Archive of Our Own

It’s Thursday, exactly a week since Scout had his first day at L-Corp, and Lena, miraculously, has nothing scheduled for the morning. She has several meetings after lunch but nothing before.

She decides to take advantage of the unusual free time and heads to the Super Shelter instead of the office.

Alex is behind the desk when she walks in.

“Hey, Lena,” she greets with a smile, coming out from behind the desk to pet Scout. “He’s getting big.”

“He’s growing so fast,” Lena agrees. “Is Kara in the training room?”

“Oh, no, she’s at home today.”

Lena frowns, concerned. “Is she sick?”

Alex chuckles. “No, she’s fine, she’s just dealing with a rescue case right now. Why don’t you drop by?”

“I don’t want to interfere.”

“She’ll be really disappointed if she learns you came to see her and she missed it,” Alex urges. “Trust me.”

“What’s this rescue situation? Do I need to take Scout back to the apartment?”

Alex considers and then shakes her head. “Nah, he should be fine, and worst case, Kara has like four kennels in her apartment.”

Of course she does. “Alright. Thank you.”

“You’re saving me from at least two days of moping, I should be thanking you.”

Lena lets Alex say goodbye to Scout and wishes her a good day, then leaves the shelter and directs David to a small apartment complex on Argo Street.

*****

Alex: Hey, you’re about to have a visitor.

Kara: Who?

Alex: Lena stopped by the shelter and I sent her your way.
Alex: So like put some pants on or something.

Kara laughs at the text, then glances down at herself and decides she should probably be wearing a shirt when Lena arrives.

It only takes about twenty minutes for a knock to sound at the door.

“It’s open,” she calls, and after a moment, the door swings open, revealing Lena with Scout beside her. “Come on in!”

Lena walks in and closes the door behind her. Kara is sitting cross-legged on the floor in her living room next to a low fabric box with mesh on the sides.

Before Kara can explain, a tiny mew is heard.

Scout’s ears perk up and he begins to sniff madly, pulling against the harness to try to get closer.

Kara lifts her chin. “I threw a dog bed there for him,” she says, gesturing to a spot about five feet from the pen, “see if you can get him to settle? I’ve got two little kittens in here that I’m sure he’d like to meet.”

Lena walks over to the dog bed and pats it with her hand. “Scout, place.”

He flops down on the bed but immediately jumps back up, wanting to investigate the sounds.

Lena tries again, ready with a treat this time once he lays down, and he stays put.

Kara reaches into the pen and withdraws two of the smallest creatures Lena has ever seen. One is solid black while the other is nearly identical but with a white patch on the chest. Blue eyes blink at the world and they mew and wriggle in the woman’s grasp.

Scout’s tail won’t stop wagging as Kara approaches.

Kara kneels beside the dog bed and holds one of the kittens for Scout to smell. He noses it gently and then licks the kitten across the face. The kitten grunts but the wiggling decreases. Kara carefully sets the first kitten down against Scout’s chest. He sniffs it all over and nuzzles it once, before turning his attention to the other kitten in Kara’s hands.

She puts the second kitten down beside its sibling. The tuxedo kitten climbs over Scout’s paw, sniffing, grunting, finally settling down, half on top of its sibling and half against dog belly.

Scout rests his head beside the kitten pile, keeping them close.

“They’re so tiny,” Lena whispers.

“I got a call last night from the man who found them in his yard,” she explains. “The mother and two other kittens were… deceased. They’re about two weeks old, maybe a little more. None of our fosters have a nursing mother right now so we’re trying to network and find someone who can take them.” She smiles gently. “In the meantime, I’m just keeping them warm and feeding them every few hours.”

“He really is good with cats,” Lena observes, watching as Scout’s eyes close and he relaxes, perfectly content to have the two little bundles curled up in his armpit.

Kara grins. “He tested really well at the shelter, so this doesn’t surprise me. He’ll probably have an instinct to chase or herd if they run, but if they just hang out, he’s good with them.” She motions to the couch or one of the chairs nearby. “You can sit, if you’d like. I’ll give you a tour as soon as these guys are fed and back in their pen, but I’d like to give them Scout’s comfort as long as we can.”

“That’s fine.” Lena looks around, taking in how much the apartment reminds her of Kara’s office at the shelter, though the apartment has decorations on every wall. Mostly pictures of Kara and Alex, with an older woman she guesses to be Kara’s foster mother, and paintings of dogs, including one oil painting of a yellow lab that Lena thinks must be Parker.

“What’s on your schedule today?”

“Nothing until past noon, if you can believe it,” Lena replies, “so I told Jess not to expect me before twelve.”

“And you decided to spend your free morning visiting me?” The question is teasing but Lena hears the shyness underneath.

“Of course.”

Kara smiles brightly. “Did you have breakfast? Or do you want brunch?”

“Have you eaten breakfast?”

“Yep, I made pancakes at four-thirty.”

“Why were you up that early?”

“These little guys need to be fed every two hours.”

Lena raises an eyebrow. “Have you slept at all?”

“Catnaps.”

Lena rolls her eyes. “That was bad.”

“But accurate,” Kara laughs. “I’m fine, really. Alex and Winn are taking care of things at the shelter so it’s just me and the kittens until we find a mother for them. When they sleep, I sleep.” She waves an arm. “Help yourself to anything in the kitchen.”

Remembering Kara’s metabolism, Lena is unsurprised to find the refrigerator and all cabinets stocked to nearly overflowing, though the amount of junk food is mildly concerning.

“Kara?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you aware of the existence of vegetables?”

“Never heard of them.”

Lena snorts and Kara cackles at the reaction, apologizing when she startles Scout. The puppy gives her a grumpy look, checks on his kittens, then goes back to sleep.

“Actually, yes, I know vegetables are a thing. But if they don’t come on a pizza, I’m not interested.”

Lena shakes her head. “I’m going to have to introduce you to kale.”

“Please don’t.”

“It’s delicious.”

“I don’t know why you say such terrible things.”

“Maybe I can add kale to pizza.”

“Lena,” Kara gasps, “surely that violates the Geneva Conventions.”

Lena laughs. She closes the refrigerator door and looks over at Kara who’s simply grinning at her. “You’re ridiculous.”

“Yeah, but that’s why you… you’re dating me,” she stumbles. “Remember, you said you like that I make you laugh.”

“I believe what I said was, I enjoy hearing you laugh.”

“Oh, that’s right. Well, it seems that I like making you laugh, and I also happen to laugh at my own jokes, so it works out both ways.”

The kittens shift and make soft mews and Scout jerks awake when they start nosing sensitive areas.

“Okay, that’s not gonna get you anything, babies,” Kara says, carefully lifting the curious kittens and returning them to their playpen. “Good boy, Scout, thank you for playing nurse.” To Lena, she asks, “Can you come keep an eye on them for a minute? I need to get their bottles together.”

Lena takes Scout’s leash and kneels beside him, petting him gently, proud of his gentleness with the tiny kittens, keeping him occupied while Kara prepares the formula.

She warms the mixture and grabs two towels. “I’ve got a fish skin if you want to give that to Scout in one of the kennels.” Two large wire kennels are set up at the edge of the living room, near the dining room table. “It’s going to take a little while to finish the feeding and clean up.”

Lena nods and leads Scout to the kennel, pleased when he walks inside when asked. She unclips the leash and gives him the large dried fish skin. The smell is strong even to her human nose so she figures Scout will love it - and he does. He braces it between his paws and chews happily.

Kara holds two bottles in her hand. “Want to feed one?”

“Are you sure? They’re so small.”

She smiles. “You’ll do great. Go ahead and sit on the couch.” When Lena sits, Kara hands her a towel to put over her lap, protecting her skirt. “They’re going to knead when they nurse, but the towel should be a good barrier.”

Kara picks up the little tuxedo kitten and puts him on Lena’s lap. “Just keep a hand at his chest, so he doesn’t push off, but he shouldn’t wiggle too much once he finds the nipple.” She hands off the bottle. “Keep it at around 45 degrees. You’ll know when he gets going, he’ll pull quite a bit. Keep him steady and it’ll be fine.”

Lena takes a breath and nods. She adjusts her hold on the bottle and places it near the kitten’s mouth. He mews urgently and the moment he gets a drop of formula on his nose, he latches on and begins to suckle. Lena can see the sharp claws extend, retract, extend as he kneads, alternating paws, but the towel means her skin is safe.

Kara settles beside her with the other kitten and soon the only sounds are soft purrs and grunts as the kittens feed, and crunches from the kennel as Scout enjoys his treat.

Kara shows Lena how to burp the kittens once they’ve both finished the small amount of formula. “Now we get to play mama cat and make sure they eliminate,” Kara says, reaching out for the kitten on Lena’s knees. “You don’t have to do this part.”

“I don’t mind,” she insists, cradling the kitten against her chest and following Kara through the small apartment to the bathroom.

Kara runs warm water in the sink and wets a washcloth, showing Lena how to encourage the kittens to eliminate, which she does while holding the kitten upright in a box of shredded newspaper.

“They should start being litter trained soon and if we can get them a mama, she’ll help them learn,” Kara explains. She takes another damp cloth and makes short strokes across the kitten’s face and entire body, simulating a bath from mom.

Lena follows Kara’s instructions and repeats the entire process with her little tuxedo kitten. “He’s cold,” she frets after having wiped him down with the washcloth, holding him near her neck.

“I have a hot water bottle in the pen,” Kara assures her. “Let’s get them back, they’ll curl up together and then I can reheat the bottle.”

Only when the kittens have made another pile and settled on top of the towels that cover the heated bottle does Lena relax.

“They’re cute,” she admits.

Kara chuckles and wraps her arms around the woman from behind, kissing her shoulder. “They sure are.” She yawns and buries her nose against Lena’s neck. “Sorry.”

Lena turns in the embrace. “It’s time for your catnap.” She kisses her softly. “I should go.”

That suggestion earns her a pout.

She smiles fondly. “I should start heading toward the office so I can prepare for the afternoon.”

Kara sighs. “You’re right. I need to clean the bottles and start laundry before the next mealtime.”

“Let me know if you still have them tonight, okay? Maybe I can come by and take a shift.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“You need rest.”

I need you. “I’m not going to turn down a chance to see you, but it doesn’t have to be on kitten duty. Maybe, maybe we can get coffee again soon?”

Lena nods. “I’d like that. I don’t know if Scout is up to being alone for several hours but a coffee date should be fine.”

Kara grins. “I was thinking the same thing.” She pulls Lena closer for several slow kisses. “Are you sure you have to go?”

“Unfortunately,” Lena sighs. “But you’re making it really difficult.”

“I can’t help it,” Kara murmurs, nuzzling her ear, “I haven’t seen you in forever.”

“We had dinner at my apartment two days ago.”

“Forever,” Kara confirms.

Lena chuckles softly and cups Kara’s cheek. “I’m going to go. Text me and keep me updated on the kittens, okay? And, please, get some sleep.”

Kara kisses the pad of her thumb. “Okay.” I love you. “Have a good day.”

*****

Not long after Lena leaves, Kara sends a text message.

Kara: sister emergency, like now

Alex: do you need potstickers or ice cream?

Kara: all of the above plus pizza
Kara: you’re the best sister ever
Kara: I don’t tell you that enough

Alex: are you dying?

Kara: shut up. bring food.

Alex arrives a little past one, bearing lunch and dessert and snacks, just enough to sustain her sister for the next hour.

“Winn says hi.”

“Tell him to text me. He’s such a nerd.”

“He didn’t want to interrupt your time with Lena.”

Alex expects a blush and is surprised when Kara just snags a piece of pizza and shoves half of it into her mouth before remembering to chew.

“Okay, what’s the emergency?”

“I’m in love with Lena.”

“I hate to break it to you, but that’s not news. Maggie already conceded twenty bucks to me a few days ago when she heard you talking to Lena on the phone.”

Kara rolls her eyes and swallows the lump of half-chewed pizza. “I talked to her for less than a minute and we were discussing what to have for dinner. Not exactly a romantic phone call.”

“Doesn’t matter. It was obvious.”

Kara pushes the rest of the slice of pepperoni into her mouth.

Alex waits, knowing there’s more to this sister emergency. She digs into the potstickers, taking advantage of Kara already having her mouth full and therefore unable to protest when Alex scoops four onto a plate. She eats two while she gives Kara time to get her thoughts in order.

Kara chews carefully, swallows, then: “I want to tell her about me. About Supergirl. I need to.”

The redhead raises an eyebrow. “Why ‘need to’?”

“I can’t… Alex, I can’t lie to her. Not… not if I love her. You know? And she… maybe she doesn’t want to date an alien. I need to tell her.”

“First of all, you haven’t been dating that long. I’m not saying you don’t love her,” Alex cuts off Kara’s outrage before it can begin, “I’m only saying that it might be too soon to reveal the superhero thing. You’ve never considered telling anyone else you’ve dated, have you?”

Kara shakes her head. “Lena’s different. She’s… it’s different.”

“I get that.” She sighs. “I just… look, I want you to be careful. You know the risks.”

“I do,” Kara says firmly, “and I want to tell her.”

Alex nibbles on another potsticker. “It’s not like I can stop you,” she relents, at last, “but if you change your mind, that’s okay, you know? If you want to step back and take more time. Don’t feel like you have to do this.”

“Okay.” The blonde pulls her glasses from her face and rubs her eyes. “I need to… she should know, so she can… decide.”

“I really doubt it’s going to be a problem, because from what I can tell, that woman is head-over-Louis-Vuitton-heels in love with you.” Alex emphasizes her point by jabbing her last potsticker toward her sister, yelping when Kara swipes it out of her fingers and pops it into her mouth. “That was rude.”

The blonde sighs around the mouthful of potsticker. “You think she’ll still want to be with me?”

“I really do. I think you’re working yourself up about this but it’s all going to be fine.” She nudges Kara’s shoulder. “When do you want to tell her?”

“We’re going out for coffee soon. I’ll tell her then. Not, like, in the coffee shop of course, but when we get back to her apartment.”

Alex smooths a bit of hair from her forehead. “Don’t stress about this.” Also, don’t pay any attention to the fact that I’m stressing about it. She knows she has no way of actually keeping Kara from telling Lena and it’s ultimately her choice, but upholding Kara’s secret identity has been priority number one since the alien first stepped foot on the Midvale property and it’s a responsibility that Alex has always taken seriously. If this comes back to bite you… it hurts so much more when it’s someone we love.

“How can I not? I’m really good at stressing out.”

“I know.”

“What if she hates me?”

“She’s not going to hate you.”

“I’ve been lying to her.”

“She’s only known you for three weeks, you guys don’t have to give up your darkest secrets on the second date, okay? Let the U-Haul happen first.”

“I’m the cousin of the alien that put her brother behind bars.”

“Not as though Lex didn’t deserve it,” Alex reminds her. “Superman didn’t just decide to toss Lex in jail one day.”

“What if she hates me?” she whispers.

Alex puts her arms around her and squeezes with all her might. “I’ll visit L-Corp and tell her off.”

“You will not.”

If she hurts you? You damn well better believe I will. The oath she’d taken to do no harm was second only to the one she’d sworn about protecting her sister. “You’re right. I won’t have to. Because she won’t hate you.”

“I’m scared.”

Alex kisses the side of her head. “I know.” Me, too. “Putting your heart on the line is terrifying. But if you want to tell her, you should tell her. Everything. Including that you’re scared.” She rubs the strong back. “Okay? Ready to eat two pints of ice cream?”

Kara pouts. “You only brought two?”

*****

Lena’s late start lead to an even later night, and while she was willing to help with the kittens again, Kara texted at just past six with the news their rescue network had found a nursing mother who’d only had two kittens of her own less than two weeks before. Lena was glad they’d be taken care of and know a mother’s love, but admitted she would miss them.

Their coffee date didn’t happen until Friday night, when Kara met Lena at her apartment an hour after she was home from work. She’d changed clothes, walked Scout, finished a quick training session, working on “place” and refining “shake”, and was just giving him dinner when Kara arrived.

“I put a Kong in the freezer for him this morning so it will last him longer while we go out.”

Kara smiles. “Great idea. Oh, and you put a straw in the middle,” Kara notes, watching as Lena runs hot water through the drinking straw and removes it from the center of the frozen mixture. “Someone’s been reading up on Kong ideas.”

“They said it was safer this way, so both openings are maintained and there’s less risk of creating suction.”

“Exactly.”

“And I’ve watched him with his Kongs twice a day and so far he’s never tried to chew them once they’re empty. He doesn’t seem destructive with them.”

Kara kisses her cheek. “It’s not a test, sweetheart. You’re doing great and he’s going to be fine. We’re just going to be a few blocks away.” She pulls her in for a quick hug. “Still want to go?”

“Yes. Of course. I just…” Lena sighs. “It sounds ridiculous, but this is the first time I’ve left him home alone.”

“It’s important that he learn some independence and how to be alone for a little while. Not a long time, we’ll build up to longer periods, but this is a good first try, especially since he’s got a frozen Kong and he hasn’t shown any issues with being kenneled while you step out of the room, right?”

Lena shakes her head. “I put him up when I shower because I can’t watch him and he… he somehow managed to pull a jacket down from the closet once.”

Kara chuckles. She hadn’t heard that story yet. “Did he chew it?”

“Only a little. Mostly he laid on it. But he almost swallowed a button and I swore I’d never leave him unsupervised.” And there had been fifteen anxious minutes of counting the large buttons and finding one missing and nearly calling Kara in a panic as images of intestinal blockages and emergency vet visits flashed in her mind, when she found the button had rolled under the dresser.

“A hard lesson we’ve all had to learn.” Kara nods toward the pup who is sitting in the kennel, though the gate is open, clearly waiting for Lena to deliver his dinner. “Ready to feed the little guy and we can walk over to The Green Bean?”

Lena keeps the straw in the sink for the next meal prep and places the Kong in Scout’s kennel. He starts to duck his head toward the feeder but then freezes, blinking twice at Lena.

“Okay!” she says happily and he pounces on the toy as she closes the gate.

“His impulse control is getting much better,” Kara praises.

It doesn’t hit Kara until they’re walking through the lobby, ducking out the back entrance to avoid the press, that when the date is over, she’s going to tell Lena who she is. She’d been looking forward to spending time with the woman for days, but the nerves were beginning to set in.

She shoves both hands in her pockets.

Lena loops an arm through hers and seems to find the silence comfortable.

They place their orders and claim a table. Lena’s cappuccino is brought first and then Kara’s hot chocolate with whipped cream (a comfort drink) and two custard-filled doughnuts, a choice she’d made on the fly when they were sadly out of crullers.

Lena prods Kara a little for an update on the kittens and is glad to hear their foster mother has taken to them right away. Kara pulls out her phone and shows Lena a photo of the solid white mama cat with all four kittens curled into her side, the two Lena knew plus two dark orange tabby kittens.

“That’s precious.”

Kara grins and figures by this time next year, Lena will definitely have adopted a cat. Maybe even within six months, if she remembers how much Scout liked the kittens.

Wonder if we’ll still be together then. Or in six hours. She sighs and tries to shake the melancholy thoughts.

“How was your day today?” she asks, focusing on the woman across from her, genuinely interested.

Lena explains a couple of her meetings and highlights that one appointment ran long because the scientist hadn’t yet met Scout and was determined to make a good impression by petting the dog for at least five minutes and giving him a dozen treats.

“I’ve swapped the treats on Jess’ desk for blueberries because she was going through a handful of dog biscuits every day.” Lena expects to get a laugh at that, or at least a chuckle, and Kara would probably have an anecdote about overfeeding treats or perhaps a specific fruit Scout might like.

Kara simply nods at the story, agreeing offhandedly that blueberries were a good idea.

Lena frowns slightly. Maybe the orphaned kittens had worn her out more than it seemed, though that was an unlikely excuse, she knew. Caring for tiny kittens clearly wasn’t new for Kara and it had only been a short-term arrangement. Something was going on.

Kara finishes her doughnuts with considerably less enthusiasm than Lena is used to seeing from the woman; another tick in the “something’s wrong” column. She’s nursing her hot chocolate and Lena isn’t sure if that’s a stalling tactic or if Kara regularly savors the flavor.

When Lena is done with her drink and Kara knows she can’t put it off any longer, she drains the last of the chocolate from her cup and stands. She clears the table, returning their mugs to the counter by the cashier, and joins Lena with a brief smile, holding the door open for her.

Kara walks at her side but just shrugs and hums noncommittally when Lena tries to engage her in conversation.

They’re only three blocks from the cafe when Lena tugs on her arm, pulling her onto a small side street. It isn’t extremely busy on the sidewalk but she doesn’t want to block the flow of pedestrians.

“Okay,” she says, poking Kara gently, “what’s going on?”

“What? Nothing.” Kara tries a disarming grin but Lena’s sharp eyebrow tells her she missed it.

“You’ve been quiet all night,” Lena insists, but her posture softens. “What’s wrong?”

Kara squeezes Lena’s hands. “Nothing’s wrong, I promise.” She sighs and bites her lip when Lena’s expression doesn’t change. “Just… I want to tell you something,” she exhales, “and it’s not bad,” at least I hope not, “but it’s, well, kind of private. Can we head back to your apartment?”

Kara leans forward to reassure Lena with a trail of kisses to her jaw, but freezes when there’s a voice a few feet away.

“You’re not going anywhere,” the man states, and she stiffens at the shick as he withdraws a fixed-blade knife from a sheath. “Least, not until I get all your cash.”

Kara turns, keeping Lena at her back, and takes a step closer to the would-be mugger, ignoring the grab at her belt as Lena tries to pull her away. “You don’t have to do this,” she speaks evenly, spreading her hands out to the side, “we can talk for a minute.”

He’s holding the knife easily, without any sign of a tremor in his wrist, no sign of nervousness in his fingers, and Kara confirms his heartbeat is slightly elevated but not erratic. He’s calm. “You got five seconds to talk as you’re handing over the money, or I start cutting.”

She slides one foot a few inches to the right, making sure all of Lena is well behind her. “That’s not going to happen.” She can hear Lena digging her wallet out of her purse. “Do you want to grab a coffee, instead? Or maybe some dinner? It might take a little longer than five seconds, but I bet we can figure something out.”

The man growls, “Time’s up.” When Lena isn’t able to produce the cash fast enough for him, he steps into Kara’s space, thrusting the knife into her side.

Kara grabs his wrist and, before he can realize his blade shattered, pulls him closer and taps her elbow against his temple.

He crumples.

Then Lena’s hands are on her, pushing her against the wall, as though to hold her up.

“Hang on, Kara,” she presses her palm against the slash in the fabric of her shirt, “it’ll be okay.” Her voice is wavering but Kara’s impressed with her composure in what she believes to be an emergency. “I’m here. Talk to me, sweetheart.”

Lena starts to reach for her phone, but Kara gently grasps her arm. “I’m okay, Lena.”

Tears are pooling in the green eyes. “You’ll be fine,” she agrees firmly. When she can’t figure out why she isn’t seeing any blood, she imagines the blade must have broken off, and expediently untucks Kara’s shirt and unhooks every button so she can get a good look at the wound. Blood isn’t really her thing but Kara needs her, so she steels herself for the gruesome image, hands shaking slightly as she pulls the fabric apart, shifting focus from the small clear buttons.

The red-and-yellow-on-blue is startling, given what she’s expecting, and she takes a step back. What was going to be a shout for help dies in her throat.

“Oh.”

Kara tugs the edges of her shirt closed, turning away from the street, just in case someone glances their way. “I’ve been trying to tell you, I -”

Lena throws her arms around Kara’s neck and pulls her into a fierce hug. “You’re okay?” she asks against her shoulder.

Kara blinks. “I’m fine.” She holds Lena close. “He didn’t hurt me.”

“Oh my god, Kara, I thought you were…” She’s shaking as she pulls back and Kara caresses her cheek. “You’re okay.”

“Yeah.”

Lena exhales slowly. “Is this… is this what you were going to tell me tonight?”

Kara nods.

Lena starts fastening her shirt. “Let’s get back so we can talk, then.” She keeps throwing glances at the man on the ground as she works. “Do you need to, ah, do anything about him?”

“I should probably call Maggie.” She focuses her hearing for a moment. “No cameras here so there’s no footage to worry about.” Lena hooks the last button and Kara smiles at her in thanks, relieved that at least Lena doesn’t seem to be furious, and pulls her phone out of her pocket.

Maggie doesn’t answer until the third ring and Kara winces when she remembers the officer had the night off.

“What’s up?” is the greeting she offers.

“Hey, so, we’re okay, but Lena and I just had an incident with a guy with a knife,” Kara explains. “Do you want to send someone by or should I drop him off?”

Maggie hesitates. “Did he try anything?”

“Well, his knife is broken and he’s unconscious.”

“Awesome.” Kara can imagine her rubbing her forehead. “Can you drop him off? I’ll tell Javier to expect, ah, Supergirl.”

“Yeah, I’ll do that. Thanks. And sorry, for interrupting your night.”

Maggie chuckles, “Nah, it’s okay. Your sister is covering at the emergency clinic tonight so I’m just eating cereal for dinner and watching Netflix.”

Kara tells Maggie good night and ends the call. She chews on her bottom lip before asking Lena, “I need to, um, take him to the police station. Do you want to start heading back? I’ll catch up with you in a minute.”

She wants to ask to wait, starts to open her mouth to ask for just that, admittedly a little shaken by the events, but reconsiders. She doesn’t want Kara to feel like she’s pushing and, at the same time, she’s not certain she wants to see the full shift from Kara to Supergirl and back.

Lena nods.

“I’ll just be a minute,” Kara repeats, and Lena nods again and steps onto the main sidewalk, moving slowly toward her apartment.

Kara changes swiftly behind a large dumpster farther down the small side street, picks up the mugger and his knife, and takes off into the sky.

She lands outside the National City Police Station, where Officer Javier Salazar is waiting.

He holds out a hand and she carefully drops what remains of the weapon into the marked evidence bag.

“Broke his knife when I interrupted a mugging,” she explains, and nods as two other officers approach. She can hear his respiration begin to shift as he nears consciousness. “He should be waking up soon.”

Each officer takes an arm over their shoulders to accept the burden from the superhero and carry the man inside the precinct. He’ll get a quick once-over by the medical staff and then spend some time in a cell. “We’ll contact you through Officer Sawyer if we have any questions,” Officer Salazar says. Maggie has been their unofficial liaison with Supergirl for a while and though the other officers support the hero, they always seem a little uncomfortable without Maggie nearby.

Supergirl nods. “Have a good evening,” she says, and then she’s gone.

Back in her civilian clothes, holding an arm awkwardly against her stomach to hide the slash in her shirt, Kara jogs for a moment and finds Lena easily, just a half-block from her apartment building.

“All done,” she says quietly, walking beside her.

Lena nods, but her mouth is in a firm line and Kara worries she’s angry.

Inside the elevator, Kara keeps to one side, giving Lena space, though her hand flexes with the urge to reach out to her.

Scout spins around in his kennel, excited by their return, and he whines a little, pawing at the gate. When that earns him nothing, he flops down with a sigh.

The first word Lena says after they’re in the apartment is “okay” as she lets Scout out of the kennel when he’s been quiet for about fifteen seconds.

He sits on her foot.

She shakes her head fondly and crouches to scratch behind his ears.

Lena stops petting him after a few moments and he bounds over to Kara and sits in front of her.

The blonde smiles and whispers how proud she is of him, kneeling to pat his chest.

“I’m going to take him for a quick walk,” Lena says, slipping the pup into his harness, for which he stands still but then races around the living room, knowing the harness means a trip. He’s been stellar with his housetraining so far and though it’s been less than two hours since his last walk, he could probably be fine for another hour or so before going out one more time before bed, but this walk is more for Lena than the puppy.

“Okay.” Kara licks her lips. “Um, I can, I mean, do you want me to go, or…?”

Lena squeezes her arm. “I’d like you to be here when I get back.”

“I can do that.”

Lena attaches the leash to the ring on the back of Scout’s harness and clips the treat bag to her waist, exiting the apartment quietly.

The moment the door closes behind them, Kara lets out an impressive sigh and rests her elbows on the kitchen island, sliding forward until her forehead is against the cool granite. “Rao,” she mumbles into the countertop, “don’t let her hate me, please.”

She stands up after a moment and pokes at the hole in her shirt, frowning. It wasn’t as though she didn’t own more button-ups, but this one was soft and well-worn and had been a favorite.

Maybe Alex will patch it for me, she muses, and she feels marginally better at the idea.

She’s not sure how quick of a walk Lena plans on taking, but remembering how intense Scout is with his sniffing, she figures she has at least another ten minutes and sets about cleaning the kitchen.

*****

When they exit the complex, Lena immediately turns left, walks one block, crosses the street, then goes another block and a half. It marks the beginning of a mile-long stretch of large medians interspersed with pockets of parking spaces. They were usually crammed full of commuters, early-birds who claimed a spot near their office building, but at a little past eight, the well-lit paved areas were mostly empty, only a single car in every other lot.

Lena discovered it the second day Scout was home and quickly decided it was her favorite nighttime walk with him. He got to sniff a location that was teeming with scents, different ones every day, from people and vehicles and the occasional dog or stray cat, while capped at the end of each median was a square of grass around a tree, perfect for the pup to leave his mark.

She lets him wander, giving him slack on the leash, following easily wherever he decides to stick his nose, holding a few treats in her hand, ready to offer him one when he glances back as if to check on her.

Scout seems content to take his time with the wrapper of a fruit bar and each tire of the Cadillac and Lena exhales slowly.

So.

My girlfriend is Supergirl.

That’s something, she acknowledges wryly.

Every time she tries to concentrate, calling up the image of the superhero, trying to reconcile it with the soft-spoken dog trainer, all she can see is the tear in the woman’s cream-colored shirt.

The moment the man plunged the knife into her side.

The certainty that she was watching her girlfriend bleed to death.

The memory, abrupt and to the forefront, of Kara’s words from the day she adopted Scout. Something about... not worrying about the end, it’s muddled now when Lena tries to call it up purposefully, but it had been so clear in that alleyway, and the only thing Lena could think was that she hadn’t loved her enough in the cruelly brief time they had together.

It wasn’t fair.

Lena takes a deep breath, blinking away the dark spots at the edge of her vision and wincing at the pain in her left hand where she’d unwittingly clutched the leash. She forces the fist open and flexes her fingers.

She realizes that the superhero’s identity should probably bring feelings of surprise, and Kara likely expects that reaction, along with perhaps a little worry (maybe even anger?), given the history of the Luthor-Super dynamic, but she just can’t bring herself to care.

She thought she was going to lose Kara.

She didn’t.

And regardless of the reason, she’s grateful.

So, her girlfriend is Supergirl? That’s not such a big deal.

“We can handle that, can’t we?”

Scout turns at the sound of her voice and wags his tail, in full agreement.

*****

It’s fifteen minutes before Kara registers the sounds of Lena and Scout exiting the elevator. She can hear Lena praise the puppy quietly and she smiles.

She’s still standing in the kitchen when the door opens.

“What?” Lena asks when she sees the grin.

“Oh, it’s… you’re really good with him.”

Lena smiles, pleased.

She asks Scout to sit so she can remove his harness, and the moment it’s off, he rolls around on the floor and then scoots himself a few feet on his back, pushing with his hind legs, going mostly in a circle. Lena laughs and he wags his tail, then jumps up and decides it’s time to play with a toy, taking the dinosaur in his mouth and shaking it.

Lena hangs the leash and harness near the front door and steps near Kara to wash her hands in the sink.

She raises an eyebrow at the state of her kitchen. “You did dishes?”

Kara shrugs. “I clean when I’m nervous.”

“Oh?” Lena finally cues in on the woman’s anxious habits, fidgeting with her glasses, fingers tugging at each other restlessly, and she wonders if they should have taken Scout on the walk together. She wasn’t scared of dying tonight but that doesn’t mean she isn’t afraid of anything.

“I mean, I... you know who I am, but I can’t tell how mad or, well, scared that makes you.” And I really, really don’t want you to hate me. “But we, um, we should talk. So you can ask or, or say whatever you want.”

Lena gives her a soft smile, trying to ease some of her nerves. “I’m going to get a cup of tea, would you like one?” Kara shakes her head. “Okay, I’ll join you on the couch in a second.”

Lena prepares a mug of tea and then slips off her shoes and socks, sighing to herself at the immediate increase in comfort. She carries the cup into the living room and cradles it in her hands as she sits on the couch, curling one leg underneath in a familiar move.

“You’re Supergirl.”

“Yes.” Kara speaks quietly, hands folded in her lap, as if waiting for a reprimand.

Lena picks something she thinks might lighten the mood a little, a gentle teasing. “So you don’t really just have a fast metabolism.”

She chews on her lip, hearing the echo of one of the first sort-of lies she’d told. “I do, kind of, but it’s due to the yellow sun and how much energy I burn in general, let alone when I have to do, um, stuff.”

“Stuff?” Lena repeats with a small smirk.

“I don’t, I don’t know what you’re comfortable hearing.”

“Why do you assume anything you’d tell me would make me uncomfortable? For that matter, why do you think I’d be angry or frightened of you?”

Kara sighs and adjusts her glasses, then her hand falls back to the other in her lap and she begins twisting her fingers, an anxious move that continues until Lena reaches out and threads their fingers together. “There was…” she sighs and starts again. “Okay, I don’t know if you remember but you probably heard about it… there was a time last year when I… I was sick, sort of, but I hurt a lot of people. I scared everyone. The public lost faith in me, lost their trust in me… rightly so, but... it took a long time to recover from the damage I did in just a few days.”

Lena keeps her face carefully neutral. She knows exactly what Kara is talking about - the headlines in Metropolis ranged from “Supergirl Flies Off the Handle” to “Supergirl Rampage” to, and this had been Lex’s favorite, “Kryptonian Menace”. It had been the last straw for her brother, confirming all of his views and all of his worst fears, and it had been less than three weeks later that he made what would be his last attempt at killing Metropolis’ superhero, which resulted in the deaths of more than two dozen people and his own arrest.

If Lena had absolutely anything to say about it, Kara would never put the timeline together.

“So, I know that this symbol,” Kara taps her free hand against her chest, “it can instill fear or distrust and I… I know your brother and Superman… your family views our crest differently.”

She doesn’t mean to flinch but the way Kara’s eyes snap up to hers tell her Kara noticed. “Because I’m just like my family.”

“No,” Kara insists, “I know you aren’t. But my cousin has a history with your brother, and I get it if that means you aren’t exactly thrilled to… to be dating Superman’s cousin.”

“I am not my brother and you are not your cousin,” her voice is more steel than she wants. “I can make the distinction between you and your family.”

It’s Kara’s turn to flinch. “I’m sorry,” she whispers, “that isn’t what I meant. I just… I don’t want to make you uncomfortable. Seeing Supergirl occasionally is one thing but knowing is another. I don’t want to… if you’re scared, I don’t want to push you.” She’s staring at their joined hands as though she doesn’t trust herself and it dawns on Lena, then.

“Kara. You’ve saved my life numerous times, including tonight, and just yesterday I saw you care for tiny kittens. You are the kindest, gentlest person I know. Your crest...” she puts her own hand over the center of Kara’s chest, “you, make me feel safe.” Feeling the heartbeat under her palm, the rise and fall of her chest against her fingers, Lena is firmly reminded the woman is whole and unharmed and that’s the only thing she cares about at the end of the night.

She realizes Kara is trembling and she scoots closer. “I’m glad I know.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” She moves a few strands of blonde hair behind Kara’s ear. “Thank you for… well, for wanting to tell me.”

“I don’t want to lie to you anymore.”

Lena considers that. “We… you don’t owe me anything,” she says gently, though the words are heavy on her tongue. “I understand that protecting your identity is important.”

Kara develops a deep crease just above the bridge of her nose. “I wanted you to know. I wanted… I wanted to be honest with you. I don’t want you to ever think that, that how I feel about you isn’t real because I kept this big secret from you, or because I had to cancel dates or make up excuses for sneaking out, I just… I don’t want to do that.” She swallows. “I kind of, and I mean, I know this won’t be right away, and like, it’s probably too much, even, but I was kind of hoping, not that you have to at all…”

Lena strokes her cheek. “Breathe, darling.”

She gulps air. “I hoped I could show you who I am, bring you into every part of my life. I’m… just, Lena, I’m so in love with you.” She finishes the statement on an exhale and then stares at Lena with wide eyes.

“We’ve only known each other for a few weeks,” Lena says, but she’s still caressing Kara’s cheek so the woman remains hopeful. “How is it possible that you know already?”

“Oh,” she smiles a little, “well, we met a little earlier, technically. I mean, I was intrigued by you right away, but emergency rescues aren’t really the best chance to get to know a person, you know?” She turns her head to kiss the delicate palm. “But when you came to the shelter and then, um, the day we had coffee? Yeah. I fell hard.”

When Lena is quiet, Kara leans into her touch, the soft hand still resting against her cheek. “I wanted you to know,” she repeats, “that’s all. Don’t feel like you have to say it back, okay?”

Unable to get the words out, no matter the depth of her feelings she just isn’t sure, (but god, the thought of losing her? that had rocked her to her core, with a sharp pain that she hadn’t expected at all, and certainly that meant something) Lena slips her hand behind Kara’s neck and pulls her in for a kiss, trying to convey what’s in her heart and let Kara sort it out.

Kara’s moan is a mix of pleasure and relief and she returns the kiss eagerly. She allows Lena to continue pulling until she’s lying on top of her completely, and Kara takes advantage of the position to pepper soft kisses everywhere, her cheeks, her eyelids, her forehead, down the bridge of her nose.

Lena’s smile turns into a delighted laugh when Kara finishes with a final kiss to the tip of her nose. She promises herself she’ll never forget this image of Lena Luthor, beautiful, happy, laughing, warm and perfect.

Kara nuzzles her ear and resumes her kisses, though these are lingering and purposeful, and as Lena’s neck arches to encourage and her breath hitches when lips find a particularly sensitive patch of skin, Kara commits another moment to memory.

Feeling bold and dizzy and a million ways in love, Kara finds a pulse point with her tongue and then, carefully, softly, she places her teeth at the same spot.

The moment teeth hit skin, Lena yelps and draws back, both legs instinctively coming up, knees pressing against the toned stomach.

Kara throws herself away from Lena hard enough she flips over the end of the couch.

Scout barks once, startled at the sudden two-legged heading on a collision course, and runs to safety on the other side of the table.

Lena lifts her head, seeing only a cap of blonde hair as Kara kneels on the floor and presses her forehead against the arm of the sofa.

“Kara?”

“Rao, I’m sorry, Lena. I’m so -“

“Scout licked the bottom of my foot.”

“... what?”

“He licked my foot.”

Blue eyes peer over the sofa. “You’re ticklish?”

Lena immediately pulls her feet under her and sits cross-legged. “No.”

Kara puts a hand out to Scout and scratches under his chin when he comes near. “Didn’t mean to scare you, boy, but we need to talk about timing, okay? Because I think I just lost about ten years off my life.”

She smiles when he licks her hand and pushes against her leg, apparently forgiving her for startling him; at least if she pets him again. After a few belly rubs, he wanders over to his kennel and lays half in, half out.

Kara pulls herself onto the couch and blinks at Lena, who hasn’t moved. She reaches out one hand and taps the woman’s knee. “Ticklish?”

Lena scowls.

Kara grins. “Do you trust me?”

“Maybe.”

She chuckles. “Gimme your foot.”

“No.”

“I won’t tickle you, I promise.”

Lena eyes her warily but slowly stretches out one leg, placing her foot in Kara’s lap. She tenses when Kara’s fingers grasp her foot.

Kara makes long strokes with her thumb, from Lena’s heel to the ball of her foot, careful not to use too much pressure but still add some strength to the ministrations.

“This,” Lena sighs, almost melting into the cushions, “is not the usual reaction when someone finds out I’m ticklish.”

Kara smiles.

She works in silence for several minutes, moving on to the other foot when Lena places it in her lap, until the woman suddenly snickers.

“What’s funny?”

“It just occurred to me. Supergirl is giving me a foot massage.” Her eyes are closed but she arches an eyebrow. “I bet you do this for all the girls.”

Kara laughs. “Nope, just you, Ms. Luthor.”

“Hey. Is that… Tuesday night, when I was trying to leave you with a hickey…?”

“Oh. Yeah,” Kara admits, “like I said, I don’t bruise easily.”

“Or at all,” Lena smirks. “You let me keep trying.”

“I said I couldn’t bruise, I didn’t say I wanted you to stop what you were doing.”

Lena chuckles. “I’ll remember that.” She revels in the massage again for a while. Then: “Oh my god. I invited you to the gala twice.”

Kara pats her calf gently.

“At least now I can stop making a fool of myself.”

“You’re not a fool.”

“Those glasses look good on you but they’re not really a great disguise. I should have known.”

Kara shakes her head. “Glasses aren’t my only disguise, but they help. Besides, the shelter isn’t exactly the busiest place in the city, so it isn’t as though I see hundreds of people every day. Most people wouldn’t suspect.” She taps a finger against the top of Lena’s foot. “You saw me at the gala, remember? Just seconds between me and Supergirl.”

Lena thinks about that for a long moment. “True… your demeanor is different. And your speech pattern shifts, right? Oh, and those boots, they make you a little taller.”

“See? Not just the glasses.”

Scout begins to snore. Lena looks over toward the sound and laughs at the puppy, who finally crawled into the kennel all the way but fell asleep completely on his back, paws up in the air, head resting on the dinosaur toy.

“I think we’re boring him.”

“So it seems,” Kara chuckles. Silence settles as they watch the puppy fondly for a few moments, and then Kara clears her throat. “Thanks for, um, well, everything, tonight.”

Lena shifts, moving her legs from Kara’s lap so she can sit beside her. “You were really worried about telling me?”

“Terrified,” she admits. “Alex brought me emergency snacks yesterday and told me I shouldn’t be scared, though.”

Lena raises one eyebrow. “What are ‘emergency snacks’?”

“Potstickers and pizza and ice cream.”

“And then you had two doughnuts and a hot chocolate tonight at the coffee shop.” Lena puts the back of her hand against the woman’s forehead. ”Can Kryptonians develop scurvy?”

Kara swats her hand away. “No, I can’t get scurvy. I can’t get pimples, either.”

“Now you’re just bragging.”