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Kara looked up at Lena. They’d been watching Penguins of Madagascar, a hilarious movie that Lena had somehow never seen before. Kara was wearing a penguin onesie to fit the moment. She giggled slightly, looking at Lena’s bewildered expression.
“—this is the weirdest movie you’ve chosen yet, Zor-El.” Lena warned her best friend as the lemur sang about liking to move it. Kara just grinned. Telling Lena about her true name was the best thing she’d done.
“Whatever, I think it’s cute. Oh, here, I got you something earlier.” Kara said. “To commemorate the movie.” she smiled as she fiddled with the things in her purse for a moment, then grabbed the shiny pebble.
“Here you are,” Kara stated. She handed the pebble to Lena with a wide smile. “I read somewhere that penguins like shiny pebbles. You’re my penguin!” She teased.
Lena froze, blushing a deep red. “I’ll treasure it,” she promised as she took the pebble. “Thank you darling.” She pressed a lipsticked kiss to Kara’s cheek.
“Of course! Come on, snuggle time.” Kara insisted, trying to fight the blush that threatened to consume her, as she opened her arms playfully.
Lena smiled, rolling her eyes as she fell into those open arms with a sigh of acquittance. “Okay.”
<center> *~* </center>
The next time Kara saw Lena, there was a bracelet on her arm. The bracelet was not much, it was just a single smooth pebble, wrapped in string and then in a loop around her wrist. Kara still had a heart attack after seeing it.
“I’m glad you liked the pebble so much!” Kara was enthused, if not a little panicky, nodding to the bracelet on Lena’s wrist. She was trying to figure out a good way to explain to Lena the significance of a bracelet on Krypton, the way a single band would show them unified as only marriage would allow.
Lena had made that bracelet out of Kara’s pebble. Did that mean she wanted to marry Kara? Did she somehow already know about Krypton’s customs? The idea took Kara’s breath away. “I told you I’d treasure it, darling.” Lena said, breaking Kara out of her stupor.
“I am glad.” Kara forgot how to use a contraction in the face of that bracelet. She blushed lightly, some Pulitzer award winning writer she was. “So, lunch?” She gave Lena a bright smile, attempting to rally some semblance of confidence.
Lena nodded, offering Kara her arm. “Lead the way.”
Lunch went on as per normal, with only the occasional look of panic when Kara glanced at Lena’s wrist, and they only drew apart when Kara had to go rescue someone. “I’ll text you later, bye Lena!” she said as she left.
“Bye darling, I love you.” Even if she hadn’t had super hearing, Kara would have heard that. Lena…. Loved her? That was news to Kara.
“Love you too.” She said, because it was true. And then she zoomed out, leaving Lena’s hair flicking into her own face. Unbeknownst to Kara, Lena was smiling shyly as she did the rest of the day’s work.
<center>*~*</center>
“You have to tell her.” Alex sat cross legged across from Kara as they ate their ramen.
“I do not.” Again with the missing contraction. Kara made a face. “What if she didn’t mean it like that?”
Alex ran her hands through short red hair. “You have to tell her Kara,” she insisted again. “Your mother is coming to visit, and if she sees Lena wearing your bracelet, then something is going to be said.”
Kara winced. Alura In-Ze had been coming to Earth to stay for a month, every other month since Argo had been found, and while Kara relished the chance to bask in her mother’s presence, right now she would really rather not have to face the other woman with all of the unspoken tension lingering between Lena and herself. “ Jeju would understand if I told her.”
“No, but Lena would. You said you love each other! Own up to it, Kara.” Alex pressed.
“You don’t understand.” Kara whispered. “Ever since Lena put that bracelet on, we’ve been engaged. And Kryptonians don’t break engagements. We also don’t believe in divorce.” Kara stressed. “If I tell Lena we’re matched, that means also telling her that we can’t do anything about it.” Kara shoved some noodles in her mouth.
Alex rubbed her temple. “I don’t think Luthor would want to do anything about it, Kara. Have you seen her with you?”
Kara looked at her sister. “You mean that?”
“Of course. You two have been unknowing participants in a betting ring for almost a year now.”
“Who’s winning if I own up?” Kara asked, laughing.
“Me. I know you well.” Alex said proudly. Kara rolled her eyes.
“No wonder you’re pushing for it.” she teased.
Alex shook her head, “I also just want to see you happy Kara.”
“I am happy when I’m with her.” Kara muttered, ducking her head. “I’m going to text her. Can you leave?” she asked bluntly.
“Sure, sis. Love you.” Alex nodded, used to the blunt words of a certain Kryptonian, kissing her sister on the forehead before exiting the apartment. She took the noodles with her though. Kara pouted.
“Hey Lena,” Kara typed out a text. “Can you come over? We need to talk.”
Kara hated how it sounded, and hoped it wouldn’t make her zhao worry too much, but she sent the message anyway, knowing she wouldn’t if she had to wait and think how to word it correctly. So.
Damn, even from all the miles apart, Kara could tell that Lena got the message when her heartbeat ticked up.
Lena showed up on her doorstep no more than ten minutes later, slightly out of breath and anxiously wringing her hands. “Hey, is everything okay? I’m sorry.” She asked in a rush.
“Of course, I’m so sorry I worried you. You’ve done nothing wrong, Lena.” Kara promised. “Honestly, I really did just need to tell you this.”
Kara loved her. The Kryptonian knew that Lena was the true zhao meant for her, Rao himself picked out Lena for Kara and vice versa. Zhao meant romantic , true, love in Kryptonian. There were all sorts of different words for the different meanings and types of love.
But Kara felt zhao for Lena.
Now she just had to tell the woman that she loved that Lena had accidentally bound them together in a very permanent way, and there was no way to break it that did not involve also breaking a millennium old law on Kara’s home planet.
No big deal.
“Kara? Tell me.” Lena insisted, walking into the apartment and sitting on Kara’s couch. She tugged Kara down beside her. “We’re gonna be okay.” she assured Kara. “No matter what you tell me.”
“That bracelet means we’re engaged.” Kara blurted out simply.
Lena looked at her, then the bracelet, confused. “Okay?”
“On Krypton, if I wanted to seal a ritual that states we are betrothed to be married, then I’d give you a bracelet.” Kara winced. “I looked up on the internet what a pebble is for a penguin, too, and I guess it’s some sort of mating ritual, so that was like a proposal too. Maybe you knew that—”
“I did.” Lena stated, “I thought you knew it too, that’s why I put it on a bracelet.” Lena’s voice shook as she tried to take off the bracelet, tugging desperately at the thin strap secured around her wrist. “I’m sorry.”
Shit, shit, shit, Kara was not doing this right. Her goal had been to break the news to Lena gently, not make the poor woman feel like she was alone in her feelings.
“Don’t!” Kara gasped, placing a hand on top of Lena’s. “Please just let me explain. I didn’t realise that you knew–” she started, only to be cut off by a clearly upset Lena.
“Yeah, but we don’t have to. It’s fine, Kara.” Lena promised through tears she was valiantly trying to fight off. “Please don’t make this harder than it already is.”
“I love you! It doesn’t have to be hard.” Kara whispered. “And you don’t have to cry either. I just wanted to make sure you knew what it would mean to me if you wore that bracelet.”
Lena stopped struggling, and even stopped breathing as she heard Kara’s words. “You love me?”
“Of course I do.” Kara insisted. “You mean more to me than potstickers.” Kara said simply. Lena blushed, the air whooshing out of her lungs.
“That’s a lot of love.” Lena acknowledged as she sat back down.
“I’m glad you understand the sacrifice I’ve gone through,” Kara risked teasing her. Lena laughed.
They settled into a comfortable silence, before Lena blinked up at Kara. “So does this mean we’re engaged?”
“I think we should go on a date first, probably.” Kara admitted. “For Earth’s sensibilities. But yes… I’d like it to mean that.” Kara blurted out.
“Then we’re engaged.” Lena acknowledged. “I think most people seal that with a kiss.”
Kara blushed a bright red. “Is that an invitation?”
“Sure is.” Lena nodded, leaning down. Kara leaned up. Their lips met and holy Rao it was a kiss that cemented the singular fact that they were it for each other.
“We’re engaged,” Kara breathed out and they kissed again. “Lena? I love you.” she insisted again.
“You’re going to be my wife.” Lena’s eyes lit up at the prospect.
“Penguins mate for life, did you know?” Kara blurted out. Lena laughed, running a hand through Kara’s blonde hair.
“And you called me your penguin earlier…” Lena rolled her eyes. “We’re idiots.”
“Yeah. I know. But I plan to be your mate for life.” Kara asserted. “Because Kryptonians also mate for life.”
“Well then.” Lena nodded. “Guess we’re Kryptonian penguins. I don’t have any plans of letting you get away from me now.”
Kara beamed. “Oh, I have to tell Alex she wins the bet.” Kara said. “She and some of our friends bet on us.” she told Lena with a wry grin.
“Are we really that obvious?” Lena laughed as she leaned in, pecking Kara’s lips again just because she could.
“Maybe a little.” Kara shrugged, pulling Lena close. “Does it matter that they know?” she asked worriedly. She wasn’t sure what Lena wanted.
Lena smiled sagely. “I want the whole world to know, darling.”
“Me too.” Kara beamed again.