Chapter Text
Kara reveals herself to Lena the night after they defeat Reign.
Her mother has already returned to Argo with Kara’s promise to visit as soon as the reconstruction of National City is underway. Her sister is reacclimating to the realization that she can have everything she wants, and Kara catches the bug.
Alex isn’t making excuses. She isn’t putting her happiness on hold.
She made the selfish decision to resign, to pursue what she wants most.
It’s Alex’s courage that prods Kara to do the same.
She reveals her truth to Lena with a few popped buttons and minimal explanation. At this point, words would just be excuses, and there’s something in the way that Lena pulls away that curdles any well-meaning explanations on Kara’s tongue.
“So when Supergirl accused me of being the devil incarnate for making kryptonite…”
Lena’s soft voice carves through the silence. She stands away from the sofa where Kara sits, arms crossed tightly across her chest. Long fingers press deep into her own arms, and Kara sees tears glittering in her eyes.
Whether they’re tears of hurt, or anger, or something else entirely, Kara doesn’t know. For the first time since they met, Lena’s features are completely inscrutable.
“That wasn’t just National City’s resident superhero, but my very best friend. Is that what you’re telling me?”
Kara swallows thickly. She’s not proud of the way she reacted to Lena’s kryptonite, especially now that the actions Kara had decried had saved the last of her people. Her mother.
“I’m sorry,” is all Kara can offer. “It– Kryptonite is a sensitive subject–”
“I can tell,” Lena returns. “Especially from the way you chewed out Agent Danvers for weaponizing the kryptonite you forced me to surrender.”
A flush heats the back of Kara’s neck. She has no leg to stand on, and she knows it. She trusted Alex with the kryptonite. She didn’t trust Lena, and she had far less reason to doubt Lena.
“Why tell me now?” Lena holds her gaze, features a mask of indifference. “Did you want to make sure I knew exactly who I’d be hurting if I ever chose to go back on my word?”
“What? No!”
“Then why?”
“Because for twelve years, I thought I was alone in the universe. Krypton was just a memory, one I alone seemed to carry. Hiding Supergirl was about hiding what I could do, what I did when I put on the cape.
“But Lena– part of Krypton survived . My mother is alive . It’s not just what I was, or what I can do– it’s who I am. And I’ve nearly told you a million times since I found out, because you’re my best friend. Because–”
Because Lena is the only one who can even come close to understanding what it would mean to have her mother back.
To have spent so many years believing her mother dead and then suddenly have her, flesh and blood, to hug and hold and to talk to.
Alex tries, but when Kara mentions Krypton, she gets a shadow in her eye– the unspoken, unshakeable fear that Kara will leave her to spend more time with her mother.
“I want my mother to meet you. I want to show you everything that helped make me who I am. I want to share Argo with you. I want to share my world, my– my culture! I want to show you everything !”
Lena stares at her, eyes wide and silent. In the quiet, Kara’s excitement slowly fades to apprehension. She could recite the Book of Rao right here and now, but if Lena didn’t want to know— it meant nothing.
“That is…” Kara’s throat tightens around the words. “If you’ll let me.”