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You can chart probable exam periods by my LJ output, I'm beginning to suspect.
Anyway. Instead of putting up the Dear Santa letter as given by the... Dear Santa letter generator, I picked a character at completely random and wrote fic based on it instead.
(Q: ...So. The completely random character you picked. It wouldn't happen to be Kara, would it?
A: Why, yes, actually. However did you guess!)
Cassie doesn't look up when Kara arrives, even though Kara is looking contrite and holding pizza and obviously ready to apologize.
Kara watches her for a few seconds. "I've got pizza," she says, like Cassie maybe just didn't notice. Cassie's frown tightens and her shoulders tense. Her fingers hit the X-Box control pad with greater force.
Kara puts the pizza on the table. "I didn't mean it," she says. "I know Kon meant a lot to you, and you couldn't have guessed what you were getting involved with. And I understand why you needed to try. I... I'd do anything to get my people back."
"So what?" says Cassie. "Are we supposed to be friends now?" She turns her glare to Kara for a moment before focusing back on the screen. "I thought you were only hanging around because Superman told you to."
The world goes momentarily cold around Kara, and then the X-Box leaves her fist and smashes through the wall. Cassie gapes at her, still gripping the controller.
Kara leaves at super-speed, before Cassie has time to hate her for that, too.
***
Hazing pranks, Kara muses, probably work a lot better on people without super-vision. Kara looks through the side of the Legion breakroom's toilet, close enough to make out Ayla's fingerprints on the triggered device, and shrugs to herself. She leaves without telling the toilet to flush.
Star Boy enters the bathroom a few moments after her.
"Oh, gross," she hears him say. "Flush!" The transmuter whirrs as it begins to change the chemical consistency of the toilet's contents, and then there's a small explosion from inside the bathroom. It's hard to tell if Thom's next comment on the situation is a whimper or a scream.
***
There's always a way, Kal-El tells her. There's always a way to save the girl, save the day, capture the bad guy without the loss of life or limb.
But he's not here now, standing beside her on Mhohal IV with a moon-sized grey extinction device due to reach orbit in slightly less than a local day. It's older than Kryptonian civilization, and protected by ancient technology she's never seen before.
It stings inside her mind when she gets too close, but Kara's managed to pick up the broad strokes of its purpose. Whoever sent the weapon hurtling through the eons on a perfect, pinpointed trajectory meant to wipe out any higher lifeforms that might have evolved on the planet, as decided by an algorithm run on samples of primordial DNA.
She can't stop the device or alter its course. She's contacted the Green Lantern Corps, but none of them can reach the area in time. She can barely touch the first layers of programming, and there's no command she can find that will halt it. The best she can do is ask it to be more targeted in its destruction.
There are two sentient races native to Mhohal IV. When the weapon arrives, it will kill everyone on the planet. Or it will kill 500 million Kesari. Or it will kill 3 billion Mhohians.
Being a hero isn't about the math, Kal-El tells her, as if he knows anything at all.
***
The physician seems scared and confused. It doesn't do much for Kara's faith in Earth medicine.
"He's been badly hurt. The alien bomb exploded in his abdomen and both of his, well, they look like kidneys, were ruptured."
"So you want to take one of mine," says Kara. "Okay."
The physician shakes her head. She fingers the pocket of her labcoat, pulls out a pen, puts it back. "From what we know of your biology, we believe the organ will grow back in a few days."
"Okay."
"There isn't an anesthetic that we're confident will work on your system, so we're forced to use telepathic means to put you under. The Martian," the physician speaks slowly, stumbling over the name, "J'onn J'onzz? Has agreed to assist. For the surgery itself, we'll cut with lasers based on the frequency of red sunlight. There will probably be some lingering effects when you regain consciousness."
"I already agreed," Kara says to her. "Why are you wasting time telling me this?"
The physician stops fidgeting and looks at her seriously. "You have to understand the risks of what you're agreeing to."
"I understand all the risks I care about," Kara says. "If I say no, Kal-El might die."
The doctor nods. "Okay," she says. "This way."
Kara follows her into the operating studio. She wonders if, when she wakes up, she'll finally be alone in the universe.
***
Batgirl comes at her with a growl and a batarang that glows green with kryptonite. It should be ridiculous, but Batgirl is fast and she moves differently than anyone Kara has seen. The weapon slices into Kara's arm before she can take to the air, and she gasps as pain radiates up into her chest.
The kryptonite batarang swings back into Batgirl's hand. "Why are you attacking me?" Kara asks. "I thought you were one of the good guys. Kon said--"
Batgirl shakes in anger. "You're not him!" She jumps into a kick, aiming her foot at the centre of Kara's chest. Kara backs away with inhuman speed and swings a fist toward Batgirl's shoulder. Batgirl stabs at Kara's hand with the batarang, and Kara doesn't move in time.
Kara swears. She tries closing her fingers, but they don't respond. Batgirl lands in a crouch some distance away and waits, ready.
"I never said I was!" Kara shouts at her. Batgirl's muscles tense for movement, and Kara blows up a rock beside her with heat vision as a warning. "I miss him too, okay?"
"I don't believe you," says Batgirl. She shifts her stance, takes a step backward, rotates her kryptonite-free hand. Finally she says, "When he died, no one cared, because you were already in his place. But he was Super, not you."
Batgirl points to Kara's chest, and Kara glances down. A few drops of her blood have stained the crest of the house of El. "And what would you know about family symbols," says Kara. "You're human."
Batgirl starts shaking again, but she doesn't attack. It takes Kara a while to realize that this time she's laughing.
***
"What are you doing?" Kara says, sniffing the air dubiously.
"Cooking!" says Owen.
Kara considers the pans scattered over the counter. She considers the things stuck to those pans. "Are you sure?"
"Oh, shut up." Owen plops a sandwich in front of her. Half of the side facing Kara is black, and there's a slight green tinge on a corner.
"...yum."
Anyway. Instead of putting up the Dear Santa letter as given by the... Dear Santa letter generator, I picked a character at completely random and wrote fic based on it instead.
(Q: ...So. The completely random character you picked. It wouldn't happen to be Kara, would it?
A: Why, yes, actually. However did you guess!)
 Dear Santa...Dear Santa, This year I've been busy! In September I broke Cassie's X-Box (-12 points). Last week I didn't flush (-1 points). Last Saturday I committed genocide... Sorry about that, Superman (-5000 points). Last Tuesday I gave Superman a kidney (1000 points). Last month I helped Batgirl see the light (8 points). Overall, I've been naughty (-4005 points). For Christmas I deserve a moldy sandwich! Sincerely, |
Cassie doesn't look up when Kara arrives, even though Kara is looking contrite and holding pizza and obviously ready to apologize.
Kara watches her for a few seconds. "I've got pizza," she says, like Cassie maybe just didn't notice. Cassie's frown tightens and her shoulders tense. Her fingers hit the X-Box control pad with greater force.
Kara puts the pizza on the table. "I didn't mean it," she says. "I know Kon meant a lot to you, and you couldn't have guessed what you were getting involved with. And I understand why you needed to try. I... I'd do anything to get my people back."
"So what?" says Cassie. "Are we supposed to be friends now?" She turns her glare to Kara for a moment before focusing back on the screen. "I thought you were only hanging around because Superman told you to."
The world goes momentarily cold around Kara, and then the X-Box leaves her fist and smashes through the wall. Cassie gapes at her, still gripping the controller.
Kara leaves at super-speed, before Cassie has time to hate her for that, too.
***
Hazing pranks, Kara muses, probably work a lot better on people without super-vision. Kara looks through the side of the Legion breakroom's toilet, close enough to make out Ayla's fingerprints on the triggered device, and shrugs to herself. She leaves without telling the toilet to flush.
Star Boy enters the bathroom a few moments after her.
"Oh, gross," she hears him say. "Flush!" The transmuter whirrs as it begins to change the chemical consistency of the toilet's contents, and then there's a small explosion from inside the bathroom. It's hard to tell if Thom's next comment on the situation is a whimper or a scream.
***
There's always a way, Kal-El tells her. There's always a way to save the girl, save the day, capture the bad guy without the loss of life or limb.
But he's not here now, standing beside her on Mhohal IV with a moon-sized grey extinction device due to reach orbit in slightly less than a local day. It's older than Kryptonian civilization, and protected by ancient technology she's never seen before.
It stings inside her mind when she gets too close, but Kara's managed to pick up the broad strokes of its purpose. Whoever sent the weapon hurtling through the eons on a perfect, pinpointed trajectory meant to wipe out any higher lifeforms that might have evolved on the planet, as decided by an algorithm run on samples of primordial DNA.
She can't stop the device or alter its course. She's contacted the Green Lantern Corps, but none of them can reach the area in time. She can barely touch the first layers of programming, and there's no command she can find that will halt it. The best she can do is ask it to be more targeted in its destruction.
There are two sentient races native to Mhohal IV. When the weapon arrives, it will kill everyone on the planet. Or it will kill 500 million Kesari. Or it will kill 3 billion Mhohians.
Being a hero isn't about the math, Kal-El tells her, as if he knows anything at all.
***
The physician seems scared and confused. It doesn't do much for Kara's faith in Earth medicine.
"He's been badly hurt. The alien bomb exploded in his abdomen and both of his, well, they look like kidneys, were ruptured."
"So you want to take one of mine," says Kara. "Okay."
The physician shakes her head. She fingers the pocket of her labcoat, pulls out a pen, puts it back. "From what we know of your biology, we believe the organ will grow back in a few days."
"Okay."
"There isn't an anesthetic that we're confident will work on your system, so we're forced to use telepathic means to put you under. The Martian," the physician speaks slowly, stumbling over the name, "J'onn J'onzz? Has agreed to assist. For the surgery itself, we'll cut with lasers based on the frequency of red sunlight. There will probably be some lingering effects when you regain consciousness."
"I already agreed," Kara says to her. "Why are you wasting time telling me this?"
The physician stops fidgeting and looks at her seriously. "You have to understand the risks of what you're agreeing to."
"I understand all the risks I care about," Kara says. "If I say no, Kal-El might die."
The doctor nods. "Okay," she says. "This way."
Kara follows her into the operating studio. She wonders if, when she wakes up, she'll finally be alone in the universe.
***
Batgirl comes at her with a growl and a batarang that glows green with kryptonite. It should be ridiculous, but Batgirl is fast and she moves differently than anyone Kara has seen. The weapon slices into Kara's arm before she can take to the air, and she gasps as pain radiates up into her chest.
The kryptonite batarang swings back into Batgirl's hand. "Why are you attacking me?" Kara asks. "I thought you were one of the good guys. Kon said--"
Batgirl shakes in anger. "You're not him!" She jumps into a kick, aiming her foot at the centre of Kara's chest. Kara backs away with inhuman speed and swings a fist toward Batgirl's shoulder. Batgirl stabs at Kara's hand with the batarang, and Kara doesn't move in time.
Kara swears. She tries closing her fingers, but they don't respond. Batgirl lands in a crouch some distance away and waits, ready.
"I never said I was!" Kara shouts at her. Batgirl's muscles tense for movement, and Kara blows up a rock beside her with heat vision as a warning. "I miss him too, okay?"
"I don't believe you," says Batgirl. She shifts her stance, takes a step backward, rotates her kryptonite-free hand. Finally she says, "When he died, no one cared, because you were already in his place. But he was Super, not you."
Batgirl points to Kara's chest, and Kara glances down. A few drops of her blood have stained the crest of the house of El. "And what would you know about family symbols," says Kara. "You're human."
Batgirl starts shaking again, but she doesn't attack. It takes Kara a while to realize that this time she's laughing.
***
"What are you doing?" Kara says, sniffing the air dubiously.
"Cooking!" says Owen.
Kara considers the pans scattered over the counter. She considers the things stuck to those pans. "Are you sure?"
"Oh, shut up." Owen plops a sandwich in front of her. Half of the side facing Kara is black, and there's a slight green tinge on a corner.
"...yum."
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