Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Emilia Cooper?”

She straightened under the attention. “Yes.”

“You wished to speak to me about the, I quote, unique profile of the adoptive daughter you wish to enroll in our school?” The man looked at her, his entire presence felt dusty despite being relatively clean.

“Yes, she… is quite unique and I’d like to make sure the school administration and her teachers know what to expect. For her sake.”

“Very well,” little Kara’s future principal linked his fingers together before him, “what do you wish to tell me?”

“You might know I adopted her about 4 months ago. What you couldn’t have known is her… unfortunate background.”

She knew why she was saying what she was saying, but it still felt wrong. As close to both realistic and the truth as she could, but still. “Kara, she… well, there is no simpler way to say this, she grew up in a cult. They were nearly completely off the grid. It’s… that community is all she knew for 13 years, and it has had its influence. From what we can tell, she had a pretty happy life all things considered. So the loss of her parents and community in an incident including fire is something that has… more than just heavily marked her.”

She breathed out, glad to have gotten the lie and difficult part both out. It was hard for her to say the lie or think of the horror, and Kara, so young, could do both better than her, somehow. Affection bubbled in her chest for the brave little girl she had come to love so much. “For a girl that has lost all she knew the world to be, I am quite proud of her resilience despite everything.”

She saw the shock, horror, and incomprehension on his face, the look of a man who was reminded of what reality actually could be beyond the heavily laid paths of habits and their expected possible variations he had come to see life through. Emilia continued.

“She of course has different concepts of what is normal or expected and has almost no knowledge of the culture of the outside, besides what I had the time to teach her amits… quite frankly the hell that is making her existence and my adoption of her legal, as well as simply caring for her. Nothing that should pose a problem for others from what I can tell, but an important fact for her and her teachers.”

Now for the tough sell. What she’d previously described was more or less the experience of any child immigrant and their teacher, but considering her cover, she’d need to make sure they understood none of this was up for negotiation.

“I will mention she still holds the religion of her community close to her heart and that I will not take that away from her too, especially since it’s mostly innocent sun worship. All this might never come up again, but just in case it does, I do expect her religion to be respected, within the same boundaries you treat any other student with religious convictions, of course. I wouldn’t ask for the teachers to do anything they aren’t already supposed to do, but I do ask you to treat her no different in that regard, no matter the origin of her traditions.”

She saw his fairly hidden grimace, but she knew he would do as she asked: he looked more judgmental towards herself than Kara. After a moment, he nodded, seeding her point more out of logical understanding than emotional agreement.

“Lastly, Kara is quite intelligent, and has been highly educated on specific topics while lacking education in others, the latter probably to be expected. And while we haven’t tested for it yet, I find it not improbable she is on the autism spectrum.” The last true in all ways that matter, with power-caused physical awkwardness and sensory issues as well as a mind designed for science and all.

The principal took in a deep breath, before offering a slight smile. “Well, for all the strangeness of the… particulars, you will be happy to find that we here are well equipped for handling and supporting students functionally like her, and have done well by them in the past. We will be glad to count Kara Cooper among our students.” He extended a hand.

She shook it. “Thank you,” she exhaled sincerely, the fact she’d picked this school for that very reason the only reason her voice didn’t crack.

Kara would get the best life Emilia could offer, and that started with a school that would support her and the promise she’d need to hide herself as little as they could afford.

Chapter Text

Lois Lane looked at the sleeping girl on her boyfriend’s bed. God, this was such a fucking mess. This was his older Kryptonian cousin who was still a child, and she needed to be protected.

That was so much. And by how Clark was holding himself on the couch, hunched over, one hand moving from on his mouth to forehead to mouth again, he absolutely agreed.

Ok, she could do this. She was smart, she was cool under pressure, this should be easy!

Clark was right. Lex was a problem, and Clark acknowledged that any relationship with the girl could get real bad real quick if anyone even suspected it. She needed a safe place to grow up, by people who could be trusted to know and still want her and want to protect her.

Clark spoke up “I’m sorry for asking, I could figure this out on my own, it’s fine. Maybe… The Danvers? They moved out to California, but they helped me with my powers when I was a kid, they could deal with her and…”

“California? Are you kidding me?!” Lois sighed, her boyfriend was an absolute idiot. “She hasn’t even had the time to get used to you being older than her and her purpose being lost forever, and you want for her to be the exact opposite side of the country? Clark, she’s gonna need you to help her transition in that. She is here for you, we need an option where you can be at least a part of her life.”

“I can fly!” Clark insisted, visibly disgusted she would imply he might abandon his cousin, which wasn’t even her point.

“Which you only do as Superman, and you know can’t be seen doing often. If you do, she won’t only be seen as related to Clark, who might be Superman, but she’ll be directly related to him. She needs Clark to visit her, both for her safety,” she insisted on that last part; “and to get used to who you are. For that, she can’t be far. Perhaps not in Metropolis, but you need to be able to drive there easily enough.”

“Who then?” he looked up, pleading for something she wasn’t sure he could even articulate. “Who can we trust with this?”

“I…” was this really a good idea? “I could call an old college friend of mine, she is a psychologist and lives in Stamford. Last I checked she got engaged and was open to having kids. She could work?”

“Ok. but we give them the Danvers’ contact, alright? She needed them as much as I did.”

—

Emilia Cooper was somehow more excited than shocked, which was saying something. I mean, sure, Lois’ boyfriend was Superman and said boyfriend’s cousin was a kid in need of a home, but on the other hand this was Lois Lane, and she was asked to raise a young refugee right after that talk about maybe adopting a kid in need.

Her fiance would still probably have to be convinced, though. They had agreed on it, but this was a bit early, and there was no mention of aliens or superpowers. She would listen to a no, of course, living in a small home of their own on the outskirts didn’t mean she wouldn’t be a hassle if not a danger, but she really hoped her fiance would agree.