Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Lena Luthor hated winter. She hated the cold, the shorter days, the snow, and most of all, the holidays. Ornaments, sugar plums, multicolored lights, unoriginal song covers, and other Christmas cheer were constantly forced down her throat for an entire month. She had hoped that the issue was just a Metropolis thing, but since moving to National City, she had come to realize just how much Metropolis had been holding back. Even her penthouse apartment and corporate office weren’t safe. Illuminated decoration hung from telephone poles, numerous Santas walked the streets, and her secretary, Eve, had been pestering her for weeks with details regarding the office Christmas party. None of Lena’s excuses worked because, of course, Lena had no life outside of work, and if anyone knew that it was the woman who organized her schedule.

So when Lena received word that her mother’s trial was to be held in the weeks preceding Christmas and that she was needed to testify, she couldn’t help feeling a little relieved.

“I’ll need for you clear my schedule,” Lena told Eve as she packed up her things. “Just push them back into the following week.”

“But, Ms. Luthor, that’s the week of Christmas,” Jess replied.

“So?” Lena asked, quirking a thin eyebrow.

“No one will be able to meet. They’ll all be with their families,” Eve said, tentatively taking a step forward. “Honestly, Ms. Luthor, with the ban you put on Christmas grams and carolers, you’ve developed a bit of a Scrooge reputation.”

“As I told you, Christmas grams and carolers are nothing but a distraction, and with December already bringing a decrease in productivity, the last thing my employees need are distractions.” Lena couldn’t help but sneer slightly as she recalled the tone deaf singing coming from a group of carolers dressed as elves who invaded the lobby of L-Corp a week ago. “And I’m not a Scrooge.”

“Well, what about the lack of decorations? Every other building is adorned with lights and ribbons, while L-Corp doesn’t even have a tree in the lobby.”

“Why should we waste money on a tree and ornaments we’re going to throw out in a few months? Not to mention they are a huge fire risk and get needles everywhere. I thought the staff would be grateful to not have to deal with that.”

“Ms. Luthor,” Eve sighed. “I think you’re missing the point of Christmas.”

“The point of Christmas is to make money by manipulating people into the notion of purchasing pointless decoration, conforming to so-called traditions, and buying expensive presents for people they don’t really care for,” Lena snapped her laptop shut. “It’s capitalism at its finest, and I refuse to take part in it.”

“Ms. Luthor,” Eve took another tentative step forward so she was up against Lena’s desk, holding her digital planner tightly in her hand. “While you may have a point, Christmas is about spending time with those you love and showing them that you care about them.”

Lena bit back the urge to scowl at her secretary. Of all people, Eve should know that Lena had no one to care for and no one to care about her in return. The holiday season reminded her of that every single minute of every single day. Turning to look out her office view, Lena gazed upon the bustling city streets of shoppers and Santas and merchants. They all carried gifts and smiles that made Lena’s stomach clench. It wasn’t fair. Why couldn’t she have that?

But her secretary had a bit of point, Lena supposed. And if Lena were to prove that she did have a heart unlike the rest of her family, one of the best ways to do that would be to let her employees off for the week. Forcing others to partake in her bitterness wouldn’t make her bitterness any more enjoyable.

“Fine,” Lena said, her back still turned towards Eve. “Give them the week off. Schedule all my meetings for January then.”

“Oh, thank you Ms. Luthor!” Eve squealed. “They’ll be so grateful. I’ll go tell them now.”

“Eve,” Lena called over her shoulder, stopping the excited blonde. “Before you go, could you gather up the upcoming project files? Just leave them for me on your desk. Someone has to get some work done this season.”

“Oh, yes, of course, Ms. Luthor,” Eve replied, her tone notably more somber.

Lena heard the click of her office door closing. Deciding to wait until she was sure that her secretary was gone, Lena moved from the window to the liquor cabinet. She poured a more generous amount of scotch than typical, telling herself that she deserved it. After all, this was the first time she’d be seeing her mother so close to the holidays in years. Not to mention testifying to ensure that she wouldn’t be seeing her mother in anything but an orange jumpsuit for years to come. Lena just wanted to be bitter and numb and the scotch was the only thing that made that possible this time of year.

Grimacing through the taste with each swig, Lena slowly finished the glass and gathered the rest of her things. Her flight left in the morning for Metropolis and she wanted to be sure she looked the best for her mother. Her mother might not care, but Lena still did.

Thankfully, her timing her had been right and Eve’s desk was empty except for a stack of files. As Lena went to grab it, she noticed a small red box on top of them. On the tag, Lena found her name and nothing else, but she thought it was safe to assume it was from Eve. Resisting the urge to throw it in the trash, Lena carefully opened the box to reveal the contents – a white, snow flake Christmas ornament. On closer inspection, she noticed the generic red inscription in the center: “May all your Christmas Wishes come true .”

Perhaps it was her holiday bitterness or the recent alcohol, but Lena couldn’t help but scoff loudly. She thought back to Eve and her employees and all those children who wanted things for Christmas. The lists and the commercialism. All things a billionaire Luthor like herself could afford and have in a snap of her fingers. But there was one thing that all her money couldn’t buy, but everyone else seemed to have.

“All I want for Christmas is a family,” Lena said aloud to herself. “And that’s never going to happen. So, bah humbug.”

She threw the ornament into the trash as she walked towards the elevator. As the doors closed, she considered running back and grabbing it so not to hurt Eve’s feelings, but then she realized that this may be the best way to ensure that none of her other employees try to give her gifts either. Besides, she had other things to worry about than a cheesy, generic ornament.

Little did Lena know that as soon as she disappeared behind the elevator doors, the ornament in Eve’s trash disappeared too.

Chapter Text

Lillian’s trial was hell.

It really shouldn’t have surprised Lena. Her mother had a knack for bringing out the worst in people and souring everything she touched. It only seemed fitting that her lawyer had the same qualities. Lena took the stand braced for a verbal assault and her mother’s lawyer gave it to her. Little did he know that Lena knew how to fight back. After all, her mother had been training her on it her whole life. Lena walked off the stand victorious with her head held high, but as soon as she was behind the closed doors of a cab, her head and shoulders drooped. Perhaps it was a good thing her company had basically shut down for the rest of the month; she needed time to recover.

Since she wasn’t needed and didn’t want to be there, Lena decided to leave Metropolis after her testimony was given. She was a CEO of the company her family had almost run into the ground so it wasn’t as if anyone questioned her departure. But from the smug look Lillian gave her at the front of the courtroom just before she left, Lena knew her mother was counting it as a victory on her part. Lena told herself she didn’t care, that she wasn’t the one going to prison for the next several decades, but she didn't quite have the knack for lying like the rest of her family did. Especially when it came to herself.

Lena’s cab took her to the Metropolis airport, and it was there that Lena’s day only got worse.

“Cancelled? What do you mean cancelled?”

“I’m sorry Ms. Luthor, but all flights in and out of National City have been cancelled indefinitely,” the airport worker told her. “There’s a large blizzard headed that way, and we don’t know when the runways will be cleared.”

“Can’t I get a flight to somewhere closer to it then?” Lena asked. “Central City or Star City. I’ll even work with Gotham.”

“I’m sorry Ms. Luthor, but almost all seats have been booked,” the airport worker told her with a forced smile. “With the holidays and all, it’s our busiest time of year. I hope you understand.”

“There must be something,” Lena replied, adopting a harsher tone than she meant to. Her mother’s trial had put her more on edge than she realized.

“I’m sorry Ms. Luthor, but there isn’t anything I can do,” the airport worker replied in a tone matching in hostility.

The airport worker had been about to ask Lena to leave so she could attend to the growing line of people behind her, but just before she could, her eyes caught the news reel on the television behind her. Lena’s gaze followed and her face dropped. It was footage of her at her testifying at her mother’s trial. Although the television had been muted, the headline scrolling beneath it said it all: Lunatic Luthors’ Family Reunion in Court.

Lena whipped her head away from the television and held her head down. She was thankful to have worn her hair down that day so her face could hide behind a curtain of raven hair. Why hadn’t she thought this through better and brought a hat or sunglasses like every other well-known person in public did? She had barely had the strength to face her mother today. She definitely didn’t have the strength to face judgement - or worse, sympathy - from strangers.

“Please.” Lena added with a softer tone of desperation and pleading eyes.

“Let me check with the travel agency,” the airport worker said before scrolling and typing away at the computer, stopping when she came across something. “Oh, I didn’t know we still ran these, but it might work.”

“What?” Lena asked, perking up slightly.

“Well, it may be a little out of date, but we do have a Greyhound bus leaving here for National City today,” the airport worker explained. “I don’t know how far it will take it you with the upcoming storm and it will certainly take a bit longer, but it will get you closer to where you need to be.”

“I’ll take it,” Lena said quickly.

She hadn’t ridden on a bus since… maybe ever. But she’d seen them on movies and television shows. She could work it out. How hard could they be? Besides, she hated flying anyway and this way, she could get some work done on the bus.

“Wonderful,” the airport worker said, still clicking away. “It leaves in about half an hour. Just let me print off your ticket and give you refund, and then you can just make your way down to the end of the airport and follow the signs to the bus depot.”

“Okay, thank you,” Lena said, reaching for the ticket.

“It’s my pleasure,” the airport worker said with the first genuine smile she’d given Lena even though the sympathy in it made Lena want to cringe. “And Merry Christmas.”

“Yeah, Merry Christmas,” Lena mumbled.

She turned and trudged towards the bus depot, only stopping to buy a gray beanie and large black sunglasses at an airport kiosk. Of all holidays that she wished she wasn’t a Luthor, this was the one.

---

While Lena hadn’t heard much about the Greyhound bus line in the past several years, she knew that they were still a viable business and still producing and adapting to the modern world like any decent company. However, the bus she now prepared to board apparently did not get that memo.

From the chrome sides, the giant gray hound on the side, and the inclined roof, Lena would have sworn that the bus had come straight from the seventies or eighties. Still, the driver was courteous and respectful as he took her suitcase and stored it underneath the bus. She had to fight the urge to grimace at the garland and lights strewn along the windows and dash of the bus. She cringed when she realized how much the decorations must clash with the bus’s pale blue exterior. Honestly, the amount this country changed and sacrificed all for a season of commercialism astounded her, but after her day, she didn’t have the energy to try and fight it.

The bus was surprisingly more packed than Lena expected. With the front seats full, Lena climbed up the steps in the middle of the bus leading to the back which only made her question the safety of the vehicle. From what she could tell, the seats at least had seat belts, but that didn’t bring her as much comfort as she had hoped. She took a seat towards the back where she prayed fate would pity her for once today and keep the seat next to her empty. She dropped her bag and briefcase of files on it for good measure. And it seemed to work. Soon the bus’s engine roared to life and rolled out of the station with Lena alone in her row.

For bus’s vintage appearance, the ride was surprisingly smooth. Much smoother than any plane anyway, and Lena was able to get through her work faster than expected. Yet unlike a plane, the travel time was considerably longer especially with all the added stops. And while the aisle lit up as night fell, Lena couldn’t bring herself to use the overhead lights. Unlike the people on planes who all seemed like arrogant, smelly snobs, these people seemed gentle and kind despite not ever saying a word to her. The bus line didn’t provide eye masks or earplugs like the airline, and Lena couldn’t bring herself to be the cause of their discomfort.

So, she put away her files and decided to rest her head against the cool glass of the window. It had been such a long day and all Lena wanted was to rest. She still had several hours before she’d make it anywhere close to National City. A few hours of sleep wouldn’t hurt anything. And it was just all too easy to drift off to the steady rumble of the old Greyhound engine. For the first time in months, sleep came easy for Lena.

A bit too easy actually. When Lena woke up, her mouth was dry and eyes were heavy. She squinted against the harsh sun reflecting against the banks of snow outside and looked around. Most of the passengers around her had disappeared. Frantically she checked her watch and swore aloud.

She had slept over an hour past her arrival time.

How could she have been so stupid? Why didn’t she set an alarm on her phone? This was all her fault. And where even was she? She looked out the window and saw the snowy landscaped and assumed that it must have been from the blizzard. Apparently, it hadn’t been as bad as the airport worker claimed. Or it hadn't hit yet. Oh, this was so bad.

“And we’re coming up on our next stop,” the driver’s voice crackled over the intercom. “Feel free to stretch your legs and grab something to eat. This town is famous for their sticky buns.”

Lena peered out the window and saw the quaint, small town the bus was now pulling into. She scanned the buildings for a town name and racked her brain for any town close to National City known for their sticky bun, but came up empty. Maybe the snow had slowed the bus down. Maybe she hadn’t missed her stopped. Still, there’d be no harm in getting off and asking around.

The driver pulled up to the bus depot, and Lena quickly gathered her things and headed out the door. Her feet sank into the snow and Lena was grateful to have worn her boots rather than her heels. Navigating her way on ice covered sidewalks in heels seemed like a good way to get a ride in an ambulance rather than bus.

No one else got off the bus for Lena to follow so she decided to blaze her own trail. She trekked her way into the small bus depot which was quite a generous title once Lena realized as she walked inside. The small, one room building had one counter, a drink machine, and seemingly doubled as a post office from all the parcels and envelops overflowing from the bags along the sides. Lena had seen the mail room at corporate, but she could have sworn the amount of mail in the room outnumbered that place even on a good day. She had to step over a fallen pile of red and green envelopes that had toppled along the small path between packages and sacks of mail to get to the counter. Either someone was severely behind on their job or someone in town was very popular.

“Sorry, just try to avoid stepping on them,” a voice called from behind the counter. “We always get super backed up this time of year.”

Lena navigated her way her to the counter where a man with a large smile and wild brown hair stood. He wore a striped green and red hat on his head that only added to his elf like appearance, but Lena shoved that thought down. It may have been the holidays but that never gave her a reason to compare anyone to an elf.

“Is this the bus depot?” Lena asked.

“Yep!” the man smiled. “We handle all transportation actually, but it’s really just bus services mostly. And clearly, we double as the post office. Small town compromises and such. We don’t typically get a whole lot of visitors anyway outside of the season. I’m Winn by the way, and it’s a pleasure to be of service.”

He flashed a large toothy grin, and Lena instantly found herself craving the fake smile of the airport worker from earlier. At least that one she knew how to handle.

“I’m sorry to bother you, but do you have any buses going to National City today?” Lena asked, shouldering her bag.

Winn frowned.

“National City?” Winn asked.

“Yes,” Lena replied beginning to get irritated that the elf-dressed man in front of her hadn’t even bothered turning on a computer. “It shouldn’t be too far. I just missed my stop. And could you hurry? I’m in a bit of a rush.”

“Your bus was supposed to take you to National City?” Winn asked slowly as if he didn’t understand what Lena was telling him.

“Yes,” Lena bit out. “I missed my stop. Now could you please get me a ticket so I can get back there? And I need for you to hurry. I still need to get my suitcase off the bus.”

“You mean that bus?” Winn asked, pointing out the window to the Greyhound that had already begun pulling away.

“No!” Lena gasped.

She tore off behind her, knocking over several stacks of packages and sacks of letters in the process, but she didn’t care. Her clothes and belongs were still onboard. She held her beanie tight against her head as she attempted to chase after the bus in the ankle-deep snow, but the closest she ever got were the fumes of gray exhaust billowing out the back. That didn’t stop her from screaming and waving her arms around though, drawing attention from just about everyone on the street. Oh, if her mother could see her now.

But unfortunately for her, a car didn’t seem to see her though. At least not until it was too late.

Lena heard the horn and slough of tires breaking against snow, but that still didn’t get her feet to move. All she could do was close her eyes in a feeble attempt to brace for impact.

She just didn’t expect the impact to come from the side.

A force rammed into her side, throwing her face first into a snow bank with an added weight resting on top of her forcing her further down. She was too shocked to breath at first, but as soon as she was pulled out of bank just seconds later, she frantically gulped down breaths of air. Her face had gone numb from the snow and her cheeks now burned against the air.

“Are you alright?” a gentle voice asked her.

With how much brighter the world now looked, Lena knew she had lost her sunglasses which was most unfortunate as she now stared straight into a blindingly bright light. She squinted against the light and after a moment once her vision returned, she realized it wasn’t a light but the blonde hair of a woman. A blue eyed, rosy cheeked, beautiful woman who currently held her in her arms. Despite just receiving a face full of snow, Lena’s throat and mouth instantly went dry.

“What happened?” Lena croaked, unable to take her green eyes off the woman’s blue.

“You ran out in the road in front of a car,” the woman explained with a slight smile. “I pushed you out of the way before you were hit.”

“Oh,” Lena said, her gaze falling as her mind started to work again. “Wait, my bus!”

Lena started to sit up, but the woman held her back, most likely fearful that the raven-haired woman would run back out into the road again.

“Woah there,” the blonde said. “That bus is long gone. You’re not going to be able to catch it. Just take it easy.”

“Well, then I need to a ticket for the next one,” Lena retorted, no longer flustered but annoyed that this woman treated her like she was a horse than a woman. “I need to get back to National City as soon as possible.”

“National City? That’s going to be quite the ride.”

“What are you talking about?” Lena asked, her eyes narrowing. “I just missed the stop by an hour. It shouldn’t take me anymore than that to get back.”

“Well, National City is about a two-day drive from here.”

“What?” Lena’s eyes widened. “That’s impossible. My ticket was for National City.” She paused for a moment and looked around, her fear quickly doubling her racing heart. “Wait, where even am I?”

“Well... North Pole, of course.”

Chapter Text

“The North Pole?!”

“Well, not like the North Pole,” the blonde explained as she cocked her head to the side. “We’re not that far north.”

“What are you talking about?” Lena asked, her surprised tone fading into one of frustration.

“The town is called North Pole,” the blonde explained. “You’re in North Pole, Montana.”

“Montana…” Lena said slowly before her green eyes widened. “MONTANA?!”

“Yeah…” the woman’s brow furrowed and her glasses slide further down her nose. “You know the big state with all the mountains and bears and bison? I thought it was pretty well known.”

“I know about Montana,” Lena snapped. “And would you please get off me?”

“Oh yeah, sorry.”

The blonde woman hastily scampered off Lena who still laid pressed into the snow drift. After swiftly brushing the snow off her scarf and shirt, the blonde gave a small smile and offered her hand out to Lena, but the CEO just swatted it away and stood up on her own. Lena staggered slightly to her feet, brushing off clumps of snow that still clung to coat. While she wasn’t in the snow for long, her coat was cloth and some of the snow had melt into, making it damp and useless in protecting against the cold. A slight shiver ran through her but she suppressed it as she checked the condition of her bag and briefcase which were thankfully unsoiled by the snow. However, the same could not be said about her slacks that now sported a large tear in the knee.

“I’m sorry about your pants,” the blonde woman said with a gesture.

“It’s fine,” Lena muttered bitterly as she ran her fingers through her dark hair. “It’s not like they were designer or expensive, like everything else in my luggage that is now barreling down an old highway through the godforsaken state of Montana. Dammit, how did I let this happen?”

“Hey now,” the blonde woman said, holding up her flannel clad arms in an attempt to placate the distraught woman in front of her. “It’ll be okay. We can figure it out.”

“How?” Lena asked. “Do you have a way to get that bus back? Or anyway of getting me back to National City? Don’t tell me that you have a way of flying me down there.”

“Well, I only special fly on special occasions,” the blonde said with coy smile. “But I do have a knack for getting people what they need.” She dropped her hands. “Come with me.”

“To where?” Lena asked, narrowing her eyes. She didn’t want to trust this woman even with her kind eyes and smile, but her options were too limited not to.

“To see Winn at the bus depot. Although we’ll have to cross the street.” The woman grinned broadly as she held out her hand. “Will you need to hold my hand this time?”

Lena didn’t return the smile. After the stress-filled days she’d had, Lena did not have the patience to be treated like a child. The blonde’s grin faltered and her hand dropped.

“Well, I guess I’ll just have to trust you to look both ways then,” she said with a hint of her prior perkiness gone.

“I guess so,” Lena mumbled, shoving her cold hands into her pockets before crossing the now empty street with the blonde by her side.

A part of Lena hated herself for hurting this blonde’s feelings. She had saved her life after all. And it was so cute how her nose scrunched up when she smiled and her blue eyes had such a lovely twinkle, but Lena caught herself. What she thinking? She was currently marooned in a nowhere town with no luggage, no shelter, and no way of leaving. Romance should be the last thing on her list just like it had been ever since her family tried running L-Corp into the ground. Besides, she was a Luthor. She had no business in a hick town in a hick state regardless of how attractive she found one of their hick residents. It wasn’t like she’d even see her again after today.

Still, the blonde could definitely pull off that flannel and vest.

“After you,” the blonde smiled opening the door the bus depot that Lena had just left.

“Thank you,” Lena mumbled, ducking her head slightly as she crossed the threshold.

Where the place had been cluttered before, it now looked to be a mess. The narrow pathway between towers of packages and bags of letters now laid strewn with white, red, and green envelopes and off kilter, colorfully wrapped packages that covered the wooden floor. It took Lena only moments to realize that in her haste to catch her bus, she had triggered a postal avalanche.

“Nice to see you’ve returned,” Winn called out as he peered out from behind one of the piles he was restacking and eyed Lena. “And here I thought I’d have to clean this up all by myself.”

“What happened, Winn?” the blonde gasped as she pulled the door shut behind her.

“Kara!” the small man’s face immediately brightened. “Oh, this? Just a little accident. No permeant damage from what I can tell. Now that you’re here, maybe we can load them into your truck?”

Lena raised an eyebrow. Her life had been saved by Kara, the town mail man? Or mail woman in this case. Still, Lena couldn’t help but be a little grateful that the blonde woman’s distracting attractiveness had fallen just a little bit.

“Not yet, Winn,” Kara smiled. “Clark’s running errands in the truck right now. We plan on coming by in an hour or so to gather up everything.”

Oh. Clark. If her occupation wasn’t enough to keep a snobby Lena away, her heterosexuality was. Even if the woman wasn’t completely straight, it still sounded like she was in a serious relationship. One serious enough for them to share trucks. Didn’t that equate to marriage in some small towns? Lena’s heart deflated and she hated herself for it.

“Um,” Lena cleared her throat in an attempt to clear her thoughts. “Do you need any help cleaning up?”

Winn comically arched an eyebrow; the bell on red and green elf hat tingled. A smirk stretched along his face as he crossed his arms in front of him, leaning back ever so slightly. He may have worn an elf hat, but in that moment, he reminded Lena more of a sassy Tinkerbell. If she found out he wasn’t tiny green slippers, Lena was going to be very disappointed.

“That’s so kind of you to offer,” Winn said sarcastically.

“You really don’t have to,” Kara told her, placing a hand on Lena’s arm, but Lena was quick to duck down to the floor and grab a handful of letters.

“Really, I don’t mind,” Lena assured her, flipping over one of the colorful envelopes. “We need to make sure that…. Santa Claus gets their mail.” Lena blinked but the messy, childlike writing in crayon remained the same. She flipped through the other cards in the stack she had gathered from the floor and all of them had the same name on them. “Why are there so many letters addressed to Santa Claus?”

“Um…” Winn’s wide eyes darted to Kara, but she looked calm as ever.

“That’s what happens when you live in a town named North Pole,” Kara explained with a tight smile as she gently took the letters out of Lena’s hand. “Now, why don’t you go with Winn and you two can try to figure something out while I clean up this mess, okay?”

Lena caught Kara’s eyes darting back to Winn’s, but she didn’t know what to make of it.

“Yeah!” Winn exclaimed. “Just make your way over to the counter, and we can get you out of here.”

“Um, okay,” Lena said, her brow furrowing a bit in confusion, but she did as she was told, carefully stepping over the mess of mail she had made in her prior haste.

“Alright let’s see,” Winn said as he booted up the old white box computer. “This’ll take just a second.”

Lena held back a groan. Figuring it out on her phone would be beyond faster than waiting for this dinosaur to wake up. She pulled out her phone and frowned. No signal. Of course. Why would it be that simple?

“How long do you think this will take?” Lena asked peering over the counter just in time to see the blue screen with white code turn a lime green and slanted.

“Er, um,” Winn leaned back. “Kara, could you…”

“Oh, yeah.” Kara stood up and came over to deliver a hearty slap to the side of monitor. Much to Lena’s amazement, the desktop screen appeared, icons and all. “Winn may the tech guy in these parts, but I’m the one with magic touch.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Winn grumbled as he clicked the browser icon. “If only they’d update this place. It’s torture having to use internet explorer as default browser. But then again, I would lose my space pinball record…”

“Are there any buses leaving today?” Lena interrupted as she tried her best to ignore how well those jeans fit Kara when she bent down to collect the mail.

“Umm let me see.” Winn clicked and clacked on the keyboard for a moment. “Oh. Well it looks like you were on the last bus for today.”

“Are you serious?” Lena gaped. “What about tomorrow then?”

“No can do,” Winn said with a shake of his head. “There’s a storm on its way that’s blocking most of the roadways and the lines don’t want to risk it especially since not many people have tickets here anyway.”

“Well, when is the storm supposed to hit?” Lena asked.

“Oh, it probably won’t hit us,” Winn said pointing to the tall mountains behind her. “Even if it does, it probably won’t be that bad. Those mountains typically catch the most of it.”

“Then is there a way I can fly out then?”

“All we got around here are prop planes, but they can’t take you too far. Your best bet would be taking one to Billings and then getting a connector, but finding one on such short notice definitely won’t be cheap.”

“Money isn’t an issue,” Lena said although her stomach clenched at the thought of riding in one of those tiny planes. “I’ll take whatever I can get.”

“Alright, just let me call some people,” Winn said.

He reached for the phone and Lena saw that is was a landline. It still had a spiral cord and rotary dial. This time Lena didn’t hold back her groan.

“I get it,” Kara said as she stacked a pile of fallen presents. “It must be frustrating not being able to get to see your family on Christmas.”

Lena scoffed. “Trust me, those are the last people I want to see.”

Kara frowned, but Winn spoke before she could.

“I’m sorry, but it doesn’t look like anyone is flying out today.”

“Did you tell them money wasn’t an issue?” Lena asked, her head whipping back to Winn.

“It doesn’t matter,” Winn shrugged. “No one in town has changed their planes over to winter skis yet so they can’t land. Even if you found someone who had, Billings’ Airport is closed off to all planes except airliners for the holidays.”

“Then what am I supposed to do?” Lena demanded. She meant her voice to should stern, but it only came out as desperate.

“You can always stay at the Danvers Bed and Breakfast,” Kara suggested. “At least until the storm has passed. I know they have an open room, and I’m sure they won’t mind.”

“They do serve some of the best pancakes in town,” Winn said. “And I’ll be able to call you as soon as I figure something out.”

Lena chewed her lip. The last thing she wanted was to stay in a small, Christmas themed town in Montana indefinitely, but it wasn’t like she had much of a choice. She should have just stayed in Metropolis where at least they had cell service and computers made in the twenty-first century.

“Fine,” Lena said. “I’ll do that.”

“Awesome!” Kara jumped up with a perky smile. “It’s not too far from here. I can even take you there now.”

“Don’t we need to finish cleaning… oh.” Lena looked down at the ground and noticed Kara had cleared an even larger path than before with perfectly organized and stacked packages and letter bags along the side. Must be a postal worker thing. “Okay, I guess we can go now then.” She turned back to Winn and reached into her bag. “How much do I owe you?”

“What? Oh no.” Winn shook his head. “It was nothing.”

“Please, I insist,” Lena plead. After all, she had wrecked his place.

“Don’t worry about it. If it really bothers you, just buy me coffee later. It’s a small town. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you around.”

“Okay,” Lena said, shaking her head in disbelief as she turned back to Kara. “Ready to go?”

“Yep!” Kara was already by the door holding it open for her. “It’s just down the road from here.”

Lena nodded and walked through the open door, doing her best not to react when she noticed the sweet peppermint smell of the blonde as she passed. How had she not noticed that earlier?

“You’ll love the Danvers,” Kara said, falling in step beside Lena on the sidewalk. “They’re really good people. And they have a chef who makes the best pot stickers.”

“Pot stickers?” Lena asked, arching an eyebrow as she pulled her jacket tighter, attempting to suppress a shiver as the wind blew. “What kind of bed and breakfast serves pot stickers?”

“The best kind!” Kara smiled. “Maggie’s not the best with other Asian cuisine, but she has perfected the pot sticker and dumpling. They’re to die for. I go just about every week. Usually more if I have the time. This time of year’s just always busy, you know?”

“I suppose,” Lena said nodding as she realized just how busy a postal worker’s life was during the holidays. “The snow must make it difficult.”

“Huh? Oh, I don’t mind it too much. It’s not really Christmas without it.”

Lena grimaced. “It’s more of hassle really.”

“But snow is so much fun, though! There’s snowmen, snowball fights, snow angels, snow days. It’s the best time of year!”

“I wouldn’t know about that,” Lena said, re-shouldering her bag and intently looking ahead.

“Wait, have you never done any of those things?”

Lena scoffed. The Luthors weren’t ones to encourage snow fun unless that meant shoveling the walk and half-mile driveway as discipline. To her, snow just meant more work and canceled flights.

“I guess a place like National City doesn’t have anywhere to do those sort of things,” Kara said before making a face. “Oh, and their snow must be filthy.”

“You’re not wrong,” Lena murmured.

“Well we’re just going to have to fix that,” Kara said before coming to a stop. “And we’re here!”

Before them stood a large, two story yellow house with a wraparound porch, smoke peeling from the chimney, and snow covered flowers out front. Christmas lights wrapped around the railing and porch and a large green and red wreath hung on the front door. Quite honestly, it looked as if it had been taken out of a Hallmark Christmas card. Kara shook the wooden snow off the sign out front to reveal “Danvers Bed and Breakfast” written in blue font.

“It looks… cozy,” Lena said truthfully.

“It really is,” Kara beamed. “Well, I’m going to let you go here. I have to get back to work, but the Danvers will take really good care of you… wait, are you shivering?”

As much as Lena wanted to deny it, she really was. While she wasn’t at teeth-chattering cold just yet, her wet coat was sure to make that happen soon. The snow from the bank earlier only seemed to have melted more while they were at Winn’s. Her cloth coat must have been drenched now. Why had she been so stupid to not bring a waterproof jacket with her? Of course, it wasn’t snowing in Metropolis.

“I’ll be fine,” Lena said as she wrapped her coat tighter. “It’s just a little damp.”

“Well, here,” Kara said as she started to unzip her black vest over her flannel. “You can at least take this.”

“No, I’m fine really,” Lena insisted, taking a step back. “You’ll freeze otherwise.”

“But so will you,” Kara frowned, freezing mid-zip.

“My destination is right in front of me,” Lena pointed out. “And I’m assuming they have heat. You, on the other hand, still have errands to run. You’re the one who needs it more.”

“Then at least take my scarf,” Kara said as she unraveled the white scarf wrapped around her neck. “Please.”

If it weren’t for those pleading blue eyes, Lena would have refused. With a sign, she caved and quickly wrapped the warm scarf around her neck. It smelled just like it’s owner: sweet peppermint.

“Thank you,” Lena mumbled into the soft fabric.

“Anytime,” Kara grinned. “Well, I guess I better be off. I’ll probably be by later to make sure you got settled nicely.”

“I’ll see you later then,” Lena said with a small wave.

“Yep!” Kara turned to walk away before spinning back on her heel. “Oh and I never did catch your name.”

“It’s Lena.”

“Well,” Kara said with a smile. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Lena.”

Chapter Text

The salt on the wooden front steps crunched underneath Lena’s boot as she approached the Danvers’ Bed and Breakfast. She hadn’t even opened the front door, but she could already sense the warmth overflowing from the place. On her left and right, several rocking chairs aligned in varying positions with either a checker board between them or a small table as they faced towards the mountains in the distance. From the thick blankets lying across many of the chairs, Lena figured this was a town where people had the time to waste looking at stationary views for an hour or two every day even if it was freezing winter. They probably laughed and drank cocoa and looked at the same stars in the evening and got up early to watch the sunrise despite it doing so every single day. She never understood those kinds of people. Their actions showed no logic as it was all a waste of time, nonproductive, and sounded miserable.

Still, it made Lena feel a pang of longing in her chest that made her frown.

Shaking her head, Lena gripped the cold front door and pushed it open. She was half surprised that a tinkling pair of bells didn’t announce her arrival. Stomping off whatever snow, ice, and salt she could from her boots to the porch and welcome mat, Lena made her way down the front hall and into living room type welcome area as she tried to find the front desk.

The Hallmark Christmas card style wasn’t limited to just the exterior but the interior as well. Red ribbon and garland wrapped around the decorative columns, railing, and stairs while lit candles in holly wreaths and pine cones on the table draped the place in a comforting scent of pine. Frost clung to the corner of the glass windows and red and white poinsettias tied with wintery bows sat on their sill. A fire crackled in the fireplace with red stockings hung on the hearth with a stack of ready logs next to it. It all made Lena want to grab one of the fuzzy, fleece blankets draped across the plush gray couch and curl up in front of the fire and forget about all the stress for just a little while.

But she was a Luthor and that would only be ridiculous and a waste of her time.

“Do you need a room?”

Lena swiftly spun on her heel out of her thoughts and towards the voice, finding a blonde haired, middle age woman standing behind a front desk smiling warmly at her. She had the some of the kindest eyes Lena had ever seen – well excluding those blue ones she had seen earlier. If Lena were being honest, this woman reminded a lot of the mother she imagined having when she was younger; one who was kind, warm, and supportive in a way that didn’t tear down her accomplish. One that taught her to hope and trust rather than doubt herself and look for validation elsewhere.

“Um, yes,” Lena said with a shake of her head as she tried to brush the unwelcome thoughts of her mother aside. “I would like a room please.”

“Wonderful!” the woman’s smiled brightened and she started flipping through a book in front of her. “And how long will you be staying with us?”

“An underdetermined amount of time,” Lena replied, walking towards the reception desk.

“Well, it looks like we have free room for the next week or so. And would you look at that, it’s right above the fire place too so you’ll be all nice and toasty.”

“Great,” Lena said with a tight smile as she slowly started to find the woman’s sunny attitude sickening. Maybe she had been hanging around her mother too much lately.

“So it’s about a hundred and fifty dollars a night,” the woman said. “You’re free to cancel whenever you’d like and price does include meals as well as a fifty percent discount at our bar. And will that be cash or credit?”

“Cash,” Lena said as she opened up bag. One of the very few useful lessons Lex had taught her was to always carry plenty of cash. Cards left trails while paper didn’t. And with being a Luthor, it wasn’t much of a loss if she were to lose it. “Do you need it all now?”

“One night down payment is fine,” the woman said with a smile although her eyes widened a bit when she caught a glimpse of the stack in Lena’s wallet.

“That’s fine by me,” Lena said as she handed over a Franklin and Grant.

“Thank you.” The woman made a note in her book before sliding the bills into the register. It struck Lena as odd that she didn’t bother testing to see if they were counterfeit, but then again, people did seem overly trusting here. “And can I have a name?”

“Lena Luth—” Lena caught herself for a brief second as she remembered the way the airport worker treated her after she discovered her name. The last thing Lena wanted was that kind of sympathy or special attention or prejudice from her name or mother’s trial. For once, she could be free from the Luthor name and could just live like anyone else. Maybe this was a bit blessing in disguise. “Luthien. My name is Lena Luthien.”

“Luthien,” the woman repeated. “That’s an unusual last name.”

“It’s Celtic,” Lena said, choosing to lie rather than shamefully admit it was the name of elf in Tolkien’s Middle Earth.

“Well, it’s beautiful,” the woman said as she set down her pen. “I think everything is settled here. Rooms are up those stairs.” She waved to the ribbon and garland strung staircase before gestured to a room behind Lena that looked as if it were set up like a dining room with a large mahogany table in the center. “Meals will be served in there. Breakfast is served between 7-9 am, lunch 11-1, dinner at 6 and the bar opens at 8. If you need anything, feel free to ask. My name is Eliza Danvers –” An opening of a side door interrupted her – “And that would be my daughter, Alex.”

Lena turned to see a young woman with short red hair and thick black coat carrying in an armful of wood. She stacked it on top of the pile already by the wood place with a grunt before offering a wave to Lena.

“Hi, nice to meet you,” Alex said, pulling off her gloves before offering a hand to shake. “I’m Alex.”

“Lena,” Lena replied with a brisk handshake of Alex’s cold hand.

“Nice scarf,” Alex nodded with a slightly raised eye brow towards the white fabric still wrapped tightly around Lena’s neck.

“Thank you,” Lena said, her cheeks reddening slightly. “I’m just borrowing it.”

“Hey, aren’t you that woman who missed her bus?” Alex asked with slight cock of her head and a small smile tugging on the corner of her lips.

“Um, yes…” Lena’s brow furrowed confused on how they’d already know about that.

“News travels pretty fast around her,” Eliza explained as she held out Lena’s room key. “I’m sorry to hear about your predicament though. You’re welcome to join us for dinner in an hour and have a complementary glass of wine if you’d like to relax and get a load off your feet.”

“Thank you,” Lena said as she reached for her room key. “But I think I’d rather relax in my room tonight.”

“Alright,” Eliza said with a warm smile. “I hope you have a good night.”

Lena nodded a farewell to both Eliza and her daughter before heading upstairs. She could feel the smirking redhead’s eyes on her as she ascended, but she tried to brush it off. Did she know that she was wearing Kara’s scarf? How could she? Everyone owned a white scarf. Of course, only one had the delightful smell of sweet peppermint. Lena shook her head. She was just overthinking things. All she needed was a good night’s sleep.

The room key came on a keyring with a small keychain Santa hat and a wooden circle engraved with 2C which Lena assumed was her room. Her fingers fiddled with the soft fabric of the tiny Santa hat and she found an odd sense of comfort in it before she told herself she was being childish and stopped. Lena found her room easily due to the matching but larger Santa hat hanging on the door. Sliding her key in and turning, she opened the door and greeted with a much-welcomed warm breeze.

It was a quaint room with a simple twin bed, oak dresser, stuffed chair, and vanity. Some books graced the shelves, but Lena doubted they’d be anything of interest to her. There were two doors: one to the closet and another to the bathroom. The Christmas theme continued from the front room into the hotel room in the decoration with covered with a red and green Christmas quilt on the bed, poinsettias and candles in the window sill, and wallpaper patterned with red and green holly branches. Lena wondered what this place did when Christmas ended.

Setting her briefcase and bag on the bed, Lena went through what she still had in her inventory. Thankfully, Lena always carried a spare tooth brush and make-up in her bag and it looked as if the bathroom had the rest of the toiletries she’d need. Still, she’d have to go shopping tomorrow for new wardrobe. Money wouldn’t be problem as she still had plenty of cash and credit cards on her. Checking her phone one more time, she sucked her teeth when she saw the lack of service once again. At least, she was finally in a place she could get warm again.

With a sigh, Lena kicked off her boots and flopped down on the bed which was notably softer than it looked. Unable to resist, she took one more long drag of the sweet peppermint scented scarf before she laid it careful on the vanity beside her. Shrugging off her still damp coat, Lena tossed it towards the chair, not wanting to bother to get up. But she missed and the jacket hit the floor with an unexpected thump.

Frowning, Lena stood up and decided to investigate. Perhaps she left her room-key in it? But it was still on the vanity with the scarf. Yet when she squatted down to check her jacket pockets, her hands found something cool and solid to the touch. She pulled it out and gasped, falling back on to the floor in shock.

It was the white snow flake Christmas ornament Eve had given her. Generic red inscription and all.

Chapter Text

For some time, Lena simply stared at the ornament trying to figure out some possible explanation for how it to come by on her person, but every theory she came up with seemed as unlikely as the first. She had thrown it away before just before she left her office, hadn’t she? Maybe she had mistakenly thrown away the box instead of the contents and had had it in her pocket ever since. But then why hadn’t she felt it in her pocket before now? Perhaps someone on the bus had gotten to her and slipped it in. But for what purpose? Did Eve have something to do with this? Had she put someone up to it? Did she really not handle Lena’s rejection of the gift that well?

She was scientist. She was supposed to question everything as everything had a logical explanation, but this ornament seemed to defy that.

Or she was just tired. After all, Lena had had a very long day. Nothing was making much sense anymore and the longer she looked at the ornament or the holly branch patterned wallpaper, the more Lena felt her sanity and thought slipping. Yeah, that was it. Lena just needed sleep.

Removing her jewelry and hair pins, Lena turned off the lights and stumbled into bed, burrowing under the soft blankets and quilts. The way she sank into the soft bedding and the covers settled around her, Lena felt safe and comfortable for the first time in such a long time. She had never realized how much cozier a bed of cotton and flannel was in comparison to her bed of silk and satin in her apartment back home. The smell of pine and peppermint tickled her nose as Lena drifted off into a much needed sleep.

However, the sleep didn’t last as long as she’d have liked. Her mind woke up abuzz a few hours later still concerned about the ornament and her secretary. There was an answer there and Lena had to know. Despite it being dark outside, Lena rolled out of bed and pulled on her boots. Her phone may have not signal in the room, but this was a town where at least a couple hundred, possibly thousand, people lived. There had to be service somewhere.

Her coat was still a little damp, but Lena decided to tolerate it as she slipped her phone and key into her pockets. For a brief moment, Lena thought about leaving the scarf, but soon caved as she considered how much colder the town would be at night. Smiling slightly as the warm scent of peppermint filled her nose, Lena slipped out of her room, locking the door behind her. She gave a silent prayer that no one would be downstairs where she’d be forced to endure awkward small talk and thankfully, the fates were kind to her. While no one sat at the front desk, the fire still crackled beneath the hearth and she heard the clicking of glass and conversation in the room she believed to be the dining room and kitchen. Padding quietly across the room, Lena slipped through the front door and down the porch steps and into town.

Despite the dark sky, the town streets were ablaze with lights: candles in every window, lit garlands wrapped around every lamppost, and multicolored Christmas lights covering every structure. It was as if the town had taken on that fabled Christmas challenge of being so bright that they could be seen from outer space. Yet Lena could only wonder what their electricity bill must be like.

Holding her cell phone out in front of her as she scanned for signal, Lena began the trek through the salted, slushy sidewalk deeper into town. Although she doubted the town was very large, she still wanted to limit her chances of getting lost by staying on the same road as much as possible. However, her signal prospects weren’t looking very promising as she trudged on past the post office/bus depot. There wasn’t much sidewalk left and Lena was definitely not fond of the idea of wading through whatever muddy snow laid along the side of the highway. Perhaps all she needed was a little height.

After a quick scan of her surroundings, Lena spied a white wooden gazebo in what looked like the center of a small park in the middle of town. Like everything else around it, it was awash in white Christmas lights and garland and even had a large wreath hanging from the front of it. Although it looked tacky to Lena, she hoped the added few feet as well as the open space around it provided some close to a signal.

Deliberately checking both ways before she crossed the street despite the town appearing completely empty, Lena quickly sauntered across the road and into the park towards the gazebo, but even with all the lights surrounding her and salted sidewalk before her, she failed to notice the layer of ice that accumulated on the steps. Her boot slipped and Lena doubted the frozen wooden steps would do much to break her fall.

But before her body could collide with the hard and cold steps, strong but soft arms wrapped around her, catching her just in the nick of time. Lena squeaked in surprised as they pulled her back and upright.

“We’ve got to stop meeting like this.”

Lena spun around in the limited space the saving embrace allowed and found herself face to face with that same beautiful blonde as before. She took in another sharp breath of surprise, falling back a bit more, but the secure arms around her held her steady. Kara laughed softly, her warm breath tickling Lena’s face and Lena suddenly realized that they were almost nose to nose. That sweet peppermint scent filled Lena’s head with a haze, triggering her body go slightly limp for a moment before she caught herself and straighten up.

“Are you okay?” Kara asked, her arms still tight around Lena’s waist and her face still mere inches from Lena’s.

“Yeah,” Lena whispered as she quickly lost herself in those glacier blue eyes.

“You can let go then, you know.”

Lena’s eyes darted down and she gasped when she realized that she had tight grip on Kara’s biceps. While the jacket Kara wore was soft, the arms underneath felt toned and hard. Sculpted even. Did being a postal worker give people muscles? Lena guessed it would with all the mail this town’s postal office seemed to acquire. Barely resisting the urge to squeeze Kara’s biceps again but still recognizing that she had held on to them for a few seconds too long, Lena hastily dropped her arms.

“Oh, yeah, sorry,” Lena mumbled taking a step back as she noticed Kara had dropped her arms too. Lena hadn’t understood how warm and secure those arms made her feel until she had lost them. “What are you doing out so late?”

“Oh, you know,” Kara shrugged. “Just walking. The town’s always so pretty at night and it’s always so peaceful. It’s just nice to take time and enjoy it.”

“You just regularly take walks in the middle of the night alone? In the cold?” Lena asked, cocking her head slightly.

“I wouldn’t say it’s the middle of the night. I mean, it’s not even ten. And I also had a sudden craving for milk and cookies.” Kara held up a plastic bag as evidence. “Someone drank all the milk at home so I had to buy more and they had the cookies on sale… so yeah.”

“Oh,” Lena nodded. “I guess that makes sense.”

“What about you?” Kara asked. “Don’t tell me you’re on an emergency grocery run too.”

“What? Oh no, I was trying to find cell service.” Lena patted down her pockets as she tried to find her phone. “Um, you wouldn’t happen to know where my phone went, would you?”

“Your phone?” Kara swung her head around in search. “No, but I can help you look for it.”

“You don’t have to,” Lena assured her as she bent towards the ground to search through the snow. “I don’t want your groceries to spoil.”

“It’s milk and cookie dough,” Kara said, setting it on the gazebo steps. “The whole town is basically a fridge right now, so I don’t think I have anything to worry about. Besides, your phone is more important.”

“Still, I feel wrong keeping you out here in this cold,” Lena said, deliberately turning her back from Kara as she searched so she wouldn’t keep distracted by how memorizing her wavy blonde hair looked against the snow.

“This kind of cold doesn’t bother me. It’s nothing like where I use to live. We were lucky to see if ever get above freezing there.”

“Oh gosh,” Lena shivered at the thought. “Where did you use to live?”

“Uh- Hey, I found it!”

Lena spun around to see Kara holding up her phone proudly in her hands, and thankfully, it all looked to be in one piece.

“Thank you!” Lena moved towards it, taking the phone out of Kara’s hand, thrilled that it didn’t seem to be damaged by the fall or snow. “You’re a life saver.”

“Anytime,” Kara beamed. “Although I must say, I don’t think I’ve ever saved someone’s life as much as I have yours.”

“Ah, well.” Lena’s cheeks began to redden and it wasn’t from the cold. “Sorry about that.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s always a pleasure,” Kara’s smile widened as she flashed her pearly white teeth before she stepped forward to grab her plastic bag off the gazebo steps. “Well, I guess I best be off. I have a preheating oven with my name all over it.”

“Oh, okay,” Lena straightened up a bit as she fiddled with her phone. “Oh, and before you go, do you know anywhere I could get cell reception?”

“Well, sometimes if you just turn the phone like this,” Kara took a step forward, invading Lena’s personal’s space slightly as she gently tilted the screen of Lena’s phone until it dinged. “And there we go!”

“How did you do that?” Lena asked with a gasp.

“It’s just an old trick,” Kara said with a shrug and small smile.

“I guess Winn was right,” Lena said, glancing up from her phone to Kara’s blue eyes with a small smile, “you do have the magic touch.”

“I guess you could say that,” Kara smiled warmly as she took a step back. “I’ll leave you to make your phone call. Have a nice night and be sure to watch out for cars and ice. Those things can really sneak up on you, you know.”

“I’ll try to keep that in mind,” Lena said wryly.

“And nice scarf by the way. It looks really good on you.”

Lena blush deepened and she swore she saw the blonde wink.

“Goodnight, Kara,” Lena called after her.

“Goodnight, Lena,” Kara said with one final smile before walking off down the sidewalk.

Lena watched her longer than she meant to, unable to resist a smile when she saw the little hop skip the blonde did as she walked through a small pile of snow. Shaking her head, Lena chastised herself for letting herself get distracted like that. The woman was a postal worker with a penchant for cookies and snow; Lena was a billionaire with a heart of ice and a terrorist family. Regardless of how sweet or kind or beautiful she was, they were from different worlds. It would never work out.

Not to mention the Clark issue; the man Kara shared a truck and most likely a deep relationship with. As much as Lena wanted to believe Kara had been flirting with her, she knew it was just Kara being friendly. She probably treated every stranger like that. There was nothing special about Lena.

With a heavy sigh, Lena dialed Eve’s number on her phone.

“Ms. Luthor?”

“Hey, Eve,” Lena greeted as she wrapped her coat closer to her chest. “I was just calling to let you know I won’t be back in National City for a while.”

“Is everything alright, Ms. Luthor?”

“There was an issue with my flight so I bought a bus ticket—”

“You got on a bus?” Eve asked sounding just a bit horrified.

“Yes, but there was a mix-up and now I’m stuck in Montana for a while.”

“Montana? Gosh, how did you wind up there?”

“I don’t know, but I’m stuck here now. I just need you to make sure my schedule is clear until January like we talked about.”

“Of course, Ms. Luthor. Is there anything else you’d like for me to do?”

“Well, there’s one thing I wanted to ask you about,” Lena said as she fiddled with the Santa hat key ring on her hotel key. “It’s about that Christmas ornament you gave me.”

“Christmas ornament? What Christmas ornament?”

“The snow flake one with the red inscription. You left it on my desk on top of those files I asked for.”

“Ms. Luthor, I didn’t give you a Christmas ornament.”

“Oh.” Lena’s brow furrowed and her shoulder’s slumped.

“I know Christmas isn’t your thing, but did you want me to get you one? I don’t know how I’d get it to you though…”

Lena heard a loud laughing and glasses clinking on the other end of her line and she instantly felt guilty for bothering Eve so late and clearly interrupting her plans.

“No, it’s fine,” Lena said through a forced smile. “That was all. I hope you enjoy your party.”

“Okay and thank you, Ms. Luthor. And Merry Christmas!”

“Goodbye, Eve.” Lena hung up her phone.

---

Typically, when faced with issued like the ornament, Lena would obsess and spend several sleepless nights trying to figure it out. She wasn’t one who admitted defeat easily. But with no possible leads and the stress of several days still weighing on her, Lena decided that she was better fit for a drink instead. Hopefully the bar in the Danvers’ Bed and Breakfast was still open and they had something a little bit stronger than a glass of wine.

When she carefully opened the front door, she was relieved to still hear voices coming from the dining area where the bar was located. Stomping her boots quietly on the welcome mat, Lena set off for it but stopped at the door when she saw that the voices she heard were really just two women talking very intently to one another.

“Don’t lie to me,” the red head from earlier, Alex, said shaking her finger. “You intentionally placed mistletoe there.”

“And why would I have done that?” the female bartender asked as she dried a glass out with a towel.

“Because you know this is my seat,” Alex replied holding her hands up in the air. “I sit here almost every night.”

“Sounds like you have a bit of a drinking problem,” the bartender said setting down the glass and crossing her arms, a smile tugging at her lips.

“Ugh, just admit it.”

“Why? I don’t see what the big deal is.”

“Because otherwise it doesn’t count. If set intentionally by one of the parties to trap one from another party, the traditions of mistletoe don’t apply.”

“I’ve never heard that rule before.”

“Well, we both know who the expert is at Christmas between the two of us and I say it does exist.”

Smirking, the bartender slowly leaned forward so that her hips and open arms were resting against the bar.

“Are you saying you don’t want to kiss me, Ms. Danvers?” The bartender asked with a sly smile.

Alex’s cheeks reddened slightly as she leaned forward, closing the distance between the bartender’s face and her own.

“Well, I never said that,” Alex said before she pressed her lips against the other woman’s.

Unlike most mistletoe kisses Lena had seen, this one was more than just a peck.

Deciding that it’d probably be best to just leave the two women alone, Lena started to back out of the room, but unfortunately for her, the wooden floor creaked beneath her as she shifted her weight. The two women sprung apart and Alex whipped her head towards the direction of the sound.

“Ms. Luthien,” Alex gasped, quickly standing up from her stool to her feet. “We were just um…”

“I know,” Lena said with a smug smile as she pointed over Alex’s head where the tawny green branch with white berries hung. “I saw the mistletoe.”

“Oh.” A blush almost matching the color of her hair swept across Alex’s face. “I’m sorry if that offended you or anything.”

“Offend me?” Lena asked with a scoff as she walked forward. “The only way I’d be offended would be if one of you tried to tell me that kissing women impaired your ability to pour me a drink, which I know from experience that it does not.”

The bartender’s face brightened.

“What it’ll be then, ma’am?” she asked cheerily.

“Scotch if you have it,” Lena said as she slid on to a stool next to Alex.

“That’ll be right up,” the bartender said as she reached for a glass and bottle.

“Sorry, Ms. Luthien,” Alex said as she sat back down on her stool. “Most of the visitors we get a generally retired and conservative. We just try to play it safe around the guests.”

“Trust me, you have nothing to worry about with me,” Lena said as she watched her scotch be poured. “I’d be rather hypocritical if I said otherwise. And please, call me Lena.”

“Well, it’s nice to meet you then, Lena,” the bartender grinned as she passed Lena her drink. “And you can call Maggie.”

“Pleasure,” Lena said before taking a large swig.

“You know I could have just pour you a shot if you planned on drinking it like that,” Maggie said with a raised eyebrow.

“It’s been a long couple of days,” Lena said before finishing off the rest with another large swallow.

“Oh, I’ve heard,” Maggie said as she topped Lena’s glass off.

“I can take you to some of the stores around town tomorrow if you’d like,” Alex offered. “That way you can find some clothes to replace the ones you lost. I’m sure most of the storeowners would give you a discount.”

“That would be nice, actually,” Lena said, feeling slight warmth inside her that she knew wasn’t from the alcohol. “Thank you.”

“It looks like that scarf’s pretty comfortable though,” Maggie said before narrowing her eyes slightly. “Wait, isn’t that Kara’s?”

“Yes, she was kind enough to lend it to me,” Lena murmured into her drink before taking another generous swig.

“Uh huh,’ Maggie said slowly, sharing a glance with Alex. “Well that was very nice of her.”

Feeling as if she was suddenly on the outside of an inside joke, Lena choked down the rest of scotch and stood up from her stool.

“Well, it’s been a long day,” Lena said as she placed a twenty on the counter. “It was a pleasure talking with both of you and now I think I’ll just leave you two to your mistletoe.”

“Anytime,” Maggie said with a smile as she leaned against the bar.

“I’ll be around all day tomorrow for whenever you want to go shopping,” Alex said.

“I’ll see you then,” Lena said as she started for the door. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” they called after her.

Chapter Text

Despite her previous nap and the ever-pressing mystery surrounding the ornament, Lena slept quite well. Perhaps it was a result of having a room right over the fireplace or the soft quilts on the bed, but Lena had never felt cozier. If she didn’t live in an apartment, she’d consider installing a chimney in her own home. The quilt however would be much easier to obtain. Of course, it wouldn’t have the same atrocious Christmas theme ruining it though.

After all the notice the simple white scarf garnered yesterday, Lena decided to leave the sweet peppermint smelling fabric in her room rather than add it to her outfit. She was getting new clothes anyway. Kara didn’t need her wearing it around and potentially ruining it. Inhaling from it one last time, Lena left the scarf on her vanity next to the ornament and prayed that they’d both still be there when she returned.

“Good Morning, Lena!” Eliza greeted as Lena descended the stairs. “Breakfast is being served if you’d like for me to grab you a plate or a cup of coffee.”

“Just coffee would be fine,” Lena said as she walked into the dining area where Alex was.

“What?” Maggie called from the kitchen. “You don’t trust my cooking?”

“I’m just typically not breakfast person,” Lena explained, taking a seat at one of the empty tables.

She was surprised by the number of guests she saw, but most seemed older or had families and were all engaged in their own worlds. Lena seemed like the one who was alone. Typical.

“Well, it is the most important meal of the day,” Alex said from where she was nursing her own cup of coffee by the door.

“And I made poached eggs!” Maggie exclaimed. “Do you have any idea how difficult that is? I must've watched Julia Child do it a hundred times before I perfected it.”

“Fine,” Lena sighed with a small smile. “I’ll take one poached eggs.”

“Now we’re talking!” Maggie cheered.

“Maggie will have that right out to you,” Eliza said a she returned with a cup of coffee. “And cream and sugar are on the table.”

“Thank you,” Lena said before looking at Alex. “Would you be free to go shopping after breakfast?”

“Sounds good to me,” Alex replied with a smile.

---

“So, this is Main Street,” Alex announced as she led Lena down the front porch steps and on to the sidewalk. “You can tell that because of the street signs and it has the most and best shops and restaurant on it. There’s also a wonderful Bed and Breakfast located on it, but you already know about that.” She rubbed her hands together as she looked down both sides of the street. “Alright, let’s see. I think the stores most up your alley would be down that way. Kara’s sister-in-law helps run a boutique down there that I’m sure you’d love.”

Kara’s sister-in-law. Yeah, Kara was definitely married. Maybe it was a good thing she didn’t wear the scarf.

The boutique looked small and quaint on the outside but was actually rather spacious and grand on the inside. Wooden floors, exposed bricks, and from the looks of it, it even had a second floor. Unfortunately, it was all Christmas themed. Fake snow littered the displays with ornaments and doves hanging from the ceilings. And the amount of Christmas trees shoved in every nook and cranny made Lena pity the poor forest that they scalped.

And even more unfortunately, most of the merchandise seemed to match. Racks of red and green with sparkles and tinsel crowded the floor. There wasn’t a mannequin in sight without displaying either atrocious Christmas sweaters with reindeer or elves or fuzzy pajamas of some kind saturated with the winter holiday.

Perhaps Lena didn’t need new clothes after all. Maybe she could just wear her current clothes inside out. That should buy her some time before laundry, right?

“Hey, Lois!” Alex called out as they walked towards the register.

“Alex!” The woman behind the counter rehanging clothes called. “It’s a surprise seeing you here. Are you second guessing those pajamas you bought Maggie already?”

“Yeah actually, but that’s not why I’m here,” Alex said before placing a gentle touch on Lena’s shoulder. “This is Lena Luthien.”

The saleswoman flicked her eyes towards Lena and she raised her dark eyebrows. Lena’s eyes widened and her stomach curled with fear. This was Lois Lane. The Lois Lane . The one who first broke the story on Lex’s embezzlement and other possible crimes. The one who then covered his brief reign of terror over Metropolis and won a Pulitzer for it. The one from the pressed that Lena regular dodged for weeks during her brother’s trial.

What was she doing her in nowhere Montana?

Oh gosh, Lena was screwed.

“Lena Luthien, eh?” Lois asked Lena.

“Yeah,” Alex said, answering for her. “She’s unfortunately lost her luggage in a bus incidence yesterday.”

“Ah, so you’re the one I’ve been hearing about,” the Lois smirked, but Lena couldn’t tell if it was playfully or mockingly.

“I was wondering if you could show her around the store a bit,” Alex said. “Help her out a bit while I run next door and try to finish up some last-minute Christmas shopping.”

“Still searching for Maggie?” Lois asked.

“Ugh, she’s just so hard to shop for,” Alex groaned. “I mean she’s a chef so I know she’d like some new cookware, but then I feel weird because technically she works for me. Well at least my mom anyways. And what if she doesn’t like those pajamas or the perfume or anything I got her?”

“Try jewelry,” Lois suggested as she walked out from behind the counter. “It’s hard to go wrong there.”

“Why haven’t I thought of that?” Alex asked herself. “Thanks Lois! And take care of her. I’ll be back in a bit.”

The boutique door closed and it was followed by a tense silence of neither Lois or Lena moving or saying anything. Lena chewed the inside of her lip as her eyes flittered around her surroundings, deliberately not making eye contact with the woman across from her who’s eyes bore daggers into her.

“So, what brings Lena Luthor to North Pole, Montana?” Lois asked.

“So you do remember me,” Lena sighed, finally flicking her green eyes to Lois’s.

“I’m Lois Lane,” she said crossing her arms. “A Pulitzer Prize winning journalist. You think I don’t recognize a member of the family I covered for months when I see one?”

“Fair point,” Lena said raising her head and mimicking Ms. Lane’s crossed arms. “Although I suppose I could ask what a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist is doing in a place like North Pole, Montana.”

“I suppose,” Ms. Lane shrugged as she leaned back against the counter. “But I asked you first.”

“I’m surprised an award-winning reporter like yourself has to resort to immature tactics for interviewing your sources.”

“It helps wade through the muck caused by CEOs and members of terrorist families trying to evade questioning.”

“Cut right down to the bone, don’t you?” Lena sighed, lacking the fight she normally had for members of the press like Lois required. “If you must know, there was travel mix-up and now here I am indefinitely with few clothes and little cell service.”

“Travel mix-ups tend to happen when you use a fake name,” Ms. Lane said with a quirked eyebrow.

“Look,” Lena sighed again as she closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. “After everything that’s been going on with my family— the trial, the mass murder, the terrorism—I just want to distance myself as much as possible from them. I just…I saw the opportunity to be someone else for a change and I took it.” Lena dropped her hand and looked up at the woman across from her. “I know we haven’t always been on the best of terms, but I promise you Ms. Lane, I’m nothing like my family. So please, don’t ruin this for me. I just want to be normal for once in my life.”

“I never said I would,” Ms. Lane said with a shrug. “I know what it’s like to want to distance yourself from your family.”

“Isn’t your father an honored military general?” Lena asked, briefly recalling a time when Lex use to strike business deals with the military before his... incident.

“Yes, and a neurotic one at that,” Ms. Lane said pushing herself off the counter. “Our relationship has always been strained. Even more so after I moved from Metropolis to here.”

“So why did you move here?” Lena asked.

“I came here for a story and fell in love,” Ms. Lane said with a small smile. “They needed part-time help with the store and since I was a bit burned out with journalism and Metropolis after covering all the hard tragedies courtesy of your brother I thought I’d take the job. Besides journalism is so mobile now that I can pretty much work from wherever and whenever I want.”

“Really?” Lena asked, not completely buying it. “Even with this horrible reception?”

“It’s not so bad,” Ms. Lane said with a shrug and sly smile. “Especially when you know someone with the magic touch.”

Magic touch. It sounded like Kara was just a really friendly person.

“Now,” Ms. Lane said with a clap of her hands. “Let’s get you some new clothes.”

“Please tell me you have something that’s not covered in bells, reindeer, or tinsel,” Lena asked with a groan.

“Perhaps,” Ms. Lane said with a smirk. “But it’ll cost you extra.”

Lena shot her questioning look with a raised eyebrow.

“What?” Ms. Lane asked with a mock offense. “Did you think I wasn’t to take advantage of the billionaire in dire need of a new wardrobe who walked into my store? What kind of saleswoman would I be otherwise? Besides, a tenth of proceeds go to charity anyways.”

“Just show me the clothes, Ms. Lane,” Lena smirked.

“Oh please,” Ms., Lane said with a wave of her hand. “You have enough power and money that you can get away with just calling me Lois like everyone else.”

“Alright then, Lois.” Lena said unable to stop the small smile that stretched across her lips.

---

“Wow, it looks like everything went great with Lois,” Alex said, gesturing to the many bags in Lena’s hands as she approached her outside the boutique.

“Yes, actually,” Lena smiled. “I never would have thought that a hard-hitting journalist would know so much about current fashions and trends.”

“That’s the Metropolis in her,” Alex said. “I guess it was nice to talk someone else from the city?”

“More or less,” Lena shrugged. “She’s like Metropolis but without the typical bite.” Lena eyed the small bag in Alex’s hand. “Find something for Maggie?”

“Maybe,” Alex said as she started chewing her bottom lip.

“Don’t tell me you’re already having buyer’s remorse,” Lena said, raising an eyebrow. “What did you get her?”

“Diamonds,” Alex replied with a slight smile.

“I’m sure she’ll love it,” Lena insisted. “Every girl loves diamonds.”

“We’ll see,” Alex mumbled.

“Hey guys!”

Both women turned around, eyes widening slightly as they saw a bubbly blonde prancing towards them. If she didn’t have a coffee cup in each fist, Lena was sure Kara would be waving at them passionately with both hands.

“Hey, Kara,” Alex greeted as she tensed slightly, almost as if she didn’t trust Kara while she carried multiple hot beverages excitedly.

“Hey,” Lena said, her tone betraying the unexpected giddiness blooming within her.

“I thought it was you two, but I wasn’t sure,” Kara said, her nose red from the cold and thrill. “But I’m glad I was right.”

“That didn’t mean you needed to leave Clark behind,” Alex said, leaning to the side to look behind Kara.

“Oh yeah,” Kara said, turning to follow Alex’s gaze.

It felt as if someone had taken a hammer to the ballooning excitement in Lena’s chest when she saw the man jogging up the side walk behind Kara. Like Kara, he wore glasses and jeans and had a favor for flannels. From his broad shoulders thick biceps, Lena wondered if his figure was as toned as Kara’s. To make matters even worse for Lena, he a smile and kindness to his eyes that reminded her too much of Kara for her hate.

Oh gosh, they even wore matching ascots.

“I turn around for one second and you just disappear,” Clark said, panting a bit after he caught up.

“Sorry about that,” Kara said as the redness on her cheeks deepened. “Oh, and Clark this is Lena. Lena this is Clark.”

As much as Lena wanted to run and hide, she held her ground and pulled from that Luthor strength to force a smile and small wave.

“Oh, so you’re Lena,” Clark said with a grin as he pushed up his glasses.

Lena’s smile and wave faltered. Had Kara talked about her? To Clark? From the way Kara’s cheeks reddened even more and the brief awkward silence that followed, she most certainly had.

“Hey, Clark,” Alex said, her back straightening a bit. “Could I talk to you and Lois about something really quick?”

“Is everything okay?” Clark asked, his forehead instantly wrinkling in concern.

“Yeah, it’s just… about the Christmas party coming up,” Alex explained with a tight smile.

“Do you need to talk to me too?” Kara asked, stepping forward.

“No, that’s fine,” Alex said with a bit more of a forced smile. “Clark and Lois can handle it. Just keep Lena company for a minute or two.”

“Okay,” Kara said slowly, her brow furrowing as she watched Alex slip her arm around Clark’s and lead him back into the boutique.

“I wonder what that’s about,” Lena said as she watched the door close behind them.

“Beats me,” Kara said, turning back to face Lena.

Kara opened her mouth to say something else, but was interrupted by an insistent tugging at her flannel.

“Well what do we have here?” Kara asked, still smiling as she looked down at the little girl who couldn’t have been more than five with a hold on her shirt.

“I was really good this year,” the little girl said, swaying back and forth on her feet.

“Is that so?” Kara asked, grinning brightly as she knelt down to the little girl’s level.

“I’m sorry,” the woman behind the little girl said who Lena assumed to be mother. “She just insisted on coming up and talking to you.”

“It’s quite alright,” Kara assured the mother before turning back to the little girl. “What do you want for Christmas this year?”

“I want Santa to bring me a swimming pool,” the little girl, flashing a baby tooth grin.

“A swimming pool?” Kara repeated with genuine excitement that made Lena’s heart skip. “I’ll tell you what, if you can promise me that you’ll be good, I can personally guarantee that you’ll have a great Christmas, Katie.”

“Okay!” the little girl exclaimed as she jumped after her mother’s hand.

“Now what do we say?” the mother asked.

“Thank you!”

“Anytime, Katie,” Kara replied, waving to the little girl as her mother ushered her down the sidewalk.

“That was really sweet what you did,” Lena said as she watched the little girl continue to wave with reckless enthusiasm at Kara despite her mother’s efforts to lead her down a side street.

“Kids,” Kara said as she stood up, brushing the snow off her pants. “They just do some of the darnest things this time of year.”

“Did you know her?” Lena asked.

“What?” Kara asked, blinking.

“You said her name,” Lena explained.

“Oh, that,” Kara paused for a second. “There was a locket around her neck. It had her name on it. So, I just assumed.”

“I guess I missed that,” Lena replied.

“Yeah, it was real small.” Kara said before she suddenly realized that both her hands were still full. “Oh, do you want one?” Kara held out one of the cups. “There was a mix-up and the barista gave me two.”

“Oh,” Lena said, her gaze falling to the cup and questioning who on earth thought it was a good idea to give this woman caffeine. “Thank you, but I already had a cup of coffee today.”

“It’s hot chocolate,” Kara said, beaming.

“Oh,” Lena said, cocking her head to the side a little.

“Come on,” Kara said, wiggling her eyebrows as she swayed the cup in front of her. “It even has extra marshmallows and whipped cream.”

“You put marshmallows and whipped cream on your hot chocolate?” Lena asked.

“Why limit a good thing?”

“Well, I suppose you are right about that,” Lena said with a grin as she reached out for the cup. Warmth shot through her as their fingers touched and Lena knew it wasn’t from the hot beverage.

“Then a cheers is order then,” Kara smiled as she held up her cup.

“Cheers,” Lena said unable to hold back a grin as she clicked her paper cup against Kara’s and took a drink.

“Good?” Kara asked.

“Delicious,” Lena said, coming away from her sip with a slight cream mustache.

“Oh hey, you got something right there,” Kara said

And rather than pointing it out on herself, she reached forward and brushed the whiteness on Lena’s upper lip away with her thumb. Lena tensed, but didn’t move, doing her best not to react when that sweet scent peppermint flooded her nose or when Kara’s warm touch lingered just a second too long.

“Thanks,” Lena breathed, her green eyes locked on Kara’s blue.

“Any time,” Kara said, a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

And for a brief second, Lena understood why Lois could leave Metropolis for a place like this.

Chapter Text

“So… you and Kara…” Alex said suggestively to Lena as they walked back to the Bed and Breakfast.

“What about us?” Lena asked knowing full well what Alex was hinting at and praying that an unwanted blush wouldn’t betray her.

“Well, you two just seemed real comfortable with each other back there,” Alex said, raising her eyebrows and nodding at the cup still in Lena’s hand. “Is there anything you want to tell me?”

“I’ve known her for barely two days,” Lena replied. “I guess we’re friends if you want to call it anything. She’s nice and sweet, but she’s like that with everyone.”

“I wouldn’t say with everyone,” Alex said with a smirk.

Lena couldn’t believe what this woman was encouraging. Yes, Lena was fond of Kara but it wasn’t as if anything to happen given the situation. Lena had National City that she needed to get back to and Kara had Clark that she was in a relationship with. Was Alex actually advocating for infidelity? Did Maggie know about this? And Lena had just started to like her too.

“We just keep running into each other, that’s all,” Lena insisted a bit more forcefully than she intended. “I doubt it’ll keep happening. With the holidays and everything, I probably won’t even see her again.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Alex said, smirking wider. “She’s coming by the inn later this afternoon.”

“What?” Lena asked, her eyes widening a bit. “Why?”

“Well, someone has to deliver our tree.”

---

Lena planned on hiding in her room for the rest of the day. While yes, everyone here was nice and yes, she wanted to see Kara again, this was all just becoming a little too much for Lena. Not only was the girl she crushing on already taken, she was lying to everyone about who she really was. Lex and Lillian may excel at lying, but Lena always found it exhausting.

To relax, Lena told herself a nice bath would be in order. After all, the bathroom was well stocked with peppermint bath salts and oils. She doubted they smelled as good as the white scarf on her dresser, but she decided not to let that hold her back. She just needed something to take her mind off things. But as soon as Lena dressed down and slipped on her bathrobe, the hot water stopped flowing from the faucet.

Of course. Why would the fates decide that today was the day that they’d start being kind?

Frustrated, Lena tied her sash tight around her fluffy bathrobe, grabbed her room key, and scurried downstairs to talk to Eliza. When she made it to the front desk, she was thankful to see Eliza there. The last thing she needed was to run into someone while she was just in her robe.

“Ms. Luthien,” Eliza greeted and Lena tried not flinch at the name. “What can I do for you this afternoon?”

“Hi,” Lena said, bundling her robe tighter. “I was just trying to take a bath and the hot water cut out. Do you think there’s anything you can do about that?”

“Oh, it’s gets finicky sometimes,” Eliza explained. “I can have Alex go down and take a look at it.”

“Thank you,” Lena said.

But just as she said this, a blast of cold air hit her exposed calves and bare feet. Jumping back and tensing up, Lena spun towards the source to see a large pine tree making its way through the front door. Nestled in between the green branches and the front door, Lena recognized an all too familiar head of blonde hair and her heart sank.

“Lena!” Kara exclaimed.

Oh, of all the rotten luck… Of all times to run into Kara, Lena was barefoot and in a hotel bathrobe of all things.

“Kara!” Lena’s eyes widened as she instantly pulled the sash tighter. Thank God, that at least her legs were shaved. “What are you doing here?”

“I always deliver the Christmas tree to Danvers a few days before Christmas,” Kara explained as she continued to wrestle with the tree as it seemed stuck in the front door. She flinched slightly as a branch wacked her face and Lena instantly took a step forward before catching herself. It wasn’t like she could do anything especially with how she was dressed.

“Oh, Kara,” Eliza fretted as she came around the counter. “Do you need any help?”

“Nah, I got it,” Kara assured her as she spat out a few needles. “Tastes like good sap too.”

“Just be careful, dear,” Eliza said, coming to stand next to Lena as they both watched.

“Always am!” Kara said with a bright smile as she pulled the tree free from its hang up. “There we go. Alright, where did you want it, Eliza? Same place as last year?”

“The tree stand’s already out,” Eliza said with a proud smile as she took a step back to clear a path for Kara. Lena followed Eliza’s lead although she found herself a bit distracted as she watched Kara move the large tree around as if it were nothing. She couldn’t help but bite her lip as she thought once again about those muscles underneath that flannel.

Lena shook her head. Oh gosh, how pathetic was she.

“I’m just going to head on back up to my room,” Lena announced, taking a step back towards the stairs. “You two seem busy.”

“Are you going to help us decorate?” Kara asked with those bright eyes and smile that Lena couldn’t say no too.

“Umm…” Lena chewed the inside of her cheek.

“Please Lena,” Eliza seconded with a kind smile. “It would be wonderful if you were to join us. Alex and Maggie always help too, but I know that they’d be more than happy to have you here too.”

“Uh…” Lena twisted her fingers nervously with her sash as she tried to think of some excuse, but then her eyes landed on Kara’s pleading blue eyes and she crumbled. “Yeah, I suppose I can come down for a little while.”

The joy on Kara’s face made Lena’s stomach clench, but she wasn’t sure if it was out of regret or longing.

“Wonderful!” Eliza said. “Just come back down as soon as you get changed. Alex will have probably tracked down the boxes Christmas lights and ornaments by the time you get back.”

“Alright,” Lena said as she ascended the stairs. “See you in a bit.”

As soon as she closed the door to her room, Lena instantly regretted her decision. But Lena was a woman of her word and she couldn’t stomach the thought of disappointing that adorable perky blonde downstairs even if nothing were to happen between them. It would still make Lena feel as if she were kicking a puppy with a steel toed boot.

After rifling through recent shopping purchases, Lena settled on a green sweater and black pants. Now, should she wear her hair up or down? Should she put on anymore make-up? Should she give Kara back her scarf now or wait until the end so she wouldn’t have to carry it? Now she was just being ridiculous. Lena shook her head. These were nice people and Kara would never be anything more than a friend. Lena had no business standard or Luthor reputation to uphold as none of them knew about it. None of them cared what Lena looked like even if Lena secretly wanted one of them too.

Deciding to wear her hair down, Lena grabbed her jacket off the chair and Kara’s scarf off the vanity. She paused slightly to stare at the Christmas ornament and wondered briefly if the red inscription has always been so shiny or if it had moved during the night at all. Lena shook her head and determined that she would really go insane like the rest of her family if she kept overthinking mundane things like this. Pulling her coat on, Lena headed out of her room.
But as soon as the door clicked shut, the Christmas ornament vanished.

Chapter Text

Even though Lena hadn’t been gone that long, she returned downstairs to a packed house. Eliza and Alex dug through a series of box, retrieving what looked like ornaments while Lois set up a tiny, snow cover village on the mantle above the stockings and roaring fire. The Christmas tree was now standing tall in the corner of the room and Kara carried a festive green storage container which made Lena’s heart tighten in her chest, but then she saw Clark trailing not far behind her which made her heart sink into her stomach. Lena nervously pulled the sleeves of her green sweater taunt against her arms and chewed her bottom lip as she considered turning around and making a run for it, but Maggie spotted her before she had the chance.

“Lena!” Maggie announced loudly as she sauntered into the room holding a large plastic bowl. “You’re just in time! I need someone to help me make the popcorn garlands.”

Lena blinked. “Help you make what?”

“Popcorn garlands,” Maggie repeated as she set down the large bowl in her hands which Lena realized was full of white popcorn. “We got to string enough to wrap the tree a couple of times and it’d go a lot faster with two sets of hands instead of one.”

“Three,” Kara corrected as she plopped the green container down with a small grunt.

“No, two,” Maggie insisted as she gathered the needle and thread. “Me and Lena.”

“But I thought you said I was your fastest stringer,” Kara said, her brow creasing.

“Yes, but you also eat half the bowl,” Maggie replied, putting her hand on her hip. “And I really don’t want to have to make another bowl.”

“To be fair, you were the one who insisted we use white cheddar popcorn last year,” Kara said, raising an eyebrow.

“That’s because none of the guests ate it from the night before,” Maggie explained. “It was hard and stale.”

“Oh,” Kara shrugged. “Still tasted fine to me.”

“Ugh,” Maggie said, throwing her arms up in the air before turning to look at Lena. “You see what I have to deal with during the holidays?”

With Maggie’s playful grin, Alex’s eye roll, and Kara’s laughter, Lena couldn’t help but smile as she approached the couch.

“It’s not as bad as living with her,” Clark said. “The girl will plow through a tub of cookie dough in a single night.”

And Lena tried not to frown as her stomach soured.

“That’s because you ate all the ice cream!” Kara fired back with an accusatory finger. “What else was I supposed to eat?”

“How about the fruitcake I made?” Lois said, giving them both hard looks from across the room. “You know, the one that’s still in the fridge untouched.”

Both Clark and Kara exchanged a frantic look as both their faces adopted a subtle shade of red before both craning their necks as to not make eye contact with a hard stare of the brunette in front of them.

“Oh yeah,” Clark mumbled, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. “I guess we forgot about it.”

“Mmhm,” Lois said, crossing her arms. “You’re telling me in the multiple times a day you both open the fridge, neither one of you noticed the fruitcake that has been sitting there front and center for the past week?”

“We thought you were saving it for a special occasion?” Kara tried to offer but the look from Lois shut her down.

“This is why I never bake for you two,” Lois said, turning back to work on her snow village.

“You could try feeding it to the reindeer,” Alex suggested as she set aside wrapping and tissue paper from her box.

“Reindeer?” Lena asked, her eyebrows shooting up.

“Yeah, they own the Kent Tree and Reindeer Farm,” Eliza explained. “That’s why Kara brought the tree.”

“Oh,” Lena mumbled as she rubbed the back of her neck. She felt a bit ridiculous thinking that they had been postal workers considering she never saw their truck or them wearing anything resembling a uniform despite running into them multiple times. How many postal workers could a town this size even need considering there was already Winn? Then again, there had been all that mail. Of course, it was addressed to Santa Claus, a magical fictional being. Lena frowned when she realized that it was probably just Kara and Clark’s job to throw it all away.

“So, do you want your own bowl or are you okay with sharing the big one?” Maggie asked.

“Hm?” Lena asked, startled from her thoughts. “Oh, I’m fine with just sharing the big one.”

“Okay, cool.” Maggie plopped down on the couch. “We also have red and white thread to choose from. I suggest the red if you think you’re going to stab yourself with the needle a lot so the blood blends in. Or just commit and go for the white and try for the candy cane look.”

Lena thought Maggie was joking until she saw the size and point of the needle and her certainty wavered. Taking a small breath to calm herself, she took a seat next to Maggie on the couch and attempted to slyly watch what her partner did rather than admit ignorance. Lena vaguely recalled this sort of Christmas tradition from a commercial she saw once when she saw young and thinking just how ridiculous it seemed. Even if it was stale, wouldn’t it attract mice and ants? And how was she supposed to thread popped popcorn? It wasn’t as if there was a hole or anything. But she was the guest and Lena was adaptable. After all, she had rebuilt the company her family had run into the ground. How hard could stringing popcorn be?

Apparently, quite hard.

“Ah!” Lena sucked in her teeth as her needle went straight through her popcorn and into her finger tip. Luckily, she had gone with the red thread.

“You know I wasn’t being serious earlier, right?” Maggie asked, leaning forward to see the damage but backing off when she saw Kara coming around the back of the couch.

“Oh careful,” Kara said, placing a hand on Lena’s shoulder and sending a rush through Lena’s body. “Can I see?”

“Oh, um, sure,” Lena said, offering her pricked finger up to Kara and praying that her face wasn’t as red as it felt.

Kara gingerly took Lena’s hand in her own and a thrill went through Lena as Kara’s warm fingers pressed a tissue against the tiny drop of blood forming on the pad of Lena’s index finger. Lena chewed the inside of her cheek as she found herself lost staring into those caring blue eyes as they studied Lena’s hand. When they darted up to meet Lena’s green, Lena felt her breath catch in her throat.

“I think you’ll live to make popcorn garlands another day,” Kara said with a bright smile.

“Thank goodness,” Lena replied, unable to find the strength to move her hand out of Kara’s despite the several eyes that she could feel on them.

Kara’s eyes fell to the unfinished garland in Lena’s lap and frowned slightly when she saw the large gaps and crumpled pieces of popcorns strung.

“Have you ever done this before?” Kara asked.

“Um,” Lena bit her lip. “Not exactly.”

“Well, here. Let me show you,” Kara said as she dropped Lena’s hand and reached for the needle and popcorn. “You’ll want to try and thread through the kernel which makes it easier to watch your fingers. And then, just be sure to pull it all the way down the thread so there aren’t any gaps.”

“Oh, okay,” Lena said taking the offered needle and popcorn back from Kara. “Like this?”

“Maybe over a little bit more,” Kara said as her warm fingers gently guided Lena’s hand. “Yeah, just like that!”

“Thank you,” Lena mumbled, her face turning red as she noticed how long Kara’s hand lingered on her own.

“No problem,” Kara grinned. “Oh, and the final step—every time you string one, be sure to eat another.”

“Hey!” Maggie smacked Kara’s hand away from the bowl. “You better not be teaching our guest bad habits.”

Kara laughed and walked over to Alex to had gotten down to the ornaments in the box. Ignoring the raised eyebrow stare from Lois, Lena bent her head back down to her garland and did her best to focus on it rather than the tingling sensation lingering on her hands from Kara’s touch.

“Oh gosh,” Kara gasped as she pulled out a particular Christmas ornament from the box. “Is this you, Alex?”

“Give me that!” Alex made a swipe for the ornament, but Eliza snatched it up first.

“Oh, I remember this!” Eliza exclaimed as a bright smile lit up her face. “This was from Christmas… what was it Alex? Ten, fifteen years ago?”

“I was nine,” Alex grumbled, crossing her arms. “And you made me wear it.”

“Made you wear what?” Maggie asked eagerly as she hurried to Eliza’s side.

“Oh, no, Mags please,” Alex protested, but her words fell on deaf ears.

Alex’s ears turned pink when Maggie let out a loud laugh and covered her mouth.

“Oh babe, you look so precious!” Maggie told her, unable to take her eyes off the picture on the ornament.

“I made it you know,” Eliza said proudly and Maggie only laughed harder.

“Now I have to see,” Clark said coming to the side and sneaking a peak. “Oh wow.”

“Show it to Lois,” Eliza said as she gave it to Clark.

“Sure, let’s just pass it around it,” Alex sulked, her face turning redder than her hair. “It’s not like I’m standing right here.”

“Oh my,” Lois said, when Clark showed her the picture. “You look cute, Alex.”

Clark passed it to Lena next and Lena couldn’t stop her eyes from widening when she saw it. It was Alex, red haired and baby faced, scowling fiercely at the camera while wearing large, Pepto-Bismol pink bunny onesie. Complete with pink mittens, floppy ears, and bunny slippers. Lena couldn’t tell who was upset more: Alex or the bunny slippers on her feet.

“Please tell me it had a fluffy tail,” Maggie asked as Clark brought the ornament back to Eliza. "Please."

“Of course,” Eliza said. “I copied the design from Alex’s favorite movie.”

“A Christmas Story?” Clark guessed.

“That’s the one!” Eliza confirmed. “Alex was obsessed with it. I thought she said she wanted the pajamas but I think this was the only time she ever wore it.”

“No,” Alex said. “I said I wanted Red Ryder BB gun, but would never get it for me.”

“Because you would have shot your eye out,” Eliza told her.

“You sound just like all the parents in the movie,” Alex grumbled.

“And they were right,” Eliza replied. “The boy just about did it to himself.”

“You realize Maggie and I have been to the range before, right?” Alex asked. “Like multiple times. And neither one of us have lost an eye.”

“Yes, but you also aren’t nine anymore,” Eliza said as she hung the ornament up on the tree.

“Do we have to put it so all the guests can see it?” Alex asked. “Why can’t we just put it on the back of the tree?”

“Because this way guests can see it and potentially bond over their favorite Christmas movie,” Eliza explained. “It’ll create a community.”

“At my expense,” Alex muttered.

“You could always play a Christmas movie,” Lois suggested. “Then guests can watch it together down here.”

“Perhaps,” Eliza mused, tapping her fingers on her chin.

“Ooo you could play Christmas Vacation,” Maggie said with a clap of her hands. “Everyone loves that one.”

“As much as I do enjoy it, there are kids here,” Eliza replied. “And I don’t think parents would enjoy it if I exposed their children to Chevy Chase’s creative but vulgar vocabulary.”

“Better not let them in the kitchen while Maggie’s cooking then,” Alex commented with a teasing look.

“Hey,” Maggie replied by playfully hitting her girlfriend’s arm.

“What about A Christmas Carol?” Kara suggested as she hung up another ornament. “The Muppets version has always been my favorite.”

While Lena had not seen a single film referenced so far, she had at least read the Dicken’s novella and she couldn’t help but go a little rigid at the mention of it. Quite honestly, Lena often struggled to see what was so wrong Ebenezer Scrooge. He was just doing good business and could you blame him for not doing anything for Christmas since he didn’t have a family? Her secretary had called her a Scrooge just before she left and a chill ran down Lena’s back as she realized just how accurate the label was. She had grown up in a family of Scrooges and now that she was the only one left, she was the ultimate Scrooge.

“Oh, please no,” Maggie said, shaking her head. “That ghost of Christmas future gave me the nightmares for months afterwards.”

“But the songs are so catchy,” Kara protested. “And Michael Caine’s in it. How can you not love Michael Caine? And it’s funny and shows just how important family is on holidays.”

Lena swallowed and tried to ignore the sinking sensation in her stomach. When she pricked her finger with a needle this time, she welcomed the distraction.

“I always liked Miracle on 34th Street,” Clark piped up. “It’s always heartwarming and it’s does a great job at showing that sometimes the impossible is right under your nose.”

Feeling eyes on her, Lena looked up and saw that Clark was looking right at her with a kind smile. Wait… did he just wink?

“I’m surprised you didn’t say It’s a Wonderful Life,” Lois said, strolling up to Clark. “That movie always has you crying like a baby by the end.”

“I don’t cry like a baby,” Clark mumbled, his face reddening.

“Yes, you do,” Lois insisted. “But I that’s just one of the many reasons why I married you.”

Wait… did she say married? Lena’s eyes widened as she snapped her head up just in time to see Lois leaning in to plant a kiss on Clark’s cheek, turning his face an even deeper shade of red but this time with a large grin. How could she have so stupid? No wonder Kara and Clark looked alike; they were related. And Lois was Kara’s sister-in-law because she married Kara’s brother and not because Kara married Lois’s brother.

So much for her scientist brain questioning everything. How could she be so stupid?

“What about you, Lena?” Alex asked, snapping Lena’s attention away from Clark and Lois. “What’s your favorite Christmas movie?”

“Um,” Lena bit her lip. “I’ve never really seen any Christmas movies.”

“What?” Maggie demanded, twisting her head away from the box of ornament to Lena. “How is that even possible?”

“My family just wasn’t that into Christmas growing up,” Lena said with a small shrug as she tried to return her attention back to the popcorn garlands.

“But not one?” Maggie asked. “There must have been something. I mean come on, there’s Charlie Brown, The Grinch, Elf, Home Alone, and not to mention all those cheesy, predictable films on Hallmark. You’ve had to at least seen one of those.”

“I think I saw parts of that Rudolph movie once when I channel surfing,” Lena said. “But I didn’t care for it. It was all just too absurd for me.”

“Absurd?” Alex echoed, her forehead wrinkling in confusion or concern but Lena couldn’t tell.

“The reindeer has a nose that is red and flashes lights,” Lena explains. “Not only is that impossible but it is impractical. An animal born with that kind of characteristic that is then isolated from the herd would not have survive into adulthood and would have probably been killed by a bear, wolf, or lynx. And his best friend is an elf who wants to be a dentist which is just ridiculous. I just turned it off after that.”

She looked up from her popcorn garland to see the entire room full people all staring at her. Her ears felt hot as she ducked her head so her hair could act a little bit like a make-shift shield.

“What did your parents do to you as a child?” Maggie asked.

Lena knew Maggie meant it as a joke, but her words still landed like a punch to her gut. If only Maggie knew that she was talking to the sister of a mass murderer and the daughter of a terrorist. The needle stabbed Lena’s hand again, but this time, she let the blood pool. Blood wouldn’t show on the red thread anyways.

“It sounds like we have our work cut out for us then,” Lois said, breaking the silence. “I guess we’ll just have to watch a Christmas movie tonight after dinner and educate our new friend.”

Lena glanced up at the warm eyes and sympathetic smile on Lois’s face. Of all people, the one who had interviewed and knew in-depth details of the skeletons in Lena’s closet had been the one to offer a hand. And she had called Lena a friend. Lena didn’t have friends unless you possibly counted Eve, but that one was more of a paid tolerance. But Lois had called her friend with the pronoun our in front of it meaning Lena had multiple friends. Friends. Even though Lena hated sympathy, this was the first time she felt herself automatically responding with a smile.

“Oh dinner!” Eliza said. “You are joining us for dinner, right Lena?”

“You better,” Maggie said, turning her attention back to the box of ornament. “Do you know how long it’s taking me to make that duck?”

“Um…” Lena chewed on her lip. As much as she wanted to, she wasn’t all that great at fitting in with the Christmas talk and festivities even if these people were her friends.

“It would be a such a pleasure if you joined us,” Kara plead as she plugged in the Christmas lights. The white lights reflected off her eyes, turning them an even lighter shade of blue and placing a spark of magic in them.

How could Lena say no to that?

Chapter Text

“Lena, why don’t you sit here?” Eliza said, pulling out the dining room chair next to Kara.

“Oh, um, sure,” Lena said, abandoning the chair she had already pulled out and just about sat in. Not that moving was an inconvenience, especially if that meant she got to sit next to that blonde she had been struggling to take her eyes off of the entire evening.

“It’s just I’d like to see the door,” Eliza explained with a causal wave at the line of sight from where Lena had previously chosen to sit. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all,” Lena said politely as she circled the table to take the seat next to Kara and despite all the warm and scrumptious food laid out on the table, all Lena could smell was that sweet peppermint perfume.

“I don’t know how you’re going to top this, Maggie,” Clark said as he eyed the feast of duck, vegetables, and mash potatoes.

“One word: turducken,” Maggie replied as she proudly looked over the spread.

“Doesn’t that take like four hours, Mags?” Alex asked with a look of concern.

“Five if you count the prep,” Maggie corrected. “But I’ve bought all the supplies so there’s no turning back now.”

“Well count me in then,” Lois said. “I’ve never had any desire to eat a bird with two others shoved inside it, but I trust your cooking skills enough to give it a chance.”

“They’re talking about our upcoming Christmas dinner,” Kara explained quietly to Lena. “Every year, we get together on the 21st and celebrate Christmas together.”

Lena counted in her head; that was only two days away. Christmas really was sneaking up on her.

“Why not just wait till Christmas?” Lena asked. “It’s only four days away from then.”

“Maggie has those few days off so we typically just do frozen dinners or take-out,” Kara explained. “It’s also the day that business here seems to lull the most during the holidays for some reason. And it’s the Winter Solstice so we have the maximum amount of time to star gaze that night.”

Lena thought back to when she first saw the porch and the rockers and realized she had been right when she bet that these were people who just stargazed for fun. She had thought it was ridiculous then, but now she struggled to think of something she’d like to do more with the blonde than just that.

“Sounds nice,” Lena mumbled.

“You should join us,” Kara said. “We play games, eat food, watch movies, exchange gifts. It’s a lot of fun. I’m sure you’d love it.”

“I’ll think about it,” Lena replied, knowing that the longer Kara talked to her about it, the more willing she would be to attend.

“I’ll even let you be on my team for the Christmas trivia,” Kara grinned. “Alex tries to beat me every year, but I’m still the reigning champion.”

“If you’re picking teams now for Christmas trivia then I have dibs on Clark,” Alex called out from across the table.

“You heard that?” Kara asked.

“I hear everything,” Alex stated, her eyes narrowing.

And Lena had thought Lex was competitive.

--

After dinner, the group had moved into the front room and had taken over the couch and loveseat. Eliza decided to retire for the night, leaving the rest of the group to properly start Lena’s Christmas education. Not that Lena minded one bit especially when that meant she got to share a couch with that toned, blonde goddess in flannel.

“Alright, so we don’t have The Muppets Christmas Carol on DVD and mom won’t let us play Christmas Vacation, but we do have Miracle on 34th Street,” Alex announced while holding up the DVD case to everyone sitting on the couches and chairs in front of her. “It’s the remake and not the original, but I still think it’ll do for Lena’s first Christmas movie. It’s got all you need: small children, family development, heartwarming moments, Christmas magic-”

“Don’t forget Santa Claus!” Maggie perked up as she carried in a bowl of freshly popped popcorn.

“Spoiler!” Alex exclaimed.

“Oh please,” Maggie said as she sat down on the plush rug at the foot of the couch. “It’s Christmas. Of course, Santa’s real.”

“You know, she’s got a point,” Lois said with a smirk as she pulled Clark’s arm over her in the chair. “Santa’s always real this time of year.”

Lena felt Kara tense next to her on the couch, but when she looked at her, Kara’s focus laid on the television in front of them over the fireplace.

“Yeah, yeah,” Alex muttered as she turned on the DVD player. “I still think you’re ruining it for her.”

“Popcorn?” Maggie offered, holding up her bowl to Lena.

“Um, sure,” Lena said but before she could grab any, the bowl moved away.

“Uh uh,” Maggie said, narrowing her eyes at Kara. “I already gave you a bowl.”

“Oh, come on,” Kara whined. “It’s not like you guys ever finish it anyway.”

“At least let our new friend have her fill first,” Maggie insisted pushing the bowl back to Lena.

“Thanks,” Lena mumbled as she took two large handfuls.

“Just let me know if you want more,” Maggie said, taking the bowl away before Kara could get her hands in it.

Kara let out a defeated groan and fell back against the couch.

“Give me your hand,” Lena whispered to Kara once Maggie’s attention was back on the television screen in front of her.

Kara’s forehead wrinkled in confusion, but she still held out her hand in front of her. Her face broke into a bright smile when Lena passed her a large handful of popcorn.

“You’re incredible,” Kara breathed, those blue eyes not on the popcorn but on Lena.

The warmth that spread through Lena’s chest at that moment was enough to melt the fake snow off Lois’s Christmas village.

---

Perhaps it was the coziness of sitting by a fire, the dim lighting of the room, or the fact that there were couples all around them, but as the movie progressed, Lena found eyes drooping and herself leaning more and more into the blonde beside her. And when that warm, toned arm circled around her shoulders, Lena happily let herself fall into a sleep on to that shoulder beside her that smelled of sweet peppermint.

---

“I still don’t see why they had to take Santa court,” Maggie said as the credits began to roll.

“To prove he was real…” Alex said turning to questioning look at her girlfriend in her arms. “Didn’t you watch the movie?”

“Well, yeah, but it doesn’t make any sense,” Maggie explained. “I mean, clearly he is Santa, but none of the adults believe him. The children do, but not the parents. So where do the parents think the presents come on Christmas morning? They didn’t buy them or put them there. Who do they think did? If anyone believes in Santa Claus, it should be them.”

“Well I think Santa’s work is a bit more complex than just putting toys under a Christmas tree,” Clark told her.

“Is that so?” Lois asked with a smirk and arched an eyebrow. “Then tell me Clark, what does Santa’s work entail?”

“I, uh,” Clark’s face reddened as he floundered.

“We could ask Kara,” Alex said. “But she’s seems too busy right now acting as a pillow.”

Lena groaned softly as she lifted her head off the comfy shoulder she’d been passed out for the majority of the movie. When she opened her eyes, her face flushed red as she saw all the attention on her. She sat up quickly, Kara’s warm arm slipping off as she did, and despite the heat of embarrassment, she had never felt colder without it.

“Sorry,” Lena mumbled, rubbing one of her eyes. “I guess I didn’t realize how tired I was.”

Lena prayed that she hadn’t snored. Or worse—drooled.

“No worries,” Kara smiled and Lena’s insides turned to mush.

“How far did you even get, Lena?” Lois asked.

“Um…I think there was something with a mall?” Lena said.

“Oh gosh,” Alex laughed. “You didn’t even make it half way.”

“I guess I’m not cut out for Christmas movies,” Lena mumbled, her cheeks flushing once more.

“Or Clark is just bad at picking out good movies,” Lois countered.

“Hey,” Clark said with mock offense.

“Love you,” Lois said, pressing quick kiss to his cheek.

“I told we should have watched Christmas Vacation,” Maggie said. “No one ever falls asleep to Chevy Chase.”

“That’s because he yells so much,” Alex told her, earning a swat to the thigh from Maggie.

“Well whatever the reason, I suppose we’ll just have to try again tomorrow night,” Lois said as she stood up and stretched. “That sound good to you, Lena?”

“Um,” Lena bit her lip. They have called her a friend, but she didn’t want to overstay her welcome.

“Think about it while I make us some hot chocolate,” Maggie said, standing up.

“Need a hand?” Alex asked as Maggie pulled her up.

“From you?” Maggie grinned with a wink. “Always, babe.”

---

Within a few minutes, everyone had a steaming mug of hot chocolate in hand and had naturally paired up with their significant other. Clark and Lois had returned to the love seat and Alex and Maggie sat on the plush rug in front of the fire, leaving Lena and Kara on the couch. And as much as Lena preferred this, she couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable surrounded by people who continually snuck glances their way.

“Hey, would you want to go outside?” Kara asked after she noticed how much Lena was chewing on her cheek. “There’s some blankets out there and if we’re lucky, we might even see a shooting star or two.”

“Yeah,” Lena replied. “Just let me grab my coat.”

Ignoring the snooping eyes and teasing grins, Lena followed Kara outside on to the porch. Compared to the cozy living room that they were just in, the night air was as if they were in the actual North Pole. Bundling her jacket tighter, Lena did her best to repress her shivers and chattering teeth.

“Oh, gosh here,” Kara fretted as she threw a blanket over Lena’s shoulder and pulled it down so Lena wouldn’t have to move her hands. “I forgot you weren’t used to this kind of weather. If you want we can sit on the porch swing instead of the rocking chairs for like body heat.”

How could Lena say no to that?

Soon, Lena laid nestled against Kara’s side with her knees folded in front of her and her hands still cradling the cup of hot chocolate. Kara’s foot idly pushed the swing back and forth as she gazed out at the dark mountains along the ridge and the bright stars above them.

“I’m sorry about falling asleep on you like that,” Lena said softly. “I probably should have asked or tried leaning the other way or something.”

“You have nothing to apologize for,” Kara said with a kind smile. “You can use me for a pillow any time.”

“Thanks,” Lena mumbled, thankful the darkness could hide her blush.

“So, were you that tired or did you just not like the movie?” Kara asked.

“Um, both I guess. I mean, I was tired, but I don’t know, I think it was just something about the predictability it all, you know?”

“You predicted that they were going to take Santa to court?” Kara asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, no, but I mean I knew he would be the real deal and the little girl would get the family she wanted for Christmas,” Lena explained. “It’s just both of which are impossible and can be a bit exhausting to watch play out.”

Kara barked out a laugh. “You know, most people find that heartwarming.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not most people,” Lena mumbled as she took a sip of her hot chocolate, missing the small smile from Kara.

“So, when did you consider Santa Claus to be impossible?” Kara asked. “When did you stop believing?”

Lena let out a small sigh, her breath turning white in cold air.

“I don’t think I ever believed,” she said.

“Really?” Kara asked, shifting to get a better look at her companion. “Never?”

“My family just never saw the point,” Lena explained as she looked down at her hot chocolate, scared of seeing the possible judgement in those blue eyes she adored. “My father never went along with the charade and my mother had never bothered lying to spare my feelings. We never wrote letters or put out cookies and milk. Christmas was just like any other day except everything was closed.”

“You never exchanged presents or anything?” Kara asked in disbelief.

“Not really,” Lena shrugged. “We aren’t really gift givers in my family. We’re impossible to shop for since we typically just buy anything we want or need. And what’s the point in buying something if you don’t even know if the other person will like it. Even if we did buy a present, it wasn’t as if there was a tree to put it under or stockings to hang it in.”

“That doesn’t sound very fun,” Kara frowned.

“It was just how it was,” Lena said with another shrug before a small smile tugged her lips. “Although, my older brother would try to make it special. We’d sneak downstairs in the middle of night and bake cookies. Sometimes, we’d even exchange little things we made with each other.”

Of course, these little things weren’t usually crafts but low grade tech and mechanics that they had invented. Once Lex had given her a heat gun that was perfect for turning bread into toast. That was probably their last Christmas before he started acting differently. The last holiday before the intense hatred set in. Lena still had that heat gun that she pulled out to look at when she was feeling nostalgic or bitter. But Kara didn’t need to know about that. She was a Luthien and not a Luthor to her.

“If it was snowing, we’d sneak outside and have snow ball fights,” Lena continued with a small laugh. “When our mother saw all the water we tracked in the neck day, we’d always get in so much trouble. But that never stopped us from doing it the next year.”

“It sounds like you two had lot of fun together,” Kara noted.

“Yeah,” Lena said her smile fading into sadness. “He was probably my best friend. Until he wasn’t.”

“What happened?” Kara asked, her concern evident in her voice.

“He died,” Lena whispered and it wasn’t a lie. The Lex she knew died that day he took his first life.

“Oh, Lena,” Kara said softly. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s alright,” Lena mumbled. “It happened a long time ago.”

“It still doesn’t make it hurt less,” Kara said as she wrapped her arms around Lena, pulling her in for a tight hug at her chest.

Lena hadn’t realized she was crying until she felt the wetness of Kara’s flannel.

They sat like that for a while. Their hot chocolate turned cold, but neither of them minded. Lena felt the safest and most content she ever had in her entire life wrapped in the cocoon of warm arms and peppermint scent.

“Hey,” Kara said, interrupting their peaceful silence. “Would you possibly want to visit the farm with me tomorrow? You can see the reindeers and sleigh…”

“You have a sleigh?” Lena asked.

“Well, um, it’s just easier sometimes,” Kara stammered. “With all the snow we get and all.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a real sleigh,” Lena noted.

“I can take you out on it if you’d like,” Kara perked up. “We have plenty of space on the farm and the reindeer would love the exercise.”

“I’d like that,” Lena smiled.

“Great!” Kara beamed. “I can come by and get you in the morning.”

“I’ll look forward to it,” Lena said, nuzzling deeper into Kara’s shoulder. “Oh, and when did you stop?”

“Stop what?” Kara asked, frowning slightly.

“Believing in Santa Claus?”

“I never said I did,” Kara said with a wink.

Chapter Text

Lena fretted over her outfit for far too long the next morning. She wore green yesterday, but would it be too much to wear it again today? The black sweater looked good, but was that a suitable color for a sleigh ride? She could pair the red sweater with her red lipstick, but would that seem like she was trying too hard? And how was she to wear her hair? Did she need a hat? Would it be strange to wear Kara’s scarf? When was she even supposed to return it?

With a huff, Lena threw another outfit on the bed in frustration. She was the CEO of a billion-dollar corporation. She faced sexist corporate investors and competitors on a regular basis and never so much as flinched. Just a few days prior, she had stood and testified against her terrorist mother and barely blinked. She was a woman forged from Luthor steel, passion, and neglect.

But one date with a perky blonde woman had her nerves spinning out of control.

And was it even a date? Yes, it would be just the two of them and yes, it would be a romantic setting and yes, Kara had asked her join like it was a date. But Kara had never said exclusively that it was a date. For all she knew, Kara was just being friendly. Had they cuddled a bit the night before? Yes, but that was due to sleep, body heat, and comfort. Oh gosh, what if Kara had just asked her on the sleigh ride out of pure pity? What was she even thinking when she told Kara about her brother? She hadn’t even spoken about her brother in months.

Lena groaned loudly in her hands. This is why she never opened up to people. It just made everything too complicated.

Due to the time constraint, Lena eventually just gave up and settled on a thick beige sweater, skinny jeans, and a gray beanie, and she prayed that her jacket would keep her warm enough. Upon seeing the gray clouds outside and worrying for snow, Lena grabbed Kara’s white scarf from the vanity and told herself that she could at least get around to returning it. But in her rush to get downstairs, she failed to notice that the mysterious snowflake ornament was no longer where she had left it.

When she didn’t see Kara downstairs, Lena thought she had been making good time. Yet when she went into the kitchen to pour a cup of coffee, she found Kara already there chatting with Alex in hushed whispers.

“Lena! Hi!” Kara greeted with a bright, distracting smile, but Lena still noticed Alex turning her back to her and shoving something small in her coat pocket.

“Hello,” Lena said, her brow furrowing slightly. “Am I interrupting something?”

“Hm?” Alex asked as she spun around, her eyes too wide and lips too thin to look believable. “No, no. We were just chatting. Holiday stuff you know.”

“Uh huh,” Lena nodded, clearly not convinced but with no intention to press further.

“Can I pour you some coffee?” Alex asked quickly, practically leaping towards the coffee pot.

“That would be nice,” Lena replied, frowning slightly. “Thank you.”

“Here,” Kara said passing Alex a silver thermos. “I didn’t want you to have to worry about your coffee getting cold so I made-erm… I mean, I bought a thermos for you. I hope that’s alright.”

“Oh,” Lena said as she raised her eyebrows. Other than her secretary and her schedule, no one had really ever given Lena any sort of careful thought like that. It sent a warm tingling through her that made it impossible for her not to smile and duck her head slightly to hide her blush. “Thank you.”

“Anytime,” Kara beamed, clearly thrilled for being helpful.

“And before I forget,” Alex said after she passed the warm thermos to Lena and ducked under the table. “Maggie prepared a little picnic for you two.”

“Really?” Kara’s eyebrows shot up when Alex passed her small wooden basket. “I didn’t know she knew about this.”

“Lois briefly mentioned it this morning when she stopped by,” Alex said with a wave of her hand.

“She did?” Kara asked, her forehead wrinkling slightly. “I guess she saw me getting the sleigh together earlier.”

“I guess so,” Alex said with a wave of her hand. “Anyway, it’s not much but there’s a thermos of tomato soup and another one of chili that should stay warm for a while. And a Tupperware of cookies for dessert.”

“Chocolate chip?” Kara asked as she opened up the lid of the basket, her face brightening.

“You’re favorite,” Alex confirmed with a smile.

“Yes!” Kara said with small fist pump. “I don’t think you could have found yourself a better woman, Alex.” Kara placed a hand on the redhead’s shoulder and adopted a softer smile and tone. “Seriously. I couldn’t be happier for you.”

“Thanks, Kara,” Alex said, her eyes watering slightly before she blinked it away. “Now both of you need to get going. You have a lot to do today especially if you both plan to make it back by dinner.”

“Shall we?” Kara asked Lena with a look at made Lena pray her knees wouldn’t buckle.

“We shall,” Lena said, gripping her thermos tightly in her hand. “Lead the way.”

Rather than taking Lena through the front door, Kara lead them down a small hallway towards the back door and small porch. Watching her step down the ice-covered stairs, Lena failed to properly notice the what awaited them in the back yard until she was merely a few feet away from it, and she couldn’t hold back her loud gasp when she did.

When Kara had told her she owned a sleigh, Lena hadn’t expected it to be so nice or picturesque. It was small two-seater with a decent size space in the back that Lena assumed was used for transporting materials or luggage. The body was curved and wooden but painted a pleasant shade of red and green that shined against the snow. Thick furs and flannel blankets covered the seat which settled any qualms Lena had about freezing. Attached with reins and a harness was a single large reindeer currently craning its neck back to scratch at the light brown fur of its shoulders with one of its large tan antlers. Like everything else about this town, it seemed as if the entire set up had come from a Hallmark Christmas card.

“Kara,” Lena gasped. “This is incredible.”

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Kara said, rubbing the back of her neck as her cheeks turned a rosy color.

“No, it’s really something,” Lena told her, unable to take her eyes off of the reindeer.

“Do you want to get in?” Kara asked. “That way you can get situated while I put away the picnic basket.”

“Absolutely,” Lena said.

The step up was a bit higher than Lena expected, but it was nothing she couldn’t manage. Just as she nestled herself among the soft furs and draped a blanket across her lap, Kara climbed in after her. Due to the narrowness of the seat, body heat seemed to become one more reason why Lena wouldn’t have to worry the cold. As soon as Kara sat down, Lena’s nose instantly filled with that sweet peppermint scent that automatically trigger her smile.

“Cookie?” Kara asked, holding one of the chocolate chip cookies out to her.

Lena laughed.

“Already ready for dessert?” Lena asked as she took the offered cookie.

“Well, cookies are called biscuits in England, right?” Kara said as she wrapped her hands around the reins. “And biscuits are a breakfast food, so really it’s just second breakfast. And who would want to disrespect hobbit culture of second breakfast?”

“I never would have taken you as a Lord of the Rings fan,” Lena said with a laugh.

“Oh, yeah,” Kara said. “With my stomach, I’m fairly certain I was hobbit in a past life.”

“I certainly see that,” Lena agreed. “Thankfully, you didn’t keep the feet.”

“Yeah, seriously,” Kara laughed. “You know, I could see you totally being an elf in a past life. You have the right name for it.”

“What? Oh, yeah,” Lena mumbled before biting into her cookie.

She had almost forgotten she wasn’t a Luthor but a Luthien to Kara; a name that actually had come from an elf in Middle-Earth. Lena could only pray that Kara wouldn’t think much of it to consider it to be more than a coincidence.

Kara clicked her tongue and flicked the reins, starting the sleigh off with a gentle pace. They fell into a quaint silence as Lena sipped her coffee and Kara munched on several cookies as they travelled deeper into the country side.

“What’s his name?” Lena asked, nodding towards the reindeer.

“She actually,” Kara corrected.

“Oh, but the antlers…” Lena pointed out.

“Both male and female reindeer have antlers,” Kara explained. “Male’s typically have much larger ones, but they shed them around mid-November or early December, but the females don’t shed them until spring. Hence, Prancer is a she.”

“Prancer?” Lena asked, arching an eyebrow over her thermos.

“Yep,” Kara said proudly. “Clark’s favorite is Comet, but I think Prancer is probably the best. She does this cute thing where she picks her feet up higher when she walks kind of like she’s prancing.”

“How many do you own?” Lena asked.

“Eight,” Kara said proudly. “There’s Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, and Blitzen.”

While her Christmas knowledge may have been more limited than most, Lena at least knew the names of Santa’s reindeers when she heard them.

“How original,” Lena commented dryly, taking a sip of her coffee.

“I thought so,” Kara mumbled, her chest deflating a bit.

And immediately, Lena was wracked with guilt.

“No, I mean,” Lena fumbled over words as she struggled to think of anything that restore that light to blonde’s eyes. “They’re very nice names, but I was just thinking that they’d be something different. I mean, they are quite common names.”

“You have a point,” Kara said with a small shrug and smile. “But I like to think Clark and I started the trend.”

“At least none are named Rudolph, right?” Lena said with a weak smile.

“Well, the red nose wouldn’t be very practical, would it?”

The small wink Kara gave Lena almost stopped her heart.

Chapter Text

“Alright, so here we are!” Kara announced as she pulled Prancer and the sleigh to a stop.

“Where?” Lena asked as she looked at the vast fields and hills of nothing but white snow and pine trees.

“The most perfect place to build a snowman,” Kara said proudly as she jumped down from the sleigh.

“Here?” Lena asked, her brow creasing and eyes widening as she suddenly realized how potentially foolish her agreement to this may have been. She was in the middle of the wilderness with a woman she just met a few days ago and only one other person knew where Lena Luthor currently was and that was her secretary who wouldn’t come looking for her for at least a week. This was basically the beginning of one of those true crime documentaries Lena watched when she couldn’t sleep at night.

“Yeah,” Kara said as she offered Lena a hand down. “Don’t you trust me?”

With just one look into those blue eyes, Lena did.

“So, what makes this place so perfect for snowman building?” Lena asked as she took Kara’s hand and stepped down from the sleigh.

“It’s home to greatest snow rollers!” Kara said, holding on to Lena’s hand a second too long. Not that Lena minded one bit.

“Snow rollers?” Lena frowned.

“It’s this thing where the wind blows chunks of snow along the ground and creates these giant snow balls,” Kara explained, pointing off into the distance at a large lump of snow that Lena initially thought to be a rock or a bale of hay.

“That’s amazing,” Lena gasped as she trudged towards it.

“It’s pretty rare but it’s so cool,” Kara said as she walked along side Lena. “Plus, they usually make the best bases for snowmen. And it saves us from having to roll the biggest ball.”

They finally approached the snow roller and Lena couldn’t resist touching the large ball of snow with her bare hands. It wasn’t as if it felt physically any different from the cold ice of regular snow but there was still something about it she couldn’t explain. Almost like it was magical, but the kind of magical applicable to science where it still made perfect logical sense, but remained baffling and phenomenal.

“Alright,” Kara said, rubbing her hands together excitedly. “Ready to get started?”

“I, um, have never made a snowman before,” Lena admitted with a blush.

“Well, have no fear because you’re talking to a snowman building pro,” Kara said, putting both hands on her hips as if she were posing. “Not exactly, but it’s really not hard.”

“Yeah?” Lena asked, a smile tugging her lips.

“Yep!” Kara said before bending down to pack together a tight ball of snow. “All you have to do is just make a snow ball and then roll it around so it gets bigger.”

“That’s it?” Lena asked, eyeing the ground questionably.

“Pretty much,” Kara said as she started to roll her snow ball around on the ground to collect more snow. “It’s pretty much like you’re creating the ultimate snowball. And if nature can do it on its own, then I have complete faith in you.”

“Yes, but nature also created the glaciers,” Lena replied, kneeling down to pack her own ball of snow.

“I guess we’ll just have to work you up to that skill level, then,” Kara smirked.

Lena rolled her eyes, but couldn’t help but grin. Turning her attention back to her work, her snow ball had begun to gather in size and soon Lena had to use both hands to continue rolling it around. Her excitement grew as the ball did, making her roll faster and soon she had quite a large ball on her hands

“Make sure you’re rolling it in a zig zag,” Kara called out. “Otherwise, it gets to be kind of oval shaped.”

“I might need your help then,” Lena grunted as she struggled to roll the already very ovular shaped snowball on its side to reduce the lopsidedness.

“Dang,” Kara whistled as she noticed the already large size of Lena’s snowball. “And I thought I was the pro.”

“I guess I got a little carried away,” Lena mumbled as she rubbed the back of her neck.

“No, this is great!” Kara beamed. “You’re a natural.”

“Thanks,” Lena ducked her head as she blushed. “Although it isn’t very spherical.”

“Eh, we can still make it work,” Kara assured her as she squatted down on one side of it. “Help me lift it and we can place it on the snow roller.”

“Are you sure?” Lena asked as she bent down like she was told. “We don’t need to roll it out anymore? Round it out anymore?”

“Nah,” Kara shook her head. “Otherwise it’ll get too heavy. Besides, ovular shapes like this are easier to move anyway. Are you ready?”

Lena nodded.

“On the count of three,” Kara said. “One…two… three!”

Both grunted as they lifted the large snowball which had gathered much more weight than Lena was expecting. As someone who’s greatest work out each week involved carrying her groceries from her car to her door, Lena wasn’t much help in this scenario especially when compared to the burly farmer who had arms that Lena could drool over for days. Still, Lena tried her hardest to contribute even though she noticed that Kara had grabbed more towards the middle than the sides to help Lena feel like she was contributing more than she actually did. And rather than being offended like Lena probably would have been with anyone else, she found it oddly sweet.

“A little to the left,” Kara instructed with a jerk of her head. “Yeah, just like that!”

After the ovular snowball had been placed, Lena took a step back and her eyes widened when she realized just how lopsided her ball had been especially when compared to the one underneath. But Kara didn’t seem to mind one bit.

“Time for the head!” Kara proclaimed, gathering up the snowball she had been rolling.

“That won’t make it too tall, will it?” Lena asked, noticing how the already slanted structure was about four and half to five feet tall.

“Nah,” Kara said, carrying the ball over in her arms. “There isn’t such a thing as a too tall snowman.”

Lena watched as Kara stretched up on her toes and lifted her arms to adequately place the snowman’s head in place. Doing so, lifted the material of her shirt and jacket just enough so that Lena caught a brief glance at the tan skin on Kara’s stomach.

Wait, were those abs?

And Lena’s mouth instantly went dry.

“How does it look?” Kara asked as she clapped the snow off her gloves.

“What?” Lena snapped out of her dazed. “Oh, it looks great!”

“Sweet,” Kara said as she dug through the pockets of her jacket. “So, you’ll have put it on quickly because Prancer might eat it, but did you want to place the nose?”

Kara pulled out a long orange carrot from her pocket and Lena grinned.

“With pleasure,” Lena said, taking the carrot.

She pursed her lips for a second in thought as she judged for what looked like the softest but sturdiest place for the nose on the head before reaching up and digging it in. It may not have been perfect, but the smile Kara gave Lena never made her feel prouder.

“You want to do the eyes and mouth too?” Kara asked, holding out a handful of dark rocks.

“Can I?” Lena beamed, clearly getting swept away in a magic she didn’t think was possible.

“Of course,” Kara laughed, encouraging Lena to arrange them however she deemed fit.

“Do we need arms?” Lena asked, cocking her head to side as she studied the uneven grin and crooked eyes on the snowman. “I think we need arms.”

“Well, it’s a good thing we’re in forest then,” Kara said, spreading her arms out around her. “We’re surrounded by snowman arms.”

Lena couldn’t help but throw her head back and laugh.

They found a pair of similar sticks to use for arms under a nearby tree, and while they weren’t arm-like and had several stray branches sticking out of them, Lena thought that they were perfect. Kara had to chase after Lena as she scurried back to the snowman.

“There!” Lena said after she jammed both sticks into the rolled snow. “Now it looks excited to be here.”

“It may not be as nice as yours but did you want to add the scarf?” Kara asked as she offered her a long red one.

“Yes!” Lena exclaimed, snatching it out of Kara’s hand and winding it around the neck of the snowman before taking a step back to admire her works. Even with the mistakes, it looked so much like those snowmen in the movies and advertisements she’d seen and Lena couldn’t have been more thrilled. “It’s perfect!”

“Yeah,” Kara agreed with a smile. “Absolutely perfect.”

The grinning Lena turned and noticed that Kara wasn’t looking at the snowman but at Lena. Her grin softened as the blush spread across her face.

“Sorry,” Lena mumbled as she looked down and brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear. “I realize I didn’t let you do much there decorating wise. I guess I got a little swept away there in the moment.”

“Pssh,” Kara said with a wave of her hand. “Don’t worry about it. Like I said, I’m a snowman building pro. I’ve made plenty of these before. I’m just glad you’re getting into the Christmas spirit.”

“Still, I feel kind of bad,” Lena said with a weak smile.

“Then if it makes you feel better,” Kara said stepping towards the snowman. “I’ll place the hat then.”

The blonde pulled out a red and white Santa hat from her jacket and reached to place it on the head of the snowman. Hoping to possibly get another flash of that toned stomach once again, Lena craned her neck a bit as she intently watched.

“There,” Kara said proudly. “I think we did a good job. She looks good.”

“She?” Lena asked, arching an eyebrow. “Are you saying that my lopsided ball in the middle looks like cleavage?”

“Not at all,” Kara laughed. “I mean, the Santa hat.”

“What?” Lena’s brow furrowed. “I thought Santa was an old man. I mean, he has a white beard, doesn’t he?”

“Well, yes, if you’re going by popular culture,” Kara nodded as she shuffled her feet. “But it’s still Mr. and Ms. Santa Claus.”

“I thought Ms. Claus was more like a homemaker,” Lena said, putting her hands back in her pockets for warmth.

“There’s almost eight billion people in the world,” Kara explained. “I think Ms. Claus would have to be more than a homemaker to make Christmas work.”

“So, you’re saying it like a husband and wife team?” Lena asked with an arched eyebrow.

“No,” Kara snorted. “It’s actually a huge misconception that Mr. and Ms. Claus are actually married. Just because they share the same title, doesn’t mean they have to share the same bed. Hasn’t any one ever heard of siblings or cousins?”

“I didn’t know you were so passionate about your Christmas heroes,” Lena smirked.

“Well, I’m just saying,” Kara mumbled as she stuck her hands in her pockets and her face lighted up. “Oh, and I have an extra for Prancer if you wanted to feed it to her.”

“Please,” Lena exclaimed as she felt herself swept up once again in a foreign joy she didn’t want to end.

---

“I still can’t believe you talked Maggie into making so many pot stickers for dinner,” Lena laughed as Kara led her on to the front porch that night.

“It’s taken years of practice,” Kara replied. “But I think I’m finally starting to learn her ways.”

“Well, you were right,” Lena said as she leaned up against the porch railing. “They really were to die for. Now I just have to try her dumplings.”

“You remembered,” Kara grinned, her blue eyes twinkling in a way that made Lena glad she had the railing to help support her weight.

“Of course,” Lena told her. “After all, you did save my life not too long before it. And nothing makes me trust a food critic more than after they save my life.”

“Hopefully, your life’s not in peril too often,” Kara laughed as she leaned against the railing next to Lena.

Lena scoffed.

“You’d be surprised,” Lena muttered bitterly as the pain from several previous assassination attempts curtesy of her brother and mother flashed through her mind.

“Hey,” Kara said softly, reaching for Lena’s hand and redirecting Lena’s mind down a much different spiral. “I had really nice time today.”

Lena’s heart did a stutter before taking off in a mad dash and her mind found it rather difficult to think of anything but the feeling of Kara’s warm hand in hers. Oh gosh, it really had been a date.

“I did too,” Lena responded in a gentle whisper although her pulse raged in her head. “Would you possibly want to do something tomorrow?”

The crooked grin that broke out across Kara’s face completely short circuited everything in Lena’s brain.

“I’d would love to,” Kara said with a slight frown. “But I have some prior arrangements taking up most of my day tomorrow.”

“Oh,” Lena said, doing her best to keep her tone neutral, but the disappointment was still clear in her face.

“But would you want to join us for dinner?” Kara asked, her eyes perking back up. “I’d still love to see you and Maggie’s making the turducken so there’s going to be plenty of food. We’d all love to have you there.”

“Yeah,” Lena found herself saying with a bright smile before she even thought about it. “I’d like that.”

“I’d really like that too,” Kara said with a bright grin matching Lena’s.

Lena had seen that look in Kara’s eyes before with other women she had dated. It was the look that made Lena lick her lips as her eyes fell from Kara’s glacier blue eyes to her pale parted lips. She couldn’t help but wondered if Kara tasted like the sweet peppermint she smelled like.

Taking a small step forward to help close the gap between them, Lena’s coat fell open which wouldn’t have bothered her in the slightest, but it just so happened that her pocket thudded against the wooden porch railing. Lena froze for a second. She shouldn’t have had anything in her pocket. She hadn’t put anything in there. Unless…

With her curiosity already ruining the mood, Lena took a step back. Placing her hand in her pocket, Lena felt something cool to the touch with a rather odd shape. Almost as if it were flat with spikes as well as had a ribbon attached to it.

Then Lena’s eyes widened and she sucked in her breath sharply as realization hit her.

“Is everything okay?” Kara asked, her brow wrinkled in concern.

“Everything’s fine,” Lena answered too quickly as she took another step back.

“Are you sure?” Kara asked as her concern only increased.

“Absolutely,” Lena swallowed as her mind reeled. “You know, I just realized how tired I was. I think I’m going to go to bed now.”

“Oh,” Kara’s face fell. “I guess I’ll see you at dinner tomorrow then.”

“Yep,” Lena said with a forced smile and slight cringe. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Good night.”

“Good night, Lena,” Kara sighed, her shoulders slumping before she turned to leave the porch.

Lena watched her for a few seconds before her anxiety forced her back inside the Bed and Breakfast. Not bothering to stomp off any snow or salt on her boots, Lena rushed through the lobby and up the stairs to her room, blatantly ignoring the concerned looks of Clark, Lois, and Eliza. Behind door to her room, Lena tore the offending object from her coat pocket.

Just like she had feared, it was the snowflake ornament.

“Why?” Lena demanded out loud. “Why did you have to be in my pocket? You weren’t there all day, but decided to appear then? Right in the middle of our perfect moment? What did I even do to you?!”

Her anger overflowed and she threw the ornament on the ground, but rather than hearing the satisfying shatter she hoped for, it bounced with a small thud and remained in tack. Letting out a frustrated cry, Lena’s nostrils flared as she stomped down on the ornament with her heavy boot, but after several attempts, she failed to make even a mark. When her anger had run its course with a few more stomps, Lena conceded deep and slumped against the back of the door, sliding down it until she was sitting on the floor. Burying her face in her hands and knees, she let out a sob.

“You made me ruin the perfect date.”

Chapter Text

The sun came up the next day, but Lena stayed buried beneath her blankets and pillows. The events of the previous night replayed like a loop in her head and she couldn’t stop cringing or curling deeper into a ball under the covers. And it didn’t help that she knew she was being illogical and overdramatic. The date had gone better than she ever could have hoped and it was ridiculous to think that one failed kiss would be the end of it all. She was just being ridiculous.

But then Kara’s sad blue eyes and heartbroken expression would float back into her mind and she was burying her face under the pillows once again.

It shouldn’t matter anyway. This wasn’t even real. She was Lena Luthien to Kara. Just a sad, lonely woman who never had a real Christmas or family. If Kara knew the truth, she wouldn’t want her. Even on the slight chance Kara did, Lena had to return to National City soon anyways and she doubted she’d ever have a reason to set foot in Montana let alone North Pole ever again. It wasn’t as if long distance would even work with this sporadic cell reception. Besides, she was a CEO of a billion-dollar company. She didn’t have time for relationships or sleigh rides or Christmas movies. Especially with someone who owned a farm in the middle of nowhere. Regardless of how cute and lovely and toned she may be.

It wasn’t as if Lena could make her happy anyway. She was a Luthor and Kara deserved better.

When the curtains failed to block out the high noon sun, Lena finally rolled out of bed. Even if she did prefer to wallow in her misery, the workaholic in her couldn’t bear the thought of wasting away too much of a day. Still, that didn’t mean she had to face anyone for the time being. After all, Lena still had those files in her bag she had meant to look over long before now and work was just what she needed to get her mind off things. Even if that failed, she had other methods to get her mind on a desired track.

She had taught herself to compartmentalize a long time ago. Every emotion, every fear, every guilt—anything that could be deemed distracting, she shoved down into a box and put away to be dealt with later. However, that bubbly, perfect blonde face and that warm feeling that spread through Lena’s chest when she saw that crooked smile didn’t want to fit inside the box, no matter how much Lena forced it. Even when she thought she had put it away, it would drift back in with a mere glance outside the window at the snow or a faint smell of sweet peppermint would tickle her nose when the heat cut on and blew against that white scarf.

Lena should have returned that scarf.

Shaking her head, Lena did her best to force her attention to return back to the open files on the bed in front of her, but it didn’t do much use. If Lena hadn’t already spent so much of the day in bed, the unbelievably dull files would have put her to sleep. Soon her stomach added itself as one more distraction when it let out a loud growl. As much as she wanted to, Lena couldn’t stay in her room forever, but that didn’t mean she had to stay out of it long. Perhaps Maggie would just let her bring the food up to her room. Would it be acceptable if she asked for an entire bottle of wine to come with it? Nothing like alcoholism to adequately get her mind off things.

---

“So, she lives,” Maggie said, looking up from the table was wiping off in the dining room. “And I here I was starting to worry.”

“I’m sorry,” Lena mumbled as she rubbed the back of her neck. “I accidentally slept in.”

“Right,” Maggie replied, arching a coy eyebrow. “It didn’t have anything to do with certain… events that happened last night.”

Lena ducked her head as a fierce blush corrupted across her cheeks.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Lena said, busying herself with pouring a cup of coffee. “Nothing happened.”

“So those looks at dinner and that hand holding during the movie meant nothing,” Maggie smirked as she crossed her arms. “Because it sure looked like something to me.”

A pleasant warmth seeped through Lena for a moment as she recalled the meal of pot stickers and rice the night before and pure elation on Kara’s face when Maggie brought out a special plate just for her. Lena had thought it was impossible for Kara to look any more jubilant than in that moment, but when Lena slipped her hands into Kara’s during the cheesy Christmas movie, she was proven wrong.

But then it morphed into the memory of the porch later and dejected heartbreak on Kara’s face as Lena retreated, and that warmth twisted and soured in Lena’s gut.

“Maggie,” Lena sighed.

“Lena,” Maggie countered, raising both her eyebrows this time.

And Lena couldn’t help but wonder if Maggie would speak this way to her if she knew her last name was really Luthor. Or if she would tell her jokes, share popcorn, or try to bully her into watching Christmas movies. If any of her new “friends” would. No else had before. People didn’t socialize with Luthors. They feared them. And for good reason.

“It just wouldn’t work out,” Lena said in a forced neutral tone. “We’re from different worlds.”

“Well then it’s a good thing Kara’s good at traveling,” Maggie replied, seeing right through Lena’s supposed indifference. “And it seems you are too since you ended up here.”

“I don’t mean just a physical world,” Lena said, pinching the bridge of her nose. “I mean socially, economically, occupationally, morally...”

“Morally?” Maggie frowned. “Since when do you think your morals differ from Kara’s?”

“She’s a farmer in a small town,” Lena explained with tired eyes. “I’m a business woman from the big city. She cares about making people happy and taking care of them while I care about making money and being successful. When she sees someone who could possibly be in need, she helps without being asked while I prefer to stay neutral and leave them alone.” She gave a small shrug. Lena may not the same breed of evil as her Luthor family, but she certainly wasn’t a hero. “It’s just who I am and Kara deserves better than that.”

“Alright,” Maggie sighed, throwing her rag on the empty table. “Get your coat.”

“What?” Lena’s brow crinkled. “Why?”

“Because that frown and attitude of yours is going to spoil my dinner,” Maggie explained as she pushed in a few chairs. “And I did not just spend the past hour shoving a chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey. So grab your coat.”

“Wait…” Lena’s heart plummeted. “Are you kicking me out?”

“No,” Maggie said with an offended tone and face. “I’m dragging you with me to run an errand that’ll hopefully get your mind off things. That and I need your help carrying stuff to the car. So go on,” Maggie clapped her hands. “Chop chop. That turducken only has a few hours to cook so I’ll need to be back soon.”

---

As it turned out, Maggie’s supposed errand was to deliver and serve food at the local community center. While Lena herself had never set foot in one, she had donated plenty of funds to ensure their creation and upkeep around National City and Metropolis. Even though the North Pole community center was smaller than any of those, this one also functioned as a soup kitchen, homeless shelter, after school care, and a free clinic on the weekends; all things Lena supported on paper but never been to physically. Lillian enjoyed the good PR, but she never dared come anywhere near poverty or its people. And as much as Lena hated to admit, she acted the same way.

Like mother like daughter she supposed.

If she ever wanted to change that, now seemed like the perfect time. Lena helped unload Maggie’s trunk, then slung the bags over her shoulder and carried the trays of lasagna in her hands. She held her head high as she walked despite the anxiety towards the unknown prickling in her stomach. But these were people, and she handled people every day. This would be no different. She could do this. As Maggie opened the door, Lena cocked her chin a little higher, double checked her composure, and walked in after her.

But as soon as she stepped inside, her composure failed and her shoulders slumped.

These weren’t people.

These were children.

If Maggie hadn’t been blocking the door, Lena would have more than likely attempted to make a break for it. Instead, she forced down a swallow and followed the signs towards the kitchen. She kept her eyes down to avoid making any undesired eye contact with the laughing children running around or their parents around them conversing. It wasn’t until the door to the kitchen closed that Lena felt her muscles relax and as if she could breathe again. Unfortunately for her, Maggie seemed to know just exactly what she was doing, and it wasn’t long before the ingredients for salad were laid out on the counter and the lasagna trays were load back into the oven.

“Alright,” Maggie said brushing off her apron. “That’ll take a couple minutes to reheat. I think I can take it from here. Why don’t you go mingle?”

“Mingle?” Lena repeated, blinking slowly as she did.

Maggie cocked her head to the side and smirked at Lena.

“Don’t tell me you’re afraid of children,” Maggie told her.

“What? Me?” Lena asked in an attempt to feign an innocence that Maggie’s look shot straight through. “They’re small and sticky and I don’t know how to talk to them.”

“Wow, the big National City business hotshot is afraid of five year olds,” Maggie said with a laugh. “That was honestly the last thing I expected from you.”

“You’re so not helping me right now,” Lena said, crossing her arms.

“Look, it’s no big deal,” Maggie assured her with a shrug of her shoulders. “Just talk to them like you would any kid. Don’t you have a niece or little cousin or even a younger sibling growing up?”

“No,” Lena said in a stern voice.

“Oh come on, you at least babysat for extra money when you were a kid, right?”

“Never.” The Luthors didn’t do children.

“I forget you lived a strange and deprived childhood,” Maggie said, shaking her head as she reached for the door. “Just try it. They’re good kids and as long as they can see that you’re trying, they’ll love you for it.”

Lena bit her lip, but nodded. When Maggie opened the door, Lena took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself before squaring up and leaving the kitchen. Immediately, she was hit with the loud thud of partially deflated basketballs bouncing against the gym floor and the squeak of cheap tennis shoes as the kids ran. A few girls jump roped in the corner while some young boys played house with their matted stuffed animals beside them. Several adults either stood along the sidelines watching the half-court basketball game while others played cards at the small lopsided tables. Quite honestly, they looked nothing like Lena had expected. These kinds of people were supposed to be filthy, crass, and addicts; memories of her mother saying that those in poverty were there because of their own failed work ethic and bad decisions.

But these people looked normal. Yes, some of their clothes were out of fashion and didn’t fit them well and their toys were worn and had seen better days, but these were still normal looking people. They still laughed, smiled, played, and cared for one another. When one of the girls jumping rope tripped and fell, her father was at her side in seconds, wiping away her tears and making sure she was alright. One of the basketball players scored and a proud mother on the side line cheered and gave two thumbs up. At the tables, an older brother taught his younger sister how to play cards and remained patient and kind despite the little girl’s frequent exclamation of “UNO!” These were people treating their fellow people like family.

The whole scene simultaneously warmed Lena’s heart and pierced it. Thank god Maggie had closed the door because Lena now needed something to lean against as her legs now struggled to hold her up.

After several long moments of just watching everything in front of her, Lena’s caught her eye on a teenaged girl with long brown hair and a round face sitting by herself at a table in front of a chess board. She stared intently at the board as she moved piece by piece, white and black, and Lena realized that the girl was actually playing against herself. Lena might not know the rules of half-court basketball, but she knew her way around a chess board.

“Are you playing chess against yourself?” Lena asked as she walked up to the teenaged girl.

“It’s the only way I’ll have a decent opponent,” the girl replied, her focus still clearly on the game as she moved the white knight to take out a black bishop. “Besides, I’ve either beaten everyone here or they don’t want to play.”

“Well, you haven’t played me,” Lena said, raising an eyebrow as she crossed her arms.

The teenaged girl finally tilted her head up, her eyes racking over Lena in a way that made Lena tilt her chin up as if she were proving herself to a board room full of sexist, old white men investors. But unlike those men, the girl gave Lena a warm smile.

“You look like you’re up for the challenge,” the teen held out her hand. “My name’s Ruby.”

“Lena,” the CEO replied, unable to hold back a small smile as she shook Ruby’s hand. “Do you have preference for white or black?”

“Well,” Ruby stared as she reset the board. “The whites are missing the most pieces so it might be easier if I take them. Unless you have some pieces of paper we could tear up.”

“Let me see what I have,” Lena said as she dug through her pockets for an old receipt. “Wait, am I missing my king?”

“Eh, it’s just the king,” Ruby said with a wave of her hand. “He’s just some old figurehead who probably lays in bed all day. The queen’s the one with the real power.”

Maybe Lena could get along better with kids than she thought.

Chapter Text

Ruby claimed to have taken the white out of convenience, but Lena had the sinking suspicion that Ruby actually took them for the first move advantage. Of course, this idea could be from Lena's leftover paranoia from playing with her family. In fact, Lex would typically let Lena be white just to give her a false sense of security and so it felt like more of a victory when he won. But Ruby was just a teenaged girl. How nefarious and cunning could she be in a simple game of chess?

Upon seeing her first few moves, Lena noted that she was right to be suspicious.

“Check,” Ruby said proudly after moving her piece of paper labeled “bishop.”

“That was fast.” Lena arched an eyebrow impressed although she was careful not to make it obvious that she was studying the current board layout. The teen didn’t need to be only one who used assumptions to their advantage.

“I told you I was good,” Ruby said with a smile as she rubbed a captured black knight and rook with against one another. “I haven’t lost a game in years.”

“That is until now.” Lena gave a coy smile as she bypassed white’s baited bishop and went straight for the queen. “Check mate.”

Ruby almost dropped the pieces from her hand.

“How’d you do that?” she demanded, leaning forward with her mouth open wide.

“Oh please,” Lena said, leaning back and crossing her arms. “Do you think I can’t spot a gambit when I see one?”

“Can’t blame a girl for trying,” Ruby replied with an unexpected grin.

It wasn’t the kind of threatening or scheming grin Lex or Lillian would offer when Lena won that sent a small chill through her spine that made a tiny part of her regret her victory. Nor was it the patronizing one Lionel use to give her when she was younger that made her win feel hollow. No, this one was kind and in good sportsmanship. Despite Lena ruining the girl’s undefeated reign, there seemed to be no malice behind her eyes. Perhaps even a bit impressed.

“You still play quite well, though,” Lena assured her. “On a good day, I’d bet you could give Bobby Fischer a run for his money.”

Ruby snorted. “I’m sure I could use his whole being dead thing to my advantage. Besides that, I seriously doubt I could bring anything to the table in a game against the greatest chess player of all time.”

“He had his moments, I suppose,” Lena shrugged. “But he had a weaker mid game than his beginning and end. I was able to end our game in a stale mate because of it. And I still think I could have done better in the next if he hadn’t refused to play again.”

“Our game? You’ve played against Bobby Fischer?”

“When I was younger, yes,” Lena said causally, trying to brush it off as to not draw attention. “My parents use to do business with him.”

“That’s so cool!” Ruby said leaning forward. “What was he like?”

“Well, he certainly was a lot nicer before a twelve-year-old almost beat him.”

“Makes sense,” Ruby laughed. “Oh gosh, twelve! How old were you when you learned?”

“Four,” Lena replied, her tone hardening slightly as she remembered her first day as Lillian’s unwanted daughter and Lex’s surprise sister.

“Four?” Ruby gasped. “And I thought I was doing good to learn at six!”

“My mother was a bit pushy when it came to erudition,” Lena explained with a tight smile. “There was never any room for failure. Only perfection.”

“Well, my mom says that you learn more from failure and risks,” Ruby said as she set back up the chess board. “And I’m going to take her word for it because otherwise I lost for nothing. Now—” Ruby straightened up her back, arranged her fingers in an exaggerated pyramid, and gave Lena a lopsided grin. “Teach me your ways, once four-year-old Grandmaster.”

With a roll of her eyes and corner smile, Lena did exactly that.

---

“I was wondering if you’d ever come back,” Maggie said as she pulled a pan of cookies out of the oven. “I had to recruit extra help.”

She waved an oven mitt towards the tall, young woman in a waitress uniform with long brown hair frosting a cake by the counter. The woman turned and offered a familiar smile that instantly sent Lena back to that chess board.

“Hey, I’m Sam,” she greeted with a wave of her icing covered hands. “I would offer to hand shake, but frosting.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Lena laughed. “I’m Lena.”

“Am I mistaken or were you actually just beating Ruby in a game of chess out there?” Sam asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes, but it wasn’t easy,” Lena replied as she passed a spatula to Maggie. “She certainly plays better than most people I know.”

“Still, I’m glad you’ve cut her down,” Sam with a sly smirk. “Nothing’s more embarrassing than losing every game to your daughter since she was eight. And she isn’t near this sportsmanlike at home either.”

“Wait,” Lena stopped and turned to her. “You’re Ruby’s mother?”

“Yep,” Sam said as she leaned against the counter and licked the frosting off her thumb. “I had her when I was sixteen.”

“Wow,” Lena said, blinking. “Good for you. I can’t imagine raising a prodigy like that was easy.”

“Please tell me you didn’t call her that,” Sam laughed. “That kid’s already got an inflated ego as it is.”

“Seriously though,” Lena gave a genuine smile. “She’s great kid. You’ve done a great job raising her.”

“Stop, now you’re inflating my ego,” Sam replied.

“Have you two started looking into colleges?” Lena asked leaning up against the counter across from Sam. “With a mind like hers, it wouldn’t surprise me if Ruby found herself in an Ivy League. She definitely has a bright future ahead of her.”

“Yeah,” Sam sighed as she set down the frosting knife into the sink. “I have no doubt she wouldn’t make the Dean’s list every year. But we just can’t afford it.”

Lena’s face dropped. For a moment, she had forgotten where she was, the people she was talking to and instantly hated herself. Sam had been a teen mom and from the lack of wedding ring on her finger, the stained waitress uniform, and the tired lines under her eyes, she’d clearly had a tough time despite how great of daughter Ruby seemed. Even though Lena found little enjoyment in money and thought little of it, she often forgot how vital it was for others.

“Aren’t there scholarships, at least?” Lena asked. “I’m sure Ruby can get a few scholarships with her chess skills. And doesn’t the government provide financial aid?”

“Not enough though,” Sam said with a weak smile. “Her tuition for a technical college is covered, but the closest one is an hour away in Billings and I’ll still have to take out a loan for textbooks and finding a way to get her there and back.”

“What about online school?” Lena asked.

“Service is too unreliable in this town,” Sam told her. “There are pockets here and there and the company says they’re planning on building a tower soon, but it just isn’t a feasible way for Ruby to get an education.”

“I’m so sorry,” Lena said and never had she meant it more.

“It’s not so bad,” Sam shrugged as she brought the cake to counter to be served. “We’re actually better off than most here. I was actually able to afford to upgrade Ruby to a smart phone this year. It may be used and have a cracked screen, but it’s still better than nothing. At least now she’ll be able to call me when she starts classes in the fall.”

“Yeah, that’s nice,” Lena mumbled as her eyes drifted across the open counter towards the tables of children and their families eating, particularly the smiling teenaged girl who had played chess with her earlier, and she felt a twinge in her heart.

“Do you have the cookies ready for Kara?” Sam asked Maggie.

“Kara?” Lena’s gasped, her neck snapping to her friends in the kitchen.

“Oh sorry,” Sam winked. “I mean, Santa.”

“Just about,” Maggie said as she shoveled the last of the cookies from the pan to the plate.

“Kara’s Santa?” Lena asked slowly.

“What? No! Um, kind of? Well, not like you’d think…”

Maggie’s awkward fumbling was interrupted by an excited shout from the children and Lena turned her head just in time to see them swarm a laughing figure dressed in a red and white suit with big black boots. Even with the slight distance, pillow stuffed in the shirt, and the fake white beard, Lena would have recognized those glacier blue eyes anywhere.

“Now who’s been good this year?” Kara asked in a comically deep voice that made Lena smile and her heart flutter.

“I have! I have!” all the children seemed to clamor in unison.

“Then let’s see what I have here for all you then,” Kara said as she pulled her red velvet sack down from her shoulders.

“She does it every year,” Maggie explained, drawing Lena’s attention back to the kitchen. “Even though she hates wearing the beard. But the kids seem happier when she does. All she asks is for a plate of milk and cookies.”

“Do you remember that year she bought all the kids sleds?” Sam asked. “It was during that really mild winter where it hadn’t snowed yet and we all thought she was crazy? Then it snowed Christmas day and we were the ones looking like the fools?”

“Don’t forget that time she brought the sleigh and reindeer with her and gave all the kids rides around town on it,” Maggie said.

“How could I forget?” Sam laughed, throwing her head back. “Ruby begged for a pet reindeer of her own for months afterwards.”

“She does this every year?” Lena asked, completely memorized on the Santa in front of her.

“For as long as I've known her,” Maggie told her. “She’ll always be sure that all the families, both children and adult, have proper coats and shoes for the winter as well as have enough food and hygiene supplies, but all that’s done on the side. Her favorite part is delivering the fun gifts like this.”

“And she always gives the perfect gift too,” Sam added. “She gave both me and Ruby ice skates one year even though neither of us had tried it. But it turned out that we both had a bit of a knack for it. Plus, it’s still a great bonding activity between us.”

“That’s so thoughtful,” Lena said softly.

And it was. Not only did Sam and Ruby have a mother-daughter relationship that Lena thought to be impossible, the woman who seemed to impossible had made it even stronger. This woman who spent her own money and gave up her own time every year to help these families all for smiles and cookies. How much money could a farmer like Kara even make? But still cared like this. And the way the little boy lit up when Kara handed him a new basketball or the little girl squealed when Kara placed a new stuffed animal in her arms made Lena’s heart feel things that she didn’t think possible.

How could she ever have called Kara a hero? That woman was a saint.

“Lena,” Maggie said carefully, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Are you okay?”

“What?” Lena squeaked, rapidly blinking back tears as she cleared her throat. “Yeah, I’m fine.” She barely held back a sniffle as she wiped her sleeve against her cheek. “Actually, I think I’m gonna go and finish up some things in my room before dinner tonight if that’s okay.”

“Are you sure?” Maggie asked. “I can give you a ride back if you me to.”

“No, no it’s fine,” Lena assured her as she pulled her hat out of her pocket. “It’s not too far of a walk and the fresh air will do me good anyways.”

“Okay,” Maggie frowned but let her go. “I guess I’ll see you tonight then.”

“Tonight then,” Lena repeated as she backed towards the door. “It was pleasure to meet you Sam.”

“You too,” Sam offered a small wave, but Lena had already fled out the door.

---

Despite only being in the town for a few days, Lena knew her way around surprisingly well. After all, almost everything in the small town all lied on the same street. Even with it being the afternoon and so close to Christmas, the sidewalks were quite empty which made Lena thankful as she was now able to walk as briskly as she pleased back towards the Bed and Breakfast. She just needed time alone to think. She hadn’t thought it was possible to find Kara even more attractive but after seeing her in the community dressed as Santa… her heart still swelled at the thought. But it wouldn’t work out. She was a Luthor and Kara was Kara: a farmer with beautiful eyes and a heart of gold. Quite honestly, the more Lena thought about it, the more she found it ridiculous that someone like Kara would even be interested in someone like herself.

Lena walked down the sidewalk so quickly lost in her own thoughts that she didn’t notice the large cardboard box until her foot collided with it. Cursing quietly to herself, Lena dragged it back it’s respected place on the salted side walk and, upon closer inspection, she realized it was a box labeled for the state trooper’s Toys for Tots drive. Her heart sank when she saw that the reason she had kicked it so easily was that it was absolutely empty. Frowning, Lena looked around her and conveniently noticed a toy store across the street.

She was Luthor, afterall and her family owed a debt. If Lena wanted to be more than her name, it was time she started repaying that debt.

As she approached it, she noticed how old fashion it was with train displayed in the windows and giant toy soldiers standing guard out front. When she opened the door, she was hit with a pleasant wave of pine and peppermint. Garlands, tinsel, and Christmas lights adorned the ceiling and walls as it all seemingly led to a large red chair off to the side that was surrounded by fake snow and adorned with "Santa" in green script across the top. It made sense for a toy store to go all out for a fake Santa meet and greet, but what really perplexed Lena were the amount of wood shavings on the floor and the tools hanging on the wall as if it were a workshop. Did they make the toys here? If so, someone really knew what they were doing considering the level of detail in every toy Lena came across.

“I don’t have to worry about you making a mess in here too, do I?”

Lena spun around and her eyes widened as they landed on the same small, dark haired man she first met in this town standing behind the counter.

“What are you doing here?” Lena asked.

“Well, I work here,” Winn explained with a smirk. “It’s Sunday so the post office is closed and there aren’t any buses coming in for a while so we closed it up for the day. My friend James was needed elsewhere, so I’m taking his shift here.”

“I guess I didn’t realize how small this town was,” Lena muttered as she approached the counter, but those oddly pointed ears of Winn seemed to catch it anyways.

“I told you that you’d probably run into me again,” he said with wide grin. “Now what can I do for you today?”

“Right,” Lena dug through her purse and pulled out her wallet. “I want to buy every toy you have for sale.”

Winn blinked as his grin faltered.

“Excuse me?”

“I want to buy every toy you have for sale,” Lena repeated, taking out most of the cash she had on her, setting the thick stack of twenties and hundreds on the counter in front of a flabbergasted Winn. “Or at least all that will cover. And donate it to the Toys for Tots please.”

“Um,” Winn stammered as he slowly reached for the large pile of cash in front of him. “I guess I’ll need to get you a form to fill out so they’ll know who to think.”

Lena shook her head. “No names. Say it was an anonymous donor or something. I don’t care just as long as they get the toys.”

“Well, thank you,” Winn told her, still looking completely floored. “I know they’ll appreciated it.”

“It’s the least I can do,” Lena replied before turning and leaving through the door in which she came.

Funnily enough, as soon as Lena stepped foot outside, her phone started to ring. Assuming she was currently standing in one those pockets of service Sam mentioned earlier, Lena stopped in her track and pulled out her phone, noticing that it was Eve calling her.

“Hello, Eve,” she greeted.

“Ms. Luthor! I’ve been trying to reach you all day.”

“Is everything okay?” Lena frowned.

“Yes, everything is fine! It was just when I didn’t hear from you or any notes regarding those files you took, I was beginning to worry that something bad happened to you.”

“I’m quite alright, Eve,” Lena assured her. “I’ve just been busy, that’s all.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to have disturbed you then.”

“Actually, I’m glad you called. There were somethings I needed to talk to you about. How quickly do you think L-Corp could put together a scholarship fund? Also, what loops do you know of that would involve getting a cell tower built in the middle of nowhere?”

Chapter Text

After Lena finally got the details sorted out with Eve, she completed her trek back to the Danvers Bed and Breakfast and was quite shocked to see Lois and Clark on the front lawn and porch. They were surrounded by boxes of decoration as if the place hadn’t been decorated already, but Lois stood on a ladder while Clark passed her more garlands to hang.

“Careful on that ladder, Lois,” Clark said leaping forward to hold the rickety wood steady. “It’s really old.”

“You’ll catch me,” Lois smirked before climbing up another rung.

“Are you two hanging up more decorations?” Lena asked as she walked up to them.

“Lena!” Clark as he hid the garland behind his back. “We didn’t expect to see you here. We thought you were at the community center with Maggie.”

“I came home early,” Lena replied, her eyes narrowing at the two of them. “What’s going on?”

“Eliza just asked for more decorations, that’s all,” Lois said briskly from atop her ladder. “Clark and I just thought we’d give her hand before tonight. You know, kind of like a Christmas gift and spreading the Christmas cheer and all.”

“Right….” Lena said slowly, clearly not believing them, but lacking the energy to say so.

“You are still coming tonight, right?” Clark asked.

“I planned on it,” Lena replied.

“Great! We’ll see you then!” he said too fast and Lena got the distinct feeling that her presence was unwanted.

“I’ll see you then,” Lena said with a nod towards both of them before heading back up to her room.

---

Lena purposely took her time preparing for the evening dinner. After showering, blow drying, and straightening her long dark hair, she pondered for nearly half an hour trying on different clothes before she finally settles on something she deemed decent and fit her just right. For a moment, she even considered taking her flat iron against the slacks she worn earlier that had wrinkled, but that was a line Lena doubted she could ever cross. Despite lacking much make-up on her person, Lena spent quite some time with her eyeliner and lipstick, redoing it when it strayed even minutely from perfection. This was her first Christmas dinner after all and, while it may still be a few before Christmas day and involve people she had just met, she wanted it to be perfect. She had to be perfect.

It was dark outside before she finally deemed herself ready, but with it being the shortest day of the year, she wasn’t too surprised. Colorful Christmas lights shined through the window and aiding the Christmas tree and fire in lighting up the room. From the stairs, Lena could see everyone else already there, laughed and passing around a bowl of what looked like roasted chestnuts. Everyone was adorned with an obnoxiously hideous sweater that they seemed to wear with pride, but made Lena roll her eyes. When she spotted the blonde standing by the tree laughing with Alex, Lena’s feet came to a stop as her heart fluttered all the faster. Despite the atrocious smiling reindeer Christmas sweater and the red antler headband, Lena had never found Kara more attractive than in that moment. She just looked so jolly and carefree, and she was most certainly in her element. If she could have, Lena would have gladly just stood on those stairs all night just to watch Kara laugh.

“Lena!” Eliza called out to her in her bright green and blue Christmas tree sweater. “Come join us! Maggie was just about to serve us dinner.”

Kara looked up and for a brief moment, their green and blue eyes locked, triggering a small smile from each of them. However, Lena quickly tore her gaze away when she felt the heat of a blush blooming across her face.

“I’ll be right there,” Lena replied as she hurried down the rest of the stairs and into the living room to join the others.

---

“I’m going to be honest, Maggie,” Clark said in white candy cane sweater as he passed around a plate of green beans. “When you said turducken, I thought you were trying to pull our leg.”

“Oh, I never joke about my turducken,” Maggie replied in a green gingerbread sweater as she carved into the massive bird in front of her. “Especially when it involves me de-boning a turkey, chicken, and duck then shoving them all inside one another. I found one recipe for a turbaconducken which is this but wrapped in bacon, but I thought that was a bit excessive.”

“If you think that’s excessive, have you heard of the twelve-bird one?” Lois asked in her blue poinsettia sweater. “I think it’s a turkey stuffed with a goose, duck, guinea, mallard, quail, partridge, pigeon, pheasant, chicken, and some other birds.”

“Oh my gosh,” Eliza laughed. “That’s like a bird for each day of Christmas.”

“I guess I’ll have my work cut out for me next year,” Maggie grinned.

“Mags, you can’t be serious,” Alex said. “That sounds like enough poultry to feed a hundred people. We’ll have leftovers for months.”

“You forget that we have a Kara,” Maggie jerked her head towards the excited blonde.

“I completely support this idea,” Kara proclaimed in between mouthfuls of pot stickers.

“I didn’t even know you could eat pigeon,” Eliza said.

“It’s more common in Europe,” Lena explained. “They taste much better than you would think. But they aren’t the same kind of pigeons that people feed in cities though.”

“Well, I’ll guess you’ll just have to come back next year and show us how it’s done,” Eliza said with a smile that sent an unexpected wave of emotion through Lena.

“You are coming back next year, right Lena?” Alex asked. “We can go ahead and book you a room in advance too if you’d like.”

“She better be,” Maggie added. “There’s too many Christmas movies we still have to expose this girl too. Not to mention all the traditions she already missed out on.”

“I, um,” Lena’s gaze fell down to the green beans her fork was currently moving around on her plate as she purposely tried to avoid the attention on her, especially that from the blonde next to her. “It’s still kind of early and I don’t know what work will be like just yet. I’ll have to get back to you on that.”

And it wasn’t all of Lena’s fear speaking. She was the CEO of L-Corp: a billion-dollar company. Who was to say that the investors wouldn’t follow through on their threats and pull out or that her research and development team would come up with nothing viable in the next quarter or the next? What if the stock market crashed again? Was it really wise to take an entire week or more off work every Christmas to go to nowhere Montana?

Of course, there may have been a large part since the prospect of returning to North Pole, Montana for annual visits nullified her excuse of never seeing Kara again. However, it also meant that a heartbreak would break that much harder if she returned. Not to mention, what if her flavor soured in the mouths of everyone at this table when they learned of her real identity? Would they want to share a table with a daughter of terrorist or have their friend dating the sister of a mass murderer?

Really, it was Lena’s fear speaking. She just needed time to think whether her fears were risks worth taking.

“Well, we’d be thrilled to have you join us again,” Lois said with a genuine smile and a heat bloomed in Lena’s chest.

---

“No way!” Alex gasped as she tore off the rest of wrapping. “You got me a Red Ryder BB gun!”

“Well, you already had the pink bunny outfit,” Maggie shrugged with a smile. “I just thought I’d get you the next best thing.”

“God, I love you,” Alex sighed, wrapping the gun in her arms before pulling on her girlfriend in for a kiss by her shirt collar.

“Hey, now,” Maggie laughed as she pulled away before placing a quick kiss on Alex’s cheek. “We have an audience with your mom is right there and you know how lovey-dovey eggnog makes you.”

While everyone else in the room laughed, Eliza rolled her eyes and took one last gift from under the tree.

“Here you go, Lena,” Eliza said as she passed the wrapped present to her. “Merry Christmas.”

“Oh,” Lena gasped, sitting up straighter as her eyes widened. All night she had been a bystander sipping on eggnog as she watched the others exchanged gifts. And it wasn’t as if she minded or had been offended by it one bit. It was actually quite nice seeing them all get excited and laugh and enjoy whatever laid beneath the wrapping. It wasn’t often Lena found herself as comfortable as she was then. Well was at least before Eliza had handed her a gift. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t get you anything.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Eliza assured her with a wave of her hand. “It’s just a little something I made that I thought might spread some Christmas cheer.”

“Okay,” Lena said carefully as she tore off the wrapping paper, opened the box underneath, and went still.

It was a sweater. An oversized, green sweater made of fuzzy yarn and large stitching. Letting the box and wrapping fall from her lap to the floor, Lena held it open and let it unfold to reveal a massive snowman on the front with thick stick arms, a long red scarf, and multicolored button eyes and mouth. Oblivious to the crowd of people watching her, Lena slowly ran her fingers down the front, feeling the soft texture of it. The orange carrot nose bumped out further than the rest and Lena realized that part had been sewn on. It was absolutely hideous and there were no tags meaning it had to be home made and Lena soon found it hard to breath.

“It’s not my best work,” Eliza said with a small shrug. “But everyone else in the family has one so I thought it was only fitting that you’d have one too.”

Unable to take her eyes off it, Lena soon found the snowman becoming blurry. After a few quick blinks, she realized just how close to tears she was.

“Excuse me,” Lena said in a hoarse whisper

Ignoring whatever anyone around her said or did, Lena rushed for the door with sweater still gripped tightly in her hand. It was too much. All of it was too much. She need the cold winter air to shock her back, to wake her up from this dream, but it did little good. It felt as if a hole had opened up in her chest, but rather than consuming her like it normally did, this hole seemed to fill her with something foreign but oddly pleasant.

Was this what Christmas was supposed to be like?

The more it overcame her, the further Lena realized she had descended into tears. Clutching the snowman sweater tightly to her chest, Lena felt as if she could breath for the first time in years.

“Lena, is everything alright?”

The voice shocked Lena out of her trance and as soon as her eyes landed on Kara, everything became clear.

“Yes,” Lena sniffled with a small smile. “Everything is great.”

“Then why are you crying?” Kara asked as she stepped towards Lena, her brow furrowed in concern. “It’s okay if you don’t like the sweater. Eliza promised she won’t be offended if you don’t.”

“Kara,” Lena said, her gaze falling on Kara’s own reindeer sweater. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

Kara’s face instantly became serious and concerned.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s about us,” Lena choked out.

“Oh,” Kara’s face fell into the same sad expression from the night before, sending an unpleasant pang through Lena’s chest.

“It’s just…” Lena swallowed in an attempt to alleviate her dry mouth and push down her creeping anxiety. “I wasn’t raised like most people. My family’s tough love bordered on neglect and in everything I did, regardless of chore, sport, or class, perfection was expected. And it not only made me a perfectionist but also terrified of failure.”

“Okay,” Kara said slowly, her forehead wrinkling as she tried to follow.

“So typically when I fail or mess up, I run from it,” Lena explained, her words quickening as her heart began to beat faster. “Especially if it’s complicated and I don’t think I can do better. It’s just easier for me to ignore and forget. But then today, I was talking with this wonderfully smart and sweet girl, and she said that you learn more from your failures especially if you pursue them. Otherwise, I failed for nothing…”

“Lena,” Kara interpreted Lena’s now frantic rambling by putting two hands on Lena’s shoulders. “I get that what you’re saying is important, but I don’t understand how this applies to us.”
Lena bit her lip as she lost herself in those glacier blue eyes.

“I’m saying that even though the perfectionist inside me hates that I failed to last night, I now know just how much I want to kiss you.”

Thank heavens for Kara’s grip on Lena’s shoulders because otherwise Lena’s legs would have given out when Kara’s face broke out into an elated grin.

“Oh thank goodness,” Kara whispered before bringing Lena’s lips to her own.

And Kara’s lips tasted just like Lena had hoped: sweet peppermint.

Chapter Text

Kissing Kara not only filled Lena’s mouth with the taste of sweet peppermint, it also filled her chest with a blissful warmth almost as if she were standing in front of the fire. If her hands weren’t so busy tangling themselves in Kara’s blonde hair, she probably would have taken off her coat, but she really couldn’t be bothered with that now. Especially not when one of Kara’s hand moved to cup the back of her neck, sending another burst of warmth through her. When the other circled around Lena’s waist, pulling her impossibly closer and flush against Kara’s toned body, Lena let out a soft moan against Kara’s mouth and she felt Kara’s lips curve into a grin with her own.

How had she let her frustration with a stupid Christmas ornament keep her from this?

Unfortunately due to their limited lung capacity, their kiss had to end in order to breath, but that didn’t mean they let go of one another. Carefully untangling her fingers from Kara’s hair, Lena wrapped her arms around her neck and rested her forehead against Kara’s, staring into those magically soothing glacier blue eyes. With her hand coming forwards to cradle Lena’s flushed face, Kara gingerly rubbed her thumb along Lena’s cheek, triggering a soft smile from each. Kara’s eyes trailed slowly along Lena’s face as if she was memorizing every detail, but when her gaze landed on Lena’s lips, she let out a slight chuckle.

“What?” Lena asked, her forehead wrinkling.

“It’s just funny that Lois put all that work into hanging up the mistletoe for nothing,” Kara explained with a crooked smile.

“What mistletoe… oh,” Lena’s gaze followed Kara’s to the porch rafter and noticed the branch of mistletoe hanging above them. Her eyebrows jumped slightly when Lena realized that that must have been what Lois and Clark were doing when she ran into them earlier today.

“Sorry,” Kara blushed. “Everyone in this town is weirdly invested into each other’s love lives. Especially mine for some reason.”

For the second time tonight, Lena felt the prickle of tears in her eyes. The one woman who knew who Lena was and all the horrors and evils her name was attached to better than anyone was actually meddling in her love life for the better. With anyone else, Lena would have thought it would be a trap, but with just one look in those blue eyes, she seriously doubted Kara had a malice thought within her. Despite only knowing her for a handful of days, Lena had never felt more loved in her entire life.

“No, no, it’s fine,” Lena assured her with a smile. “It’s sweet actually.”

“Oh, thank goodness,” Kara laughed. “I wish I could say that it would probably just be temporary, but they’re pretty like this all the time.”

“They really care about you,” Lena said, her thumbs rubbing the back of Kara’s neck.

“They care about you too, you know,” Kara nodded to the green snowman sweater. “I’ve never seen Eliza work so hard and fast on one of those before.”

“Yeah,” Lena said softly, her eyes and voice dropping. “I’m really glad to have stumbled into this town. It’s been more than I ever could have hoped.”

“And you’re just getting started,” Kara grinned, leaning forward to place a kiss on Lena’s forehead and soothing the wrinkles there. “I have a whole day of activities planned out for us tomorrow if you’re interested.”

“A whole day of activities?” Lena’s mouth and eyebrow quirked, pulling Kara’s face minutely closer to her own. “And what might they involve exactly?”

“Well there’s ice skating, snow angels, gingerbread houses,” Kara’s hand tightened at Lena’s waist. “And I’m sure we can come up with a few other things.”

“Would mistletoe happened to be involved in any of these activities?” Lena breathed, her nose brushing against Kara’s.

“I’m sure we can figure something out,” Kara smiled before sealing her promise with a kiss.

---

“So,” Maggie said slowly. “They kissed before midnight.”

“Mmmhm,” Alex pressed her lips tightly together.

“Which means…” Maggie grinned. “We drink vegan hot chocolate tonight.”

“Ugh,” Alex groaned, tossing back her head. “I never should have taken that bet.”

“Oh, stop complaining,” Maggie laughed. “I’ll even add extra Baileys to yours.”

“Maybe that will cover the taste,” Alex wrinkled her nose which only made Maggie laugh harder.

“Come on, babe.” Maggie pulled on Alex’s hand. “I promise the chocolate will perk you right up.”

“We should bring out some of leftover turducken too,” Alex said rising to her feet. “I want to at least get some more before Kara takes her leftover plate home.”

“Trust me,” Maggie slid her hand around Alex’s waist and into the back pocket of her jeans. “Even with Kara’s stomach, we’re going to have leftovers for weeks. I totally overestimated the amount of poultry it would be. But it’s taking up so much fridge space that your mom might even tell me to start serving it to the guests.”

“Don’t worry,” Alex scoffed, slinging her arm over Maggie’s shoulders. “I’ll keep it safe from ungrateful guests.”

“What? Are you the food guardian now?” Maggie chuckled as she shook her head. “Eggnog always makes you so cocky. Maybe the hot chocolate will sober you up some,” Maggie started to lead them towards the bar, but she felt Alex resist for a second and her face fell. “Babe? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Alex said quickly, but the taunt tendon on her neck betrayed her.

“You know you don’t have to drink the vegan hot chocolate, right?” Maggie’s eyes flickered across her girlfriend’s face. “It was just one of our stupid bets. It doesn’t actually have to mean anything if you don’t want it to.”

“No, no it’s fine,” Alex assured her with a small smile. She slowly slid her arm off Maggie’s shoulder and laced her fingers into Maggie’s, effectively pulling herself out her girlfriend’s embrace. “There’s actually something I want to show you.”

“Okay…” Maggie’s brow furrowed, but she didn’t resist as the redhead pulled her towards the bar, finding a bit of comfort in the love shining in Alex’s eyes despite her nervous smile and shaking hold.

“I’m sorry,” Alex mumbled as they approached the bar doors. “I just wanted tonight to be perfect.”

“Alex, what is going on?” Maggie asked, her hold tensing in Alex’s just before she pushed the door open.

Even though Alex hadn’t turned on the lights, the room was still aglow with hundreds of tiny candles on the counter and tables. Red and white poinsettias overflowed the available services, rivers of greenery flowed at their base and to the floor. Pine needles and face snow littered the wooden floor and filled the room with a heavy pine scent. A sharp gasp left Maggie’s lips.

“Mom had the idea for the candles so we don’t have to worry about getting in trouble for breaking fire code,” Alex explained as she gently tugged her girlfriend deeper into the room. “Kara brought the flowers. I couldn’t decide between red and white so she brought both. Clark and Lois helped set it up. You know how Lois has an eye to these sorts of things. Do you like it?”

“Alex… it’s incredible,” Maggie struggled to take her eyes off of everything and find the blushing face of the woman she loved. “But why?”

“Well, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking,” Alex started with a shaky voice once they entered the middle of the room. “So much of our lives happen by chance. I mean, Lena stumbled in here by mistake and now Kara can’t stop talking about her. And that got me thinking about our relationship. I don’t know why you applied to be the chef or why my mom hired you, but I’m so grateful it happened because otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten to meet you and I don’t want to imagine who I would be. And I know this all hasn’t been easy especially with how we try to hide our relationship from the guests and how stressful that is, but I need you to know that there’s nothing ever I would want to hide about you, Mags. You’re smart and you’re tough and you’re beautiful.” Alex reached forward to push some of Maggie’s hair back behind her ear and cup her cheek. “Gosh, you’re so beautiful.”

“Alex… you’re crying.”

“Yeah,” Alex sniffled with a slight laugh and her eyes glistened with tears. “I guess what I’m trying to say is that life is too short to leave so much of it up to chance. And we should be who we are, and we should kiss the girls we want to kiss. And I really just- I want to kiss you, Mags. Forever.”

Alex directed Maggie’s gaze upward with a point and a glance, and her breath caught when she saw the green mistletoe hanging from the ceiling by red ribbon just above their heads. But unlike the mistletoe she’d used on Alex before, there was something else in them, and Maggie’s jaw dropped when she saw that it was a diamond ring.

“Oh my gosh…” Maggie breathed before she looked down, saw Alex on one knee, and realized her girlfriend wasn’t the only one crying. “Oh my gosh.”

“Marry me. Please”

Chapter Text

“I can’t believe a town this small has an ice skating rink,” Lena said as Kara pulled up in the parking lot by an outdoor skating rink.

The rink was large but crowded with many families and children skating around on the ice or drinking hot chocolate next to the rink. While it was below freezing, the wind wasn’t blowing and several heaters were set up keeping everyone warm and cozy as well as a small restaurant and rec center open next door. Even though Lena’s coat had lost a battle to snow and ice before, she now wore her green snowman sweater in addition to protect her. At least, that was the excuse Lena was using. In actuality, Lena doubted she’d ever take the sweater off despite how hideous it may be. Nothing made Lena feel quite so warm or safe, except maybe Kara’s arms wrapped around her.

“Oh yeah.” Kara threw the car in park and cut off the engine. “We use the field for soccer and field hockey during the summer, but as soon as it gets below freezing, we turn it into an ice rink. Besides, we’re more of a winter sports kind of town anyways. Don’t want to brag or anything but our curling team has been state champions for almost five years in a row now.”

“Curling?” Lena raised her eyebrows. “Like with the rocks and brooms?”

“That’s the one! You’re talking to a pro sweeper.” Kara grinned as she reached into the back of the truck and pulled out two pairs of white ice skates. “I knew you didn’t have any skates so I brought you some.”

“Are you sure they’ll fit?” Lena asked, skeptically as she eyed the narrow toe.

“Oh yeah,” Kara said with a wave of her hand before stiffening slightly. “I mean, I hope so because… I guessed.”

Lena studied Kara’s seemingly forced smile and wide eyes as she cautiously took the skates from Kara’s hand. Low and behold, the size printed on the inside was hers.

“Good guess,” Lena murmured, opening her door and missing Kara’s sigh of relief.

---

“Oh gosh,” Lena said as she stepped slowly out on to the ice. “I haven’t done this in years.”

“Just take it slow,” Kara offered out her hand. “And feel free to use me for support.”

“You know there are easier ways to get me to hold your hand,” Lena smirked just before she slipped slightly and rapidly clutched on to Kara’s arm. Oh gosh, how Lena had let herself forget about that muscular definition in Kara’s arms, she’ll never know.

“That’s not my hand, you know,” Kara laughed.

“I thought I’d compromise,” Lena replied curtly, still keeping her death grip on Kara’s toned bicep.

“Come on,” Kara said, skating around in front of Lena so she was skating backwards but holding her hands out to Lena. “We’ll take it slow.”

“Now you’re just showing off,” Lena snorted, but gladly took Kara’s hands in hers.

“Well, I have to impress you somehow,” Kara winked, giving Lena’s hands a slight squeeze and causing Lena’s heart to flutter. “Now just try to glide. From one foot to the other. Don’t worry about steering. I got you.”

A warmth blossomed in Lena’s chest and she found it so difficult to look down at her feet with those blue eyes and crooked smile in front of her. Her mind briefly flashed back to all those coaches and instructors Lillian forced her to endure as a child; the thought of those former Olympians and now angry alcoholics whose coaching methods revolved largely around outbursts and humiliation that still made Lena want to cringe. They wanted perfection but Lena just wanted to have fun. But in the hands of this kind-hearted woman before her, Lena couldn’t help but wonder how much farther she could have gone with someone like Kara teaching her.

“You’re a good teacher,” Lena told Kara as they curved into the loop.

“I have a lot of practice,” Kara explained with a smile. “I coach little league hockey with Clark on Thursdays. Mostly it’s just us trying to keep them from hitting one another with their sticks, but there is still a lot of ice skating involved.”

“You’re really good with kids, aren't you?” A small smile curved on the corner of Lena’s mouth that made Kara’s cheeks redden.

“I guess you could say my life revolves around them,” Kara shrugged before dropping one of Lena’s hands. “Do you think you’re ready to try this on your own?”

“Maybe,” Lena said, disappointed to lose Kara’s warm touch.

“I think so,” Kara insisted with a supportive grin. “Now just remember: glide. One foot then the other. You can do this.”

She dropped Lena’s other hand and spun to the side, arms out as if she was ready to catch Lena if she were to stumble again. Tempted as she was to fall into the blonde’s arm, Lena pushed off the ice, her blades slicing through the ice as she stared to pick up some speed.

“Okay, you seem to have gotten the hang of it,” Kara said, doing her best to keep up. “You might want to slow down though—LENA look out!”

An orange cone that clearly been set up an obstacle routine had been knocked over by either wind or child now laid over turn on the ice. While Lena knew she could have avoided it by either a quick stop or turn, something in her urged her to continue towards it. Kara wasn’t the only one trying to impress someone after all.

Pulling back from recollections long ago, Lena picked up speed. Hopefully, it was like riding a bike: all muscle memory. Holding her breath, Lena kicked her leg up in front of her and swiftly pulled her other limps in tight with her. For a brief second, her eyes closed as she spun through the air before landing more gracefully than she thought she ever could backwards on one skate.

Maybe the angry alcoholic coaches did teach her something after all.

From the other side of the orange caution cone, Lena came to a stop, smiling fiercely, and raised her hands in the air dramatically as she took a graceful bow towards the dumbfounded blonde skating her way.

“I thought you said you had never skated before,” Kara said as she came to a stop.

“I said I hadn’t skated in years,” Lena corrected, unable to laugh slightly in giddiness. “You’re looking at a three-year state champion.”

“Oh wow,” Kara grinned, clearly impressed. “Maybe you should be teaching me.”

“I have my moments,” Lena shrugged, but to disprove her point, she stumbled and Kara instantly reach out and caught her. Lena’s breath left her in a hurry as Kara’s arms circled around her, holding her steady. With how weak in the knees her legs felt, maybe Lena wouldn’t have learned much with Kara as a teacher. “Thank you.”

“Anytime,” Kara said in a low voice so that only Lena could hear and that only made Lena’s fingers tighten around those firm biceps that she loved so much. And with Kara’s face already so close, Lena found herself swiftly losing her ability to think about anything but those pink lips that tasted like sweet peppermint.

Unfortunately for both of them, the outside world suddenly pierced into their small one.

“Don’t tell me Michelle Kwan taught you that.”

Lena looked up to see the brunette teenaged chess player from yesterday skating towards her. Rather than being upset for her own private moment interrupted, Lena’s face broke out in a smile as she pulled herself up and away from Kara so she could properly address their new companion.

“Tonya Harding actually,” Lena grinned. “She also taught me how to break my opponent’s legs too if you’re interested.”

“Are you serious?” Ruby gasped, but quickly started to laugh when she saw Lena’s wink. “Well, I can’t imagine my mom would be too happy if you did teach me that anyways.”

“You’re absolutely right,” Sam said as she skated up behind her, stopping as she placed her hands on her daughter’s shoulders. “You’re supposed to hire someone else to do the leg breaking- not do the dirty work yourself. Haven't I taught you anything?”

“Hey Sam!” Kara greeted brightly. “Hey Ruby! Are those ice skates still treating you both well?”

“Still good as new,” Ruby grinned.

“Thank you again so much for them Kara,” Sam said. “They really have been wonderful and it still baffles my mind how they’ve held up so well with how much we use them.”

“Lucky guess I suppose,” Kara shrugged. “Did you two want to join us?”

“Oh, well we don’t want to interrupt anything,” Sam replied, pointing to how Lena had never let go of Kara’s hand which made them both blush, making it clear that they had actually interrupted something.

However, Ruby did not share her mother’s reservations.

“I bet I can beat you in a lap around the rink,” Ruby told Lena, already prepping for take-off.

“Oh, you’re so on!” Lena exclaimed unable to turn down a challenge as she pushed off the ice after her and left a laughing Kara and Sam behind.

---

Even with the additional company, Lena struggled to remember when she had such a good time. Ruby talked to Lena one side, telling her all sorts of stories of how her and mother learned to ice skate and even tried out for intramural hockey and curling teams (apparently Sam was the reason for the curling victories), and Kara held Lena’s hand on the other. They all fell or came quite close to it, and Lena was always sure to at least try and pull Kara down after her, but Kara always caught her.

When their faces became numb and legs became tired, the skated off the rink and both Kara and Ruby decided hot chocolate was just the thing that they all needed. Leaving Sam and Lena to hold their table, they both went off in search for the hot beverage. Lena didn’t mind though. In the short time she had known her, Lena had become rather fond of the woman and respected her even more. It was quite easy to see where Ruby’s intelligence, wit, and benevolence came from. She made Lena feel comfortable and like she actually was a friend like so many other people in town.

But of course, Lena should have known that like everything good thing in her life, it had to end.

“Hey, Lena,” Sam started slowly. “Could I talk to you for a second? I just need your opinion on something.”

“Um, I don’t see why not,” Lena straightened up on the seat. It wasn’t often people outside of the office asked for her opinion on things and the risk of giving poor advice triggered an unexpected amount of stress. Was this what friendship entailed? Perhaps Lena should have eased slower into this. A girl can only handle so much anxiety.

“It’s just I doubt Kara can speak badly about anyone,” Sam explained with wave. “And you’re from the big city so I figured you would have more knowledge and insight about this, but…” Sam rubbed the back of her neck. “What do you know about L-Corp?”

The metal blades of Lena’s skates clattered as they hit the floor.

“Everything okay?” Sam frowned, eyeing the fallen skates and Lena’s limp fingers.

“L-Corp?” Lena echoed. “Why-why do you need to know about L-Corp?”

“Well, they called me this morning telling me that Ruby had been awarded this huge scholarship that would cover tuition, dorms, meals, and even text books to any college she’d want,” Sam explained with a small sigh. “Honestly, it just sounds too good to be true. Ruby didn’t apply to anything like that and so many other kids meet the same requirements as her. Like it’s a scam or an attempt at good PR. I know that they’d been involved in some shady things in the past and I just really don’t like the idea of Ruby being used as pawn.”

Lena’s jaw tightened. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. She just wanted Ruby to be given a chance. The thought of using Ruby as good PR had never even crossed her mind. Of course the heads would think of doing that. They’d probably already contacted the media outlets to write a puff piece. Why hadn’t she been more explicitly clear with Eve?

“The company is under new management,” Lena replied stiffly.

“That’s because the past two CEO’s were arrested,” Sam said, leaning forward. “What’s to say that the current one won’t follow suit? Who’s to say they won’t take back Ruby’s scholarship in a year or two so they can save money?” She let out a sigh as she ran her fingers through her brown hair. “I just don’t want to risk Ruby getting hurt. And quite honestly, I don’t know if I want her looking up to or being involved in a business that corrupt and untrustworthy.”

It would have hurt Lena less if Sam had thrown her against the wall. Of course, Lena had known about how awful her company’s image and public perception was courtesy of her Public Relations department. That had been one of the main reasons she had rebranded in the first place. And she was accustomed to protests, backlash, death threats, and even the occasional assassination attempt. She’d learn to combat it with philanthropy, openness, and constantly wearing subtle armor for both her body and emotions.

However, Lena hadn’t realized she had taken off that armor until Sam’s words pierced her chest, dangerously close to her heart. She had only wanted to help her friends. But she should have known better. Luthors never helped and they never had friends.

“Well, it sounds like your mind is already made up,” Lena said in her steel tone she only used with adverse executives as she stood up. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to run to the restroom.”

For the next ten minutes, Lena hid behind the crooked door of the handicap stall and willed herself not to cry.

---

The drive back to the Danvers Bed and Breakfast was quiet except for the Christmas music singing from the radio. Lena’s fingers itched to turn it off, but she didn’t want to upset Kara that way. Besides, staring at a blindingly white snow covered landscape made it easy for her to tune out the obnoxious carols. She hadn’t even realized that they had returned how until Kara cut off the engine and the radio’s music ceased.

“Is everything okay?” Kara asked slowly.

“I’m fine,” Lena replied too quickly and too half-heartedly.

“Are you sure?” Kara turned to face Lena directly. “You’ve seen kind of off since I brought you back your hot chocolate. Did something happen? Did I do or say something?”

“What? No,” Lena swiftly assured her, placing her hand on Kara’s. “You’ve been great and today was great. Thank you. Seriously Kara. You did nothing wrong.”

“Then what’s wrong?” Kara asked softly as her thumb ran smooth circles against Lena’s hand.

Kara’s concerned tone and gentle touch made Lena’s chest constrict. She had to tell her eventually. It was inevitable and the more she delayed it, the more damage it would cause. Her Luthor name was known for destruction after all. But could Lena bring herself to destroy this? This beautiful thing she had found with Kara. It may not have lasted that long, but Lena was already struggling to see her life without those glacier blue eyes, kind crooked smile, or warm gentle touch anymore.

But she had to. Kara deserved to happy. Even if that meant without Lena.

“Kara… there’s something I need to tell you…”

But once again, the outside world interrupted their private one.

“There you guys are!”

Both women snap their heads to the side to see the red headed Alex waving enthusiastically outside the truck window. Like Lena, Alex still wore the ugly Christmas sweater her mom had made from yesterday, but from the bright smile on her face, Lena doubted it was possible for Alex to be anymore thrilled than she was now.

“We were wondering when you two were coming!” Alex continued to shout. “Come in! We were about to start without you!”

“Start what?” Lena asked Kara.

“Gingerbread houses,” Kara explained as she reached stop Lena from unbuckling her seatbelt. “We don’t have to go in now. We can talk first if you need to.”

And Lena knew that that was probably the better idea, but with the possibility for a delayed heartbreak and the pressure from an Alex still waving from the porch, Lena decided in favor for procrastination.

“We can talk later,” Lena said as she unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door. “We don’t want to keep everyone waiting, right?”

She was sure to keep her head down and turned, knowing that just one glance at the concerned wrinkled in Kara’s face would crack her resolve.

---

“We’re using kits this year?” Lois asked as her and Clark looked over a box displaying a gingerbread farm. “Wow, Maggie. I didn’t know you had it in you.”

“Well, I couldn’t exactly bake with this massive rock on my finger,” Maggie exclaimed, holding her hand up dramatically so the light caught the diamond of her engagement ring.

“What?” Lena gasped, craning her neck to get a better look at Maggie’s finger as she was the only one in the room at that hadn’t been involved in the engagement beforehand.

“You’re going to do that all night, aren’t you?” Alex asked as she circled her arm around her fiancé’s waist, her smile betraying her words.

“You know it, babe,” Maggie grinned, pressing a kiss to Alex’s cheek. “Do you want to see it, Lena?”

“Of course,” Lena leaned forward, cautiously taking the ring from Maggie’s hand. “It’s beautiful.”

Looking over the silver band and the princess cut diamonds, Lena’s mind started to whirl as she thought of all the possible wedding and engagement gifts she could give. Besides old acquaintances in boarding school and employees of hers, Lena had never had anyone she known get married, let alone anyone she was close to. What did people even give as wedding presents? A house was probably too much, but what about a car? Or a European honeymoon? Oh, Lena knew the most wonderful restaurants that Maggie would love in Paris or pubs Alex would love in London. Depending on where they wanted to stay, Lena could already have Eve working out a possibly itinerary and reservations…

But then her previous conversation with Sam saturated her thoughts and spoiled them. Would these two women even accept a gift from a Luthor? It wasn’t like they’d want to invite her to their wedding anyhow. Lena Luthien maybe, but certainly not Lena Luthor.

“Your girlfriend has good taste,” Lena said as she forced a smile and gave the ring back to Maggie who proudly slipped it back on her finger.

“I think you mean fiancé,” Maggie beamed as she leaned back into Alex’s embrace and the redhead eagerly tightened her hold around her and placed a kiss on Maggie’s head.

“If you two are going to act all lovey dovey this evening, I’m going to turn on a movie,” Eliza said as she reached for the remote and turned on the television. “I think they’re showing A Charlie Brown Christmas on one of these channels.”

“One more movie to add to your Christmas movie knowledge,” Kara whispered into Lena’s ear, triggering a small smile from her as their hands touched.

For a few blissful moments, Lena fell back into her private world with Kara once again where only each other and first names existed. Her previous anxieties fell away and all that remained was that perky blonde and the gingerbread house kit in front them that Kara was overly excited to build despite the main licorice decoration. While her muscles were sore and her skates were in the car, Lena felt happy in her green snowman Christmas sweater with Kara by her side surrounded by these people she had come to genuinely care for and, by some wild miracle, they seemed to care about her too. Perhaps this was why there was so much hype around Christmas.

But then Eliza’s channel surfing accidentally landed her on the news station and Lena’s world shattered beyond repair.

“With the jury still out on Lillian Luthor’s trial, many experts agree that the difficulty hasn’t been deciding whether or not she is guilty, but what punishment fits her crimes. Considering how harsh Lex Luthor’s sentence was, the same treatment can only be expected. With both mother and son behind bars, the fate of their billion-dollar company, L-Corp, is uncertain as many skeptics wonder how long it will take for the new CEO, Lena Luthor, to follow in her families’ criminal path.”

Lena’s blood ran cold when she saw that next to her the familiar faces of her mother and brother was her own face and name.

Chapter Text

“Lena… isn’t that you?”

Alex was simply stating the truth everyone else in the room had realized at that point. Six sets of eyes darted back and forth between the televised news report and the rigid, wide-eyed CEO. With her pulse hammering in her ears and her suddenly bone dry mouth, Lena wasn’t even sure if she heard Alex correctly, let alone felt competent to attempt an answer. She should be used to high pressure and tense situations like this. After all, she had been mentally preparing for this all week, but the shock and lack of control the situation rendered her silent and immobile.

She didn’t even blink when her and Kara’s gingerbread house fell over and cracked.

Lois was the first to react, getting up to take the remote from Eliza’s hands and turn off the loud offending television. She let out a small sigh and turned to face Lena with a kind, but pitying expression that Lena couldn’t stand, making the Luthor even more impossibly stiff. When she felt Kara’s hands loosen and drift away from her hold, Lena decided to make the work easier for her and just pulled herself completely away from Kara’s hold despite the small sound of protest coming from the blonde. Hadn’t that been what Kara wanted anyway? Could she really think to hold it against her if she had just wanted the pain quick and ripped off like a band aid?

“You’re Lena Luthor?” Maggie asked slowly. “The billionaire? The owner of L-Corp?”

Lena took a shuddering breath, her body aching and cold from where Kara’s arm once was. Every part of her body screamed for her to burrow into Kara’s safe embrace or bury her head into her green snowman sweater, but the urge soured as Lena realized she didn’t deserve either. This was her mess and it was time to reap the consequences.

“It would appear so,” Lena croaked out due to her dry mouth and the lump in her throat as her head dropped down to stare at her lap.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Eliza’s small but motherly voice carried from the doorway.

Despite the hurt and pity in Eliza’s voice, Lena refused to turn and acknowledge her or anyone for that matter. She knew she wouldn’t make it out of here if she did. Instead, she stood up and did her best to bury down the complicated feelings coursing through her and pull up the numb Luthor steel her family was known for.

“Because not all of us want to remember our families over the holidays. I apologize if I offended or hurt any of you as that was not my intent.” Lena did her best to sound neutral, but her voice still cracked. Her hand curled into a fist as she tried to swallow down her frustration and tears. “Now if you’ll excuse, I just remembered that I still have work to do in my room.”

“Lena, wait,” Lois plead as she reached her hand out for Lena’s shoulder, but Lena brushed it off as she scrambled for the stairs, desperate to make it to her room before the water in her eyes overflowed.

It wasn’t until Lena was safely behind the closed door of her room that her fragile composure finally broke and all the repressed emotions from throughout the day poured out and threatened to drown the woman in silent sobs.

---

“You knew,” Kara finally said.

“Of course, I knew,” Lois sighed as she crossed her arms. “I covered the Luthors for months during Lex's trial. I knew who she was the second I saw her. And besides, Lena Luthien.” Lois scoffed. “She wasn’t exactly trying with an alias like that.”

“But why didn’t she tell us?” Eliza frowned, her brow furrowing.

“Well, I can’t imagine it’s easy being related to a mass murderer and terrorist,” Lois raised an eyebrow. “You saw that news report. They've been attacking her for weeks and calling her everything from ungrateful daughter, heroine, and bitch. She probably saw a chance to escape it for a while and took it. I’m sure she would have told us eventually.”

Kara sighed as she placed her head in hands. How could she have been so oblivious? She had known something was different about Lena since first laying eyes on her; there was a strength and benevolence about her that Kara had never seen before. It was stunning and only made her small smiles all the more beautiful. The little heartbreaking details Lena had let slip only made Kara adore her and want to protect her more. And it wasn’t as if she could be mad at Lena for keeping her identity a secret like that especially when Kara was doing the same.

Why had she let her go?

“Well, I guess that explains why L-Corp offered that full-ride scholarship to Ruby,” Maggie said.

“What?” Alex’s eyebrows shot up. “When did that happen?”

“This morning,” Maggie explained. “Someone called Sam earlier today offering to pay for everything Ruby would need to go to college. They said they were from L-Corp, but Sam thought it was just too good to be true so I told her to ask Lena about it since she probably knew more the company than I did since she was from National City. And clearly, I was right.”

Kara’s heart skipped a beat. That was why Lena had been acting so weird earlier.

“She’s paying for all of Ruby’s schooling?” Eliza gasped. “I can’t imagine that’s cheap.”

“I think money's the last thing Lena cares about,” Clark told her. "Especially when you consider how she bought out the toy store."

“She what?” Kara perked her head up, pushing up her glasses.

“She bought everything in the store,” Clark repeated. “Winn said she came in and bought everything to be donated to the Toys for Tots drive. The police department now has a enough toys to distribute across the county and then some. Apparently, she requested it be anonymous, but you know how Winn can’t keep his mouth shut.”

“At this rate, she’ll out give you, Kara,” Alex smirked.

Kara chewed her cheek as she twisted her fingers in her hands. Despite the anxiety running through her, Kara couldn’t help but feel a pride blooming in her chest. This was her girl. Even if Lena was ashamed of her last name, she had a humility that made Kara only love her more. How had she been so lucky to have this woman stumble into her life?

“You don’t think she has anything to do with them finally breaking ground on that new cell tower this morning, do you?” Maggie asked.

“Oh, come on, Mags,” Alex laughed. “It’s a cell tower. She can’t be that powerful…” She hesitated. “Can she?’

“I’m going to go talk to her,” Kara announced standing up.

“Don’t stay too late,” Clark said as he grabbed his coat. “We still have a lot of work to get done.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll cover it,” Lois insisted as she shooed Kara away. “Now, go get your girl.”

The blonde offered a smile of thanks towards her sister-in-law before turning and heading upstairs towards the room with the Santa hat on the door.

---

Rather than knocking immediately when she came to the door, Kara stood outside of it, trying to build up the courage as well as figure out what to say. From the crack along the foot of the door, Kara saw some movement and when she leaned closer, she heard a muffled sob that pierced her heart like a knife.

“Lena?” Kara called as she softly knocked on the door.

The sobs instantly ceased, but the shadow beneath the door froze. Holding her breath, Kara knocked again.

“Lena, I know you’re in there. Please, let me in.”

Her answer was silence.

“Lena, I’m not mad at you. I mean, yes, it hurt at first, but I understand. I can’t imagine what you’ve had to go through with your brother and now your mom. Close family like that is supposed to make you feel safe, loved, and proud to be one of them, but you never had that. But you still deserve it.” A sniffle interrupted Kara’s speech but she pressed on. “Gosh, you deserve so much. You’re so beautiful and kind and gentle and generous. You have the biggest heart of anyone I know and your laugh… I can never hear enough of it. And you care so much. About people and things and causes. And you're strong. Gosh, you're the strongest person I know. You were dragged through hell and still came out an angel. You deserve so much, Lena.” Kara paused to take a deep breath and wipe the back of her hand against her nose. “You deserve so much more than I could ever give you, but I’d really love it if you’d give me a chance.”

The silence that followed drug Kara’s heart deeper and deeper into her chest as it ticked by. She was just starting to wonder how she’d ever breath again when the turning of a lock reached her ears. The door to room 2C opened to reveal a red eyed and sniffling Lena peeking out from behind the door.

“Can you ever forgive me?” Lena whispered.

“There’s nothing to forgive,” Kara insisted as she stepped forward.

Lena opened the door just enough for Kara to come inside before she buried her face into Kara’s shoulder. Immediately, the blonde wrapped her arms around the sniffling woman and kicked the door shut behind them for privacy. Lena most definitely did not strike her as a public crier. Cradling Lena’s head against her shoulder, Kara rubbed soothing circles along Lena’s back as she whispered sweet, comforting words into her ears. Every so often, she’d place a kiss against the top of Lena’s dark head, inhaling that delicious vanilla scent of her shampoo. Eventually, Lena pulled Kara to the bed with her, but all they did was hold each other and get lost in their own world with just the two of them.

---

“I didn’t know the Danvers kept such a good book collection for their guests,” Kara said, as she bent down and inspected the titles. “Harry Potter, The Hobbit, and OH!” Kara grabbed a book and spun around. “There’s even Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies!”

“Is it as bad as it sounds?’ Lena laughed.

“Worse,” Kara grinned. “And I love it. There’s even pictures.”

“I’ll consider it,” Lena smiled as she sat back down on the bed. “It’s been a long time since I’ve read anything with pictures.”

“It’s quite the treat in adulthood. It makes reading go by so much faster and it’s so hard to find time to read when you’re older, you know? There was just so much free time for naps and doing nothing when you’re a kid and then it all goes away.”

“Well, I can think of some things we still have time for,” Lena smirked as she held out her hand. “Come here.”

As one who was always eager to please, Kara quickly obliged and scrambled to sit on the bed next to Lena. From there, it didn’t take long for their lips to find each other’s or Kara’s hands to find Lena’s waist or Lena’s hands to find Kara’s neck. Unlike on the porch the night before, it was much easier to get lost in the kiss without the cold to spoil it. When Lena let out a soft moan, Kara broke away for both breath and to give Lena’s neck the attention it most deserved. But just as her wet tongue skated across Lena’s hot flesh, something caught her eyes and she froze.

“What’s wrong?” Lena breathed, her hold tightening against Kara as she felt her still.

“That ornament,” Kara said as she slowly pulled away, not taking her eyes off the white and red snowflake ornament. “Where did you get it?”

Lena’s head whipped around to her bedside table that Kara was staring at, and lo and behold, that accursed Christmas ornament that had caused her so much grief was there, glinting in the lamp light. And Lena was going to be damned if it was going to ruin another night for her.

“It’s nothing,” Lena assured Kara with a forced smile as she ran her fingers along Kara’s cheek, trying to soothe the shock from the blonde’s face. “Don’t worry about it.”

But Kara wouldn’t be soothed.

“You know, I just remembered something,” Kara said as she slowly stood up, mindful of the hold that Lena still had on her. “And I have to do it tonight. Can we possibly take a raincheck?”

“Raincheck…” Lena repeated sadly. “Yeah, that’s fine.”

“I’ll see you again in the morning, okay?” Kara said as she pressed a quick kiss against the Lena’s forehead. “I promise.”

“I’ll see you then,” Lena replied, but Kara was already out the door. “Bye...”

After a few seconds of sitting in silence on her bed, Lena opened the window to her room, letting the cold winter air hit her.

“Damn ornament,” Lena muttered as she threw it outside and slammed the window shut behind it.

---

Kara drove home faster that night that she ever had, not giving one care to snow or ice on the road as her truck roared through it. All she could think about was Lena and that ornament. Too many things were falling into place and it terrified her. Why else would Lena have stumbled across this small town? No one ever came on the buses anymore. And the town may be small, but that was no excuse for how often they ran into one another. Besides, what other reason would a billionaire CEO have feelings for her? She was a tree farmer for all Lena knew. How much of their relationship was even real?

But one thing was for sure; she was going to kill Clark.

When she finally parked in her drive way, Kara slammed her truck door shut and stomped towards the house, her anger only festering more with each step. She didn’t bother taking her snow covered boots off by the door but instead when right to the kitchen where she saw both Lois and Clark still up reading from the newspaper in their pajamas.

“Everything go okay with Lena?” Lois asked, not looking up from her crossword as she took a sip from her tea.

“It is one thing to rig seating arrangements and hang mistletoe,” Kara seethed as she stormed towards the kitchen table, “but this time you two have gone too far.”

The slap of Kara’s palms against the wood snapped the couple’s attention away from their individual papers. The both exchanged a quick, confused glance with one another before returning their gaze back to the infuriated Kara.

“Kara, what are you talking about?” Lois asked.

“Don’t act like you don’t know,” Kara steamed before whipping her head to Clark. “I know your touch when I see it. And I can’t believe you would meddle in our lives like that. Do you have any idea what you could have done? Not to mention it is an abuse of your power!”

Clark raised his eyebrows and pushed his glasses up his nose. “I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Really?” Kara demanded, raising her eyebrows and anger. “Then explain this.”

With a sharp snap of her fingers and brief flurry of sparks, a white snowflake ornament appeared in Kara’s hand. In red ink, across the center, it said “May all your Christmas Wishes come true.”

Chapter Text

Clark’s eyes widened and his back stiffened.

“Oh…. That.”

“Yes, that,” Kara sneered as she threw the ornament at his chest which he easily caught. “What on earth were you thinking?!”

“We were just trying to help,” Lois piped up, but Kara silenced her with a glare.

“This is my love life,” Kara growled, her tone dropping in seriousness as she leaned forward, locking eyes with Clark. “Not yours. I thought I could trust you. You’re supposed to be my brother. But you crossed a line.”

“Kara, I didn’t do anything—” Clark started, but Kara swiftly cut him off with a hard smack to the wooden table.

“Don’t you dare lie to me, Clark,” Kara warned through gritted teeth. “I’m older than you so therefore I’m more powerful and don’t you dare think I won’t use it against it you.”

“Look, it wasn’t intentional…”

“What wasn’t?” Kara’s voice cracked as she blinked back tears, but that didn’t stop her. “That she would come here? That she would have feelings for me? That I would fall in love in with her? Which is it Clark because I’m dying to know.”

“Kara…” Lois reached out to place her hand over the blonde’s but Kara jerked away.

“Did Cupid give you the idea?” Kara asked. “He’s always trying to encroach on our holiday. Was he the one that told you she had everything I’d fall for? And then you used your magic to brainwash and manipulate her into feeling the same way.” She pursed her lips as she shook her head. “I can’t believe you. God, haven’t you heard of consent? You should be ashamed of yourself-”

“It’s the Make-A-Wish ornament!” Clark exclaimed as he jumped to his feet.

Kara stopped in her rant and took a small step back. “The what?”

“It’s the prototype Winn and I have been working on,” Clark ran his fingers through his hair. “Winn came to us with the idea a few years ago. It’s the same concept as wishing on a star except it’s an ornament and it’s fueled by Christmas magic.”

“The prototype…” Kara repeated slowly, blinking. “Why didn’t you tell me it was ready? I thought we stopped working on it.”

“Well, we hit a bunch of dead ends and we didn’t think it would even work so we just kept it workshop division,” Clark shrugged as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Besides, you had enough on your plate planning everything, answering the letters, public morale, and all. We didn’t want to add any more stress of a failed project.”

“We’re partners though, Clark,” Kara protested with a sigh. “We can’t keep secrets like that from one another.”

“You mean like when you tamper with the reindeer feed?” Clark asked with a small smile and raised eyebrow. “Or try to make every Christmas a white Christmas?”

“That’s different,” Kara protested, throwing her hands in the air. “They don’t have any major impact on the holidays to come and clearly I wasn’t trying to keep them a secret.”

“Besides, it isn’t as if keeping secrets is Kara’s forte,” Lois perked up. “Just look at her fling with the Tooth Fairy.”

Kara’s jaw became slightly unhinged as her eyes bulged.

“Who told you about that?” she gasped.

“Oh, please,” Lois rolled her eyes as she reached for her tea. “Anyone could tell as soon as they saw you two in a room together. That and I found a tooth in your bed when I was changing your sheets.” Lois grimaced into her tea. “If that wasn’t from her, I really don’t want to know how it got there.”

Kara shuddered. “Yeah, that was kind of deciding factor on why it ended. I mean, I understood why she had them since she’s the Tooth Fairy and her main thing is collecting teeth and all, and it wasn’t a lot but…” She shuddered again. “Any number of loose teeth is too much if you ask me.”

“Yeah, I’m really glad I don’t have to deal with that with you two,” Lois agreed. “But then again, you two do try to eat me out of house and home. The real magic here is both of your lack of cavities and fat.”

“Hey, I brush my teeth,” Kara replied. “And there is a lot of physical labor in our line of work.”

“Not to mention the calories we burn when we use magic,” Clark supported. “There’s a reason we eat all those cookies on Christmas Eve, you know.”

“How much magic was use in the ornament?” Kara asked, her voice lowering and eyes hardening on her brother.

“Kara…” Clark sighed.

“I’m guessing the magic will run out by Christmas Day?” Kara continued, her hard gaze beginning to glisten. “Then she’ll snap out of it and realize it’s all for nothing, tell me she never wants to see me again, and then leave to never come back?”

“It doesn’t work like that,” Clark explained.

“I know how it works,” Kara bit out. “She made a wish and now it’s warping everything it can to temporarily fulfill it. She wished for girlfriend or a relationship or a love life and then you tampered with it to bring her here and forced us together—”

“She didn’t wish for a relationship!” Clark interjected, his outburst stunning Kara into silence. He sighed and ran his fingers through his short dark hair. “Well, I guess in a sense she did, but not a romantic one.” He carried the ornament over to Kara and flipped it over, running his thumb over the back to reveal a single word in the same red script.

Family.

How could Kara have been so blind?

“She wished for a family?” Kara whispered.

“Yes,” Clark nodded. “And the ornament brought her here.”

“But why?” Kara blinked back tears.

“Because what other family besides the Danvers would readily take in a stranger woman without a home or loved ones days before Christmas without blinking an eye?” Lois asked as she set down her tea. “Honestly, Lena could have been an orphan from outer space and Eliza would have readily adopted her without a second thought.”

“We plan a lot of things,” Clark told Kara. “But there are somethings that the Christmas magic just plans on its own. Did Lois and I attempt to push you two closer together after noticing a spark? Yes, but we didn’t use any magic.”

“Just a boring movie and an old ladder,” Lois added.

“For the last time,” Clark groaned as he titled his head back. “Miracle on 34th Street is not a boring movie.”

Lois grinned and rolled her eyes. “Whatever you say, Kris Kringle.”

“But why Lena?” Kara asked. “You said this was a prototype. Why did you send the ornament to her?”

“Because I suggested it,” Lois explained, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms. “The past few years with her family and running a company, she’s been through hell. I wasn’t even on the inside, but even just following it all made me take a step back from journalism, but she’s somehow kept her good heart throughout it. And I thought she deserved at least a chance to be happy.” She shrugged. “The last thing we expected was that it would bring her here or that you two would click.” Lois smirked as she leaned forward. “Because I got to say Kara, even though you are two of the last people I ever thought to put together, you two mesh extremely well. And you both make a super cute couple.”

Flustered and red-faced, Kara pushed up her glasses.

“So, you’re saying that what she feels for me is real?” Kara cleared her throat. “It’s not fake or manipulated?”

“Kara,” Clark smiled as he gently placed his hands on Kara’s shoulders to lock eyes with her. “You and I may be able to use Christmas magic, but that doesn’t give us that kind of power. It can’t manipulate or brainwash anyone. I doubt Cupid could even do that. What she feels for you genuine and true. The only magic that involved was bringing her here.”

“Really the thing you should be wondering is how she’d feel about marrying Santa Claus,” Lois told her with a wink.

Chapter Text

“Alright now, Lena, prepare yourself for the ultimate Christmas classic,” Maggie proclaimed as she held up a black and white DVD case proudly. “Because it’s time for It’s a Wonderful Life!”

“I’ll get the bells ready,” Alex said, moving to open one of the Christmas boxes still on the coffee table.

“What?” Lena asked, watching Alex confused.

“'Every time a bell rings an angel gets its wings,'” Maggie quoted happily as she prepped the television.

“Oh, I always thought that had something to do with jingle bells,” Lena mumbled as she leaned back into the couch.

“It’s okay.” Kara wrapped her arm around Lena’s shoulders, chuckling and pulling her closer. “We’ll forgive you.”

“You’re too kind,” Lena mumbled before placing a soft kiss to Kara’s warm cheek.

“Aww, why aren’t you ever sweet like that to me, Clark?” Lois asked.

“You do realize I’m literally massaging your shoulders right now, right?” Clark replied, arching an eyebrow as he looked down at his wife who was sitting on the floor between his legs propped against the side of the couch so Clark could reach her shoulders easily.

“I guess you have a point,” Lois sighed as she leaned back in to his touch. “Could you go a little lower, please? Yeah, that’s the spot.”

“Shhh,” Maggie ordered as she flopped in the loveseat next to Alex. “The movie’s starting.”

Despite the small giggles that followed, the room eventually fell quiet by the time the opening credits ended and the movie began. Lena snuggled deeper into Kara’s body heat and peppermint scent as she pulled a blanket across them to make them even more cozy. Her arm drifted around Kara’s waist and beneath her flannel so her arm could rest on the warm fabric of Kara’s undershirt. When she felt Kara’s body relax against her own, Lena let out a happy sigh.

Quite honestly, Lena felt as if she were on a high, but one so much better and wholesome than one induced by alcohol or drugs. It was if is she were weightless, warm, and even giddy. Most of all, unlike any other high she had ever experienced, there wasn’t that looming hollowness in this one; this one had an absolute fullness that made Lena believe it would never end. That for eternity, she could sit on this couch in front of a fire surrounded by loving friends all while wrapped snuggly in the strong arms of the woman she loved.

Looking back on it later that night, Lena despised herself for ever being so foolish.

Just as Lena had found herself comfortable with her head against Kara’s shoulders and their hands entwined beneath the cozy blanket, Kara’s hot breath tickled her ear, sending a slight shiver down her back.

“Can we go somewhere more private?” Kara whispered so softly that no one else but Lena heard.

Biting her lip, Lena nodded. It wasn’t as if It’s a Wonderful Life wasn’t an intriguing movie, but if Lena had to choose, she’d always choose Kara. Besides, the blonde had been tense all night and if there was anything Lena could do to help, she most certainly wanted to.

They pushed the blanket off of them and Lena trailed after Kara as she pulled her by the hand towards the front door. At Maggie’s suggestive grin and wiggling eyebrows and Alex’s roll of eyes, Lena couldn’t help but blush deeply, grateful neither of them said anything then, but she knew they'd tease her mercilessly about it later. Out of the corner of her eye, she barely caught the supportive smile from Clark or the thumbs up from Lois, but she completely missed the tight smile Kara gave in return. Most of that was forgotten, however, when Kara opened the front door and they were both blasted with cold air.

“Oh gosh,” Lena shivered. “I swear it gets colder each night here.”

“That’s North Pole, Montana for ya,” Kara said as she swiftly draped and tightened a thick but soft flannel blanket around Lean’s shoulders. “Better?”

“Much, but I can think of something better.” Lena smiled, leaning forward to coil her arms around Kara’s waist.

“Uh, Lena,” Kara gulped as she took a small step back, triggering Lena to drop her hold. “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”

“Oh.” Lena hated the sinking sensation in her chest from what felt like a rejection, but she pushed it aside. “Yeah?”

“Well, um, there’s something I need to tell you.” Kara fiddled with the rim of her glasses before pushing them up her nose. “It’s about who I am," Kara took a shuddering breath as she clenched her hand into a fist and dropped them from her glasses, "but I need for you to know that I’m still me and my feelings for you are still the same.”

Kara gulped and rubbed the back of her neck. In all honestly, her flustered nerves put Lena’s own raging one a bit at easy. After all, it was just Kara. How bad could it even be? It was probably just guilt over a library fine or jay walking.

“Yeah?” Lena prodded with a nod as she tried to hide her small smile.

“It’s just…I’m not exactly like other women… or other people for people for that matter.”

“Kara, if this is you coming out to me, I have to say you’ve done a really poor job at hiding it,” Lena attempted to joke, hoping that it would relieve some of the bundle anxiety straining on the blonde’s face.

Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to work.

“Well, yes, I mean, I am gay, but that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about,” Kara wringed her wrist in her hand. “It’s about who I am. Who I really am.”

“Hey,” Lena said softly, placing a reassuring hand on Kara’s arm. “It’s okay. I’m here and I trust you. Also, I'm a Luthor. You've seen my family. I don’t exactly scare easily.”

“It’s just I’ve never had to tell anyone like this before,” Kara said softly.

“It’s okay.” Lena rubbed Kara’s tense bicep. “Take your time.”

Kara closed her eyes and took a deep breath which she held for several long seconds before she finally let it out with a string of words.

“Lena, I’m Santa Claus.”

Lena’s hand froze in its movement.

“Excuse me?” she blinked.

“Well, not just me exactly,” Kara rambled. “Me and Clark technically. I mean, there’s almost 8 billion people in the world so we kind of need two. But I’m older so therefore I have more of the power so I’m his superior, technically. He runs the workshop and I do pretty much everything else with the people and the magic and morale—pretty much anything I can do to boost the population’s overall hope and happiness in the bleak winter times. And not just with those that celebrate Christmas but also those who celebrate Hanukkah and Kwanzaa and—”

“Wait, stop,” Lena ordered as she held up her hands. “Let me get this straight, you think you’re Santa Claus…?”

“Well, no. I don't think. I know I’m Santa Claus,” Kara explained with a gulp. “I have been most of my life. Just like my parents before me.”

“Most of your life?” Lena asked in disbelief.

“Yeah, I mean, my parents had to teach it to me,” Kara rubbed the back of her neck as she stared hard at the ground. “Well, what they could before they passed. The elves kind of picked up the training after that. Nia, Brainy, and them. Oh, and Winn! You met Winn. Remember at the post office bus depot?”

“I remember who Winn is.” Lena's voice remained neutral, giving off no inflection.

“Yeah, they were great help,” Kara continued, shoving her hands in her pockets. “For a while there, we worried the Santa image would fall back into the old Krampus days. Trust me, it’s a lot worse than it sounds. Coal is one thing but eating the naughty kids is something else entirely—”

“Kara, stop,” Lena sighed as she held up her hands. "Just, stop."

“Lena…” Kara breathed, the anxiety trickling back into her speech.

“No.” Lena shook her head. “I get it. You’re still mad at me for hiding my Luthor name and identity from you so your thought you’d pull this joke to get even. Well, you had your fun and now you should really stop because it’s really starting to hurt.”

“No, Lena, I’m serious,” Kara insisted, her eyes and head darting around frantically before she held out her hand. “Just watch.” She gave a sharp snap of her fingers and after a brief flurry of sparks, the snowflake Christmas ornament appeared her hand. “See?”

At the sight of that accursed ornament, Lena’s eyes flashed and nostrils flared.

“You think you can fool me with a parlor trick?” Lena asked in a tone like steel. “I’ve seen street magicians do more impressive acts than that.”

“No, Lena, it’s not a trick,” Kara groaned. “Look, I know things about you too.”

“Really? You know things?” Lena crossed her arms and arched an eyebrow.

“Christmas things,” Kara explained as she ran her fingers through her blonde hair. “The more I spend time with someone, the more I come to know naturally. It's just part of the Christmas magic that flows through me. I know that you love staying up late at night and going out on your balcony during winter nights to watch the snow fall over the city and enjoy the rare moment of peace in your world. I know that you secretly love peppermint flavoring and hoard peppermint bark and schnapps so you can have it all year around. I also know that one of the main reasons you kept your father’s turntable was to play Elvis Presley and sporadically sing ‘Blue Christmas’ at the top of your lungs when the feeling hits.”

Lena opened her mouth and shut it quickly as her mind whirled to figure out some explanation as to who else would know that about her. Her gaze only hardened all the more when she found a viable candidate.

“Did you call my secretary?” Lena demanded, her tone dropping in seriousness. “Did you get Eve to tell you these things? Is she in on this? Is that how you got the ornament on my desk?”

“No, Lena,” Kara sighed as she closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I don't even know who that is. I also know that your favorite Christmas gift that you’ve ever received was the heat gun that turned bread into toast. Your brother, Lex, gave it to you. That was also your favorite Christmas since it was the last one before he changed.”

Lena’s eyes widened in alarm and her jaw dropped, but she soon recovered. That was secret not even Lex or her mother knew. And Eve most certainly did not. Who had Kara gotten to break into Lena’s apartment and find that out? What else had they found? Her green eyes flashed and narrowed as her jaw clenched and mouth curled into a sneer.

If Kara was upset that Lena was Luthor, then a Luthor was what she was going to get.

“How dare you,” Lena snarled through gritted teeth.

“Lena…”

“I thought you were different. That you actually cared. I apologized and you said you forgave me and I believed you, but now you do this?” Lena shook her head. “I thought you were better than that.”

“I’m telling the truth,” Kara insisted in a small voice.

“Just leave,” Lena ordered, taking another step back as her voice broke.

“Lena.” Kara took a step forward with her hands out, but Lena turned away and went even more rigid.

“Now,” Lena said, her arms crossed tightly her middle, still unable to look at the blonde. “And I don’t want to see you again.”

Kara’s hand fell and her head dropped defeated.

“I never meant to hurt you,” she whispered as she shoved her hands into her coat pocket and turned to leave the porch.

Simply still being within eyesight of the blonde was too much for Lena so she fled back into the house. The door slammed shut behind her, but she ignored that and the stares from the others as she scurried up the stairs into her room. She thought she heard Maggie and Lois call out her name, but she heeded no attention to them as she dug through her pockets for her room key. When her eyes landed on the Santa hat keyring attached to her room key and something in her snapped.

Summoning from an unknown strength and fury inside her, Lena yanked the Santa hat keyring off. The metal bit into her fingers and cut into her flesh, but she ignored it, unrelenting in her pursuit until the metal chain finally gives way. Throwing the pathetic little red hat to the side, Lena then turned to address the larger Santa hat hanging from her door. Somehow, the larger hat was secured more tightly than the keychain and Lena was forced to use both her hands to rid the door of it. Once it was free, Lena attempted to rip the red cloth apart, but her attempts failed. Throwing it as hard as she could down the hall, Lena finally made it in her room door where the anger faded into sobs.

How could she have been so foolish to think she could have actually been happy?

Chapter Text

Lena didn’t sleep that night. If she did, it was that sort of sleep that came in short, unrestful bursts that felt more like a blink, and she was too restless to realize it had happened. Despite the number of blankets draped over her, Lena couldn’t sooth the frigid coldness buried deep in her chest. The only way she had found herself remotely close to alleviating some of the pain was by curling herself into a ball and wrapping her arms tightly around her knees. The fabric of her sleeves and pants legs became damp with her tears. She was grateful when the inn because silent due to sleep so she could be sure to sob in peace.

After the third hour of lying in bed in the fetal position, she promised herself not to cry anymore. Luthors didn't cry.

She was a scientist and scientists didn’t cry either; they thought. It was time she shut down her emotions and let herself fall into the comfortable numbness of logic, but unfortunately, that numbness wasn’t coming quite so easily that night. Logically, Kara was either: A) playing a cruel joke on Lena, which didn’t seem likely knowing her personality, but then again, how much did Lena really even know about her considering that they’ve known each other for only a couple of days, or B) she was simple insane. What sane person thought that they were Santa Claus? Maybe that’s just what small towns like this did to people? There had a reason everyone wanted to leave them for the big city, after all.

But Lena had spent time with Kara and there was never any indication that she might not be completely right in the head. Yes, she did voluntarily spend a large amount of her time with children and she was unusually close to her friend and family in the town which both seemed highly unusual, but Lena knew crazy. She had grown up with crazy. And Kara wasn’t crazy.

A small part of Lena wanted to believe Kara. After all, it would make everything so much easier. And it would answer so many small questions that Lena had brushed off such as the excessive amount of mail for Santa at the post office, why Kara was so good at guessing the perfect to give, and even possibly her bottomless stomach. Not to mention all the questions about the ornament would finally be explained such as why it continually disappeared and reappeared in her pocket. Of course, some of that could be explained away by simply being around Kara if this all was a part of some cruel joke since she could have just slipped it in her pocket, but then how did it get to her desk? Kara couldn’t have known she would be appearing in North Pole just a short time later. No one did, including Lena. Logically, magic seemed like the only explanation.

But magic wasn’t an explanation. It was a fantasy and no self-respecting scientist believed in it.

So after several hours, Lena decided to do what any other self-respecting scientist would do when faced with this particular dilemma.

She banged the ornament repeatedly against the wooden floor of her room.

It was after several forceful bangs that Lena realized that what she thought was a developing echo was actually someone knocking on the door. With a groan, Lena threw the snowflake ornament against the ground with every ounce of strength she possessed, barely managing to scratch the paint, before standing up and dragging herself to the door. Flipping the deadbolt open, Lena opened the door to her room just enough to glare at the red headed woman on the other side.

“Oh, sorry if I woke you,” Alex said, no doubt in response to Lena’s red-eyed and disheveled look. “Typically, when I hear a banging this early in the morning, I come check it out.”

“Morning?” Lena grumbled, turning her head to the side to catch sight of the glowing rays of dawn peeking through her gossamer curtains.

“Yeah.” Alex’s brow furrowed when she caught a glimpse of the scattered blankets and pillows strewn across Lena’s bed and floor. Her frown grew even deeper when she realized Lena was still wearing the same clothes from the day before, wrinkled from spending the night in them. “Lena…is everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine,” Lena quipped a bit more sharply than she meant.

“Does this have anything to do with what happened with Kara last night?” Alex asked, leaning her arm forward against the door frame. “Because she’s not returning our calls either.”

“That is none of your concern,” Lena said darkly as she stepped back. “Now if you excuse me…”

“She told you, didn’t she?” Alex asked, in a low voice.

“I…” Lena stuttered for a brief moment in shock before recovering. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You know it’s true, right? She really is Santa.”

Great, Lena thought. Everyone in this small town was supposedly insane then. How long would it be until the craziness started infecting her as well? Or is Alex actually in on this sick joke and just trying to milk more pain out of it? If she was, it was most certainly working.

“I don’t have time for this,” Lena said as she moved to shut the door, but Alex’s foot blocked the way.

“Look,” Alex sighed. “I know it’s hard to believe – I didn’t at first either – but it’s the truth. And if not believing is the only thing keeping you from being with her, I think you’re making a big mistake.”

A lump formed in Lena’s throat as she hesitated. A part of Lena wanted to believe. To believe that not only Kara had been honest that something as kind and pure and wonderful as Santa Claus could actually exist. That there actually was some benevolent magic in this cruel world.

But she knew that that was only a fantasy and kidding herself like that would only cause her more harm.

“Santa Claus doesn’t exist, Alex,” Lena said darkly. “And it’s time for you to grow up and realize that for yourself.”

The hurt on Alex’s face was almost enough for Lena to open the door and apologize, but when she felt Alex’s foot give way, her muscles followed through and shut the door in her face, thankfully missing the redhead’s fingers just in time. When the slamming sound of the door hit Lena, her heart broke and a wave of self-hatred washed over her. But she didn’t move. Instead, she just simply stood by the door with the knob still in her hands and her forehead against the door while she willed herself not to cry as she sent a silent apology to the woman who had been the closest thing she had ever had to a sister.

---

About an hour or so later, Lena heard another knock at the door. At this point, she had changed into something more presentable as her bags had already been repacked. She had determined that the best course of action for her as well as everyone else in this town would simply be her departure. That way, Lena would escape with her sanity and no one else in the small Montana town would face anymore of the inevitable Luthor destruction.

Zipping the final pocket closed on her suitcase, Lena stood up to answer the growingly persistent knock at her door that did little to help her growing migraine.

“What?” Lena demanded as she threw open the door, her hard gaze softening slightly when she saw that it was her favorite chef holding two to-go cups of steaming coffee.

“Don’t be turning all Luthor-y on me now,” Maggie snapped sarcastically back at her. “Especially when it’s on my day off, and it’s Christmas Eve.”

“I’m really not in the mood, Maggie,” Lena sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose.

“You know some breakfast would probably help that. Eliza made some superb pancakes this morning even if they were from a box.” Maggie’s smile dropped when she spotted the packed suitcase and bag in the middle of Lena’s room. “You’re not leaving, are you?”

“I’ve spent too much time here as it is,” Lena explained, forcing her expression and tone to remain neutral. “I really must be getting back to National City.”

“But the roads are blocked. And no one’s flying out for another week. There isn’t a way in or out of town.”

“The mail’s still getting in,” Lena argued. “I’m sure I can figure out something based on that.”

“But’s that’s because of Kara’s….” Maggie trailed off when she saw Lena’s glare, but rather than backing down like most would at Luthor’s challenging gaze, she gave a coy smile. “Well, your departure is going to have to wait because I have an errand for you to run.” She held out both the coffee cups in each hand. “I need for you take these down to Lois for me. She had to leave before Alex was able to figure out which pot was decaf and which was regular. And quite honestly, I’d rather spend my vacation with my fiancée than tramping through the snow to deliver this to her.”

“I really don’t have time—”

“I insist.” Maggie smirked wider. “Just think of it as a Christmas gift to me. Although, if you don’t think it’s enough, I certainly won’t turn down a new Kitchen-Aid Mixer.”

“Are you serious?” Maggie’s frank and pushy nature never failed to stunned Lena and throw her almost completely off her game.

“Red, preferably.” Maggie pushed the coffee cups into Lena’s hands. “Now go before these things get too cold. I have to go make sure my future mother-in-law isn’t about to explode my microwave.”

Dumbstruck and left with two steaming cups of coffee in her hands, Lena watched as Maggie skipped back down the hallway and down the stairs. Since she wasn’t sure what else she could do, Lena shrugged on her coat and hat. At the very least, she could either try to call Eve to set something up or just swing by the post office and see what she could about finding a way out. She could only pray that Winn wasn’t working.

The red and white glint of the ornament caught her eye as Lena moved towards the door, and in her frustration, Lena kicked it into the dark corner under her bed.

---

Even with the slow walk through the snow to mentally prepare herself, the familiar tinkling of the bell sent a shiver down Lena’s spine. This time, the fake snow, tinsel, and Christmas trees of Lois’s boutique twisted Lena’s gut and for a moment, she considered fleeing back out the door, assuring herself that the coffee had gone cold by now anyway, but a snappy voice brought those thoughts to a halt.

“Well, I certainly didn’t expect to see you this morning,” Lois said as she walked up to Lena, her arms crossed across her chest.

“Maggie sent me to bring you coffee,” Lena said with a tight smile as she held both cups.

Lois arched an eyebrow. “I only need one,” she said as she carefully took the coffee from Lena’s grip. “I suppose the other one is for you then.”

“I suppose so,” Lena mumbled as she took a quick sip of the lukewarm drink.

“So,” Lois said, leaning back against the check-out counter.

The way Lois looked at her reminded Lena of her brother’s trial and how all the reporters and press scrutinized every aspect of her and her family. She shifted the weight on her feet, wishing desperately for the steel and bravery of her mother who never broke eye contact with a reporter or camera first.

“So?” Lena asked.

“Do you care to explain why my sister-in-law refused to speak to anyone last night or this morning?” Lois asked, tapping the top of her coffee lid. “This is typically her favorite time of year, you know. Usually it’s hard to get her to shut up, but you seemed to manage to do it just fine.”

“Lois, I’d really rather not talk about it,” Lena sighed, closing her eyes for a long blink and mustering whatever strength she had for this tense conversation.

“You didn’t believe her.”

“Not you too,” Lena groaned. “Out of all people, I thought you would be immune to this town madness. You’re a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist for Christ’s sake.”

“I’m a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist because I know the truth when I see it,” Lois retorted tersely.

“Because believing in Santa Claus is the truth?” Lena scoffed. “No wonder you left the Daily Planet. Are you sure they didn’t fire you?”

Lois cocked a thin eyebrow and gave a look that Lena felt in her very soul.

“Is that all you got?” Lois asked. “I thought you Luthors were supposed to have more bite than that. Or at the very least a gun in your hand.”

Lena bristled as Lois’s jab hit her closer to home than she would have liked.

“Just stop, okay?” Lena hated how her voice broke, but she recovered quickly. “The Santa gag has gone on long enough and it stopped being funny a long time ago. Now, it’s beyond cruel.”

The tension left Lois’s shoulder as she sighed and leaned further back against the counter.

“Why is it that you always assume that everyone is out to hurt you, Lena?” Lois asked calmly.

“Because they usually are,” Lena said in a tight voice as she tightened the grip dangerously on her coffee. “Shall I show you the scars? My brother’s left quite a few, including one from a bullet.”

“Fair point,” Lois replied with a nod. “But what reason has anyone in this town given you?”

“I…” Lena forced down a swallow as her mind scrambled. “I barely know any of you. I’ve only known about this place for about a week.”

“And in that time, everyone treated you like family,” Lois continued. “We treated you with love and care and you responded in kind. You knew us enough to become quite fond of us, didn’t you? Or was Ruby’s scholarship really just a PR ploy? I know you can’t say the same for the Toys for Tots drive since you didn’t even attach a name to that one. And don’t even get me started on that cell tower.”

“I…” Lena’s face grew hot. “No one was supposed to find out about that.”

“But they did. Things like that travel fast in a small town,” Lois waved her coffee in front of her in a flourish. “My point is that clearly you trusted and thought well enough of us at one point. What changed?”

“What changed is that Kara told me she believed she was Santa Claus,” Lena bit out.

“So?” Lois took a sip of her coffee.

“So?” Lena echoed with raised eyebrows. “So, Santa Claus doesn’t exist. He’s a work of fiction designed by retailers for a marketing campaign to boost sales during the winter.”

“They,” Lois corrected. “Santa Claus is ‘they.’ There is two of them after all, and besides, they would both prefer if Santa was gender neutral anyways.”

Lena opened her mouth but all that came out was a groan. “You’re unbelievable.”

“I’m pretty believable actually. And so is Santa Claus especially considering you’ve met both of them multiple times and experienced several first-hand accounts of Christmas magic.”

“Santa Claus isn’t real Lois,” Lena said more for herself than anything else. “And Christmas magic doesn’t exist.”

“Then explain how that Christmas ornament got on your desk.” Lois quirked an eyebrow. “Or how it keeps returning to you. I’m willing to bet my career that it’s in your pocket right now.”

For a moment, Lena wasn’t sure if Lois was serious, but from the look the brunette gave her, she knew she was. Slowly, Lena hesitantly put her dropped her hand into pocket and her eyes widened in shock and she took a small step back when she felt the cool material and shape of the snowflake ornament.

“How did you know about that?” she asked as she took it out of her pocket and into the light.

“Because I’m the one who convinced Clark to send it to you,” Lois explained as she set down her coffee and took a step forward. “It’s a prototype so there are still some bugs in it, but it will most likely hang around until your wish is fulfilled.”

“My wish?” Lena looked up and realized just how close Lois was to her.

“For a family.” Lois flipped the white ornament over to reveal the word in red script. “That’s what you wished for when you first saw it, isn’t it? And it’s been doing its best to fulfill that wish ever since.”

“You’re saying it brought me here?” Lena asked slowly, her mind hurrying as it connected all the bizarre dots in her head. “The cancelled flight and the Greyhound?”

“And the lack of transportation to leave and the open room at Danvers’s Bed and Breakfast.” Lois smiled. “I have to admit; the little guy really outdid himself.”

“Wait.” Lena’s mind suddenly made a revelation that made her hear sink. “Are you saying it was all a lie? That Eliza, Alex, and Maggie don’t really care about me? It was all just magic manipulating them?”

“So, you believe it was magic?” Lois grinned. “But no. Christmas magic cannot manipulate emotions like that. All it did was take you to a place most likely to fulfill your wish, which in your case, was here in North Pole, Montana at the Danvers’s Bed and Breakfast. The Danvers would have likely taken you in regardless of circumstances, but it took the ornament and a little bit of magic to get you to them.”

“That’s… not possible,” Lena mumbled, refusing to admit the only explanation that made any sense. “It’s unbelievable.”

“What’s so wrong with believing?” Lois asked, arching eye brow.

“It’s just… ludicrous.” Lena threw up her hands. “The next thing you’re going to tell me is that the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy are real.”

“I wouldn’t bring up the Tooth Fairy to Kara,” Lois insisted. “They have a bit of a complicated history.”

“This is unbelievable,” Lena muttered.

“This wouldn’t have anything to do with your own unresolved feelings towards Santa Claus, would it?” Lois asked, leaning back up against the counter.

“What?” The lid popped off of Lena’s cup. It bounced along the ground as she realized that she had squeezed the cup too hard and that there was now coffee running down her fingers. She scurried to the counter for the tissues to quickly wipe the liquid off her fingers, refusing to meet Lois’s gaze as she grit her teeth. “Look, it’s just not fair, okay? Every other kid got a happy, Hallmark card Christmas with gifts and stockings and families while I got nothing but lectures and emotional abuse. If Santa were real, why did I have to endure that? I understand that my family is made up of very bad people, but what about me?” Her suddenly sniffling nose made her very grateful for the tissues to be so close. “Why didn’t I get a chance to be happy?”

She felt a warm hand on her shoulder as she wiped her nose, hating herself for her tears breaking the promise she made just hours ago.

“I wish I knew,” Lois sighed. “I can’t answer for the Santas before Clark and Kara. No one can. But I can promise you this; this is your chance to be happy, Lena. You just have to stop trying to fight it.”

Another wave of tears threatened to roll over, but Lena blinked them back. Thoughts of Lillian from just days ago to when she first met her when she was just four years old flittered through her mind. The chess games, the scolding, the shame, all of it. Memories of Lex followed from his prison garb at the trial or his violent outbursts beforehand, but also the time when he gave her that heat guy, played with her in the snow, and taught her how to play chess. The warmth and security from those old distance memories of her brother caused her to finally recognize just what she had been feeling with Eliza, Alex, Maggie, Clark, Lois, and Kara all week. They were feelings only a family could give, and that for the first time in such a long time, she was finally happy. Even if it was just watching boring Christmas movies, stringing popcorn, or wrapped in the arms of another, Lena had never been happier. She had laughed and smile more this week than she had her entire life. In the mornings, she actually woke up excited rather than out of obligation. And as terrifying and foreign as it was, but she wanted more of that. She wanted that forever. Now that she had tasted it, she doubted she could ever go back.

“It’s okay to be happy, Lena,” Lois told her as she rubbed her back.

And in that moment, there was only one thing Lena needed to be happy.

“Can you take me to her?”

Chapter Text

Neither said much as Lois drove the truck through the snowy roads to the Kent Tree and Reindeer Farm with Lena fidgeting nervously in the passenger seat. The further away from town they drove, the more her nerves set in and the more Lena regretted her decision of saying anything. Of answering the door this morning for Maggie or Alex. Of agreeing to the Danvers’s Bed and Breakfast. Of buying that ticket on that Greyhound. Of testifying at her mother’s trial. Then she wouldn’t have this gaping hole of anxiety in her chest that made her struggle to breath or even sit up straight.

She thought of Kara mostly. How her hand always felt so warm in hers. How her nose crinkled when she laughed. How her lips were always so soft against her own. How that sweet peppermint scent of hers always made her feel so safe and loved. The idea of losing all of that despite just glimpsing it robbed her of her sound mind and heart.

But then Lena remember the green snowman sweater Eliza made for her, the popcorn chain she strung with Maggie, the shopping day with Alex, the talks with Lois, the chess game with Ruby, and all the dinners and movies nights she had been a part of. All those memories of those little things would loosen the tighten in her chest just enough for her get one more breath in and then another. The more she thought about them, the more she was able to actually breath. They were reminders and slight flickers of hope what Lena could still possibly have if she had already screwed everything up beyond repair.

When Lois finally pulled up to a yellow wooden farm house with a wraparound porch and a red barn out back, Lena immediately wished the drive had been longer. Despite the snow and wind chill, Lena’s palms and neck sweated like she was in the Australian Outback. She rubbed her hands on her pants as she stumbled out of the car and after Lois. Thankfully, her stress had made her unsteady on her feet because otherwise Lena would have seriously considered making a run for it. But if her mother had taught her anything, it was not to run from a fight.

Oh gosh, this was going to be a fight, wasn’t it?

What else could Lena expect? She had shouted in Kara’s face and rejected her. Even if Kara did cut her some slack, it wasn’t as if Lena completely believed her on this whole Santa thing. Sure, Lena couldn’t really deny the existence of Christmas magic as she had so clearly seen it impact her life rather severely and directly this past week, but she also wasn’t about to start proclaiming it on the street. Lena doubted she could win or even hold her own with someone who denied its existence which would be most people her age. Besides even if Kara was able to look past all of that, why on earth would she want to put up with being in a relationship with someone so damaged as Lena? The Luthor baggage wasn't an easy one to deal with so most people didn't. Kara would just reject Lena like everyone else had. Oh gosh, what was Lena even doing here?

But then Lois led Lena around the barn and all of Lena’s worries melted away momentarily when that blonde came into view. Of course, as soon as Lena saw her, her mouth went dry and she doubted she would be able to say anything intellectual.

Of all things Lena had prepared for, she hadn’t prepared herself to see Kara chopping wood in a flannel.

The green and blue flannel strained against her back as Kara brought down the ax with sharp crack and whoosh of her lungs. With her sleeves rolled up, Lena could still see the flexing muscles of her forearms and biceps which sent her heart flipping. When Kara bent down to pick up the freshly chopped pieces of wood, Lena sent up a prayer of thanks for Levi and their jeans’ enhancement of Kara’s tight ass. Oh gosh, was she even strong enough for this? A heat creeped through Lena, but she shook her head. This wasn’t what she was here for.

That became much easier when Kara looked up and those glacier blue eyes locked with Lena’s green. Her mouth opened with a slight part as the wood in her hands thudded on the snowy ground. Her boot crunched in the snow as she stepped forward but caught herself a second later, and she shoved her hands into the small pocket of her jeans and hung her head slightly. Her blonde hair was up in a ponytail, but a few stray strands still cascaded down her face and there was nothing Lena wanted more than to push them to the side.

“Hi,” Lena whispered, hating herself for how vulnerable she sounded.

“Hey,” Kara replied, her eyes falling to the ground as she kicked the snow with her boot.

“Not that this conversation isn’t riveting,” Lois announced as she started walking towards the barn door. “But I have some work to get done. I’ll just leave you two be.” With a small reassuring to smile, she disappeared into the red barn.

Even after they both heard the barn door close, neither said a word. Both choose to stand awkwardly close to one another, refusing to make eye contact while kicking the snow in front of them. This was all so new for Lena and really, she was just terrified of making it worse, but when Kara spoke first, she suddenly found herself speaking.

“Lena, I’m sorry—”

“No, I’m sorry,” Lena swiftly cut in. Her eyes briefly met Kara’s before they flickered away. She couldn’t think clearly when she looked into them and she needed to think clearly for this. “I’m sorry for how I reacted. It wasn’t fair to you and I never gave you a chance to fully explain. It’s just…” Lena stopped to let out a long sigh, trying to summon the words and the strength she so desperately needed. “I know it’s no excuse, but I’m not really use to caring about people in my life. Well, I’m really just not use to people caring about me.”

Lena took another shuddering breath as she crossed her arms over herself not so much for warmth but for a small sense of security as she proceeded to lay herself out bare to the one woman she cared for or trusted most in her life.

“When most people look at me, they see my family. They see what they did. My brother hurt a lot of good innocent people. My mother then followed suit. My family owes a debt. And now that debt is on me. As much as I try to repay that debt, it’s never enough. I even rebranded the company and took the Luthor name out of it but even that didn’t work. I’ve just learned that it’s better and safer for myself if I just lower my own expectation and expect the worst for everyone around me. That way it won’t hurt as much when CatCo publishes a scathing article about me or someone tries to shoot me at a charity benefit. I don’t expect pity or sympathy for it though. I know I don’t deserve it. I just tell myself that, in a sense, it’s a good thing. I’m more motivated and have less distractions that a family or friends would provide. I’ve done better work because of it. Besides, it’s all I’ve ever known and that normalcy and familiarity with the loneliness and criticism can be comforting through all the change.”

Lena’s breath hitched as she realized that she had begun pacing in the snow. She curled her fingers tighter into fists against the fabric of her coat and pressed on.

“But then I came here and it was different. I suddenly wasn’t a Luthor but just Lena. And I had people wanting to talk to me and include me. People who set a place at the table for me, decorate a Christmas tree with me, and even cleared a place on the couch so I could watch movies with them. For the first time in my life, I wasn’t alone. And as terrifying as it was, I wanted more. I wanted more of you.”

“Lena…” Kara took a step forward, holding her hand out, but Lena couldn’t bring herself to start now.

“You were simultaneously nothing like I ever expected but everything I ever needed. You were so kind and sweet and stunning, and there was simply no conceivable reason for why you’d ever be interested in the damaged and potentially evil individual that I am. But you were. You let me fall asleep against on your shoulder, you tolerated my childish excitement when building a snowman, you held my hand under the table at meals, you kissed me under the mistletoe… You were perfect. And much as I hate to admit it, the entire time, I was just waiting for the other shoe to drop. So, when you told me, I just assumed the worse and I acted out. And I’m sorry Kara. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay, Lena,” Kara insisted as she closed the gap between them. “Really.”

“No, it’s not,” Lena’s voice cracked as a tear ran down her cheek. “I hurt you and didn’t listen. You deserve so much better than me.”

There was a soft touch on her arm and Lena suddenly found herself staring in those glacier blue eyes she loved before being wrapped in that sweet peppermint scent.

“There no one else I’d rather have,” Kara whispered into Lena’s ear as she held her tight in a hug.

Lena gripped Kara tightly to her, closing her eyes and breathing deeply as she let the warmth and sweetness overtake her. After a moment though, she pulled away slightly, dabbing her nose with the back of her hand, embarrassed of how wet she had made Kara’s shoulder.

“I know it won’t be easy,” Lena said, sniffling. “I’ll have to go back to National City and I know long distance can be hard especially with how spotty service is here.”

“We can make it work,” Kara smiled, her thumb gently wiping away a tear on Lena’s cheek.

“And believing… it’s going to be a process for. It’s not that I don’t believe you, but this is going to hard adjustment for me. In all my degrees and schooling, I’ve been taught magic doesn’t exist. I’m just really going to need you to bear with me.”

“Of course,” Kara said with a reassuring smile, her fingers pushing back a strand of Lena’s dark hair behind to ear. “Anything you need.”

“Gosh, you’re just too perfect,” Lena sighed.

“None of us are without our faults,” Kara replied, pressing a gentle kiss to Lena’s temple. “Trust me. I can be a bit of a workaholic. Not to mention I snore like a tractor and it costs a fortune to keep my stomach happy.”

“Good thing I’m rich then,” Lena gave a small smile, her hold tightening slightly on Kara’s biceps.

“Do you want to see the workshop?” Kara asked, a shy smile replacing her grin.

Lena’s heart dropped for a moment. As much as she hated it, her knee jerk reaction was still disbelief. It was out of habit after all. Magic wasn’t supposed to exist outside of Hogwarts or Middle-earth, but here she was. She forced the lump down her throat and plastered on a fake smile as she did her best to force herself along this process as quick as possible.

“It would be a pleasure,” she said.

“Oh!” Kara exclaimed as she took a step back causing Lena’s hold on her biceps to fall. “I almost forgot to suit up.”

Cocking her head to the side momentarily in confusion, Lena’s eyes widened as she saw Kara just grinned and offered a sly wink before she flicked her wrists out. Before the movement was even complete, an array of white sparks shower over her. Beneath the flurry, a thick red coat with white trim replaced her flannel and matching Santa hat appeared on her blonde head. Lena gasped Kara shook the sparks off her and took a step forward.

Perhaps this wouldn’t be so much of a process for her after all.

“What?” Kara asked with a broad grin. “Did you think I kept the suit on secretly underneath my flannel at all time and would just rip off the buttons when the time called?”

“I don’t know what I expected,” Lena answered honestly.

“Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it.” Kara assured with a kind smile as she held out hand. “Now, I have a list to check twice and a holiday to prepare for. Would you care to join me?”

And in that moment, Lena knew she had never been more sure of anything in her life.

“It would be my pleasure,” Lena returned the smile as she grasped Kara’s hand in her own.

Chapter Text

One Year Later

“You know we have to go in, right?”

Lena ignored the blonde as she was far too busy tasting the skin right where Kara’s jaw and neck met. When she found the particular spot she had been hunting for, she suckled hard on the sensitive flesh, grinning widely when Kara jerked and sucked in her own breath sharply.

“Lena…” Kara sighed, half-heartedly pulling away, but Lena was having none of that.

“No,” Lena whined, her fingers curling tighter in the blonde hair, pulling them impossibly closer in the small cab of Kara’s truck. “I wasn’t finished.”

“They’re waiting for us, you know,” Kara whispered, her own hands coming to circle around Lena’s back and cradle her neck as she kissed a trail up Kara’s neck.

“Let them wait,” Lena murmured, her teeth gently grazing the line of Kara’s jaw. “We’ll just tell them I had business to attend to.”

“I thought you didn’t bring work home with you on the holidays,” Kara said breathlessly, closing her eyes as her fingers gently massaged Lena’s scalp, egging her on.

“It’s not my fault you wore this flannel.” Lena’s fisted the collar of Kara’s offending shirt, pulling her ever closer. “Besides,” Lena’s lips ghosted over those pale peppermint-tasting ones she delighted in so much, “I thought you enjoyed this sort of business.”

At the loss of Lena’s lip from her skin, it was Kara’s turn to let out a soft whine of protest, but Lena’s mouth was still so close to her own that she could feel her hot breath in her own parted mouth. She shifted in her seat, turning more completely towards Lena and hating the barrier that the console and gear shift provided. But Lena always did have knack when it came to persuasion.

“You make a valid point,” Kara mumbled quickly, before tugging her mouth back to Lena’s.

A soft moan escaped Lena’s throat as she curled into the kiss, holding Kara’s collar firm while her other hand tangled further into those blonde locks. Kara hummed against her mouth in agreement as her thumb lovingly stroked the back of Lena’s neck and push Lena back into the seat. Lena was just about to start working on undoing the buttons on Kara’s flannel when a pounding at the window sprung them apart.

“These windows may be fogged up, but I know you’re in there!” Lois called from outside the truck. “And I better be seeing both of you in a presentable fashion at that dining table in five minutes or else I’m sending Clark after you.”

Lena groaned as she fell against Kara’s shoulder, the fabric there muffling the sound.

“Since when did your sister-in-law become such a mood killer?” Lena asked, not moving from Kara’s shoulder.

“Since she became pregnant,” Kara replied, running her fingers through Lena’s long raven hair. “Her mood swings alone have done quite a number on Clark. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so exhausted.”

“Ugh, I knew I should have just jumped you in the bus depot parking lot,” Lena sighed as she nuzzled into Kara’s neck, losing herself in that sweet peppermint scent she loved so much.

“I guess you’ll just have to keep that in mind for next year then,” Kara murmured before she placed a gentle kiss on Lena’s forehead.

“Oh, I definitely will,” Lena said as she ran her finger along the front of Kara’s flannel, tracing the line of buttons, thrilled by Kara’s sudden sharp breath intake.

Kara cleared her throat. “I guess we better be going before she comes back then.”

“I guess,” Lena sighed as she pushed herself up and attempt to tame her back in the rearview mirror.

Unable to resist herself, Kara pulled Lena back for one quick kiss, running her fingers through Lena’s now somewhat tidy hair before pulling back with a wide grin.
“We always have later,” Kara winked before opening her driver side door.

Despite her frustration, Lena couldn’t help her small smile. Unlike the previous Christmas, there was no time limit on their time together. “Later” could be anticipated rather than dreaded. Small things like that continually hit Lena with a burst of warmth and euphoria. She was finally starting to understand what it meant to be happy and there was absolutely no one else she’d rather navigate these pleasant new waters with.

Running her fingers through her hair and rubbing away her smudged lipstick with her thumb, Lena opened up her own passenger door and prepared to follow her girlfriend into the house to their awaiting family.

---

“Honestly Maggie, I can’t believe you were even able to make the twelve-bird roast this year,” Clark said as he patted his full stomach. “I didn’t think you were being serious last year when you said it, but you really did out do yourself.”

“I never joke when it comes to Christmas dinners,” Maggie replied proudly as she looked over her eighteen-pound turkey stuffed with eleven other smaller birds. “Recently, I’ve heard rumors of another turducken type creation that uses five more than this one so it sounds like I have my work cut out for me next year.”

“Mags, you can’t be serious,” Alex said with a small smile as her hand ran down her wife’s arm. “That’s seventeen birds.”

“Well, I have to put the industrial oven to use somehow,” Maggie told her while she gave a small wink to Lena.

Lena blushed into her wine glass as she took a sip. After Maggie’s plotting and prodding from last year’s Christmas, Lena thought she owed it to her to get her that Kitchen Aid mixer she had requested. But while purchasing it, Lena noticed how great the red color looked with a matching blender and mixing bowl and then refrigerator. Next thing Maggie knew, she was signing off on a delivery and installation of all new appliances and cookware. If Lena hadn’t been worried it would bother or inconvenience Eliza, she would have gone with an entire kitchen renovation and expansion. While Lena realized she may have been a bit excessive, every time Kara’s hand slipped into her own or she saw Kara’s crooked smile, Lena always felt as if it wasn’t enough.

“You forget about just how much food this is though,” Alex said with a small laugh. “We’re going to have leftovers for months.”

“That’s why we invited more people this year,” Maggie replied with a flourish.

“If you seriously think that either me or Ruby will make a dent in your leftovers, you are quite misguided,” Sam told her while her daughter laughed beside her.

“Fine, but—” Maggie pointed a finger down the table at Lois. “There will be another mouth to feed and if that child is anything like his father or aunt, we shouldn’t have a thing to worry about.”

“That’s if he’s even out yet,” Lois groaned as she stroked her swollen stomach. “I think he prefers the life of kicking my organs and sitting on my bladder.”

“Just give it another month, sweetheart.” Clark slid his arm around his wife, pulling her close so he could kiss her temple. “You’re doing great. Connor will be here in no time.”

“I didn’t know you had picked a name,” Lena said.

“Their family’s a sucker for alliterations,” Lois replied. “But I guess that’s a good thing for us with the ‘L’s’ and all.”

“Wait, is that why you didn’t change your name when you married?” Lena asked, arching her eyebrow slightly.

“I didn’t change my name because I’m a strong, independent woman who establish a notable reputation without conforming to the rules of the patriarchy.” Lois took a sip of her sparkling grape juice. “That and, let’s face it, ‘Lois Kent’ just doesn’t have near the same ring to it.”

“So, does that mean your son’s taking Clark’s last name?” Sam asked.

“Well, there’s a certain clause currently taking precedent.” Lois smiled to herself at her joke while Clark only rolled his eyes.

Sam frowned and her brow wrinkled in confusion. She opened her mouth to say something, but Alex swiftly cut her off before she could.

“I think it’s time to open presents!” Alex said as she stood up from the dining room table.

“Yes!” Maggie clapped her hands. “Time for us to move to the living room.”

What followed was everyone moving to the living room and taking up their respective places as couples to pass out the presents. Eliza joined Sam and Ruby on the couch in front of the fire while Lois lounged in a chair with Clark massaging her shoulders behind her. Next to them, Kara traced mindless but distracting patterns on Lena’s thigh in the loveseat they shared. With Alex and Maggie sitting on the couch closest to the Christmas tree, it was their job to pass out the gifts, and it wasn’t long before everyone had a pile of gifts either at their feet or on their laps.

“That one’s from me,” Eliza said with a smile as Lena reached for the thin box wrapped in red and gold.

Eagerly tearing off the paper, Lena opened the box to reveal suspiciously familiar red sweater.

“Hey!” Kara exclaimed brightly. “We can now match!”

A little more than a year ago, Lena would have grimaced in horror at the thought of such a gift, but now, she couldn’t help by laugh in delight. Letting the box fall to the ground, she grabbed both shoulders of the sweaters to relish in its full glory. Just like the sweater Eliza had made for Kara a year earlier, Lena now had the matching red sweater with a massive smiling reindeer across the front.

“I love it, Eliza,” Lena said with a genuine smile. “Thank you.”

“I didn’t have quite the same time crunch as last year so hopefully this one fits a little better,” Eliza replied.

“Oh, trust me, last year’s fit completely fine,” Lena assured her.

And it had. She had worn it so much over the past year that parts of the sweater were already fraying. Despite the summer heat, Lena had turned down the AC in her apartment so that she could still lounge in the sweater that always made her feel comfy and safe during the July heat waves. The green sweater had become her go to comfy attire while she wasn’t at work and occasionally even at work. At a particularly cold day in February when Lena only had meetings via the phone, Eve had walked into her office reviewing her schedule aloud before coming a sudden halt when she realized that her billionaire boss was wearing a large, green, snowman Christmas sweater. Lena was already imagining what Eve would say when she saw this one.

Lena’s phone vibrated in her pocket as attention moved on to the next person and present. As slyly as she could, Lena glanced down at the screen and smiled softly as she read the “Merry Christmas Eve!” text from Eve.

While Eve may have called her a Scrooge before last Christmas, she had quickly noticed Lena’s change to anything but, and despite not knowing all the facts, she had rightfully attributed it to the bubbly blonde that had suddenly entered Lena’s life. Unlike most long-distance relationships, Kara and Lena had a bit of an advantage due to Kara’s knack when it came to rapid travel. After all, she could make it to basically every household in the world in one night, so making just one stop in National City was about as quick and easy as a snap of her fingers. Several times a week, Kara would pop in for either a lunch or dinner date of some sort and Eve would all so too ready to comply and clear Lena’s schedule to do so. And this of course resulted in quite the end of year bonus and raise from Lena.

“Wait, Lena I thought you weren’t going to get us anything,” Alex said, her voice snapping Lena away from the text and her happy memories.

“Hmm?” Lena said, looking up and noticing the red envelope in Alex’s hands. “Oh, it’s nothing really. Just think of it was a delayed wedding present for you and Maggie or something along those lines.”

Kara arched an eye brow in question at Lena, but Lena simply shrugged her shoulders. Alex and Maggie had been married just two months prior and Lena had already paid for most of it. Even if had been small, Lena made sure that no expense had been spared whether it was the catering, the dresses, or location. Of course, it made it all the better when Lena was the one to catch the bouquet. Kara hadn’t stopped smiling since.

“Oh, my gosh, Lena!” Alex gasped, placing her hand over her mouth.

“Let me see,” Maggie craning her neck before her own eyes widened. “Oh wow… you’re actually sending us to Europe?”

“There isn’t a time limit on the vouchers,” Lena explained. “I know you two just went on your honeymoon so you can save those for a few months or even years if you want. Just let me know and I can call and get everything schedule for you.”

“First class tickets to London, a cooking class in Paris, a wine tasting in Tuscany, a night in the luxury suite in the Swiss Alps…” Alex read aloud.

“Of course, you don’t have to do them all in one go,” Lena added. “They’re just things my assistance picked out.”

“Lena… this is too much,” Alex said.

“Don’t think anything of it,” Lena insisted with a wave. “It’s not every day you get to marry your soulmate. I just want to be sure you two can celebrate it.”

“And to think we just got you a family yule log cake,” Maggie said as she looked over the vouchers in her wife’s hand.

“That sounds like a wonderful exchange to me,” Lena grinned.

“Clearly, you don’t know its value,” Maggie mumbled.

“I like to think I do,” Lena said softly before giving Kara’s cheek a quick kiss.

“My turn!” Ruby proclaimed as she reached for the largest in her stack.

When Lena saw the one she had reached for, her body instantly went tense in anticipation. Kara, forever mindful, squeezed Lena’s thigh gently in reassurance, but that didn’t do much to help Lena resist chewing her bottom lip.

“It’s a chess set!” Ruby exclaimed as she held it up.

“Yes,” Lena said with a small smile. “That chess board’s been in the Luthor family for generations.”

“Oh, Lena we couldn’t,” Sam replied quickly as she looked over the shiny but no doubt expensive chess pieces that were probably worth a small fortune.

“Please,” Lena insisted. “It’s about time that its seen some decent gameplay and love. And I could only watch you play with pieces of paper for so long.”

“It’s so cool!” Ruby inspected the pieces, holding up one the white knights that was missing the horse ear. “What happened here?”

“I, uh, may not have always been the most gracious loser I am today,” Lena blushed.

“Oh, we know,” Alex said. “We barely survived that Monopoly game with you.”

“That’s because you cheated!” Lena fired back, the corners of her mouth unable to resist curling in a smile.

“Collecting the money in the middle on free parking is not cheating!”

“Actually, it is,” Kara interjected. “There’s nothing about that in the rulebook. It’s just a place on the board where you land and nothing happens.”

“That’s a load of baloney,” Alex argued. “Everyone plays like that.”

“I have to support Kara and Lena on this one,” Clark added. “They’re right. There is nothing in the rulebook about collecting money on Free Parking.”

“Ha!” Lena grinned triumphantly.

“Whatever,” Alex groaned. “I still beat you regardless.”

“But if you think about it, babe,” Maggie told Alex. “Lena’s kind of won the one that actually counts. You know, the real life one.”

Lena’s smirk only broadened when Alex shot her another playful glare.

“Well, if you two are done arguing, I’d like to open one of my gifts,” Lois announced as she reached for one of the few presents her swollen stomach would allow her to reach.

“Oh, that’s from me!” Kara beamed as Lois grabbed the present in Santa hat wrapping.

“Very tasteful decorating,” Lois mumbled as she tore the paper off, stopping for a moment in silence when she saw its contents. “Kara, you didn’t.”

Kara only grinned in respond and it only grew when Lois lifted the small red onesie in the air and turned it around to reveal the words “Santa Baby” written on it in black script.

“How long have you been sitting on that one?” Lois asked, cracking a small smile.

“Since you and Clark first announced your engagement,” Kara replied brightly. “There’s also a little hat in there too.”

“Aww,” Clark unexpectedly gushed as he picked up the small Santa hat. “His first hat!”

Maggie, Alex, Eliza, and Lena couldn’t help but laugh even harder.

“Do you ever get the feeling you’re missing out on something?” Ruby asked her mom.

“All the time with some people,” Sam said as she narrowed her eyes playfully at everyone else in the room.

While Sam and Ruby may have been the only ones who didn’t know about Kara and Clark’s secret identity, no one doubted it would be long before they learned as well especially with Lois’s baby on the way. Ruby was already more-than willing to babysit and having to explain a magically powered baby guidelines would be rather difficult otherwise.

A timer on Clark’s watch went on. Once he turned it off, he and Kara exchanged a quick look and a nod before Lois slowly started to rise to her feet.

“Well, we hate to leave a fun evening so early, but we unfortunately have to get going,” Clark announced as he reached for Lois’s jacket.

“Leaving so soon?” Sam asked.

“We just have a few things to get done before tomorrow. And of course, we have to be sure to get in bed before Santa comes,” Clark said with an exaggerated wink to Ruby.

Ruby just rolled her eyes. “You know I’m too old to believe in that kind of stuff, right?”

“Don’t worry, kid,” Maggie told her. “You’ll relapse sooner than you think.”

For the second time tonight, Sam frowned and her brow wrinkled, but before she could say anything, Lois cut her out with a sharp gasp.

“Is everything, okay?” Clark asked worriedly, instantly placing his hand over Lois’s on her stomach. “Is it the baby?”

“Yeah, sorry,” Lois panted. “He’s just been so excited all night and just kicked one of my kidneys especially hard.”

“I guess you got a future soccer player on your hands,” Alex said.

“That doesn’t give him excuse to use my organs as a soccer ball,” Lois said, glaring down at her stomach. “Gosh, I just want him out of me.”

“Don’t worry,” Sam assured her as she ruffled Ruby’s hair. “He’ll be out and grown before you know it.”

“Mom,” Ruby laughed as she struggled out of her mom’s grip to fix her hair.

“Alright, guys,” Clark said as she helped Lois into her coat. “Or ladies, actually. We’ll see you all later. I hope everyone has a merry Christmas!”

“You too!” Maggie called after them. “And don’t forget about New Year’s Eve dinner!”

“Don’t forget the sparkling grape juice,” Lois retorted as Clark opened the door for him. “We’ll see you then.”

“I have to get going too,” Kara said as she moved to stand up and offer Lena a hand. “See me out?”

“With pleasure,” Lena replied as she took Kara’s.

In actuality, Lena’s stomach was becoming a stressful ball of nerves. Logically, she knew that Kara had to go for the night and that she would be perfectly safe while gone, but that didn’t stop Lena’s heart from aching. Last year, she at least had Lois to wait up the night with her to keep her company and soothe any stress Lena had. With the pregnancy and how quickly Lois tired out lately however, everyone agreed it would best to encourage Lois to bed as early as possible, but Lena knew that Lois would still try to wait up for her husband anyway. Still, Lena decided it would probably be best to stay at the Danvers Bed and Breakfast since they already had a room reserved for her anyways.

Kara said her goodbyes before leading Lena out to their usual place on the front porch. Despite the cold, Lena swiftly looped her arms around Kara’s neck while Kara’s arms curved around Lena’s waist, both pulling each other close and relishing in the warmth of one another’s embrace as a gentle snow fell silently around them.

“Stay safe, tonight okay?” Lena whispered, twirling her finger absentmindedly in Kara’s blond hair. “Don’t fly to low over those oceans and watching out for skyscrapers.”

“Don’t worry, I got this,” Kara assured her softly as her hands slipped into the back pocket of Lena’s jeans. “I’ll be back before you know it.”

“Promise?” Lena breathed, closing her eyes as she leaned her forehead against Kara’s.

“I promise,” Kara said before bringing her lips down to Lena’s to seal her promise with a gentle kiss.

And for a moment, Lena forgot everything but the strength, warmth, and softness of the beautiful woman in her arms.

“Hey—oh!”

Immediately, Lena and Kara sprung apart, both whirling around to see a startled Sam and a wide-eyed Ruby coming through the front door with an armful of gifts each. Behind them, they could hear Maggie laughing.

“Sam!” Lena exclaimed. “We were just… um.”

“Mmmhmm,” Sam said smugly as she walked around them on the porch. “I guess someone was getting their Christmas present a little early. I’m sorry to have interrupted.”

A fierce blush crept around Lena as she ducked head down slightly, but she was grateful for Kara’s hand still in her back pocket holding her close. They watched as they walked across the porch, Lena clearly more embarrassed and flustered than Kara.

“Watch out on those steps,” Kara said as Ruby took a step down them. “Sometimes ice forms on them.”

“Thanks,” Ruby said before looking at Lena. “Do you think you have time for a chess game before you head back to National City?”

“Of course,” Lena said as she cleared her throat slightly. “I wouldn’t miss it.”

“Awesome!” Ruby grinned. “I’ll see you soon then!”

“Nice mistletoe placement,” Sam said as she pointed up to the rafter over hanging the porch with an ever-growing smug smile. “You two are about as creative as Alex and Maggie.”

Lena frowned for a moment as she looked up. The green branch hung from the same spot it had last year, but Lena seriously doubted that Lois had climbed a later while she was this pregnant or that Clark would even let her.

“Did you…?” Lena asked Kara quietly as she pointed up to the branch.

“I couldn’t resist,” Kara replied with a sparkle in her blue eyes and smile before turning to wave goodbye to Sam and Ruby as they walked down the side walk. “Have a Merry Christmas, friends!”

“Merry Christmas to you too!” Sam and Ruby called back.

As the two women tracked through the snow along the sidewalk, Kara’s arms curled around Lena’s front, pulling her close as she rested her chin on Lena’s shoulder. Lena leaned back into Kara’s embrace, her arms curling over Kara’s as they watched Sam and Ruby disappear into the night. When Kara moved her head to press her lips against Lena’s cheek, Lena turned her head so she could catch Kara’s kiss with her own.

---

“We were wondering when you two love birds would separate,” Maggie said as she helped Alex gather up all the trash. “If you two kept it much for much longer, you were going to leave a lot of kids unhappy come Christmas morning.”

“She just decided to teleport back home,” Lena replied as she sat down on the now seemingly too large and empty loveseat. “That way she’d save at least a little bit of time.”

She hated how glum she sounded, but watching Kara leave for the night always bummed her out even if she knew she’d be coming back safe and sound soon. It only made her feel worse when she realized just how selfish she was acting especially when she considered the billions of people Kara would bring happiness to tonight.

“Hey,” Alex said. “Do you want us to stay up with you tonight?”

“Oh, no, you’re fine,” Lena shook her head. “I’ll be fine.”

“Are you sure?” Alex asked. “We really don’t mind.”

“No really,” Lena insisted with a tight smile. “All of you just go to bed. I’ll be fine.”

“Here’s some blankets, Lena,” Eliza said as she brought several soft blankets over to the ottoman. “If you need anything, please just let me know.”

“I think I’ll be fine,” Lena smiled. “Thanks Eliza.”

“You’re welcome, sweetheart,” Eliza pressed a kiss to Lena’s forehead. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Goodnight, Eliza,” Lena called after, a pleasant warmth spreading through her that prickled her eyes with tears as she watched the only motherly figure in her life ascend the stairs.

“Can we at least get you a drink?” Maggie offered.

“I still have my glass of wine,” Lena nodded to it on the coffee table. “But thank you.”

“Well, there’s some coffee still warm in the kitchen and you’re welcome to anything behind the bar,” Maggie said before giving Lena a warm smile. “And we’re here if you need anything. I can even heat up that yule log cake if you want.”

“Thank you, but I think I’ll be fine,” Lena told them, some of the tightness of her smile loosening.

“I know I don’t say this enough, but it’s been really great having you as part of the family,” Alex said as she placed her hand over Lena’s. “I’m really glad you found us. And Kara especially.”

“I’m really glad I found you all too.” Lena flipped her hand over and squeezed Alex’s. “My life’s never been better.”

“Who would've believed it?” Maggie laughed slightly. “A Luthor and a Santa.”

“Merry Christmas, Lena,” Alex said softly.

“Merry Christmas, Alex,” Lena replied before letting her hand slip away. “Merry Christmas, Maggie.”

“Merry Christmas!” Maggie called back. “Don’t stay up too late, okay?”

“No promises,” Lena mumbled as she watched them disappear up the stairs after Eliza into their own room.

For a few minutes, Lena could hear the creaking of them above her as they walked around upstairs, but it didn’t take long for the entire world to descend into silence. Reaching for her wine glass, Lena stood up and walked towards the Christmas tree. Taking a brief sip of wine, she watched the snow fall in fat flakes along the ground, slowly covering up the front walk and porch steps. For a moment, she wondered if the snowfall was Kara’s doing or Mother Nature really had this planned. Either way, there was still a certain magic to that Lena couldn’t help but smile at.

Turning to examine the tree, Lena’s eyes flicked over the ornaments as she hunted for one in particular. After finding the one with Alex in her pink bunny pajamas and the ornament commemorating Alex and Maggie’s recent marriage, Lena finally stumbled across the white snowflake ornament she was looking for. Cursing it just a year before, Lena now reached for it and held it tight in her hand, running her thumb over the red script. It had answered her wish once before, maybe it could do it again.

“Please keep her safe.”

---

Dawn was just starting to break through the cloud when the soft thud of boots clomped across the living room. Brushing the snow off the red shoulder of her coat, Kara turned behind her, waving her hand in front of the fireplace to call the fire back she had momentarily stopped. She turned back around and smiled when she saw Lena curled up on the couch under one of Eliza’s soft blankets. Her eyes may have been closed and her jaw may have been slack, but her hands still held on to the snowflake ornament as tightly as she would have had she been awake. Chuckling softly to herself, Kara knelt down and gave Lena a gentle kiss. Those green eyes she loved so much fluttered open moments before a smile stretched across her lips.

“You’re back,” Lena whispered.

“Of course.” Kara brushed a strand of hair behind Lena’s ear. “I’ll always come back to you. After all, that's my Christmas wish.”