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Sirens wail in the distance. The screams of the onlooking crowd blend in with blaring car alarms and the thrum of an encroaching helicopter, its lights following from the top of a building, down. Faster than the human eye, something crashes down.
A spine-chilling boom is heard before the ground splinters and a cloud of dust and debris shoots up. More screams, horrified gasps, tires screech to a halt and sirens pierce the air as the dust settles. There’s a muted bolt amidst the chaos- whoever caused this, gone.
A body lays motionless amongst the rubble. Her face was mutilated, silken hair damp with blood, the symbol of hope scorched off her chest. National City’s hero, dead.
Her Kara. Dead. Dead. Dead.
Lena awakens with a scream. Her body moves automatically, sitting up as she cries out. The memory that had interwoven itself with her dreams left her sick all over. It’s a futile attempt to quiet herself, pressing her lips into a thin line to muffle the pain she feels. The exertion makes her body tense, shaking profusely. Hands fly to cup her mouth as the bitter taste of bile threatens to lurch out of her.
Looking to her right the bed is empty, again. A wave of fear washes over her. She hugs her midsection in an attempt to stop trembling. The fabric of her silk nightgown stuck uncomfortably to her clammy hands. Fingernails biting harshly into her sides in an attempt to balance herself.
Everything feels so real, so fresh, it already happened and yet it keeps happening. Be it plaguing Lena at night or having to rush to the DEO at any given moment because some new threat emerged. It’s infected her mind, poisoning her senses anytime she finds the bed empty or hears a police scanner ping.
A minute passes, no more than two, before Lena hears a whirl of wind and the doors to their balcony almost snap off its hinges. She’s enveloped in strong arms and a few inches off the ground before her mind registers the movement. Kara-
“Oh Rao, are you okay? Is everything okay? Are you hurt? What happened?” Kara stumbles over herself as she scans for anything out of the ordinary. Despite the concern and lack of glasses, that look was all Kara. Devoid of her picturesque Supergirl mask. It's endearing and Lena truly was okay. But seeing the woman so panicked, her eyebrows creased and worried frown made the horrific images of a few moments ago hit her anew.
Lena couldn’t help the choked sob she gave into Kara’s shoulder. Even in getting to hold her, feel her actually there, it did little to quell her suffocating anxiety. Fearing that if she pulled away, this moment would disappear before her, forcing her back to that grotesque chaos- to the helplessness of it all.
Kara stroked the back of her head in an attempt to calm her cries. Murmuring an apology when she realized they were still floating, she put Lena down gently. It takes a while for Lena to face her but when she does Kara tries her best to give her a smile even as worry eats away at her.
They stay silent as the cries subside into sniffling and Lena finds her bearings enough to ask “I thought you were patrolling, how did you-?” She cuts herself off, beginning to worry that she dragged Kara away from her duties for something so childish.
“I was! But I’m always listening for you. Even through all the other noise” Kara calmly rocked Lena in her arms. “And when you screamed.. I knew I had to get to you.”
“I’m sorry if I worried you darling. It’s nothing, it was a..” Lena looked away embarrassed. Everything was starting to feel silly the longer she was being stared at.
“I had a nightmare- about Reign, from when you two had first fought and she- and you had- just the memory of you lying there looking like that and the aftermath of the millions of my thoughts racing through my head of what would have happened if Alex didn’t get to you in time or if Sam- Reign had decided to finish you off. I just keep seeing myself standing there, watching you die just like I had that night. I felt so useless.” She spoke to Kara’s shoulder, knowing that if she dared to look her in her face she’d begin to sob again
Kara sighed. It had been over a year since they were able to separate Reign from Sam but that moment had unsurprisingly stuck around. She more than anyone knew how horrifying that all had felt, seeing their close friend lose control, being beaten nearly to death by a creature that had been designed to kill Kryptonians, and the guilt that weighed down on her when she awoke two days later with a disheveled and tear-streaked Lena by her side.
“It’s not, nothing Lena, these night terrors you get feel real to you, they hurt you and anything that makes that beautiful heart of yours beat out of fear will always be something to me. And- And you were not useless during my first fight with Reign. We were all caught off guard, we didn’t know what we were going to be dealing with.” Kara brings her hand up to Lena’s chin and gently coaxes her to look at her. “And let’s not forget who was the one that made it possible to separate Reign from Sam without having to kill her, you saved us and her.” She flashes a smile, Lena thinks it’s brighter than the sun she’s powered from.
Giving Kara a watery smile, she nods. This is all still new to her. The attentiveness, the understanding, no one has ever treated Lena this way. Not Lex who’d degrade her efforts- her mind, the potential she had out of fear of being bested (by a woman is the part he’d curse in silence), and most definitely not by Lillian who sneered at her presence, belittled her in favor of Lex, and mocked her for being a child; for not being her child.
Lena brings her hand to rest against Kara’s cheek. “Thank you for this Kara, I mean not just for the flattery but for saving me from myself, for holding me close and listening to my childish woes.” Kara puts her hand over hers, moving to briefly kiss her palm, and lets out a small scoff.
“It’s not childish! Not with me it’s not. I’ll have you know that Eliza had to keep buying me night lights until I was seventeen.” Kara refuted which earned a genuine laugh from Lena. “I’m serious! But you don’t need to thank me for something I do out of love, I’ll always be here for you. Supergirl may be National City’s protector but I, Kara Danvers, am your protector.” Lena rolls her eyes, Kara Danvers is also incredibly cheesy but nonetheless, she reaches on the tips of her toes and presses a small kiss to her lips, mumbling another ‘thank you’. Kara giggles like a schoolgirl before she gasps sharply and sheepishly pulls away. A mix of pain and embarrassment.
With how sudden she had woken up and still tense from the images flashing in the back of her mind, Lena hadn’t really taken the time to look at Kara. She cocks her head to the side and catches what had caused Kara’s reaction, her heart stutters in her chest. There was a slit in the fabric of her suit, spanning from below her armpit down to her ribs. The skin exposed still looks a bit raw and there’s a nasty bruise purpling her side.
Lena’s eyes shine with fresh tears, “Kara, oh my god! Are you okay? How did this-”.
“It's okay! It’s okay! It’s healing, nothing is stuck in the wound I checked. Just kinda hurts and it’s my fault really! Alien tech actually does a number on my body and I haven’t eaten yet” Kara interrupted her quickly trying her best to reassure her. After what happened earlier she didn’t want to cause Lena any more distress, especially anything relating to injury.
Lena crossed her arms and pursed her lips, trying to mimic the expression she usually reserved for L-Corp meetings (or as Kara called it “scary-hot CEO face") “You need to be more careful! I can see it’s healing but you tell Supergirl that I want my girlfriend back in one piece every night” She chastised trying to be humorous despite the worry creeping its way back to the forefront of her mind.
Kara straightened her back and saluted with a pout, “Yes Ms. Luthor. I’ll relay the message as soon as possible.” She pointed to her temple and gave an overexaggerated wink. She was trying to lighten the mode and it was working, whether Lena’s subconscious wanted to accept it or not.
Giving a conscious look to their clock Kara clapped her hands together. “I think we should go to bed, you have CEO business to attend to early in the morning. I’ll just get out this real qu-” Kara was about to dash through her routine when she felt Lena’s hand on her forearm effectively stopping her in place, letting out a hum in questioning.
“This might seem strange but..can I help you? Get dressed for bed?” Lena truthfully was nervous as to what Kara’s reaction would be trying to prolong the embarrassment that was threatening to make her waver and just let Kara forget she even said anything. A beat passed and before her sense of self-preservation kicked in, Kara gave a light ‘yes’, shy with her answer but not disturbed. Lena felt it necessary to explain herself lest she make Kara uncomfortable “I promise I won’t do anything strange… I just want to feel you physically with me. I need to assure my mind that this isn’t some beautifully twisted hallucination.” Lena rambled hoping her thoughts were conveyed somewhat coherently.
Kara gave a sympathetic smile. “I trust you Lena, more than anyone and if this puts you at ease then I’m more than okay with it.” She reassured her by making the first move, fingers fiddling with the tops of her cape. After fumbling for a moment it detached with a click from her chest piece leaving it to thump against the floor. She moved her hands down to Lena’s hips, allowing her space.
Her touch was reaffirming as she began. Lena was gentle as her hand ran through Kara’s golden hair, combing through the light waves before stopping at her right eyebrow, thumb grazing over the inner corner. “I don’t think I ever asked how you got this,” Lena mumbled absentmindedly, feeling the wrinkled skin of the small scar. Remembering how it felt to see the ever indestructible Girl of Steel with a small dent in her impermeable skin.
“It happened back on Krypton. I had been playing with my aunt Astra and I fell, hitting myself against a table. I was small, perhaps around five and my mother nearly fainted at the sight of me when Astra called for her.” Kara’s smile was fond and Lena manually tilted Kara’s head down to leave a featherlike kiss upon the mark, making her gush with a dorky smile.
Lena chuckles and continues down. Going from the slope of her shoulders to her biceps, appreciating the firmness under her fingertips, the feel of Kevlar soft and warm. One hand moves to press right in the middle of Kara’s chest, her hand appearing small in comparison to the emblazoned “S”, the House of El, a symbol of hope looking proud and resounding; a stark contrast to the passing thought of smoke and charred fabric.
Hands traveling down Kara’s sides she let out a hum of disappointment, tugging at torn edges making a mental note to ask Winn to finally use that upgraded Kevlar L-Corp had handed over to the DEO.
“So how did this happen?”
“..A car”
“A car hit you? Or?”
“A drone- don’t ask, snagged at my cape, and then suddenly a car was being launched at me so I dodged!”
“With?!”
“My body…”
All Lena could do was shake her head as her fingers skimmed over bruised skin. It felt as though she’d never tire of telling Kara to be careful. Well, Kara kept her promises but it was Supergirl that determined how she looked by the end of the day.
Removing the chest piece turned out to be more complicated than it seemed. The entire top was practically skin tight and tucked into Kara’s skirt. She had never seen the suit being taken off manually; Kara usually already had it on under her clothes or slipped out of it and into more leisurely wear faster than her eyes could humanly perceive.
But in freeing the edges she looked up to see that Kara was still comfortable (and not thinking that Lena was some sort of weirdo), her rapidly spiraling thoughts were put to a halt when Kara helped her lift the fabric up and over her head, leaving Lena to be mindful of the purple mess on her side. The air between them was light, the heaviness that had hung over both of them dissipating.
For a moment they fell into a comfortable silence; something Lena found herself thankful for. On any given day if Lena awoke when Kara had gotten home they’d talk about anything and everything until they let sleep takeover but right now she just needed to be grounded in reality, a reminder that this happiness was selfishly and unapologetically her own, and no one could take it away from her like they had before.
They progressed smoothly until Kara’s forearm got stuck in her sleeve prompting them to break into laughter, whining until Lena was able to get it off.
The piece dangled limply in her hands, not seeming as imposing now. It was pliant and soft in Lena’s hands, just like Kara herself. Stepping away momentarily she’s able to grab the clothes she had set out earlier that night.
Taking a good look at the woman in front of her Lena couldn’t help but feel emotional all over again. She ran her hands from her sides up her biceps to her shoulders, making her way to the back of Kara’s head, knowing that if she were anybody else there would be a myriad of scar tissue continuing to heal here.
“Do you ever get phantom headaches from when Reign?…it was solid concrete she hit you with”
“Would it upset you if I said yes?”
A kiss is placed on Kara's cheek. “Deeply, I am a doctor after all.”
“Then no” She jests. Lena stays silent which means Alex will definitely conduct a full body physical the second she enters the DEO in the morning.
Lena’s silence stretches while she adjusts the shirt over her head and with no reaction Kara implores the one thing she knows will bend a Luthor; she reaches around the expanse of Lena’s neck and lightly pinches the skin of her nape. Lena squeaks, yanks on the hem of the shirt, and suddenly Kara is dressed. There’s a halfhearted glare while Kara sulks but at least the shirt is on.
She does make Kara take off her own boots, they are knee high and while nice to look at, were going to be awkward to try and remove. The first one was off in the blink of an eye, the other on the other hand stopped Kara mid-movement as she hopped on one foot trying to pull it off, finally having it ungraciously clatter to the floor. Lena hid her amusement with the back of her hand.
Kara was able to swiftly change out of her skirt and into pants even if she had a small hiccup with the golden belt still attached.
When she’s back at Lena’s side she’s immediately brought into her arms. “Well hi to you too, miss me these past five seconds?” Kara jabs playfully which earns her a smack to the shoulder; she dramatically clutches the area as if her arm had been ripped off. It earns her another smack.
“Oh yes it was insufferable without you” Lena lamented with a straight face. Her smile returned when Kara let her entire body droop with a frown and ushered back into a hug.
“I love you Lena” Kara beams. “I haven’t said it since I got here and it made me feel wrong. I love you” Lena grips tightly to the back of her shirt.
She is solid and warm and the feeling of her just there is all Lena needs. “I love you, Kara.” She pulls back enough to look her in the eyes.
“Truthfully, I had this feeling.. when you got here like you were just going to slip through my fingers. And even when I’ve gotten to hold you, there was this doubt in my mind, telling me that any second I was going to jolt awake and that this would all be a dream.” Lena tried to not make the waver in her voice apparent but speaking aloud what she thought was going into her little boxes was difficult.
“So right now being able to tell you I love you and be loved back makes me feel as though I can breathe again”
Kara sniffles “I will always be by your side Lena, no matter what. There’s nothing we can’t face together and I promise you that.” She cups Lena’s face and pulls her in for a kiss, a proper one.
~
When they finally laid down to go to bed Lena was pulled right into Kara. Her head was guided to her chest as arms encircled her. Kara incoherently rambled in the third person as exhaustion took over, making a tiny whooshing sound, and mumbling “Kara shield activated” into Lena’s hair. As Lena drifted off, all she could think about was being able to feel the rise and fall of her chest and the slow beat of her heart against her ear.
Kara is alive, Kara is safe, and Kara is all that Lena could ask for.