here!” Kara whispered.

“She wanted us all to talk after dinner.” Jeremiah told her, knowing that she knew.

“No, you all want to have some sort of intervention. Since when do we bring others into our family business, my business? Instead you plan some sneak attack on me? You wanted to do this with Clark within listening distance? J’onn too? Really?”

“Maybe J’onn just showed up hoping for a thank you for carrying you home from the bar unconscious last night.” Jeremiah reminded her.

“I was placed under house arrest and… and… I got carried away, but it hardly ever happens. I…”

“Have been drinking all day.” Jeremiah finished. “Do you know how I know? Your hands aren’t shaking. You have been drinking that water bottle you are keeping in your purse, right? Could I have a drink, Kara? I am kind of thirsty. Water would be great. It’s not like it would kill me or anything. It’s just water, right?”

Kara stepped back, turning her head to the right, not meeting his eyes. Jeremiah knew he nailed it. He knew all his daughter’s deflections and guilty expressions.

“Kara…”

“Mom is probably going to need my help. When Barry shows up let me know, please?”

Kara walked off quickly, leaving a frustrated Jeremiah.

Kara realized she should have stayed out of the kitchen because she almost literally walked into the fire.

Eliza was waiting for her, Jessica as well. Both were leaned against the counter, arms crossed and not happy in the least.

Kara waited for them, either of them, to say anything. Neither did. Apparently, it was up to her to make the first move.

“So this is more of a party than I expected. I didn’t realize everyone would be here.” she tried, trying to sound annoyed in the face of Eliza glare.

Eliza walked up to her and placed a hand on her cheek.

“I have loved you. I will always love you. You are my daughter and you have been since the moment I laid eyes on you. I have seen you happy, I have held when you were scared or upset. I have been with you every step of the way and I always will be. I will do anything to protect my family from any danger. I will protect you from any danger, even if that danger is yourself. You know why I wanted us all to meet tonight.”

Kara turned away and crossed her arms. Of course she knew. Why else would everyone be here? They all wanted to talk to her, tell her how worried they were and attempt to guilt trip her into some form of treatment, a triple A as she joked to Alex once. Alien Alcoholics Anonymous.

Alex did not find it funny then. Kara was not finding it funny now.

“I would imagine you wanted us all to sit in a circle and each one of you are going to say how worried they are about me. I don’t need it and I don’t want it. I am not an alcoholic. I am getting very tired of everyone calling me one. Two years ago I did something horrible. I scared you…”

“You did worse than scare me, Kara!” Eliza told her. “I thought you were dead. I have nightmares about that moment still! My angel, my beautiful Kara, who loves her siblings and birds, and music and art, gone. I thought you were dead, you looked dead! You were lying on the floor in a large puddle of your blood! You have been drinking since you were 18, right after Myriad. You kept it a secret for a while until you couldn’t anymore. You think it’s no big deal? Let’s go to the bathroom and you can step on a scale. Since you turned 22, you have weighed 126 lbs. Every year, every month, every day, you have weighed 126 pounds, whether you ate a cow or had nothing for weeks. There is no way you weigh 126 pounds now. You might be 115. You shouldn’t be able to lose weight but you have been. These substances you are consuming are destroying you and I will not stand by and let you keep doing it to yourself. I tried to give you space, tried to be understanding, letting you work this out on your own. Now I am telling you that you are getting help.”

Kara turned back to Eliza, feeling a sting at the tears in her eyes. She hated to make Eliza cry and had done it too often. Kara looked at the woman who was her mother in every way. She stayed up with her when Kara couldn’t sleep and Alex needed sleep, she fussed over her, still snuck over and cleaned their loft, still made Kara’s favorite meals and left them in the fridge, never once stopped loving her, despite the hell the girl put her through.

But she didn’t understand this. Eliza did not know the victims that haunted her sleep. The faces of those she couldn’t save. She had failed too many times and the first failure was near a beach in Midvale. No matter how many times her and Jessica worked on placing blame where it belonged, she still went back to when she was 13, watching that woman and baby die in almost slow motion.

“I do not have a drinking problem. I just need to relax and it helps me sometimes. Yes, I do shake sometimes but that is a normal reaction when I have had too much. It stops soon after I wake up. If it means that much to you I will cut back. I don’t ever hear you complain about Alex drinking.”

Eliza shook her head and rubbed Kara’s cheek.

“Alex does not have tremors because she hasn’t had a beer in a couple hours. You do. “she told her gently. “If it is a normal reaction then why won’t you let me test you, determine if it is effecting you physically?”

“Because I don’t like to be studied.” Kara told her firmly.

“You have never had a problem with me checking you out before. Never. Are you afraid of what we might find? No matter what, we can fix this…”

“I am not broken!” Kara snapped. “Maybe I am, but it’s my own fault. I swear I won’t try to kill myself again. I swear, okay? But please stop this. I am so tired of being treated like I am a charity case.”

Kara looked towards the living room and smiled.

“Barry is here.” she told her mother. “I better get to him before our friends scare him away. Come meet him, please?”

The girl walked out quickly, leaving the mother and therapist staring at each other, neither knowing what to say. Eliza prayed Kara would agree to get help herself, so other steps wouldn’t have to be taken. She had planned a show of love and support from their family and closest friends tonight. Kara had anticipated it and countered by bringing another into this, someone she knew the family would not bring up tough subjects around.

“I should move. We should move. Every time she is here, she is less than thirty yards away from the spot she killed Astra.” Eliza told Jess.

Jessica shook her head, knowing that wouldn’t make a difference.

“It doesn’t matter. She wants Clark to have stability, we all do. It doesn’t matter where you live. Every demon she has lives in her head and her heart. She carries them with her everywhere. That spot does not remind her of killing Astra as much as it reminds her of the day she almost lost you all, the same as that day Hank Henshaw found you all in Midvale. We are going to have to do it, Eliza.”

“We can’t.”

“If you want to save her life we may not have any other choice. We can talk about it more later. I have no doubt that even with Barry Allen taking her attention she is listening to everything. She knows we want her to get help of course and will come up with every excuse to avoid it until we give her no other option.”

Eliza took a deep breath, wiped her eyes and prepared to meet Barry Allen. She didn’t want to think about what they had discussed. The woman knew her daughter and she knew Kara would hate her, hate them all.

She also knew she could not put it off for long. Kara was losing weight, she was shaking when she wasn’t drinking, her anger was always just below the surface and often spilt over. The guilt of everyone she had failed to save, the hate she had for Astra for making her kill her, the hate for her father and Jor El, even her grandfather for destroying Krypton and the hate for her mother due to her role in covering up the impending destruction was always inside her. No matter what Kara swore, if they did not get her serious help, more extreme than daily therapy sessions, another suicide attempt was not far off. One thing Kara had always done was learn from her mistakes. If she tried to kill herself again, she would not be stopped this time. She would hide in the Fortress or fly to the moon and put a damn red sun bracelet on. Eliza knew of these possibilities because they haunted her sleep.

Barry had arrived, glad to see a shed on the side of the house. The house everyone was gathering at was the neighbor’s house. He hoped it was the right house. Kara’s bike wasn’t present but she could have gotten a ride or flown. Rushing inside the shed with the bag he carried from Central City in his arms, he quickly changed, uniform in the bag and jeans, sneakers, white t shirt covered by a blue button up shirt, long sleeves rolled up. It was the 16th thing he tried on and decided it would have to do. Walking out of the shed, he was confronted by a giant and a little dark-haired boy.

“Smooth,” Dan Hawk told him. “Didn’t notice the lightning trail or red streak jump into the shed at all. You are one sneaky guy.”

Barry looked up at the very tall, very muscular man.

“That was sarcasm if you weren’t sure. It’s hard to tell sometimes with Dan. I’m Clark. You are that guy from Central City, right? Streak or… what do they call you? I can’t remember.” the little boy lied.

“I’m Barry Allen. You must be Kara’s little brother?”

“I must.” the kid agreed. “This is Dan Hawk. He’s my friend.”

Barry looked at the duo, one not quite five-foot-tall and the other closer to seven feet. They made quite a… pair.

“Yeah, Kara told me to… I am guessing this is your parents’ home? Is she inside or at the neighbors?” Barry tried, hoping to find her before he was introduced to anyone else.

“Did you bring flowers?” the boy asked. “I don’t see flowers. Do you see flowers, Dan?”

“I don’t see flowers, kid.” the man confirmed.

Barry started to sweat a bit, wondering if he should have… of course he should have. But for who? The neighbor who was preparing dinner, Kara’s mother, her? Damn it!

The Flash looked at the house where everyone was gathered and then towards the shed he had just left his red suit. Should he suit up and run back into National City? How would he run back with the petals staying on the stems?

“Too late now, string bean. Get inside. Hey, you aren’t planning on spending the night at Kara’s, are you?” the large man asked.

Barry began to sweat, the button-down shirt he had on feeling very tight around his neck even though it was not buttoned around his neck. He could tell the man wanted an answer.

“Uh… you see… I… Alex… and couch… and she, Alex I mean… she is there… so it’s not like… I don’t have to… I just…”

“Kid relax. I don’t care if you do or not…”

“I do.” Clark added.

“but if you are, just make sure you don’t drink anything Jere gives you. The man can make some amazing, scary things. He caught Batman Jr in Kara’s apartment once and gave him a cup of coffee that took him out of action for a month.”

Barry couldn’t have heard that right. He poisoned Nightwing?

“Why would he not want Nightwing fighting crime?”

“Not the action I am talking about.” Hawk told him, patted him on the shoulder, and walked to the party.

Clark looked up at Barry and shrugged. “I have no idea what action he is talking about but he wasn’t kidding. I doubt Dad would poison you though. I mean probably not. Sure, he is kind of overprotective and does work in a lab and makes all sorts of viruses and cures but I don’t think… it’s a fifty-fifty chance. You probably shouldn’t drink anything he offers you. Hey, Alex!” Clark finished, seeing her pull up and rushing to her, leaving Barry alone.

Barry walked slowly towards the house everyone was gathered at. The patio was being set up by who he assumed was Jeremiah Danvers and another man who was possibly Jason Connolly or Jack Webb. He had only seen Connolly once and was more focused on Dante at the time. A very grim middle aged black man was on the patio and Barry had a feeling that the man was green and from Mars.

Then she was there, off the patio and walking towards him. Her glasses were off and her blonde hair and blue eyes seemed to reflect the setting sun over the ocean behind him. Despite the nerve wracking conversation he had just had, the sight of her brought a smile to his face.

“Hey there. You look great.” she told him, a bright smile gracing her face.

“So do you.” he told her.

The man was not lying. She was dressed casually, stone washed comfortable jeans and a light blue sweater. He saw she still wore the necklace, spying the gold chain around her slender neck. When she was dressed like this, not in the costume the world knew, but as Kara Danvers, it seemed impossible that she could lift a tire much less lift a plane.

Kara reached out for his hand and pulled him towards the patio. Of course every eye was on him. He noticed two women had just walked out, the blonde most likely Kara’s mother and of course Alex slapped the back of his head as she walked by him.

“Mom, Dad, come meet Barry!” Kara shouted. If all attention had not been on the man it was now.

No, Barry decided. All the attention had already been on him. The dark haired older man and blonde woman walked up to him, smiles on their faces, he was very glad to see.

Jeremiah reached out and took Barry’s hand. “Barry Allen, Jeremiah Danvers. A pleasure to finally meet you after all these years.”

“And I am Eliza, Kara’s mother. I have heard great things about you. I’ve been wanting to meet you for years. I am so glad you could make it.”

Barry caught something in Eliza’s eyes but he wasn’t sure what it was. Yes, she was glad to see him, she seemed sincere but something was… off?

“I am very glad to meet both of you. For a long time I never thought I would.”

He decided to leave the part about having to be struck by lightning to have the opportunity, out. The joke didn’t seem appropriate. The mood was strange and he couldn’t quite understand it. Things seemed easy going, the woman and men sitting on the patio were smiling. No one was sending threatening glances his way. So what was off?

“Come on over to the table. I think the food should be ready soon.” Jeremiah offered. Kara took his hand softly and pulled her with him to the table. After introducing him to those he didn’t know already, they sat and relaxed. Barry poured a glass of tea from the pitcher in the middle of the table for him and one for Kara. He did notice Kara look for her bag and realize it wasn’t next to her.

“You left it on the couch inside Kara. I’m sure it will be fine there.” Alex told her pointedly, confusing Barry even more. “Unless it is that time of the…”

“No!” Kara practically shouted, stopping Alex from speaking further. “I thought Dad banned that topic of conversation at the table years ago, Alex.”

The brunette shrugged her shoulders. “Yeah, but this isn’t his table, its Jess’s. Hey Barry, want to hear a funny story about when Kara first moved in with us… owww!”

Kara and Alex’s faces were both red, Kara from embarrassment and Alex from the pain of Kara kicking her shin under the table.

“I would love to hear stories, I mean it would be great to hear since I know… you know… it can probably wait for another time though.” he finished awkwardly, since the two sisters were still staring at each other.

“Sorry.” Kara whispered. “After dinner we can take a walk or go somewhere and I will tell you all the stories you want to hear that don’t involve embarrassing topics.”

“Tell him about the first time we had to go into a porto potty and you figured out that humans used toilet paper! I love that story!” Clark suggested, brightening Kara’s face even more, the shade nearly matching her Supergirl cape.

Kara cleared her throat, thinking maybe an intervention wasn’t so bad and reminding herself to never invite Barry around her siblings again. She caught Eliza grinning at the end of the table.

“Mom, a little help here?” the blonde tried.

Eliza actually snorted. Kara guessed she would not be getting help from her, probably for a while.

A silence descended on the table, the guests not knowing exactly what to say, Barry not sure what the underlying tension was and also trying to eat a normal amount of food and Kara wondering what excuse she could make for walking inside to grab her purse.

Clark was completely oblivious to any awkwardness.

“So Barry, right? I read on the internet that some paper in Central City said you were the fastest man alive. Is that because you are over 18?”

Barry shook his head, wondering where the hell that came from. The little boy looked sincerely curious so he decided to play along.

“Uh, no, I never said that. Okay, I may have said it before but it’s almost like bad luck. It seems every time I say it, someone else comes along who is faster. I guess now, at this moment, unless someone is around who I don’t know about… then yeah, I probably am the fastest man alive.”

“That’s cause nobody knows about me. Wanna race? I am pretty sure I can take you.” the boy challenged.

“Uh…”

“Do you have any other powers? Like heat vision, super strength, X ray vision, freeze breath? I know you can’t fly. What about it? What do you got?”

“Clark!” Kara hissed.

“I’m just curious.”

Barry did not know quite what to do. Kara had her head in her hands, Alex held her hand in front of her mouth to hide a smile and Jeremiah and Eliza seemed to be in the same state Barry was in. The rest of the guests seemed curious so he figured he should play along.

“I… I can actually run fast enough to go through solid objects.” he offered.

Clark seemed unimpressed. “Why don’t you just crush them with your fist? Oh right, that’s us. Go on, what else you got?”

“Clark, stop it now!” Kara scolded while Alex held her eyes shut tight to hold the tears from the laughter that desperately wanted to break out.

“No, it’s alright Kara. Uh, let’s see, I can run over water.” Barry tried.

“We fly, go on.” the boy encouraged.

Barry gritted his teeth and smiled.

“I once ran back in time on accident and I can make breaches into alternate universes.”

“Dad, didn’t you say when we watched the Terminator that a person would have to be a reckless, irresponsible idiot to travel back in time for real because the damage they can do to the world we live in could be… what was the word you used? Catastrophic? Yeah, that’s what you said. I hope you didn’t screw anything up, Barry. You didn’t, did you? Alternate universes sound cool. So you just visit, like on vacation or do you bring friends over… no wait! You don’t bring more bad guys over, do you?”

“Mom!” Kara begged.

Eliza decided to have mercy on Kara. Mercy on Barry but his discomfort was nothing compared to Kara’s mortification and the woman was enjoying it after what Kara had done tonight.

“Clark, that is enough. Stop asking these questions. It isn’t your business and Barry has done a lot of good with his powers. He has saved this world.”

“From the black hole? Cause when it happened Kara and Alex said it was probably the Flash’s fault in the first place…”

“Clark!” four voices rang out at once, causing everyone else at the table to jump, even Hawk.

“Sorry. I’ll shut up now. Kara is faster than you, by the way. You ever want to put your money where Central City Picture News mouth is…”

“Barry, why don’t we go for a ride? We still have an hour of daylight and the road by the coast is beautiful.” Kara offered, hoping he would agree so she could get him out of here. She should have just sat through the damn intervention. It would have been less painful.

Jeremiah was having none of that. Kara would have Barry talked into going to the bar with her and pass it off as showing Barry the Alien side of town in Raleigh no doubt. Alex would be going wherever Kara went tonight. It wasn’t that he didn’t think Barry would be anything less than a gentleman. At first glance, Jeremiah could tell he was a good guy, a good person and was relieved. He had only heard good things about Allen from Alex but considering Kara’s history with Grayson, he had been afraid Allen might have been another underwear model only in red spandex instead of black.

Sadly, he didn’t trust Kara. He loved her, would die for her, but he did not trust her when it came to making good decisions for herself. The man knew she needed help and the last thing Barry Allen needed to see was Kara drunk. She had been drinking probably all day but the girl knew when to drink just enough to soothe her over until she could be alone. Once alone though, all bets were off.

“I have a better idea.” he told them, dashing Kara’s hope. “Why don’t the five of us head over to our house and get to know each other in a less crowded environment? Clark, you can stay and clean up.” the father ordered.

“But I want to know if he has ever been clocked and compare my times and…”

“And you asked all the questions you are going to get to ask, little man.” Eliza told him. “Help everyone clean up. Do you mind, Jess?”

“Of course not. These guys are going to be telling war stories for the next several hours. Clark can help me out quite a bit. Since you are so fast you shouldn’t have a problem taking care of it all in seconds, right?”

“Sure! Give me something to do and Barry can try and get it done faster than me. He is supposed to be the fastest man alive and all.”

“I swear to Rao, I will drop your little butt on the moon and you can find your own way home!” Kara told him, causing Alex to finally loose it, breaking down in laughter. Leave it to Clark to turn a boring meet the parents night into one of complete awkwardness for Kara.

Clark stopped talking then. He had come a long way in his Kryptonese he insisted he learn so he could understand what Kara and Alex were saying. He wasn’t quite sure what Kara had just said but it was not something nice. The boy had figured he had pushed her past her limit tonight.

“It was nice to meet you, Barry. I like your costume.” he offered. Barry at that point was afraid to say anything. “Is it impenetrable and impervious to temperature like ours…”

“Clark! Go help clean up.” Jeremiah told him in the tone used to convey that he was not playing around anymore. Clark smiled and winked at Barry and in a blur, he was gone.

The walk over was thankfully quiet, Kara whispering an apology for her little brother… or cousin, he supposed. No, she considered the Danvers her parents so she would consider him her brother. Barry assured her it was no problem. He did find it weird that everyone seemed to grimace when Kara zipped inside and came out with her bag. It seemed like a nice bag to Barry but he doubted the reaction had anything to do with the bag itself. Something was going on and the man had no idea what.

Kara did seem to relax when she took a drink her of her water. Barry thought it may be some alien drink, considering how relieved she seemed. The looks of her family told him they probably weren’t happy she had taken a drink of alien water. What was the story with that? Caitlin’s question popped into his mind. What is her diet? She ate dinner but not much. Did she need food? Did she really not need air?

The Flash was starting to realize there was a lot about Kara that he did not know. She had told him of her time on Earth but he knew she was holding back. The blonde had told him there were things she wouldn’t talk about. Kara had mentioned some horrible things, fights, seeing her family almost die multiple times, fighting and killing Astra, the raid on the Myriad base.

So what was she holding back? Was it his place to ask? Kara had not asked him about his father, only to say she was sorry for his loss and it seemed as if she felt guilty about it. She obviously had not asked him any personal questions. Was it his place to ask her personal questions? Would it ever be?

Barry decided he was getting ahead of himself. He needed to relax, stop trying to overanalyze everything and just enjoy being around her. He noticed there was no strong smell of alcohol that had been at her apartment the last time he stayed with her. Perhaps it was a one off, or she was celebrating something, maybe happy he was there?

Taking in the house, he was surprised. It wasn’t a typical beach home, not that he had been in many, but no nautical themes, or light interiors. It came off as warm, lived in, like his home as a child and Joe’s home he spent his later years in. Pictures adorned the walls of the home and he couldn’t help but walk around the living room, taking them all in. What he saw was amazing. Not only were photos present but artwork as well, paintings that were not reprints and must have cost a fortune.

Kara noticed him studying the painting of the house in Midvale, she had painted a year ago. The blonde wondered if she had not made a massive mistake inviting him and should have called Nyssa instead. She had watched Clark… be Clark, and she had no doubt the man noticed the tense atmosphere and hoped he did not believe it had anything to do with him. No, the atmosphere was on her, but she had not been the one to plan a poorly concealed attempt at some sort of intervention.

The blonde walked up beside him.

“It’s the home I grew up in, the one in Midvale. I’m going back someday, to live in it. Mom and Dad still own it. That’s kind of been one of my goals since I left for college. Take care of business and if I survived come back to Midvale.”

“You painted this?” Barry asked. “I knew you were an artist but this is beyond amazing.”

Kara blushed and shrugged it off.

“Every painting in this house was done by Kara.” Jeremiah told him, standing behind the two.” I also have a massive collection of her sketches and other paintings. I like to rotate them very month, give them all a chance to shine.”

Kara shook her head and stepped away. Yes, she was proud of some of her art. She also wondered if her parents still had that sketch book she drew in to record her worst nightmares when she was growing up. It was not something she ever wanted to see again and hoped they had burned it, but never had the courage to ask them. Avoidance was a technique Kara had mastered long ago.

She watched Barry continue to look at the photos. The ones that were hung were the ones she loved most. Moments when Kara felt as completely happy as she was capable of. The vacations they had taken, always spots she was able to not wear her glasses comfortably, the holiday memories, the prom photos that her and Alex had attended together, the birthday parties and soccer team photos, all photos Kara genuinely smiled in.

Then he arrived at the wall that contained childhood photos. There were many of Alex holding science fair trophies, Clark holding soccer trophies and the graduation photo of Alex, along with another in front of the house with both of Kara and Alex. Kara had refused to take her glasses off for even a school photo that could be added to a yearbook with no online connection, so the parents took photos of them standing in front of the Midvale home in their cap and gowns.

“You have a great family.” Barry told her.

“The best.” Kara agreed, eyes misting up, looking at these memories through new eyes now. Every photo was a moment that was seared into her mind, as strong as the horrible memories she had of tragedy, danger, fear, lives lost.

“I love the one of you without your front teeth. How did… did you bring these from Krypton?”

Kara snorted. “Nope, only a few diapers, a few cans of baby food and bottles and a set of crystals. That was the survival gear they felt I needed to take care of a baby on a strange planet, even after spending fifteen years building a space craft in secret.”

She had hoped he didn’t notice the bitterness in her tone, but from his surprised expression and lack of a reply, she supposed he did.

The four sat down, Alex, Kara and Barry on the sofa, and Jeremiah and Eliza next to each other in a love seat. The parents took over the conversation, and Kara was happy to see the awkwardness had lessened since they left Jessica’s. Perhaps they had accepted that whatever they had planned tonight would not be happening. The parents asked about Barry’s job, his friends and Eliza and Jeremiah of course had many questions about the meta humans and dark energy that S.T.A.R. Labs had studied. The questions were not invasive and did not bring up time travel, Thawne, Zoom or any battles he had fought and lost. Instead they were of a more scientific nature, technical but on a level, Barry could keep up with. He was a scientist, and though his specialty was forensics, he did have enough knowledge of physics and biology to keep up. He also suspected the Danvers were keeping their questions on a level he was knowledgeable of and appreciated it deeply.

After a relaxed hour, where Kara did not say much, she suggested that they go out. To her annoyance, Alex thought this was a great idea. After promising that they would meet Alex at the apartment before other plans were made, the Flash took off towards their apartment while Alex took her bike and Kara suited up quickly and flew off before her parents could have a word. She had left her purse behind but it didn’t matter. The bottle she needed was in her hand and though it was nearly empty, the blonde had more stashed in a compartment in the ceiling of the bathroom closet, somewhere Alex would not think to look. Nothing annoyed her more than Alex pouring out drinks. They did cost money and Kara did not make much. Cat Grant wasn’t known for competitive wages.

Kara caught Barry’s attention at the front of her building and told him from above to follow her. Once they arrived on the roof, she pulled out a bag she kept stashed near a large AC unit. Perhaps Kara did not realize or think about it but no matter how fast she changed, he saw everything in slow motion. Of course her back was to him, but she was not moving quickly, at all. When she turned, dressed in jeans and a white tee shirt, her suit and cape in hand, she realized that Barry was standing, still suited up and staring with his mouth open. She should have been embarrassed but had drank enough during the day, fortified with the rest of her bottle on the flight over that she laughed instead. If she was honest with herself, she did it on purpose.

“Sorry, forgot to warn you to turn around. I usually change up here. I don’t like flying into my window or out of it unless it is absolutely necessary.”

“Uh… no problem. I’m sure superheroes change in front of each other all the time. I just haven’t been around other superheroes… that often. I mean I have, but… uh…”

Kara laughed again, glad to see that even in the dark he was blushing but didn’t appear offended.

“I’ll warn you next time, I promise.”

“No!” Barry told her quickly. “It’s completely cool. Have… I guess you and Alex but has…”

“Batman sleeps in his suit.” Kara told him, kidding, sort of. “I’ll turn around. The red outfit you have on seems like it might catch the attention of my neighbors.”

Kara did as she promised and turned back around three seconds later. As she suspected, Barry had not wasted time, dressed as before, duffle bag in hand. The blonde walked up to him and gently took his hand, still feeling that tingle every time she touched him. Kara suspected it must have to do with his molecules being in a constant state of vibration even when not using his powers.

That had to be it.

“I’m really sorry about tonight. About Clark. He has a big mouth, likes to talk, to brag and…”

“Whoa,” Barry stopped her. “I liked him. He was cute. He didn’t offend me. The thing about time travel…”

“Barry…”

“He was right. Or your father was, I guess. You have no idea how close I came after my Dad was murdered to going back in time and saving my mother, preventing me from ever becoming the Flash. Don’t get me wrong, I always loved being the Flash but there was a moment I felt really broken. I wanted to change everything, rewrite history, make sure I was never struck by lightning. I almost did it.”

Kara was surprised by that admission. She had never thought about Barry having the desire to go back and change his own past but shouldn’t have been surprised.

“Why didn’t you?” she asked before she could stop herself.

The man shrugged his shoulders and looked at the stars, shining brightly on a clear night.

“When Thawne first offered the chance, I talked to everyone about it. Everyone said I should go back, change things. Everybody but my Dad. He told me not to. I was going to do it anyway until I saw myself back in time, in the living room with my mother. I told myself to not get involved. I mean the other me… you know what I mean. Anyway I hesitated, I didn’t save her. But after my Dad’s funeral and then when Zoom was… I almost did it. I stayed calm though, really thought about it. If it would be for the best, I never would have held myself off the first time. So many bad things happened but a lot of good things did too. The lives of everyone around me would have been changed, some for the better, but some for the worse. There was simply no way to be sure that I could do it without hurting my friends, or worse, the whole world. So I didn’t.”

Kara grabbed his hand and turned him towards her.

“I think you made the right decision. I don’t know if I could have done that. Sometimes I think, that if I could go back, fifteen years before I left Krypton and killed mine and Clark’s parents an entire planet would still be alive.”

Barry was shocked but stayed quiet. What did her and Clark’s parents have to do with the death of her planet?

Kara realized what she had said too late and hoped he didn’t ask any questions for now.

“But then Clark wouldn’t be alive. So I wonder, would I trade him, the light of my life, for millions of Kryptonians? I don’t think I could. I know I couldn’t. If I could stop them, I wouldn’t, just so he could be born. It isn’t right, it would be the wrong decision regarding the greater good but I would make it every time.”

Barry took her other hand, and the blonde looked up at him. He saw her eyes were a glorious blue and shining, wet. The sadness was evident and Kara looked away quickly to hide her expression. She had said more than she meant to. It was a characteristic that Barry always had. Whenever he was around, even when she was 18, Kara told him things she would never tell anyone else.

“You wouldn’t have been born either.” Barry pointed out. Kara did not respond, instead wiping her eyes and walking toward the rooftop entrance, Barry following behind, deciding he would get no response.

Once inside Kara told Barry to make himself at home and headed straight to the bathroom. Opening the closet and levitating up, she popped the false ceiling and grabbed her recently purchased bottle of alcohol, a tasteless, odorless liquid meant to be mixed with other beverages. Kara drank it straight and then placed it back. Once she checked herself out in the mirror and saw she had it together a bright idea occurred.

Walking back into the living room, she found Barry flipping through channels.

“Want to go somewhere?”

The man seemed surprised. He had heard Kara tell Alex they would be here when she arrived.

“Didn’t you promise Alex…”

“That we wouldn’t go out. We aren’t. You are going to have to trust me. Come with me.” the blonde beckoned, walking back to her bedroom. Barry followed but stopped at the door.

Kara noticed him looking at both beds, Streaky laying on hers and glaring at Barry, as if daring him to move the cat off. She wondered what was going on in his mind then realized he was probably realizing what had gone on in here for years with Grayson. Maybe this was a bad idea.

“Barry? If you don’t want to be in here, I understand. It’s fine.” she lied.

Barry shook his head. He hadn’t known exactly what to think. Despite being here before he had never seen Kara’s bedroom. It was a shock to see such a personal space. No paintings were on the walls, but drawings instead, pencil sketches of her family and some of random images. An electric guitar was in the corner of the room next to an amp and she had a journal of some sort on her pillow. He saw a different pair of sneakers by her bed and a sheet of paper on the desk, he swore was a costume design.

“Sorry, no, its fine. I was just… I don’t know. For years you have been this larger than life… I knew you before Supergirl but I guess after all these years I realized I didn’t know much about you at all. You kind of did become a bit larger than life to me, in a way. To see your room, I guess it just hit home that…”

“I’m human?” Kara guessed. “I’m not. I want to be, I would give anything to be. But I’m not Supergirl either. Supergirl is a myth, created by Cat Grant, that I participate in. Supergirl is strong, kind, loving, compassionate. She is everything you could hope for her to be. That’s not me, not the real me.”

Barry didn’t see it. Yeah, he had heard what Oliver had told him and for Oliver’s health, he would never mention that conversation to Kara. But everything he had seen her do had shown that she was kind, she was compassionate and seeing her around her family showed him she was loving.

“I haven’t seen anything to prove those descriptions wrong.” he told her.

Kara took a deep breath and walked over to her closet. She opened the door and brushed aside her clothes that she still color coordinated in her closet and even her drawers to Alex’s eternal amusement.

“Maybe I can be those things. It’s just Cat builds me up to be this infallible person, someone who always makes the right decision, who is always bright, optimistic, would never harm a single person. I am supposed to be above such petty things as anger, and bitterness, depression. She makes me seem like a god, a savior. I’m not. I’m just a screwed-up girl, who has a lot more power than someone like me should ever be given. I do the best I can sometimes, and sometimes it isn’t good enough. Do you want to know the real me? You would be disappointed. I’m not a hero, Barry.”

He walked across the room slowly, wondering why she would say such things. She had saved thousands of lives. The Daily Planet ran a story once, attempting to estimate the number of lives that had been saved by her direct intervention. The numbers were vast and the Planet admitted that they were most likely low in count.

What Barry would give to know her, to really know her, scars and all. Especially the scars, because he had a feeling those scars were what made her who she was, and he thought she was pretty great. He always had.

“Maybe I am not either. Maybe we are both trying to do the best we can with what we have been given.” he offered. Kara shrugged her shoulders.

“I don’t know. Step inside my closet with me. Its big enough for two.”

Barry was confused but followed her into the small space anyway. Kara slipped a small piece of clear plastic out of her pocket and placed it into her ear.

“Kelex, open the portal and turn off the disintegrator. I have a guest coming with me. Do not attack.”

Barry swallowed hard. He remembered Oliver saying something about a Kelex. He had not heard anything about portals or disintegration. He would have remembered.

He tried not to squeak when the back of the closet lit up, a bright blue light. Kara grabbed his hand and literally pulled him into the wall. He opened his eyes and was surrounded by… ice? Crystals? But the place wasn’t freezing. Where the hell was he?

“Where the hell am I?” he asked quietly, taking as much as he could in but realizing the place was huge.

“You are in Antarctica.” Kara told him, smiling sweetly.

“Antarctica? Like, physically in Antarctica?”

“Physically, metaphysically, in every way possible. This is my home away from home. Alex and I made it… sort of. It’s a large crystal structure, impervious to outside attack and carved into a mountain. The portal is a recent addition. A friend of mine named Lobo dropped off some plans for a portal transmitter he found on Rann. They are great at transportation technology. It basically opens a small… not a worm hole, exactly. It does bend space but it does not have the power of a worm hole. You know how unstable those can be. It’s not very different from the small Phantom Zone projector we made once that Alex trapped a Coluan with. Sort of like the naturally occurring portal one I found in the Bermuda Triangle.”

“Hold on. Wait… Lobo, portals, Rann, Phantom Zone, Coluans and the Bermuda Triangle? You are going to have to take… oh, and we have a flying short robot.” he finished, seeing Kelex float up. Barry probably shouldn’t be surprised by anything considering he was infatuated with a super powered alien and yet she still managed to do it.

“This is Kelex.” Kara told him.

“And you are Barry Allen. I have had Justin look in on you over the…”

“Kelex! Cut the conversational mode out for a while, okay?”

“My apologies, Kara.”

“Why does he sound like Loki?” the man asked.

“They all did on Krypton. Anyway, Mom and Dad have a portal in their home. If anyone comes in without one of us, basically mine and Clark’s DNA or Alex and our parents DNA, a shield will activate just outside the portal and vaporize anyone who walks into it. I needed a way to get my family to the Fortress quickly if the worst-case scenario ever happened and I had to get them off this planet fast.”

“Wow.” Barry said, not knowing what else to say. He could see a large machine, circular and filled with monitors, images from all over the world filling it. He swore he saw a large space ship at the far end to his right and supposed that was her families escape pod. He also noted a group of mannequins in glass cases, each having a different variant on Kara’s costume. Barry admitted he would love to see her in some of them… all of them.

“Yeah. We call it the Fortress of Solitude. There is no one around for hundreds of miles, completely secure and completely hidden. Only a select few even know it exists. Welcome to the select few, Barry Allen.”

Barry walked around, looking at everything. He had a million questions to ask, not knowing where to start. Everything he saw was in some way from or connected to alien civilizations. The Earth knew of aliens of course but the ones who meant no harm must have stayed hidden. The ones who meant harm were taken out by Supergirl quickly, never heard from again. Other than that, the vast majority of Earth really knew nothing about other planets, species, politics or technology.

“It’s also the one place I can feel completely comfortable without my powers.” Kara admitted, walking beside him.

Barry stopped walking. He remembered Dick Grayson telling him that Kara beat him without her powers. The man hesitated at first, wondering if she would want him to know but deciding she wouldn’t bring it up if she didn’t.

“How exactly does that work? You can just turn them off?”

Kara shook her head.

“I wish it was that easy. I have to rely on special lights… let me show you. Kelex, change to red solar light inside.” the girl ordered.

Kelex flew in front of her and to Kara’s surprise, scanned her body.

“I am sorry, Kara. I am unable to carry out that command.”

Kara’s face turned red, her anger quickly taking over as it often did when she was questioned or denied by the one thing on Earth, that should not be able to deny her anything.

“Why is that, Kelex? This had better be good.”

“After you attempted to terminate your own life two years ago as of this date, Alex took command of the Fortress and placed constraints on my system that cannot be countermanded. I am to inform her if I suspect you of attempting to take your own life again and deny any measures which may assist you in this task. I have scanned your body and based on the amount of extraterrestrial alcohol in your system, if you were to lose your powers at this moment, your life would end in approximately eight seconds.”

Kara’s face was no longer red, going pale quickly. Barry tried to understand what the robot had just told him. Kara tried to kill herself? Alcohol that would…

His thoughts were cut off quickly when she grabbed his hand and pulled him back to where they had come from.

“Open the damn portal, Kelex. Now!”