I'M KARA DANVERS

That afternoon Kara was in the sky, red cape billowing behind her. It had taken all of her willpower not to fly back to Lena as soon as she had left the building, but she knew that would look way too suspicious. Especially considering the way Lena had looked at her before she'd left.

Lena seemed to be holding up when she'd last saw her, but Kara had the feeling that this was hurting her more than she had let on to Kara Danvers.

As she approached the L-Corp building, she scowled when she saw the crowd of reporters still hounding the entrance. She drew in a deep breath and blew down towards the huddled mass, chuckling internally as their papers and possessions scattered everywhere. At the very least, she could take pleasure in annoying them.

Lena was sitting at her desk when she alighted on the balcony, but she must have been listening out for her, because she spun around in her chair as soon as Kara's boots touched the ground. Lena came to the balcony door and stopped there a moment as Kara straightened up.

The stoic mask Lena had been putting on for the world cracked, and then shattered all at once. "Supergirl," she breathed and crossed the space between them. She folded herself into Kara's arms, her cape falling around the pair.

"It's not your fault," Kara said, knowing Lena would still be finding some way to blame herself for what happened, despite what she'd told her earlier. Lena drew in a stuttering breath and was quiet, burying herself deeper into Kara's embrace. Kara held onto her tightly, giving her all the time she needed before speaking.

Kara was amazed by how quickly Lena fell apart when she came to her as Supergirl—holding it together when she had visited earlier as Kara Danvers must have taken tremendous effort. Kara swallowed, hoping that someday she could be vulnerable like this around her other self—her whole self. She knew it was up to her to tell the truth about who she really was, but for now the situation with Lena was too fragile and precious to disturb. She had to tread carefully.

After a while, Lena pulled back from the hug, straightening her back and smoothing out her blouse. She ran a hand over her tired face, and leaned against the balcony railing, staring off into the distance.

"I just—I can't believe I have to add another name to the list of people Lex has hurt," she finally said, her voice cracking slightly. "I thought the ink had finally dried, but..." Lena trailed off and shook her head.

Kara couldn't understand how anyone could ever believe Lena Luthor was even capable of causing harm when she had empathy to feel the suffering of everyone her brother had ever hurt.

"This has to stop," Lena said firmly, looking at Kara with determination in her eyes. "I have to go see Lex."

"Maybe that's is just what he wants."

"It's exactly what he wants," Lena said plainly. "He's baiting me, but I'm not biting. I'm going to let him know exactly who he's dealing with. I won't let him hurt another soul because of me, I won't. I am Lena Luthor, and I will not be intimidated by him, or anyone else for that matter." Her hands gripped the railing and her eyes burned ferociously as she spoke. Kara had never seen her like this, so determined and fearless. It seemed like she had taken her advice into consideration—she was ready to play the game.

"I can come with you, if you need me," Kara offered, but Lena shook her head.

"No," she said, reaching out to lay a hand on Kara's forearm. "This is something I need to do alone."

Kara nodded in understanding. She had a feeling Lena would say that. Lena breathed deeply, but it was different this time. She seemed focused, now that she knew what she had to do.

Lena tipped her head down to look at the ground and she scowled at the reporters blocking the entrance to the building. "You'd think they'd get bored, wouldn't you?" she muttered.

"Want me to shoot some laser beams down there? Not to hurt them, of course. Just to scare them a little," Kara proposed, dead serious.

Lena laughed shortly and shook her head. "As much as that would delight me, L-Corp can't afford bad press right now. I'll have to face them eventually," she sighed, her brow creased in irritation, and Kara could tell she was definitely dreading it.

Kara frowned, her mouth set in a determined line. "Not today, you don't," she said firmly.

Lena cocked an eyebrow quizzically. "What do you mean? I have to leave the building at some point...oh no. You're kidding. Really?" She must have caught the wicked gleam in Kara's eyes.

Kara shrugged nonchalantly. "It's either that or the reporters. Your choice."

Lena grimaced in response. "That's not much of a choice, considering there's only one reporter I can even stand in this entire city."

That only served to widen Kara's grin. "I knew you'd see it my way."